How it fills
- 5 out of every 130 paid on every flip;
- half of the money from the first purchase of every tower.
How the timer works
- The timer starts at 24 hours on the first purchase in the city.
- Every flip adds 1 hour, but the timer never goes past 24 hours. If it reads 23:30, a purchase sets it to 24:00, not 24:30.
- Whoever bought last holds the key to the city.
When the timer hits zero
- 50% of the Vault goes to the key holder;
- 30% stays in the Vault for the next round;
- 20% is shared between all tower owners by weight.
Any player can close the round with the Close round button once the timer is out; the next purchase closes it too. The next round starts with the next purchase.
Example. The Vault holds 500,000. It is night, few people are buying, the timer reads 00:10:00. Alice buys a Company: the timer jumps to 01:10:00 and Alice holds the key. Forty minutes later Bob buys a Company and the key passes to Bob. Nobody else buys and the timer runs out. Bob receives 250,000, 150,000 stays for the next round, and 100,000 is shared between the owners.
Why it works this way: the quieter the city, the closer the timer gets to zero and the more it pays to buy something. A lull creates its own reason to act.