Has anyone run into the 'Too much money' problem in the RPG?

[Khymerion]

Like the topic title states, I recently ran into a minor problem of getting a game rolling and something odd came up.   Everyone made their characters separately, mostly because I wanted to not waste a day just making characters so I hunted them down each on different days.  The problem I came up with is this...  most went and made exactly what you expect to from BT players... grizzled veteran mech pilots with incredible skills in piloting and their own personal mechs, one went so far as to get a custom modified machine.  One made a phenomenal technician who could pilot and fight in a pinch.   No problem there.   They were as broke as you expect a rag tag group of mercs to be.

Then came the last two.   They made nobles.   They didn't care about the piloting of mech aspects...  they have the most basic of skills in that regard, they all went for the massive land holdings and titles.  They had social skills and command skills.   And then came the shock of seeing just how much money they were pulling in... without ever having to leave their homes.

Normally, it seems like not a bad thing... till they start throwing around cash like a Lanister from Game of Thrones or the worst stereotypes of a Steiner.  Should I really go at it like I was running a BT version of A Song of Ice and Fire?   Because these two could hire mercs that could match any of the other players, equip them with the best equipment money and connections can buy, and outfit a unit that puts them to shame... so it kind of relegates the mech jockeys to being.. well..  bodyguards/elite escorts at best for these two nobles.

I think things just start really getting odd because there is very very very little you can do with the framework of the game that isn't purchasing ships, mechs, fighters, and other bits of equipment and military personel.   Frustrating is a better word for it.   The game really starts to seem a bit creaky when those RPers start asking for things like how much infrastructure costs in their hopes to create better domains to rule over.

So, how do other GMs handle the problem of having players coming right out of the gate with so much money that they are actually contemplating monster purchases like brand new mech companies and then saying 'Well, what else do we have to buy?   This is our post tax income!'.    I mean, I could start imposing things like 'Your lord higher up is demanding constant tithes of cash and equipment...  but that is cutting into what is indeed referred to as the 'annual PERSONAL income' and not administration/logistic costs... this is the out of pocket funds, right?

So, I think the question I really am asking is...  how do you handle a game with TWO dukes (with appropriate property holdings) running around?   Should I just go and tell them 'Sorry...  I can only have a single super noble...  pick who gets to be the one...  in this flaming circle of death I have carved into the snow out back.'   They did both come to the same conclusion without talking to each other or knowing the other's plans.

[NullVoid]

Depends on the time frame.  In our campaign, we have just reached the Clan Invasion, and let me tell you, facing them is a huge money pit.  There is not enough materiel production, and that means BIG markups (mainly aerospace, we're always getting our escort ASFs totaled, and have managed to lose two Overlords so far, as well as our old Aquilla-class junker jumpship to a nuke strike from a pirate lord enemy event; but also mechs since the FC and the DC are buying or comandeering everything in sight)

In other words, this is a boardgame campaign universe; if the money is going too long a way, there's always pirates, rival nobles trying to muscle out economic competition, spendthrift dependents or just plain war rationing to keep them from totally derailing the game for the other players.  That being said, you can always give the others the option to getting knighted and start making headway into industrialism themselves.  Eventually war and fame might allow them to marry up the social ladder...

[Maelwys]

Well, the two Dukes have spent +20 TP on Traits presumably (10 on Title, 10 on Property. Any higher and they've reached the NPC level), and are pulling down 15,000,000 c-bills per Year. Yeah, they can definitely pull off hiring a merc to fight for them, though companies and their support might be a bit tough (not saying its impossible, mind you).

You could start hitting them with personal costs. Houses back on whatever planet they're from. Money to keep up appearances. You can also start rolling for what happens to the planets as well. Maybe while the noble is off with the merc unit, someone on the planet starts a pro-democracy movement. Does the player try to hire the other players to come back and put down the rebellion? Maybe their retainers taking care of things back home run off with the money one year due to an absentee landholder.

Unfortunately for you, it seems they sort of reached that point where the scale of things goes out of whack. To have two of them do it at the same time...ouch.

