Rebuilding a civilization from the ashes of a plague-ravaged medieval world is the core challenge of Going Medieval, the colony-building strategy game from Foxy Voxel. For new players, the depth of systems governing survival, construction, and warfare can be daunting. Mastering the initial phase is critical, as early decisions set the trajectory for a settlement’s prosperity or collapse.
Foundational Choices: Scenario, Biome, and Starting Settlers
The journey begins with three critical choices that define your early-game experience: the starting scenario, the map biome, and your initial group of settlers. Each decision carries weight, influencing the difficulty, resources, and strategic priorities of your colony’s first days.
Selecting a Starting Scenario
Going Medieval offers four distinct scenarios, each tailored to different playstyles and experience levels. ‘A New Life’ is the recommended beginner scenario, starting in spring with three settlers, providing a balanced introduction. ‘Peaceful’ mode removes enemy raids entirely, allowing players to focus purely on construction and management. For a severe challenge, ‘Lone Wolf’ begins with a single settler in winter, while ‘Pioneer’ starts with three settlers in autumn and features aggressive, unpredictable raids.
Evaluating Map Biomes
The choice of biome dictates the environmental and resource landscape. The ‘Valley’ offers fertile soil, clay, and mild winters, ideal for agriculture. The ‘Hillside’ provides uneven terrain for natural defense and moderate resources. The ‘Mountain’ biome is rich in minerals like limestone, iron, and silver but has harsh winters and poor soil. The ‘Marsh’ is abundant in fish and vegetation but scarce in land animals and mineable minerals, presenting a unique logistical challenge.
Assembling Your Initial Settlers
The three starting followers are your most valuable asset. A successful early colony requires a team covering three essential roles: a Builder with high Construction or Mining skill to erect structures; a Farmer/Cook proficient in Farming and Cooking to secure the food supply; and a Fighter with competent Melee or Ranged skill for defense and hunting. Beyond skills, traits significantly impact efficiency. Positive traits like Hard Worker or Iron Gut provide boosts, while negative traits such as Glutton or Pyromaniac can cripple a settlement. It is often worthwhile to reroll or manually select settlers to secure a balanced, capable group.
Critical First Steps for Colony Survival
The opening hours establish the colony’s foundation. Following a structured sequence of priorities mitigates early risks and accelerates stability, though growth inevitably attracts the attention of hostile forces.
Step One: Immediate Resource Gathering and Stockpiling
Before any construction, prioritize gathering all loose resources—wood, stone, berries—from the starting area. Establish a stockpile zone immediately; leaving resources scattered leads to waste. This initial stockpile fuels your first building projects and provides a buffer against scarcity.
Step Two: Constructing Basic Shelter Before Nightfall
Settlers sleeping outdoors risk animal attacks and exposure, leading to mood penalties that reduce productivity. A simple, rectangular wooden structure with walls, a roof, beds, and a door suffices for the first night. Overengineering is unnecessary; functionality and speed are paramount.
Step Three: Establishing a Sustainable Food Source
Food is the most pressing early-game resource. Initially, rely on foraging for berries and hunting wild game with ranged weapons. Quickly transition to more reliable sources: build a campfire or clay oven for cooking raw food into more nutritious meals, and designate a farm plot on level, fertile soil. Cooked meals provide superior nutrition and positive mood bonuses, essential for maintaining settler morale.
Step Four: Prioritizing Research
Construct a research bench early and assign your most skilled researcher. The initial research tree unlocks technologies fundamental to survival: improved farming tools, advanced food production, durable building materials like clay bricks, and basic defensive structures. A perpetually active research queue is vital; technological advancement is the primary driver of colony resilience and expansion.
Step Five: Preparing for the Inevitable First Raid
On standard difficulty and above, raids typically occur within the first season. Preparation is non-optional. Ensure each settler has a viable weapon, establish a defensible position such as a wall with a choke point, and stockpile sufficient food and medicine to endure a prolonged conflict. Neglecting defense can lead to catastrophic colony loss.
Managing the Food Supply Chain
Food management is a continuous, multi-faceted challenge encompassing production, processing, storage, and spoilage. A robust food system is the backbone of a thriving colony.
Early Food Sources and Transition to Farming
While berries and hunted meat provide temporary sustenance, sustainable agriculture is the long-term goal. After unlocking farming through research, designate a growing zone on rich soil. Select crops suited to your biome and season; most grow only in warm months, so planting in early spring is crucial. Staple crops include Wheat for bread production, Turnips for cooler conditions, and Herbs for medicinal purposes.
Cooking, Quality, and Infrastructure
Raw food offers minimal nutrition and no mood benefits. Cooking transforms it into efficient sustenance. As research progresses, better recipes yield higher quality meals. Establish a dedicated kitchen area with a stove, workbench, and adjacent storage to optimize your cook’s efficiency and output.
Storage Strategies and Spoilage Mitigation
Food spoilage is a constant threat. Construct an underground or partially buried larder to create a cooler environment that slows decay. In winter, outdoor temperatures can act as natural refrigeration, but this exposes food to animals and raiders. Manage inventory proactively, consuming perishable items before they spoil, and preserving durable goods like grain for lean periods.
Advanced Considerations for Long-Term Prosperity
Beyond survival, long-term success in Going Medieval requires strategic planning in defense, resource management, and settler well-being. The colony’s complexity grows with its population and wealth.
Designing Effective Defensive Structures
As raids increase in scale and frequency, passive defenses become insufficient. Design layered defenses: outer walls with limited gate access, interior choke points, and elevated positions for ranged settlers. Utilize terrain features like hillsides for natural advantage. Research unlocks advanced defensive options like reinforced walls and traps.
Balancing Resource Production and Expansion
A growing colony consumes more resources. Balance extraction activities—mining, logging, farming—with manufacturing—smithing, tailoring, brewing. Avoid over-specializing; a diverse resource base buffers against shortages. Plan expansion phases carefully, ensuring new construction projects do not cripple current production or defense capabilities.
Maintaining Settler Morale and Health
Settler mood directly impacts productivity. Provide comfortable bedrooms, varied cooked meals, and recreational spaces like taverns. Manage workloads to prevent burnout, and address negative traits or conflicts promptly. A robust medical system, with herbal medicine production and a dedicated infirmary, is essential to recover from injuries, illnesses, and combat wounds.
The path from a vulnerable band of survivors to a formidable medieval stronghold is fraught with challenge, but methodical application of these foundational principles provides a blueprint for success. Every decision, from the initial settler selection to the design of the final defensive bastion, contributes to a narrative of resilience and rebirth in a harsh, unforgiving world. The true measure of a leader in Going Medieval is not merely Essential Strategies for Surviving the First Season in Colony Builder Going Medieval“>surviving the first winter, but forging a legacy that endures.
