Hello Merchants! As the game early access launch is nearing, I think it's a good time to give a glimpse how trade and resource gathering in Merchant of the Skies works. First of all, you start the game small. Really small. A boat and a few gold coins is all you have.
So how do you start? You fly around and search for valuable resources. Normally, your ship requires special tools (modules) to gather specific resource types. But whenever you discover a new island with natural resources, you can scout it to gather what you can. All you need is time.
You can also do quests: either bring basic resources or deliver letters, both give OKish amount of gold.
Taking on a quest Of course, don't forget about the actual trade :) You'll need to buy low and sell high in order to survive. After you've revealed most of the map, it becomes quite a lucrative thing to do.
As you accumulate more money, you can purchase resource producing islands:
And then build buildings on them:
This starts the automatic production: as the in-game calendar runs, your warehouses keep stockpiling gathered resources. You can either sell them or invest into building advanced production chains:
The advanced production buildings create second and third tier resources that are used for quests and further base building, so you can't easily trade them in at the trade posts. That's when bazaar comes into play (pun probably intended):
Bazaar is a special island where you can sell even the most advanced resources. There's a catch though: you are not guaranteed to sell them as you set your own prices. There are also a limited amount of visitors per day.
In the end, you might end up not selling anything. But that's usually not the case! Just trade wisely and don't be too greedy and you'll succeed. :)
Thanks for reading and make sure to follow the page for more in-game updates. Do you think this system will be enough for the trade mechanics? Let us know what you think! Best, Vladimir