We Rule: how to get the most out of your kingdom

ngmoco's We Rule takes the idea behind the popular Facebook management game FarmVille and applies it to a mediaeval scenario on iPhone.

Planting crops and making friends is the idea behind this highly addictive kingdom-planning freemium title.

It's very easy, however, to feel daunted by the options available - both for crops and buildings. Once the game's tutorial is over, you're thrown right in at the deep end with no explanation as to what you're really meant to be doing.

What you need is a We Rule walkthrough.

Well have no fear. Pocket Gamer is here to help you with this handy guide to We Rule. From crop-selecting to friend-making, let us help you build a city fit for a king.

There are a few core factors to progressing in We Rule, and planting and harvesting the right types of crop is one of them.

Choosing the right crops to plant is crucial to earning both cash and XP. Your best choice of produce all comes down to timing and maths.

Each crop has a specific amount of real time it will take to be ready for harvesting. The longer a crop takes to mature, the more money and XP you'll earn.

However, economically-speaking, it's better to grow lots of the cheaper crops rather than one batch of the more expensive stuff.

Here's the maths behind it: In five hours, I can grow a field of squashes. I will earn 180 gold and gain 75XP for doing so.

Yet if I plant five lots of onions in a row (which take one hour each), I will end up earning 500 gold and 200XP - more than double the output for squashes.

Of course, the downside to this method is that you'll have to go back to the game five times rather than just the once, but if you're at work or home and your iPhone is close by, this is definitely the better option.

In fact, if you're really bored, you could even plant wheat every five minutes for a total profit of 240 gold and 96 XP an hour - hence, 1200 gold and 480XP in five hours.

Note: If you do this, you're crazy and have way too much time on your hands. But still, the idea is there.

Oddly, you're not initially supplied with any crops which come to fruition in a regular sleep timescale (i.e. around 7-8 hours), so planting crops before going to bed is a big no no.

It's best to make sure all farming business is wrapped up before you hit the sack, and leave your fields empty overnight.

Finally, make sure you always have the maximum number of fields. Generally when you level up the number of fields you're allowed to build increases.

For every field you build, you're essentially multiplying your profit by +1, which can make a huge difference.

So farming in We Rule is pretty important, but adding other people to your game is just as essential.

Once other kingdoms have been added to your surroundings, you can visit them and order a variety of different things from shops and mines.

Ordering stuff from other players will give both of you a moderately-sized money and XP boost, so it's well worth it.

First off, find lots of players who are addicted to the game. This is the easy part - just search on the internet for usernames. Players have been adding their usernames to every single relevant comment section available - just check the Pocket Gamer We Rule posts, for example.

It really doesn't matter whether you know these people or not - there are no other interactions available other than ordering from shops, so for once it's okay to play with strangers.

Once you've added people to your cause, jump to the kingdom map and you'll be able to scroll through the cities of everyone you've added.

Any kingdom with an open shop in it will have a big 'Open' bubble hovering above it. Enter that kingdom, find the shop in question, and order away.

You can only order one thing at a time from each person, so having dozens of friends is the key to making some serious moolah.

Apart from ordering stuff from other people regularly, make sure to build yourself a variety of shops as well.

Your friends can order wares from your kingdom - just make sure you accept the order promptly to ensure quick profiteering.

We Rule is free to download and technically free to play - however, there's a paid element to it in the form of Mojo.

When applied to any job, bottles of Mojo can make the work happen in a flash. If a building is going to take a day to produce some business, two bottles of Mojo can make it happen instantly.

There are two ways to get yourself some Mojo - leveling up, and through real-money purchases.

Our advice is to not bother buying any Mojo at all. We've not bought a single bottle of it and the game has been enjoyable all the way. So it takes a little more time - is that really such a bad thing?

You'll achieve Mojo through leveling up anyway, and the amount supplied is more than enough for those moments when you just can't wait.

It's tempting to use Mojo early on, especially when your stocks begin to pile up, but we recommend you don't touch the stuff until much later on in the game.

Certain expensive buildings can be bought using Mojo rather than cash - for example, the Dragon's Lair - so if you can hold out until then, you'll be able to grab them the second they become available.

Every five or six levels, you'll have the option to expand your main palace. This will give you extra space to build on and is definitely worth the cash.

Make sure to note when the next upgrade will become available for you, and have the cash ready to purchase it. That way, you'll have tons more space for constructing buildings and making money.

Make sure to build a number of cottages. While not that incredibly important, you'll be able to tax the occupants every few hours for cash and XP. Plus, the dwellers will wander around your kingdom, making it look a little more busy.

And looking busy is always a good thing, right?