Suggestion: price plus (last months) freight

[qobb]

It would be very useful if you could set up an automatic pricing strategy which would be a certain "base" price, plus shipping charges.

However, it is complicated to calculate shipping because different factories produce different amounts and it isn't always clear which factory will end up supplying which branch.

One solution is to pick up the shipping charges for last month in this months prices. Assuming sales are somewhat smooth, it should all (roughly) balance out.

Basically, take the total amount of shipping divided by the number of cars sold at that branch and add that number to the base price. If you don't want one type of car subsidizing another, then do that calculation for each model of car sold at that branch (probably a better approach).

If it turns out that this strategy produces "spikey" sales where lots of cars are sold one month and none the next (as nobody can afford the horrendous shipping charge) which then resets the shipping charge, producing sales again, you can smooth things over by averaging across the last 3 months (quarter).

[Eric.B]

It would be very useful if you could set up an automatic pricing strategy which would be a certain "base" price, plus shipping charges.

However, it is complicated to calculate shipping because different factories produce different amounts and it isn't always clear which factory will end up supplying which branch.

And this is exactly why there can't be an automated pricing system, as sales have to be calculated in order to distribute shipping, but pricing has to be known before calculating sales.

Factor in other things, such as the break even price of a vehicle depending on the amount you produce, and you'll have a system that will either 1) never be profitable or 2) Spikes into the 6 figures every once in a while thus causing you to sell no vehicles.

As such, no automatic pricing systems are going to be implemented in the game. The suggested price is as close as you'll get. It's also the same price AI uses.


If you want to be picky about your shipping costs, utilize the shipping distance system. You can lock shipping from specific districts for example. You then just create a custom district of the factories you want to get cars from, then assign a lock on your vehicles to that district. Thus the branch will only get cars from that district, and shipping costs will remain the same (not including fluctuation in fuel costs.)


That being said, you should probably be pricing your vehicles a little more or building more locally if shipping costs are getting to you. The auto industry didn't really get mass globalization until the late 70s. At which point in game, shipping costs barely factor into your sales price.

[qobb]

Will the modding tools (when they come out) have access to the factories and branches, so I could, in theory, write my own automatic pricing strategy?

[Eric.B]

Will the modding tools (when they come out) have access to the factories and branches, so I could, in theory, write my own automatic pricing strategy?

No, that requires the code, which will not be open for modding.

Mod tools handle external data found in the /media/scripts folder.


There will however be some smaller maps, which means less locations to change prices in, fewer factories, etc.