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Session: Traveller Core Rulebook Update 2022:: Solo Traveller - The Raven's Call: Session 18 - This, My Friends, is a Deathbot! Maitz Outbound, 054 to 058-1105
Posted: Sun, 05 Apr 00:46:31
Next Session: -
Character Sheets & Setting: Game Info. Character sheets, game info, supplements, & solo tools.
Mythic Scene Expectation: The crew make final arrangements and leave Maitz for their next destination. While outbound from Maitz, Ash unpacks the cargo container of exotic robotics.
Chaos Factor: 5
Scene Type: Not testing. I've had enough distractions for now.
Location & time: Maitz and outbound to Meleto, Spinward Main. 054 to 058-1105
Ship Credits: 812,804 Cr
[hr]Action
Ash and Failsafe arrange cargo, freight, and passengers through the online brokerage network while Monarch and Vertigo see to resupplying the ship and Fixer, nursing a mighty hangover, gets his new bunkmate settled in. (1)
Despite being a class A starport, it's slim pickings on Maitz. They take a ton of gold and platinum for what seems like a good price, then all the spare freight they can get. The X-Boat service has one mail packet that's ready to go, so they take that too. They still have almost 70 tons capacity left and debate buying some petrochemicals, but the risk is high and the likely profits too low. At this point, everyone would rather just get the frak off this frozen rock and good riddance to it! They leave under capacity.
"I wonder how Fixer feels about bunking with Tolari?" Ash wonders out loud.
Failsafe chuckles. "Who frakking cares? Serves the drunk grell right for landing this mess in our laps."
Maitz clears them to depart without delay. There's some hesitation at the anomaly, but once again they have freight and passengers to worry about, so Failsafe gives it a wide berth. By 4 in the afternoon, they reach the jump point, fire up the j-drive and begin the jump to Meleto. (2)
[hr]By mid jump, Pancake has the container of exotics open and robotics parts strewn everywhere. She roped Fixer into helping because she needs the muscle and he's tired of losing money at cards to Tolari, who's been given the callsign "Gambler". He also can't bear to think of his friend working here alone. Every time he does, he sees her lying on the cargo bay floor, broken and bleeding in her battered vacc suit after being pancaked by that damn container.
Fixer shakes his head to clear the memory. She's ok now, elbow deep in packing material as she works to free something that's hidden deep inside the container.
"Don't just stand there, help me!" Pancake says. "You're here for your muscle, not to watch me as I work."
Fixer dives in. He can't see much at first, apart from it being large, yellow, and somewhat battered. "Hey, Ash" he says, forgetting to use her callsign - most of the crew alternate between Ash and Pancake - "I thought your scans said this stuff was all high-tech prototypes, advanced beyond even Mora's TL15 robotics. But this looks like old junk. So, why'd they pack it so carefully?"
Ash shakes her head, and just keeps working to free the large, battered, yellow object from the extensive packing material. Soon they have it clear and out on the deck. (4)
"My, aren't you a long way from home." Voice shaking with emotion, Ash hits the comm. "Everyone, cargo bay. NOW!" Then, with one trembling hand she reaches out and touches the ancient robot.
The crew race in, faces anxious. Monarch has a medikit in one hand, Gambler an engineer's toolbox and emergency bulkhead patches. They all stop short, staring at the battered yellow monstrosity that dominates the cargo bay.
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"What the frak is that?" Monarch asks for all of them, her uncharacteristic use of colourful language going unnoticed.
"This, my friends, is a Deathbot. A priceless artifact from the Sindalian Empire, it's nearly 3000 years old. I've read about them but didn't know any still survived intact. That container must have belonged to a wealthy collector. They were both threat and status symbol back then. Look, twin laser carbines, and there's meant to be a concealed plasma gun, but it'd be a miracle if it's still present. They were incredibly high tech, and the design is nothing like what we have today. That's probably why the sensor readings looked so off."
"I take back everything bad I said about you" Fixer says lovingly. "We have to keep it! Rare you say? We'll put it on the bridge, we'll be the only ship in the sector with a Deathbot! Oh, oh, what if it still works? Ash, Ash, can you fix it? Please?"
