How much do coins weigh?

[vivsavage]

I'm starting a new campaign today. The PCs have hired henchmen and I'm trying to figure out how much treasure they can carry, between backpacks and treasure chests held on a pair of horizontally held poles. The CKG lists how many coins each thing can carry, and it has left me scratching my head. To whit: a small backpack can carry up to 40 lbs of stuff or 200 gold... indicating that a gold piece weighs .20 lbs. A large backpack can carry 80lbs or 800 GP... indicating a GP weighs .10 lbs. And then there's the large chest, which can hold 300 lbs... or 250 GP. Errr.... what?!?!?

I understand that there are coins of differing size, but this stuff in the CKG seems to make no sense. Does anyone have a rough estimate of how much a coin would weigh? I'm thinking the average size would be that of a half dollar coin (???).

[redwullf]

I'm starting a new campaign today. The PCs have hired henchmen and I'm trying to figure out how much treasure they can carry, between backpacks and treasure chests held on a pair of horizontally held poles. The CKG lists how many coins each thing can carry, and it has left me scratching my head. To whit: a small backpack can carry up to 40 lbs of stuff or 200 gold... indicating that a gold piece weighs .20 lbs. A large backpack can carry 80lbs or 800 GP... indicating a GP weighs .10 lbs. And then there's the large chest, which can hold 300 lbs... or 250 GP. Errr.... what?!?!?

I understand that there are coins of differing size, but this stuff in the CKG seems to make no sense. Does anyone have a rough estimate of how much a coin would weigh? I'm thinking the average size would be that of a half dollar coin (???).

Yeah, I've wondered about that too. It's yet another thing in a long list of things that makes me wonder whether or not the Trolls are drunk when they write the material.

The "traditional" weight is a mere 10 coins per pound, so that the previously mentioned backpack, carrying 40 pounds, can be stuffed with 400 gold. AD&D 1e was specific about this weight, and it's what I've used all these many years.

[Arduin]

Page 43 PHB (under PC class starting gold chart) "All coins equate to about one ounce in weight."

So, 16 G.P. to the pound.

[Omote]

I keep it as simple as possible, 100 coins = 1 EV.

When I think of gold coins, I think of that recent cache of roman gold coins found in 2012. They found 52,000 roman coins. Each one was roughly the size of a nickel or a dime in US coin standard. In my estimation, those should not weigh 1/10 of a lb.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/ ... field.html

~O

[Arduin]

I keep it as simple as possible, 100 coins = 1 EV.

When I think of gold coins, I think of that recent cache of roman gold coins found in 2012. They found 52,000 roman coins. Each one was roughly the size of a nickel or a dime in US coin standard. In my estimation, those should not weigh 1/10 of a lb.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/ ... field.html

~O

C&C used coins sizes similar to American Eagles, Canadian Maple Leafs, et al. It is integral to the weight, price, carrying capacity & spell component system used in the rule books.

[tylermo]

Somebody from the forums used to suggest 50 coins = 1 EV. Omote, was that you?

[Arduin]

Somebody from the forums used to suggest 50 coins = 1 EV. Omote, was that you?

At a very compact, ~3 lbs. 50 coins would be 1 EV.

[Omote]

Somebody from the forums used to suggest 50 coins = 1 EV. Omote, was that you?

No sir. Again, to keep it simple 100 = 1 EV for my games. Coins sizes in my game are a lot smaller than the example Arduin points out above. I tend to think of gold as a little bit more rare than the GP amount of things suggests it should be. Regardless of that line of thinking, I still, usually, give out the amount of GP suggested for treasures according to the M&T.

~O

[Treebore]

I went "roman" many years ago. D&D coins are assumed to be the really large English and Spanish coins, I went with Roman gold, which is about 118 coin to the US pound, and I just rounded it down to 100. I then assume silver and copper are proportionately bigger, so are also 100 coin per pound.

So as for how it is in the books, I don't care. So my point is, don't get hung up with what is in the books. House rule it if you don't like it.

[Zudrak]

I went "roman" many years ago. D&D coins are assumed to be the really large English and Spanish coins, I went with Roman gold, which is about 118 coin to the US pound, and I just rounded it down to 100. I then assume silver and copper are proportionately bigger, so are also 100 coin per pound.

So as for how it is in the books, I don't care. So my point is, don't get hung up with what is in the books. House rule it if you don't like it.

As the Isley Brothers (almost) said, "It's your game. Do what you want to do."