And now for something completely different (setting up a PG-run shop and facilities)

As discussed here, the Trading Company is interested in the opportunities provided by the war with Eiskalt, but to capitalise on that, will need to set up a shop and make our suite of facilities and craftsmen available. I'm posting here to work out the details, show the provenance of and access to TC resources, and work out any issues/purchases we'll need to make everything legit (figured it was the best place for it; sorry if I messed up :/ ). Invetisto, I have taken some liberties when describing these items, so please inform me if they deviate from what you originally had in mind so that I can fix them accordingly (or if I am simply missing information). Once this is sorted out, I assume that we can create a thread in the Black Market, move this information there, keep it updated, and handle our transactions from there.


Facilities

• Forge: located just outside of Radasanth. It includes a hearth, a couple of anvils, slack tubs, cooling ovens, draw plate, die and sand moulds, mill-powered drill/saw/lathe, hand tools, and storage. It is large enough to allow three smiths and a couple of apprentices to work at the same time. NPCs involved are Ian (an accomplished smith) and two apprentices. First appeared in the thread: [The Trading Company] A New Face...
• Stables: unknown location, appears only in the TC PG forum. The facilities boast pastures in which to manage herds and breeding programs, as well as structures in which to provide shelter for the animals and in which to store mounts/beasts of burden for work. Currently empty.
• Testing facilities: unknown location, appears only in the TC forum. These facilities provide a place and space in which to try out/practice with new inventions, be it ballistics testing, armour proofing, putting a machine through its paces, stress tests, or something more obscure.

Resources:

• Iron (ongoing. On completion, ongoing threads will yield resources to the TC as spoils, which will allow us to make items from them more cheaply, and thus sell them at a lower price).
• Copper (ongoing).
• Tin (ongoing).
• Silver (ongoing).
• Elemental crystals (ongoing?): apart from the acquisition thread, the TC also has a supplier of these crystals. Information on the NPC and the crystals themselves are given here.
• Timber: the TC has an agreement with this NPC, which allows them access to timber resources from Balbadoa Woods. Location and available wood types unknown. Furthermore, as this NPC acts as a guardian of the woods, it is unlikely that it will allow unrestricted logging, so perhaps there should be an a restriction on how frequently we can acquire wood from this source (which would require us to utilise more expensive suppliers in the mean time).

Otto, TTC can create a thread anytime they want in the Black Market subforum to sell goods. If they want a subforum, one can be purchased for 10,000 GP in the forum perk area. Alternatively, they can obtain an HQ and put a store subforum in there.

The only rule is that they need to own the items they're selling. So, if you don't want to interact at all with the bazaar, you must a) be able to link the thread where the raw materials are approved; b) link to the thread where the material was crafted into the good and; c) provide the bazaar moderators a monthly ledger of items sold. I also wouldn't focus on things like battering rams, but rather actual weapons & armors characters can actually use.

Now, other agreements can be made to make your store into a retail operation (buy from bazaar & resell to players). The Red Hand outpost is the oldest example of a retail system. Those would need to be made privately to protect your trade secrets and I'd be happy to talk with you in private about that. Just send me a PM.

That is... expensive. Something to work towards, perhaps. I had originally intended to put the store thread in the Black Market, though, so that the option is there when people go looking, and that it's right next to our competitors - but also so that we don't have to rely on constantly nagging people to buy our stuff.

Regarding your second point: I definitely understand that we need to own what we're selling. I think that IC acquisition threads would actually be a great way to explore the wild resources, industries and economies of different areas, so these won't (all) just be straight-out spoils threads. However, I wasn't sure if we need to invest to acquire the capital stated above, or if a certain amount of infrastructure is allowed upon creation of a PG. And I would be happy to log transactions as they occur, and provide tallies on obtained and used resources. Most of the fun will be in building this thing up from the ground, I reckon, which means meeting such challenges and limitations (not to mention that pulling free stuff out of thin air would probably be frowned upon).

I'll send you a PM in a bit about our retail options. Thanks again for your time - I know you're all about activity, and I sincerely hope this will venture will promote player/faction interaction.

EDIT: when I say a bit, I mean after my sleep, sorry. Definitely need to catch my forty winks.