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    Your Elvenar Team

Want to Plan for Orcs Chapter. Any Tips to Make it as Speedy as Possible?

Lemon Wren

Well-Known Member
I'm nearing the end of Fairies and love how it looks. I'm going to be here several more weeks, as I don't move into a new chapter until I have my city entirely upgraded, layout changes made, etc.

While I'm doing this, any suggestions on what to stock up to make Orcs go as fast as possible? I dislike how it looks and so will want to get through it as fast as I possibly can.
 

The Fairy

Scroll-Keeper, Buddy Fan Club Member
Upgrade your armories as soon as you unlock the research such that you can start making orcs.
In some of my cities I built 20 level 1 mushroom farms and 1 level 1 rally point and used those to level up my portal. Once your portal is updated you can use delete the mushroom farms and rally point and use portal profits for the rest if you have enough of those and don't care about the quests. Alternatively you can do a combination and produce some guest race goods on your mushroom farms/rally points and just use portal profits whenever you get stuck in research.
If you want to do it without portal profits then I suggest a LOT (at least 40) mushroom farms - if you have that many then I don't think you need to level them all the way, but maybe level 2 or 3.
 

Mykan

Oh Wise One
Orcs is one chapter you can actually overbuild the guest race and take longer. It is possibly the most strategically diverse chapter without any real clear best path. Portal profits will be your friend.

If you really don't like the looks consider avoiding the upgrades other than armouries (for orcs) and progress to woodelves for a mass upgrade then.
 

The Fairy

Scroll-Keeper, Buddy Fan Club Member
If you really don't like the looks consider avoiding the upgrades other than armouries (for orcs) and progress to woodelves for a mass upgrade then.
I have done that in some of my cities, but it took a long time to catch up on upgrades when I reached woodelves.
 

Mont Clair

Active Member
If you are me and want to get out of Orcs fast, then build as much Mushroom farms and Orc rally points as your town can fit. Delete the Mushroom farms later when you don't need them as much. I had 48 at most. I removed a lot of buildings to fit my farms and 5 rally points.

Now, what to stock: supplies. TONS of supplies. Any windfalls you have. You will thank yourself in the chapter.

Orcs is one chapter you can actually overbuild the guest race and take longer. It is possibly the most strategically diverse chapter without any real clear best path. Portal profits will be your friend.

This is sage advice. Stock up on PPs too.
 

Iyapo1

Well-Known Member
When you get into orcs you also might want to craft a few orcs nests to give you a jump on orc production.

I dont have a single Armory because I am a catering city, the orcs nests are a must have for me.

Also, I have a chapter 7 city that I am going to speed run through orcs straight to the end of woodelves because I am also not fond of the look of orcs. I have been lurking in chapter 7 building up enough blueprints and RRs to allow me to upgrade all magic, evolving and set buildings at the start of orcs and the start of woodelves. So I wont be keeping the orc buildings for long.
 

crackie

Chef, Scroll-Keeper, Buddy's #1 Fan
Not sure if people trying to skip Orcs care about fancy roads, but you won't be able to build Wooden Trail roads if you portal profit through the chapter. The Woodelf fancy roads only require mana though, and not settlement goods.
 

Iyapo1

Well-Known Member
Not sure if people trying to skip Orcs care about fancy roads, but you won't be able to build Wooden Trail roads if you portal profit through the chapter. The Woodelf fancy roads only require mana though, and not settlement goods.
In the city doing the speed run I will be skipping orc roads. I have the Triump of Tides evolving building which is a mana beast so I will be able to get a hella jump on mana production for woodelf roads.

In my city stuck in orcs....I built the orc roads.
 

Iyapo1

Well-Known Member
This is useless for you but kinda funny.
The chapter 7 city making the speed run...will hit Orcs with a lv 30 Blooming Trader Guild. It is scroll boosted city so I had to have the BTG for the wholeseller discount.

At that lv it will also give me a 40% boost to guest race productions instantly o_O

That's going to be super sweet!
 

samidodamage

Buddy Fan Club member
There's a strategy that makes drastic changes to your city and how it operates for that one chapter. It also puts you in a very positive position for the next chapter: Woodelves. It will probably cause you to stall out somewhere on the storyline quests. I'd check out the quest line on ElvenGems and see if I really wanted the rewards. I recall skipping them and declining the ones I didn't want to do after activating Advanced Scouts for Woodelves.

