How construction works
Every construction action checks four things: the target building’s current level, its required supporting buildings, the required resources, and an available builder. The Citadel is the hard level ceiling: no other active building can advance beyond the Citadel’s current level.
Builder queues
One builder is standard. Extra Builder capacity allows a second construction or upgrade to run at the same time.
Offline progress
Construction timers continue while the game is closed. A finished timer frees that builder for the next project.
Cancellation
Check the confirmation screen before committing scarce resources. Plan around prerequisites so a cancelled or mistimed project does not stall the next Citadel level.
Base time versus your time
Your in-game timer can be shorter. Dominion Research increases construction speed; eligible Lord Equipment and Coven landmark bonuses can reduce it further. Coven help and construction speedups reduce an active timer after it starts.
Because bonuses differ by account, use the table for planning and compare it with the final timer shown in the upgrade confirmation screen. Costs shown are the current base resource costs before any eligible cost-reduction effect.
Citadel upgrade costs
The Citadel begins at level 1 and can reach level 30. Each row shows the resources and base time required to reach that level. Blood and Credits are equal for Citadel upgrades.
| Target | Blood | Credits | Base time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 630 | 630 | 3m 48s |
| 3 | 976 | 976 | 9m 30s |
| 4 | 1,513 | 1,513 | 19m |
| 5 | 2,345 | 2,345 | 38m |
| 6 | 5,452 | 5,452 | 57m |
| 7 | 8,450 | 8,450 | 1h 25m 30s |
| 8 | 13,098 | 13,098 | 1h 54m |
| 9 | 20,302 | 20,302 | 2h 51m |
| 10 | 31,468 | 31,468 | 3h 48m |
| 11 | 65,034 | 65,034 | 5h 42m |
| 12 | 100,803 | 100,803 | 7h 36m |
| 13 | 156,244 | 156,244 | 9h 30m |
| 14 | 242,178 | 242,178 | 11h 24m |
| 15 | 375,377 | 375,377 | 15h 12m |
| 16 | 581,834 | 581,834 | 17h 6m |
| 17 | 901,842 | 901,842 | 20h 54m |
| 18 | 1,397,855 | 1,397,855 | 1d 42m |
| 19 | 2,166,676 | 2,166,676 | 1d 4h 30m |
| 20 | 3,358,348 | 3,358,348 | 1d 10h 12m |
| 21 | 5,205,439 | 5,205,439 | 1d 17h 48m |
| 22 | 8,068,430 | 8,068,430 | 2d 1h 24m |
| 23 | 12,506,066 | 12,506,066 | 2d 9h |
| 24 | 19,384,403 | 19,384,403 | 2d 16h 36m |
| 25 | 30,045,824 | 30,045,824 | 3d 12m |
| 26 | 46,571,028 | 46,571,028 | 3d 11h 36m |
| 27 | 72,185,093 | 72,185,093 | 4d 2h 48m |
| 28 | 111,886,895 | 111,886,895 | 4d 18h |
| 29 | 173,424,687 | 173,424,687 | 5d 9h 12m |
| 30 | 268,808,264 | 268,808,264 | 6d 4h 12m |
Citadel prerequisites
A Citadel upgrade never asks for a supporting building above the current Citadel ceiling. The exact requirement list is shown in-game before you upgrade.
- Every level: keep the Blood Bank and Finance Hub close to the Citadel.
- From Citadel 4: Bloodforge Bastion joins the core requirement path.
- From Citadel 8: Shadow Archive begins appearing as a support gate.
- From Citadel 10: Night Vault enters the path.
- From Citadel 14: War Chamber becomes part of Citadel progression.
- From Citadel 18: Hero Sanctum becomes a Citadel support requirement.
- From Citadel 22: Coven Hall joins the late progression path.
- From Citadel 3 onward: Reaver Keep, Shadespire Enclave, and Sanguine Infirmary stay within two levels of the target Citadel level.
Open the next Citadel upgrade before your current project finishes. If a support building is red, make that your next queue target rather than spending both builders elsewhere.
Building directory
| Building | What upgrading supports | Initial gate or cost |
|---|---|---|
| Citadel | Empire level ceiling, Influence generation and storage, major progression gates | Built at level 1 |
| Blood Bank | Blood production, collection capacity and storage | Core economy path |
| Finance Hub | Credits production, collection capacity and storage | Core economy path |
| Shadow Archive | Research access, research progression and stronger world activity | Citadel 1 · 1,600 Credits · 15s |
| Sanguine Infirmary | Wounded capacity, treatment and recovery throughput | Citadel 2 · 850 Blood + 1,150 Credits · 1m 56s |
| Night Vault | Protected Blood, Credits and Influence during PvP | Citadel 2 · 900 Blood + 1,200 Credits · 1m 59s |
| Bloodmoon Watch | Citadel defense and later War Chamber progression | Citadel 2 · 850 Blood + 1,050 Credits · 2m 12s |
| War Chamber | March capacity, movement and military coordination | Bloodforge Bastion 1 · 1,100 Blood + 1,300 Credits · 2m 29s |
| Hero Sanctum | Hero administration, recovery support and Hero Equipment access | Citadel 2 · 900 Blood + 260 Influence · 3m 35s |
| Arms Forge | Troop gear and military readiness | Bloodforge Bastion 2 · 1,250 Blood + 1,450 Credits · 2m 29s |
| Reaver Keep | Blood Reaver training and progression | Citadel 2 · 1,150 Credits + 280 Influence · 3m 59s |
| Shadespire Enclave | Shade Stalker training and progression | Citadel 2 · 1,150 Credits + 280 Influence · 3m 59s |
| Bloodforge Bastion | Crimson Brute training and heavy troop progression | Citadel 3 · 1,600 Blood + 1,800 Credits · 3m 59s |
| Crypt Forge | Siege and breaching support | Bloodforge Bastion 3 · 1,500 Blood + 1,700 Credits · 2m 37s |
| Coven Hall | Coven coordination and stronger help-timer reductions | Citadel 2 · 1,050 Blood + 360 Influence · 2m 9s |
| Black Ledger Exchange | Economy utility and advanced support progression | Finance Hub 1 · 900 Blood + 1,500 Credits · 1m 59s |
A practical upgrade order
Inspect the next Citadel level
Use its unmet building list as your roadmap before committing a long timer.
Protect resource flow
Keep Blood Bank and Finance Hub advancing, and raise the Night Vault when exposed reserves become meaningful.
Match support to your activity
Prioritize War Chamber and troop facilities for field play, Shadow Archive for Research, Hero Sanctum for hero development, or the Infirmary when wounded capacity is the bottleneck.
Start long builds after bonuses
Activate or equip any available construction-speed effects before confirming a multi-hour or multi-day project.
Use help before speedups
Let Coven help land first, then use the smallest combination of speedups needed to reach your desired finish time.