Our dynasty is in possession of a vagabond class transport with a mining rig on it ! Great (Ok we can only fit one macrocannon battery on it...but there you go and they have purchased reinforced bulkheads to make it harder to sink...)

I have a couple of questions:

1) How would you roleplay a mining ship? The only one that springs to mind in poular culture is the comedy UK series Red Dwarf or the film armageddon (Bruce Willis). Is there anyway to roleplay it without having to go back to the 'rough tough individualistic roughneck' stereotype.

2) How long would a transport have to stay fixed to a asteroids to make it viable and profitable. I know that in the expanse it says 'can stay decades' but I rather see the vessel as a opportunistic prospector and I doubt that it can stay in one place in the expanse without a freebooter turning up or something nastier to spoil the work. What other uses can a mining rig be put to apart from mining asteroids?

3)What would be a good NPC character to have aboard such a vessel? What kind of character class would be a good captain for such a vessel?

4) In the background the dynasty has realised that they only have a part share in this ship (Finances in arrears) How would a mining ship react to discovering that its part owned by a Rogue Trader?

5) Any Other Ideas out there?

Captain Harlock said:

1) Gold rush prospectors with a mystic bent. Ship is guided to the richest seams by astropaths. Crew is obsessed with the 'purity of ore'. Play up forge metaphors. Crucibles, tempered steel, et cetera.

2) Given that it's intended to be used for endeavours, assume that the rig would stay at a good location until something goes wrong (Ie, a Misfortune). Other uses depend on your ingenuity, I suppose. Excavating artifacts from deep underground?

3) Drawing a bit of a blank on this one.

4) Depends on how pushy the RT's going to be about exerting his authority.

Captain Harlock said:

I'm really confused. Your Rogue Traders have AQUIRED a mining ship as part of their fleet, or your playing a campagin ON a mining ship? As for having one...well it doesn't make a whole lot of sense for them to cart it around. A mining operation takes years, and usually isn't something a Rogue Trader would involve himself in personally. It could be used for prospecting and setting up mining operations, but ideally a RT is going to set up operations and then move on to the next business venture. The ship could be an easy way to set up an endevor and then left behind providing a heafty PF bonus.

If it IS your ship you have an interesting conundrum. Again, a Rogue Trader gets their money from setting up businesses, not running a single business, and mining and then selling their cargo is never going to provide enough money to support a dynasty. Another idea is to run it as an unlicenced ship. It would be a lower powered campaign, but could be very fun.

Answering questions in 3...2...1...

1) It could be played as a prospector with a RT heading into the expanse to find new deposits of unusual or rare resources. Another option is to run it as an unlicenced ship with a navigator from a fallen house. Lots of shady contacts, smuggling, and avoiding imperial/xeno authority. Kind of a mix between firefly and Battlestar Galactica. The captain isn't a noble, the crew (all 5k+ of them) are his family. They chaffed under the heel of the imperium and wanted the freedom to make lives from themselves. Lots of focus on the nitty gritty: water supplies, refueling, getting ammo, food supplies, smuggling, shipboard encounters, and dealing with crooked authorities. Change the startup packages to remove high powered equipment.

I just don't see it working well for a Rogue Trader with a Warrant. They have too much power and authority to be mucking about too long min, and a license to engage in endevors much more profitable than mining.

2) For a traditional mining operation it would have to be decades. If you really want to do this they should probably be focusing on high risk/profit materials, possibly illegal. You could probably invent some rare/high profit/restricted/illegal substances that they could focus on. Look up Glittersim in Star Wars for a good example. But again, for a true Rogue Trader this would never be a really profitable setup.

3) Well in Rogue Trader a Rogue Trader is always the captain, but you could use DH classes instead to bring down the power level (which I think would be wise). You would probably grant them a big starting XP bonus though. You would probably have to do something custom with lots of Elite Advance options because neither game is really geared towards this campaign.

4) um...I can't see them minding. Rogue Traders of some of the big movers and shakers of the Imperiums economic world. Many mining ships would be owned, either wholly or in part, by Rogue Traders. Don't see it being an issue.

5) After some consideration...

I think it could make a fun alternate campaign style, but for a strait up Rogue Trader profit comes from establishing businesses, not mining and selling cargo personally. A true mining vessal just isn't compatable with the lifestyle and needs of a Rogue Trader, a Lord of the Imperium, the peer of Inquisitors and Space Marine Chapter Masters. Things will likely have to be retooled.

riplikash said:

To answer your confusion. We rolled for a starship aquisition test after the first couple of endevours, and we managed to aquire a transport vessel on a lucky roll. Initially we decided that it would be a vagabond Transport but when we heard into the storm was coming out we decided to wait to see that other hulls were on offer, so we decided that until the Sword class frigate we had got back to belacane In the Calyxsis sector we wouldn't decide exactly what the new ships hull it was. However we did roll for quirks and complications and the complications turned up as finances in arrears. This fitted in with the background of the Dynasty as it was heavily dependant on a merchant house in the past, so we decided that this was a ship that the dynasty had a 'part ownership', but through a clerical error was no longer registered to the dynasty. We decided that the Seneshal had indeed found the legal writs for it, and had negotiated with its other part owners for its return.

