Spaceships Continued — Credit, Morale, and the Crew

Part 1 here!

Corporate cargo freighters, External Service vessels, passenger spaceliners, and military gunships all hew closely to the Mission Control Model. Most crew are paid working-class wages typical for their “unskilled” labor. Department heads are paid somewhat better, while Command officers are salaried and given generous benefit packages. The chain of authority is clear, discipline is tight, and responsibilities are divided rationally and efficiently across departments.

You are not those people, and you don’t fly on that kind of ship.

You might be a contractor for hire, always looking for short-term work and a ride to the next port. You might be part of a nomadic ethnocultural group that’s been circuiting the Solar System for generations. You might be a pirate, smuggler, or other outlaw. You might be trying to get rich quick in the asteroid-mining business. Or you’re just a down-on-your-luck drifter. What’s important is that you don’t work for anyone. There’s nobody paying your wages. All you’ve got is yourself, your crew, and a ship.

Credit

Every crew has Credit, a combination of your cash on hand and money loaned from various (usually predatory) lenders. The higher your Credit, the more able you are to pay routine expenses and cover your debts. The lower your Credit, the closer you are to insolvency.

You can use Credit in a variety of ways.

• Repair: It costs 1C to repair a damaged or patched System, and 2C to repair a destroyed System.
• Replace: It costs 2C to correct one flaw with the ship.
• Refuel: Roll 1d6 every time the ship performs an interplanetary transfer. On a 6, spend 1C at port to replenish the ship’s supply of helium-3 reactor fuel.
• Reactor maintenance: It costs 1C to reduce the ship’s Stress to 0.
• Armor: It costs 1C for every point of Armor up to 5, and 2C thereafter.
• Medical treatment: It costs 1C to restore 2d6 to all three Crew Stats, up to their maximum (roll separately). Signing bonuses: It costs 1C to hire new crew, raising all three Crew Stats’ maximums by 1d6 (roll separately, maximum of 20).
• Hazard pay: Pay 1C to take on a particularly dangerous job.
• Ammunition: It costs 1C for every unit of missile ammunition.
• Cost of living: A week of “normal expenses” for the crew — food, oxygen, payroll, etc. — costs 1C.
• Other: Any large, “out-of-the-ordinary” expense, such as a bribe, costs at least 1C.

Credit Checks

A Credit check determines if the crew can handle the pressure of their financial obligations at a moment of particular need. A Credit check can be called for in several situations:

• Whenever the crew makes a big purchase.
• Whenever the crew takes downtime at port.
• When the crew goes a while without work.
• When the crew upsets their creditors.
• Whenever it otherwise seems appropriate.

To make a Credit check, roll 1d20 equal to or under the crew’s current Credit. If the check is successful, nothing happens or the crew gets what it wants. If the check is failed, look up the result below.

Credit cannot be increased above 20. If Credit is decreased below 0, there is an immediate repossession and Credit is reset to 0.

