Lords of Ether (20th Anniversary Edition) Trade
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14.Trade
Trade is an integral part of international relations. High profile, high cost items like war machines, high technology and rare resources are dealt with on an individual deal-by-deal basis; these rules describe the day-to-day movement of luxuries and non-essentials that can truly enrich the commercially inclined.
Similarly, many wealthy powers supplement their industry with components and low-end consumer goods brought from elsewhere.
Each unit of Trade Goods takes 1 Industry or Ether to produce, and takes up 5,000 cargo points. These Trade Goods convert to Wealth when delivered to a Customer. The ratio of Trade Goods to Wealth is determined by the trade Return.
Return is determined by four factors – the relative Wealth, Industry or Ether of the Trader and Customer, relative Advancement, exotic resources, and distance covered. These are added together as a series of percentages, whose cumulative total determines the profit or Return. Different types of trade will be differently affected by different factors.
Basic Return
The basic Return (+0 Return) of Trade Goods to Wealth is 1:1. For every +1 Return, the Trader adds +1/4th of a wealth unit per trade good If a trade shipment method is particularly economical to operate (IE a ship using sails or star sails, or geode power) gain +1 return regardless of what type of trade it is.
High-Value Trade
This trade represents the movement of high-end finished goods, luxury items and the like. It is primarily determined by relative wealth, advancement and distance covered. A power may absorb up to 1 unit of luxury goods for every point of population per year, and gains one free point of public order payment for doing so.
Wealth
If the Trader has a greater Wealth per-month (including any Population bonuses) than the Customer then they gain +1 return. If the Trader has a Wealth-per-month more than twice that of the Customer they gain a +2 Return. If the Trader has a Wealth-per-month more than three times that of the Customer they gain a +3 Return.
If the Trader also has both industry and ether production higher than the custom they gain +1 additional return.
Advancement
If the Trader has at least one Advancement Category at least one level higher than the same Category of the Customer they gain +1 return. If the trader has double or more higher than the same Category of the Customer they gain +2 Return, providing it is higher than one. If the Trader has a technomagic/magitech fusion and the Customer does not, the Trader automatically gains +3 Return.
If a customer has a 0 in a category in which a trader has at least 1, due to ineptitude then that is a further +1 return.
Distance
If the one-way distance from Trader to Customer is greater than 10 Great Leagues the Trader gains a +1 return. If the distance is greater than 20 Great Leagues the Trader gains a +2 Return. If the Distance is greater than 40 Great Leagues the Trader gains a +3 Return. Other factors
Particularly prestigious events, such as the construction of major monuments or certain stories may make goods from a planet in particular demand. The total of all these plusses gives the total Return in Wealth on each unit of Trade Goods delivered. Thus a Trader with a Return of +4 with a Customer would get 2 WU for every unit of Trade Goods, while one with a Return of +12! Would gain a whopping 4 WU for every unit of trade Goods.
Bulk Goods Trade
Bulk trade goods represent cheap consumer goods, components and resources like textiles and so on which a less wealthy and technologically advanced power may trade with a stronger. They are less profitable than luxury goods, but can still produce a good return. Bulk goods may not be used to pay public order, but may instead be used to supplement local industry at a rate of 2 trade goods to 1 industry. This is less efficient than shipping raw resources but generates returns for the constructing power. The maximum amount of industry that can be produced by this is 25% of Industry + Pop Bonus per month, to a yearly maximum of a power's value of Industry + Pop Bonus.
It is primarily determined by relative industry, wealth and advancement. Distance does not matter significantly for bulk good deliveries.
Industry
If the Trader has a greater industry-per-month (including any Population bonuses) than the Customer then they gain +1 return. If the Trader has an industry-per-month more than twice that of the Customer they gain a +2 Return.
If the Trader has less wealth per month than the Customer gains an additional +1 return.
Population
If the Trader has a greater population than the Customer then they gain +1 return. If the Trader has a population more than twice that of the Customer they gain a +2 Return.
If the Trader has more than a third of their population unhoused, they gain an additional +1 return.
Advancement
If the Trader has at least one Advancement Category at least one level higher than the same Category of the Customer they gain +1 return. If the Trader has at least one Advancement Category within 50 RP of the Customer, gain +1 return. These bonuses stack.
Raw Resources
Industry may be converted to produce raw resources at a rate of 1 industry for 1 raw resource. When fed to another point of industry, each point of raw resources doubles its efficiency, allowing it to produce 2 points of industry instead of one. Converting industry to produce raw resources only takes 1 year.
Raw resources do not naturally generate returns for the supplying power, but payment may be arranged, or their production may be coerced.
Black Market Goods
A great deal of profit can be made by the shipment of commonly recognized illegal goods, such as harmful drugs, banned weapons, restricted entertainment and suchlike. What determines whether goods are Black Market or not depends on the society into which they are being smuggled, but all societies have something they consider prohibited.
There are a number of advantages to Black Marketeering: Such shipments are usually of greater value, needing smaller sizes and thus taking up only 1,000 Cargo Points per Trade Unit (though still costing 1 Industry to produce). On top of the normal calculations for High-Value Return, the Return on the Black Market is always at least +2, rising to +4 for goods delivered to Dissatisfied populations, and +6 for goods delivered to Angry or Rebellious populations. Such deliveries also do not require any consent or agreement from the Customer. The Trader can deliver as much as they can move as often as they can move it.
