Tile variables

Population

% workforce:

agriculture

other primary sector

secondary sector

tertiary sector

Topography

Land use % area:

forest

marsh

scrub-land

grassland

barren

agriculture

residential

rubble

other primary sector

secondary sector

tertiary sector

Tile variables tie closely into Infrastructure. For example, the extend of farming could either be modeled using a % land use approach, or could be by a count of number of farms (potentially of different sizes and levels of advancement). One advantage of the %-land-usage-model is that is gives a sense of the upper bound that can be achieved.

Another key aspect is that the tile variables, together with infrastructure, will affect how units behave, both in terms of movement and combat.

Tile variables and movement from sea to land

In Civilization II, there are no prohibitions on movement from sea to land (and vice-verse) other than the limitation that only the Marines unit type could attack from the sea. A more detailed and realistic model would be to give tiles a coast type variable, and then give units a minimum coast type for unloading.

For example, the coast types in order of increasing ease of movement: cliffs; beaches; bays; estuary; harbours. The last of these is an infrastructure improvement rather than an inherent tile property. The cost to build harbours would be proportional to the ease of movement of the coast (i.e. cliffs costs more than beaches, which costs more than bays.

So for example, a Marines type unit would be able to unload onto any coast type, but an artillery piece would require a harbour.

Another angle to this would be to give ships landing modifiers, so for example a landing ship would allow units that normally require a harbour to land on beaches.

There could be a defensive advantage of cliffs vs beaches, and beaches vs bays.

There could be a difference between loading and unloading, e.g. some units require a harbour for loading, but can unload onto beaches.

A simpler model would be to have a variables for units "requires port to be unloaded from ship" yes/no.