Leo 2021/01/02(Sat)19:00 No. 984660 ID: ca2950
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Leonardo Ranieri walked through the streets of Kand toward the docks of Kand. Not the good docks either. These were the skeevy ones where it wouldn't be unheard of for people to turn up dead or missing on occasion, the latter probably related to the former when it occurred.
His father, Argento seemed not to care about the seediness of his surrounding and strolled along as if he didn't have a care in the world, leading the way to some kind of "gift".

Leo 2021/01/02(Sat)19:01 No. 984662 ID: ca2950
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"Leo," Argento said, clamping his hand on his son's shoulder. "Our family does quite well for itself, yes?"
Leo nodded.
"It does good for a man's heart to see his family want for nothing and you are a man now, someday, everything I have will be yours. But I've noticed a trend, Leo. And any merchant worth his salt makes certain to pay attention to trends," he continues, gesturing with his free hand.
"So I've prepared a gift for you which I think will break a worrisome trend that can be easily avoided."

Leo 2021/01/02(Sat)19:02 No. 984663 ID: ca2950
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The pair continue down to the pier where several large ships are moored and stop at a particularly rickety looking dock and Argento holds up his arms towards a rusted heap of an airship.
"This is my gift to you, my boy."
"You're giving me a boat?" asks Leo, slightly dejected by the sight of the thing.
"You see, too many children in your position become dull and spoiled, never having earned a single coin with their own hands, causing the downfall of their family with their unthinking opulence. So no, I am not giving you a boat."

Leo felt a twinge of relief.

"I'm selling you a boat. I'm giving you the gift of opportunity." Argento exclaims.
Leo wrinkles his nose and grimaces.
"I don't want to buy that thing," Leo snapped back. "It looks like it's going to fall out of the sky."

Argento nodded.
"Well, I can't force you into it. You are your own man and you can make your own decisions now."

"Phew..."

"That's why I signed all the paperwork for you on your behalf long before that point."

Argento pauses to examine the vessel, which creaks with the slightest shifting breeze.

"I put one thousand Seta in the onboard safe. You only need to use that money and this ship to make forty-nine thousand more to pay off what you owe. That will prove you have the drive and tenacity to be my heir and you learn more getting your hands dirty than lazing around in luxury like a spoiled house pet."

"Or I'll die..." Leo mumbles.

"Come now! You inherit your mother's brains and my good looks, how can you fail!? But seriously, don't die. It would make this seem like a very bad idea in retrospect."

Leo stares at the decrepit ship, outlined by the golden twilight sun. Maybe there's potential here, but it looks like a piece of crap.

Inspect ship

>>984663
check the damn thing is in working order, presentation is important but not falling out of the sky is vital

>>984673
May as well inspect the ship. Where the hell does your father expect you to go anyway? The city is boring, but everywhere else is boring-er.

You are some kind of unholy mesh of fox and man. Panic! PANIC!

....Oh, and ask your dad what would be the best way to invest those thousand coins.

>>984663
What are the terms of the loan? Is there an interest rate, or a minimum payment per month/year? How much leeway do you have in paying it, how are late payments handled etc?
If there's no interest rate or due date then it's a pretty good situation to be honest, just a challenge to complete to inherit the family business. If that's not the case it'll be a pain in the ass.

Step 1: find someone competent to advise you. Whether that's a first mate, an engineer, or a lawyer.

Find yourself a cute cabin boy(secretly girl) who can help keep it shipshape and accompany you while you are doing the important things. Such as trading and hiring a competent crew member

Leo 2021/01/03(Sun)04:11 No. 984718 ID: ca2950
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Leo hesitantly climbs the gangplank up onto the deck and
briefly ponders the scrap value of the hulk before turning to ask his father about the details of this morally, if not legally dubious deal.

"What are the terms of the loan? Is there an interest rate, or a minimum payment per month or year or is this just a challenge to complete to inherit the family business."

Argento holds up his hands and smirks smugly.

"I just want you to show me you're not a complete lost cause. Just make fifty thousand Seta with what I gave you. Besides, being bloodsucking parasites are what banks are for, which you might find in your dealings."

From the wheelhouse comes a voice.
"Whoever's up there, better not be trying to steal anything, or I'm gonna come up there and weld your nuts to your chin!"

After a moment of thumping and clattering, a short rabbit woman emerges from inside. She sees Argento and a look of realization crosses her face.

"Ah! Excellent timing," says Argento, grabbing Leo by the shoulder. "This is Elizabeth Conrad. She is daughter of one of my best engineers. You won't find a better mechanic anywhere... without paying more. Elizabeth, this is my son, Leonardo."

She wipes her sooty nose on her arm.
"Nice to meet you. You can just call me Lizzy."

