History Main / MoneySpider

* In ''ComicBook/ScottPilgrim,'' which utilizes a lot of video game tropes, the Evil Exes turn into actual [[CanadaEh Canadian currency]] when defeated. This also appears in the [[Film/ScottPilgrimVsTheWorld film adaptation]].

* ''[[{{Creator/Nitrome}} Tiny Castle]]'' initially plays this straight, then [[spoiler:justifies it. The monsters eat metal, and the princess who owns them is so wealthy that she can afford to feed them coins.]]

* In ''VideoGame/EarthBound'', Ness receives money from his dad instead of from monsters; the amount of money given, however, is a proportion of experience points won. This just leads to the question, how does dad know what monsters his son has killed, and where was this generosity early in the game?

* Lootbugs in ''VideoGame/DeepRockGalactic'' are harmless fat bugs that slowly crawl around and don't attack the players. Killing them has them drop a lot of nitra and gold; the former is needed to summon a supply drop to refill health and ammo and the latter is converted into currency. There's also a rare chance to have a [[MetalSlime golden version]] of the Lootbug to appear and killing it has it drop a ton of gold. There's also the Crassus Detonator, which is a gold version of the Bulk Detonator. Killing it causes a massive explosion as usual, but the crater it leaves behind is converted into gold.

* In ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'', the [[GiantEnemyCrab chasmfiends]] each have a "gemheart", an enormous gemstone (generally about the size of a man's head) that grows naturally in their body. Since gemstones are the focus for this world's FunctionalMagic, the gemhearts are an order of magnitude more valuable than they would be even in RealLife.

* In ''LightNovel/LogHorizon'' monsters drop gold and items. Shiroe eventually reasons that as part of the bizarre world logic explaining such game mechanisms there must be some magic that gives them this gold. [[spoiler:The source is a relic guarded by the Kunie clan which embeds gold in the spirit of monsters just before they respawn]].

* ''LightNovel/SwordArtOnline'': Volume 6 of ''Progressive'' references this trope when Kirito mentions that like in many games, the wild animals faced outside of the Town of Beginnings drop money when defeated.

* Subverted and lampshaded in ''{{LightNovel/Overlord}}''. Momonga, a long-time MMORPG player, has found himself trapped in a fantasy world. When he meets a team of low-level adventurers, they explain that they were planning on earning money by killing monsters near their city. Momonga allies with them, and after helping them kill a group of monsters, they start cutting off ears. They explain that they bring the body parts back to the city as proof that they've killed a certain number of monsters, and the city pays money according to how dangerous each type of monster was, to encourage adventurers to keep the area surrounding the city safe. Momonga was clearly expecting the ogres to be carrying something valuable like [[ShopFodder crystals]], and one of the locals points out how outlandish that sounds.
* In a version that dips into TwentyBearAsses territory, ''LightNovel/IsItWrongToTryToPickUpGirlsInADungeon'' takes place in the city of Orario which is built above a dungeon with infinitely respawning monsters. An adventurer's main goal is to kill the monsters and harvest the crystal inside each one, getting as many crystals as they can as well as the larger and higher quality crystals in high level monsters, as well as the ''occasional'' RandomDrop. The crystals are traded for money since they are very useful as a raw, renewable resource in energy production, making Orario wealthy enough to fuel and sustain an entire economy that supports a large community of adventurers.

* ''VideoGame/LuigisMansion'' has gold mice and very fast blue ghosts (which are palette swaps of the basic yellow ghost) that are worth a LOT of money if sucked up. In ''VideoGame/LuigisMansionDarkMoon'', gold mice, as well as gold bats, beetles, and (yes) spiders, net a gold bar or several bills if flashed with the Spectrobe. The regular versions of these enemies will drop coins or hearts. Speedy Spirits (in 1) Gold Greenies in (''Dark Moon') will drop tons of money if sucked up.

* ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros''. Apparently, Bowser has not only enough money to spend on ridiculously complex castles that Mario will demolish with his passing, but in many games his minions carry at ''least'' one coin, which they relinquish if they're defeated with a fireball.

** ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'' pointed that out [[https://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2011/01/26/inner-wealth here]].

* In ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'', winning in random encounters will yield nothing more than experience. Money is received from other trainers (who would logically be carrying money). The amount of money won also differs based on the type of trainer. Swimmers and Bug Catchers reward little, as they don't carry much money. Gamblers, League officials, and elite trainers are loaded. Also works in reverse: You lose half your money when you lose (prior to FireRed & LeafGreen and in Emerald) or an amount of money based on the amount of Gym Badges you have multiplied by the level of your highest Pokemon (FireRed & LeafGreen and all games starting with Diamond & Pearl. A certain item, the Amulet Coin, when equipped to a participating member of your party, will double the reward you get from an opposing Trainer.\\\

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXI'' only has beastmen drop gil, and even then in pitiful amounts. However, all creatures (including those that drop gil) have a chance of dropping items befitting the creature (beehive chips on bees, for example) and if the player has the "Signet" effect active the creature will also drop elemental crystals, a requirement for crafting. Typically the random items will be useful for crafting only with some exceptions that are quest items or equipment. Gil is also dropped by certain [[BonusBoss Notorious Monsters]] and undead (specifically, [[OurGhostsAreDifferent Fomors]] and [[OurZombiesAreDifferent qutrubs]]; the former are the undead closest to the living and the latter are [[AllThereInTheManual supposed to be]] [[DistractedByTheShiny attracted to shiny objects]]).

[[folder:Video Games --Third Person Shooter]]

** The Corpus are the easiest ones to explain, being theocratic hyper-capitalists who worship the concept of profit and having money, so it's probably a borderline religious sacrament to have cold hard cash on their person.

** Notably, common Sentient units have no use for money and do not drop it, being something of hive mind comprised of attack drones; instead, they drop useful pieces of themselves such as their valuable cores.

* ''VideoGame/HeavenDust: Sometimes, zombies will drop tokens upon death. These tokens can be spent at vending machines.

* In ''VideoGame/SevenDaysToDie'' the zombies carry quite a few odds and ends. Some are pretty sensible, such as cans of food or weapons, while others, such as a random piece of scrap or a pop-cap, may make a little less sense.

* In ''Franchise/DeadSpace'' practically every necromorph is carrying lots of cash or ammunition, which is largely sensible up until the ''zombie foetuses'' appear.

* ''VideoGame/{{Alisa}}'': The enemies in the game drop tooth-wheels as they go down. Tooth-wheels serve as the game's currency.

* Parodied/Lampshaded in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8NsnLfIAcs this video.]]

* Lampshaded in the Website/{{Newgrounds}} [[WebAnimation/FF7AboutRandomBattles video]] ''[[http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/169933 About The Random Battles]]'' by Creator/LegendaryFrog.
-->''Yes, I know. I have '''no idea''' why these random animals are carrying 148 gil '''and a magic fire ring'''. It will forever be a ''''mystery'''!'' - Narrator

* Parodied in the ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' movie "Bender's Game," where one of the Dungeons and Dragons sessions Dwight is running features the line "Deep in the unicorn's rump sack, you find <roll> 60 gold pieces!" It's fairly clear from context that he's not talking about something like a saddlebag but rather an anatomical feature.

!!Exceptions

[[folder:TableTop Games]]

** ''TabletopGame/{{Starfinder}}'' is an unusual one in that it has tiered gear like its predecessor ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}''. A maxed out laser rifle costs what hundreds of basic rifles would cost. However, looted objects sell for a trivial amount of money. Most monetary rewards come from people paying the player characters for their work. Very few rewards come from looting your enemies.

