Frostpunk 2 is a highly demanding city-building simulation that challenges players to expand and govern New London, one of humanity’s last strongholds. If you’re looking for the best strategies to get started as the Steward, check out our comprehensive Frostpunk 2 guide for essential tips and tricks.
Frostpunk 2 Guide – 10 Tips and Tricks
Since Frostpunk 2 lacks a formal tutorial, we have compiled the most vital tips to help you establish and grow New London as the new Steward.
How to Acquire and Utilize Prefabs
One of the primary resources available at the start of Frostpunk 2 is a collection of Prefabs. These are critical for expanding New London by constructing various Districts, building specialized Structures within those districts, and maintaining their condition through repairs as needed.
Prefabs are also essential for conducting scouting missions across the Frostlands and constructing Trails and Skyways to establish outposts and retrieve new resources.
Maintaining a solid supply of Prefabs is vital to ensuring the structural integrity of New London and other settlements. You can increase your Prefab stock by constructing Industrial Districts, using their materials specifically to manufacture Prefabs instead of Goods. Additionally, you can explore Frostland regions known for Prefab availability, but be cautious—some resources may come with conditions.
How to Acquire and Utilize Heatstamps
Another essential resource for expanding and maintaining New London is Heatstamps (previously referred to as “Scraps”in the prologue). This resource serves as a universal currency, necessary for construction, Frostbreaking, scouting Frostland areas, researching technologies, and funding various factions.
As long as New London is operational, your supply of Heatstamps will gradually replenish weekly from the city’s inhabitants. As your population increases, so will your weekly Heatstamp earnings.
You may also request additional Heatstamps from specific factions, especially those who are favorable toward you; however, exercise caution as this may create unnecessary tension.
Unlocking the Idea Tree
To effectively expand and enhance New London’s technological capabilities, unlocking the Idea Tree is crucial. First, construct at least one Research Institute in a designated Housing District. Once established, the Idea Tree and its subcategories will be accessible, so begin researching ideas as soon as possible.
Remember, each idea requires 50 or more Heatstamps to research. You can monitor the progress of a researched idea via the ticker on the bottom right corner of your HUD. Once it reaches 100%, you’ll be notified that a new idea is ready to implement.
When negotiating laws in the city’s Council Hall, certain factions may require you to research ideas that align with their interests. If you agree to this, make sure to start the research promptly as deadlines will apply. Failing to comply may damage your relationship with that faction due to a “broken promise.”
To speed up your research efforts, consider constructing additional Research Institutes across other Housing Districts (recommended). Additionally, scouting () areas in the Frostlands can further enhance your research pace, although you might lose spare teams in the process.
Unlocking the Council Hall
Another important structure you can unlock early in New London’s Central district is the Council Hall. This building enables delegate sessions with the city’s communities to vote on various laws that will define New London’s future.
When the Council is in session, you can access your options by clicking the respective button in the bottom left corner of your HUD. There are four categories of proposed legislation available, but they only become accessible when the delegates request votes on them.
Once you select a law to propose or reject, hit ‘Propose’ to bring it to the voting floor in the Council. This will also impact your Trust meter, so choose carefully. Additionally, a ‘Negotiate’ option allows you to persuade a faction to vote favorably or unfavorably. You can agree to one of three optional stipulations ranging from researching preferred ideas to allowing that faction to choose the next law to be voted on, or even providing them with Heatstamp funds (a bit of bribery!).
Politics in Frostpunk 2 presents significant challenges, as balancing the various factions’ interests can be complex. You may frequently find yourself facing conflicts where consensus is rare.
Choose your battles wisely to prevent hostility from factions. If tensions rise, factions may start protests that could disrupt city districts, and with enough popular support, they can precipitate your downfall.
Scouting the Frostlands
As you venture into the icy tundra surrounding New London, one of your first objectives should be to frostbreak a path to one of the three Old Waystations situated on the outskirts of the city. These are located south, west, and northeast of New London, near a Shallow Iron Vein deposit.
After activating the Old Waystation, build a Logistics District to restore its functionality. This action will enable scouting in regions surrounding New London using Frostlander teams, an essential step for certain chapter objectives, such as locating Oil, preparing for extreme weather events, and uncovering the remnants of Winterhome.
Additionally, you can unveil several new resource deposits that yield more Prefabs, Materials, Coal, Food, Workers, and more. Be mindful, however, as your available Frostlander teams are limited, and some expeditions will deplete more teams. Certain areas are classified as “dangerous,”risking team losses without preemptive scouting station establishment.
Improving relations with the Frostlanders and Pilgrims can grant you additional Frostlander teams. Establishing Logistics Districts at all three Old Waystations around New London will further enhance your team availability.
Expanding New London (Frostbreaking, Districts, Buildings)
The initial phase of Frostpunk 2 revolves around expanding and fortifying New London to withstand the harshest elements, including Whiteout storms, while ensuring your growing populace has all necessary resources.
As soon as Chapter 1 begins, prioritize frostbreaking essential areas near the city. Target the Shallow Coal Seams southeast of the city center, the Frozen Forests in central southern regions for materials, and Fertile Soil deposits either southwest or northwest. However, avoid excessive frostbreaking at once to prevent rapidly draining your Heatstamps.
Initially, focus on constructing essential Extraction districts for Coal, Materials, and Food. These infrastructures will lay the groundwork for Industrial Districts that produce Goods and Prefabs. Ensure you also build one or two Housing Districts to protect against cold exposure among the populace.
Lastly, establish your first Logistics District at an Old Waystation promptly to dispatch scouting parties along the roads.
Repairing and Upgrading the Generator
Heat is one of your most vital resources during this ceaseless winter, so it’s imperative to address it immediately.
Initially, the Generator appears as a bright red icon, indicating it’s inactive. Start by frostbreaking to nearby Shallow Coal Seam deposits and constructing an Extraction District to begin producing adequate fuel. Then, select the Generator at the city center to access its management menu.
You should now be able to activate the Generator using the toggle switch in the bottom left corner. This activation will start generating heat for the city, reducing overall demand. Eventually, you’ll want to upgrade the Generator to manage higher needs, utilize different fuel types, and more.
To upgrade the Generator, unlock the Idea Tree and research each tier of ‘Generator Upgrade’ ideas found in the ‘Heat’ category, such as Surplus Injectors. A more powerful Generator, fed with sufficient fuel, is essential for enduring extreme temperatures and keeping your citizens safe and warm.
Finding and Securing a Source of Oil
Once the Generator is repaired, the city’s attention will shift to the declining Coal deposits, prompting the need to find a dependable, long-term fuel source in the Frostlands, either through direct discovery or by making Charcoal.
Making Critical Choices and Sacrifices
Frostpunk 2 presents players with an ongoing series of challenging decisions, influenced by factors such as city expansion strategies, resource management in food and heat, technological focus, legislative choices, and interactions with various factions.
A crucial aspect to remember is that, much like its predecessor, Frostpunk 2 is unforgivingly harsh, particularly from a moral and ethical perspective, impacting virtually every facet of gameplay. Your primary objective is to ensure the survival of New London, which may necessitate exploitative labor practices, controversial food production methods, and maintaining order through force. Survival in a sub-zero apocalypse might require making difficult choices, even if they mean sacrificing the vulnerable for the sake of the strong.
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