| Lo | Difficult |
| Mod | Routine |
| Hi | Simple |
Any of the following steps can be turned into an adventure:
- Find a possible cargo
- Negotiate a price
- Load the cargo
- Jump to another system
- Find a potential buyer
- Negotiate a price
- Unload the cargo
- Collect payment
Finding a possible cargo
The first step is to find a decent cargo. This system assumed that there are many possible cargos, but the players are looking for something with extraordinary profit potential. As well, regular shipments of standard items will, in settled space, probably be carried by a regular freighter with a contract (ie. a subsidized liner). Thus, what the players are picking up are the fortuitous crumbs of trade that slip between the megacorporations' fingers.
To find a potential cargo:
Notice that finding a cargo will, on average, occupy a single individual for
most of a week. If a cargo is not found, or if the players do not like the
one they do find, another attempt can be made with the usual penalties for
retrying.
If the players find a cargo, choose one from the world's trade table.
Once a cargo is found, then a price must be negotiated. While this will, in
many cases, be the lowest one possible, circumstances might warrant paying a
bit more. Possibly the players feel sorry for a real hard-luck case. Possibly
they want to cement an ongoing business arrangement. Possibly they learn that
the seller has a cousin in the starport engineering department.
Canny players will want to investigate the goods (and the seller) before
making a deal. Possibly the goods are defective, or stolen. Possibly...
To investigate the goods:
The markets for different commodities vary, to reflect this there are three
actual value tables. Most goods use the standard table. Goods with stable
markets are indicated by an "S" following their price; these goods use the
stable table. Goods with volatile markets are indicated by an "V" following
their price; these goods use the volatile table.
Rather than a task, a simple die roll is used to set a price. Roll two dice,
modify the total by all appropriate factors, and find the percentage value on
the correct actual value table. Multiply the base cost by the indicated
amount. The Bargaining skill of the players' negotiator is a negative
modifier (tends to lower cost); the Bargaining skill of the seller'
negotiator is a positive modifier (tends to increase cost).
This is relatively straightforward, unless the cargo has special requirements
or is illegal. In each case the referee must adjudicate the requirements.
Don't be afraid to use a bit of humour; after all, players who have bought
2000 live rabbits without the cages deserve everything coming to them!
One enhancement I use is to make the players pack their cargo hold. To do
this I use deck plans and cardboard templates. After a couple of days spent
loading sacks of grain (by hand - because the low-tech cargo robot kept
tearing the sacks) my players invested in a couple of standard shipping
containers.
Covered in other rules (specifically Starship Operators Manual).
Posting a notice on the starport computer net will probably find a buyer, but
a better price can be obtained with a little salesmanship.
To find a potential buyer:
Notice that selling a cargo will, on average, occupy a single individual for
most of a week. If a buyer is not found, or if the players do not like the
one they do find, another attempt can be made with the usual penalties for
retrying.
Once a buyer is found, then a price must be negotiated. While this will, in
many cases, be the highest one possible, circumstances might warrant paying a
bit more. Possibly the players feel sorry for a real hard-luck case. Possibly
they want to cement an ongoing business arrangement. Possibly they learn that
the buyer has a cousin in the starport engineering department.
Canny players will want to investigate the buyer before making a deal. Do
they always pay on time?
To investigate the buyer:
The markets for different commodities vary, to reflect this there are three
actual value tables. Most goods use the standard table. Goods with stable
markets are indicated by an "S" following their price; these goods use the
stable table. Goods with volatile markets are indicated by an "V" following
their price; these goods use the volatile table.
Rather than a task, a simple die roll is used to set a price. Roll two dice,
modify the total by all appropriate factors, and find the percentage value on
the correct actual value table. Multiply the base price by the indicated
amount. The Bargaining skill of the players' negotiator is a positive
modifier (tends to increase price); the Bargaining skill of the buyer's
negotiator is a negative modifier (tends to decrease price).
As with loading, this is relatively straightforward, unless the cargo has
special requirements or is illegal. In each case the referee must adjudicate
the requirements. Illegal cargos should certainly be role-played!
