Civilizations and Nomads

“I’m cold and starving, WHAT DO I DO?“

- A confused player

What is Civilizations and Nomads mode?

In Nomads, everyone spawns without any predetermined roles or Factions. The map is a complete wilderness, ready to be explored and settled. There are no prebuilt structures, except for occasional ancient ruins.

You can stay factionless (a nomad), create your own faction or join an existing one. Only members of a faction can research new technologies and accumulate research points.

A map may have one or more ethnicities, each speaking its own language initially incomprehensible to a speaker of a different language. On certain maps you can choose who you spawn as, while on other maps it is random.

There is no predetermined goal.

What will each civilization desire? Military power? World domination? Scholars with advanced technology? Mass resource output and production? Commerce and trade? Raiding? It’s up to you or your leaders to decide!

What is RP Map mode?

In the RP mode, everyone chooses a role to play as before spawning. There may be one or more preset factions. The map has some prebuilt structures, but there is also plenty of space to expand with new buildings.

In this mode, the research level is fixed and cannot be advanced. In other words, the epoch is static (Middle Ages - 1013; Wild West - 1873; certain decades of the 20th century - 1940s, 1990s, etc.)

There may or may not be specific goals, which are listed at the start of the round. A brief outline for goals on different maps where they are present (mostly accumulating points for factions under certain conditions):

Gulag (1946) - the prisoners - hold as much money as possible within your faction and escape; the camp guard - force the prisoners to work and send out the resources.
The Art of the Deal (1994) - the company members - arrange deals to acquire disks and money; the police - jail company members and confiscate disks and money.

Maps without a set goal:

Bohemia (1013) - live in a city in Medieval Europe.
Colony (1713) - build a New World colony (two maps with different climates).
Little Creek (1873) - live in a Wild West town.
Pioneers (1873) - develop a town in the prairies.

What else is there?

There are also other modes and maps which are, effectively, a mix of the previous two modes, with a number of extra features. Currently it includes:

Tribes - a fantasy mode with several different races (chosen randomly upon spawning), each forming a preset faction.
Wasteland (2013) - survive in a post-apocalyptic environment (two variations - zombies and nuclear apocalypse).

Becoming Civilized

Perhaps you have noticed that your ability to craft things is a bit limited in comparison to other people, and you would like to make more. Perhaps you are finding surviving alone difficult. Perhaps you enjoy the company and roleplay opportunity that comes with engaging with other players. If those apply to you, then you should consider joining or starting a faction.

The benefits of joining or assembling a faction:

You gain access to that factions research levels, which equates to more things you can craft.
More opportunity to roleplay in a manner you want to. From becoming a towns blacksmith, simple farmer, village idiot, to village chieftain, diplomat, emperor, or anything you want to try and make happen.
Depending on the faction, you might have access to shared resources and facilities.
Safety in numbers. Raiders will think twice before attacking a city, whereas a loner is an easy target for burglars, thieves, pillagers, and robbers.

Factions

Factions are basically “teams”. Everyone in the same faction shares the same research points, and everyone in the faction contributes to everyone else when they perform research.

But that also means that lazy people can take advantage of your technology and resources and not contribute a thing…

A small tight-knit group of workers that contribute is often better off than a large group of slackers that just consume.

Pick your members wisely! Or cunningly use them to your advantage…

Work smart, not hard!

General

To Create a faction, open the Faction tab and click Create a faction. Choose a name for it, as well as symbols and colours for you faction’s banner.
To join a faction, you must be Recruited by a faction member who has recruitment permissions.
You can leave a faction by clicking Abandon on the Faction tab. Take note, that you will not be able to rejoin the same faction for 24 hours!
Creating a faction makes you the default Leader.

As a Leader

You can invite people to your faction by getting close to them, right-clicking them, and selecting Recruit from the menu.
You cannot force someone to leave your faction; They have to abandon it themselves. How to get them to do that, is up to you…
You can make someone else a Leader by clicking Transfer Leadership on the Faction tab while near to your successor.
You can make Announcements that are received by every member of your faction. Open the Officer tab and select Faction Announcement.
You can delegate your power to other faction members by giving them certain officer permissions. Right-click a person and select Faction Perms. These are the permissions you can give or revoke, if the person already has them:
- Permission Management - allows giving permissions per se.
- Announcements
- Giving Titles
- Recruitment

As a Member

You can ask the leader to give you officer permissions.
If the leader dies, anyone in the faction can recruit new members.
Anyone in the faction can become a new leader if the current one is dead, by clicking Become Faction Leader on the Faction tab.

