Star Wars Credits and Coinage - References and Recreation

The big problem I have with most of these is - how would you actually use them as money? The Book of Boba Fett coins are fairly good for that, and the Old Republic Credits aren't awful, but the others would be horrible.

Money has a few traits that are really important.

First, it has to intuitively feel valuable. Okay, most of the coins hit that note; in-universe they'd be made out of something that felt like a valuable metal, and the size of them would add to the sense of value. (They might be actual precious metals, or they might just evoke it. Consider a British "round pound" coin that looks like it's made of gold and is very heavy for it's size, but is actually nickel-brass.)

Second, it has to be convenient to carry and use. Coins are inherently less convenient, of course, but their durability and sense of value tends to trump that. However, the vast majority of real-world coins are much smaller than these. Most coins are no bigger than a US/Canadian quarter, a UK 10p (or, pre-decimal, 1 shilling), or a Euro 50c. All of these are about 25mm in diametre. Nowadays I'm not aware of anything bigger than 30mm in diametre; the Canadian Twonie is 28mm, and trust me, when you have a pocket full of those, you really notice.

The Flan get a bit of a pass from me for this one, because they're meant for Mon Calamari who have big, awkward (in comparison to human) hands and would need big coins. But all the others are huge!

Third, and most important, their value needs to be easy to identify. The only "coins" that have any denominations marked on them are the Old Republic credits. The pattern of squares doesn't mean much to us, but we can assume they are quickly and easily read by the people who routinely use them. (As a Canadian who occasionally visits the US, I'm very familiar with how a marking system can be easy for those who are used to it and a n absolute pain for those who aren't.) The "Boba Fett" coins are all different shapes and sizes, which would also work for determining value - although they'd be a lot more useful if it was actually marked on the coin somewhere, I've also got real-world coins that have the same problem.

One could argue that the Flan have markings that aren't visible to the human eye, but that would very much limit their utility for anyone who wasn't a Mon Calamari. The Mandalorian coins and the Imperial Credits, though, are completely identical except for colour. And colour is not a good way to differentiate different coins. What if you're colour-blind? What if you're *actually* blind? What if your helmet is on the fritz and you've only got low-light mode so everything is shades of green?

I figure there's two possibilities for how these would actually work in-character.

First, that these are not meant to serve as currency but rather are ingots. Much like one can go buy a 1 troy ounce gold bar and have a known quantity of a precious metal, perhaps the Mandalorian coins and Imperial Credits are not coins per se, but are certified to be a known quantity of precious metal. This is more plausible to me for the Mandalorian coins since (to my memory) the only place we see them is in the betting pools in Solo, and one could easily pitch a gold bar on a poker table, agree on a value, and carry on in the real world as well. (Well, in some settings, anyway.) I'm pretty sure we see the Imperial credits being used as money in Rebels, though, so that makes it less likely that these are just ingots.

Second, that the in-character versions would have more markings. For the Mandalorian coins, one could argue that the mythosaur is just the obverse, and that on the reverse there would be a marking of value. For the Imperial credits, one could argue that the R.O.W.E. symbology should be replaced with markers of value. The R is probably supposed to be the credit symbol, and the other characters could be numbers or the Star Wars equivalent of Roman numerals. Especially for the Imperial credits, this makes sense to me - the design, so far as I know, originated in Rebels. Rebels was working quickly to a tight budget, the show frequently took shortcuts on the art and heavily stylised the details, and the coins were never meant to be held in close-up. So it makes sense that they used placeholder symbols that are only being replicated now because of the fan base's slavish devotion to recreating every last detail even when it's obviously not supposed to be on the "real" thing. (Such as recreating the German proof marks on blaster props.)

The Flan are a bit more awkward, but I'd still argue that they fit in the second category, with the caveat that the markings may not be suitable for human eyes because they weren't meant to be used by humans. Though I think we'd all agree with NakedMoleRat that the Dok-Ondar Flan are not accurate in any case.

Anyway. I don't want to run down folks who want screen-accurate recreations. Much of my grumbles are devoted to the prop design, not the recreations thereof. But it's a thing that bugs me! Beta Cygni's decision to add denominations to their Bantu Spirit inspired coins suggests I'm not the only one, either. In my SW universe, the Imperial Credits will have different markings based on value, and the Mandalorian coins will have denominations on the other side of the coin.

(And now I'm wondering if I could build an Imperial "credstick" where the markings were actually a display that could change depending on current value.)

Ulmtimately, this post exists because I'm feeling out-of-sorts and needed a safe thing to grumble about. I hope it was at least mildly entertaining!
 
