Its silly that dwarves demand food that they don't even know exists, its a blunt statement but its fitting for the context that in our real-world history, people had to travel the globe visiting distinct continents and climates in order to obtain the things we take for granted today.
- To solve the problem i believe that each civilisation should have a seperate reading for livestock training levels, crop knowledge levels, and finally commodity knoweldge levels (for goods such as metalworking) that which they cannot produce themselves they only aquire a broad understanding though inter civilisation trade, but alone don't sometimes reach their full potential without a exceptional individual pushing the envelope to discover it (a advancement beyond 'going to the depths of the earth' as to say discovering how to work/forge steel).
Merchant companies should be a driving force for making these connections click, mirroring the way they access new goods in warehouses they set up for things like making a final push to domesticate a animal or crop after a fortress player has put in effort to train it, or a AI settlement picks out a likely animal to use from the area in a slightly slower process.
Means to say, dwarves will simply not know what a elephant steak or fruit tastes like or whether they like it from a exotic biome because they don't have the widespread knowledge beyond a local understanding which the player develops. Immigrants from a isolated nation will have quite confined tastes. And the revelations on whether they like something will reveal over time while always ensuring its tradable to your fortress.
Livestock Merchant company premises could have 1/3rd of their land dedicated to breeding animals (or more depending in any degree of company specialisation or their own accessibility to goods) prioritizing common kinds of animals, typically cows or maybe recently in order to replace shortages of animals or introduce them into new markets. Maybe they're beef/venison barons.
In our own real world comparisons, Ostriches (sociably natured, lays eggs), Llamas, Oxen/Yaks and crocodiles are commonly farmed in specialist establishments, and the close confines of it keep the numbers stable.
Crocodile farm in Zimbabwe though there's quite a few in Asia, and Alligator farms in the US, commoditized for their meat, skin and of course high numbers of eggs.
Crops Either a romanticised version of Dutch tulip sellers or a more typical commercial supply process on privately owned farms, crops obtained here are grown in order to supply surplus to settlements that need food or again to reach markets, selling crops to independent traders after succesfully raising your local knowledge will let them eventually domesticate it.
Warehouses -
Final 1/3rd, where commodities from the premises are stocked up and imports to be sold on (such as selling your fortress mode goods to this independent trade entity) end up and then determines the way of distribution through arrangements.
Caravan owning + Your own companyOwning your own company isn't exactly a development plan idea, but i would like it as a outlet to expand in a later economic arc or therabouts the way you can control things from afar, without constantly having to return to your premises to handle your orders (but not exactly neglect it)
You yourself as the adventurer would have to do the legwork (as usual) and find the actual commodities to put into your company
- Do all your own taming and exploring, using farming mechanics on a smaller self-built homestead scale in order to create a stable population of animals and farm crops, or buy bulk agreements of goods to stock up with regular imports using the coin you've earnt doing adventuring or otherwise to fund your ventures.
- Absolute choice in what you produce and who you sell your goods to - you might think it would be a profitable venture to attempt to domesticate some subterreanean monsters like Jabberers or savannah Rhinoceros's from scratch and grow rare herbs, no matter the difficulty (which is often rewarded in kind by revenue earnt) these animals willl be ready for you to use.
- As you own scenarionized establishment, people will come to you in order to work and you can approach people, including caravan drivers, laborers, book-keepers, overseers, and you would manage them from afar by sending off one of your companions as a messenger to complete your orders and keep it ticking over.
Nothing is perfect and i woul believe there would be some detachment meaning that once all the employees are in place you would have to occasionally return to your company to pick up your revenue, solve local disputes like bandits or monster attacks or ensure you're not running yourself into debt.
Author
Topic: Trading company involvement in accessibility to goods civ-wide (Read 778 times)