For years, Anno players begged for diagonal roads. Now that we have them in Anno 117: Pax Romana, we are realizing they might be a mathematical curse. 📐⚠️ The "Square Root of Two" problem is wrecking production layouts, and most players don't even realize it.

This episode is a deep dive into the geometry of efficiency. We explain the math behind the grid: while a straight road tile has a distance of 1, a diagonal movement is 1.41 (approx. √2). This means your carts are traveling 41% more distance per tile step when moving diagonally, potentially destroying your carefully calculated delivery times. 🚚💨

We also discuss the "Space Waste" crisis. Because buildings in Anno are still fundamentally squares, placing them on a diagonal road creates unbuildable "triangles" of empty grass. 📉 We show you the difference in density between a standard 90-degree Roman Grid and a "free-form" diagonal layout, proving that beauty building comes at a massive cost to your population cap.

Finally, we answer the ultimate question: Is there any strategic benefit to diagonals, or are they purely for screenshots? We break down the specific "Road Shortcuts" where diagonals actually save time (the hypotenuse shortcut), provided you understand the math behind the pathfinding. 🧠