Failsafe, ever the Advocate, says "Sindalian Empire? That was back in the Long Night, in the Sindal Sector. Long way from here. But if this is as rare and valuable as you say, then the first thing we need to do is claim salvage rights. I should have done that on Maitz, but we got distracted" - she throws a hard stare at Gambler - "and left in a hurry. I'll get the paperwork ready." (5)
Monarch looks uneasy. "Are you sure we want a Deathbot on the ship? I've read about these. Among other things they used them to assassinate nobles and their families, to inspire loyalty."
Ash reassures her. "Monarch, it'll be fine. It's thousands of years old. There's no way it still works. It's not like it's going to wake up and murder everyone on the ship."
Vertigo laughs, a little uneasily. "Frak me, Ash. You know we were all thinking it. Why'd you have to say it out loud? Now we're all grelled!" (6)
Nobody notices the small dark shadow that slinks from the robotics container and disappears through the open hatchway.
[hr]Mechanics
1: First, trade. It's DM-2 to find a new supplier, which Ash fails to do. They can only buy from the supplier they found yesterday. 1dT precious metals@42.5kCr/dT. There's not much else for sale they want to chance.
Freight for Meleto: 70dT major, 25 minor, 31 incidental. 1 parcel of mail.
Still 68 tons space left. Meleto is low pop, low tech, non-industrial. No cargo available is worth the risk though.
Failsafe & Ash find just 3 passengers for Meleto.
2: Failsafe astrogation, success, effect 8. Chain bonus 3. Tolari jump check: exceptional success.
3: Mythic: does anything happen during the jump? yes. I'll try meaning tables and fall back on random event tables.
Action: energise tactic
Starship descriptor: large work
Immediately I'm thinking of the 15 tons of exotic prototype robotics that Ash "Pancake" Kobayashi planned to spend her time studying. That's the "large work" and now something happens…
4: This thing is so old that it's actually a Science (history) check for Ash to immediately recognise it. It's an easy check, because for people in the field, these things are infamous. Ash succeeds with effect 3.
5: The TAS Journal 5 has a section on salvage rights, but it all pertains to salvaged ships. I'll assume something similar applies to lost cargo.
6: I'm just realising that Vertigo is superstitious.
[hr]Mythic Bookkeeping
- Chaos stays at 5.
- Final credits balance is 789,804Cr
- Closing thread "what's in the recovered cargo container?"
- Opening threads "Claim salvage rights on the cargo container", "We've got a Deathbot now" and "What was the small dark shadow thing?"
- Advancing to the end of jump. In the next scene, the ship arrives at the Meleto jump point.
- The Sindalian Deathbot is from Robot Handbook. I picked it while scrolling through that book trying to work out what fun items might be in a cargo container of exotic prototype robotics, and ended up thinking that something alien and ancient would be fun.
Posted: Sun, 05 Apr 00:46:31
by JugglinDan
Last Session: -Next Session: -
Character Sheets & Setting: Game Info. Character sheets, game info, supplements, & solo tools.
Mythic Scene Expectation: The crew make final arrangements and leave Maitz for their next destination. While outbound from Maitz, Ash unpacks the cargo container of exotic robotics.
Chaos Factor: 5
Scene Type: Not testing. I've had enough distractions for now.
Location & time: Maitz and outbound to Meleto, Spinward Main. 054 to 058-1105
Ship Credits: 812,804 Cr
[hr]Action
Ash and Failsafe arrange cargo, freight, and passengers through the online brokerage network while Monarch and Vertigo see to resupplying the ship and Fixer, nursing a mighty hangover, gets his new bunkmate settled in. (1)
Despite being a class A starport, it's slim pickings on Maitz. They take a ton of gold and platinum for what seems like a good price, then all the spare freight they can get. The X-Boat service has one mail packet that's ready to go, so they take that too. They still have almost 70 tons capacity left and debate buying some petrochemicals, but the risk is high and the likely profits too low. At this point, everyone would rather just get the frak off this frozen rock and good riddance to it! They leave under capacity.
"I wonder how Fixer feels about bunking with Tolari?" Ash wonders out loud.
Failsafe chuckles. "Who frakking cares? Serves the drunk grell right for landing this mess in our laps."
