"Short on Tuscan eh?" Marks said, with a trace of disapointment in his voice.  "Well let's see the silver-streaked product.  We might be able to find a use for that; if quality is good and the price is right."

In reply to Hayden Marks (msg #9):

"Well, I do have some Tuscan marble is you're interested."

Out in the yard, Bartak shows you various lots of marble.  The marble is stored on wooden pallets in the open.  The facility has a fence, but otherwise doesn't seem particularly secure.  Not being experts, you're not sure, but the marble appears to be of very high quality.  He does show you one lot that has some minor damage and imperfections.  "Many interstellar customers are happy to have Salasia at all. We could probably reach an agreement on this lot fairly easily."

OOC: Hayden, if you're ready, choose either the high quality or the seconds and roll two dice.  Otherwise we can roleplay some more.

OOC: I'm assuming that the Salasia lot with imperfections is the one with the 30,000/ton fair market value?  Is that correct?  04:46, Today: Hayden Marks rolled 6 using 2d6.

Jack looks over the various marble lots, wishing he knew more but trying to look as if he has a trained and appraising eye. He runs his fingers along the silver streaks in the stone, tsk-ing and clucking when he finds a bit of damage.

"My father used Salasian granite in our kitchen, which was quite the event when he had it installed... not as eye-catching as the silvered marble, even with these kinds of imperfections. How much Tuscan do you have available, Mr. Bartak?"

OOC: 18:27, Today: Jacques Keveloh rolled 7 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 3,3. Deception, Mr. Bartak.

Crap! I gotta stop offering up the 'just-in-case' rolls!

EDIT - sorry, just saw the Ref's 'roll if you're ready' comment a couple posts above, didn't mean to interrupt the flow.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:35, Wed 09 Mar 2011.

OOC: No, the seconds will be cheaper to negotiate for (plus DM), but harder to sell for full value (equal minus DM to sale).  Please state which lot you were rolling for.

When the subject eventually turns to money, Bartak is somewhat coy.  He occassionally attempts to divert the conversation to other areas, art, home decorations, etc, as if the money is only an afterthought.

OOC: Ah, in that case, we are looking for the good stuff (high quality).

"I appreciate that most of your clients purchase things to fit their lifestyle.  And that price for much of your clientele is a secondary concern.  But I'm a middle man Mr. Bartak.  Margins matter to me.  That said, this can be a very lucrative deal for both of us.  I can take your product to a new markets.  Instead of selling to the top 2% of income earners on Alsace, I can make your product known on a dozen worlds.  Suppliers across the two subsectors will be clamoring to do business with you.  Correct me if I'm wrong, but Alsace is the only source of silvered marble?  You'd be generating subsector wide demand.  Half as much margin on four times as much volume will still double your profits.  And with resellers marking your product up to your levels in other markets, you'll still make wide margins on local customers.  Let's make this work for both of us."
This message was last edited by the player at 04:41, Wed 09 Mar 2011.

In reply to Hayden Marks (msg #14):

Liam Bartak listens to your arguments politely and obliges a point-counterpoint price negotiation in his own roundabout way.  Finally, after over twenty minutes of haggling diguised as idle discussion he arrives at "260,000Cr for a ten ton lot of our top of the line Salasia marble blocks, delivered free of charge to your ship at the downport within the next forty eight hours."

"Well bid and done!" Marks says, using a phrase from an obscure series of ancient Terran texts.

Dr. Jones hadn't arrived back at the ship before Hayden and Jack left for their first meeting of the day as he was still checked into the hotel.  Expecting they would be spending a lot of the near future in the confines of the ship, Jim liked to enjoy planet sides while he could.

However, rather than enjoying what Alsace had to offer, he was really kept up late into the local night within the confines of his room, merely doing research.  First on chinchillas, and then on aspects of the other potential cargoes on the list.  Always eager to apply and expand his knowledge, he engrossed himself in the task to the point of completely ignoring the time.

When he realized the lateness of the morning, he hastily made his way back to the ship hoping to catch up with the others at some point.

Jack smiles at Hayden's pounce, pulling out his hand-comp and getting ready to record and exchange pertinent details for payment and delivery schedule.

In reply to Jacques Keveloh (msg #18):

Having arranged for the delivery of the lot of marble on Day 356 and confirmed payment is to be made via electronic transfer once the cargo is delivered, you proceed to the next possibility.

