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Pathfinder Unchained / Esoteric Material Components

Scrounging

Source Pathfinder Unchained pg. 152
This optional rule allows a low-level spellcaster to find enough components to keep casting her spells. It’s recommended to use scrounging if esoteric components are mandatory.

Over the course of an adventuring day, a spellcaster can scrounge for esoteric components in her environment. At the end of each day, she can collect 1d6 gp worth of each common esoteric component. (Rare components can never be found by scrounging.) This requires her to explore a decent-sized area. Spending several days in one town or repeatedly going through the same few rooms in a dungeon doesn’t yield more than 1 day’s worth of components. Depending on the likelihood of finding a type of component in an area, the GM can adjust the die size up or down by one. For instance, while exploring caverns, a scrounger might find 1d8 gp worth of geodes, but only 1d4 gp worth of verdant salts. A scrounger can hunt exclusively for a specific type of common esoteric component. Because esoteric components are naturally occurring, she must succeed at a DC 15 Knowledge (nature) check or come up empty-handed. If she succeeds, she gains 2d6 gp worth of the component she was searching for and none of the others.