Argento grips Leo by the shoulder.
"Elizabeth, my son seems to have hesitations about quality of this ship. Can you put his mind at ease?"

"Sure thing, Mr. R," Lizzy says with a lopsided smile.
"The gas cells are leaking. The hull plating is rusting through. It burns more oil than actual fuel and I'm pretty sure the engines could just explode at any time. It's going to cost at least one hundred Seta to get it in working order and two hundred to do it all properly. That's just the really vital parts. I'm also going to need fifty Seta a week for my wages."


>Step 1: find someone competent to advise you. Whether that's a first mate, an engineer, or a lawyer.

The engineer issue has worked itself out, if he wants to hire this rabbit that showed up out of nowhere. The lawyer sounds like a good option at first, but probably wouldn't actually accomplish anything.

>Find yourself a cute cabin boy(secretly girl) who can help keep it shipshape and accompany you while you are doing the important things. Such as trading and hiring a competent crew member

A cabin boy (girl) sounds good on paper, but has very little practical use on such a small vessel. Also, there are some paradoxes involved in acquiring such an individual.

Leo ponders on the practical and not-so-practical aspects of owning this tub; what trade goods he could purchase, where they could be sold, other options for using an airship to make money.

Well there's the obvious ways of making money.

-Mail carrier
-Nonperishable goods transport, spices, dried meats, etc
-Perishable goods transport, livestock foodstuffs, etc
-Luxury consumer goods transport, risk of piracy
-Piracy
-Contraband smuggling
-Party boat
-Private chauffeur
-Merchantman contract for military goods transport
-Sightseeing tours
-Currency arbitrage

Some of these need special equipment. Some only need mild repairs. Some may even pay for your repairs.

Guess, we'll have to spend those 250 coins now.

I'd say spices as well as mail could be a good use of the ship. It really doesn't seem to have much room for livestock.

>>984663
Realize your dad may not like you.
He just spent fifty thousand Seta to have you die in an "accident".

>>984697
>boy(secretly girl)
Proceed to fill your motley crew with clichés archetypes

>>984718
Her nipple inform you that she is not wearing a bra.

We need to become the private transport of a destined hero adventurer, they always seem to end up with a shit ton of money.

>>984720
>Luxury consumer goods transport
>Perishable goods transport, livestock foodstuffs, etc
>Party boat
>Private chauffeur
Too small/shit

>Piracy
>Merchantman contract for military goods transport
>Sightseeing tours
Probably requires special setup.

>Mail carrier
>Nonperishable goods transport, spices, dried meats, etc
>Contraband smuggling
>Currency arbitrage
Viable.

Suggestion 2021/01/03(Sun)07:01 No. 984727 ID: 021ebc

I still thing the cabin boy(girl) idea is a great idea. As it stands we've still got a boat. I'm sure dad wouldn't abandon us on a complete wreck. Ask the bunny if she can keep us afloat for even one voyage until we can earn what we need. Maybe we can get some work as transport for tourists or travelers who need to travel to another sky island?

I think that depending on our setup our crew members can fulfill more than a single goal. Including the cabin boy(girl) idea.

Let's do it let's build our ideal trading crew

For now, we don't really need to purchase anything. Just wait for the customers to come to us. Surely there's plenty of people who would be willing to hire cheap air transport.

But do get it repaired. Tell Lizzie that 50 is fine... as long as she can keep her clothes in one piece because you ain't buying her new ones.

>>984728
I am going to guess that she can buy her own clothes with her salary.

I do agree that you need to fix this thing ASAP. But you need a product to sell or a service to privide in orther to make money.
Leo, do you have any savings in order to repair this thing and buy products? Or you are dry as fuck?

Also, what kind of businesses does your dad makes? Legal? On the side? Straight out illegal and morally cuestionable?

Do you have any friends/underlings/women
you can get to accompany you for basically free?
possibly possibly even invest money into your venture?
as part of the upper class it's important to surround yourself with sycophants who'll want to piggyback on your future success, and for you to exploit and order around.

give the rabbit her 250$ to fix the boat

>>984718
Don't spend any money yet until you put together a budget to see how much wiggle room you have. Like, figure out what your minimum size crew would be and how expensive their initial payments will be. You want enough money left over to be able to invest into your first profitable venture.
...do you have any belongings you can liquidate to add to your available funds?

Hire her. If it's feasible you should go for the full repair, as incomplete repairs just lead to more expensive repairs later down the line. However, that's an extra 100 Seta you can't invest... you should ask how long the basic repairs will last before needing more maintenance. If you can manage one trade run before then, it'll be alright probably.
You'll need a pilot too, unless you know how to fly this thing. And a navigator.
Using her pay as a baseline, that's 150 spent on wages and another 100-200 on repair, so you're blowing 250-350... but you also need supplies for the trip. No idea how much those cost, you should figure out how much that'll cut into your profit.

