Forts: Complete Guide

This guide covers Forts, EarthWork Games' physics RTS where you build and fight with forts. It explains the economy, how to build structures that don't fall over, weapon and tech priorities, commanders, the DLCs including 2026's Firebird, and ranked play.

Researched September 2026 — current as of Ranked Season 43 (ends 30 September 2026 UTC) and the post-Firebird DLC patch cycle. Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Current State (September 2026)

• Firebird DLC launched on 16 June 2026 with a 10-mission campaign, new weapons and devices, and a new commander, the Fulminator. The first Firebird tournament (Tournament 33, August 2026) was dominated by the Lightning Beam + 20mm Cannon combo.
• Ranked Season 43 runs until midnight UTC on 30 September 2026. Its map pool: Balls Crevice, Desert Ruins, Ledge Grab, Moorings, Stalactites 1v1. Ranked seasons last about two months, and the top 20 finishers get a season medal.
• Season 42 notes (official stats): Overdrive was the most popular commander at a 17.9% pick rate, but it had a below-average 46% winrate. Moonshine fell to a 36% winrate. Smoke use dropped as howitzer play came back. Big vertical maps led to sprawling mega-forts.
• Tournament 34: a 2v2 Firebird double-elimination event on 31 October and 7, 14 and 21 November 2026 (7 PM UTC), for up to 16 teams. A fresh balance patch is expected before it. The Forts Pro League has been pushed back to 2027.
• Map Making Contest VII winners (added to the built-in 2v2 Firebird pool): Fulminator's City 2v2 (Pile Rouillée), Lighthouse 2v2 (Dranistian) and Stone Forest (juNyu).
• Forts is a finalist in the Ongoing category at the Australian Game Developer Awards 2026, with the ceremony on 7 October 2026.

Quick Start

• Protect your Reactor. If it's destroyed, you lose. Everything else is there to keep yours alive and to break theirs.
• Economy first, weapons second. In the first minute, build metal mines on ore deposits and wind turbines for energy. A fort that's short on income falls behind no matter how well it aims.
• Build with triangles. Structure is physics. Triangulated bracing holds up, and long unsupported beams sag and collapse.
• Armour the front, bracing inside. Put armour (metal) on the face that takes fire and use cheaper bracing for the internal frame.
• Doors let weapons fire. Put weapons behind doors that open to shoot and close to take hits. Leaving doors open all the time is the classic beginner mistake.
• Tech unlocks the good guns. Tech buildings unlock stronger weapons and upgrades. Build them somewhere protected.
• Always have anti-projectile defence. Machine guns and flak can shoot incoming projectiles and missiles out of the air.
• Finish the tutorials and campaign. The campaign is 28 missions and teaches every weapon in context. The tutorials unlock the Grasshopper achievement.

Resources and Economy

Resource | Source | Notes

Metal | Mines built on ore deposits | Spent on armour, weapons and devices. Deposits are limited, so grab them early.

Energy | Wind turbines (among others) | Spent when firing and building. Turbines need clear exposure to wind. Blocked turbines produce less.

Storage | Metal and energy storage devices | Raises your cap so income isn't wasted.

Economic rules of thumb:

• Put turbines high and exposed, but not where the enemy has an easy shot at them.
• Spread your mines out. A single mortar volley can wipe out a cluster.
• Repair is cheaper than rebuilding. Keep your structure repaired between volleys.
• Destroying the enemy's economy (turbines and mines) is often worth more than hitting the reactor early.

Building Forts That Stand

• Triangulate everything. Squares fold under stress and triangles don't.
• Watch the stress colours. Overloaded struts show stress. Add supports before they snap.
• Anchor to the ground in several places. One ground anchor is one point of failure.
• Keep your reactor low and in the middle, behind layers of armour and never on an exposed edge.
• Layer your armour. Put some sandbags or extra layers in front of important spots to absorb impacts.
• Plan for fire. Wooden bracing burns. Some weapons set structures on fire, so keep an eye on flames and repair quickly.
• Leave space for doors and weapons in your initial frame so you don't have to tear down the structure later.

