Trade is an advance in Call to Power II.
Gameplay[]
Although humans have bartered and traded within communities since the beginning, the Trade Advance represents the advent of trading between other communities and even other nations.
Caravans are central to the Trade system in the game. The Bazaar is a city improvement that provides a location for merchants and consumers to gather on a regular basis.
Roads make Trade easier and faster, and The Appian Way is one of the most famous roads in history.
Great Library entry[]
The proliferation of trade, internal and abroad, was essential to the economic vitality of many of the ancient empires. Commerce was no longer limited to the goods within a city or country's own capacity to harvest and manufacture. Foreign caravans would deliver exotic new foods, fabrics, luxuries and precious items. Unfortunately, trade was a dangerous endeavor. Bandits and other hostile forces threatened the livelihood of many merchants. Contracts, laws and other fruits of jurisprudence helped mitigate the risk.
Trade had political and social ramifications as well. Nations generally had to be on good terms in order to keep trade routes open. As a result, consumer demand for foreign goods could powerfully influence a government's motivations to keep peaceful relations with trade partners. Trade contributed to the international exchange of music, art, culture and science. It motivated nations to fund the exploration of the world, to seek alternate trade routes and find new cultures and societies with which to exchange goods.