>other options for profit aside from trade
Uh... there's piracy I guess. Can you go fishing? Exploring? Hunting? Taxi service?
Investigate the profit rate for this stuff. I doubt you have the funds to buy enough weapons for piracy and I doubt your father would approve anyway.

Your hands are stained in the filth of luxury.
Wash it with blood.

Take on bounty quests and protect the people. If you build and secure a supply line, it pays for itself.

But for now, hire yourself a crew and start out shelling peanuts. At least until you get a feel for the milk runs.

Well worth the 200 for the full repair. First, because a bodge will eventually bite you in the arse and have you spending more anyway. Second, because an engineer that gets to do things the right way is a happy engineer.

Paying less now will end with you paying much more later; spend the full 200, and set aside 50 for the engineer's pay - never spend below your paycheque margin except in an emergency. Ask her when the repairs will be done and what people we'll need to man the old girl; we have that much time, minimum, to scout out a job and hire a crew (if necessary). Speaking of, ask your old man about any milk runs you can get your sky-legs with. (If he gives you shit, remind him that you have to start somewhere with your market research; a little advice on that front is the least he can do.)

Leo 2021/01/04(Mon)08:49 No. 984839 ID: ca2950
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Leo decides that fixing the ship properly will be cheaper in the long run and tells Lizzy to go ahead with proper repairs.

She seems happy with the decision.
"Great! I'll have this heap better than new in no time... Well, it'll run, at least."

Leo 2021/01/04(Mon)08:52 No. 984840 ID: ca2950
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With a big expenditure right off the bat and a newly acquired ongoing cost, Leo then turns his thoughts to how to increase this already dwindling funds.

>Mail carrier
>Nonperishable goods transport, spices, dried meats, etc
These are simple, safe options with low risk that yield low reward. It might be the best option to avoid trouble.

Spices typically come from Drevas, which is fairly arid, so Ilcia's stocks of stable grains, fruits and vegetables are easy to sell or trade for spices. The farther south you go, the better the prices, which is obviously more difficult.
However, a simple bushel of apples sells for a small fortune in the farthest southern reaches. You'd need a fast ship to make it in time, though. Non-perishables are still a good moneymaker, with only the danger, not the time constraints.

Volgheim has less issue growing, but still has healthy trade with southern nations due to a shorter growing season. They have an abundance of animal furs, leather and softwood timber that sells well in Ilcia as luxury goods and construction material, respectively. Spices from Drevas are at a premium there, due to the increased distance, of course.

>Merchantman contract for military goods transport
This is not unreasonable. The Gadran Empire is being aggressively expansionistic and pushing to occupy Sunree Island, to the south. Delivering supplies there is a sure way to make sales. Anywhere on the south is treacherous due to Gadran patrols and overland transport is keeping everything supplied, so demand is minimal.

>Contraband smuggling
Just the contacts and infrastructure to run such an operation are beyond Leo's capacity at the moment. Dodging and/or bribing port authorities and just getting the stuff in the first place are just some of the worries.

An easy method of smuggling would be selling Ilcian goods to the Gadra, but Leo is pretty sure that's not particularly beneficial, since he's not aware of them wanting for anything specific and it's basically treason.

Also, they might just kill him and take the cargo.

There's a huge array of possibilities and it's only limited by Leo's funds, cargo capacity and whether Lizzy is a good enough mechanic to keep this junker operating.

>>984840
I'm liking the idea of an above board spice/fruits/skins setup. We'll start with spices, foods, and non perishables between Ilcia and Drevas, then expand to Volgheim once we get better capacity and speed for our ship.

I vote Either Merchantman or contraband smuggling
Contrband smuggling is more exciting, merchantman is less risky
Im leaning a little towards contraband smuggling for fun shenanigans

Right now, any operation is high risk. We're an untested captain, ship and crew with no contacts or practical experience.

Find a mentor to help get your feet off the ground. Doesn't matter what for. Merchantman if we want military contacts later in our career as a nobleman, mail carrier for bureaucrats. I don't recommend contraband.

I like the Merchantman idea, as long as we have updates on the situation in Sunree. We don't want to go there and find ourselves in the middle of an invasion.

I don't want to make any risky trades right off the bat, but at the same time I wouldn't be happy with minimal profit.

The one advantage that an airship has over the land transport is its speed. As such, airships should be the main mode of transport for perishable goods. Even if we're not in the best shape, there should exist some semi-perishable produce which we would be able to transport.

I vote for perishable goods. Choose the ones with the slowest rate of deterioration and deliver them to northern or central Drevas, depending on how far we can make it.

