How to Play
Your first ten thousand years
There is no rush and nothing to buy. Here is everything you need to take one settlement from a campfire to the stars.
Getting started
Found a city
Tap New City, then Found. A short tutorial walks you through the controls. You can keep several cities and switch between them.
Lay a road
Every building must touch a road that connects back to your Town Center. Tap Road and drag to lay one.
Build homes
Open Build, choose House, and tap one of the glowing spots beside a road. New buildings need a road connection before construction starts.
Follow the goals
The goal card in the top corner always shows the next step for this age, from "Build 4 houses" to raising the wonder.
Controls. Drag with one finger to pan, pinch to zoom, and twist two fingers to rotate the island. Tap any building to inspect it.
Growing homes
A house on a connected road is level 1. It then climbs one level for each service that covers it, in order: a house needs water before faith counts, faith before a market counts, and so on. Each age raises the highest level a home can reach, and its look changes with every age. Tap a house to see which need is next and which building brings it.
| Level | Service | Provided by | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A road | Connected to the Town Center | Stone Age |
| 2 | Water | Well, Aqueduct Fountain, Water Tower | Stone Age |
| 3 | Faith | Shrine, Temple | Stone Age |
| 4 | Market | Market | Bronze Age |
| 5 | Health | Bathhouse, Hospital | Classical Age |
| 6 | Culture | Amphitheater, Stadium | Classical Age |
| 7 | Safety | Watch House | Medieval Age |
| 8 | Education | School | Renaissance |
| 9 | Power | Power Station, Solar Farm, Fusion Reactor | Industrial Age |
| 10 | Transit | Metro Station | Modern Age |
| 11 | Wellbeing | Biodome | The Beyond |
Service buildings cover homes within their radius, shown when you place them. Bigger homes hold more people, and more people let you raise the wonder.
Resources
Your city runs on five resources. Residents eat food and pay taxes in gold; producers need workers, who come from your homes.
Food
Made by Town Center, Forager's Camp, Fishing Hut, Wheat Farm, Windmill, Glasshouse Farm, Vertical Farm. If the granaries run empty, people go hungry and begin to leave.
Wood
Made by Town Center, Woodcutter's Lodge, Forester's Lodge. Clearing forest for a building or road also yields a little wood.
Stone
Made by Stone Pit.
Gold
Taxes from happy residents, plus Market, Bronze Smithy, Guild Hall, Bank, Factory, Office Tower. Many buildings cost gold upkeep, and they run at half strength while the treasury is empty.
Knowledge
Made by Library, Scriptorium, University, Research Lab, Quantum Institute. Every wonder from the Colossus on needs it.
Where you build matters
Some producers must sit beside the right terrain, and they work faster the more of it surrounds them:
- Forager's Camp: near fertile meadow
- Fishing Hut: near water
- Woodcutter's Lodge: near forest
- Stone Pit: near rock
- Wheat Farm: near fertile meadow
- Windmill: near fertile meadow
Happiness
Happy homes fill up faster and pay more tax. Happiness rises with a home's level and with beautiful things nearby, and falls when people are hungry, out of work, or cut off from the road network.
- Raise it with decor: Carved Totem, Garden, Marble Statue, Plaza Fountain, City Park. Events such as festivals help too.
- Mind the smoke: the Power Station and the Factory make nearby homes less happy, so keep them away from houses.
Wonders and new ages
Each age ends with one wonder. It can only be built in its own age, only once, and only when your population is large enough. Completing it carries your city into the next age, which unlocks new buildings, a new need, and new looks for every home. The Space Elevator completes your city's story, and you can keep building afterwards.
| Wonder | Age | Needs | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stone Circle | Stone Age | 45 people | 100 food150 wood130 stone |
| Great Ziggurat | Bronze Age | 120 people | 400 food500 wood800 stone500 gold |
| Colossus | Classical Age | 260 people | 900 food1,800 stone1,500 gold400 knowledge |
| Cathedral | Medieval Age | 450 people | 1,800 food1,500 wood4,000 stone3,500 gold1,200 knowledge |
| Grand Dome | Renaissance | 700 people | 3,000 food2,500 wood7,000 stone8,000 gold3,000 knowledge |
| Iron Tower | Industrial Age | 900 people | 4,000 food10,000 wood30,000 stone40,000 gold15,000 knowledge |
| Sky Spire | Modern Age | 1,000 people | 5,000 food32,000 stone42,000 gold18,000 knowledge |
| Space Elevator | The Beyond | 1,100 people | 6,000 food45,000 stone70,000 gold35,000 knowledge |
Events
19 things that can happen
Events pop up as your city grows. Most are choices with a reward. Disasters strike where a service is missing, and a ruined building can be repaired for part of its cost by tapping it.
