Timberborn building guide: costs, research, staffing and connections | gemelog

Edition: PC Steam base game (app 1062090), main branch without mods. Examples use Folktails, Plains' default starting location, Normal and a new survival game with droughts and badtides. Faction, map and difficulty differences are distinguished separately.

Verification scope: Official main-branch Update 1.1 released on 2026-09-03 was checked. Experimental fixes dated 2026-09-22 and 10-01 are not assumed applied to main. Internal build numbers and actual saves are untested. Building values were compared between current individual wiki entries and official update history.

Sources checked: 2026-10-04

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Separate unlocking, construction and operation

Unlocking in Construction, delivering materials to finish, and operating afterward are separate. Tables cover representative main-branch 1.1 Folktails facilities. Listed materials cover the buildings themselves; add stairs, supports, shafts and storage as needed.

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Separate unlocking, construction and operation: 5 entries
Stage	Requirement	Onscreen display	Common confusion
Unlock	Required Science (SP)	Unlock cost in Construction	Assuming SP also pays construction materials
Construction	District-accessible materials, builders and route	Missing materials and progress	Prioritizing only the building on an unfinished platform
Staffing	Desired and actual workers	Employment priority and staff count	Assuming construction priority also prioritizes employment
Operation	Inputs, power or range, and free output	Input slots, power and shutdown reason	Assuming roads also transmit power
Output and use	Compatible storage, good assignment and connection	Stored good, stocks, free capacity and district	Adding storage without assigning its good

Initially unlocked means no SP payment in a new game, not free construction. English resource labels are Logs, Planks, Gears and Treated Planks.

Representative basic and wood-production facilities

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Representative basic and wood-production facilities: 8 entries
Facility	Research or construction prerequisites	Checked cost	Connections and staff	Operation and purpose
Lumberjack Flag	Initially available; mature trees and cutting designation	No construction materials	Entrance path, one worker and reachable trees	Fells trees for Logs; output goes to Piles or construction.
Water Pump	Initially unlocked; reachable clean water	12 Logs	Path and one worker; no mechanical power	Draws from depth two to produce Water; output buffer 15.
Efficient Farmhouse	Initially unlocked; crop designation in range	25 Logs	Path, up to three workers; no power	Plants and harvests carrots or other crops; output buffer 50 per crop.
Lodge: housing	Initially unlocked; entrance access	12 Logs	No workplace staffing; check occupancy.	Houses three, meeting sleep and shelter needs.
Inventor	Initially unlocked	12 Logs	Path and one worker; no power	Base 1 SP per working hour. SP unlocks buildings and is not carried to goods storage.
Lumber Mill	Initially unlocked; Logs and power source	15 Logs	Path, one worker and 50 HP	1 Log → 1 Plank; internal buffers of 13 Logs and 13 Planks.
Power Wheel	Initially unlocked; power connection to the consumer	20 Logs	Path, one worker and axle connection	Base 50 HP; worker movement-speed modifiers and actual staffing change output.
Forester	30 SP; ability to produce Planks	10 Logs + 7 Planks	Path, one worker and planted plots in range	Plants trees and bushes; distinct from cutting or gathering.

Maximum staff is an adjustable workplace limit. One actual worker does not do the work of three merely because three slots exist. Distinguish waiting for growth from a paused workplace.

Choose storage goods and capacity together

Storage is not one building accepting everything. Separate food, Logs, Planks and Water, assigning a good immediately. Additional storage does not automatically increase production or hauling.

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Choose storage goods and capacity together: 6 entries
Facility	Research prerequisite	Checked cost	Connection and settings	Capacity and purpose
Small Warehouse	Initially unlocked	3 Logs	Path; select one good and a mode such as Accept.	30; compatible goods such as Berries or Carrots
Medium Warehouse	Initially unlocked	15 Logs	Path; one good as with Small Warehouse	200; bulk food storage
Large Pile, Folktails	Initially unlocked	6 Logs	Path; select Logs or Planks.	180; Pile goods such as Logs and Planks
Small Tank	Initially unlocked	15 Logs	Path; select Water for drinking reserves.	30; empty capacity differs from actual stocks
Medium Tank	120 SP; prepare Planks and Gears	30 Planks + 20 Gears	Path; select one liquid good.	300; does not directly retain river water
Large Tank	600 SP; metal processing needed	80 Planks + 60 Gears + 30 Metal Blocks	Path; select one liquid good.	1200; same capacity units as the Small Tank

Producers and haulers move goods; storage has no dedicated worker slots to fill. Setting every store to Empty may draw workers away from important jobs, so limit it to the goods being moved.

