A Pilot's Almanac

By The Ceres Commune Trade Council

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A Pilot's Almanac

ES 89 Edition

Compiled by the Ceres Commune Trade Council

Published collectively at Ceres Yards

About This Almanac

This Almanac is compiled and published collectively by the Ceres Commune Trade Council. No single author claims it. Every entry has been reviewed by working traders.

The Almanac is updated annually. Errors are corrected; new patterns are added; outdated routes are removed. The version you hold is current as of ES 89.

If you find an error, send a note to Ceres Yards. We will correct it in the next edition.

1. The Markets You Will See

Every IPU station operates a Market Terminal. The Terminal shows current buy and sell orders for items at that station.

Orders are listed cheapest-first when buying, highest-first when selling. The Terminal handles partial fills automatically.

The Market Terminal at Ceres is the largest in human space. Roughly forty percent of all interstellar trade by volume passes through it.

Other major markets: Hub Prime (financial center), Mars Olympus (industrial demand), Europa Industrial (fold-core market). The frontier markets are smaller but often more profitable per-transaction.

Continued.

1. Common Cargo Categories

The categories that move the most volume in the current era:

Ore — mined from drift rocks and asteroid clusters. Sold to refineries. Margins are low; volume is high.

Refined Materials — processed ore. Higher margin than raw ore. Buyers are manufacturers (Helios, Praxis, smaller corporate yards).

Modules — manufactured ship components. Tier-based pricing (Common, Rare, Elite). Most pilots trade Common; Rare and Elite are restricted markets.

Salvage Components — recovered from wrecks. Variable pricing depending on quality. Drake & Quill is the largest buyer.

Reach Items — recovered artifacts. Pricing is highly variable. Long Listeners pay best for unusual finds.

Continued.

1. Routes and Their Economics

The Almanac will not name specific profitable routes — those change too quickly. We can name patterns.

High-volume cargo (ore, refined materials) profits on turn-around time. Short routes, frequent runs. Insurance is light. Risk is low.

High-margin cargo (modules, rare components) profits on selectivity. Longer routes, fewer runs. Insurance is heavy. Risk is real.

New pilots should start with ore. The math is straightforward. The risk is bounded. The market is reliable.

Continued.

1. Patterns in Prices

Prices fluctuate. The Almanac documents the patterns that have held for years.

Ore prices fall in the standard fourth quarter (Q4) as refineries clear backlogs before the Founder's Day reset. Buy in Q4 for resale in Q1.

Module prices rise sharply around Stargate Watch recruitment drives (typically Q2). Combat-tuned modules see the steepest increases.

Reach-item prices are unpredictable. A single major find can crash a regional market for months. Trade these carefully.

Note: IPU bounty payouts cycle differently than market prices. Bounty pay tends to be steady year-round. Mining and trade pay are seasonal.

Continued.

1. Common Scams

The Trade Council documents these because they recur.

The phantom buy order — a station displays a high buy price that disappears just before your delivery arrives. Always confirm the order is still open before committing to a long haul.

The substituted cargo — a shipper at one station loads you with goods that don't match the manifest. By the time you arrive, you cannot sell legally and cannot return. Inspect cargo before accepting.

The trusted intermediary — someone offers to broker a complex trade for a small fee. The trade is real; the broker is not. Verify intermediaries through the IPU bounty board.

Continued.

1. Insurance and Cargo

Brace insurance covers your hull but not your cargo. This is by design. Brace will not insure cargo, no matter what you pay.

If you must protect a cargo run: convoy with other pilots (cheap, social), contract Stargate Watch escort on backbone routes (mid-cost, official), or pay a Halo transit fee preemptively (informal, frowned upon).

The Almanac does not endorse the third option. The Almanac acknowledges that some pilots use it.

Continued.

1. Last Notes

Trade is one of the few honest professions left in the new era. It rewards patience, precision, and a tolerance for waiting.

If you are starting out: keep a journal. Note your routes, your fees, your delays. The patterns become visible after about two standard years.

The Trade Council is available for consultation at Ceres Yards. We do not charge for advice. We do appreciate corrections.

Trade well.

— The Trade Council

End of Almanac

A Pilot's Almanac, ES 89 Edition. Compiled by the Ceres Commune Trade Council. Distributed at cost. Next edition expected ES 90.