indirect trade routes

[Betelgeuse]

A indirect trade routes is a trade route where you stop at a middle station for a service to improve the price you can get.

A current example of this is buying duralloy ore then going to the tinkers and having them make armor then selling that armor. You can also use enhancement services to improve prices.

One thing I know that is being pushed for is manufactured commodities. You buy raw goods then sell them to a station. That station changes those goods into finished commodities and then you buy those commodities to a different station. You can even have a loss at the sell the raw and buy the finished stage and still come out on top. (it would make sense too they want to make money)

What other things can happen so you can get a better profit? I can think of three things manufacture/barter, enhancement, repair. Can anyone think of anything else.

[george moromisato]

I like this idea.

1. How do we stop this from turning into an endless source of money? Are there limits on the raw materials?

2. I presume that the middle station is randomized (i.e., we randomly pick a raw material and then randomly pick some manufactured item).

[Betelgeuse]

limits in raw materials would limit the total money.

Also a extra idea the middle doesn't have to be just one station. It can be several steps. Takes some raw materials to station A and they make some stuff that you take to station B that trades that stuff for different stuff and then you go sell that different stuff somewhere.

[OddBob]

2. I presume that the middle station is randomized (i.e., we randomly pick a raw material and then randomly pick some manufactured item).

Can you explain what you mean by this? Is it that the things which can be made from a raw material change from game to game? Or something else?

Also a extra idea the middle doesn't have to be just one station. It can be several steps. Takes some raw materials to station A and they make some stuff that you take to station B that trades that stuff for different stuff and then you go sell that different stuff somewhere.

Not only that, the 'path' can split as well, so for example both Station A and B take the raw material but they each do something different with it.

[Desolator]

I like this idea.

1. How do we stop this from turning into an endless source of money? Are there limits on the raw materials?

2. I presume that the middle station is randomized (i.e., we randomly pick a raw material and then randomly pick some manufactured item).

How do you stop a trucker from making an endless amount of money? You don't.

[Periculi]

Interesting- I experimented with resource chains and trading specialties in the Enviromental based mod I did- It seems like a great idea to bring more life to trading! Having some details like manufacturing processes and Supply/Demand factors for stations would be really great, IMHO.

[Betelgeuse]

looking through some older threads (waiting for .99) and thought up a new idea for this. With item data going in you could have two of the same items have different prices depending on what they where made out of (high quality vs low quality)