Great Merchant - Please explain

[WillieSea]

There is a great merchant that gives "1 free copy of the luxury resource on this tile to your capital city" and it highlights the hex's with a luxury resource. Going to the hex and activating the person seems to do nothing.

Can anyone explain what it is supposed to accomplish?

I would have though it would copy that resource to a square owned by my capital city, but I don't see anything like that happening.

Or does it simply give 1 of that resource for 1 turn to my capital? The whole line is confusing and clicking on the civilopedia did not explain it any further.

[Stormwinds]

I have assumed that it gave you an extra copy of whatever luxury resource you activated him on, but I've never tested it as the bonus is super underwhelming.

[That Crazy Squirrel]

It doesn't plant the resource on a random tile, it makes a copy of that resource to your "inventory" to be traded.
You can see the difference on the trading screen.

[BlackSmokeDMax]

Consider the ability as if you have a luxury in your empire and you build the appropriate thing on the tile with a builder to exploit it.

This ability does not give you the ability to have more than one copy of any particular luxury to be used.

For instance, if you already have the 'amber' luxury in your empire, using the great merchant ability on another amber will only give you the ability to be able to trade away amber in the normal way.

The "usual" best use of this ability is to go to a different continent (all land based luxuries are limited to I think 4 different types per continent) and secure a luxury item that otherwise you would never likely be able to get by placing a city there, or without the need to pay an AI civ for that luxury.

[WillieSea]

Originally posted by BlackSmokeDMax:

...For instance, if you already have the 'amber' luxury in your empire, using the great merchant ability on another amber will only give you the ability to be able to trade away amber in the normal way.

Sorry, this is still confusing. Would I not have the ability to trade the amber since I already have one without having to get the second amber through the person?

Originally posted by BlackSmokeDMax:

The "usual" best use of this ability is to go to a different continent (all land based luxuries are limited to I think 4 different types per continent) and secure a luxury item that otherwise you would never likely be able to get by placing a city there, or without the need to pay an AI civ for that luxury.

Perhaps I am reading more into it then you meant, but I think you are saying it is for 'trade reasons' only. So if I have NO amber on any of my owned lands, I can use this merchant to 'add' amber to the list of items I can trade?

And since I have never used the 'trade' screen other than when other empires want to trade with me, another question.

Does the 'amber' in the above example of mine remain forever as if I owned land with amber on it?

And if I finally do get 1 plot of land with amber, I still only have 1 amber I can trade? The merchant added one goes away, and I now have the land based amber...

[BlackSmokeDMax]

Originally posted by WillieSea:

Originally posted by BlackSmokeDMax:

...For instance, if you already have the 'amber' luxury in your empire, using the great merchant ability on another amber will only give you the ability to be able to trade away amber in the normal way.

Sorry, this is still confusing. Would I not have the ability to trade the amber since I already have one without having to get the second amber through the person?

Originally posted by BlackSmokeDMax:

The "usual" best use of this ability is to go to a different continent (all land based luxuries are limited to I think 4 different types per continent) and secure a luxury item that otherwise you would never likely be able to get by placing a city there, or without the need to pay an AI civ for that luxury.

Perhaps I am reading more into it then you meant, but I think you are saying it is for 'trade reasons' only. So if I have NO amber on any of my owned lands, I can use this merchant to 'add' amber to the list of items I can trade?

And since I have never used the 'trade' screen other than when other empires want to trade with me, another question.

Does the 'amber' in the above example of mine remain forever as if I owned land with amber on it?

And if I finally do get 1 plot of land with amber, I still only have 1 amber I can trade? The merchant added one goes away, and I now have the land based amber...

Yeah, I didn't explain it very well, lol.

When you already have a copy of something that is being used for amenities, the ONLY use for further copies is for trading it away. You can never use more than one of each luxury type in your own empire for amenity purposes. If you don't really need the amenities, or just need any trade benefits more, you can definitely trade away any luxury, whether that is acquired via the great merchant method we are talking about, or any of the other methods
- great people give some unique luxuries
- any luxuries acquired by being suzerain of a city-state
- luxuries within your own land that you have used a builder to place the appropriate improvement

The more copies of a luxury you get, the more you can trade away. So that will definitely help you bring more money into the empire.