Weapons and Tech

Forts has 16 core weapons across the tech tree, plus more in each DLC. Examples from the base game and DLCs:

Weapon | Role

Machine gun | Cheap. Shoots down incoming projectiles and hits exposed parts

Minigun | Higher-rate close defence and anti-projectile

Sniper | Precision shots through gaps and at weapons behind doors

Mortar | Arcing fire over walls, good against the enemy's top and interior

Cannon | Heavy direct fire that breaks armour

Laser | A beam that sweeps and cuts through structure

Missiles | Heavy strikes on key targets. Answer them with anti-air

Flak | Anti-projectile and anti-air defence

Howitzer (Moonshot) | Long-range heavy artillery. Strongly back in the Season 42 meta

Smoke Bombs (Moonshot) | Hide your fort from enemy targeting

Magnabeam, Buzzsaw (Moonshot) | Moonshot-specific options

Deckgun, Orbital Laser (High Seas) | Both are upgrades of the Hardpoint. The Orbital Laser has Sweep and Focus ammo

Harpoon, Runway (High Seas) | The Harpoon fires Decoy and Control ammo; the Runway launches Thunderbolt and Nighthawk jets

Energy Dome (High Seas) | A protective energy shield

20mm Cannon | Fast direct fire; half of the dominant Firebird-meta pairing

Lightning Beam (Firebird) | Strong against bracing; projectiles crossing the beam trigger lightning bolts. Needs the Smelter

EMP Beam, Magma Cannon, Striker, Zapper (Firebird) | Disable weapons/devices, incendiary breaching (Magma Cannon is an Upgrade Centre upgrade of the 20mm Cannon), burst electric damage, and a charge weapon that chains lightning

Tech Buildings

Stronger weapons need a tech building in your fort first. Tech buildings named in the official DLC notes include the Workshop, Armoury and Upgrade Centre (which handles weapon upgrades such as 20mm Cannon to Magma Cannon). Firebird adds the Smelter, which needs a Workshop or Armoury and unlocks the Striker, Lightning Beam and Rods From God ammo. Tech buildings are expensive and high-value targets, so protect them inside your fort rather than on an outer wall. Hover each building in the build menu to see exactly what it unlocks in your version.

Tech order for new players:

• Mines and turbines, then a basic defence (machine guns).
• Your first tech building, and a mid-range weapon (mortars or snipers).
• Anti-air or flak before the enemy gets missiles.
• A heavy weapon (cannon or laser) to break through armour.
• Upgrades only once your economy is solid.

Commanders

There are 12 commanders in the base roster, with more from DLCs (the Moonshot achievements mention Buster, Moonshine and Phantom). Each has passive bonuses plus an active ability that charges during the match. Named commanders include:

Commander | Style (from official descriptions and stats)

Warthog | "Fierce firepower"

Armourdillo | "Unyielding resilience", a defensive and armour focus

Shockenaugh | A "cunning" style

Architect | Building mastery

Overdrive | Most-picked in Season 42, with only a 46% winrate

Moonshine | Moonshot commander. Winrate fell to 36% in Season 42

Buster, Phantom | Moonshot commanders

Fulminator | Firebird commander: near-misses by heavy projectiles produce lightning bolts, and its kit includes a protective force field. It was briefly available in ranked by accident after launch

Commander balance changes with every patch. Check the season recap posts for the latest pick and winrates.

Game Modes and DLCs

• Campaign: 28 missions against the Black Penguin Oil Company, in three parts (with Hard mode achievements for each part and for theatre medals).
• Skirmish and multiplayer: Up to 8 players, with online PvP, LAN and co-op. Games are 1v1 up to 4v4.
• Ranked 1v1: Two-month seasons with leaderboard medals.
• Workshop and modding: A map editor and Workshop support for maps, weapons and full overhaul mods (for example the long-running Tanya's Commander Mod Reloaded series, spotlighted by the developers in August 2026).

DLC Comparison

DLC | Released | Campaign | What it adds

Moonshot | 18 June 2019 | Pacific Rim campaign against the BPO (Japan, Indonesia, New Zealand and Australia objectives) | Four weapons (Howitzer, Smoke, Magnabeam, Buzzsaw), three commanders (Buster, Moonshine, Phantom), portals and a capture-point game mode

High Seas | 25 March 2022 | 18 missions as Max, a United Navies captain, across five mission types (Enforcement, Interdiction, Boarding Action, Land vs Sea, Carrier Strike) | Buoyant ships, an ammo mechanic, Energy Dome, Harpoon, Runway jets, Hardpoint with Deckgun or Orbital Laser, 20 maps

Firebird | 16 June 2026 | 10 missions following Lisa Del Fuego, from firefighter to Eagle Empire commander | EMP Beam, Magma Cannon, Lightning Beam, Striker, Zapper, Flashbang and Rods From God ammo, the Smelter, the Fulminator commander, 20 maps

The free updates (Tons of Guns, the Repair Station and extra commanders) are in the base game for everyone.

