Can someone explain "workload is too high" to me?

[GrenadesAndHamm]

I'm not understanding why I'm getting this message. I have work areas. And then I have things like repairs, building, etc.

But is it no prioritized? I dont understand why I keep getting this message.

[Aieonae]

Simple
See the percentage?
If its over 100% its too high.
If its more than 200% its can cause morale and productivity issues.
A optimal practice is let it hover around 100%
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1679030355

[GrenadesAndHamm]

As I said, I'm not understanding why I'm getting the message. I dont know how to alleviate it or how to improve it.

It would seem a bit silly if I have to cancel projects instead of letting them queue.

Whether it's 100 percent or not, I don't know how I'm supposed to increase productivity.

[Aieonae]

Originally posted by GrenadesAndHamm:

As I said, I'm not understanding why I'm getting the message. I dont know how to alleviate it or how to improve it.

It would seem a bit silly if I have to cancel projects instead of letting them queue.

Whether it's 100 percent or not, I don't know how I'm supposed to increase productivity.

Workload is very situational issue. It would be nice if I can have a screenshot to work with.

Yes, cancelling build order and limit field counts does help.

[Onnajy]

High workload happens when the amount of tasks to be performed and are being performed exceed (I believe) 150%.

The hotkey for the Activity Percent I believe is 6 or 7. Probably 6. You can also access this from the management menu. The number is on the top left of the Activities page when access it.

High workload reduces worker efficiency since it makes people unhappy. Unhappy workers work slower and have reduced stats. To counter this you build spiritual buildings like totems or stone monuments. Beer is an end-game solution for this as well.

To reduce workload is pretty straight forward. Reduce the amount of tasks being performed.

A start would be to reduce the amount of people in a work area. A common mistake is to have 3-4 people hunting in an area. This usually overburdens your population FAST because now 3-4 people will walk far to go hunting and most likely won't catch anything due to the animals outrunning villagers easily. (I personally manually hunt and don't rely on AI to do this themselves)

That said, I commonly have high workload problems myself but don't find it too big of a problem if managed properly. This is because, if you're playing for end-game, you SHOULD be getting this error. This is because at the start of every Spring you SHOULD be planting a ton of crops and at the start of every fall you SHOULD be gathering straw like crazy to support you livestock.

Hope that helps. Enjoy the game.

[GrenadesAndHamm]

Makes more sense, thanks. Can you explain the sledge to me? How is it used? It looks like a cart, but nobody is using it.

Does it have to be placed near something? Are they not able to move it?

A lot isn't explained in this game so I appreciate the help.

[VA gamer]

Another problem with excessive workload is that it can spiral.

If they don't have time to move the grain / straw before it rots, then they don't have enough for bread and feeding animals, for example.

Or they don't have time to make the sledges that would make it easier to reduce workload.

[Aieonae]

Originally posted by Onnajy:

That said, I commonly have high workload problems myself but don't find it too big of a problem if managed properly. This is because, if you're playing for end-game, you SHOULD be getting this error. This is because at the start of every Spring you SHOULD be planting a ton of crops and at the start of every fall you SHOULD be gathering straw like crazy to support you livestock.

I gather you must had built one of those mega settlements with fields and huts dotted everywhere, but you did be surprise the fields can be a lot more productive than originally perceived.

[Aieonae]

Originally posted by GrenadesAndHamm:

Makes more sense, thanks. Can you explain the sledge to me? How is it used? It looks like a cart, but nobody is using it.

Does it have to be placed near something? Are they not able to move it?

A lot isn't explained in this game so I appreciate the help.

This is a sledge in action
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1678739211

They normally use it to collect things, you will see major use in resource "collecting" from far flagging. Eg. Things like logging, hunting, gathering, mining.

They are also commonly use in fields if the folks have time to collect them.

[GrenadesAndHamm]

Originally posted by Aieonae:

Originally posted by GrenadesAndHamm:

Makes more sense, thanks. Can you explain the sledge to me? How is it used? It looks like a cart, but nobody is using it.

Does it have to be placed near something? Are they not able to move it?

A lot isn't explained in this game so I appreciate the help.

This is a sledge in action
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1678739211

They normally use it to collect things, you will see major use in resource "collecting" from far flagging.

They are also commonly use in fields if the folks have time to collect them.

Do you have to assign someone to it?

I made one, but nobody uses it. When I assign someone to it, they drag it but just stand at it then leave. Nobody actually uses it. I would like them to use it to gather sticks.

[Aieonae]

Originally posted by GrenadesAndHamm:

Do you have to assign someone to it?

I made one, but nobody uses it. When I assign someone to it, they drag it but just stand at it then leave. Nobody actually uses it. I would like them to use it to gather sticks.

Sadly no, they use it on their free will. Try to mine some nodes far from the base you will see them using it.

[Onnajy]

Originally posted by GrenadesAndHamm:

Originally posted by Aieonae:

This is a sledge in action
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1678739211

They normally use it to collect things, you will see major use in resource "collecting" from far flagging.

They are also commonly use in fields if the folks have time to collect them.

Do you have to assign someone to it?

I made one, but nobody uses it. When I assign someone to it, they drag it but just stand at it then leave. Nobody actually uses it. I would like them to use it to gather sticks.

The AI seems to for the most part only use it to gather materials far away or to gather resources for building construction. I haven't payed enough attention to them using it to know for certain.

I do notice a significant improvement in activity % when I make them though. Sledges are handy mid-game and carts in end-game. It's hard to gauge how many you need so a good rule of thumb I use is for every 15 population I create 1 cart to support it.

You'll start to notice if you're overproducing carts if you see idle carts and sledges so it's going to vary based on what tasks you have assigned and the amount of activity you have in your town.

Side note: Donkies/Horses are unaffected by winter weather and food when using carts.