The monastery (3×3) occupies, say, tiles (0,0) to (2,2) if we set its southwest corner at (0,0). To maximize watered modules, the player must position the monastery within the Noria’s diamond so that as many expandable tiles as possible fall inside the diamond.
The maximum contiguous area for garden modules is a plus-sign shape or a filled diamond. However, because modules must be placed edge-to-edge starting from the monastery, the most efficient shape is a cross extending in the four cardinal directions, then filling the diagonal gaps.
Less efficient for pure production; some tiles wasted on empty space. However, historically accurate—real monasteries had central garth (lawn). 4.3 The Hybrid Three-Pod Layout Goal: Balanced production of herbs, wine, and attractiveness.
If the monastery is centered inside the Noria’s radius (e.g., its center at distance 5 from Noria), then all 24 possible modules might be watered. But if the monastery is near the edge, only 12–16 modules will be watered. Thus, pre-planning your monastery location before building Norias is critical. 4. Three Optimal Layouts Based on extensive testing (via the Anno 1404 community forums and my own simulations using the game’s map editor), three layouts dominate. 4.1 The Compact Production Layout (for Herbs or Grapes) Goal: Maximize watered modules for resource production, ignoring aesthetics.
G G G G G G G G G G M M M G G G G M M M G G G G M M M G G G G G G G G G G This pattern (a hexagon rotated 45°) fits perfectly inside a Manhattan diamond of radius 6. Place your Noria 5 tiles south of the monastery’s center for full coverage. End of paper.
Ugly, no flower gardens for attractiveness. Not suitable for a beauty-building city. 4.2 The Aesthetic Cloister Layout (for Attractiveness) Goal: Maximize attractiveness (flower gardens) while maintaining symmetry and leaving a central courtyard.