* Not only is the webcomic ''Webcomic/DMOfTheRings'' an exception, but it also discusses and handwaves this point at the end of [[http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?p=617 "DM VI: Lootless"]]:
-->''On one hand, it makes no sense for the monsters and encounter areas of the gameworld to come pre-stocked with loot. It also makes no sense for feral beasts and the shambling undead to walk around carrying fabulous cash prizes. On the other hand, gold coins are shiny and make a fun jingling sound when you have lots of them.''

[[folder:WebOriginal]]
* Monsters having internal gold sacs is ''Website/{{Cracked}}'''s #26 [[http://www.cracked.com/photoplasty_388_27-science-lessons-as-taught-by-famous-video-games/ Science Lesson As Taught by Famous Video Games]] and one of [[http://www.cracked.com/photoplasty_586_31-life-lessons-you-can-only-learn-from-video-games/ 31 Life Lessons You Can Only Learn From Video Games]].
[[/folder]]

!!Examples

!!Video Game Examples:

!!Non-Video Game Examples:

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]

[[folder:Fan Fiction]]

[[folder:Mythology]]

[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'': The list of creatures with treasures a variety of beings one would not expect to have accumulated such wealth or to carry it around. The implication was that the creature had killed a number of wealthy passers by, whose (useless to the creature) wealth was left to litter the creature's lair. For [[RandomEncounter creatures encountered outside their lair]], however, the explanation was often sketchy or non-existent.
** Dragons carry lots of treasure on their naked bodies. This is explained as them taking [[WesternAnimation/DuckTales1987 Scrooge McDuck]]-style money-baths in their hordes with coins and treasure getting stuck in their scales.
** In at least one edition of ''AD&D'', it's stated that the treasure values given are only for monsters encountered in their lair. [[GameMaster DMs]] are expected to give nothing, or some appropriately small amount, for wandering monsters. This rule tends to be ignored.
** Later editions at least try to encourage [[GameMaster DMs]] to only put equipment on enemies if it would make sense for them to have them. Some tricks include keeping tally of the encounters the players have completed, and then having the players find the accumulated "loot" at an appropriate juncture (in the monsters' lair, for instance).
** In 3.5, while many monsters do collect varying amounts treasure, wild animals and monsters with designs that would prevent them from acquiring loot in some way (such as not having opposable thumbs, or having incorporeal bodies or low intelligence scores) are listed as being incapable of carrying treasure at all.
** The original intent was for money and magic to be the goal. Characters improved through collection of Experience Points, but monsters were worth quite little XP. Their treasures were worth 1 XP per Gold Piece, which amounted to much more XP value (plus of course you get the gold). So your goal was to fight as little as possible while trying to find money. Wandering monsters didn't carry treasure. Do you keep all your money in your wallet? But a lair contained treasure even if the monster was out. So avoiding wandering monsters was imperative since they were just a dangerous waste of time. And since wandering monsters had a chance of coming at regular intervals, they were effectively a penalty for wasting time. More efficient, skillful players were more successful even if their characters weren't all that hot.
** In ''D&D''[='=]s fourth edition, while the player characters' income is definitely still meant to come from treasure to the point that there are standard expected rewards per level (with the actual economy of the game world, such as it is, being run strictly by [=NPCs=] in the background -- there are no official "money-making" skills as such anymore and used gear and common items can only be sold at bargain prices, never anywhere near market value let alone for profit), those treasures are ''not'' linked to specific creatures or encounters anymore. So a party of five first-level characters may be able to expect about four magic items plus 720 gold pieces' worth of "monetary" treasure total, give or take, in the course of advancing to second level; but the ''placement'' of said treasures (in the common hoard of a bunch of monsters, abandoned in some dungeon, as a reward by quest givers or even actually dropped by magical spiders if desired) is wholly up to the [=DM=].
** A common practice amongst [=DMs=] is to place all of the treasure at a logical point in the adventure, such as in a monster's lair, or as a bounty. In situations where massive piles of gold are impractical, a [=DM=] might place a piece of ShopFodder amongst the loot, worth the amount of currency expected.
** One technique to allow loot for wandering non-humanoid monsters that would swallow prey whole (giant lizards, crocodiles, sharks, etc.) would be to have the treasure in the creature's stomach. This is why many old school roleplayers will slit a creature's stomach in their search for treasure.
** In First Edition, the tarrasque's hide is basically made from diamonds, which can be extracted with some effort. In the final ''Ecology'' article in ''Magazine/{{Dragon}}'' magazine (3.5 Edition), Jonathan M. Richards has his Monster Hunters consider this aspect of the tarrasque legend and conclude that it's probably nonsense.
** Alkadas are fascinated by shiny objects, and when they come across a gem, jeweled item, shiny stone, piece of glass or the like, they stuff it into their mouth to carry around in a growing hoard of treasure and gewgaws accumulated in their belly, released only on the creature's death.
* ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}'': Aukashungi are isopod-like monsters that live in aquatic areas of the Abyss and are unable to digest or excrete non-organic material, which simply remains in their first stomach and gradually builds up over their lives -- and they can live for quite a long time. Elder aukashungis grow to monstrous sizes and bulge with the gear and wealth of fallen enemies, providing quite a haul for players who can take one down (and incidentally also allowing swallowed victims to cut themselves free by grabbing a weapon inside their gut).
* ''TabletopGame/WarhammerQuest'': The first scenario of the campaign features a well from which an infinite number of spiders crawl out of, each one giving a small amount of gold to the one who has slain it. If the dungeon master doesn't step in at this point, it's possible for players to accumulate an infinite amount of gold.
[[/folder]]

