Bellwright is Donkey Crew's medieval survival and town-building RPG, in Steam Early Access since 23 April 2024 and still in Early Access as of August 2026, with a full release the studio has targeted for 2026. You start as an outlaw with a knife in the region of Karvenia, and you finish as the head of a settlement that other people work in. Seven village capitals sit on the map, Haerndean, Padstow, Bradford, Farnworth, Blackridgepool, Horndean and Crasmere, and each one only hands over recruits once you have earned its Trust. The 2026 Summer Update brought a performance overhaul and console versions, while the Maiden Voyage update added the Halmare Isles as a second landmass.
This guide covers everything you need: core mechanics, the best builds, equipment worth investing in, location progression, and the tips that actually make a difference.
Core Mechanics
Village Trust and Renown recruiting
Each of the seven village capitals tracks its own Trust in you, raised by doing the odd jobs its people ask for: setting traps, clearing the wolves, running deliveries. Higher Trust unlocks better recruits, and the recruits themselves cost Renown. That double gate is why a player who only builds and never talks to villagers ends up with a beautiful empty settlement.
Villager jobs and work priorities
The Population screen assigns each villager a role as Worker, Companion or Guard, then sets job priorities across gathering, hauling, crafting and combat. Priorities matter more than headcount. A settlement with twelve villagers who all prefer woodcutting will starve while logs pile up outside the storage hut.
Production chains and research
Nothing useful is one step. Logs become planks at the sawmill, wood becomes charcoal at the coal burner, ore plus charcoal becomes iron at the smelter, flax becomes cloth at the weaver hut, and iron feeds the toolmaker. Research unlocks each tier, so the order you spend research on decides whether your first winter is spent eating or shivering.
Liberating bandit camps and villages
Bandit camps carry a difficulty rating from easy to very hard, and clearing them is how territory opens up. Liberating a village capital pulls it out from under the Crown and into your control, which changes who trades with you and where your squads can safely walk.
Stamina based melee with companions
Combat is stamina-driven and directional. Attacks, blocks and sprints all draw from one bar, and running it flat leaves you unable to defend. Companions you bring along fight with their own gear and their own stamina, so a squad of three badly equipped villagers loses fights that two well-armed ones win.
For a deeper dive into how these systems interact, see our Bellwright combat guide.
Builds Overview
| Build | Tier | Playstyle | Key Stats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Worker | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Companion | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Guard | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Hauler | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
| Crafter | A | Versatile approach | Balanced stats |
For full build breakdowns with gear and stat priorities, see our Bellwright builds guide. For rankings, check the tier list.
Equipment Guide
| Equipment | Why It Matters | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| One handed sword | Balanced speed and damage, and the only melee category that pairs with a shield without a heavy penalty. | Your first fifty hours, and any fight you are not certain you can win |
| Two handed axe | The highest damage per swing and the fastest way to drop an armoured bandit, at the cost of a shield slot and a stamina bar that empties in a handful of attacks. | Players with a Guard squad to absorb attention while they hit things |
| Spear | Longest melee reach in the game, which lets you contribute to a squad fight from a position where nothing is swinging back at you. | Group fights and camp clearing with companions |
| Bow | Ranged damage plus the main source of Agility experience and the food supply. | Hunting for hides and meat, and softening bandit camps before the melee starts |
| Shield | Blocking builds shield skill, which raises attack speed while a shield is equipped. | Anybody still learning enemy attack timings, which is everybody for the first several villages |
One handed sword: Balanced speed and damage, and the only melee category that pairs with a shield without a heavy penalty. Weapon skill rises by hitting human enemies rather than animals, so bandit camps are where it levels.
Two handed axe: The highest damage per swing and the fastest way to drop an armoured bandit, at the cost of a shield slot and a stamina bar that empties in a handful of attacks.
Spear: Longest melee reach in the game, which lets you contribute to a squad fight from a position where nothing is swinging back at you. Lower damage per hit than an axe, higher survivability than either.
Bow: Ranged damage plus the main source of Agility experience and the food supply. Arrows are crafted, so a bow build needs a wood and feather pipeline running before it can be used seriously.
Shield: Blocking builds shield skill, which raises attack speed while a shield is equipped. Because the block and counter loop is the core defensive rhythm, shield skill quietly improves the whole sword build.
Full breakdowns in our Bellwright weapons guide.
Location Progression
| Location | Level Range | Key Rewards |
|---|---|---|
| Haerndean | Opening area, lowest threat tier | First recruits, early quests, blacksmith access |
| Padstow | Opening area, lowest threat tier | Carpenter access, early Renown quests, safe settlement sites nearby |
| Bradford | Mid threat tier | Higher-tier recruits, better trade options, mid-game quest chains |
| Horndean | Mid threat tier | Blacksmith access, iron-era gear, territory control |
| Blackridgepool | Highest mainland threat tier | Best recruits, top-tier profession access, late-game gear |
Haerndean: One of the two lowest-threat village capitals and a standard first stop. It has a blacksmith among its professions, so early tool and weapon work can be done here while you are still building Trust.
