Free Settlers Discussion
(written by Auratus)

In Setters, on the display for Settlers: the top number is total carriers (free plus assigned; lets call it "Total Carriers" or "TC" for short).

The middle number is "Carrier" (or "Assigned Carriers" to such tasks of carrying exclusively; or "AC" for short). The last number is "Free Carriers" (or "Unassigned Carriers;" or "FC" for short )

For ease of communication, I'll use the abbreviations I made up (TC, AC, FC).

If a game is played with defaults, then all will work just fine if the TC number says high enough to support the needs of the economy. This is determined by just watching those standing around. If none are, then more are needed; i.e., build more residences.

The problem occurs when we begin to recruit soldiers with default settings! If AC is 5 and TC is 100, then 95 (FC) of them can be recruited (minus those stuck in "occupations")! If that happens, then it'll be disaster for your economy as it comes to a grinding halt. BUT! If you have the AC set at a value that you believe will support the economy (and in fact does), then things will be different as recruiting begins. For example: Say TC is 500 and AC is 200, then what is the value of FC? How many soldiers can be recruited? The answer is 300 (FC)(again, minus those stuck in "occupations" in buildings). I noticed this the other day when checking the numbers of those available to recruit verses the FC number.

Now that I've over analyzed this, lol, here it is in a "nut shell:"
The FC number is the number of carriers available to RECRUIT or join an occupation; that's partly why so many just stand around, but if more are needed to carry or join an occupation, then the game will "call" those guys to "carry" or "join an occupation" regardless of the AC number setting.

The AC number will not FORCE carriers to carry even if you set the value high! The purpose of this number is to allow you, the gamer, a way to protect carriers from being recruited! That's all there is to it. If you watch your total population and keep the TC number high, then you'll never need to adjust those defaults. But only experience will help you determine what a "good high number" is relative to a particular economy size. Of course, it may be better to be safe than sorry, so try to get your AC to about 200 (work up to it). Most large economies use about that many, but, of course, more may be needed if the economy is larger.

So what is the "Basic Rule Of Thumb" regardless of all of this?

This: Make sure that you have some folks standing around! If not, build more residences... quick! If you have a bunch of folks standing around, and then you decide to recruit a bunch of them, then keep an eye open for how fast they disappear! If your AC number is way too high and standers are much, weapons are plenty, the FC is very low, and the bad guys are coming, then lower the AC and you'll start recruiting without harm to your economy! If standers are few and the AC is high, FC is very low, and then you lower the AC to recruit in an emergency due to an impending attack, then your economy will suffer a lack of carriers and then slow down. But the sign for all of this will always be if you have folks standing around or not, regardless of the settings. If the AC is too high, the unnecessary carriers will still just stand around, as they can't be forced to work with a high AC setting.

In conclusion: The "AC" number ("Carrier" or "middle number") is a "good thing" as it can help keep you from ruining your economy when you begin to recruit lots of settlers into soldiers; and the key is to set it to a value that is close to what is actually needed to support your economy.

"Free Carriers" are those available for recruiting and occupations in buildings. By lowering the "Carrier" number, more settlers are available for "jobs" or recruiting, but that may slow your economy if you were short on carriers in the first place.