FIELD MANUAL / 01
Drive the outrider
Move to matter
Weapons fire automatically. Draw raiders away, screen the hauler and break formation only when the route is safe.
Dodge the volley
Boost protects you from gunfire during a brief surge. The tanker is solid: steer around it. Contact with enemies damages both hulls, yours more, even while boosting.
Pulse the field
Erase hostile rounds and shove nearby enemies. Save it for pressure, not noise.
Seal the leaking tank
Steer into the cyan ring beside the leaking tank, then release the steering pad. Touch the ring with the outside of your hull: normally 2.5 seconds, or 2 in Last Ration. Engineer kits reduce patch time by 20%. Autofire continues. Watch the SEALING countdown. The seal confirmation means leakage stopped; lost water does not return. If no tank is leaking, there is no hole to patch. Boost away to break contact. Refill at service stops. Last Ration contracts disable paid water refills; their supplies and water modifications still work.
Choose the risk
Gold ingots fund repairs; teal crosses repair your hull; blue twin canisters refill tanker water. Violet twin barrels add Piercing Repeater fire; orange fan muzzles add Storm Scatter. Each bonus lasts 18 seconds alongside your main gun. Another gun refreshes or replaces only the bonus. First collection pauses briefly to explain the pickup. Below 20% hull, red screen edges pulse; reduced effects use a steady tint.
Draw fire away from the water
Ordinary raiders approach the tanker first. Come within 9 metres to draw their attention, then lead the group away. Beyond 15 metres they return to the tanker. A pale diamond marks enemies targeting you; cyan twin bars mark tanker targets. DRAWING FIRE counts enemies currently attacking or chasing you. Puncturers and siphoners stay focused on the cargo; bosses keep their own attack patterns. Kill a charging attacker before release to cancel its warning. Bullets already fired keep travelling.
Read the formation
Scouts close in, gunners fire spreads, mortars mark blasts and brutes punish close range. Puncturers fire a warned shot at tank panels: pulse or destroy them before it lands. Siphoners tether the hauler and block patching: PULSE breaks the tether, or destroy the siphoner. Road blockades halt the tanker: destroy the marked weak point; your gun targets it automatically when you approach. The narrow twin-fork Interceptor commits to a warned charge: dodge the lane or pulse it before launch.
Read the road forecast
Later roads alternate warned crosswinds and static storms. Wind pushes sideways: steer against the arrows. Static slows incoming enemy rounds by 25%, but pulse recharge slows by 50%. Each condition gives two seconds of warning and lasts four seconds. The first road and bosses stay clear.
Use their weakness
Amber Plated crews are tougher and slower: pulse cracks their armour, then your shots deal 50% extra damage. Violet Overcharged crews are faster but fragile, with longer attack warnings; pulse stuns them for 2.4 seconds. Pulsing either cancels attacks still charging. Each elite drops six extra scrap. The delivery log records your crossings and lets you retry the same road seed with a new build.
Another convoy needs you
Deliver the water to unlock three harder threats. Each is a fresh nine-encounter run with separate records. Daily routes always use the normal threat.
Choose your view
Tap VIEW during play to switch between the close action camera and a wide tactical overview. Tap it again to return. Your choice is saved in Settings.
Take a moment
Tap II, or press Escape or P, to pause the whole run. Choose Resume run to continue. Pause also opens Settings, training and the photo lab. Leaving the game window pauses automatically.
Know your controls
MAP pauses play and shows your route and current loadout. SND toggles sound; use Pause then Settings to set music and effect volumes. Your cannon fires automatically; a mouse can aim it manually.