Padstow: The other low-threat starting village, with a carpenter among its professions. Between Padstow and Haerndean you can cover the two crafting lines that matter most in the first dozen hours without walking into anything that can kill you.
Bradford: A step up in threat from the opening villages. Camps in its territory hit harder, so this is where a sword and shield player wants a squad of Guards rather than a solo run.
Horndean: Mid-tier territory with a blacksmith among its professions. Useful as a second base of operations once your production chain has reached iron and you need somewhere closer to the harder camps.
Blackridgepool: One of the toughest mainland territories, with very hard bandit camps. Do not come here on hide armour and a starting sword. It carries both blacksmith and carpenter professions, which is the reward for surviving the surrounding area.
See our maps & locations guide for detailed area breakdowns and our walkthrough for the optimal progression path.
Tips That Actually Matter
- Trust and Renown are two separate gates. Trust decides which recruits a village will offer, Renown pays for them. Grinding one without the other stalls your population either way.
- Assign a job priority the moment a villager joins. Unassigned villagers idle or default to whatever station is nearest, and a settlement of thirty idle people eats as much food as a settlement of thirty working ones.
- Build the sawmill and the coal burner before anything cosmetic. Planks and charcoal are inputs to nearly every later station, and skipping them stalls the whole research tree.
- Melee skill experience comes from hitting human enemies, not wildlife. If your one-handed skill is stuck, the answer is a bandit camp, not another deer.
- Agility experience comes mostly from ranged combat, so even a dedicated melee player should carry a bow and use it on the approach to every fight.
- Bandit camps show a difficulty rating from easy to very hard. Read it before you commit, because the gap between an easy camp and a very hard one is measured in whole gear tiers, not a few percent.
- Companions fight with the gear you give them. Arming three villagers with spare iron weapons changes squad fights more than any personal upgrade you can buy at the same moment.
- Haerndean and Padstow are the gentlest places to plant a first settlement. Blackridgepool and Crasmere are where late-game players go, and arriving there early is the most common way to lose a run's worth of gear.
- Research order decides your first winter. Food preservation and basic tools before decorative buildings, every time.
- The game is still in Early Access after two years, and updates such as Maiden Voyage and the 2026 Summer Update have changed balance and added the Halmare Isles. Check the patch notes before following any guide written more than a few months ago.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Building a large settlement before recruiting anybody. Buildings do not staff themselves, and empty stations produce nothing.
- Leaving job priorities on default, which produces a village where everyone chases the same task and the rest of the chain starves.
- Attacking a very hard bandit camp in starting gear because the map marker looked close.
- Ignoring village quests and then wondering why the Elder will not offer better recruits. Trust only moves through those odd jobs.
- Sending companions into fights in whatever rags they arrived in. Unarmed villagers die and take their Renown cost with them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Bellwright finished?
No. It entered Steam Early Access on 23 April 2024 and is still in Early Access as of August 2026, with the developers targeting a full release in 2026. Console versions arrived alongside the June 2026 Summer Update.
How many villages are there?
Seven village capitals in Karvenia: Haerndean, Padstow, Bradford, Farnworth, Blackridgepool, Horndean and Crasmere. Each has its own Trust level, its own professions and its own surrounding territory.
How do I recruit villagers?
Raise a village's Trust by completing the small jobs its residents ask for, such as trapping and clearing wolves, then pay Renown per recruit in the hire panel. Higher Trust unlocks better recruits from that village.
Can I play Bellwright solo?
Yes. Co-op exists and console co-op arrived in 2026, but the whole recruitment and settlement loop is built so that a solo player commands villagers instead of relying on other players.
What should I build first?
Storage, a sawmill and a coal burner. Planks and charcoal feed the smelter and the toolmaker, and every later tier of tools, weapons and buildings runs through that chain.
More Bellwright Guides
- Bellwright Best Builds
- Bellwright Tier List
- Bellwright Walkthrough
- Bellwright Beginner's Guide
- Bellwright Tips & Tricks
- Bellwright Weapons Guide
- Bellwright Combat Guide
- Bellwright Boss Guide
- Bellwright Maps & Locations
- Bellwright Crafting Guide
- Bellwright Classes & Characters
Similar Games
If you enjoy Bellwright, check out these related guides:
- Palworld Guide: survival game with similar mechanics
- Rust Guide: survival game with similar mechanics
- ARK: Survival Evolved Guide: survival game with similar mechanics
