Welcome to Windward: Town and Area Growth. This short guide will go over the information you need to create a thriving economy from nothing or bolster your already existing town network.

This guide is based on my experiences, so it's neither perfect nor intended to be canon. Instead, it's a framework with which you can develop your own techniques as you experience different situations than what are covered here.

Faction
I went with Exchange. The speed and diplomacy boosts are big helpers in the process. You also get XP for trading, which is an added bonus. I was routinely given items and crew for fulfilling resource shortages, which I'm not sure is an Exchange factor, but it sure was useful! If they do not benefit your trading or combat attributes (see below), they could be sold for money or (for personnel) salvaged for additional XP.

Attributes
For town building and trading in general, your biggest factors are going to be items and crew that boost speed and diplomacy. The speed will help you get from town to town quickly and the diplomacy will help you get extra cash!

Don't forget however, that you may end up fighting pirates at times, so make sure to keep an eye out for and tuck away items and crew that are useful in combat! This isn't a guide on combat, so check out the other guides for the most useful attributes for defending your area or grabbing up a new one.

While not incredibly complicated, successful trading or creating a thriving economy requires knowledge of the process and the tools that are provided to make your endeavors a success.

Basic Town Information
Every town has four things you need to know about it. These are headlined right at the top, so they're not hard to find:

1. Name
   
2. Size
   
3. Largest Possible Size
   
4. Quests To Go

The first 3 rather self-explanatory, but the 4th, Quests To Go, is important to understand. For now, I'll refer to it as "Quest Count".

In order for a town to increase its size, it must have the current Quest Count reach 0. Reducing the Quest Count can be done in 2 ways:

• Complete Quests
• Provided Needed Resources

Completing Quests is just like it sounds, selecting a quest and completing it. No matter what city the quest ends in, the only city that will get credit for the quest is the city of origin. Also to be noted, is that no matter how well you fulfill the bonus objectives of the quest (timed, stealthy, priority etc.), the town will experience only 1 point of reduction per quest.

Providing resources will also reduce the quest count by one point per resource, no matter how badly the town needs it. In some cases, quest will run out and you will be forced to trade for growth. As a successful trader, this should not be an issue as trading will be your main source of growth and income. It is important to remember that if you're not full of cargo, quests may be a good side dish to help supplement growth and income.

The Map and the Rumor Tab
The Map is an important tool not only for locating your towns, but also for mousing over a town name to see its current resource abundances and resource shortages. The "Rumor Tab" is found in the town page and gives small snippets of information about different resource shortages in some towns and where to find them. Occasionally it will give you the amount of profit you will make on a resource trade in a town. There is usually 0-3 rumors on the rumor page. Since the Map covers all resource supplies and shortages in each town, it makes the Rumor Tab somewhat obsolete. However, it can still be used as a quick reference. The profit information is rather obsolete since your goal will be fulfilling town needs, which will net you profit anyway.

Continuing on with information on the map, it's important to get to know exactly where your towns are and maybe keep in mind the resources is supplies and if any exist, frequently recurring resource shortages at any specific town. This will help you plan and create efficient supply runs between one or more large towns that may also benefit still growing towns along the way.

Every town produces some resources and consumes some resources. For the most part, towns will never produce a resource they have consumed before and likewise, will never consume a resource they have produced. This will keep your supply network consistent on where you can find and sell resources.

Resource supplies and shortages can be categorized into two types:

• Natural
• Trade Driven

Natural shortages aren't found as often as natural supplies, but are out there, especially when a town grows. As the name implies, a Natural Supply refers to a renewable resource that a town creates over time. However, depending on the resource, this can be a slow process, even if it is more certain than a Trade Driven supply.

A Trade Driven supply or shortage is one caused by you fulfilling a resource and the town responding accordingly. Sometimes you won't see the shortage drop on a resource you provide as the town craves more than what you've given them! Rest assured though, you are fulfilling the Quest Counter. This craving can also serve as a safety net if you've made a mistake in how much of a resource a town wants. If you brought too much of one resource, don't despair, a trade driven shortage may open when you fulfill the other resources!

Trade driven supplies are incredibly important though, as some resources have a cap on how many of a resource will naturally be stored at any given time or will reproduce incredibly slowly. Also, if you have 1 town out of 5 that provides a widely used resource, prepare to pamper that town! You'll need to fulfill its wants to get every bit of that resource you can to help grow your other towns.

