Types of Livestock
In addition to crops, different types of livestock are available on the farm.
Unlike crops, which have to be sown each year, animals will stay on the farm for many years and provide an annual revenue for the family.
Requirements for Livestock
In order to purchase livestock, different buildings may be required, such as a shed for the chickens.
Multiple buildings will increase the total revenue from livestock, since they are assumed to provide more options and resources for proper tending.
If buildings are sold, or lost due to random events, the animals that require those buildings will not disappear, although their revenue will be lower due to the missing bonuses from buildings. And no additional animals that require the missing building can be bought, until the player decides to reconstruct it.
Placement of Livestock
There are 8 tiles where livestock can be placed.
Livestock Vulnerabilities & Countermeasures
Livestock is vulnerable to a number of random events.
Chicken Disease, Pig Disease, Cattle Disease and Elephant Poachers will cause the player to lose all livestock of the corresponding type.
The Angry Mob, Guerillas, and Refugees events will cause a player to lose all livestock of all types.
The Civil War event will cause the player to lose approximately three out of four heads of livestock, chosen at random.
There’s little the player can do to avoid the random events and protect his livestock, but some countermeasures should be mentioned. For example, The Angry Mob event can be prevented from occuring at all by not neglecting the fields and making sure to plant at least some crops every few years.
And if the player has paid a Representative, the Guerillas event will not cause him to lose any livestock either. The presence of a political representative is assumed to indicate a democratic development in the country’s political climate. Minorities and mariginalized groups have better representation and are able to stake political claims, so would-be-militants and guerillas are less desperate and less inclined to pillage local farms and villages.
Boosters
All types of buildings add a cumulative bonus to the annual revenue from all livestock. The bonus is shown under “Building bonus” on the Annual Report.