-
A Wandering Stranger
Visitor · Stone Age to Medieval Age
A cloaked stranger at the edge of town offers to teach a trick or two in exchange for a hot meal. Share your food and your woodcutters work faster for a while.
-
The Great Hunt
Fortune · Stone Age to Bronze Age
Scouts spot a herd of giant deer beyond the hills. Join the hunt for a feast, or let them graze in peace. Either way, your people are happier.
-
Trade Caravan
Visitor · Bronze Age to Renaissance
Traders with laden donkeys ask to camp by your market. Swap wood for gold or stone for food, or send them on without a deal.
-
A Duel of Wits
Visitor · Classical Age to Renaissance
A swaggering sea captain challenges your best orator to a duel of insults while the whole harbour watches. Accept, and win gold and a legendary mood.
-
Harvest Festival
Fortune · Stone Age to The Beyond
After a good year the people want music, dancing and far too much food. Spend food on a festival for a big happiness boost, or save the stores and disappoint them.
-
A Flash of Insight
Fortune · Classical Age to The Beyond
A scholar runs through the streets having cracked an old problem. Fund the work with gold for a large knowledge reward, or applaud for a smaller one.
-
Bumper Harvest
Fortune · Bronze Age to Industrial Age
Warm rain and long sun: the fields have never looked so full. Food output rises for a while.
-
A Glittering Vein
Fortune · Bronze Age to Industrial Age
Quarrymen strike a seam of something shiny. Mine it for stone and gold.
-
The Road Connects
Fortune · Medieval Age to Renaissance
Carriers with handcarts run goods along every road, and the supply chain hums. Gold income rises for a while.
-
Two Banners
Visitor · Medieval Age
Two rival noble houses camp outside the walls, each demanding the town's support. Host a tournament instead, or stay neutral and live with the tension.
-
Visitors from Abroad
Visitor · Industrial Age to The Beyond
Delegations from distant cities come to see what the fuss is about. Give them the grand tour for gold and civic pride.
-
Something in the Bay
Visitor · Modern Age to The Beyond
An enormous, very polite lizard surfaces in the bay and stares at the skyline. Sell tickets, or ask it nicely to leave.
-
The Arena Festival
Visitor · Modern Age to The Beyond
A slick promoter wants to run mystery-chest contests at the stadium. A fair tournament keeps people happy; the chests pay well but leave buyer's remorse.
-
A Very Strange Petition
Visitor · Modern Age to The Beyond
Two freelance investigators, one in a suit and one with large ears, petition to rename the river after their car. Approve it for some absurd local fame.
-
Fire!
Disaster · Bronze Age to The Beyond
A building outside the reach of a watch catches fire. A bucket brigade usually saves it; let it burn and it falls to ruin until you repair it. Watch coverage prevents fires.
Prevented by safety: Watch House.
-
Fever in the Streets
Disaster · Bronze Age to Industrial Age
A fever spreads through homes that no bathhouse or hospital covers. Quarantine costs gold but saves lives; waiting it out costs residents and happiness. Health coverage prevents fevers.
Prevented by health: Bathhouse, Hospital.
-
Rising Waters
Disaster · Stone Age to The Beyond
Heavy rain swells the water and a building at the shore is at risk. Spend stone on a levee to keep it safe, or hope for the best.
-
Thunderstorm
Disaster · Stone Age to The Beyond
A wild storm rolls in off the sea and everyone hides indoors. Wood output dips for a minute, but the storm leaves some driftwood behind.
-
Blackout
Disaster · Industrial Age to The Beyond
The lights go out in homes without power coverage. Pay for emergency generators, or spend some grumpy candlelit evenings. Power coverage prevents blackouts.
Prevented by power: Power Station, Solar Farm, Fusion Reactor.