Nenyuk withdrew money from my Account! I'll switch Banks!

[HardCarbon]

I think this would spell trouble for Nenyuk. Why? Someone will eventually get pissed off and open up their -own- banks. Sure, Nenyuk could squash them, but then they appear to be not only strong-arming, but also have to spend money on hiring thugs and so forth.

Unlikely as anyone setting themselves up as competition against any other great house..

If Nenyuk misses the competition and they begin to grow stronger, well, then it's going to start becoming a war. At this point it's already most likely costing Nenyuk more than its worth to fight it. Future groups will repeat the past and learn from the failure's mistakes, and -eventually- Nenyuk will be toppled.

 Which is why the great houses all are so paranoid

If Nenyuk still thought this was a good idea even with the above scenario laid out, they would have to consider the reaction from commoners. After all these years, instituting a fee like that is going to piss off a lot of people. While they may just be commoners, they're all around. They work at the banks. They keep an eye over the vaults of money. They take messages and work as aides for the Nenyuk. But let's factor that out, and say that Nenyuk personnel are excluded from the fee. Try walking down a street when a city full of people is pissed off at your family's business practices.

What and the prices the other houses charge arn't highway robbery??  though I agree that a fee would be a problem .. but on the other hand.. look at creeping ATM fees and Gas prices.

[My 2 sids]

The commoners of Zalanthas are a very large part of the population, so I don't think the comparison is accurate. Even if Zalanthan commoners might not have much money, individually, they will have a lot of money all together. A little money times a lot of people equals a lot of money.

And this is a great example of the danger of giving commoners a safe place to build up funds.  Sure, it's good for the economy to let individuals have enough to make purchases or perhaps bribe the common soldier once in awhile.  But, how dumb would it be for the government, nobility, and major merchant houses to let individuals accumulate enough coinage to be able to actually gain political ground?  

Case in point?  Why would that Byn sell-sword need thousands of sids if not to bribe some templar at some point? (Remember Zalanthas is a very paranoid society).

I think this would spell trouble for Nenyuk. Why? Someone will eventually get pissed off and open up their -own- banks. Sure, Nenyuk could squash them, but then they appear to be not only strong-arming, but also have to spend money on hiring thugs and so forth.

If Nenyuk misses the competition and they begin to grow stronger, well, then it's going to start becoming a war. At this point it's already most likely costing Nenyuk more than its worth to fight it. Future groups will repeat the past and learn from the failure's mistakes, and -eventually- Nenyuk will be toppled.

If Nenyuk still thought this was a good idea even with the above scenario laid out, they would have to consider the reaction from commoners. After all these years, instituting a fee like that is going to piss off a lot of people. While they may just be commoners, they're all around. They work at the banks. They keep an eye over the vaults of money. They take messages and work as aides for the Nenyuk. But let's factor that out, and say that Nenyuk personnel are excluded from the fee. Try walking down a street when a city full of people is pissed off at your family's business practices.

Miltia members are pissed off. The barkeeper at your favorite tavern is pissed off. Minor merchants are pissed off. Mercenaries are pissed off. Many, many people are pissed off at you.

I think this would fall under the 'Bad Idea' category for Nenyuk.

I don't think this rightly applies to the situation.

First, Nenyuk actually hires very few commoners.  It is much more efficient to simply hire slaves.

Second, An oppressed people just don't think about such things.  It would be like getting really pissed at your officer for lashing your back bloody the night before.  People can bitch and complain but as long as society's masters give just enough to keep the population satisfied, they can do just about whatever they want.

Why would Lord Fancypants deposit his 100000 coin stipend in the bank where he'll lose a fifth or a tenth or it just to touch it? He'll keep that heap of sid in his room for his silk-clad concubines to count for him, where it's safe behind his insanely-hard-to-pick lock on his bedroom door, which is watched over by his guards, and his Estate's guards, and his pc, npc, and vnpc servants.

Once again, paranoid society.  Lord Fancypant's own family might be very interested if he keeps a balance well over his allotted allowance.  They might be even more interested if he suddenly is trying to hide things in his own locked room.

[Cuusardo]

First, Nenyuk actually hires very few commoners. It is much more efficient to simply hire slaves.

