Caravans = Loot pinatas?

[Goldenpotatoes]

Trade caravans are an extremely nice thing to have, having something other than the occasional trade ship for selling goods is nice, but right now they feel a bit too easy just to shoot and steal from.

You can check the gear of their animals to see what is carrying what. This means just stationing a few colonists with pistols and quickly popping the one with the best gear usually ends with a few of the caravan retaliating while the rest bolt for the map border. Sure, it worsens your relationship with that faction, but that's nothing when I can send back a fraction of the silver I stole on the console and patch up their incapped colonists for a decent relationship boost. Rinse and repeat for phat loot.

Specifically during the first year of a colony, the stuff you can get from these caravans is pretty insane. Oh, you're carrying 2 power arms, a painstopper, and 3000 silver? Don't mind if I do!

itt: caravans op pls nerf

[BlackSmokeDMax]

Agreed, I guess I prefer the way trade caravans work in the Hardcore SK modpack (not sure which actual mod does the job)

[Chibiabos]

No need for that, just put a bunch of beer near them.  If their pack muffalo gets drunk enough, they'll become incapacitated and drop absolutely everything -- and you don't take the relations hit then.

[RoboticManiac]

I think they should stay as is. Maybe add some extra guards; but generally the same. It's good to have the choice of either robbing them; and collapsing relation between you and them, leading to future sieges and attacks for a one time boost to resources or building a healthy trading relationship; allowing you to exchange what you don't need for what you do.

[Mrs_Brisby]

Robbing a trade caravan should cause a huge reputation hit.

[Noobshock]

extra guards, worse / more durable reputation hit for ambushing them, whatever combination of those.

the option to pillage them should remain, but it should have reasonably serious consequences. maybe trigger a seriously stacked raid from said faction as a revenge among the possible outcomes, for instance.

hell, double raids, where the angried caravan traders join up with another angry faction to kick your ass. and good luck defending!

[Shurp]

No need for that, just put a bunch of beer near them.  If their pack muffalo gets drunk enough, they'll become incapacitated and drop absolutely everything -- and you don't take the relations hit then.

LOL, beer raiders, that's too hilarious   Maybe the traders need to carry their own food for pack animals.  (This will also solve the problem of pack animals devouring your devilstrand crop)

And yes, if they're carrying 10,000 silver worth of goods, they need to have at least a dozen guards protecting them.  Your colony isn't the only one interested in raiding them...

[JonoRig]

I always just assumed if you raided the convoy, the faction would be instantly hostile towards you, and you'd lose your (sometimes only) trading partners, how small is the rep hit?

[Shinzy]

or you know maybe they could just send bigger, better caravans if you keep trading instead of raiding

[Shawnganz]

I would program the factions to automatically become hostile with you and send in units with weapon/armor of equal value or higher to that which was lost. On top of that any silver/rep buying require you pay 3x the amount stolen to be neutral.

Maybe different faction types would handle the situation differently. Like the one mentioned above or like a faction that would intercept your comm ship trades.

[mumblemumble]

Just give factions a social setup,  with thoughts / ect,  not just a static bar.

Also perhaps make gifts much less effective the more you piss them off over time.

[makapse]

shooting down the caravans? Thats nothing, when the temp outside is -100C All the pack animals drop down right at the entrance of the colony. Thats some way to gift for playing ice sheets. I reached a point where i would trade all the things i want with the caravan, knowing that there is a 50% for it to die anyway before it decides to go home in the summer

[keylocke]

hmm.. i thought they already have the ability to detect if they're trapped or if the temperature is becoming lethal?

[makapse]

if the temp is around -40C ,yes they can detect the temp, but below that the very pack animals(muffalo) cannot survive hence even when the pawns themselves can, the animals die and with them,the trading loot. Also, below -60C they have a bad habit of not being insulated enough when they come(the parkas bring min temp to around -40 most of the time), so many of the traders die too. You need to test this on the -95C min winter maps to see this though.

Oh and even when they detect the temp is bad, they die before they can reach the border to exit on the second meduim map well away from the border