Tim (Christophe Joseph Pépin) decides that gaming is sufficiently important that he should rearrange his work schedule to allow for it. He explains, "I have no idea why the lady I traded schedule with wants the crappy schedule I had, but I'm not going to question it so long as I get what I want." Chris (Dmitri Baranov) congratulates him, "Way to go!" Paul (Smith) points out, "I've been thinking of developing a new fetish. How about nail polish? I've heard on good authority that you can develop a really unhealthy obsessive interest in the stuff. Just think of all the colors! There are thousands of them!" Chuck (Percy Winston-Smythe) offers, "Do what you want, but you'd better keep away from it while you're here." Bruce simply reminds everyone that Ernest's life is sprouting inconvenient responsibilities and that he's not going to be able to attend.
Christophe Joseph Pépin has been in an opium trance for quite some time, and needs to catch up on his trading and business interests. This is handled through a series of Merchant rolls. He invests 10,000 Lv in the Venus-to-Mars run and makes a 50% return, and another 40,000 Lv on the Mars-to-Earth run, making a 0% return.
His regular income is used to support the operations of the Musaraigne d'Egrappage. He estimates that his current liquid assets amount to about 100,000 Lv.
Leopold Windengald really did manage to translate an ancient Xea-Osk instruction manual on programming clockwork brains. He wasn't much for organization, so studying his notes and assembling them into a logical sequence requires eight weeks of effort by one individual with at least one of Martian Artifacts, Mathematics, or Computer Programming/TL4+5 at 10+. Each additional individual employed in the task shortens the time required by a week. A successful Administration roll will shorten the time required by two weeks. Minimum possible time needed is four weeks.
Once the notes have been organized into a coherent whole, they can be used for two purposes. First, they provide a useful primer on the architecture of a clockwork brain. They can be used as a training guide to learn up to two points in Computer Programming/TL4+5 at the normal rate of one point per 200 hours. However, the notes cannot be used to reach a skill higher than 10. If a single point in the skill would put a student beyond that limit, their skill is capped until they can find an additional source of instruction.
Second, the notes can be used as a practical manual to allow modification of a clockwork brain. With the notes as a guide, a researcher can modify up to twenty points of mental advantages or disadvantages in an existing clockwork brain at a rate of five points per week. Added disadvantages simply reduce the total point value of the brain. Added advantages must be paid for out of experience points. Each week of work requires a successful Computer Programming/TL4+5 roll; a failed roll results in no progress for the week. A fumbled roll will typically have grave consequences, generally manifesting as malignant mental disadvantages (e.g., Phobia, Intolerance, Berserk, etc.).
The characters spend four weeks helping the Egyptian organize Windengald's notebooks. Smith, Christophe-Joseph Pépin, Dmitri Baranov and Windengald's former student Peter Barneld all help. Only Percy Winston-Smythe doesn't help in the project. Instead, he heads off to the local common-houses to play cards, winning 300 Lv.
The characters quickly realizes that Windengald's work could be used to reprogram smith. Winston-Smythe asks the others, "How much would a safe-word cost?"
Pépin mentions, "The first time Smith says 'Miranda', I'm running."
The characters investigate the market for clockwork brains. They find that 2000 Lv would buy Pépin an unprogrammed, "clean" clockwork brain. A mere 1000 Lv buys a clockwork brain with a questionable history. Pépin decides that he would like to have his own computer, if only for the novelty. He buys a clean brain; 2000 Lv more buys him a disembodied mechanical head so he can talk to it. He names it Llewellyn.
Pépin figures out that a mechanical man without many brains but ST 20 would cost 2000 Lv for the brain and 15,000 Lv for the body.
The characters find upon their return that the dockworkers' strike has been brutally crushed. They take advantage of this by unloading piles of martian art and selling it off to the highest bidder.
| Good | Type | Price (Beldet) | Initial Sale Offer (Calais) | Final Sale Price (Calais) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xea-Osk Crafts | low-grade | 0.5 Lv/kg | 2 Lv/kg | 2.1 Lv/kg |
| Xea-Osk Crafts | high-grade | 10 Lv/kg | 30 Lv/kg | 26 Lv/kg |
| Xea-Osk wine | low-quality | 1 Lv/liter | 3 Lv/liter | 3 Lv/liter |
| Xea-Osk wine | good quality | 5 Lv/liter | 8 Lv/liter | 8 Lv/liter |
| Phlogiston | 250 Lv/ton | 400 Lv/ton | 360 Lv/ton | |
| Weeskein | 4 Lv/hide | 60 Lv/hide | 72 Lv/hide |
Taxes amount to 20% of gross for everything except weeskein hides, which are taxed at a rate of 20 Lv/hide. The characters make a pile of money.
Winston-Smythe notes, "Do you all realize that for a ton of rice you can buy a very fine saber? Really puts things into perspective, doesn't it?"
Pépin suggests, "I think we should start storing our money by the bathtub-full."
Winston-Smythe tells the others, "I'm going to start making bullets out of gold, just because I can."
Smith tells the characgters that in five months, conditions will be right for optimal approach to Saturn. Nobody questions his opinion: they know that Smith just knows these things. They quickly list out things that they need for the voyage:
Extra Crew (some with ship skills and some gurkhas)
Important ship spares include:
The characters set about to hire a dozen new crewmen. Their current standard rate is 30 Lv/mo. Their initial plan is to hire in the new crew at an "Elite" rate of 60 Lv/mo until Baranov points out the effects this would have on the current crew. He comments, "I'm gonna bring in a number of new guys to do exactly the same job you do, under the same conditions, but I'm gonna pay them twice the money."
Winston-Smythe grumbles, "Thanks for shooting down all my efforts to improve morale."