[bluedragon7]

Think about what kind of campaign you want to play. Not every Char possible will fit, so i usually tell the players what will be the tone of the campaign and what type of charakters i expect. i am not very strict on this, but i expect them to have a motivation of their own to participate. If the nobles do not want to participate in Mechbattle on their own but rather buy surrogates, then they dont fit a small scale merc unit.

Long years back we had a double blind BT campaing with each side having MW2 characters for each participant.
One side sold their mechs, used the money to hire lots of mercs and attacked the other, which could only afford a few militia due to sticking to their own mechs. Somewhat ruined the game.

If you fear that happening, talk to your nobles and ask them to reconsider.

[scJazz]

Like the topic title states, I recently ran into a minor problem of getting a game rolling and something odd came up.   Everyone made their characters separately, mostly because I wanted to not waste a day just making characters so I hunted them down each on different days.  The problem I came up with is this...  most went and made exactly what you expect to from BT players... grizzled veteran mech pilots with incredible skills in piloting and their own personal mechs, one went so far as to get a custom modified machine.  One made a phenomenal technician who could pilot and fight in a pinch.   No problem there.   They were as broke as you expect a rag tag group of mercs to be.

Then came the last two.   They made nobles.   They didn't care about the piloting of mech aspects...  they have the most basic of skills in that regard, they all went for the massive land holdings and titles.  They had social skills and command skills.   And then came the shock of seeing just how much money they were pulling in... without ever having to leave their homes.

Normally, it seems like not a bad thing... till they start throwing around cash like a Lanister from Game of Thrones or the worst stereotypes of a Steiner.  Should I really go at it like I was running a BT version of A Song of Ice and Fire?   Because these two could hire mercs that could match any of the other players, equip them with the best equipment money and connections can buy, and outfit a unit that puts them to shame... so it kind of relegates the mech jockeys to being.. well..  bodyguards/elite escorts at best for these two nobles.

I think things just start really getting odd because there is very very very little you can do with the framework of the game that isn't purchasing ships, mechs, fighters, and other bits of equipment and military personel.   Frustrating is a better word for it.   The game really starts to seem a bit creaky when those RPers start asking for things like how much infrastructure costs in their hopes to create better domains to rule over.

So, how do other GMs handle the problem of having players coming right out of the gate with so much money that they are actually contemplating monster purchases like brand new mech companies and then saying 'Well, what else do we have to buy?   This is our post tax income!'.    I mean, I could start imposing things like 'Your lord higher up is demanding constant tithes of cash and equipment...  but that is cutting into what is indeed referred to as the 'annual PERSONAL income' and not administration/logistic costs... this is the out of pocket funds, right?

So, I think the question I really am asking is...  how do you handle a game with TWO dukes (with appropriate property holdings) running around?   Should I just go and tell them 'Sorry...  I can only have a single super noble...  pick who gets to be the one...  in this flaming circle of death I have carved into the snow out back.'   They did both come to the same conclusion without talking to each other or knowing the other's plans.

House Rule #1: Never do anything that might get you punched in the face :) Sounds like these two jokers went and broke that rule.

GM Rule #1: When players min/max the rules in such a way as to destroy Game Play there is only one solution. Deus Ex Machina!

That income is mostly investment related and represents an Average. It isn't 15,000,000.00 CB every year. Start by making the payout monthly. Then hit their landhold with an earthquake, plague, insurrection (or all of the above) to reduce their income to non-obnoxious levels. Finally, since we are mostly talking about investments, rents, etc randomize it!

example 1d6 roll...

1 - Large Negative Bonus
2 - Small Negative Bonus
3 & 4 - Normal
5 - Small Positive Bonus
6 - Large Positive Bonus

Finally, add in some extra evil... Markets tend toward trends so once things go Negative they will tend to stay negative for awhile. The same applies to a Positive Market. While this is overly simplified a Normal Healthy Market will tend toward slight positive growth in the 2% to 5% area over a long term. If the growth happens faster or if there is an over long positive trend a Market will collapse significantly and then start the process of rebuilding after a period of "Shock" elapses from the collapse.

Overall, the fix for Prince Igottalottacbills is to just get RANDOM with a side of MEAN!

[NullVoid]

Overall, the fix for Prince Igottalottacbills is to just get RANDOM with a side of MEAN!

That's the sort of thing that destroys gaming groups.  Ideally, you'd have discussed previously with your players the "tone" of the campaign so everybody made compatible characters.  There's no intrinsic problem with a Song of Fire and Ice in space; it might even be a very fun premise to play.  The problem is when most players have square pegs and the adventures present them with only round holes.  At the beginning of the current campaign I'm playing, us (the PCs) ended up infiltrating a rival mercenary company.  The problem is, we were an aerospace technician, a 'mech jock and an infantryman with barely a +3 of acting between us, and that after adding attribute modifiers... and let's not dwell on the other relevant skills, such as Security Systems and Climbing (ouch!). Let us say it took a lot of fiat to keep us alive through the experience.

The GM should NEVER take a "me vs. them" position in relation to the players.  If the players have put their hands on special game-breaking equipment and it's ruining the campaign, explain it to them and then take it away with a believable in-story reason, but don't have it blow up the player's 'mech in the middle of an important battle. If a munchkin is using a loophole in the rules to be uberchar, explain to that player that that loophole is ruining your (and maybe even the other players's) enjoyment of the game and that the loophole needs to be closed. If the player(s) believes that that makes their character unplayable, allow them to change their characters to address the problem.

[Mohammed As`Zaman Bey]

So, how do other GMs handle the problem of having players coming right out of the gate with so much money that they are actually contemplating monster purchases like brand new mech companies and then saying 'Well, what else do we have to buy?   This is our post tax income!'.    I mean, I could start imposing things like 'Your lord higher up is demanding constant tithes of cash and equipment...  but that is cutting into what is indeed referred to as the 'annual PERSONAL income' and not administration/logistic costs... this is the out of pocket funds, right?

  Roll with it.
  The guys I'm GMing have rolled up a bunch of Kais and are curbstomping the Clans without breaking a sweat. The nobles of the bunch are insane wealthy and have set up factories to manufacture Clan Tech -No prob, it was expensive and it took years to tool up but face it, if you have the money, anything can be done.
   One player lost his land holdings for committing atrocities during a rebellion. His commander limited the punishment to paying fines and a slap on the wrist but I let my players hang themselves when they insist on it.
  Most GMs forget that every landed noble has a rival jockeying for that noble's title, wealth and power. Landed Nobles possess their properties at the whim of their sovereign, and every benefit is at the cost of a list of obligations, such as obligatory military service, showing face at social functions, and making sure their subordinates don't get out of line.
 
  Roll with it. Have your players meet REAL social generals with armies of servants to keep them comfortable, mobile brothels to keep the men happy in the field, five-star chefs staffing the mess hall, and pressure your players to get with the program -If they aren't stylin' like the social generals they're just unwashed hicks with a lot of cash. Make them want to spend their money in frivolous extravagances. Work their egos!

  Despite the ample number of curves I throw them, my players are having a blast because anything goes in my universe and sometimes the bad guys get away.

[Tai Dai Cultist]

The problem of too much money in BattleTech is actually pretty analogous to the problem of having too much money in D&D.

"Hooray!  We have a giant pot of gold/c-bills.  We can buy anything we want now!"

No, not really.

In order to buy anything you want, you have to presume there's someone who wants to sell anything you want.  Just because you have enough money to buy a battalion of new mechs does NOT mean there's a battalion of new mechs out there up for sale.

"Well, we could buy a single super expensive item, like a dropship or a jumpship!"

No, not really.  Not unless the GM is ready to give you your own space transport.  Until then, there's just none available on the market.

"Well, we could buy something mundane, like a city!"

