Personally I wing it, there is a list of items your adventurers might want in the DMG. If my players want anything else I will make a decision about availability based on the size of the settlement and how niche the item they want is, then price it based on how much the general population might need to buy it and how powerful I think it will be.
As for haggling, I just get them to roll a persuasion check for a chance at a modest/moderate discount, rolling really bad might well have consequences though.
First, I get a sense for the town/city and what they might have. Is this some tiny town in the middle of nowhere that would have no weapons or armor, maybe just some food/rations? Or is this some large city with a few shops perhaps competing over the same items - a few blacksmiths for metal weapons/armor, herbalists for various positions and medicine kits, traders/general stores for the more mundane traveling necessities?
After getting a feel for the town, I come up with a list of what would make sense for there to be. For the most part, I try to rationalize having at least basics there so they can stock up to keep going.
Depending on the place and the means of the town, I might increase or decrease the prices in the PHB/DMG. A vacation town in the middle of nowhere will have increased prices, a city with a lot of competition might have slightly lower prices.
As for haggling, again, I let it depend on a combination of rolls and what makes sense for the setting. I also firmly believe that a high roll does not necessarily mean a large discount. It could, instead, mean that you aren't kicked out for asking. ;)
I more like the idea of having small little missions/quests/favors for the party to do in order to get a discount from a particular shop. The adventurers may look the capable sort - maybe they can help out with a shipment of something, or getting access to these resources over here, or finding out why this rival shopkeep is selling their wares for such a low price as to drive them out of business.
I have a fat deck of homebrew magic items. When a player goes into a store, I pick a number of cards relevant to the shop. Then the players pick a number of cards at random. The bigger the city, the more cards. That’s the inventory of magical items. It’s fun. My players get a kick out of it. I also do it for random treasure generating for bad guys etc.
Here's how I do haggling. My players really enjoy it. It involves a calculator at the end, but it's very quick and I don't find it disruptive. James Haeck had something similar to this in one of his weekly encounters and it is where I got the idea.
The shopkeeper gives the character a price for an item. If the player wants to haggle, they do a skill check. The player says whether they are going to try to use persuasion, intimidation, or deception and then they tell me how they go about doing so. If their explanation is sketchy, they may roll with disadvantage. If their plan is cool or fun, they may roll with advantage. Then I compare their result to an insight check from the shopkeeper or sometimes I just pick a DC to represent how tough a bargain he drives. If the player comes up short, then the shopkeeper is not impressed and the price doesn't come down. If the player succeeds, when whatever their result was becomes the % discount I give them from the original price. A player with expertise in a skill and a very good roll can get 25-30% off the original price of an item or more by doing this and it turns shopping into a fun role play exchange at the table.
Here is a guide I go to for sane prices for magic items. Most of the prices are pretty good, but I tend to jack up the prices for higher-level healing potions when they are even available. Magic items for sale are pretty rare. Potions, scrolls, and other consumables are a little bit more common in my game.
I make a list of some interesting shop ideas as back up, you make a town/city/ village and put your ideas in it. Never force a player to go somewhere, let them explore and always keep notes on the shops they didn't go to. Next settlement they go to uses those shop you didn't get to use last settlement. Also make all list of what they own. If you have a magic shop, don't let the players have their run of the mill and pick whatever they want. Make a list like so:
Well It's pretty basic. You really just need to remember that if it entertains the players then it's good. Also if your shop sales magic stuff think about what their selling, no shop owner is giving away a flaming sword or letting some random player persuade them to lower it. All shops have personality, if the players are spending time wanting to go shopping make it interesting. Maybe a black smith has half a skeleton face cause his forge blew up in his face. Then there selling, lets say after the forge blew up he now only sells things not related to fire, which is a shame scene he is a very good black smith. Now that limits his inventory to clubs, staffs, and for fun, wooden swords. Don't be afraid to charge the players more then needed. Forcing them to pay something in d&d is good and puts them in a situation where they will need to adventure to fiance their desires or business ventures. With that in mind don't be shy to making something bad happen to them like, bankruptcy or there is a higher tax on the rich which includes the players scene they now make this much.
I typically just go to the Equipment section in the rule book or DNDbeyond, and let them look it over like a catalog, depending on the shop type.
That being said, I do use the Fantasy Gachapon Table in the Adventure Zone: Test of Initiation one shot for some magic item shops as a goof. Most of them are 1 Charge gag items that can be useful in a pinch but not break the game. They're great for Tier 1 (levels 1-5) players who need a helping hand, but higher levels will probably find them amusing.
I like to use premade lists. on DMguild site there is a shop list that has village, town and city options. It also has the items broken down by type of shop. When I wanto to say they can check xy list. Then i can also set a random % number to indicate if they have it in stock. So smaller the town the lower the %. Big time, they have to spend time finding stuff. They spend some time looking (investigation) and then Charisma roll indicates how well they found stuff in shop or price break, and % indicates if its in stock or not. Harder to get items or wanting to limit stuff? lower the % number. Want to make them understand war is brewing, everything only has a 20% chance of in stock.
I like to use premade lists. on DMguild site there is a shop list that has village, town and city options. It also has the items broken down by type of shop. When I wanto to say they can check xy list. Then i can also set a random % number to indicate if they have it in stock. So smaller the town the lower the %. Big time, they have to spend time finding stuff. They spend some time looking (investigation) and then Charisma roll indicates how well they found stuff in shop or price break, and % indicates if its in stock or not. Harder to get items or wanting to limit stuff? lower the % number. Want to make them understand war is brewing, everything only has a 20% chance of in stock.
Do you have the link to that on the DM's guild? I can't find it, it sounds awesome
I organize like shops in old school videogames the starting town has only the most basic things Daggers, Short Swords, Bows, Shields, as they move on and get harder encounters I give shops +2 or +3 weapons and when they get to large cities that have Mage towers in them it opens up Magic weapons/armor.
