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Tips for starters

DeletedUser

Guest
Hello and welcome
Do we need a little guide for new players?
I don't know, just thought about sharing a few things that might be helpful.
Anyone can contribute to this, feel free to add a reply here.

First of all this is a city builder game where you start out small and over time your city will grow and expand and can become very beautiful .. or a little bit chaotic.
So what do you need?
The game has a tutorial - or quest intro - that shows the basics of the game like the first buildings you will place and upgrade and also the world map and the research section.

Buildings and placement
All buildings in Elvenar can be upgraded
However the Builder's Hut does require Diamonds (premium currency) to do so. Otherwise it will remain at level 2, which means 2 simoultaneous constructions maximum.
The Builder's Hut does not need to be connected to a street section to work.
Every other building that is not a culture building needs a street connection to do their job.
ie. residences that are not attached to a street will still operate as a boost to population, but you won't be able to farm coins (taxes).
So let me say this again, since I see many cities that have their cultural buildings being placed right next to streets:
Culture buildings do not require a street to add their culture bonus to your total!
You can save some squares if you line them up at the edge of your city plot, namely: out of the way.

Upgrading buildings can have its limitations since they need free population (except for residences obviously) and culture. It is a good idea to plan a little bit ahead when you see a building upgrade soon to become available on the tech tree, so that you will have plenty free population, culture and plot space.
Generally buildings have 3 stages of upgrades:
Basic - or *as is* once you have unlocked the building - Advanced and Superior.
Every consecutive stage has a larger base size and will need more space.
For example the Residence (Elves) starts out with 2x2 grid space (Basic).
Once you can upgrade to Advanced, it grows to 2x3 and Superior Residences need 3x3 grid space on the city plot.
Buildings cannot be rotated in Elvenar which means you have to be a little bit creative how to place all your fancy structures.

Coins, Supplies and KP (knowledge points)
Always spend all your knowledge points in the research tree before you log off.
You get 1 KP (knowledge point) for free every hour which means the bar is filled after 10 hours ( =10 KP ).
In addition to what is already mentioned about KP (knowledge points), you can acquire them by purchasing them underneath the name of your town. If you click on the green "+" sign, there are some options you can look at on how you want to purchase them. Also, completing encounters in provinces will also reward you with KP (1 per encounter).
You probably want to farm all your residences as well if you don't know when you log back in for the next time.
There's a timer on residences before they fill up with coins so it is easier for you to estimate when you should log back in if you don't want the cash flow to stop. Simply mouse over your residences.

Culture and Relics
Culture bonus will change the amount of coins from residences (taxes) and the supplies on workshops that you will get the moment you farm those buildings.
Culture bonus has no impact on manufactories (Marble, Steel, Planks etc).
To get a higher production for goods, you should finish more encounters on the world map in provinces that have the same icon as your production type. These are called relics.
You can check your relics numbers and how many more you will need for the next boost upgrade at the bottom panel of the world map and also when you click on your main hall in the city.
The boost from relics need the appropriate research unlocked in the tech tree.

Try to mostly build manufactories that match your Relic type (check Main Hall for which you have).
They will give you so much more than unboosted factories.
Theres a trader for your city, once you have that unlocked, where you can exchange your (boosted) goods for those of other players.
Also some loopable side quests will reward you for gaining goods (check info on side quests below).

Neighborly help
Neighborly help is 1 of the 2 ways to interact with your neighbours at this time.
Another way is to use the Trading menu to exchange goods (sending a message is a 3rd option and communication is good!).
When you click on a player city on the world map:
Some players change their city name to tell you what kind of help they prefer.
For example: Culture please! or Polish please! means they want more cultural bonus and it is nice to click on the strongest culture buildings you can go for.
You can choose any message you desire (ok, within reason) where your town name is located. Players can use this space to notify others of what building they'd like assistance with (whether it's cultural, building help, or simply coins donated to the main hall.)

A word how to use neighborly help:
When you visit a city that you have discovered on the world map, use the hands icon below their player name to enter the help menu.

Quests
You will have 2 quest NPCs at the left edge of your screen.