Again, who's got a city for sale?  You could theoretically buy some noble's fief and put him into early retirement, but then you are buying yourself a whole new campaign's worth of administration challenges.  And if the GM doesn't to change the game from mechwarriors to scheming noblemen, then he can simply say no there's no noblemen right now who want to be bought out into early retirement. 

Et cetera.

[epic]

...

Increase the threat level?  Perhaps it's just me but... 15 million cbills a year seems like chump change.  I'm used to running merc campaigns where we run a regiment or more, and have that amount monthly as part of our budget. 

Don't get me wrong; it's nothing to sneeze at.  However, a significant threat - say, another Duke or an ambitious Baron who has some good Connections - will have similar resources, and a similar threat level.   A Duke is at a level where they are actually able to engage in interstellar politics and make changes to the realm as a whole.  Other Dukes and powerful nobles will be doing the same.  If you have a Duke in the game, as a PC?  You are getting into that level of power play, imo (hence, I suppose, the earlier Game of Thrones references).   I mean, the two most powerful other nobles in the Fed Suns are both Dukes - the Duke of Robinson, and the Duke of New Syrtis.  Ditto for the nobles in many of the other realms (including the infamous Ricol, I believe). 

"Why, yes, you have an entire company of mechs at your disposal.  So do I... and I saved up to hire an extra battalion of the unit Grubby Mercenary Scum for a 6 month contract.  Who's laughing now, you trumped up peasant?"

[idea weenie]

The other detail is while that may be personal income for the nobles, they are expected to use that income to improve their family's standing.  So bribes, parties, spies, bragging, tech theft, etc is all expected to be done by the Dukes.

I.e. the players are doing an Objective Raid, and the GM has put an extra item on the map (a secondary objective, but still useful).  The PCs have to stay longer, taking more damage, and the only ones that benefit are the nobles.  The nobles would then use part of their monthly allowance to pay for the extra damages/ammo used, but they managed to rescue a VIP, or just helped some civilians get to safety (merchants may be obsessed with the bottom line, but a Duke risking his life for a child is great propaganda).

Or the PCs have to meet with a potential hiring agent.  Normally it would be the PCs trying to shmooze up to the hiring agent to get a better deal.  The nobles have the retainers who can identify items that the agent has always wanted, and will be sure to have them present (rare wines, certain foods, etc) to give bonuses for rolling the Negotiation tests.  The agent feels that they are the ones who have to impress the PCs (they have a pair of Dukes!) and will correspondingly offer better terms.

Based on "What Means to be a Successor Lord", the noble PCs should try for the following:
* possess an inhuman ambition; a ceaseless, insatiable hunger for power, respect, authority.
* every action, every word pursues power, accumulating it, storing it for the future.
* each C-Bill and moment of time should be spent accumulating power however possible
* know the people they are going to meet, and what their strengths/weaknesses are
* have a network of people who are capable of handling situations without his direct intervention (so he has free time)
* find/cultivate the right families to marry to improve his family's position (marry the power)

Oh, and their peers are people that do the same thing.  Expect smear campaigns, spies sneaking in, rivals taking credit for what the nobles do, tipping off pirates, etc.  They will not actively help the enemy, but they will keep the noble busy with small details.  Expect their rivals to be constantly trying to seduce away their potential marriage partners, taking the mercenary contracts they need, buying the assembly line products, etc.  All sorts of stuff that will strengthen the overall realm, but weaken the PCs family.  The PC will need to do the same, plus doing his best to point his rivals at someone else so he has some breathing room, and eventually getting them on his side.  He has to do all this while not making enough of a stir that his Lord cracks down due to the disruptions being caused.

[Kitsune413]

The nobles of the bunch are insane wealthy and have set up factories to manufacture Clan Tech -No prob, it was expensive and it took years to tool up but face it, if you have the money, anything can be done.

That's ignoring the GDP of Successor States. If simply having money meant that you could build Clan Tech then it would have been done. Don't get me wrong. Your game, your thing. But everytime I've ever seen 'Players' build a factory its happened in a vacuum. CEO's, Successor States, Lawyers, or any other number of things aren't involved.

