The fastest route to power in Kingdom Come: Deliverance – From the Ashes is to arrive in Pribyslavitz with roughly 10,000 groschen, train with Captain Bernard, exploit Herbalism early, and turn every profitable settlement building into a daily income engine. Don't pour money into the church first: rebuild the woodcutters' camp, trader, tavern, and forge or guardhouse in an order that pays for the next upgrade while Henry levels.
Start From the Ashes with a cash buffer
From the Ashes becomes available after the main quest Baptism of Fire, when Divish asks Henry to help rebuild Pribyslavitz. The settlement is not a free source of money at the start. It has daily expenses, and several buildings can lose money until their supporting services are online. Bring at least 10,000 groschen before accepting the project; 15,000 to 20,000 makes the opening much less painful.
The cleanest pre-DLC preparation is to finish profitable side work around Rattay, repair valuable equipment, and sell loot instead of carrying it indefinitely. A horse with decent capacity—Pebbles is serviceable, while better purchases such as Warhorse Jenda later make hauling easier—lets you strip bandit camps without repeatedly fast-travelling to town. Keep one strong weapon and a useful armor set, but sell duplicate shields, low-condition helmets, and common swords.
For a second opinion on efficient early progression, Steamoz's starting-build advice follows the same principle: invest in tools that improve every activity rather than chasing one flashy weapon.
Before spending, check the Pribyslavitz ledger. It shows income, expenses, and the settlement's current balance. A building that says it produces 50 groschen per day may effectively produce nothing if wages and upkeep consume the same amount. Your target is positive net income, not a large headline number.
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Captain Bernard remains the best combat trainer in the game. Meet him at the Rattay combat arena and drill with wooden weapons until Henry's Warfare, Strength, Defence, and weapon skill improve. Practice combos, perfect blocks, and master strikes against Bernard rather than burning expensive healing items in random fights. Master Strikes unlock through Bernard's training and are the single biggest jump in combat efficiency.
Use a simple rotation: train with a longsword until the weapon skill is comfortable, switch to a mace for armored enemies, then practice perfect blocks until the green shield timing becomes automatic. Maces are especially effective against plate because blunt damage does not bounce off armor as harshly as many early swords. The Headcracker perk, available through Strength progression, can turn a clean head hit into a knockout, but don't rely on it as your only plan.
Herbalism is the underrated leveling shortcut. Pick every herb around Rattay, Ledetchko, and the roads near Neuhof. At Herbalism level 10, Leg Day awards Strength experience while gathering herbs, making a long harvesting route level two skills at once. Sell excess herbs to apothecaries, or dry them when you have access to a drying rack. This gives Henry Strength, Herbalism, and a steady supply of ingredients without combat risk.
Alchemy compounds the result. Brew Marigold Decoction for cheap healing and Saviour Schnapps whenever you have enough wine, nettle, belladonna, and charcoal. Repeated brewing levels Alchemy rapidly, while selling surplus potions creates clean money. Keep a few Schnapps for saving, but don't waste them on every short trip. The game already saves after major quests and sleeping in owned beds.
| Activity | Skills Advanced | Why It Works | Best Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bernard training | Warfare, Strength, Defence, weapon skill | Safe practice with no equipment durability risk | Before serious combat |
| Herb gathering | Herbalism and Strength with Leg Day | Low-risk XP plus sellable inventory | Early game and travel downtime |
| Alchemy | Alchemy, occasional Vitality | Potions heal, save, and sell well | After gathering ingredients |
| Hunting | Hunting, Strength, Stealth | Meat and boar skins convert into cash | When carrying capacity allows |
Build Pribyslavitz for profit, not prestige
The first reconstruction choices decide how quickly your investment comes back. Start with the Woodcutters' Camp, then repair the bridge and road so the settlement can function. The Trader is an important early purchase because it opens useful supply lines and helps the village recover economically. Follow it with either a bakery or butcher, depending on which supporting building you plan to use.
