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So the game’s been out for a week and I’ve just finished my first village. Here are some things that I found in my playthrough that will hopefully help you guys out when assigning villagers to jobs.
I can’t back any of this up with hard numbers, and the developers are constantly making tweaks to the game so this guide could become outdated very fast. That being said, this should hopefully help new and current players play their game more optimally
Also note that I haven’t included more in depth things like how relationships with co-workers impacts the production cycle or how mentoring works.
For Job Performance: Skill > Stats > Aspiration > Class (usually)
Which villager should you assign to an open job? This is one of the most important decisions.
If it’s your first time playing the game, you may be tempted to select whichever unemployed village has the most “potential” according to the game without a second thought. The game assigns a star rating to a villager based on a combination of their skills, stats, aspiration & class. However, I’ve found that in practice, this star system doesn’t assign enough weight to a villagers skills. (and in the case of 6 year-old children I think it doesn’t put enough emphasis on stats and aspiration, but that’s a topic for another day)
So indulge me for a moment while I breakdown each of the components that go into a villager’s performance on the job individually.
Skill a.k.a. The Thing that Pays the Bill
Skill is the purple shield at the top left of the screen. In production jobs, it directly impacts how much of a resource is generated every time the villager finishes a production cycle.
If you hover over the resource being produced, the game will show that the higher the villager’s skill is, the greater the more resources they will produce at the end of their production cycle.
Stat(s)
Most jobs only rely on 1 stat, but a few will use the total of all the villager’s stats instead of just one. Stat(s) impact how short a villager’s production cycle is.
The greater a villager’s stat(s), the shorter the production time will be. If you hover over the timer below the villager’s portrait it will show you a breakdown of how the villager’s production time is being impacted.
Aspiration
If a villager’s aspiration matches that of the job in question, the stars displaying their potential will be highlighted.
Does this have any impact on the amount produced or how quick the production cycle is?
No. Not at all. But at the end of every production cycle, villagers who are in a job that matches their aspiration will receive 50% more skill experience that those who don’t have it.
If you hover over the villager’s portrait in the workplace screen, you can see how much skill xp they’ll gain at the end of the current production cycle (as well as morale and life expectancy lost).
However, the boost to skill experience is over-stated in my opinion. A villager’s intelligence stat impacts how quickly they gain all skills and a character with 5 intelligence will pick up a skill that doesn’t match their aspiration faster than a character with 3 intelligence who does aspire to pick up that skill.
There’s a reason I ranked Aspiration higher than class. If a villager works a job that matches their aspiration, then there is a chance their aspiration level will go up over time. The impact of ranking up in aspiration can be pretty significant and can result in permanent increases to a villager’s stats.
Note that once a villager has mastered their aspiration, they no longer will have the outline around their job performance stars. I haven’t tested to see if they still get the 1.5x boost to their skill experience yet, but will update this guide when I find out.
Class
As far as I can tell, the only impact class has is on the villager’s morale.
Assigning a villager to a job meant for a different class of villager will cause them to suffer a morale hit every time they complete a production cycle.
It’s worth noting that if a villager works in this job for 3 years, then their class type will change to match that of their job. (ie If a Noble spends 3 years being a lumberjack, they will become a member of the peasant class)
Assigning Villagers to Illicit Buildings
THE MOST IMPORTANT THING WHEN ASSIGNING VILLAGERS TO ILLICIT BUILDINGS IS THEIR SKILL LEVEL AND ONLY THEIR SKILL LEVEL.
The way the game is currently designed, stats only impact how long/short a production cycle is. If you have to choose between a Rat Trainer with 0 strength and 99 leadership and one with 10 strength and 79 leadership, CHOOSE THE ONE WITH 99 LEADERSHIP SKILL.
The way faith, health, entertainment and protection are calculated in Lakeburg are impacted ONLY by the character’s skills and not stats, aspiration or class.