Cost of sea passage at TL1/2

[DanHoward]

There isn't much point researching Iron Age Greek shipping and trade. It bares little resemblance to Bronze Age trade. Markets were different. Ships were different. Social structures were different. Industries were different. They actually had proper currency. There was far less centralised control.

A good example of a late Bronze Age merchant ship is the one found near Ulu Burun.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uluburun_shipwreck

[whswhs]

Originally Posted by DanHoward

Paying a percentage of your cargo in the form of fees and taxes is not the same as a currency. It is barter - trade in kind.
Barter is the direct exchange of goods. Currency acts as a medium of exchange - an intermediary between the exchange of goods.

It appears that gold and silver were in fact used as media of exchange for some transactions before the invention of coinage. In fact, that use likely motivated the invention of coinage, by putting the medium of exchange in an easily carried, conveniently pre-weighed form with a recognizable mark of authenticity (which in turn created its own issues of counterfeiting and debasement, of course). Coinage is iron age, but circulating media are older, perhaps bronze age. Though I have seen a theory that the use of gold and silver grew out of looting barbarians of the ancient Dark Age wanting to swap their loot for more practical commodities.

[DanHoward]

Originally Posted by whswhs

It appears that gold and silver were in fact used as media of exchange for some transactions before the invention of coinage.

Yes but not in the Aegean nor in the Middle East during the Bronze Age. It isn't appropriate for a Heroic Age Greek campaign.

[whswhs]

Originally Posted by DanHoward

A good example of a late Bronze Age merchant ship is the one found near Ulu Burun.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uluburun_shipwreck

That's a great reference. It's almost exactly the size of the ship in my campaign, and the design is somewhat comparable (I wrote up a sewn-plank vessel built shell first, with a single square sail). And the cargo list is wonderfully miscellaneous.

[Flying Toaster]

Originally Posted by whswhs

That's a great reference. It's almost exactly the size of the ship in my campaign, and the design is somewhat comparable (I wrote up a sewn-plank vessel built shell first, with a single square sail). And the cargo list is wonderfully miscellaneous.

It's what I'm basing the merchant ships in my game off also. There are bundles of adventures in just the cargo.

[ravenfish]

Even without currency, people recognize that some things are worth more than others. It would be possible in principle to discuss how big a gift or favor one should offer in exchange for passage on ship, even if it would not have been expressed in pieces of silver.

The suggestion of "working one's passage" has attraction, but it occurs to me that a ship has a finite number of oars, and I would assume that it would usually set out already equipped with a man for each (but this is just an assumption- my knowledge here is sadly lacking), so, barring recent death among the crew, there is a limit to what the adventurers can usefully offer in this regard.

EDIT: Although, of course, if you are the GM, nothing is stopping you from having the ship down a number of oarsmen greater than or equal to the size of the party (accidents do happen, after all), and whoever is in charge might well be glad to take on a number of reliable and reasonably skilled men who are going in the same direction and willing to lend a hand.

[Purple Haze]

Merchant ships are not rowed. Only warships are rowed. Nobody is getting a berth as an oarsman.

[ravenfish]

Originally Posted by Purple Haze

Merchant ships are not rowed. Only warships are rowed. Nobody is getting a berth as an oarsman.

Did we specify what variety of ship was available?

Assuming we are limited to primarily sail-powered ships (of this period), are there any tasks where strong-and-willing-but-not-particularly-nautically-skilled folk would be worth taking on?

If one is desperate to get the PCs a ride, one could have them save the ship's crew (beached for the night) from raiders or somesuch, which would surely be a large enough favor to give them a berth if the ship is already going where they want to go, but it probably wouldn't be a big enough favor to divert the course if their desired destinations don't coincide, and a ship in trouble that just happens to be going exactly where they want might be a bit of a large coincidence to swallow (unless the game is aiming to mimic the mood of epic or traveller's tale, in which case such a coincidence is nearly assured).

[Prince Charon]

Looking at the Bronze Age section of the History of Money article on wikipedia, it seems that commodity money was in use in the general area around that time, at least enough that it's plausible for gaming purposes. No, it doesn't mention Greece or the Mediterranean specifically, but with the amount of trade going on, and how far specific mentions of some form of money predate the Heroic Age, the existence of commodity money in some form seems reasonable, especially if economics is a side issue, and not something that the game will be focusing on.

[DanHoward]

Originally Posted by whswhs

And the cargo list is wonderfully miscellaneous.

It also closely matches the items that were exchanged as gifts between royalty in the Amarna letters, so it is highly likely that the cargo was not destined for the open market but was headed straight for the palace.