Ashes of Creation Housing Guide

Introduction

Everyone needs a place to lay their head after a long day of Adventures! Learn about AOC’s spin on a classic MMO feature in our Ashes of Creation Housing Guide

General Housing Information

There are many different types of housing in Ashes of Creation including: Apartments, Freeholds, Static Housing, and Guild Halls. Owning a house can provide players with many of in-game benefits such as citizenship to a node, storage, and more! Here are a few more facts about the Housing System in Ashes of Creation

Players will be able to own 1 of each type of housing.
- Apartments and Static Housing are limited to 1 per server
- Freeholds are limited to one per account
There will also be Inns in-game that players can rent until they get their first appartment/house
Taverns will also have rooms to rent
Players will have to pay taxes in Stage 3 (Village) nodes or higher. Housing will go into foreclosure if players don’t pay their taxes.
There is a Real Estate system in Ashes of Creation that Allows players to buy/sell deeds to their properties.
Some of the Housing in Ashes of Creation can be destroyed in Sieges
Players will be able to set up security that allow other players to access their house/freehold to use artisan stations and more!

Freeholds

Freeholds are sizable player housing that can be placed anywhere within the zone of influence of a node. However, the freehold placement can’t block certain pathways or be in close proximity to certain points of interest. For example, you can’t place a freehold too close to a dungeon or block a pathing route or a roadway.

The node must be at level 3, the village stage, or higher for players to be able to place a freehold within that node’s zone of influence. Freeholds provide the player with a large plot of land, approximately a half-acre, and the footprint of the freehold does not automatically change as the node progresses in level. So, the freehold land plot does not automatically grow if the node advances to the next stage. However, expanses and upgrades do become available as the node progressions allow, and the number of freehold plots that can be placed within a node’s zone of influence does automatically scale with the progression of the node.

Players are limited to 1 freehold per account, and a freehold can not be sold or traded to other players.

How to Place a Free Hold in Ashes of Creation

In order to place your freehold plot you must first obtain a freehold certificate from the parent node, and different types of buildings can be placed on the freehold plot. There are various sizes of buildings that can be placed and some of the bigger mansion-style buildings could take up more than half of your freehold plot.

The types of buildings that can be placed consist of:

Blacksmiths
Forges
Freehold Farms
Guildhalls
Homesteads
Inns
Lumber Yards
Mills
Personal Shops
Shrines
Smelters
Stables
Taverns

A Screenshot of a Freehold in Ashes of Creation’s Alpha 1 (pre-UE 5 update)

All buildings are empty upon placement but can be decorated or players can purchase an upgraded version that comes pre-decorated. Players can place artwork, furniture, storage, and other decor items within their freehold.

Owning a Freehold in Ashes of Creation

Owning a freehold will give the player a number of benefits. Just like other housing, you can claim citizenship to a node if you own a freehold within that node, and as mentioned above you can freely decorate and customize your plot. There are also certain crafting stations available in certain building types that players can utilize, as well as achievements and social activities that are tied to the freeholds.

Players also have the ability to place multiple buildings within the freehold plot which will allow the owner to sell consumables that are only purchasable from select freehold buildings. The freehold buildings can be leveled up based on the length of time and the productivity of the freehold. As the buildings level up this unlocks new bonuses, abilities, and capabilities.

Having certain buildings on your freehold plot allow you to have certain professions run from your freehold. If you own a tavern then you can provide quests to players that can only be obtained from a freehold tavern and can provide meals to visitors that grant a buff to that player once they exit the tavern. Taverns may also provide recipes that can only be obtained from specific freehold taverns. There will also be freehold farms, fisheries, and animal husbandry professions available, as well as being able to craft and sell from your shops from the specified buildings that were listed above.

Losing Your Freehold in a Siege

If the node is sieged it is possible to lose your freehold during the siege.

There’s a 2-hour window after a successful siege that makes all freeholds that were previously tied to the node vulnerable to attack. If during that window, a freehold is attacked and destroyed, then it is permanently destroyed and you will lose your home and any processed goods or gathered goods stored in the home will be lost and will become part of the spoils of war for the attackers who won the siege. However, any finished goods (armor, weapons, potions, and other crafted goods), and your home furnishings will be returned to you.
If your freehold is either not attacked or successfully defended during the 2-hour window then your freehold will enter into a grace period. During this grace period, if the zone of influence your freehold resides in is then progressed to the village stage, stage 3, then your freehold will remain and will function just as if nothing happened. If the zone of influence does not reach the stage then the freehold will be destroyed as if it were attacked.

Decorations and Customization

Next, let’s talk about how you can decorate your home in Ashes of Creation. Players may decorate their house with both functional and cosmetic items. The size of the house determines how many individual decorations you can have in your house. Players will be able to interact with some housing items, such as sitting in chairs etc.

Furniture can be crafted in-game using the Carpentry profession. Components of unique furniture will also drop while adventuring in the world of Verra. Almost all furniture that has function inside of the housing system will be crafted by players of the Carpentry Trade.

Guild Halls

Finally, Guild Halls will also be in Ashes of Creation. Guild Halls will be available when a guild hits a certain level and will be placed inside of a node. Guild halls will be used to unlock certain actions that are unique to ownership, as participation in the Stock Exhange.