Jamison's Catalog: Xboat Route Transports

[boomslang]

Originally posted by Sigg Oddra:
Tell me how an A2 can survive against the big boys without speculating itself?

Heh, heh.

As mentioned in an earlier thread, speculation is the whole raison d'être of the Type A2, since no matter how you bend/break/fix the rates, freight is profitable only on 400dtonners and above...

 

[boomslang]

Originally posted by Sigg Oddra:
Tell me how an A2 can survive against the big boys without speculating itself?

Heh, heh.

As mentioned in an earlier thread, speculation is the whole raison d'être of the Type A2, since no matter how you bend/break/fix the rates, freight is profitable only on 400dtonners and above...

 

[boomslang]

Originally posted by robject:
Perhaps fitting the fleet of MKs within the context of a dividend-paying company was why I figured that KCr40 and up were needed.

Well, yeah -- Al Morai can't pay dividends if it's not making a profit, but is KCr40 per ship per month enough to cover all the outstanding shares?

Another big chunk of overhead is the support for the route protectors; they're all cost and no revenue. Furthermore, I doubt they make any helpful contribution to reducing insurance premiums -- on the one hand, they will reduce claims based on losses, but on the other, they will increase the need for liability coverage to compensate for any collateral damage they inflict...

And if Al Morai's profit margin is razor-thin, I can only imagine what Oberlindes' looks like...

 

[boomslang]

Originally posted by robject:
Perhaps fitting the fleet of MKs within the context of a dividend-paying company was why I figured that KCr40 and up were needed.

Well, yeah -- Al Morai can't pay dividends if it's not making a profit, but is KCr40 per ship per month enough to cover all the outstanding shares?

Another big chunk of overhead is the support for the route protectors; they're all cost and no revenue. Furthermore, I doubt they make any helpful contribution to reducing insurance premiums -- on the one hand, they will reduce claims based on losses, but on the other, they will increase the need for liability coverage to compensate for any collateral damage they inflict...

And if Al Morai's profit margin is razor-thin, I can only imagine what Oberlindes' looks like...

 

[robject]

Nope, I don't think KCr40 per ton per week isn't quite enough. What was that number again? Something like KCr60 or so...

And those route protectors are small potato(e)s. The more I think about it, the less likely they are to be route protectors. They're more like an elite strike team.

I'm sure Oberlindes plays rough. Al Morai seems to be making money, but I'm sure it's hard to play in the megacorporate sandbox without cutting a deal.

 

[robject]

Nope, I don't think KCr40 per ton per week isn't quite enough. What was that number again? Something like KCr60 or so...

And those route protectors are small potato(e)s. The more I think about it, the less likely they are to be route protectors. They're more like an elite strike team.

I'm sure Oberlindes plays rough. Al Morai seems to be making money, but I'm sure it's hard to play in the megacorporate sandbox without cutting a deal.

 

[robject]

Here we go Chad, here's the phoney numbers I cooked up from the other topic:

According to Hans' estimate, BCr2 is a 1-2% dividend on profits. That appears to make Al Morai a BCr100+ company.

This means average value shipped per jump is KCr80 per ton. About MCr100 per jump. 20 m-drives, 20 jump drives, 20 power plants, and a crate of air/rafts would get them that.

Sounds very doable with 150kt to 180kt of xboat transports.

 

[robject]

Here we go Chad, here's the phoney numbers I cooked up from the other topic:

According to Hans' estimate, BCr2 is a 1-2% dividend on profits. That appears to make Al Morai a BCr100+ company.

This means average value shipped per jump is KCr80 per ton. About MCr100 per jump. 20 m-drives, 20 jump drives, 20 power plants, and a crate of air/rafts would get them that.

Sounds very doable with 150kt to 180kt of xboat transports.

 

[boomslang]

Originally posted by robject:
And those route protectors are small potato(e)s. The more I think about it, the less likely they are to be route protectors. They're more like an elite strike team.

The more I think about this, the more I'm liking it...

I'm sure Oberlindes plays rough. Al Morai seems to be making money, but I'm sure it's hard to play in the megacorporate sandbox without cutting a deal.

I mean seriously, what in the world do the Vargr produce that has both high trade value and regular availability? Nada. Forget "speculation"; it's even money that the Emissary is a classic, if heavy-hitting, Vargr corsair when the 3I isn't looking...

 

[boomslang]

Originally posted by robject:
And those route protectors are small potato(e)s. The more I think about it, the less likely they are to be route protectors. They're more like an elite strike team.

The more I think about this, the more I'm liking it...

I'm sure Oberlindes plays rough. Al Morai seems to be making money, but I'm sure it's hard to play in the megacorporate sandbox without cutting a deal.

I mean seriously, what in the world do the Vargr produce that has both high trade value and regular availability? Nada. Forget "speculation"; it's even money that the Emissary is a classic, if heavy-hitting, Vargr corsair when the 3I isn't looking...

 

[robject]

To expand, here's a list of things these ships may be carrying. I'm thinking each lot size is something generic like 2d6 x 100 tons.

That last column is a work in progress. I'd like to have many world types reasonably represented as source worlds for high-value cargo. The idea is that you'd roll cargo for every row where the source world condition is met, and that's what's available for shipping.

