Part of the City Survival Series:

Beginner Strategy Hub: Core principles (Start Here).

Cookhouse Guide: Managing survivor health and nutrition.

Clinic Guide: Recovering from edict-induced sickness.

The Chief's House is the control panel for your city's productivity. Once unlocked, it hosts six activate-able Edicts (Chief Orders) that apply temporary, powerful buffs to your settlement.

Quick Answer

Unlock: Furnace Level 6.
Cost: No known upgrade or construction costs; building does not level up.
Currency: Uses Contentment, generated passively by working survivors.
Top Edict: Rush Job is the highest raw-resource value in the building.
Key Strategy: Always pair Productivity Day and Urgent Mobilization with Festivities to offset the massive Mood penalties.

The Six Edicts at a Glance

Edict	Cost	Cooldown	Duration	Mood Cost
Urgent Mobilization	50k	8h	48h (Survivor Time)	-10 Mood
Rush Job	150k	24h	Instant (5d resources)	None
Comprehensive Care	150k	4h	Instant	None
Double Time	800k	~24h	5-min window	None
Productivity Day	50k	12h	24h (Survivor Time)	-10 Mood
Festivities	50k	24h	24h (Survivor Time)	+50 Mood

Edict Breakdown

1. Rush Job (The Economy King)

Instantly grants 5 days' worth of resource production based on your current Hunter's Hut, Sawmill, Coal Mine, and Iron Mine levels.

[!IMPORTANT] Daily use is non-negotiable. At 150k Contentment for 5 days of output, this is the most efficient conversion of Contentment into growth.

2. Double Time (The Construction Hack)

Reduces construction time by 20% for any project initiated within a 5-minute window after activation.

Best for: High-tier Furnace or Embassy upgrades that take 5+ days.
Strategy: Ensure all resources and prerequisites are ready before you press the button.

3. Productivity Day & Urgent Mobilization

These two stack for massive output:

Productivity Day: +100% resource output.
Urgent Mobilization: Forces continuous work for 48 survivor-hours.
Combined Penalty: -20 Mood. If you run this without Festivities, your survivors will eventually strike.

4. Festivities (The Stabilizer)

Restores +50 Mood and +30 Comfort. This is the "tax" you pay to run the aggressive productivity stack.

Contentment Economy

Contentment is generated passively while your survivors work at workstations.

Higher building levels and tool assignments increase the generation rate.
Gem Top-ups: You can buy 50k Contentment for 50 gems. This is an emergency lever only—F2P players should avoid this.

Mood Management & Stacking Strategy

The "Classic Stack" for maximum growth:

Activate Productivity Day (+100% output).
Activate Urgent Mobilization (No breaks).
Activate Festivities (Offset the -20 Mood penalty).
Activate Rush Job (Capture 5 days of production at the boosted rate).

[!WARNING] The Strike Threshold: Survivor mood below ~85% leads to strikes, which completely halts production. Always check the mood indicator in the Chief's House before stacking.

Decision Framework: Double Time vs. Rush Job

Early/Mid Game (Furnace <25): You are likely resource-bottlenecked. Focus on Rush Job to fund your next big upgrade.
Late Game (Furnace 25+): You are likely time-bottlenecked. Focus on Double Time to shave days off the construction clock.

FAQ

Why is my Double Time button locked?

You likely just used it or another edict with a shared internal cooldown. Ensure your Contentment is above 800,000.

Can I bank extra attempts for Rush Job?

No. Once the 24-hour cooldown is up, use it or lose that day's production boost.

Does the Chief's House need to be heated?

Yes. Like all city buildings, its function can be affected by the Furnace's heat radius.

Known Ambiguities

Exact Contentment generation formulas remain unpublished.
Prerequisite status for Furnace 7 is inconsistently reported.
Survivor-time-to-real-time conversion ratios are not documented.

Whiteout Survival Chief's House Guide [2026] — Edicts & Contentment