¶ A very basic visual introduction to Goods Tribes (636)
¶ WHAT IS A GOODS TRIBE AND WHY SHOULD YOU CARE! (By The Wise Venezians 637)
Every new clan starting out in TribeNet needs to know what a Goods Tribe (GT) is and how to use it. Proper use of GTs can drastically improve your quality of life as well as the logistics of managing your clan as it grows. So, what exactly is a GT?
Per the Mandate (at least the version I have) - "A Tribe or Element can be the holder of goods and animals for other designated Tribes/Elements of the same Clan... The GT acts as a storehouse for all sub-units using it". This can be a bit confusing. so let's go to our first example to explain what this actually means.
Example 1: 0637 and 1637 are both in hex A. I choose to designate 0637 as the GT for 1637. This means that 0637 will hold all goods and animals for both 0637 and 1637. Anything that is produced by either unit will instantly be available to both units without any need to transfer anything. Maybe 1637 is in charge of mining the Tin mine, but 0637 does all the refining. No need to bother with transferring that Tin ore, it is already useable by 0637!
And this isn't limited to just one sub-unit. If I also had 2637 in the same hex, I could designate 0637 as the GT for that unit as well. Now, all 3 units effectively share the same inventory and have access to everything.
¶ Why Does This Matter?
I know what you're thinking right now. That's cool, but it isn't game changing. Are the Venezians so bad at managing their transfers that they have to have all their units throw their junk in a giant pile for everyone to use? Well first, that's hurtful, and second, maybe... I might have mangled a few transfer orders here and there in my time, but that's not the point! The real benefit of GTs comes about when you have a Meeting House (MH) in the same hex as either the GT unit or the sub-unit.
Per the Mandate (again) - "The units involved must be in the same hex and/or in an adjacent hex if the GT or unit(s) using the GT has a MH". This is the true beauty of GTs. If you have a MH in a hex, you can form a GT with a unit in an adjacent hex. Let's look at our second example now.
Example 2: 0637 is in hex A with a MH, 1637 is in hex B, and 2637 is in hex C. Because 0637 has a MH in the same hex, I am able to form GTs with units in adjacent hexes. As such, I have designated 0637 as the GT for both 1637 (hex B) and 2637 (hex C). This means 0637 now holds all goods for all 3 units, AND all goods are useable by each of these units. So, in this example, 1637 could cut logs in hex Band those logs would be immediately useable by 2637 in hex C. Or 2637 could make Adzes, and these implements would be immediately useable by 1637 in hex Bon the following turn. As you can see, this drastically simplifies the logistics of moving goods between various units in nearby hexes.
(Reminder: If I had a MH in hex B but not hex A or hex C, I could still designate 0637 as the GT for 1637 (hex BJ but not for 2637 (hex CJ. The GT unit does not have to have a MH,just one of the 2 units in any particular GT relationship.)
¶ Let's Get Fancy!
Alright, you think you're an expert on GTs now? Want to take it one step further? Using a GT and adjacent hex transfers, you can effectively transfer goods to a unit up to three hexes away. How you ask?
Per the Mandate (stop whining, rules can be good once in a while!) - "To trade (transfer) items there are two means available... (skip the first one, doesn't matter for this) ... By transferring if the Tribes/Elements of the SAME CLAN are in adjacent hexes and at least one of the hexes is a Village of that Clan (that is, has a Meeting House)." Now, to our third and final example to show you how this can be paired with GTs for some truly great benefits.
Example 3: 0637 is in hex A with a MH, 1637 is in hex B, 2637 is in hex C with a MH, and 3637 is in hex D. Similar to example 2, 0637 (hex A) is set as the GT for both 1637 (hex B) and 2637 (hex C). By combining the GTs and adjacent hex transfer rules, we can now have a turn that looks like this:
Activities Step: 1637 (hex B) cuts logs
Before Movement Transfer Step: 2637 (hex C with a MH) transfers those same logs to 3637 (hex D) using an adjacent hex transfer. This is allowed because as soon as the logs are cut by 1637, they are included in the inventory of 0637. Because 2637is in a GT relationship with 0637, 2637 has access to everything in 0637's inventory.
Movement Step: 3637 rides off into the sunset with the newly acquired logs.
As you can see, in that simple example, I was able to cut logs in one hex and transfer them to a unit 3 hexes away in the same turn before that unit moved. This is just one simple example of what is possible with GTs and adjacent hex transfers, but I'm sure you can find other creative uses if you put your mind to it!
¶ This is All so AWESOME! How do I Get it Started?
This the easy part! GTs are handled via the GM Actions tab on auto-orders. Just ask the GM to set the GT and you're done. A quick example looks something like "Please set 0637 as the GT for 1637. Thanks!". And boom, it's done! If you aren't using auto-orders, ask the GM how to manage this, but I imagine it is pretty similar since it is a manual process either way.
Now, go forth and GT!
[Originally published in Clan News 819-02]