Fire, theft and officers
Where Grow → Outlets → Head Office → Protection
Opens The rank of Town Favourite, then it arrives a real day or more later
A bigger business has more to lose. Each kind of trouble is rare, but costs when it comes. Each has its own cover.
Fire or water can damage an outlet overnight. A visiting officer may ask for money. A thief may empty the till or walk off with small things. They start at the rank of Town Favourite, and the news tells you at once when one happens.
| Trouble | The cover |
|---|---|
| Fire or water damage | Insurance pays for it |
| Officers asking for money | Papers in order (or the usual) |
| Overnight theft | A night watchman |
Insurance and protection
Where Grow → Outlets → Head Office → Protection
Opens The rank of Town Favourite, then it arrives a real day or more later
Insurance, papers and a night watchman. Each costs a little every day and saves a lot on a bad night. Set it once for the company; change one outlet if it needs it.
Choose cover once for every outlet in the Head Office, then give any single outlet its own choice. Premiums grow with your rank.
| Cover | Choice | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Insurance | No insurance | Fire and flood are rare. You pay for all of it when they come. |
| Insurance | Basic cover | Pays half the damage. The outlet still loses a day. |
| Insurance | Full cover | Pays nearly all of it, and the outlet opens as usual next morning. |
| Papers | Nothing | No fees. Now and then an officer will turn up with his hand out. |
| Papers | The usual | A little something for the beat constable every day. Mostly it works. Occasionally he wants more. |
| Papers | Papers in order | Every licence and inspection up to date. Dearer, and nobody can touch you. |
| Night watchman | A watchman | A man with a torch and a whistle, all night. Thieves try next door instead. |
The city’s moods
Where Grow → Outlets → Head Office → Be prepared
A few weeks into a career, things happen you did not plan. Never more than one big one in a week, never more than a quarter of your cash. Each one says what would have kept it away.
Floods in the rain-heavy towns (Beach Road, Hill Station, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore), power cuts, road digging, a break-in gang, a licence drive, a gas shortage, a food scare, a staff strike, a rent hike, a bad review gone viral, the delivery app going down. While you have one outlet you meet half as many, and Relaxed sees half as many too.
Most have their cover. Raise the plinth once and a flood stays out; a Generator (₹2,400, Build → Facilities) keeps the fans and the grinder going in a power cut; a gas supplier contract keeps the cylinders coming; a night watchman sends the gang next door; papers in order mean no fine; fair pay and a manager keep a strike away; a lease signed early fixes the rent. Be prepared lists them all.
With one outlet there is no Head Office yet, but the moods come all the same. Then Be prepared opens from the news: in Notifications (the newspaper at the top right), the note that the city has its moods, and every event after it, has a Be prepared button.
Good surprises
Where Notifications
A film crew, a cricket star, a food blogger. Nothing to prepare. Keep the rating up and they come more often.
Now and then the city smiles. A film crew wants your outlet for a song (shut for the day, paid, busier after), a cricket star walks in, a food blogger raves.
Rebuilding
Where Grow → Outlets → Head Office → Be prepared → Rebuild
What a flood, a fire or thieves take goes on the Rebuild list. Put each piece back with one press. The insurer pays its share as you rebuild.
Each piece goes back where it stood, at today’s price, and the insurer pays its share of it: 50% with basic cover, 90% with full. Write off what you do not want back; the insurer still pays its share of what it cost.
With one outlet, before the Head Office opens: when something is lost, Be prepared opens by itself on Rebuild. To come back to it later, press Be prepared on that event in Notifications (the newspaper at the top right).
Selling an outlet
Where Grow → Outlets → Sell this outlet
On its card in Outlets: Sell this outlet. A buyer pays half what the fittings are worth. Nothing for the name.
Never your first outlet, never one abroad, and never in its first 30 days. If you bought its building, the buyer pays half of that too. Its staff leave with it, and the Outlets board counts one fewer.
Breakdowns and the handyman
Where Run → Staff → Hire → Handyman
Stalls wear as they cook and can break. A broken stall sells nothing until it is fixed. A handyman services stalls before they fail.
Without a handyman each repair is a paid call-out from ₹250. A stall left broken for 3 days is mended by its cook, at 2× the call-out price.
Festivals, rain and visitors
Where Notifications
Some mornings bring a crowd, rain or a visitor. The top bar says what today is. Get ready for the crowd before the rush.
A festival or match day fills the street; rain thins it but everyone wants something hot; a critic’s review can make your rating; the inspector rewards a clean room.
| Day | What happens |
|---|---|
| Temple Festival | The festival crowd is out early. Many more guests today. |
| Monsoon Morning | Fewer people on the street, but everyone who comes in wants something hot. |
| Critic in Town | A food critic will visit today. Their review can make or dent your rating. |
| Health Inspection | The inspector is doing rounds. A clean room earns a certificate; a dirty one, a fine. |
| Match Day | India is batting. Big, hungry groups who linger. |
Decision cards
Where Notifications
Now and then a card asks you to choose. A good call pays; a risky one may pay more. There is no wrong answer you cannot recover from.
A card waits for you; if you are busy it stays as a small pill until you open it.
Next: Perks, quests and goals