Research

A sharp blade outlasts a dull army, and a full ledger outlasts them both. The scholars of the Laboratory keep a tree of study in four branches: Warfare, Seafaring, the Shadow Arts, and Prosperity. Each line of that tree is climbed level by level, each level a named study with its own price and its own reward. Research is slow and costly, but no raid can undo what has been learned.

The Laboratory

The bench that gates the tree and quickens every study.

Units

Military forces strengthened and unlocked by research.

Combat

Where plunder runs, blockades, and patrols earn their keep.

Island Prestige

Learning counts alongside masonry in the council's ledger.

The Scholar's Bench

Only one advancement may be studied at a time per settlement. Every level of every line is its own study, individually named and individually priced: the first rank of Spearcraft is the Levy Drill, a cheap afternoon's work, while the tenth is a costly oath sworn by the whole line of battle. The reward of each study is permanent and cumulative. A fifth rank does not replace the fourth; it builds upon it, and battle forecasts read the settlement's current ranks, so forces already mustered benefit the moment the study completes. Every completed level also raises the island's prestige.

Lines grow out of one another. Shieldwork asks for a rank of Spearcraft first, Siegecraft for a schooled corps of Bowcraft fletchers, and each branch's crowning work for mastery of the lines beneath it. These prerequisites only gate the start of the next study. Nothing a settlement has learned is ever taken back, not by raiders, not by curses, and not by a Laboratory that later falls to siege.

Knowledge Bound to the Bench

Research belongs to the settlement where it was achieved, not to the Governor's domain at large. Each Laboratory houses its own instruments, prototypes, and calibration records, and none of them survive a voyage across open water. Every colony therefore requires its own Laboratory and its own programme of study, and a Governor who expands quickly should plan the order of advancements carefully, since a young colony rarely needs the same studies as an established stronghold.

Master Quill: Margin note

Research is the slowest pillar of governance, but the most enduring. A breakthrough earned on one island cannot be crated and shipped to another, and it cannot be stolen either.

The Laboratory's Gates

The tree is arranged in tiers, and each tier waits on the Laboratory. A modest bench opens the first studies of every branch; the deepest tiers, where the Great Works are drafted, demand a Laboratory of the highest orders. Some long lines also set their own deeper gates: the early ranks of Spearcraft come freely, but its master ranks ask for a taller bench before the scholars will attempt them.

Tier	Opens at	Lines of study
I	Laboratory 1–2	7
II	Laboratory 4	6
III	Laboratory 8	6
IV	Laboratory 12	3
V	Laboratory 14–18	4 (the Great Works)

The Laboratory does more than open doors. Its scholars work faster as the bench grows: each Laboratory level trims research time by 1%, up to a saving of 15%. Levels raised beyond the tier gates are never wasted.

Warfare

The branch of drilled ranks and broken walls. Spearcraft arms the levy and opens the way to Spearfighters, a Governor's first real defenders. Shieldwork hardens the garrison and, deep enough, fields the elite Swordsman. Houndcraft raises Guard Hounds at the Kennels, Bowcraft arms Archers, and Drill Yards muster every recruit faster. Siegecraft builds the engines that break walls and claim territory, and Banner Discipline steadies the whole island's defence. The branch crowns itself in The Master-at-Arms.

Spearcraft

Tier I

Trains the levy in the long-spear drill that breaks a charge before it lands. Season after season of it, your spearfighters push harder into the line.

At full study: +100% Spearfighter attack

Levels: 10

Requires: Laboratory Level 1

What does each Spearcraft level cost?10 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants	Also Needs
1	100	50	80	3m	+10% Spearfighter attack
2	150	75	120	4m 30s	+10% Spearfighter attack
3	225	112	180	6m 45s	+10% Spearfighter attack
4	420	190	300	12m 49s	+10% Spearfighter attack	Laboratory 5
5	775	310	500	24m 22s	+10% Spearfighter attack	Laboratory 5
6	1,430	520	830	46m 17s	+10% Spearfighter attack	Laboratory 5
7	2,620	860	1,370	1h 27m	+10% Spearfighter attack	Laboratory 9
8	4,820	1,410	2,260	2h 47m	+10% Spearfighter attack	Laboratory 9
9	8,820	2,320	3,720	5h 17m	+10% Spearfighter attack	Laboratory 9
10	16,130	3,800	6,080	10h 3m	+10% Spearfighter attack	Laboratory 13

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Shieldwork

Tier I

Drills the wall behind the wall — locked shields, braced feet, the patience to hold. With every drill, each rank stands its ground a little longer than the last.

