After your father had given you the go-ahead, the next month was filled with a head-spinning number of things that needed to be done. Even with the help from your father's personal staff, it was still a complicated task to be done. You needed to create three completely new departments in the company. And if that hadn't been complicated enough, you needed to do so relatively quickly, considering the financial situation the company was facing.
For the Design Department, you decided against any experienced personnel. Instead, you hired students fresh from university who had just finished their education. They all were starry-eyed and very enthusiastic. Your father sent in one of his own to rein them in and control some of the expected outbursts. Gaath Kootto had worked for your family for three decades. The old Mon Cal had a bit of a grumpy reputation mixed in with a credit pincher attitude. Of all the people in the company, he had at least done some design work before he had washed up in the Accounting Department. Gaath had an eye for a good design and, at the same time, would ensure that the young hot-heads wouldn't burn the departments' budget in their first design. Gaath already hated his job and complained that he felt like a tadpole's header. And yet, he looked less grumpy than during his time with the accountants.
With the Research Department, you at least hadn't had to start from scratch. With Dhin Nerroma, a Bothan woman, and her team, you had a small group of reassigned personnel who had some experience with unique ships. Before, they had mainly handled custom builds or modifications, which required extensive ship rebuilds. This had required finding out which parts worked with each other or bridged differences that seemed impossible. Additionally, you hired some personnel from outside. Dhin seemed happy about them and couldn't wait to get to work.
Thor D'non was an experience, even before you basically stole him from the Repair Department. He was a Jawa, a small species from the Arcanis Sector in the Outer Rim. Before him, you had never seen one of his kind or even heard of them. But he was highly skilled when it came to repairs and on-the-spot solutions. The head of the Repair Department now hated you, from now on until the universe's end. But maybe that had less to do with Thor D'non leaving his department and more with the fact that you also took half of his department.
With the departments set up and ready to work, you finally had time to look at the total budget your father had given you. You were surprised; the amount was as grand as he had promised, and that made you feel nervous. You truly realized that the family business indeed relied on you and your idea.
No pressure at all.
Finally, the time had come to meet all of your department heads. Before this, you had met with them occasionally when it became relevant for their departments. It was the first time they all were gathered in a conference room together. They were, of course, no strangers to each other, as they all had been with the company for at least five years or more. So that awkwardness wasn't there, but it was still new for them. You could tell that easily enough by the sidelong glances they all gave each other. Not surprising, as before, they had maybe met each other in a corridor or at some festivity but never shared a conference table.
You still decided to follow the usual introduction spiel simply because it set everyone's mind at ease. After that was done, you came to the real reason for the meeting.
"Okay, now that we all know who the others are, let us begin. When I informed you about this meeting, I told you to gather ideas for a ship concept within your departments. Furthermore, I also wanted to hear why you decided to bring the concept before us. Now the time has come to show us your ideas. Remember, there isn't a right or wrong here. This is about gathering ideas. We can from there start to check what will be possible or not."
When you got two nods and an enthusiastic sound from Thor, you nodded pleased. You looked towards Gaath, who returned the look with his fish-like eyes and sighed. The Mon Cal stood up and cleared his raspy voice, not really helping him sound clearer in any way. As he started to talk, he activated the holoprojector, and a concept design for a light freighter appeared.
"My Department had two ideas: a light freighter or a utility craft. Personally, I think that the light freighter is the better idea. Usually, construction is based around a small crew of two to five. Capacity of around 75 to 80 metric tons. The intended usage would be on short trips to neighboring planets or to serve within a sector. Considering that most of the bulk transport across the galaxy have been monopolized, it would be harder to sell anything heavier. Plus, the last few years have seen an upswing in the popularity of light freighters everywhere in the galaxy."
He pressed another button, and the holo of the light freighter was replaced by a new ship. This one was basically a ball with engines and two arms. Gaath's face grew a bit darker as he stared at the holo. "This is the utility craft that we propose. It is basically a cockpit with an engine. The arms are for work in space and can be replaced with several tools. You're all familiar with what I'm talking about, considering we're working in a space yard. Still, half of my team think it could be a good idea to build them. Cheap, easy build, and a wide field for usage, besides the 'yard."
"You disagree?"
The old Mon Calamari sighed again. "Not exactly, boss. The vehicle could be quickly planned and produced. The thing is, I don't think that it will give us good access to the market. There exists plenty of these in the galaxy. The same is true for the light freighter, just that people are buying light freighters, and the market is at the moment still open for smaller entries. We should concentrate on that, this utility craft we can build later."
"Thank you, Gaath." You turned to the only woman at the table. Dhin Nerroma's fur looked calm enough as the Bothan returned the look. "Dhin, your turn."
