Over dinner one night, Caernak tries to explain The Plan to the assembled band - Tison, Arcus, Sechs, Seben, and Greyreed. As usual, a brief period of River-induced harmony cleared his head enough for some crazy schemes to percolate up.
First off, we have to realize that River Voices, as a general rule, tend to be ignorant of financial matters. While we all have a lot of gold right now, unless we get some good, trustworthy advice, very soon, we'll all be pinching pennies by next Dark Season, looking for work guarding caravans so we can feed our new mounts. We ourselves would never starve, but would be a burdon on the cult's financial resources.
Second, I have seen the future as if in a vision, and the Corflu I saw was a booming trade center, filled with merchants from every part of the world. The wealthiest merchants in the world made Corflu home, regardless of their origin; it struck me that Corflu's notorious insect hordes are probably preferable to annual raids by the Wolf Pirates. Now that the river flows freely form the Leaping Place to Corflu, the old trade routes can be used again, bringing the goods of Prax to the world, via Corflu. The salvage operations now underway could last for ever - the swamp is vast, and this is not the first fleet to sink in these waters - it isn't even the fisr fleet thsis YEAR.
But it was not a vision granted by Zola Fel. It is not fate. If Corflu is left to its own devices, it will enjoy a minor economic boom, which will only be remembered for the decadence of its crumbling architecture. Corflu will rival Feroda one day, but only if we take action now.
We need to pool our funds, however much we spend on cool toys left by the Lunars, or we won't have the capital we need.
There are three areas that could provide income: trade, real estate, and banking.
Real Estate is the first of the three, the most urgent to act on. We need to make our purchasesas soon as we know it's viable - prices will only go up as the situation stabilizes. We should start by buying up mostly cheap housing in the city, and one or more larger trading house type buildings... one for us to house our trading collective, one or more to rent to someone else. Houses could be sold for needed cash, or just kept forever, adding tiny rent payments to the balance sheet.
The banking services I think we need are letters of credit and microloans/small business loans for the inhabitants. Letters of credit are key for long-distance trading; if our bank in Corflu can issue a note that says "give these guys some cash", and have it honored outside of Prax, we're good to travel! The loan services aren't very complex. We make tiny loans 100-1000 guilders to individuals, at high interest rates or low, depending on whether the loan is secured or not. SBD loans are key for developing Corflu. We make loans to people looking to expand their businesses, add a dock, buy another fishing vessel, increase brewing capacity, whatever. We could also offer savings accounts, which would enhance our capital, but would add headaches*
The trading house is potentially the largest of our operations. We would need a warehouse, Issaries type(s), and a traveling show to go trade for stuff. I'd suggest following the Ingilli's lead closely, as they are the leading traders in Corflu. What might turn out to be surprisingly effective if co-opting House Ingilli. We make 'em an offer they can't refuse; secretly invest in our trading house, provied technical support so we don't go out of business, and rake in half the profits. They benefit from association with the River Voices, we get their contacts and know-how, and both houses benefit from the greater nubmer of trading houses in Corflu.
Now, what do we do with all the money we make? We divide it among various poeple, charities, and cults. The non-River Voice staff draws their income, we pay expenses, then the remaining money is divided among The Cleansed One coffers, our charity organization ("when the right hand makes an orphan, the left hand reaches out to help"), and the River Voice Mutual Assurance Society - which would hold money for us (like "party funds", provide "health insurance" and survivors' benefits, etc. We get an income stream (such as it is - there's money around when we need it, but we don't have to keep tabs on it). We help the people of Corflu by offering loans, cheap housing, and economic expansion. The Cult gets a revenue stream. Our future widows and orphas are provided for, sort of. And the New Guys are charter members, 'cause we're capitalizing on the huge popularity of the River Voices. WE get to help people out in ways that are appealing to Caernak's sense of duty as a River Voice. We're thinking outside the box!
I think the whole thing is a bit much, but some of the elements should be workable - particularly having one of the trading houses as a secret partner. What we really need to do, though, is get shut of all this money in some productive way - and since we're all fiscally incompetent and/or irresponsibly, we need outside help. Caernak suggests we select a board of three advisors - Ingilli, non-local Issaries, and local trader not affiliated with Ingilli.
Oh, and of course, party members not in Corflu would be part of the River Voice Investment Group. The initial investment shoudl be whatever you have lying around, with a par value of, say, 750 Wheels. No drawing funds if you're investment is below par, and dipping into capital should be a life or death situation
Caernak comes out of his time-travel trance and asks for comments and criticism. Questions, too. I'm sure there's stuff I left out, that will make The Plan sound even goofier, but I can field those! Acutally, Caernak is going back into the meditation chamber to pray for his spells back now - he'll be glad to answer questions in the morning.
*Not for us, though! Remember, we hire people to run these; we just provide the cash and inspiration.