Merchants

[PaulRyan]

Is there any way to change the data folders for the game to get the merchant agent?

[jinjo]

i think it is not possible
tatw really doesn't want merchants

[Jean=A=Luc]

It's possible, you just need to make them recruitable again afaik. Though I'm not in the mood to explain how atm, maybe later.

[JorisofHolland]

In that case, I'll redirect you to the Mod Workshop.

[Himster]

Orc factions merchants should be called thieves. Dwarf merchants should either be called miners or travellers.

The only where merchants are a real neccessity is Rohan and Gondor.

[leo.civil.uefs]

I dont think merchans would be a nice stuff in TATW. Seems kk agreed with me.

[Nergor]

If you enable merchants for TATW you can get them for all factions without Orcs, so I think it is a little lorewise. I have tried it out and it is ok
To enable merchants edit the folder (data/)export_descr_buildings :
search the building market and you only have to delete the ; at each line in front of merchants under corn_exchange, market etc .
After this edit the folder (data/)descr_campaign_db :
search the line <merchants> and change >base_income_modifier float="0,0"< to 0,7
and <trade_bonus_offset float="0,0"< to 70,0

[Santeri]

So you think it's lore wise that elven merchant is selling slaves from Nurn?

[HolyDevil]

this could be done with some scripting perhaps, so that some resources become faction specific as well, or relgion/culture

in any case, the map would have to be rebalanced with the resources, give mithril and insane (yet realistic) value and watch the orcs and dwarves flourish with negative income cities ><

[Miroslav Klose]

So you think it's lore wise that elven merchant is selling slaves from Nurn?

No of course it isn't, that's why it isn't included in the main mod.
But if someone wants merchants in, then he is free to do so by modding

[Nergor]

Merchants can`t pass Minas Morgul and the Black Gate but it is possible for them to travel through Nurn. After several Games I have never seen a elvish merchant so far from his home.

[The Black Goldfish]

Nergor: To quote Gimli: "We should the the long way around".
You CAN get into Mordor Via Khand in the far east. Of cause, that is a very long way, and a waste of time. Its the equivalent of The British attacking France via Finland (Over-simplification!)

Trade in Middle-Earth is indeed a possibility. I mean, Dale and Eriadors foundations a practically built on trade. Dwarves NEED trade (in order to get money and to sell products (Mithril, steel, armor, weapons). And I could imagine Rohan and Gondor were in for some merchants too. Elves maybe too
Harad And Rhun would most likely be trading slaves.

Mordor is North Korea!

[Miroslav Klose]

Nergor: To quote Gimli: "We should the the long way around".
You CAN get into Mordor Via Khand in the far east. Of cause, that is a very long way, and a waste of time. Its the equivalent of The British attacking France via Finland (Over-simplification!)
Damn, why didn't the British tried that, genius tactic

Trade in Middle-Earth is indeed a possibility. I mean, Dale and Eriadors foundations a practically built on trade. Dwarves NEED trade (in order to get money and to sell products (Mithril, steel, armor, weapons). And I could imagine Rohan and Gondor were in for some merchants too. Elves maybe too
Harad And Rhun would most likely be trading slaves.

Mordor is North Korea!

Dwarves also need trade to get some food. Eriador mainly have trade in the areas arround the old Arnorian roads, and also near Bree and the Shire. Dale, without trade, doesn't really work that well

[JorisofHolland]

Well, they could always switch to communism and abandon money, right?

[PaulRyan]

If you enable merchants for TATW you can get them for all factions without Orcs, so I think it is a little lorewise. I have tried it out and it is ok
To enable merchants edit the folder (data/)export_descr_buildings :
search the building market and you only have to delete the ; at each line in front of merchants under corn_exchange, market etc .
After this edit the folder (data/)descr_campaign_db :
search the line <merchants> and change >base_income_modifier float="0,0"< to 0,7
and <trade_bonus_offset float="0,0"< to 70,0

I did that, but when I build one, it comes up as a princess, but with the merchant "flavor text" and doesn't do anything

[ppetrus]

Trade in Middle-Earth is indeed a possibility. I mean, Dale and Eriadors foundations a practically built on trade. Dwarves NEED trade (in order to get money and to sell products (Mithril, steel, armor, weapons). And I could imagine Rohan and Gondor were in for some merchants too. Elves maybe too
Harad And Rhun would most likely be trading slaves.

Mordor is North Korea!

But the trade itself is present and well prospering in TA. There is no need of merchants as the sources do not mention any notable merchants nor economic systems depending on single, genius merchants rather than ordinary ones selling potatoes in villages.

[Cyclops]

I think naval trade is modelled in TATW, sometimes in ways that the text really doesn't support. Fir example I think I was trading with Gondor and Rohan as the HE. The Rohirrim were suspicious of elves to the point of fearing them, and Denethor may have been the only living Gondorian who knew where Rivendell was.

The income from naval trade (once ports are established) is quite large, but the text suggests the main trade routes were the east road and the River Running, neither of which generates extra income in and of itself (although the end-point trade in the sea of Rhun is quite well done).

I can see an argument for trade for all the good factions as the SE definitely traded extensively with dwarves and men. The end point of the east road was Lindon, and it ran through Rivendell which strongly suiggests a connection with trade (although maybe Elrond and Cirdan just safeguarded trade without getting their hands dirty).

As pointed out above Dale and even more so the Dwarve's wealth was founded on exchange of resources. Yet the only way for them to really expand their trading wealth is by engaging in sea trade, something quite out of charcter for dwarves (who AFAIK are only once mention in connection with the sea).

Merchants represent contestable resource aquisition ventures. The idea of calling orc merchants thieves or raiders is a sound one, and human and dwarf merchants could be called adventurers (which has the double meaning of traders as well as D&D style heroes). If elf merchants seem a little to prosaic for the Fair Folk recall that Galion the Butler drank himself unconcious and there were elven "representatives" at Laketown who squabbled over tolls and river-maintenance, so they could be just as grubby and materialistic as men and dwarves.

Of course money matters are not really central to LOTR as a narrative, but its in there so if someone wishes to mod it in more extensively than already implemented.

[Nergor]

PaulRyan you are right, I have got a princess too. It worked fine for FRoME 1.4. I think the problem are the missing CAS and TGA files, sry

[eregost]

I wish we had merchants in Third Age. It adds another interesting dynamic to the game and allows competition over trade resources, travelling far and wide to grab as many as you can with your most experienced merchants. And its not lore breaking. Cyclop's post is excellent.

[*Ranger*]

I can imagine it now, the Dwarves wouldn't tolerate competition.... so there wouldn't be any competition