Forum Challenge #2: 500 Farmers

[rkelly17]

So, I've been plugging away trying to get 500 farmers. Still haven't managed, though I have some open flat land left on the map, so we'll see. In the process I have built the largest and most long-lived settlement I've ever done and done more trading than I thought possible, so that's something. Here's a bit of a progress report. I selected a town I'd already started for another purpose, Ashforkville, because it looked to have the most flat land. Here's the year 103 summary. You can see from the mini-map that there is still some are left for expansion and more farming, so we'll see whether or not I can get past @slink's massive number of farmers. I'm having my doubts, but maybe this will be the town where I make it to 200 years.



Here's the oldest part of town. The wagon memorial is just right of and just above the center of the picture and the original forest village is on the left of the picture.



Here is the long East-West boulevard and current center of population. Since this was a farmer challenge I planted pecans in the middle of the boulevard. In the upper right is one of my two main export areas with cherry orchards and taverns pumping out ale in order to trade for logs, stone, iron and coal (to supplement firewood production). All ale goes for trade and I'm trading nothing else at the moment. For the last couple of years I'm just behind consumption in food production, so every Spring I buy enough food manually to make up the deficit (c. 4000 in the past year) and I buy leather occasionally to keep up with wool production for warm coats.



Here is the South-end trading area. It is near the exit point so, following @salamander's research I am not putting as much emphasis on these trading posts. I've got space for one more, but I need to bring ale production up a bit before I build it.



The pictures are also posted in the galleries under Village Collection.

[RedKetchup]

Nice, good job @rkelly17 dont give up !!! plenty of space left

ps. i ll post an update tomorrow or next day on mine.

[salamander]

Wow ... I'm way behind everyone else.  I seem to have hit some sort of a wall around 500 total population that's lasted several years.  I've been building houses, but the birth rate just doesn't wanted to rise.  Hopefully it's a bunch of elderly folks occupying houses, and it will eventually work itself out as they pass on.  I've got one 88 year old who just refuses to call it a day. 

[mariesalias]

I'm only up to about 800 population so I'm behind, as well. I keep forgetting it is a farming challenge and have to keep replanning areas. 

[Bobbi]

As usual I am super behind as well. Around 600 pop, but lots of room to grow. Just need time to play. Alas, if only we could ignore the world and play, play, play! 

[irrelevant]

Yes, those pesky jobs. Will someone please toggle the "work" button off?

Mrs. Irrelevant is staying in the city this week for work starting tonight, so I should make good progress the next few evenings. Me and the cats. They are good help.

[rkelly17]

@mariesalias, even laying down as many fields as I can (without over-building and pushing my population beyond where I can feed them) I find that I end up having to have people do other things as well.    Why can't everybody just be happy to be farmers and not insist on having tools and coats and warmth?

@irrelevant, I'm glad your cats are helpful. Mine just wants to sleep on the keyboard and shed. That is, when he's not outside killing rodents. Or waking me up at 2 AM for no particular reason other than he can. Why is it again I think it's a good idea to have cats?

I'm finding as I expand the building is going slower and slower on the edges where all the empty land is. Awhile back I found a way to fit a couple more farms in toward the middle of the map and the gang got right to work and had them built in no time. Meanwhile out on the West end it took over a year to build two farms. 

[slink]

@rkelly17:  Here is why we have cats:

[rkelly17]

Yes, indeed. Funny, the cat on the poster looks a lot like ours. Storm is his name. He rules his kingdom with the usual cat assumptions.

[irrelevant]

I'm finding as I expand the building is going slower and slower on the edges where all the empty land is. Awhile back I found a way to fit a couple more farms in toward the middle of the map and the gang got right to work and had them built in no time. Meanwhile out on the West end it took over a year to build two farms. 

This is happening to me as well on the expanding edges of town. What I see is that the construction crew are not being chosen very well. Even though I may have several laborers living within a few doors of the construction site, the engine will assign builders and laborers who are quite far away. And the laborers will bring resources from wherever they happen to be when they get the assignment, even though I have large stockpiles on hand right at the site.

[irrelevant]

@irrelevant Why is it again I think it's a good idea to have cats?

Oh, you have cats? That's a coincidence, my cats have people.

[slink]

@rkelly17: You mean these assumptions?  *grin*

[irrelevant]

"Dogs have masters; cats have staff."

[Bobbi]

Allow your cat to choose your next map seed. Reaaaally fun.

[irrelevant]

An idea for the next challenge? j/k