Best Modules
Pick one damage engine first. Add movement and survival only after the core is online.
Key Takeaways
- Starter four: side cannons / ram / mortar / mines — the default EA kit.
- Push side cannons to level 10 → Front Cannon unlock toast, then buy with silver.
- Companion needs a back slot — skip Spiderberg for that run.
- Pick one family and feed it: turrets+arrows, fire+ballista, or cannons+mortar.
- Unlock toast ≠ owned — farm silver between runs before the next mount.
Module rankings
| Rank | Module | Slot | When to pick |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Side Cannons | Side | Day-one core gun; unlock Front Cannon at Lv10 |
| 2 | Top Mortar | Top | Area volley / bombard; starter roof pick |
| 3 | Front Ram | Front | Hit + shove ahead; Overtime mobility |
| 4 | Mine Layer | Back | Drop mines while kiting; early coherent back |
| 5 | Turret Layer | Top | Turrets + arrows family opener; safe scaling |
| 6 | Side Ballista | Side | Arrow cleanup or fire+ballista finish |
| 7 | Archer Tower | Side | Range pressure; unlock from archer crew Lv10 |
| 8 | Companion | Back | Hammer robot; keep a back slot (skip Spiderberg) |
How do I set the four starter slots?
Answer: Day one, park side cannons on side, ram on front, mortar on top, and mine layer on back — that’s the default kit every EA tape starts from.
Side cannons auto-fire and also have a broadside ability on Q/E/R/Space. Ram shoves what’s ahead (handy when Overtime gets spicy). Mortar dumps an area volley from the roof. Mines drop behind you while you kite.
Hull caveat: some vehicles get two top slots; Spiderberg has no back. Bindings are Q / E / R / Space plus auto-attacks. Relics that buff “all top,” “all back,” or “all arrow abilities” are the ones worth grabbing once you’ve picked a family.
| Slot | Starter | Job |
|---|---|---|
| Side | Side cannons | Side shots + broadside |
| Front | Front ram | Hit + shove ahead |
| Top | Top mortar | Area volley / bombard |
| Back | Mine layer | Drop mines while you kite |
Side cannons — what level unlocks Front Cannon?
Answer: Push side cannons to upgrade level 10, then the game toasts Front Cannon — you still buy it in the loadout with silver.
Same pattern for the ram line: ram to level 10 unlocks Arms, then purchase. Unlock toast ≠ owned. Silver pays between runs — see Silver farming.
Other loadout buys once unlocked: Turret Layer, Side Ballista, Fire Crew, Side Barracks, Companion, Fire Mage. Archer crew to level 10 unlocks Archer Tower on fewer tapes. No shop price grid here.
| Do this | Opens (then buy) |
|---|---|
| Side cannons → level 10 | Front Cannon |
| Ram → level 10 | Arms |
| Archer crew → level 10 | Archer Tower |
| Destroy 100 health boxes overall | Repair Crew |
| Beat all four Golden Dunes bosses | Spiderberg (still buy) |
Companion — which slot do I have to keep?
Answer: Companion is a back module — keep a back slot free, which means skip Spiderberg for that run.
Companion spawns a hammer robot. With Empress you get two Companions; she also halves your speed, so bring ram / booster / nitro if you plan Overtime. Side Barracks sits in the same friendly-unit neighborhood.
Want mines instead? Fine — just don’t expect Companion on a no-back hull. Full captain pairing: Captains.
Turrets+arrows / fire+ballista / mortar — what do I mount first?
Answer: Pick one family and feed it — turrets want Turret Layer + arrow kit, fire wants Fire Crew + Side Ballista, mortar wants Top mortar next to your side cannons.
Turrets + arrows
Mount Turret Layer first, then chase Archer Tower, Side Ballista, and archer crew. Drop the turret, kite, scoop gold for level-ups.
Grab the relic that shortens all arrow ability CDs when you kill with arrows — that’s the engine. One tape claimed a #1 leaderboard run with this pile; treat it as “players like it,” not a promise.
Fire + ballista
Mount Fire Crew + Side Ballista together. Vehicles that die from fire leave fire craters — that’s the synergy creators chase on Golden Dunes clips.
Fire Mage exists in EA, but Demo 8 “mage tower is broken” titles are a different balance conversation. Don’t import demo power claims.
Cannons + mortar
Keep side cannons, push them toward Front Cannon, and park Top mortar on the roof. Pair with Patchy the Pirate if you want the cannon-damage captain line.
Magma Core (cannonballs leave a fire grid) shows up on the same cannon tapes. If a roll says “cannonball” next to mortar, read the tooltip — don’t assume every cannon relic applies.
Also solid (not a fourth family you must chase)
- Ram + mines — mobility for Overtime; bumper ram + mine dumps show up on silver grind streams.
- Merchants crew — passive gold → faster levels. Not a gun. Skip late merchant rolls if you never invested early.
When to take / skip a roll
- Position relic matches your slots (all top / all back / all arrow) → take it.
- Off-theme shiny while your core isn’t online → skip. Finish the family first.
- Only back slot left on an Empress run → Companion (or Booster if Companion is already set).
- Demo mage-tower nostalgia → skip.
Still checking
- Shop silver prices — no verified grid.
- Exact slots for Cannon Tower / Arms / Force Mage — best-effort only.
- 0.9.9 patch string not confirmed on Steam news.