Dilettante - Portfolio Question.

[Marachai]

Hi,

I have recently been reading and using the Dilettante book and I got confused by the Portfolio example on Page 41. It is an example where a private in the army who's father is a noble rolls for a Portfolio. I assume you can only roll on the portfolio table while in one of the Dilettante careers, yet the example is of a private in the army.

Am I right you must be in a Dilettante or can you turn any benefit roll into one, even if your in another career ?

Mara.

 

[SSWarlock]

Hmm. Excellent question with lots of role-playing possibilities.

Based on the specific text in the supplement, I'd say the character cannot roll for a portfolio in a non-Dilettante career unless he/she has spent at least one full and successful previous term in one of the Book 8 careers. Basically, the character has seeded the investments in the Book 8 career(s) and is just managing the funds while in the other career(s). Difficult to do sometimes but not impossible, especially if a money manager is hired. The example seems to support this since the soldier in question is "...the unacknowledged son of a noble..." which fits the Wastrel assignment of the specific Dilettante career.

It's really more of a GM call then a written-in-stone rule.

I'm not sure I'd allow it for any other career in the Book 8 supplement other than "Dilettante" but I know people who successfully managed their own portfolios while maintaining a full-time job in the corporate world. The cash benefits are mainly just a form of personal wealth, as is an investment portfolio. Both have value; cash just has more "liquidity". The key to success is having the time to spend while the market being invested in is open, if the character is managing their own investments.

Because of this, I'd also say there's little to no chance of a character in the military adding to an existing portfolio using a cash benefits rolls because of the amount of time spent being trained, being stuck in transit when transferred from world to world, etc. Most militaries want their personnel to spend their daytime hours carrying out orders and soldiering rather than watching stock market events, not to mention the pay below mid-range officer grades doesn't leave much to risk in investing. Senior-grade officers are another story since they can take time out of their day with little consequence as long as they're on a planet with a investments market.

My favorite Traveller character of all time actually started a corporation and did some rather successful investing (using the GM's homegrown rules) but I do remember being away from the planet hosting the market the character was investing in made it impossible to manage the funds himself. As can be seen today, whether a market timer or a momentum investor, one is required to stay on top of the daily events of the market. Can't really do that while stuck in Jumpspace or another planet.

Just my Cr2's worth.

 

[Marachai]

Thank you for the reply , you gave me lots to think about. I think your right and its a situation I'll need to make a judgement call on each term after my player leaves his Dilettante career. It really will depend on where he goes and what he is doing, if it makes sense for him to add to his Portfolio or just gets his new careers cash bonus.

Mara.