Maitz clears them to depart without delay. There's some hesitation at the anomaly, but once again they have freight and passengers to worry about, so Failsafe gives it a wide berth. By 4 in the afternoon, they reach the jump point, fire up the j-drive and begin the jump to Meleto. (2)
[hr]By mid jump, Pancake has the container of exotics open and robotics parts strewn everywhere. She roped Fixer into helping because she needs the muscle and he's tired of losing money at cards to Tolari, who's been given the callsign "Gambler". He also can't bear to think of his friend working here alone. Every time he does, he sees her lying on the cargo bay floor, broken and bleeding in her battered vacc suit after being pancaked by that damn container.
Fixer shakes his head to clear the memory. She's ok now, elbow deep in packing material as she works to free something that's hidden deep inside the container.
"Don't just stand there, help me!" Pancake says. "You're here for your muscle, not to watch me as I work."
Fixer dives in. He can't see much at first, apart from it being large, yellow, and somewhat battered. "Hey, Ash" he says, forgetting to use her callsign - most of the crew alternate between Ash and Pancake - "I thought your scans said this stuff was all high-tech prototypes, advanced beyond even Mora's TL15 robotics. But this looks like old junk. So, why'd they pack it so carefully?"
Ash shakes her head, and just keeps working to free the large, battered, yellow object from the extensive packing material. Soon they have it clear and out on the deck. (4)
"My, aren't you a long way from home." Voice shaking with emotion, Ash hits the comm. "Everyone, cargo bay. NOW!" Then, with one trembling hand she reaches out and touches the ancient robot.
The crew race in, faces anxious. Monarch has a medikit in one hand, Gambler an engineer's toolbox and emergency bulkhead patches. They all stop short, staring at the battered yellow monstrosity that dominates the cargo bay.
"This, my friends, is a Deathbot. A priceless artifact from the Sindalian Empire, it's nearly 3000 years old. I've read about them but didn't know any still survived intact. That container must have belonged to a wealthy collector. They were both threat and status symbol back then. Look, twin laser carbines, and there's meant to be a concealed plasma gun, but it'd be a miracle if it's still present. They were incredibly high tech, and the design is nothing like what we have today. That's probably why the sensor readings looked so off."
"I take back everything bad I said about you" Fixer says lovingly. "We have to keep it! Rare you say? We'll put it on the bridge, we'll be the only ship in the sector with a Deathbot! Oh, oh, what if it still works? Ash, Ash, can you fix it? Please?"
Failsafe, ever the Advocate, says "Sindalian Empire? That was back in the Long Night, in the Sindal Sector. Long way from here. But if this is as rare and valuable as you say, then the first thing we need to do is claim salvage rights. I should have done that on Maitz, but we got distracted" - she throws a hard stare at Gambler - "and left in a hurry. I'll get the paperwork ready." (5)
Monarch looks uneasy. "Are you sure we want a Deathbot on the ship? I've read about these. Among other things they used them to assassinate nobles and their families, to inspire loyalty."
Ash reassures her. "Monarch, it'll be fine. It's thousands of years old. There's no way it still works. It's not like it's going to wake up and murder everyone on the ship."
Vertigo laughs, a little uneasily. "Frak me, Ash. You know we were all thinking it. Why'd you have to say it out loud? Now we're all grelled!" (6)
Nobody notices the small dark shadow that slinks from the robotics container and disappears through the open hatchway.
[hr]Mechanics
1: First, trade. It's DM-2 to find a new supplier, which Ash fails to do. They can only buy from the supplier they found yesterday. 1dT precious metals@42.5kCr/dT. There's not much else for sale they want to chance.
Freight for Meleto: 70dT major, 25 minor, 31 incidental. 1 parcel of mail.
Still 68 tons space left. Meleto is low pop, low tech, non-industrial. No cargo available is worth the risk though.
Failsafe & Ash find just 3 passengers for Meleto.
2: Failsafe astrogation, success, effect 8. Chain bonus 3. Tolari jump check: exceptional success.
3: Mythic: does anything happen during the jump? yes. I'll try meaning tables and fall back on random event tables.
Action: energise tactic
Starship descriptor: large work
Immediately I'm thinking of the 15 tons of exotic prototype robotics that Ash "Pancake" Kobayashi planned to spend her time studying. That's the "large work" and now something happens…
4: This thing is so old that it's actually a Science (history) check for Ash to immediately recognise it. It's an easy check, because for people in the field, these things are infamous. Ash succeeds with effect 3.
5: The TAS Journal 5 has a section on salvage rights, but it all pertains to salvaged ships. I'll assume something similar applies to lost cargo.