Also note that as your town grows to larger sizes, it may start demanding resources found only in one of your nearby areas or at the largest sizes, in a different climate completely! My recommendation would be to consult one of the guides on which climate holds the resource you want. Once you have establish that, put on some speed and armor and make a dash through the sections to get to the climate your resource is located at! Establish or capture a town wherever you can in the vicinity, allowing you to fast travel to the region as you need more of that exotic resource.

Being efficient in your trading and questing will help your towns and area grow that much faster. Like I have said previously, at least know the relative distances of your towns in relation to each other. This will help you decide if you can make that quick detour and swing by a town or if you even have to make that detour; the town may be on your way!

Free Space?
If you find yourself traveling to supply one of your cities, but find that you have room left in the cargo hold, ask yourself these questions:

Got Quests?
Check out the Quests Tab. You may find your current town may have a quest that can be accomplished just by sailing right into the town you're going to anyway!

What Town(s) Do I Pass?
Check out your map and see what is on your way or what is just a small island hop away from your destination. While you're there, check and see if there are any resources your current town can supply to these pass-by towns or if there are any resources that the pass-by town can offer your destination city.

Got More Quests?
If you haven't found any resources to bring along, but have found a town you'd like to detour to, check and see if there are any quests going to that town.

Actually, even if you're just passing by a town and don't want to stop in, a delivery quest or ferry quest lets you pass close to finish without even having to stop in, so those can be equally attractive. Alternatively, you can still stop by a town and see if you have any quests going to your final destination.

If the quest to establish new towns starts appearing and you agree that it's time to expand, pick up those colonists and set sail! Before you set foot on land though, pull out a piece of paper and a pen or bring up an excel sheet and take a look at how your area looks in the numbers. At the very least, record how many towns each resource is supplied by. For a complete picture, also record how many towns currently consume it and if it's in hot demand in any cities. This may take 5 or 10 minutes extra, but you may find it well worth it in the long run when your cities begin thriving because you snagged that extra supply of a resource.

In terms of area growth, the location of a town can be based on 4 factors:

1. Largest Possible Size
2. Resource
3. Distance From Other Towns
4. Variety of Resources

No matter how close or plentiful an area is, if you can't build a size 10 or at the very least, a size 9 town, you're wasting your time and space. A town limited by size is limited by resources. Look for areas large enough to support large towns, small little islands are not going to cut it.

As discussed above, the second biggest factor is whether or not it will be a contributor to your current economy. If it produces the same resources as the majority of your other towns and consumes the exact same things, you'll have just added another town that is going to grow slowly because it's competing for the same resources as your larger towns.

Distance From Other Towns is also something I consider important. It's possible that it's a largely subjective factor though. If you have the time to travel an extra 2 to 3 times the distance, then you may find it worthwhile to put down somewhere that can supply a variety of resources to diversify your area.

As a preface to this section, remember that new areas likely have pirates in them, so not only should you be ready for expansion, but also for a fight! New areas may also have towns in them, but this section is assuming you've found an area devoid of towns.

Maybe you've grown tired of your current area and long to start a fresh, new land. No problem, pick a direction and go! Although make sure you have picked up colonists and that there's another area in the direction you've picked otherwise you may find yourself sadly disappointed or run aground. Another consideration of direction is how close it is to your other towns, as you will likely have overlapping supplies and shortages in nearby areas. Having the ability to sail back and forth as if the new town are in the same area is quite handy!
This strategy will help you establish a base city to determine what resources you want your second town to supply. Growing a town to at least size 3 or size 4 will help show the major supply shortages that town will have and help you more accurately place towns in order to fill those shortages. Repeating this method when you want more towns will grow a balanced economy where you have a decent supply of resources flowing between towns.

Keep in mind you don't need to rush to build towns in an area. You can use trade from nearby areas to grow the towns you have established. Sometimes having a couple towns situated in close vicinity can benefit from fast travel between different regions. Pick up what you need in another region, fast travel, and done! Resource shortage addressed. On to the next one.

I've found area building to be a fun, addicting, and strangely rewarding activity. Hopefully you find the same thing to be true for yourself. Fair winds and following seas!

If there is anything that is incorrect about the guide, be sure to note below so I can fix it and make the guide even better!