Economics - Revision history

Cholmondely: Added link

2026-08-25T20:31:55Z

Added link

Cholmondely: Updated link

2026-06-29T15:20:42Z

Updated link

Cholmondely: /* BB Discussions */ Added cim on the GalNavy budget

2025-08-19T14:18:20Z

‎BB Discussions: Added cim on the GalNavy budget

Cholmondely: /* Game issues */ Added another link (Thought experiment: no currency)

2025-07-29T13:33:30Z

‎Game issues: Added another link (Thought experiment: no currency)

Cholmondely: /* Loans */ Added Bank of the Knights Templar

2025-06-09T13:52:17Z

‎Loans: Added Bank of the Knights Templar

Cholmondely: Added Witch Bank

2025-06-09T13:48:47Z

Added Witch Bank

Cholmondely: /* 3) Stranger */ Added a couple of remarks

2025-05-02T11:48:03Z

‎3) Stranger: Added a couple of remarks

Cholmondely: Added Daddyhoggy's snippet

2025-05-02T11:26:18Z

Added Daddyhoggy's snippet

Cholmondely: /* Notes */ Added a summary of trade models

2025-01-01T10:29:55Z

‎Notes: Added a summary of trade models

Cholmondely: /* Ideas for a seventh OXP */ clearer title, better formatting

2025-01-01T10:12:35Z

‎Ideas for a seventh OXP: clearer title, better formatting

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 * Cim (2013): With the current ship prices in Oolite, any pirate other than the entirely non-pragmatic would realise that the average act of piracy nets them a few hundred credits, selling a ship gets tens or often hundreds of thousands of credits, and the odds of surviving each fight are less than 99%. They therefore all sell their ships and retire in luxury.
 :...I personally just assume that the player is the subject of a giant practical joke and all the shipyard owners stick three extra zeroes onto the price tags when they see you coming... [https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?p=205539#p205539 Cim (2013)] - and see Cim's [https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?p=199912#p199912 idea] for a ship-price/maintenance oxp.
-* Cim (2014): ''Basically the idea of piracy for profit is fundamentally broken because the value of any ship's cargo is insignificant next to the capital cost of the ship. (Malacandra)'' My guideline for this is to divide the in-game cost of the ship by 100 (or more). A decent ship will pay for itself in a few good trips, and then you'll be rich (but more likely dead); meanwhile light fighters and third-hand scraps/salvage can probably be picked up for a few hundred (most of which is the pulse laser).
+* Cim (2014): ''Basically the idea of piracy for profit is fundamentally broken because the value of any ship's cargo is insignificant next to the capital cost of the ship. ([[Malacandra]])'' My guideline for this is to divide the in-game cost of the ship by 100 (or more). A decent ship will pay for itself in a few good trips, and then you'll be rich (but more likely dead); meanwhile light fighters and third-hand scraps/salvage can probably be picked up for a few hundred (most of which is the pulse laser).
 :It also explains things like:
 :- why you get pirate groups of three light fighters with pulse lasers, as opposed to two light fighters with military shields and lasers; also, why hardly anyone carries hardheads.

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 :* Furthermore, "rich" and "poor" agriculturals now impact on their markets as rich and poor agriculturals (Stranger relabels them as Common, Strong & Extreme, treating their wealth as a separate quality). Rich agriculturals have more money to pay for computers than poor ones do (all other factors being equal). Poor agriculturals sell their produce for less.
 :*Markets may now stock 800TC or more of a commodity!
-:Economies are given a comparative rating on the [[F7 page (data on "system")]] showing how the neighbourhood affects the local economy. The new rating is on the scale between poor agricultural (Agri 4) and rich industrial (Ind 4).
+:Economies are given a comparative rating on the [[F7 screen (data on "system")]] showing how the neighbourhood affects the local economy. The new rating is on the scale between poor agricultural (Agri 4) and rich industrial (Ind 4).
 ==== Critique of oxp ====
 Faulty. After a while (often quite a while) the commodity prices tend towards 0. Also, there are no changes in quantities, just in prices.

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 *[https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=15061 Another] Cim inspired discussion (2013): Piracy, trade, AI roles, Market prices (Sat Aug 03, 2013 9:29 pm for a bit; Sun Sep 01, 2013 2:57 pm for a bit)
 *[https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=13342 galcop's] BB Thread (2013) - why the laws are the way they are, Governments, Economics & GalCop
 *[https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1848 The 127 Limit] (2006-9)
 *[https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=17366 Commodity sub-types] (2015+): note [[User:Redspear|Redspear]]'s powerful defence of the Oolite trade model.

