The trebuchet is one of the most underused and underrated weapons in Conan Exiles. It can be used either to defend your base from attacking forces or to destroy the base of an enemy. The latter is more common in PvP battles, but there’s still a place for it in PvE, especially after the Age of War updates. On this page, we’ll show you exactly how to build and use a trebuchet including how to place a Siege Foundation, Trebuchet Base, Trebuchet Frame, and Trebuchet Arm. This can be a lengthy, cumbersome, and sometimes tricky process depending on where you want to build the trebuchet, so we’ll give you some tips to make the process as smooth as possible.

What Materials Do You Need to Make a Trebuchet?¶

If you just want to know what materials you’ll need to build a trebuchet, you can see the table below. In total, you need 1,500 Wood, 450 Stone, 30 Shaped Wood, 25 Brick, and 15 Iron Reinforcement. It’s important to keep in mind that the default time frame for building each of these pieces is 30 minutes, so once you have enough for the first piece you can start that building process before venturing out for more materials.

How to Craft a Siege Foundation and Trebuchet Base¶

The first thing you’ll need to start the process of building a trebuchet is a siege foundation. You can get the recipe for this at level 25 when you unlock the Engineer knowledge. You’ll then be able to make the siege foundation using 30 Shaped Wood, 25 Brick, and 15 Iron Reinforcement, as noted in the table above. You can also make the trebuchet base at the same time if you have the 500 Wood and 150 Stone required.

Placing the Siege Foundation¶

Now that you have the siege foundation, you need to place it on your quickslot bar and then press the corresponding key to see where you can build it in the landscape. For example, if you place it in slot 1 of your quickslot bar, just press the key (or button on controllers) for 1 to see the outline of the siege foundation appear. It’s a rather large structure that covers the distance of roughly two and a half building foundation pieces in circumference, so you’ll need plenty of space to build it.

As you’re placing the siege foundation for the first time, you’ll notice that you can increase its height. Even if you don’t follow the tip mentioned above, you should aim to keep it high enough above the ground so that it doesn’t clip with any natural stone or earth foundations in the landscape.

Building the Trebuchet Base¶

With the siege foundation in place, you can now select the Trebuchet Base and put it on your quick slot bar. The same principle applies when placing it, only this time you need to place the trebuchet base directly on top of the siege foundation. Don’t worry if you can’t rotate the trebuchet base to face a specific direction at this point, you’ll get the opportunity to do this with more precision later on.

If you experience any clipping issues while trying to place the trebuchet base on the siege foundation, you can deconstruct the siege foundation to place it elsewhere. You won’t need to rebuild the siege foundation after doing this. Instead, you’ll find it back in your inventory, ready to place somewhere new.

How to Craft the Trebuchet Frame and Arm¶

Now that you have both the siege foundation and the trebuchet base in situ, you can interact with the trebuchet frame to bring up a new crafting menu. Here you’ll see the option to construct a trebuchet frame for 500 Wood and 150 Stone. Again, this will take 30 minutes if you have the default crafting time enabled on your server, so you can go back to doing something else for a while.

Only after the trebuchet frame has been constructed will you be able to make the trebuchet arm, and you’ll be waiting another 30 minutes for it to complete. This is why the whole process is lengthy and cumbersome, but it’s worth it in the end!

How to Use the Trebuchet in Combat¶

Once you’ve finally completed crafting everything noted above so that the trebuchet is functional, you can hop onto the platform and interact with it to see a list of ammunition types. They each require different materials to craft, but the easiest is by far the Siege Boulder, which requires only 150 Stone. It’s a good idea to make a few of these and practice shooting the trebuchet with them before you waste any valuable materials on the more expensive ammunition types.

All Trebuchet Ammunition Types¶

The table below shows exactly what you need to craft each type of trebuchet ammunition.

How to Move and Aim the Trebuchet¶

After placing the trebuchet and its constituent parts in a specific place, you won’t be able to move it again without losing some materials. You can always recover the siege foundation and the trebuchet base, but if you dismantle the trebuchet once you’ve built the frame and arm, you’ll need to build these again. It’s for this reason that you should consider carefully where you place the trebuchet to begin with!

Aiming with the Trebuchet - Direction and Firing Angle¶

The aiming mechanism for the trebuchet takes a bit of getting used to. The first thing you need to do is run into either of the handles (wooden beams) that are placed opposite each other on the edges of the trebuchet, as shown in the screenshot above. This will move the trebuchet in a specific direction, although it’s a relatively slow process.

You’ll also notice a small lever near the center of the trebuchet, referred to as the “Firing angle” when you hover over it. You can adjust the firing angle from -25 degrees to 80 degrees, but you need to cycle through all of these options by continually clicking rather than selecting a specific input. This can be a chore in the midst of battle, so it’s a good idea to set up where you want to aim the trebuchet in advance if possible.

It’s difficult to determine where the small adjustments to the firing angle will cause ammunition to fall, so you’ll need to practice by firing some siege boulders initially. You can then see where they go, and make small adjustments from there.

What Is the Load Ratio and Counterweight?¶

As you come to place some ammunition in the trebuchet inventory, you’ll notice the “Current Payload” percentage at the top. This will vary depending on the type of ammunition that you’ve crafted, but it always tops out at 100%. You’ll also notice the Counterweight inventory beneath the ammunition inventory. You can place most items in here, including raw materials, weapons, furniture, or practically anything you can think of to add weight.

The more weight you add, the higher the load ratio will become. Once it reaches 100%, you can’t place anything else in the counterweight inventory. The heavier the counterweight (or in other words the higher the load ratio), the more force will be applied when launching ammunition from the trebuchet, which translates to a more violent impact with a greater chance of smashing through enemy defenses.

It will take some time to become competent with the trebuchet, but once mastered you’ll begin to wonder how you ever lived without it for some combat scenarios. They can be incredibly useful tools when defending against Purge attacks, especially after the Age of War update, but they’ll also be useful in sieges against enemies in both PvP and PvE. Any base worth defending should have at least one trebuchet protecting it.

More Conan Exiles Guides¶

If you’re looking for more Conan Exiles guides, be sure to check the links below.

• How the Purge Works in Chapter 2
• Tips for Surviving the Purge - Best Bases
• Purge Rewards in Conan Exiles
• Religions, Altars and Avatars Guide