Again, this should be relatively straightforward. However, don't neglect the
fun of individual planetary currencies. Difranian marks are probably not
legal tender off-planet, so the players may be forced into buying another
speculative cargo*
The players' starship is grounded at Genese on Echiste, a water-world in
Lanth/Spinward Marches. While the engineer overhauls the jump drive, the
purser heads into town to look for a profitable cargo.
Echiste is a low population world, making this a Difficult task (11+). The
purser has Trading-3 and Streetwise-3. The referee rolls a 5 for success;
only her high skills let the purser find cargo here. The time roll is 16
(less 6 for skills) for a total of 30 hours. The purser is in a hurry,
working 10-hour days, so it will be three days before she finds a cargo.
Rather than simply rolling the dice and announcing the result, the referee
describes the startown district and general flavour of Genese , giving a
brief but vivid description of how weary the purser is trotting after leads,
visiting grungy warehouses, and so forth. The referee rolls for encounters,
and on the third day gets a street gang. Sensing an opportunity for
adventure, he improvises.
"On your way back from talking to M. LeFarge, one of seedier local sashimi
brokers, you see a scruffy man, mid-forties, ringed by leather-clad young
punks. 'Donnez moi, gramps,' snarls the leader as he swings a chain."
The purser is feeling heroic. "I pull out my deck-sweeper, fire a round into
the ground, then cover the gang. 'Another day, boys,' I smile. 'You're up
past your bedtime.' I jerk the muzzle down the passage."
The referee quickly rolls a morale check for the gang. They fail. "They glare
at you, but back away. 'Another day, midons,' growls the leader, 'another
day.' They rumble down the passage, making out like they were leaving anyway.
"Their victim breathes a sigh of relief. 'Merci beaucoup, madamoiselle, je
pense que j'ai morte.' He notices your shipsuit. 'Ah, vous etes une voyageur!
Please to excuse my manners. I am Jean-Guy Morseau, a simple coureur des
fonds waylaid while peddling my poisson-fue. I have much for to thank you;
this trip I capture deux - 'ow you say, two? But of course, I must buy you a
drink. Come, ma cousine has a little bistro' He leads you off."
The contact is made. Poisson-fue is a delicacy, live animals bringing a
premium price on Regina. And who better to teach the players how to keep one
alive than Jean-Guy?
As a minimum, every world should have a trade table. Particularly detailed
worlds can have a trade table for every country, or even for every major
city.
As always, rolling the dice is a substitute for imagination. At any time feel
free to select a result, or to make one up completely.
The universe is full of unique products. Many of these are suitable for but a
single planet, or are not worth the cost of transporting them to another
star. However, the vagaries of history and economics can lead to bizarre
situations. For example, in the 19th century laundry was shipped from
California to Hawaii, while during the Roman Empire urine (used for fulling
togas) was shipped from Spain to Italy! Part of the fun of Traveller is
devising logical explanations for apparently bizarre circumstances.
In general, larger economies will produce a greater variety of exports. This
is reflected in the table size. Note that the population is that of the
economic unit referred to by the table: thus, most cities will have smaller
table than countries. (But a big city on a high population planet will have a
larger economy - and thus a larger table - than an entire low population
world.)
The number of dice thrown for a trade table is the population number of the
planet (or country). Thus, a table for a population 1 world is numbered from
1-6, while a table for a population 4 world is numbered 4-24.
There are several ways of categorizing goods. I selected the system used in
Grand Survey, mainly because DGP included tables to determine if a particular
resource was present on a world, then expanded it to include the
MegaTraveller categories. These categories are:
Spread the categories throughout the table. Place the most common categories
in the centre (they will be rolled more frequently).
Use the following checklist to detail the specific characteristics of a trade
good.
Note: Not all goods on a resource table are equally likely. Strike a
balance between goods being common enough to be available and unusual enough
to be available to a tramp trader.
Costs and prices should be given in terms of lots.
