Obelisk

The Obelisk is a granite monument commemorating deeds and achievements. Unlike pyramids and mastabas, all granite must already sit in staffed Storage Yards before you can place the site — after placement the stone is set at once, then carpenters raise scaffolding and stonemasons carve the faces.

You do not need Work Camp peasants. Only one unfinished obelisk (small or large) may be under construction at a time.

Source summary adapted from Impressions Games Fandom — Obelisk and Pharaoh Heaven monuments chart.

Small

3×3Footprint

100Granite

2Monument wt.

Cost (Normal)

2 500 Db

Cost by difficulty

VE 1 500 · Easy 2 000 · Normal 2 500 · Hard 3 500 · VH 5 000

Art stages

4 (a–d)

Large

5×5Footprint

200Granite

4Monument wt.

Cost (Normal)

5 000 Db

Cost by difficulty

VE 3 000 · Easy 4 000 · Normal 5 000 · Hard 7 000 · VH 10 000

Art stages

6 (a–f)

Materials

Granite (pre-stock in staffed SY) · Timber (scaffolding)

Guilds

Carpenters · Stonemasons

Labor

Guild craftsmen only — no Work Camp

Fire / damage

Fireproof · damage-proof

Overview

Obelisks are single buildings (no linked parts). Granite amount required to place comes from each building’s JS placement_resources — currently 100 for small and 200 for large. Storage Yards that hold that granite must have workers (num_workers > 0); empty yards do not count toward the pre-stock check, and granite is removed only from staffed yards on place.

Under the current additive rating formula, one finished small obelisk (weight 2) yields monument rating 9 — the goal used on Buhen.

Construction

1. Accumulate granite in staffed Storage Yards (≥ amount from the building config).
2. Place when the ghost footprint is all green. Granite is deducted immediately; the monument appears at stage a.
3. Carpenters’ Guild + timber build scaffolding (early phases).
4. Stonemasons’ Guild carve hieroglyphs through remaining art stages.
5. Finished — contributes its monument weight to the city rating.

Scaffolding ornament uses obelisk_extra image id 1 (ladder). Work Camp laborers are not used.

Placement

Clear land with an all-green footprint — 3×3 (small) or 5×5 (large). Each stage pack has a single isometric sprite (no alternate camera diagonals, unlike the Sphinx). Warnings fire if granite in staffed yards is insufficient, or if another unfinished obelisk already exists (text group 19 ids 83 / 84 / 86). Road access is not required on the monument tiles themselves, but guilds and storage need roads so carpenters and stonemasons can reach the site.

Missions

• 13 — Buhen — one small granite obelisk (import granite from Abu); monument goal 9.
• Later campaigns (Dakhla, Iken, Byblos, etc.) use small and/or large obelisks once those missions are fully wired.

Tips

• Staff every Storage Yard that holds granite before trying to place — unstaffed stock does not count.
• Import granite early on maps without a granite quarry (e.g. Buhen from Abu).
• Keep Carpenters’ and Stonemasons’ Guilds near the site; timber must keep flowing or scaffolding stalls.
• Finish or demolish an unfinished obelisk before placing another.
• Do not stockpile timber in the Overseer of Commerce, or carpenter deliveries will freeze.

building_small_obelisk {
  building_size : 3
  art_stages : 4
  timber_loads [ 200, 200, 200 ]
  placement_resources [
    { resource: RESOURCE_GRANITE, count: 100 }
  ]
  cost [ 1500, 2000, 2500, 3500, 5000 ]
  meta { help_id: 372, text_id: 178 }
  info_title_id [198, 22]
  flags { is_monument: true }
}

building_large_obelisk {
  building_size : 5
  art_stages : 6
  timber_loads [ 400, 400, 400, 200 ]
  placement_resources [
    { resource: RESOURCE_GRANITE, count: 200 }
  ]
  cost [ 3000, 4000, 5000, 7000, 10000 ]
  info_title_id [198, 23]
}