Foundation is a medieval city-building game where you grow a small settlement into a working town. Everything you place, from farms and workshops to churches and grand halls, is a building, and each one has a job to do. Some make goods, some store and move them, some keep villagers fed and content, and a few large monuments tie into the three estates that shape your town's power. Once you know how buildings unlock, how they're built and what they need, the rest of the game starts to make sense.
Showing 92 of 97 items.
Category
Resource
Blacksmith
Produces tools for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Planks; 5 Polished Stone; 10 Stone; 6 Tools; 50 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Blacksmiths
- Produces or Provides
- Tools
- Content
- Base Game
Bowyer's Hut
Makes either shortbow or recurve bow, with the chosen recipe set by the player.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Planks; 5 Cloth; 5 Polished Stone; 8 Tools; 50 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Weaponsmiths
- Produces or Provides
- Shortbow or recurve bow
- Content
- Base Game
Charcoal Hut
Produces coal for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Wood; 5 Planks; 2 Tools; 25 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Charcoal Burners
- Produces or Provides
- Coal
- Content
- Base Game
Cooperage
Produces barrels for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 30 Planks; 10 Polished Stone; 10 Tools; 300 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Coopers
- Produces or Provides
- Barrel
- Content
- Base Game
Forester Camp
Plants trees in a painted Reforestation zone.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Wood; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Foresters
- Produces or Provides
- Plants trees in a painted Reforestation zone.
- Content
- Base Game
Glass Smelter
Produces glass for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Tools; 20 Polished Stone; 500 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Glass Blowers
- Produces or Provides
- Glass
- Content
- Base Game
Iron Mining Camp
Produces iron ore for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Wood; 3 Cloth; 4 Tools; 25 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Miners
- Produces or Provides
- Iron Ore
- Content
- Base Game
Iron Smelter
Produces iron for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Planks; 5 Stone; 10 Polished Stone; 5 Tools; 50 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Iron Smelters
- Produces or Provides
- Iron
- Content
- Base Game
Lumber Camp
Produces wood for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 2 Tools; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Woodcutters
- Produces or Provides
- Wood
- Content
- Base Game
Sawmill
Produces planks for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Wood; 10 Stone; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Carpenters
- Produces or Provides
- Planks
- Content
- Base Game
Spearmaker's Hut
Makes either spear or polearm, with the chosen recipe set by the player.
- Construction Cost
- 15 Planks; 5 Polished Stone; 8 Tools; 50 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Weaponsmiths
- Produces or Provides
- Spear or polearm
- Content
- Base Game
Stonecutter Camp
Produces stone for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Wood; 2 Tools; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Miners
- Produces or Provides
- Stone
- Content
- Base Game
Stonemason Hut
Turns stone into polished stone.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Wood; 5 Cloth; 8 Tools; 25 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 1 Stone Mason
- Produces or Provides
- Polished Stone
- Content
- Base Game
Swordsmith
Makes either shortsword or steel sword, with the chosen recipe set by the player.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Planks; 10 Polished Stone; 8 Tools; 50 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Weaponsmiths
- Produces or Provides
- Shortsword or steel sword
- Content
- Base Game
Category
Food
Apple Orchard
Grows apples in a painted crop field.
- Construction Cost
- 15 Stone; 10 Planks; 3 Tools; 25 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Farmers
- Produces or Provides
- Apple
- Content
- Harvest Festival
Bakery
Bakes bread, plus pastries with Harvest Festival.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Planks; 20 Stone; 10 Tools; 50 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 4 Bakers
- Produces or Provides
- Bread; Pastries (Harvest Festival)
- Content
- Base Game
Brewery
Produces beer for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Planks; 20 Polished Stone; 10 Tools; 200 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 1 Brewer
- Produces or Provides
- Beer
- Content
- Base Game
Butchery
Produces meat for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Stone; 10 Planks; 3 Tools; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Butchers
- Produces or Provides
- Meat
- Content
- Base Game
Cabbage Farm
Grows cabbage in a painted crop field.
- Construction Cost
- 15 Wood; 5 Planks; 2 Tools; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Farmers
- Produces or Provides
- Cabbage
- Content
- Harvest Festival
Cabbage Garden
Grows cabbage in a painted crop field.
