Why Factories Matter
A factory matters because it turns connected land buildings into a train trade network that can generate gold. An openfront factory automatically spawns trains and railroads when it can connect with suitable buildings on land. It is most useful when placed to link cities and ports rather than standing alone.
Factories are economic buildings built on land. Their role is different from a city’s population capacity or a port’s naval trade: factories create the train side of the economy. They work with railways and cities to form a trade network, while factory upgrades improve train spawning and railway throughput.
A factory does not simply create income on its own. It needs a usable connection. The relevant buildings are factories, ports, and cities, but only ports and cities act as train stations that pay gold. That makes placement the first important decision: build where a factory can connect to at least one city or port and where a broader network can grow.
| Factory fact | Details | |---|---| | Building type | Economic building | | Build location | Land | | Base cost | 125,000 | | Build time | 20 ticks | | Upgradable | Yes | | Main role | Spawns trains and supports railway trade | | Connected building types | Factory, Port, and City | | Paying train stations | Port and City |
Building Cost and Placement
Factory pricing uses the same scaling group as ports. The number of existing ports and factories together determines the next price, so building a port can make a later factory more expensive, and the reverse is also true.
The formula is min(1,000,000, 2^n × 125,000), where n is the number of existing ports and factories. The first four purchases in that shared group cost 125,000, 250,000, 500,000, and 1,000,000. Later purchases remain capped at 1,000,000.
| Existing ports and factories | Next factory or port cost | |---:|---:| | 0 | 125,000 | | 1 | 250,000 | | 2 | 500,000 | | 3 or more | 1,000,000 |
This shared cost counter makes timing matter. A player planning both sea trade and rail trade should consider which building is more immediately useful before committing to the next purchase. The sources do not establish a universal best order, because the value depends on the player’s available city, port, and factory locations.
For a factory connection, buildings must be placed within range on land. The stated connection range between a factory and another building is from 15 to 100 units, while an individual railroad connection can have a maximum distance of 120 units. Railroads travel directly in cardinal directions.
| Placement rule | Reported behavior | |---|---| | Factory terrain | Land | | Connectable buildings | Factory, Port, City | | Factory connection range | 15 to 100 units | | Maximum individual railroad distance | 120 units | | Railroad travel direction | Directly in cardinal directions | | Minimum network condition | Two or more connectable buildings within range on land |
Avoid treating a port merely as a factory attachment. Ports have their own naval role, including spawning trade ships and serving as a base for trade ships, transports, and warships. Their shared cost is the key factory-related interaction, while their train-station role makes them relevant to rail trade.
Trains, Railroads, and Gold
When two or more connectable buildings are placed within range on land, factories spawn trains and railroads automatically. Once the connection exists, trains begin spawning. The factory is the train source, and the city or port is the destination type that can pay out gold.
Gold is awarded when a train reaches a station that pays gold. Both the train owner and the station owner receive the reward unless the same player owns both; in that case, the reward is received once. The reward depends on the relationship between the train owner and the owner of the territory containing the station building.
| Relationship | Gold reward when a train visits a paying station | |---|---:| | Allies | 50,000 | | Neutral / Teammates | 25,000 | | Self | 10,000 | | Enemies / Embargoed | 0 |
This table describes the reward relationship, not a guarantee that every connection is equally valuable. A route to a city or port can produce a different result depending on territorial ownership and the relationship involved. Enemy or embargoed territory pays no gold under the listed reward table.
A practical network therefore has three questions:
- Can the factory connect across land to another eligible building?
- Does the route reach a city or port, rather than only another factory?
- What relationship applies between the train owner and the territory owner at the station?
Factories can connect with other factories, but a factory-only link is not described as a paying train station. Cities and ports are the listed buildings that pay gold. A city also participates in train trade and acts as a train station, while a higher-level city with a factory significantly boosts train revenue according to the structures database.
Train Spawning and Factory Upgrades
The sources describe train spawning in two ways. One source gives a factory-related spawn rate of (factories + 10) × 15 ticks; another provides a per-factory probability formula using a multiplier of 20. Because the descriptions differ, it is safer to use them for the shared conclusion: factory count affects train spawning, and upgrades improve factory train spawning and railway throughput.
The probability source states the following formula for the chance that an individual factory spawns a train during a tick:
spawnChance = 1 / ((numFactories + 10) × 20)
It also gives an overall expected network spawning expression:
expectedOverallSpawnChance = numFactories / ((numFactories + 10) × 20)
That explanation says adding factories makes each individual factory less likely to spawn a train, while increasing the overall chance that the player’s network spawns a train. The precise live behavior should be checked against the current game version when exact planning depends on it.
| Factory count effect | Reported result | |---|---| | More factories | Lower individual factory train-spawn likelihood | | More factories | Higher overall network train-spawn chance | | Factory upgrade | Improves train spawn rate | | Factory upgrade | Improves railway throughput | | High-level city with a factory | Significantly boosts train revenue |
Factories have four upgrade levels according to the structures database. The source identifies the upgrade benefits but does not provide a full numerical upgrade table for factory train rate or railway throughput. That is a good reason not to assume a specific percentage improvement for any level.
A player expanding a network should separate two choices: adding another factory and upgrading one already built. More factories affect the broader network’s train spawning, while factory upgrades improve train spawn rate and railway throughput. The best choice depends on the player’s available connections, station access, and shared port-factory cost level.
FAQ
What does an openfront factory do?
An openfront factory spawns trains and automatically creates railroads when at least two connectable buildings are placed within range on land. It works with factories, ports, and cities, but only ports and cities are listed as train stations that pay gold.
How much does a factory cost?
The first factory or port in the shared pricing group costs 125,000. The next costs 250,000, then 500,000, then 1,000,000. After that, the price remains capped at 1,000,000.
Do factories share their price scaling with ports?
Yes. Ports and factories share the same counter, so the existing total number of those two building types determines the cost of the next one.
Can a factory earn gold without a city or port?
The sources describe factories as connecting to factories, ports, and cities, but only ports and cities are identified as train stations that pay gold. A factory-only connection is therefore not described as a gold-paying station route.
How do train rewards work?
When a train reaches a paying station, the train owner and station owner both receive the reward unless they are the same player, who receives it once. Listed rewards are 50,000 for allies, 25,000 for neutral or teammates, 10,000 for self, and 0 for enemies or embargoed relationships.