Gear Guide (Pre-Season 1)

The 4 Gear Slots

Every hero in Last War: Survival equips 4 pieces of gear:

Why Gun and Chip Go on DPS Heroes

Gun provides raw attack power. For a DPS hero like Kimberly or DVA, attack power directly translates to damage output. A gold Gun on your carry is the single largest damage increase you can make.

Chip provides critical rate and critical damage. These are multiplicative bonuses — they multiply the attack power from your Gun. This is why Chip is the second priority for DPS heroes: it amplifies the investment you already made in their Gun.

Why Armor and Radar Go on Tanks

Armor provides physical defence and damage resistance. Front-row tanks like Murphy and Williams take the brunt of physical attacks. Armor keeps them standing so your back row can deal damage.

Radar provides energy defence and skill damage resistance. Many of the most dangerous enemy abilities deal energy damage. Radar on your main tank protects against these burst abilities that could otherwise bypass physical defence.

Why Radar Before Armor for Tanks

In most matchups, energy damage from enemy skills is the biggest threat to your front line. Enemy carries like Kimberly and DVA deal massive energy burst damage with their active skills. Radar counters this directly. Physical damage from normal attacks is more predictable and less likely to one-shot your tank. This is why Radar is crafted before Armor for tanks.

Gear Rarities

The Gold Gear Craft Order

This is the most important section. Gold (Legendary) gear is expensive and materials are limited. Every craft should be deliberate.

General Rule for Any Squad

No matter what squad type you run, the craft order follows the same logic:

1. Gun for your main DPS first — damage wins fights
2. Radar for your main tank — keeps the front line alive against energy bursts
3. Guns for remaining back-row heroes — more damage from the back row
4. Radar for second tank — reinforces the front line
5. Chips for DPS heroes — crit bonuses multiply damage
6. Armor for tanks — physical defence comes after energy defence
7. Remaining pieces — fill in the gaps

For Tank Squads (Pre-Season Meta)

For Aircraft Squads

Only start crafting Aircraft gold gear after your Tank squad has gold gear on at least 2-3 heroes.

For Missile Squads

Missile squads are typically the third squad type to gear. Only start after Tank and Aircraft squads are established.

Gear Levelling

Each gear piece can be levelled from 1 to 40. Levelling requires Gold and Ore. At Level 40, Legendary gear delivers approximately 390% of base stats before star promotion — this is why pushing to 40 on priority pieces is so impactful.

Bonus Attributes

At every 10th level (10, 20, 30, 40), gear gains an extra bonus attribute. These are significant power spikes.

The Levelling Strategy

This is critical. Follow this exact order:

Phase 1: Broad Foundation

1. Get every gold gear piece on your main squad to Level 10 — this unlocks the first bonus attribute on each piece. It is cheap to do and provides a massive collective improvement

Phase 2: Deep Investment on Carry

2. Push your main DPS's Gun to Level 40 — this is the single biggest power increase in the game. Every ore spent here is worth more than anywhere else
3. Push your main tank's Radar to Level 40 — keeps your front line alive

Phase 3: Secondary Priorities

4. Push your main tank's Armor to Level 40
5. Push your main DPS's Chip to Level 40
6. Then level remaining pieces to 40

Upgrade Ore Sources

Upgrade Ore is the bottleneck resource for gear levelling. Here is where to get it:

Gear Crafting Materials

Material Types

Gold gear requires specific crafting materials. Each gear piece type uses different materials:

Where to Get Materials

Material Management

• Always keep Gear Factory production running — empty queues are wasted time
• Prioritise materials for your next craft — do not stockpile randomly
• Share excess materials with alliance members who are in the crafting priority wave
• Track your material needs — know exactly what you need for your next gold gear piece

Gear Blueprints

Blueprints are required to craft Legendary gear. They are one of the most valuable resources in the game.

Blueprint Sources

Legendary Gear Blueprints (gold border):

• Honor Shop — the primary source. Buy all 50 Legendary Gear Blueprints every refresh
• Season Store — check for blueprint availability
• Events — many events reward blueprints
• Packs — some purchase packs include blueprints

Mythic Gear Blueprints (red border) — for the 5-star promotion:

• Ammo Bonanza events — exchange 600+ bullets for up to 10 Mythic Blueprints per cycle
• Season Store — limited availability
• Anniversary events — the best Mythic Blueprint source. Save resources year-round for these
• Special promotional packs — check for value before purchasing

Blueprint Strategy

• Do NOT spread blueprints across many heroes — concentrate them on your main squad
• Focus blueprints on your main DPS hero first (Gun blueprint, then Chip)
• Plan your blueprint usage around the craft order above
• Never use Legendary Blueprints on gear you do not plan to level to 40 — it is a waste of a scarce resource

Star Promotion (Legendary to Mythic)

Once a gear piece reaches Level 40, you can promote it further by adding stars at the Gear Factory (requires Gear Factory Level 20).

How Star Promotion Works

• Each star level requires specific materials and Legendary/Mythic Gear Blueprints
• Stars add percentage-based stat increases on top of the Level 40 base
• Completing a piece to 5-star transforms it from Legendary (gold) to Mythic (red)

Full Costs Per Gear Piece

Per gear piece total: 50 Legendary Blueprints + 10 Mythic Blueprints + 1,250-2,100 Ceramic + 19-34M Gold.

