Basic Land Management Guide

Guide originally created by TheOneOmega. Please check the corresponding forum thread "Land Management" for further information.

Land Management

Land management is the practice of owning and operating virtual property in Entropia. Types of property include apartments, houses, booths, shops, malls, hangars, land areas, and more. Different types of property have different functionality. A single piece of property is called an estate. An associated estate deed is necessary to claim ownership of an estate. Only the owner may drop or pick up items on the estate. Each estate has a maximum item storage capacity.

Apartments

An apartment is an estate inside an apartment building. One apartment building contains multiple apartments. Apartments vary in size and shape, according to the letter classification of the apartment. A, B, E, and F style apartments are single-room estates, virtually identical to each other. C, D, and H style apartments are single-room estates, each with a uniquely shaped outdoor balcony area. G style apartments are larger estates, containing two rooms as well as a large outdoor balcony area. Though a balcony is accessed via a hallway in an apartment, the balcony is not considered to be part of the estate in terms of item storage. Any colonist may drop or pick up items on a balcony, and such items do not count toward the maximum item storage capacity of the apartment.

Houses

A house is an estate in which the entire building is owned by one colonist. Houses vary in size and structure. Some houses resemble real world homes. Others are shaped like airplanes, castles, etc. Houses are larger than apartments, so the maximum item storage capacity of a house is usually higher than for an apartment.

Booths and Shops

Booths and shops are estates which allow the owner to display and sell items without requiring a Shopkeeper. However, the maximum item storage capacity of a booth or shop may still be increased if the owner chooses to use one or more Shopkeepers. A small fee is added to the purchase price if the item is bought from a shop inside a mall (the mall owner receives this fee). The main advantage of booths and shops over the auction is that the fee is insignificant compared to the sale price of an item. It is reasonable to sell stackable items in much smaller stacks in a booth or shop than in the auction. Additionally, there is not a limit to the duration of time which the item is available for sale; it remains in the booth or shop until it is manually removed by the estate owner, or it is purchased. Finally, as with the auction, there is no need for direct interaction between the seller and the buyer when the exchange takes place. Shops are larger than booths, so the maximum item storage capacity is higher as well.

Malls

A mall is an estate containing many shops. The owner of such a mall does not necessarily also own the shops in the mall, but the mall owner does receive a small fee each time an item in the mall is sold. A mall may also have an additional house-style estate known as a penthouse. Malls have multiple levels, which may be navigated via a Televator.

Hangars

A hangar is an estate related to a Privateer spaceship.

Land Areas A land area is a estate of great size. Unlike other estates, land areas are not defined by a building or a particular structure. Instead, ownership of a large, pre-allocated section of land is given to a colonist or society. The owner of such an estate may set tax rates between 0% and 10% for hunting, mining, and shopping. This percentage will be deducted from each hunting loot, mining loot, or Shopkeeper transaction within the confines of the land area, and transferred to the estate owner's PED Card in a lump sum each day. If a society owns a land area, the PED will be split among its members.

Ore and Energy Matter may be mined in a land area, and sometimes natural spawns of mobs are available for hunting. The estate owner may select additional mobs to add to the land area by introducing the associated DNA. The maturity and spawn density of such a mob may also be altered. Energized Fertilizer is required to alter the mobs, maturities, or spawn densities in a land area. A small amount of Energized Fertilizer is also required to lock the maturities and spawn densities from naturally decreasing over time. Energizer Fertilizer is created by refining an equal quantities of Common Dung (found on the ground while walking) and Growth Molecules (an Energy Matter) using refiner tool. A basic refiner tool may be purchased at any Trade Terminal or Local Trader.

The types of Ore and Energy Matter in a land area cannot be altered by the owner.

Other Property

There are a few other types of property in Entropia which are quite scarce. Some very large sections of land are player owned. These often contain multiple land areas, each of which can have a different owner. Banks are special buildings where colonists may apply for PED loans from the estate owner. There is also a small display area in front of some banks, which is a separate estate. Essentially, property can take any form that a planet partner chooses. Land management takes many forms, and careful research is necessary to evaluate which investments are the wisest