SimCity 4 - Is there a way to lower the monthly cost of the buildings?

[RiXZ 0]

Hi to all,

I've been playing the game for a while and I started to thinking...

When I play the game without cheats I've never managed to get to more thаn +1000 income... And even then, something will happen and I build a park, a plaza, school here, police staton there... and poof... the income is gone so I have to raise taxes and the people will start to hate me..

So I've been asking myself... is there a way to actually alter the game configuration and to lower the general monthly cost of the buildings by a certain percentage?

Isn't that nice?

Is there a way to make the buildings like power plants, schools, parks etc. etc... cost less per month?

  Edited August 28, 2012 by RiXZ  

[chimeran 208]

there is no mod that i'm aware of but i understand that you can use ILive Reader to tweak each lot

http://sc4devotion.c....php?lotGET=656 ... requires registration and login for download link

you could also use the lottery ordinance to generate income

i wouldn't consider this too much of a cheat since the most you get is like 10K per game month which sounds reasonable and in the realm of possibility and there is always the traffic simulator that you can tweak to generate income from your roads, streets and even sidewalks and also reduce the maintenance costs of your transportation networks

  Edited August 28, 2012 by chimeran  

[pcwhiz24 1,188]

You do not need to alter the game configuration.

Click on the query tool (the little arrow on the lower left of your interface) then, click on the building by hovering the question mark over it, and it will allow you to adjust their funding (you should see sliders for bus funding and capacity)

Early on, you can adjust the school and hospital funding to low, and rise it gradually. Police stations aren't needed until your city is at least 2000 or so, and fire stations can be placed once the first fire occurs.

I recommend doing the tutorial over the Timbuktu Region in the game, it will show you how to change the fundings of your schools, and other buildings.

  Edited August 28, 2012 by pcwhiz24  

[lovemax 41]

you could also use one of these

you could use one of these:

[RiXZ 0]

You do not need to alter the game configuration.

Click on the query tool (the little arrow on the lower left of your interface) then, click on the building by hovering the question mark over it, and it will allow you to adjust their funding (you should see sliders for bus funding and capacity)

Early on, you can adjust the school and hospital funding to low, and rise it gradually. Police stations aren't needed until your city is at least 2000 or so, and fire stations can be placed once the first fire occurs.

I recommend doing the tutorial over the Timbuktu Region in the game, it will show you how to change the fundings of your schools, and other buildings.

There is such option but I don't like it ...

For the rest,

Thank you for the help guys... the links you posted were realy usefull

  Edited August 28, 2012 by RiXZ  

[cogeo 960]

You can economize a lot from health & education. Play with the sliders (have a capacity just a little above the attendance (extra funding is just waste). Also bus/ambulance funding can be reduced, even to zero. The area serviced is smaller, but for the large schools and hospital it's still large enough - you will need to plop more schools and hospitals though.

Police and fire should be placed wisely, and only when they are really need and your budget can afford them. They do not respond well to funding reduction (80% is the minimum funding, and you are still risking strikes). Placing police and fire is my biggest headache in playing SC4: they must cover the whole developed area, yet their coverage areas must not overlap too much, but only to some degree, as their effectiveness at the outer part of their coverage area is very much reduced.

As for the utilities, do not build more unless there is a shortage (eg you can't cover your needs with imports). Utilities in SC4 aren't profitable, the best you can hope in is covering a part of the running costs. Don't reduce funding, instead set funding to 100% (this results in the lower cost) and try selling the excess production. If you can'r, only then reduce funding. Power plants should be operated at 75-80% of the capacity, otherwise they wear fast. DO NOT import garbage, if you have landfills. Due to a bug in the cost calculation you will only get a fraction of the real cost. The cost of running a landfill is as high as $3.3/ton, but you will be getting pennies, and then the upkeep cost will soar. Better find other ways to dispose your trash, maybe a deal with a city that does have a landfill - you can always cancel the deal when you are running that city. Never ever use recycling centrres, they are a joke: $350 a month for processing 18 tons of garbage, ie some $20/ton!

  Edited August 29, 2012 by cogeo  

[A Nonny Moose 8,263]

If you can't make the game go profitable with its standard set up you are in too much of a rush. Take your time, don't run on maximum speed (Cheetah), and build with thought. Getting there is most of the fun.

[nukeu123 307]

If you can't make the game go profitable with its standard set up you are in too much of a rush. Take your time, don't run on maximum speed (Cheetah), and build with thought. Getting there is most of the fun.

yes patients is a necessity for sc4

in the begining:

-i place power and trash in neighboring cities so my main land dose not have to deal with it

-i wait to place the first water tower after my population reaches 5k,

-Place elementary school and small clinic (first civics)

-mass transit can wait until my pop is at 20k or im looking at inanimate abandonment from commute time

-place fire/police stations untill first toxic spill/fire/riot or when my population is arownd 10K

-only place larger buildings when current facility is over flowing and is at maximum funding

-i place jails 15k and only add more when the become crowded

-lower funding on every thing to accommodate only what the city needs

-manipulate with the taxes to control growth, example in the begining raise higher wealth slightly higher than normal, but be sure not to overkill

hope that helped

  Edited August 28, 2012 by nukeu123  

[fredinno 54]

How would you use the Ifile to modify the amount of Jobs a building gives (like a Hotel), and change the monthly cost of a building?

[Yarahi 1,831]

@fredinno You may want to look in to these tutorials;

 

[fredinno 54]

2 hours ago, Yarahi said:

@fredinno You may want to look in to these tutorials;

 

hey, double post...

[CorinaMarie 29,934]

1 hour ago, fredinno said:

hey, double post...

Looks like two separate tutorials to me. I'd start with the 2nd one. I've bookmarked them both cause they each have good info.

[Yarahi 1,831]

2 minutes ago, CorinaMarie said:

Looks like two separate tutorials to me.

Hmmm.. yeah, thought that was a given seeing as there is 2 different authors, and 2 different dates on the tutorials...

As a side-note; The beginner guide by docj101 is part of the more extensive SC4 Modding - Open Discussion - boards on ST

while the other tutorial is part of the modding part of the Omnibus - which also contains more info

[CorinaMarie 29,934]

1 hour ago, Yarahi said:

Hmmm.. yeah, thought that was a given seeing as there is 2 different authors, and 2 different dates on the tutorials...

Yep. Exactly what I was pointing out. Perhaps you meant to quote @fredinno

[fredinno 54]

5 hours ago, CorinaMarie said:

Yep. Exactly what I was pointing out. Perhaps you meant to quote @fredinno

No, I was referring to a double post the guy made- probably deleted by him or moderators... I know they are 2 different tutorials....

 

What is the name for the values of the jobs that would be given by a building? Demand relieved?

[CorinaMarie 29,934]

6 hours ago, fredinno said:

No, I was referring to a double post the guy made- probably deleted by him or moderators... I know they are 2 different tutorials....

Ah. Makes sense now.

I don't have the answer to your question, but I found another tutorial you might find useful: