While settling on an island in Anno 117: Pax Romana, players will notice that their land is limited. For that, it's important to, at one point, settle on another island by building a ship. Ships are also excellent defenders against incoming ships that board enemy troops. Nevertheless, you also need to set up sufficient defenses by recruiting troops of your own. Here's how to build ships and recruit troops in Anno 117: Pax Romana.

anno-117-pax-romana-how-enter-third-first-person-mode-explore-city
How To Enter First Person Mode In Anno 117 Pax Romana

Players can explore the city they built by entering the third or first person mode in Anno 117: Pax Romana.

How To Build Ships In Anno 117 Pax Romana

anno-117-pax-romana-how-build-ship-penteconter-recruit-troops-how-to-combat-fight - shipyard

To build ships in Anno 117: Pax Romana, you must first build a Shipyard, which can be found in the Harbour Building tab. This option is not available from the start, and the conditions may vary. It's usually either of these:

anno-117-pax-romana-how-build-ship-penteconter-recruit-troops-how-to-combat-fight - fighting ship

There are three types of ships that players can build. The basic form is the Penteconter, which has three slots available for modifications. If players wish to make bigger ships, they must research the right discovery. The second form is a Trireme, while the best ship is a Quinquireme.

  • Penteconter has three module slots, two of which can be occupied by a Ship Archer and a Ship Oar.
  • Trireme has five slots, and three of them can be modified. The other two are stuck as a cargo slot. You can add two Ship Archers, one Ship Mast, or one Ship Oar.

These modifications can be adjusted accordingly. Here's an overview of the modifications:

Module

What Is It For?

Ship Archers

For ship-to-ship combat.

Ship Mast

Increases maximum speed when sailing.

Ship Oars

Increases maneuverability and reduces reliance on wind, but increases workforce cost.

anno-117-pax-romana-how-build-ship-penteconter-recruit-troops-how-to-combat-fight - penteconter civilian boat

After building Rope and Sail productions, players can soon build their own ship. The game offers a default setup, but governors are free to make their own modifications. Just remember that the modifications will be saved, so you need to reset and manually adjust it if you wish to build with different modules.

anno-117-pax-romana-how-build-ship-penteconter-recruit-troops-how-to-combat-fight - all ship views

Players can see all the ships they have, their status, and their location by pressing the boat button at the bottom of the screen.

How To Recruit Troops In Anno 117 Pax Romana

anno-117-pax-romana-how-build-ship-penteconter-recruit-troops-how-to-combat-fight - barracks

You can begin recruiting troops once you unlock the Barracks. Initially, you can recruit Auxilia and Archers.

anno-117-pax-romana-how-build-ship-penteconter-recruit-troops-how-to-combat-fight - research

More army types can be discovered through research.

anno-117-pax-romana-how-build-ship-penteconter-recruit-troops-how-to-combat-fight - troop list

Like with ships, you can see your troops by pressing on the Land Troop button at the bottom of the screen.

How To Combat In Anno 117 Pax Romana

anno-117-pax-romana-how-build-ship-penteconter-recruit-troops-how-to-combat-fight - army

Selecting all your troops will make them an army, just as selecting all your boats will make them a fleet. Doing this allows you to move all of them at once.

After pressing the troop or ship you want to use to attack, simply right-click (PC) on the enemy. If the enemy or ship is moving, you can pause the game to target them easily.

anno-117-pax-romana-how-build-ship-penteconter-recruit-troops-how-to-combat-fight - auto combat

If you don't want to command them manually, there's also an Auto Combat button you can utilize.

anno-117-pax-romana-how-build-ship-penteconter-recruit-troops-how-to-combat-fight - stances

Alternatively, you can change the soldier's stance between three available stances:

  • Aggressive
  • Disciplined
  • Evasive
anno-117-pax-romana-how-build-ship-penteconter-recruit-troops-how-to-combat-fight - archer tower

When fighting, make sure to keep an eye on the Archer Towers. These can significantly hurt you while attacking. Likewise, this building is an excellent defender for your island.

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Anno 117: Pax Romana Tag Page Cover Art
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City Builder
Simulation
Strategy
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Systems
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Top Critic Avg: 83 /100 Critics Rec: 92%
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Released
November 13, 2025
ESRB
Teen / Alcohol Reference, Language, Mild Violence, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
Developer(s)
Ubisoft
Publisher(s)
Ubisoft
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WHERE TO PLAY

DIGITAL
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Genre(s)
City Builder, Simulation, Strategy