Basically: Get everything you need for the chapter (except Culture bldgs) upgraded to max. Sell off all your Culture Only bldgs. Your factories will continue to produce as usual, you just won't be able to build or upgrade anything that requires culture. Your coin and supply production will return to base levels without the culture bonus. Stocking up on some coin rains and supply instants is advisable. You can do the same with culture/pop bldgs that are not giving enough pop to equal a residence. Going negative pop doesn't stop your city from running; it works just like culture. Build a huge Orc settlement. In my pre-Portal profits/instants city, I think at one point I had 50+ mushroom farms and 7 Rally Points. I *think* I upgraded 5+ of the Rally Points, but probably only around 20 of the farms. In my 2nd city, I saved Portal Profits in Dwarves/Fairies and used them liberally where I could once I got to O&G, so I had a smaller and less upgraded settlement to get the portal upgraded.

One of reasons this strategy is feasible is the huge change coming in Woodelves. You will rarely opt for a Culture Only bldg after reaching that chapter; you'll want culture/mana bldgs. This means you'll be placing the WeepingWillows and/or any event mana producers/crafted Festival Merchants you gain after you arrive in this chapter. As you sell off the farms/rally points, you'll get coins/supplies that'll help build the Willows. You'll go from negative culture to a huge culture bonus with the Willows. I recommend placing the event/crafted buildings where you're going to keep them, then placing Willows everywhere else you can fit them. There's a bunch of research after you unlock Willows and before you get to the Woodelves portal research, giving you time to amass some mana. It decays, so building an early inventory is a positive. As you need the space for the Woodelves settlement, sell off the Willows, again using the resources you get back to help with building the Woodelves settlement production bldgs.
It's possible to do most of this without upgrading residences or workshops past max Fairy level if you've got enough of each and the coin rains/supply instants. Continuing to win those in the Spire and as event consolation prizes will help some. You'll upgrade houses first to get the pop you need to start on the workshop upgrades. Then, you can take a huge portion of your city right through the ugly phase into the Woodelves architecture without having an 'Orc' city for very long, lol! Hated O&G. Hated. It. Ugliest thing in the game. The houses looked like they used toilets for models. Seriously, they went from having me collect ambrosia to me collecting dung. Ugh!
 

iamthouth

Tetris Master
This is 2 years ago now, but this was my layout, with 35 Mushroom Farms and 3 Orc Rally Points. Efficient layout, taking advantage of the size differences is important. It is also the first chapter I used ElvenArchitect for (probably when I found it).
Orcs and Goblins.JPG
 

Lelanya

Scroll-Keeper, Keys to the Gems
Geez you guys!
Orcs & Goblins chapter is the most developed chapter in the entire game. It's easy and fun - if you embrace the spirit of the guest race. I am currently running O&G in my Harandar city, and I am really having fun with it. I will place one more rally point than I currently have, and I have the space already sorted on the Architect with the next expansion (but I have 2 coming in the next week). I will upgrade the rally points a wee bit then comes the late chapter push and the planning for roads. I am going to be counting my resources soon, I may have all the powershrooms that I need already.
 

Lemon Wren

Well-Known Member
Geez you guys!
Orcs & Goblins chapter is the most developed chapter in the entire game. It's easy and fun - if you embrace the spirit of the guest race. I am currently running O&G in my Harandar city, and I am really having fun with it. I will place one more rally point than I currently have, and I have the space already sorted on the Architect with the next expansion (but I have 2 coming in the next week). I will upgrade the rally points a wee bit then comes the late chapter push and the planning for roads. I am going to be counting my resources soon, I may have all the powershrooms that I need already.

Ha, don't feel bad. I got rid of the Crab Hotel Deluxe as soon as I could. Couldn't take the look of it, despite it's great numbers.
 

Lemon Wren

Well-Known Member
There's a strategy that makes drastic changes to your city and how it operates for that one chapter. It also puts you in a very positive position for the next chapter: Woodelves. It will probably cause you to stall out somewhere on the storyline quests. I'd check out the quest line on ElvenGems and see if I really wanted the rewards. I recall skipping them and declining the ones I didn't want to do after activating Advanced Scouts for Woodelves.

