Character Buildings

Anonymous's picture
Anonymous
December 16, 2009 - 4:20pm

As a character gains levels and prestige what's he to do with all those creds?
Buy a ship? Nah. How about make a building where he can keep his gear, have an office, hang out with his minions or start a corporation.

I'm crafting a system where a character can build a building and wanted some feedback on the types of buildings you would...
  • Build as a Character?
  • How about Referee's?
Note: This system could be used to make deckplans volumetrically.

What about the types of rooms? Here is a short list I made up;

  • apartment
  • cargo bay
  • communication area
  • computer room
  • crew quarters
  • defensive/weapon placements
  • entertainment center
  • galley
  • generator room
  • kitchen
  • laboratory
  • lavatory/shower
  • medical bay
  • offices
  • processing lab
  • recreational area
  • refinery
  • robotics room
  • security center
  • spaceship bay
  • storage/warehouse
  • vehicle bay
  • vehicle service center
  • weapons room
Updated list 12/17
Comments:

Rum Rogue's picture
Rum Rogue
December 16, 2009 - 4:39pm
dont forget the pool and exercise equipment.
And a patio with bar & grill.
and a big keg o'rum.Smile
Time flies when your having rum.

Im a government employee, I dont goof-off. I constructively abuse my time.

Anonymous's picture
w00t (not verified)
December 16, 2009 - 6:35pm
To cut cost and have lasting enjoyment we'll fill the pool with rum. :-)

Rum Rogue's picture
Rum Rogue
December 16, 2009 - 8:10pm
I weep tears of joy over such a vision

and the scantly clad wenches got to have those as well. Wink
Time flies when your having rum.

Im a government employee, I dont goof-off. I constructively abuse my time.

Shadow Shack's picture
Shadow Shack
December 16, 2009 - 9:06pm

Hmm, a classic "name level" stronghold a la D&D?

Never really put much thought into it, as more often than not my players end up with a ship as their "stronghold"...but I can see the possiblity of a land based version. Or better yet, characters that acquire a smaller ship (like a scout ship) and still have enough wealth to build a remote place to park it (re: a really large "vehicle bay").

I think the big obstacle would be acquiring the land more than anything. Out in the sticks, not so much of a problem. Closer to or part of a civilization? Bring your Frontier Express card, membership has its advantages...


And add to the list:

> computer room
> life support equipment (perhaps half of what would be needed for a starship, since the air is already there only food and water is needed. Or if it's a zero atmosphere environmnet, full scale starship equipment rules apply and ad in a hydroponics room)
> generator room
> spare parts storage, if separate from cargo bay
> optional environmental and/or medical laboratory
> optional robotics room
> pending local govt. approval, perhaps even a defensive station (laser battery and ICM launcher)

I'm not overly fond of Zeb's Guide...nor do I have any qualms stating why. Tongue out

My SF website

Anonymous's picture
w00t (not verified)
December 16, 2009 - 9:27pm
Thanks SS!

I have a section that list lot costs based on location and tax assenemnt.
I also have a small table for Social modifer. :-)

Check it out.

2.3 Location Value Lot Table

Type

Taxes

Metropolitan

Urban

Suburban

Rural

Infertile

Residential

0.01%

2.0

1.5

1.0

0.5

.25

Commercial

0.04%

3.0

2.0

1.5

1.0

.50

 Industrial

0.02%

4.0

3.0

2.0

1.5

1.0



2.4 Social Modifier Table

Area

Cost

Ghetto

x 0.5

Middle-Class

x 0

Upper-Class

x 2.0


umungus's picture
umungus
December 16, 2009 - 10:04pm
Hey Woot, no place to take a bath or shower in your place?

How about a security room to survaile your own place?

I might know a guy who has experience designing houses and buildings and stuff...

At least I got to scare an alien rabbit thingy......


jedion357's picture
jedion357
December 16, 2009 - 10:41pm
I do think its a good idea but I also think this might work better as a story reward in the same vein as the Dramune Run adventure where the PCs, upon successful completion of the adventure, end up with both a ship and the docking fees paid for 2 months at Inner Reach.

Where they get a hide out/ stronghold as part of a story reward or find and explore a lost complex on a random asteroid that has been obviously abandoned for a considerable time and they decide to just take it over. (original owner is in jail and when he finally dies his nephew inherits some stuff including a message that details the asteroid's location and he goes looking for it, only problem is he's well connected in organized crime.

Some consideration: property tax and such, if its a story reward you can work and angle to delete dealing with most taxes and bills

But on the other hand the monthly cost can be assumed to include all that other junk and that is probably the best way to handle that.

I would alsoe suggest provisions for owning a bit of storage space as parties that have a ship will likely live on it but might need a storage unit for the sports car or hover bike.
I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers!

Rum Rogue's picture
Rum Rogue
December 17, 2009 - 5:49am
jedion357 wrote:
I would alsoe suggest provisions for owning a bit of storage space as parties that have a ship will likely live on it but might need a storage unit for the sports car or hover bike.

Players being players, you better include a secure vault or two to help store the other loot that has been aquired throughout their adventuring carreers.
Should come up with some guidelines about power generation as well.  You know they will want a generator or three to power the place even if it is already on the grid.
Time flies when your having rum.

Im a government employee, I dont goof-off. I constructively abuse my time.

Anonymous's picture
w00t (not verified)
December 17, 2009 - 7:38am
Some of the questions are getting into the meat of the document but I'll try and answer (I was mainly looking for room suggestions so I can build a list/table).

