Coinage

Coinage is materially grounded, portable, scalable, and legible across cultures, preferred for taxation, long-distance trade, and accumulating wealth. It is often scarce in rural economies, from hoarding and outward trade flow. Some lords, and almost all true kings, keep their own mints.

The gold piece is one troy ounce by convention. The gold, silver, and copper pieces are round. The silver and copper pieces share dimensions, probably a Velasian legacy of standardized form, and are told apart by color and weight. Even perfectly sized coins would in time be bent, dented, and warped: "close enough is close enough." Silver coins, being formally and politically sanctioned, are subject to inspection and weights and measures testing. Copper coins are designed to be dimensionally identical but are not subject to official confirmation.

The electrum piece is square, semi-archaic, and regional. Square coins tessellate and stack, and clipping shows at once as deformed geometry. A mint’s mark guarantees it, not a lord’s face, so free cities and independent trading centers prefer it; where it circulates, one is near territory outside or between lordly powers.

The platinum piece is hexagonal, an antique Velasian coin, valid but extremely rare in circulation. Its shape is unmistakable and resists clipping. It typically exchanges at forty gold pieces. Circulating platinum coin is falling in quantity, because of dwarven capture.

See also: Mint Charters, Dwarven Minting