6: I'm just realising that Vertigo is superstitious.
[hr]Mythic Bookkeeping
- Chaos stays at 5.
- Final credits balance is 789,804Cr
- Closing thread "what's in the recovered cargo container?"
- Opening threads "Claim salvage rights on the cargo container", "We've got a Deathbot now" and "What was the small dark shadow thing?"
- Advancing to the end of jump. In the next scene, the ship arrives at the Meleto jump point.
- The Sindalian Deathbot is from Robot Handbook. I picked it while scrolling through that book trying to work out what fun items might be in a cargo container of exotic prototype robotics, and ended up thinking that something alien and ancient would be fun.
Session: Traveller Core Rulebook Update 2022:: Solo Traveller - The Raven's Call: Session 17 - Confrontation in the TAS, Maitz, 053-1105
Posted: Sun, 05 Apr 00:46:27
Next Session: -
Character Sheets & Setting: Game Info. Character sheets, game info, supplements, & solo tools.
Mythic Scene Expectation: The Raven's crew and Ulan Tolari confront the squad of Stellar Construction Corpsec that have stormed the TAS lounge to apprehend Tolari.
Chaos Factor: 5
Scene Type: Altered. Increase an activity! Things threaten to spiral out of control.
Location & time: TAS Lounge, Maitz. 1:30pm, 053-1105
Ship Credits: 823,804Cr
[hr]Action
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"Ulan Tolari, come with us. Off-worlders, stand aside or get hurt. This doesn't have to be your problem, but it can be if you want."
The guard steps forward, confident in the squad at their back, hand reaching for the stunner on their belt.
Fixer stands, knocking over his beer as he reaches for the bespoke cutlass at his hip. "Tolari's my friend" he says, swaying. "And I say -" (1)
Vertigo puts a firm hand on Fixer's shoulder and pushes the big man back into his chair. "Sit down! There's nothing we can do here."
As the corpsec guards lead Tolari away, Vertigo gives him the tiniest of nods as if to say, "sit tight, we'll do what we can".
Once the guards have cleared out, the sober members of crew discuss what to do while Fixer grumbles into his beer about how he could have taken them all. It doesn't take long for them to agree that they don't know enough, and that a diplomatic solution would be their best option.
"Ultimately" Monarch says, "this whole installation is owned and run by Stellar Construction. They are the law. A legal approach won't cut it. I say we talk to them, find out what they want, and see if we can make a deal."
"Sounds good" replies Vertigo. "Knowing what they want Tolari for will help. Can't go in cold. So, step one - learn all we can. Step two - talk to the execs. Maybe one of the passengers we brought here could be a way in."
"Yeah, and step zero is to get this grell-headed piss fountain sobered up" Pancake says with a grin. (2)
After they dump Fixer in his bunk to sleep it off, the remaining crew get to work. Ash scours the computer networks for information while Vertigo pretends to fall asleep. In reality, he's scanning Tolari's thoughts before the engineer can get too far out of range. Any clue will help, and there it is, as plain as day. Gambling debts to one of the big shot execs in Stellar Construction. 12,000 credits, and Tolari can't pay. How the hell did he lose that much overnight? Rigged game but can't prove it, or so Tolari thinks. Doesn't matter, it's enough. Vertigo opens his eyes and whispers the info to the others.
"I can use that" replies Monarch, "but I'll need funds from the ship's account. I don't see another way."
Pancake paces anxiously in the TAS lounge for several hours until finally Monarch, Vertigo, and Failsafe return, a pale Ulan Tolari in tow. The engineer is visibly relieved but shaken, and a heavy bruise is forming over his left eye. He's stammering that he's got no way to repay his debt, that he's been fired from his job, and he's flat broke.
Monarch looks at her friends and they nod their agreement. Tolari's a good man, though apparently a bad gambler. "Come fly with us! Work off your debt on an engineer's salary. You can double bunk with Fixer."
Pancake grins, surprised at how happy she'll be to get out of engineering for a while. "This'll be great! I'll have time to study those robotics we found out near Grille" she exclaims.
[hr]Mechanics
1: Usually, PCs wouldn't roll to make actions against other PCs, but in a solo game, sometimes I find it's the thing to do. Fixer's drunk and a blade master, but I know his friends realise this is not a fight they can win, nor is it a fight they should even start.
