Expanding the Mob Empire | Strategy Omerta: CoG Guide

Once you've familiarized yourself with the interface, it's high time to understand the way in which to expand your business so that it gave you profit. Currency available in the game is divided into Dirty ($) and Clean ($$). Most of things you do in the game will get you dirty money - it can be used practically for everything. You will need clean money only for buying building sites and putting new buildings on them, and in the course of completing particular missions.

Both dirty and clean money can be obtained in two ways: by setting up specific buildings or doing Jobs. Locations in turn are divided into three types: those set up in Joints, rented in Premises, or built on building sites.

Joints:

• Speakeasy - sells your Beer and Liquor for $; serves as a small warehouse
• Ponzi Scheme - collects $ dependent on Liked rating; paying out lessens your respect in the district
• Protection Racket - collects $ dependent on the number of neutral locales; may intimidate citizens
• Boxing Arena - collects $ dependent on Liked rating; may sell Beer
• Pawn Shop - collects $$; may provide Weapons
• "The Don" Pizzeria - increases the efficiency of all your locales; may intimidate citizens
• Bookmaker - collects && dependent on Liked rating; may increase efficiency dependent on the level of intimidation
• Pharmacy - sells Liquor for $$
• Weapons Store - sells Weapons for $; may intimidate citizens
• Loan Shark - pays interests to your $; may intimidate citizens

Premises:

• Brewery - produces Beer; may Liked rating
• Safe House - lets plan robberies (fighting in return for resources); may intimidate citizens an increase the efficiency of other premises
• Hidden Storage - increases the capacities of Warehouses
• Smuggler - imports Beer, Liquor and Firearms; his efficiency may be increased
• Soup Kitchen - increases Liked rating among citizens
• Distillery - produces Liquor
• Accountant - exchanges $ for $$; his efficiency may be increased
• Counterfeiter - prints $ when Heat is low
• Wholesaler - sells Beer, Liquor and Firearms; may serve as a Warehouse
• Labor Union - collects $ dependent on Liked and Feared rating; may double (!) your efficiency

Building Site:

• Flophouse - collects $$; may increase Liked rating
• Warehouse - increases the capacity of your storage facilities
• Insurance Company - collects $ dependent on the number of neutral premises; may increase efficiency dependent on the level of Fear
• Nightclub - sells Beer and Liquor for $$
• Clinic - quickens the medical therapy of your characters; may increase Liked rating
• Hotel - collects $$; may increase Liked rating
• Lawyer - lowers police efficiency; may lower the cost of bribes
• Casino - collects $; may sell Liquor

Once you've gotten to know your capabilities, it's time to learn how they work. At the beginning of most of your missions, you're going to need a source of income. The easiest way to do that is to build a Brewery and then a Speakeasy. You should do it in that order for one other reason: a lot of times your own beer business will cause a local Speakeasy to take a liking to you, and instead of setting up your own building, you could buy the local one out for a small price. It will not only save you money, but eliminate the competition at the same time!

Speakeasies don't earn a lot, but you know what they say: "grain by grain", and you'll have a couple thousand $.

Protection Racket is a very universal building - it's cheap to establish and gives a solid income. Unfortunately, is has two drawbacks: it quickly loses efficiency when there are several of them in the city, and requires a lot of independent businesses to operate. However, when the conditions are right, it's proves a very reliable investment.

Protection Racket can quickly lose its efficiency when there is competition in the area.

Ponzi Scheme, Boxing Arena and Bookmaker work in a similar way - the make more money the more the district residents like you. The first joint, however, has a huge disadvantage - when you take money from it, the Liked rating decreases. I don't recommend using it - regaining the lost trust will cost you more that it is worth it. The two other buildings are a very good investment, and they also increase the efficiency of other locales.

Buildings that earn clean money are Pawn Shop and Pharmacy. The first one operates "passively" - it doesn't require any additional resources, but gives little income. Pharmacy can gather money way faster, but requires a constant supply of Liquor; if you want to use it as your main source of clean money income, build a Distillery to become independent of suppliers.

Pharmacies get you clean money, but require a constant supply of alcohol.

Apart from the buildings above, there are two more of a very great significance: "The Don" Pizzeria and Soup Kitchen. They improve Fear and Liked ratings respectively by increasing the efficiency of your premises and getting you an easier access to informants through the Intimidation or Favor options. It's doesn't always pay off to set them up at the beginning of the game, because they don't give any income, but once you've secured yourself a steady flow of cash, they can greatly speed things up.

Soup Kitchen, otherwise known as exchanging money for the citizens' respect.

Among the more advanced building are, for example, Accountant or Counterfeiter. The former will continuously launder your dirty money - unfortunately, its efficiency won't be any good without improvements. However, if you choose both options... try and remember that in the background of your operations there is one active accountant, because he sometimes can completely block your dirty money flow by "producing" clean cash. Counterfeiter will continuously print dirty money as long as your Heat doesn't drop below two stars. Personally, I don't recommend using it - you won't always be able to control your Heat levels and the business will therefore give little income.

The most expensive premises are Wholesaler, Weapons Store and Labor Union. They cost a lot, but what they earn can return your investment in an instant. Maxed out, they can return your money within one-two days of the game time. Unfortunately, you won't always have the time to use them. What's more, Wholesaler and Weapons Store require a constant supply of goods, which demands not only your attention, but also available gangsters to perform specific assignments. If you want to build at least one of them, I recommend focusing solely on Labor Union.

Labor Union, or in other words: "I don't do anything, but money flows". Building costs were returned in a day.

Locations such as Safe House, Hidden Storage or Loan Shark won't rather be needed during the course of the game - they take up space which can be allocated to a more lucrative business.

Much more interesting are the buildings you can put on building sites. They can earn you earn both dirty money (Insurance Company, Casino) and clean money (Night Club and Hotel). They are much more efficient than the previously described lots, but they're also much more difficult to construct. The amount of cash they require may prove to be an impassable barrier during many missions.

Lawyers will make it harder for police to work, therefore lowering the increase of Heat.

The bar also has auxiliary buildings, with Lawyer among them - which is one of the most important locations in the game. It not only slows down law enforcement activities and therefore decreases the levels of Heat, but also lowers the cost of Bribes. If you have an area where police activity is higher than "lower", setting up a Lawyer is going to be a necessity.

Similarly to joints and premises, building sites can also be used to set up auxiliary buildings such as Flophouse, Warehouse or Clinic. They will support some of your activities, but they will usually come second after the more relevant structures.

A long list of premises means an adequately high income.

Further part of the guide, which describes mission walkthroughs, contains detailed information as to which buildings are useful for the completion of particular objectives. The list is not definitive and depending on your experience and preferences, you can easily modify it. The information are there mostly to serve as help for players who got stuck and can't go on their own.