Second Orders
The first arc ends with a warship, a raid haul, and a working island. The second arc claims a second one. One island is a settlement; two are a realm, with a supply line between them and a resource lean you chose on purpose. Most Governors take their second shore for the wood.
The second arc, in order
- Pick the island. The chart marks a lumber-rich, unclaimed shore in your waters; scout it before you commit.
- Deepen the Harbour and research Sailcraft. The Colonisation Ship needs both.
- Let raids pay for the charter. Rotate unclaimed shores and let the sea fund the ship.
- Build the Colonisation Ship. It is the most expensive hull you have built, and it is consumed on landing.
- Sail the charter, then open a transport line between the two islands.
Pick the island
A colony is not a trophy; it is a specialist. By the time the Harbour is working, lumber is usually the resource that hurts, because ships, walls and every deep building queue drink it. A forest-rich second island turns that permanent shortage into a supply line.
For a new Governor the chart already marks a lumber-rich, unclaimed island in your own waters, and the adviser names it. The mark is yours alone: no two Governors are sent at the same island, and the Black Tide does not settle on it. It stays yours until your first raid, and leaving the sea for a week releases it for others. If your waters hold no free island, nothing is marked until one frees up, and any unclaimed island will do for the scouting and the raid.
Scout before you commit. The first good raid target is not always the first good colony. A spy report says what a shore is rich in, how dangerous its wild defenders are, and whether it can be supplied and defended after the charter lands. A colony you cannot reach quickly is a colony someone else will reach first.
Deepen the Harbour and learn Sailcraft
The first Harbour level builds light warships and merchant hulls. The Colonisation Ship asks for a deeper Harbour and Sailcraft research, and it costs far more than light ships. Start the research and the lumber stockpile before the urge to expand becomes urgent.
| Goal | Requirement | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Harbour | Main House 5 | Naval construction and operations. |
| Small Warship | Harbour 1 | Carries 5 troops and 40 resources. |
| Small Merchant Ship | Harbour 1 | Carries 5 troops and 80 resources. |
| Colonisation Ship | Harbour 10, Sailcraft 5 | Founds the colony. Costs 8,000 gold, 7,000 lumber. |
Let raids pay for the charter
Raiding unclaimed shores is the income engine of this arc. Victory brings resources home, but each target has wild defenders and a resource tier, and a beach raided twice in a day pays less the second time. Warships provide the strength, the troop room and the cargo space; troops help win the fight but carry nothing themselves. When the chart marks a shimmering shore, a successful raid there claims a treasure before the island rotates away.
Sail the charter
The ship is consumed when the colony is founded, so the sailing is the commitment. A new Governor's first settling against an unclaimed shore carries the Matron's Favour, which makes that first charter far more likely to take hold; if a charter fails, the colonisation rules decide whether the ship survives the return. When it lands, your realm doubles: two islands, two build queues, and a transport line between them that turns the colony's surplus into the capital's ambition.
Common questions
Why is the second island usually a lumber island?
Because by this stage lumber is the bottleneck. Ships, walls, and deep building queues all drink it, and a forest-rich colony feeding the capital by transport line removes the shortage at its source. Gold and stone leans are legitimate choices too; wood is simply the shortage most realms feel first.
When is the first colony ship too early?
If saving for it stops walls, mines, garrison, and research all at once, wait. A second island is only useful if the first can keep funding and defending the realm.
Should I colonise the first island I raid?
Not automatically. Raids test reach and reveal value. Colonies need a defensible position, a useful resource lean, and enough support to grow. The marked lumber island in your own waters is a strong default for a first colony.
