# Economy Model: [System Name] *Created: [Date]* *Owner: economy-designer* *Status: [Draft / Balanced / Live]* --- ## Overview [What resources, currencies, and exchange systems does this economy cover? What player behaviors does it incentivize?] --- ## Currencies | Currency | Type | Earn Rate | Sink Rate | Cap | Notes | | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | | [Gold] | Soft | [per hour] | [per hour] | [max or none] | [Primary transaction currency] | | [Gems] | Premium | [per day F2P] | [varies] | [max] | [Premium currency, purchasable] | | [XP] | Progression | [per action] | [level-up cost] | [none] | [Cannot be traded] | ### Currency Rules - [Rule 1 — e.g., "Soft currency has no cap but inflation is controlled via sinks"] - [Rule 2 — e.g., "Premium currency cannot be converted back to real money"] - [Rule 3] --- ## Sources (Faucets) | Source | Currency | Amount | Frequency | Conditions | | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | | [Quest completion] | Gold | [50-200] | [per quest] | [Scales with quest difficulty] | | [Enemy drops] | Gold | [1-10] | [per kill] | [Modified by luck stat] | | [Daily login] | Gems | [5] | [daily] | [Streak bonus: +1 per consecutive day] | | [Achievement] | XP | [100-500] | [one-time] | [Per achievement tier] | --- ## Sinks (Drains) | Sink | Currency | Cost | Frequency | Purpose | | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | | [Equipment purchase] | Gold | [100-5000] | [as needed] | [Power progression] | | [Repair costs] | Gold | [10-100] | [per death] | [Death penalty, gold drain] | | [Cosmetic shop] | Gems | [50-500] | [optional] | [Vanity, premium sink] | | [Respec] | Gold | [1000] | [rare] | [Build experimentation tax] | --- ## Balance Targets | Metric | Target | Rationale | | ---- | ---- | ---- | | Time to first meaningful purchase | [X minutes] | [Player should feel spending power early] | | Hourly gold earn rate (mid-game) | [X gold/hr] | [Based on session length and purchase cadence] | | Days to max level (F2P) | [X days] | [Enough to retain, not so long it frustrates] | | Sink-to-source ratio | [0.7-0.9] | [Slight surplus keeps players feeling wealthy] | | Premium currency F2P earn rate | [X/week] | [Enough to buy something monthly, not everything] | --- ## Progression Curves ### Level XP Requirements | Level | XP Required | Cumulative XP | Estimated Time | | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | | 1→2 | [100] | [100] | [10 min] | | 5→6 | [500] | [1,500] | [2 hrs] | | 10→11 | [1,500] | [7,500] | [8 hrs] | | 20→21 | [5,000] | [50,000] | [40 hrs] | *Formula*: `XP(n) = [formula, e.g., 100 * n^1.5]` ### Item Price Scaling *Formula*: `Price(tier) = [formula, e.g., base_price * 2^(tier-1)]` --- ## Loot Tables ### [Drop Source Name] | Item | Rarity | Drop Rate | Pity Timer | Notes | | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | | [Common item] | Common | [60%] | [N/A] | [Always useful, never feels bad] | | [Uncommon item] | Uncommon | [25%] | [N/A] | [Noticeable upgrade] | | [Rare item] | Rare | [12%] | [10 drops] | [Exciting, build-defining] | | [Legendary item] | Legendary | [3%] | [30 drops] | [Game-changing, celebration moment] | ### Pity System [Describe how the pity system works to prevent extreme bad luck streaks.] --- ## Economy Health Metrics | Metric | Healthy Range | Warning Threshold | Action if Breached | | ---- | ---- | ---- | ---- | | Average player gold | [X-Y at level Z] | [>Y or 0.5] | [Wealth too concentrated] | | % players hitting currency cap | [<5%] | [>10%] | [Raise cap or add sinks] | | Premium conversion rate | [2-5%] | [<1% or >10%] | [Rebalance F2P earn rate] | | Average time between purchases | [X minutes] | [>Y minutes] | [Nothing worth buying] | --- ## Ethical Guardrails - [No pay-to-win: premium currency cannot buy gameplay power advantages] - [Pity timers on all random drops: guaranteed outcome within X attempts] - [Transparent drop rates displayed to players] - [Spending limits for minor accounts] - [No artificial scarcity pressure (FOMO timers) on essential items] --- ## Simulation Results [Include results from economy simulations if available: player wealth distribution over time, sink effectiveness, inflation rate, etc.] --- ## Dependencies - Depends on: [combat balance, quest design, crafting system] - Affects: [difficulty curve, player retention, monetization] - Must coordinate with: `game-designer`, `live-ops-designer`, `analytics-engineer`