I find the Wealth window to be confusing. At the outset, The income ledger includes what I assume to be starting funds. It appears to show those funds increasing even though expenses exceed income. After one month, the situation becomes clearer: the income side shows a lower number than the expenses side. It would be helpful if there was a column for projected total wealth which would allow one to easily see how long the current deficit is sustainable.
Is there any way to adjust the tax rate? If so, what are the consequences?
I visualize the econoomic pie as follows:
1. What is labeled as agricultural sector represents necessary production or people die. It, of course, includes agriculture but also would include other things such as water, clothing, housing, etc. Does each planet have a different factor for productivity in this sector? Can the player affect the productivity of this sector through research or installations or governor bonuses?
2. What is labeled as service industry represents consumer goods (and services) that people want. If they are not provided, people do not die but they are less willing to produce the goods that go to the final sector. It is necessary to realize that the only reason that people engaged in the agriculture sector are willing to spend extra time producing surplus goods beyond their own consumptive needs is that they want what the people in the 'service' sector make more than they desire additional leisure. By leisure I mean sleeping in a hammock. People, of course, will purchase more advanced forms of 'leisure' and will willingly sacrifice time sleeping in the hammock to produce surplus goods to trade for such 'leisure' products.
Does each planet have a different productivity factor for this sector? Can the player affect the productivity of this sector by research, installations, governor bonuses or tax rate, etc.
3. What is labeled as manufacturing sector represents everything going to the player acting as government. I like the fact that Aurora limits this sector, eventually, to what the people are willing to pay for in taxes? While I might label things differently, the Aurora economy makes sense even to an Austrian economist. I don't have to ask about affecting this sector, because that is what the game is about.
What do the financial centers do? I built some and there is an additional income item, but I cannot figure out how that income item is derived.
Aurora is a natural setting for a commodities market including futures. At the outset, some minerals are being mined at a greater rate than they are being consumed. It is quite possible for player activity to exceed the mining production for some minerals as I have found out by making mistakes. In real life, if the consumption of a mineral was greater than production, prices would go up and there would be incentive to harvest more of that mineral relative to some other mineral. For example, where is the most efficient place to put the automine at the margin? Without a price system, there is no way to tell. Obviously, if one is choosing between two locations with the same minerals, one would place the mine at the site with the greater accessibilty. That would obviously maximize return. But what about the situation where Asteroid #1 has Duranium accessibility 1 and Mercassium accessibility 0.5, while Asteroid #2 has Duranium accessibilty 0.5 and Mercassium 1. In this case it depends whether Duranium or Mercassium is the more valuable. Without a price system, one cannot tell. Oh, one can tell in obvious situations where there are one or two minerals involved and only one pressing need. But what about comparing two asteroids, or a planet with 5 different minerals all of different accessibilities? With a price system, one (or Aurora) could display the total marginal rate of return from the mining site and the player could decide which is the best location.
The player would be a natural to both write futures contracts and buy them. Any mineral in shortage, the player could buy a futures contract and accept delivery of that mineral. Civilians would write the contracts and deliver minerals. Any mineral in excess at Earth provides the player with the opportunity to write a contract, sell it to a Civilian and deliver that mineral to fulfill the contract.