Research

Research is one of the most important aspects of Civilizations and Nomads. It is with it that your faction can unlock new craftables and better equipment!

A small faction with advanced research and guns can usually topple the big group of unga dunga cavemen armed with bows and arrows.

There are currently 4 (more like 4.5) modes of research.

Research mode is voted at the lobby, before the game begins.

Remember, you need to create or join a faction to save research points!

Classic Research

The original research method! And the most tedious…

Use a Research Kit on Scientific Literature, Scientific Rock Slate, Scientific Books, or Bookcases.

You can make those with the following materials: wood, bamboo, stone, sandstone and marble.

The points you get depend on how advanced the person who wrote the literature was, and what is the subject of their writing.

TIP: If you are struggling with your own research, progressing slowly, it might be a good idea to see if any neighboring factions will let you study their bookcases! Buy, trade, and negotiate access to them to boost your research. Or fight them, rob them… Get creative! (within the rules)

Auto Research

As the name suggests, all factions in the world gain the same amount of points in all areas at the same rate, without doing anything.

Sit back and relax. Or go plan a war against that one guy who looked at you funny.

Just remember, if you can make guns, so can they…

Resource-Based Research

In this mode, you create a Research Bench with wood, place any items on it, and select a category to research.

This means that this mode rewards productivity and exploitation of natural resources. No slacking off!

Different items are worth different amounts.

Experiment!

Chad Mode

It started as a joke, now it’s too late to go back…

Essentially it is No Research, but without any IC rules whatsoever.

Really. You can do anything you want, without any bwoinks. EXCEPT FOR ERP.

Chad Mode+

Just like Chad Mode, but with research! To do chad research, build an Altar of Chad. Slam living or dead people on it, and you get a bunch of research points - it’s that easy! Living are worth 12, dead - 8.

If a faction member is sacrificed to advance a certain category of research, that faction loses all their research points in that category!

No Research

In this mode, you’re stuck in the epoch you started in, with all technology of that epoch unlocked.

Research mechanics won’t yield any improvements.

The Research Milestones

A list of the most important technology that you’ll unlock, and at what research level. This is just a list of major milestones- For the full list of craftables (over 700!) with all the costs and necessary research levels, check Full Crafting List.

Industrial

8: forks, knives, spoons. copper coins, Copper hatchet & spear (requires 8 in Military too)
14: chair, wood chest, bookcase, target dummy
15: dice, bow
17: gold and silver hatchets and spears (requires 16 points in Military too)
18: coin pouch. floors, wood walls, doors
19: roman sandals, loom, pipe, mill, dehydrator, barrel, pen, foldable canopy
21: water well, bronze hatchet, spear, shield, and battle axe (requires 16 points in Military too)
22: rolling pin, mop, drinking glass, small bottle
24: diamond hatchet and spear (requires 30 points in Military too)
25: anvil
25: comfy chair (requires 25 poins in Health too)
26: furnace
27: iron tools, spear and shield (requires 16 points in Military too)
28: lanterns, doors, keys, coffins
29: fortified walls
33: iron brazier, iron pot, table, oven
39: medieval leather shoes
41: coffin, wardrobe
43: gravestone
45: paper, violin
47: crosses
49: wine glass
50: steel hatchet and spear (requires 44 points in Military too)
52: printing press
55: black leather shoes, black leather boots, leather boots (requires 25 points in Health too)
85: gunpowder pouch, bandolier
90: bakelizer
95: canner, tin cans
96: Global Exchange
105: oil well
141: 2-way radio, portable radio
178: walkie-talkie radio

Military

12: bone armor
14: wood shield
15: leather armor
21: bronze chest plate (requires 34 points in Industrial too), wood sarissa, wood dory
32: mechanical trap
33: catapult, catapult projectiles, siege ladder *(requires 24 points in Industrial too)
34: copper small sword (requires 18 points in Industrial too), bronze small sword (requires 27 points in Industrial too)
39: pike, halberd (requires 33 points in Industrial too)
42: copper spadroon (requires 18 points in Industrial too), bronze spadroon (requires 27 points in Industrial too)
46: telescope
49: Fire Lance, Stone Bullets
56: Hand Cannon
62: Arquebus
70: Matchlock Musket
80: iron bullets, cannon balls
79: cannon (requires 71 points in Industrial too)

