A Land of Bounty & Prosperity

          

          Communities and towns don't simply pop into being out of nowhere. They need things which attract people there in the first place; sources of water, stone, wood and food are all necessary to be even considered as a potential place of settlement. Residents then exploit the resource, building infrastructure and eventually building it into a local industry. The settlers pin their reputations and livelihoods on their ability to extract and sell the bounty of their land. Whether they be wise in their stewardship or fools who waste it, the drive and ambition for ever more will never truly cease.

          My third post in the demographic series, these tables aim to give the community character through the natural bounty around them. It should be assumed that every healthy community of note likely has the basics covered and that the results of this table are more emblematic of notable concentrations of resources, but that does not necessarily have to be the case. I would also like to note that every result seeks to be 'interesting' in some way. The reasons for this are simple: if the place wasn't interesting or did not have some sort of central conflict, the Referee would have little reason to go into it. There are plenty of non-spooky forests and mines without hauntings. We're not trying to talk about those. These are places for the PCs to either adventure in, or to try and claim for themselves. Short of conquering or founding towns themselves, there's little means for them to usually gain an in on the ground floor for these sorts of places. To use these tables, simply roll 4d8 and consult the results below. For smaller communities a single roll could suffice, but for larger ones it may be necessary to roll multiple times to simulate more than one basis for the local economy.

d8	Resources of the Community
1	Aquifer.
2	Non-Precious Stone or Metal.
3	Timber.
4	Range land.
5	Fishery.
6	Sap/Rubber.
7	Pelts/Game.
8	Precious Stone or Metal.

d8	Relative prosperity
1	Nearly exhausted. The community is likely dying if this is the only major resource in the area. The resource itself has nearly petered out.
2	Last legs. While there are some reserves left, it has grown increasingly clear to everyone that the good times are gone.
3	Hard times. If any one was on the precipice of leaving, they'll probably do so now.
4	Rough patch. The easy work has started to dry up; outsiders trying to make their fortune will not be welcome.
5	Business as usual. Residents have long ago developed a routine, the extraction is steady and the methods are all well known and effective.
6	Rising tides. People are rich, there's always a hunger for new laborers and the community is building for the future.
7	Flourishing. New claims are being made all of the time, the amount seems almost endless.
8	Boom Town. The amount of material they have on hand is enough to support their own needs, as well as several smaller outlying communities.

d8	General level of hazard
1	Hellish. Procuring the resource is almost more trouble than it is worth. Perhaps there are hostile beings or spirits guarding it, or it is in an area of active environmental peril.
2	Miserable. There could be aggressive or predatory creatures which lurk in the area, or it could be in a place which is unpleasant to work in, such as an area with constant inclement weather.
3-6	Normal. It is as dangerous to gather this material as it would be in real life.
7	Safe. The resource is well-managed and maintained, perhaps there is competent management, or the area itself has somehow been changed to ease the work.
8	Arcadian. It is so easy to find or secure more of the material that is is nearly worthless locally.

d8	What is unique about it?
1	The resources is contested, whether by another nearby community, or some sort of population or force which guards it.
2	While the quality of the material is objectively as high as any other location, it is widely thought of as being cursed or bringing ill-luck.
3	The material isn't naturally occurring, it is being drawn from the ruins or rubble of some previous civilization.
4	An annual ritual or sacrifice is required to keep the spirits or beings which inhabit the area satisfied. The consequences will be dire if the oblations aren't performed.
5	The resource requires a special treatment or process to be rendered safe to humanoids. This process is a closely guarded secret.
6	A guild or another similar organization controls access. Competitors can expect serious reprisals.
7	The quality of the resource from this area is renowned far and wide. It fetches an unusually high price.
8	Gathering the resource can only be done on a certain schedule. Perhaps it is underwater some of the year, or the path to access it is cut off for weeks or months on end.