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First steps

This page takes you from creating an account to your first raid. The numbers are those of a classic (1×) world; on faster worlds everything happens sooner.

Found your realm

On the title screen choose Create an account, enter your email address, a password and a lord name, and choose your first calling. If the realm asks you to confirm your address, open the link it emails you, then log in: your realm is founded with the name and calling you chose. The first calling is free; changing it later costs Fateshards.

When the game runs more than one server, the title screen shows them under the form: pick yours before you log in or sign up. Each server is a world of its own, with its own accounts.

Calling Play style In short
Guildmaster Miner More yield and mana, faster and larger cargo trains, Delver Golems.
Warlord Raider Faster armies, cheaper marches, better battle lore, two extra banners, Reavers.
Wayfarer Quester Faster study, richer quests, more quest slots and plots, Rangers.

If you are unsure, the Guildmaster is the most forgiving: a stronger economy helps with everything else.

You start with:

  • a Seat of 163 plots on a temperate site (sites 4 to 12) of the first province with room;
  • 500 iron and 500 runestone;
  • a population of 50 Humans, the starting kindred;
  • the world's starting Fateshards (8,000 in a default world);
  • protection as a fledgling until you pass 50,000 renown.

Even with no mines at all, your Seat receives a small tithe of 30 iron and 15 runestone per hour.

Your first hour

The first levels of every building are quick (an early-game divisor makes level 1 three and a half times faster than its cost suggests), so the opening is about getting the economy running.

  1. Iron Mine 1 (60 iron, 15 runestone). Iron is the resource you spend most.
  2. Runestone Quarry 1 (48 iron, 24 runestone).
  3. Ley Tap 1. Mines need mana: a level 1 mine or quarry uses 11 mana, and a level 1 Ley Tap makes 22. Without it your mines would run at 0%.
  4. Keep raising the Iron Mine, Runestone Quarry and Ley Tap in turn. Watch the mana counter in the top bar: if it turns red, your mines are slowing down, so raise the Ley Tap next.
  5. Build the Builders' Guild: every level divides build times by one more (level 1 halves them).
  6. Build the Mage Tower and study Mana Theory and Banner Command.
  7. Add an Aether Condenser once iron and runestone flow well. Aether pays for marches and many later buildings, units and lore.

Keep an eye on the vaults

Each vault starts at 10,000 capacity. A full vault stops its mine, so build Iron Vaults, Rune Vaults and Aether Cisterns before you leave the game for a long time. Hover over a resource in the top bar to see when it will be full.

Your first army

  1. Muster Hall (needs Builders' Guild 2). It raises units and fortifications.
  2. Study Pathfinding 1 for Skirmishers, the cheapest fighting unit.
  3. Raise a few Archer Towers to defend your Seat. Fortifications never leave home, but about 70% of the ones destroyed in a battle are rebuilt for free.
  4. Study Spycraft 2 and Pathfinding 3 for Ravens, then scout a neighbour before you attack.

Your first raid

The world is seeded with NPC realms in the first provinces of continent 1. They never log in, so they are dormant: no fledgling protection, no honour to win or lose, and no limit on how often you raid them. They do have fortifications, some units and a stockpile.

  1. Open the Map (M), pick an NPC stronghold and send Ravens to scout it.
  2. Read the scout report: with enough ravens it shows the target's resources, army and fortifications.
  3. Send Skirmishers on an Assault from the Hosts panel (H). Bring enough load to carry the plunder home: from a dormant realm the victor takes up to half of each resource (three quarters for a Wayfarer).
  4. Watch the battle again from its report, then send Scavenger Carts to salvage the spoils field left by the fallen.

What comes next

  • Settle new holds with a Settler Caravan once you study Cartography.
  • Join or found an Order and talk to other lords in the chat.
  • Send hosts on quests into the Wilds for treasure, sellswords and Fateshards.
  • Send envoys to meet the other kindreds and unlock their arts.
  • Read Tips and strategy for build orders and defence advice.