What does Irian Weapons think of these clantech factories? What do the Clans think of these clan tech factories? Where did they get the raw materials. Who is in charge? Whats their administration skill. Do conniving people on their board of directors ever try to cut them out?

If your players are having fun that's good. But you're missing a lot of opportunities to show them just how cut throat business in the sphere is.

Roll with it.

This. Honestly you got really lucky with those players. They have a lot of money. That gives them a lot of prestige and power. But its not in a vacuum. They are going to have entirely different problems than paying for where their mech stays. Keeping it armored and armed.

Make it fun.


When I do campaigns a lot of the time I do it from multiple levels. So they will have some noble characters that are in the know. Then they'll play special forces or mech pilots or something like that. Cut the story into different layers.

[Kitsune413]

.
In order to buy anything you want, you have to presume there's someone who wants to sell anything you want.  Just because you have enough money to buy a battalion of new mechs does NOT mean there's a battalion of new mechs out there up for sale.

if you're in the 3145 time period then this is a pretty gigantic issue. People with real money want to buy battlemechs. Not your dirt poor fifteen million a year nobles. So they own a planet and because they are the landholder it all rolls up to them. That's great. You know who else owns a planet? Everyone else who owns a planet. Not an insubstantial amount of people.

Then you also have to deal with this planet. You know whats really challenging about owning a planet? Being the Landowner of a Planet. Whats their ruling body like? How is their economy doing? What kind of stuff does the planet make? What kind of stuff does the planet need? What kind of things do the planets people want but not have?

"Well, we could buy a single super expensive item, like a dropship or a jumpship!"

It would take them 20 years to be able to buy a Scout. xD

No, not really.  Not unless the GM is ready to give you your own space transport.  Until then, there's just none available on the market.

Free Traders like their jumpships. If the thing isn't family owned or government owned then you'll have to deal with galactic megacorps.

Again, who's got a city for sale?  You could theoretically buy some noble's fief and put him into early retirement, but then you are buying yourself a whole new campaign's worth of administration challenges.

I think this for everyone who has ever 'Built a Factory'. Awesome if you want that to be your game. But lets face it. The players don't have the scrap for that... and if they did. Then they don't have the administration and bureaucracy skills for that... and if they did. Well then the Campaign starts and that's a nightmare.

[truetanker]

BLACKMAIL!

No seriously, have them a natural NPC enemy like a cousin, who just happens to have some dirty * whatever * and they promise to use it against them. 5 million a year for them to quietly not put it out? Or else? The rest could be a relief funds, give them 2 mil a year as the only cash that can be safely unaccounted for. Or the IRS is after them for embezzlement.

TT

[Khymerion]

Thank you all for the advice and the different points of view of going into this.

I definitely am looking forward now to running a heavy political game...   the problem I am going to have to come to is keeping things interesting for the techs and mech jocks.   I'll find that out this weekend when I finally pin everyone down and force them to understand their position as actually being almost important people within the inner sphere and that I need to stop being lazy and actually start writing up the mid and low level nobility within the feudal system on the planets they have and the neighboring systems and who it is who they are in service to via the rank of Grand Duke, Prime Minister, and luckily... phew...  in 3145, the books actually tell me who is in charge of the houses.

And knowing them and their ineptitude...  and they have a fantastic record of botching these things up... like cut from the cloth classic brand Liao here...  this will be fun.

But yes, thank you all for your various points of view, they will help me in my decision making in the coming days, weeks, and months leading up to what will inevitably lead to the one or both of them screaming something that will befit a demotivational poster.

[idea weenie]

And knowing them and their ineptitude...  and they have a fantastic record of botching these things up... like cut from the cloth classic brand Liao here...  this will be fun.

This could be even more fun.  Are they a senior noble from one House, with a member from another Huose in their unit?  That other House member better be personally sworn to their service, or their rivals will insinuate they are working with an enemy.

