Getting started
Here's exactly what happens in your first few days as a jarl, one stage at a time. No one can touch you yet, so this is the safest time to learn.
Exact lengths and numbers below are still being tuned, so this page describes the shape of it ("a few days," "a small camp") rather than promising exact figures.
Choosing how you start
Before anything else, you pick a starting path. Each one hands you a different mix of isles to begin with, plus enough gold, food, and soldiers to get going. None of them is the "right" choice. They just point you toward a different early game.
TraderLeans on the Harbor Exchange from day one. Good for someone who wants to learn the market fast.
FisherLeans on steady food and export income. A forgiving, low-drama start.
WardenLeans toward defense. A good pick if you're nervous about being raided.Whatever you pick, you land the same place next: Fosterage.
Sheltered: no one can touch you
Fosterage starts with the Sheltered stage. While you're in it, no one can attack you, spy on you, or raid you. You also can't attack, trade, or make deals with anyone else yet. It's just you and your isles for a few days.
Three things unlock in order while you're Sheltered:
| Step | What unlocks | What it teaches you |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Your home isle and your first Longhouse, your first way to earn gold, food and upkeep, and the bank | Your income keeps adding up even while you're away, and spending it is a real choice |
| 2 | A second way to earn gold, and the Harbor Exchange market | Every income type has a weak spot, and prices move on their own |
| 3 | Your home fleet and defenses (Housecarls and Beacon Forts) | A fight has three fronts, and no single unit wins them all (see Combat) |
Apprentice: out on the water, still protected
After a few days, Sheltered ends on its own and Apprentice begins. Now only jarls close to your own size can touch you, and anything they take from you is much smaller than normal. You can trade, make deals, and take your first real actions out in the world.
| Step | What unlocks | What it teaches you |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | Your first expedition, against a small Outlaw Crew camp | Your home has less defending it while your fleet is away (see Growing Your Jarldom) |
| 5 | A first look at Oaths, and a report on a nearby jarl | What other jarls can (and can't) do to you |
| 6 | A final defense check, then Fosterage ends | You're ready for open water |
If you attack someone else first, Fosterage ends immediately, on the spot. You don't get to keep the protection and throw the first punch. Leave it alone, and it ends on its own once you've finished the steps above.
Open water
Once Fosterage ends, you're out on the open water like every other jarl. Nothing about your isles or your gold changes in that moment. The only thing that changes is that you're no longer protected, and everyone else's rules now apply to you too.
From here, it's the same loop every jarl runs for the rest of the season: earn, spend, grow, and decide how much of that you want to do with a sword in hand.