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This article is about the unit in Chronicles. For the unit in other games, see Trade Cart. |
| “ | Trade unit used for generating gold at another player's Market. | ” |
| —In-game description | ||
The Trade Cart is an economic unit in Chronicles that can be trained at the Market.
Overview[]
Trade Carts are used to trade and generate gold by traveling between two Markets. Trade Carts do not actually engage in the exchanging of resources between two civilizations. Empty Trade Carts travel to another player's Market empty-handed and return with gold. They receive their gold from the Markets of other players/allies, and deposit them at the Markets of their owners. The amount of gold gained depends on the distance from one Market to another. The farther away the Market is, the more gold the Trade Carts generate, the amount is almost quadratically proportional to the distance.
Trade Carts may engage in trade with allied, neutral, and enemy civilizations. However, trading with enemy civilizations is ill-advised unless the enemy has resigned, since the Trade Carts are likely to be slaughtered upon reaching the enemy Market.
In order to generate at least one gold, the two Markets used for trade need to be at least 5 tiles away. However, trade does work in fractional gold too, so even if the UI does not show gold, given some time, gold can be seen accumulating. The maximum amount gained per trip is 517 gold, if both Markets are placed in the very edges of a ludicrous (formerly called LudiKRIS) sized map.
Trade is an extremely important element in late games due to the limited amount of gold available from mines and Relics on most maps. Therefore, trade routes are a primary target for attacks and should be guarded accordingly.
Further statistics[]
| Technologies | |
|---|---|
| Conversion resistance |  Exorcism (+4 min, +4 max) Hemlock (die upon getting converted)
|
 Movement speed
|
 Caravan (+20%)
|
| Civilization bonuses | |
|---|---|
| Damage resistance |  Macedonians (-8% (+15% instead of +25%) when on lower elevation)
|
| Aura and ability enhancements | |
|---|---|
 Regeneration
|
 Caravanserai (+1 HP/s; Hindustanis, Persians, and allies only) Fortified Outpost (+30 HP/min, requires  Ends of the World, Macedonians only)
|
| Movement speed
|
Caravanserai (+20%, Hindustanis, Persians, and allies only) Fortified Outpost (+20%, Macedonians and allies only)
|
| Team bonuses | |
|---|---|
| Conversion resistance |  Teutons (+3 min, +1 max)
|
| Movement speed
|
 Puru (+15%)
|
| Creation speed |  Bohemians (+80%)
|
| Ability |  Bengalis (generate +10% food in addition to gold) Spanish (generate +25% gold)
|
Team bonuses[]
Bohemians: Caravan researches 80% faster.- Lithuanians: Exorcism, and Hemlock research 20% faster.
- Portuguese: Technologies that benefit Trade Carts research 25% faster.
Changelog[]
Battle for Greece[]
- Upon release, Trade Carts had a base movement speed of 1 and Caravan increased the movement speed of Trade Carts by 50%. With update 141935, Trade Carts have a base movement speed of 1.25, and Caravan increases the movement speed of Trade Carts by 20%. Thus, a Trade Cart with Caravan researched has the same movement speed as before the update.
Trivia[]
- The gold generated by a Trade Cart is inversely proportional to its speed attribute, such that if a Trade Cart's speed is increased via triggers in the Scenario Editor, it yields proportionally lesser gold so that the rate remains the same as a regular Trade Cart. The effects of Caravan include a work rate increase to counteract the decreased yield effects of the increased speed.
- A Trade Cart with Caravan and Puru ally being buffed by Persian/Hindustani Caravanserai and Fortified Outpost (requires Macedonian ally to unlock) is the fastest unit in the game. It's speed would be 1.25 (base) * 1.2 (Caravan) * 1.15 (Puru team bonus) * (1 (base) 0.2 (Caravanserai effect) + 0.2 (Fortified Outpost effect)) = 2.415.
- All Chronicles civilizations use the European model of the Trade Cart of Age of Empires II.