The woman stood up with the grace of a feline predator. Her fingers quickly danced over the controls of the holoprojector, and a new ship design replaced the utility craft Gaath had just introduced. The new ship concept was rougher than the two before, but considering that Dhin was running Research and not Design, that could be excused. As she started to speak, she pointed to the lazy rotating image the projector showed in the air. "We think that a heavy freighter would be our best, first ship. The reasons for this are simple: they will be bought. Now, Gaath was right, that most of the heavy lifting that happens in sectors and between them is in the hands of the Trade Federation and their like. But, this overlooks the high number of medium businesses that have crawled up in the last decade in the Mid Rim. They have started to push into bulk trading but can't get ships that fit them. Something like the Action series from CEC. It came to our surprise when we found that the market is rather lacking in such ships of the lower heavy freighter class."
Pointing towards her datapad, she continued. "I've loaded your pads with the relevant market analyses we have conducted. The numbers aren't lying. Let's act quickly enough, and we can offer buyers a reasonably priced alternative to the Action series. We'll have a foot in the door of the heavy freighter market before the niche is closed."
You nodded towards her as she sat down and gave the report she had managed a quick glance. The numbers did look promising. "Right, thanks, Dhin. I will take a closer look at these numbers later. Thor? I think it is your turn."
The small non-human wearing a brown cloak bounced up, filled with barely contained energy as he started to speak in his own voice. He continued to talk and ignored the panicked reaction from his translation droid which seemed overwhelmed with the words coming from the small alien at such a rate.
"Ah, Master Thor greets you all and hopes that you all found water this morning. He also wishes to inform you that he is excited about the proposals of both Master Gaath and Mistress Dhin. Both should be in the range of the ability of his team. He also has a proposal of his own." You weren't sure about it, but considering the high number of fast fired words coming from the Jawa, the droid seemed to cut some parts out of it. If Thor was bothered by that, he didn't show it in the slightest. He even made some explosion noises and the appropriate motions with his hands to underline his words. Here his tone got even more excited, if that was even possible. "My master suggested that we should enter the market for military vehicles and ships. He recently read an article in the Tamaris Gazette that starfighters are the great new thing any PDF wants. And if that isn't something that we wish to build, he suggests that we try and build corvettes."
You lifted your eyebrows, surprised when the droid translated the words from Thor. At the same time, the Jawa hit the control buttons for the projector. Two new but badly drawn ships appear in the air. One looked like a fighter craft. The other had some resemblance with the new CR70 Corvettes that CEC had recently presented to the public.
"My master wishes to inform you that the fighter would be a multipurpose model. Aimed to bolster PDFs cheaply and go with the current trend in military circles. The corvette, on the other hand, could be aimed at either exclusively the military market or also the civilian market as escorts for larger convoys."
"Okay…," you said slowly as Thor sat down, "to be honest, I think we will have problems finding buyers for this. The market is cornered by large companies. At least for your corvette idea. The fighter could be a good idea, I think. From what I've read in the recent reports, the big companies leave the market mostly open. They don't see profit in it yet. So we might just have a chance there. I will think about it. Thank you, Thor, and you two too."
In addition to the ideas your three department heads had, your father also sent you a small list of procurements that were currently going on in the sector. Thanks to your family's connections within the Temaris Sector, you had the chance to take part in some of them. The question is, do you wish to do so? If you decide to do it, you have to concentrate on it with all departments if you want to compete with other companies.
Pick one!
[ ] No bid
You've decided against entering any procurement processes for now. That doesn't mean you can't offer your designs later on, just that you don't want that kind of stress and pressure right now on your team.
[ ] The Pride of the Fleet
The Temaris Protection Fleet is looking for a new flagship. Reading the procurement document is almost as if someone decided to simply copy the description of a Dreadnought from Rendili StarDrive. The only difference is the measurements of the ship wanted and the price, both lower than the standard offer from Rendili.
[ ] The Parcelmasters' Dream
The Fast Delivery Parcel service, FDP for short, is a point of pride for the Temaris Sector. It recently suffered from the same setbacks as the rest of the sector. The new Parcelmaster wants to get newer and faster courier vessels to combat this.
[ ] Hutt Air
Gamala the Hutt, a wealthy businesswoman in the sector, has recently stated at a party that she was thinking about going into the passenger business. But she wants a unique ship that gives even the everyday worker a good time.
Total Budget: 10
Design Department
[ ][Design][1B] Upkeep
Progress: n.a.
Description: You pay the bills and assign working orders, generally ensuring that the department isn't losing brainpower. If this option is not taken, the cost will grow in the next turn.
[ ][Design][1B] Plans for a Light Freighter
Progress: 0 of 100
Description: Light Freighters come in all shapes and forms. Some fast, others with a great range, and so on. It is time to design your own.
[ ][Design][1B] Plans for a Heavy Freighter
Progress: 0 of 100
Description: Heavy Freighters are the backbone of interstellar trading. They are, in theory, easy to build. You've never built one, just repaired them, so you don't know for sure.
