Treasure Resources need a shake-up. Here's how to do it.

[Hellenism Salesman]

The Distant Lands mechanic serves as a means to create in-game Columbian Exchanges between the old and new worlds. The Economic Legacy Path of the Exploration Age is meant to model European colonization of the New World for trade.

There's just one problem. Europeans didn't just colonize the New World.

In fact, many of the Treasure Resources are from the Old World. Spices and Tea are from South-Southeast Asia and East Asia respectively. A vast portion of Cocoa is found in Africa. And of course, Gold and Silver can be found in the Old World, but only one spawns there. What's the deal?

Why are Treasure Resources limited to the Distant Lands when many of them existed on the real-life Old World? Why is there an ocean-sized divide keeping my civilization from a Treasure Resource, rather than it simply being located on a far-away corner of my existing continent? Why does Home Land trade become irrelevant in the Exploration Age when the purpose of the real-world exploration during that time was to bolster it?

It just doesn't make sense. As a result, Firaxis ought to make this simple fix: let Treasure Resources spawn in the Home Lands! Improve those resources in your Settlements, build a Fishing Quay, and soon enough Treasure Fleets will begin spawning like before.

Wouldn't this trivialize the Economic Legacy Path? I don't think it would. During the period of time where you have Shipbuilding researched and your Treasure Fleets are actively spawning, it is far easier to have Settlements on the nearby strip islands (Distant Lands!) than it would be to circle your ships around an entire continent. Would this make the Legacy Path complete too quickly? Nope, not if you still have to research Shipbuilding before your Treasure Fleets can spawn.

There are some broader concerns, however. By putting randomly spawning Treasure Resources on the lands you're already inhabiting, couldn't that result in one player getting a lucky monopoly on the resources? It absolutely could, which is why the resource spawning should work in one of two ways:

1. The Treasure Resources are equally distributed across the continent, preventing any one player from amassing more than a handful.
2. Different players have different Treasure Resources. The way this would work is that Jose Rizal leading the Majapahit wouldn't find Spices exotic or rare at all- they would appear as an ordinary City, Bonus, or Empire Resource to him. However, Isabela leading the Spanish has no Spices whatsoever- they are a Treasure Resource for her!

This system would actually solve another problem with the game- the players who spawn in the Distant Lands aren't playing the same game as everyone else. Under this system, the Home Land resources could easily become the Treasure Resources of the Distant Lands players, allowing them to actually compete for the Economic Legacy Path instead of being the neuteured, sitting ducks that they are currently, with all the unfortunate historical implications that brings...

(I am aware that each player having their own set of Treasure Resources could lead to some serious confusion over who wants who. This could be resolved with a panel or graphic on the Resources and/or Diplomacy screens. I also understand that this would change the way Merchants operate due to Treasure Resources not making Settlements eligible for trade routes- that's a topic for another day.)

Will Firaxis ever do any of this? No, almost definitely not! But it'd be pretty cool if this was in the game.

 

[Krikkit1]

The Distant Lands mechanic serves as a means to create in-game Columbian Exchanges between the old and new worlds. The Economic Legacy Path of the Exploration Age is meant to model European colonization of the New World for trade.

There's just one problem. Europeans didn't just colonize the New World.

In fact, many of the Treasure Resources are from the Old World. Spices and Tea are from South-Southeast Asia and East Asia respectively. A vast portion of Cocoa is found in Africa. And of course, Gold and Silver can be found in the Old World, but only one spawns there. What's the deal?

Why are Treasure Resources limited to the Distant Lands when many of them existed on the real-life Old World? Why is there an ocean-sized divide keeping my civilization from a Treasure Resource, rather than it simply being located on a far-away corner of my existing continent? Why does Home Land trade become irrelevant in the Exploration Age when the purpose of the real-world exploration during that time was to bolster it?

It just doesn't make sense. As a result, Firaxis ought to make this simple fix: let Treasure Resources spawn in the Home Lands! Improve those resources in your Settlements, build a Fishing Quay, and soon enough Treasure Fleets will begin spawning like before.

Wouldn't this trivialize the Economic Legacy Path? I don't think it would. During the period of time where you have Shipbuilding researched and your Treasure Fleets are actively spawning, it is far easier to have Settlements on the nearby strip islands (Distant Lands!) than it would be to circle your ships around an entire continent. Would this make the Legacy Path complete too quickly? Nope, not if you still have to research Shipbuilding before your Treasure Fleets can spawn.

There are some broader concerns, however. By putting randomly spawning Treasure Resources on the lands you're already inhabiting, couldn't that result in one player getting a lucky monopoly on the resources? It absolutely could, which is why the resource spawning should work in one of two ways:

1. The Treasure Resources are equally distributed across the continent, preventing any one player from amassing more than a handful.
2. Different players have different Treasure Resources. The way this would work is that Jose Rizal leading the Majapahit wouldn't find Spices exotic or rare at all- they would appear as an ordinary City, Bonus, or Empire Resource to him. However, Isabela leading the Spanish has no Spices whatsoever- they are a Treasure Resource for her!

