On Calydon, players can establish settlements that will attract NPCs to populate it and take up residence.
Starting and running a settlement is no easy task. As your character meets and gathers followers (based on Charm), eventually a critical mass is reached, and a self-sufficient settlement can be established. The player can be as hands-off or micromanaging as desired on the way the settlement operates and develops.
Note that player settlements will not appear on other players' maps unless they add a pin on their Cavelink.
A portion of all economic exchange is put away into the settlement's coffers to enable development, maintenance, and expansion of public works.
A player may also construct buildings without undertaking the full task of managing a whole settlement. They will still need managers to care for the buildings they have built.
Constructing Buildings
If you can obtain the blueprints for a type of building, you can build one somewhere in Calydon. It is recommended that your first buildings are within proximity to a safe city belonging to your faction, so it can have the benefits of their protection.
The buildings have templates, and can be placed on available land. Buildings are designed such that other players can enter and interact with the NPC that is managing it.
Examples of buildings are:
Forge
Trading Post
Different buildings take more time to build based on their material cost. There are some Intelligence-related skills (such as Efficient Engineer) that can decrease the material cost.
You need at least one builder to construct a building, but more builders can be hired to expedite the work. There are some Charm-related skills that can decrease the salary for builders (such as Smooth Talker), and others that increase the effectiveness of the builders in your employ (such as Charismatic Leader).
If during construction you run out of scrap to fund salaries and construction, the builders will quit, and the construction will pause.
Managers
Each building you own needs a manager, and as your city grows, you will need to fill more managerial jobs to continue growing. Each manager has a number of statistics which you can judge when hiring them, and monitor as they do their job in your city. This can be done on the city management tab.
Example managerial jobs:
Lead regular mass meetings (yearly, monthly, weekly)
Education (general, specialized, research)
Public Services (Security, fire prevention, crime prevention, animal control, library, justice)
Health (treating wounded/sick, training doctors)
Religion (might self-develop if left unchecked, or can control)
Construction (building projects, hiring/training builders)
Food (hunting hire/train, farming hire/train, domesticated animals)
Energy (heating, electricity)
Heating (fire tender, other fuels inorganic or biofuels)
Manager Stats
Effectiveness % - Their efficiency at whatever position they have. This can be improved with skills such as Charismatic Leader.
Sites of Resource
It is wise to establish cities around sites of resource, such as arable land or mine-able rubble, to guarantee a steady stream of tradable goods. These create optional managerial jobs, but typically are well worth the salary of the manager to reap the resources from the site.
Resource: Like EVE, set up mining/harvest operations, or do quests to gain resources as compensation.