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 * [https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=11904 Tax OXP?] thread (2012)
 * [https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?p=233333#p233333 Problems] of having too much money (2015)
 === Other Discussions ===

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 === Loans ===
 * [[Bank of the Black Monks]] - the Order of the Black Monks of Saint Herod
 * [[Media:First Finance 0.3.0 beta.oxz | First Finance]] (downloaded {{#downloads:First Finance 0.3.0 beta.oxz}} times) by Ocz: [https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=17937 Beginning the game with a loan to pay off] - the loan! (2014)
 * [[Media:Loan Repayment 0.2.0 alpha.oxz | Loan Repayment]] (downloaded {{#downloads:Loan Repayment 0.2.0 alpha.oxz}} times) - the lenders! by Ocz as above (2014)

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 :Slave and narcotics (and partly firearms of course) are a special case. This is illegal business, criminal, affected by random events, so quantities and prices for such items will be highly variable.
 :::(Stranger's introduction to [[SW Economy]] - but see also his essay, [https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=21094 here])
 ==== Critique of oxp ====
 The creation of mining economies in agricultural worlds unable to support agriculture is incomplete. The mining worlds bear misleading agricultural icons. Their markets are agricultural with very low prices for the food that they cannot grow and must import. One suspects that the vanilla game code inhibits full implementation of this oxp.

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 [[File:Redspear's Trade-Species Diagramme.png|thumb|right|320px|[https://bb.oolite.space/viewtopic.php?p=256342#p256342 Yet another trade model by Redspear] <br> ''Click to expand'' ]]
 == Critiques of Oolite's economics ==
 === 1) Cim ===
 * '''Cim''': Let's assume a 1Tc barrel of Food contains 1000kg of food, or approx 500 person-days of food. A Boa will bring 125Tc, and lets say 2 or 3 arrive each day carrying food rather than other goods. So they're only importing enough food to feed a couple of hundred thousand people at most. We can probably pretty safely assume then that the Food cargo is generally luxury food, interstellar delicacies, and the like, and all planets are usually self-sufficient for basic food needs. The NPC bulk haulers (''eg'' [[HammerHead]]) could raise it to a couple of million people, perhaps, which is still negligible.

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 === Notes ===
 [https://archive.org/details/oeconomica01arisuoft/page/n7/mode/2up?ref=ol&view=theater Economics] was a book written by Aristotle in Classical Greece. He started analysing household accounts (Oikos Nomos - laws of the household) and moved on to look at the accounts of a Greek city state. Hence the term.
 Note that of these 6 OXP's only New Cargoes, Demand Driven Economy & Stranger's SW Economy are available through the in-game [[Expansions Manager]].
 == Taxation ==

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 These three authors thus wrote OXPs which enhance the economics of Oolite in quite different ways. There is a sixth OXP which works along lines similar to Cim's, [[Risky Business]] by [[User:Phkb|Phkb]], who sadly offers us no learned disquisition on economics! Risky Business aims to make Multi-Gov, Feudal and Anarchy systems more rewarding for traders, by tweaking prices on a ''few'' goods. Goods that are already over the average could be increased. Goods that are below the average could be reduced. Not all goods will be impacted at all locations. Phkb's newest version includes Cim's Risk Based Economy and allows you to choose between one, the other or both (you will need [[Library OXP]] to do so).
-=== Ideas for a seventh OXP ===
+=== Commander Trigg’s ideas for a seventh OXP ===
 I believe I've come up with a system that reduces the traditional milk runs and encourages commanders to trade with a bigger variety of commodities and in more systems. I've also come up with a reasonable explanation for the various price levels that fit into the ooniverse.
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 Poor Agricultural
 Poor Agricultural systems are a small step away from operating on a subsistence level and the population concentrate almost exclusively on growing food crops. Those few crops that aren’t used to fend off starvation are either sold for export or converted into potent fermented concoctions, very little of this brew makes it off-planet however. The average farmer has little need for the finer things in life and as such there is little demand for luxuries and computers. Machinery is highly sought after however, particularly tractors and harvesters which allow the farmer to make better use of his land. The more adventurous among the population head off into the wilderness on hunting expeditions to collect the pelts of the local wildlife and it is these furs that bring in the majority of the planet’s off-world credits.
 Rich Agricultural
 Factory farming is the order of business on these worlds. Crops are plentiful and this allows the farmer a relatively easy life and they can even indulge in the occasional luxury. A significant amount of the crops are converted into liquor and fine wines – which brings these systems the nickname of galactic vineyards. The most pressing need amongst the population is for computers which are used not only to manage the sprawling farmlands but also much-needed entertainment.
 Poor Industrial
 Picture a landscape of row upon un-ending row of grey factories, smoke belching towards the skies and you have a pretty good idea of what life is like on a poor industrial planet. These factories churn out large quantities of low-grade mechanical goods, alongside the radioactives that are the inevitable side-effect of the manufacturing process. There is a high level of alcohol dependency and drug abuse amongst the population as they attempt to escape the drudgery of their dull, uneventful lives
 Rich Industrial
 On rich industrial planets you will find a more skilled workforce, specialising in producing all the marvels of the modern age – everything from top spec computer systems to the latest in robot butlers. This climate has bred something of a “nouveau riche” culture, with the well dressed constantly in search of the latest exotic furs to stay one step ahead of the fashion police. With this culture comes a distinct lack of enthusiasm for the more “common” pastimes of drink and drugs, however a commander may find a willing market for the more unusual luxury items.
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 Poor Agricultural systems sell furs and buy machinery
 Rich Agricultural systems sell liquor and buy computers
 Poor Industrial systems sell machinery and buy liquor
 Rich Industrial systems sell computers and buy furs