Independent Mercantiles

IF YOU ARE UPDATING FROM AN OLDER VERSION, UNINSTALL THE OLD MOD, MAKE A CLEAN SAVE, INSTALL THE NEW VERSION, THEN LOAD THAT CLEAN SAVE.

Independent Mercantiles adds a set of connected gameplay loops built around trading, hauling, deliveries, outpost business and protecting your own commercial network.

It can be added to an existing character, but it can also provide the basis for a fresh playthrough. You do not need to complete—or even begin—the main quest before using INMERC. With an alternate-start setup, including a shipless start, you can join the Partner Programme and use the optional starter vessel to begin building your own commercial career from the start of the game.

Normal INMERC trading and the Partner Programme are separate. You can trade without becoming a Partner.

A different way to play INMERC can sit alongside the normal game or become the foundation of a character:

trade between systems, haul freight, take local deliveries, build commercial outposts, grow a passive-income network and travel back to defend it when operations are disrupted.

You can start that loop immediately on a new character without waiting for the main quest to provide your direction.

Getting started You will receive INMERC Network Access in your Aid inventory. It is reusable and opens the portable Partner Network terminal (exit the inventory for the menu to open, or bind the item to a hotkey for convenience).

From there you can:

Join the Independent Partner Programme Access your Partner Account Claim the optional Starter Vessel Review your commercial outpost network If you lose the INMERC Network Access item, a replacement can be crafted at an Industrial Workbench.

If you already have a ship, build an Independent Mercantiles terminal aboard it for 1 Aluminum to access commodity trading.

The ship terminal handles trading. INMERC Network Access handles the Partner Programme and your wider commercial network.

Start with or without a ship and gear The Partner Programme includes an optional starter vessel financed through a 30,000 Cr equipment advance.

The advance is applied to your Partner Account rather than taken from your normal credits, carries no interest, and can be paid down through future Partner revenue or voluntary deposits.

After claiming the vessel, you can choose to make it your home ship. An existing home ship is not replaced automatically.

The starter-vessel system has also been tested with a shipless alternate-start setup.

The ship comes with some free basic gear like a space suit set, clothes, aid items and weapons.

Trading INMERC markets use your ship's cargo hold. Your ship is your warehouse and freight vehicle.

The ship terminal provides four main trading options:

Remote Trading: Buy (Small Lot) Buy locally available commodities in flexible quantities.

Priority Deliveries: Sell (Small Lot) Accept a local delivery contract, carry the requested cargo aboard the ship that accepted the job, travel to the recipient and complete the delivery.

Remote Trading: Buy (Bulk) Purchase complete wholesale consignments at discounted unit prices.

Remote Trading: Sell (Bulk) Fulfil large procurement orders when you have the complete requested quantity aboard.

Markets vary by planet and system. Developed regions tend to support larger markets, while more remote systems can offer very different prices and opportunities.

Your Commerce skill affects INMERC buying and selling prices.

Commodities INMERC trades five commodity groups:

Luxuries Anomalous Materials Food Industrial Products Water Some can also be produced through normal crafting stations, giving exploration, resource gathering and outpost production another route into the trading system.

Local markets have limited stock and demand and refresh after approximately 7 in-game days.

Partner outposts After joining the Partner Programme, your normal player outposts become part of the INMERC commercial network automatically. No special INMERC beacon or workshop object is required.

Developed outposts generate passive commercial income into your Partner Account. Larger infrastructure and resource-producing facilities increase their commercial value, while the planet, system and the rest of your network also affect the final income.

Existing outposts can be brought into the network when you join, so you do not need to rebuild them.

The Partner Network terminal shows your registered sites and their current income.

Blockades Successful commercial sites can attract unwanted attention.

INMERC outposts can occasionally be blockaded by hostile forces, temporarily stopping that site's income. Travel to the affected outpost and eliminate the blockade force to restore operations.

Blockade attackers can come from different hostile factions, including Spacers, the Crimson Fleet and Va'ruun, with varied enemy types within each group.

If an incomplete encounter is abandoned by leaving the ground area entirely, the blockade force may be restored when you return. The outpost remains blockaded until the hostile force has been completely cleared.

Multiple outposts can be affected at the same time.

Bug reports and suggestions https://www.nexusmods.com/profile/AgreeableOwl