Your colony can only grow so much with the same handful of people you started with. As your base expands and you take on more ambitious projects, having additional colonists can make a huge difference.

More colonists means more people available to build, research, grow food, fight, craft, and handle the daily work needed to keep your settlement alive.

Fortunately, there are several ways to get more colonists in Rimworld.

Recruit Prisoners

One of the most reliable ways to gain new colonists is to recruit prisoners.

During raids, some enemies may survive after being downed rather than killed. If you find a raider with useful skills or traits, you can capture them and bring them back to your colony.

Capturing Enemies

Step-by-Step

Follow these steps to safely secure a downed hostile and transfer them to your colony for recruitment:

Select Colonist

Select one of your capable, active colonists on the field.

Target Downed Enemy

Right-click the incapacitated enemy unit.

Select “Capture”

Choose Capture from the action context menu.

Transport to Security

Escort them directly to a designated prison room or available prison bed.

Configure Interaction

Open the prisoner’s menu tab and set their interaction status to Recruit.

Your Warden will gradually reduce the prisoner’s resistance before attempting to recruit them.

The recruitment process can take a while, especially if the prisoner has high resistance. Having a colonist with a strong Social skill can make recruitment much easier.

Capture Warning

Before capturing someone, check their skills and traits. You do not want to spend weeks recruiting a prisoner who has terrible traits and no useful skills.

Capture Downed Raiders

Not every enemy can be recruited, so it is worth checking the information panel before investing time and resources into a prisoner.

Some prisoners have traits that make recruitment impossible, while others may have high resistance. However, a good raid can provide you with an excellent new colonist.

A raider with high Construction, Plants, Medical, or Intellectual skills can be extremely valuable to a growing colony.

Remember that you do not need to capture every enemy you defeat. Only take prisoners who are worth the food, medicine, and time needed to recruit them.

Complete Prisoner Rescue Quests

Some quests require you to rescue a prisoner from a hostile location.

When you accept one of these quests, you will usually need to travel to another location, defeat the enemies guarding the prisoner, and rescue them.

Once you successfully rescue the prisoner, they may join your colony.

These quests can be a great way to gain a new colonist because you know in advance that the person is available to rescue. However, make sure your colony is prepared before accepting the quest, as the rescue location may contain dangerous enemies.

Look Out for Wanderers

Sometimes a person will simply arrive at your colony and ask to join.

These events can be one of the easiest ways to get a new colonist because you do not need to fight anyone or recruit them from prison.

However, you should always check their skills and traits before accepting them.

A new colonist can be helpful, but a person with terrible traits or major health problems can create additional problems for your colony.

Buy Slaves

If you have the Ideology DLC, you can also purchase slaves from traders.

Slave traders may visit your colony or appear as part of a caravan. You can purchase people from them and bring them back to your settlement.

Slaves can perform many of the same jobs as colonists, although they have different mechanics and may require specific facilities or ideology rules depending on your colony.

Some slaves can eventually be emancipated and become full colonists.

Rescue People Who Crash Nearby

People can sometimes crash near your colony after an incident.

If the person is still alive, you can rescue them and take them back to your hospital. Once they recover, they may have the option to join your colony depending on the event.

These events can provide useful new colonists without requiring you to attack a hostile settlement or recruit a prisoner.

However, be careful when rescuing strangers. Some events can come with additional complications.

Recruit a Wild Person

Wild people can occasionally appear on the map.

You can attempt to tame them, although this is not always successful. If the attempt fails, they may become hostile.

Once you successfully tame a wild person, they can become part of your colony.

This is a more unusual way to gain a colonist, but it can be useful if you are struggling to grow your population.

Use the Population Intent System

Rimworld’s storyteller also helps colonies with smaller populations find opportunities to grow.

If your colony has very few colonists, you may be more likely to receive events that provide opportunities to recruit new people.

This can include joiner events, rescue quests, and other opportunities to increase your population.

As your colony grows, these opportunities may become less frequent. This helps prevent colonies from growing endlessly without the player having enough time to manage everyone.

How Many Colonists Should You Have?

There is no perfect number of colonists in Rimworld.

A small colony is easier to manage and requires fewer resources, while a larger colony gives you more people to perform important jobs.

Population Trade-Offs

Growth Management

Expanding your population increases productivity, but every new recruit adds extra pressure to your colony’s infrastructure and defense:

Higher Food Demand More food is required daily to keep everyone fed

Food

Expanded Housing More bedrooms are needed to maintain mood and comfort

Housing

Increased Medical Risk More people can get sick or injured during events

Medical

Harder Raid Scaling Raids may become significantly more dangerous

Threat

Equipment Requirements More colonists need weapons, armor, and specialized gear

Supply

Growth Strategy Tip

For many colonies, gradually growing your population is safer than recruiting every person you can find.

How to Choose Good New Colonists

Colonist Recruitment

Recruitment Guide

Before recruiting someone, look closely at their skills and traits. Some of the most valuable skills for colony survival include:

Construction Build

Good builders can quickly create bedrooms, defences, workshops, and other important structures.

Plants Grow

A skilled grower can keep your colony reliably supplied with food and other essential crops.

Medical Health

A good doctor can save colonists who would otherwise die from severe injuries or unexpected illness.

Intellectual Research

Dedicated researchers are essential for unlocking new technologies and upgrading your colony.

Shooting & Melee Combat

Combat skills are extremely valuable when enemy raids become larger and more dangerous.

Critical Warning: Check Traits

Always check a potential recruit’s traits. A colonist with great skills can still be a terrible addition if they have negative traits that constantly cause mental breaks or trigger conflicts with other colony members.

Final Thoughts

The easiest way to get more colonists in Rimworld is usually to recruit prisoners, but there are plenty of other methods available.

You can rescue people from quests, accept wanderers, save injured strangers, buy slaves, or even tame wild people.

The important thing is to avoid recruiting people simply because you have space for them. Every new colonist increases your colony’s workload and resource requirements.

A small number of skilled colonists can often be more valuable than a large group of people who cannot contribute much to the colony.

Sometimes the best new colonist is not the person with the highest skills. It is the raider you almost killed during a raid, only to discover that they have a burning passion for Construction and Plants.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the easiest way to get more colonists in Rimworld?

Recruiting prisoners is one of the most reliable ways to gain new colonists. You can capture downed raiders and attempt to recruit them.

Can you recruit raiders in Rimworld?

Yes. Downed raiders can be captured and taken to a prison. After reducing their resistance, you can attempt to recruit them.

Can you buy new colonists?

With the Ideology DLC, you can buy slaves from slave traders. Some slaves can eventually become full colonists.

Can wanderers join your colony?

Yes. Some random events allow wanderers to join your colony.

Should you recruit every prisoner?

No. Always check their skills, traits, health, and potential problems before deciding to recruit them.

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