#	Result
10	REFUND. A billing error is corrected, giving you an unexpected windfall. Add 1C.
19	ANXIETY. Reduce Morale by 1.
18	PAY ADVANCE. New hires demand more money upfront before joining the crew. The next time you hire crewmembers, signing bonuses will cost 2C.
17	ACCOUNT FREEZE. You cannot spend Credit until the next time Credit is raised.
16	HEADHUNTER. A larger organization attempts to poach your crewmembers with an offer you can’t match. Reduce one Crew Stat’s maximum by 1d6.
15	INTEREST. Reduce Credit by 1 as your debts spiral out of control.
14	OUT OF WARRANTY. Roll 1d8 for a System. That System is damaged and must be repaired.
13	BEHEST. Your creditors demand you do a job for them, at standard pay.
12	WEAR AND TEAR. The crew falls behind on critical reactor upkeep. Increase the ship’s Stress by 1.
11	RESTRUCTURING. Add 1d6 Credit as debt obligations are reduced. In exchange, all major movements and spending decisions must be approved by your creditors until your Credit hits 15.
10	OVERDRAFT. You’re forced to draw a short-term loan as your account balance goes negative. A week of normal expenses for the crew costs 2C until the next time Credit is raised.
9	PANIC. Reduce Morale by 1d6.
8	LAPSED MAINTENANCE. Gain the Faulty System flaw. Roll 1d8 for a System. That System cannot be patched — if it’s damaged, it’s destroyed and must be repaired at port.
7	PAYROLL ISSUE. Crew paychecks bounce. Spend 2C immediately, or make a Morale check.
6	LOAN SHARK. A particularly unscrupulous creditor sends 2d6 enforcers to threaten, harass, beat, or kidnap you and your crewmembers.
5	DISTRAINT. Your creditors attempt to seize a weapon, drone, module, or piece of cargo from the ship.
4	LOCKOUT. Your ship is barred from a particular port until your Credit hits 15.
3	EXTORTION. Your creditors demand you do a job for them, without pay.
2	INSOLVENCY. Crewmembers quit as payroll can’t be made. Reduce Morale and all three Crew Stats’ maximums by 1d6 (roll separately).
1	REPOSSESSION. An armed squad of mercenaries comes to claim your ship, by deadly force if necessary.

Morale

Every crew also has Morale, a measure of your crewmembers’ cohesion, confidence, enthusiasm, and discipline. The higher your Morale, the more trust the rank-and-file have in your leadership, and the better they’re able to work together. The lower your Morale, the closer you are to mutiny.

Gain 1d6 morale when…

• The ship wins a battle.
• The crew receives a significant financial windfall.
• The crew passes a Credit check.
• The crew completes an objective.
• The crew spends downtime at port.
• It seems otherwise appropriate.

Lose 1d6 morale when…

• A battle is finished and…
  • A Crew Stat was damaged.
  • A System was damaged or destroyed.
  • The ship overheated.
• The crew fails a Credit check.
• The crew fails an objective.
• The crew goes a while without downtime.
• It seems otherwise appropriate.

Morale Checks

A Morale check determines how well the crew stays together in difficult situations, and tracks the evolution and churn of crew politics. A Morale check can be called for in several situations:

• When the ship loses a battle.
• If the crew goes a while without being paid.
• Whenever the crew is put into life-threatening danger.
• Whenever the crew must choose between themselves and the leadership.
• Whenever it otherwise seems appropriate.

To make a Morale check, roll 1d20 equal to or under the crew’s current Morale.

Morale cannot be increased above 20. If Morale is decreased below 0, there is an immediate mutiny and Morale is reset to 0.

