Read this if you're having problems with squlaor

[therother]

1. I do not believe that population alone in real life is responsible for squalor.

Not alone, no. But in 200BC there was only so far you could go in eliminating squalor, or waste and refuse if you like. The dustbin (garbage) men didn't come round every Tuesday to empty your dustbins for a start.

2. Farms should make the settlements themselves less squalor prone because lack of food = squalor. Farms could increase population, yes, but they seem to be missing inhibiting effects on squalor that they deserve. It is one-sided at the moment, that is where I see the rub. I doubt CA intended us not to upgrade farms (or public health buildings) as a way of reducing squalor.

Lack of food = squalor? I disagree. You can have all the food in the world, but if you've not got the infrastructure to handle the population - not enough houses, water, refuse collection, etc., then you are going to be living in a mess. Humans, like all animals, are messy people; have a room full of them, especially if they are well fed, and watch the waste. The only difference is that animals tend to live in better equilibrium with their surroundings than humans.

3. The game is by nature trying to be a simple population simulator. If you make farming a workable enterprise, there should be population shift out of the settlement to the countryside. (If you've ever played the old Lords of the Realm series you will recall how populations moved around the map based on "happiness levels" effected by a few different factors--it was a simple but effective population simulator.)

Oh, I agree with you. The simulator could be better. I'm not trying to be the fanboy defending CA to the death, but I do think that at least some of the criticism directed at the management of cities is, if not quite unfounded, then certainly on pretty shaky ground.