As a great man once said, "slow and steady wins the race".

Here is a Mollweide projection of Ember I made in paint.

Today I hammered out the catalog that mining outfits will purchase supplies from. This is far from complete, and I am always open to new items to be listed in the catalog and will consider any suggestion to the catalog within reason. This is very much a work in progress and is subject to change.

Each player will submit a "shopping list" to me once every turn, which will be the amount of IRL time it takes for the freighter starship to leave Ember and return from Earth. Goods ordered from the catalog will be delivered to your base of operations on Ember via dropship operated by the freighter company at the start of the turn. The freighter company dropship will then pick up your mined baltuskite ore and I or a co-GM will calculate how much that ore will fetch at market and how many credits you will be paid. With these new credits, you will be able to buy new equipment, gear, and hire new crew members if you so choose.

Bear in mind, 1 Federation Credit ~ $25 USD in the current year. Many of these prices will end up being tweaked, so don't get too alarmed if some prices seem way off.

---

• Magnetic sensor - handheld: 100
  
• Magnetic resonator - low sensitivity: 450
  
• Magnetic resonator - high sensitivity: 8,000
  
• Magnetic trommel separator - small: 800
  
• Magnetic trommel separator - large: 3,500
  

• Field tent: 10
  A large tent of tough construction. Suitable for living quarters or the headquarters of a mining operation on a shoestring budget. More than suitable for weather on Earth, but this tent may not provide adequate protection against the erratic, often-violent weather that prevails on Ember.
• Inflatable structure: 100
  An inflatable dome structure that uses ammonium azide to self-inflate with the push of a button. A climate controlled interior and rigidly-inflated walls provide more substantial protection against the elements. Can be deployed on any flat surface for near-instant shelter.
• Steel building kit - barn: 1,000
  Once - or rather, if - the mining operation on Ember takes off, field bivoaucs will not be sufficient for many mine activities. Ore processing and vehicle and gear storage will need to moved to more permanent structures before long. The cheap corrugated steel buildings that comprise warehouses, garages, and light industrial buildings on Earth, Mars, and Luna are a good short-term solution for putting a roof on many mine operations. Some assembly required.
• Steel building kit - hangar: 2,500
  A kit for constructing a larger building of corrugated steel. Large mine equipment and vehicles will need more space than a simple pole barn. Has taller ceilings and more floor space than the cheaper kit, and features tall retractable hangar doors to accommodate large vehicles.
• Solar recharge station: 250
  Utilizes an array of photovoltaic solar panels to transform the warmth of Ember's sun into useful energy to power vehicles and equipment. Does not produce enough energy to power energy-intensive machinery.
• Field reactor: 5,200
  

• Pneumatic jackhammer: 50
  
• Excavator - small: 2,500
  
• Excavator - large: 12,000
  
• Hauler truck - small: 1,600
  
• Hauler truck - medium: 7,600
  

• ATV: 40
  An all terrain vehicle similar to those of 2017, save for the fact that it is powered by an electric battery rather than fossil fuels. Can carry a driver and one passenger or a load of field equipment on a small rack mounted on the rear. Top speed of 40 mph/64 kmh.
• UTV: 100
  A small ground vehicle designed to transport small crews and field equipment over rough terrain. Can carry four passengers and one ton of field equipment in a small bed in the rear. Top speed of 40 mph/64 kmh unladen.
• Hovercraft: 1,200
  A floating platform kept aloft by four small, high-powered repulsorjets. Gimbal thrust-vectoring nozzles on these repulsorjets make the hovercraft fast and ultra-maneuverable. With a maximum altitude of 20 feet/6 meters off the ground and a top speed of 100 mph/160 kph, the hovercraft is perfect for cruising above rough terrain and dense brush that would bog down ATVs and UTVs. Carries six passengers or two tons of field equipment.
• Bicopter - ultralight: 1,000
  A very small aircraft with two propellers affixed on winglike booms. Pilot is seated in an enclosed plexiglass bubble at the front of the aircraft. Can carry two passengers in open-air seats or 500 lbs/250 kg of cargo over a distance of 300 miles/480 kilometers. Due to its light construction, the vendor cautions buyers not to fly this aircraft in adverse weather or in proximity of large flying wildlife. Unfortunately, both are common in Ember's skies.
• Bicopter - military surplus: 15,000
  A military reconnaissance aircraft sold off by the despot of some failed state on Earth or Mars. Can carry 10 passengers or 5 tons of equipment over a range of 1,000 miles/1,600 kilometers. Delivered with all armaments removed by the vendor, although some weaponry could be MacGuyver-rigged on by a skilled tinkerer.
• VTOL - training: 10,000
  A lightweight VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) jet aircraft built to train commercial pilots. As a training aircraft, it was only designed to accommodate a pilot and instructor and as such can only carry a pilot and one passenger. Because it was designed for beginner pilots, it is extremely tolerant of adverse flight conditions and is remarkably maneuverable. Its pressurized cabin and flight range of 1,700 miles/2,720 kilometers allow this aircraft to reach locations that are simply inaccessible to bicopters. This aircraft is ideal for scouting out far-flung locales.
• VTOL - cargo: 30,000
  
