Why can't we escort our trade caravans?

[MΛRCUS HΞLIUS]

Why is this simple feature not in the game? Link a unit with the trader so it moves with the trader. Like we can with civilian units...

[davemon]

Does seem kind of logical to be able to do that.

[Skumboni]

When you write a mod for that let us know , as I will use it.

[grognardgary]

Or better yet spend a bit extra gold to give your trade units a chance to fight off at least say barb scouts However that being said I generally if not a war just plunk an archer or two on a hill along the route and rally to barb camps as soon as they pop up.

[grumble]

I just wish the AI civs and city states would make more of an effort to deal with barb scouts and barb camps.

I particular find that, when venturing into an area of the ocean far from my own civ, that the ocean is full of pirates the nearby civs seem to have ignored.

I feel that I am, like the British navy in the 19th century and the US navy in the modern world, solely responsible for keeping the world's oceans safe for trade.

[jmerry82]

Mechanically, it's about what "layer" they're in. Traders can stack with each other arbitrarily high, can share tiles with units from other players, can enter rival territory without open borders, and can even enter rival cities. Anything you might join up with that as an escort would have to be left behind when the trader entered one of those troublesome tiles, so the game doesn't let you do it.

[AbSlayer]

Sounds like a common sense to have trader protected if wanted should be be able to link them with protection GREAT IDEA

[BlackSmokeDMax]

You can move and follow them manually, and likely the reason you can't link them is your units would be stopped by borders you don't have "open border" agreements with, while traders don't need that access to pass through. Plus, its a good "game" thing. Don't forget the Civ game was originally modeled after a board game. So it has always had some of that board game similarity baked into its DNA.