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HQ Progression Guide: Levels 1-30

Progression · 2026-03-11

How HQ Progression Works

Your Headquarters (HQ) level gates everything in the game. Higher HQ means higher building levels, better troops, stronger heroes (hero level cap increases by +5 per HQ level), and access to more systems.

Before each HQ upgrade, you must meet specific building requirements. Always check what is needed for the next HQ level and work toward those prerequisites first.

The single biggest rule: never let your builder sit idle. Always have something upgrading.

HQ Upgrade Requirements Table

Use this table to plan ahead. "Troop Center" means whichever combat center matches your squad type (Tank Center, Aircraft Center, or Missile Center). Food and Iron costs are equal at every level.

HQ 1-10

HQ Level Building Prerequisites Food Iron Coins Time
2 Drill Ground 1 34 34 — ~10s
3 Wall 2 1K 1K — ~1m
4 Barracks 3, Drill Ground 3 2.5K 2.5K — ~5m
5 Barracks 4, Wall 4 20K 20K — ~15m
6 Wall 5, Drill Ground 5 91K 91K — ~30m
7 Wall 6, Troop Center 6 240K 240K — ~1h
8 Tech Center 7, Alliance Center 7 390K 390K — ~2h
9 Tech Center 8, Troop Center 8 620K 620K 200K ~4h
10 Tech Center 9, Hospital 9 750K 750K 240K ~8h

HQ 11-20

HQ Level Building Prerequisites Food Iron Coins Time
11 Tech Center 10, Wall 10 1.9M 1.9M 600K ~12h
12 Tech Center 11, Barracks 11 3.2M 3.2M 1M ~16h
13 Tech Center 12, Troop Center 12 3.5M 3.5M 1.1M ~20h
14 Tech Center 13, Drill Ground 13 4.9M 4.9M 1.6M ~1d
15 Tech Center 14, Wall 14 6.8M 6.8M 2.2M ~1d 8h
16 Tech Center 15, Alliance Center 15 12M 12M 3.9M ~1d 16h
17 Tech Center 16, Troop Center 16 16M 16M 5.1M ~2d
18 Tech Center 17, Hospital 17 28M 28M 8.9M ~2d 12h
19 Tech Center 18, Wall 18 33M 33M 11M ~3d
20 Tech Center 19, Barracks 19 60M 60M 19M ~3d 12h

HQ 21-30

HQ Level Building Prerequisites Food Iron Coins Time
21 Tech Center 20, Troop Center 20 84M 84M 27M 3d 18h
22 Tech Center 21, Drill Ground 21 110M 110M 35M 5d 12h
23 Tech Center 22, Wall 22 140M 140M 44M 6d 10h
24 Tech Center 23, Alliance Center 23 170M 170M 54M 8d
25 Tech Center 24, Troop Center 24 290M 290M 93M 11d 12h
26 Tech Center 25, Hospital 25 400M 400M 130M 15d
27 Tech Center 26, Wall 26 530M 530M 170M 22d
28 Tech Center 27, Barracks 27 740M 740M 240M 30d
29 Tech Center 28, Troop Center 28 1B 1B 330M 39d
30 Tech Center 29, Drill Ground 29 1.4B 1.4B 460M 101d 14h

Key takeaways from the table:

  • Tech Center is required at every level from HQ 8 onward — it is always one level behind your target HQ. Start it early.
  • Costs escalate sharply after HQ 20 — resource costs jump from millions to hundreds of millions. Save your resource chests for this phase.
  • Upgrade times hit a wall at HQ 25+ — a single HQ upgrade can take weeks. Use construction speed buffs and alliance help wisely.
  • Coins appear at HQ 9 — make sure you have a steady income by then.

For HQ 31-35 requirements (Age of Oil), see the Season 1 HQ Guide.

HQ 1-10: Sprint Phase

Goal: Blast through this as fast as possible. Resources are plentiful and timers are short.

Priorities

  1. Upgrade HQ non-stop — use speedups freely here, they are cheap at this stage
  2. Follow the tutorial — it gives excellent rewards
  3. Tech Center — keep it matching your HQ. It is the biggest bottleneck throughout the game
  4. Barracks — keep within 1-2 levels of HQ
  5. Join an alliance on day one

What NOT to Do

  • Do not upgrade resource production buildings beyond what is required for HQ prerequisites
  • Do not upgrade the Material Workshop
  • Do not spend gems on anything — save for VIP
  • Do not worry about squad composition yet — use whatever heroes you have

HQ 11-20: Foundation Phase

Goal: Build your first proper squad. Get into a rhythm of daily progression.

