How Settlement Citizenship Works in Ashes of Creation

[ArcticGlow]

How does settlement citizenship work in Ashes of Creation?

Settlement citizenship is one of the core long-term systems in Ashes of Creation. In general, it decides where you belong, what local benefits you can access, and how involved you are in a specific node’s future. Most players interact with this system once they start thinking about housing, taxes, voting, and long-term progression rather than just leveling.

Citizenship is not automatic. You do not become a citizen just by visiting or using a settlement. You have to actively qualify for it and then claim it.

In practice, citizenship ties your character to one settlement and makes you part of that node’s internal ecosystem.

What do you need to become a citizen?

To qualify for settlement citizenship, you usually need player housing within that settlement’s zone of influence. Only settlements that have reached at least Village stage (stage 3) can offer citizenship.

Most players follow this general path:

The node grows to Village or higher

The player acquires housing tied to that settlement

The player applies for citizenship manually

Owning housing does not automatically make you a citizen. You still need to claim citizenship through the settlement’s Town Hall Administrator NPC. Many players miss this step at first and assume it happens automatically.

This manual step matters because citizenship is a deliberate choice, not a passive reward.

How do you apply for settlement citizenship?

Once you meet the housing requirement, you interact with a Town Hall Administrator NPC in that settlement. This is where you formally apply and declare citizenship.

In general, most players do this once they are confident they want to commit to that node long-term. Early-game players often delay this decision because citizenship comes with ongoing costs and responsibilities.

There is no competitive race to apply first, but timing does affect how much you pay later.

Is there a limit to how many citizens a settlement can have?

There is no hard cap on citizenship, but there is a soft cap.

In practice, this means:

Settlements do not suddenly lock out new citizens

Costs increase as more citizens join

Joining later is more expensive than joining earlier

Citizens pay both citizenship dues and property taxes. These costs scale based on the settlement’s development stage when you join and when you acquire property.

Most players who join early pay lower dues. Players who join a well-established city usually pay significantly more. Over time, this naturally limits how many people are willing to become citizens of the same node.

So while technically unlimited, the system becomes restrictive through cost rather than hard rules.

Why do citizenship costs increase over time?

Citizenship is meant to reflect commitment and value. As a settlement grows, it unlocks stronger bonuses, better crafting progression, and more desirable systems.

In general:

Older, larger nodes offer more benefits

More players want access to those benefits

Higher demand leads to higher costs

This creates a natural pressure point. Large guilds may want all members to become citizens of the same node, but usually not everyone can afford it. Over time, this creates a clear divide between citizens and non-citizens.

Most players accept this as part of the design rather than a punishment.

Can you be a citizen of more than one settlement?

No. You can only declare citizenship in one settlement per server realm per account.

This applies across all characters on that server. If you have a main character and multiple alts on the same server, only one of them can hold citizenship at a time.

If you play on multiple servers, you can hold citizenship on each server separately. But within a single server, the choice is exclusive.

This rule exists to prevent players from stacking benefits, voting power, or political influence across multiple nodes.

Do alts share citizenship?

Yes. Citizenship is account-based per server, not character-based.

In earlier testing phases, alts were sometimes able to share or duplicate citizenship, but the intended final design is one citizenship per realm per account.

In practice, this means most players choose which character represents their citizenship benefits and political participation.

What happens if a settlement is destroyed?

If your settlement is destroyed during a successful siege, you lose your citizenship immediately.

There is no cooldown or protection period. The citizenship simply ends because the settlement no longer exists in its previous form.

Aside from settlement destruction, there is no player-driven system that allows other players to remove your citizenship. You cannot be voted out or stripped of citizenship through PvP, politics, or guild actions.

This makes settlement sieges the only major risk to your citizenship status.

Is settlement citizenship tied to guild membership?

No. Guilds do not own settlements, and citizenship is not tied to guild membership.

In general:

You can be a citizen without being in a guild

You can be in a guild without sharing citizenship

Guild leaders do not control who becomes a citizen

Settlements are designed as shared content hubs, not guild property. Most players interact with settlements for services, crafting, housing, and narrative content whether or not they are citizens.

Citizenship simply grants deeper access and influence, not exclusive ownership.

Why are guilds, citizenship, and mayorship separate systems?

These systems are intentionally separated to prevent single groups from controlling everything.

Guilds are territorial and organizational. Settlements are communal spaces. Citizenship represents personal investment rather than group dominance.

In practice, this separation encourages political tension, alliances, and conflict. A powerful settlement becomes a tempting target, especially when it holds rare bonuses or progression advantages.

This design creates reasons for sieges, betrayals, and shifting power without locking content behind guild ownership.

How do most players decide where to become citizens?

Most players consider several factors:

Long-term stability of the node

Local crafting bonuses or services

PvP risk and siege history

Travel convenience

Cost of citizenship and housing

Some players save resources early, especially gold, to prepare for citizenship costs in a desirable node. Others farm locally and join smaller settlements to keep expenses low.

In rare cases, players may prepare by stockpiling resources or even choosing to buy AoC gold from a trusted site like U4N to afford late-stage citizenship costs, though most players rely on in-game methods.

Is settlement citizenship worth it?

In general, yes, but only if you plan to stay.

Citizenship makes the most sense for players who want:

Long-term housing

Political participation

Local crafting advantages

Deeper involvement in node progression

For short-term or highly mobile players, citizenship is usually not necessary. Many players delay committing until they are confident the settlement will survive and align with their playstyle.

settlement citizenship

Settlement citizenship in Ashes of Creation is not about locking players in. It is about commitment, cost, and consequence.

Most players will only choose citizenship once per server, and that choice shapes their experience for a long time. Understanding how costs scale, how exclusivity works, and how settlement destruction affects citizenship helps players avoid costly mistakes.

Taking the time to choose the right node usually matters more than choosing early.