- Anvil Empires how to build: Choose between a solo homestead, a group village, or keep housing.
- Solo homesteads offer full customization anywhere in the wild; keeps trade freedom for safety.
- Specializing in one resource gives your homestead a clear identity and stronger trade value.
- Keep living costs silver tax — craft and sell regularly to keep your spot inside the walls.
- Early access is expected soon; join the official Discord for pre-alpha testing access.
Choosing Where to Build in Anvil Empires
Anvil Empires is billed as a massive, persistent war game, but building is where the game truly opens up. There are three main ways to live and build, and each suits a different playstyle. Picking the right one before you place your first structure saves hours of relocation work later.
Video Highlights:
- Three living options: solo homestead, group village, keep housing
- Solo homesteads allow full customization with no set blueprint
- Keeps provide safety, crafting stations, and marketplace access for a silver tax
- Resource specialization (mining, lumber, hunting, farming) defines your homestead identity
- Early access expected soon; pre-alpha testing via official Discord
New players should begin inside a keep to learn crafting systems safely, then move out to a solo homestead once resource routines feel comfortable.
Three Build Styles Compared
Each build style trades freedom against security. Here is how the three options stack up:
| Build Style | Freedom | Safety | Customization | Costs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solo Homestead | ★★★★★ | ★★ | Full control, any layout | Time and self-supplied materials |
| Group Village | ★★★★ | ★★★ | High, shared planning | Coordination with teammates |
| Keep Housing | ★★ | ★★★★★ | Very restricted | Silver tax, limited space |
Solo Homestead
- Total creative freedom
- Build anywhere in the wild
- Specialize in one resource
- Best for peaceful, self-paced play
Group Village
- Shared roles: farmer, smith, hunter
- Much higher production output
- May need walls and defenses
- Great with a few friends
Keep Housing
- Safe from raids and war
- Free high-tier stations and forges
- Marketplace access
- Silver tax and close neighbors
An island homestead is a fourth variant worth trying — an isolated base adds a unique twist, though map layout in some tests limits island placement.
Step-by-Step: Building Your First Homestead
Follow this sequence to get a functioning homestead running with minimal wasted effort:
Pick Your Location
Scout fields, mountains, or woods near the resources you plan to gather. Coastal roads and open fields are popular; remote spots reduce raid risk.
Choose a Specialty
Pick one focus — mining and smithing, lumber, hunting, fishing, or farming. A clear identity makes trading with neighbors efficient.
Set Up Crafting
Build a basic shelter and the crafting stations for your specialty, such as a forge for smiths or a mill for farmers.
Establish a Routine
Gather raw materials, refine them at home, and craft finished goods like tools, weapons, armor, or food for trade.
Trade and Expand
Trade surplus with nearby homesteads or the keep marketplace, then reinvest in expanding your estate.
Out in the wild you are exposed to raids and war. Once your stockpile grows, consider walls and defenses — group homesteads especially attract attention.
Resource Specialization Paths
Your homestead's identity comes from what it produces. These are the main viable paths:
| Path | Gather | Produce | Trade Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miner/Blacksmith | Stone, ore | Tools, weapons | High — armies always need gear |
| Lumberjack | Trees | Processed lumber | High — construction demand |
| Hunter | Wild game (bow) | Meat, leather armor | Medium — feeds frontline fighters |
| Fisher | Rivers, lakes, oceans | Food stock | Steady, peaceful income |
| Farmer | Crops, livestock | Food, bred horses | High — soldiers buy horses for war |
Focusing on a single resource type gives your homestead purpose and lets you dominate a niche market — a strategy that becomes even stronger as the full map opens and resources become region-specific.
Living in a Keep: Pros and Cons
Keeps are the community hub of Anvil Empires — where players meet, form groups, and get recruited into clans. You claim a small homestead inside the city walls with real advantages and real limits.
- Access to high-tier crafting stations and public forges without building them
- Marketplace on your doorstep — ideal for crafters who dislike gathering
- Security from raids and war
- Restrictions: limited space, close neighbors, little house customization
- Silver tax: gather or craft regularly to afford your place inside the walls
Many players start in a keep for free food and equipment, then move out to a solo homestead once they can self-supply. Treat the keep as a tutorial base, not a forever home.
Homestead Startup Checklist
First Week Homestead Goals:
- Choose a build style: solo, group, or keep
- Scout and claim a resource-rich location
- Pick and commit to one resource specialty
- Build shelter and core crafting stations
- Make first trade with a neighbor or market
The developers have stated Anvil Empires is expected to enter early access soon. Join the official Anvil Empires Discord and sign up for pre-alpha testing to build ahead of launch.
FAQ
Q: How do I build in Anvil Empires?
Choose one of three options: a solo homestead anywhere in the wild with full customization, a group village with friends, or a small claimed plot inside a keep. Solo homesteads have no set blueprint — you shape everything yourself.
Q: Is solo or group building better?
Solo building is peaceful, creative, and fully your own. Group building produces far more resources through role division — one player farms, another smiths, another hunts — and can scale into organized operations similar to Foxhole logistics.
Q: What does living in a keep cost?
Keep housing charges a silver tax, so you must keep gathering or crafting to afford your spot. In exchange you get safety from raids, high-tier crafting stations, public forges, and marketplace access.
Q: How does Anvil Empires differ from Foxhole?
Both share persistent war, but Anvil Empires leans heavily into survival mechanics, personal homesteads, resource gathering, and player-driven marketplaces, creating a slower, more immersive pace than Foxhole's combat-focused gameplay.