• Dropship - small civilian: 85,000
  A small spacecraft designed to ferry passengers and equipment to and from the surface of a planet. Flies under jet power through the atmosphere and then transitions to liquid-fuel thrusters in the upper atmosphere to achieve orbital velocity. Once in low orbit, the dropship maneuvers into the docking hangar of an orbiting starship. The dropship is capable of transporting 20 passengers or 4 tons of equipment anywhere on the planet in under an hour. While the dropship is not capable of interstellar travel, it has enough fuel to reach either of Ember's moons.

• Semi-automatic rifle: 30
  A very old firearm that fires 7.62x39mm rounds. Who knows where this thing's been in the time between its make nearly a century ago and its purchase by the vendor. These weapons are known for being cheap and reliable. Good enough for stopping native vermin or a lone intruder to the mine, but it will not be sufficient to bring down the larger wildlife roaming Ember's wildernesses.
• Flamethrower: 240
  
• Assault rifle: 120
  A more modern assault weapon. This weapon can lay down a withering 1,200 rounds per minute. Fires standard kinetic rounds, which are suitable for taking down most hostile life forms on Ember. However, the initial survey team sent to Ember discovered several species of large predators that might only be enraged by small arms fire.
• Grenade launcher: 700
  A large shoulder-fired weapon which lobs a fist-sized explosive projectile 1200 feet/465 meters. There are multiple grenade varieties available, including concussive and fragmentation. While the grenade launcher is overkill for most wildlife on Ember, it is an effective anti-vehicle weapon - not that the vendor would ever suggest it be used against rival mining outfits.
• Razorwire spool - 1 acre/.4 hectare: 30
  A spool of razor-sharp fencing that can quickly be deployed to provide some measure of protection against intrusion by humans or alien life. Lacerations against the two lines of razorwire will deter curious wildlife, but determined attackers will get through.
• Electrified perimeter fencing - 1 acre/.4 hectare: 300
  A perimeter fence coursing with enough power to fry smaller wildlife and cause serious pain to predators. The fencing draws a lot of power, and if the fence shorts out it's no more effective than a sign that reads "no trespassing".
• Sentry turret: 600
  Twin machine guns mounted on a pivoting arm. A motion sensor keeps constant vigil over a designated area, and can be programmed to differentiate between human and wildlife, or armed to shoot anything that moves until it stops moving. An effective means of defending a mine or expedition camp, but only as long it has bullets to shoot.
• Railgun - tripod mounted: 1,200
  A railgun uses magnetic force to propel a projectile at incredible speed. Railguns have long been the primary weapon of combat starships, but only relatively recently has the technology been miniaturized to the point that hand-fired railguns are available. This railgun is too heavy and cumbersome to be carried into combat, but it can be mounted on a tripod or a pintle mount in a vehicle. A railgun should have no problem taking down even the largest and most formidable monsters on Ember.
• Railgun - manportable: 2,400
  This railgun has been miniaturized to the point that it can be carried by hand into combat. The ability to easily aim this weapon into the sky, along with the stunning velocity of its projectiles, allows its use as an effective anti-aircraft weapon. If the operator has true aim, this weapon poses a real threat to all but the heaviest aircraft.
• Radar: 2,000
  A miniaturized radar scanner capable of detecting any threat approaching from the sky, whether that threat be an airborne predator, an unauthorized aircraft, or one of Ember's unpredictable storm systems.

Interested! Will keep an eye on this.

This is getting increasingly interesting.

Color me interested!

