A field manual for FrontWars

Ports: water and trade

A port costs 125,000, needs water, and does two things the Instructions screen states plainly: it lets naval units exist, and it sends trade ships that generate gold for both ends of the route.

• TESTEDthe price and both description strings, 2026-11-03
• IN-GAMEthe port, trade-ship and five-minute trade-stop lines, quoted
• OFFICIAL ONLYCrazyGames lists naval units among the features, without numbers
• NEEDS CHECKhow much a trade ship pays, and how many a port runs

Water first

The Instructions screen states the port can only be built near water. We watched that rule fire: at an inland spawn holding 151K, the City and Factory cells stayed lit at 125,000 and the Port cell greyed out. Same price, same gold, one cell refused — the gate is the ground, not the money.

Trade ships pay both ends

A port sends out trade ships automatically. The route pays the sender and the receiver, so a trade partner is not a favour but half the mechanism. Warships capture trade ships, per the same screen, which is why a port with no warship nearby is an invitation: your income is someone else's income the moment they sail past.

The five-minute stop

Attacking or being attacked stops trade for five minutes, recovering after that. That single line reframes naval play: a raid on a coastline is not only about taking land, it is five minutes of someone's income. The same screen states it for the port's trade loop specifically.

Cost against the alternative

At 125,000 a port competes directly with a city and a factory. The difference is that the port's value depends on a map feature you do not control — water — and on a partner existing. On an inland spawn the 125,000 is better spent on a factory; on a coastal one, the port is the only building that both makes gold and lets you project across water.

Last checked against the client: 2026-11-03 · client v42.5