Prestige Class: Trader
In a world full of magic, awe inspiring cultures and terrifying
beasts, it is the humble trader that wields enormous influence.
While the butt of many jokes, and often despised by city state
leaders and monarchs, traders are popular with ordinary
citizens. They are tolerated everywhere, for without them and
the goods they bring life would come to a hungry and dull end.
While all traders aspire to become master of their own
trading houses, most have to start small. They generally have no
qualms about accompanying roving bands of adventurers, acting
as negotiators and diplomats, appraising and bartering for
treasure and supplies. It is, in fact, in the best interest of a trader
to see the world, as it allows them to make new connections and
find rare and exciting goods to share across the world.
Those adventurers that accompany a young trader often form
the core of a new trading house, are adopted into their family as
close friends, or live well as senior agents when the trader
grows successful.
Trader Level Features
1st Fast-talk
2nd Liquid Gold
3rd Eye for Detail
4th Desperate Haggling
5th Agency
Prerequisites
Charisma 13. A trader's livelihood depends on their ability
to fast talk their competitors and gain the trust of their
customers.
Intelligence or Wisdom 13. Recognising the value of
goods requires a wide basis of experience and knowledge.
Proficiency in Persuasion, Deception or Intimidation.
A trader needs a silver tongue to stay one step ahead of the
competition.
Gain a trading license. Traders live and die by the swaying
of the market, and one of the major forces maintaining its
stability is the governing body of the land. To profitably trade
in large amounts of goods, taxes must be paid and legal
documentation obtained to defend your rights in the eyes of
the law. You cannot gain experience as a trader if you cannot
practice your skills.
Class Features
As a trader, you gain the following class features
Hit Points
Hit Dice: 1d8 per trader level
Hit Points per Level: 1d8 (or 5) plus your constitution bonus
per trader level.
Proficiencies
Tools: Calligrapher's Supplies, Cartographer's tools
Fast-talk
At 1st level, you learn the art of Fast-talking. It is the art of
distraction and conning. You are able to persuade your target to
cooperate with your schemes, and agree to your suggestions.
You can fast-talk in many situations. You may be an out-and-out
fraud, such as selling worthless merchandise for a fortune in
gold pieces. You may be persuading an assailant to stop and
listen to reason. You may even simply bargain to gain a better
price for an ordinary mercantile shipment.
To fast-talk someone, tell the DM your plan, and they will
allow you to make a Deception, Intimidation, Performance or
Persuasion check. The DC to fast-talk someone is equal to 8 +
their intelligence and wisdom modifiers. If they are
proficient in the insight skill, add their proficiency bonus to the
DC. Further factors may increase the DC, at the DM's choices. If
your skill check beats their DC, you have successfully fast-talked
them.
Someone you have fast-talked, until reasonable evidence is
provided, will believe what you tell them, agree to tasks you
suggest, and may even turn on their allies. The effects of your
fast-talk will wear off after 10 minutes have passed, or the goals
of your fast talk plan have been achieved. If you fail to fast-talk a
target, or the effects of your fast-talk have worn off, they become
immune to it for the next 24 hours.
To be able to fast-talk a creature, you must be able to
communicate with them in some way. A target with less than 3
intelligence cannot be fast-talked, nor can a target that is
unconscious or petrified. If you injure or otherwise turn on
someone you have fast talked, the effects ends on them.
Fast-talking examples of increasing difficulty can be found at
the end of the class description.
Liquid Gold
At second level, you learn that for many professions, both
potions and poisons are valuable tools that can be the difference
between life and death, a job well done and a task failed. The
production of these solutions can be very profitable. As a trader,
it is your prerogative to take advantage of this. Choose between
potions or poisons:
Potions. If not already, you gain proficiency with the
herbalist's kit. With access to a lab, you can brew a tincture of
healing. The brewing process takes three days and costs 30gp in
reagents. The tincture heals 1d4+1 hit points per trader level
when brewed.
Poisons. If not already, you gain proficiency with the
poisoner's kit. With access to a lab, you can distil a deadly toxin.
The distilling process takes two days and costs 75gp in reagents.