1 guy is telling the main quest story line and some of those quests can't be declined at all.
The other guy has a set of quests - let's call them side quests - which can always be declined.
Important:
Those quests will come back once you have completed or declined (or a mix of that) the set of side quests.
Side quests have a decline button. Use this and confirm to skip to the next side quest.
Now, clicking this does not remove the quest once and for all, but instead only the current progress for the quest will be lost and the loop will bring you to the next side quest of the set.
And so on and so forth, until you come back to the end of the loop and start over with the same side quests.

Usually the NPC for side quests is the top of the 2 NPCs, after you log in.

Side quests will change at certain points when you advance your main quest story line.
Usually they want more of X to give you more of Y.
For example early on in game: Gain 500 Supplies. Reward: 10.000 Coins.
Later on the equivalent side quest would be: Gain 2.000 Supplies. Reward: 45.000 Coins.

Trading
Just a few words here.
Using the wholeseller is quite expensive. Some will say, it's a scam!
So try and resort to player trades before you buy goods with hard earned coins or supplies.
Player trade offers have a rating system. That's also explained in game.

Generally a 1:1 trade is considered fair and will be accepted quickly.
However when you see a 50% markup for the goods asked for it means that you will have to pay an extra 50%, because the trading player who has put up the offer has not been discovered by you.
The same will happen to players who check your own offers and who did not discover your city on the world map, yet.
You will notice a small (!) exclamation mark next to the rating for those trades.

The maximum markup for placing an offer is 400% trading value, the lowest markdown is 25%.
This means you could potentially ask for 4 times the value of the goods that you offer.
Or only a quarter of them. Or anything in between.
The default ratio is 1:1 when you set up a new offer.
i.e. 100 apples for 100 oranges :p
All of this takes into account that next tier goods have 4 times the value:
16 Basic goods /tier 1 = 4 Crafted goods/tier 2 = 1 Magical goods/tier 3

Note about the Trader and paying a 50% fee on a basically fair trade (1:1)
I feel like adding this in is important since the thread turned into a debate whether the 50% fee for remote player trades is justified or not.
For example, on player trades where you see an offer that reads:
100 Steel (Offer) < - > 150 Marble (Demand) >!< (check this exclamation mark in game)

The other player asking for your Marble will only get 100 not 150.
The additional 50% fee is a game feature that kicks in when
the other trade partner is in trade range but not discovered by your scouts, yet!
If you think about this as a game world immersion factor, it could be a tax taken by highway bandits, since you haven't liberated the provinces between you and the other player (not scouted yet).
As such it is a game feature that is intended.
If that trade option very profitable for you it can be a good idea to free the provinces between you and that trade partner and pay no fee in the future!

Fighting and Training
I'm not doing any fighting on this world (EN).
Maybe someone else who is more experienced can add a few words or share a link to a guide that explains fighting?
The amount of armories you have directly affects the amount of troops you can train in the barracks. (Bear in mind that you can upgrade the barracks to reduce the time it takes to train troops and also to unlock more troop slots.)

Thanks and have fun ;)
____________________

Feature Discussions
reduce trader fee for undiscovered neighbors
 
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DeletedUser111

Guest
I've got a tip for player trading..

Don't, just don't!
 

DeletedUser

Guest
I've got a tip for player trading..

Don't, just don't!
Hello MrSiborg
Could you explain your reasoning for this?
Remember this is a guide for new players to get them started so that they can play and love the game as much as we do.
Thank you
 

DeletedUser111

Guest
Player trading is unfair and needs fixing, for now just don't trade.
 

DeletedUser111

Guest
Pay 15 items of tier 1 for 10 items of tier 1.. Need I say more?
 

DeletedUser

Guest
While I agree that the trader fee is a bit too much, I sincerely hope people don't follow what you said - I'm not slamming you, there's just a possibility new players might take you up on what you said. Given the fact that inactive accounts will be deleted and replaced with new players, if they don't decide to trade, that's going to aggravate me and others, due to the demand for goods. If we all didn't trade, I'd be screwed in terms of the amount of goods I produce. I RELY on other players to provide me with fair trades - for without them I'd have to use up much more space providing myself with many manufactory's - or go to the rip off wholesaler.

This is barely me even thinking about it. Basically, new players in new slots who would never start trading would pretty much suck. Otherwise, I'll have an annoying time building 5 (at a minimum) of ALL non boosted goods manufactory's.
 

DeletedUser111

Guest
I understand what you're saying, every word of it but it we don't make a stand it won't be changed. End The Trade Fee!
 

