Caravan System¶

What a Caravan Is¶

A caravan is a hired transport service. When a player needs to move bulk goods between two settlements, they book a caravan through the Caravan Board. The NPC caravan operator provides the wagon, draft animals, and handlers. The player provides the cargo and pays the hire cost. The further the route, the more it costs.

Players do not own or drive wagons. Wagons are what the hired NPC operator brings to move the goods.

Players can hire other players as paid escorts on their booked caravan, or accept escort jobs on other players' and NPC caravans. Escorting is the entry point into the system — it requires no cargo and no upfront cost.

The Caravan Board is the coordination interface: booking caravan services, posting and accepting escort jobs, and listing NPC-originated caravan runs that need protection.

Caravan Service Tiers¶

Four service tiers are available from the NPC operators the Caravan Masters represent. The tier determines what the operator brings, how much cargo can move, and the base rate. The player picks a tier based on their cargo volume.

Tier	Equipment the Operator Provides	Cargo Capacity	Terrain	Slot Rate	Distance Rate
Porter Run	Pack animal and handler	30 slots	Road and trail	0.3 coin/slot	0.5 coin/km
Wagon Run	Light wagon, draft horse, driver	80 slots	Road only	0.5 coin/slot	0.8 coin/km
Heavy Wagon	Large wagon, draft team, driver + handler	150 slots	Road only	0.8 coin/slot	1.2 coin/km
Grand Convoy	Multi-wagon outfit, full NPC crew	300 slots	Road only	1.2 coin/slot	1.8 coin/km

Grand Convoy bookings require Caravan Master Solvig's personal coordination. She requires at least two filled escort slots before a Grand Convoy departs.

Hire Cost Formula¶

hire_cost = (loaded_slots × slot_rate) + (route_distance_km × distance_rate) + hazard_surcharge

Only loaded slots are charged — booking a Wagon Run for 40 units charges 40 × 0.5, not 80 × 0.5.

Hazard surcharge:

Route State	Surcharge
Open	+0%
Disrupted (minor)	+20%
Disrupted (major)	+40%
Blocked or Active Threat	+60%; Caravan Masters refuse to run without at least 1 filled escort slot

Example — Wagon Run, 50 units of iron ingots, Rumiarr → Trevalkaan (~35 km, Open route): - Slot cost: 50 × 0.5 = 25 coin - Distance cost: 35 × 0.8 = 28 coin - Total hire: 53 coin

UI requirement — cost breakdown display: The booking screen must display hire cost as a line-item breakdown (slot cost, distance cost, hazard surcharge, and total) computed live as the player adjusts cargo quantity, service tier, and route. The player must never be expected to perform or verify the formula manually. The total is shown prominently before the confirmation step. The breakdown collapses into a single total line on confirmation.

The Caravan Board displays the calculated cost before the player commits. The hire cost is paid upfront and is not refunded once the caravan departs.

Negotiation skill: The Negotiation skill reduces the hire cost. At Practiced, the player can negotiate the hazard surcharge down. At Skilled and above, the base slot rate is reduced. See ../progression/skill-catalog.md for Negotiation band effects.

Booking a Caravan¶

Visit any Caravan Board location (Trevalkaan, Arujoki, or Rumiarr)
Select origin settlement and destination
Enter cargo type and quantity
Choose a service tier (the board shows tier eligibility based on cargo volume and route terrain)
Review hire cost and current route risk flag
Set escort slots (0–4) and the coin reward per escort slot
Confirm booking and pay — cargo moves to the depot holding area; escort coin moves to escrow

The caravan departs on the next settlement tick after booking, provided any escort slot minimums are met. The Caravan Masters will hold departure if a Grand Convoy or high-risk route has unfilled required escort slots.

Caravan Speed and Delivery Time¶

Wagons travel slower than mounted characters and are constrained to roads.

Service Tier	Road Speed	Notes
Porter Run	3.5 km/h	Trail capable
Wagon Run	2.5 km/h	Road only
Heavy Wagon	2.0 km/h	Road only
Grand Convoy	1.8 km/h	Road only

Delivery time is based on route distance at the applicable speed, expressed in settlement ticks by the resolver.