When applied to a weapon or ingested, the toxin deals 1d4
poison damage per trader level when brewed, and the
victim has to make a constitution saving throw or be
poisoned for one hour. The save DC of your toxin is 8 + your
intelligence modifier + your proficiency bonus, and
victims have disadvantage on their save if they ingest the toxin.
Eye for Detail
If you weren't already, you gain proficiency with appraiser's
tools. During a short rest you can study an object (such as piece
of equipment or a scroll), or a sample of a quantity of goods
(such as a handful of grain from a sack) you learn the following
information:
Agents are a way for you to manage the affairs of your
business without the need to watch over it. Agents are
more loyal than regular hired aid, as they see you as
inspiration for their own dreams and aspirations. It is
unlikely that an agent would betray you, unless you
gave them a particularly good reason.

Its base value, and what condition it is in. Fast-talking Examples

The quality of its production, and whether it is genuine or DC
fake. Difficulty Example Modifier
If it is magical, and what properties it has. Getting up to 10% more or less than an
A brief history of its use, such as if it is used often, fixed item's base value; persuading a target
Easy 0
regularly, sat on a mantlepiece or handled with little care. to believe a plausible exaggeration or
If it is part of a set, or missing any pieces. lie
Getting up to 20% more or less than an
Desperate Haggling item's worth; persuading a moderate
lie, such as "this gem is from a Red
At fourth level, your silver tongue can even bargain for your life. Average +1
Dragon's hoard, and it very rare!";
You can use your reaction to make an assailant stop in their convincing a single assailant of equal or
tracks before they strike. When an enemy who you can lesser level not to attack
communicate with targets you with an attack or harmful spell or
Getting up to 30% more or less than an
ability, you can make a fast-talk check against them. This does
item's worth; persuading a target to
not make the target immune to your Fast-talk ability. If you are
believe an implausible falsehood, such
successful, they cannot attack or try to harm you until the Moderate as "if you kill me, you will be slain by a +3
beginning of your next turn. They can choose another target for terrible curse!"; convincing a group of
the attack, spell or ability, but not if you would be directly up to 10 assailants of equal or lesser
harmed by it (such as being in the radius of a fireball.) level to not attack
You can use this ability as many times as your Charisma
Getting up to 40% more or less on an
modifier, and regain all uses after a long rest. item's worth; persuading the target to
believe an extremely implausible
Agency Hard falsehood, such as "I am a powerful
wizard and can strike you dead";
+5
Once you reach 5th level, your successful portfolio and renown convincing 10-20 assailants of equal or
as a shrewd dealer begins to attract agents. Agents are followers lower level to not to attack
of exceptional skill and ability, and will work for you if their
Getting up to 40% more or less on an
needs are met. Agents might produce rare goods, guard your
item's worth; persuading the target to
caravans, or provide other services to you. You need not accept
Very believe a total falsehood, such as "I am DM's
the services of every agent that approaches you. However, bear Difficult a Red Dragon in disguise, fear me!"; Discretion
in mind that a dismissed agent might refuse to work with you in convincing 20 assailants of higher level
the future, or hold a grudge. to not to attack
Agent Services Requirements
The Dungeon Master may decide to award advantage or
Skilled Performs a service 2gp payment per disadvantage to the fast-talk check based on the situation. A
Worker involving a proficiency day of work trader fast-talking someone who is charmed by them might have
Keeps stored goods in advantage on their check. Equally, a trader trying to fast-talk a
Warehouse
order and organises 75gp per tenday stern guardsman catching them in the act of theft would have
Manager
product to go to market disadvantage.
Moves stock onto the When determining the fast-talk DC of a group of creatures,
Apprentice 10% commission determine if the group works well together or not. If they are
market when prices are
Trader on all sales
favourable cohesive, use the highest intelligence and wisdom. If they are a
300gp a voyage, disorganised mess, use the lowest stats instead.
Crews, maintains and sails
Captain plus crew and
your trade ships
provision costs Fast-talking is not a catch-all replacement for
Commits espionage on negotiating. Players should be aware that other traders
Spy 400gp per mission may be just as smart, so careful planning and catering
competing business
to the targets needs may yield more success than just
Explores and reports on a sweet talking.
