Connect the market squares with the road tool
To build roads in County of Fortune, select Build a road on the bottom bar or press V. Connect the central market squares of the settlements you want to link. That connection matters because regional deliveries need a usable network between their producers and consumers.
The official County of Fortune demo FAQ explains the placement controls, diagonal construction and water-crossing requirement.
Find the settlement's connection point
With the road tool active, look for the market square in the middle of each settlement. The FAQ describes these squares turning yellow when you hover over them with the tool.
Build the road between those central connection points. A road that passes near a settlement is not the same as verifying that it reaches the market square.
Use Shift when you want to build diagonally. You do not have to copy a playthrough's road layout: choose a valid connection for your own settlement positions and terrain.
Handle red sections and water crossings
A red section means the proposed road cannot be built there. For a route over water, the official instruction is to build a bridge first with the bridge tool.
Place a valid bridge crossing and connect the road network to it, rather than repeatedly trying to draw an ordinary road across the river. The October 20 demo patch increased maximum bridge length, but the published note does not provide an exact universal span limit.
Check the full intended connection before confirming that your two settlements are linked. One invalid or unfinished section can leave the route you meant to create incomplete.
Give the connection something to deliver
After connecting settlements by road, set the receiving settlement to accept the relevant food recipe or equipment. Vendors then distribute goods automatically when there is enough product to move.
Delivery is not necessarily instant. The FAQ specifically warns that enough stock has to be available, so an empty road immediately after selecting a need does not by itself show that the connection failed.
As traffic grows, dirt roads can become a limit. The game notifies you when a road's capacity is insufficient. Stone-road upgrades require quarry stone and a Mason's Guild and improve both vendor speed and traffic capacity.
FAQ
What is the road-building shortcut?
Press V, or choose Build a road from the bottom bar.
Where should each end connect?
Connect the middle market squares of the settlements. With the tool active, those connection squares are highlighted yellow when hovered.
How do I build a diagonal road?
Use Shift while building. For a water crossing, use a bridge first; diagonal placement does not replace the bridge requirement.