- Construction Cost
- 5 Stone; 10 Planks; 2 Tools
- Workers
- 3 Farmers
- Produces or Provides
- Cabbage
- Content
- Base Game
Cheesemaker
Produces cheese for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 15 Planks; 10 Polished Stone; 10 Tools; 75 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 5 Cheesemakers
- Produces or Provides
- Cheese
- Content
- Base Game
Cider House
Produces cider for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Stone; 20 Planks; 10 Tools; 50 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Cidermakers
- Produces or Provides
- Cider
- Content
- Harvest Festival
Common Croft
Raises livestock in a pasture and provides eggs.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials; Variable gold coin cost
- Workers
- 2 Farmers
- Produces or Provides
- Chicken, Pig, Goose, Eggs
- Content
- Harvest Festival
Dairy Farm
Raises cattle in a pasture and provides milk.
- Construction Cost
- 30 Planks; 10 Tools; 150 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Dairy Farmers
- Produces or Provides
- Milk
- Content
- Base Game
Drying Kiln
Dries fruit and cures ham for food production.
- Construction Cost
- 15 Polished Stone; 20 Planks; 10 Tools; 75 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 5 Kilners
- Produces or Provides
- Dried Fruits, Cured Ham
- Content
- Harvest Festival
Fisher's Hut
Produces fish for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Wood; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 1 Fisherman
- Produces or Provides
- Fish
- Content
- Base Game
Gathering Hut
Produces berries for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Wood; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Foragers
- Produces or Provides
- Berries
- Content
- Base Game
Hazelnut Orchard
Grows hazelnuts in a painted crop field.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Planks; 15 Stone; 3 Tools; 75 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Farmers
- Produces or Provides
- Hazelnut
- Content
- Harvest Festival
Hop Farm
Produces hops for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Planks; 15 Polished Stone; 20 Tools; 100 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Hop Farmers
- Produces or Provides
- Hops
- Content
- Base Game
Hunter's Hut
Hunts boar for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Wood; 2 Tools; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Hunters
- Produces or Provides
- Boar
- Content
- Base Game
Plum Orchard
Grows plums in a painted crop field.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Planks; 15 Stone; 3 Tools; 150 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Farmers
- Produces or Provides
- Plum
- Content
- Harvest Festival
Turnip Farm
Grows turnips in a painted crop field.
- Construction Cost
- 15 Wood; 5 Planks; 2 Tools; 25 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Farmers
- Produces or Provides
- Turnip
- Content
- Harvest Festival
Well
Provides water for Villagers, Visitors and some production buildings.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Wood; 5 Stone; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- -
- Produces or Provides
- Provides water to Villagers and Visitors and for production buildings.
- Content
- Base Game
Wheat Farm
Grows wheat in a painted crop field.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Planks; 4 Tools; 25 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Farmers
- Produces or Provides
- Wheat
- Content
- Base Game
Windmill
Produces flour for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 15 Planks; 15 Stone; 6 Tools; 50 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 6 Millers
- Produces or Provides
- Flour
- Content
- Base Game
Category
Goods
Candle Workshop
Produces candles for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 50 Planks; 30 Polished Stone; 13 Tools; 300 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Candlemakers
- Produces or Provides
- Candle
- Content
- Base Game
Common Wares Workshop
Produces common wares for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 45 Planks; 25 Polished Stone; 13 Tools; 200 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Common Wares Makers
- Produces or Provides
- Common Wares
- Content
- Base Game
Gold Smelter
Produces gold bars for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Planks; 25 Polished Stone; 16 Tools; 500 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Gold Smelters
- Produces or Provides
- Gold Bar
- Content
- Base Game
Jeweller's Workshop
Produces jewellery for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 40 Planks; 40 Polished Stone; 25 Tools; 500 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Jewellers
- Produces or Provides
- Jewellery
- Content
- Base Game
Sheep Farm
Produces wool for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Wood; 10 Stone; 2 Tools; 25 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Shepherds
- Produces or Provides
- Wool
- Content
- Base Game
Tailor's Workshop
Produces clothes for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Planks; 15 Stone; 8 Tools; 50 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Tailors
- Produces or Provides
- Clothes
- Content
- Base Game
Weaver Hut
Produces cloth for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Planks; 5 Stone; 6 Tools; 50 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 2 Weavers
- Produces or Provides
- Cloth
- Content
- Base Game
Category
Logistics
Builder's Workshop
Provides Builders for construction and Master Builders for decorative work.
- Construction Cost
- 5 Wood
- Workers
- 3 Builders
- Produces or Provides
- Builders construct the town’s buildings, while Master Builders handle skilled decorative work.