As anyone who has roleplayed with me before likely knows, I absolutely detest character sheets. In spite of this fact, I recognize that they are a necessary evil and as such, I have provided the template of the character sheet. Remember that when it comes to a good character sheet, less really is more.

Enterprise name: The name of your mining outfit
Leader name: The name of your outfit's leader.
Enterprise bio: Briefly describe how the leader of your outfit came to arrive on Ember. What are his/her motivations for risking everything for the chance to strike it rich mining baltuskite on Ember? Where did the start-up capital for this venture come from?
Starting crew: The number of initial crewmembers your outfit is arriving. Are you going to Ember alone, or are you bringing friends? Many hands make light work, but interstellar travel is not cheap. The freighter company charges 250 credits per head for transport to Ember.
Start-up capital: How many credits do you have at your disposal? You have two options here:
Determine your own credits. The maximum starting credits is 3,000. You can choose to start with fewer for RP purposes.
Allow the GM to roll for your credits. I will multiply the initial 3,000 credits by a rolled number. This could give you many more starting credits, but it could also result in you starting with substantially fewer.
Starting location: Where the freighter dropship will drop you and your gear off on the planet's surface. Can be a picture or a grid coordinate.

Some of you have requested to roleplay an individual rather than a mining outfit, and I am amenable to this. If you wish to roleplay as an individual, please use the character sheet template provided below.

Individual name:
Age:
Biography: The history of your character, their motivations for coming to Ember, and what they hope to achieve on this planet.
Starting location:

Enterprise Name: Roughnecks

Leader Name: Ulysses Roosevelt

Enterprise Bio: The Roughnecks are formed entirely of an old group of infantryman who were in the same squad together during the recent military coup. Soon after the coup, they were discharged and found themselves adrift in civilian life. But under the leadership of Ulysses, they decided to pool their funds and purchase tickets and equipment to travel to Ember, seeking adventure, glory, and adrenaline the likes of which Earth and Mars could not provide.

Starting Crew: 5 Men

Start-up Capital: 3,000 Credits

Starting Location:



West of the Meridian, southern hemisphere, close to the equator for less intensive take-off and landing (despite how little that probably matters in the age of interstellar transport), on the northern side of the "Great Lakes" system, as Ulysses personally refers to that set of bodies of water. The "Great Lakes" are probably far, far larger than the ones of Earth, of course.

If the catalog is unchanged and foodstuffs/medicine do not need to be accounted for, the following will be the Roughneck's gear and purchases:

5x Magnetic Sensor - Handheld: 500
2x Inflatable Structure: 200
1x Solar Recharge Station: 250
5x Pneumatic Jackhammer: 250
5x ATV: 200
1x UTV: 100
4x Semi-automatic Rifle: 120
1x Assault Rifle: 120
1x Acre of Razorwire Spool: 30
5x Tickets: 1250

Total: 2990
Remaining: 10

A solid application, Ascendant. Just so you know, you will be able to hire additional crew in subsequent turns. Don't want anyone to feel that the initial crew they bring to Ember is who you're going to be stuck with for the entire roleplay.

I think it's high time to move this to OOC and gear up to start.

My turn one goal is essentially a prospecting blitzkrieg to see if anything major can be found. Of course, I might be entirely off the mark on how plausible/smart that is.

Making a CS!

Individual name:
Ferran Ferraro

Age:
36

Biography:
Born in Barcelona, Ferraro grew up in a middle-income family. He attended university at the age of twenty-after a stint of traveling Earth's home solar system ostensibly to study alien geography. A prolific reader, Ferraro consumed books without hesitation and delved into a considerable many topics outside of his studies to become in the end an exoplanet surveyor. Between his official and unofficial studies, Ferraro practiced boxing and enjoyed morning runs.

While during his travel and travel years he met many men and women he never settled down to marry, and graduated as and continued to live as a bachelor when he walked out diploma in hand and set his sights for the stars. He signed on to a small exploration company to scour the galaxy for the fuel necessary to run and operate the Annihilation engines which had become so ubiquitous and standard issue in human space flight, he knew it was a lucrative trade and he hoped to strike it rich partnering up with like-minded individuals to stake claims across the stars.

Ferraro was in the stars when the coup took place and he and his group returned to Earth. On their arrival many of Ferraro's companions were arrested for political suspicions and he was just barely able to escape the military police drag net in the moments after the coup. Still, terrified to remain on Earth and in fear for his own life Ferraro again took to the stars alone to find safety – and work – on the exoplanet SEVI-T3.

