Cargo cost price wise for Dropships

Pages: 1
Karagin
11/27/20 10:40 AM
70.118.172.64

Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply
I know at one point I had this information, how much does it cost to ship cargo from a planet to the jump point in a system?
Karagin

Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
CrayModerator
11/28/20 02:48 PM
71.47.193.139

Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply
I haven't really seen that value in DropShips & JumpShips, Explorer Corps, or Strategic Operations. I know there was a basic number for hauling DropShips (usually 50,000 per collar per jump).

If you're feeling masochistic, then you could try some AccountantTech: take the purchase price of a DropShip, divide it over 30 years to get the cost per year / week / whatever. Then figure out weekly wages, spare parts, and fuel costs (Campaign Operations can help with those.)

Do you recall what book you saw the rate for hauling cargo to jump points in?
Mike Miller, Materials Engineer

Disclaimer: Anything stated in this post is unofficial and non-canon unless directly quoted from a published book. Random internet musings of a BattleTech writer are not canon.
Karagin
11/28/20 04:42 PM
70.118.172.64

Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply
No, I don't recall the book, think it was a novel where they mentioned it, but can't be 100% on it. I do remember making a note of it but can't find that note.
Karagin

Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
ghostrider
11/28/20 08:31 PM
66.74.60.165

Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply
Page 40 of the original Mercenary's Handbook touches lightly on Dropship transport costs.
Not sure if this is what you were looking for.
It does not go into normal cargo, like how much a ton of medical supplies goes for. I would think the cost of hiring the dropship would be something like total (ship carried) cargo weight divided by the weight of your cargo might be a simple cost.
Dropships and Jumpships has a little more variety of the different dropships in their hiring costs, as the merc's handbook only has 8 dropships listed.

Hope this helps.
Wick
11/28/20 10:32 PM
173.247.25.195

Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply
The question is a little flawed because in most situations the jump point is not the end destination. Supplies for a recharge station or shipyard perhaps, but most dropships are attaching to a jumpship, jumping to another system, and then transporting cargo there. So effectively the cost is usually TWO trips through solar systems, and at least one jump.

Campaign Operations p 43 says: "The typical transport costs for military Forces are 0.5 percent of a DropShip’s purchase price (rounded up to the nearest CB) per month or fraction of a month, and 100,000 CB per docking collar per jump on JumpShips." This is explicitly defined in the book as a measure of what a dropship operator charges its customers, not what it costs the operator to run the dropship as in Cray's answer.

But that's for transporting mechs (or other combat assets around) so I'm not sure how reliable it is for cargo. I can't imagine it being terribly different, though cargo could be a little cheaper in House space as they are a less attractive target to enemy militaries, but more expensive in the Periphery where they are more attractive to pirates. So in general I think you could take the 0.5 percent of total dropship price plus 100,000, and divide that by cargo capacity tonnage to get your per-ton-per-month rate. If only transporting to the jump point, ignore the 100,000 collar fee and pro-rate to a daily charge as needed.

Using a Mule as the example, that would be 966,611 c-bills for the whole dropship's cargo capacity for a one-month trip, or about 118 C-bills per ton of cargo. Offhand I'd expect a rate of something like 300 c-bills per ton per month if you're only buying a small amount of it, as a cargo dropship probably rarely ever transports at full capacity but also probably rarely so at under half. And there's very likely some kind of minimum, at 10, 50, or 100 tons akin to modern day commercial sea or rail transport where you have to pay for a full container regardless of how much you put in it. Dropships running between single jumps could charge closer to 100-200 c-bills per ton, as they could make two (or more) roundtrips in a month. Trips into dangerous territory (pirate havens, Chaos March, Clan Occupation Zones during the invasion, etc.) likely carry higher rates. Dropship poor areas (like the Magistracy of Canopus or deep Periphery) probably also carry high rates, due to higher demand than supply (Magistracy) or little demand and potentially empty, unprofitable holds (deep Periphery)
CrayModerator
11/30/20 07:30 PM
71.47.151.234

Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply
Quote:
Campaign Operations p 43 says: "The typical transport costs for military Forces are 0.5 percent of a DropShip’s purchase price (rounded up to the nearest CB) per month or fraction of a month, and 100,000 CB per docking collar per jump on JumpShips." This is explicitly defined in the book as a measure of what a dropship operator charges its customers, not what it costs the operator to run the dropship as in Cray's answer.



Heh. I didn't bother reading my own writing in Campaign Operations but went from memory, which said, "I didn't really call out cargo hauling specifically in CO so improvise some stuff."

I agree with your derivation of the CO rules, Wick. Karagin, forget my other answer.
Mike Miller, Materials Engineer

Disclaimer: Anything stated in this post is unofficial and non-canon unless directly quoted from a published book. Random internet musings of a BattleTech writer are not canon.


Edited by Cray (11/30/20 07:30 PM)
Wick
12/01/20 03:15 PM
173.247.25.195

Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply
Would be nice if it didn't need to be derived from mech/vehicle transport costs though. Seems like something the RPG rules should cover, but I couldn't find anything else flipping through the few books I thought might have an answer, with the CO rule the only thing close. I can envision RPG scenarios where you have to transfer some large amount of cargo and the rules should provide a ballpark prices per ton per jump for various types of cargo: standard dry, military equipment, liquids, refrigerated containers ("reefers" in modern transport lingo), live cargo, and contraband all come to mind as to having potentially different rates. Though to simplify it looks like the 300 c-bills per ton per month seems like a fair ballpark for now with GM discretion to increase or decrease up to 50% as needed.
CrayModerator
12/01/20 08:38 PM
71.47.151.234

Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply
Quote:
Would be nice if it didn't need to be derived from mech/vehicle transport costs though.



Interestingly enough, that was one of the last errata we just wordsmithed in for Campaign Operations. I'll suggest something for cargo if there's still time to edit.

Since there is zero room for additional word count - I've seen at least a couple of pictures get deleted to make room for the errata - it would be no more than a sentence or so.
Mike Miller, Materials Engineer

Disclaimer: Anything stated in this post is unofficial and non-canon unless directly quoted from a published book. Random internet musings of a BattleTech writer are not canon.
Karagin
12/01/20 08:51 PM
70.118.172.64

Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply
So a PDF can't have the extra added to it?
Karagin

Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
CrayModerator
12/03/20 05:50 AM
71.47.151.234

Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply
Quote:
So a PDF can't have the extra added to it?



The driving factor is the hard copy. Number of pages is one of the factors influencing cost of the book.
Mike Miller, Materials Engineer

Disclaimer: Anything stated in this post is unofficial and non-canon unless directly quoted from a published book. Random internet musings of a BattleTech writer are not canon.
Karagin
12/03/20 10:10 AM
70.118.172.64

Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply
Quote:
Quote:
So a PDF can't have the extra added to it?



The driving factor is the hard copy. Number of pages is one of the factors influencing cost of the book.



Yes, but at the same time offering an updated PDF with all the extra is a good way to get folks to purchase a combo deal, that is if CGL remembers to mail the hardcopy out, then folks get the updates and since in a PDF they are marked one could print them out.

I recall many of errata pages printed out and in a nice binder that went with the ROW or BTC etc...
Karagin

Given time and plenty of paper, a philosopher can prove anything.
Pages: 1
Extra information
1 registered and 100 anonymous users are browsing this forum.

Moderator:  Nic Jansma, Cray, Frabby, BobTheZombie 

Print Topic

Forum Permissions
      You cannot start new topics
      You cannot reply to topics
      HTML is enabled
      UBBCode is enabled

Topic views: 2512


Contact Admins Sarna.net