Funny Money: expanded Forgery skill

This is an expansion to the forgery skill rules found in the Cyberpapacy sourcebook (and in the new rulebook when it comes out.) It is meant to cover technological aspects of forgery not covered by the published skill.The basic mechanics of the skill are the same, as are the modifiers presented with the skill description.

Gamemasters wishing for a more realistic version of the skill may elect to limit forgery and require characters to take a specific form of the skill (counterfeiting, painting, sculpture, documents, etc.) instead of allowing for all forms of forgery to be accomplished with one skill. The various types of forgery could also be taken as specializations of the skill.

When superior technology is used to forge (or more commonly, to counterfeit) items, the difference between the Tech axiom of the equipment used and the person(s) attempting to detect a forgery is applied as a negative modifier to the evidence analysis or forgery skill value of the person trying to detect the forgery. This penalty has a maximum value of -5. Conversely, if inferior technology is used to forge items, the person attempting to detect the forgery gets a bonus up to +5.

Example: A Nippon Tech counterfeiter uses Tech 24 equipment to produce counterfeit Ayslish conj (paper money). An Ayslish merchant (Tech 15) attempting to identify them as counterfeits would be at -5 to do so. Conversely, if an Ayslish counterfeiter attempted to make Japanese Yen notes with Tech 15 technology, a Japanese merchant would get a +5 bonus to detect the forgery.

Note that just because a character has a higher Tech axiom, it does not mean that he automatically has access to the necessary equipment to take full advantage of his axiom. For example, most Core Earth counterfeiters probably use Tech 22 equipment instead of Tech 23 because it is more readily available, less expensive and it does the job well enough since most people don't bother to actually look for forgeries or counterfeits.

Using the right materials is also important when it comes to producing forgeries or conterfeits, or more accurately when it comes to avoiding detection. A forged Rembrandt painting will be harder to uncover if the paints and canvas are made from the same materials that Rembrandt himself used than if it was painted with acrylics from the corner supply store! Similarly, counterfeit US dollars made with cotton fiber paper will be harder to detect than ones made with regular wood pulp paper.

Using the right materials will add a +3 to a +5 bonus to the character's forgery skill value based on how close he gets to the right materials. For example, a forged Rembrandt using paints similar to Rembrandts paints might get a +3 bonus while a forged Rembrandt that also used canvas the same age as an actual Rembrandt might get a +5 bonus (if he somehow had paints of the right age he could get a +5 bonus from both!) Conversely, if the forger uses very inappropriate materials (for example, glossy magazine paper for Ayslish conj) the GM should feel free to impose a suitable penalty to the skill value.

For your convenience, here is a listing of the types of currency used in the realms involved in the Possibility Wars (since there are so many, you're on your own when it comes to Core Earth currencies!)

Cyberpapacy
E-Franc (electronic, not forgeable by normal means)
Franc (paper, several denominations, black market only)

Royals are dime-sized gold coins stamped with the Egyptian Eye of Horus symbol. Crowns are quarter-sized silver coins stamped with the symbol of infinity. Farthings are blank penny-sized copper coins.

Nippon Tech
Yen (Japan, paper and coin denominations)
Yuan, Chiao, Fen (China, paper)
Won (Korea, paper)

The Yen comes in five coin denominations: silver 100Y, nickel 50Y, bronze 10Y, brass 5Y and aluminum 1Y. Paper currency exists in several denominations of 1000Y and higher (5000Y, 10000Y, etc).

The exchange rate for the Yen is different depending on how much time has passed since Nippon Tech entered the war. The values given below are the number of Yen that equal one US dollar at the beginning of the listed year in the invasion (These are Kanawa's projections from the Nippon Tech sourcebook, gamemasters are welcome to fudge the numbers based on how well or poorly Nippon is performing in their campaign):

Year one: 140Y = $1 US
Year two: 105Y = $1 US
Year three: 79Y = $1 US
Year four: 59Y = $1 US
Year five: 44Y = $1 US
Year six: 33Y = $1 US

The agreed upon exchange rate is 1 ciara = $50.00 US, though Coar Akashans have been known to ignore the exchange rate and pay whatever they feel is appropriate.

Most economic transfers in Tharkold are probably along the lines of barter and trade, though a unit of exchange, the Servile, does exist. There is no true exchange rate as the Servile is more of a trading/barter concept than a currency, but a value of 1 servile = $100.00 US has been adapted in some areas of Los Angeles. (Information about the servile was gained from a discussion with one of the authors of the Tharkold sourcebook, you won't find any information about it in the sourcebook.)

Single pounds come as coins (gold sovereigns, sometimes called quids) while higher denominations (5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 300, 500, 1000) are commonly paper currency, though 2 and 5 pound coins do exist. The shilling (also called a bob) is a silver coin, the pence and farthing are bronze coins.
There also exists a bewildering array of other coins that represent nearly every possible denomination of shillings and pence such as the halfpence, the twopence, the three-pence, the half-shilling (6 pence), the florin (2 shillings) the half-crown (2 shillings, 6 pence), the silver crown (5 shillings), the gold half-sovereign (10 shillings) and the guinea (21 shillings).

The Pyrians appear to use barter and trade for all economic transactions and they are the most advanced society in the Land Below