How do you establish trade route via sea?

[CivNoobie]

I have a city on the shore and I want the city to have more than one trade route besides a city that's my own, how would I do it?

and how do i generate lots of commerce via trade routes??? (i want 30+ commerce per costal city)

 

[WelshGandalf]

Q1) Short answer is, to have trade routes with others, research sailing, have an open borders treaty with the civ in question, and not be at war with anyone inbetween you and them (part 3 can be ignored if you have Astronomy). However to have more than 1 trade route you need other things, like Currency which gives you +1 trade route.

Q2) The best way to boost coastal commerce early game is building the great lighthouse, this gives you 2 extra trade routes in coastal cities. The other big thing is to have trade routes with cities on other land masses (these get +100% commerce yield).
Later game, you can improve trade route commerce a few ways. One dead simple way is simply to have your cities bigger (this only helps once you get bigger than size 10 though).

Don't set a target though, trade routes are just one weapon in your arsenal to climb the tech tree. Tech trading and city specialisation are more important.

 

[civvver]

Trade routes overseas basically follow the same rules as your ships, meaning you cannot have a route cross an ocean tile unless you have astronomy or that tile is within your cultural borders. Then you need open borders with the trade partner. That's basically it.

 

[QuixotesGhost]

Exploration is also important. Either you or your trading partner need to be able to see the other guys cities to be able to trade with them. After I build the connecting road to another civ, I'll normally have the worker who built it run around their territory for a few turns so I can see their cities and start getting foreign trade routes.

 

[Apricottage]

There are two kinds of aquatic trade routes: post-Sailing and post-Astronomy. For Sailing, you need to have a path completely unbroken by fog or anything else running along Coast tiles from one of your cities to one of their cities. If there's a city owned by Barbarians or people you don't have Open Borders with along the way, the way is shut. If it's another continent and there's no coastal connection, the way is shut. After Astronomy, though, you can also be connected by ocean, meaning that you can establish trade routes around Barbarians and to other continents. You still need to have an unbroken path, though.

 

[elmurcis]

Get fast harbors in biggest cities - I had 6, 5, 5 and 4 commerce from trade routes in my capital in 500 BC

 

[Apricottage]

Get fast harbors in biggest cities - I had 6, 5, 5 and 4 commerce from trade routes in my capital in 500 BC

In this situation, it sounds like The Great Lighthouse was what gave most of the benefit. It's the reason Archipelago maps are kind of silly: it turns the entire game into trying to land it, and maybe The Colossus if you're feeling ambitious.

 

[Handel]

You need astronomy for trade routes over dark blue waters.

 

[Bellringer]

I usually refuse Open Borders with anybody. Once they send their units romping around my territory they will know my weaknesses and perhaps even send Settlers. Is this a bad policy? All I get is 1 trade route per city & 2 after Currency.

 

[elitetroops]

I usually refuse Open Borders with anybody. Once they send their units romping around my territory they will know my weaknesses and perhaps even send Settlers. Is this a bad policy? All I get is 1 trade route per city & 2 after Currency.

I've never seen an AI take advantage of my weaknesses. If I have a heavily defended city close to their border and only one archer/warrior in the rest of my cities, they still always attack the only one city they cannot possibly take (or move their stack next to it so I can wipe it out with siege). You, however, can with OB find out about their weaknesses and hopefully you can use this knowledge to your advantage a lot better than the AI.

They will eventually send settlers across your land, but that usually happens so late that you should have grabbed all the good land already.

OB also boosts your relationship to the other AI -> better trade deals & less likely surprise dow.

If the AI arrives from another continent and has astronomy while you don't, then denying OB is good. In this case OB would give him lots off good trade routes, while you get nothing. (You can still explore his lands with caravels.) You should probably also deny it if it is an AI that is hated by the rest of the world and you don't want to upset everybody else. Otherwise I would almost never deny OB.

 

[a0161613]

I usually refuse Open Borders with anybody. Once they send their units romping around my territory they will know my weaknesses and perhaps even send Settlers. Is this a bad policy? All I get is 1 trade route per city & 2 after Currency.

