City Truly Cater Only

[Silver Lady]

"recruit xyz units" event quests

There are several other ways to get credit for units: some hybrid buildings produce units, unit instances, healing units lost in a fight, TG & MC (both of which can be sold), and some AWs. Or if there is an alternative then do that instead.

 

[Silver Lady]

@Yogi Dave
In my main cities I get by just fine with using Witch Hut and Orc Nests. The Echoes of the Forgotten also produces orcs and may add that one to my cities if needed.

Edit: corrected for spelling errors

 

[Yavimaya]

I will say I'm interested in seeing how this goes just out of plain curiosity.

 

[Yogi Dave]

The Barracks have less than nothing to do with breeding orcs, so that is not an argument.

Oops, you are way right. I was thinking, incorrectly, of armories. So please, forget all I wrote about barracks needed for orcs. Brain Fart.

In fact, creating troops requires way more supplies than creating goods. So one can make do with fewer workshops, which frees up even more space for the buildings one wants to put up, allthough one would need some extra's for the catering, so that will probably even out in the end

Not sure I agree with this statement. Most of the time I run with 3 magic workshops spelled. Before I was spelling them, I had 5 and that was plenty to keep me going to the trader daily. Far fewer factories are needed in my city. In fact, I don't need sentient factories since my 24 armories (overkill for orcs) with a level 30 pyramid of purification produce 422k goods daily. I only need one of each of the other 6 factories to produce more goods than I need, but I have a couple of extra anyway. When there's an FA, I teleport a few armories to bring in more of my boosted T1s. Yes, teleport. FAs are much less frequent than events, so I don't use near as many as I think would be needed for a cater city.

Now rearranging the city, that IS some core part of the game, so that is no argument at all.

Yes, it is a core part of the game, but having to do that for every event would use a lot of teleport spells is the problem I stated along with how much work it would entail rearranging the city with so many events. (Yes, conjecture on my part. As you say, nobody knows.)

All these however are assumptions, not facts and certainly no real arguments against making the Barracks sellable.

I think you missed this.

Personally, I wouldn't mind if building could be sold.

The game ALSO does not mention you do have to fight.

Nope, but over time the ability to seems to have become more critical to doing well. I've noticed people who try to cater only have difficulty doing well in tourneys and spire every week. There are of course exceptions to that.

In fact, I have not yet heard a single argument against being able to sell the Barracks that makes any sense, but there are several in favor of it.

Nope, not a problem with being able to sell the barracks from me. And a lot of what I said does go away with the stupidity of my brain switching from barracks to armories. Kind of embarrassing that. However, I just don't think selling it will do a lot to help a city be catering only.

@Yogi Dave
In my main cities I get by just fine with using Witch Hut and Orc Nest. The Echoes of the Forgotten also produces orcs and my add that one to my cities if needed.

Good to hear that it works well for you. I'm somewhat blinded by having set up my city for fighting.

EDIT: BTW, if you look at my city at the moment, there are a lot of factories in my city. They are there because after finishing chapter 21 and selling the guest village I've used the space to upgrade all my factories. Most of which will go back into storage. Then my armories and chapter 21 event building will come out after I get off my butt and finish my reorg plan.

 

[Dhurrin]

Oops, you are way right. I was thinking, incorrectly, of armories. So please, forget all I wrote about barracks needed for orcs. Brain Fart.


Not sure I agree with this statement. Most of the time I run with 3 magic workshops spelled. Before I was spelling them, I had 5 and that was plenty to keep me going to the trader daily. Far fewer factories are needed in my city. In fact, I don't need sentient factories since my 24 armories (overkill for orcs) with a level 30 pyramid of purification produce 422k goods daily. I only need one of each of the other 6 factories to produce more goods than I need, but I have a couple of extra anyway. When there's an FA, I teleport a few armories to bring in more of my boosted T1s. Yes, teleport. FAs are much less frequent than events, so I don't use near as many as I think would be needed for a cater city.

