I have an idea for a Mod and I want to get everybody's feedback.

The spirit of this mod is to take the Territory Control aspect to the next level, add a little realism to game feel, as well as change much of the resource gathering to a "rate based" mechanic.


The main points to this mod.

1: The importance of the Town Center-
THE TOWN CENTER IS THE HEART OF YOUR NATION AND WILL BE TREATED AS SUCH. All structures constructed should have their cost (in building materials AND food)
increased the farther away they are from a TC. This will keep towns tighter together and help prevent sprawl. I do however suggest a "normal cost" radius from the TC.
Building extra TC's should also have a high build cost to prohibit unrealistic expansion. As an added feature there can be an upgrade to make the TC a castle when you
enter the Castle Age.


2: Building with FOOD-
Work costs energy, and that energy comes from gathered food. All structures need to have an added Food cost for construction.
Bigger buildings= more food cost to build.


3: Villagers ARE militia-
Instead of building a full-time military unit called MILITIA, all villagers should have a militia toggle to turn them into temporary soldiers.
This Mechanic can only be employed within a designated radius of the TC to give the game a "DEFEND THE MOTHERLAND" feel.


4: The Rate Based Economy-
In the current AOE world I get a sense of humans being "Locusts" as they just spread outward consuming everything as they go. I want the world to have a feeling of permanence. Mines are VAST resources that need to be sought out, established, and protected. Building a mine should be an investment. To achieve this, the mine should be a structure built on a resource and villagers should be garrisoned in it, giving you an accumulating rate of that resource (similar to relics in a monastery). The more villagers garrisoned, the better the extraction rate, but I would suggest a diminishing rate of return after a certain number of units
garrisoned; as well as a reduced return based on the distance from the nearest TC. The mine mechanic I suggested can be used for food as well. Garrisoning sheep, goats, etc. in a structure similar to the way Banthas were used in Star Wars Galactic Battlegrounds comes to mind.
Trees though. Trees are different. Perhaps there can be a "manage forest" option in the lumber mill? To accomplish this, with a certain number of slots available to add/ garrison villagers. Using this function will not cause any more deforestation, but it will cap that lumber mill's wood rate to a much lower number.
Alternatively, if you want to clear an area for building you could just use the lumber mill in the way it's used now. All resources except food should have an"operational radius" that prevents unrealistic spamming of resources.

This is just an outline I want all of us to build upon. Please respond with suggestions I haven't thought of to help develop this mod into something great for us all!

I just want to thank the developers of this game and the MOD community for giving this game and this genre amazing content.

Thanks!

-RPG