This is terrible.....

 

[elmurcis]

I usually refuse Open Borders with anybody. Once they send their units romping around my territory they will know my weaknesses and perhaps even send Settlers. Is this a bad policy? All I get is 1 trade route per city & 2 after Currency.

Usually open borders give more than it takes from you.. But.. 1st - you need to have trade routes to AI cities (scout coast line or rivers..). You can check it in F9 demographics screen.. Sign open borders and than check last line in that list (export-import), if that becomes negative, than AI get trade routes to you, but you not.. If thats positive number, than you get trade routes to AI, but (s)he don't - perfect situation
Best what human can get is trade route with another landmass across the water (but only human can cross that water, AI block ocean). Together with Great Lighthouse can get >100 commerce profit from trade routes.. Same happens with Astronomy - get it first and you get huge profit from trade routes but AI gets.. nothing

 

[ben-jammin]

I usually refuse Open Borders with anybody. Once they send their units romping around my territory they will know my weaknesses and perhaps even send Settlers. Is this a bad policy? All I get is 1 trade route per city & 2 after Currency.

Poor strategy. Open borders gives you a diplo bonus as well as foreign trade routes. The AI will not send settlers through your tiles, though they will occasionally use triremes to go around. By the time they do this you should have all your land claimed except for unusual circumstances like a huge amount of land to backfill.

 

[Bellringer]

Seems I have been condemned outright!

OK, here is a game I am struggling with. What would you have me do?

To take advantage of Open Borders I should send a caravel with a missionary or explorer. I am not good at diplomacy either. The only ruler with whom I have land contact is a real sourpuss.

There is not much scope for sea routes prior to Astronomy in this game. But before Ast I will get Banking and then adopt Mercantalism, which seems much more advantageous than foreign trade routes with a city or two?

 

[SquirrelCensus]

One more important thing in addition to open borders and navigation: Neither you nor your trading partner can have the mercantilism civic. It forbids trading with foreign nations.

If that empire across the ocean adopted it and you want to trade with them...twist their arm and get them to adopt a different economic policy.

Also, build those harbors and custom houses.

 

[LincolnOfRome]

I looked at the game. HC and Mao were willing to open borders with you, but you didn't ask. You need open borders to have foreign trade routes. A few turns after opening borders I saw a few more foreign trade route open.

 

[ZeekLTK]

In Civ 3 it was a good idea to refuse open borders, but that's not the case in Civ 4. Open borders are very useful in this game and you should try to have as many as possible.

The only downside is that, when you do have as many as possible, the AIs start to get mad because "you traded with our worst enemy"... which is really dumb sometimes. Why do they care about a "worst enemy" before anyone has even fought a war? But other than that there are no disadvantages to open borders like in Civ 3 (where the AI would totally abuse it and walk stacks of troops all over your territory and then declare war on you when they were right next to your cities!! That doesn't happen in Civ 4)

In fact, I rarely see the AI walk around in my territory in Civ 4. If they are, it's probably because you are not settling land very well. Don't leave open land to put settlers on and they won't send any at you.

 

[Bellringer]

Thank you, Lincoln. Can you attach the file after you played?

 

[LincolnOfRome]

Thank you, Lincoln. Can you attach the file after you played?

Sure, I felt a bit like Nixon opening up China. You have some nice strong foreign trade routes, but it took a few years after the borders opened. Economics will help as well, if you choose free market.

 

[Bellringer]

Thanks, Lincoln. I saw the file you attached. Some cities are getting +5 and +7 income from foreign trade routes. The manual state: "If a city has three trade routes that are bringing in 10 commerce, that city has an additional 30 base commerce..". What is the source of this commerce?

Someone please see the new game in the attached file. I have Open Borders, have built the Great Lighthouse and I have researched Currency. Still I am not getting the extra trade routes. What is lacking?

Seems I have never understood how foreign trade works and I am missing a lot of income in my games.

Also I am narrowly missing completing the Parthenon by a few turns. I have switched to slavery but I still can't do anything more. How does it work?