Tech & Policies

Tech is a snowball; scholars are the hill. Policies are the wax.

Cartography vs Metallurgy first — the eternal week-one argument

Traders swear Cartography (second route = instant income). Smiths swear Metallurgy (tools compound forever). Our sim says Metallurgy wins by day 5 IF you have 2+ smiths; otherwise Cartography. The forum thread about this outlived the argument.

Week-One Tech Order

#1Agriculture I20 RP
Farm plots +15% yield. Nothing else feeds you first.
#2Milling35 RP
Unlocks flour → bread. Doubles your food economy.
#3Sawmill Blades40 RP
Planks +20%. The timber line is every other line.
#4Metallurgy I60 RP
Smelter + ingots → tools compounding.
#5Cartography75 RP
Second trade route. Greyharbor was lonely.
#6Bakery Arts80 RP
Bread +25% value; also feeds trade partners.

Policy Ledger

Policy	Cost/day	Effect	Verdict
Pantry Act	10 gold/day	+50% food storage, offline 100% window 2h→4h	Always on. The day-one policy.
Apprentice Mandate	25 gold/day	New workers learn jobs 50% faster	On during hiring bursts, off during stability.
Free Market Charter	60 gold/day	Trade margins +15%	Pays for itself once furniture flows. Check the math weekly.
Night Watch Edict	30 gold/day	Raid damage -30%	Cheaper than rebuilding. Ask Oakhollow how.
Scholar Stipend	40 gold/day	Research +25%	The snowball accelerator. Enable and forget.

Research points do not expire

Banking RP across days is fine; nothing decays. The "use it or lose it" feeling is inherited trauma from other genres. Heal.

costs from tooltips + editor ledger, v1.0.1