🏺 Clay and Kilns

Sticky earth plus fire gives you pots to boil in, bricks to build with, and kilns hot enough for everything that comes later.

Find and clean clay Dig sticky earth from stream banks, test it with a squeeze and a roll, and knead out the stones and air. easyhalf a day Shape pots by pinch and coil Pinch a ball of clay into a small bowl, then roll clay snakes and stack them into pots big enough to cook in. easya day Fire pots in an open pit Dry your pots slowly, then bake them in a hot pit so soft clay turns hard as stone. takes patiencetwo days Cook and boil in clay pots At last: soup, stew, and easy safe water straight over the fire. easyhalf a day Build a simple kiln Build a clay oven with a fire hole and a draft so pots fire harder and fewer of them crack. harda week Make mud bricks and fired bricks Press clay and straw into molds, dry the blocks in the sun, and fire the best ones hard in the kiln. takes patiencea week, mostly drying Build a bread oven Shape a clay dome that soaks up fire and bakes with its stored heat. takes patiencea week Spin a potter's wheel A heavy spinning disc lets you pull up round, even pots in minutes instead of hours. hardtwo weeks of practice