Hey benjaminmckay,
Trade ratios of 0.1 are indeed horrible, only offered by NPC traders i.e. the game system itself, and are usually a last resort for most people. Trading can be done with neighbours or with guild members, hence you do not need to join a guild to trade. However, I would recommend joining a guild because:
- Trades with neighbours will cost you a forge point. This means one less forge point to use in your research or donation to Great Buildings, etc.
- Trades with guild members are free, i.e. they do not cost forge points.
To join a guild, you can go about it in various ways:
- On this forum, there are several sections dedicated to various worlds/servers i.e. Arvahall, Cirgard, Houndsmoor. In those sections, there is a subsection called Guild Recruitments. You can look in there to see if any guild is recruiting, or alternatively, advertise yourself.
- You can also click on the world ranking at the top left corner of the game screen (a laurel and a number), then the Guilds tab. There you can see a list of all the guilds. Browse through and see which one might seem like a good place for you to be, then message the leader(s) of the guild to ask for an invitation (the leaders are usually indicated in the guild description).
Hope you find a fun guild to hang out with soon!!
Cheers,
L.R.