At full study: +100% infantry defence

Levels: 10

Requires: Laboratory Level 1 + Spearcraft 1

What does each Shieldwork level cost?10 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants	Also Needs
1	50	100	80	3m	+10% infantry defence
2	75	150	120	4m 30s	+10% infantry defence
3	112	225	180	6m 45s	+10% infantry defence
4	250	365	290	12m 49s	+10% infantry defence	Laboratory 5
5	525	590	470	24m 22s	+10% infantry defence	Laboratory 5
6	1,080	940	750	46m 17s	+10% infantry defence	Laboratory 5
7	2,170	1,490	1,190	1h 27m	+10% infantry defence	Laboratory 9
8	4,290	2,340	1,870	2h 47m	+10% infantry defence	Laboratory 9
9	8,360	3,610	2,890	5h 17m	+10% infantry defence	Laboratory 9
10	16,130	5,490	4,390	10h 3m	+10% infantry defence	Laboratory 13

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Houndcraft

Tier II

Schools the kennel-masters and arms the watch hounds with studded collars. Each lesson leaves the hounds at the gate harder to put down.

At full study: +150% Guard Hound defence

Levels: 10

Requires: Laboratory Level 4 + Shieldwork 1

What does each Houndcraft level cost?10 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants	Also Needs
1	90	60	70	2m 40s	+15% Guard Hound defence
2	135	90	105	4m	+15% Guard Hound defence
3	202	135	157	6m	+15% Guard Hound defence
4	380	225	260	11m 24s	+15% Guard Hound defence
5	710	370	435	21m 39s	+15% Guard Hound defence
6	1,330	615	715	41m 9s	+15% Guard Hound defence
7	2,460	1,010	1,180	1h 18m	+15% Guard Hound defence	Laboratory 9
8	4,550	1,650	1,930	2h 28m	+15% Guard Hound defence	Laboratory 9
9	8,390	2,690	3,140	4h 42m	+15% Guard Hound defence	Laboratory 9
10	15,430	4,360	5,090	8h 56m	+15% Guard Hound defence	Laboratory 13

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Bowcraft

Tier II

Schools the fletchers and the bowyers together so the shaft and the draw match the hand that holds them. Keep at it and arrows find their mark from further off.

At full study: +100% Archer attack

Levels: 10

Requires: Laboratory Level 4 + Spearcraft 2

What does each Bowcraft level cost?10 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants	Also Needs
1	80	40	100	3m 20s	+10% Archer attack
2	120	60	150	5m	+10% Archer attack
3	180	90	225	7m 30s	+10% Archer attack
4	345	150	370	14m 15s	+10% Archer attack
5	660	245	610	27m 4s	+10% Archer attack
6	1,260	400	1,000	51m 26s	+10% Archer attack
7	2,370	650	1,620	1h 37m	+10% Archer attack	Laboratory 9
8	4,440	1,050	2,630	3h 5m	+10% Archer attack	Laboratory 9
9	8,290	1,690	4,230	5h 52m	+10% Archer attack	Laboratory 9
10	15,430	2,700	6,750	11h 10m	+10% Archer attack	Laboratory 13

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Drill Yards

Tier II

Lays out mustering grounds and puts a sergeant's whistle to them. Recruits reach the wall — and the boats — sooner.

At full study: +15% training speed

Levels: 5

Requires: Laboratory Level 4 + Spearcraft 1

What does each Drill Yards level cost?5 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	630	380	390	1h	+3% training speed
2	850	515	525	1h 21m	+3% training speed
3	1,150	695	710	1h 49m	+3% training speed
4	1,550	935	960	2h 27m	+3% training speed
5	2,090	1,260	1,300	3h 19m	+3% training speed

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Siegecraft

Tier III

Sets your engineers to the slow craft of timber, rope and counterweight. The deeper the craft, the heavier the stones come down — and the sooner the walls follow.

