SINR rue EFFECT! 0-130————TABLE OF CONTENTS__. irRoDUCTION 3 EQUIPPING THE TRADER CHARACTER ‘The Trader As Player Character 3 Starting Savings (CREATING TRADER CHARACTERS 4 Finding The Pay Grade ‘Character Types 4 Base Yeaty Savings ‘Groatng Tne Treder Character 5 ‘Average Yeary Savings ‘Choosing Race 5 Grose Savings Creating Aout And Endurance Sooes 5 Starting Cash ‘TRAINING TRADER CHARACTERS 7 Gulde To Equipment Character Backgrounds 7 Land Vehicles Background Types 7 WiatorVotictos Choosing a Background 7 AirVehices Background Sols 8 Space Vehices Choosing A Lane Of Advancement 9 Weapons Lane Descrtion 5 Medical Equipment Selacing Advancement Lane 10 Getting Merchant Academies " Enveonmental Goat Basic Training " Elecroic Personal Equipment “Testing And Erauaton "1 ther Personal Equipment ‘Specialy Traning 2 Guide To Services Completion Of Academy Program 3B Leeng “Apprenticeship Programs 8 Food ‘BasioTraing 8 Travel “Test And Evaluation 16 Other Services Spocaty Tearing 14 Pay ‘Completion OF Apprenticeship Progam 8 Determining Pay Cctimbing The Ladder 15 Star Fleet Pay ‘Walng for Opparuriies 6 JUDGING TRADE Opportniy Knocks 7 Creating Corporations Testeg ForThe Merchant Spaceman's Ticket 17 Running The Corporate Bureaucracy fate LevelLaber Traning, 8 Hing Pre-Campaign Experience 19 Pay and Bonotis. ‘Certcation 19 ‘Corporate Supervsers ‘Obtaining The Master's Ticket 2 Promations And Receeniion Of Eto Yeas Of Trading Experience 2 Independent Trade Morchant Lie Sits a “Jodgng Ship Purchases “Taser Character Combat Staton 2 Finding ASH ‘Adding Background Detall 2 Determining Saling Price (Other Character Generation Mathods 2 Financing And Purchasing The Sip ‘Using Previously Gonorated Characters a agisteang The Snip. Creating Cher Star Fleet Oicers a Building A Businese Creating Nor-Commisioned Sar Feet Characters 24 Detinions ‘New Skills and How To Use Thom 2 Finding ACargo Bibery 2 ‘Buying The Cargo Forgery 2 ‘Shipping Contracts “Tage AnsCommerce 2 Operating Exoorses Value Estimation a Unioreson Prosioms Insurance Seling The Cargo Passenger Snvice Judging Spaceport Operations Borting and Storage Costs Gargo Handing and Storege se Me teigna ven eter my fan is anane 20 es ag _ onsig 2 28 28 20 3 3 me 33 zB 4 a5 35 3% 38 3 38 Py a 2 2 e 2 6 ae 3 “4 6 s a a a7 48 4 43 33 50 3 53 5 57 57 60 6 a 64 6s 66 o7 7 n n zm raJUDGING THE MERCHANT ADVENTURE. m JUDGING FINANCE AND INVESTMENTS. ‘The Gharacier Spokesman 7% ‘Stocks And Securities ‘Adventure Types 6 ‘Companios and Stock Pro Codes, ‘Star Fleet Crossovers % Weekly Actvty Wior-For-tire 8 mcg Maa Indopendent Merchant Adventures And Campaigns 75 wait petal Stators aa Buea The Stock Aventures With Alon Races 16 Buying On Margin ‘Adventure Locations, 8 Seling Sock ‘Wrhin Te UFP 3 Bonds within Fee Space 7 Penalty For Early Withdrawal ‘Adventure Preparation 20 Brokerage Fee Ships and Grow 80 Rocording Transactions Mapping The Trade Area 80 Sample UFP Corpratons Campaign Background a2 Large-Scale Feet Operations ‘creating A Campaign Seting 3 Making The Hazara Rol “The Twiight Nebula 8 Making The Proit Rol Fest Steps Poy Rasing The Grow Eticiency Rating ‘The Sconaro 84 Use in Campaigns “wight Nebula Secor Maps 8 Loans And Financial Speculation Pcs) 33 Locating Borrowers Seat i ° Das Arc oerevens Creaing Neos 90 eiauts And Detinguent The NPCMotchantin Star Fleet Campaigns 92 APPENDIX A: TRAVEL TIME Establishing The Adventure 2 APPENDIX B: TRADE SHIPS Encounters, Scanares, and Campaigns 2 Control Computers Timelines 8 Engines JUDGING ILLEGAL OPERATIONS 9% Merchant Vessels ‘Smuggling rt ‘Ofher Vessels Ofical Attude 94 Passing Tho Customs Check 94 ‘Caught Smvgging Legal Cagoes 95 Caught Smogging Restricted OrllegalCargoes 95 Fencing The Goods 95, Piracy And Hijacking 96 Pracy 6 jacking 97 Disposing OF Stolen Goods 98 ‘The Black Market 8 vali Pols 100 ‘TRADER CAPTAINS AND MERCHANT PRINCES. \Weting And Design Production Stat Fantasimulations Associates Cover ant Guy W. MeLimore, J David A. Deitick Grog. Postiein sustation David F, Tepoot Dana Knutson “Todd F, Marsh Project Editor elf Laubensten Win, John Whester Mich OConnot David Hutchins Editorial Stott Dan Cart Eater n-Chiet Typeseting And Layout IL Rass Babcock i ‘Teta Gallagher Senior Eater Pastoup Donna lppotto Dana Knutson ator Toa F. Marsh Todd Huctot Jett Lauoensten Published by FASA Corporation ‘STAR TREK is a Registered Trademark of Paramount Pictures