- Content
- Base Game
Granary
Stores food and Tavern resources for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 15 Wood; 5 Stone; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 4 Transporters
- Produces or Provides
- Stores and distributes food and resources used by Taverns.
- Content
- Base Game
Paviour's Yard
Paves dirt paths inside a painted Road Paving zone.
- Construction Cost
- 15 Planks; 20 Polished Stone; 10 Tools; 200 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 3 Paviours
- Produces or Provides
- Paves dirt paths inside a painted Road Paving zone.
- Content
- Base Game
Village Centre
The starting building that brings in Villagers and stores initial resources.
- Construction Cost
- -
- Workers
- -
- Produces or Provides
- Brings in the first Villagers and contains the town’s starting resources.
- Content
- Base Game
Village Market
Provides market stalls for food, goods and luxury Needs.
- Construction Cost
- -
- Workers
- Market Tenders
- Produces or Provides
- Provides stalls for Villagers’ food, goods and luxury Needs.
- Content
- Base Game
Warehouse
Stores common goods, raw materials and refined materials.
- Construction Cost
- 15 Planks; 10 Stone; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 4 Transporters
- Produces or Provides
- Stores common goods, raw materials and refined materials.
- Content
- Base Game
Category
Service
Modest Church
Satisfies the Service Need for all Villager types.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- 1 Village Priest
- Produces or Provides
- Satisfies the Service Need for all Villager types.
- Content
- Base Game
Rustic Church
Satisfies the Service Need for all Villager types through Village Priests.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- 1 Village Priest
- Produces or Provides
- Lets Village Priests satisfy the Service Need for all Villager types.
- Content
- Base Game
Category
Tavern
Berry Brewery
Produces berry brew for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Brewers
- Produces or Provides
- Berry Brew
- Content
- Base Game
Festival Grounds
Prepares and hosts Harvest Festivals for visitors.
- Construction Cost
- 15 Wood; 10 Planks; 1 Tools; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- -
- Produces or Provides
- Lets you prepare and host Harvest Festivals for visitors.
- Content
- Harvest Festival
Inn Lodge
Provides accommodation for everyday, fair and estate Visitors.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Innkeepers
- Produces or Provides
- Provides accommodation for everyday, fair and estate Visitors.
- Content
- Base Game
Tavern Hall
Sells alcohol to wealthier Villagers and Visitors.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Taverners
- Produces or Provides
- Sells alcohol to wealthier Villagers and Visitors, satisfying Entertainment Need.
- Content
- Base Game
Tavern Kitchen
Produces Tavern Meals for the Tavern.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Cooks
- Produces or Provides
- Tavern Meal
- Content
- Base Game
Category
Monastery
Apiary
Produces honey and wax.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Polished Stone; 20 Planks; 2 Tools
- Workers
- 2 Bee Keepers
- Produces or Provides
- Honey, Wax
- Content
- Base Game
Berry Garden
Produces berries for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Gardeners
- Produces or Provides
- Berries
- Content
- Base Game
Chapel
Satisfies the Service Need for Villagers of all types and ranks.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Monastic Priest
- Produces or Provides
- Satisfies Villagers’ Service Need within the Monastery.
- Content
- Base Game
Cloister
Satisfies the Cloister Need for senior Monastics and some Monastery visitors.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- -
- Produces or Provides
- Satisfies the Cloister Need for senior Monastics and some Monastery visitors.
- Content
- Base Game
Emissary Office
Assigns a Monastic Emissary to perform tasks for the ruler.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- 1 Monastic Emissary
- Produces or Provides
- Lets you assign a Monastic Emissary to perform tasks for the ruler.
- Content
- Base Game
Herb Garden
Produces herbs for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Herbalists
- Produces or Provides
- Herbs
- Content
- Base Game
Hospitium
Provides accommodation for Monastery visitors and pilgrims.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Hostellers
- Produces or Provides
- Provides accommodation for Monastery visitors and pilgrims.
- Content
- Base Game
Monastic Abbatial Church
Satisfies the Service Need for all Villager types.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Monastic Priests
- Produces or Provides
- Satisfies the Service Need for all Villager types.
- Content
- Base Game
Monastic Croft
Produces chicken, goose and eggs.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials; Variable gold coin cost
- Workers
- 2 Farmers
- Produces or Provides
- Chicken, Goose, Eggs
- Content
- Harvest Festival
Monastic Grange
Stores resources made or used by the Monastery.