Vertigo makes a Persuade roll to convince Fixer to calm down: exceptional success, effect 7!
2: I want to get on with the journey again rather than getting bogged down in this dilemma, so I'm going to use the Scene Resolution approach from SOLO Second Edition. It's a solid plan, which is the middle ground. I don't have enough info to choose otherwise. It's also a safe plan since the crew are going to help, but they are not going all in. If things turn sideways, they'll back down and leave Tolari to his fate. They get +3 from at least 3 characters helping, and no penalty from Fixer because they are dumping him in his room to sleep it off. Having an exec contact from their passenger list doesn't count as an asset since those passengers didn't socialise with the crew at all.
The roll: 2d6+3, 8+ needed: 12 - they succeed.
Consequences roll, 1d6+6 since it's a safe plan: 12 - there's a sudden twist in the story. Tolari can no longer stay on Maitz. Since he's broke, he signs on to work on the Raven's Call until he can get back on his feet. This is the second option from the A/B setup in the last scene. I end up with both A & B after all. 12,000Cr would mean he'll be working for 3 or 4 months to repay his debt. I don't actually want him around that long. Maybe I'll give him a red shirt or find some other way to offload him sooner.
[hr]Mythic Bookkeeping
- Closing thread "incident on Maitz".
- Dropping chaos to 5.
- Adding Tolari to crew in the engineering role.
- Deducting 12,000Cr from ship account.
Posted: Sun, 05 Apr 00:46:27
by JugglinDan
Last Session: -Next Session: -
Character Sheets & Setting: Game Info. Character sheets, game info, supplements, & solo tools.
Mythic Scene Expectation: The Raven's crew and Ulan Tolari confront the squad of Stellar Construction Corpsec that have stormed the TAS lounge to apprehend Tolari.
Chaos Factor: 5
Scene Type: Altered. Increase an activity! Things threaten to spiral out of control.
Location & time: TAS Lounge, Maitz. 1:30pm, 053-1105
Ship Credits: 823,804Cr
[hr]Action
The guard steps forward, confident in the squad at their back, hand reaching for the stunner on their belt.
Fixer stands, knocking over his beer as he reaches for the bespoke cutlass at his hip. "Tolari's my friend" he says, swaying. "And I say -" (1)
Vertigo puts a firm hand on Fixer's shoulder and pushes the big man back into his chair. "Sit down! There's nothing we can do here."
As the corpsec guards lead Tolari away, Vertigo gives him the tiniest of nods as if to say, "sit tight, we'll do what we can".
Once the guards have cleared out, the sober members of crew discuss what to do while Fixer grumbles into his beer about how he could have taken them all. It doesn't take long for them to agree that they don't know enough, and that a diplomatic solution would be their best option.
"Ultimately" Monarch says, "this whole installation is owned and run by Stellar Construction. They are the law. A legal approach won't cut it. I say we talk to them, find out what they want, and see if we can make a deal."
"Sounds good" replies Vertigo. "Knowing what they want Tolari for will help. Can't go in cold. So, step one - learn all we can. Step two - talk to the execs. Maybe one of the passengers we brought here could be a way in."
"Yeah, and step zero is to get this grell-headed piss fountain sobered up" Pancake says with a grin. (2)
After they dump Fixer in his bunk to sleep it off, the remaining crew get to work. Ash scours the computer networks for information while Vertigo pretends to fall asleep. In reality, he's scanning Tolari's thoughts before the engineer can get too far out of range. Any clue will help, and there it is, as plain as day. Gambling debts to one of the big shot execs in Stellar Construction. 12,000 credits, and Tolari can't pay. How the hell did he lose that much overnight? Rigged game but can't prove it, or so Tolari thinks. Doesn't matter, it's enough. Vertigo opens his eyes and whispers the info to the others.
"I can use that" replies Monarch, "but I'll need funds from the ship's account. I don't see another way."
Pancake paces anxiously in the TAS lounge for several hours until finally Monarch, Vertigo, and Failsafe return, a pale Ulan Tolari in tow. The engineer is visibly relieved but shaken, and a heavy bruise is forming over his left eye. He's stammering that he's got no way to repay his debt, that he's been fired from his job, and he's flat broke.