At full study: +100% siege attack

Levels: 10

Requires: Laboratory Level 8 + Bowcraft 3

What does each Siegecraft level cost?10 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants	Also Needs
1	120	100	80	3m 40s	+10% siege attack
2	180	150	120	5m 30s	+10% siege attack
3	270	225	180	8m 15s	+10% siege attack
4	510	375	300	15m 40s	+10% siege attack
5	955	615	495	29m 46s	+10% siege attack
6	1,790	1,020	815	56m 35s	+10% siege attack
7	3,330	1,670	1,330	1h 47m	+10% siege attack	Laboratory 12
8	6,170	2,730	2,180	3h 24m	+10% siege attack	Laboratory 12
9	11,410	4,430	3,550	6h 28m	+10% siege attack	Laboratory 12
10	21,040	7,160	5,730	12h 17m	+10% siege attack	Laboratory 14

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Banner Discipline

Tier IV

One banner over every wall, and every garrison the steadier for it. Orders are read, posts are held.

At full study: +5% defence, island-wide

Levels: 5

Requires: Laboratory Level 12 + Shieldwork 5 + Drill Yards 3

What does each Banner Discipline level cost?5 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	13,500	2,200	2,300	10h	+1% defence, island-wide
2	16,470	2,680	2,810	11h 6m	+1% defence, island-wide
3	20,090	3,270	3,420	12h 19m	+1% defence, island-wide
4	24,510	3,990	4,180	13h 40m	+1% defence, island-wide
5	29,910	4,870	5,100	15h 10m	+1% defence, island-wide

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

The Master-at-Arms

Tier VGreat Work

A lifetime of war, hired into your service. Every yard, drill and watch on the island answers to one grey-bearded master.

Grants: +5% attack, island-wide, +5% defence, island-wide

Levels: 1

Requires: Laboratory Level 16 + Siegecraft 5 + Banner Discipline 3

What does The Master-at-Arms cost?1 level

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	80,000	10,000	10,000	30h	+5% attack, island-wide; +5% defence, island-wide

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Marshal Voss: Field order

Spearcraft first, then Shieldwork. An army that can hold ground survives long enough to learn everything else.

Seafaring

Speed on the open water wins wars before they begin. Sailcraft quickens every vessel in the fleet and unlocks the heavier hulls, from the Large Merchant Ship to the Large Warship and the Colonisation Ship. The rest of the branch is the navy's paperwork made deadly: The Harbour Watch teaches warships to hold station over their own shore as a patrol, Victualling keeps those patrols provisioned and on station longer, and Letters of Marque sanction the blockade, the ambush of cargo in open water. Convoy Masters squeeze yet more speed from a fleet and teach it to sail in company — the signal books behind a combined attack — and The Grand Admiralty crowns the branch.

Sailcraft

Tier I

Cuts canvas heavier and lines truer than the yards next harbour over. Under finer rigging your fleets outrun the weather and reach further harbours sooner.

At full study: +100% fleet speed

Levels: 10

Requires: Laboratory Level 2

What does each Sailcraft level cost?10 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants	Also Needs
1	80	60	100	4m	+10% fleet speed
2	120	90	150	6m	+10% fleet speed
3	180	135	225	9m	+10% fleet speed
4	355	220	370	17m 6s	+10% fleet speed
5	685	365	605	32m 29s	+10% fleet speed
6	1,320	590	985	1h 1m	+10% fleet speed	Laboratory 6
7	2,520	955	1,590	1h 57m	+10% fleet speed	Laboratory 6
8	4,770	1,540	2,560	3h 42m	+10% fleet speed	Laboratory 6
9	8,980	2,450	4,080	7h 3m	+10% fleet speed	Laboratory 10
10	16,830	3,870	6,450	13h 24m	+10% fleet speed	Laboratory 10

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

The Harbour Watch

Tier II

Small warships learn to hold station off your own shore, watching the lanes a governor cannot watch himself.