The most reliable money path is to build the Tavern and then add the Guardhouse or Forge. The tavern creates strong income, while the guardhouse provides a combat-focused option and the forge supports weapon and armor production. The stables are attractive if you want the best horse-related rewards, but they are a major expense and should wait until your ledger is already positive.
Do not rush the church. The church is a prestige project with a huge price tag, and it should come after the settlement's core income is stable. Likewise, don't build both every expensive branch immediately. Pribyslavitz has mutually exclusive choices, so decide whether this run prioritizes stronger equipment, horses, or the largest practical daily surplus.
| Priority | Building | Typical Cost | Reason to Build |
|---|---|---|---|
| S-Tier | Woodcutters' Camp | About 2,500 groschen | Required early infrastructure and unlocks reconstruction |
| S-Tier | Trader | About 4,000 groschen | Improves settlement function and supports the economy |
| A-Tier | Tavern | About 8,000 groschen | One of the strongest income choices for a profit build |
| A-Tier | Forge or Guardhouse | Roughly 12,000 groschen | Provides useful rewards while adding a profitable branch |
| B-Tier | Stables | Roughly 20,000 groschen | Excellent horse rewards, but slow payback |
| Late Game | Church | About 35,000 groschen | Prestige and story completion rather than fast profit |
Costs can vary with your exact construction path and completed contracts, so treat the figures as planning targets rather than a promise from the ledger. The important rule is simple: after every build, wait several in-game days and confirm that net income is positive before buying the next expensive structure.
Farm high-value loot around Skalitz
Once Henry can survive a fight, ruined Skalitz becomes one of the best repeatable gold routes. Bandit and Cumans encounters can appear near the town and on nearby roads. Watch the fight from a distance, let enemies thin each other out, then step in when the survivors are wounded. This is safer and more profitable than charging a full group in basic gear.
Loot armor selectively. A cuirass worth hundreds of groschen is worth the weight; a damaged gambeson often isn't. Strip valuable pieces, repair them with armorer kits when the repair cost is lower than the resale gain, and sell armor to an armorsmith rather than dumping everything on a general trader. Swords go to swordsmiths, bows to huntsmen, and potions to apothecaries. Merchant specialization improves the prices you see.
At night, lockpicking and stealth can accelerate the loop, but stolen goods need time to lose their red-hand status. Peshek at the Rattay Mill is useful for fence work and lockpicking training. Start with easy chests, use a save before risky attempts, and take the Luck of the Drunk perk once available if you can tolerate the noise and visibility penalty. Never carry a huge stolen haul into a town guard checkpoint.
For broader farming habits, compare this approach with Steamoz's fast leveling and gold farming guide, or the stamina-focused advice in Fast Break. The lesson carries over: efficient routes beat frantic grinding.
Turn the gold loop into a daily routine
After Pribyslavitz has a positive balance, use a tight routine rather than waiting around. Sleep in a safe bed, check the ledger, travel to Rattay or Skalitz, clear one encounter, sell the best loot, and return to advance time. Brew potions or gather herbs during the trip. A few in-game days of this routine can generate thousands of groschen while Henry's combat and crafting skills continue climbing.
Keep your carry weight under control. Overburdening slows travel and makes ambushes more dangerous, while a high-capacity horse lets you carry profitable armor back to town. Equip repair kits before leaving, bring Marigold Decoctions, and carry a mace when you expect heavily armored opponents. If a fight starts badly, use terrain, retreat to your horse, or break line of sight; dying with a full haul is the worst possible payout.
Graphics settings also matter on long farming sessions. On PC, prioritize a stable frame rate over maximum draw distance: lower shadow quality and volumetric effects first, keep textures high if VRAM allows, and use a modest foliage distance reduction if traversal stutters. Steamoz's performance-tuning guide explains the same trade-off, while its PC fixes guide is useful if long sessions become unstable.
Finally, check the game's official Steam page for the current edition and DLC listing, and keep an eye on Warhorse Studios for official updates. The winning From the Ashes strategy isn't one exploit: it's Bernard training, Herbalism-powered Strength, selective Skalitz loot, and a Pribyslavitz ledger that stays in the black.