Hey thanks for the feedback!
Interesting point about the no-progress runs. Perhaps each run should earn you a prestige point if you make progress or not, that way there's a fighting chance to improve the next run either way? But maybe it should only happen if you match your previous progress? Something for me to think about at least.
There is a reason the distance exists between the forest and the warehouse, the distance will be bigger for later resources too! Essentially it's a problem to be solved either by worker management and then, when discovered, blueprints discovered will make later runs far easier in that regard.
To begin with the best tactic is to stager the lumberjacks so that the wood level is as steady as possible - personally I always do this in groups of 5 lumberjacks and I try to time the next group so that they arrive when the previous group is about to leave. Then the ratio of lumberjacks to runners should be around 1:2 respectively. And then, like I said, when you get a certain blueprint the approach becomes completely different.