- Construction Cost
- 5 Stone; 15 Wood
- Workers
- 4 Transporters
- Produces or Provides
- Stores resources made or used by the Monastery.
- Content
- Base Game
Monastic Kitchen
Cooks the Monastery’s meals: simple stew, garnished greens, golden gruel and robust roast.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Cooks
- Produces or Provides
- Simple Stew, Garnished Greens, Golden Gruel, Robust Roast
- Content
- Base Game
Monastic Scriptorium
Produces manuscripts for the Monastery.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Copyists
- Produces or Provides
- Manuscript
- Content
- Base Game
Monk Dorms
Provides accommodation for male Monastics.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- -
- Produces or Provides
- Provides accommodation for male Monastics.
- Content
- Base Game
Nun Dorms
Provides accommodation for female Monastics.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- -
- Produces or Provides
- Provides accommodation for female Monastics.
- Content
- Base Game
Refectory
Serves selected foods to Villagers and Monastics.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Refectorians
- Produces or Provides
- Serves selected foods to Villagers and Monastics.
- Content
- Base Game
Turnip Garden
Grows turnips in a painted crop field.
- Construction Cost
- 5 Stone; 10 Planks; 2 Tools
- Workers
- 2 Farmers
- Produces or Provides
- Turnip
- Content
- Harvest Festival
Vineyard
Grows grapes for the Monastery.
- Construction Cost
- 5 Wood; 5 Planks; 10 Stone; 20 Polished Stone; 5 Tools
- Workers
- 3 Vinegrowers
- Produces or Provides
- Grapes
- Content
- Base Game
Winery
Produces wine for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 20 Planks; 25 Stone; 25 Polished Stone; 5 Tools
- Workers
- 2 Vintners
- Produces or Provides
- Wine
- Content
- Base Game
Category
Manor House
Bailiff Office
Appoints a Bailiff to carry out Mandates for the ruler.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- 1 Bailiff
- Produces or Provides
- Lets you appoint a Bailiff to carry out Mandates for the ruler.
- Content
- Base Game
Tax Office
Employs Tax Collectors to collect town taxes.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Tax Collectors
- Produces or Provides
- Lets you employ Tax Collectors to collect taxes.
- Content
- Base Game
Watchpost
Employs Watchmen and Patrollers to monitor the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Watchmen and Patrollers
- Produces or Provides
- Lets you employ Watchmen and Patrollers to monitor the settlement.
- Content
- Base Game
Category
Castle
Armoury
Stores military goods such as weapons, War Rations and steel.
- Construction Cost
- 10 Stone; 15 Planks; 10 Gold Coins
- Workers
- 4 Transporters
- Produces or Provides
- Stores weapons, War Rations and steel for the town’s military.
- Content
- Base Game
Barracks
Provides housing for combatants and visiting Royal Companies.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- -
- Produces or Provides
- Houses combatants and visiting Royal Companies.
- Content
- Base Game
Bow Encampment
Forms a Bow Company for the army.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Combatants
- Produces or Provides
- Lets you form a Bow Company for the army.
- Content
- Base Game
Castle Keep
Forms a Castle Company for the army.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Combatants
- Produces or Provides
- Lets you form a Castle Company for the army.
- Content
- Base Game
Mess Hall
Provides food slots for the Castle’s combatants.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Transporters
- Produces or Provides
- Serves food from its slots to the Castle’s combatants.
- Content
- Base Game
Private Quarters
Provides accommodation for wealthy townsfolk, Visitors and Knights.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- -
- Produces or Provides
- Provides accommodation for wealthy townsfolk, Visitors and Knights.
- Content
- Base Game
Provisioner
Produces War Rations for the Castle’s army.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Cooks
- Produces or Provides
- War Ration
- Content
- Base Game
Royal Office
Assigns a Royal Courtier to carry out tasks for the ruler.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- 1 Royal Courtier
- Produces or Provides
- Lets you assign a Royal Courtier to carry out tasks for the ruler.
- Content
- Base Game
Spear Encampment
Forms a Spear Company for the army.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Combatants
- Produces or Provides
- Lets you form a Spear Company for the army.
- Content
- Base Game
Sword Encampment
Forms a Sword Company for the army.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Combatants
- Produces or Provides
- Lets you form a Sword Company for the army.