>>984858
We need to be conservative in our first venture. There's no guarantee our engineer caught all the problems with the ship, or that we will make it without a breakdown. Perishable goods make it so that we lose our entire investment if we can't deliver on time.

That and we run the risk of bruising the apples if we hit the dock too hard on entry.

>>984840
Merchantman. It's a quick trip there so if something breaks on the ship it won't be the end of the world, and we can expect reasonable profit. For a first voyage, it seems good. Ferrying spices far south by going around the east coast will probably work better later on when we have the cash to fund the trip.

Now, we need to see about filling the skeleton crew. Can you fly this thing? Can you navigate? You'll want someone with basic cooking skills too, though with a small crew it won't be a full time job. Not sure what other job would mix with it though.
Oh, you'll need at least two navigators/pilots, because someone has to fly this thing at night. Two mechanics would be more comfortable as well, but tbh if something breaks while Lizzy is sleeping you can just wake her.

Deliver bread, what could go wrong?

Well, obviously, the best suggestion is to fake your death. Make it look like a tragically ironic accident that came about as a consequence of your father's idiotic scheme.
Let him stew in that for a few years - five to ten should do it - to really let the grief and guilt eat away at him.
In the mean time, build a nice, comfy life for yourself. Get a job, have some romantic trysts, find a home in some idyllic surroundings, the whole shebang.
Then, when the time is right, reveal to your father that you survived and throw it all back in his face. Have a good, long laugh at his expense before going back to your business.
Just imagine how utterly and completelycrushed he'll be.
It'd be a thing of pure beauty.

Check the city for intel; is anyone doing the supply runs for the military? Do that if nobody else is doing their part, you don't want this to spiral into an unwinnable situation.

If not, then stick to delivering foodstuffs. Make sure you sample the goods yourself, you don't want to supply poison or a bomb to the wrong person.

Leo 2021/01/05(Tue)11:42 No. 984994 ID: ca2950
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Leo returns home to plan the next few days. While the ship is being repaired, he can decide what course of action is best.
Just a standard run to Drevas with staple products is a safe bet and depending on how far he wants to push it, some fresh produce might yield good rewards. It's just a matter of what ratio of his cargo should be perishable and how much he should spend on it. He has 750 seta available.

As for crew, it's a small ship and he already has himself and an engineer. The only roles that need to be filled would be a navigator and maybe a deckhand to do the heavy lifting, unless there's something he's forgetting...


"Is daddy really kicking you out to be some wandering vagrant? What did you do? I want all the gory details."

Leo's sister, Sara enters the room and leans over his shoulder.
"It can't be that bad, though. He hasn't forced you to join the military or stuffed you in a burlap sack and tossed you off a cliff," she quips.

Leo tries to focus on his scribbled notes.
"He thinks the youth of today don't know the value of a dollar and I need to learn what it's like to work my way up in the world to build character or some nonsense. It's either that or this is all just a plot to saddle me with one of his old ships at criminally inflated prices."

Sara's face drops slightly.
"Aw... That's kind of boring. I thought something crazy happened," she sighs. "Make sure not to die, because I'll have to take over and do all the tedious paperwork or be pressured into marrying someone who will."

"I will try with all my might not to inconvenience you with my sudden and tragic demise," Leo states dryly.

"I appreciate it."

ask if she wants to come along

>>984995
This

>>984994
I bet u think ur sister's hot. Ask her to 'come with you'

>>984994
>something he's forgetting
Well, for example here's the crew of a modern cargo vessel:
1 Master
1 Chief Officer
1–2 Deck Officers
1 Chief Engineer
1 Second Engineer
1–2 Engineering Officers
2–6 Deck Ratings (deckhands)
2–6 Engine Ratings
1 Chief Cook
1 Steward
I think we've mostly got that covered.

I guess there's one thing we might be forgetting though. Do we need someone who's good in a fight, in case we get boarded? How common is piracy?

>>984994
>unless there's something he's forgetting...
A chef and a doctor.

But with how small your ship is, there aren't enough rooms to house that many people. There's probably only enough rooms to house you, Lizzy, and 1 more person.

Although, it's probably best to not hire anyone else yet, since you don't have enough money to pay them and get cargo.

Ask her what would be the optimal risk/reward ratio for the perishable to non-perishable goods to bring on your first trip. Spend 400 seta on the goods.

Also, ask her for her panties as a farewell gift.

Totally kidnap your sister and force her to try the same trials as you so she learns that ambition knows no gender.