DeletedUser

Guest
The 50% Markup for remote player trades is still by miles cheaper than resorting to the Wholesaler paying 500% of same tier resources.
So if you were saying the Wholesaler is unfair and needs fixing, for now just don't use it. I would certainly agree ;)

Anyway using player trades is the most efficient way to come by the resources that are not relic-boosted.
Not withstanding using Diamonds of course.

However I'd rather not like to see this thread turn into a room to discuss game balancing issues, to be honest.
It is meant to inform and guide new players on a constructive base to help them learn the ropes and manage to build their city.
So please stay informative and constructive and try not to use your personal or biased opinion on what the game should or should not be.
We're playing the game as is
Thank you.
 

DeletedUser111

Guest
Were not trying to make it a balancing thread, it's tips for starters and I'm telling starters to steer well clear of player trading until it's fixed.
 

DeletedUser3

Guest
Hi folks - please remember this is a guide, not a discussion thread. If you wish to discuss issues with the Trader there are threads elsewhere in this forum where that can be done, such as Fair Trades? Let's please keep this guides section as a guides section, and not turn guides threads into discussions on specific questions.

Thank you for your co-operation :)
 

DeletedUser

Guest
I believe that a discussion should be held to an extent to allow both points of view coming across - this allows the new player to come to a decision. If, for example, a new player was to come across this thread without reading any other threads, regarding trading, should I pipe down ad not voice my opinion when it's something I feel strongly about? This is why it's important to have both sides of a story, laying out your points and justifying why you're making that point, giving the new player a decision they can take themselves, knowing all the facts presented.

The word "guide" is to guide to players, so discussing what you think is important, even if it only refers to a specific issue will allow new players to come to their decision. So, I'm trying to guide players to trade, yet others may not see it that way. It's still relevant to the guide because it's helping players to decide what they want to do.
 
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DeletedUser

Guest
That's a very extensive guide which I'm sure people will find useful, so I'll try and find a few things that could be added. Let me know if I mentioned anything you've already included.

In addition to what is already mentioned about KP (knowledge points), you can acquire them by purchasing them underneath the name of your town. If you click on the green "+" sign, there are some options you can look at on how you want to purchase them. Also, completing encounters in provinces will also reward you with KP (1 per encounter).

You can choose any message you desire (ok, within reason) where your town name is located. Players can use this space to notify others of what building they'd like assistance with (whether it's cultural, building help, or simply coins donated to the main hall.)

Interested in higher score? Your score is calculated by adding your total minimum culture and your working population.

The amount of armories you have directly affects the amount of troops you can train in the barracks. (Bear in mind that you can upgrade the barracks to reduce the time it takes to train troops and also to unlock more troop slots.)

That's all the time I have for now, hope you found this small amount of information helpful.
 

DeletedUser

Guest
Fair point, #MetalLift.
I'll try to add links to the relevant discussions at the bottom of post #1,
so that players are able to find a more diverse and detailed look on specific game features.
 

DeletedUser

Guest
I hope that new players know how much we relay on helping each other. Its a big part of the game right now and when Friendships start then it will change a bet. To me its just as big as Trades are.
 

DeletedUser186

Guest
Hey mjjmlaf :) The Wholesaler is part of the Trader. The Trader is where you can trade goods with other players and pretty much set your own price. The Wholesaler is the fourth tab in the Trader window and you use it to trade with the game itself. The prices are set and they are pretty expensive, however it is useful if you run out of storage room for coins or supplies, or no other player is offering the goods you need. Hope this all make sense!
 

DeletedUser219

Guest
Still a bit of a n00b myself, but for fighting, I have had great results with 3 squads of infantry and two of ranged attack (artillery? not quite). This may change when I get more than 2 types of units. :cool:
 

DeletedUser172

Guest
After the big game changer of fellowships being introduced.
No 1 tip join a fellowship, visit your fellows and neighbors and provide neighborly assistance.
 

DeletedUser277

Guest
After the big game changer of fellowships being introduced.
No 1 tip join a fellowship, visit your fellows and neighbors and provide neighborly assistance.

+1 to this...I am amazed by how few of my neighbours bother to visit/effect neighbourley help. Given that this act takes but a few seconds and gives you (as well as the receiver) coins etc., its a 'no brainer' to me.
 
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