@Rum Rogue
- buildings have power drain and I provide four power sources; parabattery, generator, reactor core (non-AD) and utility power.
- where would this secure vault be? Part of another building owned by someone else? A secret location on an asteroid? Rental vault from a storage company?

@Jedi
- I agree on the story reward. As my character obtains prestige I'd eventually want to have my own establishment, even if I didn't frequent it for months while I'm travelling. Lots and property taxes are to give flavor.

@umungus
- I've been looking at online house planed in addition to Shadow's deck plans. I built the Corsair Container with my system. :-)

@Shadow
- I have a really nifty idea about life support (at least I think so. lol) . I'm making "packages" that can be applied to an entire building, a room or a series of rooms.

For example; I built a Mining Outpost that could be used as a drop container on a newly discovered world. If I wanted the same building on an airless moon I simply apply the "Sealed System Package" Description: Includes air scrubbers, recirculation, and control of atmospheric element mixing, etc.  Can be applied to entire building or just specific rooms (add up all spaces that are considered "sealed" and use the following package costs and considerations).......

Question: What about "lots in space". As a world's space lanes become populated I can envision orbital zones becoming crowed and consider 'primer property'.


jedion357's picture
jedion357
December 17, 2009 - 8:05am
I think you should have modular packages like 1 Room, 3 rooms, 5 rooms and make it a little more cost effective to buy the 3 room package rather than 3 one room packages. Players will design the rooms as per their desires. you could say the player have the option of a small closet sized bathroom being added to the 1 room package, 1 standard sized bathroom being added to the 3 room package, and 1-2
standard sized or closet sized bathrooms being added to the 5 room package. Leave that as player option cause they just might want the 3 room package for a business and dont need the bathroom space. 

Vaults could be rented from Eversafe Ent., they are the best in the business and most secure.

It sounds a little bit like you've played a Sony owned MMORPG like Star Wars or EQ2. In EQ2 players got an entry level one room appartment in which they could store bits of furniture and stuff they picked up as story reward or that they made from crafting. Naturally your tried to have a cool looking room. the cost for larger houses in game economy terms were just rediculous and probably set up to force you to spend tons and tons of time on line playing the game.
In Star Wars you got a house and guilds could set up their own town.

I'm wondering about level of security. and do you allow for a pc to be robbed while he's out? some players may not take that well. But I can see many people just paying for the cheapest lock secure in the knowledge that the GM wouldn't think to rob them.
I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers!

Anonymous's picture
w00t (not verified)
December 17, 2009 - 8:37am
@Jedi
Cool My system is completely modular. The suggestions I asked for rooms are to give the Ref and Players examples.

Cool I'll have to come up with a rental fee and insurance premiums. :-)  Eversafe Enterprises, like it.

Cool I came up with the system all on my own after working with Bill on several iterations of the Spaceship System and Vehicle System for FrontierSpace(TM) :-)

Cool There are different security system available. At higher levels a prestigious character would have followers or a business. Players could be rewarded a storefront and build a secret base underneath.  Security could be tied into the local law enforcement system. I imagine that a Ref would "rob" a characters building as a plot device.

Rum Rogue's picture
Rum Rogue
December 17, 2009 - 8:43am
w00t wrote:
 
- buildings have power drain and I provide four power sources; parabattery, generator, reactor core (non-AD) and utility power.
- where would this secure vault be? Part of another building owned by someone else? A secret location on an asteroid? Rental vault from a storage company?

Just thinking of my old gaming group and things they made and did.
Anytime they got a building with a public power source, they started looking for ways to circumvent it, or at least have a backup power system (or three).
The secure vault was a room in the basement or other out-of-the-way place in the main building.
Examples:
Call of Cthulhu: one group built a large underground bunker in Central Kansas.  It was one level, but had a couple of secure vaults/rooms.  One was a valuables vault and the other was the "experiment" room used for making things that go "Boom" and testing things that "man was not meant to tamper with."
They had multiple generators, 2 diesel and one gas, as well as propane water heater.
Rifts: The group started with a maintence shed, with 3 large work bays and a reinforced storage room for valuables and another one for explosives.  This group eventually built a barracks and a bar/grill.  Everything was connected with reinforced tunnels.  For power they used solar, diesel, nuclear and magical generators.
Time flies when your having rum.

Im a government employee, I dont goof-off. I constructively abuse my time.

Shadow Shack's picture
Shadow Shack
December 17, 2009 - 7:25pm
w00t wrote:
Question: What about "lots in space". As a world's space lanes become populated I can envision orbital zones becoming crowed and consider 'primer property'.


Seems to me renting/buying space on a orbital space station is the answer to that one.

Failing that, building/buying a small station (size 1 station). Now you really have your work cut out...

jedion357 wrote:
I'm wondering about level of security. and do you allow for a pc to be robbed while he's out? some players may not take that well. But I can see many people just paying for the cheapest lock secure in the knowledge that the GM wouldn't think to rob them.


There's actually a lot to consider behind that plot.

A group or PC with a hidden (underground?) stronghold out in the middle of nowhere who takes massive security measures is unlikely to be robbed, however a group/PC with minimal security in a lower class section of a busy city is very likely to get robbed, moeso when the neighbors see frequent trips made in and out of the structure with characters hauling nice goods each time, and then the character finds himself offworld for a few months...
I'm not overly fond of Zeb's Guide...nor do I have any qualms stating why. Tongue out

My SF website