Lot volumes should be in cubic metres/kilolitres, but the increments should
fit into standard shipping containers. (25kL and 50kL seem reasonable -
roughly 2 and 4 displacement tons.)
I think I'll use kilolitres, just because you can write "kL" in ASCII, while
without superscripting "m3" looks a bit odd.
Although I'm still working on converting my current table to ASCII, I'll
describe the format here. Each item is actually a column on the table:
Good Type: A nice generic type of good. For example, grain, rice, manoc,
potatos and corn are all "bulk carbohydrate".
Lot Number: Expressed as a dice throw for the trade table. Eg. "4D".
Lot Size: Given as a number or a formula - must be resolved into a number for
the trade table. Eg. "1D x 50".
Base Price: This is given in credits per kilolitre, because the lot size may
change. Must be multiplied by lot size for trade table.
Purchase DMs: As given in the Book 2 system. Could also expand to include
other world trade codes, starport types, etc.
Resale DMs: As per Book 2.
Handling: A list of handling requirements and probabilities (from MT), to be
rolled and determined when the table is being created. Eg. "Fla 6+, Exp 4+".
So, as an example, an entry might be:
Lets say that this is a good found on an agricultural world. The referee
copies the good type to the trade table.
He then rolls for the lot size, getting 4 x 50 = 200 kL as the base lot size
(8 displacement tons). He copies the number and lot size to the trade table:
5D x 200 is the lot entry on the trade table (indicating 5D worth of 200 kL
lots).
He rolls for price and gets a 10. Looking up 8 (10 - 2) on the actual value
table yields 110%, so the lots cost 200kL x 110% x 20Cr = 4800Cr each ==>
this is the base cost.
Looking up 10 on the actual value table yields 130%, so the lots will sell
for an avergae of 200kL x 130% x 20Cr = 5200Cr each ==> this is the base
price.
He copies the resale DMs directly to the trade table.
He then rolls 2D for each of the handling codes, getting 7 and 2
respectively. This good is flamable but not explosive. (How can bulk
carbohydrate explode? Ever see a grain silo blow up?)
His 5-year-old neice comes up with the name "purple gumroot".
So, the final entry for the trade table is:
Referee: Several characters can pool their efforts. Use the highest skill in
each category for the success roll, but total all skills for the time roll.
(The extra help means several leads can be followed up simultaneously.)
Negotiating a price
Routine. Admin/Legal, appropriate skill. 15 minutes. (uncertain)
Referee: An appropriate skill is one that relates to the goods being bought.
Gravitics for grav modules, Prospecting for ores, and so on.
Actual Value Tables
Stable Standard Volatile Roll Value Roll Value Roll Value 2 75% 2 40% 2 10% 3 80% 3 50% 3 20% 4 85% 4 70% 4 40% 5 90% 5 80% 5 60% 6 95% 6 90% 6 80% 7 100% 7 100% 7 100% 8 105% 8 110% 8 120% 9 110% 9 120% 9 140% 10 115% 10 130% 10 160% 11 120% 11 150% 11 200% 12 125% 12 170% 12 300% 13 130% 13 200% 13 400% 14 140% 14 300% 14 600% 15 150% 15 400% 15 800% Loading the cargo
Jumping to another system
Finding a potential buyer
Referee: Several characters can pool their efforts. Use the highest skill in
each category for the success roll, but total all skills for the time roll.
(The extra help means several leads can be followed up simultaneously.)
Negotiating a price
Routine. Admin/Legal, Streetwise. 15 minutes. (uncertain)
Unloading the cargo
Collecting the payment
Example Trading Session
Creating a Trade Table
Good Type Number Size Base Price Purchase DMs Resale DMs Handling Bulk Carbohydrate 5D 1D x 50 20 A-2, Na+1, I+2 A-2 Fla 6+, Exp 4+
Purple Gumroot (bulk carbohydrate) 4800Cr/5200Cr A-2 Fla 5D x 200
Joseph Heck
(joe@mu.org)
21 August 2000
http://traveller.mu.org/house/trade.html