Fireflies, Economics and Gorram Budgets Budgets are fun. They’re filled with numbers, formulas, calculations and all around mathematical models. And if you think they’re fun, you either wanted to be an accountant (or mathematician) since you were six or you really should have a doctor examine that hole in your head. Budgets are work. Budgets are boring. No one ever sits down and does a budget unless forced to…unless they find something that could make it interesting. Role Playing Games (RPGs) are not widely known for their accuracy when it comes to economics (you’ve found a treasure chest! Plus 200 to your wealth!). However, in recent months one such RPG stands out. Serenity RPG is based upon the short television series Firefly and its big-screen adaptation Serenity both created by Joss Whedon of Angel and Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame. It’s a sci-fi show, so it has spaceships, terra-forming and the like but lacks all those bumpy foreheads, pointed ears and dozens of ambassadors like so many other sci-fi shows. Instead of delving into the long and complicated exposition of the “‘Verse” lets just dive right into what this essay is supposed to be about, a monthly budget. We’ll be focusing on a Greenhorn (that’s a beginner for those of you who don’t speak western drawl) wanting to make a living out of interplanetary freight service from a model 03-K64 Firefly class transport. Okay here’s a few things you need to know about the ‘Verse and its economics. First, it’s just on the cusp of overcoming a five year civil war, the war of Unification, with the victors being the Core planets of the Alliance. The Alliance is Gene Roddenberry’s sci-fi future manhandled, where large corporations influence a gigantic bureaucracy that is too large to seem effective. The Alliance and its corporations just won power in the bloodiest war in the history of humanity and aim to keep it by inflating prices. Second, there’s a new currency in the year 2518 called an Alliance standardized credit (C) which comes to about $25 US. This is the unit of monetary value among the Core planets, but along the Border and Rim you’ll find “hard coin” such as platinum, gold and silver. These hard coins tend to fluctuate in value, so we’ll try to be keeping things in credits. Also, by some miracle of government, direct income tax is no longer needed, they just tax the *$#% out of everything else, which also explains the high prices (taxes included). All right, you’re a greenhorn bright eyed and bushy tailed to carve yourself out a living with that Firefly you just paid in full with that C240 you borrowed from Hera First Planetary on a 5-year 10%ARP. Which is good, because that means the ship’s yours free and clear with no monthly ship payments to dole out. You do have though that C5.10 monthly payment to the Hera First which ends up being C306 in interest. But that’s for a future time. Right now you’ve got C750 left over from your lifesavings to stock your newly acquired ship and go about getting a crew. Crews can be hired on for a standard wage or to keep overhead down, a share which also gives incentive for spacehands to work harder. Wages for spacehands usually run C10-20 a month plus free room and board. For this ship, let’s call her Devine for reference, the crew will be paid by shares. Devine has a starting crew of five so the split follows as such: 50% of the profits go to the ship, the remaining credits break down as: 40% for the Captain, 20% for the first mate, 15% for the mechanic, and 25% for the two spacehands to split at 12.5%. Now that wages are settled, it’s time to keep the crew nice and fed. Fresh foodstuffs are expensive and hard to come by out on the Rim, around C8 per person per week. Many crews live off a mixture of canned (C5 per person per week) and protein packs (C2.5 per person per week). Variety helps keep moral so you’re going to create a mixture of fresh, canned and protein packs for the monthly (30 days worth) foodstuffs. Using the operating procedures of the US Submarine Corps, have something along the lines of one week’s worth of fresh, one week canned and the last 2 ½ of the protein packs, which adds up to around C115.5 per month for six people. Food all squared away it’s time to focus on feeding that ship of yours. Fuel in the ‘Verse runs around C5 per 1 ton of fuel. Devine has a 60 ton fuel capacity (which is 600 hours flying time) so filling her up costs about C300. Monthly refueling between planets would run about C600. Time to purchase some much needed supplies for a first-time operation such as: A distress beacon—C31 (4) Vacuum suits—C268 (3) ship-linked handsets—C9.6 Basic tool kit—C14.4 First-aid kit—C0.6 Patch tape—C1.2 Scrapeware—C5 Large Mule (ATV)—C50 This comes to a whopping C379.80. Fortunately, most of these expenses won’t need to be restocked, repaired or replaced anytime soon. Other miscellaneous expenses might include ship maintenance, which for a good conditioned Firefly is C1920 a year or C160 per month. The large corporations like to insure their luxury liners and big freighters that not only covers accidental damages but mechanical breakdown of major parts, which runs to C10 per ton per year. Smaller craft like Devine which weighs in at 2,400 tons would run C24000 per year or C2000 per month! These prices are much too high for normal folk, which is why most ships aren’t insured. Docking fees in ports for up to one week run C1 per 100 tons of ship, meaning Devine runs about C24 per week. It’s about time to offset all these accumulating credits. Jobs in the verse can be plentiful or scarce depending on ones owns inclinations and a bit of luck. Freight is on average C1 per tone of general cargo. Fully loaded, Devine’s 500 ton cargo capacity could garner a C500 fee for jobs less than a week long. ‘Course, like most things in business the price of freight is competitive and fluid. A 3-day fully loaded haul that doesn’t include any complications (hazards, detours etc) runs anywhere from C175-250, while complicated transactions may be C225-3300. Ten day runs range fromC575-850 standard to C750-1000 complicated. Now optimally, let’s say that Devine can wrangle the mean of the 3-day no complications, C212.5, and a steady job and no business expenses. Monthly (30 days) Devine could make five trips which is C1062.5. Now using the mean of the 10-day no complications, C712.5, instead Devine could make two drops earning C1425 that month. Folks are always trying to get from one place to another, and are willing to pay to do so. Devine could augment each trip with a number of passengers, 4-6. First class passengers aren’t likely to be found on a Firefly, but second class passengers willing to pay C50 can expect the quality of life of a crew member. Steerage class folks pay around C20 per person, but are usually asked to provide their own vittles. Again, these rates are subject to change so a 3-day standard ride could give Devine C50-85 in revenue, C170-255 on a 10-day. With complications that’s about C60-100 for 3-days and C215-300 for 10-days. As second class passengers are to be provided food for Devine has anticipated this with her extra sixth “crewmember” in the C115.5 foodstuffs total. Time to tally up the first month’s starting expenses including: Food—C115.50 Fuel—C600 Ship Maintenance—C160 Start-up supplies—C379.80 Port Fees—C240 Loan Payment—C5.10 Total= C1500.4 Let’s say Devine caught that C1062.5 job, now deal out the shares Ship: C531.59 Captain: C212.5 1st Mate: C106.25 Mechanic: C79.09 #1 Spacehand: C66.41 #2 Spacehand: C66.41 Total wages= C530.66 Earnings Starting Capital: C750 Earnings this month: C531.59 Additional income: (6)Passengers: C180 Total earnings=C711.59 Add the total earnings to the starting capital to get C1461.59 and minus expenses to get: Ending Capital= C-38.81

Well, no one said you’d ever get rich making an honest living. Truth be told there are credits to be made by smuggling, but a greenhorn like you ought to stick with the legal stuff until you get a little more experience. Your Captain shares will off-set that first month’s losses but you’d better find some work to keep flying next month.

Sources: Understanding and Using Mathematics a Quantitative Reasoning Approach third edition, Jeffrey Bennett & William Briggs, 2005 Serenity Role Playing Game, Jamie Chambers, 2005