Windlass Canal Locks

A flight of locks climbs the hill. The summit pound holds only so much water. Every boat that wants up must borrow a lockful — and the tolls only land when a boat exits the TOP. Windlass is an idle game about throughput, not just numbers. Painted narrowboats moor up below the flight; you tap each chamber's brass windlass to fill it and lift its boats one lock. Each cycle drinks the same lockful from the summit whether it carries one boat or two — so the craft is PAIRING: hold a lonely boat in a chamber until a partner slips in beside it, then lift both on a single shared fill. Twice the cargo, the water of one. The weather has opinions. Rain doubles the summit's refill; drought halves it and the queue backs up while you ration every lockful. Side pounds recapture spent water, a back-pump steams tolls back uphill, and hired hands turn the windlasses on their own cadence — hire the whole flight and boats keep moving even overnight. When the tolls justify it, dig the New Cut: the canal is surveyed away, and every Charter you claim pays +10% tolls and +10% water regen, forever. • A living flight of 4–8 lock chambers, water levels animating with every fill • Paired locking: two boats, one lockful — the ×2 you engineer with timing • Rain and drought cycles that swing the whole water budget • Side pounds, back-pump, auto-cranks, gate speed, cargo and trade upgrades • New Cut prestige with permanent Charters • Boats queue and the summit refills while you're away (up to 8 h) • Fully offline, no account, nothing collected Wind the paddles. Mind the water.