Manor Lords is a city builder and real-time strategy game wherein the player acts as the ruler of a small territory. By establishing trade routes, winning over the people, and generating wealth, this initial territory can greatly expand to the entire map. Starting is often the hardest part in Manor Lords, but there are plenty of tips and tricks to get ahead.

Manor Lords currently hosts three different scenarios: Rise to Prosperity, Restoring the Peace, and On the Edge. Each mode has a different level of difficulty and will require the player to take on different tasks and priorities. For those unfamiliar with Manor Lords, Rise to Prosperity is a combat-free scenario that gives much more leeway when learning the game’s mechanics. For those looking for a challenge, Restoring the Peace is a balanced scenario whereas On the Edge is a particularly brutal challenge even for experienced players.

Manor Lords Scenario Tips - Rise To Prosperity

Rise to Prosperity ignores combat completely and removes bandits from the map. Building an army, hiring mercenaries, and conquering territories all take a backseat in this scenario. The end goal of Rise to Prosperity is to climb from Small Village status to a Large Town settlement. This is primarily done by building Burgage Plots, but each settlement level will require more and more.

Although Burgage Plots are what will raise your settlement to Large Town status, you need to make sure you don’t kill off your citizens by forcing them to build without enough food or resources. Forager Huts and Hunting Camps are essential for gathering food to sustain your population and to keep your popularity high.

Considering Burgage Plots require wood, it is also prudent to establish several Logging Camps and plant nearby trees. Overall, so long as you keep your Timber in abundant supply and the townsfolk alive, then you’ll easily ace this section.

Manor Lords Scenario Tips - Restoring the Peace

Restoring the Peace in Manor Lords is a balanced experience that combines the city building and RTS combat elements. Your end goal in this scenario is domination, which means eliminating the nearby adversary dubbed The Baron and taking his lands.

Your newfound enemy will not attack immediately, which gives you time to build Hunting Camps, Graineries, Woodcutter’s Lodges, and similarly necessary structures. Below are extra buildings that you should prioritize building in this more combat-oriented mode.

• Mining Pit - Used to extract Iron Ore from Iron Deposits, which is necessary to craft weapons for your army.
• Bloomery - A workshop that can turn Iron Ore into Iron Slabs, which are a far more versatile form of the raw material.
• Trade Routes - Establishing Trade Routes is far more important than ever. This can be used to sell excess raw materials to meet areas where you may be lacking.
• Stonecutter Camp - Used to gather stone from stone deposits. Essential for building roads, other building structures, and equipping your army.

Keeping the land tax rate between 10 - 20 percent is generally the best way to raise treasury funds without inflicting too much damage on your popularity.

A new priority in this scenario is rushing to level two in order to get access to your first istrative building: the Manor. The Manor is where you can set your land tax rates, which help to build your treasury. The treasury is essential to raising your army and hiring mercenaries, who can then be sent into new territories to attack the enemy and seize land.

Although building an army as fast as possible is certainly a priority, you want to be careful not to raise land taxes too high. Taxes will earn disapproval among the people no matter what, but going above 30 percent will result in low morale, which leads to a much less efficient village and militia.

Manor Lords Scenario Tips - On the Edge

On the Edge is the most intensive version of Manor Lords. Your end goal in this scenario is both growth and domination, to grow your settlement to a Large Town and to lay claim to all surrounding territories on the map. In this mode, bandit attacks are far more aggressive, combat is much more difficult, and winter is significantly more brutal.

Given that this mode starts in the dead of winter, generating fuel by building Woodcutter Lodges and Charcoal Kilns is essential. From here, establish trade routes and try to build your first Manor as soon as possible.

In On the Edge, you can expect to see anywhere from two to five bandit attacks per year. This makes raising a militia and building iron-focused buildings much more important. It is essential to grow your regional wealth first and foremost, as otherwise, your citizens will be too poor to tax. Upgrading your Burgage Plots is also just as important as it was in Raise to Prosperity, since this is the main tool through which you’ll start expanding your settlement and stave off homelessness in your town.

Town morale will play a much larger role in On the Edge than in the previous two scenarios, since both higher taxes and frequent attacks will continually damage this important stat. The church swiftly turns into one of the most important structures to build and upgrade. This challenging game mode in Manor Lords presents you with immediate dangers and pitfalls, so it is best not to let morale become a growing issue as well.