Okay, this has kind of been bugging me since episode 2 when Graham buys a map from the cartographer. The man sells Graham a map of the entire Green Isles for a single gold coin. While a gold coin is certainly valuable, an ounce of it today being worth about $1400 an ounce and the coin likely around that weight, it doesn't really come close to the value of an accurate map. Considering how much money it took to convince the Ferryman to get his boat moving during a crisis, I assume that getting him to travel and drop anchor for researching maps would cost somewhere around this amount.
Then the big deal the candy salesman makes over the value of a single gold coin manages to be even more strange. He's claiming that all the saltwater taffy that the islands could make wouldn't be worth the value of a single gold coin? Then goes on to say that if he sold all the taffy he had for that coin he'd be out of business? Doesn't that imply that he'd be selling it for less than it is worth?
I think the real cap on this was the sea nymphs that accepted a gold coin though. I guess it really is the universal currency. But I also think that the value of gold (particularly in a world where magic can create it) has been overestimated. People who businesses at the time would deal in gold no matter the size or product they deliver. While not a major issue in the game, I just think it was kind of a strange string of dialogue... thingies.
The nymphs weren't interested in the value of the gold, just its shine.
In the middle ages, most coins were not gold. There were pennies and farthings and other small change which would be, I think, some kind of bronze or copper alloy. Then you'd have shillings (12 pennies) which would be silver. I think gold only appeared in coins of very large value such as the Crown (and maybe the half-crown).
My medieval economics aren't that great, but I think most businessmen would see gold coins very rarely. And to those lower down the food chain, silver would probably be a rarity.
So maybe the value of the gold coin has been inflated a little (and I completely agree with what you say about the sweet merchant - how could his selling his stock for the correct price cause him to go out of business?), but there was a time when gold coins really were incredibly valuable to anyone who wasn't a noble. I mean, I think a gentleman of modest means could live on a pension of ten pounds a year or so, and a pound was only slightly greater than a crown.
Of course, this is not strictly relevant since KQ is not set in the middle ages but in a weird, distorted fairytale version of it, but I think there's something to be said for the value of a gold coin.
Quote from: Roivas on April 09, 2011, 01:48:06 PM
While a gold coin is certainly valuable, an ounce of it today being worth about $16 an ounce and the coin likely around that weight, it doesn't really come close to the value of an accurate map. Considering how much money it took to convince the Ferryman to get his boat moving during a crisis, I assume that getting him to travel and drop anchor for researching maps would cost somewhere around this amount.
Ummm... an ounce of gold is worth over $1400. I'm not sure where you got $16 (though according to goldprice.org, that's how much the value has increased today).
Also, I'm pretty sure each map didn't have to be researched individually. They could have made copies (hand-drawn, of course).
Also also... it's amusing that the filter censored salt.water.
Quote from: snabbott on April 09, 2011, 02:51:33 PM
Also also... it's amusing that the filter censored salt.water.
Hmm...yeah. Apparently the filter only searches for specific orderings of letters, regardless of whether or not they are separate words. So, while it is understandable that typing "t***," would result in a filtering, typing salt_water certainly should not.
And just for good measure...
**Admin Edit**
Ahh, that's what it filtered that word--I was wondering what the heck could've triggered it. I should look into if the filter can be set to NOT do silly things like that....
Also, Lamb, I'm obviously editing your post, just FYI.
Quote from: KatieHal on April 09, 2011, 05:49:09 PM
Also, Lamb, I'm obviously editing your post, just FYI.
Haha...I would expect nothing less. ;)
LOL, I really enjoy these Lamb/Katie scuffles.
I should really just have a ready-to-use emoticon of a teacher with a ruler or something for them. :P
ETA:
Ah, here we go! These'll do!
:shame: :smack:
Hahaha....I like the one of Katie smacking me around. That seems about right.
