For the similarly named Fall of the Samurai technology, see Merchant Houses.
The Merchant House is a commercial building in Napoleon: Total War.
Description[]
This building adds to the industrial wealth of, and greatly improves the town wealth in, its region.
As trade opens up the world, people begin to contemplate the best way to exploit commodities. A merchant houses is a place for traders to gather to discuss trade and conduct business. New ways of financing their enterprises can also be tried. The merchants' rapidly increases finances are also looked after and reinvested in all manner of ways, benefiting the region as a whole.
Historically, the Rothschild banking family controlled the finances of some of the most important men of the Napoleonic era. Nathan Mayer Rothschild established his business in London and was responsible for handling the gold bullion that was sent to Wellington for his war effort in Portugal and Spain. Rothschild took a small percentage commission for handling what turned out to be millions in gold. With important, and profitable transactions like these the Rothschilds were set up a network of family branches to handle business the world over. His connections brought Nathan Rothschild the news of Wellington's victory a full day before it reached the government!
General Information[]
Upgraded from markets, merchant houses are the cheapest buildings that grant a global town wealth generation rate, meaning that they greatly contribute to a faction's wealth if it controls many regions.
Without counting global town wealth growth, merchant houses pay for themselves with their additional benefits after 30-41 turns (including build time). However if multiple regions are controlled merchant houses are far more valuable. Even assuming the worst case scenario, 30 turns isn't unreasonable compared to most other mid-late tier buildings, and the benefits increase greatly over time, making merchant houses a good choice for investment.
Merchant houses can be upgraded to banking houses after Joint Stock Company is researched, which provide greater wealth and greater wealth generation.
The Peninsular Campaign[]
In The Peninsular Campaign, merchant houses are cheaper and require less time to build, making them even more worthwhile to sink money into. At the beginning of the campaign, merchant houses are particularly valuable to the French, who control most regions. They are far less productive for the other factions initially, but are still excellent sources of money for any faction in the long run.