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Personally I wing it, there is a list of items your adventurers might want in the DMG. If my players want anything else I will make a decision about availability based on the size of the settlement and how niche the item they want is, then price it based on how much the general population might need to buy it and how powerful I think it will be.
As for haggling, I just get them to roll a persuasion check for a chance at a modest/moderate discount, rolling really bad might well have consequences though.
First, I get a sense for the town/city and what they might have. Is this some tiny town in the middle of nowhere that would have no weapons or armor, maybe just some food/rations? Or is this some large city with a few shops perhaps competing over the same items - a few blacksmiths for metal weapons/armor, herbalists for various positions and medicine kits, traders/general stores for the more mundane traveling necessities?
After getting a feel for the town, I come up with a list of what would make sense for there to be. For the most part, I try to rationalize having at least basics there so they can stock up to keep going.
Depending on the place and the means of the town, I might increase or decrease the prices in the PHB/DMG. A vacation town in the middle of nowhere will have increased prices, a city with a lot of competition might have slightly lower prices.
As for haggling, again, I let it depend on a combination of rolls and what makes sense for the setting. I also firmly believe that a high roll does not necessarily mean a large discount. It could, instead, mean that you aren't kicked out for asking. ;)
I more like the idea of having small little missions/quests/favors for the party to do in order to get a discount from a particular shop. The adventurers may look the capable sort - maybe they can help out with a shipment of something, or getting access to these resources over here, or finding out why this rival shopkeep is selling their wares for such a low price as to drive them out of business.
I have a fat deck of homebrew magic items. When a player goes into a store, I pick a number of cards relevant to the shop. Then the players pick a number of cards at random. The bigger the city, the more cards. That’s the inventory of magical items. It’s fun. My players get a kick out of it. I also do it for random treasure generating for bad guys etc.
Here's how I do haggling. My players really enjoy it. It involves a calculator at the end, but it's very quick and I don't find it disruptive. James Haeck had something similar to this in one of his weekly encounters and it is where I got the idea.
The shopkeeper gives the character a price for an item. If the player wants to haggle, they do a skill check. The player says whether they are going to try to use persuasion, intimidation, or deception and then they tell me how they go about doing so. If their explanation is sketchy, they may roll with disadvantage. If their plan is cool or fun, they may roll with advantage. Then I compare their result to an insight check from the shopkeeper or sometimes I just pick a DC to represent how tough a bargain he drives. If the player comes up short, then the shopkeeper is not impressed and the price doesn't come down. If the player succeeds, when whatever their result was becomes the % discount I give them from the original price. A player with expertise in a skill and a very good roll can get 25-30% off the original price of an item or more by doing this and it turns shopping into a fun role play exchange at the table.
Here is a guide I go to for sane prices for magic items. Most of the prices are pretty good, but I tend to jack up the prices for higher-level healing potions when they are even available. Magic items for sale are pretty rare. Potions, scrolls, and other consumables are a little bit more common in my game.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
I make a list of some interesting shop ideas as back up, you make a town/city/ village and put your ideas in it. Never force a player to go somewhere, let them explore and always keep notes on the shops they didn't go to. Next settlement they go to uses those shop you didn't get to use last settlement. Also make all list of what they own. If you have a magic shop, don't let the players have their run of the mill and pick whatever they want. Make a list like so:
Healing potion and sleeping potion 80 gp
Flame sword 200 gp
Flying battle axe 340
Thats a good idea! Anything you can share?
Well It's pretty basic. You really just need to remember that if it entertains the players then it's good. Also if your shop sales magic stuff think about what their selling, no shop owner is giving away a flaming sword or letting some random player persuade them to lower it. All shops have personality, if the players are spending time wanting to go shopping make it interesting. Maybe a black smith has half a skeleton face cause his forge blew up in his face. Then there selling, lets say after the forge blew up he now only sells things not related to fire, which is a shame scene he is a very good black smith. Now that limits his inventory to clubs, staffs, and for fun, wooden swords. Don't be afraid to charge the players more then needed. Forcing them to pay something in d&d is good and puts them in a situation where they will need to adventure to fiance their desires or business ventures. With that in mind don't be shy to making something bad happen to them like, bankruptcy or there is a higher tax on the rich which includes the players scene they now make this much.
I typically just go to the Equipment section in the rule book or DNDbeyond, and let them look it over like a catalog, depending on the shop type.
That being said, I do use the Fantasy Gachapon Table in the Adventure Zone: Test of Initiation one shot for some magic item shops as a goof. Most of them are 1 Charge gag items that can be useful in a pinch but not break the game. They're great for Tier 1 (levels 1-5) players who need a helping hand, but higher levels will probably find them amusing.
I like to use premade lists. on DMguild site there is a shop list that has village, town and city options. It also has the items broken down by type of shop. When I wanto to say they can check xy list. Then i can also set a random % number to indicate if they have it in stock. So smaller the town the lower the %. Big time, they have to spend time finding stuff. They spend some time looking (investigation) and then Charisma roll indicates how well they found stuff in shop or price break, and % indicates if its in stock or not. Harder to get items or wanting to limit stuff? lower the % number. Want to make them understand war is brewing, everything only has a 20% chance of in stock.
Do you have the link to that on the DM's guild? I can't find it, it sounds awesome
https://www.dmsguild.com/product/200700/Shops-and-Stores
Thanks! Just bought it :D
I organize like shops in old school videogames the starting town has only the most basic things Daggers, Short Swords, Bows, Shields, as they move on and get harder encounters I give shops +2 or +3 weapons and when they get to large cities that have Mage towers in them it opens up Magic weapons/armor.