Housing, Tools, and Survival Gear

This page has not been finished up!

Basic Set

What Cost of Living Gets You: A Modern Example

Your lifestyle will depend greatly on the campaign tech level. At TL3, Status 7 means you will live like a medieval king: a couple of castles or palaces, lands, and plenty of servants. At TL12, Status 7 is unimaginable...you probably have your own private planetoid!

Here's a modern (TL8) example of how housing and transportation would reflect Status:

Status 8: An estate the size of a small country, multiple palatial mansions, an entire private airline, a yacht the size of an ocean liner, and an army of guards.

Status 7: A palatial mansion, multiple rural estates or retreats, a private jumbo jet, a large acht, a fleet of vehicles, and an entire agency of security guards.

Status 6: A huge mansion on an estate, a couple of more modest residences, a private jet, a yacht, a fleet of vehicles, and hundreds of functionaries (including a platoon of bodyguards).

Status 5: A large mansion on an estate, one or two smaller townhouses, an executive jet, a yacht, a small fleet of cars, and dozens of functionaries (often including a team of bodyguards).

Status 4: A mid-sized mansion, several other properties, a yacht or private light aircraft, a limousine, a few luxury cars, and many servants (often including at least one bodyguard).

Status 3: A small mansion, a few other properties, a small yacht, a number of luxury cars or other vehicles, and a handful of servants.

Status 2: A large house with grounds, one or two other properties, a couple of expensive cars, a few other vehicles, and a housekeeper.

Status 1: A comfortable house or condominium, a nice new car or a couple of older ones, and perhaps a boat or other recreational vehicle.

Status 0: A house (heavily mortgaged) or large apartment, and a car.

Status -1: A small or shared apartment, or a decaying or derelict house in a bad neighborhood, and possibly a used (or stolen!) car.

Status -2: A room in a flophouse or shelter...or a patch of sidewalk.

High-Tech

Appliances

Whether one is taking a rest between moments of danger or skulking through a home during a black op, the most mundane items can sometimes prove important.

Refrigeration (TL5)

The "Ice Revolution" begins at TL5. Ice cut from ponds, lakes, and rivers is buried under sawdust and kept in icehouses throughout the warm season. In the 19th century, ice-cooled freight cars transported meat by rail to New England from packing plants in Chicago – a common market for rangy Texas longhorns fresh from the cattle drive.

This is a profitable business. The Ice King, Frederic Tudor, shipped thousands of tons of ice from Boston to Charleston and New Orleans – and later to Havana, Calcutta, and Singapore. He secured low freight rates by offering the ice as ballast to ship owners. "Ice speculator" would be an excellent cover for the globetrotting adventurer at TL5.

At TL5, home refrigeration means an icebox of heavy oak, with sawdust and/or a zinc-lined container as insulation. Initially an appliance of the rich, the icebox is common among the middle class by TL6. Door-to-door ice deliveries by wagon are a colorful part of the American landscape until the late 1940s.

The refrigerator gradually replaces the icebox through the second half of TL6. The first "electric icebox" is a big hit, but pricey: in 1925, it cost more than a Ford Model T! Cutting-edge TL8 fridges are "smart," capable of tracking their contents and ordering replacements over the Internet.

Ice (TL0). At TL5, transportation and storage make harvested ice expensive: $5 a pound. At TL6, mechanically produced ice is much cheaper: $0.05 a pound.

Icebox (TL5). Holds 50 lbs. of ice. Has 3 cubic feet of storage space plus an internal 2-gallon water cooler. A 25-lb. block of ice will last 2-4 days, depending on the temperature. DR 2. $300, 140 lbs. LC4.

Refrigerator (TL6). Holds 9 cubic feet. Includes the newfangled "freezer" for making ice cubes. DR 2. $3,000, 400 lbs., external power. LC4.

Refrigerator (TL8). Holds 20 cubic feet. Has a freezer, ice maker, and water tap. DR 2. $800, 200 lbs., external power. LC4.

Stoves (TL5)

At TL5, the cook stove burns wood, is made of heavy cast iron (at least 1/4"), and uses a surprisingly sophisticated arrangement of baffles and louvers to manage air flow, thereby regulating heat and reducing fuel consumption. A night's fuel is an armload of wood; cooking a meal requires only a log or two. In warmer regions, the stove may not reside in the home – the kitchen is often an outbuilding, for both comfort and safety.

