Brokers

[Sigtrygg]

<edit- I am editing this post to make it more like the final version I have always imagined>

I wrote it for CT so it will take a bit of conversion to modern Mongoose standards, but here it is in its original form:

April 2006 CotI

A factor is an individual who represents a megacorporation or noble house in everything from negotiation and brokerage to industrial espionage. He is a hands-on troubleshooter, trade negotiator, and business agent.

These are the people who travel the worlds of a subsector, learning the intricacies of the economies of each world, and studying what the markets have to offer.

They are the people who act with the authority of their patron, directing trade, deploying resources, all to the profit of their employer.
They are the people who sanction trade wars, industrial espionage, even small scale wars, in order to advance their patron's interests.
They are troubleshooters, merchants, diplomats...
and they all have to start out somewhere.

The factor career is a bit more "romantic" than a typical merchant or functionary, if that's the right word. More adventurous, more of a risk taker.
They are the people on the ground representing the megacorporations and noble houses. Having proven themselves trustworthy and able they have great authority to direct the resources of their patron - including the secret agencies.

A successful factor may well end up with their own megacorporation directorship, a patent of nobility, or even their own pocket empire.

Enlistment 8+
DM of +1 if End 7+
DM of +2 if Int 8+
Draft 6 (may be entered as part of the Other career)

Survival 5+
DM of +2 if End 7+

Commission 8+
DM of +1 if Intel 8+

Promotion - while a factor may become commissioned there is no rank structure, without a commission the character is an agent of <patron>

Reenlist 5+

Service Skills:
automatic streetwise 1
automatic admin 1
broker 1 upon receipt of a commission

Die roll	Personal Development	Service Skills	Advanced Education Table	Advanced Education Table (8+ Edu)
1	+1 Str	Vehicle	Streetwise	Medical
2	+1 Dex	Streetwise	Mechanical	Admin
3	+1 End	Brawling	Electronic	Broker
4	Gambling	Bribery	Forgery	Computer
5	+1 Int	Gun Combat	Admin	Jack-o-T
6	+1 Edu	Blade combat	Jack-o-T	Leader

A factor receives 3 skill rolls for the first term and 2 skill rolls per term thereafter.

Mustering Out Tables

Die roll	Benefits	Cash
1	Low passage	20,000
2	+2 Int	20,000
3	+2 Edu	30,000
4	Blade	30,000
5	Gun	50,000
6	Traveller's or ship (ref decision)	50,000
7	+2 Soc or Patron's Letter (ref decision)	100,000

Note, a factor who receives a commission can take a +1 DM on the Benefits Table, if they have gambling skill +1 DM on the cash table.

The Patron's Letter benefit is an authority from the Factor's patron to act in their name and to claim assistance from any other employee of the patron.

 

[FreeTrav]

I wrote it for CT so it will take a bit of conversion to modern Mongoose standards, but here it is in its oroginal form:

April 2006 CotI

Written for CT isn't a problem; Freelance Traveller supports it all. Do you have any objection to my including it in a future issue?

 

[NOLATrav]

Did you know that at one stage you could be perma-banned from CotI if you criticised T5 too heavily?

Absolutely, I remember those days. After my third infraction (none were based on T5 criticisms lol) I left CotI for good. Too much drama for too little return. And to think I’m still a Knight on those boards! Here’s to hoping CotI passes on to Mongoose along with everything else, or is put to rest.

Now the positives. Makers, system design, sophonts, wafer tech, brains, robots, synthetics, the most comprehensive coverage of Traveller tech levels and technology to date, cultures, interpersonal tasks... loads of stuff you can mine and build with.

I would love to see Mongoose take up the task of strip mining T5 and building a hybrid of MgT and T5.

I’ll politely disagree with you on (Star?) system design but yes on the other topics you mention. Flux is a great mechanic but I’m still on the fence as to whether it’s better than Boons/Banes in a 2D system.

Emphatic Yes on Mongoose strip mining T5 for all its worth. It’s been a hoary shadow over Mongoose since its release, looking forward to Mongoose getting out from under its yoke and moving forward how they see fit. Hopefully with streamlining and internal consistency.