The Chinchilla Farm, Weiss Pet Farms Inc, is located 25km south of Aidensburg and you don't arrive there until shortly before 1200.

Presumably Dr. Jones joins you enroute.

The farm is a large operation with several long barns, for lack of a better word, holding tens of thousands of Chinchillas.  You amble uncontrolled on the grounds for a few minutes before locating a small office.  No one seems to mind you being there or take much interest in you.

Once in the office you are introduced to Marge Langley, Sales Representative.  A plump, middle-aged woman with a sprayed in place hairdo, she doesn't waste much time.  "Starship for Espiaux?  Sure, we export to there.  As, I'm sure you're aware, it's fairly straightforward from a quarantine perspective since its an intra-Republic transfer.  You'll only be subject to quarantine if the animals show evidence of sickness.  Of course all our animals are healthy."

She herds you out of the office and leads you toward one of the long, low barns.  "Of course we can help arrange cages and feed for you too.  You know, chinchillas are very sensitive to changes in diet and environment.  We get the cages from a metalworks here in the local area.  They make them stackable so you can stack maybe eight tiers in a cargo bay if space is an issue.  You'll want to put boarding and plastic sheets under each tier of cages for obvious reasons."

As she opens the door to the barn the live animal smell rushes out to greet, and almost overpower, you.  From the research you've done, Chinchillas are supposed to be relatively clean animals, but the aroma of fur, urine, animal feed, and musk from thousands of the critters is certainly noticeable.  The chittering of the animals fills the barn with a constant low roar.  "We have all breeds available and all the animals receive topquality food, exercise, and veterinary care while they're here."

In the barn a handful of workers are monitoring each run to remove birthing females, keep the place more or less clean, conduct feedings, and dispose of the occassional dead animal.  The chinchillas appear to be small, twitchy rodents, which is what they are, but they look healthy and energetic enough.  "You'll want to stock up on feed since it's a pretty long trip with the jump and then three or four weeks in normal space to get the animals from Box 2 to Espiaux itself.  We buy the feed in bulk so we can work with you on the price for that, though you'll want to make sure you store it in a well-ventilated area.  Figure you'll need about 250-300kg of feed for each ton of animals to make sure they have enough food if they get delayed on Box 2 for a couple weeks, for whatever reason, and you'll want to make sure you've got enough water also.  If you're going to be doing this run regularly you really should buy a waste recapture system to recycle their eliminations.  Do you think you'll be on this run much?"

Apparently satisfied that her clients have had a chance to view the product, she leads you back out into fresh air and quiet.  She doesn't appear to notice the difference, but you feel the involuntary urge to take a deep breath. (OOC: riffing off the fact no one has Animals skill so you're probably not used to bulk livestock smells and sounds, but if you want to roleplay indifference that's fine too).  "We've seen an uptick in demand lately since people seem to love our product, but I'll be as fair as I can to you."

OOC: I essentially put the whole tour in one post.  Please feel free to interject questions or roleplaying at any point in the tour.

OOC: In terms of some of the practical considerations Marge has pointed out:

For disease, the risk is about 2% (3+ to avoid) unless the crew neglects animal sanitation (.25 personhours per day of cleaning per ton of animal).  If neglected risk rises to 5% (4+ to avoid).

For water, you'll need maybe a one ton tank and a cheap recycling system (a few thousand credits) to recpature their waste OR 50kg of potable water per ton of animals per day they're to be supported.  I'll assume the cost of plastic barrels of water is negligible.

The cages, plastic sheeting, food dispensers, water troughs, etc are included in the cargo tonnage, but may be a negotiating point on the price.  All that infrastructure might cost about 100-200Cr per ton if you were to buy it yourself. Chinchilla feed is about 1Cr per kilo, though a big bulk purchaser like the farm may be able to get you a discount.

It is unlikely a space station like Box 2 has animal feed on hand.

I'm wildly guessing on about 500 chinchillas per ton and trying to extrapolate food and water needs off of that, and openly admit I could be off by a good bit, but the above is my starting point.

Once all questions have been answered and everyone's satisifed, Hayden give me the proverbial two dice for purchase negotiations. 
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:14, Thu 10 Mar 2011.

