Pick a base spot that saves travel, not just one that looks nice
In Enshrouded, your Flame Altar (the object that defines your build area and acts as a fast-travel anchor) should go in a safe, central place you can keep for a long time. For your first main base, aim for high ground just outside the Shroud (the hazardous fog zone where your time is limited), with quick access to wood, stone, plants, and either a road or a clear glide path. If you can grab early resource nodes and get back without pushing through deep Shroud, that spot is strong.
Avoid placing your main altar deep in tight ruins or at the bottom of valleys. You need room to expand, clear visibility, and easy routes for hauling materials. A simple test: stand where you want the altar and see if you can reach multiple nearby points of interest with one glide or a short sprint. If movement already feels clunky, it will feel worse during repeated crafting and farming loops.
Early-to-mid game base layout that actually works
Build around workflow first: one crafting side, one storage side, and one utility side. Keep rescued crafting NPCs and their workstations together in one open hall so you can move station to station quickly. Put labeled storage right beside the station that uses those materials (for example, ores and bars near smelting/crafting stations, fabrics near armor crafting) to cut inventory shuffling.
For a practical setup, start with a compact rectangle and leave room to build upward. Keep the Flame Altar central, preserve open floor space around it, add a rooftop platform for glider launches, and place lighting on paths and stairs so night runs stay clean and fast. This gives you a base that remains efficient from early progression into mid game without needing a full rebuild.