First of all, we're programmers mostly interested in the technical challenges, so the design is somewhat floating. Originally, the idea was pretty much to clone Settlers 4 but improve on AI (easy, right?) and combat mechanics a bit. Since then, I think we've moved away from that a bit. For example, I think we've dropped all types of borders and intend to allow building anywhere (terrain limitations and exploration are still factors).
The first thing you'll want to do is to find a spot where you can create basic industries, like basic building materials and perhaps food. Once you have a sustainable base (should be fairly quick), you'll want to expand to find increasingly rare/valuable resources. Depending on game mode (peaceful or not), you may want to find suitable defensive positions as well. I think we'll be fairly generous with space, but it might not be immediately available. A simple example would be a forrest. It would initially be rather hard/annoying to build there, but you can clear it using wood cutters etc.
Do you process things on a One for One mechanic? One ore makes one metal which makes one tool? Or do I need to move half a dozen ore to make one metal, and a few metal to make one tool? Will the later stages of a production chain become easier and cheaper to move, encouraging initial processing close to resource gathering, but making it easier and more flexible how far away the later chain buildings are?
We haven't really discussed it, but I guess we'll have early game tech that's mostly one for one, then later game tech that requires either exponential amounts of simple/common resources, or resources that are increasingly hard to come by. I expect that optimizing building placements to reduce goods transports will be one of the keys to success.
Do you have factions, or the sort of tech tree that encourages specialization? It would be really interesting if different factions were differentiated by their logistical strategies (minions, conveyors, ballistics, mobile buildings, etc.).
We do want varied play styles, but haven't decided on how yet. We can go by factions, by a branching tech tree or by presenting the players with different sets of resources, effectively forcing them to adapt. For example, if you start in a toxic area full of "oil", you might be better off relying on a small set of highly efficient machines and vehicles, while if you start in a very "green" area, it might be cheaper/easier to rely on a large population and human workers.