[Khymerion]

This could be even more fun.  Are they a senior noble from one House, with a member from another Huose in their unit?  That other House member better be personally sworn to their service, or their rivals will insinuate they are working with an enemy.

Well, considering that there is only a handful of ranks above Duke...  and throwing around a decent sum (with one arguing that the chart only stops there and should go higher due to the math equation for calculating property actually giving them a potential of +18 before modifiers like what and where the planet/system actually is come into it...  10 for property, 3 from rank, 5 for reputaion...  it was not a very pleasant luncheon where he quoted this to me, soured the meal)...  I think that puts them on the short list of annoying people you have to invite to royal functions...  or at least the functions in that governing region.

I think deep down, one of them wants to be the next Jacob Bannson while the other just wants to have his personal little empire he can leer out of at people paranoid like from his mobile fortress while bribing/kidnapping anyone who actually passed a science or engineering course.    Okay...  talked to much, sorry.   This is getting way too unprofessional.

[solmanian]

Instead of the lannisters, treat them like the starks. Make it an adventure, the plot of MW4:vengence comes to mind.

[Kitsune413]

Yeah but those mechwarriors and techs need payed and it sounds like you know a pair of pc"s with money.

Bodyguards, drivers, or just an entourage. Take them to solaris or galatea. Take them to the tables.

[Dave Talley]

now its your game, you get to pick what thier holdings
actually are

it could be that they are from rival families, or that thier home planet was just taken by the clans/kurita/whoever

now the money they have is all thats left, they will
have to use it to liberate thier home,or they can simply retire to Solaris

[Mohammed As`Zaman Bey]

What does Irian Weapons think of these clantech factories?

  Not a factor -They are not in direct competition for market share.

What do the Clans think of these clan tech factories?

  Nobody cares, not even the Clans. They don't even bother with the Wolves in Exile.

Where did they get the raw materials. Who is in charge? Whats their administration skill. Do conniving people on their board of directors ever try to cut them out?

  I ran the numbers -It will take over a decade for the factories to break even. The players appointed CEOs and functionaries to manage their businesses so they are like Victor Steiner Davions -Absentee landlords who have no clue where every C-Bill is going and millions are skimmed off from the profits. They really don't care to micromanage their holdings and I don't force them. The players haven't a clue on the rampant corruption they rule over. The same happened when King Richard Lionheart went off to play in the Crusades and left his brother John to run the show. The truth is, Richard was an idiot and Prince John saved England from bankruptcy -The Crusades and King Richard's ransom (he was seized by the Germans) nearly broke England. John kept it all running and the taxes collected. He even signed the Magna Carta.

  The regiment they play in was a dysfunctional rabble -Only the god-like abilities of a handful of players would pull the unit through. In one campaign, several of the officers got into a shouting match that ended in a brawl that wound up shown on the BT universe's version of YouTube.
 One officer, who never bothered to familiarize himself with the units' infantry assets, actually welcomed two companies' worth of insurgent infiltrators into the unit, where the insurgents proceeded to kidnap officers and men and stole vehicles out from under their noses...and there was much hilarity...

  I even documented the unit in fanfic form but for mature readers; Much of it based on my own experiences in the military....
https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9937852/1/AoD

[RMDC]

I think idea weenie said it best. At the ducal level, it's less about "how do I control these players" and more about "how are these characters going to get more control". In fact, reading that post gave me inspiration for my upcoming ATOW game...

[Lorcan Nagle]

There's actually some decent advice on this front in the GM's section of AtoW.  If the characters are rich and powerful, then they have obligations and duties.  Their lord may ask them to go off on a mission (which requires their bodyguards and retainers to come along, of course), they'll have to watch out for all their family members who are lower on the inheritance chain as well as criminals and members of other houses (and other nations) too.

[Orion]

Not run into this in Battletech, but have in fantasy and superhero games.  Personally, I've ran into issues like this so often that I require a pre-game meeting before any character is made.  This meeting is all about deciding the genre, tone, direction, etc. of the campaign.  Stuff like how well should the characters get along, are they designed in secret, or to maximize the usefulness of the group, long-term friends vs new unit thrown together, etc.

