[Basics] How to Start & First Machines

Welcome to the Farming Simulator Academy! Today we’re going to give you a short briefing on how to start your farm. You will have to make decisions. Let’s go!

What kind of farmer will you be?

There are three types of specializations you can focus on. Do you want to focus on good old agriculture, animal husbandry or forestry? 

We’ll teach you how to approach each specialization in detail down the road in other tutorials. But let’s take a look at the options. 

Agriculture

Classic agriculture is the heart of Farming Simulator. Since we started in New Farmer Mode and you start with some machinery, we would advise you to focus on agriculture when starting out. There is a lot of variety in the day-to-day farming activities, with more tasks to do across all the various processes of crop farming.

Animal Husbandry

On some maps, there are already animals on your farm when starting a game in ‘New Farmer’ mode. But don’t worry - if you pay no attention to them, they will just not produce any more goods. This game is rated for all ages and no animals will be harmed in any way.

Forestry

Wood harvesting is a lucrative profession - although not as diverse as agriculture and operating the machines will require a certain level of skill as well as a good chunk of money. 

What to do first

First thing you should do is to familiarize yourself with the machines. If you picked ‘New Farmer Mode’ you already have the most important machines to start at your disposal. We will take a look at machines you should own in the beginning.

Contracts

Another good starting point is to accept and fulfil a variety of contracts. If you go to the contracts screen in the menu, there will be various contracts available, changing over time. You can either use your own machines by accepting right away, or you borrow the items from the employer. You have to pay a fee when borrowing the machines, but it’s small, so don’t worry. The required machines will appear in front of the local shop. 

First Equipment

Since we advise you to start with agriculture, there is a set of machines you should own. If you play on easy mode, you already have some machines at your disposal.

• You need a tractor, of course. Mind the fact that every machine has a power requirement. If your tractor is not strong enough, you’ll have a hard time operating your machinery. 
• You need a cultivator to prepare the field before sowing by loosening the soil.
• You need a seeding machine to sow the crops, plus seeds to fill it with
• You need a weeder to get rid of weeds to avoid getting a penalty on your yield
• You need a fertilizer spreader to fertilize and lime the soil. Not all fertilizer spreaders can be filled with lime, too. 
• You need a harvester with the appropriate header. We suggest starting with a grain header since it can harvest a lot of crops. If you're playing with seasonal growth enabled, you can also just lease the harvester for harvest season. 
• You’ll also need a trailer to transport crops to the selling points

We will show you a selection of machines whenever you require them in the following tutorials. The following machines are a well-rounded selection for beginners - you can't do anything wrong with buying them. 

Note! In "New Farmer" mode, you have already some (comparable) machines at your disposal!

• Tractor: John Deere 7810
• Cultivator: RABE MR 250
• Seeder: NORDSTEN NS 3030
• Weeder: Einböck Aerostar-Exact 600
• Fertilizer: BREDAL K105
• Harvester: DEUTZ-FAHR Topliner 4090 HTS + Header 4090
• Trailer: WELGER DK 115

What's next?

Try to operate the machines on your farm, attach the tools to your tractor and get a feeling for it. Proceed with one of the next lessons, and learn how to work the fields.

Well done!

Congratulations, you finished another lesson. Stay with the Farming Simulator Academy, and you’ll become a top-notch virtual farmer in no time!