The big problem I have with most of these is - how would you actually use them as money? The Book of Boba Fett coins are fairly good for that, and the Old Republic Credits aren't awful, but the others would be horrible.
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Beta Cygni's decision to add denominations to their Bantu Spirit inspired coins suggests I'm not the only one, either. In my SW universe, the Imperial Credits will have different markings based on value, and the Mandalorian coins will have denominations on the other side of the coin.
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Good points. The Boba Fett coins have the clearest denomination markings on them. Here's a speculative picture trying to figure out the value of each one based on one set of Star Wars numerals.

I added denominations to my Batuu Spira replicas because the originals have some writing on the back (Disney info about a gift card) so I wanted to put something on there and "values" seemed like the logical choice.
 

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Good points. The Boba Fett coins have the clearest denomination markings on them. Here's a speculative picture trying to figure out the value of each one based on one set of Star Wars numerals.

I added denominations to my Batuu Spira replicas because the originals have some writing on the back (Disney info about a gift card) so I wanted to put something on there and "values" seemed like the logical choice.

Hunh, I'd not noticed the value pips before, cool.

Of course, that raises my other complaint about fantasy money, which is "why are the values always so high?" Unless we're talking about something like yen or krona, or course, where there's no subunit and a 100 credit coin has similar buying power to a loonie (1$) or a tenner (10$) in the real world. But it does make me like those coins more and more. :)
 
Hunh, I'd not noticed the value pips before, cool.

Of course, that raises my other complaint about fantasy money, which is "why are the values always so high?" Unless we're talking about something like yen or krona, or course, where there's no subunit and a 100 credit coin has similar buying power to a loonie (1$) or a tenner (10$) in the real world. But it does make me like those coins more and more. :)
I guess there's as much inflation in a Galaxy Far Far away as there is here! :)
 
The New Republic Credits look very accurate, dare I even say dead on!
I agree the details are great on those. Very accurate.
I have to tweak my version slightly.
1) Add the "mint mark" "S" on 3 of the credits at the base of the #7
2) The lettering is identical on the tri-corner and square credits (I figured that out before), but the 2 "dots" around the circle with the lettering on the tri-corner credit are together at the bottom of the #7 instead of being at the top and bottom on the square one.

The only issue I have is with the color of the tri-corner credit. In the Galaxy's Edge version, it looks like they used the same material as the tear-dropped shaped credit and put some of black wash/treatment on it. In the show, it is much more blue/gunmetal in the butcher shop scene which has the best lighting. Here's a photo of it compared with my version.
 

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I agree the details are great on those. Very accurate.
I have to tweak my version slightly.
1) Add the "mint mark" "S" on 3 of the credits at the base of the #7
2) The lettering is identical on the tri-corner and square credits (I figured that out before), but the 2 "dots" around the circle with the lettering on the tri-corner credit are together at the bottom of the #7 instead of being at the top and bottom on the square one.

The only issue I have is with the color of the tri-corner credit. In the Galaxy's Edge version, it looks like they used the same material as the tear-dropped shaped credit and put some of black wash/treatment on it. In the show, it is much more blue/gunmetal in the butcher shop scene which has the best lighting. Here's a photo of it compared with my version.

Perhaps a cost saving measure?
 
Now that the official Disney set for the Galactic Credits is out, I'm updating my version to include the newly seen bronze credit.

These credits showed up in the Cara Dune fight in the Common House on Sorgan in Season 1, episode 7 (5:29 minutes into the episode) of the Mandalorian show on Disney+.

In my version the blocks on top of the credits stick out which is screen-accurate.

The last photo is a screen grab from the show.
 

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For the Imperial credits, one could argue that the R.O.W.E. symbology should be replaced with markers of value. The R is probably supposed to be the credit symbol, and the other characters could be numbers or the Star Wars equivalent of Roman numerals. Especially for the Imperial credits, this makes sense to me - the design, so far as I know, originated in Rebels. Rebels was working quickly to a tight budget, the show frequently took shortcuts on the art and heavily stylised the details, and the coins were never meant to be held in close-up. So it makes sense that they used placeholder symbols that are only being replicated now because of the fan base's slavish devotion to recreating every last detail even when it's obviously not supposed to be on the "real" thing.

Ulimately, this post exists because I'm feeling out-of-sorts and needed a safe thing to grumble about. I hope it was at least mildly entertaining!

THANK YOU! I hear you loud and clear and agree! I've lately been pretty disgruntled with the costuming community's embrace of out-of-universe shortcuts which--if we think critically for a second--are just results of the limitations of having to crank out SW content for the TV format. So know that your grumbles are appreciated!

Something I've been wondering with the latest batch of merch reveals: now that Disney is selling 'official' replicas of these currencies at their parks, does anyone think we will see fan-makers of these coins receive cease&desist letters from the Mouse? The precedent always seemed to be 'sell your own things but if it competes with Our product, you have to stop'... Or will they just continue to turn a blind eye?
 
