sterling/README.md

# Sterling

Converts a given D&D 5e currency value to the Silver Standard. Inspired by the Reddit posts titled
[The Silver Hack: Making Money Matter](https://www.reddit.com/r/DnDBehindTheScreen/comments/80f6kt/the_silver_hack_making_money_matter/),
and [I make Silver Standard for 5th Edition (Spreadsheets.)](https://www.reddit.com/r/dndnext/comments/5tt5g8/i_make_silver_standard_for_5_edition_spreadsheets/).

## Usage

```
USAGE:
    sterling.exe [FLAGS] [OPTIONS] [VALUE]...

FLAGS:
    -f, --full       Print currencies with full name, rather than with alias.
    -h, --help       Prints help information
    -V, --version    Prints version information

OPTIONS:
    -c, --config <CONFIG>    Specify location of config file; defaults to './sterling-conf.yml'.

ARGS:
    <VALUE>...    The value to be converted; should be suffixed with the coin's short-hand
                  abbreviation, i.e. p, g, e, s, or c.
```

## Examples

```
// Convert one hundred platinum coins: 
sterling 100p // 10g

// Convert one hundred platinum, fifty gold coins:
sterling 100p 50g // 10g, 5s

// Convert fifteen thousand copper coins, printing the full names of the coins:
sterling -f 15000c // 1 gold, 50 silver

// Convert one platinum, thirty-six gold, twelve electrum, eighty-two silver, and four hundred
// sixty-nine copper coins, printing the full names of the coins
sterling --full 1p 36g 12e 82s 469c // 64 silver, 89 copper

// Convert one platinum, thirty-six gold, twelve electrum, eighty-two silver, and four hundred
// sixty-nine copper coins, printing the full names of the coins, using the custom config file
// detailed below.
sterling --full -c "~/Documents/D&D/sterling-conf.yml" 1p 36g 12e 82s 469c // 27 sterling, 9 farthing
```

## Custom Currencies

`sterling` allows for user-defined currencies, with their own names and conversion rates. By
default, `sterling` will look at a file within the current directory called `sterling-conf.yml`, or
in whatever location as supplied by the `-c` flag. Below is an example `sterling-conf.yml` file,
showing the actual currencies that I use within my own campaign!

```
-
  name: "florin"
  rate: 8640
  alias: "F"
-
  name: "sterling"
  rate: 240
  alias: "s"
-
  name: "penny"
  rate: 12
  alias: "p"
  plural: "pence"
-
  name: "farthing"
  rate: 1
  alias: "f"
```

Please note that the `rate` value is defined as the number of copper coins that goes into one of
that particular currency. In the example above, twelve copper coins goes into one "penny", and
two-hundred forty copper coins goes into one "sterling".

## Abstract

Items and expenses are, by default, assigned arbitrary currency values within the official D&D 5th
edition source books. Many of the officially priced items use the "Gold Standard"; that is, items
are priced in gold coins by default. While there is nothing wrong with using official currency
values within your campaign, it leads to the perceived value of gold to be less in the eyes of your
players. Gold has been sought after as both a commodity and a currency for centuries, and your
campaign aught to treat gold similarly!

## Explanation

The basis of the Silver Standard treats one gold coin from the official D&D 5e source books as one
silver coin, and that there are one hundred of a given coin to every one of the next highest valued
coin. That's all. Thus, one hundred fifty copper coins equals one silver and fifty copper coins,
while a suit of heavy plate armor equals fifteen gold coins, rather than fifteen hundred.

## Installation

Make sure that you first have `rust` and `cargo` installed onto your computer before downloading
`sterling`. Just follow the simple
[Installation Guide](https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/getting-started/installation.html) on the
official Rust language website to install both programs.

Once `rust` and `cargo` are installed onto your computer, run the following command:

`cargo install sterling`

This will install `sterling` into the `.cargo/bin` directory within your User directory
(`/home/YOUR_USER_NAME` on Linux and macOS, `C:\Users\YOUR_USER_NAME` on Windows). Be sure to add
this directory to your PATH.