While I would like to use a more Age Of Empires-like gather system, WC3 doesn't have the capacity. So how will it work?
- Lumber Harvesting will stay as it is in WC3, with the only differences being a 3 tier improvement tech for all Civs and a slower gather rate.
- Gold Mining capacity has been altered, now mines work best with 9-10 gatherers. A 3 tier improvement tech has been introduced for all Civs and gather rate has been slowed down.
- Depending on tests, some tiers of lumbering/mining techs might be disabled for some Civs to differentiate the economy a bit for historical and/or balance reasons.
Other secondary sources of Gold income include:
- The Coinage tech at the Market, which grants a periodic income depending on the number of your allies.
- Sea Trade Routes, capturing them with your ships grant you a periodic income.
- Killing enemy units grant you 10% of their total resource cost as gold.
- Celtic melee units steal resources by attacking enemy structures (lumber as well)
- Athenians (if implemented) have a periodic income depending on the number Triremes they own.
- On later versions, when an in game diplomatic system is developed, there will be an option to make a surrendering enemy your vassal, diverting a percentage of their income to you.
Since WC3 doesn't support a 3rd resource, I'm mixing the population and food mechanics a bit:
- Civ Centers provide population. Farms do the same as well, but they can also train herdables (Chickens, Sheep). Those are more cost effective in providing population, but are also more vulnerable to attacks and require some extra micromanagement. They can be garrisoned in farms for protection. They are also capturable in the wild.
- Fishing Regions can be captured with your ships to provide extra population
- Settlements, present at fixed locations near gold mines can be upgraded to Colonies and then to Civ Centers to provide population and mining dropsites.
