Top Lords buildings: Castle, research and queues

What the main buildings actually do

At the start, almost every building asks for your attention. That does not mean they all deserve the same amount of resources. Learn which building is blocking the thing you want to do next.

Castle progress, research, troop training and healing are different jobs. Finishing one job does not automatically finish the others. A new soldier tier still needs training, and a higher hero cap still needs Hero EXP.

Include the required buildings

Open the next Castle upgrade and read its requirements before starting optional buildings. If it asks for two other buildings, both matter. If a requirement offers a faction-building alternative, you choose one eligible branch; you do not need all three just for that gate.

For Castle 20 to 21, the recorded direct requirements are a level-20 Scholar Tower and level-20 Alliance Keep. If they are both 19, there are three jobs ahead of you: the tower, the Keep and the Castle itself. Save resources for that sequence rather than only the final Castle price.

The same rule applies further down the chain. An upgrade can need a building that has its own prerequisites. Check those before spending your last coins on a different job.

Keep queues working while you are away

When you have time to play, clear short requirements and start the next job promptly. Before sleeping or a long break, leave a longer useful upgrade running. A queue that finishes five minutes after you leave can sit empty for the rest of the night.

Having two queues is useful only if you can keep both funded. One can work on the current requirement while the other handles the next supporting building. Do not start an unrelated long upgrade in both queues and then discover the Castle prerequisite has nowhere to go.

Research deserves the same attention. Prepare the materials and next requirement before a research job ends. Adding another queue will not solve a coin shortage by itself.

Speedups should open the next job

Before using speedups, check that you can afford what follows. Finishing a building early is less useful when the next required job is still short of coins. Sometimes gathering the missing resource is the better next action.

Apply a construction-speed benefit before starting the job when that benefit affects its starting timer. A speed bonus increases the work rate: +10% speed turns a base hour into about 54 minutes 33 seconds. It is not a flat six-minute reduction.

If an event rewards a completion or building power, time the finish where practical. If it rewards speedup use, read which speedups qualify. Starting a construction job and completing it are different scoring actions.

Keep training and recovery usable

Castle progress is important, but the squad still needs soldiers. Check training capacity and leave enough food and wood for the army you actually use. Do not spend every resource on an optional building just before a planned battle.

Before fighting, inspect the Ward Tent and wounded troops. Recovery uses its own time and resources. A bigger displayed army does not help if you cannot support the losses from the next operation.

Later, keeping Barracks at different tier breakpoints can support stepped training. That is a separate army strategy, not a reason to upgrade every Barracks to the same level automatically.