Disclaimer

These views are wholly my own in relation to my own perspectives. Details will, of course, be adjusted as more concrete information is released. While I've done my best to keep theory crafting to a minimum I feel that looking forward and anticipating possibilities is important.

These views do not express official policy within Vornair.

Logistics and Trade within Vornair and Beyond

The main principle and the four aspects

The main principle behind most of my plans in regard to trade and logistics of resources is that even though I am not yet immersed into a virtual world, this game has already begun. I frequently am open and speak to others, knowing full well that, at the start of this game, one can either have known or unknown assets regarding trade agreements and potential allies. In my opinion, it is much better to have the known variety.

Successful trade agreements revolve around four prime aspects. Mutual respect, mutual need, mutual gain, and timely delivery. While all are important, none of them matter if the last one is not satisfied. The movement of goods on either end of the deal must be handled in an organized manner that displays personal integrity. Trade agreements, when considered in this manner, are just as political as they are economical.

Diplomats are merchants who sell words

Politics is rooted in the maintaining of power; power is maintained by information and availability of resources. A Kingdom without access to stone will have no castles of defensible means, Duchies without ample access to food will not have a populace alive long enough to be ruled, and Baronies without proper metals for armaments will not be able to defend their respective territories, much less defend the Duchies and Kingdoms. Understanding and traversing various political landscapes is key to accessing the resources inherent to the physical landscapes they overlap. This can foster deals that normally would never have been conceived and form relationships of mutual gain that can cause costly wars to be avoided.

There is another much less altruistic side of this in that wars can also mean wealth. Knowing which warring entity is on the winning side and supplying them can lead to great gains. Without viable information regarding the politics of these entities, this avenue of trade isn't even approachable.

Roads are the crux of all land-based trade

Without a well-planned and maintained road network, all is for naught as it has been stated by the developers that travel along roads will affect many factors. Most important of these factors, in my opinion, is the faster rate of travel and the reduced wear and tear of whatever is moving the goods. The faster one gets from point A to point B also translates into accumulating wealth faster. Faster accumulation of wealth means better defense, better-equipped military and a higher quality of kingdom services, so speed is key.

While expediency is important, traveling blindly into unknown areas, in my opinion, is not the work of merchants. Trade routes must be scouted thoroughly both physically and politically to avoid threats. Maps that accurately guide the movement of goods will be important as diverging roads will occur and getting lost with cargo is not an acceptable outcome. Sadly, though, losses will happen, while this is a potential reality of any endeavor, these losses must be mitigated as much as possible both physically and politically. Informed diplomats, trained scouts, and well-equipped guards will be imperative to this.

Our own relief is with beasts of burden

Beasts of burden (trison, ursaphant, etc.) will be a primary means of transport on trade routes. We must carefully consider the available supply of food and rest for beasts of burden on trade routes. If animals work, they will get hungry, and if they are not fed they will die. Dead animals are quite bad at pulling wagons and carts, so not taking proper traveling supplies into consideration is beyond foolish. Well provisioned resupply stations along major trade routes will go a long way in this as well. One will have to know how much each animal eats and drinks along with a set distance and multiply that by each animal needed for the movement of goods and ideally with some overage. Food items will spoil in this game as well, so the resilience of both animal fodder and exported food items over set distances should be known and managed appropriately.

Consumption without conservation is an early grave

Resources may be finite, but hunger and greed are not. Mankind is guided by the same principles no matter if it’s a real or virtual world. I expect this to be even truer in Elyria, given the realistic nature of it. The consumption of resources, if not managed and recorded correctly, while initially being a huge boon to progress will undoubtedly lead to Elyria becoming a wasteland. Wastelands themselves are not well known for their prosperity, so I strongly feel that conservation efforts should be made to avoid this eventuality. With extinction also being a reality of this game, measures should reach beyond the scope of raw materials and into the conservation of animals. The materials that animals provide are likely to be just as valuable and necessary as the inorganic ones we acquire. Conservation of animals and renewable resources can be handled in many ways through laws and logistics. Rotation of gathering spots, hunting seasons, reserved areas where hunting is prohibited, tracking of materials that are brought in from gathering and trade, monitoring of animal populations, tree surveys, and a plethora of other ways to keep wanton consumption at bay.

Water is for more than drinking and conquest

One aspect that I feel is rarely touched on is the movement of goods via waterways. While this will require a larger initial investment, the speed at which the goods travel will increase and the number of goods that can be stored will likely be much greater. These benefits are balanced by various risks, much the same as land travel, but also much different. While goods lost on land can be recovered by swift military action if a ship full of cargo sinks then it is gone forever. We, as of yet to my knowledge, do not know the conditions related to a ship sinking, but they will all have to be understood at all costs to minimize loss. A sufficient navy will be needed to handle threats, which means higher upkeep related to the logistics of sea trade on top of the cost of ships. The trade agreements will have to keep this in mind to ensure a profit instead of a deficit. If this can be managed correctly, trade in Vornair will enter a similar phase that led to powers within our own world reaching a new developmental height.