Trade in 5150

To keep these rules simple, it is assumed that you will get the best bargain you can in the
system where you buy your cargo and it is the profit on that purchase that is being measured.
If you fail to achieve a profit, it might be because you paid too much for the cargo or simply
because you have not negotiated well. This means that you will always pay the same for a
cargo when buying it (1 point per tonne of cargo) but you may not be able to sell the cargo for
that amount. This simplifies things and keeps the game moving. After all, 5150 is about
combat not trading. The trading is only a means to an end; a larger force with bigger guns so
that you can stomp all over your opponents.

To take part in trading, a player’s group must have points in the bank. These points represent
the group’s liquid assets that can be used to buy trade goods. One point will buy one tonne of
goods. The group may buy as many tonnes of goods as they can afford up to the cargo
capacity of the group’s ship.

The basic process for trading is as follows:

1. Work out how much cargo your ship will carry and how much you have to spend.

2. Buy your cargo, not exceeding your ship’s cargo capacity.

3. Travel to a new system.

4. Attempt to sell your cargo there by rolling on the tables below.

It is envisaged that trade will add an extra dimension to the campaign and will not unbalance
it, because the campaign is not based around conflict between players. Instead, the players’
groups are operating within the post-Fifth Frontier War environment and their stories are part
of the story of District 268 at that time. Occasionally the groups may come into conflict but this
is the exception rather than the rule.

Ships

All players are assumed to have a ship in our campaign. This was a common mustering out
benefit in Traveller, and it fits the basic paradigm of this type of science fiction. In our
campaign, the players all start with a 100 ton Type J Seeker with a maximum cargo capacity
of 20 tonnes. This ship can achieve Jump-2 (i.e. move two hexes on the map per week) if it
only carries 10 tonnes of cargo, or it can achieve Jump-1 (i.e. move one hex on the map per
week) with a cargo of greater than 10 tonnes.

Type J Seeker

Crew 1
Passengers (inc crew) 4
Performance Jump 1 (Jump 2 if using optional drop tanks instead of carrying cargo)
Cargo 20 Tonnes at Jump 1, 10 tonnes at Jump-2
Armament 1 Pulse Laser
Equipment G-Carrier, Fuel Scoops, Fuel Purification Unit

Although the Type J Seeker has been configured for 20 tonnes of cargo space, and only 4
berths, it is possible to re-jig the space within it and use it differently. This means that you
could use the ship to carry more figures or different equipment, etc. Each extra passenger
above the standard complement of 4 requires 2 tonnes of cargo space.

Equipment Notes

The G-Carrier is an enclosed pressurised vehicle designed for working in a vacuum or hostile
atmosphere.

Fuel Scoops are required if a ship is to refuel from a gas giant. Ships without fuel scoops
must refuel at a starport.

Fuel Purification Units are required to use unrefined fuel. Any ship without these will need to
refuel at a Type A or B starport (see Traveller Supplement 3 Spinward Marches for further
details about starports in the systems).

Buying a New Ship

There is nothing to stop people buying larger ships later in their career. Ships cost 2 points
per MegaCredit that it would cost you to buy them. Thus a Type J Seeker would normally cost
30MCr and therefore would cost 60 points in our campaign. If you later choose to sell your
ship, you will get half its points value back.

Trade Classifications

Traveller rates worlds by trade classification amongst other things. These classifications
determine what goods are available on a particular world and also affect the value of those
goods when you come to sell them. E.G. goods bought on an agricultural world will sell well
on an industrial world and vice versa.

The following classifications are used in this trading system. See the section on Selling Goods
for how they are applied.

Industrial (I)

Non-industrial (NI)

Agricultural (A)
Non-agricultural (NA)

Tech Level

This refers to the Traveller Tech Level and not the 5150 Tech Level. Generally speaking,
higher tech goods will sell well on lower tech planets. Therefore, when importing goods from a
higher tech world, the player may roll one extra die on the test to see how much they get for
the goods

Selling Goods

To sell goods, you must take them to a different system from that in which you bought them.
When trying to sell goods, roll 2 or more dice against your Star’s REP on the following table:

2 Successes Sell cargo for twice its normal value

1 Success Sell cargo for its normal value
0 Successes You cannot find a buyer in this system

There are a number of modifiers to the Selling Goods table. Each of the modifiers detailed
below is a bonus die to be rolled when testing to see if you can find a buyer. You may roll one
extra die for each of the following conditions that applies:

• Goods are from a higher TL world

• Selling goods from an Agricultural world on a Non-agricultural world
• Selling goods from an Industrial World on a Non-industrial world
• Selling illegal goods

On any result of 1 success or less, you will have to take your cargo to a different system if you
wish to roll again on the above table.

E.G. You bought your cargo on TL11 Industrial world and are planning to sell it on a TL6 Non-
industrial world. You get 2 dice as standard and may roll one extra die for the Hi-tech goods,
and one extra die for selling the goods on a Non-industrial world. Thus the final result will be
that you roll 4 dice.

Smuggling

You can make a larger profit from selling goods that are illegal on a particular world. This
usually means selling weaponry, but it could be drugs or pot noodles, depending upon the
system you are selling to. You will need to buy the cargo in a system where it is not illegal.
However, when you come to sell the cargo, you must first test to see if you can avoid the local
law enforcement people before you can attempt to sell your goods. Roll 2 dice versus your
own REP and 2 dice versus the Law Level of the system. Then consult the following table.

You score

2 dice more than the

Sell goods as normal and add half again to the final value of the cargo
Law
1 die more than the
Sell cargo as normal
Law
0 dice more than the You have no opportunity to sell anything because you are too busy
Law avoiding the law
1 die less than the
You have been caught and must fight a stand up battle
Law
2 dice less than the
You have been caught and the Law have ambushed you
Law

In any situation where the Law catches you, you may still try to Talk the Talk because the Law
will always negotiate before shooting. When you are ambushed, that means that your group
begins the game at a disadvantage and surrounded.

If you surrender, you will lose your cargo and be fined 10 points per figure in your group. If the
Law beats you in a fight then you will lose the cargo and be fined as above, but you may also
get shot to pieces. You are always fined on the basis of the number of characters in your
group at the start of the fight and not on the number that survive it.