Corporation, ‘STAR TREK: The Role Playing Game is published by FASA Corporation under license from Parmount Pictures Corporation, the trademark owner. Copyright © 1987 Paramount Pictures Corporation. Rights Reserved P.O, Box 6830 Chicago, IL 60680 Printed inthe United States of America,I NTRODUCTIONNN The Trader! Just saying the name might create a number of images in the mind's eye. The Merchant Prince surrounded by ‘wealth, for example, with a dozen beautiful women (or the Princess with handsome men, of course) hanging on every phrase, or the dashing Trader Captain, plying the trade routes with his noble crew. Perhaps the roguish Pirate, plundering giant freighters for the good of the common man {perhaps himself). Or even the mousy accountant who finds himself thrust into a situation that brings out his hid- den heroic nature. Creating these, and many more charact- fers is possible wih Trader Captains And Merchant Princes. Designed for use with STAR TREK: The Role Playing Game, this supplement allows gamemasters to add a whole new dimension to their campaigns. With it, players may ‘entor the worlds of high finance in the STAR TREK universe, ‘and may replace the Star Fleet ethic with the ‘reewheeling life ofthe independent tracer. Included are rules for judging the player characters’ actions as they buy private ships, obtain cargos, and tum a profit. The economic system of the UFP is defined for player and gamemaster alike, inclucing details on the UFP Stock Exchange, price lists for useful goods and equipment, and much more, ‘Trader Captains And Merchant Princes allows the ‘gamemaster to insert trader characters into his Star Fleet campaign, give his Star Fleet characters pay, and let them ‘buy things or speculate on the stock market. The character creation process is expanded here to permit the creation of traders and rogues. There are now three paths for the prospective trader to follow in building his character, rom the prestigious Merchant Academies to climbing the ladder the hard way—one rung at a time! Trade and shipping has been expanded to include trade companies, seling cargos at many different levels, and even hauling passengers trom fone pat of the galaxy 10 another. There is a new system for aging ships and telling when they will break down, and a method for fixing the price of anything that can be purchased on the black market, ‘The gamemaster should note, however, that this material must be used in tandem with the second edition of FASA's STAR TREK: The Role Playing Game rules. With those two rule sets, tno Galaxy is tho limit!——LCREATING TRADER CHARACTERS____. In many ways, trader or merchant characters are a more varied lot than the usual Star Fleet characters. Though Star Fleet officers come from all backgrounds, cultures, and physical types, Star Flost maintains uniform standards for officers to assure that they will be an elite group. Also, Star Fleet provides certain types of training to all officers. This creates some uniformity. ‘The loose category of traders and merchants is another matter. Within this group is @ wide variety of character types, from third assistant deokhands on a bulk freighter to wealthy NPCs who own huge passengeriright fleets. Sometimes, these characters have litle in common ‘except their involvement, in one manner or another, with Interstellar trade. Even so, most games and campaigns using these rules will Ikely be composed of characters that form either the independent crew of a small cargo ship, the crew of a larger merchant vessel, or a group of independent ‘merchants planetside. The character creation and training procedure is thus designed to allow for the most variety and detail in creating such characters. CHARACTER TYPES Before characters can be created, however, itis nec- essary to understand some of the character types that can bbe developed and used in merchant-cenlered games and campaigns. This section of the rules wil look at trader and ‘merchant character types, their backgrounds, new skis for these characters, and ways in which this information relates tothe selection of a character type. ‘At the top of the merchant pyramid are the merchant princes. These characters can be men, women, or alien be ings, but the term isa common way fo refer to rich merchant- fleet owners in space-opera fiction. The merchant prince is weallhy individual whose enterprises _moslly center around trading operations