Tundra Ranger Economics

RockJock · Unread post by **RockJock** » Thu Jul 22, 2004 3:35 am

They are really the Black Market supplier for all the CS knock off weapons.

Crackpot Jones · Thu Jul 22, 2004 8:01 am

Well, if they're anything like the government, they probably said they'ld pay, but haven't written any cheques. Or, like any government, in a world where there is no real worry of inflation, they could just print their own.

Sureshot · Unread post by **Sureshot** » Thu Jul 22, 2004 10:09 am

DarkWarriorKarg wrote:The cash is stored at the same place as the Colaition's 3.2 million suits of SAMAS, the food supply and all the MDC materials needed to outfit nearly 2 million people in the CS military and ISS.

Mack · Unread post by **Mack** » Thu Jul 22, 2004 10:41 am

What did I tell you people? Mixing Rifts and Economics will make you go cross-eyed! :shock:

Well, I didn't want to reveal this secret, but the Tundra Rangers do have a source of income. It's a very small, super-secret rift that credits continuously fall out of.

Vrykolas2k · Unread post by **Vrykolas2k** » Thu Jul 22, 2004 4:27 pm

DarkWarriorKarg wrote:The cash is stored at the same place as the Colaition's 3.2 million suits of SAMAS, the food supply and all the MDC materials needed to outfit nearly 2 million people in the CS military and ISS.

Yes....

The Artist Formerly · Thu Jul 22, 2004 6:03 pm

Phalanx wrote:Economics has never quite been Kevin's forte, I've noticed.

Gee, ya' think?

RockJock · Unread post by **RockJock** » Thu Jul 22, 2004 8:11 pm

They found Pre-Rifts copies of various Power Ranger TV shows, and have made their own, similar bootlegged vid show called the Mightly Gun Toting Tundra Rangers to make a mint in the Burbs and Free Quebec.

Svartalf · Unread post by **Svartalf** » Sat Jul 24, 2004 1:39 pm

MattBaby wrote:I don't see why it couldn't be donations or grants from friendly local communities and grateful citizens. Come on, how does a "not-for-profit" organization pay its workers when they don't make any profits?! Wooo it's a mystery of economics!!!!!11~

because, you big ninny, there ain't much in tundra ranger territory in the way of communities that could fork out that kind of money, even with pooling.
we're talking 40 M credits CASH, and never mind the cost of housing, feeding and providing medical care to rangers and families.

Svartalf · Unread post by **Svartalf** » Sat Jul 24, 2004 1:42 pm

A possibility might be the Rangers using federal/proprietary rights to the exploitation of natural resources. the exploitation would be done by civilians, who would pay fees to the rangers.

The Artist Formerly · Sun Jul 25, 2004 3:30 am

svartalf wrote:A possibility might be the Rangers using federal/proprietary rights to the exploitation of natural resources. the exploitation would be done by civilians, who would pay fees to the rangers.

This is the most likely run down or a variant where a core group of villages and towns pay a portion of their income to the Tundra Ranger Warlords in the time honored extortion/protection/racketering format (perhaps with less menace then we would expect from Sony Corleone, however).

Temporalmage · Unread post by **Temporalmage** » Sun Jul 25, 2004 7:20 am

Rifts economics is touched on breifly in one of the books, don't remember which one right now. But I remember it stating that pretty much every "Nation" in Rifts has it's own currency, some identifying other "nations" currency, and some that don't. Perhaps the Tundra Rangers are paid in "Tundra Bucks", (as it was stated by someone earlier,) and those credits are then turned in for goods and services provided by the Tundra Rangers themselves. And possibly those local towns that the Tundra Rangers protect. But anywhere else those same "Tundra Bucks" would be pretty worthless, as there is no actuall finacial backing for the money. The CS and many others have enough financial backing to make thier credits stable, and thus easily accepted pretty much anywhere. But just try to trade in Tundra Credits in Chi-Town, or Lazlo. Your gonna get a strange look and a polite "Um, I'm sorry but ya got anything else?"
Those same comunities that allow and accept Tundra Bucks are doing so as a kind of payment, or at least polite thank you, for the Tundra Rangers protection. Possibly even just out of some sort of old habit or tradition passed along from generation to generation. Those credits are still valuable simply because peaple still use them. Now THAT would be ironic!!

Nekira Sudacne · Wed Jul 28, 2004 2:21 am

The Fifth Business wrote:Now, most people who have used the Tundra Rangers have probably ignored Kevin's salaray logic and run them as Phalanx has suggested.

no, not really.

does it matter where the money comes from? it's a game, go with it, don't worry about the details like that

Hystrix · Unread post by **Hystrix** » Wed Jul 28, 2004 9:48 am

Anyone think that maybe they loot the radiers, bandits and such that they kill, and sell the extra weapons and armor for profit? Though 39 mil is a bit high. My thought is maybe the ecinomics arn't wrong, maybe (Like the CS having 3.2 million SAMAS sitting around), there aren't really that many. Maybe there should be more like 2600 tundra rangers. When you stop to think about it why would an army in the canadian wilderness with NO country to support them be that big.

Personally I think this a problem with Rifts Earth in general. I think Tolkeens army should have been smaller (dosn't really matter any more), as should ANY mercenary comany mentioned (who feeds and pays the JAL, or Larsen's brigade? Really?) the FoM, Free Quebec, Northern Gun, Kingsdale, Whykin, and even the mighty CS and NGR. They ALL have armies too big to support themselves (even if they could raise armies that size)...

Svartalf · Unread post by **Svartalf** » Wed Jul 28, 2004 5:46 pm

BrokenChild wrote:I fail to see how 39 million credits is a *LOT* of money when most 20ft robots cost that much. If you can afford to pay an entire milita or army's salary for the price of just 1 war machine a month, that's a bargin!

Well ... it's not much, when you're talking about state sized organizations funding an army : the problem at hand is precisely that we don't know just how the rangers are funded...

And no, they don't tax the places they protect : such tactics (forcibly taking money from people who don't volunteer and who haven't given you authority to levy taxes... and let's face it, most of the community they protect are just too small and/or unorganized to get to the point of levying a Ranger Tax) would make them no better than racketeers, and I guess they would disband before that

Mack · Unread post by **Mack** » Wed Jul 28, 2004 9:13 pm

BrokenChild wrote:I fail to see how 39 million credits is a *LOT* of money when most 20ft robots cost that much. If you can afford to pay an entire milita or army's salary for the price of just 1 war machine a month, that's a bargin!

The robot is part of the problem. No one on Rifts Earth could afford to buy one in the first place.