So this is a specific case, but the bottom line is: How bad could/should it get?

Here are the details:

One of the PC's started with a "Bounty" Obligation owed to Durga the Hutt, but that PC bought off that debt. No worries. (right)? There are hard feelings but some of the PC's former contacts are sympathetic.

Meanwhile the PC's were approached by a new Hutt (we'll call her Soshu and no she's not cannon but) she's affiliated with the Gorensla Kajidic and is the heir apparent for Oruba's operations. Oruba's seat on the council has been left vacant, for the time being, and Soshu is trying to angle to get onto that seat.

To that end, Soshu hired the PC's to make a delivery to Roon, which they accepted. As a side quest, Soshu asked the aforementioned PC (let's call her Silver because that's her callsign) to also remove a former friend "from the game board." Soshu was clear that she didn't mean for Silver to kill her friend, but to have that person stop working for Durga.

Meanwhile Durga has been trying to stage a coup d'etat on Roon to remove an uncooperative and overly independent Governor.

And Soshu is shipping cash & weapons to prop up the Governor. The other thing that Soshu does, is present evidence to Durga that Silver's friend has been less than diligent in some of her operations to the point of betrayal, AFTER the PC's leave Nar Shaddaa.

Long story short, the PC's deliver the (unknown to them) cargo, don't directly involve themselves in the coup, but are affected on the periphery.

Plus a group of Mando bounty hunters show up and ask after's Silver's friend. The Mando's were hired by Durga and also claim that they received intel from Soshu that Silver would be able to 'help' them collect on the bounty.

No big deal. Right?

Well, the players have been too Roon before on a 'rescue the princess' plot and have made contact with some of the locals. In the midst of all of this excitement, the PC's drop by to talk to their local farmer contact and offer to buy up a shipload of 'spice.' (And we're not talking about the Tabasco variety of spice).

Negotiations take a bit of time to coordinate but the locals come through and sell the spice directly to the PC's for cash. (Their contact acts as a broker for his neighbors and the PC's purchase 175 EC of unprocessed spice). I'm figuring that this haul qualifies for about 20% of Roon's production of this product for this season. 20% that both the Governor AND Durga will sorely miss . . .

The PC's return to Nar Shaddaa to get paid by Soshu (but neglect to let her know about their 'side' venture).

In selling the lot of spice, the PC's use their streetwise to try to find a buyer. They end up talking to Triloc (a former client of the group) and though she doesn't handle that kind of product, she refers them to a cousin of hers on Tatooine.

They eventually negotiate and sell their batch to Jabba and (they think) they walk away with a handsome profit (which they kinda do actually). One of the concerns that both Triloc and Jabba express is the concern over where this product came from and how the PC's came about this lot. I'm guessing that this much spice constitutes about 4-12% of the annual Ryloth Spice produced in the Galaxy. So it's not an inconsiderable sum.

So that sums up the case study.

The question is: How badly are the various Hutts going to take this little surprise? And we can count on this being a disappointment for the Twi'lek Governor on Roon too.

Whatever could they do?

I'd say it all depends upon how well they can BS Jabba.

In broad strokes, you can take this inside or outside.

Inside, it's a good chance the Hutts are focused on kings and queens, not pawns -- so they'll assume the buyoff was a dirty trick from the top.

The farmer might have a short remaining life expectancy, and as a twist, Durga might haul the party in front of him and...admit how impressed he was. I mean, my players were once tested by a Hutt with assassins; incensed, they brought one of the bodies into court, dumped it on the floor, and the highly amused Hutt immediately offered them wetwork (they'll, uh...think about it).

Outside, and someone the governor answers to might enter the picture, wondering where their product went. New faces, new plots. I'll admit I'm a sucker for adding a narrative branch at every opportunity.

Love the intrigue. Good stuff!

Yep, the farmer is a dead man. I definitely think Durda is going to drag them in to pay their debt (obligation, like min 30).

They’ll have to work it off an the sly, or else Soshu is going to feel slighted (more obligation?)...

Maybe it gets so bad both Hutts team up to take down the party.

—Lagspike

The farmers' FRIEND is the dead man. The PC's should largely skate if they give him up, soshu would have a stern talking to them, and invite them to retroactively have been working for her, so she gets a cut and shields them from other consequences because good operators are hard to find. Next time they pull something like this there will be consequences.

14 hours ago, EliasWindrider said:

The farmers' FRIEND is the dead man. The PC's should largely skate if they give him up, soshu would have a stern talking to them, and invite them to retroactively have been working for her, so she gets a cut and shields them from other consequences because good operators are hard to find. Next time they pull something like this there will be consequences.

Note that if the PCs had told soshu up front and given her cut she would have been happy, the purchase was part of the negotiation they needed to do to get the job for her done, and made her profit to boot. Operators that show initiative that make her profit get rewarded rather than punished. And she should tell the PCs that. Soshu might even protect the farmer's friend from the other hutts if he agrees to sell spice to her moving forward. He'll be between a rock and a hard place.

Hmmmm. Interesting options.

Some of the responses tempt me to add some color commentary. So here goes.

The Farmer (Papa'Fama) is going to be okay. Sure he "brokered" the purchase of approximately 20% of Roon's Ryloth Spice for this season, but as a Broker, he operated mostly on good will. So he's merely one of SEVERAL farmers who sold to an 'unknown off world party' and by the time the Governor's people discover this, it will be well after the fact. He's going to be just one of many farmers who has a sufficient treasure to pay his 'taxes' but his spice vault is empty. "Come see for yourself!"

Additionally Papa'Fama isn't someone to be messed with lightly. The Governor already fears Papa'Fama and thinks that the 'Fama clan may try to oust the Governor one day.

And Papa'Fama doesn't actually do all that much farming. He spends most of his time looking for wives for his sons and grandsons and husbands for his young daughters and grand daughters. And a sizable number of Papa's sons and grandsons spend most of the day walking around the farmstead with blaster rifles . . . to protect the farmstead.

Lastly, Papa'Fama's farmstead is over 700 kilometers NE of the capital Ultime'Roon.

The Governor is 'struggling.' He's made it a year since he . . . "assumed" . . . his Governorship. And (historically) that's a pretty good run so far. He's pulled some innovating tricks to stay where's he's at too. First he cut out the Black Sun/Durga's local representatives and is purchasing spice allotments from the Farmers directly. He doesn't offer as much money as the Black Sun, but with that competition "eliminated" he can offer a little less.

Meanwhile the Governor had his clan kidnap hundreds of young Twi'lek ladies and he sold them in order to purchase a handful of aerospace fighter craft. His timing was brilliant so that by the time Black Sun realized what had happened, there was a tiny fleet of fighters protecting the planet. And though the local farmers are all uniformly pissed* at the governor, the governor has had sufficient firepower to stave off any direct attack against him.

But the Governor is also the 'buyer' so there's an incentive to NOT attack him. There's also the issue that if the Governor starts destroying rebellious farmsteads, that will reduce the quantity of spice being produced, and that will adversely affect the treasury. (The spice must flow).

The Governor's treasury has always been mostly empty and he has struggled with liquidity issues . . . up until Soshu's gift arrived.

So from that perspective Roon and its population has established equilibrium.

So Focus on the Hutts. Whatever is a Hutt to do? (Also the "Farmer's" friend is Silver).

* Yes the local families are upset that their daughters have been disappearing, but these are Twi'leks, so the why is a bit unique. Having your daughter sold off to slavery isn't all that bad . . . What is pissing off the locals is that the Governor jilted them out of "Dotir." That semi dowry/payment for taking their daughters from the household.

Okay, resume at your leisure.