Trade Routes

[bkrice]

What are the factors that determine how many and how valuable trade routes are for a city? thanks

[BigTime]

More trade routes are gotten by civics (Free Market) wonders (ToA and GL to name a few) techs (corporation) and some buildings. Other buildings like harbors and custom houses increase the amount of gold gotten from a trade route. The distance of the trade route makes it more profitable, and if a trade route is intercontinental is is much more valuable. That's why in a continent or hemispheres map astro is a very important tech.

[kossin]

Originally Posted by BigTime

More trade routes are gotten by civics (Free Market) wonders (ToA and GL to name a few) techs (corporation) and some buildings. Other buildings like harbors and custom houses increase the amount of gold gotten from a trade route. The distance of the trade route makes it more profitable, and if a trade route is intercontinental is is much more valuable. That's why in a continent or hemispheres map astro is a very important civic.

Actually ToA adds 100% to trade route value, it doesn't add any.

Distance does nada for trade route value as far as I know. City size, buildings (harbors, Customs House, etc.), foreign cities, intercontinental, peace, connection to capital however do.

Other buildings that add 1 trade route:
-Airports
-Cothon (harbor replacement for Carthage)
-Castles (but obsolete with Economics)

[BigTime]

Yea, sorry for the gaff on ToA, it gives greater yield, not more. Does distance really not do anything? Hmm. Intercontinental and foreign I know do, and they are pretty big commerce boosters from trade routes.

[lymond]

I haven't thought a great deal about it, but curious as to what determines what cities you get trade routes with, especially if certain ones would be more lucrative based on the factors described. There's seems to be no control over it.

Castles are kinda redonkulous...there time span is so brief except maybe on Marathon. I hope they rethink that one on the next version. I've only built them with Protective and Stone.

[BigTime]

Trade routes are determines by which cities give you the most commerce. There's really no need to choose if the computer chooses the best automatically.

[bkrice]

Thanks for the replies. i should have given you more info as to why i asked the qustion. i just started a game with Hannibal and was trying to figure out how to leverage his UB.

[BigTime]

GL + Hannibal= Serious trade route abuse.

[Rittmeyer]

That's why in a continent or hemispheres map astro is a very important civic.

astronomy is not a civic.

[Infantry#14]

remember population adds the base value of trade values

[BigTime]

Originally Posted by Rittmeyer

astronomy is not a civic.

Eh, sorry. Typing while tired causes errors like this. Fixed it though, thanks for pointing it out.

[raxid]

Originally Posted by kossin

Distance does nada for trade route value as far as I know.

i swear i've seen distance as a trade route multiplier before, but i just went through a save (at end game) and didn't see it. perhaps it was in vanilla or warlords? the only mod i've ever used was rhye's and scenarios, guess it could be in there.

[Rittmeyer]

the basics are... intercontinental trade routes as soon as possible, and the bigger your cities are, the better. but, here's the thing: don't think astronomy is always optimal just because it might give you intercontinental trade routes earlier. give me rifling 15-20 turns before my closest neighbour and you can have astronomy 40 turns earlier. i'll just double my city number and compensate later on.