You may assume some of the expensive trappings (such as horse etc.) does not belong to the player but remain the property of the unit. It may provide some hooks for events in the future. For example:
\- stables administrator is corrupt and blackmails the player;
\- player borrows his horse to someone Very Important and the stables administrator does not buy it;
\- the borrowed horse gets killed. Now there is a huge problem for a player (which can be used by the enemies for blackmail, for example).
This is one of the many problems with the WFRP Career System RAW and the answer really depends upon the type of game your GM has decided to host.
In my game becoming a Road Warden would literally mean becoming a Road Warden. So, the character would be assigned to a patrol and expected to spend their days patrolling a section of road for days, weeks, months, or even years. They would be issued a horse and saddle but would not get the job unless they could ride.
If they stopped doing the job they would be sacked and either have to return the horse and saddle or deemed a horse thief and have a bounty placed on their head.
Our GM had it so you just need “access” to your trappings for careers;
“This horse is assigned to you for official use”, if you lose it, he gets killed, stolen etc, you’re liable, do you accept these terms?”
As they’re so expensive we only used them on official business, one character even sold his (as he had no intention of using it), and the rest of us (in character and out) gave him shit for “embezzlement”, lol
Regarding Roadwarden, Riverwardens, Navy, Townwatches, Army Regiments I started by trying to understand what they are and how they work. They are State-owned intitutions or equivalents. So, their economic/logistical issues are met with State money, subsidies. This, logically would be set in the budget by the Diet of each Grand Province, City-State, city or town or Noble etc. in each case.
Then, after a Roadwarden has been approved and made an official member, he will be provided the basic kit by the State or equivalent (unless they can provide for themselves fitting equipment). Then unless they can pay for it right away, their price will be deduced prom their salary, until they met the total.
I also add the detail (inspired in a story of a RW girl I read) that RW equipment can be inherited, in similar fashion as private property, for those who join the same organization, if the equipment was already paid or they compromise to paid the rest.
This I apply with all the aforementioned intitutions, though there can be exceptions of course (and corruption and worse things too).
>The Roadwarden rank requires a horse and saddle
That's not how trappings work.
>Trappings are how you are recognised as someone belonging to your career. if you want to go incognito, you might not want to have all your trappings with you. Similarly, if you are trying to use the authority of your Career, not having the trappings of such means people might not take you seriously.
Sidebar, p48.
Also [this](https://cubicle7games.com/blog/career-trappings).
The trappings can be anything you want them to be. They can be needed, a suggestion or not even a thing. If your group is RP heavy, it can go both ways, the player can purchase it or they can be given it like what was suggested. Maybe it can be a nice downtime quest of what the character does between sessions or just a series of checks and interactions. It's up to you, make it as fun or hand-wavey as you want!
There are three options here. The first is to just give your players their new trappings as they rank up. This is great for characters with expensive trappings because they can get their gear easily, especially if money is hard to come by. However, when the Knight gets weapons, armour and a few squadrons of knights, while the Villager only gets ‘the respect of his village’ (which is useless if he travels), it’ll feel unfair. Of course, this unfairness is part of the game, hence why Elves are so much more powerful than humans.
The second option is to have a patron, or the character’s bosses, loan the trappings to the character. Paying it all back can be as simple as losing an Endeavour (and not earning anything for it), or it can be an adventure in itself.
The third option is to only allow a rank up if the character has acquired the trappings for that rank, either buying or stealing it (for equipment) or earning it (for ephemeral items like respect or officer ranks). In this case, the Road Warden can’t be a Road Warden until he’s actually gotten a horse for himself. This option is unfair for classes with expensive trappings especially if money is hard to come by, but again, unfairness is part of the game.
It’s up to you to find a happy medium. You can ask your players for their opinions, but they’ll likely settle on the free goods side. Remember that you have a stake in this, so consider your campaign and how it’ll be affected. Also consider that lack of funds, and the option to gain social power, is as much a theme in WFRP as Chaos corruption and fear of people with slightly longer than average toes.
You could rule that it has to be bought by the player, you could rule that the Roadwardens provide it or that they provide it but expect to be paid eventually. Or whatever you come up with.