Unlocks: Patrols

Levels: 1

Requires: Laboratory Level 4 + Sailcraft 1

What does The Harbour Watch cost?1 level

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	1,400	600	800	2h	Unlocks Patrols

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Victualling

Tier III

Biscuit, casks and salted stores. A patrol lasts as long as its provisions do.

At full study: patrols hold station 40% longer

Levels: 5

Requires: Laboratory Level 8 + The Harbour Watch 1

What does each Victualling level cost?5 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	3,600	1,100	1,300	4h	patrols hold station 8% longer
2	4,540	1,390	1,640	4h 45m	patrols hold station 8% longer
3	5,720	1,750	2,060	5h 39m	patrols hold station 8% longer
4	7,200	2,200	2,600	6h 44m	patrols hold station 8% longer
5	9,070	2,770	3,280	8h 1m	patrols hold station 8% longer

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Letters of Marque

Tier III

Sea-robbery, sanctioned and sealed. Your captains may stop, search and seize under your colours.

Unlocks: Blockades

Levels: 1

Requires: Laboratory Level 8 + The Harbour Watch 1 + Sailcraft 3

What does Letters of Marque cost?1 level

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	6,000	2,000	2,000	6h	Unlocks Blockades

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Supply Lines

Tier III

Standing contracts and sworn shipmasters. A manifest signed once, sailed forever.

At full study: +15000000% routes

Unlocks: Standing transport routes

Levels: 5

Requires: Laboratory Level 8 + Sailcraft 2

What does each Supply Lines level cost?5 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants	Also Needs
1	5,400	1,800	2,200	6h	+800000% routes; Unlocks Standing transport routes
2	8,100	2,450	3,050	8h	+1200000% routes
3	12,200	3,300	4,200	10h 40m	+2000000% routes
4	18,300	4,450	5,700	14h 13m	+3500000% routes	Laboratory 12
5	27,400	6,000	7,700	18h 13m	+7500000% routes	Laboratory 12

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Convoy Masters

Tier IV

Ships that sail in company arrive together — and sooner. Signal books keep the slowest hull off the rocks, and let fleets from several harbours strike as one.

At full study: +8% fleet speed

Unlocks: Combined attacks

Levels: 4

Requires: Laboratory Level 12 + Sailcraft 5

What does each Convoy Masters level cost?4 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	14,250	2,000	2,750	12h	+2% fleet speed; Unlocks Combined attacks
2	17,390	2,440	3,360	13h 19m	+2% fleet speed
3	21,210	2,980	4,090	14h 47m	+2% fleet speed
4	25,880	3,630	4,990	16h 24m	+2% fleet speed

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

The Grand Admiralty

Tier VGreat Work

Every chart, tide-table and captain's log under one roof. The sea keeps fewer secrets from your fleets.

Grants: +10% fleet speed

Levels: 1

Requires: Laboratory Level 16 + Letters of Marque 1 + Sailcraft 8

What does The Grand Admiralty cost?1 level

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	90,000	8,000	12,000	32h	+10% fleet speed

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Treasurer Mora: Treasury habit

Faster ships mean shorter supply runs and quicker reinforcements. Sailcraft pays dividends long before the first Large Warship is commissioned.

The Shadow Arts

Knowledge of the enemy is as valuable as any weapon, and some of it is best taken quietly. Espionage trains spies to slip past defences and return with richer intelligence; the Espionage chapter covers the missions themselves. Night Landings teaches crews to touch sand without a sound, which is what permits a plunder run at all. False Colours sharpen the getaway odds of those runs, and The Spymaster's Ring crowns the branch for Governors who prefer never to be seen.

Espionage

Tier I

Pays the dockhands, scribes, and idle sailors who notice what other harbours would rather keep quiet. A heavier purse, and your agents slip the watch more often — and come home with cleaner ledgers than they left with.