Starting location:
<Fuck I dunno I'll wait and see who else makes an app>

CS Inbound here shortly!

@gorgenmast How much would an cheap pistol be in the catalog?

EDIT: What about an inexpensive burglar alarm or security camera for the base?

Enterprise name: Luminary Industries

Leader name: Amelia Reinhardt

Enterprise bio: Little more than Amelia and two friends – and former employees – Luminary Industries is not, currently, very impressive. All three of its current employees and shareholder hail from Old Earth, engineers by training and former employment, involved in the construction and maintenance of the homeworld’s towering arcologies.

Amelia was the catalyst for the formation of the company venture; her choices were fairly stark back on Earth – marry a wealthy chinless wonder (and one who had no intention of putting up with her little peccadilloes, at that) or sell her assets and seek her fortune. With all the old certainties in flux thanks to the Federation’s coup, she seized her chance to escape into the black, with every intention of becoming rich and powerful enough to make anyone pause.

Not a fool by any stretch of the imagination, the glimmer that would become Luminary Industries sparked into existence when she came across Andrei Baltuška’s sample test results, rather than old spacer’s tales, and unlike the scientific oversight officers the man had laboured under, she at least had seen the glorious, glorious potential inherent in the stuff. And, admittedly, a potential way out of her own situation. After that, it was easy for her to convince a couple of friends to come onboard and thus, Luminary Industries was formed and formally incorporated, registered on the corporate tax haven of Luna with one Amelia Reinhardt as Chair of the Board and CEO.

Starting crew: 2
Start-up capital: Allow the GM to roll for your credits. I will multiply the initial 3,000 credits by a rolled number. This could give you many more starting credits, but it could also result in you starting with substantially fewer. Result: 4,110 credits

Starting location:



Amelia has picked a more northerly location, next to a deep natural harbour on the inland sea she privately calls the Bullseye, owing to the central island and its appearance from space. She knows that water is a vital resource, whether fresh or salt, and the central island of the sea could potentially provide a final redoubt.

Initial Requisitions:

1x Magnetic Trommel Separator (small) – 800 FC
2x Magnetic resonator (low sensitivity) – 900 FC
1x Inflatable Dome – 100 FC
1x Solar Recharge Station – 250 FC
3x Pneumatic Jackhammer – 150 FC
1x Hovercraft – 1,200 FC
1x Razorwire spool – 30 FC
4x Surveillance camera – 40 FC
1x Assault Rifle –120 FC
2x Extra Tickets – 500 FC

Total Cost: 4,090 FC
Remaining Funds: 20 FC

WIP until catalogue is finalized :) .

Will probably add a small bio for Amelia herself later :) .

Enterprise name:
Delta Depth Industries

Leader name:
Asher Pyke

Enterprise bio:
Three former convicts all from very different backgrounds decided life on Earth was all too difficult for men with records. Asher took charge and presented a handful of friends with the idea of heading into the stars and making a fresh start for themselves. After several months of planning and conning other's into taking loans, they've gathered enough capital to get themselves to Ember and set up a humble yet functional base of operations. While they aren't super soldiers or brilliant engineers, they are a rugged group of down to earth men with hopes to become rich. With a little luck, they can provide for their families back home and keep their children from making the same mistakes they did.

Starting crew:
3

Start-up capital:
2,700

Starting location:

Starting Requisitions:
(WIP until catalog finished)

Enterprise name: Stohlm & Stohlm Enterprises
Leader names: David and Charlie Stohlm
Enterprise bio:

David and Charlie Stohlm were born twenty-seven and twenty-five years ago, respectively, to Swedish factory supervisors on Luna. The academic and bookish David fell in love with the biological sciences, while the adventurous Charlie dreamed of becoming a soldier. David made it to university stayed to complete his Ph.D in microbiology, while Charlie, military dreams dashed by parental concern, took up an apprenticeship in the ironworking business. Both boys were on their way to settling into a comfortable, ordinary life when the rebellion happened and their father was killed. To this day, neither Stohlm knows whether the missile was UN or Federation. The subsequent "disappearances" among David's fellow colleagues and the targeting of Charlie's mentor for political treason had the boys looking to the stars for opportunity. Charlie had also been hearing of rumors among his coworkers of a substance that could potentially render tritium obsolete. After much research, finance clearing and the unlikely motivation that came with the presence of a new baby stepbrother and the gradual failure of their old mother's mental health, the Stohlm brothers decided to pool the little finances they had and bought a one-way ticket to Ember.