First of all, slaves aren't hired.  They are bought and sold, because they are property.

Second of all, have you ever seen a Nenyuk slave?

Third, Nenyuk probably does the majority of the work themselves.  They KNOW that they will do it right.

And fourth, the major merchant houses are not paranoid, and they do not have reason to believe that anyone could ever topple the merchant "empires" that they have built over many, many generations.  They have FAR too much money and power to worry.

[Larrath]

First, Nenyuk actually hires very few commoners. It is much more efficient to simply hire slaves.

First of all, slaves aren't hired.  They are bought and sold, because they are property.

That's pure semantics and has nothing to do with it anything, you know.

Second of all, have you ever seen a Nenyuk slave?

The Nenyuk banks are loaded with slaves that scribble until their fingers fall off.

Third, Nenyuk probably does the majority of the work themselves.  They KNOW that they will do it right.

That's unlikely, really.  House Kadius doesn't usually send its own blood with the hunters because -they- can skin a jozhal just right, and I don't see why Nenyuk should send its own blood to dig up scrolls and mark '+50' and then dig up fifty other scrolls.

And fourth, the major merchant houses are not paranoid, and they do not have reason to believe that anyone could ever topple the merchant "empires" that they have built over many, many generations.  They have FAR too much money and power to worry.

The Great Merchant Houses didn't get to where they did purely by being good at what they make.  They also got there by being very good at destroying the competition.
If some jeweler started up shop in the Bazaar where he sold silt pearls to the nobility and cost Kadius a few big and important customers, this jeweler is going to end up working for Kadius, enslaved in Kadius, driven out of business, or dead.  Same goes for the rest of it - just imagine how Kurac might react to an independent merchant selling spice in Tuluk for half their prices and at large amounts.

[flurry]

I could just imagine:

The Worthless Commoner exclaims, in sirihish:
"Lord Templar, a thousand pardons, but the Nenyuki have stolen my 1300 coins and won't give it back!"

Lord Templar Hard Nose says to The Fattened Merchant, in sirihish:
"Is this true?"

The Fattened Merchant says, in sirihish:
"Bank error in your favor m'lord."

Lord Templar Hard Nose collects 1000 coins.

Lord Templar Hard Nose points at The Worthless Commoner, motioning to nearby soldiers...

Well..that could happen, sure, but then any of the great merchant houses could do something similar.   But I don't think Nenyuk would see the volume of coins they do unless there was at least the perception that they were reliable.   Sure they've got a monopoly, but if they had a reputation for simply ripping off commoners, then commoners would be a lot more wary of handing over their coins like that.

I think if anything they might take advantage of the widespread illiteracy to fudge the numbers a little rather than be more blatant.

As long as people trust them enough to store coins in the banks, Nenyuk will get the coins in the end anyway.

[mansa]

...
I think if anything they might take advantage of the widespread illiteracy to fudge the numbers a little rather than be more blatant...

That's why I think there needs to be a change of some sort right now, because, right now, it's more perfect than any bank in Real Life.  It needs to have a change to fail and have a chance to be weak.

[jcarter]

Second, An oppressed people just don't think about such things. It would be like getting really pissed at your officer for lashing your back bloody the night before. People can bitch and complain but as long as society's masters give just enough to keep the population satisfied, they can do just about whatever they want.

Heh, never underestimate what a population can and will do. French Revolution, anyone? Didn't the population of Allanak almost riot when water prices went up?

[Delirium]

I've supported using the bank less for a while.

I like Seeker's idea, especially.

Nenyuk is providing a service by keeping your money safe and sound.  Why would they care about providing that service to some filthy tribal, especially? More compellingly, would that tribal TRUST Nenyuk with their hard-earned coins?  Everybody knows you can't trust people from the cities, and vice versa.

That tribal's couple large is just a drop in the ocean to them, I suspect.

[Angela Christine]

Case in point?  Why would that Byn sell-sword need thousands of sids if not to bribe some templar at some point?