The characters finally decide to pay all of their current crew plus the twelve newcomers 60 Lv/mo each, and to hire in another 12 standard sailors at 30 Lv/mo and 12 green sailors at 15 Lv/mo, plus a spare captain at 750 Lv/mo.
| Crew Type | Number | Rate/mo | Total Cost/mo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic Crew | 12 | 30 | 360 |
| Elite Crew | 24 | 60 | 1440 |
| Green Crew | 12 | 15 | 180 |
| Captain | 1 | 750 | 750 |
| Carpenter | 2 | 120 | 240 |
| Steersman | 1 | 120 | 120 |
| Algerian Zouaves | 20 | 30 | 600 |
| Ex-Legion Officer | 1 | 120 | 120 |
| Third-Brevet-Ghul | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Klaus Heigen | 1 | 120 | 120 |
| Human PC's | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Ssaug | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Ssaug Families | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| Catherine Iphegenia | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Total on Board | 92 | Total Cost/mo | 3930 |
|---|
For defense, the characters hire up a force of Algerian Zouaves, mostly veterans of the colonial service. They figure that the men have a fierce enough reputation that they should do well. And that doesn't even begin to count their snappy uniforms. Klaus Heigen serves as the Zouave commander. Lieutenant "Hook-Nose" Gerard serves as his assistant; the man has a previous history as an officer in the Legion Étrangére. The Steersman is Milo Norwest and the Deputy Captain is Nathaniel Himmelspach.
Pépin regrettably decides that 1000 Lv/mo is a bit much to be paying for a lawyer on staff. He tells his staff lawyer the sad news as gently as possible: "I'm sorry, our organization is going in new directions, directions that you don't fit into." He gives the man a nice reference. Likewise, he sends his mistress to a family estate for the duration: Saturn is no place for a respectable woman, much less a non-respectable one. Needless to say, Catherine Iphegenia refuses to leave the ship.
Six months' advance pay for the whole crew is 23,580 Lv. Winston-Smythe notes that that amount of money would have paid for slightly more than one mechanical man. He takes this as a sign of the wisdom of the characters' current strategy.
The journey to Saturn is estimated at 75 days each way. The characters decide to lay in enough food and water to last for a full year, just in case.
| Total Crew | 92 | |||||
| Days | 365 | |||||
| Usage/ person | Units | Cost/unit | Total mass (kg) | Total mass (tons) | Total Cost | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Food | 2 | kg/day | 0.4 | 67160 | 67.16 | 26864 |
| Water | 4 | liters/day | 0 | 134320 | 134.32 | 0 |
| 201.48 | 26864 |
They also section off 100 tons of cargo area into quarters for everyone, including a small ssaug laundry in the aft of the ship.
| Total Hold Space | 400 | tons | |
| Cargo Usage | Tons | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crew Quarters | 100 | 0 | |
| Food & Water | 201 | 26864 | |
| Trade Goods | 1 | 5000 | Huge variety of things |
| Repair Supplies | 15 | 30000 | Enough to bring one disabled ship to good shape |
| Repair Supplies | 5 | 10000 | Enough to bring one disabled ship to mobility |
| Aether Sledge | 20 | 20000 | |
| Trackless APC | 10 | 20000 | |
| Spare Sledge Sails | 0 | 10000 | 5 extra sets of sails |
| Siege Mortar | 4 | 10000 | |
| Mortar Rounds | 1 | 8000 | 1 shell = 25 kg; 40 shells |
| Swivel Guns | 0 | 1000 | 2 more guns, in addition to 2 already owned |
| Triple Rifles | 0 | 3000 | 15 guns. |
| Venus Rifles | 0 | 2500 | Huge rifles for big animals. 10 guns. |
| Survival Gear | 0.5 | 512 | Personal basics, blanket and camping gear for 100 people |
| Total Tons | Total Cost | ||
| 357.5 | 146876 |
It takes some work, but Pépin is able to find a gunsmith able to make a version of the mab-yetso that uses standard gunpowder. The characters agree to buy fifteen, with the idea of equipping half of their Zouaves with them. They also buy some very large-bore rifled muskets for use against large targets. Half of the Zouaves are strong enough to use the Venus rifles effectively. The characters buy ten very fine versions at 250 Lv each.
| TL | Weapon | Damage | Acc | Rng | Wt | RoF | Shots | ST | Bulk | RCL | Cost |
| 4+1 | Mab-Yetso | 3d+2 pi+ | 5 | 600/1800 | 8/0.05 | 1 | 3 (15i) | 10† | -8 | 3 | 50 Lv |
| 4 | Triple Rifle | 4d pi+ | 3 | 600/1800 | 10/0.05 | 1 | 3 (15i) | 10† | -9 | 3 | 200 Lv |
| 4 | Venus Rifle | 6d pi++ | 2 | 100/2000 | 15/0.05 | 1 | 1 (20) | 12† | -6 | 4 | 50 Lv |
| 4 | VF Venus Rifle | 6d pi++ | 4 | 100/2000 | 15/0.05 | 1 | 1 (20) | 12† | -6 | 4 | 250 Lv |
The total cost of the characters' preparations, not counting crew salary, is 137,000 Lv. Catherine Iphegenia throws in 10,000 Lv. Pépin puts in 63,500 Lv. The remaining cost for each of the remaining characters is 15,875 Lv. This is enough to bankrupt Winston-Smythe, so Baranov kicks in an additional 5000 Lv to cover part of Winston-Smythe's share.
Smith throws in an extra 10,000 Lv for additional repair supplies.
Each character gains two experience points, because all the group did for the entire session was shop. Smith promptly spends his experience points on Engineering.