Starting crew: 2

Start-up capital:

2,250 - original finances

-500 - freighter fare x2
-200 - magnetic sensor x2
-100 - pneumatic jackhammer x2
-800 - magnetic trommel separator x1 (small)
-100 - UTV x1
250 - solar recharge panel
-100 - inflatable structure x1
-30 - semiautomatic rifle x1
-10 - pistol x1 (wild guess)

160 - remaining finances

Starting location: (red dot)

Hello all. Glad to see the outpouring of interest. I am going to write a few tidbits about the planet Ember before compiling everything into an OOC starting post. Look for the OOC thread later this afternoon.

@gorgenmast How much would an cheap pistol be in the catalog?

EDIT: What about an inexpensive burglar alarm or security camera for the base?

From the updated catalog:

Pistol - semi-automatic: 15
A military surplus sidearm that is old enough to be an antique. It is light and reliable, but has good stopping power for a sidearm of its size. Fires 9x17mm rounds from a 10-round magazine. Powerful enough to stop small to mid-sized wildlife at close range.

Surveillance camera - motion activated: 10
A small, high-resolution camera that activates upon detecting motion within a designated area. Switches to infrared at night or in low-light settings. Sends an alarm to a control panel or smart tablet when unexpected motion is encountered, and is able to distinguish between humans and wildlife. An excellent component of a complete mine or base camp security system.

Start-up capital:

Allow the GM to roll for your credits. I will multiply the initial 3,000 credits by a rolled number. This could give you many more starting credits, but it could also result in you starting with substantially fewer.

Luminary Industries starts with 4,110 credits.

Start-up capital: Allow the GM to roll for your credits. I will multiply the initial 3,000 credits by a rolled number. This could give you many more starting credits, but it could also result in you starting with substantially fewer.

Delta Depth Industries starts with 2,700 credits.

This RP is looking nice! Will get to work on a CS shortly.

Is protective clothing such as body armour or environmental suits something we will be able to purchase from the catalogue?

Enterprise
GeluCo

Leader
Christopher Murphy

Enterprise Bio
GeluCo and the newfound administration career of Chris Murphy are both ostensibly experiments of Hartford Energy, one of several paramount companies that make up the galaxy's "Big Tritium" industry. Hartford Energy in particular has always been one of the most hated, vilified, and protested companies in the tritium harvesting industry -- If there is news about a stockbroker's imprisonment for hedging and pocketing funds, that stockbroker will be in the pocket of Hartford nine times out of ten. If a photograph emerges of a tritium miner gleefully clubbing a polar bear to death, a tritium refinery worker dumping barrels of waste into a river, or a jaundiced brown youth in the third world assembling tritium centrifuge cases by hand, the red-and-pink Hartford heart is ironically almost always the logo on their uniform. Whether Hartford Energy is the most corrupt business in the tritium industry or if they simply suffer from bad publicity is not universally agreed upon, but their image being synonymous with greed, corruption, mismanagement, and pollution certainly is.

Naturally, Hartford has stake in the possibility of an element that makes tritium obsolete, moreso if it can it furthers their dwindling investors from the current company image. This stake is a quietly-created subsidiary called GeluCo, a mining company whose image -- at least, to the Hartford employees who manage the company's website and paperwork -- is one of environmental awareness, scientific advancement, and cooperation with consumers. The actual stake placed in the company is a few thousand credits and the career of one Christopher P. Murphy, an upjumped regional manager of a Hartford Energy refinery in Wyoming. According to the researchers at Hartford Energy, a friendly face to the energy industry, particularly a clean-burning energy company with a spotless track record, has a 54% chance of surpassing Hartford within a decade. To have such a company under their payroll would be an incredible benefit to Hartford. If their gamble does not pay off, and Hartford succumbs to whatever lies within the 46% of failure, their only losses will have been a manager and the few credits they funded him with.

Starting Crew
1

Start-up Capital
Awaiting Roll

Starting Location
Ember's Terrestrial South Pole

How about marksman/sniper rifles? For "reasons."