Because he doesn't plan to die.  Oh, he knows sudden death is a possibility, perhaps even a probability, but like most people doesn't really expect it to happen  to him.  What is worse than sudden death?  Getting injured, maimed, sick or old and having no money, and no way to make money.  The Byn might look after him for a while, let him keep eating mystery stew and sleeping on a pallet in return for helping to train new recruits, but that isn't what you'd call security.   The situation is even worse for people who do high risk, high reward work independantly.  An independant hunter, herbalist, scavenger, explorer, burglar, spicer, etc., can make good money, but if something goes wrong they have no back up.  Eventually you won't be able to do the work you do now, at which point you may need to have something to fall back on.


Or those thousands of 'sids might be intended for less disasterous purposes.  Perhaps he wants to settle down and have a family some day, but he'd like most of the kids that are born to make it past 5 years old, and that takes money.  Or he might want to be able to afford a multi-room home, so that everyone doesn't have to sleep in the same room together.  He might have a dream to start his own buisness, with a shop, stall, or wagon, and he has to save a ton of money first to cover start up costs (which could include bribes).  People do have uses for money other than fancy swords.



I'm not sure that Nenyuk does keep all your money when you die.  Sure, if no one makes a claim they do, but what about people that have family?  Certainly they don't get to keep all the money in a noble's personal account when he dies, the familiy would expect it to be (virtually) transfered into the House account.  Both merchant and noble houses have high ranking employees who handle house funds, so they could make a claim against any funds left in the account when Advisor Amos dies.  Large employers might routinely arrange to have a dead (non-PC) employees assets and property returned to her family as part of their benefits package  (some might even offer a death bonus, but not a pension, to the families soldiers and other employees who die in the service of House or the City).  The people most likely to leave a significant amount in their accounts are also the people most likely to leave behind heirs with some influence.  In those cases it seems much more likely that they would withold a "transfer fee" rather than to try to keep the whole account.  This doesn't happen much for PCs because the records aren't actually kept at the bank but instead as part of the character sheet, but PCs are odd ducks all around, so what happens with the rest of the population is probably a little different.


Angela Christine

[Anonymous]

Nenyuk is providing a service by keeping your money safe and sound. Why would they care about providing that service to some filthy tribal, especially?

Because the more that filthy tribal brings sid and his tribemates follow suit the more sid Nenyuk has to draw on.

Am I the only one that doesn't think Nenyuk is run like a charity?  They are getting your money for free whereas in our day banks pay you to put your money with them.

More compellingly, would that tribal TRUST Nenyuk with their hard-earned coins?

That's a question I answered for my tribal PCs everytime I played them but I don't think it has anything to do with whether or not Nenyuk makes sense in it's current form.

That tribal's couple large is just a drop in the ocean to them, I suspect.

But when you add up an entire tribe, it matters.
I look at it like this, if Nenyuk starts razing the little guy's bank account word will spread and they'd see more and more withdrawals.  And sure, that little guy's pittance doesn't add up to much but when you consider the fact that the little guy comprises the vast majority of two cities whose populations number around 500k each (as I believe was posted here by a staff member) it behooves Nenyuk to not play games.

In short, why would you rip off a current customer at the risk of losing future business from both that person and those around them which will surely add up to more than the two hundred sid he's got collecting dust in the backroom?

I think in the quest to differentiate our world from Zalanthas people sometimes forget that even in our own medieval days educated people had a better grasp on economics and math than John and Mary from 2005 who work the calculator to do their income tax.  Nenyuk has a good business model to me.  Millions of sid under their care to invest and make more money out of while having a smaller overhead than Salarr, Kadius and Kurac.  Salarr and Kadius need to employ people and deal with raw materials whereas Kurac has Luir's to keep going.  Nenyuk is just people guarding and keeping track of coin that they can basically do whatever they please with.

[Nenyuki Agent]

Hi there! I'm playing a Nenyuk PC right now, and have been reading this thread with an interesting mix of amusement and dismay. I have only the following short comment to offer:

Using the clan documents and my recent RP experiences as my guide, I will say that most of the things that people have stated in this thread about how the House does business, views the remainder of the world, and thinks in general are not correct. However, most of the correct answers are IC information and are not suitable for posting here. I will simply say that things are not always as you perceive them to be, particularly through a modern capitalist attitude, and leave the rest to be discovered in-game.

