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Originally posted by Garen Thal


-In previous editions, Waterdeep did not mint its own gold coins, having more than enough from other sources

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Originally posted by Wooly Rupert

So I decided to ping Ed directly, and much to my surprise, had a response within minutes.

In addition to wondering what was on the faces, it occurred to me to ask how the faces were referenced -- heads/tails or obverse/reverse, etc.

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Here's my root lore on Sword Coast mintings:

Silverymoon:
Copper: glint
Silver: shield
Electrum: sword (older term: bluesword [[electrum coins of Silver Marches minting always have, and have had, a blue tint]])
Gold: dragon
Platinum: unicorn
“Specials”:
Moon: worth 2 gp in Silverymoon and throughout the Silver Marches, valued at 1 gp elsewhere; gold crescentiform coin stamped with the wavy line of the river (that bisects the city) on one side, and three many-pointed stars on the other.
Moon (older sort): worth 1 gp in Silverymoon and throughout the Silver Marches, but half that elsewhere; shiny blue crescentiform coin stamped the same as the newer moon; no longer officially minted, but it’s rumored that someone in the city is quietly producing them.

Waterdeep:
Copper: nib
Silver: shard
Electrum: sambar (older terms: sandar, serpent)
Gold: dragon
Platinum: sun
“Specials”:
Toal (or “Taol” in earlier centuries): worth 2gp in the city but practically worthless elsewhere; a square brass coin with a hole in the center to allow it to be strung on a string.
Harbor moon: worth 50gp in the city but 2 gp elsewhere; a crescentiform coin of platinum inset with an oval of electrum stamped with the arms of Waterdeep (used for bulk purchases as an alternative to heavier and bulkier tradebars, and more fragile gems).

SILVERYMOON (all coins are pierced by a small round hole in the center, so coins can be strung together on wire or cord):
Copper: glint (arrowhead-shaped, copper-hued triangle with two many-pointed stars in a line down one side, and a wavy line of the river down the other, crossed by an arch [representing the Moonbridge])

Silver: shield (a shield-shaped silver-hued coin [point in center of bottom, “flat” top, matching curved sides] with the same stamped markings as a glint, except that it bears a line of three many-pointed stars down the center of the shield)

Electrum: sword (an oval, shiny blue-tinted coin bearing the same stamped markings as a glint, except that one of its sides bears an arc-shaped curve of four many-pointed stars)

Gold: dragon (a gold-hued coin shaped like a stylized dragon’s head [side-on shape of open six-fanged jaws-alligator head with a row of seven small points along its “top”] bearing the same stamped markings as a glint)

Platinum: unicorn (a bright-silver-hued coin shaped like the head of a unicorn [horn-in-forehead horse’s head, side-on] bearing the same stamped markings as a glint)

WATERDEEP (no coins of current minting, except the specials, are pierced):
Copper: nib (large slender oval with a tail [tall, narrow, filled-in letter “Q,” so, a thinnish oval with a curving “ell” at one end] stamped on one side with the arms of Waterdeep, and on the other with a stylized Mount Waterdeep [triangle rising from wavy line representing the sea])

Silver: shard (“thin, long” arrowhead-shaped silver-hued coin stamped with the same markings as a nib)

Electrum: sambar (tadpole-shaped [oval with a wide three-bend-wiggle serpentine tail] silvery-blue-hued coin stamped with the same markings as a nib)

Gold: dragon (oval with four in-curved talons protruding from one arc of its edge [curved back inwards to minimize catching on things] in shape, gold-hued coin stamped with the same markings as a nib)

Platinum: sun (large round shiny-metallic ale-brown-hued coin stamped with the same markings as nib)

NOTE: the “standard” (as opposed to “special”) coins of Silverymoon are all about the same size, whereas the nib and sun of Waterdeep are noticeably larger than other Waterdhavian coins.

Nib: arms of Waterdeep face (the “front”) is “the blazon” and the stylized Mount Waterdeep face is “the mountains”

Shard: faces and their names are the same as the nib

Sambar: faces and their names are the same as the nib

Dragon: faces and their names are the same as the nib

Platinum: faces and their names are the same as the nib

Taol: (varies by minting) any face that has the moons and stars around a central ring (around the central piercing) is the “front,” and known as “the worth” (it may or may not have a “one” numeral), and the obverse (“back”) usually has a pattern of parallel wavy lines (the waves in Waterdeep harbor) and is known as “the wet”

Harbor Moon: (varies by minting) the face that has two figures (which vary by minting, but are often two ships, of the heads of two walking statues) facing inwards, towards each other and the central piercing hole (and its ring surround), is the “front” and is known as “the splendor,” whereas the obverse or “back” face usually has a radiating-rays “sun” circle surrounding the central piercing hole and its ring, often with mint marks (writing) on it, the rest of the crescent being filled with a “50” marking and with either waves or tentacles to denote the sea, and is known as the “fair sailing” (Waterdeep’s prosperity being built on its harbor and shipping, and the sun shining on the sea denoting good conditions for voyaging)

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