andycott
Sergeant
?
In short the main problem is food shortages, which has negative effect on prosperity and vice versa, which leads to other different problems, because everything is interconnected in the game. But high prosperity is not the only thing, which can lead to food shortage, you shouldn't forget about bandits and enemy raiders, who have bad effect on villages, which also leads to food shortage.
So balance in the stated above areas is definitely a problem, even though everything seems to be logical, except for the fact you can't really control either. And it's ruining everything. It may be even a game breaking problem, especially at late stages of the game.
To balance it player needs tools to control at least these two main areas - food and prosperity. Or at least to have direct control of food consumption, which will of course effect prosperity as well.
Suggestions.
1. The main. At least an option or better a few options to choose priorities between food and prosperity in every separate fief. Existence of such a tool will already be a huge addition.
- It can be as simple as prioritizing extra food production, but making prosperity grow less or even stop growing at all and vice versa.
Or a little more complex:
- Prioritize food storage. You will be able to stock a part of produced food separate from market for the future, without selling or consuming it, thus not increasing prosperity too much and not letting caravans take everything from you. More food for harder times - less money. And it may already be enough to solve the main problem, depending on how much food can be stocked, so it's better to make stocks much bigger. But here are the other solutions.
- An option to lower food consumption and thereafter to have penalties in other areas, f.e. popularity or/and prosperity. It may also lead to both militia and garrison desert, if you don't have martial law. ?
- An option to force food production, which heavily effects popularity and prosperity in a negative way both, because nobody wants to work 24/7 and it makes your town buy food from distant markets for higher prizes, because you can't produce enough. If you already have food shortage it will solve the problem in the short term.
- In addition there can be an option to prioritize prosperity for more balance. If you desperately need additional money, you can give more freedom/opportunities to local markets, which lets locals and caravans consume and buy much more food, because it becomes cheaper, so you will be earning additional money for some time and fasten prosperity. It leads to high food consumption and also reduces prosperity growth in a long run.
2. You can also let the player to buy food and manually stock it in a fief, so it can always be as full as player wants.
3. Another option, f.e. can be called a ? martial law.
Don't forget that one of the biggest problems with food shortage is that it depletes garrison, so there should be an option or it has to be by default that garrison troops are the last to starve from such a problem. Like an option of the fief owner for the garrison to have priority access to food over everyone else.
If it is an option it also can be supplemented with a penalty to popularity or/and prosperity. So you can have a huge garrison, but it will result in low militia numbers, low popularity and prosperity.
4. Another one. One of the main problems seems to be bandits and enemy raiders, who don't allow villages to be as effective as they can be. You can't and don't have to deal with both, you can't be everywhere at once. So you need manhunters and patrols to deal with them. It's logical. Manhunters are independent, but you should be able to make patrols by yourself. Also it should be taken into consideration that in the middle/late game bandits literally have armies. If they aren't nerfed or capped, you should be able to make more than one patrol or a patrol with lots of troops.
Manhunters are the best option compared to patrols, because they are independent and won't attack you or your enemies, but only attack bandits and will surely balance the world and will grow in numbers in time like bandits do. While patrols should have very limited troop numbers if manhunters will be in the game too. If there will be only patrols without manhunters, than it's harder to calculate limits for them as bandits grow in numbers in the late stages of the game and patrols need to have a constant cap, because they can attack both bandits and your enemies parties, caravans, etc.
Mods, which solve or partly solve the problem. Read the description of mods.
www.nexusmods.com
www.nexusmods.com
www.nexusmods.com
A mod, which lets you interact with granary directly.
www.nexusmods.com
A mod, which solves a part of the problem by adding an option to recruit Patrols for each village. But sadly not the whole problem.
www.nexusmods.com
Adds manhunters.
www.nexusmods.com
Also this suggestion automates the recruitment and training processes, which would make it easier to control bandits and give both AI lords and human player more time to pay attention on this problem, rather than endlessly to recruit villagers and babysit villages.
Suggestion. Make training grounds the new main source of training, especially for recruits. Add recruiters and patrols in the game.
A mod. Also not exactly solving the problem. But already a tool to control prosperity, thus controlling food shortages.
www.nexusmods.com
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
UPD. Some of my other threads, which are not exactly connected with this topic, but can make this game better in one way or another:
Suggestion. Building in towns and castles is way too fast and free. Maintenance.
Tools to balance food and prosperity. Detailed suggestions for food shortages.
Build your own fief with future upgrades. Detailed.
Capitals/all fiefs with unique buildings and additional opportunities.
Suggestions. Maths and Winter attrition for balance. Detailed explanation
Hideout difficulty. A possible solution, both if you like or hate them. Detailed.
In short the main problem is food shortages, which has negative effect on prosperity and vice versa, which leads to other different problems, because everything is interconnected in the game. But high prosperity is not the only thing, which can lead to food shortage, you shouldn't forget about bandits and enemy raiders, who have bad effect on villages, which also leads to food shortage.
So balance in the stated above areas is definitely a problem, even though everything seems to be logical, except for the fact you can't really control either. And it's ruining everything. It may be even a game breaking problem, especially at late stages of the game.
