Tears of Metal Village Upgrades

When currency banks

Currency banks when you clear an act boss, wipe, or abandon a run back to hub — not after every individual campaign node. That means reaching the Act I finale on a learning run still funds your first Settlement Outpost levels even if Gilles kills you twice.

Failed objectives on the overhead map jump Threat Level and can shorten your route — see walkthrough — but any run that touches mid-act elites usually pays for at least one building upgrade.

Threat Level vs village income

Higher threat runs yield more village currency per node conquered. Early Access squads often alternate: one low-threat Act I farm run for Outpost and Armory levels, then a push run into Act II once Ruadh is unlocked and emblem clans are committed.

Do not confuse run gold (merchant/event nodes) with settlement currency — merchants sell in-run charms and gear; village buildings consume the meta resource shown on hub upgrade panels.

Settlement Outpost — Ruadh gate

The Settlement Outpost is the highest-priority Tears of Metal village upgrade for most players because Level 2 plus a Gilles kill unlocks Ruadh Stonecrusher — the armor-break hero that shortens every subsequent boss and elite room. Upgrade Outpost before cosmetic buildings or late-tier Training Grounds unless you are deliberately learning Wallace-only.

Armory and Blacksmith

Community progression guides rank Armory as a five-star early investment: higher base weapon damage compresses every future node timer, which indirectly makes currency farming safer. If your hub labels the building Blacksmith, treat it as the same weapon-meta line — Paper Cult uses both terms in preview materials.

Barracks and Recruitment Tent

Demo transcript (*FryQpmU5IeQ*, ~33:40) prompts players to visit the Barracks to train troops immediately after the first building unlock — battalion size is passive DPS and objective soak. Recruitment Tent expansions stack with Barracks promotions; understaffed boss attempts are a common Act II failure mode on the walkthrough.

First boss clear — spend order

After Gilles the Hog dies once: (1) Settlement Outpost to Level 2 if affordable, (2) Armory first level, (3) Recruitment Tent, (4) Barracks unlock. This sequence mirrors community EA clears and matches the heroes unlock table for Ruadh.

Enable challenge modifiers only after you can comfortably re-clear Act I — preview footage notes they unlock post-first-boss for increased difficulty and rewards (*5LjqlUF8y-8*).

Act II entry checklist

Before launching Act II routes, aim for: Outpost L2 (Ruadh online), Armory L2 or equivalent, Recruitment Tent L2, at least one Apothecary level, and Artifact Shop access. Missing Armory levels is the silent reason Act II elites feel like damage sponges — tune emblems on builds only after weapon baseline is funded.

Act III / farm phase

Act III corruption mechanics punish greedy routing — invest Apothecary and Mystic Altar before spamming Training Grounds. Long low-threat Act I repeats remain the safest village currency farm until your emblem clan is S-tier online.

Equipment vs artifact shops

Hub equipment stacks with in-run artifact drops — you do not need perfect gear in Act I, but Act II captains assume you unlocked at least tier-two vendor rows via Armory investment. The separate Artifact Shop building widens which passive items appear between campaigns; community Act II clears cite Mother Stone Shard and Highland Warlord Emblem showing up more often after that unlock on the artifacts tier list.

Merchant event nodes

In-run merchants still appear on overhead event nodes — charms and one-off gear — independent of village level. Meta shops and map merchants complement each other: village for baseline power, events for run-defining charm spikes.

Promote between campaigns

Hub time should include Barracks visits to promote commanders and fill empty squad slots — preview VO explicitly routes players there after the first construction unlock (*FryQpmU5IeQ*). Veterans carry permanent skills; losing them on a boss wipe hurts more than losing one emblem pick.

Co-op village spending

Tears of Metal co-op shares the run but not personal village screens — each player spends their own currency on settlement upgrades between sessions. Align priorities verbally: one player rushing Mystic Altar while another ignores Recruitment Tent creates squad power gaps on the co-op guide.