This is where the game slows down. Upgrades take hours instead of minutes. Get used to planning ahead.

Building Priority

  1. HQ prerequisites — always work toward whatever buildings are needed for the next HQ upgrade
  2. Tech Center — must match HQ level. This unlocks troop tiers and research
  3. Hospital — keep capacity high. Troops that exceed hospital capacity after a battle die permanently
  4. Barracks and Drill Grounds — keep within 1-2 levels of HQ
  5. Walls — required at multiple HQ tiers

Research (Tech Center)

Your Tech Center unlocks research trees. Priority order:

  1. Troop upgrades — higher troop tiers are dramatically stronger than lower ones
  2. Combat stats for your primary squad type
  3. Construction speed and research speed bonuses
  4. March-related research later

Squad Building

By HQ 15 you should be building toward a mono-type squad. In pre-season, Tank is the dominant meta:

  • Tank heroes are the easiest UR heroes to get early
  • The recommended early squad is Murphy, Williams, Kimberly, Stetmann, Marshall
  • Focus all hero investment on this squad
  • See the Tank Squad Guide for full details

The Drone

After Stage 38 you unlock the Drone Center. Start upgrading it immediately — it provides global stat bonuses to your entire squad.

HQ 21-25: Growth Phase

Goal: Max out your primary squad. Start accumulating gold gear materials. Prepare for the push to HQ 30.

Building Priority

  1. HQ prerequisites — always first
  2. Tech Center — always matching HQ
  3. Hospital — capacity should cover your full army
  4. Military buildings matching your primary squad type

Resource Crunch

Around HQ 25 you will notice resources getting tight. Building costs jump significantly.

  • Do not waste resources on unnecessary building upgrades — only upgrade what is needed for HQ or your squad
  • Save resource chests — do not open them until you need to spend immediately
  • Participate in every event — events are now your primary resource source

Gold Gear

Around HQ 22-25 you can start working toward gold (legendary) gear for your primary squad heroes.

  • Do not craft randomly — follow the gear craft order in the Gear Guide
  • Focus on your main DPS hero first (Kimberly for Tank squads)
  • Buy Legendary Gear Blueprints from the Honor Shop — this is the single best use of Honor Points

Planning Ahead

Check the requirements for HQ 26-30. The biggest bottleneck is typically the Tech Center and specific building levels. Start those upgrades early so you are not blocked.

HQ 25-30: Late Pre-Season

Goal: Reach HQ 30. Build gold gear for your primary squad. Prepare for Season 1.

Building Priority

  1. HQ to 30 — this is the finish line for pre-season
  2. Tech Center maxed — unlocks T10 troops at level 30, which are a massive power jump
  3. All prerequisite buildings — clear the path to HQ 30
  4. Hospital — max capacity

T10 Troops

When your Tech Center hits level 30, you unlock Tier 10 troops. These are dramatically stronger than lower-tier troops and are one of the biggest power spikes in the game. Getting here should be a high priority.

Oil

After HQ 30, oil becomes the primary resource bottleneck. The "Age of Oil" tech tree opens up, providing additional progression. Start planning for oil production before you hit 30.

Squad Status at HQ 30

By HQ 30 your primary squad should be:

  • All 5 heroes well-levelled with skills invested
  • Working toward full gold gear (see Gear Guide for craft order)
  • T10 troops unlocked and training
  • Drone at a decent level

You may be starting to think about a second squad (Aircraft) for the mid-game meta transition — but do not start investing until your primary squad is in a strong position.

General Tips for All Levels

  • Never let your builder idle — this is the single biggest factor in progression speed
  • Never let research idle — same principle
  • Save gems for VIP — VIP 6 gives you a second builder queue, which effectively doubles your building speed
  • Do not open resource chests early — resources in your base can be stolen. Items in your inventory cannot
  • Plan for VS (Building Day) — save your bigger upgrades for the Arms Race building day for extra event points
  • Use the "Next 2 HQ levels" rule — before starting a long upgrade, check the requirements for your next two HQ levels and start the slowest prerequisite first

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