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Annex System
September 29, 2026 at 12:09 AM
Initial version (2026-09-29)
The Annex system is how D.O.R.F. Real-Time Strategic Conflict is planned to handle technology progression. The developers introduced it in the July 2026 development update. Instead of gating technology only behind prerequisite buildings and research upgrades, the game uses Annexes: structures built next to a factory, or directly onto it, that unlock certain units and upgrades or change units the factory already makes.
The game was unreleased as of September 2026, and the developers described the full roster and technology tree as still being settled at that point. The combinations on this page are the examples they have published, not a complete list.
Annexes can only be built adjacent to a factory structure or directly on top of it.
An Annex either unlocks new units and upgrades, or modifies units the factory can already produce.
Most factory buildings have a limited number of Annex slots, usually no more than two (August 2026).
Some units need a specific combination of Annexes before the factory can produce them.
Annexes are real structures with a footprint on the map, not abstract upgrades.
Anyone with vision of the area can see which Annexes a factory has.
An Annex can be removed by demolishing it, the same way as a normal building.
Since each Annex has its own footprint, it takes up room in a base like any other building, which makes it part of the layout planning described on the Resources and Logistics page.
One result of the system is that some units now exist as variants or upgrades of a base unit rather than as separate designs. The developers used the Tank Destroyer as the example. It was previously shown as a unit of its own; under the Annex system it is the late-game anti-armor version of a generic Medium Tank. Likewise, flamethrower infantry are an upgrade to basic Warband Raiders rather than a separate unit.
These are the combinations described in the July 2026 update. The Motorworks is the Empire vehicle factory, the Academy is the Empire infantry structure, and the Hand is the Warband infantry structure.
Factory | Annexes Attached | Result |
|---|---|---|
Motorworks (Union of Imperial States) | None | Medium Tank armed with an autocannon |
Motorworks | Artillery Depot | Mobile artillery variant of the Medium Tank |
Motorworks | Artillery Depot and Steelworks | Armored Assault Gun variant |
Motorworks | Hypervelocity Lab and Steelworks | Tank Destroyer, a late-game anti-armor unit |
Academy (Union of Imperial States) | Artillery Depot | Riflemen squads that include a deployable Mortar |
The Hand (Warband Tribes) | Gasoline Tank | Raiders who can throw Molotov cocktails, with a few Raiders in the squad replaced by flamethrower infantry |
The Artillery Depot shows up on two different factories in these examples. On the Motorworks it produces artillery vehicles, and on the Academy it adds a mortar to infantry squads, so the same Annex can do different things depending on what it is attached to.
Annex | Factories It Appears With in Published Examples |
|---|---|
Artillery Depot | Motorworks, Academy |
Steelworks | Motorworks |
Hypervelocity Lab | Motorworks |
Gasoline Tank | The Hand |
In the updates and replies available as of September 2026, the developers had not published Annex examples for The Collective, full factory lists for any faction, or combinations beyond the six above. Asked in August 2026 whether upgrades would branch as widely as in some other strategy games, the developers answered only with the slot limit and the physical nature of Annexes. Unit costs and build times are placeholders, so none are listed here. The wider roster is on the Units page.
