Elements of a Blockade Runner's Life

Risk First and foremost is the risk. Most characters have a level of risk, but blockade running sometimes runs too high in risk. When one takes on a run, there is no question that some amount of direct combat will ensue. Many runners don't know when their last run will be. Some think they will push it to the limit, whatever that limit is, then drop out of it before the heat catches up. Others embark on what seems like a cake run, and are never seen again. For most runners, this is the hardest part to deal with. They see those they know leave and most of the time come back. Others are lost to the void, be it in jail forever or gone.

Everything a blockade runner does is risky. They cannot take their ships to regular ports, and must land and spend much of their time in shadowports. That alone is risky as the Empire is always seeking them out, and sometimes the natives themselves are as dangerous too. Flying anywhere is a game of total avoidance, for coming across a customs corvette means you must escape. You can try to spend money on outfitting your ship with a different engine every trip or two to change the transponder code, but that costs so much money it is often financially unreasonable. If you get to a regular port, you must be careful as you never can be totally sure whether or not your ship is wanted or you yourself. As a ship, and often as a man, you are tagged constantly and sought after by the best police forces the Empire and local governments have to offer.

To most, this all sounds a little too rough for their taste. But to some, this life appeals to them for a singular reason. This is where those with a passion for combat and conflict can make a massive difference, and be among others such as themselves. Few make a career of it, but it's not too uncommon. Those that do are usually of the type that don't really interface that well with the more common elements of society. Seen as people with a deathwish or as adrenaline junkies, runners have a tendency to get a bad rap. Quite a few of them are running scared, trying to make that "last run" that will make them rich forever. Sometimes it comes, more often it doesn't.

Reward The rewards that are reaped from blockade running are never small. In fact, most would agree that runners rank among the highest paid professions in the underworld. Though there is no average run amount nor is there a way to easily measure how much a run is worth, the pay mostly runs in the tens and hundreds of thousands. It is not unusual to come across those willing to pay half a million credits for a seemingly simple run. Huge runs where success is terribly unlikely and the prospect of capture would only be avoided by luck can pay several million credits. For a good blockade runner, the cash always flows toward them.

Another reward that a good blockade runner can attain is status. This goes a long way in terms of getting out of it once you've had enough. Pirate and privateer groups want you because you've proved you don't seize up in a pinch. Smuggler groups take interest in you for your usually superior piloting skills. Racing leagues solicit you with offers to fly ships and other vehicles for them, a job that is nothing but fun and money. The Rebellion is always looking for hotshot pilots like yourself that are willing to fly outlandishly dangerous missions. Crime lords see you as a valuable asset if they could only get you on retainer. The list goes on, but suffice it to say that you are a wanted man in more ways than one.

 

 
A Blockade Runner's Life

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This is an original work by Tim "Nealos" Salam.

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