Start out by scribing as much information as you can. Buy newspapers, comics, anything that isn't mass-circulated. Then work your way up with non-perishable rations and medical supplies. Buy some crates of basic firearms and store them in your quarters. Any luxuries you buy need protective carrying cases worth 1/4th their cargo, individually packaged and placed in a viscous but aerated jelly to prevent vibration damage.
And buy a magic book or some technical manual you can study in your spare time. You'll have a lot of it.

>>984995
Hah! She'll say no, but do it anyways, for shit and giggles.

>>985001
Well, i doubt we can recrute all this, but perhaps someone who has some actuall expirience sailing and is willing to teach us. And some muscle won't hurt either.

We're on a budget. Cut anything that's not necessary.

No chef. Chefs are for morale and money saving: turning preserved food into edible food, and making sure the crew doesn't eat more than they are allowed. We don't need one.

Deckhands can be hired ad hoc dockside. No need to pay wages or provide bunk space.

Play nice with sis. She'll be your lifeline to any contacts you have on the estate or locally when you inevitably need favors down the line.

Also, I vote 100% nonperishable. The first run is to test our ship and abilities. No need to complicate things.

100% nonperishable. As long as we make *a* profit, period, that's a success. Ambition can wait for the third or fourth voyage after we've gotten a feel for things and ironed out all the (easily and affordably fixable) kinks in how we operate.

For hires, I assume we'd want a deckhand on our crew; sure, wages might theoretically be more expensive than paying per job, but having someone we can actually trust do it would be better. I agree that we also need a navigator. You might want to bone up on the subject yourself - not that you could ever be good enough to fill the position full-time; aim for being passable enough that you won't run the ship into the ground when your hired guy inevitably needs to tag out for a nap (assuming you take overnight trips).

So here we are, back again to the cabin boy(girl) situation. Someone useful on the deck or eager enough to learn important skills sounds ideal. Maybe we try this voyage on our own and see if we can hire a foreigner in the next port. IF we make profit.

As for the ratio of goods, I think we should try something decently risky for this voyage. Assuming our repairs are enough, I don't think we'd end up stranded because of our wise forethought on the repairs.

Fortune favors the bold, I think let's try 80 percent perishable, and hold the rest of the cash as a safety net in case there is a problem and we won't need to start from nothing in a foreign port

>>984995
Inform her that the ship needs a wench.

Leo 2021/01/06(Wed)20:36 No. 985145 ID: ca2950
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Leo immediately discards any notion of bringing his sister along. She would be a big hassle that would take up space, cause problems and she has no valuable skills to contribute. There's also no way she would want to be crammed into a small and dirty ship for days at a time. The complaining would be unbearable.

Instead of inviting disaster, Leo negotiates what seems to be a good price on four-hundred seta of non-perishable goods, mostly staple grains.
This turns out to be nearly two tons of products.

Lizzy appears from over the side of the ship.
"Alright this thing is ready to goooo... after I go down and do some more fine tuning. Have fun loading all that though."

The prospect of moving all of this into the hold himself is unappealing. Leo considers how spending money can make his problems go away.

He could hire legitimate longshoremen or he could scour local dive bars for more colorful and possibly less expensive help, maybe someone to fill other roles as well.

>>985145
There's always someone looking for a job. Let's scrounge about a bit and see who we can find.

going to dive bars to hire muscle is a good way to get all your stuff and ship stolen when you leave port, when that kind of scum inevitably betrays you.

Pay for reputed help from reliable sources and get some legitimate longshoremen

If we want to have some fun, we can get ad hoc help from a dive bar, and meet some real characters with little risk.

Long-term longshoremen might be expensive, and really, how much of a background check can you run on a guy/gal when you need their help immediately?

>>985148
I am all abourd with a sligly more expensive crew.

It's grain. Who's gonna steal grain?
Oh wait, you DO need someone good with combat. A security officer-- someone to watch your stuff when there's strangers on board, and also to escort you through town to dissuade muggers.
With a security officer, you can hire cheap manual labor to load and unload cargo when you need it, instead of long term contracts. That should be comparable to hiring more than one legitimate longshoreman while being completely safe.

It shouldn't be too much of an issue to try and find someone with muscles to do what we need. Longshoreman(girl) maybe we can go see if we can find a street tough down on their luck and get some more colour to our crew

Lizzie can move this stuff with the power of her tits! That is, get her to seduce someone gullible for free labor.

>>985145
Hire longshoremen, but ask if they know someone trust-ish-worthy who's looking to hire on for a modest wage. Considering their trade they should have friends and contacts in the business.

Go for the longshoremen.
Ideally, you'd want to minimize the effects of your family's reputation on your business, but if anyone without a reputation to uphold realizes they can just kidnap you and ransom you off to your father...
Hire just one porter, you just need a guard who can occasionally help you lift stuff from the other side while Lizzy guards the ship.

