Everyone has to make a living, even in the fantasy world of Britannia.

The simplest way to start earning an income is to start trading. Find any small items that might be available (there is something there, if you look hard enough), and then find a merchant who might need something of that sort. If you try to pick up something that already belongs to one of the non-player characters in town, the NPC informs you that you may not take it. Do not try to steal anything unless you have the appropriate Thieving skills - you're unlikely to survive the experience!

Be prepared to spend some time building a nest egg - it's not easy. Note that shoplifting from local merchants is not the best way to build a nest egg - even if you get away with it, merchants can usually spot a "hot" piece of merchandise appropriated from a fellow tradesman's display.

You can make money and train up your combat skills by "bunny bashing" - hunting small creatures like rabbits, birds, pigs and even rats. Be careful not to attack anybody's pet - that's a criminal action! When you kill small game, Use your dagger or other bladed weapon on the corpse to take its meat, hide or feathers. Meat can be sold to butchers or tavern keepers, hides and skin to furriers and tanners, and feathers to bowyers.

Remember that because supply and demand is an important part of the virtual economy, shopkeepers do not automatically buy everything you try to sell. Shops can become overstocked with items, and while they "sell back" overstock at regular intervals, they won't be interested in buying anything that's currently overstocked. Furthermore, shopkeepers pay less for items they already have plenty of. One good way to gauge the "market potential" of a shopkeeper is to say "buy" to get a look at the shop's current inventory. Any items that seem particularly scarce probably command a premium price, while items that show up in quantity command a cheap price, or none at all.

If the market for a certain type of wares becomes glutted in one town, the best thing is probably to seek out a better market in another town. If you feel that you're not yet ready to venture out of town, perhaps a more experienced character could be convinced to act as a "middle man," paying you for your wares so he can sell them in another town at a profit. 

Once you possess more money or items than you can (or wish to) carry, you can start keeping the bulk of your wealth in a bank. Every citizen has a bank account (although of course your account is empty when you start playing). Banked money and items are is 100% secure from theft. To conduct most banking transactions, you must go to a bank.

Your bank account and bank box can be accessed from any bank in the land.

Walk into your local bank and say, "Bank" to the banker, and he opens your personal chest, containing your banked items and whatever gold you have deposited into your bank. There is a limit on how much this chest can hold.

 

Note: Double-check to be sure that you're giving your coins to a banker. Other NPCs take your gold and won't return it!

To deposit a check, you will need to place the check inside your bank box and then double-click it. The amount of the check in gold coins will then appear in your bank box.

For very large purchases of 2000 gold or more (a house or ship deed, for example), or for purchases from a vendor where it would be difficult or impossible to carry sufficient cash on your person, the vendor, architect, shipwright or other tradesman can transfer funds directly from your bank account, even without a banker present, once the deal is agreed upon.