New Mechanic for M.U.L.E. II: People/Housing

[cerealbusiness]

STORY: The colony that arrived also brought a bunch of optimistic pioneers that wanted to live in the new frontier. These people constitute the Irata job market. They require homes and food to be useful and thrive.


People would work mainly as a new type of mule, but a unique one.
Housing would work as a new type of commodity, but a unique one.

Rules would be as follows:

The new building that I assume would be on the opposite end of the M.U.L.E. II globe would hold a corral-like zone full of people that can hold up to 14. The market produces one person for 2 food every turn up to 7 new people or full at 14. (Think mule corral)

A new mule type can be built and is a housing mule, and it also requires an energy to run. This mule depending on where it's built produces a fixed amount of housing that doesn't spoil:

River: 1
Mountain: 2
Plain: 3
Forest (New terrain type. Wood=Houses): 4

Housing can be sold to other players and works like a commodity that doesn't spoil and is fixed.

Every player could start with 2 housing.

Every turn a player can grab a person and hire them by placing them on a mule-occupied plot of land, assuming they have the appropriate housing.

EXAMPLE: I go to the market building and step into the unemployment zone and pay the amount to hire a worker, then he follows me as I lead him to the mule factory that I want him to work on, each factory can hold up to 3 workers assuming you have the housing.  While I'm standing on the plot of land I press space to assign him there. If he is my only worker and my amount of housing is 2 than he will work for me.

A worker has an initial hiring price determined like mule prices and will work for you as long as you house them.

Similar to energy, mules need these people to run them.

The differences include:

1) Different mules require different amounts of workers: a house mule doesn't require workers, energy mules and farm mules require one worker, smithore and crystite mules require 2.

2) Your character counts as one worker.

The goal here is to make the game more complex and intertwined (And expanded to accompany more players) while maintaing balance. The rules that I posted are subject to change. As they stand the implications would mean that players need more money to invest in mining(since mining mules require more workers), food would be in greater demand(since food is needed to produce more workers and the amount of workers needed would increase or decrease depending on the type of mules in use) and energy to a lesser extent(energy would be in slightly greater demand to power houses), new commodity of housing would change the dynamics, etc.

I really feel like the mechanic could be better designed but I need another perspective.

Please post questions, comments, suggestions etc. I need help to refine this idea.

[GambitTime]

Sorry, I don't like it at all... MULE is an economic game of suppy and demand... suppy housing doesn't fit

[MuleyMan]

Just add a Bomb Brad button, fix the land auction bug and the game would be perfection imho. lol

[leahcim99]

Maybe in a completely re-vamped game, but I think it would add too much time to the current version.