Monarch looks at her friends and they nod their agreement. Tolari's a good man, though apparently a bad gambler. "Come fly with us! Work off your debt on an engineer's salary. You can double bunk with Fixer."
Pancake grins, surprised at how happy she'll be to get out of engineering for a while. "This'll be great! I'll have time to study those robotics we found out near Grille" she exclaims.
[hr]Mechanics
1: Usually, PCs wouldn't roll to make actions against other PCs, but in a solo game, sometimes I find it's the thing to do. Fixer's drunk and a blade master, but I know his friends realise this is not a fight they can win, nor is it a fight they should even start.
Vertigo makes a Persuade roll to convince Fixer to calm down: exceptional success, effect 7!
2: I want to get on with the journey again rather than getting bogged down in this dilemma, so I'm going to use the Scene Resolution approach from SOLO Second Edition. It's a solid plan, which is the middle ground. I don't have enough info to choose otherwise. It's also a safe plan since the crew are going to help, but they are not going all in. If things turn sideways, they'll back down and leave Tolari to his fate. They get +3 from at least 3 characters helping, and no penalty from Fixer because they are dumping him in his room to sleep it off. Having an exec contact from their passenger list doesn't count as an asset since those passengers didn't socialise with the crew at all.
The roll: 2d6+3, 8+ needed: 12 - they succeed.
Consequences roll, 1d6+6 since it's a safe plan: 12 - there's a sudden twist in the story. Tolari can no longer stay on Maitz. Since he's broke, he signs on to work on the Raven's Call until he can get back on his feet. This is the second option from the A/B setup in the last scene. I end up with both A & B after all. 12,000Cr would mean he'll be working for 3 or 4 months to repay his debt. I don't actually want him around that long. Maybe I'll give him a red shirt or find some other way to offload him sooner.
[hr]Mythic Bookkeeping
- Closing thread "incident on Maitz".
- Dropping chaos to 5.
- Adding Tolari to crew in the engineering role.
- Deducting 12,000Cr from ship account.
Session: Traveller Core Rulebook Update 2022:: Solo Traveller - The Raven's Call: Session 16 - It's the Grelling Margins that Bite! Maitz, 053-1105
Posted: Sun, 05 Apr 00:46:16
Next Session: -
Character Sheets & Setting: Game Info. Character sheets, game info, supplements, & solo tools.
Mythic Scene Expectation: The crew attempt to sell their trade goods for a profit.
Chaos Factor: 4
Scene Type: Interrupt, PC Negative. I've got an idea, but it's on hold until after trading is done because I'm the GM and I can do that
Location & time: The Stellar Construction port on Maitz, Spinward Main. 053-1105.
Ship Credits: 236,404Cr
[hr]Action
The next morning Ash and Failsafe get to work, jacking into the trading network with Ash's tablet from the TAS lounge. Ash finds a buyer and Failsafe negotiates. They'll offer a decent price for the fresh consumables, almost getting their money back even after dumping 30% of the shipment, but it's still nearly 40,000Cr less than they would have earned for hauling freight. Even worse, the buyer just got a load of electronics and industrial parts yesterday and their offer is terrible on those. They'll bleed credits if they make that deal. They sell the consumables and decide never to trade in them again. Too much cargo space for too little margin.
Failsafe holds her head in her hands and groans. "It's the grelling margins that bite! What will we make compared to freight? Dense, high-value stuff is the shot..."
Although it's only mid-morning, Fixer and Vertigo have long since gotten bored and wandered off. Ash takes a drink of water, stretches her shoulders and says "that makes sense. In a nutshell, we don't buy anything that's worth less than the equivalent displacement tonnage of freight, and we target demand in the next few systems we're visiting. Right, let's find another buyer then."
Failsafe smiles. "Not quite. High value items are better because they don't displace so much freight, but it's the margin that matters. We need to make sure the profit is better than what we would have made carrying the same volume of freight. It's not enough just to compare the upfront cost of the cargo, or even whether we make a profit on the price we paid. We could buy 100 dT of rocks for 1Cr, sell em for 10,000Cr and make a huge profit, but we'd lose because 100 tons of freight would have paid a lot more."
