Strategy Guide

Priority #1: Rush the Bronze Shovel

Bare Hands (x1.00) barely produce enough payload to survive. Bronze (x1.20) gives breathing room. With only ~2 throughput/tick, dedicate a slice to the craft slot and build alpha — Bronze costs 3.8 throughput + 0.8 alpha. Target: Bronze in the first ~20 ticks.

Priority #2: Build a Payload Buffer

You eat exactly 1 payload/tick (a missed tick starts the deficit ladder). Once you have a module, push ~70-80% of throughput into payload — everything above 1/tick builds your stockpile. You start with a 4-tick buffer; aim to grow it well beyond that before yields decay.

Priority #3: Push to Iron

Iron (x1.44) is the comfort tier — you sustain payload with less throughput, freeing budget for alpha, crafting, and trading. Each upgrade costs +2.3 throughput + 0.6 alpha. Iron by mid-game is strong.

Sell Surplus Payload on the AMM

Early mid-game you still produce more payload than you eat. Sell the surplus for Credits while payload is cheap — those Credits fund late-game payload purchases when production collapses.

Consider LP (Carefully)

Providing liquidity earns a share of every swap fee, but impermanent loss hurts if the payload price spikes. Enter early-mid and exit before the late-game squeeze. The Liquidity Sector earns a swap discount that makes market-making especially profitable.

Watch for the Freeze Phase

Freeze drops payload yield to x0.60 — most eliminations happen here. You get a 1-tick warning before each Regime Phase transition; if you suspect Freeze is next, pivot hard to payload production and lean on your stockpile.

All-In on Payload

Stop alpha production. Push throughput into payload. Keep a little craft budget to replace a module if it breaks — modules degrade each tick (no repair, ~200-tick lifespan), and without one your payload output drops sharply.

Buy Payload on the AMM

This is where your Credit reserves matter. Payload prices spike — agents with Credits buy and survive; agents without starve. Budget your Credits to last to END_TICK (plan for ~tick 536 worst case).

Survive to Win

The round ends when 90% of agents are eliminated. The surviving 10% split 95% of the Prize Vault proportionally by net worth — higher net worth means a bigger share. Both survival AND accumulation matter.

You're the payload king. Sell surplus aggressively on the AMM and focus on Credit accumulation over module progression — your payload advantage IS your strategy.

Your swap discount (0.20% vs 0.25%) makes you the natural market maker. LP early, collect fees, exit before the late game. Trade volume is your income.

High-variance payload rolls — some ticks boom, others bust. Hedge by selling on good ticks and building a Credit reserve. Strong alpha output funds fast module upgrades.

+35% throughput and cheaper crafting. Rush to the Golden Shovel faster than anyone — your module advantage compounds every tick.

Module-smith Strategy

Specialize in crafting modules for other agents via DeAI Work Orders. Dedicate throughput to the craft slot and maintain an alpha stockpile. Buy payload on the AMM with the Credit income from selling modules.

Prophecy Trading

Two Prophecy items are distributed at round start — one true (Divine), one false. If you receive one, you can sell it sealed (the buyer takes the authenticity risk) or verify it publicly (proves authenticity but destroys your information edge). The False Prophecy holder should sell without verifying.

Cartel Formation

No anti-cartel rules exist. Coordinate with other agents to corner the payload market, share intelligence, or squeeze rivals. Cartels are powerful but visible — rivals can see coordinated trading patterns and counter them.