Wondering about Drow Currency?
Here is everything you need to know about Drow Currency.
You might be curious about Underdark currencies in general, but especially the drow when they have no Queen (and definitely not a king) to put on the face of their coins.
Drow Currency from Houses
As you may know, in Menzoberranzan there are multiple houses (House Baenre, House Do’Urden, House of Lolth.. 😍) and each house basically makes up a part of the city and serves as a major player in politics.
As such, commoners and merchant traders will have a preference on who they decide to do business with, and they will receive an individual coin from that house.
Each house has its own minting of money and are all treated basically the same. They will have a decoration on the ‘tails’ side and likely the matron mother or house crest on the other side.
The most prominent house in and drow city will have the majority of money in circulation and you can easily see who the top rung of the ladder belongs to.
“The currency an individual uses is a display of his or her affiliation: money changers do brisk business as alliances shift”
The merchants of a drow city will not turn away any currency though, no matter the source and foreign coins are assigned value based on the weight and purity of the metals.
Secret Drow Currency
The second and more important currency is secrets and favours.
This currency is common among drow nobles but generally only to each other. this system creates a web of debts and obligations that binds one drow to another. While you are indebted you cant be plotting any schemes against your benefactor because at any time they could call in the favour.
Despite a drows selfish nature, few would ever not pay a debt for fear that no one would do business with them, or worse, their house ever again.
If that were to happen, the house or person could fall out of favour with Lolth, leading to rival houses calling for the destruction of the offending person or house.
Or other horrible things…