Using Accept, Obtain, Supply and Empty

Complete the receiving store first, select the same good and reserve space. Do not delete the active old store first.
Change only the old store being moved to Empty. Check its good and remaining stock.
After goods reach the new store, confirm continuing paths and producer output. Check whether the new location lengthens producer round trips excessively.

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Using Accept, Obtain, Supply and Empty: 4 entries
Setting	Function	When useful	If nothing moves
Accept Goods	Basic acceptance of the assigned good, available to relevant workplaces	First establish a new food Warehouse or Water Tank.	Check good, paths, space and same-district access.
Obtain	Normal acceptance plus hauler replenishment from other facilities	Stock near users, such as housing	Inspect the Hauling Post and actual haulers. This does not produce goods.
Supply	Accept new goods while haulers distribute to other stores.	Move goods from production toward consumers instead of stockpiling locally.	Check receivers and haulers. This also affects interdistrict distribution capacity calculations.
Empty	Stop accepting and move or consume remaining stock.	Relocating storage or changing goods	Cannot empty without a destination. Restore the ordinary setting afterward.

When changing goods, old stock must be removed before the new good enters. An initial delay does not establish a broken building.

Representative water structures and 1.1 cost changes

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Representative water structures and 1.1 cost changes: 6 entries
Facility	Research or construction prerequisites	Checked cost	Connections and staff	Operation and purpose
Dam	Initially unlocked; safe overflow route	20 Logs	No operating staff or power after construction; builders still need access.	Low barrier overflowing above 0.65; supports paths on top.
Levee	120 SP; supporting surface for the wall	12 Logs	No staff or power; stack to the needed height.	Blocks one terrain block's height. Manage outlets and low banks separately.
Floodgate: single height	150 SP; Plank production	10 Logs + 5 Planks	No staff or power; inspect synchronization and height.	Adjusts from 0 to 1 in 0.05 steps; no path on top.
Fill Valve	300 SP; Planks and Metal Blocks	5 Planks + 5 Metal Blocks	No staff or power; direction, target depth and signals	A one-way valve maintaining downstream depth. Contamination detection is separate.
Mechanical Pump	2000 SP in 1.1; Gears and Treated Planks	50 Gears + 15 Treated Planks	500 HP; intake, outlet and power connections	Transfers terrain liquid without producing the Water good.
Compact Mechanical Pump	Introduced in 1.1; 4000 SP	50 Gears + 25 Treated Planks + 25 Metal Blocks	700 HP; check wall-side intake and outlet.	Separate from the ordinary Mechanical Pump; unsuitable as an initial drinking pump.

The final two rows highlight changes easily confused with old guides, not recommended preparations before the first drought. Do not reuse old 700 HP and high-metal-cost tables for the ordinary Mechanical Pump.

Connect paths and power as separate networks

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Connect paths and power as separate networks: 6 entries
Connection	Required check	Action	Success indicator
Building entrance to District Center	Continuous path matching entrance height	Connect paths on ground or platforms with stairs.	The disconnected warning clears.
Building on a platform	Is the support complete?	Finish the lower level, then add a path on top separately.	Construction becomes accessible and beavers can reach the entrance.
Power Wheel to Lumber Mill	Do axle and building power points connect?	Add current Power Shafts between them if needed.	HP reaches the mill and work begins.
Power network on one level	Continuous automatically connecting shafts	Power Shaft is initially available and costs 1 Log each.	Distant generators and consumers join one power network.
Power network across levels	Are you assuming ordinary shafts connect upward?	Vertical Power Shaft: 40 SP, 2 Logs + 2 Planks + 1 Gear	Power reaches the upper consumer.
Water wheel to power network	Water direction, current under the axle and shaft connection	Read supplied HP rather than appearance alone.	Power reaches machinery according to flow.