Ash nods her understanding, then gets to work. It's midday by the time she hands the tablet computer to Failsafe. "Your turn. Get a good price for our rocks, ok?" (2)
Failsafe starts haggling, mumbling as she's making the deal... "220,000Cr for machine parts, 70kCr clear, freight would be 32k. Electronics... 7dT for 147kCr, paid 119kCr, 28kCr clear, almost triple going rate for freight..." Finally, she looks up, beaming. "It's our best trip yet for revenue. We've brought in 652kCr, refuelled for free at Grille, bought unrefined fuel here to process onboard, and hauled in that container of exotics that pancaked our dear Ashley."
Failsafe's broad smile fades. "But don't celebrate. We lost so much on those goram vegetables that we'd still have been better off just hauling freight. Only 6000Cr better off, so if we hadn't refunded Tolari …"
"I don't know" Monarch replies, trying to see the upside. "Think of all we learned. That's going to be worth a lot -"
Before she can say more, Fixer staggers in. He's as drunk as a sailor, tailed by a chagrined Vertigo and an almost equally drunk Ulan Tolari. He pulls up a chair and orders drinks all round. (3)
"Man, I love a place where a man can walk around with his sword! You know what I mean, Tolari?"
Ulan Tolari doesn't answer. He's staring at the dust cloud where the door to the TAS lounge used to be. It's been replaced by five angry Stellar Construction Corpsec officers, all swagger and tactical weaponry, standing in the shattered doorway like they own the place.
"Ulan Tolari, come with us. Off-worlders, stand aside or get hurt. This doesn't have to be your problem, but it can be if you want." The commander's grin says that he really hopes the off-worlders will get in his way.
[hr]Mechanics
1: Ash finds a buyer online: success. Failsafe negotiates: success. Trade rolls … ugh!
2: Ash looks for another buyer. There's a DM-1 to this roll but she succeeds. Making the trade rolls … so many trade rolls … jackpot!
3: The interruption! Fixer has been getting into trouble, but nothing serious. It's Tolari. The A/B scenario is that A: Tolari has gotten into trouble with Stellar Construction and needs to get off world fast, or B: he got a taste for adventure and spurred on by Fixer, he's quit his job. Drunk as he is, Fixer has offered him a job on the Raven's Call without talking to the other crew. That's why Vertigo looks embarrassed - he didn't stop Fixer in time. Time to ask Mythic, is it A? A no result means it's B. 50/50 odds.
Mythic says it's option A, exceptional yes!
Since Tolari seemed to be steady and reliable, I think he's stumbled onto something rather than Tolari being a criminal. Perhaps it's related to the silent Stellar Construction execs that travelled on the Raven's Call, or to the anomaly they found before docking. Not sure yet, but with the exceptional result, I think that 1d6 corporate security guards bust through the door right now!
[hr]Mythic Bookkeeping
- Ship's credits are now 823,804Cr, not bad given the scene started at 236,404Cr. This 2-parsec trip brought in 652kCr overall, but some of that was paid in advance by passengers, some has been spent already for fuel and berthing fees, and some was refunded to Tolari since he worked on the trip.
- Adding "Resolve the incident with Ulan Tolari on Maitz" to threads list.
- With that ending, chaos goes up!
- Also, I'm not sure that either myself or the crew of the Raven's Call understand speculative trading yet, but we're getting there
Posted: Sun, 05 Apr 00:46:16
by JugglinDan
Last Session: -Next Session: -
Character Sheets & Setting: Game Info. Character sheets, game info, supplements, & solo tools.
Mythic Scene Expectation: The crew attempt to sell their trade goods for a profit.
Chaos Factor: 4
Scene Type: Interrupt, PC Negative. I've got an idea, but it's on hold until after trading is done because I'm the GM and I can do that
Location & time: The Stellar Construction port on Maitz, Spinward Main. 053-1105.
Ship Credits: 236,404Cr
[hr]Action
The next morning Ash and Failsafe get to work, jacking into the trading network with Ash's tablet from the TAS lounge. Ash finds a buyer and Failsafe negotiates. They'll offer a decent price for the fresh consumables, almost getting their money back even after dumping 30% of the shipment, but it's still nearly 40,000Cr less than they would have earned for hauling freight. Even worse, the buyer just got a load of electronics and industrial parts yesterday and their offer is terrible on those. They'll bleed credits if they make that deal. They sell the consumables and decide never to trade in them again. Too much cargo space for too little margin.
Failsafe holds her head in her hands and groans. "It's the grelling margins that bite! What will we make compared to freight? Dense, high-value stuff is the shot..."
