The first year in any survival city builder game is always a difficult one as players have to contend with a small population, limited starting resources, and any hazards such as poor weather or natural disasters the game might throw out to provide a bit more of a challenge. Manor Lords is certainly no different, starting off its players with a smattering of essential resources such as timber and food, but leaving the rest up to the player.

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Manor Lords makes things a little more difficult than other games in the genre by introducing a more complex system of logistics requiring oxen and other livestock for transporting goods, so surviving the first year is a bit more of a challenge. Fortunately, there are tried and true steps you can take to ensure your survival in Manor Lords.

Get More Oxen (Optional)

At the beginning of the game, players are given a single ox for use in settlement logistics, carrying resources from one place to another. This is more than just useful as it's an essential part of the logistics mechanics in Manor Lords. But with only a single ox there's a bit of a bottleneck. Should players want to, there's the option of using the starting money to procure another.

Simply click on the hitching post building that's part of the starting settlement and then click on the image of an ox to purchase another. In the early game this can speed things up quite a bit. This isn't a strict requirement at all, and players wishing to keep hold of the starting money don't need to invest in this if they don't want to but having extra oxen can certainly come in handy.

Secure The Food Supply

Although homelessness is a problem in Manor Lords, and one you'll need to address soon, the first thing any would-be Manor Lord should do is ensure the settlers have enough food to eat. Early on in the game, the fastest, least complex, and most reliable way to ensure a steady food supply is through hunting and gathering.

Build Forager Hut & Hunting Camp

Near the starting location of the settlement, there should be a forest with a berry deposit and a herd for hunting. Players should build a Forager Hut and a Hunting Camp immediately, at a decent middlepoint between your town and the deposits themselves. For the hunting ground in particular, it's important not to place the building — or any other construction — too close to the herd, as that will cause the herd to migrate away from the area.

Once the buildings are finished, assign one family to each, and reap the rewards.

It's also good to note that at the top of the screen on the info bar, there's an icon that says how long the settlement can survive on its stores — this is a good piece of data to be aware of when thinking about survival in the first year.

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Gather Enough Timber

At this point, timber reserves are likely to be running a little low. It's a good idea to construct the various buildings that allow players to obtain and process wood for building and fuel. The most important of these is the Logging Camp, which allows assigned families to chop down wood for use in building or crafting, but it's also a good idea to have a Woodcutter's Camp for production of fuel.

Place these buildings close to a good-sized forest to get the most out of the starting wood supplies. It's also a good idea to build a road and connect these buildings to the main arteries of the settlement. Once the Logging Camp and the Woodcutter's Camp are finished building, assign one family each to them.

At this point, it might be wise to consider building a Forester Lodge, but it isn't strictly necessary — and even if built, it's a good idea not to assign a family to it until timber and fuel production reaches a high enough level that there's a good buffer zone.

End Homelessness In The Settlement

Once there's a secure supply of timber and fuel, it's time to build enough housing and housing-related structures to keep the families of the settlement happy. The most important of these is the Burgage Plot, a flexible plot type that allows families to build homes. These plots come in a variety of sizes and shapes and can be defined by the player using the tool.

Although it's tempting to pack in as many Burgage Plots as possible, it's a good idea to give each plot a little extra space — the extra space can be used to upgrade plots with an additional production at the cost of Treasury. Some of this production is a great option, as it can provide passive sources of resources such as eggs or vegetables.

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Provide Access To Plenty Of Water & Commerce

Families in Manor Lords require good access to water and a place to buy and sell goods. Once homelessness is solved, you'll want to place down a well or two in the appropriate locations, as well as defining a space for market stalls.

The market tool is like the Burgage Plot tool in that the player can define an area for stalls to be built, so this gives a good bit of flexibility for fitting it into stranger shapes of roads. Meeting the families' needs is key to increasing population in Manor Lords, so it's very important to get their water and commerce needs met after their more basic desire for a home.

Additional Tips & Tricks To Survive The First Year

• There needs to be at least one unassigned family for use in construction, but if there isn't any ongoing construction, it's not so important.
• Hunting will stop when the herd reaches 10 members, but this shouldn't happen for a while unless there's a lot of assigned families to the Hunting Lodge.
• Oxen can die — if this happens, buy another one right away.
• Don't be afraid to unassign and reassign families to different jobs — be flexible! Sometimes, there's enough of one resource and not another, or there's a need for an unassigned family for construction work.

Manor Lords

Platform(s)

PC , Xbox One , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S

Released

April 26, 2024

Developer(s)

Slavic Magic

Publisher(s)

Hooded Horse

Genre(s)

Strategy , City Builder