- Content
- Base Game
Category
Castle sub-building
Healing House
Assigns Barber Surgeons to help wounded Combatants recover.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Barber Surgeons
- Produces or Provides
- Lets Barber Surgeons help wounded Combatants recover.
- Content
- Base Game
Category
City Market
City Belfry
Stores and sells marketable resources as part of the City Market.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Market Tenders/Transporters
- Produces or Provides
- Stores and sells marketable resources from the City Market.
- Content
- Base Game
Market Hall
Stores and sells marketable resources from one building.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- Market Tenders/Transporters
- Produces or Provides
- Stores and sells marketable resources from one building.
- Content
- Base Game
Category
Sub-building
Sculpture Workshop
Produces sculptures for monuments.
- Construction Cost
- 15 Wood; 5 Cloth; 5 Tools
- Workers
- 1 Master Builder
- Produces or Provides
- Sculpture
- Content
- Base Game
Stained Glass Workshop
Produces stained glass for the settlement.
- Construction Cost
- 5 Tools
- Workers
- 1 Master Builder
- Produces or Provides
- Stained Glass
- Content
- Base Game
Category
Decoration
Court of Heroes
Adds a 25% happiness boost for Combatants.
- Construction Cost
- Variable construction materials
- Workers
- -
- Produces or Provides
- Raises happiness for Combatants by 25%.
- Content
- Base Game
How to Unlock Buildings in Foundation
You start with only two buildings available: the Village Centre and the Builder's Workshop. The Village Centre has to go down first, because nothing else can be built until it exists. It also brings in your first villagers and a starting stock of resources. Finishing the Builder's Workshop opens the rest of the building tree, and quests then point you toward the next structures to build.
The tree is split into four paths: Common, Labour, Kingdom and Clergy. Common tiers open as your town's Prosperity rises. Prosperity measures overall success and is built from wealth, territory, trade, population, gold, and the splendour and beauty of your buildings. The Labour, Kingdom and Clergy paths open as Splendour rises instead. Splendour comes from the buildings and decorations you add, and only certain pieces count, which the build menu marks with a star.
Influence is what you spend on estate upgrades, and it builds up over time. The higher your Splendour, the faster Influence accumulates, and quest rewards can add to it. Splendour also sets a ceiling on how much Influence you can hold, so anything above that limit slowly drains away. Common-path upgrades cost gold, while estate upgrades cost Influence.
How to Place and Build Buildings
Open the build menu and either search by name or use the category filters. Pick a building and a blueprint follows your cursor. Drag the arrows to move it, use the ring to rotate it, and right-click or press Esc to cancel. Holding Shift while you left-click places one and keeps the blueprint active, which helps when you're setting down several of the same building.
Look closely at the entry points on the blueprint. Blocking them stops villagers from getting inside, so keep a clear way to every door. The menu also shows whether a building's requirements are met, so check that before you commit to a spot.
Construction happens in bundles of resources. You can deliver materials in any order, but the work only moves forward one bundle at a time, and shared materials go to the earliest bundle first. If a site seems stuck, look at whether the first bundle is still missing something.
Workers and Villager Needs in Foundation
Any building that performs a job needs workers, while decorations and other passive pieces don't. Click the plus sign to add the next unemployed villager, and the game picks the rank that suits the job best. You can also click the empty slot to choose a specific villager. Each job has an optimal rank, and promoting someone past it doesn't make them work any better, so promotions are best saved for where they help.
Villagers also have needs that must be filled to keep them happy, and each rank asks for more than the one below it. Water is essential at every rank. A serf mainly needs basic food and basic housing, while a commoner wants two kinds of refined food and a citizen wants three, plus service, and citizens also need entertainment. During free time, villagers visit places like wells, markets, churches, taverns and their homes to fill those needs, then head home to rest once everything is covered.
Water only comes from wells, and villagers and visitors have no other source for it. Wells need no workers, and since water can't be kept in granaries or warehouses, it's worth building several in different parts of town so nobody has a long walk. Churches fill the service need for every type of villager, and village priests staff them.
Resource, Food and Goods Buildings Explained
These buildings work as a chain, with the output of one becoming the input for the next. Resource buildings gather or process raw materials. The Lumber Camp is a good example: its woodcutters produce wood, which feeds construction and refined materials.
Food follows the same idea and moves through four tiers: raw, rustic, refined and luxurious. Farms and hunting and fishing huts supply the raw ingredients. Bakeries and breweries turn those into refined food, and bakers and brewers need water to do it.
