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Need a ressource trading/collection mechanic in a civ like game.

7 replies [Last post]
Mon, 10/13/2008 - 11:40
larienna
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Hi, there is a map where you build cities and where resources are spreaded on the map.

To get a resource, you need to build a city besides the resource (not on it) to gain access to it.

I think most special resources will be non-counted. Si for example, if you have 1, 2 or 3 iron mine, you just have iron. It's just harder to loose since you need to loose 3 mines.

For resources, I thought that each player could either:
- have a chart with all resources and place a token besides the resource you have.
- get a card for each resource type you have access to.
- Get a token with an icon for each resource you have.

Now the problem is that since resources might be important, I might want players to trade resource with each other. But since they are non counted, I cannot trade like in settlers of catan. So the ideas so far:

- Use trade cards like in twilight imperium. That would mean each player would have to have is own trade cards for each resource so that i could indicate that he is trading crystal against iron with that player.
- Use a chart of resource, place a token of the other player's color if you get if from trading, else place a token of your color if you get it yourself. (I think it's currently the best.)

Do you have other mechanics which could allow easy trading and which is very flexible.

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Mon, 10/13/2008 - 16:28
#1
kungfugeek
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trading

When a player trades a resource away, do you still want that player to have access to that resource?

So, if I have one Iron mine, and give another player access to it in exchange for salt, can I still use the Iron?

The answer to that might determine the best mechanic to use.

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Mon, 10/13/2008 - 16:36
#2
kungfugeek
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now you got me thinking

Probably won't apply to your game at all....
Let's say that each round or whatever a d6 is rolled.
Iron mines produce 1 ore for every 3 pips. So 0 ore on a 1 or 2, 1 ore on 3,4,5, and 2 on a six.
Having multiple mines allowed you to increase the number of pips.
Having two mines allowed you to double the pips. In effect then, you'd get 0 ore for a 1, 1 ore for 2, 2 for 3 and 4, 3 for a 5, and 4 for a six....
Having three mines allowed you to triple the pips. So the number of mines is a multiplier to the pips, I guess is a shorter way of saying it.

Just interesting numbers to think about. Since you're increasing the pips, and not the resulting ore, you get a little more variety....

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Tue, 10/14/2008 - 08:42
#3
larienna
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You share ressources

Quote:
So, if I have one Iron mine, and give another player access to it in exchange for salt, can I still use the Iron?

Exactly, you can share with others while still beign able to use it. Having more just prevent you from having your supplies cut easily.

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Tue, 10/14/2008 - 09:13
#4
Hedge-o-Matic
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Sharing

This could lead to easy abuses by a couple of players teaming up to gain access to everything without penalty, freezing out one or two others. Resources have to be limited, somehow. Unless you make it so that turnover of resource spaces is pretty easy, trading will make the concept break down pretty quickly.

Perhaps when you allow another player to use your resource, you place a token for that resource by a "Traded" card. One token is placed for each player you trade with in a turn. Next turn, you can discard one token for each resource space of that type from the Traded card, and only when you have no Traded tokens for a given resource can you collect resources for your own use.

In this respect, this would make deficits add up, while you don't normally count resources in your game. But by having deficits, players incur actual loss in exchange for the greater flexibility trade allows. This will also encourage players to grab more resource spaces of the same type, and make cornering markets a valid possibility and a worthwhile goal. Further, it will subtly encourage backstabbing by leaving players at a disadvantage for a few turns, should they be trading heavily, and less able to respond to a sudden incursion into their territory.

Because you can't hoard resources, the players will be encouraged to trade, and operate on deficit, just like real countries, which tend to blaze through resources at the rate they are produced, instead of hoarding them. Leveraging your future for gain in the present is the hallmark of a mature trading culture, and one I've never seen done in a game before.

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Wed, 10/15/2008 - 08:48
#5
larienna
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It might be too easy

You are right that it might be too easy to get what you want.

By thinking about it, most resources on the map unlock the access to develop something. So if you get infinite resource, you can develop stuff indefinately and choose if your traders will be able to do so or not.

Another idea would be to place tokens on the board for each resources and when you build cities, or if you spend an action to do so, You collect the resource token. When you have a token, you can then decide to trade it or use it as you want. I am not sure if there will be a mechanic to place back tokens in the game or there will not be more tokens than those starting on the board. It's just an idea.

Else I could prevent players from trading forcing them to fight. Still I would like to be possible to negotiate things in my game. So I thought that resource trading/giving could be a sort of payment.

Or maybe you spend an action harvesting a resource. You get it as a card or token and then you can decide to use it or trade it. Resources are limitless, but you still lose an action to harvest it.

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Wed, 10/15/2008 - 10:11
#6
Gogolski
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You could handle trade

You could handle trade contracts as in twilight imperium, where a contract is broken if you fight that player, thus ending access to that resource...

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Wed, 10/15/2008 - 11:05
#7
kungfugeek
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larienna wrote: By thinking

larienna wrote:

By thinking about it, most resources on the map unlock the access to develop something. So if you get infinite resource, you can develop stuff indefinately and choose if your traders will be able to do so or not.

If you make a rule where only one of each kind of thing can be developed by each player (might make sense if they are developing technologies), then having infinite resources isn't necessarily as much of a problem. Especially if the tech tree is set up so the resource needs are always rotating, encouraging active trading between players...

So, my first tech requires Iron, so I try to get access to that. The next few turns I build everything that requires Iron (while probably not trading with my opponents so I can get ahead of them). Once I'm done with that I start sharing the Iron in return for whatever. It doesn't cost me anything to share the Iron, but I've built everything I can with it for now. The next tech requires Coal and Salt, so I go for them, possibly giving up my Iron space since I can't defend everything, and by watching my opponents I see one of them will need Gold soon so I secure one of those that I can then use as leverage in negotiations with him (since he has Salt that I need)...

Infinite resources isn't necessarily a game breaker, as long as the other mechanics are built with that in mind. And if it makes the theme a little difficult, don't think of it as "infinite" resources, just "as much as you'll ever need in this game."

Might want to make up a rule or reason for players to not be able to save resources for future use -- at least, not without certain improvements....

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