In the Real World, animals don't use money. Not so in video- and role-playing games. For many game economies, wealth is associated with ''dangerous creatures''; if you can attack it and it is alive (in some sense) and/or able to theoretically attack in return, it probably has some actual currency which will become available upon its death. This will be true almost without regard for the creature's ability to carry money, its interest in money, whether it's sentient enough to comprehend money, or any connection with the existence of the money. On occasion, this is true regardless of whether it had money the first time.

Parodied in a great number of video-game-based webcomics and other satire. For a specific enemy that you seek out because it carries a ''lot'' of money (or other reward), see PinataEnemy, with tougher variants being {{Metal Slime}}s.

* A game set in a cyberpunk, sci-fi, UrbanFantasy, or other setting (basically - games that aren't doing the typical fantasy genre) will usually avert this. Consider a few examples:
** ''TabletopGame/{{AllFleshMustBeEaten}}'' is about a zombie apocalypse. The zombies generally don't drop loot; if you need gear, you likely will be scavenging it.

** ''TabletopGame/{{UnknownArmies}}'', ''TabletopGame/{{KULT}}'', and the ''TabletopGame/{{WorldOfDarkness}}'' are dark UrbanFantasy games. Enemies will include supernatural horrors, rival supernaturals, and humans. The first group isn't (usually) using money. The latter two are going to be using gear you could just buy and carrying only the type of wallet and valuables we would have in our world.

** The "treasure" in ''TabletopGame/{{CallOfCthulhu}}'' and ''TabletopGame/{{DeltaGreen}}'' comes from unknowable cosmic horror denizens. It's almost never salable. It stands a good chance to drive your academic friend insane as he summons the Horrible Horror With NaughtyTentacles. Burning the treasure would be sensible, but sensible people don't become player characters in either game.

* ''VideoGame/Blasphemous'' copies the functionality of ''Dark Souls'' (detailed below), but without the justification of the original. It must be another aspect of the Grievous Miracle.

* Justified in ''VideoGame/DarkSouls''. Enemies aren't dropping money, they're dropping ''souls," the magical force that allows the undead to continue to move as of alive. The more powerful the Undead, the more souls they drop. The player is no exception, dropping any "sovereignless souls," (i.e souls they haven't permanently committed to their body leveling up) on death.