The first thing I'd ask the players is if they are wanting to play nobles, with all the economics, politics, and non-combat stuff it brings up, or they simply want to be a stinking rich mechwarrior with a noble title.  If they really want to play nobles, then ask the other players if guarding the nobles is an okay game.  Chances are, it won't be agreeable to all.  At this point, you have everyone decide what kind of game they do want to play, and then someone makes a new character.

I think a great traditional game could be made in which one noble is the black sheep of his family.  Sure he's stinking rich, but few other nobles will speak to him, he's not allow to go home, and he survives on an allowance the family sends out as long as he doesn't screw up too badly.  The second noble is a merc pilot because it was expected of him, not because he's that interested in doing the job.  Make one of them the commander of the unit because of his money, but another character is the one really running it because he is the one with the experience and/or knowledge.  To maximize roleplaying opportunities, make sure they have different ideas on how things should be done, and what direction the unit should take.

[E. Icaza]

So they're rich.  That just comes with a whole new set of problems.  It's your job to make those problems happen.   >:D

"They've got 99 problems, but C-Bills ain't one of them."

[Maelwys]

Of course, when there are two of them and their problems are so big, its easy to lose focus on the rest of the group. Maybe the other players don't WANT to be the noble's bodyguards, or are tired of having everything about the noble and/or coming up against yet another problem caused by the noble.

I think its going to be a pretty tricky balancing act.

[Mohammed As`Zaman Bey]

I think its going to be a pretty tricky balancing act.

  I make that a problem for the players to work out among themselves...and enjoy the ensuing hilarity.

[scJazz]

So they're rich.  That just comes with a whole new set of problems.  It's your job to make those problems happen.   >:D

"They've got 99 problems, but C-Bills ain't one of them."

Yeah... this points back to my earlier post about getting totally medieval on them.

The earnings should be taken as an Average amount of Investment income which is normally paid out quarterly. The Rules do not give any clarity about what should happen with those earnings. Is it just the straight Average of everything left over, the total net income? There are many things that could lower net...

1 ) Incompetent Investment Advisor
2 ) Bad Market
3 ) Huge Natural disasters (Hurricane, Earthquake, Asteroid Impact, Pestilence, etc)
4 ) Inflation
5 ) Deflation
6 ) War
7 ) Small Natural disasters (drought, tornadoes, pestilence, etc)
8 ) Industrial disasters (Hydro-Electric Dam breaking, pollution, Power Plant offline, not enough shipments of XXX, etc.)
9 ) Ad Nauseum

A happy medium can be found... heck... in many ways it could add to the Storyline and increase player fun!

[idea weenie]

The earnings should be taken as an Average amount of Investment income which is normally paid out quarterly. The Rules do not give any clarity about what should happen with those earnings. Is it just the straight Average of everything left over, the total net income? There are many things that could lower net...

6 ) War

A small scale war, because the pirates hear the Duke(s) is away, so they decide to play.  Since the Duke is busy spending time as a mercenary, he is not there to provide morale bonuses or better bonuses to the local militia.  As a result the locals take more damage, and more loot is stolen.  This damage and loot have to be repaid, so it comes out of the Duke's pocket.

You could have a rules where the higher the Noble title, the more time has to be spent at their home, keeping things going well.  A Baron can pop off, because his superiors can handle a single Baron being gone easily (the Count's assistant accountant can do a good job).  A Duke away from the planet means the direct representative of the Successor Lord is gone, and there are a lot of people who want that title.

That could be an adjustment for the rules.  If you have a noble title and are being a merc, you are not in the line of succession.  You are one of the secondary children who will not inherit the title, and have to find another way to make your money/fortune.

[scJazz]

A small scale war, because the pirates hear the Duke(s) is away, so they decide to play.  Since the Duke is busy spending time as a mercenary, he is not there to provide morale bonuses or better bonuses to the local militia.  As a result the locals take more damage, and more loot is stolen.  This damage and loot have to be repaid, so it comes out of the Duke's pocket.

