Starting Your Own Society
Want to build something from scratch? Here's everything you need to know — from picking an island to getting your first Society Goals ticked off.
Before you begin
Starting a society is a real commitment. You'll be responsible for early infrastructure, getting resources flowing, and helping new arrivals settle in. Read the Quickstart Guide first so you know what the first tier actually requires.
The SEED Discord is a good place to find co-founders if you're not starting with friends.
Step 1: Pick an island
From the society creation screen, you'll see a continent view with all available islands. Each one has a different resource profile and a different mix of societies already running on it. This choice matters, so take a moment.
Different biomes produce different things:
Grassland and woodland plots tend to have water and clay or coal — solid for early survival
Mountains lean toward iron and silver
Desert areas have titanium and gold, which become more useful mid and late game
Water access is the most important factor for a new society. If an island looks appealing but water is scarce, factor that in before you commit.
Step 2: Choose your plot
Once you're on an island, you'll see a grid of available plots. Each one comes with a resource description — read it. Where you settle determines what you can produce, and that shapes your whole early game.
Look for plots rich in water and food resources first. Some plots are deliberately sparse, with fewer resources and a harder start. Those are for experienced players looking for a challenge. If that's not you, don't pick one.
Worth knowing: not every resource type will be present in your area, and that's intentional. The game is built around societies specialising and trading with each other. If your area doesn't have iron, another society's does. Shortages early on are normal — trading fills the gaps later.
Step 3: Create a lobby and invite your co-founders
After choosing your plot, create a lobby and share the invite code with the players you want to found with. Everyone needs to be online at the same time — you need at least 3 players in the lobby simultaneously before the host can deploy.
Starting with exactly 3 is possible but rough. The early game covers a lot at once: resources, building, food, water. With only 3 people it gets stretched thin fast. If you can get 4 or 5 together, do it.
Private lobbies
You can set your lobby to private during creation. You'll be asked to set a password — this becomes the society password once it's deployed, so anyone joining later will need it.
Starting private doesn't lock you in. You can change the society's privacy settings later from the Society Panel.
Step 4: Deploy and get to work
Once enough players are ready, the host deploys and your society launches. Your Seedlings all arrive at the Society Kernel together. Open the Society Goals panel straight away and divide up the work — who's harvesting, who's building, who's on food and water.
See the Quickstart Guide for the full survival checklist.
A note on leadership
Completing Tier 1 unlocks your first governance structure: an elected Leader chosen by the community. The Leader can appoint a Housing Manager and gains early administrative permissions. More governance options open up as your society advances through tiers.