For a lot of newcomers to Pharaoh: A New Era, the AI pathfinding might seem counter-intuitive per modern standards since every NPC just shuts off their brain when presented with intersections. There's also no automatic AI pointing them to where they need to go. However, this is the game design that the developers want players to strategize around.
The "dumb" AI in Pharaoh is a mere puzzle for the veterans of the city builder game, and they thankfully have come up with some of the most efficient housing layouts in Pharaoh to maximize space and take advantage of the pathfinding (or lack thereof). To prevent the collapse of society from random loitering, make sure to follow these housing layouts.
7 Straight Line Block
Considered by many as the most efficient housing layout in Pharaoh, the line is practically just one whole street where players put everything. Houses are on one side and the services are on the other side. Some vacant spaces might be delegated to housing later on if the line is too long. A Roadblock is naturally placed at the end of the line connecting to an intersection.
With this layout, players don't have to worry about service NPCs just wandering off. However, it's not the most flexible design. Line blocks are rigid and don't exactly fit well on all maps, especially in the presence of rivers, rocks, forests, and other obstacles or calamities caused by gods. Moreover, players can't make the line too long.
6 Donut/Double Loop Block
If players have good open spaces where two closed square roads will fit in, then the donut or double loop block works well and can even encourage dense populations. Houses are placed on the second layer of space while the services are all crammed inside the innermost layer. The Roadblock is placed in the intersection between the two road loops.
What this does is prevent service walkers from venturing off the outer road loop, thus merely limiting their movement to the housing. Players are then free to attach industrial blocks to the outer road loop so that worker-seeker NPCs will easily find themselves some houses and citizens for hire, with no need for segregated worker ghettos.
Of course, players will need plenty of open spaces for the inner and outer layers, so it's not ideal for cramped, uneven maps.
5 Pipeline Block
This kind of housing layout looks like a single pipeline that forces services to walk just one road, much like in the donut and straight line blocks. It takes advantage of the fact that service buildings only need to be adjacent to one road cell in order to count as "connected." Roadblocks are placed on both ends of the road.
The housing positioning also ensures that service walkers will pass by all of them. While it's a flexible design, the caveat is that players also can't make this block too big or too long; longer roads will discourage service walkers from going in the other direction of the road. It's best to just stick to the size presented in the image.
It's also worth noting that this kind of block still leaves space for estate housings on the side.
4 Estate Block
For rich people's housing, players need something a bit different and more spacious. This is similar to the donut block where nearly all the services are crammed in the inner side of the road to ensure that they only follow one path. Since players are left with more space, some of the services can be placed on the outside of the road.
The Roadblock is naturally placed at the intersection leading outside of the road loop. This kind of design allows the houses to blossom into estates and have as much garden or statue space as they want. Players will usually only need one of these blocks since estate inhabitants and rich people in this game are jobless leeches.
3 Palace/I Block
If players want their own fancy block leading to their personal in-game palace, this design is easily one of the most flexible. It's shaped like the capital letter "i" (with the serif). The palace is placed at the bottom end and there's a Roadblock near the bottom intersection to prevent service walkers from venturing out.
The beauty of this design is that it can easily expand into an estate or wealthy housing block if players want. They just need to adjust some of the housing plots. It's also crucial to keep it as small as possible while still accommodating around six estates. If the roads are too long, then the service walkers might wander off at the top intersection.
2 Flexi-Block
This block design is what happens due to months or years of experience and min-maxing with design. It's by far one of the most practical housing layouts in the game, and it can bend or curve according to the terrain while still maximizing space. Players can start it off as a rectangular block with a loop around the housing areas.
If the terrain doesn't permit that kind of space then players can just bend some of the roads and readjust housing locations. They won't lose much, and they can still accommodate the services inside the loop or tucked away in a small segment for a neater distinction.
1 Industrial Ghetto Block
Segregating industrial areas in Pharaoh is the norm since these buildings can lower the land value and discourage house evolutions. They still need access to nearby homes, so instead of connecting them to the main residential areas, some players have resorted to forming destitute ghettos with a couple of housings to keep steady fuel for industrial buildings.
This is also a loop, but players will instead put a couple of crude huts at the corner. Be sure to provide them the bare minimum like basic healthcare (Physicians), Firehouses, Architects, Police, and the basic Well. And do be a considerate human; refrain from taxing them in this sacrificial state.
Pharaoh: A New Era is available on Microsoft Windows.