[ ][Design][1B] Plans for a Utility Craft
Progress: 0 of 50
Description: In the orbital industry, not only in shipbuilding, small crafts are used every day. They are called Utility Craft, and there never seems to be enough despite how many models are on the market.
[ ][Design][1B] Plans for a Corvette
Progress: 0 of 150
Description: Corvettes are used by every military in the galaxy to some extent. The market is hard fought over by such names as Kuat Drive Yards and CEC. Entering this arena will be risky, but the profits…
[ ][Design][1B] Plans for a Fighter
Progress: 0 of 100
Description: The new lovechild from the Deep Core to the Mid Rim if it comes to "new" and "hip" military "geniuses." The market hasn't been cornered yet. Maybe you can corner it a bit.
[ ][Design][2B] A Cruiser
Progress: 0 of 250
Requires: The Pride of the Fleet
Description: The TPF wants a new flagship. You're sure that they wish for a Dreadnought-style ship from the procurement text alone. But maybe a homebrew construct could win. After all, military contracts never go to the best or the cheapest (even if soldiers tell you differently), but to the ones with the best connections.
[ ][Design][1B] A Courier
Progress: 0 of 150
Requires: The Parcelmasters' Dream
Description: To build a fast ship will be some hard work, but it can be done. And then the whole sector will see your ships covered in the logo of the FDP. Free advertisement at its finest, especially if your ship can beat the competition.
[ ][Design][2B] A luxury passenger
Progress: 0 of 300
Requires: Hutt Air
Description: To build a large luxury passenger for the average worker will be quite a task. But if you get that done, you will earn some friends in Hutt space, you're sure, and among the working class.
Research Department
[ ][Research][1B] Upkeep
Progress: n.a.
Description: You pay the bills and assign working orders, generally ensuring that the department isn't losing brainpower. If this option is not taken, the cost will grow in the next turn.
[ ][Research][1B] Class 5 Hyperdrive
Progress: 0 of 500
Description: A Class 5 Hyperdrive is the slowest drive seen on the market, often built-in as an emergency drive should the main one fail. If we want to start building our own hyperdrives, Class 5 is the point.
[ ][Research][1B] Basic Sublight Engines
Progress: 0 of 250
Description: Every starship needs sublight engines for travel outside hyperspace. We should start learning how to build basic ones ourselves before we go for larger and better sublight engines.
[ ][Research][1B] Basic Hull Plating
Progress: 0 of 100
Description: Most people in the galaxy won't give two thoughts about the hull plates that protect them from the void through which they travel. But the truth is, it is hard to come up with the right mixture of metals and other things to make these plates. We should start with something basic.
[ ][Research][1B] Basic Shielding
Progress: 0 of 200
Description: Most weapons used in the galaxy are either blaster or laser-based. Accordingly, any ship manufacturer worth his name will provide basic protection against these. In theory, it shouldn't be too hard to come up with one ourselves.
[ ][Research][1B] Basic Blaster
Progress: 0 of 100
Description: Blasters are the ideal weapon for close combat situations, making them perfect for civilian ships. We should take a look into building our own.
[ ][Research][1B] Basic Laser
Progress: 0 of 200
Description: Most military ships use lasers, thanks to their ability to fight at longer distances. If we wish to push into the military market, we should first develop basic laser weapons.
Production Department
[ ][Production][1B] Upkeep
Progress: n.a.
Description: You pay the bills and assign working orders, generally ensuring that the department isn't losing brainpower. If this option is not taken, the cost will grow in the next turn.
[ ][Production][1B] Ask for Hyperdrives
Progress: 0 of 50
Description: Currently the company hasn't the knowledge or the facilities to produce something like a hyperdrive themselves. That means you need offers from other companies that do build hyperdrives.
[ ][Production][1B] Ask for Sublight Engines
Progress: 0 of 50
Description: Any ship requires some form of sublight engine. It shouldn't be too hard to come up with something of your own, but until that is the case, you will need to buy somewhere else.
[ ][Production][1B] Ask for Plating
Progress: 0 of 25
Description: It shouldn't be too hard to find someone willing to produce hull plates that your ships require.
[ ][Production][1B] Ask for Shielding
Progress: 0 of 150
Description: Some of your designs require shields, not the navigational but actually protective ones. Even civilian variations cost a lot. Hopefully, there are some cheap offers.
[ ][Production][1B] Ask for Weapons
Progress: 0 of 200
Description: Weapons are restricted on most Republican worlds and not easily bought in bulk. Still, there are plenty of companies that offer ship-graded weapons. The absolute nightmare is the bureaucracy behind it.
The [?B] gives you the cost of the option, you can increase the number if you wish that more dice are rolled.
Run any Write-In by me first.
Please Use [ ] Plan to vote!
There will be a Moratorium! Voting will be opened by me!
