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Message no. 1
From: "D. Ghost" <dghost@****.COM>
Subject: Stock (This does apply to Shadowrunners, trust me. :)
Date: Tue, 1 Dec 1998 23:16:01 -0600
the thread about purchasing land reminded me of when I wanted to buy
stock for a character ... here's the system that just dawned on me:

A character wants stock and so allocates X nuyen as stock. Converting
from stock to nuyen and vice-versa incurs a fee equal to 1% of the value
of the stock if the character has a SIN. If the character does not have
a SIN, the fee is 20% of the value. The stock has two attributes: Value
and Stability. Value is the worth of the stock in nuyen. Stability
reflects how well the stock weathers changes in the market. The
stability of a stock is equal to 1/10th (round off) of the net rating of
Corporation (see Corporate Shadowfiles.). That gives Megacorps' stocks
Stability ratings of 10+ and piss-ant corps will have Stability ratings
of 5 or less.

Each time interval (For Example, every 3 months.), divide the value of
the stock by (3.5 times the Stability rating from the LAST check.) and
multiply the result by the sum of the values rolled on a number of D6s
(rule of 6 applies.) equal to the stability rating of the stock.

The reason that you use the stability rating from the last check is that
since the stability rating is based off the corp's net rating, the
stability rating can fluxuate or even plummet if the net rating is
altered.

This is, IMO, a pretty good quick-and-dirty stock system, IMO.
So, how does this apply to Shadowrunners? Well, how are Shadowrunners
going to get paid? Certified Credsticks and _Corporate_Script_.
Corporate Script, of course, is only as good as the corporation that
issued it... Therefore the same system above can be used for corp script.
Of course, in most cases that would probably be adding unneccisary
complexity but in a few instances (maybe if your players have a lot corp
script from one corp they have to unload.), it might be a pretty nifty
touch.

--
D. Ghost
(aka Pixel, Tantrum, RuPixel)
"Coffee without caffeine is like sex without the spanking." -- Cupid
"A magician is always 'touching' himself" --Page 123, Grimoire

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Message no. 2
From: Steve Eley <sfeley@***.NET>
Subject: Re: Stock (This does apply to Shadowrunners, trust me. :)
Date: Wed, 2 Dec 1998 09:32:06 -0500
"D. Ghost" wrote:
>
> Each time interval (For Example, every 3 months.), divide the value of
> the stock by (3.5 times the Stability rating from the LAST check.) and
> multiply the result by the sum of the values rolled on a number of D6s
> (rule of 6 applies.) equal to the stability rating of the stock.

This isn't a bad system, actually. I might say divide the value of the stock
by 3 instead of 3.5, though, just because the natural inclination of the
market is to grow.


> This is, IMO, a pretty good quick-and-dirty stock system, IMO.
> So, how does this apply to Shadowrunners? Well, how are Shadowrunners
> going to get paid? Certified Credsticks and _Corporate_Script_.
> Corporate Script, of course, is only as good as the corporation that
> issued it... Therefore the same system above can be used for corp script.

Actually, not really. Corporate scrip (not script) doesn't represent
ownership in the company; it's much closer to bonds in what it represents, and
it's not going to fluctuate in value due to anything other than inflation
inside the corp. (We'll assume that any corp big enough to issue scrip is big
enough that bankruptcy is a remote and nonrandom possibility.)


> Of course, in most cases that would probably be adding unneccisary
> complexity but in a few instances (maybe if your players have a lot corp
> script from one corp they have to unload.), it might be a pretty nifty
> touch.

It wouldn't help for that -- if they need to drop a lot of corp scrip, the
only thing they can do is either go into that corp and spend it, or dump it on
the black market at a real loss. Still, your stock rules can be really
useful.. My group has a few PC's, for instance, that are *very* business- and
investment-minded. (Besides, as _Corporate Shadowfiles_ states, owning stock
in the big megacorps can be a terrific means for shadowrunners to stay on top
of research and business opportunities.)


Have Fun,
- Steve Eley
sfeley@***.net
Message no. 3
From: Sean McCrohan <mccrohan@*****.OIT.GATECH.EDU>
Subject: Re: Stock (This does apply to Shadowrunners, trust me. :)
Date: Wed, 2 Dec 1998 10:05:12 -0500
Quoting Steve Eley (sfeley@***.NET):
> It wouldn't help for that -- if they need to drop a lot of corp scrip, the
> only thing they can do is either go into that corp and spend it, or dump it on
> the black market at a real loss. Still, your stock rules can be really
> useful.. My group has a few PC's, for instance, that are *very* business- and
> investment-minded. (Besides, as _Corporate Shadowfiles_ states, owning stock
> in the big megacorps can be a terrific means for shadowrunners to stay on top
> of research and business opportunities.)

*innocent blink* Why, Steve, who could you possibly be talking about? :)

Actually, Michael does have some long-term plans involving stock,
once the team has enough money to make it possible. All part of his eventual
goal of surviving in the shadows without having to shoot anyone. I have some
short term plans for you, too, for Saturday...things like (quietly) advertising
the availability of services like analysis of financial data (Great, you have
paydata. But do you know what it means or who it's worth money to?), contract
negotiation (Hire an expert and beat Mr. Johnson at his own game), and *ahem*
tax advice for the identity-impaired. I'm going to wring every possible nuyen
out of those Finance and Negotiation skills :)
There's a whole economy in the shadows, and runners are only part of
it. Many of the services fixers offer are (just like runs) probably handled
by subcontractors who are experts in that area. If you have PCs with skills
along those lines, there's no reason why they shouldn't take advantage of
them.