Route	Wagon Run	Heavy Wagon
Arujoki → Trevalkaan (~30 km)	~12 hours	~15 hours
Rumiarr → Trevalkaan (~35 km)	~14 hours	~17.5 hours
Cross-region village leg (~20 km)	~8 hours	~10 hours

Winter conditions and active route disruption events can extend delivery time. The hire cost does not increase for transit delays caused by weather or events — those are the operator's risk, not the cargo owner's.

Escort Slots and Hiring Players¶

When a cargo owner sets escort slots at booking time, those slots appear on the Caravan Board as open escort jobs. Any player can accept an escort slot through the board.

Escort job terms:

Condition	Pay
Caravan arrives with full cargo	Full escort reward
Caravan arrives with 80–99% cargo	Full escort reward (threshold met)
Caravan arrives with 40–79% cargo	Escort reward reduced proportionally
Caravan fails to deliver	No escort pay
Escort abandons mid-route	No escort pay; abandonment logged against the escort's Caravan Master standing

Escort pay is set by the cargo owner at booking and locked. It cannot be reduced after a player accepts the slot. If the cargo owner cancels the entire booking after escorts have accepted, escrowed escort pay is returned to the escorts, not the cargo owner.

Self-escorting: The cargo owner can join their own caravan as a participant without filling a paid escort slot. They provide their combat and Caravan Handling skills to the caravan's survival odds at no additional cost.

Caravan Handling Skill and Escort Performance¶

The Caravan Handling skill is the primary skill for escort work. It directly affects cargo protection during threat encounters.

Caravan Handling Band	Escort Effect
Untrained	Not eligible for Heavy Wagon or Grand Convoy escort slots. Standard encounter resolution; no cargo protection bonus.
Familiar	Basic escort capability. Standard encounter resolution. Eligible for all tiers.
Practiced	Cargo loss reduced by 5% per threat encounter. Route risk breakdown visible before accepting a slot (threat probabilities, known hazards, route state).
Skilled	Cargo loss reduced by 15%. Ambush setup detectable one encounter ahead — resolver issues an early-warning flag.
Veteran	Cargo loss reduced by 25%. A Cargo Loss outcome resolves at reduced cargo rather than expedition failure — the caravan continues instead of turning back.
Expert	Cargo loss reduced by 35%. Blocked route segment can be rerouted around at the cost of additional transit time, avoiding full failure.
Master	Cargo loss reduced to near-zero. Signature effect: one Cargo Loss outcome per expedition is automatically upgraded to Partial Success.

At Caravan Handling Untrained, the escort only sees the Standard / Elevated Risk Flag. At Practiced and above, the full route risk breakdown is available before committing.

Delivery Outcome Bands¶

Outcome	Cargo Delivered	Escort Pay
Full Success	100%	Full
Partial Success	80–99%	Full (threshold met)
Cargo Loss	40–79%	Reduced proportionally
Route Failure	0–39% (salvage only)	None
Raid Success (PvP)	Cargo intercepted — see `pvp-and-conflict.md`	Determined by escort vs. raider outcome

Cargo partially lost in a Cargo Loss outcome can sometimes be recovered. If the caravan's route log identifies a specific loss hex, a follow-up Salvage expedition can attempt recovery before the site clears.

What the Caravan Board Shows¶

Field	Description
Route	Origin → Destination (e.g., Rumiarr → Trevalkaan via North Road)
Cargo	Item type (quantity shown to cargo owner and escorts; public-facing can be set to "General Merchandise")
Service Tier	Porter Run / Wagon Run / Heavy Wagon / Grand Convoy
Escort Slots	Open slots available / total slots / filled count
Escort Reward	Coin per escort slot
Departure	Scheduled settlement tick
Risk Flag	Standard / Elevated
Posted By	NPC organization or player character name + guild tag
Beginner Protected	Yes/No

Players who post their cargo as "General Merchandise" reduce Raid Contract likelihood but also see fewer escort applicants — escorts are less willing to commit without knowing what they are protecting.

