Goods

The New World produces many goods, which can be traded in Europe. In order to this, you must use your ships to transport them to your Home Port. As soon as the ship arrives in Europe, you can sell the goods, and buy others, in the Europe Panel. Later in the game, after you have built Custom Houses, goods can be exported automatically. Until then, you can partially automate this process by establishing Trade Routes.

Exporting these goods to Europe will be one of your most important sources of income. At the beginning of the game, you will probably want to export raw materials, such as Sugar and Tobacco, but as prices drop, you should concentrate on luxury products, such as Rum and Cigars, which command higher prices.

Food is the single most important good, since all your colonists consume two units of food each turn. If this demand can not be met, some of your colonists will starve to death. On the other hand, a colony that has accumulated 200 units of food will produce a new Free Colonist. Unfortunately, buying food in Europe is always expensive, and colonial foodstuffs fetch only poor prices.

Food comes in two varieties, Grain, which can be cultivated on nearly all land tiles, and Fish, which is produced by ocean and lake tiles. In order to harvest the bounty of the sea, you will need a Dock, however.

Breeding new Horses also requires food, but the horses you already have are content to eat grass and consume no more of your precious food. In order to breed horses, you need at least two horses in your colony (for obvious reasons). Breeding horses does not require Stables, but Stables do speed things up.

Four raw materials are typical for the New World. They will initially generate a good income, but prices will inevitably drop. These goods are Sugar, which is best cultivated on Savannah tiles, Tobacco, best cultivated on Grassland, Cotton, which is most abundant on Prairie tiles, and Furs, which are available on all forested tiles, but most abundantly on Boreal Forest and Mixed Forest tiles.

These four materials can be used to produce corresponding luxury goods, which will fetch much higher prices in Europe. In a distillery, Rum is produced from Sugar. Tobacco is used to make Cigars in the Tobacconist's House. The Weaver weaves Cloth from Cotton in his house, and the Fur Trader turns Furs into Coats in his house.

Initially, the resource which fetches the highest prices in Europe is Silver, which can be mined in Hills and Mountains. As prices drop, Silver will become less and less useful, however. On the other hand, Hills and Mountains also produce Ore, which is not in great demand in Europe, but which can be refined to produce Tools in the Blacksmith's House. Tools are required for clearing forests and plowing fields, as well as for constructing advanced buildings and units. Furthermore, Muskets can be produced from Tools in the Armory.

Lumber also fetches poor prices in Europe, but can be used to produce Hammers in the Carpenter's House. Hammers are required for constructing all buildings, as well as naval units and Wagon Trains. Hammers are ``abstract'' goods that can neither be transported nor traded. They represent the work required to finish a building rather than some tangible material.

The two other ``abstract'' goods are Liberty Bells, which are produced in the Town Hall, and Crosses, which are generated by the Church. They represent the concepts of liberty and of religious freedom. Liberty Bells are needed to convince your colonists of your policies, and to elect Founding Fathers to the Continental Congress, whereas Crosses attract further colonists.

Trade Goods, on the other hand, can be transported and traded, but they can not be produced in your colonies. They are only available in Europe and are useful for trading with native settlements, which generally demand Trade Goods.