The Sugar Coast

Build the island's economy, one hex at a time

It is 16th century, and Madeira is still mostly forest. Start with a single laurel sawmill and a harbour at Funchal. Fell timber, plant vineyards, salt fish, grow woad and cane, and sell all of it at the dock. Then put the money back into the island.

Production chains that make sense

Raw goods feed workshops, and workshops feed the export trade. Timber becomes planks and pitch, and those become ships. Cane goes to the sugar mill, whose molasses goes to the distillery to make aguardente. Wine and woad are turned into indigo dye. When a building runs short of inputs, you can see why and fix it.

Water and roads

Madeira is steep and dry. Dig levadas, the island's famous irrigation channels, down from the mountain springs. Water only runs downhill, so plan the route carefully. Lay roads so goods reach the port without the haulage cost eating your profit. Levadas and roads stay built from one generation to the next.

Open the trade routes of the Atlantic

Funchal will only buy so much. To grow, send trial cargoes to win a royal charter: Lisbon first, then Flanders, and later Genoa and England. Each charter opens a bigger market and unlocks a new tier of buildings. Every port pays its own premium, and your reputation with each one carries over between generations.

An idle game that respects your time

Construction runs on real time, and your plantations keep producing while the game is closed. When you come back, you get a summary of what came in. You can check in for five minutes or spend an evening laying out channels.

Generations and ruins

Once your fortune is large enough, start a new generation. Your old buildings stay on the map, decay over time, and can be restored before they fall to ruin. Spend Mercês, royal favours earned through milestones, on a permanent sky of perks that shapes every future run.