[Incognito]

Nenyuk charging interest on deposits is something that probably would not happen, in my opinion.

I do not know of House Nenyuk's intricate operations, but here's a simple scenario.

1) The banks of the House hold deposits for various "clients".
2) The House uses those liquid funds to "rent" property in various City-states from the templarate (including palm-greasing).
3) In turn, the House rents out those properties to others, at a profit.

So, even though Nenyuk might not be charging you a fee to stash your sids with their bank, they might very well be making money of the bulk of the deposits, in an indirect manner.

Not to mention:
4) Since no provision is made for accounts of dead people, all that surplus money is quietly transferred into the House's personal coffers.

[mansa]

How about just a minimum balance of 1500 coins?

[picklehead]

How about just a minimum balance of 1500 coins?

I can't imagine any reason why Nenyuk would want to do that.. as CRW mentioned, average Joe's 200 coins isn't much, but when you multiply it by all the number of other average Joe's out there it comes to be a sizeable amount of money.

I've never really had a character who was pulling in so much coin that he could afford to have fees and percentages taken out. I think if people started getting gouged by the bank they'd just stop putting money there and the Nenyuk's would find themselves with less coin to throw at their various investments. Clanned people and those with other established resources would be able to find alternate ways to safeguard their coin. The only ones who would suffer would be new characters and independents.

Most people trust the bank with their money. This is a good thing for Nenyuk to want to keep going.. when people don't trust the bank and you start getting more withdrawals than deposits, eventually the bank is going to go under.

[Northlander]

One reason they'd do it is that even fat-brained psionicist skulls ought have a hard time keeping track of the entire known world population's account balances.  With the banks as they are now, only queues would put even a beggar off securing his singles in there. Queues aren't a factor for the PC population, but I'd as well see that coded as any interest rate.

Nenyuk nonwithstanding, another reason for change would be how riskier money storage, and more money spending, makes a better game, opening venues for intrigue. The banks could at least have non-virtual, stone-doored vaults.
You don't always need an in-world reason to improve or change the game; why would six spells suddenly cost less mana?

[Bebop]

Banks are generally a little unrealistic in Zalanthas.  How can they all know they exact amount in your accout without any kind of phone system etc? I like to think of banks more as a "game" aspect then a "realism" aspect.  When it comes right down to it Geddon is a game, although addicts like myself don't like to admit it sometimes And in this game, you safely need some place to put your stash from time to time, it can be fined by templars and it can be stolen while on you so there -is- risk.  Besides technically when you die all the money goes to the Nenyuki.  So they make money like that if by nothing else.

[LoD]

I am against any changes that draw MORE attention to banks.

Banks, to me, are a playability issue.  They're also an anwer to what may otherwise be an endless request by players for new locks, coded NPC guards, hidden floorboards and trapped chests.

It is easier for players to place money into virtual vaults and pretend piggies than for Imms to worry about all of the player's requests to guard their loot.  Likewise, it gives people an easy place to keep their coin for lack of better code to "hide" objects within rooms or to save them between boots.

Imms have better things to do with their time than try to figure out an automated system for milking the wealth of the playerbase which they pretty much acquire anyway.  If you want to start charging interest, then you may as well start adding joint accounts, family wills and all of the other things that are going to go along with a REAL person wanting to secure their wealth against death.

This doesn't seem like the kind of problem that needs fixing.  If you do want to make the banks a bit more realistic, however, make a character that works for the House and, after several years, ask the Imms to allow you to make coin transfers between city-states every once and awhile.  Heck, perhaps just make stops at the various branches to discuss things with the merchants there and make sure everything is stocked.

That'd do more for adding interest and depth to the game over coding something up to force players to ponder solutions for protecting their wealth in a minimal environment for doing so.

-LoD

[Fnord]

This doesn't seem like the kind of problem that needs fixing. If you do want to make the banks a bit more realistic, however, make a character that works for the House and, after several years, ask the Imms to allow you to make coin transfers between city-states every once and awhile. Heck, perhaps just make stops at the various branches to discuss things with the merchants there and make sure everything is stocked.

That'd do more for adding interest and depth to the game over coding something up to force players to ponder solutions for protecting their wealth in a minimal environment for doing so.

