Colonization Tips and Tricks

[JohnMegacycle]

Greetings Colony Leader!
I’ve embarked on many campaigns for colonization and I’ve acquired quite of bit of knowledge, in the form of tips and tricks, that I’d like to share with you. Regardless of your choice of nation, I hope these ‘tools of the trade’ will help you in your adventures and assist in your claim for independence.

– Sources of Income – Gold (Money) can be made in a few ways in Colonization. Instead of forcing the player down a single income stream method, the game allows for a few options. I’d like to go over these in detail as I believe they all deserve a little spotlight:
– Trade with Europe – This is the most basic method of revenue generation and simply means hauling raw or finished products from the New World back to the Old World for sale. The two major drawbacks with this method is having to pay taxes and boycotts shutting down your ability to trade certain commodities entirely. Also, having to haul the stuff all the way across the world certainly adds a few turns.
– Trade with the Natives – This trade method is a little more complicated but definitely worth your time. Each village will trade three different goods with you and each successful trade not only puts cash in your coffers quicker but it will also improve your relations with that specific village and the tribe as a whole. Prices vary, sometimes severely, so be sure to do some looking around for the best deal for whatever commodities you are producing.
– Trade with Colonial Powers – Similar to trading with the natives, after recruiting Jan de Witt to the Continental Congress, you will be able to trade with the other colonial powers. This can be a lot of fun, especially after you sell back stuff that you just stole from them using a privateer.
– Custom House – Ahh, the Custom House. This is by far my favorite method of generating income as it is really a ‘hands-off’ approach to making some cash. You’ll be given the ability to build this fabulous structure once you recruit Peter Stuyvesant. After you get it setup, it just becomes a question of volume. Produce and sell as much stuff as you can as everything gets smuggled into Europe. This practice doesn’t matter if products are boycotted or not, but you’ll still have to pay taxes.
– Working With the Natives – When first settling in the New World you will certainly meet some new and unfamiliar faces. At first, the Native American tribes will welcome you warmly and periodically provide gifts which can help spark some early sales with Europe. It’s important to maintain this relationship, since the Natives can provide an extra income stream when Europe pours on the taxes, and that can be done via missionaries, trade and gifts.
– The War for Independence – Dragoons are going to be the backbone of your attack/counter-attack force before and after you declare independence. A new game mechanic is triggered at the time of independence which opens another level of promotion for your troops and gives a bonus when attacking from outside a colony, which makes them even more potent. Levels of troops are then set in this manner:
Criminal > Indentured Servant > Free Colonist > Veteran (or Dragoon) > Continental Soldier (or Dragoon)
Artillery isn’t bad in a pinch, but it really isn’t designed to take damage since it suffers a 75% penalty called ‘Artillery in the Open’ if it’s caught outside of the fort. So stock up on muskets and horses so you always have a quick military at the ready.

Cheers, to your own fight for independence!
-JMegs

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