Goods work the same way, with workshops making items that villagers ask for. Goods and luxury items are the extras higher ranks need, so they matter more as your town grows. Keeping the whole chain flowing depends on storage and transport.
Warehouses, Granaries and Other Logistics Buildings
Logistics buildings are the ones that move and hold what your town makes. A Warehouse stores common goods along with raw and refined materials, and builders and workers can take from it to build or make things. Traders visit to buy and sell.
The Granary is the food hub. It stores all four food tiers and passes ingredients to bakeries and cheesemakers, stocks market stalls, adds food to the Monastery's refectory, and sends food to the Mess Hall to supply the military. Its base size matches the Warehouse. Both buildings are staffed by up to four transporters, and serfs make the best ones, because higher ranks have more complex needs and spend more time away from the building.
The Builder's Workshop is the other key logistics building. Its builders construct every other building in the village, and master builders handle the decorative work on monuments. Two optional add-ons, the Sculpture Workshop and the Stained Glass Workshop, add decorative output to the village.
Monuments: Manor House, Castle, Monastery and Tavern
Monuments are large, modular buildings tied to the three estates. Each one is built from parts and can hold sub-buildings with their own jobs, so one big structure can serve several purposes. The Manor House, Tavern and City Market belong to Labour, the Monastery belongs to Clergy, and the Castle belongs to Kingdom. Splendour from each estate's buildings is what opens that estate's tiers.
The three Labour monuments cover local government, entertainment and trade. The Manor House is the town's seat of local government, with sub-buildings for taxes, a bailiff, watch posts and a treasury. The Tavern is a social centre for wealthier townsfolk and visitors, and it earns revenue for the town. The City Market combines the roles of a market, granary and warehouse, with greater capacity than each would have on its own.
The Castle is the military centre of the town. It houses combatants, stores weapons and hosts visitors tied to the Kingdom, and its Castle Keep and encampments form the town's companies of fighters. The Monastery works differently. You can't assign monastics to specific jobs. Instead, you devote unemployed villagers to the Monastery, and the game chooses each one's job inside. Monastics live in dorms, work only within their own Monastery, and are promoted with manuscripts that the Monastic Scriptorium makes.
The Manor House, Castle and Monastery each open at the first tier of their path. The Tavern comes later, at the second Labour tier, and the City Market is a late-game build at the fourth Labour tier. The Manor House, Castle, Monastery and Tavern each include a Great Hall in their first tier, which unlocks Mandates.
Which Buildings Should You Build First?
Start with the Village Centre and Builder's Workshop, since the game requires them. A Lumber Camp is the most useful early build after that, because wood feeds much of your early construction. Wells come soon after, since villagers need water at every rank.
Once those are running, a Warehouse or Granary is worth adding, because the Warehouse is the central point between production, construction and trade. For the longer game, Labour is the path to watch if you want a busy, trading town, since it brings the Manor House, Tavern, markets and taxation. The Castle matters if you want a fighting force, and the Monastery matters if you want monastics and their manuscripts.
How Building Upkeep Works
Every building has a monthly upkeep cost in gold, and the total grows as your town does. If upkeep ends up higher than your income, your treasury can run out of gold. When that happens, you can't start new construction, import resources or buy new territory.
The treasury also has a limit on how much gold it can hold. Treasury sub-buildings in the Manor House raise that limit, so they're worth a look once your gold starts to pile up.
FAQ
Can I expand or change a building after I've built it?
Modular buildings, such as monuments and churches, can be extended and decorated later. Improved buildings take add-ons that depend on a main part, so the add-ons do nothing without it. Be careful when switching a building's type, too: a Castle Keep uses unique parts, and those are deleted if you switch it to something like a Barracks.
How many villagers can work in one building?
It depends on the building. A Lumber Camp starts with three woodcutter jobs. Limbing, napping and snoring posts each add one job, up to two of each, and munching, stewing and drinking posts each add two, up to one of each. Warehouses and granaries have four transporter jobs, a Builder's Workshop holds three builders, and a Rustic Church can employ more priests when you expand it.
How do I store more goods?
Warehouses and granaries can each take up to two depots, and every depot adds more storage slots. Depots need the Storage Improvement technology on the second tier of the Common path, and each one adds a small monthly upkeep.
Why can't I build a certain building yet?
Usually the building is still locked behind a tier, or the spot is missing something it needs. The Royal Office, for example, must be built in an area of Heavy Fortification.