Placement of Treasure (DMG)

__TOC__
One given in the AD&D game is that there is a significant amount of treasure (monetary and magical) that is not circulated in the society. These treasures are not used to purchase goods or pay for services. They do not collect interest in banks (a foreign concept to the age, anyway). They do not represent collateral used to secure loans or maintain prestige. They are not the underpinnings of monetary systems. They are just piles of unused treasure, apparently forgotten, their potential unrealized. By normal standards, this is an illogical situation. So, just why is there so much treasure laying around?
Now, it is not important to create a detailed background that goes into the economic theories of dragon-hoarding or the supply-and-demand trade structures of dwarves. But it doesn't hurt to look at some of the basic premises behind all this loose treasure. Take these three related premises:
Premise #1: Long ago the world was a wealthier place, since all this money has been taken out of circulation.
Premise #2: Once the world was more culturally advanced, since only an organized society can control things like minting on a large scale.
Premise #3: The world has fallen into a dark age, since now these same hoards are eagerly sought after by adventurers and there are few governments able to mint such amounts of coinage.
From these premises, the DM begins to create a background for his campaign world. Here are some possibilities:
Once in ages long before the present time, there was a Golden Age of learning and culture. (It could have been the Reign of the Elven Lords, the Empire of the Dwarves, the Great Age of Peace, the Time Before the Coming of Man, or the Rule of Good King Haring.)
Then came a great disaster and evil times. (Suddenly the Dragon-Fire began, the Sinking of the Gruen Mountains occurred, the Darkling invaded, Man arrived, or Therope usurped King Haring's throne.)
Now, the world is slowly beginning to recover from this disastrous time, but much of what once was has been lost. There are hidden treasures of bygone ages, ancient ruins, forgotten wonders, and mighty magics now lost.
Ancient civilizations, now in ruins, are the source of many of the treasures adventurers seek. Of course, there are also new treasures being made and amassed. some of which are ripe for the picking.
Other deductions could be made and different premises reached from the same beginning. The ones given above provide a broad range of excuses for adventures, both for the players and the DM. Recovering that which was lost leads to all manner of possibilities: treasure maps, ruined empires overswept by desert, legends of powerful wizards with spells now unheard of, magical devices of unknown function, relics and artifacts from the previous age, even greater powers no longer worshiped.
==Who's Got the Treasure?==
The next question relating to treasure hoards is just who assembles these treasures and to what end? The answer can be divided into two simple categories, the unintelligent and the intelligent creature. Unintelligent creatures here refers not to those totally mindless beings, rather to those of animal nature for whom wealth has no meaning.
Unintelligent Creatures: Few unintelligent creatures set out with the intention of amassing a fortune. Such treasures grow by chance and happenstance.
The remains of victims dragged back to the creature's lair may include what fortune, arms, armor, and magical items that victim was carrying. These, unsavory and indigestible, could be thrown aside or scattered among the bones and refuse of previous meals.
Fortunately for adventurers, most animals have some sanitary habits and regularly clean their dens of refuse, creating small garbage dumps just outside their doors. Thus, the unwanted litter from the aerie of a giant eagle could be scattered around the base of its tree, while the remains of a cave bear's kill could be found somewhere near the opening to its den.
At the same time, animals (and animal-like monsters) often have a fascination with the strangest of objects. Packrats and magpies are known to carry off shiny objects, pet ferrets will carry off pennies and shoes, and birds will weave all manner of things into their nests. Thus it is possible for virtually any item of interest to be found in the lair of a creature.
There won't be many items in a lair, since few animals make an industry of such gathering. However, the nest of a giant otter might include a set of leather armor and fine silks for bedding material, while the nest of a roc could have a magical rope woven into it.
In the rarest of instances, the creature could actually eat its treasure, though hardly by design. This is most often the case for creatures lacking the limbs to separate the edible from the inedible and especially for those with voracious appetites. Sharks' bellies have been known to hold such strange items as license plates, suits of armor, hubcaps, and other indigestible bits of metal. In adventuring, such instances should be limited to beasts with massive maws (purple worms, killer whales, and gelatinous cubes).
Finally, there are a few creatures that actually feed on items others consider treasure. The beast may eat gems or precious metals. Of course, such creatures are not likely to have a sizeable hoard, and treasures found by them will not remain around forever.
