So, after a long break in gaming, we had our last session late November early December, we're about to continue our molestation of the Star Wars galaxy, by molestation I mean grand space adventure with little or no consideration of canon or collateral damage.

While I do, sort of, have an overarching plot, I also need to cater to each player, it's what I do. And so far most characters have had their background vomit in their face in some way or another, either through obligations or just background story, or both. There is however one character that so far has been lucky enough to hardly have had his obligation activated, nor had his background make a mess of things. That should change.

Only problem is, I'm at loss at how to let it have a constructive impact. His obligation is Debt, it's about 15 points worth, and it's to the IBC (hence the thread title).

Now, the exact sum is of course not stated, interest rate and all - but it's a lot. How do I make it's activation engaging beyond a bounty hunter encounter, keep the rest of the group invested? I intend to devote the entire session, more or less, to this. Perhaps the next few sessions actually. All in an effort to move along another plot line which entails gathering funds for a merc army to attack a secret imperial installation developing some crazy biological weapon (think death troopers except the zombies...)

Thoughts? Brain farts?

Owing a debt to the IBC may not be necessarily a credit amount but a social debt Obligation. Why would the IBC loan money to a fringer? Maybe he is more like a Star Wars Bernie Madoff and the bankers are after him because he defrauded investors and made the IBC look complicit. So they've frozen all his ill-gotten assets but they still need your PCs personal ledgers to identify to whom and how much each of the fraud victims is owed. The problem being that if your PC just turned over the ledgers then they'd also have the proof they need to convict him of high crimes in the Imperial justice system... which means a life sentence to Kessel or worse.

His "Debt Payments" on the interest would basically represent the cost of bribes and small cons to keep the IBC investigators off his trail until he figures another way out of it.

Good idea, but the backstory basically prevents it, sort of. He is from a upper middle class family on Coruscant, borrowed lots of money, now IBC is after him. Granted I had some initial ideas linking him to the Damask holdings, and that book and (pseudo)canon aside I'm still sort of thinking they want him, for whatever reason. Of course the amount of cash is really irrelevant, they want him ... I've been toying with using his family against him, but I'm not sure that would trigger his character - he is awfully care free... And he's not really clever enough to swindle and commit fraud, he's more into debauchery and borrowing money to keep his spending going... At least he was, now it's more about the sound system and his galaxy box 3000... And it's still about the flashy clothing.

I like your idea though, I'll have to adjust it somewhat, but it's a **** good starting point. Thanks!

Well, in our world the International Banks don't even lend to upper middle class people. Assuming the conceit that they did, it would be for business investment and not to fund some spoiled suburban kids partying and toy buying.

So if you maintain some degree of verisimilitude, the IBC is not going to just loan a crapton of credits to your player's character if he is just some bon vivant party hipster. He would have had to pretend it was for legitimate investment purposes at the very least. At various points he would have had to lie to IBC officials. If the character himself is incapable of such deception, perhaps he is the patsy of a true con artist... which would make your PC the hapless scapegoat and would eventually lead to interesting drama if the guy who used him comes back into the picture... only to con him again.

To represent the trouble of his Obligation given what you clarified, I'd go with repo men coming for his toys, his credit being declined at the hot clubs and party locations, his commlink getting spammed with debt collector calls at very inopportune times, contract slicers locking out the group's starship at the spaceport so they can't leave until some amount of payment is made, etc.

Essentially make his life a debtor's living hell where he can no longer engage in debauched partying and his care free attitude about the Obligation will change. The rest of the group will get on his case too when their ship gets locked out from them and they start receiving commlink calls from the debt collection agencies after him when they widen their net to friends, family and known associates. When their lives become a living hell because of his Obligation, it won't matter if he's carefree... because the rest of the group won't be.

You guys are awesome!

Com-link calls from a debt collection agency while sneaking into somewhere. And they don't stop ringing!

Or, the IBC claims an old piece of republic law that still stands, wherefore a debtor given an inability to have his debts paid shall have all debts settled by his immediate familio-social unit. Given the wide variety of cultures that republic statutes had to cover, the definition in that act of immediate familio-social unit is any group of sentient beings that the aforementioned sentient co-habitates with for the majority of one Coruscanti year. ie, the rest of the party. Share the love!

You could have some IBC repo men come and hotwire the group's starship while they're drinking at the cantina. Then spend the next few sessions chasing them across the galaxy, trying to get their starship back They could also incur further obligation having to borrow a contact's junker ship to do the chasing (maybe having to take them along for the ride), or get the law on their back by doing the illegal variety of "borrowing" of a CorSec patrol boat that happened to be parked with its keys in the ignition. Three-way chase scene!

The possibilities are endless...

I can think of a few ways that the IBC can get to your PC. What might be interested (and totally unexpected for your PC) is to keep in mind that under the Empire, alien interests are often taken over or suffer such heavy oversight that they might as well be in Imperial control.

The IBC lender that arranged for your PC loan is now being asked uncomfortable questions regarding the nature of providing a loan to a no-name medium-class family. After all, most Rebel leaders come from the mid tiers of nobility, and the mere accusation that the IBC was lending to the Rebellion would be enough to have the Imperials move one step closer to shutting them down and seizing their assets.

As a response, the IBC lets the Imperials assist in "investigating" the loan and reclaiming payment. This means that whenever the PCs enter a place of Imperial governorship, all of a sudden all monetary transactions are frozen "pending investigation" to allow for the Imperials to basically brow-beat and strong arm the characters to determine if they have an Rebel ties. Unless the PC's start using cover identities and disguise their appearance, the Imps will get facial recognition and make even the simplest transaction pure agony - freezing their ability to use credsticks, access accounts until they remit to an "Interview" with the local Imperials. You can even have this information spread at the speed of bureaucracy, so they make it to the next town before the system updates and they have to go through it all over again!

Well, I like all these ideas, but I'm also trying to introduce some "mysterious" elements inspired by the Darth Palguis book hence the Damask holdings, and someone taking personal interest: yes, I'm breaking with the events from the book.