Acquisitions Incorporated

18

BASELINE COSTS

Franchise Headquarters

Horse-drawn carriage or wagon

Farm or rural enterprise

Settlement enterprise (guildhall, inn, tavern,

shop, and so forth)

Sailing ship, including all port fees

Remote enterprise (fort, lighthouse, trading

post, roadhouse, and so forth)

Noble estate, large manor, fortified tower

Airship

Giant walking statue, magic locomotive

Keep or small castle

Large castle or palace

Monthly

Cost

15 gp

20gp

120 gp

200 gp

250gp

350 gp

800 gp

l,000 gp

3,000 gp

12,000 gp

Some characters might decide to maintai n more than

one headquarters for their franchise. or to control addi·

tional sites as part of the franchise's overall operation.

A franchise might use a ship as its headquarters. while

also owning a number of remote trading posts run by

franchise staff. The costs for all such "virtual headquar-

ters'' should be added together to derive one monthly

baseline cost.

FRANCHISE RANK MULTIPLIER

The multiplier on the Franchise Advancement table is

applied to a franchise's baseline cost. This represents

the increased costs a franchise faces as it expands into

larger markets.

MONTHLY BUSINESS PERFORMANCE

Each month, a franchise performs the running a fran-

chise task, which can be found in the "Franchise Tasks

and Downtime" section later in this chapter. The result

of this task is used to calculate the final monthly cost,

and is deducted from the franchise's coffers.

DEFAULTING

No sel f-respecting franchise would ever run out of

money and fail to make its monthly payments. Right?

Were that to happen, th e amount owed-plus a modest

15 percent penalty- would be due to Head Office the

following month. Failing to make payments-and espe·

cially defaulting on two or more payments in a row- is

likely to trigger campaign consequences. Head Office

might send inspectors to a troubled franchise, or assign

the franchisees a difficult (and hopefuJly profitable) mis-

sion. Rival groups and entrepreneurs might smell blood

and auempt to attack the franchise or take over its mar-

kets. Nefarious NPCs will most certainly come calling.

Defaulting on franchise payments can also strain rela-

tionships with nobles. merchants. and others who value

a franchise more for its assets than for the characters.

Such relationships typically turn frosty until the charac-

ters are able to prove that the franchise is back on its feet.

CHAPTE R 2 I G ROWING YOUR I RAN<.;JllSE

Company Positions

A franchise is a complex affair, requiring its participants

to fulfill a myriad of important duties necessary for its

proper growth (and the enrichment of Acquisitions In-

corporated Head Office). A company position establishes

a character's role within a franchise, as well as a rela-

tionship with the larger Acq Inc organization.

When you choose a company position for your char-

acter. that choice is independent of and in addition to

your character's background. class, and other options.

Though Head Office might tell would-be Acq Inc fran-

chisees to play to their strengths, you should choose the

position that speaks to you- and that feels like it'll be

the most fun. All characters who take on an Acquisitions

Incorporated franchise must take a company position. A

character can take only one position within a franchise.

Each company position has its own distinct Ravor-

and comes with a range of preternatural benefits. Some

of these benefits take the form of material boons granted

by Head Ofilce, including specialized magic items avail-

able only to Acquisitions Incorporated franchisees. Oth-

ers are shaped by the subtle power of your position and

the franchise's rank.

JOINT EFFORT

Players- and especially new players- should keep

in mind the amount of creativity and collaboration a

company position requires when determining which

position is the best fit for their character. In addition to

their various mechanical benefits. the features of each

company position are intended to offer players and DMs

the opportunity to collaborate on crafting campaign

narrative. Sometimes this is straightforward. as when

a feature allows a character to learn useful information

about enemies or allies, as with the obviator's Read the

Opposition feature. Sometimes this calls for a focused

collaborative effort between player and DM. as with the

cartographer's Tale of Safe Travel. Where the narrative

options in a posilion's features lend themselves to inter-

pretation, the DM works with the players to determine

how those options play out, as is the baseline model of

every Acquisitions Incorporated campaign.

POSITION PROFICIENCIES

Accepting a company position with Acquisitions Incor-

porated means more than just a title and hopes of a

paycheck. With it comes access to trade secrets. best

practices, and corporate shortcuts central to fulfilling

one's role within a franchise. When a character takes a

specific company position, they gain proficiency in the

tools and skills associated with that position. Such pro-

ficiency also extends to a variety of business practices,

day-to-day tasks. and hazard mitigations that are all

part of the job. Professional functions that characters

can add their proficiency bonus to are detailed in the

" Position Proficiency" section of each of the following

company positions.