A Use for the "Trade" resource

For what's not in 'Top Priority Game Design'. Post your ideas, visions, suggestions for the game, rules, modifications, etc.

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General_Zaber
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A Use for the "Trade" resource

#1 Post by General_Zaber »

I haven't seen much about this so far and I think it's worth discussing.

Personally I have an idea that trade should be used as the ability to used trade agreements and the like. My vision is that trade is not necessarily a physical currency but represents the cost to exchange various things.

For example, in diplomacy you may want to enter into a trade agreement. All is well but remember that the freighters carrying traded goods need upkeep. In this case you would have a trade cost to pay out of your trade stockpile otherwise you wouldn't benefit as much from the agreement.

Also if you wanted to give another empire a gift, then you would be required to pay a certain amount of trade resource depeniding on the value of the goods (More valuable goods have a lower cost because they are easier to sell)

I know this idea is a little revolutionary and has plenty of room for thought, but I basically just came up with it so theres more to be said yet.
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Krikkitone
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Re: A Use for the "Trade" resource

#2 Post by Krikkitone »

Well I think the Trade resource should be redesignated as "Social"

So essentially Spy actions, Governmental "maintenance", keeping your population happy, "cultural war", keeping your troops loyal, etc.
Treaty Maintenance/Fees would definitely fall under that category


I think it should definitely Not be used to maintain PP produced items like it currently is (the maintenance cost for something should be of the same resource used to build it).

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eleazar
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Re: A Use for the "Trade" resource

#3 Post by eleazar »

"Trade" isn't a resource, just as "Farming" isn't a resource.
Farming produces food and "Trade" produces money.

Money isn't yet used in very many ways, and you may be able to argue that it should or shouldn't be used for X.

But i doubt we're interesting in changing "money" into a different, more abstract resource.

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General_Zaber
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Re: A Use for the "Trade" resource

#4 Post by General_Zaber »

Well then perhaps trade can be exchanged for increased production like BC's in MoO2. You still can't spend more than the turn rate but yu can spend four times trade for every Production point you want to fill up the meter for that turn. This would represent the government looking for alternate ways to speed up production like contracting a mass of unskilled laborors to do menial jobs for a few months to allow the more skilled workers put their own elbow grease into something else.

Perhaps the same thing can be use to boost research, representing scientists using a boost of funding to enquire visiting members of other empires to let them in on some secrets.

Of course none of this would allow you to make something in less than it's minimum amount of turns (Engineers and Scientists have their rest requirements, they can't observe their project all the time. Not to mention it does take time for items to be produced on other worlds and shipped to the main assembly site)
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eleazar
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Re: A Use for the "Trade" resource

#5 Post by eleazar »

General_Zaber wrote:Well then perhaps trade can be exchanged for increased production like BC's in MoO2
IIRC this idea has already been considered and rejected.

I don't see that it would add much to the game. You can already fiddle with production by moving items forward or back in the queue.


Perhaps you should look at the roadmap specifications for long-established decisions.

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Valeriy
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Re: A Use for the "Trade" resource

#6 Post by Valeriy »

I don't know the current model of using trade, perhaps the current model with PP is that what I mean. I think trade should be used for paying for transporting minerals to the worlds with production and further transporting PP to assembly planet. Also it can be used for transporting food to systems with insufficient food production. The more jumps are required for transporting resource, the more trade is spent. Players then should build balanced empires where production of all resources is distributed more or less uniformly in space.

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eleazar
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Re: A Use for the "Trade" resource

#7 Post by eleazar »

Valeriy wrote:I don't know the current model of using trade...
Then before you go any further, don't you think you should try to find out?
Learn a bit about what we've done and why, before trying to convince us to do it differently. :?

The first link in my signature is a good place to start, or the link in my previous post.

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Valeriy
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Re: A Use for the "Trade" resource

#8 Post by Valeriy »

I have read information at those links before posting my previous post. Words about trade say that trade generates money, and money currently does nothing. I wrote that I didn't know because actual behaviour of the trade was similar to my suggession, but I didn't find description of algorythm. I would be good if there was tool for displaying statistics of increase and decrease of each resource.

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Geoff the Medio
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Re: A Use for the "Trade" resource

#9 Post by Geoff the Medio »

Valeriy wrote:I would be good if there was tool for displaying statistics of increase and decrease of each resource.
If you mouse over a planet resource meter icon on the sidepanel, you get a tooltip explaining the value of the meter and what alters it. If you want the equivalent for the production and consumption of resources for the whole empire, it's on the Programming Work page. If you mean something else, you'll have to explain it more clearly.
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General_Zaber
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Re: A Use for the "Trade" resource

#10 Post by General_Zaber »

Well considering Trade produces money or whatever. Then perhaps this 'money' would be required to make certain items. For instance, building a Scout ship would only require production so it would technically be free in that respect, but a colony ship may require people to be 'persuaded' into entering the ship with the promise of monetary rewards.

Something else to spend it on would for instance be like a 'Galactic Stock Market' which you could only build once. This would require you to pay a lot of Trade resource* from your galactic pool for because you need a large trade base to begin with, and it would also imply that you need to be wise in positioning it.

Finally perhaps you could use trade as a payment for spies / leaders etc. This would imply that in return for their services they get a share in your empire's wealth. Although if they have a high loyalty rating then they would require a smaller share (or none if they're particularly patriotic)

* Foot note
I refer to Farming, Mining, Industry, Trade, RP and PP as resources. Largely because I can't think of a better word.
The enemy is retreating! As always, there is no cuteness about them. Dammit

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