Start with Agricultural + Commercial if both are unlocked and you want the clearest crop-focused learning plan. Choose Martial + Commercial when you are deliberately pursuing a Gold/Spymaster route, or Civic + Commercial when you want a Plot reset or Marketplace/stall plan. Choose the pair before the run; you cannot inspect future card draws first. After selection, build around the cards and terrain that actually appear.
Choose before the run
The official Steam description says each run pairs two different guilds from seven standard guilds, making 21 possible pairs. The standard roster named in Steam achievements is Agricultural, Frontier, Martial, Commercial, Civic, Industrial and Maritime. Only guilds unlocked on your save are available as opening picks.
Pick by the kind of engine you want to look for, not a promised win rate. These three plans are editorial starting points drawn from named player examples. If your unlocked set does not include a suggested pair, use the options you actually have and focus on the small working chain described in the layout guide.
Three starting plans
Choice map · editorial comparison, not a tier list
| Your purpose before the run | Pair to try if unlocked | First thing to make work after selection |
|---|---|---|
| Learn a visible, repeatable crop engine | Agricultural + Commercial | Crop beside Well; Picker’s Hut within its shown range |
| Chase the reported Spymaster/Gold route | Martial + Commercial | A legal, worthwhile Gold Pan target for Ballista if both appear |
| Work with resets or market triggers | Civic + Commercial | Plot + Tax Collector or Marketplace + stalls as separate chains |
Agricultural + Commercial: learn the crop cycle
Choose when: both guilds are unlocked and you want a chain whose moving parts are easy to inspect. Once inside the run, look for a crop such as Berry Bush, a Well next to it, and a Picker’s Hut whose shown range reaches the crop. Agricultural provides the crop path; Commercial offers gold and possible market pieces. emgeal’s Quick Overview explains the Well/Picker relationship, while players in the Goofy Clowns discussion report Agricultural + Commercial runs with differing card luck.
If a piece is missing: without Well, keep a smaller crop/harvest chain at the crop’s ordinary pace; without the Hut, do not claim harvest payoff. If there is no useful crop space or the cards do not arrive, stop reserving the whole board for that plan and pivot to a chain your actual hand supports.
Martial + Commercial: aim at Gold deliberately
Choose when: your purpose is the player-documented Spymaster route, and both guilds are unlocked. Cube’s unlock guide recommends looking for Commercial Gold Pan and Martial Ballista; that is the author’s route, not a guaranteed draw. The pictured Ballista rotates to a random direction and triggers the tile it faces. After selection, inspect the live placement preview so Gold Pan can occupy a tile Ballista might face. A Barracks can help an early Martial opening only where its terrain rule permits it, according to the Martial discussion.
If a piece is missing: no Ballista means no promised repeated Gold Pan hit. Guard Tower is a different conditional trigger that needs removal events; it is not a drop-in replacement. If the placement leaves Gold Pan outside Ballista’s possible facing positions, or random facing does not hit it when needed, pursue score with cards you actually have rather than forcing the secret unlock this run.
Civic + Commercial: keep two subchains separate
Choose when: both guilds are available and you are comfortable hunting a reset or market route. Once cards appear, Plot with Tax Collector is one conditional Civic path; Marketplace with stalls is a separate Commercial path. The pictured Plot first needs its Irrigator range or adjacency condition to turn into Hut. Separately, Tax Collector needs a House-tagged target in range to turn a random one back into Plot; confirm that tag on the target in your run. The two pictured effects alone do not make an automatic loop. curtaincall’s quick manual describes those mechanics, and a player example combines them with additional cards. Do not assume the full higher-card sequence will arrive.
If a piece is missing: no Plot or Tax Collector means no claimed reset chain. If Marketplace and stalls exist, try that smaller chain independently. If neither appears, use the current Compendium and hand to find a real scoring cycle instead of waiting for an invented substitute.
Adapt to the cards after selection
- Inspect the current map and each offered card’s terrain, target, adjacency and range preview.
- Make the first functional subchain fire before placing multipliers or saving a large empty area for a hoped-for card.
- If the required trigger or target does not appear, keep the smaller useful engine and switch goals early.
For a stalled chain, use the source → position → target → cooldown check. If you are choosing a pair for a hidden pool, read the unlock sequence and its version limits first.
These recommendations organize official guild structure, named player guides and player reports checked Sep 29, 2026. They are not measured pair rankings or our own playtest.