Something I've been wondering with the latest batch of merch reveals: now that Disney is selling 'official' replicas of these currencies at their parks, does anyone think we will see fan-makers of these coins receive cease&desist letters from the Mouse? The precedent always seemed to be 'sell your own things but if it competes with Our product, you have to stop'... Or will they just continue to turn a blind eye?

My personal guess is that they'll continue to ignore it. In America this would be a case of copyright rather than trademark (there's some interesting UK case law that made it less clear which was more appropriate there) so they don't have to sue every last person who infringes on their IP. And an item only available in the theme parks has a different market: they're after folks who want a tangible souvenir of their visit to the park. Whereas the replicas are for folks who want gaming and/or cosplay props, in bulk.

If Disney released a "coin set" at general retail, they might take action. Though again, probably easier to just let the mass-produced plastic outsell the Etsy boutiques.

Totally just my personal thoughts, though, I'm not in a position to have any actual knowledge!
 
Here's my version of the Sabacc Dealer Block seen in "Solo: A Star Wars Story".

It is made from fine-grained hardwood cut to screen-accurate dimensions (length, width, and height) and stained to look like the block in the movie. Two coats of clear-coat are applied to preserve the finish. The top of the block has a well for storing the Sabacc dice in between rolls.

A solid copper rod extends from one end around to the right side.
The rod holds three 3-D printed "honest stones" that are used to keep track of the betting rounds of a hand.
Each stone has a unique shape and color.
 

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From starwars. com
But there was one prop that Elliott had perilously little to go off of: wupiupi coins. Often mentioned as the currency of the Hutt clan on Tatooine, where Republic credits are no good for bartering with Toydarian junk dealers, Kenobi marks the first time fans have seen wupiupi in regular use.


obi-wankenobi-props-wupiupi-coins-front.jpg



Elliott says his team had just one image for reference from Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, indicating the look of wupiupi was originally based on Turkish Yuzluk, coin currency from the Ottoman Empire just slightly larger than an American half dollar. But Director Deborah Chow worried that was too large for the swift hand-to-hand transactions in the series. As a result, the wupiupi carried in Kenobi is scaled down slightly with the same art as the first iteration. Elliott and Lucasfilm creative executive Pablo Hidalgo not only discussed the look of the coins, but also the proper conversion rates for wupiupi and trugut, another currency favored by the Hutts. By comparing the values between wuipiupi, truguts, and credits, the two figured out the cost of some common goods in the galaxy far, far away and a minimum wage for the whale carving station where Kenobi works at the series outset. “A full shift at the sand whaling station pays one trugut and three wupiupi,” Elliott says. “Not much really.”
 
I needed some props for a role-playing game and decided to make my own version of the Imperial Credit Chits. These embrace my theory that the ROWE markings are actually supposed to be a marker of value. They're also made in two parts with room inside for 20mm coins, to add heft to the props.

They aren't really screen-accurate, but they definitely hit the "mood" of the screen-used props, and they're much more functional for anyone who wants some prop money. :)

I've shared the files over on my Printables.com account:


As of this writing, I've got 100, 250, and 500 credit versions. I'm working on 10, 25, and 50 credit versions - they'll be narrower - and I have partial ideas for 1, 2, and 5 credit versions, as well as a 1,000 credit bar.
 

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I picked up these from Etsy….


You can see them compared to the Hyperspace versions.

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I don’t have the Galaxy’s Edge to compare them with nor do I know what the correct size should be. But between the two, I like these new ones better. I feel the thickness and depth of the cut seems more accurate.
 
I picked up these from Etsy….


You can see them compared to the Hyperspace versions.

View attachment 1606266View attachment 1606267View attachment 1606268

I don’t have the Galaxy’s Edge to compare them with nor do I know what the correct size should be. But between the two, I like these new ones better. I feel the thickness and depth of the cut seems more accurate.
Dude, I’ve purchased the same set… I have 15 or each of them now. I love those credits, even the rounded corners. I’ve gotten his new Republic credits as well. I have another set on the way and he threw in a Mandalorian bounty tracker since I’ve been a repeat buyer. I love the coins.
 
The smaller ones from J46Designs look exactly like the ones on display on the line to the Millennium Falcon ride at GE. I’ll be updating my collection pics this weekend. The last of my credits will all be here by Saturday. Including my hyperfuel from Todd that I’ve been wanting for years and finally got.
 
I have been looking at new republic coins available.

Previously, these were available.
Here is a review that compares them to the ones at Galaxy’s Edge.
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Now there appears to be some new offering. These capture some of the missing details that are found on the Galaxy’s Edge version minus the LFL logo.

These all appear to be the same coins from various sellers…



The downside to the new Etsy coins is that if you buy the two coins, it will cost you more than if you bought the full set of four at Galaxy’s Edge (Which I do have).

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