To balance it player needs tools to control at least these two main areas - food and prosperity. Or at least to have direct control of food consumption, which will of course effect prosperity as well.
Suggestions.
1. The main. At least an option or better a few options to choose priorities between food and prosperity in every separate fief. Existence of such a tool will already be a huge addition.
- It can be as simple as prioritizing extra food production, but making prosperity grow less or even stop growing at all and vice versa.
Or a little more complex:
- Prioritize food storage. You will be able to stock a part of produced food separate from market for the future, without selling or consuming it, thus not increasing prosperity too much and not letting caravans take everything from you. More food for harder times - less money. And it may already be enough to solve the main problem, depending on how much food can be stocked, so it's better to make stocks much bigger. But here are the other solutions.
- An option to lower food consumption and thereafter to have penalties in other areas, f.e. popularity or/and prosperity. It may also lead to both militia and garrison desert, if you don't have martial law. ?
- An option to force food production, which heavily effects popularity and prosperity in a negative way both, because nobody wants to work 24/7 and it makes your town buy food from distant markets for higher prizes, because you can't produce enough. If you already have food shortage it will solve the problem in the short term.
- In addition there can be an option to prioritize prosperity for more balance. If you desperately need additional money, you can give more freedom/opportunities to local markets, which lets locals and caravans consume and buy much more food, because it becomes cheaper, so you will be earning additional money for some time and fasten prosperity. It leads to high food consumption and also reduces prosperity growth in a long run.
2. You can also let the player to buy food and manually stock it in a fief, so it can always be as full as player wants.
3. Another option, f.e. can be called a ? martial law.
Don't forget that one of the biggest problems with food shortage is that it depletes garrison, so there should be an option or it has to be by default that garrison troops are the last to starve from such a problem. Like an option of the fief owner for the garrison to have priority access to food over everyone else.
If it is an option it also can be supplemented with a penalty to popularity or/and prosperity. So you can have a huge garrison, but it will result in low militia numbers, low popularity and prosperity.
4. Another one. One of the main problems seems to be bandits and enemy raiders, who don't allow villages to be as effective as they can be. You can't and don't have to deal with both, you can't be everywhere at once. So you need manhunters and patrols to deal with them. It's logical. Manhunters are independent, but you should be able to make patrols by yourself. Also it should be taken into consideration that in the middle/late game bandits literally have armies. If they aren't nerfed or capped, you should be able to make more than one patrol or a patrol with lots of troops.
Manhunters are the best option compared to patrols, because they are independent and won't attack you or your enemies, but only attack bandits and will surely balance the world and will grow in numbers in time like bandits do. While patrols should have very limited troop numbers if manhunters will be in the game too. If there will be only patrols without manhunters, than it's harder to calculate limits for them as bandits grow in numbers in the late stages of the game and patrols need to have a constant cap, because they can attack both bandits and your enemies parties, caravans, etc.
Mods, which solve or partly solve the problem. Read the description of mods.
V's Food Supply Wariness
People are now wary of their food supply. This mod addresses the prosperity -> food death spiral by reducing prosperity growth depending on a town's food situation.
www.nexusmods.com
V's Rebalanced Buildings
Rebalances building costs and effects. Granary stockpiles should now be more realistic, and have a smoothing side-effect on prosperity growth.
www.nexusmods.com
V's Garrisons Don't Eat Nor Starve - v2
Your precious garrisons will no longer starve when a passing army buys up all food in town. Donating to AI garrisons is finally worth doing. May also help against AI snowballing.
www.nexusmods.com
A mod, which lets you interact with granary directly.
Improved Granary
Adds the ability to interact directly with settlement granaries and add food to their stockpile.
www.nexusmods.com
A mod, which solves a part of the problem by adding an option to recruit Patrols for each village. But sadly not the whole problem.
BuyPatrols
Hate bandits stealing all your villages' butter? Hire patrols from any settlement to help protect them! Customizable settings included!
www.nexusmods.com
Adds manhunters.
Manhunters
Ever miss the manhunters? How about a new manhunter faction, special manhunter campaign AI, 13 new manhunter units, 6 types of manhunter spawns and more!?
www.nexusmods.com
Also this suggestion automates the recruitment and training processes, which would make it easier to control bandits and give both AI lords and human player more time to pay attention on this problem, rather than endlessly to recruit villagers and babysit villages.
Suggestion. Make training grounds the new main source of training, especially for recruits. Add recruiters and patrols in the game.
A mod. Also not exactly solving the problem. But already a tool to control prosperity, thus controlling food shortages.
Prosperity Taxes - nomorefoodshortages
Raise additional taxes, increasing your income while decreasing prosperity.This way, the player can limit prosperity to a healthy level and avoid constant food shorages.
www.nexusmods.com
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
UPD. Some of my other threads, which are not exactly connected with this topic, but can make this game better in one way or another:
Suggestion. Building in towns and castles is way too fast and free. Maintenance.
Tools to balance food and prosperity. Detailed suggestions for food shortages.
Build your own fief with future upgrades. Detailed.
Capitals/all fiefs with unique buildings and additional opportunities.
Suggestions. Maths and Winter attrition for balance. Detailed explanation
Hideout difficulty. A possible solution, both if you like or hate them. Detailed.
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