Alternate economy

I'm working on an alternate Star Trek with a different economy than normally listed. Basically the idea is that the Federation has a centralized market index with the values set based on certain factors, such as the basic cost of food. It does not experience any fluctuations. Wages, benefits, as well as any basic income for civilians would be set in this system. The name of the currency is a Cemark (centralized market index).
Then each solar system or small groups of systems would have it's own economy that can fluctuate as it needs to. Each currency would have a conversion rate based on various factors.
Trade could occur between each system or through the Cemark.

Interstellar Economies are divided into these general categories.


Bureaucratic – This is mostly importing goods and exporting regulations. Command economy with distributed ownership of land. Most groups are renting space.
Industrial – They import resources and export finished goods, usually large goods such as ships, stations, or city ships. This could be a mixed economy or a corporate command economy with the types of ownership determined by the type.
Tourist – They have a light economy, import visitors, and export happiness. This would most likely be a command economy or a co-op. They would not allow free ownership of land which could damage the tourist trade.
Mining – They mainly export resources. The economy types would depend on the nature of the culture.
Outpost – This is a small town that exists on a planet. This outpost can't support the outpost completely. It is just a stopping point for travel to other points. It may not have an actual economy.
Support – This is a small town that exist on a planet to support a larger economy somewhere else in the system. This could be a town for R&R for another economy such as a mining or industrial.
Newly Established Colony – This is a new colony trying to get on it's feet. It would likely have a traditional economy unless it was supported by an external culture.
City Ship/Station – They are usually all imports or are supporting another economy.
Trade Point – This is a point where several other economies trade.



Colonies are usually either:


Corporate – It is set up for corporate exploitation. It will have a corporate controlled economy locally.

Cultural – This is a colony trying to set up a colony based on a specific sub-culture or religion. It will have a local economy based on the sub-culture involved.

Local – Setup because of local reasons such as a crashed ship or being along a trade route or having local resources. It will have a small local economy.


The assumption is that Market Economies will not exist, except maybe the Ferengi, and it won't make sense to aliens to describe Mixed economies in terms of Market Economies. I was thinking of making it based on general characteristics as above.

So I was trying to figure out what a Vulcan economy would be like. Maybe a command economy?

What about the Klingon economy?

etc.
Any thoughts?

I'm not sure what you are trying to accomplish here; the questions are too open-ended. Could you explain yourself further?

The description you provide is command-heavy (echoes of the Soviet Union). For best fun, most of the economy should 'just happen' in the background.
Economic models only become necessary if the PCs meet a con man - Harry Mudd? - or try to open their own dilithium mine.

Eltab said:

I'm not sure what you are trying to accomplish here; the questions are too open-ended. Could you explain yourself further?

The description you provide is command-heavy (echoes of the Soviet Union). For best fun, most of the economy should 'just happen' in the background.
Economic models only become necessary if the PCs meet a con man - Harry Mudd? - or try to open their own dilithium mine.

Click to expand...

It also seems to depend on era. Kirk's crew seemed to operate on some kind of benevolent capitalism. While Riker once seemed confused about the idea of being paid to do his job.

TNG is definitely a post scarcity society however. There is no reason for anybody in the Federation to live in poverty given how easy it seems to be for replicators to work. All they need is a stock of material to convert into other matter.

Beleriphon said:

There is no reason for anybody in the Federation to live in poverty given how easy it seems to be for replicators to work. All they need is a stock of material to convert into other matter.

Click to expand...

I always imagined replicator patterns were Intellectual Property, and that in 300 years they've figured out how to not have those patterns appear on Space Piratebay. So people make money designing, licensing, and selling replicator patterns. The material isn't the cost; the IP rights are. Every time you replicate a cup of coffee, somebody across the galaxy is getting a billionth of a space-penny.

Oh, I know that's not canon. Just how it works in my head.

Morrus said:

I always imagined replicator patterns were Intellectual Property, and that in 300 years they've figured out how to not have those patterns appear on Space Piratebay. So people make money designing, licensing, and selling replicator patterns. The material isn't the cost; the IP rights are. Every time you replicate a cup of coffee, somebody across the galaxy is getting a billionth of a space-penny.

Oh, I know that's not canon. Just how it works in my head.

Click to expand...

That's actually not a bad idea. The Federation has this weird economy that gets featured occasionally in the shows and movies. In part its capitalist, otherwise why have colonies and manufacturing? What are those colonist actually doing other then finding a nice view and warm bed? But at the same time there's this weird social utopia thing going on where people aren't getting paid to do jobs it seems. Never mind that DS9 has Quark who runs a bar, and presumably gets paid for his services. Or that there are merchant traders coming in and out of DS9 on a regular basis.