Which one first? Firebird if you want the current tournament scene and 2v2 pool. High Seas if you like the idea of naval forts and a longer campaign. Moonshot for capture-point play and its three commanders, which also appear in ranked stats.

Achievements Roadmap

Forts has 68 Steam achievements. A sensible order:

• Grasshopper: finish the tutorials.
• Base campaign: Bird of Prey, Bear in the Woods and Dragon Fire for parts 1 to 3, then Rigourous (all missions) and World Domination (reach the end).
• Theatre medals: Bower Bird, Roaring Success and Firing on all Cylinders need every medal in each part. High Achiever needs all mission objectives. Replay missions with a plan for the objectives rather than just the win.
• Hard mode: every campaign achievement has a Hard version, plus Hardcore for the whole campaign on Hard. Do Hard after learning the missions on normal.
• Multiplayer: Enemy Contact (10 battles) and Future General (10 ranked battles). DLC achievements need you to host 5 or 10 battles in that DLC's mode, so arrange games with friends.
• DLC campaigns: each has a boss battle, an "unlock all weapons" achievement and per-part objective sets, all with Hard versions. Moonshot also has one achievement for each of its three commanders and Pants Down (win a capture-point map with your blastdoor open).

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Weapons first, economy never. Without mines and turbines you run dry by minute three.
• Open doors. Enemy snipers and cannons love exposed weapons. Close doors between shots.
• Unbraced towers. Tall forts without triangles collapse from a single well-placed shot at the base.
• No anti-air. Missiles and air units will wreck a fort that has no machine guns or flak.
• Grouping everything. A single mortar volley shouldn't be able to take out all your turbines.
• Forgetting repairs. Damaged struts left unrepaired turn small hits into collapses.

Advanced Tips

• Aim for weak joints. Hitting a structural support can bring down whole sections, weapons included.
• Fire in volleys. Synchronised shots overwhelm point defence better than a steady trickle.
• Bait anti-air, then send your heavy strike once their defences are reloading.
• Hide turbines behind terrain facing away from the enemy's line of sight.
• Know the ranked pool. In Season 43 that's Balls Crevice, Desert Ruins, Ledge Grab, Moorings and Stalactites 1v1. Practise your openings on each.
• Firebird meta: Expect 20mm Cannon plus Lightning Beam pressure in 2v2. Armour layering and quick repairs are key, and scouting what your opponent is teching into is half the battle.
• Watch pro matches. The official Discord, the tournament streams and the season recaps show the current openings.

FAQ

What's the objective? Destroy the enemy's Reactor while protecting your own.

Which DLC should I buy first? For campaign content, pick whichever theme you like. For multiplayer, Firebird is where the 2026 tournament scene is. Moonshot and High Seas have their own weapons and modes.

How long is a ranked season? About two months. Season 43 ends at midnight UTC on 30 September 2026.

Is Forts still getting updates? Yes. Firebird launched in 2026, a balance patch is expected before Tournament 34, and official contests and tournaments run regularly.

Can I play co-op against AI? Yes. Co-op is supported, alongside PvP and LAN.

Is there a Forts Pro League this year? Its next season has been moved to 2027. Tournament 34 (2v2 Firebird) fills the gap in late 2026.

Sources

• Forts on Steam
• EarthWork Games — Forts
• Steam news: Forts Ranked Multiplayer — Season 42 Champions (13 Aug 2026)
• Steam news: Tournament 33 Winners (18 Aug 2026)
• Steam news: Forts Firebird 2v2 Hallowe'en Tournament (26 Sep 2026)
• Steam news: Map Making Contest VII winner (3 Sep 2026)
• Forts - Firebird on Steam
• Forts - High Seas on Steam
• Forts Steam achievements
• Forts (video game) — Wikipedia