Not sure if I'm following you... I always figured a great deal of Nenyuk's amazing inter-city money management is handled virtually via the Way, as opposed to physically moving currency. Or, did you mean something different?

As a side note, while I can imagine book keeping done via the Way insofar as numbers, I can't rationalize how they'd be able to keep track of names (and thereby associated accounts) without being able to read...

Regarding the OP, I think the banks are fine as is. It's a nice balance of serving their purpose and playability.

[richter]

Yes, but 'BANKS' are a silly concept in Zalanthas.

How so?

I'll guard your money and you get it guarded for free.  With or without your knowing it I'll use your money to build apartments and then charge rent on those apartments making more money.

Or are you saying it's too modern/civilized of a concept?

Well, the entire currency system is a bit silly.  Metal coins would make sense since the metal has value and can be reworked into something.  But once obsidian is used, it can't be recombined into a larger form later.  It only decreases in size as it chips and wears.

But accepting it as the form of currency, I would imagine people would invest their wealth in material possessions rather than keep coin on hand.  Transfering objects into cash when the need arises would make more sense than banking a bunch of currency.  That and direct barter.

Just my thoughts.

[Rindan]

Well, the entire currency system is a bit silly. Metal coins would make sense since the metal has value and can be reworked into something. But once obsidian is used, it can't be recombined into a larger form later. It only decreases in size as it chips and wears.

But accepting it as the form of currency, I would imagine people would invest their wealth in material possessions rather than keep coin on hand. Transfering objects into cash when the need arises would make more sense than banking a bunch of currency. That and direct barter.

Metal only works as a sensible form of currency if it is in abundant enough supply to be used as currency.  Think of how little metal is worth compared to a loaf of bread.  Even a little metal dusting in your hand would be worth more then a loaf of bread.  There is just no practical way to make a coin with metal in it.  It is far too valuable to be circulating.  It would be like if a nation used weapons grade plutonium as a currency.  Ignoring the health risks for a moment, it would be completely impractical in the sense that it is so valuable that you wouldn't be able to purchase basic cheap goods.

As far as obsidian, it actually makes pretty good sense.  True, it has no worth once it is a coin, but Allanak has been around long enough and been proven to be stable enough for people to accept its coin.  The supply and price of obsidian is fairly constant.  Further, the obsidian coin IS tied to something.  In the same way many nations used to have bank notes tied to gold, Allanak's currency is tied to water.  If you live in Allanak, there is really only one source of water – the Allanaki templerate.  If the templars say that you can only buy water with obsidian, then obsidian suddenly has a great deal of value.  Water is something that every single person in Allanak needs, and there is only a single place to get at an original source of water for most commoners.  Sure, commoners might resell used water, but with few exceptions, it all really comes from one place.

[richter]

Well, the entire currency system is a bit silly. Metal coins would make sense since the metal has value and can be reworked into something. But once obsidian is used, it can't be recombined into a larger form later. It only decreases in size as it chips and wears.

But accepting it as the form of currency, I would imagine people would invest their wealth in material possessions rather than keep coin on hand. Transfering objects into cash when the need arises would make more sense than banking a bunch of currency. That and direct barter.

Metal only works as a sensible form of currency if it is in abundant enough supply to be used as currency.  Think of how little metal is worth compared to a loaf of bread.  Even a little metal dusting in your hand would be worth more then a loaf of bread.  There is just no practical way to make a coin with metal in it.  It is far too valuable to be circulating.  It would be like if a nation used weapons grade plutonium as a currency.  Ignoring the health risks for a moment, it would be completely impractical in the sense that it is so valuable that you wouldn't be able to purchase basic cheap goods.

I never suggested using coins.  Rather, I pointed to the historical practicality of using metal as a form of currency.  Given Zalanthas' situation, it is impractical.  However, obsidian is a poor substitute.  That's why I suggested a more reasonable and realistic form of exchange would probably be barter rather than currency.

