---
title: "Special Servers - Cities"
description: "Special Servers - Cities"
url: https://support.travian.com/en/articles/79-special-servers-cities
collection: "Advanced features"
updated: 2026-10-29
language: en
alternates: [de, cs, fr, ar, es, tr, pl, it, pt, ru]
---

# Special Servers - Cities

Special Servers - Cities

On Annual Special gameworlds, you can **upgrade a village into a city**. Cities provide important strategic advantages but also come with specific requirements and costs.

* * *

## **Requirements**

To convert a village into a city, you must have:

-   A gameworld that **supports cities** (Annual Specials only)
    
-   **Town Hall level 20**
    
-   An **empty settlement slot**
    
    -   This slot is normally used to settle or conquer a new village
        
    -   Converting a village into a city uses this slot instead
        

You can choose between founding a new village or upgrading an existing one into a city.

* * *

## **City Features**

Upgrading a village to a city grants several advantages:

-   **3 additional building slots**
    
-   **Resource fields can be upgraded to level 12** (in non-capital cities)
    
-   **Walls can be upgraded with Watchtowers**, providing extra defensive bonuses
    
    -   [Special Servers - Watchtowers](https://support.travian.com/articles/78)
        
-   **Egyptians** can build **Waterworks**, but **only in cities** (including if the capital itself is a city)
    

* * *

## **Upgrading to a City**

The upgrade takes time, depending on server speed:

-   **x1 or x2 servers:** 24 hours
    
-   **x3 servers:** 12 hours
    

As soon as the upgrade begins:

-   The required **settlement slot becomes locked immediately**
    
-   The upgrade progress is visible:
    
    -   In your **player profile** (village list)
        
    -   On the **map**, when hovering over the village
        

### **Special Case: Conquest During Upgrade**

-   If **another player conquers your village**, the upgrade is **cancelled**
    
-   If **you** conquer your own village using another village you own, the upgrade **continues**
    
-   There is **no other way** to stop the upgrade once it has started
    

* * *

## **Conquering a City**

Cities can be conquered like normal villages. After conquest:

-   A city uses **2 settlement slots**
    
-   If you currently have **only 1 free slot**, the conquest still succeeds
    
-   Your next settlement slot will be automatically used when you gain it