So its not the main ship that we roleplay from...its part of a growing fleet. The current endevours we have are all to do with exploring a section in the expanse which we randomly roll and generate. Everything from the planets to the inhabitants and oddities.

I like the the idea of having a DH character in charge....that sort of good because it implies hes not quite part of the Retinue as an explorator but may grow in power as the endevours develop.

My questions are more to do with how such a ship can be made into an interesting part of the narrative rather than " we have arrived in X system. The Mining ship has parked in the asteroid belt and has begun ore extraction/surveying" and then for the aforementioned ship to play no futher part in the game.

Captain Harlock said:

1) Hmmm...
I would emphasize the "clannishness" of the types. They might be out for years, so they could be very close knit. Since they are less frequently "exchanged", they might have a very strong sense about "we vs. them" and might not take light on RT who´ruling normaly includes "decrease of crew factor" decisions. This might lead to additional moral loss. Since you onw "ItS", I would vote for the "clan quarter" options. In additon to this, their could be "cold quartes" if the ship is a lone prospector that only flies into bursts of (mining) acitivity every 3 or 6 months.
They will be very un-flameboyant as well, since their work is "down and dirty" and they might be very wary and untrusting since if they encounter some other ship out their it is likely a pirate or a competition. They are not about trade, after all, but about mining so "no company is good company" to them.

2) Since it is not about "what it is" but about "what fits the story and is believeable", how about a couple of month? This might not be attached to the SAME asteroids, but the transport might be "hopping" from one ore-rich asteroid to another. While one is mined, survey-shuttles look for the next. If things turn to unprofitable, the transport moves on to survey another system that is known to them. After a year or three, the transport hails back to port to sell ore (or steel/metal/alloys if the ship is processing on the fly, which would be wise based on how you play out the economies. Thinkg about the "Nosttromo" in Alien One!

3) I would say the seneschall. A RT is much to flameboyant, a seneschall is "down to business".

4) It might not care about it, as long as the schedule isn´t chaning. If the orders change to include "stupid and risky adventures", they will be grudging or even start to protest.

5) The ship returns to port wander, seeling ore/metall/alloys to traders. Your RT has a cunning plan: their is a new asteroid field out their. The exact position is not known to everyone, but charts are for hire. Of course, their are rules about "staking claims"... but this is far from the light of terra an ruthless greed rules supreme.

1) Negotiate with the other owner parties and win them over to the fact the risks are woth the possible profit
2) Make sure the actual captain is appeased so you have him on your side when the crew starts to moan
3) Acquire the charts and plot a course, protect the transport since pirates are on the lookout for traders to plunder! (Make sure their are different stops which are necessary to by-pass dangers of the warp... and so their are point where one needs to "re-course" so raiders have their chances!
4.1) Once arrived, find a worth claim and hurry! Other do the same and the best shares already seem taken
4.2) Or be ruthless and steal a claim from some-one
4.3) Or support a righthous claim owner which go ursuped! Join him in a skirmish with a foe he could not best himself... for shared right for the claim, of course!

5) No matter how you got your claim..defend it! Sooner or laters, robbers show up. Pirates, claim jumpers, whatever

Complications: Finally, a navy cruise shows up "to ensure piece and propert taxing". How did the pc behaved themselves Is the captain corrupt?
Complications: Breakdown in mine equipment...what to do? What if it shows that it was saboate
Complications: Wolfpacks plague the area before the arrival of the navy. Will the pc try to unite the insular and selffish mine-ships? Or will they take their chances, hoping that the wolves take on somebody else and thereby possibly "freeing up" a claim? Wil lthey go so far to strike secret deals with the packs to remove somebody special?

6) Bring your ship back to port after a half year of mining..and sell for a profit! ..which is easier if less ships return...a thought other traders might have had themselves? Forming alliances for a "convoy" ? Setting up a trap?

make sure the system is large an the asteroid belt is on the outside, so it is large and ships are hours and/or days appart from each other. Some areas might be dangeours to navigate!

1. Mining is hard labor done by the bluest of blue collar workers. The “ 'rough tough individualistic roughneck' stereotype” is a stereotype for a reason.

2. As far as time frames for the mining I would go with:
1d10 weeks for surveying.
1d10 months for prospecting.
1d10 years to mine out all useable ore in that section of asteroids.