Health

15: ancient clothing
18: wood peglegs, wood feet
19: bandages
23: cigars & cigarettes
24: teapot, teacup (requires 49 points in Industrial too)
25: ancient hats
26: bronze surgery tools (requires 18 points in Industrial too)
28: bedsheets
29: opium
38: medieval clothing
43: burn kit
44: splints (requires 35 points in Industrial too)
48: doctor handbook (requires 33 poins in Industrial too)
51: operating table (requires 25 points in Industrial too)
52: 1713’s hats
55: retractor, bone saw, scalpel, bone setter. (requires 35 points in Industrial too)
56: trauma kit
57: Jackets and vests
59: Renaissance clothing
67: cautery, hemostat (requires 35 points in Industrial too)
79: Colonial clothing, Colonial coats
89: Industrial Jackets & Vests
98: Industrial Hats & Clothes
109: Modern Hats
112: Modern Jackets, Vests & Outfits
130: custom camo uniform
145: NBC suits and hoods

Blacksmithing

From 313 B.C.: Iron Xiphos, Iron Gladius. Ancient armors and helmets
From 1013: Steel small sword, steel spadroon. Iron small sword, spadroon and longsword. Medieval armors and helmets
From 1713: Steel Swords. Iron swords. Flintlock Muskets.
From 1873: Lever-Action Rifles, Single-Action Revolvers.

Gunsmithing

From 1903: Bolt Actions, Revolvers, Small semi-auto guns (pistols)
From 1943: Full-Auto Guns, Semi-Auto Rifles
From 1969: Selective-Fire Guns

Environments

The environment lives and breathes and will be the single biggest factor that influences your life!

Each map has either a single biome or several different ones.

There are seasons of the year, effects of which are different in every biome. Some biomes have four seasons, while others have only two.

On large maps with multiple biomes each biome has its own list of plants that could be grown there. Many plants also grow only in certain seasons. See the Guide to Farming.

To determine the biome you are in, read the descriptions below and look at your surroundings. Looking at the map of Pangea that has almost every biome may also help. From top to bottom: Tundra, Taiga (roughly the southern half of the snowed area, before the northern mountains), Temperate, Semi-Arid, Desert, Savanna, Jungle. The one biome missing is Sea.

Biomes and seasons

Tundra

Snow covers the ground all year round and does not melt during summer (unlike in Temperate).
Trees and animals are somewhat rare here.

Seasons:

Summer: Amene temperatures, some snow melts, revealing dirt, and crops can grow. No chance of snowfall or blizzard. Wild animals respawn.
Winter: Icy temperatures requiring coat, high chance of snowfall, chance of deadly blizzard. Crops stop growing, snow covers all land. Have a shelter ready or you probably won’t survive until summer.

Taiga

Similar to Tundra in many regards, but considerably more trees.

Temperate

Plenty of trees and grassy meadows (“wild grass” tiles).

Seasons:

Spring: Amene temperatures, a little leftover snow from the winter. Sparse rains cause mud slowdowns. Snow starts melting.
Summer: Hot temperatures, no rain. Chance of heat-waves that evaporate all puddles. All snow melts. Wild animals respawn at a faster rate.
Fall: Cooler temperatures, sparse rain and occasional snowfall will slow you down.
Winter: Icy temperatures can kill you without a fur coat, some lakes and rivers freeze over, allowing you to walk on them. Constant snowfall slows you down, crops will not grow and animals won’t respawn. Chance of blizzards that cause a whiteout, and can kill you even with fur coats. Have a shelter ready!

Sea

Smaller islands on larger maps usually have this biome.

Semi-Arid

Large expanses of dry dirt with occasional groves.

Desert

Sand. Lots of sand.

Seasons:

Dry Season: All the water sources dry up, has a chance of sandstorms, which impair vision, but cause no other ill-effects. Heat is intense and can harm you if you stay in the sun too long.
Wet Season: All water sources fill up, sandstorms die down. Wild animals respawn.

Savanna

Wide plains covered with sunburnt dry grass. Acacia trees are a common sight here.

Jungle

Lush vegetation with massive jungle trees and large bushes; thick jungle grass covers the ground.

Seasons:

Dry Season: Fertile floodplains on the riverbanks are uncovered, sunny weather most of the time.
Wet Season: Heavy rains and the arable land along the rivers is flooded.

Nomads maps

See Nomads Maps.