Proposed Rule Update- General

[Kaiser Kirk]

The following are proposed rule updates.

These attempt to address the comments made in the various threads.
These are for the Players to comment on and suggest changes.
Strong objections will see the rule reconsidered.
If a player feels the changes result in a game unacceptable to them, say VETO.

Most of these rules come from what we learned at "Start" and "Expansion"
and the discussions afterwards. It would have been nice to start 1910 with them.

The proposed rules can be accepted / rejected each on their own.

[Kaiser Kirk]

Canals are a deceptively simple concept, but primarily an economic consideration, and so very hard to rulemake when most of our budgetary focus is military and our world modestly defined.

Proposed Rule Update

Canals

Goal : Create a canal rule that makes creating them reasonable.

Rule change :
Excavation : Same cost.
Locks : ½ cost
Revenue : IF canal open to international traffic, and can pass 140m x 21m x 7m vessel :
$0.25 per 1,000nm "saved"

Long discussion of background stuff

Factors :
Excavation cost is a useful rule, and can be applied to non-canals.

Shipping by Boat is about 4x cheaper than by rail. Rail is restricted in what grades it can make. It takes about 1 week to unload or reload a freighter for rail transit. A freighter can steam up to 2,688nm in that time. Rail is simply not an adequate substitute. So rail routes only 'count' if there is not a maritime option.

Drydocks are both a rectangular area which can be flooded, and the series of cranes, armories, machine shops, foundaries, etc to support ship repair. 

Potential Exploits :
Straight line cost instead of excavation would allow tunneling through mountain ranges.
Revenue based strictly on cost, not mercantile value could be exploited.
Revenue with no minimum size would allow a ditch.
Revenue for any route would allow useless

Cost of Excavation : Same. 
Excavation :  The cubic meter calculation will continue in use versus simple distance so that the cost of digging through mountains must be considered.  If there is not published estimates, such as for the Panama canal, the Moderator will work with the player on a volume estimate.  This will probably mean using Google Earth for elevations at intervals along the proposed route, then using geometry to find the angle of Repose.

Locks : Locks are rectangular areas which can be flooded.
The cost of locks shall be ½ the size of the equivalent drydock.

Revenue :

Revenue shall only be generated if the canal is open to international freighter traffic, and large enough to allow freighters to pass.
The freighters will be assumed to be Hog Island size of 140m x 21m x 7m.
In later years this size may increase. 

Revenue :
$0.25 per 1,000nm maritime shipping route saved.
Shipping routes will be measured from PC or Tier 1 NPCs.
If no maritime route,  $0.25 per 250nm Railroad shipping saved.

Example : Suez Canal

When first opened in 1869, the canal consisted of a channel barely 26 feet (8 metres) deep, 72 feet (22 metres) wide at the bottom, and 200 to 300 feet (61 to 91 metres) wide at the surface. To allow ships to pass each other, passing bays were built every 5 to 6 miles (8 to 10 km). Construction involved the excavation and dredging of 97 million cubic yards (74 million cubic metres) of sediments. Between 1870 and 1884 some 3,000 groundings of ships occurred because of the narrowness and tortuousness of the channel. Major improvements began in 1876,

Excavation for the Suez canal would cost $18.5. 
Presuming the ship went around Africa from Aden, and stopped at Alexandria, that would be about 11,500nm, rounds down to 11,000nm.  That would generate $2.75 / turn. This is assumed to be part of Byzantine's current IC and Revenue.

[Kaiser Kirk]

Proposed Rule Update

Goal : Provide more funds for colony development. Focus value on coastal areas.


Rule change :
Port Symbols indicate a pre-existing IC already built in colonial areas.  Once claimed, they generate income for the claiming player.
They may native, independent merchant, or trading company in origin.  These are independent trading ports with some infrastructure, local manufacture, and roads to inland areas for trade.

See colonial development for other changes to development costs.

Alternate

Desertfox pointed out this meant Port Symbols had an IC...and so did not need a garrison (Land Unit) or Deployment units.
This is correct as written.
Of course if ungarrisoned, anyone can walk in and take it, and then the rest of your holdings tied to the port would have no supply line.

So this was the alternate I considered :
Provinces with Port Symbols take $5 less to develop
All Nations receive 5 Additional IC for placement in Home Regions

[Kaiser Kirk]

Proposed Rule Update

Existing Rules :

This is the existing rule, which has not been followed, as we have been expanding by targeted provinces.

The player defines a region on the map they wish to colonize. The player then must assign a number of military points to the region equivalent to the number of provinces in the region. Then the player, over any number of turns, pays the cost of one (1) IC per province. For each IC, the required commitment of military points is reduced by one.

There is also this rule :

When placing troops outside the homeland, either offensively or defensively, the total value of Land and Air forces placed cannot exceed the Deployment points.

Effect :  To support a Land unit outside a Home Province or developed colony takes 1 deployment point.  So each undeveloped province takes 1 Land + 1 Deployment point.

Regions
Goals :   Encourage Coastal Focus. Coherent Development, No spaghetti regions.

Old Rule : Player defines region, then claims it.
Regions up to size of home regions.
Meant to make for logical expansion.
Never really followed.

Rule Change
Colonial Regions can not be more than 4 provinces across in any direction.
When more than 4 provinces "long and wide", need to start a new Colonial Region.

There will be Three Types of Regions :
Coastal Region with a Port Symbol : IC cost normal.
Interior Regions without a Port Symbol : Due to higher costs of land transport, IC cost +$5.
Maritime Regions are islands or island groups, which are assumed to have a harbor. Maritime Regions may be administered from a nearby mainland province with a Port symbol. : IC cost normal

See the colonial development thread for other issues regarding colonial development

[Kaiser Kirk]

Proposed Rule Update

Rate of Development
Goal : Prevent unrealistic instant civilizations.

