Merchant#

Membership in a merchant guild is a sign of trust and business reputation. Merchants shape trade flows, influence the market, and ensure the supplies that underpin the state’s economy. Their opinions are taken into account both on exchanges and in large-scale government projects.

Conditions for obtaining status#

A bourgeois doesn’t need to attend a public school to obtain the status of “merchant.” Joining a merchant guild by paying an entry fee of 300 gold coins is sufficient. The mere act of joining confirms the clone’s wealth and reliability.

Status options#

Most of the game’s key mechanics become available at the merchant level, and they only become more powerful as you progress.

Once you reach merchant status, you can list items on the commodity exchange. You don’t have to be a merchant yourself to do this—any clone of an account with artisan status or higher will do.

Job#

The merchant has access to high positions in state enterprises:

• Assistant manager and manager at the shipyard.
• Shelter building manager.
• Manager at the jewelry workshop.
• Manager at the cutting factory.
• Manager at the fair.
• Manager of the Trade Guild.
• Collegiate assessor at the chancellory.

When hunting, the merchant becomes able to hunt wild boar.

Agriculture#

A clone with the “merchant” status can simultaneously manage a business and engage in agriculture:

• Maintain cattle up to 40 heads.
• Keep up to 40 pigs.
• Own a chicken farm with up to 100 heads.
• Cultivate up to 20 plots of land and grow crops.

Own business#

A merchant can open highly profitable businesses and manage large assets:

• Open your own jewelry production and create jewelry with characteristics.
• Own pleasure craft with a capacity of 50 seats.
• Own a large cruise ship with 100 passenger seats for expeditions for rare ingredients.

Urban planning#

Once you achieve merchant status, you can upgrade your settlement to a city. A city grants access to more powerful production facilities, increases your population, and boosts your daily tax revenue.

It becomes possible to build a settlement hierarchy: estate – village – city. This reduces resource costs and increases the efficiency of the entire production chain.

Merchant trading strategies#

The merchant works not with individual transactions, but with volumes and terms:

• Forms stocks of scarce goods in advance.
• Uses trade orders to buy back positions at reduced prices.
• Uses aggressive or cautious buying and selling strategies.
• Controls the price through lot volumes.

Merchants also actively trade on the currency exchange, analyzing exchange rate fluctuations and profiting from price differences. The gold they earn is used for industrial development, construction, investment, and further status enhancement.

The Path to Nobility#

The merchant is the pinnacle of the common class. The next step is entry into the aristocracy.

The first noble title is “Velmozha.” Obtaining it requires not only status but also significant achievements: a developed city, a strong principality, and the ability to manage large systems.

A merchant who manages to follow this path lays the foundation for moving towards the highest goal - the imperial throne.