Although it's only mid-morning, Fixer and Vertigo have long since gotten bored and wandered off. Ash takes a drink of water, stretches her shoulders and says "that makes sense. In a nutshell, we don't buy anything that's worth less than the equivalent displacement tonnage of freight, and we target demand in the next few systems we're visiting. Right, let's find another buyer then."
Failsafe smiles. "Not quite. High value items are better because they don't displace so much freight, but it's the margin that matters. We need to make sure the profit is better than what we would have made carrying the same volume of freight. It's not enough just to compare the upfront cost of the cargo, or even whether we make a profit on the price we paid. We could buy 100 dT of rocks for 1Cr, sell em for 10,000Cr and make a huge profit, but we'd lose because 100 tons of freight would have paid a lot more."
Ash nods her understanding, then gets to work. It's midday by the time she hands the tablet computer to Failsafe. "Your turn. Get a good price for our rocks, ok?" (2)
Failsafe starts haggling, mumbling as she's making the deal... "220,000Cr for machine parts, 70kCr clear, freight would be 32k. Electronics... 7dT for 147kCr, paid 119kCr, 28kCr clear, almost triple going rate for freight..." Finally, she looks up, beaming. "It's our best trip yet for revenue. We've brought in 652kCr, refuelled for free at Grille, bought unrefined fuel here to process onboard, and hauled in that container of exotics that pancaked our dear Ashley."
Failsafe's broad smile fades. "But don't celebrate. We lost so much on those goram vegetables that we'd still have been better off just hauling freight. Only 6000Cr better off, so if we hadn't refunded Tolari …"
"I don't know" Monarch replies, trying to see the upside. "Think of all we learned. That's going to be worth a lot -"
Before she can say more, Fixer staggers in. He's as drunk as a sailor, tailed by a chagrined Vertigo and an almost equally drunk Ulan Tolari. He pulls up a chair and orders drinks all round. (3)
"Man, I love a place where a man can walk around with his sword! You know what I mean, Tolari?"
Ulan Tolari doesn't answer. He's staring at the dust cloud where the door to the TAS lounge used to be. It's been replaced by five angry Stellar Construction Corpsec officers, all swagger and tactical weaponry, standing in the shattered doorway like they own the place.
"Ulan Tolari, come with us. Off-worlders, stand aside or get hurt. This doesn't have to be your problem, but it can be if you want." The commander's grin says that he really hopes the off-worlders will get in his way.
[hr]Mechanics
1: Ash finds a buyer online: success. Failsafe negotiates: success. Trade rolls … ugh!
2: Ash looks for another buyer. There's a DM-1 to this roll but she succeeds. Making the trade rolls … so many trade rolls … jackpot!
3: The interruption! Fixer has been getting into trouble, but nothing serious. It's Tolari. The A/B scenario is that A: Tolari has gotten into trouble with Stellar Construction and needs to get off world fast, or B: he got a taste for adventure and spurred on by Fixer, he's quit his job. Drunk as he is, Fixer has offered him a job on the Raven's Call without talking to the other crew. That's why Vertigo looks embarrassed - he didn't stop Fixer in time. Time to ask Mythic, is it A? A no result means it's B. 50/50 odds.
Mythic says it's option A, exceptional yes!
Since Tolari seemed to be steady and reliable, I think he's stumbled onto something rather than Tolari being a criminal. Perhaps it's related to the silent Stellar Construction execs that travelled on the Raven's Call, or to the anomaly they found before docking. Not sure yet, but with the exceptional result, I think that 1d6 corporate security guards bust through the door right now!
[hr]Mythic Bookkeeping
- Ship's credits are now 823,804Cr, not bad given the scene started at 236,404Cr. This 2-parsec trip brought in 652kCr overall, but some of that was paid in advance by passengers, some has been spent already for fuel and berthing fees, and some was refunded to Tolari since he worked on the trip.
- Adding "Resolve the incident with Ulan Tolari on Maitz" to threads list.
- With that ending, chaos goes up!
- Also, I'm not sure that either myself or the crew of the Raven's Call understand speculative trading yet, but we're getting there
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Andrew Mayer
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A new rpg production staff has been added to the database:
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Posted: Sun, 05 Apr 00:26:27
Posted: Sun, 05 Apr 00:26:27
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