Gold is the build currency
Gold pays for the build menu. Cities, factories, and ports raise income and troop output. Defense posts stiffen borders. Warships patrol coasts. Missile silos and SAM launchers are the expensive end and open nuclear play.
There is no published gold-per-minute for a level 1 city. Use the payback calculator only after you have watched your own gold change. The 1,000 gold placeholder in that form is not a game stat.
Reported cost tiers
| Building | Gold tiers |
|---|---|
| City | 125,000 / 250,000 / 500,000 / 1,000,000 |
| Factory | 125,000 / 250,000 / 500,000 / 1,000,000 |
| Port | 125,000 / 250,000 / 500,000 / 1,000,000 |
| Defense Post | 50,000 / 100,000 / 150,000 / 200,000 / 250,000 |
| Warship | 250,000 / 500,000 / 750,000 / 1,000,000 |
| Missile Silo | 1,000,000 |
| SAM Launcher | 1,500,000 / 3,000,000 |
The same report says players upgrade core cities and ports into double-digit levels to hold gold and troops for long wars. It does not give a price for level 10, level 11, and so on. Keep the four-step ladder and the double-digit comment as two observations. Do not invent the missing level prices.
A spending order that matches those prices
- First defense post, 50,000 gold, on the border you think will be hit.
- First city, 125,000 gold, on land behind that border.
- Factory, 125,000 gold, when a war is about to cost you troops.
- Port, 125,000 gold, only after you touch the sea.
- Warship, 250,000 gold, only if that coast is worth patrolling.
- Missile silo, 1,000,000 gold, when the rest of the nation can live without that gold.
- SAM launcher, 1,500,000 gold, when missiles are actually in the match.
This order is editorial. It follows the price list and the jobs the game states. It is not an official build queue.
Where to put them
Income buildings belong on land you can still own after the next attack. A city on the tile you just captured is the first thing you lose if the counterattack works. Ports belong on a coast you intend to use. Defense posts belong on the narrow or exposed border, not in a pile on the capital, unless the capital is the exposed border.
If you go broke
Stop opening new fronts. The Attacks panel will show what you still have to hold. Replace one building tier only after gold is climbing again. No interest rate, upkeep number, or troop-salary figure is published here, so do not subtract a made-up upkeep from your gold.