Books and Balors not Money and Mummy Lords

Dungeons and dragons is all about the loot. Which is a fine paradigm, collecting gold and magic items, and using them to get even more interesting things.  But it’s not the only way to run a campaign, and it may not make the most sense. If a party is nomadic, they wouldn’t value stuff as much. If a party works for a king, a title is worth more than any gold in the world. I’d like to make a case that alternate rewards are often a lot more satisfying than the standard gold, stuff to sell, and magic item loot. There is a small section in the DMG about them, see this for reference.

1. They are more intimately tied to a character. A magic item could go to any character, and they’re often just another thing. But a new feat, a title, or learning a new language can change the way a character is played. It certainly feels more like progression that earning things do.
2. It pairs well with leveling. There are a ton of leveling options, don’t get me wrong. But levels in Rogue are only ever going to give you roguish traits. There’s a lot more to people than their profession. Your fighter learned celestial because he’s getting more religious. Your monk gained proficiency with a playing card set because she’s got a gambling habit. Slap that 3rd dimension on your characters.
3. It changes who can enlist the party. If the party works for gold, only the rich can hire the party.  If the party works for status, only the nobility can hire them. These sort of things set the tone for your game.
4. It allows for different stories. The point of fantasy is to imagine worlds different from our own. This includes societies who do not own things. Societies where everything is owned by one person, or one group of people. Societies where the only currency is favors. Societies where the only currency is secrets. Who knows. But if the party is only
5. focused on gold, you’re only going to have stories about gold.

 

Besides the list in the DMG, which has a lot of cool things (including the blessings, which are mechanically very similar to magic items, but have a lot of the benefits listed above) I thought of a few things you might be able to get as rewards, in chests, from patrons, etc.

• Books. Not spell tomes, actual, honest to god books. But what good is a book? A lot. Books were the primary method of passing information from one generation to the next for centuries. And knowledge is power. You can learn languages from books. You can learn secret histories from books. You can learn killer dry rub recipes from books. Put books in your campaigns.
• Weird ass powers. You know how we all remember that Pod (from Game of Thrones) has a magical/huge dick, even though that fact is inconsequential and was only brought up in the show one time 4 years ago? Because it’s funny, unexpected, and most importantly, because it’s inconsequential. Sure, your players will bend that weird stuff to their advantage every now and again, but it’s worth it. Give your players the magical ability “Can Speak With Shoes”. Do it, and never look back.
• Fame. Ya’ll should be keeping track of how famous your players are. You only walk into the bar with so many ogre heads before people start remembering you. Note, I’m not talking about reputation, which you should also track. Sure, they may be the “enemies” of the miner’s guild, but will Franz the Coal Miner even recognize them? Fame is great because it is sometimes not a good thing.

Hopefully this gives you ideas. It’s written towards the lens of D&D, since that’s the rulebook that inspired this post, but it’s applicable to any system. Break the trend of materialism, have some impoverished monks who’s only reward is that everyone loves them. Do weird stuff.

– R.W.