This system would actually solve another problem with the game- the players who spawn in the Distant Lands aren't playing the same game as everyone else. Under this system, the Home Land resources could easily become the Treasure Resources of the Distant Lands players, allowing them to actually compete for the Economic Legacy Path instead of being the neuteured, sitting ducks that they are currently, with all the unfortunate historical implications that brings...

(I am aware that each player having their own set of Treasure Resources could lead to some serious confusion over who wants who. This could be resolved with a panel or graphic on the Resources and/or Diplomacy screens. I also understand that this would change the way Merchants operate due to Treasure Resources not making Settlements eligible for trade routes- that's a topic for another day.)

Will Firaxis ever do any of this? No, almost definitely not! But it'd be pretty cool if this was in the game.

What I'd Like to see.

Each "Land" has Treasure resources only found in that "Land"... but only count for civs with their Capital in the Other "Land"
If you are in one "Land" you can get Treasure Fleets by
1. Colonizing the other "Land", build a Fishing Quay/Wharf and bring them back to your own territory in your own "Land"... like now except symmetrical
2. making a Diplomatic Endeavor with a Civ in the Other "Land" that has Resources+Wharf/Fishing Quay... and they will generate a Fleet for you from one of their cities... If it gets Turned in by you they get a big bunch of Gold and You get a Victory point (if they support the Endeavor you generate Fleets for them as Well.).. like now except with a Diplomatic way to get it
3. Get a City State Ally in the other "Land" spend some Influence to have it start generating Fleets for you.

 

[ehecatzin]

What I'd Like to see.

Each "Land" has Treasure resources only found in that "Land"... but only count for civs with their Capital in the Other "Land"
If you are in one "Land" you can get Treasure Fleets by
1. Colonizing the other "Land", build a Fishing Quay/Wharf and bring them back to your own territory in your own "Land"... like now except symmetrical
2. making a Diplomatic Endeavor with a Civ in the Other "Land" that has Resources+Wharf/Fishing Quay... and they will generate a Fleet for you from one of their cities... If it gets Turned in by you they get a big bunch of Gold and You get a Victory point (if they support the Endeavor you generate Fleets for them as Well.).. like now except with a Diplomatic way to get it
3. Get a City State Ally in the other "Land" spend some Influence to have it start generating Fleets for you.

+1 to all this

We need more ways to acquire treasure fleets, diplomacy and endeavors can absolutely be explored in this way.

 

[Zaarin]

Agreed, but to be pedantic...

A vast portion of Cocoa is found in Africa.

Chocolate is native to the New World and was introduced to Africa, just like Coffee is native to East Africa but has been introduced to Central Africa, Yemen, the Pacific, Southeast Asia, and the Andes. Also I'd take New World Spices to represent Vanilla and Peppers.

 

[Krikkit1]

(I am aware that each player having their own set of Treasure Resources could lead to some serious confusion over who wants who. This could be resolved with a panel or graphic on the Resources and/or Diplomacy screens. I also understand that this would change the way Merchants operate due to Treasure Resources not making Settlements eligible for trade routes- that's a topic for another day.)

I think that it is enough to have it based on "Lands": each "Land" has Treasure resources, and you want them from a different Land.
So when I look at a Tresure Fleet it should have a big Flag that tells me is it going to
"My Land"... I need to cash it in at home
"Other Land"... I need an Other Land Partner to cash it in on.

 

[UWHabs]

I think that it is enough to have it based on "Lands": each "Land" has Treasure resources, and you want them from a different Land.
So when I look at a Tresure Fleet it should have a big Flag that tells me is it going to
"My Land"... I need to cash it in at home
"Other Land"... I need an Other Land Partner to cash it in on.

Yeah, I would more or less go back to the old civ 6 model where each continent in-game has a distinct set of resources available to it, and the treasure fleets have to be returned to another continent.

And I mean, even if another civ has your home resources as a treasure resource, to me, if you capture their fleet and return it back to your homeland, you should get 1 point for "preventing the plunder of your resources" too. The Aztecs never have to settle in Europe, but if they can defend against the Spanish stealing all their gold, that can be worth something too.

 

[Krikkit1]

Yeah, I would more or less go back to the old civ 6 model where each continent in-game has a distinct set of resources available to it, and the treasure fleets have to be returned to another continent.

And I mean, even if another civ has your home resources as a treasure resource, to me, if you capture their fleet and return it back to your homeland, you should get 1 point for "preventing the plunder of your resources" too. The Aztecs never have to settle in Europe, but if they can defend against the Spanish stealing all their gold, that can be worth something too.

I’d prefer that it has to be cashed in at a civ that is in other lands… so if the Aztecs capture a Spanish Fleet, they can’t cash it in at home, but they can cash it in on the Norman Homeland territories (if they have a Trade Route or Treasure Fleet diplomatic agreement with the Normans... which would also mean they could generate their own fleets to send to the Normans... and/or the Normans could generate fleets full of Homeland Treasure to sell to the Aztecs)