### The Economy of the Kingdom of Rebmos
The Kingdom of Rebmos runs on a meticulously stratified, steam-driven economy where every gear, every coin, and every drop of sweat is accounted for in the ledgers of Kaldius. Progress is not merely a slogan; it is the only acceptable religion outside the Anointed cathedrals, and wealth is its sacrament.
#### Currency
- **Kaldium Bills** – Crisp, watermarked banknotes issued by the Royal Mint of Kaldius. Each bill bears the crowned lion crest in brown ink and is backed by ether-crystal deposits in the Crown vaults. Denominations: 1, 5, 10, 50, 100, 500, and the rare 1,000-Bill “Iron Duke.” Forgery is punishable by public disassembly in the Reeducation Forges.
- **Coins** – For daily transactions and wages:
- **Gold Crowns** – Heavy, milled coins stamped with King Douglas Northington III’s profile; used by aristocracy and for large contracts.
- **Silver Gears** – Workhorse currency of merchants and skilled artisans; 20 Gears = 1 Crown.
- **Copper Cogs** – Grimy coins for the poor; 100 Cogs = 1 Gear. Children are paid in half-Cogs called “nippers.”
#### Primary Industries
1. **Ether-Crystal Mining**
The northwestern heartlands sit atop vast ether-crystal seams. State-licensed conglomerates (Northington & Sons, Ironspire Ltd.) extract the volatile, blood-glowing gems that power everything from streetlamps to dreadnought engines. Miners are paid in scrip redeemable only at company stores; accidents are logged as “product loss.”
2. **Heavy Manufacturing**
Kaldius’ foundries produce 70 % of Rebmos’ output:
- Repeating rifles, ether-grenades, and steam-tanks for the Iron Legion.
- Clockwork automatons for factory lines and Anointed Templar exo-plate.
- Luxury airships for the Iron Aristocracy.
Factories operate 24-hour shifts; output quotas are sanctified by Anointed priests.
3. **Textiles & Chemicals**
River-valley mills spin ether-treated cotton into uniforms and ballistic cloth. Chemical plants distill alchemical reagents, dyes, and the infamous “Purity Gas” used in Reeducation Forges.
4. **Agriculture (Mechanized)**
Vast monoculture plains grow wheat, turnips, and opium poppies under steam-plows. Harvests are tithed: 30 % to the Crown, 20 % to the Anointed, 10 % exported, the rest rationed to citizens by class.
#### Trade & Taxation
- **Internal Trade** – Guild monopolies control distribution. A merchant wishing to move goods beyond his home province must purchase a Crown Seal (5 % of cargo value).
- **Export** – Ether-crystals and weaponry are sold to neutral Shatterchain ports at markup; profits fund the war.
- **Taxation** –
- **Tithe of Labor**: 18 % of every wage, collected at factory gates.
- **Purity Tithe**: 10 % of inheritance, paid in Kaldium Bills to the Anointed.
- **War Levy**: Quarterly surtax on all males aged 16–50; evasion = conscription.
#### Class Spending Power
| Class | Daily Wage | Can Afford |
|-------|------------|------------|
| **Iron Aristocracy** | 50–500 Crowns | Private airships, custom exo-plate, imported silks |
| **Middle Guilds** | 3–10 Gears | Rowhouse mortgage, one automaton servant, Anointed schooling |
| **Factory Workers** | 50–80 Cogs | Rented bunk, black bread, weekly absinthe |
| **Gear-Fodder (conscripts)** | 20 Cogs + rations | Patched uniform, one letter home per month |
#### Black Market
Beneath the gaslit boulevards thrives a shadow economy:
- Smuggled Redlands opium (1 Crown per vial).
- Forged Kaldium Bills (detectable only by Anointed ether-scanners).
- “Ghost Contracts” – indentured souls sold to Cog-Necromancers for undeath experiments.
The economy is a perfectly balanced machine: the poor are paid just enough to survive, the middle just enough to fear falling, and the elite just enough to believe the system is divine. Every transaction, legal or not, feeds the war that keeps the gears turning.
The economy of Rebmos is in constant flux due its rapid innovation. What is worth a fortune in one month is worth the average loaf of bread the next. As such, only those who manage to stay ahead of the information curve survive the chaos. Those who aren't work for those who do. And those that can't are left to beg on the streets.
Those in danger of crossing the beggar threshold see the Rebmos Military as a last resort. And many of their lower ranks are full of those who did not want to starve.