At full study: +50% spy success

Levels: 10

Requires: Laboratory Level 2

What does each Espionage level cost?10 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants	Also Needs
1	100	60	80	3m 20s	+5% spy success
2	150	90	120	5m	+5% spy success
3	225	135	180	7m 30s	+5% spy success
4	420	225	300	14m 15s	+5% spy success
5	785	370	495	27m 4s	+5% spy success
6	1,460	615	820	51m 26s	+5% spy success	Laboratory 6
7	2,700	1,010	1,350	1h 37m	+5% spy success	Laboratory 6
8	4,980	1,660	2,220	3h 5m	+5% spy success	Laboratory 6
9	9,170	2,720	3,630	5h 52m	+5% spy success	Laboratory 10
10	16,830	4,420	5,890	11h 10m	+5% spy success	Laboratory 10

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Night Landings

Tier II

Muffled oars, blacked lanterns, boats that touch sand without a sound. What the watch never sees, it never reports.

Unlocks: Plunder runs

Levels: 1

Requires: Laboratory Level 4 + Espionage 1

What does Night Landings cost?1 level

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	900	400	500	2h	Unlocks Plunder runs

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

False Colours

Tier III

Borrowed flags and painted hulls. No one robs like a friend.

At full study: +10% plunder success

Levels: 5

Requires: Laboratory Level 8 + Night Landings 1 + Espionage 3

What does each False Colours level cost?5 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	3,900	1,200	1,400	4h	+2% plunder success
2	4,910	1,510	1,760	4h 45m	+2% plunder success
3	6,190	1,910	2,220	5h 39m	+2% plunder success
4	7,800	2,400	2,800	6h 44m	+2% plunder success
5	9,830	3,020	3,530	8h 1m	+2% plunder success

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

The Spymaster's Ring

Tier VGreat Work

You will never meet them. They have already met you.

Grants: +10% spy success, +10% plunder success

Levels: 1

Requires: Laboratory Level 14 + False Colours 3 + Espionage 6

What does The Spymaster's Ring cost?1 level

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	60,000	6,000	6,000	24h	+10% spy success; +10% plunder success

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Prosperity

The branch that pays for the other three. Ore Washing, Saw Pits, and Quarry Hoists pull more gold, lumber, and stone from the same ground. Toll Ledgers grow the island's coin income, Guild Masons raise buildings faster, and Deep Seams follow the gold vein down into the old rock. The Royal Charter crowns the branch, enriching every stream at once.

Ore Washing

Tier I

Sluices and washing crews pull more gold from the same stubborn rock.

At full study: +10% gold production

Levels: 5

Requires: Laboratory Level 1

What does each Ore Washing level cost?5 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	60	30	40	5m	+2% gold production
2	100	50	70	11m	+2% gold production
3	175	85	115	24m 12s	+2% gold production
4	295	145	195	53m 14s	+2% gold production
5	500	250	335	1h 57m	+2% gold production

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Saw Pits

Tier I

Two men, one saw, and twice the timber by dusk.

At full study: +10% lumber production

Levels: 5

Requires: Laboratory Level 1

What does each Saw Pits level cost?5 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	40	25	60	5m	+2% lumber production
2	70	45	100	11m	+2% lumber production
3	115	70	175	24m 12s	+2% lumber production
4	195	125	295	53m 14s	+2% lumber production
5	335	210	500	1h 57m	+2% lumber production

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Quarry Hoists

Tier I

Rope, tackle and long levers. Stone that once took a morning now takes an hour.

At full study: +10% stone production

Levels: 5

Requires: Laboratory Level 1

What does each Quarry Hoists level cost?5 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	45	55	45	5m	+2% stone production
2	75	95	75	11m	+2% stone production
3	130	160	130	24m 12s	+2% stone production
4	220	270	220	53m 14s	+2% stone production
5	375	460	375	1h 57m	+2% stone production

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Toll Ledgers

Tier II

Every crate over your quay owes you a little. The ledgers make sure it pays.

At full study: +10% coin income

Levels: 5

Requires: Laboratory Level 4 + Ore Washing 2

What does each Toll Ledgers level cost?5 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	675	400	425	1h 30m	+2% coin income
2	910	540	575	2h 1m	+2% coin income
3	1,230	730	775	2h 44m	+2% coin income
4	1,660	985	1,050	3h 41m	+2% coin income
5	2,240	1,330	1,410	4h 58m	+2% coin income

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Guild Masons

Tier III

Masters' marks on every course of stone. Walls rise faster and truer.

