I published my very first thing. A system for handling money and obligation in Coriolis. You can find it on DriveThroughRPG at the Free League Workshop, here (Birr and Reputation).
I’m also working on a similar article for Alien/Mothership, but it wont go on the FLW, becasue alien material isn’t allowed. Fortunately, there really isn’t any alien IP in the article.
So why write two articles about money in an RPG? Because most of the time the way money is used in the game isn’t suited to the themes of the game. So Alien/ Mothership money is based on shares and retirement, a lot like the end goal of Red Markets campaigns. While Coriolis money is based on reputation, obligation and mutual aid and responsibility. What is money actually used for in the game you are playing? Does the way it’s handled make sense? There is basically a different answer for every single game and style of game. You could have money handled very differently in two different games of D&D. In a full on heroic fantasy game, you would basically narrate money “You find a chest full of gold and jewels!” and never refer to it again. In a dungeon survival game, you would track every copper piece and make sure that everything has a price and that price hurts.
There are a couple of games that handle it for their themes and setting really well. Red Markets, because it’s a game all about economics and the horror of capitalism (oh, and zombies and man’s inhumanity to man, but I think I covered that when I said capitalism). Infinity because it’s the first time I’ve seen a game setting handle dealing with money in a modern financial capital system in a way that feels real to me. Most of the other games I’ve played have equipment lists with a monetary value associated with them without apparently thinking about what money means within the themes of this game.
Think about how you want money handled in your game and just change it if it doesn’t fit the themes of your game.