10,000gp per
Cartographer new region, sending
expedition
findings to you
 A simple way to visualise how prices can change in an economy
Trade Goods: Price per unit is with price codes. These letters broadly describe the supply
level of an item, and how to modify the base cost if trying to buy
Below are some sample trade goods and prices. They are a good
or sell goods.
collection of basic goods that would make their way from city to
city, making up luxuries of different qualities, non-essentials and When preparing a new city or region with its own economics,
total frivolities. print out the tables to the left and go through, thinking about
how each item might have an affect on the citizens of that area.
Next to each item is listed the 'base cost', which is the raw
You can even just highlight important goods to keep an eye on,
value of each good. What each item actually sells for will change
as such information can help set the scene in a new city
depending on the market it is in- war drives farmers away from
or environment.
their fields, increasing the price of foods, for example. Equally,
buying a product at its source will be much cheaper than its
base cost, as there is an abundance of it.
Price Codes:
Suggested
Item Base Cost Item Base Cost Code Meaning Change
Ale 1cp/gal. Mirrors, glass 5gp ea. Supply is very low or non-existent; prices
are going to be very high, even up to 5 or 10
Amber 50sp/oz. Nuts 3cp/lb. times the base cost. This condition exists
Beer 2cp/gal. Obsidian 5cp/lb. only as a result of extraordinary 4x Base
A
Bronze 5gp/lb. Oil circumstances (war, natural disaster, Cost +
fashionable craze, etc) or market
Candy 2sp/lbs. Flammable 2sp/gal manipulation by a trading house. It rarely
Ceramics 1cp/lb. Lamp 1cp/gal persists for more than a few months.
Chalk 1cp/10lbs. Cooking 8cp/gal Supply is low, demand and prices are high. A
definite seller's market exists. Anyone 2 x Base
Chitin 4sp/lbgp Paintings 10gp/ea. B
supplying the needed goods stands to make Cost
Cider 8cp/barrel Paper 2sp/100 pcs. a considerable profit.
Cinnabar 1sp/oz. Perfume 5cp/oz. Supply and demand are balanced. Prices are
(per 10sq. Resins 8sp/oz. approximately at the base cost. The chance
Cloth C of making money on these good is about Base Cost
yds) Rice 1cp/10lbs. equal to the chance of losing, but both
Common 7cp Rope profit and loss will be moderate.
Fine 5sp Hemp 1gp/50 ft. Supply is high, demand and prices are low.
Rich 10sp Silk 10gp/50 ft. These are places where one can buy large
1/2 Base
Coal 3cp/lb. D quantities of goods at reasonable prices Cost
Rugs 1gp/ea. and, with luck, transport them to a place
Copper 2sp/lb. Salt 2cp/10lbs. where demands (and profits) are high.
Cotton 2cp/lb. Silk, raw 4sp/oz.
Dyes/Pigments 1sp/oz. Silver 50sp/lb. Random Market Fluctuation
Figs 1cp/10lbs. Songbirds 1gp/ea. Nothing can ever be certain in the world, especially concerning
Fruit 2cp/10lbs. Spices the value of stock on the market. Circumstances may change a
Furs 3sp/ea. city's economic conditions literally overnight. To simulate this,
Common 100gp/lb
when player goes to buy or sell a certain item, you can secretly
Glass 1sp/lb. Rare 200gp/lb roll percentile dice to determine the actual demand of the item.
Gold 50gp/lb. Exotic 400gp/lb Random fluctuation can also make a great plot hook for
Hardwood 1gp/lb. Statues 1gp/ea. players; when they go to market to sell their goods, recent world
Herbs 3cp/lb. shaking events have changed the city overnight.
Sugar 4cp/lb.
Incense 2sp/oz. Tools 1cp/ea. Random Market Fluctuation
Ink 8cp/oz. Vegetables 2cp/10lbs. D100
Iron 1gp/lb. Water, sealed 10cp/barrel Roll Result
Jade 1sp/lb. Wax 7cp/lb. 01-75 No change
Leather 5cp/ sq. yd. Wine 2sp/barrel Adjust price code by on letter (50% chance of either
76-90
Marble 2sp/lb. up or down)
Wheat 1cp/lb.
Medicines 5sp/oz. 91-98 Adjust price code by two letters
99-00 Adjust price code by three letters
Trade Goods: Prices Codes
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