Current EA changes that affect this page
Hotfix 0.4.1 reduced attacks and shifted targeting toward more valuable carts. Update 0.4.5 rebalanced ambushes again to make them less frequent and more predictable. The cart-purchasing issue was fixed; the patch states that players can purchase as many carts as they like. This does not mean carts are free or that all destinations have identical inventory. The patch fixes escorts expiring immediately after their first fight. A separate voice line announces ordinary escort expiry. The hotfix restricts Masters to empty carts as a temporary mitigation. The developer explicitly defers more complete control over cart allocation to a later management update.
Inspect a journey before sending it
Record the cart, destination, cargo and expected return use. If the same cart is needed for a second business, a delivery can become a scheduling conflict even when both businesses have enough workers. The business diary describes better carts becoming purchasable, with differences in capacity, integrity and speed.
Integrity and route information
The official goods diary associates damaged carts with longer journeys. The July patch adds hover information showing owner, cargo and destination, plus an unguarded-cart warning. Those are dated demo behaviours, not a measured launch travel formula.
What the planner can tell you
A manual load check can compare user-entered quantities and capacity in a consistent unit. It cannot infer stacking, weight conversion, escorts or travel time from a city’s historic identity. Use values from the cart screen and keep incompatible units separate.