Jobs for Fantasy Characters

[RogerWilco]

Originally Posted by scc

That would cover Spring and Summer Breaks in the US, which isn't THAT much time. Fruit harvest would probably be summer/autumn, along with vegetable harvest, right? But those are only 2-3 weeks long each.

Oh, and I forgot to say this before, but I'll need date ranges, I want to line all this up

The dates will depend a lot on the location. Both the climate and the latitude have a lot of influence on most seasonal work. Even height above sea level can be a major factor.

There's also things like The Little Ice Age: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Ice_Age

Next to this there are different crops, domestic animals and other variations.

What I'm basically trying to say, is that it's up to the GM, unless you have a specific time and location in mind, like the Welsh Coast in the 19th century.

Other professions, like bards/entertainers, caravan guards/guides, merchants, etc. Will depend on the local culture (religious festivals, might even be tied to a Moon instead of a Solar calendar), prevailing weather patterns (trade winds, autumn storms, freezing of tundra), and the whims of politicians, kings or other rulers.

[tshiggins]

The fighter-types might find work as men-at-arms for a local lord, or a member of the town constabulary.

If a knight gets his own fief, though, his adventuring days are over. That's not a job, that consumes an entire life.

[whswhs]

Originally Posted by tshiggins

If a knight gets his own fief, though, his adventuring days are over. That's not a job, that consumes an entire life.

From what I've read, many knights appointed bailiffs to manage their property for them, or had their wives do the job if they were called away. Though having a bailiff was classier.

[Turhan's Bey Company]

Originally Posted by tbrock1031

Thieves can make a killing selling their services as security specialists, testing and improving the security of nobles, merchant princes, and robber barons.

Or they could just cut out the middleman and steal stuff for themselves. That's kinda what the name implies. Strongarm banditry is also the go-to profession for warriors who have downtime.

There are a number of religions where itinerant holy men make a living selling prayers and blessings.

Certain kinds of cultural homogeneity provide their own unique job opportunities. Ibn Battuta, the great Medieval traveler, worked his way across the Muslim world working as a freelance legal expert.

[Buzzardo]

Don't forget that the presence of magic will change an economy in substantial ways. Someone with no spell other than Minor Healing might be able to make a living with it. A character with Cure Disease and Restoration can certainly make a living out of making people better and helping them recover from otherwise crippling accidents.

I have a character who is both a fine artist (painting) and an illusion artist. Part of his background story is that he was an artist to the rich and powerful (he has a level of status himself because of it) before he got sucked into trying to save the world through adventuring.

Another person might make a living solely out of casting Seeker or even Continual Light (the campaign I'm currently in has a store that sells Continual Light stones along with other sources of light). And so on.

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by scc

That would cover Spring and Summer Breaks in the US, which isn't THAT much time. Fruit harvest would probably be summer/autumn, along with vegetable harvest, right? But those are only 2-3 weeks long each.

No. Not fruit harvest, or vegetable. Specifically that short time each year when labour demand peaks, during the grain harvest. For perhaps a couple of weeks, labour demand freakin' spikes. All other agricultural efforts are leisurely, compared to the frenzy that is about maximizing the grain take-home, because there is only a short window of time between ripening and rottening.

Of course an Isolate towards the small end of the scale, as defined by GURPS Fantasy, such as a typical Viking farmstead (the home of an extended family)
can't absord a huge influx of harvest time labour, but certainly a normal party-sized group of adventurers who aren't too fancy to get their hands dirty and their brows sweaty. And a larger Isolate, or an actual village, can take in dozens of labourers that randomly show up, and put them to work for a couple of weeks.

[Peter Knutsen]

Originally Posted by whswhs

GURPS Fantasy actually has a short list of job descriptions.

Isn't there also some material in GURPS Low-Tech Companion 3?

[Anders]

Originally Posted by (E)

I've heard of fishermen tarring sheep on the northern Scottish island pre winter.

What is tarring sheep and why do you do it? The Google did nothing.

[(E)]

Came across the reference while going through old family records. It was seasonal work where the winters were too harsh for sheep to survive without added protection. Tar was worked into the fleece of the sheep. This usually cost the person doing it their thumbnail. The Reference mentioned that sailors typically did it. That's all I can really recall.

[Not]

If you're willing to creep out of the Middle Ages a bit, how about novelist (like Cervantes) or essayist (like Montaigne)? An adventurer should have tales to tell.