I would say leave a raider with the mining ship or upgrade the mining ship with a lighter bay and fighters for defense so they can do their thing and make you money while you are off doing something else.

4. It all depends on how much the new owner is going to interfere with their operations, and how much of an impact on profit the new owner will have. The command crew and senior personnel are the only ones who will know or have any interest in who the owner is or that a new owner showed up. All the workers will see are more suits and suits muscle.

5. I would use the mining ship as a side quest every so often. They may have trouble with pirates or need a supply shipment. Maybe they uncover an ancient outpost of Man or Xenos and call in the big guns.

Thanks Guys Lots of new ideas there and much food for thought.

As a parting shot any ideas what a good name for a mining ship would be?

Your chance to name our new mining ship....

Ready...steady...GO!

Captain Harlock said:

"Scarabundis"

ItsUncertainWho said:

An asteriod could be mined out in days. Remember, the average asteroid is smaller then the average imperial ship. For larger asteroids, it might be possible to 'clamp on' like a limpet and start mining. As far as profitability goes, I doubt a rogue trader would be mining iron. (If they were, the ship would be going from asteroid to asteroid sucking down the bulk of the rock's mass.) Rarer elements like Iridium and gold are more likely. Quite a bit of the ship's cargo space would have to be given over to refining ore into ingots though.

Adventure Ideas:

Lost Dutchman's Mine - The Rogue Traders are seeking a legenday and fabulously rich asteroid belt. A rough, incomplete chart and a small sample of the original production are avalible and point them in a general direction. The asteroids however, are warp tainted, with all sorts of horrors awaiting them.

Foundation Laying: The miner could also be used to start an asteroid colony, converting the metals mined into the hull over the structures that are raised on it.

Just some thoughts.

The "Kun Laan"

I'm assuming you've checked out the rules in Into the Storm for mining rigs, because there are rules in that for how long you would have to stay attached to an asteroid, etc. It's generally several weeks.

Sovereign of El Dorado

MILLANDSON said:

Where is it? Is it in the meta endevours section, or are you refering to the bit where you set off your retinue to do the boring work and hope they do it well?

It's in the Additional Facilities section of new starship components. There's full rules for the component, and how it works, including how long mining takes, the profit you make off it, etc.

MILLANDSON said:

I might be missing or being dumb it but the paragraph under the asteroid mining facility section is small. (p160 right?) when it refers to the rules it says "this allows the vessel's crew to construct a trade endevour based on those operations (see Rogue Trader 277) Ive checked RT but even there its kinda sketchy. Im not sure where you are refering to.. Theres a lot of stuff on background endevours which is usefull and pertinent, expecially to some of the suggestions that have been made on the thread but nothing on how long it takes/profit .

Am I missing it?

Ah, fair enough, seems like some of the stuff from my playtest copy (I'm away from home, so don't have my proper copy to hand) might not have ended up in the main book. I thought there was more on the mining rig than referring to the endeavour system.

Either way, you could either set up fairly easy endeavours with it, with the obvious difficulty in that your ship is stuck where it is for the duration of the mining, meaning you either have to negotiate for another ship to help protect you, or for you to chose your mining spots carefully. You can also cover all sorts of complications, from pirates turning up, to your mining rig finding an "abandoned" xenos facility/tomb/etc under the rock.

Otherwise, yea, I'd generally have it carry out background endeavours whilst you, in an alternate ship, do your thing, with you occasionally having to rush to protect it from rivals, xenos, whatever, and go there to check things out when you get the astropathic call of "Sir, we've found something down here that you should come take a look at". Just doing standard mining missions where you sit around for months and then take the ore home and make money sounds a bit dull to me.

MILLANDSON said:

Ah those mythical datatomes of lore of freelance playtesters! Who knows how much knowledge the imperium loses when administratum editors enforce their tyrannical word limits on supplements!

Nice ideas, thanks. Ive read up on the background endevours bit which covers at least most of my questions regarding profit factors, and the possibility of the operation suceeding or going sour. However if you could find any *** bits on the duration of mining it would be nice...I know what the variable Background endevour completion times are on a D100, Into the storm is THAT good, but I dont have a 'benchmark' as to what a unit of mining endevour time IS, (I just dont have a PHD in asteroid mining to know enough of how long it takes to profitably mine one) Normally it wouldn't be a problem and I would say off the cuff 2-3 months but we play a campaign which is very time line orientated.. Luckily the mining ship is the second ship and not the one the rogue trader is based on which is a frigate, which means we can put it in the background....but even so it would be nice to know when its finished its job so that the group can use the resource. Time is Gelts as they say.. and a couple of extra macrocannons are always usefull..

I would generally go with about 3-4 months for a decent mining haul (since you have to take into account processing the ore and ejecting the non-profitable stuff), though anything going wrong will quickly add to that.

MILLANDSON said:

Thanks Millardson!