But I guess T5 is still Marc’s baby for now… I’d rather see him hand off T5 to Mongoose along with everything else and complete the trilogy that AotI could be. The final book could see Jonathan Bland resolving crises in the Galaxiad…

 

[swordtart]

For MGT2 I would shy away from reducing the effectiveness of Broker based on distance from the world you gained it for the following reasons.

Equity:
This doesn't happen with any other skill. This is especially true where skill levels are lower than in other iterations of the game. If someone has the level of skill where this would have an appreciable effect on a 3d6 roll then they are probably deficient in other useful skills. You take away their one area to shine. Would you do the same thing to the Marine who has a weapon skill of 4 which has significantly more impact on a skill roll on 2d6?

Logic:
Broker is not stockbrokering which arguably uses an intimate knowledge of markets to predict how stocks will perform over time IN THAT MARKET (or is based on luck if you are a cynic). Broker in MGT2 is the ability to identify what goods are cheap now and if it will make a profit in a different market in the fairly immediate term. You can assess what is liable to be a good deal by very simple easily learned rules - don't buy common consumables on an asteroid and don't sell them on an Ag world. The rest is your ability to persuade someone to adjust their price.

Also it seems a little odd for a skill that is generally supposed to represent your ability at conducting interstellar trade to become less effective once you leave your home system. If the aim is to fix the money machine, to lower the margins and make trade less profitable there are fairer ways of doing it. On the old 2d6 tables where there was quite a bit of swing, and skill capping may have been appropriate but the 3d6 table of MGT2 already reduces that effect considerably.

Options:
Alternatively make the Broker roll a normal skill test and just apply the effect to the 3d6 table as if it were a chain task. That way the higher Broker skill means you are more likley to get a bonus, but it will capped automatically by the Task Chain DM. You can use the trade code modifiers in either the Skill Test or on the 3d6 table depending on your preference. This means only a slight reinterpretation of the rules rather than a wholesale rewrite.

Amend the trade table to reduce the percentages. Being able to buy at 15% and sell at 400% allows a 2600% profit in a single flip. Whilst hard to achieve this is still excessive and should be impossible. If the top and bottom of each table was 50% and 200% then the most you could make would be 400% and with the 3d6 distribution that would be far less likely.

The ideal way would be to lower the base prices of the highest value goods. No-one cares if you make 400% profit on Common Consumables as you need to ship hundreds of tons to make a killing and the shipping cost is a higher proportion. A single ton of Radioactives on the other hand would net you MCr's and the shipping cost is insignificant. Changing costs might have an impact on other parts of the system though (but the relative costs of trade coods and equipment in all versions of traveller have always been a little wonky). This would correct the humungous profits you could get from mining that is the real infinite money machine. Things are eye-wateringly valuable if they are rare, with asteroids and fabrication none of this stuff is rare.

In reality though some people make vast amounts of money in the real world through very little effort by buying when the market is low and selling when it is high. The diffentiating factor seems to be how much money you have to invest. The larger the sum you can invest in a single transaction the quicker you become so rich money ceases to have meaning. We could all make an easy 5-10% buying in bulk and selling on, but if you can only invest £500 it just might not be worth the time and effort. If your players have got to that point they can invest MCr they have already won.

 

[Condottiere]

Speaking of which, and since I'm contemplating both Black Friday deals as opposed to the second hand market.

Buy used (up) equipment from hi/tech worlds, and sell them on lo/tech worlds.

After detailing and refurbishing.

 

[Sigtrygg]

Written for CT isn't a problem; Freelance Traveller supports it all. Do you have any objection to my including it in a future issue?

Not at all, but as usual I didn't get it finished. It still needs work IMHO. Feel free to edit to your heat's content

For example I only used LBB1 skills plus the broker skill from LBB2, if I used the skills available from S:4 CotI then a more rounded skill set would likely result. Which is one of the drivers for me to upgrade it to a MgT career.