--Sean


--
Sean McCrohan (mccrohan@**.gatech.edu) | "He uses his folly as a stalking
Grad Student, Human-Computer Interaction | horse, and under the presentation
Georgia Institute of Technology | of that he shoots his wit."
http://www.lcc.gatech.edu/~smccrohan | _As You Like It_, Act 5 Sc 4
Message no. 4
From: Drew Curtis <dcurtis@***.NET>
Subject: Re: Stock (This does apply to Shadowrunners, trust me. :)
Date: Wed, 2 Dec 1998 11:39:25 -0500
On Wed, 2 Dec 1998, Steve Eley wrote:

> "D. Ghost" wrote:
> >
> > Each time interval (For Example, every 3 months.), divide the value of
> > the stock by (3.5 times the Stability rating from the LAST check.) and
> > multiply the result by the sum of the values rolled on a number of D6s
> > (rule of 6 applies.) equal to the stability rating of the stock.
>
> This isn't a bad system, actually. I might say divide the value of the stock
> by 3 instead of 3.5, though, just because the natural inclination of the
> market is to grow.
>
Yes and no. Over the entire lifetime of the market there has been growth,
but there have been periods of time where growth was flat. Between 1968
and 1982 the stock market remained relatively flat. 14 years.

Drew Curtis, President, Digital Crescent, Incorporated
http://www.dcr.net (502) 226 3376 Internet and Software Design services.
Offering dial-up Access from Frankfort to Louisville and all points between.
Message no. 5
From: Steve Eley <sfeley@***.NET>
Subject: Re: Stock (This does apply to Shadowrunners, trust me. :)
Date: Wed, 2 Dec 1998 13:10:46 -0500
Drew Curtis wrote:
>
> On Wed, 2 Dec 1998, Steve Eley wrote:
>
> > This isn't a bad system, actually. I might say divide the value of the stock
> > by 3 instead of 3.5, though, just because the natural inclination of the
> > market is to grow.
> >
> Yes and no. Over the entire lifetime of the market there has been growth,
> but there have been periods of time where growth was flat. Between 1968
> and 1982 the stock market remained relatively flat. 14 years.

Sure. And there were all sorts of reasons for that, none of which we have
reason to believe apply in the world FASA posits for 2060. That doesn't
change my basic premise -- which was that in the absence of other factors, a
realistic system will tend to have mid- to large-cap companies gaining value
more often than they'll lose it. Obviously this will vary with the specific
company's circumstances and with market conditions; but we've simplified those
out of the picture. (And it may not apply to small- and micro-caps either, as
they tend to come and go with the wind, but in the Shadowrun world those
companies will likely never be of concern to shadowrunners except as
targets.) >8->


Have Fun,
- Steve Eley
sfeley@***.net
Message no. 6
From: "D. Ghost" <dghost@****.COM>
Subject: Re: Stock (This does apply to Shadowrunners, trust me. :)
Date: Wed, 2 Dec 1998 18:18:13 -0600
On Wed, 2 Dec 1998 09:32:06 -0500 Steve Eley <sfeley@***.NET> writes:
>"D. Ghost" wrote:
<SNIP>
>> This is, IMO, a pretty good quick-and-dirty stock system, IMO.
>> So, how does this apply to Shadowrunners? Well, how are Shadowrunners
>> going to get paid? Certified Credsticks and _Corporate_Script_.
>> Corporate Script, of course, is only as good as the corporation that
>> issued it... Therefore the same system above can be used for corp
script.

>Actually, not really. Corporate scrip (not script) doesn't represent
>ownership in the company; it's much closer to bonds in what it
represents, and
>it's not going to fluctuate in value due to anything other than
inflation
>inside the corp. (We'll assume that any corp big enough to issue scrip
is big
>enough that bankruptcy is a remote and nonrandom possibility.)

Well, that's not exactly what I was getting at when I said the same
mechanic could be used ... I meant that if a corp goes through turmoil,
any currency it issues will reflect it. The same would be true if it
enjoys a boon for some reason. Look at how currency values today
fluctuate for whatever reason ...

<SNIP>
>the black market at a real loss. Still, your stock rules can be really
>useful.. My group has a few PC's, for instance, that are *very*
business- and
>investment-minded. (Besides, as _Corporate Shadowfiles_ states, owning
stock
>in the big megacorps can be a terrific means for shadowrunners to stay
on top
>of research and business opportunities.)
<SNIP>

Cool. Enjoy. :)

--
D. Ghost
(aka Pixel, Tantrum, RuPixel)
"Coffee without caffeine is like sex without the spanking." -- Cupid
"A magician is always 'touching' himself" --Page 123, Grimoire

___________________________________________________________________
You don't need to buy Internet access to use free Internet e-mail.
Get completely free e-mail from Juno at http://www.juno.com/getjuno.html
or call Juno at (800) 654-JUNO [654-5866]

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