Indiaman

[Palandiell]

hey i am prussia and i was wondering if i should set up some trading posts. I was wondering, how do you get those guys into those regions? (they are not directly on the map) and how does it work with trading post? do you have to transport your own stuff back and forth or is it like normal sea trade between nations?

also, plantations (sugar, tobacco) are just a normal good that can be traded around without any extra needs right?

[Prof]

trading ports on islands with special resources are always good.

to get an indiaman into another region you have to send him on one of those grey squares in the atlantic and then select your destination

[Palandiell]

do you have to send an army too?

[Vor]

No.

[Lubeck]

Nope just a ship with the gold coin.

I've found as Prussia if I built 3 Indiamen right at the start and send them to the Ivory Coast they all find a spot available.

[Vor]

I prefer to capture Gallions from the Spanish and send them rather than build my own Indianmen. They're far stronger.

[Strikor]

You will never be attacked as long as you're on a trade node so Indiamen are definitely worth it. Just make sure you're on a node before ending the turn or it may be taken out.

[Palandiell]

You will never be attacked as long as you're on a trade node so Indiamen are definitely worth it. Just make sure you're on a node before ending the turn or it may be taken out.

that happened, how do i make the node show its trading?

[Brusilov]

that happened, how do i make the node show its trading?

There will be a green dotted line appearing from the node (if you click on the trade route it will show how much money you are making on that route). However, some trade routes appear to only to be associated with certain factions or areas - when you've got your trade ship in place keep an eye on the diplomacy menu for opportunities to trade.

I am sure I had a trade ship in Madagascar for a number of turns before the green dotted line appeared.

If your trade goes over 1000 it may not be displayed correctly.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[Strikor]

You should have one of those green trade routes coming out of it. You can also look on the trade screen in government and it should tell you how much is being exported from that region.

[Thanatos]

Thread moved to Gameplay and Strategy Discussion. PM me if you have any questions.

[klesh]

Try to send 2 at a time to your destination. If you find 2 empty trade spots, take both and send 2 more ships to double up in each spot. If you only find one slot open you've got the two to put in there right away.

In my latest game the Pirates have taken a node in each region and reinforced it with fighting ships. In this case I'll send an escort fleet as well, but usually my Indiamen are unescorted.

[Brusilov]

I like to send single ships out to each of Brazil (sugar) , Ivory Coast (ivory), Madagascar (ivory) and the East Indies (spices) - it's best to have a trading fleet in each if possible but double up if there is a free spot. You will find that sometimes there will be a small pirate fleet already trading there. You can send some warships to take them out but make sure you have a trade ship ready (with spare movement) in case you don't capture any ships.

[Palandiell]

cool thanks guys, just one more thing: why do all the trading stations have more than one vessel in that place? When i try to find a nice trading spot to raid, many navies have over 5 ships. Are these only indiaman? is it wise to have more than one indiaman in one trading spot or is it just a waste?

[eatme]

Although this question is answered in a dozen other threads... (the thing "search is in upper right corner )

The more indiaman ships you place in the trade spot - the higher profit you get from this trade spot.

AFAIR you can stuff upto 6 indiaman into 1 trade post.

Helps any ? -)

[Strikor]

I think the maximum fleet size is based on your unit scale setting. I know it's 14 for large.