Frontkrieg Buildings Guide: What to Build and in What Order
The first thing to build in a new Frontkrieg province is a recruiting office: it costs just 4,000 money, finishes in about 10 minutes, and unlocks troop recruitment. But that is only the start — there are 8 building types in the game, and the order in which you construct them decides whether you will have the army, defense, and resources you need at the decisive moment of a match.
Frontkrieg is a free, no-pay-to-win real-time grand-strategy game about World War 1, played on a live map of 1914 Europe with 4,800 provinces. This guide explains what each building does, how much it costs, what its prerequisites are, and in what order you should build it. It is written for beginners who just took their first province and for intermediate players who want to sharpen their economy and front line.
Key takeaways:
- In every useful province, build a recruiting office first (4,000 money, ~10 minutes) — without it the province recruits no troops.
- The factory has 4 levels, adds +2.5 morale per level, and only unlocks from in-game day 6 — it is the core of your armored production.
- The fortress (up to 5 levels, +5 morale per level) is the main defensive building; place it in border provinces.
- The harbor and the railway give the biggest morale boost — +7 each — but take the longest to build: around 60 hours.
- The barracks consumes food: 5 grain per hour at level 1 and 15 at level 2, so do not build it where grain is scarce.
Table of contents
- Why buildings matter
- All 8 building types: cost, time, effect
- Build order: what to build first
- Common building mistakes
- FAQ
Why buildings matter {#navishcho}
Buildings are a province's infrastructure. Some unlock troop production, others raise morale and defense, and others speed up army movement. Without buildings a province is just a patch of land with a base income; with the right construction it becomes the forge of your army or an impregnable fortress on the border.
Every building goes into a build queue: you place the order and it completes after a set number of in-game hours. Some buildings have prerequisites — for example, you cannot build a barracks without a recruiting office, or a factory without a level 2 workshop. That is why construction should be planned ahead rather than thrown down at random.
All 8 building types: cost, time, effect {#typy}
Below is the full list with real cost, build-time, and effect figures. Time is given in in-game hours.
Recruiting office
Cost: 4,000 money. Time: ~0.17 hours (≈10 minutes). Levels: 1.
Unlocks recruitment of basic ground units in the province. It is the cheapest and fastest building in the game — place it everywhere you plan to raise an army. Without a recruiting office, a province produces no troops at all.
Barracks
Cost: 8,000 money + 50 iron, lumber, and grain each (level 1). Time: ~24 hours. Levels: 2. Prerequisite: recruiting office.
Lets you recruit heavier ground units. It has a grain upkeep: 5 per hour at level 1 and 15 at level 2. It is the only building with a constant, hungry upkeep, so build it in provinces with a grain surplus.
Workshop
Cost: 10,000 money + 50 iron, lumber, and oil each. Time: ~10 minutes (level 1) and 30 minutes (level 2). Levels: 2.
Unlocks early mechanized equipment and is a mandatory prerequisite for the factory. Cheap and fast — build it in a rear province that will later grow into your industrial hub.
Factory
Cost: from 20,000 money + lumber, iron, and oil (scaling with level). Time: ~24 hours per level. Levels: 4. Morale: +2.5 per level. Prerequisite: level 2 workshop.
Each factory level speeds up mechanized-unit production and unlocks stronger equipment — for instance, the heavy tank is only available from a level 3 factory. Higher levels open gradually: level 1 from in-game day 6, and level 4 not until day 12. The factory is hungry for oil, so keep it where supply is steady.
Fortress
Cost: 10,000 money + 100 iron. Time: ~24 hours. Levels: 5. Morale: +5 per level.
The main defensive building: it strengthens the garrison's defense and makes an assault slow and expensive for the enemy. Place fortresses in border and capital provinces. Historically, lines of fortresses and trenches defined the static nature of World War 1, and in the game they work the same way — as the backbone of your defense.
Harbor
Cost: 20,000 money + 200 lumber + 100 iron. Time: ~60 hours. Levels: 1. Morale: +7. Coastal only.
Required for fleet operations — basing and servicing ships. It can only be built in coastal provinces and gives the biggest single morale boost (+7). The downside is that it is one of the longest builds in the game.
Railway
Cost: 20,000 money + 200 iron + 100 coal + 50 lumber. Time: ~60 hours. Levels: 1. Morale: +7.
Speeds up moving troops along the front and adds +7 morale. It is the only building that needs coal. Since it takes around 60 hours, order it early — in the hub provinces your armies pass through most often.
Aerodrome
Cost: 10,000 money + 200 lumber + 100 oil + 50 iron. Time: ~12 hours. Levels: 1.
Unlocks air operations — fighters and bombers — from that province. If you plan to dominate the skies, you need an aerodrome before your first aircraft appears.
Build order: what to build first {#poryadok}
A general construction plan for the early and mid game looks like this:
- Recruiting office — immediately in every province you plan to hold and recruit from.
- Fortresses in 1–2 border provinces — cheap defense plus morale.
- Workshop → factory in a safe rear province with oil — this is your industrial hub and source of equipment.
- Railway or harbor in key hubs, once you have a resource surplus.
- Barracks and aerodrome — for a specific military need, not "just in case."
Do not spread your money thin: a 24-hour building is a full in-game day of investment, so put a factory or fortress where it will definitely be useful. A strong match start is covered in detail in the first 24 hours guide.
Common building mistakes {#pomylky}
- Building a factory too early. Its level 1 is simply unavailable before in-game day 6 — the money is better spent on defense.
- Building a barracks without grain. An upkeep of 5–15 grain per hour quickly eats the province's food stock.
- Forgetting recruiting offices in new provinces. Captured territory without a recruiting office yields no soldiers.
- Keeping several half-finished fortresses. One completed defense level beats five started and none finished.
FAQ {#faq}
What should you build first in Frontkrieg?
A recruiting office in every province where you plan to recruit: it costs 4,000 money and finishes in about 10 minutes. After that, a fortress on the border for defense and a workshop in the rear for your future factory.
What does a fortress do?
A fortress raises the province's defense and adds +5 morale per level (up to 5 levels). It makes an assault slower and more expensive for the enemy, which is why fortresses go in border and capital provinces.
Should you build a railway?
Yes, if you have a surplus of resources and coal. A railway speeds up moving troops along the front and adds +7 morale. The main drawback is the roughly 60-hour build time, so plan it ahead in your hub provinces.
Where should you build a factory?
In a safe rear province with access to oil. The factory is the core of equipment production (4 levels), and losing it on the front means losing your whole mechanized army. Keep it well behind the lines.
Conclusion
Buildings in Frontkrieg are the foundation of your army, your defense, and your economy. Start with cheap recruiting offices, anchor the front with fortresses, build the "workshop → factory" chain for equipment, and add railways and harbors when resources allow. A well-planned build queue saves in-game days and wins matches.
Ready to test your construction plan on a live map? Join a match — a new game starts every day. For more guides, visit the Frontkrieg blog: start with the economy and resources, unit types and counters, and defensive tactics.