How to make a great start in CastleVille Legends - hints, tips, and tricks

You've no doubt already downloaded CastleVille Legends, the new freemium builder from Zynga.

I mean, why else would you be reading this article, huh?

Like Sherlock Holmes before me, then, I can deduce that you're probably rather enjoying playing CastleVille Legends but aren't making as much progress as you'd like.

Am I right? Of course I'm right.

Well, you've come to the right place, as what you'll read below should help you speed through the game at lightning pace, and allow you to get to the good bits much faster than all your mates.

The usuals



As with most freemium building games, there's some general stuff you should be doing if you want to make significant progress in a speedy manner here.

Save your Crowns (the premium currency) for purchasing buildings and land to create resources. Speeding up actions is all well and good, but you'll reap the largest rewards by simply being patient, and only splashing out Crowns on permanent additions to your township.

Always have your buildings, your heroes, and any other elements you own working for you at all times.

Have a hero who's not off an adventure? He's being wasted just sat there. Have a building not churning out items to sell? It's gathering dust. Sailing ship not off on the high seas? You're playing the game incorrectly.

Visit the Wheel of Wishes every 24 hours, too, for this is effectively the equivalent of a daily login bonus. You get extra spins of the wheel (and, consequently, more loot) if you add more friends via Facebook. A chest is also left at the door of your Royal Vault after a day passes, so - again - make sure you grab that.

Opals. Fruits



Though you're encouraged in CastleVille Legends to purchase land around you willy-nilly, be smart about the areas you buy.

Scout out the area ahead to see what quest areas or heroes you'll reach. And don't just buy land because it's cheap, for it's still a waste of money. Sometimes, there are treasure chests hidden amid the fog, but you should think of them as added bonuses (rather than targets for which to aim).

You'll never run out of plots to create the all-important resource-producing buildings and farmland, especially if you organise your town's layout. Put all of your farm plots into one area so that you can gather up items like milk, eggs, apples, and so on in one sweep of the area. The same goes for the buildings in which more complicated items like cheese and opal rings are produced.

Though there's a limit to the amount of resources you can hold in the Royal Vault, you can extend this amount by either using Crowns or just by playing 'smart'. Items don't decay or wilt after they've been created, so you can retain some items at the spaces they're made without using up space in the vault. This is especially useful for axes and other items that you might not want to use immediately.

That's a bargain



You'll want to level-up as quickly as possible in the game to unlock more building types and new areas of land. There are two fast ways of doing this.

The first is by completing objectives given to you by your heroes, as you're rewarded with extra XP for creating the items they demand. This is doubly good for you, because you get to keep the items you make, and can then usually sell them at a decent price. Even better - if two heroes request you create the same item, you only need to create one of that item to complete both objectives. Neat.

The other way to level-up quickly is through sending your heroes on quests. Around the third quest, you open rewards 2000 XP for sending your heroes into its depths for eight hours. That makes it a great quest to send your adventurers on just as you yourself are about to head off into the land of Nod. When you awaken, you'll find a massive chunk has been added to your experience bar.

Finally, a few words on item selling. If Myra isn't too keen on buying what you have, take a look at what she's interested in purchasing. If you can build it easily, then do so. If you can't, tap the 'cross' button. Myra will have a think for ten minutes, then replace the old request with a new one.

Of course, you should also be concentrating on creating items with a high resale value for the trading ship. It's a good idea to spend the day working towards making an item, and then flogging it for a massive price on the open market.

Got any tips to share? Let us and the rest of the PG community know them by leaving them in the comments section below.