What happens to the payments owed if a Mercenary unit is destroyed/Killed

[daddy_pig]

If a unit has a contract that they are owed 20% salvage over the contract, then 4 months in they are all killed.  What happens to that money?  Does MRB still collect it?   is next of kin or someone paid out?  Thanks
3041 Time line. 

[snakespinner]

Most employers would just say they failed and just keep everything.
The mercs could have been smart and written in a next of kin clause in their contract which may be recovered through the MRBC.

[daddy_pig]

my thoughts exactly.  I would say the remaining payments are null and void, but those that were already earned and not paid out, should go to kin or MRB.

[gunner]

Slight problem, very few Merc's has ALL their troops and techs on the battle field. every unit will have REMF.

[HyperionCormyr]

The following is cribbed/borrowed from the original Mercenaries Handbook, with some minor adjustments of my own:

Contract for the Employment of Mercenary Forces


   This agreement, executed between ________ (hereafter designated “Employer”) and _____ (hereafter designated “Unit”), provides employment for the Unit and military and support forces in the service of the Employer.  This employment is subject to the terms and conditions outlined below.

Mission: The Unit is hired for the performance of a mission planned and assigned by the Employer, defined as a ______ mission under the conventions and usages of contemporary military terminology.  Said Unit will perform all operations that fall within the framework of this mission, as well as serving the general interests and needs of the Employer. If the Unit has been hired on retainer, the following types are specifically excluded during the length of service:
Forces: The Unit agrees to provide combat and support forces, estimated at _____ squads of combat and/or combat support troops, as of the date this contract goes into effect. The Employer reserves the right to terminate the agreement if the actual forces mustered at the time this contract goes into effect are 75 percent or less of the originally estimated forces, or if they exceed the agreed-upon strength by more than 10 percent, unless excess troops serve for no more money than originally designated in this agreement.
Length of Service: This contract will remain in effect for ____ months, commencing on _______ and concluding on ________. On the commencement date, the Unit agrees to be located on ________; if the Unit fails to appear by said date, the Unit will relinquish 5 percent of its fee. Upon termination of the agreement, the Unit will be discharged from all duties and responsibilities to the employer, unless discharge is superseded by a fresh agreement.
Remuneration: The Employer agrees to pay _____ C-Bill-equivalents per squad per month to the Unit, amounting to an estimated total of _____ C-Bill-equivalents. This money is to be paid out in the following manner:

Command Rights: The Unit hereby agrees to place itself under the overall military direction of the Employer. The Employer will implement this direction through the assignment of ______ to the unit for the period of the contract. The Unit is guaranteed to retain internal coherence and consistency of its command structure within the usual limits of this assigned command status.
Transport: The Employer agrees to provide for the interstellar and/or interplanetary transport of the Unit.  _____ percent of the Unit accepts Employer interstellar transport, and _____ percent of the Unit accepts Employer interplanetary transport. The Employer shall pay the Unit _____ to reimburse Unit for providing transport for the Unit or any part thereof.
Supply: The Employer agrees to provide the amount of ______ for the logistical support of the Unit. The Employer will reimburse the Unit for the amount of ______ if the Unit provides its own supplies.  Resupply of munitions and other specific battlefield materiel after each major battle or campaign shall consist of ______ over and above said supply requirements.
Salvage Rights: All equipment, vehicles, and other war materiel recovered by the Unit from enemy forces, depots, garrisons, industrial or civil centers, prisoners, and other sources shall be subject to the following claims and terms of division:

Other Terms: Other terms of this contract, agreed to by both parties, shall be negotiated on a case by case basis and attached, individually signed and witnessed, as riders to this document.

Any unit worth paying in the first place will have more than direct battlefield assets. They would be entitled to whatever money the unit has already earned and what it has within it's accounts as final pay and whatnot. However, given the nature of most merc units this amounts to a month's pay and that's about it.

Now, if a unit manages to win the battle but all combat effectives are killed/destroyed, the argument can be made that the Techs can recover as much as possible, sell it all to the employer and increase their final payout, but don't expect that to be much of anything. The majority of long-term contracts are negotiated not on a month-to-month pay schedule, but on longer terms. Some aren't even paid out until the contract is done IF the commander didn't negotiate operational expenses.

