DezNutz wrote:I agree with Danik and SHM. It wasn't illegal back then.
HOWEVER you run into the moral dilemma of current times. Opium was openly traded back then, but in today's society is considered an illegal substance. The same can be applied to slavery a common trade during the time period for the game, but in modern times is not acceptable. Do you add them for historical accuracy even though in modern culture they are frowned upon and potentially face a backlash by players that don't want to see that in the game.
IMHO, if we are going to open the game up to additional trading, it should be manufactured goods.
I think we could create a class of goods called 'Contraband' : its exact nature dont need quantifying as, naturally, the first rule of Contraband is we dont talk about it....
Anyway, so, one can pick-up varying amounts of 'Contraband' in a port and whisk it away to another port and gain some decent profit on it, much like Gold Bars.. however, the profit is from dodging the taxes so each transaction will create hostility with the port owners where it is sold. The selling port dont care so no hostility is gained there. Run enough contraband and you will soon be rather hostile with the nations involved and thus risk becoming a major nation mission target.
Once more port options are in place, nations may recruit customs officers to seize contraband. It can be chance based but % chance of discovery increases with hostility gained and falls with hostility decline. So, run the occasional cargo and you will probably avoid siezures : be a major player and the spotlight will fall on you and siezures will increase. But lack of cargos will increase prices, (as with GB), and encourage more trips : there is the smugglers gamble.