Intelligent Creatures: Here, the DM can begin ascribing emotions and motives. Intelligent creatures may hoard because of greed and avarice. They may do so for social status or material comforts. Indeed, many normal reasons can be given. However, the reasons are not always clearly apparent.
While a hobgoblin may kill and steal to gain a treasure he can use to become the chief of his tribe or to buy goods from unscrupulous merchants, what are the reasons for a dragon to build a treasure hoard? Dragons don't go into town and buy goods, and they don't pay builders to construct homes. They just don't seem to have any use for the vast sums of money they collect (and collect they do!).
For dragons and other intelligent creatures, the DM must create more bizarre and alien motives. Dragons may hoard treasure because they are obsessive about such things. They may have the notion that they are the guardians and recoverers of those things of the earth. They may simply feel it is their right to possess all that they can. Within their own relationships, the size of a hoard may have some bearing on the perceived might of the creature. It could even be that the wondrous beauty of treasure items brings an inner harmony and peace to the creature.
Even for those intelligent creatures with understandable motives, things are apt to be a bit different from normal. A hobgoblin society is vastly different from that of humans or most other player character races. Hobgoblins don't go to cities and spend money on palaces, fine drink, and elaborate gardens. Their expenditures are apt to be much more brutal or mundane. At the same time they do not have an economy as developed as that of human society. Perhaps they need vast sums of money because the price relationships are so bizarre.
Weapons may be astronomical in price and armor outlandish. Powerful chieftains may demand regular gifts and tribute from their underlings. Such payments may be made eagerly since death is the alternative. Indeed such a system of gifting may be culturally ingrained, each warrior attempting to prove he is still fit to be a member of the tribe.
Everything above notwithstanding, it isn't necessary to justify every hoard in existence. However, doing so provides clues about the size of a treasure and how the owner might react to someone trying to snatch it.
A dragon might take an extreme view of anyone taking even the slightest amount of treasure from its vast pile. A hobgoblin might go berserk if the characters attempt to rob him. The hobgoblin's companions might take little interest in their friend's problem. The player characters represent a threat, but after all, each hobgoblin must prove he can defend himself.
On the other hand, looting the chieftain's treasure room would almost certainly lead to upheavals within the tribe. The chief is bound by the same customs as his warriors, and if he can't protect his treasures, he doesn't deserve to be chieftain—at least by this particular philosophy.
Intelligent monsters will take precautions to guard their treasure that would never dawn on unintelligent beasts. The hobgoblin chieftain isn't going to leave his treasury unguarded.
Furthermore, he isn't going to trust his own guards, either, and so is likely to have the treasury rigged with at least one (and probably several) dangerous traps. Should he be so lucky, the chieftain will even have a trained guardbeast or two to discourage thieves.
Even a lowly hobgoblin warrior is going to make an effort to protect what is his. If his horde is small, he may carry his wealth with him at all times. He may bury it where only he can find it. He may place it in a trapped and locked chest, preferably one that is chained to the wall or floor. This is not a society with an overabundance of love and trust, after all.
A dragon, at the other extreme, may simply consider his reputation sufficient deterrent. Certainly this is true while the dragon is present! (And player characters should never just come across an unoccupied dragon hoard.)
==Planned and Random Encounter Treasures==
It is important for the DM to distinguish between placed treasures and those found with random encounters. The scale of the two is vastly different.
Monster descriptions in the Monstrous Compendium differentiate between treasures found in a creature's lair, den, or base and those carried by individuals. Treasure gained through a random encounter will be smaller than treasure gained through a planned encounter. If a random treasure is larger or more significant than a placed one, the players are going to remember and value the random encounter more than the plot.
Treasures should be used to build the adventure, develop a plot, and reward intelligent and daring play. If they just appear randomly, not only is the DM throwing away a useful adventure-building device, he is threatening his overall campaign. In general, a large treasure should be a planned part of an adventure, a way to motivate players, or a goal to be achieved by the characters.
And remember, as important as treasure is, it need not be the sole motivator for a story. Indeed, there are times when it will be unimportant to the adventure. In these cases, the plot doesn't need the outside motivation of cash to interest the players. Still, small rewards should still be made available to the players. A treasure reward, no matter how small, gives the players the feeling that their characters are succeeding and moving ahead.
==Treasure Tables==
To simplify the assignment of treasures to lairs and monsters, the AD&D® game uses a set of alphabetic codes to categorize different sizes and types of treasure. Each monster listing in the Monstrous Compendium has a "Treasure Type" listing followed by a series of letters. These letters refer to Table 84 in Appendix 1 of the DMG.