Some employers go with the "payment on completion" option with the hopes that the mercs fail or are so beat up that they can't make a claim on their wages. This is where the line of the contract in the Forces section stipulating "X number of combat effective units" works in the employer's favor. The mercenary forces are less than 75% of what was contracted and there is no possible way the unit can make up the loss of personnel before the next pay cycle- the contract is null and void.

Now the other point of your question- what does the MRB or MRBC (post 3052) collect in terms of a fee? That would depend on what was deposited with the appropriate bonding agency at the start of the contract. I suspect there is some sort of flat handling fee that either agency would levy and expect to collect- presumably some sort of percentage of the money being held, regardless of the end payout. I would also suspect that the MRB's payout is not affected by whatever salvage the unit acquires as that money would be used more for regular operating expenses and repairs beyond the regular payment. Though I could be wrong about that last.

[daddy_pig]

The direct situation I'm working through in my game is my players have hired some a small Merc Lance (4 mechs, 4 pilots)  to bring up their forces high enough to qualify for a company sized contract.   The agreement with this Lance was a 12 monthly payments and 20% of any salvage acquired during their employment.    My players have been playing them monthly, but have not been offering the salvage as of yet.  Their argument was they needed the salvage to continue the contract and that they would pay them 20% of everything even if it was lost later. 

Here is where the kicker comes in.   Through some insane luck, ballsy moves (and bad rolling on the GM's side) our heroes managed to "salvage" a Union Dropship from the forces they destroyed.   Now they owe them some 50 million cbills at contract complete.  They were joking that they could send them on a suicide mission to get out of paying for it if they were all dead.   

[HyperionCormyr]

In this case I would consider at least paying them out the parts of the salvage that would keep them operational (Allowing the players to stay within the "Company sized element" clause of their own contract.).

I take it the lance unit isn't being offered the opportunity to stay with the unit as a full part? If not then they might HAVE to pay off the lance per the contract or the MRB will step on them hard. They might just have to look at selling off any captured/salvaged Mechs to make that payment.

Unless they want to gain a reputation for dirty dealing on their contracts.

[daddy_pig]

They definitely are going to do that.  We are just getting to the end of the contract and there is a major 3 Bat vs 3 Bat battle coming up and i just don't want my players to meat sheild these guys in a effort to not have to pay.

I'm going to say that the MRB would black mark them and lien them.

[Mohammed As`Zaman Bey]

   There is a reason why hiring halls acted as bonding agencies -Tracking debts and payments as per contact. A mercenary unit isn't an informal club, it's a business that's registered to operate within a realm, with all the rights and obligations that entails, such as paying taxes and being subject to regulations and taxation. Hiring halls and government of register also provide mediation for disputes (court systems, appeals boards, etc.,) so if a unit is eliminated, the employers are still obligated, by letter of contract, to pay for services rendered. A "failed mission" does not overrule payment for travel, expenses and material losses, which is why a bonding  agent holds a portion of the payment in escrow, should the employer renege in legal payment.

  As a business, a mercenary unit may have assets, property, shareholders, lenders and other obligations far from the battlefield. If a merc unit is destroyed and the employer reneges, the host government steps in -They own a portion of the payment in taxes and if there are next of kin, they take inheritance taxes, as well.

[wanderer25]

Now the other point of your question- what does the MRB or MRBC (post 3052) collect in terms of a fee? That would depend on what was deposited with the appropriate bonding agency at the start of the contract. I suspect there is some sort of flat handling fee that either agency would levy and expect to collect- presumably some sort of percentage of the money being held, regardless of the end payout. I would also suspect that the MRB's payout is not affected by whatever salvage the unit acquires as that money would be used more for regular operating expenses and repairs beyond the regular payment. Though I could be wrong about that last.

If I remember correctly from the 1st ed Merc book, Comstar charged a 5% fee.

[Mohammed As`Zaman Bey]

If I remember correctly from the 1st ed Merc book, Comstar charged a 5% fee.

  Since a hiring hall is a business, and it always has cash on hand; a portion of the money held in escrow would be invested in low/medium-risk stocks, which is how banks and insurance companies make a profit and pay interest on accounts.

[snakespinner]

Remember that Union has a different value in differnet systems.
They could finalise the contract in a system where the union might be worth half.
It's called creative accounting, most employers do it.

[HyperionCormyr]

Book value versus depreciation.