As far as obsidian, it actually makes pretty good sense.  True, it has no worth once it is a coin, but Allanak has been around long enough and been proven to be stable enough for people to accept its coin.  The supply and price of obsidian is fairly constant.  Further, the obsidian coin IS tied to something.  In the same way many nations used to have bank notes tied to gold, Allanak's currency is tied to water.  If you live in Allanak, there is really only one source of water – the Allanaki templerate.  If the templars say that you can only buy water with obsidian, then obsidian suddenly has a great deal of value.  Water is something that every single person in Allanak needs, and there is only a single place to get at an original source of water for most commoners.  Sure, commoners might resell used water, but with few exceptions, it all really comes from one place.

Given the weight and nature of obsidian, it is a fairly poor choice of material for currency.  True, it could be bartered for its value, which would make it a form of currency, but if it's being tied into a source of water for its value, that becomes troublesome when you take into consideration that anyone can make their own currency simply by mining.  Not quite the same as printing money.  Therefore, the obsidian's not tied in to the supply of water like bank notes were tied into a supply of gold.  In the historical example, you've got a manufactured currency backed by a resource.  In your example, you've got a resource backed by a resource.  So obsidian really isn't tied into a source of water since anyone can find obsidian (you can't go walking in the mountains and run across a vein of bank notes sticking out of the ground).

Take care,

Jason

[Rindan]

Given the weight and nature of obsidian, it is a fairly poor choice of material for currency. True, it could be bartered for its value, which would make it a form of currency, but if it's being tied into a source of water for its value, that becomes troublesome when you take into consideration that anyone can make their own currency simply by mining. Not quite the same as printing money.

Obsidian can not be bartered for its value as obsidian.  A small flake of obsidian is pretty much worthless.  Maybe you could fashion a spear head out of it, but other then that, it has no real value once it has been used.  The idea of making obsidian the coin does make sense if you consider that once obsidian is a coin, it is worthless.  Lets pretend for a moment that obsidian coins are very easy to make and that any idiot with a block of obsidian can pound out as many as he wants.  Consider the scenarios.

1)  If the coins you could make out of a block of obsidian is worth more then the block itself, then you would of course start making obsidian coins.  You could make obsidian coins and buy more blocks of obsidian to make more coins.  If the value of obsidian and obsidian coins never changed, then you could make as much money as you wanted.

2)  If the block of obsidian was worth more then the coins you could make out of it, then you are better off to take your block of obsidian and sell it for coins.  You wouldn't bother to forge coins because you are better off simply just selling the block for coins.

So, you have the two scenarios, what would happen?  Let's say it start out with scenario 1.  The coins you can make from obsidian are worth more then the obsidian itself.  People would start forging.  The supply of coins in circulation would go up, and a wise god king would increase the price of water.  Increasing the price of water makes those obsidian coins worthless.  So, if a block of obsidian could make 50 coins, and you could sell it for 40, you would want to make coins.  If suddenly obsidian coins are worth less because the price of water has gone up, it might be that you could still make 50 coins from a block of obsidian, but only sell it for 45.

Follow this logic, and a wise God King will be able to balance out his economy very nicely.  Simply increase the cost of water until forgery is no longer worth while.  At some point, the number of coins you could make from an obsidian block will not be worth the time and effort when you could simply sell it for more.  If you could spend a day making 50 coins, or simply sell it for 48 coins, which would you pick?  

This actually vaguely mirrors our world.  You use US dollars in the US even though the paper has no value.  You use them because of the fact that the government will only accept them as currency.  If you try and pay your taxes in sea shells, you will end up in jail.  Now, our system is significantly less controlled and has a wide number of factors that effect its value.  Zalanthas is sort of a simplified version of it.  Obsidian coins have value because the only way to get water is with obsidian coins.  The fact that obsidian itself has value means that you can set the values of the coins such that it isn't worth while to forge them.  Having absolute control over a single supply that everyone needs really lets you have a strangle hold on currency. If anything, it is superior to all other systems, as the government really has absolute control over the value of its currency.

[richter]

Given the weight and nature of obsidian, it is a fairly poor choice of material for currency. True, it could be bartered for its value, which would make it a form of currency, but if it's being tied into a source of water for its value, that becomes troublesome when you take into consideration that anyone can make their own currency simply by mining. Not quite the same as printing money.

Obsidian can not be bartered for its value as obsidian.

Anything can be bartered.  It's all about what the other person values it as.  If someone wants it, it can be bartered.