LAIR TREASURES
 Table 84: Treasure Types
TreasureType	Copper 	Silver 	Gold 	PlatinumorElectrum*	Gems 	ArtObjects	Magical Item
A 	1,000-3,000 	200-2,000 	1,000-6,000 	300-1,800 	10-40	2-12 	Any 3
 	25% 	30% 	40% 	35% 	60% 	50% 	30%
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
B 	1,000-6,000 	1,000-3,000 	200-2,000 	100-1,000 	1-8 	1-4 	Armor Weapon
 	50% 	25% 	25% 	25% 	30% 	20% 	10%
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
C 	1,000-10,000	1,000-6,000 	— 	100-600 	1-6 	1-3 	Any 2
 	20% 	30% 	— 	10% 	25% 	20% 	10%
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
D 	1,000-6,000 	1,000-10,000	1,000-3,000 	100-600 	1-10 	1-6 	Any 2+ 1 potion
 	10% 	15% 	50% 	15% 	30% 	25% 	15%
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
E 	1,000-6,000 	1,000-10,000	1,000-4,000 	300-1,800 	1-12 	1-6 	Any 3
+ 1 scroll
 	5% 	25% 	25% 	25% 	15% 	10% 	25%
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
F 	— 	3,000-18,000	1,000-6,000 	1,000-4,000 	2-20 	1-8 	Any 5except weapons
 	— 	10% 	40% 	15% 	20% 	10% 	30%
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
G 	— 	— 	2,000-20,000	1,000-10,000 	3-18 	1-6 	Any 5
 	— 	— 	50% 	50% 	30% 	25% 	35%
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
H 	3,000-18,000	2,000-20,000	2,000-20,000	1,000-8,000 	3-30 	2-20 	Any 6
 	25% 	40% 	55% 	40% 	50% 	50% 	15%
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
I 	— 	— 	— 	100-600 	2-12 	2-8 	Any 1
 	— 	— 	— 	30% 	55% 	50% 	15%
INDIVIDUAL AND SMALL LAIR TREASURES
TreasureType	Copper 	Silver 	Gold 	PlatinumorElectrum*	Gems	ArtObjects	Magical Item
J 	3-24 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	—
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
K 	— 	3-18 	— 	— 	— 	— 	—
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
L 	— 	— 	— 	2-12 	— 	— 	—
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
M 	— 	— 	2-8 	— 	— 	— 	—
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
N 	— 	— 	— 	1-6 	— 	— 	—
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
O 	10-40 	10-30 	— 	— 	— 	— 	—
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
P 	— 	10-60 	— 	1-20 	— 	— 	—
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
Q 	— 	— 	— 	— 	1-4 	— 	—
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
R 	— 	— 	2-20 	10-60 	2-8 	1-3 	—
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
S 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	1-8potions
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
T 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	1-4 scrolls
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
U 	— 	— 	— 	— 	2-16	1-6 	Any 1
 	— 	— 	— 	— 	90% 	80% 	70%
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
V 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Any 2
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
W 	— 	— 	5-30 	1-8 	2-16	1-8 	Any 2
 	— 	— 	— 	— 	60% 	50% 	60%
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
X 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	— 	Any 2 potions
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
Y 	— 	— 	200-1,200	— 	— 	— 	—
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
Z 	100-300	100-400	100-600 	100-400 	1-6 	2-12 	Any 3
 	— 	— 	— 	— 	55% 	50% 	50%
:* DM's choice
To use Table 84 , first find the letter given under the monster listing. On that row each column then lists the percentage chance of a particular type of treasure appearing and the size range for that particular type. Treasures with no percentage listed are automatically present. Either choose to have that particular treasure present (and the amount) or roll randomly to determine the result.
The first part of the table (letters A-I) lists treasures that are found in lairs only. These are sizeable treasures accumulated by social creatures (humans, orcs, hobgoblins, etc.) or by those creatures notorious for the size of their treasure hoards (especially dragons).
The second part of the table lists treasures likely to be owned by intelligent individuals or to be found in the lairs of animal intelligence or less monsters. These treasures are small. Intelligent creatures seldom carry large amounts of cash, while unintelligent ones seldom make the effort to collect it. When an individual or lair treasure warrants being larger than normal, several smaller entries can be listed to create an overall larger hoard.