Loading...
Loading...
Created by DarkKnight_X
1 revisionsThe trade economy in Anvil Empires sits on top of the regular crafting and resources loop and adds a layer of zone-locked specialty goods that have to be moved across the map before they can be turned into the strongest weapons and armour. Three rotating trade resources, a Marketplace where players buy and sell with each other, and the Silver currency together form the economic backbone of a faction war effort. The system was introduced during the Three Empire War update and has been iterated on across subsequent tests; the most recent observed state is described below.
Silver is the in-world currency. It is earned by completing bounties posted at Town Centers, by selling goods at a Marketplace, and from town-tier sources tied to keeps. Silver is then spent on Avatar recruitments, Marketplace purchases, Place Order escrow, and structure upkeep. Silver does not persist between pre-alpha tests; every war begins with the economy reset.
The Town Marketplace is a placed structure inside a settled town that enables player-to-player commerce. Building a Marketplace costs fifteen Wood Planks and requires either an Iron Hammer or a Flint Hammer; placed Marketplaces decay over forty-eight hours if not refreshed, which keeps the trade network rooted in actively maintained towns.
Mechanic | How It Works |
|---|---|
Sell | Drop items into the market inventory at a price set by the seller; buyers exchange Silver to claim them. |
Buy | Browse the market inventory and exchange Silver for the listed goods. |
Place Order | Create a public purchase request; the requesting player escrows the full Silver cost upfront, and any other player who delivers the required goods completes the sale. |
Active Orders | All open orders are visible remotely, so traders can plan routes without standing at the Marketplace. |
Livestock such as Horses, Donkeys, and Chickens cannot be sold through the Marketplace; they must change hands by hand at homestead pens. Sealed barrels also have to be unpacked into individual items before they can be listed.
Three localized resources appear in specific regions of Calligo and rotate to new spawn points annually inside the game's calendar. Securing a faction's trade-resource zone is a strategic objective in its own right because the processed forms feed the strongest weapon and armour recipes.
Raw Resource | Processed Form | Use |
|---|---|---|
Flax Seeds | Linen | High-quality clothing pieces; armour underlayers; faction-specific superior gear |
Lead | Lead Ingots | Ammunition components; certain weapon tiers; ballast for heavy projectiles |
Resin | Rosin | Bowstring treatment; adhesives for crafted equipment; processed material for higher tiers |
Trade resources are extracted from specific node types in their current zone, hauled overland by caravan or short cart, and processed at a Marketplace town that has the matching workstations. The combination of zone-locked spawn and overland haul keeps the trade economy intertwined with the war economy: cut a supply line and the enemy faction's superior production stalls.
The Superior weapon tier introduced in the most recent build (Superior Short Sword, Superior Spear, Superior Short Bow, Superior Shield) consumes trade goods alongside deep Underworld resources. Heavy Armours similarly draw on trade goods plus deep Underworld metals. A faction that loses control of its rotating trade zone gives up a meaningful share of its top-tier production for the war.
Place Order is the most underused mechanic for new players. By escrowing Silver up front against a specific shopping list (twenty Linen, fifty Lead Ingots, a set of Iron Spears), a player creates a steady income for the production crews who fulfill the order. Faction Discord channels usually post the going rates so the escrow amount is competitive without burning surplus Silver. Trade-route runners then plan caravans that fulfill several open orders along the way.
Marketplace and Silver flows are still being tuned across tests. Specific prices, rotation timing, and the exact mix of trade resources consumed per recipe may shift between pre-alpha tests.
Place Order escrow remains locked until the order is filled or canceled. Cancellation refunds the Silver, but a stalled order ties up working capital until it is closed.
Trade goods are not exempt from theft; a Marketplace inside a captured town can be raided. The risk of losing inventory makes town defense a direct trade-economy concern.