NPC Caravan Postings¶

The board also lists NPC-originated routes that need player escorts. These are not player-hired caravans: the NPC operator is already running the route. Players accept escort slots only — no cargo ownership, no hire cost.

NPC Poster	Typical Route	Typical Cargo	Escort Pay Range
River League	Arujoki → Trevalkaan	Fish lots, preserved goods	10–18 coin per slot
Mountain Road Compact	Rumiarr → Trevalkaan	Ore, stone, worked metal	12–22 coin per slot
General Merchants Association	Variable	Mixed goods	8–20 coin per slot
Village NPC postings	Village-to-village legs	Specialist goods (herbs, fish, ore)	6–16 coin per slot
Town Council (emergency)	Variable	Civic supply lots	18–35 coin per slot; PvP-protected by civic flag

NPC escort work is the natural entry point for new players — it requires no capital, teaches the route and encounter system, and builds Caravan Master standing before the player is ready to book their own cargo runs.

How It Differs from the Hall Board¶

Dimension	Adventurers Hall Board	Caravan Board
Primary function	Hazard clearance, hunting, site expeditions	Goods transit, supply logistics
Rank requirement	Hall rank gating on most contracts	No Hall rank required
Contract nature	Expedition-based combat/harvest	Transport + delivery; encounter risk incidental
Success metric	Encounter resolved, site cleared	Cargo arrives at destination intact
Player capital required	None (rewards paid out)	Hire cost paid upfront by cargo owner
PvP exposure	Indirect	Direct — declared caravans can be targeted by Raid Contracts

Supply Band Effects on Cargo Value¶

Cargo owner profit scales with how urgently the destination needs the goods:

delivered_value = cargo_market_value × supply_demand_multiplier

Destination Supply Band	Multiplier
Abundant	0.8×
Stable	1.0×
Low	1.3×
Insufficient	1.7×
Critical	2.2×

The hire cost is fixed at booking time regardless of supply band. Only the profit margin shifts. Running goods into a settlement in critical shortage is the highest-margin caravan route and also the most raid-targeted.

Caravan Masters (NPC Organization)¶

Caravan Master Solvig — Trevalkaan. Manages the central depot and all Trevalkaan-origin bookings. Coordinates Grand Convoy departures. Practical and exact — will explain the hire cost formula unprompted. Refuses Grand Convoy departures without adequate escort coverage.

Caravan Master Pekka — Arujoki. Books Porter Run and Wagon Run routes from the fishing village. Coordinates with the River League on fish-lot scheduling. Knows the river road conditions better than anyone in the region.

Caravan Master Anya — Rumiarr. Books all tiers on mountain road routes. Treats the Risk Flag as a live assessment, not a static label. Will downgrade a Heavy Wagon booking to Wagon Run if she thinks the road condition doesn't support it.

Caravan Master Standing is a separate reputation track from village standing and Trevalkaan civic standing.

Tier	Points	Unlocks
Stranger	0	Standard booking access; standard hire rates
Known	30	5% hire cost discount; escort jobs show full cargo manifest by default
Trusted	75	10% hire cost discount; "Caravan Master Certified" tag on player caravans (reduces Raid Contract eligibility significantly)
Honored	150	15% hire cost discount; priority departure; Grand Convoy bookable without Solvig negotiation

Standing earned by: completing NPC escort jobs, successfully delivering booked caravans, no cargo abandonment record, and Caravan Handling Practiced or above when completing high-tier runs.

pvp-and-conflict.md — Raid Contracts against declared caravans
../progression/skill-catalog.md — Caravan Handling and Negotiation skill bands
../economy/market-contracts-and-logistics.md — shipment record model and cargo escrow
../world-state/town-simulation-and-supply.md — supply band data used in delivery value calculation
../combat/loadouts-and-safety-rules.md — escort loadout setup