Yes, it is a core part of the game, but having to do that for every event would use a lot of teleport spells is the problem I stated along with how much work it would entail rearranging the city with so many events. (Yes, conjecture on my part. As you say, nobody knows.)

I think you missed this.


Nope, but over time the ability to seems to have become more critical to doing well. I've noticed people who try to cater only have difficulty doing well in tourneys and spire every week. There are of course exceptions to that.

Nope, not a problem with being able to sell the barracks from me. And a lot of what I said does go away with the stupidity of my brain switching from barracks to armories. Kind of embarrassing that. However, I just don't think selling it will do a lot to help a city be catering only.

Good to hear that it works well for you. I'm somewhat blinded by having set up my city for fighting.

EDIT: BTW, if you look at my city at the moment, there are a lot of factories in my city. They are there because after finishing chapter 21 and selling the guest village I've used the space to upgrade all my factories. Most of which will go back into storage. Then my armories and chapter 21 event building will come out after I get off my butt and finish my reorg plan.

You are right, I missed that little part. Brainfart here too, must be contagious.

But that is the problem. If you want to be somewhere in the top, you need to fight. but to play the game and enjoy it, you do not. To finish the events, I doubt one has to either.
BTW, I am running my chap 21 city on 2 Magical Workshops that I keep spelled and an maxed PT. And that city fights 95% of all encounters, has (not counting sentient and ascended goods) 20 factories and generally 5-6 armories. But by far the most supplies go to the troops, the factories use only a fraction of that.

And to set up a city for fighting one needs way more AWs than for a catering city, so space should not be a major issue for a catering city in my opinion.
To me it just looks like the Devs have overlooked how much the game has evolved, or that they feel everyone should fight.

How well it works...well, I will have to see. It's a test, this city is only halfway chap 2. I just want to see if it can be done and what obstacles I run into. The mandatory barracks / training chapter quests are annoying and slow me down, but do not make it impossible. But it will be a while yet before I know how it works out

 

[Killy-]

I have a mini city sitting in the orc chapter for fun. I play in a FS that has no barracks (and no merc camp or training grounds). We are less than 20 players (kinda hard to find new players for this project, because you have to start new) and do 12 to 13 chests and silver spire (and occasionally gold with saved points). We also finish the 3 maps from the adventures. Our biggest player is in chapter 16 by now and has an tournament average of 11.5k. You can play the game without barracks etc. if you really want to.

 

[Yogi Dave]

I forget at times how there are so many ways to play the game and get stuck in my own brain. Sorry, I came on strong with my point of view, especially with the utterly incorrect statements about barracks and orc production. Silly self. I'm glad to see that people are working cities using the expressed viewpoint of not having a barrack and doing well. It's especially good to hear about people in upper chapters playing that way.

 

[Dhurrin]

I forget at times how there are so many ways to play the game and get stuck in my own brain. Sorry, I came on strong with my point of view, especially with the utterly incorrect statements about barracks and orc production. Silly self. I'm glad to see that people are working cities using the expressed viewpoint of not having a barrack and doing well. It's especially good to hear about people in upper chapters playing that way.

One of the things I noticed is how basically everyone, including myself (and the devs apparently) seems to take it for granted that one has the 700% bonus from relics. In the first few chapters that is just not the case, which makes eventquests and seasonsquests rather hard to complete, which is an absolute turn-off. It also makes the catering harder at first.
Still, I think that if I just want a city that does 2.500-3.000 points weekly in the tourney it should be easy enough with a catering city. We will have to see how that works out

 

[BrinDarby]

One of the things I noticed is how basically everyone, including myself (and the devs apparently) seems to take it for granted that one has the 700% bonus from relics.

thats not the only thing they think everyone has, and is scaled accordingly to.
( god forbid you don't have all those things )

 

[Iyapo]

I run catering cities but I do have a barracks in all my cities. It is a level 5. I built it because it would have taken longer(than I wanted) to get through chapter 1-2 without it. It is small, does not require much population, and since I dont use it, it does not need to be connected to a road.

