The Peculiarities of Dragon Hoards: Gold and Beyond

In the realm of fantasy literature and role-playing games, dragon hoards are often depicted as massive caches of gold, jewels, and magical items. However, the specifics of a dragon's hoard can vary widely, depending on the source and the dragon's attributes. Let's explore the vast diversity of dragon hoards in different contexts and methods for quantifying their wealth.

Dragon Hoards in Fantasy Literature and Games

Dragon hoards in classic fantasy literature and role-playing games like Dungeons Dragons are typically depicted as immense treasures, embodying the dragon's power and cunning. The amount of gold a dragon possesses can range from a mere few thousand gold pieces to several hundred thousand or even millions, depending on the dragon's age and type.

Young Dragon: A young dragon, often referred to as a wyrmling, might have a hoard of a few thousand gold pieces. Old Dragon: An ancient dragon, characterized by its great age and power, could have a hoard worth millions of gold pieces.

The specifics of a dragon hoard are often left to the imagination of the creator or storyteller, making the size of the hoard as flexible as needed for the narrative. Not every dragon focuses solely on gold; some may prioritize other precious items or experiences instead.

Diverse Dragon Motivations

Not all dragons collect gold and gems. Some are driven by different motivations, such as memories or a love for specific experiences.

Grey Dragon: Grey dragons might be focused on hunting and taking trophies. They value the experience of the hunt itself, sometimes setting their hoards in such a way that they might ignore more mundane characters. Brown Dragon: Browns, known for their gourmet tastes, prioritize rare spices and flavors. They may set up grand feasts for honored guests, as they themselves are gourmet creatures.

These diverse motivations highlight the richness and complexity of dragon hoards in the fantasy realm.

Quantifying Dragon Hoards: Dungeons Dragons Edition

In the context of Dungeons Dragons, particularly in Draconomicon: The Book of Dragons, the Challenge Rating (CR) of a dragon provides a framework for determining the size of its hoard. The hoard's value scales with the dragon's power, as detailed in the appendices of the book. The values are derived from randomized tables, providing a wide range of possible hoards for each type of dragon.

Challenge Rating (CR) to Hoard Value:

The CR 1 Dragon (Sub-Wyrmling): A hoard valued at 889.97 gold pieces (gp) is roughly equivalent to 587,405.42 Troy ounces of gold, or about $1,056,891,233.27 in value at the current gold rate. CR 10 Dragon (Juvenile Red Dragon): A hoard valued at 17,400 gp is approximately 11,484,493 Troy ounces, or around $20,608,867,027.11 in value. CR 15 Dragon (Adult Bronze Dragon): A hoard valued at 66,000 gp translates to 43,561,870 Troy ounces, or approximately $78,088,230,582.28 in value. CR 21 Dragon (Ancient Blue Dragon): A hoard valued at 261,000 gp is roughly 172,267,395 Troy ounces, or about $310,000,027,332.26 in value. CR 27 Dragon (Advanced Great Wyrm): A hoard valued at 465,000 gp translates to 306,913,175 Troy ounces, or around $553,090,476,815.27 in value.

These calculations suggest that even the ancient great wyrms possess vast wealth, much greater than that of a single individual, let alone a technology entrepreneur like Elon Musk, known for his significant personal wealth.

Fantastic Finances: Real-World Estimates

Estimates of dragon hoards in the real world have been attempted by various writers and researchers. For instance, Michael Noer, a writer for Forbes, has estimated that the gold hoard of the dragon Smaug, from The Hobbit, in 2011, was valued at 8.6 billion dollars. In 2012, the revised estimate came up with a valuation of 62 billion dollars. These figures, while perhaps fantastical, give a sense of the immense wealth that dragons can embody in the fantasy world.

No matter the method of estimation, these figures underscore the unparalleled wealth of dragons, even when compared to real-world billionaires like Elon Musk.

Elon Musk: Despite lighting almost 44 billion dollars on fire recently, he still pales in comparison to the sheer wealth of the richest dragons in fantasy literature and role-playing games.

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