Preston of the Space Ways

tlb wrote:Basically, there is NO Preston of the Space Ways of the type that you seem to imagine. Perhaps there are people and ships that could come to the aid of someone attacked by a pirate, but it is unlikely to be someone just wandering around space for their own amusement. Captain Thomas Bachfisch and Pirates' Bane (or his other ship) come closest to that description, but they are being financed by Manticore's Admiralty as spies in the Silesian Confederation.

markusschaber wrote:Actually, he earns most of his money with legit freight transports. He charges a bit more, but he usually arrives, and pays lower insurance fees, both due to his armor.

Normally true, but he needed help getting set up and he needed more help after tangling with a Havenite destroyer (which he would not have done, if he were a simple freight carrier).

tlb wrote:

tlb wrote:Basically, there is NO Preston of the Space Ways of the type that you seem to imagine. Perhaps there are people and ships that could come to the aid of someone attacked by a pirate, but it is unlikely to be someone just wandering around space for their own amusement. Captain Thomas Bachfisch and Pirates' Bane (or his other ship) come closest to that description, but they are being financed by Manticore's Admiralty as spies in the Silesian Confederation.

markusschaber wrote:Actually, he earns most of his money with legit freight transports. He charges a bit more, but he usually arrives, and pays lower insurance fees, both due to his armor.

Normally true, but he needed help getting set up and he needed more help after tangling with a Havenite destroyer (which he would not have done, if he were a simple freight carrier).

Yes, Manticore helped to repair his ship after that fight, and to stitch Thomas Bachfish himself back together. But that's not "usual business", that's an exception.

tlb wrote:Basically, there is NO Preston of the Space Ways of the type that you seem to imagine. Perhaps there are people and ships that could come to the aid of someone attacked by a pirate, but it is unlikely to be someone just wandering around space for their own amusement. Captain Thomas Bachfisch and Pirates' Bane (or his other ship) come closest to that description, but they are being financed by Manticore's Admiralty as spies in the Silesian Confederation.

markusschaber wrote:Actually, he earns most of his money with legit freight transports. He charges a bit more, but he usually arrives, and pays lower insurance fees, both due to his armor.

tlb wrote:Normally true, but he needed help getting set up and he needed more help after tangling with a Havenite destroyer (which he would not have done, if he were a simple freight carrier).

markusschaber wrote:Yes, Manticore helped to repair his ship after that fight, and to stitch Thomas Bachfish himself back together. But that's not "usual business", that's an exception.

Please understand that I do NOT disagree with what you have written. In the pre-partition environment of Silesia, his ships could easily earn enough to pay the crews and maintain the ships; but he did not turn his back on extra money and help from ONI, particularly when exceptional events could (and did) occur.

tlb wrote:Please understand that I do NOT disagree with anything that you have written. In the environment of Silesia, his ships can easily earn enough to pay the crews and maintain the ships; but he did not turn his back on extra money and help from ONI, particularly when exceptional events can (and do) occur.

He probably also got some financial help from them when he was buying the ships and setting up his firm.

And while I'm sure he wouldn't turn down extra money when offered, in order for his shipping business to be a useful cover it needs to be plausible as a private venture.

If it's obvious that what he can earn from high security shipping couldn't cover his costs then it'd be clear that he was being subsidized by someone. And that would make him suspicious and greatly hurt his ability to see the kind of information that Givens was hoping to receive he'd be gathering for her.


Same issue applies to folks trying to set up similar intel operations elsewhere. You're hoping for specific benefits from utilizing an ostensibly private business; and those are undermined if it's clear that this couldn't be a real business because it doesn't care about making (enough) money. [Unless you can have a cover story that explains it -- but I don't think venture capital in the Honorverse is in the habit of subsidizing money losing shipping firms in the hope of gaining sufficient market share to pivot to profitability ]

Silesia represents an endless supply stream for Bachfish. Bachfish isn't short on offers. His problem is that he doesn't have enough ships.

It's the good ole boy network. He has the backing of the government with the naval auxiliary thing. Allowing him to go where no other mere civilian armed escorts could. If there is such a thing as an armed civilian escort. But the good ole boy network comes with references and referrals. The navy has no shortage of freight that needs armed escorts. Then there is Honor and Skydomes. And Hauptman himself. There are plenty of big businesses with the need to guarantee supply lines. When you are a leading edge business and you have a classified product, you can't afford to have it fall into someone else's hands. You pay for the armed bodyguard. Period. Bachfish will never run out of work if he so chooses to remain in business. And the RMN will continue to repair his ships. Bachfish is always going to keep his ear out for any questionable developments happening around the galaxy. He has a military mind. Having Bachfish operating as a naval auxiliary is like having a GR probe traveling about the galaxy.

BTW, the naval auxiliary classification is probably classified. It is a need to know basis. So, that also gives the RMN an “unmarked vehicle” so to speak. Don't you just hate unmarked police cars? Well, the seedy and illegal enterprises do too.

penny wrote:Silesia represents an endless supply stream for Bachfish. Bachfish isn't short on offers. His problem is that he doesn't have enough ships.

It's the good ole boy network. He has the backing of the government with the naval auxiliary thing. Allowing him to go where no other mere civilian armed escorts could. If there is such a thing as an armed civilian escort. But the good ole boy network comes with references and referrals. The navy has no shortage of freight that needs armed escorts. Then there is Honor and Skydomes. And Hauptman himself. There are plenty of big businesses with the need to guarantee supply lines. When you are a leading edge business and you have a classified product, you can't afford to have it fall into someone else's hands. You pay for the armed bodyguard. Period. Bachfish will never run out of work if he so chooses to remain in business. And the RMN will continue to repair his ships. Bachfish is always going to keep his ear out for any questionable developments happening around the galaxy. He has a military mind. Having Bachfish operating as a naval auxiliary is like having a GR probe traveling about the galaxy.

BTW, the naval auxiliary classification is probably classified. It is a need to know basis. So, that also gives the RMN an “unmarked vehicle” so to speak. Don't you just hate unmarked police cars? Well, the seedy and illegal enterprises do too.

I doubt that the naval auxiliary classification is classified. Since it is a Silesian government thing, there must be a governmental registry.

Captain Thomas Bachfisch and his ships are being put out of business by the partition of Silesia; both Manticore and the Andermani are working hard to end piracy in their sectors. That eliminates the justification for the extra charges to ship with him.

In the meantime Honor does not ship into Silesia, her wealth comes from Skydomes and ship building.

I'm a bit late to the party.

And I'll be off topic...

Heck, one day Honor will need to travel to other systems, like Grayson

Honor has been traveling to Grayson in her hyper capable yacht... At least once to bring all the Treecats that ended up in Grayson.

Because it was simpler than having to deal with Sphinx SFS and all the red tapes to get them onboard Steadholder Harrington private ship since they were all willing to come and play Treecat Tribe for the kittens. ( that's not a literal quote from the book where it happened, but it's the résumé of a page long infodump.)

Guillaume wrote:I'm a bit late to the party.

And I'll be off topic...

Heck, one day Honor will need to travel to other systems, like Grayson

Honor has been traveling to Grayson in her hyper capable yacht... At least once to bring all the Treecats that ended up in Grayson.

Because it was simpler than having to deal with Sphinx SFS and all the red tapes to get them onboard Steadholder Harrington private ship since they were all willing to come and play Treecat Tribe for the kittens. ( that's not a literal quote from the book where it happened, but it's the résumé of a page long infodump.)

True, but I am referencing a time long into her retirement when she might no longer have military escorts. Grayson would never allow her to travel alone. I suppose that will always be that way because she will always be a Steadholder.