Hayden wasn't complete sold on the idea of Chinchillas and the tour of the farm didn't sway him either way, other than to confirm that out of all the cargo they might take on, this would require a lot of ongoing work.  The silver streaked marble negotiations hadn't gone quite as well has he had hoped, which meant fewer funds for additional spec trade purchase.  They'd likely only have enough cash for three or four lots at this point, not five.  So of all the cargos, this one was foremost on the chopping block.  When Marge mentioned the popularity of her product, Hayden frowned.  These would need to be cheap Chinchillas.  He'd hear Langley out, but wasn't inclined to commit.

OOC: 08:25, Today: Hayden Marks rolled 6 using 2d6. Chinchillas.

Jack is silent throughout the breeder's spiel, with a politely neutral look on his face. But he was imagining mold in the food supply, leaky water containers, fur and dander in the life support system, escaped chinchillas in the life support system, rodent crap on his bridge console and Espiaux Port Authority shaking their heads grimly as they denied Gypsy Moth passage and declared a top-to-bottom inspection.

He remains silent, willing the chinchillas to transform into aluminum ingots.

Jim was excited about the prospect of observing live cargo, something he'd done only infrequently on his numerous tours in the Pathfinders.  He'd done his research as was prepared to care for the critters - their feeding, sanitation and, most importantly, medical needs.  Dr. Jones welcomed the possibilities.

Till the barn doors were opened, that is.

"Uh", the doctor sputtered, "Eh...", his eyes going wide as his hand quickly cupped over his nose and he fled the entrance.  Followed by a brief period of retching sounds.

While it was true, as a doctor, he was used to all sorts of smells - those smells were generally masked by chemicals and always in relatively small doses and good ventilation.  This was overwhelming.

Truth be told, he'd never been to anything remotely resembling an animal farm and never to anything other than artificial, anesthetic zoos. Imagining that, that, smell - and the chaos - in the confines of his home-world's wonderfully immaculate corridors?

They'd be banned from ever returning to Espiaux!


After several moments, Dr. Jones manages to compose himself and enter the barn, though he keeps his nose clamped for several minutes till his curiosity in the animals has him forgetting the smell.

While he is taken with the critter's individually, he can't imagine transporting a ton of the critters, much less ten times that amount.  Maybe a hundred or so - which he suggests to Hayden and Jack, enthusiastically pointing out they could be a real hit on his home-world where they are not at all common (probably due to the economic realities of importing them - but that completely escapes the doctor).

He, of course, is completely ignorant of the ROI and risk compared to carrying other cargo - not the least of which is finding buyers.  Though he also inadvertently mentions a secondary market opportunity in that Chinchillas make great lab animals, especially for auditory augment development and testing.

Eventually remembering why they are there, he asks the saleslady, "They've had their Retin-G inoculations and standard immunization supplements, I presume?  And Weiss will provide us with requisite certificates of health and verifications of treatments against ectoparasites?"

In reply to Dr. Jim D. Jones (msg #22):

Marge responds to Dr. Jones, "Of course."

She gets down to business with Hayden.  Rather quickly she moves down to the sum of 5,500Cr per ton, but won't budge any lower.

The contact for the aluminum alloy ingots is a smelter with a sales office near the port.  You take advantage of the opportunity to have lunch en route and the close proximity to the Downport allows crew to join or leave the group if they so desire.  You arrive at the office at about 1400.

You are received at the AAC (Alsace Aluminum Corporation)* office by an energetic young salesman who introduces himself as Michael Ross.  He is tall, thin, has an open, friendly face, and wears a conservative charcoal grey business suit and aftershave.  He sits down with you in his cubicle and shows you brochures covering AAC's range of industrial aluminum and alumina products.

* = AAC is a fairly large publicly traded company on Alsace.  Market capitalization is in the eight billion credit range.  So, not a megacorp, but not a startup either.  In case anyone is interested, their share price is 32.03Cr, P/E is 24.87, debt/equity 0.74, and annual dividend is 0.98%.

"We are the largest source of aluminum products on Alsace and make a wide range of grades and alloys for pretty much any industry.  We consider quality to be vital in maintaining our customer base and we have strong policies on corporate ethics.  All our products are metallurgically tested, stamped and verified by the Ministry of Mines and Metals.  Our most widely used export grade (OOC: the one listed in the OOC thread) is a high tensile aluminum alloy that requires very high levels of metal purity and exact chemical balances.  Not many other smelters can make alloys like that, and no one else has the economies of scale that we do."  He wlaks you through the basics of the Ministry of Mines and Metals 27 different grades of aluminum and shows you how to read and understand an MMM certification sheet.  Michael seems knowledgeable about his business and eager to share.

