Tutorial
How can scouting the map help you choose where to settle?
Scouting the Map Before You Settle
Follow the tunnels from your field, note the Rust camps around the map, and keep the center in view. Great Clock sites appear near the center late in a season. For finding a good town spot, check for an empty field if founding another town, but do not assume a special field advantage.
Get your bearings first
The map is a large square, and your town sits on a field. Tunnels connect fields, so begin by seeing which fields are linked to yours. This gives you a clearer picture of the places around your town than a quick glance at the map as a whole.
If you are planning to found another town, remember that Settlers can establish one on an empty field. Look for an empty field on the map, then consider its place among the connected fields. The map information here does not identify fields with better production or other special benefits, so base your choice on what it actually shows.
See also: reading the Zone77 map.
Notice the Rust camps
The Rust are broken robots that live in camps around the map. Camps are worth noticing as you look over the surrounding area: beating one gives resources. Treat their locations as part of the landscape you are scouting, not as a guide to a guaranteed outcome.
If you are weighing a camp, keep the purpose of the map in mind. It shows where your town, fields, tunnels and camps are; it does not promise a particular result from a camp. For more on them, read the Rust guide.
See also: the Rust camps.
Keep the center in view
The center matters because Great Clock sites appear near it late in a season. The first alliance to build the Great Clock to its top level wins that season. That makes the center important to the season’s shared goal, but the map facts do not say that a town near the center has a special advantage.
As you consider finding a good town spot, separate what you can see from what you might assume. Note the center and the fields and tunnels around your position, but do not treat proximity as a promise of a better town or a season victory.
See also: the guide to the Great Clock.
Step by step
Step 1: Find your town’s field
Start with the field your town occupies. Use it as your reference point for looking at nearby fields and routes.
Step 2: Trace the tunnels
Follow the connections between fields. This helps you understand how the map links the areas around your town without guessing at routes.
Step 3: Mark what matters on the map
Notice the Rust camps around the map, and keep track of the center. Camps can give resources when beaten; the center is where Great Clock sites appear late in a season.
Step 4: Check for an empty field before settling
If you plan to use Settlers to found another town, look for an empty field. Compare its place among the fields and tunnels, but do not assume the map shows a special resource bonus.
Questions and answers
Why should I pay attention to the center?
Great Clock sites appear near the center late in a season, and the first alliance to build the Clock to its top level wins. The center matters as a season objective, but its location alone does not establish a town advantage.
See also: the Great Clock.
What does the map show about the Rust?
It shows that Rust camps sit around the map. Beating a camp gives resources, but the map is not a promise about what a particular camp will provide beyond that.
