Good morning! For today’s Mintage Monday post, I’d like to share my first post about replacing board game money with real currency. In this particular case, I used real Russian rubles to replace the coins in Russian Railroads!
Using real currency can be way more cost-effective than buying fake coins for your games. I could easily just use quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies, and it might cost me a fraction of what I’d pay for something from Artana or Fantasy Coin.
But in most cases, plain money isn’t a good thematic match for a game. There are better generic options, and if you’re like me and want your coins to match the theme of your games, US coinage won’t cut it and fake coins might not offer the right options.
Real coins can sometime be difficult to track down in correct quantities, or for a decent price. It takes a little more legwork and a willingness to buy on eBay to get what you’re looking for.
But I have real coins in several games, including Le Havre, Great Western Trail, and Grand Austria Hotel, and it’s always been worth the effort.
These rubles are perfect thematic fit for Russian Railroads, and cost me about $12 for 20 coins. That’s on the high side per-coin, but since the overall cost was low I was willing to make the jump for a beautiful addition to one of my favorite games.
As always, thanks for joining me for another Mintage Monday!
CLICK HERE for the archive of previous Mintage Monday posts, and check back every Monday for more awesome metal coins you can add to your favorite board games!
