Build Fast, Not Messy
Early settlements in Against the Storm can feel like a lot all at once: housing, food, fuel, and materials all yelling for attention. If that sounds familiar, you are not doing anything wrong. The biggest early trap is overbuilding and running out of Parts (a construction material that is usually tight in the early game). Keep your opener simple: pause immediately, place two Woodcutters' Camps, queue one starter building-material producer, then add only the housing you need for current and near-future villagers.
For your first years, prioritize wood and raw materials over fancy chains. Put Woodcutters on safe tree lines first, and as a beginner-safe default open at most one Glade (a forest clearing revealed by cutting trees) before the first Storm. Hold off on risky glade chaining until food and fuel are stable. Add crude roads between your Hearth, warehouse, and core production so workers spend less time walking and more time producing.
Practical Early Order
- Start paused: assign workers, place 2 Woodcutters' Camps, and set a safe cutting direction.
- Secure materials: build your Crude Workstation (your starter building-material building) for planks/fabric/bricks so new buildings do not stall.
- Prevent early penalties: add shelters and keep Hearth fuel steady before scaling.
- Stabilize food: place gathering/food production based on what your first glade actually gives you.
- Expand in layers: warehouse first, then production, then extra housing in the new area.
For layout, keep a compact core around your starting Hearth: housing, essential production, and frequent-use storage close together. Keep camps and extraction on the edge, then pull resources back through warehouses. This avoids the classic beginner sprawl where everything is technically built but nothing runs efficiently.
If you feel stuck, try one stability year: open zero new glades, fix one food chain, fix one fuel source, and raise Resolve (species happiness/willingness to stay) before pushing outward again. Once your town stops bleeding, momentum comes back fast.
Also keep an eye on Hostility (the forest pressure that rises with years, villagers, opened glades, and active woodcutters). If Storms are crushing you, pull a few woodcutters temporarily, avoid extra glade pressure, and re-expand once Resolve and supplies recover.