On top of all other considerations, this means a fantastic Return, but it does have a down side. Unlike normal Trade, Black Marketeering has no benefit to the Customer. In fact it cancels out points of Civil Order Upkeep on a one-for one basis, actually harming the society. This means that a Power will always try to stamp out the Black Market, or at least limit its operation if it is at all able. This isn't necessarily easy. Black Market goods can be hidden amongst normal legitimate shipments, or smuggled in by bribing corrupt officials or simply by sneaking around customs entirely. There is however a point of saturation; when a society is so awash in illicit goods that further deliveries bring no more profit. This comes when the number of Black Market goods delivered in a year equals the population rating (per million people) of a Power. This fight for limited consumers can lead to quite vicious crime wars between rival Black Marketers as they attempt to destroy each others shipments, bases of operations and networks of distribution.
The maximum limit of Trade Goods is not affected by Black Market Goods, and vice versa, even a society flush with its maximum in Trade Goods can still accept its population rating in Black Market Goods as well.
Merchant Marines and Free Trade
When not in use by the Power (ie: under your control) merchant ships can be sent out as “Free Traders”, to go about their own business wandering the Star Ways and plying their wares far and wide. The advantage of this is that they will bring back an automatic amount of Wealth to you at the end of each year.
The amount of Return from Free Trade is also dependant mainly on the capability of the ship in question, from its complexity, to its capacity, weapons, and speed. In the case of Free Traders every +1 return adds 100% to the Wealth Return.
Basic Return
The basic Free Trade Wealth Return is 1 WU/year for each Cargo Ship. Note that the batch cost or size of the ship does not affect Free Trade returns – certainly Mega Freighters can carry more, but they’re far less economic to operate as Free Traders than Freighters.
Added Cargo
Ships with one or more Cargo Capacity Added Capabilities gain a +1 Free Trade Return. This does not apply to ships with Specialized Cargo Capacity, as they are usually more limited in utility as Free Traders.
Economical
Ships with any form of Sails, or with nuclear (!) or ZPE (!!) drives gain a +1 Free Trade Return due to their more economical nature. AI ships do not benefit from this bonus – robotic ships are cheaper to run, but they tend to make poor salesmen, either due to the limits of their programming, or the prejudice of much of the galaxy, where computers are rarely the equal of humans and thus can often be ripped off.
Blockade Runner
Ships with any Weapons Added Capabilities, Defensive Added Capabilities such as Shields, Armour or Stealth, or with more than one Drive that is not a Sail (Sails are very economical, but not very speedy) also gain +1 Free Trade Return as they are able to perform more dangerous (and thus profitable) runs. A ship with Weapons, Defenses AND an extra Drive gains a +2 Return – such ships are the stuff of merchanter envy and customs patrol notoriety.
Hypertech
Any Cargo or Merchant ship that is made with techmagic or magitech gains a +1 Return due to high tech spiffyness. If it has more than 5 non-slot free Added Capabilities it gains a +2 Return, and if it is max capped it gains a +3 Return.
Obsolete/Prototype
Any ship that is of lower Advancement Level than the Power is capable of building suffers from a –1 Return for each Advancement Level lower. Similarly, any ship that is of a higher Advancement Level also suffers a –1 Return for each level higher as running it is much more expensive.
Hunk of Junk
Any ship with Reduced Capabilities gains a –1 Return for each Reduced Capability, regardless of how many Added Capabilities it also has.
Jerry Rigged
Any Ship with an External Added Capability that draws upkeep (so pretty much anything save armour or Wind Sails) gains a –1 Return due to the added cost of running the ship.
Thus a TL5 Freighter for a TL5 Power with the Added Capabilites +1 EAM Drive, +1 Inertialless, +1 Cargo Capacity, +1 Weapons, +1 Point Defenses, +1 ZPE Tap, and no Reduced Capabilities would end a year of Free Trading with a Free trade Return of +4, bringing back a whopping 5 WU! Not bad for a ship that only cost 3 WU to build.
How to use ships as Free Traders
Each cargo or merchant ship sent out as a Free Trader cannot be used for any other duties for the course of the year, which includes carrying troops, trade goods, performing sneaky spy missions, and so forth. If a Free Trader is used for any of these duties before the year ends it immediately loses its status as a Free Trader.
Additionally, Free Traders will scatter where they will. You can try to herd them away from certain destinations with warnings or penalties, but in the end they are Free Traders, and sometimes the risk is worth the profit. This means that if a crisis arises you may find your Merchant Marine scattered far and wide across the galaxy, and it might take some time to assemble them. They can also be targets of piracy, and a certain attrition in Free Traders should be expected in more restless times.
In times of war Free Traders can still operate, but they are usually formed up into convoys. This provides added protection but reduces the amount they can earn by –1 Return. Merchants and Freighters driven only by Sails can be particularly vulnerable in wartime as they are slow and less maneuverable. The high wealth they often carry and the ease with which they can be caught also makes them the prime targets for pirates.
There also is a limit to how many Traders can operate in any one area, determined by the total infrastructure of the planets (*Not yet worked out, so don’t ask*). If there are too many Free Traders swarming space, some may simply be unable to make any profit at all, or may head so far afield in search of the “big score” that they simply don’t return for years. Free Trade wars where the less scrupulous prey on the more vulnerable are also not unknown.