Do other players suffer the same problems with resources taking so long to acquire.
Foe example, to unlock Processions I need 24 dye but I can only produce 1 dye every 4 hours.
So it will take me 96 hours to produce the 24 dye required and that is only possible if I am here 24/7 and the process is always active which is impossible.
With the trade system being an almost redundant system is there another way around these problems (With out purchasing diamonds) and tips (That work) will be gratefully received.
Alternatively could the game organizers re-asses how long resources take to make or change the trading system.
MickyC.
In this case, at this point, my recommendation is to produce two factories, splitting the time in half.
Secondly, or perhaps more importantly, I have been working with Excel to look forward to potential lacks of resources. Basically, the further you know in advance that you will be needing a specific resource, the better off you are. For example, I know that in 249 hours, I will need 49 cloth for leatherworking. I have that on my excel sheet, where I list the researches consecutively along with the number of hours before I reach them.
So suppose that no one were trading, that would mean I would need at least 200 hours to produce the cloth at the standard rate, with one factory. But since I have 249 hours, that is still OK. So you see, as long as you can spot which resources you need in advance, the possibility of producing your own, in the event of a lack of trade, is actually quite good.
The more you think in these terms, the fewer problems like this you will have.
You mentioned that you can't play 24/7. With two factories up, it might be practical for you to produce more slowly, at 24 hour intervals, once you are sure you have enough can live with the amount of time it takes, returning a certain time of day, if you do not have the ability to check in every 8 hours. Just make sure you adjust for the slower rate, and always refresh that building every day at the same time. This ensures too that no one steals your hard earned goods when you are away.
To summarize, the best solution to lacks of goods is foresight. The road ahead can be traveled under all circumstances, as long as you know far enough in advance what is coming, and you make the decision while you still have the time. The reason why this is true is because they phase in the goods requirements for technologies a long time after you should already have been able to produce them for a while. This is particularly true later on, where there are huge waiting periods for the research.
But I would not be too discouraged about this setback so early. It is quite common, considering that you do not have time to play all day, you could not possibly catch everything the first time around.
Another point is that sometimes one cannot get enough trade because one needs to offer the right things to the right people. Try looking and seeing who is offering what, and see if you can give them what they are looking for (resources they do not have a building built for.) Then always make sure to give them a favorable rate, since they end up using a forge point.
I am very fortunate to have a few good trading partners in my neighborhood, and had no problem coming up with the 24 dye, although I got scared and went and built two factories at the time, I think, only to realize I did not need them. What can happen too is that one person gets a bit ahead of the others, and they do not realize they need to think about goods production until later. But when a few people get involved with goods production, this makes everything much more simple.