Anno 1800 is a complex game with deep mechanics, and many players—both new and experienced—make mistakes that slow their progress. Here are 15 common mistakes you should avoid to optimize your gameplay.
1. Not Starting a Custom Game
Instead of selecting default difficulty presets, use custom settings. This allows you to:
- Remove pirates if you prefer a peaceful game.
- Adjust NPC difficulty levels.
- Select an island shape or custom seed for a better starting position.
2. Over-Industrializing Too Early
You don’t need massive amounts of steel at the start. Instead of producing it yourself, buy steel from NPCs to save money and manpower. Focus on cash flow first to ensure financial stability.
3. Not Upgrading Roads
Dirt roads are fine at the start, but upgrading to paved roads greatly increases efficiency. Paved roads improve transport speed, expand the influence range of service buildings, and reduce congestion.
4. Not Setting Resource Limits for Trade Routes
If you’re sharing resources between islands, set a minimum stock level to prevent depletion. For example, reserve at least 40 tons of timber on your main island to avoid production halts.
5. Ignoring the Island Shares Menu
Buying shares of other islands provides steady income and can be a game-saving financial buffer. However, be cautious—buying too many shares may trigger war with AI opponents.
6. Poor City Organization
Randomly placing buildings makes management difficult. Group similar production buildings together for easy monitoring and efficiency. The only valid reason for spacing them out is fire safety or space requirements.
7. Not Building Enough Fire Stations
Even if buildings appear covered by a fire station’s range, adding extra stations reduces the risk of fires. This is crucial for preventing costly disasters in industrial areas.
8. Ignoring Lifestyle Needs
While not essential early on, lifestyle needs generate additional income and improve morale. Meeting these needs can delay riots and keep workers productive during tough economic periods.
9. Upgrading Houses One by One
Use the mass upgrade tool to upgrade multiple houses at once. This saves time and ensures a balanced population structure across all tiers.
10. Not Using Copy-Paste for Housing Layouts
Instead of manually placing houses repeatedly, copy a well-designed housing block and paste it elsewhere. This speeds up city expansion and maintains organized layouts.
11. Building Farms in Prime Real Estate Areas
Farms should be placed at the edges of the island or in otherwise unusable spaces like areas near rivers. This preserves valuable central land for housing and industry.
12. Over-Building Expensive Industry Too Soon
Building steel factories too early can cause negative income. If this happens, pause production instead of destroying the buildings, as this allows you to restart production when needed.
13. Not Expanding to Other Islands Early Enough
Other islands provide essential resources that your main island lacks. If you wait too long, competitors will claim them, forcing you into expensive wars to take them later.
14. Not Using Waypoints for Ships
Hold Shift (PC) or LB (Xbox) when setting ship destinations to create multiple waypoints. This automates exploration, allowing ships to uncover the map without manual control.
15. Not Managing Ship Loading/Unloading Behavior
Ships on trade routes may get stuck if they are overloaded. Use the correct unloading settings to prevent delays:
- Wait Until Full: Ensures the ship loads all intended resources before leaving.
- Offload Excess: Drops unnecessary goods to make space for priority resources.
- Fill Up Default: Loads goods even if the ship is full, which can cause stockpile issues.
Final Thoughts
Avoiding these mistakes will make your Anno 1800 experience smoother and more enjoyable. Managing resources, optimizing logistics, and leveraging game features effectively will set you up for long-term success.
My Gaming Tutorials 
Leave a comment