on a grand sale. The aristocratic owners of huge trading space fleets are not usually used as player characters. Instead, they are best played by the gamemaster as NPC patrons who finance the player's ad Venturing, or as rvalsfoes who use their wealth to compete with the player characters. and provide an element of danger. Some merchant princes work their way tothe top, and its these who are best created with this system, but even those who inherit their wealth will usually gain experience and ski in rade-elated areas. ‘One type of merchant prince can make a viable player character, however. Even the richest and most powertl sometimes lose their fortunes and positions through a series of bad breaks or the machinations of enemies. Such characters would have to start over, perhaps with one small space yacht that could be converted to cargo-carrying. Such a character would be older than most player characters usually are, and he would have the skis. and ‘experience o alifetime of nancial wheeling and dealing. ‘Crows. of larger ships, paricularly those that are corporate-owned, most resemble Star Fleet characters in their tendency to have skil specialties and their limited freedom of assignment. Because being the crew of a ship on a simple, repeitive mik run would be litle fun for the players, such player characters would be aboard a ship as- signed by its parent company to seek out and develop new trade routes and to open up new markets in less-iilized aroas of space. ‘Smaller independent trade vessels are often owned by a single person or jointly by the crew. These groups have more freedom of action and are ideal for independent game fr campaign groups. Some such ships, with crews of from 45 to 30 crewmembers, would still require some specialize tion of skis and assignments among the player characters, Player characters on these shios would likely be olficers, with routine personnel openings filed out by non-player characters. The smallest independent trade vessels, with 1 to 15 crewmembers, may have most, if not all, cew slots filed by player charactors. Those characters would likely be more of a mixed bag, with muit-skiled individuals especially im- portant because there must be at least the minimum skils necessary to run the ship. Some duplication is desirable, even on the smallest ships, in case of disaster. If the only small vessel pilot aboard is incapacitated while with the landing party, the ship's crow willbe in a mess itt becomes necessary to take off quickly. Sometimes, characters who have @ broad background, knowing a litle about many things, are preferable in these campaigns to a character who is an expert at one job only, and useless outside hisiher specialy There are many one- or two-man trading vessels ‘operating, especially in such frontier areas as the Triangle. These campaigns can be fun when there are only a few poopie available to play. A player character in these ‘Groumstances must be something of ajack-ot-alltrades Not all operators in space are legitimate, and players may find running on the ragged edge of the aw’ to be an interesting diversion. Space rogues such as Cyrano Jones and Harry Mudd can make interesting player characters. ‘These rogues may engage in minor smuggling and other semirilegal operations, but they likely would prove dan- ‘gerous and undesirable over the long haul Rather than outright pirates, player characters could be privateers, conducting operations that are subsidized {ut not supported publicly) by a sponsoring government against an enemy power. Such operations between Romu- lan and Kingon merchants are common, and Orion interests are famous. for privateering. Some privateering goes on between independent worlds in frontier areas such as the Triangle. Ff course, not all raderimerchant characters have to cown and operate ships of their own, or even serve aboard a ship as a crewperson. There's plenty of excitement in the average tradeworld spaceport town. Characters with trade backgrounds can operate brokerages, run spacoport bars or general stores, act 2s local agents or go-betweens for trade associations, and so on. It is even possible 10 develop characters who are spies, freotance detectives, mercenary bodyguards or troubleshooters, starport police or security guards—even members of an underground organization opposing a local government regime. Many such characters may have some trader background.