A small flake of obsidian is pretty much worthless.  Maybe you could fashion a spear head out of it, but other then that, it has no real value once it has been used.

And a spear head would be worth more than one flake of obsidian.

However, how big do you think these flakes are if you could make a spear head from them?  Arrowhead perhaps (if that), but not spearhead.  If they're that big, then it's ridiculous that you'd carry any more than a couple dozen or so.  If they're smaller, they become so fragile that carrying them would likely cost you a couple through breaking.  That's one of my points about the unsuitability of obsidian as a material for currency.

The idea of making obsidian the coin does make sense if you consider that once obsidian is a coin, it is worthless.

It's worthless as a material for manufacturing other things (excepting small things).  But given the nature of the material itself, it's not that good for use as a coin either.

Lets pretend for a moment that obsidian coins are very easy to make and that any idiot with a block of obsidian can pound out as many as he wants.  Consider the scenarios.

1)  If the coins you could make out of a block of obsidian is worth more then the block itself, then you would of course start making obsidian coins.  You could make obsidian coins and buy more blocks of obsidian to make more coins.  If the value of obsidian and obsidian coins never changed, then you could make as much money as you wanted.

2)  If the block of obsidian was worth more then the coins you could make out of it, then you are better off to take your block of obsidian and sell it for coins.  You wouldn't bother to forge coins because you are better off simply just selling the block for coins.

Again, one can find obsidian because it's a resource.  But let's assume for the moment that you purchased the block.  Everytime you make a knife out of a piece of obsidian, you're left with flakes which could become coins.  The knife however is worth a lot more than the block it was made from.  And in addition to a higher value item than the investment, you've got spare change left over.  You've manufactured currency as well as an object.  But your currency isn't backed by water.

So, you have the two scenarios, what would happen?  Let's say it start out with scenario 1.  The coins you can make from obsidian are worth more then the obsidian itself.  People would start forging.  The supply of coins in circulation would go up, and a wise god king would increase the price of water.

And how would they know the supply of coins in circulation is increasing.  If only one person's doing it, the amount will be negligible (though not for them).  If everyone's doing it, you get an increasing circle of inflation which would lead to a disastrous economy, not a well-managed or even viable one.  This is why a useful resource such as obsidian as form of direct currency is a poor choice.

This actually vaguely mirrors our world.  You use US dollars in the US even though the paper has no value.  You use them because of the fact that the government will only accept them as currency.  If you try and pay your taxes in sea shells, you will end up in jail.  Now, our system is significantly less controlled and has a wide number of factors that effect its value.  Zalanthas is sort of a simplified version of it.  Obsidian coins have value because the only way to get water is with obsidian coins.  The fact that obsidian itself has value means that you can set the values of the coins such that it isn't worth while to forge them.  Having absolute control over a single supply that everyone needs really lets you have a strangle hold on currency. If anything, it is superior to all other systems, as the government really has absolute control over the value of its currency.

Again, you're talking about a manufactured currency versus a piece of rock.  That's not to say that the obsidian couldn't be knapped into something other than simply a flake or "a piece".  But unless it's a significantly large piece (and this is where weight comes into it again), it's not going to be very durable.  I don't know if you've ever tried knapping, but it's not easy and the result is fragile (even large pieces will break).  Certainly a poor medium for something as well-handled as currency.

Take care,

Jason

[Ghost]

Again, you're talking about a manufactured currency versus a piece of rock.

...?  I think that piece of rock is pretty much manufactured as it is.  Check your inventory

A pile of Allanakki coins.

So, there is some kind of sign or something there.  MAybe a picture of the dragon and some...thing.  So it has a value as a coin, but it does not have a value on its own.  Like the difference of a piece of paper and a paper money.

EDIT:  ... Why can I not write in Bold in code?

EDIT II:  Thanks M42o54 and AC.

[Maybe42or54]

I would just qoute the MUD on that. Because Using the code one, it shows everything so that you copy it letter for letter and whatnot.

Onto the subject.

People have used teeth, sex, seashells, pretty rocks, SALT, and god knows what else as currency IRL.

What is wrong with them using a fragile rock as currency INSRL? (in not so real life)