Hire the longshoremen. Going with the pub hires and you may end up with grain falling overboard or possibly even having someone getting hurt and demanding you pay for their medical. Also consider adding a crane to the ship so you dont have to deal with this later on.

Something else you might want to consider is heading over to the port authority for any legal documentation you may need to transport. You might also want to get a bill of lading from the shipper, in case they try to pull a fast one at the destination to try and weasel their way out of paying in full.

>>985145
Either way, enquire with BunGineer about installing a small jib crane for quick loading/offloading without extra crew.

Leo 2021/01/07(Thu)20:29 No. 985224 ID: ca2950
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Leo has the cargo loaded by actual longshoremen at a cost of 10 seta, leaving him with 340 in reserve.

He then talks to Lizzy about potential crew hires.
"We just need a navigator and a guy to lift things. Just a nice, big muscly one. Just make sure he's not too big or he won't fit... you know... below deck."

"I'll remember that..."

"But seriously, we don't have much space on this tub. Any more than three or so more and we're gonna be stacked on top of each other.
I can ask around if you want. What kind of people are you looking for?"

Lizzy pauses to ogle the longshoremen.

"Unless you've got something else in mind."


>install a crane

Leo inquires as to the cost of having a cargo crane installed.

"We'd only need a little one, so maybe two, two-fifty. Something like that."

That's about 25 loads of manual labor costs. It would only save money in the long term and at any rate, isn't worth the delay at the moment. Something to consider for later.

Hire only women, just to spite rabbit

>>985224
Let's get someone who respects the small-crew lifestyle. Maybe someone looking to get away from the corporate, big-shipping life.

Someone with a reason to invest emotionally in the ship and potentially prevent anything bad happening to it.

>>985224
250 is too much right now. That's money you could spend on profit. I think it's honestly never going to be a good idea considering how cheap longshoremen are.

Get one slab of meat of whichever gender, and one navigator. Then get enough supplies for the trip.

>>985224
>Any more than three or so more and we're gonna be stacked on top of each other.
>Lizzy pauses to ogle the longshoremen.
Make a joke with her and say, “I get the feeling that you wouldn’t exactly be opposed to being stacked on top of each other. Especially if they match the description you gave me.”

>install a crane
Ok, crane for latter.

Let's look for a really beefy gal. To spite the mechanic, obviously.

And a navigator too.

>>985224
>Just a nice, big muscly one. Just make sure he's not too big or he won't fit... you know... below deck.
You are still talking about the ship right?
>>985230

>>985226
>>985233
Yeah a big strong girl, maybe like a bear.

>>985224
>That's about 25 loads of manual labour costs
25x costs here, in a friendly port with guaranteed reliable professional staff availability.
If you start travelling to smaller more remote ports, where prices - and therefore profit - will be higher due to that remoteness, labour may be more expensive, less reliable (wastage), or just nonexistant. Especially for perishable cargo, being able to pull up and self-offload almost anywhere is a big advantage over having to head into the nearest settlement and round up a brevet offloading crew.

Ask her which places we might find a professional navigator.

Also, ask her why her hair is purple.

>>985224
If possible, look for foreigners or at least people who have a good understanding of foreign cultures. Also make sure they arent criminals, run ins with the law at this point is not something we can deal with right now. The Navigator has to be pretty well versed, but the muscle can be a complete greenhorn who hasnt even seen an airship so long as they are cheap.

It's fiiiine, let's just go.

Leo 2021/01/09(Sat)17:29 No. 985315 ID: ca2950
File 161024216252.png - (458.95KB , 1211x1364 , 11.png )

Leo asks Lizzy if she knows anyone that could fill the crew roles necessary to take off.

Lizzy rubs her chin.
"Mn... Yeah. They're not what I'd consider ideal, but they'll get us moving. Give me some time to ask around."

Lizzy leaves while the cargo is being loaded and returns a while later with two people in tow.

"Leonardo Ranieri, this is Candice Keppler and Garrett Alvey.
Candi here can plot courses, read maps, do first aid and Garrett is large and can lift things.

Garret, Candi, this is Leo, Leon... Leonardo. He needs people that know what they're doing to do all the work."

Pleasantries are exchanged and it seems like all the minimum requirements are in place. The ship is ready to launch.

Normally I'd ask for some background checks, and what they expect for wages.

But if there willing to launch now, based off Lizzy's asking alone, maybe we've got some leverage on them.

Ask Lizzy if there's anything I should know about these two. Criminal history, if they're banned from any particular areas, etc.

Ask Lizzy about these guys' sexual preferences and kinks.

Mmm, nothing like selling bread...

They have English names, so they might be from the same placer Elizabeth comes.
Ask her how she knows them and what they are asking un return for working with you.