OOC: Ready for any questions, Hayden 2d6 when you're ready.

Dealing with sales people, at the level ship commerce involves, is a completely new experience for Dr. Jones.  He had brought his scientific toolkit along, having researched the night before to hone up on his metallography and the testing he could do on any potential goods (of course, getting distracted and spending more time on archaeometallurgy, but he still managed to learn a good deal about industrial aluminum).

He now realized he would have done better bringing a suit and focusing his research on the company instead.

Despite being prepared to distrust any salesperson and not being prepared to meet someone who appeared knowledgeable, Jim quickly warmed to the young Michael Ross, becoming thoroughly engrossed in the details of the MMM certification.  If he had any benefit to the negotiations, it was simply the enthusiasm he showed for the salesman's expertise and ego and the investment in time the salesman put into talking with a potential client.

"Can you hold that price for me for a day?  I need to make sure we can get all the environmental systems needed to make this work." Hayden says, in a bid to give the group more time to mull over the decision.

In reply to Referee (msg #24):

Hayden listens carefully to Ross's information.  He made sure to jot down notes in his handcomp and was especially surprised to see that AAC had such a favorable debt to equity ratio.  He would expect an industry like this to require quite a bit of capital investment, which normally required debt financing.

OOC: Seems I used up all my good rolls earlier.. sorry folks: 18:27, Today: Hayden Marks rolled 6 using 2d6. Aluminum.

In reply to Hayden Marks (msg #27):

Marge agrees to hold the price for you and offers to help arrange whatever life support you need.

AAC's debt/equity is a bit low for a materials company, but you'd have to do more research to determine whether its due to conservative corporate governance or a recent cash influx.

There's not much negotiation with AAC, especially not at low volumes.  The price is 3,150Cr per ton, including delivery to the ship.  The ingots are 40kg each and will be delivered on pallets.

Hayden orders 10 tons for immediate delivery.  On the way out of the AAC he places an order with a reputable outfitter for a LOT of heavy duty cargo netting and tie downs.  Enough to keep 10 tons of marble and 10 tons of aluminum, a tractor, and a the rest of their projected cargos from sliding around the hold.

In reply to Hayden Marks (msg #29):

OK, Hayden arranges for all the cargo equipment necessary to secure cargo, to the tune of 1,500Cr.

The computer components are not located near the port, so there's not enough time remaining in the work day, but you can do the machine tools.

Blackstone Machinery is located in the industrial part of Aidensburg, not far from the downport.  They have a reputation for making high-quality, rugged, durable industrial machines for a wide variety of applications, including a lot of the equipment necessary for colonizing a new planet such as Marsoui.  You are met by a salesperson named Terra Vicks, a flat-faced woman in her late thirties with close-shaven hair and a vise-like handshake. She's wearing a grey business suit, but she strikes you as someone who'd be equally comfortable in work clothes and steel-toed boots.  "Espiaux system?  Well, we can't compete with the local makes for underwater engineering products, but we do some business to Savigny for other heavy machinery.  You'd be taking an awful risk buying an individual high-end system and hoping someone needs it on the other end.  I'd personally recommend you buy machinery spare parts or some of our smaller, consumer oriented products.  Hardscabble place like Savigny, those always come in handy."

Her manner is a bit more bluff than Michael Ross' but she's also helpful recommending different types of tools which have historically sold well on Savigny.

OOC: I know I've been rushing these last couple encounters and dropping into gamespeak instead of RP, but I'd like to finish them before I depart on travel.  Sorry about that guys.  2d6 when you're ready Hayden.
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:14, Sat 12 Mar 2011.

"Thanks, we appreciate the suggestion.  Spare parts and consumer products sound great.  Let’s see what we can make work."

OOC: I've been doing the same thing, figuring that we put a lot of time and discussion in on the front end and that cargo isn't everyone's thing anyway.

07:29, Today: Hayden Marks rolled 8 using 2d6. Machine Tools (Spare/Consumer).

Agreed.

She offers 80,000Cr for a ten ton container of mixed tools and parts delivered.


OOC: <Orange>That finishes the cargo seeking on 354.  If anyone wants to do anything in the evening, please let me know.  On the schedule for Day 355 are Nino Stern's interview and spec cargo seeking for computer components and spun cotton.

Hayden places the order, using his handcomp to verify the funds transfer.