1. We have discussed the importance of resource endowments and institutions for an economy's successful development.
a. In this game, what are the resources that make up the endowments, and what defines a given player's endowment of resource at the start of the game? (e.g. what do they have and how much? Is a "hex" a "hex"?)
b. How do institutions matter for the game's outcome? (Hint: Think of trade rules, the role of the robber, the "Monopoly Card" and the role of the army)
c. How does technical progress occur in the game? Is there any other way that technical progress could have been introduced to the game?
d. Is being on the coast is an important determinant of "success" in this game? Why or why not?
e. What else would matter for the "success" of a player in this game?
2. I have provided you with a proposed board of play that is intended to represent the territory that becomes Canada.
a. How well does this "model" represent Canada? (Hint: look at an atlas)
i. Is the distribution of endowments a reasonable approximation to reality?
ii. Is there anything missing?
b. What region, or provinces, of Canada is represented by each player colour?
Answer
(i) The rulebook states that each player starts the game with two roads and two settlements. Also, the hex represents a piece of land which is to be developed. Therefore, the endowment of a player consists of two roads, two settlements and a piece of land.
(ii) The institutions in this game are both positive and negative. Starting with the negative one first, we see that if any player produces a "7" then all players suffer. This can be compared to the case of negative externality, in which case, all the players suffer due to action of one player.
Coming to trade; it increases the efficiency of production in the game. Players can obtain required resources by trading cards with each other, and hence utilize the resources efficiently. Bank also serves the same purpose.
Monopoly card and army strength give real monopolistic power to a player in terms of market power and arm power respectively. A particular player can use his army or monopoly card to his advantage.
(iii) Technical progress occurs in the game through the progress cards, knight cards, and VP cards. These cards bring in technology into play because they give bonus points or get rid of problems like robber, which otherwise is difficult to do. The VP cards give extra Victory Points, while the knight card get rids of the robber and also enables the player to build an army for future.
Another possible way in which technical progress could have been introduced is by bringing in card or resource which increases the effectiveness of existing resources. For example, a player earns a card which halves the cost of building a city for rest of the game.
(iv) Being on the coast can definitely help a player win the game more easily. This is because of the reason that the port allows the player to trade things at favourable terms of trade. However, this might not always work in the favour of the player. There are certain qualifications in order to gain from nearness from the ort. First of all, the port hex should be the actual port. Secondly, the specific ports should match the requirement of the player, in case they are there. If there is a mismatch between the specific port resource and the player's requirement then it is of little use to the player.
(v) The most important thing to succeed in this game is efficient use of resources while keeping in their scarcity and the need for development. The player must always keep in mind which resources are required in order to earn more Victory Points. So it does not make much sense to keep on building roads and wasting resources when the need exists for a city. Planning and execution are the most important part of the development process, given the resources, and the same applies to this game as well.
2. a. (i) The distribution seems to be a rough representation of the endowment of Canada.
(ii) One important thing missing here is the distribution of population, which is the most important resource, as nothing can be done without employing a man. Also, there is no depiction of the water resources.
b. The Blue colour represents the Northwest Territory and Yukon. Green represents Manitoba and Ontario. Red represents Baffin Island and Quebec and Black represents Newfoundland and Labrador.