>>985315
How much are their wages? 50 each a week again?
Did you get food and water and medical supplies?

Ask them for what they expect to get pay and get a move on, time is money.

Let's set sail and kick ass! We're all out of ass.

>>985315
How much is expected profit on this run? I don't think we got a number.

Thing is that we need these two so we may as well pick them up, low ball them a bit, let them highball, meet in the middle as expected, hopefully your father or your mentor has taught you something about approximating the worth of navigation and manual labor in your region, you don't want to insult them when providing your first offer.

You couldn't really haggle when Lizzy presented her offer first, now you have the advantage, so long as you have been taught well enough.

Leo 2021/01/16(Sat)11:45 No. 985798 ID: ca2950
File 161082634680.png - (157.02KB , 917x631 , 12.png )

>How much are their wages? 50 each a week again?
Leo negotiates them down to 45, making weekly labor costs 140 seta.

So, accounting for wages, a trip to Bahmad in northern Drevas would yield about 5% profit and a trip to Sarahvi to the south which is about twice as far would yield about 12 - 15%, more than twice as much as going to Bahmad. Goods purchased in Sarahvi won't be subject to the increased transport cost they would in Bahmad, so the return trip could be similarly profitable.

The only real cost is an increase in danger.

You can't make profit if you don't finish the trip. However, we have nonperishable goods, so if we have to take time off to fix the ship, we are still good to go.

What kind of danger are we talking about?

>>985799 That route is dangerously close to the Gadran Empire, whom we are at war with.

More profit?
More opportunities for further trade?
More chances of swashbuckling fight scenes?

Onward to Sarahvi!

>>985798
What are we looking at in terms of risk?
Weather patterns are the primary concern, but we can't discount the possibility of pirates. Have there been any sighting recently? Rumors going around?

Do we have a gun or some sort of defenses?
I have to ask, Izzy's your pilot too, right? How confident is she that she may be able to evade chasing pirates while flying?

What is her advice? If she thinks she can handle the trip that's more profitable, we'll take it, if she doesn't feel confident, we'll take the safe trip, and calculate risk there after weighing our profit margins.

If we're the pilot, just take the safe trip, it's clear you don't know what you're doing because we all know you're no flying ace.

>>985798
>5% profit
That's... very low. You bought 400 seta's worth so you get 20 seta from the trip. Barely even worth considering.

Go for the longer trip.

>>985800
It's not though. It's the opposite side of the continent from the war, in fact.

I say you should take the risks, but what risks are we talking ablout?

>>985798
Shakedown cruise to Bahmad and sell Kand goods. If there are no issues, continue to Sarahvi (keep a handful of goods from Kand, and stock up at Bahmad). Sell at Sarahvi for good profit (Kand goods) and decent profit (Bahmad goods), then fill to capacity and return to Kand for a good profit. Establishes yourself as a trader at each place, and it means a second run to either establishes you as a reliable transport route (i.e. as well as cargo to buy and sell, you could be offered jobs to transport cargo/passengers for a fee).

>>985803
That's 5% profit including wages. So its 540 * .05=27 seta all for Leon/Operating Expenses/Debt/Business Savings/Business Development , assuming it takes a week to reach that location.

Ok, fucking yikes, still bad. 12% is 64.8 minimum.

Never mind, you HAVE to make the voyage to the farther place.

How about this. Go to Bahmad and then decide if we want to continue to Sarahvi based on how well the ship is holding up.

Leo 2021/01/22(Fri)20:46 No. 986107 ID: ca2950
File 161137720833.png - (181.59KB , 754x741 , 13.png )

A return of 40 - 60 seta on the long trip is still pretty bad. After all his expenses, Leo could end up making less than his employees. He could always buy more goods with the money he's holding in reserve to nearly double his takings or maybe triple them if he took the potentially perilous perishable provisions.

More funds available upon arrival means more goods to profit off of on the return trip. It's just a matter of how aggressive he wants to be.

A)Slow and Steady: make a little bit with what you have and wait for an opportunity to arise
B)Grease the Wheels: the problem of not having enough money can be solved by throwing money at it. Buy more goods with half your remaining funds (specify stable or perishable)
C)Fortune Favors the Bold: spend every penny you can and risk it all on the biggest possible pay out. Stuff that basket right to the brim with eggs and hope for the best (specify stable or perishable)

>>986107
B, perishable. This is extra, valuable cargo on top of what is basically guaranteed profit, so your risk is already mitigated.

A. There are too many unknowns right now: how reliable your ship is, how the crew will behave, and how easy it will be for you to even sell your wares. Liquid assets (cash) can be used to solve many problems on your first trip.

B) Test and experiment what works best. Buy a variety pack of foodstuffs, and cook some in your spare time. Do not spend every last penny, risking all is unacceptable.