This is not a coverage-based electrical-grid system. Even adjacent buildings need matching power points and height. Spare power cannot replace materials or workers.

Reserve forestry Logs first

A small example produces the Forester's seven Planks from existing Logs. Totals are comparison arithmetic, not a survival guarantee for the whole colony. Water, food, housing and storage are separate.

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Reserve forestry Logs first: 6 entries
Purpose	Logs required directly	Planks required	Check
Inventor	12	0	One worker produces SP.
Lumber Mill	15	0	One worker and power required
Power Wheel	20	0	One worker; connect base 50 HP to the mill.
Forester itself	10	7	30 SP unlock and one worker
Raw material for seven Planks	7	Output: seven	At 1 Log → 1 Plank, reserve seven Logs beyond building materials.
Subtotal in this example	64	Produce seven Planks through the process above.	12 + 15 + 20 + 10 + 7, excluding extra shafts, supports and storage.

Subtract already-built facilities; add shafts, stairs or platforms for the actual layout. Trees still need growth time, so reserving 64 Logs does not instantly solve wood supply.

Fixes for completed but idle buildings

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Fixes for completed but idle buildings: 8 entries
Reason for stopping	Input and output checks	Action to try	Faction or version differences
Entrance inaccessible	Paths, stairs, platforms and entrance height	Create one continuous entrance route.	The red long-distance line is not the current district limit.
Empty job slots	Difference between desired and actual workers	Pause extra jobs and raise employment priority for essential work.	Separate from construction priority
Missing inputs	Compare district stocks with building inputs.	Fix accessible storage within the same district.	Stocks are not shared automatically across districts.
Blocked finished goods	Output buffer and compatible storage space	Add or move a receiver assigned to the correct good.	Logs and Planks use Piles, food uses Warehouses, Water uses Tanks.
Insufficient power	Connections and supplied versus demanded HP	Fix generation and shafts; pause nonurgent demand.	Water wheels and manual wheels have different stopping conditions.
No target within working range	Planting or crop designations and mature cutting targets	Redesignate within the building's range.	Do not mix three-worker Folktails farms with two-worker Iron Teeth farms.
Flooded	Is the entrance or operating part touching water?	Release safely to restore levels and plan at a flood-resistant height.	Underwater paths do not make every facility work underwater.
An old guide's building is missing.	Compare names, faction and version.	Check changes such as Sluice → Fill Valve and Fluid Dump → Discharge.	Prioritize official 1.1 changes.

Verify output reaches its next process or storage as well as clearing warnings. If the symptom remains, change one setting at a time and revisit connections → staff → input → output → power or water.

Frequently asked questions

Why does paying SP not finish a building?

SP unlocks Construction options. Provide Logs, Planks and other materials separately, with builders able to deliver them. For elevated buildings, inspect lower supports too.

Construction priority did not bring a worker

Construction priority orders building work; employment priority allocates staff afterward. Check desired and actual staffing in the completed workplace, prioritizing Water and food if needed.

A new Medium Tank does not increase Water

It stores up to 300. Water assignment, paths, acceptance and free capacity cannot overcome stopped pumping or hauling. Inspect pump stocks to distinguish failed production from output awaiting transport.

Can I use an old Mechanical Pump cost table?

Main-branch 1.1 changes the Mechanical Pump to 2000 SP, 50 Gears + 15 Treated Planks and 500 HP. Compact Mechanical Pump is a separate new building. Match the name rather than applying the old 700 HP table.

Why reserve seven Planks for the Forester first?

Using all Logs before its completion removes both Plank inputs and the Forester's own materials. Reserve the research, mill, power, Forester and processing inputs as one chain, allowing time for planted trees to grow.

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Based on site-wide views, captured July 6, 2026 (previous 28 days plus capture day).