The surface of a cast-iron stove gets hot – red hot. Somebody falling on a hot stove (or held there by a couple of thugs) can get a serious burn. Depending on the temperature, this inflicts from 1d-1 to 2d burn damage per second. Of course, the same is true of the burners and heating elements of modern stoves.

At TL6, kerosene, natural gas, and electric stoves take over. At TL7, microwave ovens come on the scene. The first are water-cooled, refrigerator-sized behemoths, used only in institutional settings – but by TL8, almost every home kitchen has a microwave oven.

Cast-Iron Cook Stove (TL5). A box or "pot-bellied" stove. The stovepipe is fitted with a small baking oven or a waterheating jacket. DR 12. $200, 250 lbs. LC4.

Electric Range (TL6). Three or four burners and an oven. DR 2. $500, 150 lbs., external power. LC4.

Gas Range (TL6). A large oven and six burners, connected to neighborhood gas lines. DR 6. $750, 400 lbs. LC4.

Barbecue Grill (TL7). Henry Ford and Thomas Edison developed charcoal briquettes, which were sold at Ford dealerships until the 1950s. Gas grills (¥2 cost) are more common at TL8, and use propane tanks (p. 31). $75, 30 lbs. LC4.

Microwave (TL7). A heavy-duty institutional model does 1 HP per second to things placed inside it, such as severed zombie hands and annoying little purring furballs (WTF?!! Who was the sick fuck who wrote this?). DR 1. $500, 100 lbs., external power. LC4.

Miscellaneous Appliances (TL6)

Halve the weight of these appliances at TL7-8.

Blender (TL6). A blender can make margaritas and quickly mince a hand (1d-3 cut per second). $50, 4 lbs., external power. LC4.

Coffee Maker (TL6). A pot of scalding coffee does 1d-3 burn. $10, 5 lbs., external power. LC4.

Hotplate (TL6). Does 1d-3 burn to a hand pressed to it. Useful for lab experiments! $20, 8 lbs., external power. LC4.

Toaster (TL6). Does 1d-3 burn to a hand trapped in it. Later models pop up and automatically switch off (rigging one as a time-delay trigger requires a Traps roll). $30, 10 lbs., external power. LC4.

Vacuum Cleaner (TL6). Helpful for collecting specimens, cleaning up alien spores, etc. $200, 20 lbs., external power. LC4.

Waffle Iron (TL6). Damage is as for a hotplate. Handy for making soles for athletic shoes, too. $30, 5 lbs., external power. LC4.

Washing Machine (TL6). Scrubs 10 outfits an hour. Gadgeteers often scavenge the useful motor. $1,000, 250 lbs., external power. LC4.

Bio-Tech

Biogadgets

Fleshbed (TL10)

This is a biogenetic mass of flesh, tailored for spinal support and comfort. It's alive, warm, and you'll never want to leave. $7,500, 60 lbs. LC4.

Garbage Disposal (TL10)

This lives under the kitchen sink, digesting all organic scraps and excreting partially treated waste into the sewer. It might be biogenetic, or based on a small omnivore. $1,000, 8 lbs. LC4.

Smart Rug or Bathmat (TL10)

This slowly tugs itself across the floor, slurping up dirt, puddles, soap, hair, etc. ST 4, DX 2, IQ 1, HT 12; Move 1. $500, 4 lbs. LC4.

Ultra-Tech

Ultra-tech domestic technologies may just be background details, but they can also be pressed into service by adventurers. The heroes, or their foes, may reprogram a cleaning robot as a spy or saboteur, or use domestic nanocleanser to clean up telltale forensic evidence.

Domestic Equipment and Appliances

This page has not been finished up!

Responsive Beds (TL9)

This bed can adjust to the shape of the sleeper, responding to voice commands to become softer, firmer, or bouncier as desired. Adds +1 to Erotic Art skill if used inventively, and adds +TL/2 to any Will rolls made to get to sleep.

Single: $500, 100 lbs.

Double: $700, 140 lbs.

Sleep Set (TL10-11)

A programmable ultrasonic or neural induction headset that gives the user the equivalent of the Deep Sleeper perk, and also provides Protected Hearing.

TL10: $400, 0.4 lbs., A/1 day.

TL11: $200, 0.1 lbs., A/3 days.

TL12: $100, 0.025 lbs., A/10 days.

Autokitchen (TL10-12)

This automated kitchen is fitted with a complete set of robotic manipulator arms. It can cook on command using its own skill, or it can duplicate the moves of a live chef. One chef could control a dozen or more autokitchens scattered around the world.

