In Game Merchandise - Are There Rules?

[FarFlungHansa]

This is sort of also for the expanded rules but in my AToW game I was joking with my friends about making merchandise in the game for our Mercenary Company.

Are there rules for something like that in AToW or in the other rulebooks? Or not really?

It'd be fun for this and if we ever run a Solaris VII game - making money off of Contestant Merchandise.

If anyone knows it'd be in here. Thanks.

[Daryk]

No specific rules, but I'd probably give the group a bonus on their Administration roll...  :)

[Mendrugo]

Complications to consider throwing at your players:
1) Who controls the distribution channels and rights for such merchandise?  By making and selling merch, do they risk getting a visit from some of the Bertoli Family's gremlins?

2) Many of the major fighters probably sign restrictive endorsement contracts.  The focus of an adventure might be to try to get an up-and-coming fighter to sign a contract with your group to license his/her likeness for merch.

3) What if you make a warehouse full of "Grady Kiefer" commemorative plates and then your boi gets hit with a major scandal, such as being caught taking bribes to throw a match?  What do you do with millions of C-bills worth of unwanted merch?

4) How are you getting these into the fans' hands?  Selling through gift shops and emporiums?  Out of the back of a Hetzer parked in an alleyway near Steiner Stadium?  There might be some hurdles to overcome in the marketing department.

[FarFlungHansa]

Thanks for the messages! These would be some good things to think about.

For a merc company we'll probably do something easy. Any other suggestions - or maybe you've done something weird in your games with merchandising?

One of our dudes actually cut together gun cam footage of our battles and winning and sold it to the Sea Foxes as a Band-of-Brothers type series since the Clans love that stuff.

[Daryk]

Heck, I'd give THAT idea a +3 on the Admin roll...  8)

[Atlas3060]

Given the rules and traits A Time of War provides, the answer I can provide is "Yes but no".

Here's why:

• Administration rolls would be the best default option.
• If someone is a dedicated "quartermaster" for this business venture, throw in Extra Income trait and maybe some Dependants to balance out the points, have them represent staff or just use Contacts, I ain't yer Daddy. You might be able to make that a side mission, your crew kidnapped because some competitor is sick of your cool shirts and videos outselling their own stuff!
• Have some fun with the softer skills like Art, maybe someone decided "hey we need this" okay roll for Art to see if you can jazz up the look. For every margin of success, maybe use that to bump up some admin roll or final payment total, I dunno.
• Language, Streetwise, and even Interest rolls could represent the advertising aspects.
• Give you landed gentry a reason to have land! Modify the Administration roll or whatever money you get with Extra Income with a negative, to represent the many hands in the pie. You have to pay third party outsiders to move your stuff along. However if someone has Property 1 to 3, that represents various levels of factories they own. Thus you can limit or remove any penalties to the amount of C-Bills you get because you're in direct control of the means of production and distribution.

Just some ideas I had rattling in my head when I read this.