There are a couple of themes where players argue that towncontrolers have not any stimulus to protect their city, that killing a player is always gives more profit that to give him freely to trade, gather resources and so on. Also there are more fair speculations about "unrealistic" TC rewards, lack of economy and capability to manage the towns life besides militia. So, after rereading one of the old suggestions for caravans i decided to make attempt to redesign it, possible to improve its chances to be implemented.
Brief concept
There nothing new: players activity (via special quests, crafting on a local workbench, trading, gathering and so on) in a north towns produce some ammounts of trading goods. Any player can manage a caravan from major settlements, if caravan will successfull reach its destonation and there are free trading goods player get some raw resourses. Also, ruling faction can manage caravans from their own town to major settlements. In both cases successfull caravan will give town some sort of trading points which can be exchanged by fraction that control it for weapon, ammo, armors and other valueble stuff.
1. Town economy, produsing trading goods (t.g.)
1.1 One of the main source of t.g. is jobs like brahmin shit shoveling and lifting caravan boxes. Because of the nature of the city they can be changed to similar jobs with the same technical implementation (corn gathering instead shit shoveling, digging and lifting stones from mines instead box lifting). Newbie get xp and little payment, towncontrollers get LSW, i think its a fair deal
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1.2 crafting on a local workbench. This will encourage the craft in their own city by ruling fraction and their allies, i think that is naturally, and another stimulus for safekepping town inhabitants.
1.3 trading with NPC, same that now, but will increace t.g. amounts not pure cash.
1.4 Resource gathering may also increace t.g. For example, each ore digged in nearlest mining side or town mine will give t.g., so if there no players because of pk-activity, towncontrolers will lost something too.
1.5. no cash reward for successful TC, all reward through t.g. and caravans
For these pvp-fractions that don't want to do something in their own towns, becase they have fun in pvp, not "sims" some amount of t.g. will generate "for free".
2. Caravans
2.1 Every settlement would have a caravane manager npc. Any player can use him to know how many t.g. each town have at this moment, open an account that would have all the goods which he delivers the city were sent to the warehouse.
2.2 In order to manage a caravan, player must pay some caps for goods and cart to caravane manager. Moving caravan carried by dialog option with brahmin that drawn the cart. Player will be accompanied by his slaves, mercenaries and other members of his group, if they so wish.
2.3 Movement of cart is automated as a railroad, but random encounters are "on", so there possibility to plunder caravans by hostile players.
2.4 after caravan reach its destanation cart disappear, goods are "moved" to warehouse, which represent by changes in player trading account.
3. Trading
3.1 Each succeseful caravan gives trading points both to ruling faction and to the caravan owner, subtracting the same number from tradinng goods avaible in town.
3.2 If there no trading goods, caravan shipment remain on "warehouse" and slowly spoiling, untill caravaner finally exchnage them for t.g.
3.3 Trading points can be exchanged for raw resourses by caravaner and for already crafted weapons, ammo and so on by fraction that take control over the town.
3.4 All "exchanges" probably would be implement via dialogs to prevent abusing.
it would be wise if the list of things obtained through trade points does not depend on the recipient and sender of caravans
P.S. I tried to make the this text readable, really