At full study: +10% build speed

Levels: 5

Requires: Laboratory Level 8 + Quarry Hoists 3

What does each Guild Masons level cost?5 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	4,200	1,500	1,300	4h	+2% build speed
2	5,290	1,890	1,640	4h 45m	+2% build speed
3	6,670	2,380	2,060	5h 39m	+2% build speed
4	8,400	3,000	2,600	6h 44m	+2% build speed
5	10,590	3,780	3,280	8h 1m	+2% build speed

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Deep Seams

Tier IV

The old rock runs deeper than anyone dared dig. Shore it, drain it, and follow the vein.

At full study: +15% gold production

Levels: 5

Requires: Laboratory Level 12 + Ore Washing 5

What does each Deep Seams level cost?5 levels

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	15,000	3,000	2,000	12h	+3% gold production
2	18,300	3,660	2,440	13h 19m	+3% gold production
3	22,330	4,470	2,980	14h 47m	+3% gold production
4	27,240	5,450	3,630	16h 24m	+3% gold production
5	33,230	6,650	4,430	18h 13m	+3% gold production

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

The Royal Charter

Tier VGreat Work

Your harbour, named in the crown's own hand. Trade, tithe and tally all flow a little richer.

Grants: +5% all production, +5% coin income

Levels: 1

Requires: Laboratory Level 18 + Deep Seams 3 + Toll Ledgers 5

What does The Royal Charter cost?1 level

Lv	Gold	Stone	Lumber	Research Time	Grants
1	120,000	15,000	15,000	40h	+5% all production; +5% coin income

Times shown are the base study durations. The Laboratory's scholars trim them further as the bench grows taller.

Treasurer Mora: Treasury habit

A few points of production sound like pennies until they compound across every hour of every day. The Prosperity bench is the only study that funds its own successors.

The Great Works

Each branch ends in a single crowning study, a Great Work: one level, a princely sum of gold, and days of scholarship. The Master-at-Arms sharpens the whole island's attack and defence, The Grand Admiralty hastens every hull in the fleet, The Spymaster's Ring blesses spy and plunder alike, and The Royal Charter enriches every stream of production and coin. A Great Work asks for mastery of the lines beneath it and a Laboratory of the highest orders, and like every study it belongs to one island alone.

What Research Unlocks

Some studies do not sharpen an edge; they teach the island an art it simply could not practise before. These arts are checked on the island that launches the venture, so a Governor with many harbours must school each one that means to use them.

Art	Study	Branch
Patrols	The Harbour Watch	Seafaring
Blockades	Letters of Marque	Seafaring
Standing transport routes	Supply Lines	Seafaring
Combined attacks	Convoy Masters	Seafaring
Plunder runs	Night Landings	The Shadow Arts

Several advanced units also wait on the bench. The roster below shows which advancements gate which forces.

Which units does research unlock?9 units

Unit	Research Required	Level
Spearfighter	Spearcraft	1
Archer	Bowcraft	1
Swordsman	Shieldwork	3
Guard Hound	Houndcraft	1
Catapult	Siegecraft	1
Spy Ship	Espionage	1
Large Warship	Sailcraft	3
Large Merchant Ship	Sailcraft	1
Colonisation Ship	Sailcraft	5

Master Quill: Margin note

Research can be nudged along at real cost. An old guild seal will shave time off a study in progress, but such rarities are scarce by nature, so no programme of study can be bought outright. It should not be delayed either: every day without a Laboratory is a day rivals grow sharper while one's own forces remain unchanged.

Common questions

Does research apply to forces already trained?

Yes. Battle and voyage forecasts read the settlement's current research ranks, so existing forces benefit the moment a study completes.

Does one island's research help another island?

No. Research belongs to the settlement that completed it. New colonies need their own Laboratory and their own studies, and abilities such as plunder runs, patrols, and blockades are checked on the island launching them.

Can research be lost or stolen?

Never. Raids and plunder take stores, not knowledge, and prerequisites only gate the start of the next level. What a settlement has learned, it keeps.

What should be studied first?

Spearcraft and Shieldwork give the earliest defensive return, and the cheap first ranks of the Prosperity lines quietly pay for everything after them. Sailcraft becomes urgent once merchant routes, raids, or colonisation start shaping the realm.