</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;"> Cargo Type Base KCr per ton Source World

11 J-drives A-L 1500 TL12+
12 M-drives A-L 2500 TL9+
13 Power plants A-L 2500 TL12+
14 Small craft 500 TL9+
15 Computers 5000 TL12+
16 Gravitic craft 125 TL10+
22 Gravitics 100 TL10+
23 Luxury foods 50 Ag Ri
24 Gems 1000 Ni
25 Radioactives 1000 As or Ni
26 Special Alloys 200 In
33 Pharmaceuticals 100 Ri
34 Machine tools 750 In
35 Body Armor 50 TL14+
36 Armored vehicles 70 TL14+
44 Farm machinery 150 In or TL10-
45 Electronic parts 100 In or TL10+
46 Mechanical parts 70 In or TL5-TL8
55 Computer parts 150 In or TL10+
56 Cybernetic parts 250 In or TL15+
66 Vacc suits 400 In or TL12+</pre>[/QUOTE]

 

[robject]

To expand, here's a list of things these ships may be carrying. I'm thinking each lot size is something generic like 2d6 x 100 tons.

That last column is a work in progress. I'd like to have many world types reasonably represented as source worlds for high-value cargo. The idea is that you'd roll cargo for every row where the source world condition is met, and that's what's available for shipping.

</font><blockquote>code:</font><hr /><pre style="font-size:x-small; font-family: monospace;"> Cargo Type Base KCr per ton Source World

11 J-drives A-L 1500 TL12+
12 M-drives A-L 2500 TL9+
13 Power plants A-L 2500 TL12+
14 Small craft 500 TL9+
15 Computers 5000 TL12+
16 Gravitic craft 125 TL10+
22 Gravitics 100 TL10+
23 Luxury foods 50 Ag Ri
24 Gems 1000 Ni
25 Radioactives 1000 As or Ni
26 Special Alloys 200 In
33 Pharmaceuticals 100 Ri
34 Machine tools 750 In
35 Body Armor 50 TL14+
36 Armored vehicles 70 TL14+
44 Farm machinery 150 In or TL10-
45 Electronic parts 100 In or TL10+
46 Mechanical parts 70 In or TL5-TL8
55 Computer parts 150 In or TL10+
56 Cybernetic parts 250 In or TL15+
66 Vacc suits 400 In or TL12+</pre>[/QUOTE]

 

[parmasson]

^Ha yes sir but what tech level to what tech level?

I presume that high tech goods flow to lower tech worlds as those goods would be more valuable there. While spices and specialty liquors (not listed!) might travel the other way. Surely Darcian Sanguavitae Wine will fetch an excellent price in the next sector! much more than 50 a ton!

 

[parmasson]

^Ha yes sir but what tech level to what tech level?

I presume that high tech goods flow to lower tech worlds as those goods would be more valuable there. While spices and specialty liquors (not listed!) might travel the other way. Surely Darcian Sanguavitae Wine will fetch an excellent price in the next sector! much more than 50 a ton!

 

[robject]

Obviously, the CT table has to be leveraged for full effect. Hmmm.

 

[robject]

Obviously, the CT table has to be leveraged for full effect. Hmmm.

 

[parmasson]

Got it.

 

[parmasson]

Got it.

 

[rancke]

Originally posted by robject:
Yep, I believe Mike is right, this works without changing the jump pricing.

KCr4 per ton shipped (i.e. KCr1 per ton per parsec) won't save Tukera. KCr80 will.

Except that it doesn't explain why anyone would bother to ship passengers at all. Al Morai's ships carry 1200 T of cargo and 30 passengers. If it really is capable of making a profit of KCr80 per dT, then every passenger cabin installed represents a loss of a cool third of a million credits per jump, rain or shine. Why would anyone plan on taking such a loss?

Sound business sense would have Al Morai carry its speculative cargo on dedicated freighters and then have separate passenger liners charging MCr20,000 per ticket for a four parsec jump. Carrying both passengers and cargo only makes sense if they're both profitable.

Another problem is that it doesn't explain how Al Morai is able to buy stuff for X kilocredits per dT, ship it for a true cost of three or four thousand credits and then sell it for X+83 kilocredits per dT. That sort of windfall is reserved for monopolies and temporary situations. Pretty soon someone shows up with a ship who is willing to pay X+1 kilocredits per T and sell for X+82. Then Al Morai will have to pay X+2 credits and sell for X+81. I'm sure you can see where this is going.

Economic laws may be a bit more flexible than physical laws, but they do exist and they do have fairly predictable effects. Any time you have a situation that seems to be too good to be true, it either doesn't exist or someone is cheating.


Hans

 

[rancke]

Originally posted by robject:
Yep, I believe Mike is right, this works without changing the jump pricing.

KCr4 per ton shipped (i.e. KCr1 per ton per parsec) won't save Tukera. KCr80 will.

Except that it doesn't explain why anyone would bother to ship passengers at all. Al Morai's ships carry 1200 T of cargo and 30 passengers. If it really is capable of making a profit of KCr80 per dT, then every passenger cabin installed represents a loss of a cool third of a million credits per jump, rain or shine. Why would anyone plan on taking such a loss?

Sound business sense would have Al Morai carry its speculative cargo on dedicated freighters and then have separate passenger liners charging MCr20,000 per ticket for a four parsec jump. Carrying both passengers and cargo only makes sense if they're both profitable.

Another problem is that it doesn't explain how Al Morai is able to buy stuff for X kilocredits per dT, ship it for a true cost of three or four thousand credits and then sell it for X+83 kilocredits per dT. That sort of windfall is reserved for monopolies and temporary situations. Pretty soon someone shows up with a ship who is willing to pay X+1 kilocredits per T and sell for X+82. Then Al Morai will have to pay X+2 credits and sell for X+81. I'm sure you can see where this is going.

Economic laws may be a bit more flexible than physical laws, but they do exist and they do have fairly predictable effects. Any time you have a situation that seems to be too good to be true, it either doesn't exist or someone is cheating.


Hans