Freighters are good!

Are you looking for an empire to join, come and join the Empire of The Light.

Very true! Remember this before you get involved in a war with the others! They go staright for your freighters and *bam* income is gone! I always research so I can get more trade routes also as I love the extra income.

As Seeker Master mentioned, come join our empire. Empires add another dimension to the game by allowing your submitted game scores to add to an empire if you belong to one. You will still also be in the individual listings. It really does make it enjoyable.

At higher difficulty levels, freighters are also *crucial* to keeping relations with the aliens at a reasonable level. They are much less likely to go to war with you when they know that it would cut off a big source of their own income. At crippling and masochistic, it's pretty much standard strategy to get trade going ASAP with the biggest, most threatening AI.

I used to set up trade routes across the map and cluster trade starbases in my primary trading sector. Boy did that cause wild fluctuation in my income! Others have mentioned lining the trade route with starbases, so I tried it. I like to have a trading partner 3 or 4 sectors away in a straignt line. I will even build a PQ 14 and gift it to an AI if I can. Then with 2 or 3 trade starbases in every sector along the route and the moolah be rollin'.

I've never really playe a game long enough for a freighter to complete its curuit more than once- so investig in trade SB's always seemd sort of a waste... I guess my trade routes are sort of long.

~SDC~

Freighters although slow are also good scouts with excellent range (better range than "scouts"). This helps on huge or gigantic maps.

In maso, I try to get my freighters going by starting with the closest or most threatening AI. Avoiding war is the primary purpose and fattening the purse is secondary although necessary for sure.

You can often get trade tech from a minor early or if you find majors you can trade for freighters. Sometimes I build freighters but mostly I trade for them.

The shorter straight line trade routes are better for building the trade starbases. With long distance trading (like huge & gigantic maps), I really don't find trade starbases necessary except as an afterthought to already existing starbases (you are paying the starbase maintenance anyway). Each to his/her own but we all agree freighters and trade are VERY important. Good luck.

Trade star bases increase the trade route's value when a mini-trader is in the star base's sector (10%, 25%, and 50%). The additional income is well worth the star bases and their trade improvements.

Also, the further apart the trade partners are, and the larger the combined population of the trade partners, the more valuable the trade route is (just another thing to consider when establishing trade routes).

Maybe this link will help

http://russellmz.joeuser.com/index.asp?AID=242

I did build a pretty good trade starbase in a sector that was along one of my routes. On it, I built three of the trade modules that increased freighter profit. It definitely made a difference and was bringing in even more money, a good amount more I need to say.

I am wondering, does a trade starbase effect the departure and destination sectors too? For example, the sectors the systems are in that you are travelling too and from for the trade route? If so, say I have a trade route that is 4 sectors long, can I build a trade starbase in all 4 of those sectors and benefit from each one? Also what about more then one starbase in a single sector, say if I have 2 will I get trade benefit from both of them?

Joining an empire sounds like fun, maybe I will do that. How can I join it? Right now I am a newbie but I am having alot of fun with this game.

You can build as many trade starbases as you want and the bonuses will stack. They only work when they're in the same sector as the mini-freighter, though. Straight-line trade routes are better if you're using trade starbases because the mini-freighters always go diagonal first, so if it's not straight-line they won't go through the same sectors on the return trip.



Join by going to an empire website, like this one http://www.galciv.com/metaverse/empires.asp?id=506 , and clicking on the "Join Empire" button. The list of empires is right here: http://www.galciv.com/metaverse/empires.asp . Click on the names of the empires, most of them will have a link to a website where you can find out what the empire is all about. Pick out the one that suits you, they're all always happy to welcome a new player. (The Open empires are, anyway. Some of them are Invite Only. Just ignore them. )

~SDC~

for empires check this link too ->http://www.galciv.org/
would you believe it! im there too LOL LOL LOL

~SDC~