TL10: Cooking-10. $20,000, 400 lbs.

TL11: Cooking-11. $10,000, 200 lbs.

TL12: Cooking-12. $5,000, 100 lbs.

All use external power. LC4.

Domestic Nanocleanser (TL10)

This "smart soap" is a solution of microscopic cleaning robots that work to remove stains, grime, dirt, dandruff, and loose skin flakes from surfaces. Domestic nanocleanser can serve as a shampoo, soap, or detergent. A teaspoon of nanocleanser powder poured into water will clean anything immersed in it in 10 to 60 seconds. It also comes in premixed liquid-detergent form, useful if water is unavailable.

Washing in nanocleanser can be unsettling to those unused to its tingling sensation, but it can also be pleasant. The robots themselves are biodegradable and non-toxic, smart enough not to scrub hard enough to scratch, and programmed to break down harmlessly if exposed to ultraviolet light or the interior of a living body.

Domestic nanocleanser can disrupt forensic evidence such as bloodstains, skin flakes and other organic residue. While it doesn't work as well as the Mask spray, treating an area with it imposes a -3 penalty on any Forensics rolls made to locate or analyze such evidence. TL10+ Forensics will be able to identify the brand of nanocleanser used, which may itself be a useful clue!

A bottle of nanocleanser lasts for about a week of routine domestic cleaning or one major cleaning job, such as thoroughly wiping down an apartment to remove evidence. Nanocleanser adds a quality bonus of +5 (TL10) or +6 (TL11-12) to Housekeeping skill rolls to clean up things. A bottle is 1/2 pound and costs $10. A bar (for washing hands, etc.) is 0.1 lb. and costs $1.

Domestic Nanomist (TL11): A spray that covers a 3-yard radius. $10, 0.5 lbs. LC4.

Cleaning Swarm (TL10)

This common swarm is programmed to move around a predetermined area, removing dust and grit, and polishing smooth surfaces with tiny brushes. Its sensors determine when material might be damaged by its actions; a cleaning swarm can safely polish lenses, and even harmlessly clean people! Each square yard of swarm can thoroughly clean one square yard area per minute. Some large craft and buildings have permanent colonies of cleaning swarms to polish windows, ports, and sensors. The swarm gives a +2 (quality) bonus to Housekeeping skill. Aerostat cleaning swarms may be popular installations in doorways, bathrooms, and showers. $1,000/square yard. LC4.

Domestic Android (TL10)

General-purpose androids are often purchased as humanoid butlers or maids.

Sonic Shower Head (TL10)

This is found in many homes and starship cabins, and on water-poor worlds. An ultrasonic spray unit clipped to a wall simultaneously cleans and massages the user. It uses building or ship's power. $400, 10 lbs., LC4.

Ultra-Futon (TL9)

This is a pretty standard item of furniture, known by scores of names in any culture it is found in. It comes in various sizes, typically sized for a small child, a medium child, a small adult, two adults, or two adults with lots of extra room. The device includes a small processor able to read and interpret the user's body language as he tries to become comfortable; this device alters the firmness and temperature of its cushions in response to the comfort level of the user, ensuring the user experiences complete relaxation at all times while using the bed. Almost all such units have small motors enabling them to change their configuration between a bed, a lounge chair, or a couch. The mattress is kept in place by thousands of tiny grippers, and never slides off the frame. The mattress changes its dimensions to accommodate the current arrangement of the frame. The units include the effects of responsive beds.

Small Ultra-Futon (TL9): Suitable for a child. $700, 140 lbs. LC4.

Medium Ultra-Futon (TL9): Suitable for a human teenager; seats two as a love seat. $800, 160 lbs. LC4.

Large Ultra-Futon (TL9): Suitable for a human adult; seats three as a couch. $1,000, 180 lbs. LC4.

Double Ultra-Futon (TL9): Suitable for two human adults; seats four as a couch. $1,250, 200 lbs. LC4.

Queen-Sized Ultra-Futon (TL9): Suitable for two human adults with a bit of extra space; seats five as a couch. $1,500, 250 lbs. LC4.

King-Sized Ultra-Futon (TL9): Suitable for two human adults with a lot of extra space; seats six as a couch. $2,000, 300 lbs. LC4.

Survival Feature: Add +50% to cost, +20% to weight. The mattress can provide adequate heating and cooling (+3 HT rolls to resist injury due to a hot or cold environment); this works for (4 + TL) hours if the bed does not have an outside power source.

Housing and Construction

TODO

Foodstuffs

TODO