Hehe, check out the mouseover text I just added for it ;)
Quote from: KatieHal on April 09, 2011, 07:02:36 PM
Hehe, check out the mouseover text I just added for it ;)
XD XD XD
Quote from: Roivas on April 09, 2011, 01:48:06 PM
Okay, this has kind of been bugging me since episode 2 when Graham buys a map from the cartographer. The man sells Graham a map of the entire Green Isles for a single gold coin. While a gold coin is certainly valuable, an ounce of it today being worth about $16 an ounce and the coin likely around that weight, it doesn't really come close to the value of an accurate map. Considering how much money it took to convince the Ferryman to get his boat moving during a crisis, I assume that getting him to travel and drop anchor for researching maps would cost somewhere around this amount.
Then the big deal the candy salesman makes over the value of a single gold coin manages to be even more strange. He's claiming that all the saltwater taffy that the islands could make wouldn't be worth the value of a single gold coin? Then goes on to say that if he sold all the taffy he had for that coin he'd be out of business? Doesn't that imply that he'd be selling it for less than it is worth?
I think the real cap on this was the sea nymphs that accepted a gold coin though. I guess it really is the universal currency. But I also think that the value of gold (particularly in a world where magic can create it) has been overestimated. People who businesses at the time would deal in gold no matter the size or product they deliver. While not a major issue in the game, I just think it was kind of a strange string of dialogue... thingies.
You're off by a factor of 1000. One troy ounce of gold today is $1475.
Update: Sorry, didn't see the earlier responses for some reason.
But here's some random math. Looks like you can by 5lbs of salt water taffy for $15. So, multiply by 1000 and you get 5000 lbs of salt water taffy.
Quote from: KatieHal on April 09, 2011, 07:02:36 PM
Hehe, check out the mouseover text I just added for it ;)
Haha...nice. I am honored.
Lol, very nice.
Quote from: ewing on April 09, 2011, 09:21:02 PM
You're off by a factor of 1000. One troy ounce of gold today is $1475.
Update: Sorry, didn't see the earlier responses for some reason.
But here's some random math. Looks like you can by 5lbs of salt water taffy for $15. So, multiply by 1000 and you get 5000 lbs of salt water taffy.
Yes you are correct. I have fixed this error in my maths. But now tell me, if you sold someone all your salt water taffy probably only 30 lbs at the most given the size of that cart for $1475 and it cost you about $450 how would you go out of business? Couldn't you use the same amount of gold to buy a lot of other things and then replenish your stock?
I just found it really strange that people were so in awe of gold coins when Alexander gave his dad a bag full of them like you'd treat your visiting parents to lunch.
Well Alexander is the king (and he has a genie) so it's not that odd to see him giving his dad something like that. Maybe just trying to show that he has a lot of gold too, even though Graham has a bottomless chest of it.
And while the candy seller certainly wouldn't be poor, he wouldn't have anything left to sell so technically he would still be "out of business."
Maybe the candy salesman is just realllyyyy savvy in that he not only hoodwinked a king to give him $1400+ worth of gold, but also got to keep his entire inventory in the process?
Doesn't it happen a few times in KQ games? :P In KQIV, you can give the fisherman the diamonds and he promptly decides to retire instead of buying a boat or a better fishing rod. :P
I'd like to think that the candy sales guy was more concerned that the children wouldn't get any candy rather than that Graham was buying him out.
Quote from: Arkillian on May 15, 2011, 04:08:17 PM
I'd like to think that the candy sales guy was more concerned that the children wouldn't get any candy rather than that Graham was buying him out.
Hmm a "Candy Salesman" "Worried" about the "Children" not getting "Candy" I'm sorry that just sounded weird to me ;P
Quote from: Arkillian on May 15, 2011, 04:08:17 PM
I'd like to think that the candy sales guy was more concerned that the children wouldn't get any candy rather than that Graham was buying him out.
And then dentists would go out of business and then EVERYTHING would collapse! :o
XD