Balican Coinage

The citizens of Balic use a wide variety of coins for their daily purchases, accepting money from across the Tablelands (though the coins of Raam have now become worthless, useful only to collectors and gambling chits.) But the favored coin in the city is, of course, minted in Balic.

There are five styles of coins produced by the Balican mint. The first is the typical ceramic found in every other city-state. The coin is decorated with an image of the White Palace on both sides. This coin is worth one ceramic and can be broken into chits.

The second type of currency is the single ceramic, a slightly smaller coin than the typical ceramic. This coin cannot be broken into smaller denominations - cracking the coin makes it worthless. This coin is decorated on both sides, the "head" side being an image of Andropinis, and the "tail" side is a silt skimmer. There have been discussions among the three great merchant Houses of changing the design to replace the head of Andropinis with another figure, but they have not agreed on whom would be the replacement, and so the sorcerer-king remains.

Thirdly is the Balican chit. This small ceramic coin is worth 1 chit and is an alternative to dividing a regular ceramic into pieces. This round coin is decorated with a small four pointed star on both sides.

The fourth type of coin is the silver sovereign, a small round coin with the head of Andropinis on one side and the White Palace on the other. Worth 10 ceramics, this coin is common throughout Balic.

The final type of coin is the silver king, a large silver coin shaped like two squares, one turned on a forty five degree angle, forming a six-pointed star. The coin is decorated with Andropinis on one side and the skyline of Balic on the other. A king is worth 25 ceramics and is used primarily between merchants for large transactions. It's bulkiness makes it unpopular ordinary Balicans.

Outside of Balic, the value of coins vary in value from city-state to city-state. Ceramic coins are generally accepted, though the typical ceramic is the only one universally accepted. More often than not, the Balican ceramic (the one piece, non-dividable variety) is accepted. The Balican chit is usually not accepted in other city-states. The silver coins hold their value well, but some small variation in value is not uncommon.