Ruleset Movement

## Comparison of Movement Range by Ruleset

Major changes in each ruleset are in **bold.**

Please note above that in MP2E, *some transport-infrastructure gives the same move speed for all units,* and *other transport-infrastructure multiplies the move rate of all units.* Starting in MP2E, Freeciv-Web has capabilities for 2 classes of *transport-infrastructure*:

* ***ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION*** assists units in using all their speed and move points. If a unit has 2x more moves than another unit, it can travel 2x farther than the other unit, when using *Active Transportation.*
* ***PASSIVE TRANSPORTATION*** makes units *passengers* of the infrastructure. Railroads assume the movement bonus is coming from virtual trains in a national train system. Likewise, the move bonus along Rivers is presumed to come from virtual boats. 👉🏽 *Passive transportation gives units a movement range that is independent of the unit's move rate*. As passive passengers, *all* *units* use the same transportation at the same speed, giving the same range.

**Passive transport is new starting in MP2E.** Please notice:

👉🏽 Warriors, Horsemen, and Armor all go the same speed when on the same train or boat—therefore their own "speed" and move points are irrelevant when using *Passive Transportation*. That is, they all have the same movement range when using rivers, rails, or maglev.

👉🏽 On Passive transportation, it doesn't matter if any unit is injured and has a reduced move rate. An injured turtle or a rabbit on stimulants both go the same speed if they're on the same train or ferry! The value of *Passive Transportation* is therefore much greater for slower or injured units.

### **History and reasons**

In *Civ2* and *MP1*, only rails are *passive transportation.* On rails, all units shared the same infinite speed. Infinite rail speed was the "great equalizer" for the mobility issues that foot units suffered. However, infinity has special mathematical properties known to create imbalances.

In *MP2A,* the excesses from infinite speed were fixed by making rails *active transportation*. A big problem was fixed but another problem was created. Rail transportation for horses somehow moved twice as fast as for foot soldiers. The infinite rails problems were fixed, but the the "great equalizer" for foot units was lost. This further aggravated the mobility issues in 2x rulesets.

In *MP2D,* only a small improvement was made. Motor-units on a river don't move 3x faster than using their own engines on open Flatland.

In *MP2E,* a **total solution** is now available with FCW's capability for two transport classes: *Active* and *Passive*.

* *Rivers*, *Rails*, and *Maglev* are *Passive Transport*—basically the same move speed and mobility for all units, regardless of move bonuses or injury penalties.
* *Blank tiles*, *Roads*, *Quays*, *Bridges*, and *Highways* are *Active Transport* *—* they let horses gallop and engines roar: faster units get to use their "horsepower" to full advantage.

### **Notes on MP2E adjustments**

* Rivers get a range of 8 to compensate their forced orthogonal/manhattan mechanics in the game. This also serves MP2's long stated goal of making rivers more important to early civilization -- and later civilization too.
* Rails are MORE effective for Foot units than MP2D, serving MP2's goals of re-balancing penalties foot units suffer from 2x move rules.
	+ However, they are less effective for Mounted and Motor units, which should not automatically act as if the trains they use are 2x or 3x faster than everyone else's trains.
* The highly composite move\_fragment system in MP2E allows MagLev to no longer be infinite but take on a fast speed of a micro-fraction of a move point, previously not possible. This fixes issues that always arise when trying to balance any maths that use infinity.
* The new Highway road-type gives Motor units a special ability to rise above all non-motor units in speed and range, which is both realistic and helps balance some of the relative nerfs they got in other areas.

### **Conclusion**

The new system upgrades balance and realism. In previous 2x rulesets, tactical depth was hurt by unrealistic boosts of mobility on rivers and rails for mounted and motor units. These units keep their move base rate but lose unrealistic advantages on passive infrastructure. Meanwhile, Foot units are equal or more mobile in every context. In MP2E, many units have higher Min\_Speed values. Passive Transport gives GREATER mobility for injured units.