You could have a rules where the higher the Noble title, the more time has to be spent at their home, keeping things going well.  A Baron can pop off, because his superiors can handle a single Baron being gone easily (the Count's assistant accountant can do a good job).  A Duke away from the planet means the direct representative of the Successor Lord is gone, and there are a lot of people who want that title.

That could be an adjustment for the rules.  If you have a noble title and are being a merc, you are not in the line of succession.  You are one of the secondary children who will not inherit the title, and have to find another way to make your money/fortune.

+1 interwebz

It doesn't even have to be a war as suggested but... if you are not on planet, managing your investments closely, the will suffer.

If I wasn't busy doing other things I might create a random modifying table.

Anyone with Investment Management want to take a quick stab?

1 ) Observant Investor
2 ) Skilled (Not skilled Investment manager, heck even corrupt which brings on whole new set of wierd)
3 ) Market Nature (Bear vs Bull)
4 ) Acts of God
5 ) Market Saturation
6 ) Inflation/Deflation
7 ) etc

[Khymerion]

Alright, some insight into the players who are behind the problem, perhaps this will help out some.

The two who made nobles are very much the stay at home, micro-manage type.  Galavanting about the galaxy is not something they are too keen on unless there is an express need... like Blakists needing to be killed or a super conspiracy to uncover... or they are ordered to by directive from their lord above.   If they do move, it will be expressly to aquire new holdings or to strike at a foe.

These two who are wanting to be nobles distrust each other across all the various characters they have ever made in the 10+ years I have run for them but they always will band together against an external threat.  Only if one of them goes off the deep end of stupid will they slit the other's throat or there is no other threat but the other one.   But since the BT universe is chalk full of threats, getting them to stab the other will be hard.

The thing is...  the Alpha noble is a manipulator to say the very least.  This guys has been gifted with a silver tongue and the skills to make up a character to back it up when you call their bluff with a dice roll.    So trying to paint him as an incompetent will be hard because he is at home in the courts.   He has a near KGB attitude towards problems, believes in spies and black ops, and has no problems black bagging people and sealing them away in dungeons for the rest of time or lighting a village on fire if it means the problem is solved.   If given the chance, he will implement the Gestapo, with their brutality and short of an outside power invading, little chance for redemption for the populace.

Yes, I can always run a popular revolve against him but this is a guy who via points is the defacto ruler of the planet or a similarly large body worthy of rank and property.   And we know how feudal systems work and how hands off most nobles are in universe.

Beta Noble.   An industrialist to say the very least.   While the other is a silver tongued demagogue with a dark side worthy of Grand Moff Tarkin, this one is a technocrat.   An efficiency expert who tends to over analyze the situation.   Prone to big purchases but only if those purchases have a very definable net-return or significant increase in capabilities.   So if I try to con him out money, he is going to want to make sure it has gone through all it's paces beforehand.   Prone to fits of paranoia and over-reacting when things start to go wrong.   Holds off on violence till there is little other option, preferring a defensive stance, ready to counter until pushed and then tends to push towards reducing the enemy that he has now deemed to be unreasonable to nothing more than dust under his boot, followers and anyone else who even bothers to resist post pushed to far being nothing more than bodies in a charnel house.   Willing to accept anyone who willing surrenders but don't shoot at him and then think you can beg for mercy after the fighting is over.   I know, I watched him do this trick on multiple occasions, mercilessly hunting a foe and all their followers down to the last little nock and cranny.

His paranoia is enough that in a world of giant battlemechs that can cloak, he half jokingly said that he would only ride around his planet in a super-heavy battletank to ensure his safety outside his estates.   The fact that I am not sure that he was really joking is the bad part because he showed up with the stats for the thing the next day... with price tag.

The rest of the group...  they are mostly the follower type.   They make good characters but tend to lack initiative and if the primary two say jump, they tend to do so... it is only if the two primaries come to a head in terms of what to do will the others have to really step in.

Hope that helps.