As for economies for other cultures, I'd imagine the Klingons operate on a market economy similar to the former Soviet Union, if only because they were supposed to be Space Commies in the original show. Romulans we're probably looking at some kind of PROC styled communist/limited capitalist market economy.

Beleriphon said:

In part its capitalist, otherwise why have colonies and manufacturing?

Click to expand...

You have manufacturing so you don't have to sleep in a cave eating food you hunted yourself. That doesn't require capitalism though.

The way I see that replicator idea is that the economy is driven by artists, designers, and creators. The product of your mind has value, but the actual physical objects don't. So you create something, and license the pattern.

People in Star Trek typically want for nothing - but not always. And even though their needs are generally met quite capably, they have appreciation for things that are made by other people, not replicators. If a character has a choice between a suit made by a replicator and a suit made by an actual tailor - they'll generally WANT the tailor-made one, but will use a replicator to make it if they have to. If they have a choice between a meal prepared by an actual living cook and a replicated meal with all the recommended daily nutrition values they'll typically opt for the manually prepared meal.

However, people don't generally sew clothing, cook meals, or whatever in anticipation of monetary payment. They do so because of the satisfaction found in doing the work and the appreciation of those who benefit from that work.

But that's only within the confines of the heart of the Federation and on planets that are FULL MEMBERS of the Federation because it does not have a monetary economy (at least not by TNG era; iirc, in TOS era there are still references to credits). Planets that have been contacted by the Federation and that want to join are expected to wean themselves off their old economies before being finally accepted - economies which would be WRECKED by sudden introduction into a universe of replicators anyway. They have to demonstrate that at least as a society they have adapted to the Federation's level of technology AND have learned how to live with it without abusing it (though obviously individuals are still going to be problems).

At the edges of the Federation there are other governments that still do operate with monetary economies. To interact with them on an economic level generally means that at the fringes there are Federation worlds that operate on both levels at once. These are the places where, for example, federation facilities would deal in latinum (that being a currency made of a material that can't be replicated).

Colonies within the Federation are established for various reasons, few of which are actually economic. They may want to exercise alternative political or religious ideals. Colonies, especially in early stages, would need to then be largely self-sufficient with minimal or no modern tech making it possible. The Federation still fully supports some colonies, typically because they will produce goods and materials of use within the Federation or provide people new places to live.

People in the Federation also recognize the need to do work of value even in a society where you don't need to work to get food and shelter, so they work at jobs that need doing and that give them satisfaction as a result, not because they get paid for it. Traders and merchants travelling around the Federation are going to be mostly TRADERS. They'd barter a lot more than SELL things. If they do SELL things then the payment would need to be in the form of something that they know where to exchange again for something of value - and they're not going to BUY much while deep inside the Federation. Travelling traders and merchants will be travelling to those outlying and isolated worlds that still have market needs not provided for by the Federation, whether that's by their own choice or various aforementioned circumstances.

The OP seems to be talking about putting the entire Federation on a command/planned economic model and that just is weird to me except as a mirror-universe sort of thing. Roddenberry's vision of a future world without money is SO futuristic it's the equivalent of magic - just like the technology which is so advanced that it makes it even possible. I still question that it would be possible even WITH such technology given the nature of man (not to mention the potential TRULY alien nature of aliens), but it's a pleasant pipe-dream at least. But that fantasy economy is part and parcel of what makes the Federation the Federation. I don't quite see how it's really still going to be Star Trek if you move from a Socialist Utopia economy to one that is simply dictated from the top-down. You can still have a fun game based on that but it feels a lot less StarTrekIsh.

That said, I've mentioned before that I think it would be an interesting show/series of movies that explored those FRINGES of the Federation where Starfleet in particular did not feature in any prominent role, and where the Socialist Utopia still ran into holdover issues from old-style economies of various member worlds. For example, what if PC's were policemen on a planet that was NOT a Federation member, but where Federation technology was being smuggled in? How would their old-style economy and society deal with the issues created?

Note also that across all the Trek shows and series, Mr. R's socialist utopia seems to be plagued with the fact that the nature of Man does not change, even if he changes his outward circumstances so radically. There are still ruthless, unethical, violent, evil people everywhere. There kind of has to be bad guys in and around the Utopia or else the show has no dramatic tension beyond taming the monster of the week.