Basically: Get everything you need for the chapter (except Culture bldgs) upgraded to max. Sell off all your Culture Only bldgs. Your factories will continue to produce as usual, you just won't be able to build or upgrade anything that requires culture. Your coin and supply production will return to base levels without the culture bonus. Stocking up on some coin rains and supply instants is advisable. You can do the same with culture/pop bldgs that are not giving enough pop to equal a residence. Going negative pop doesn't stop your city from running; it works just like culture. Build a huge Orc settlement. In my pre-Portal profits/instants city, I think at one point I had 50+ mushroom farms and 7 Rally Points. I *think* I upgraded 5+ of the Rally Points, but probably only around 20 of the farms. In my 2nd city, I saved Portal Profits in Dwarves/Fairies and used them liberally where I could once I got to O&G, so I had a smaller and less upgraded settlement to get the portal upgraded.

One of reasons this strategy is feasible is the huge change coming in Woodelves. You will rarely opt for a Culture Only bldg after reaching that chapter; you'll want culture/mana bldgs. This means you'll be placing the WeepingWillows and/or any event mana producers/crafted Festival Merchants you gain after you arrive in this chapter. As you sell off the farms/rally points, you'll get coins/supplies that'll help build the Willows. You'll go from negative culture to a huge culture bonus with the Willows. I recommend placing the event/crafted buildings where you're going to keep them, then placing Willows everywhere else you can fit them. There's a bunch of research after you unlock Willows and before you get to the Woodelves portal research, giving you time to amass some mana. It decays, so building an early inventory is a positive. As you need the space for the Woodelves settlement, sell off the Willows, again using the resources you get back to help with building the Woodelves settlement production bldgs.
It's possible to do most of this without upgrading residences or workshops past max Fairy level if you've got enough of each and the coin rains/supply instants. Continuing to win those in the Spire and as event consolation prizes will help some. You'll upgrade houses first to get the pop you need to start on the workshop upgrades. Then, you can take a huge portion of your city right through the ugly phase into the Woodelves architecture without having an 'Orc' city for very long, lol! Hated O&G. Hated. It. Ugliest thing in the game. The houses looked like they used toilets for models. Seriously, they went from having me collect ambrosia to me collecting dung. Ugh!

Thank you so much for the detailed reply. I really appreciate it the tips and explanation for them!
 

Henroo

Oh Wise One
The chapter 7 city making the speed run...will hit Orcs with a lv 30 Blooming Trader Guild. It is scroll boosted city so I had to have the BTG for the wholeseller discount.
With a lvl 30 BTG you can pretty much speed run ALL the guest race chapters! I never built it because I Portal Profited my way through most of them. But with that much of a bonus on your side it would be hella easy to just make all the goods...
 

Lelanya

Scroll-Keeper, Keys to the Gems
Ha, don't feel bad. I got rid of the Crab Hotel Deluxe as soon as I could. Couldn't take the look of it, despite it's great numbers.
I thought the Crab Hotel was pretty creepy the first time around, but I was in O&G with an older city at the time so I tossed a couple out this time for nostalgia. I recently replaced those actual hotels ;)
 

Gladiola

Well-Known Member
Here's my strategy for speeding through Orcs (in the future):

1) Hang out for a while in chapters 3-5. Do the Spire every week and collect hundreds of 50% supply instants as well as hundreds of hours of timers. Also build a level 10 Fire Phoenix and collect 10% coin rains
2) As soon as you hit Dwarves, upgrade the Fire Phoenix to chapter 6 and start collecting 5% Portal Profits.
3) Spend at least 3 months in dwarves and 3 months in fairies, enjoying the pretty buildings and collecting portal profits. After six months you should have close to 100 Portal Profits. (I am in my first month of dwarves doing this). Also collect portal profits from Spire and keep saving those timers. While in Fairies, craft one or two orc nests just to have them on hand for the start of orcs.
4) When you get to orcs, place and RR up the orc nests so they start making orcs (or craft new ones if you get them right away). Orcs don't decay, so the longer you can accumulate them, the better off you'll be. Also upgrade other potential orc-producing event buildings so they make orcs.
5) Build however many mushroom farms and rally points you can conveniently fit in your city, preferably in a section that stays off the main screen
6) Tournament wildly and pour all the RP into your research tree, delaying optional researches as long as possible
7) Use PPs whenever needed. You have a supply, use them lavishly.
8) Do not upgrade anything else. It will look ugly and cause distress. Enjoy your pretty Fairy city.
9) When you finish the relevant researches in Woodelves to upgrade buildings further, just upgrade right through the orc levels and enjoy the woodelves buildings. Your timers and coin/supply instants from step 1 will save you here.

That's my plan, anyway. I'll let you know how it works.
 
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