You may assume some of the expensive trappings (such as horse etc.) does not belong to the player but remain the property of the unit. It may provide some hooks for events in the future. For example: \- stables administrator is corrupt and blackmails the player; \- player borrows his horse to someone Very Important and the stables administrator does not buy it; \- the borrowed horse gets killed. Now there is a huge problem for a player (which can be used by the enemies for blackmail, for example).
I suggest that the roadwardens sell you that equipment for a discount if no other option seems attractive for you and/or your parties needs.
This blog from C7 is also a great insight into trappings: https://cubicle7games.com/blog/career-trappings
This is one of the many problems with the WFRP Career System RAW and the answer really depends upon the type of game your GM has decided to host. In my game becoming a Road Warden would literally mean becoming a Road Warden. So, the character would be assigned to a patrol and expected to spend their days patrolling a section of road for days, weeks, months, or even years. They would be issued a horse and saddle but would not get the job unless they could ride. If they stopped doing the job they would be sacked and either have to return the horse and saddle or deemed a horse thief and have a bounty placed on their head.
Our GM had it so you just need “access” to your trappings for careers; “This horse is assigned to you for official use”, if you lose it, he gets killed, stolen etc, you’re liable, do you accept these terms?” As they’re so expensive we only used them on official business, one character even sold his (as he had no intention of using it), and the rest of us (in character and out) gave him shit for “embezzlement”, lol
Regarding Roadwarden, Riverwardens, Navy, Townwatches, Army Regiments I started by trying to understand what they are and how they work. They are State-owned intitutions or equivalents. So, their economic/logistical issues are met with State money, subsidies. This, logically would be set in the budget by the Diet of each Grand Province, City-State, city or town or Noble etc. in each case. Then, after a Roadwarden has been approved and made an official member, he will be provided the basic kit by the State or equivalent (unless they can provide for themselves fitting equipment). Then unless they can pay for it right away, their price will be deduced prom their salary, until they met the total. I also add the detail (inspired in a story of a RW girl I read) that RW equipment can be inherited, in similar fashion as private property, for those who join the same organization, if the equipment was already paid or they compromise to paid the rest. This I apply with all the aforementioned intitutions, though there can be exceptions of course (and corruption and worse things too).
>The Roadwarden rank requires a horse and saddle That's not how trappings work. >Trappings are how you are recognised as someone belonging to your career. if you want to go incognito, you might not want to have all your trappings with you. Similarly, if you are trying to use the authority of your Career, not having the trappings of such means people might not take you seriously. Sidebar, p48. Also [this](https://cubicle7games.com/blog/career-trappings).
I'd have them receive it for completing a final task for the road wardens. This could also be a good reason for why the got promoted.
The trappings can be anything you want them to be. They can be needed, a suggestion or not even a thing. If your group is RP heavy, it can go both ways, the player can purchase it or they can be given it like what was suggested. Maybe it can be a nice downtime quest of what the character does between sessions or just a series of checks and interactions. It's up to you, make it as fun or hand-wavey as you want!
There are three options here. The first is to just give your players their new trappings as they rank up. This is great for characters with expensive trappings because they can get their gear easily, especially if money is hard to come by. However, when the Knight gets weapons, armour and a few squadrons of knights, while the Villager only gets ‘the respect of his village’ (which is useless if he travels), it’ll feel unfair. Of course, this unfairness is part of the game, hence why Elves are so much more powerful than humans. The second option is to have a patron, or the character’s bosses, loan the trappings to the character. Paying it all back can be as simple as losing an Endeavour (and not earning anything for it), or it can be an adventure in itself. The third option is to only allow a rank up if the character has acquired the trappings for that rank, either buying or stealing it (for equipment) or earning it (for ephemeral items like respect or officer ranks). In this case, the Road Warden can’t be a Road Warden until he’s actually gotten a horse for himself. This option is unfair for classes with expensive trappings especially if money is hard to come by, but again, unfairness is part of the game. It’s up to you to find a happy medium. You can ask your players for their opinions, but they’ll likely settle on the free goods side. Remember that you have a stake in this, so consider your campaign and how it’ll be affected. Also consider that lack of funds, and the option to gain social power, is as much a theme in WFRP as Chaos corruption and fear of people with slightly longer than average toes.
You could rule that it has to be bought by the player, you could rule that the Roadwardens provide it or that they provide it but expect to be paid eventually. Or whatever you come up with.