>>986107
Our grim reality makes B really our only option if we want to be a smart and GOOD merchant.

However, FUCK IT, RIDE THIS BABY INTO THE GROUND! FIRST MISSION IS FLIGHT OR DIE! OPTION C ALL THE WAY BABY! STONKS!

If we don't take Option C, can we really call ourselves a Fox?

>>986117
I forgot to say go for the perishable Option C.

Fortune's call favors the bold. Load up with perishables in case you get into some kind of ship to ship food fight with pie-rates.

I'd go with B and perishables. If things go south, at least we wont lose everything.

perishable Option C

Leo 2021/01/23(Sat)09:14 No. 986138 ID: ca2950
File 161142204188.png - (192.60KB , 751x657 , 14.png )

After nearly being more conservative with his money, Leo buys as much produce as he can get, leaving a bit for fuel and provisions.

Now it's a race to deliver the goods before half of them turn to mush or end up unsaleable for various other reasons.

>what risks are we talking about?

Monsters that can take bites out of you, monsters that can swallow you whole, monsters that can take bites out of ships, monsters that can swallow ships whole, pirates, raiders, bad weather, mechanical failure. Things like that, but it's a heavily traveled route, so the danger is minimal. You know, relatively.

Everything is set, unless there's some last minute details to take care of?

You did buy a gun... right?

Something to pass the time while traveling? A book?

>>986138
Say a prayer before you leave. These superstitions exist for a reason.

You're a wealthy merchant's son; I'm sure you already own several things you can use to alleviate boredom, like a board game and a book or two.

We won't necessarily need a big gun for such a well-traveled route. If a big-ass monster appears, or the empire sends a fleet there, we're just going to run anyway. Oh, but if you do own a personal weapon already, bring that.

You should probably wait to bed the bun until after you're underway.

Say farewell to your family. Ask tour dad "Father, if I die, will you miss me?"

>>986138
Raid your father's pantry for snax
Fuck his mistriss
bail

Leo 2021/01/26(Tue)04:09 No. 986301 ID: ca2950
File 161166297022.png - (237.04KB , 792x737 , 15.png )

After gathering some of this things and saying his goodbyes, Leo and the crew launch off into the wild blue yonder toward their destination.

>you have a gun, right?

Leo has a slightly fancier than average sword. The chances of four people fighting off any kind of organized attack is pretty slim anyway, so they're going to have to rely on seeming like an unappealing target. They're looking the part, at least.

Time to sit back and wait for now. Nothing but free time.

It sure would be useful if you could use this free time to make money by producing something.

>>986302
Or train a skill.

Work on your sailors’ knots.

Get to know the crew? Is important to know who you are working with. Especially if you are their boss.

Leo 2021/01/26(Tue)17:30 No. 986336 ID: ca2950
File 161171104408.png - (209.33KB , 1024x650 , 16.png )

>it sure would be useful if you could use this free time to make money by producing something

There's not really any onboard facilities to make much. There's also not much to make anything out of.

>train a skill

There's nothing but time. It's just a matter of which skill can be trained while puttering along on a boat?

>get to know your crew

Which one? Lizzy is just loitering around. Candice is focused on writing something down and Garrett is currently serving as steering wheel holder.

Ask Candice if we can save fuel by finding some trade winds. She's the navigator, she should know this!

Lizzy's pants look like they might blow away in the breeze. Chat with her.

>>986336
Bother the skunk.

Bother! That! Skunk!

Stare at Candice from behind a barrel until she asks what you want.

>>986336
Strike up a convo with Lizzy.
A nice, easy conversation starter: asking how your dad roped her into this.
And if she's secretly some sorta badass bodyguard.

>>986336
If Candice wore Lizzy's top she'd look like she was from a porno.

Anyway we know Liz is a size queen so lets talk with Candice.

>There's not really any onboard facilities to make much
Any sort of artmaking, like painting or sculpting, wouldn't require any facilities, maybe even woodcutting... say, can those birds be caught?

>train a skill
Train your dancing skills. Those always come in handy.

Talk to the one who has nothing else they should be focusing on; Lizzy.

We know we got Candice and Garrett through her and that she's here on behalf of dear old dad, but we don't know the specifics. Ask how she came to know our father, as well as how she met our current crew — two birds with one conversation.

>>986336
If Lizzy is loitering, maybe ask what should we be doing during downtime, typically, from her experience on board ships, or from any tales her father has told her, if he had the same vocation. Candice can join in.

Garrett looks like he's probably doing too much of an important job to leave, unfortunately. We should probably take turns doing that if that isn't already the plan. Everyone needs a chance to loiter do whatever your supposed to do when loitering on a long boring voyage.