Just because they have a Dropship doesn't mean it is straight from the showroom floor. Perhaps the Union is in dire need of repairs and not worth as much as a new one would be. Strip out half the weapons and ammo, drop most of the armor, ding up some of the Mech Bays and give them an engine that eats twice as much fuel as a fully tuned engine would use and you not only shed loads of value but you give the group something to work on for future campaigns.

[Frabby]

Does the contract say they get 20% of the salvage (in which case they're part owners of the Dropper now), or the value of the salvage (in which case accounting procedures will be in the contract, typically using the MRB/MRBC to impartially assess the value)?

Also, when is the 20% share due? Does the contract give the employers the right to withhold payment/handover until the contract runs out? If no, then the employed unit can and will demand their 20% on the spot, with interest if payment/handover is late. That may include 20% of all revenue made with the DropShip - or 20% of the revenue that could have been generated, should you players let the ship sit idle or use it for themselves...

[Mohammed As`Zaman Bey]

Does the contract say they get 20% of the salvage (in which case they're part owners of the Dropper now), or the value of the salvage (in which case accounting procedures will be in the contract, typically using the MRB/MRBC to impartially assess the value)?

  In the days of Privateers, when a mercenary vessel captured an enemy ship, they were required to return it to a selected port and the prize ship and contents were put up for auction, the process sometimes taking years.
  A captured dropship has no value until the contracted parties manage to monetize the salvage. Some employers may have the cash on hand but many employers might not. Most GMs speed the payout just for simplicity but scheduling a time lag for such compensation would be more realistic.

[daddy_pig]

  In the days of Privateers, when a mercenary vessel captured an enemy ship, they were required to return it to a selected port and the prize ship and contents were put up for auction, the process sometimes taking years.
  A captured dropship has no value until the contracted parties manage to monetize the salvage. Some employers may have the cash on hand but many employers might not. Most GMs speed the payout just for simplicity but scheduling a time lag for such compensation would be more realistic.

Thanks.  That helps. For the sake of a smooth transission, I'll have the planetary government who hired them handle it. They can either then take a loan out with collateral to pay off the portiion or turn it in and get paid out.   

[Colt Ward]

The merc contract templates & clause outlines in the various books are a good starting place . . . but PCs will always add to the contract to reflect hard won experience.  I RP'd against a guy for a contract who represented the CapCon '62 in the Chaos March.  Duh duh, I respected the whole confidential target and did not push for as much intel type info (for OOC reasons that were appropriate to limit IC info) . . . at the end of the contract, the person unveiled the target- Royce's spaceport, capital city of Fletcher with its unsanctioned Hiring Hall that my unit was stationed in as part of a city guard co-op for basing in the city's district.  We were being hired to attack in place.  Took some time to figure out how to honor both obligations to keep the reputation intact even if it was not a MRBC sanctioned contract- previously insisting on liaison for command rights helped.  Created a new clause for that merc unit's contract work to guard against such actions in the future.

I do not play AccountanTech enough with that merc group to actually write out in legalese every bit, but I do cover the intentions & highlights in plain English.  Course, I also list the few loans the mercs took- like the one to buy a used (and later found out cursed) Warhammer 7M.

To me one of the sticking points not discussed is what type of salvage agreement was made with the subcontractors- shared, exchange, or whatever.  Where they present or in a mission leading up to the capture of the DS?  If they were not in the field or in a mission directly in support of taking the Union a case could be made they had no claim on its value.

Honestly, your best bet to influence the player's actions maybe to inform them the subcontractors have already filed paperwork with the MRBC about the capture of the DS, requesting arbitration as well as filing addendums to their wills to cover passing the value they expect to gain for the DS to their survivors.

[Von Jankmon]

It all depends who they are working for and how big they are.  Non mech assets would get split up rapidly, other mercs or the employer would look to that for their own ends.  Small fly by nights might just disappear and dead mercenaries seldom get paid.

[Daryk]

Depends how good their lawyer is...

[RifleMech]

It sounds like the players are risking their company's reputation and a smacking by the Merc Board.

Is the company responsible for the Lance's maintenance/repairs and supply and if so, have they been carrying out those responsibilities? If not, they're going to owe the Lance more than just the 20% of the salvage. Also is there an interest penalty for non payment? Depending on what it is and how long they withhold payment, the company could owe the Lance more in interest than they do in payment.