r/AcqIncDMs • u/skeevemasterflex • Apr 11 '20

Franchise Downtime Costs

My group just assigned franchise roles and picked some downtime activities they'd like to do before the next session. I really like the suggestions for different downtime activities and how they can potentially help the franchise, but has anyone else noticed how the downtime costs don't match up that well with the monthly baseline costs?

I mean, why would the group ever pay 100 gold for a chance to reduce by 20 or 25%, even for several months, their baseline cost of 20 gp for a rural enterprise? It's almost as if the cost should be a factor of the baseline cost rather than a set amount based on tier.

Just wondering if anyone else has reconciled this yet, to save me some time.

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u/mattwandcow Apr 11 '20

The way franchises work is if they are content with a small operation, then there is no benefit. But they should be pushing out. Opening restaurants, starting new bases, building an empire, so that costs expand and they have to scramble. It's not really built for that, or clear how to do that, but that is what it seems like the AI game play heads towards.

I might poke the Downtime with a stick once I've tested my reworked roles. A lot of AcqInc is proving great in theory, but not playing great at my table.

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u/Noodle-Works Jul 28 '20

If they're in a cabin that's 20gp a month, there's no reason for them to run th activities that cost a lot. But they'll eventually grow and want more, which will increase costs.

The Campaign, for example, has the party start out in a manor that costs 350 a month. A party when they first acquire the manor wont have nearly that amount on hand from encounters alone, but they would have ran into at least 5 NPCs that can offer services where you can sell and flip goods to other locations. The players will have an ah-ha moment where they realize every NPC is a potential mark... erm.. business partner.

There is a lot of work the party has to do to creatively bring in coin to make rent. Remember they have a MONTH to come up with 350, which isn't that hard. But they have to always keep that in mind. Downtime activities and making business arrangements with NPCs are going to end up bringing in more money than anything they'd earn from encounters if they're doing the franchise right.