Per hero (all 4 gear slots): 200 Legendary Blueprints + 40 Mythic Blueprints for full 5-star Mythic gear.

Star Promotion Power Spikes

Realistic Timelines

The gear progression journey has three major phases:

• Completing one piece to 5-star can take 6-18 months depending on activity
• Big power spikes come at 2-star and 4-star
• F2P timeline for one fully geared hero (4-star): ~4 months at ~50 blueprints/month
• F2P timeline to reach Mythic (5-star) on one piece: additional 4-6 months for Mythic Blueprints
• One hero with full 5-star Mythic gear: 2-3 years of focused effort

Ceramic Management

Ceramic is a critical material for star promotion. How you allocate it determines your progression speed:

• 60% to your 3 core heroes — your carry, main tank, and secondary DPS
• 25% to formation support heroes — your buffers and crowd control
• 15% to counter heroes — heroes you use for specific matchups

Do not hoard Ceramic without a plan. Know which piece you are promoting next and save toward that specific cost.

Star Promotion Priority

Promote your main DPS hero's gear first:

For Tank Squads:

1. Kimberly's Gun to 2-star, then 4-star
2. Murphy's Radar to 2-star, then 4-star
3. Kimberly's Chip to 2-star
4. Then continue by piece priority

For Aircraft Squads:

1. DVA's Gun to 2-star, then 4-star
2. Carlie's Radar to 2-star, then 4-star
3. DVA's Chip to 2-star
4. Then continue by piece priority

For Missile Squads:

1. Tesla's Gun to 2-star, then 4-star
2. Adam's Radar to 2-star, then 4-star
3. Tesla's Chip to 2-star
4. Then continue by piece priority

Gear for F2P vs. Spending Players

F2P Strategy

Free-to-play players must be even more disciplined with gear:

• Focus entirely on one squad type — you cannot gear multiple squads without spending
• Follow the craft order religiously — every material counts
• Buy Honor Shop blueprints without fail — this is your primary blueprint income
• Participate in every event — gear materials from events are your lifeline
• Coordinate with your alliance — material sharing can accelerate your progress
• Do not craft gold gear for heroes you might replace — plan your long-term squad before crafting

Spending Strategy

Players who spend have more flexibility but should still follow the same principles:

• Packs with Legendary Blueprints and gear materials are the highest-value purchases for gear progression
• Do not buy green/blue/purple gear — only invest in Legendary
• Even with spending, focus still matters — a focused spender beats a scattered one
• Spending accelerates the timeline but does not change the priority order — the craft order is still correct

Gear Swapping Between Squads

As you build multiple squad types, you may want to swap gear between heroes. Key points:

• Gear swapping costs gold — it is not free
• Only swap for important fights — do not swap gear constantly for daily activities
• Plan your gear to avoid swapping — ideally each squad has its own gear set
• In emergencies (SvS, alliance wars), swapping to your strongest configuration is worth the gold cost

The Gear Factory

The Gear Factory is where you craft and promote gear. Key upgrades:

Prioritise upgrading your Gear Factory. It is one of the most important buildings in the game. Reaching Level 15 to unlock gold gear crafting should be a top priority.

Screw Allocation

Screws are the Gear Factory's production currency. How you allocate monthly screws matters:

• 60% to equipment crafting — producing the gear pieces themselves
• 25% to factory upgrades — unlocking higher tiers and faster production
• 15% to material production — supplementary crafting materials

Focus on quality over quantity. Completing full gear sets for your core 5 heroes is more valuable than partial sets for 10 heroes.

Research Consideration

Save Gold for T10 (Tier 10) research before maxing out gear promotion. T10 research provides account-wide permanent bonuses that affect all content, while gear promotion only benefits one hero. If you are approaching T10 research and are short on Gold, pause gear star promotion until research is complete.

Common Gear Mistakes

1. Crafting gold gear randomly — follow the craft order. Every piece should be deliberate
2. Spreading upgrade ore across many pieces — focus one piece to Level 40 before starting the next
3. Skipping the Honor Shop Legendary Blueprints — this is the best value in the game
4. Upgrading green/blue gear — these are placeholder items. Do not invest resources
5. Putting DPS gear on tanks — Gun and Chip go on back-row DPS heroes. Armor and Radar go on front-row tanks
6. Star promoting too many pieces at once — focus on one hero's gear for star promotion, do not spread
7. Not keeping Gear Factory production running — empty queues waste time every minute
8. Ignoring material coordination with alliance — sharing materials accelerates everyone's progress
9. Crafting gold gear for heroes you plan to replace — think about your long-term squad before crafting
10. Upgrading the Material Workshop too early — it produces ceramics for gear but gives poor return on the resource investment early on

Related Guides

• Tank Squad Guide — Tank squad formation with detailed gear craft order
• Aircraft Squad Guide — Aircraft squad gear craft order and transition timing
• Missile Vehicle Squad Guide — Missile squad gear priorities
• Hero Guide — hero investment priorities that inform gear decisions
• Alliance Squad Coordination — coordinating gear crafts across your alliance
• M5-A Railgun Promotion Guide — how to reach 4.5M CP and claim the M5-A during Light of Hope