#	Result
10	RECRUITMENT. A Loyalist has recruited new crewmembers, attracted by positive things they’ve heard about the ship. Add 2 to one Crew Stat’s maximum.
19	HARMONY. One of the departments is working like a well-oiled machine. Increase Morale by 1.
18	RECONCILIATION. One of the Loyalists works to defuse tension. Roll a d6. On a 1, remove the Nemesis tag from a crewmember.
17	FEUD. Tensions within the crew have come to a head. Either stay neutral and subtract 2 from one Crew Stat’s maximum, or take a side and add the Nemesis tag to a crewmember.
16	LOYALIST. Add the Loyalist tag to a crewmember.
15	PAYROLL. Back pay obligations accumulate. Spend 1C on payroll or remove the Loyalist tag from a crewmember.
14	REQUEST. A Loyalist asks for something problematic or difficult, which if denied will cause them to lose their Loyalist tag.
13	THEFT. Spend 1C and reduce a Crew Stat by 1 as a rogue crewmember steals money to abandon the ship.
12	LOYALIST. Add the Loyalist tag to a crewmember.
11	DISCONTENT. One of the departments is totally dysfunctional. Subtract 2 from one Crew Stat’s maximum.
10	STEADY. The crew is steady, for now.
9	INTIMIDATION. One of the Nemeses tries to intimidate a Loyalist into silence. Roll a d6. On a 6, remove the Loyalist tag from a crewmember.
8	NEMESIS. Add the Nemesis tag to a crewmember.
7	BRAWL. A Loyalist and Nemesis get into a fight. If you don’t intervene, roll a d6. On a 1, the Nemesis is killed. On a 6, the Loyalist is killed.
6	STOPPAGE. Led by a Nemesis, one of the departments refuses to work until its demands are met. Reduce one Crew Stat to zero temporarily until the situation is resolved.
5	DEFECTION. A Nemesis and their followers threaten to abandon the crew if their demands aren’t met. If they leave, reduce one Crew Stat’s maximum by 1d6 and remove a Nemesis from the ship.
4	NEMESIS. Add the Nemesis tag to a crewmember.
3	MURDER. A Nemesis and their supporters gang up on a Loyalist. If you don’t intervene, roll a d6. On a 5 or 6, the Loyalist is killed.
2	EXILE. The Nemeses pressure a Loyalist and their supporters into leaving the crew. Reduce one Crew Stat’s maximum by 1d6 and remove a Loyalist from the ship.
1	MUTINY. If any of the crew has the Nemesis tag, there is an immediate mutiny. All Nemeses and their supporters attempt to take control of the ship and purge the Loyalists.

Design Notes

I know that “mortgage payment roleplaying” has been a cliché in the sci-fi RPG scene going back to Traveller, but it’s a cliché for a reason. If the PCs are constantly in need of money (for repairs, debt repayments, crew wages, upgrades, etc.), then they’ll be really motivated to seek out opportunities for lucrative adventuring. Plus, if they fail to pay back their debts, running away from their creditors becomes an adventure all on its own.

Importantly, I’m not in the business of giving the players accounting work. Everything here has to be in service of the adventure, it can’t just be its own annoying minigame. My goal here is to have a generative way of creating both problems and opportunities for the PCs, which they have to address through play.

I made the Morale system for a similar reason. The reality is, as a game master, I’m never going to detail a 50-person crew with all their personalities and quirks and concerns and little human interest stories. I wouldn’t enjoy making that list and it would rarely prove its full usefulness in play. But I also really care about how these crew members relate to the PCs, the adventure, and each other. So I want a system that captures the crew’s overall mood, creates a stable of important NPCs, and then generates intrigue and drama between them.

Other notes:

• Like with my spaceship combat rules, I’m presenting a bunch of untested material. The tables especially feel very first-draft to me, and I’m not totally satisfied with them as they currently stand.
• I’m not sold on how I’ve specified when you should reduce Morale versus make a Morale check, but the logic is basically the same as with Credit: you lose Credit due to the ordinary spending of money, and you make a Credit check when your obligations pile up to a critical point. Credit checks and Morale checks test whether or not tensions come to a head.
• The encounters in the Morale table are short and vague. I hope that this empowers the GM to add flavor and really make each situation unique — but I don’t know if I’ve succeeded.
• Copying from The Pirate Crew, I think it’s best to give Loyalists and Nemeses a single personality trait, at least to start out with. This particular bit from that article is brilliant, so I’m going to copy it here wholesale:
  • “When you need to know how the crew as a whole acts just combine all of the personality traits of the named NPCs. If there is 1 Nemesis with “bloodthirsty” and two Loyalists with “cunning” and “greedy” then your pirate crew as a whole is bloodthirsty, cunning, and greedy. Act accordingly.”
• I’m still not 100% satisfied with “Crew Stat” as a term. I love the idea of rolling against the crew’s coherence to do stuff, but I’d prefer something a little bit less abstract.

Links

• Debt Rules for Mothership 1E
• Debt and Economic Horror (Debt Rules)
• Bell Peppers and Beef
• My (Untested) Theory of Nautical Campaigns
• The Pirate Crew

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