The gain troop quests in the events(so far) always have an alternative so I do the alternative. The gain troop quests in the Seasons can be ignored if dailies and refreshed if weeklies. Gold Spire and 2700 per week in the tournament is a breeze with my set up. More than 2.7k sustainably requires more effort(boost buildings, spells, pets, intstants, wonders, etc).

I assume it is probably the same for fighters, gold spire and beyond 2.7K probably takes more effort(boost buildings, pets, instants, wonders, etc.)

I would like to be able to sell the barracks.

 

[Dhurrin]

I run catering cities but I do have a barracks in all my cities. It is a level 5. I built it because it would have taken longer(than I wanted) to get through chapter 1-2 without it. It is small, does not require much population, and since I dont use it, it does not need to be connected to a road.

All true. It's not large, it doesn't have to be connected to a road. It is still dead space.

 

[Silver Lady]

@Astram
Can we get a poll on this idea? Is that still possible? Or what is the mechanism for getting an idea forwarded to the Devs now?

 

[BrinDarby]

Or what is the mechanism for getting an idea forwarded to the Devs now?

Smoke signals from atop Mt. Everest, Fiji, or Killamajaro.

 

[Silver Lady]

@BrinDarby
If I thought it would work I might give it a try.

 

[Henroo]

The devs have clearly stated that barracks, MA and trader are core buildings. Hence they can't be deleted and they have made many game mechanics that work and interact with those buildings. To make them removable would be for them to change a core "vision" of how they see the game. That would take some serious convincing.

You CAN sell the Training Ground and Mercenary Camp, so I don't get the logic that the Barracks is a core building of the game. In my opinion, the only truly great unit available in the Barracks is the Priest, which is only available for humans. I do think Priests are the best mage unit in the entire game. However, for every single other unit type, there are better options available in the Mercenary Camp or Training Grounds. Regardless of if you are human or elf. Honestly: if I were forced to play the game with only 1 of the 3 military buildings, I would choose Mercenary Camp. Why isn't it considered a core building?

 

[Silver Lady]

@Henroo
Good thing they don’t seem to be listening anymore, all we need is another building we can’t sell…NOT!

 

[Henroo]

@Henroo
Good thing they don’t seem to be listening anymore, all we need is another building we can’t sell…NOT!

Well, my intention was to point out that I felt the Mercenary Camp was a more important building than the Barracks. And therefore that it was ridiculous to make the Barracks nuke-proof. I was not advocating to make the MC nuke-proof also!

 

[Silver Lady]

@Henroo
That’s how I read it, but no telling how Inno would read it.

 

[BrinDarby]

That’s how I read it, but no telling how Inno would read it.

example : The forum consensus is lets say, ohhh
we want and will pay for Cogswell Cogs.
Inno's hears this, runs it thru the corporate algorythm,
and announces : We are pleased to now offer the
community ..... Spacely Sprockets.

Now it seems clear to me that, the "cater only" view
may not something Inno wants to encourage. The problem
is..... players will always look @ the "rules/norms" and
some will say, they have a better way, or they find
dongles/workarounds within said rules. The Devs can
develop things any way they want, but they cannot force
the players to only play specific ways.

If you give players the choice between catering/fighting,
you cannot then say, but we expect you to choose fighting.

A great example is the fact the community ask'd for tools,
within thier inventory, to better find/compare/organize things.
What did we get, a search bar, just search. No organizational
options or comparison options. Its 1 step above useless, yet
thats what the Inno heard we wanted and were willing to
spend the Dev's time to add/implement. I'll still say thks
for this change, but its not really what we ask'd for.

 

[Dhurrin]

So just an update here
My little Cater-Only city now has entered chap 4 and is just shy of unlocking the tourney. Maybe next week (though I'm a bit pressed for time, so it is not a main concern for me). But it is doing just fine so far.
This city now has
6 workshops lvl 9-10
9x T1 factories (all maxed to chap 3, needs to advance in the techtree to up them further)
6x T2 factories, likewise
3x T3 factories which now can be upped when I get another expansion to make enough room to do so.

That makes for 18 factories, which is about double of what I manage to place in any other small city where I have to worry about having military buildings