Progress!
Alright, so now we're at least closer to talking about the same thing. The reason what I described is a big deal in our area is because (as stated previously) there ARE a lot of chapters, each with multiple staff members that travel around, and if even 6 of those folks showed up with their staff MI kit it'd be pretty ridiculous. In theory, a goblin stamp has an actual game world value: 1 copper. This is by the book actually: page 151 (although it calls them goblin points). This is why it's not really appropriate for a chapter to give out 30000 gobbies for a 100 spell packets and say "it's cool, we charge a million gobbies for a spell shield item," (not that I believe that's happening, just that I know it shouldn't). Having said all that, ALL GEAR can be described as having a goblin stamp value because 1 gobbie = 1 copper = 1 production = 1 treasure policy point. If you have a long sword, it cost 30 of one of those things, whether you bought it with goblin stamps, made it with blacksmithing, or it was part of weekend treasure. Unfortunately, this breaks down with magic items from gobbies because different chapters don't charge the same thing for the same items.
You know what, I had more written out but nobody needs to see me flex my mathceps. Here's my actual point: the biggest issue I have with transfers of LCO items is that there isn't an enforced consistency of the value of a goblin stamp across chapters; that's why I believe that (in a no transfer environment) item trading is reasonable and calling it a work-around is unfair. If any given chapter is comfortable enough with their chapter and their chapter only having X amount of magic items in their game outside of standard treasure policy, then they are within their rights to allow that. If that chapter awards 10000 gobbies over a time period, it should be because they're prepared for 10000 gobbies worth of additional treasure to show up in their game, whatever that value actually translates to in their policies. So if Adam and Betsy trade items, so that Adam has items that work only in chapter B and Betsy's work only in chapter A, it doesn't actually matter who bought which item, nor does it matter if Adam spent 13000 gobbies for Betsy and Betsy spent 1776 for Adam. If those two people consider the trade equitable and are spending within the limits that their respective chapter has set forth, no harm is done. Both chapters are seeing only items they intended to exist anyway.
However. There is a simpler solution, using only the tools that already exist within our system: give chapter owners some number of dragon stamps to distribute to as they see fit to their staff: plot, monster desk, full time NPCs, props coordinators, logistics, marshals, cooks, whatever else they have. Staff masseuse if you have one. I wish we had one. Whatever the formula may be, whether it's a flat value per event, per calender year, or some equation based on player attendance, APL, phase of the moon and Mike V. throwing darts at a D20, it gives chapter staff a tool to gear their character(s) without the whole mess of figuring out if any given chapter is giving out LCO items in volume or power level some other chapter deems excessive. Honestly, if the dragon stamp calculation IS based on APL and attendance, then you and I are talking about very nearly the same thing.
Alright, so now we're at least closer to talking about the same thing. The reason what I described is a big deal in our area is because (as stated previously) there ARE a lot of chapters, each with multiple staff members that travel around, and if even 6 of those folks showed up with their staff MI kit it'd be pretty ridiculous. In theory, a goblin stamp has an actual game world value: 1 copper. This is by the book actually: page 151 (although it calls them goblin points). This is why it's not really appropriate for a chapter to give out 30000 gobbies for a 100 spell packets and say "it's cool, we charge a million gobbies for a spell shield item," (not that I believe that's happening, just that I know it shouldn't). Having said all that, ALL GEAR can be described as having a goblin stamp value because 1 gobbie = 1 copper = 1 production = 1 treasure policy point. If you have a long sword, it cost 30 of one of those things, whether you bought it with goblin stamps, made it with blacksmithing, or it was part of weekend treasure. Unfortunately, this breaks down with magic items from gobbies because different chapters don't charge the same thing for the same items.
You know what, I had more written out but nobody needs to see me flex my mathceps. Here's my actual point: the biggest issue I have with transfers of LCO items is that there isn't an enforced consistency of the value of a goblin stamp across chapters; that's why I believe that (in a no transfer environment) item trading is reasonable and calling it a work-around is unfair. If any given chapter is comfortable enough with their chapter and their chapter only having X amount of magic items in their game outside of standard treasure policy, then they are within their rights to allow that. If that chapter awards 10000 gobbies over a time period, it should be because they're prepared for 10000 gobbies worth of additional treasure to show up in their game, whatever that value actually translates to in their policies. So if Adam and Betsy trade items, so that Adam has items that work only in chapter B and Betsy's work only in chapter A, it doesn't actually matter who bought which item, nor does it matter if Adam spent 13000 gobbies for Betsy and Betsy spent 1776 for Adam. If those two people consider the trade equitable and are spending within the limits that their respective chapter has set forth, no harm is done. Both chapters are seeing only items they intended to exist anyway.
However. There is a simpler solution, using only the tools that already exist within our system: give chapter owners some number of dragon stamps to distribute to as they see fit to their staff: plot, monster desk, full time NPCs, props coordinators, logistics, marshals, cooks, whatever else they have. Staff masseuse if you have one. I wish we had one. Whatever the formula may be, whether it's a flat value per event, per calender year, or some equation based on player attendance, APL, phase of the moon and Mike V. throwing darts at a D20, it gives chapter staff a tool to gear their character(s) without the whole mess of figuring out if any given chapter is giving out LCO items in volume or power level some other chapter deems excessive. Honestly, if the dragon stamp calculation IS based on APL and attendance, then you and I are talking about very nearly the same thing.