NEWThe maximum rate IC can be built is $5 per HY per Province.

Please see the colonial development discussion, as the IC costs can be cheaper than they were.

[Kaiser Kirk]

Formalized colonial expansion process
Goal : provide clear explanation of the process

Colonial expansion will occur at the beginning of each half year.

This can happen by Sea or by Land.

Player specifies
1. Departure point and target Port / Island Chain / Adjacent Province (if land)
2. How many Land and Deployment points sent
3. Any naval escort.

In the event of a contested location
1. The players may choose to fight.
2. One or both players may choose to land at a nearby port/island province.

NPCs
Tier 1 NPCs will target 2 new Port/Island Provinces, or expand to adjacent provinces from a colony.
Tier 2 NPCs will target 1 new location, or expand to adjacent provinces from a colony.
They will not contest those locations with a player.

Land unit and one Deployment units
Each NEW Province claimed requires one Land unit and one Deployment unit.
Each CURRENT undeveloped colonial province  requires one Land unit and one Deployment unit
Players may choose not to garrison provinces at their risk.

By Sea :
This is represented by large fleets of merchant marine (deployment points) carrying an array of troops, engineers, surveyors, an colonists (land unit) to a distant shore.

Distance sailed will be measured from the nearest province with IC.
Sailing speed will be 8 knots.
At 4,000nm the ships will be 21 days at sea, and will need to reprovision and refuel at the nearest port/island chain/developed provinces.  That will take 1 week.

Landing provinces must be a Port / Island chain.
That province and those adjacent to it may be claimed that HY.
It will take 3 weeks to fully unload the land units at the destination.


By Land
Current Land Colonial Region, with at least 1 IC, may expand 1 province in each direction.
Any Port colonial province can expand at least 1 province in each direction.
If 1 or more island of an island chain has been taken, the rest may be claimed.

[The Rock Doctor]

Canals

-Thumbs up.  It addresses my concerns.

Colony funding

-Thumbs up to either or both proposals.

Colonial dimensions/IC costs:

-I...don't know about this.  Yes, I objected to something Walter did, but I dunno.

-If we're going to think about interior region costs, we need to think about navigable rivers.

Rate of Development

-Make sense, no veto.

Formalized Colonial Expansion Process

-That's fine.  No veto.

[Kaiser Kirk]

Colonial dimensions/IC costs:

-I...don't know about this.  Yes, I objected to something Walter did, but I dunno.

-If we're going to think about interior region costs, we need to think about navigable rivers.

It's actually more an 'original vision' legacy.
This a naval game, focusing development and value on the coast should help drive interaction down the line.
4x4 also winds up around 16, which is a reasonable region sized, based on home region sizes, so consistent with the original region colony rule.

In this case, I picked the number after counting Rome and Vilnus's North American holdings to ensure implementation did not penalize either of you.
I think it does effect Iberia in the Congo, but that area is easily flooded jungle, still not well developed - and above the head of navigation from the mouth.


Navigable Rivers: I like the idea.

Does anyone have a map of the heads of navigation of unmodified rivers for 8m draft ocean-going freighters ?
I don't.

I could burn a ton of time online finding it..maybe.
... I just don't see that time/energy nexus to put that information together.

I know "Mark Twain" was actually a depth measurement, as the sandbars on the Mississippi kept changing, and why they built shallow draft vessels for it.
Once you're building specialty craft to ship, that's an IC investment.
Then add transit time, and you're adding to the cost of goods.

All told I'd rather drop the interior penalty than try to map the rivers.

[Desertfox]

What about, players can waive the interior penalty if they provide the mod with a plausible river scenario. Then its on the player to do the research, so you don't have to do all the research right now, you just give a thumbs up if it looks good. Plus it add an "exploration" aspect, exploration in this case being online research.

Im good with all the proposed changes.

[Kaiser Kirk]

What about, players can waive the interior penalty if they provide the mod with a plausible river scenario. Then its on the player to do the research, so you don't have to do all the research right now, you just give a thumbs up if it looks good. Plus it add an "exploration" aspect, exploration in this case being online research.

Im good with all the proposed changes.

Overall I like it.
The Hog Island freighter in the canal rules can be used as the standard here as well.

Basically, if an ocean going freighter can just sail in and offload - even over a lighter- then you don't need the lengthy offloading/reloading/travel of transshipment.
If a freighter can't ...then you need to invest in barges& wiers, levees, railroads, and other means of getting goods too and from your interior provinces (the extra 5 IC)

I'll have to tinker with the language, but should be able to manage.
I can put Ocean-shade blue lines on the map if proved.

The downside IS that there was a goal to discourage deep inland expansion, in order to bolster the naval focus of the game.
However...I really don't think many rivers are navigable a great ways up the river without help.

So let's open this idea to comment.

Snip - regions were you thing, and you wanted to avoid upriver ports - no ports in this, just geography.
Rocky - does this answer your objection on the Interior Province cost?
Jefgte- Thoughts?
Darman - you too !
Maddox - you're welcome to chime in on any of this as well :)

[Darman]

I think it looks good. 
I like the idea of having a general rule (its more expensive for anything away from the coast unless the player in question provides research for why it shouldn't be considered inland.  It keeps the mods from doing all the research ahead of time. 

[The Rock Doctor]

I'm good with that.  Onus can be on the player to demonstrate.