Wanderburg Builds: Ram, Cannons, and Spiderburg Mages

Choose Ram for deliberate collision passes, Side Cannon for ranged bursts on Wanderturm, or two Top mages on Spiderburg for damage while moving. Start with one damage engine, develop it before adding support, and keep an escape tool ready. The loadouts below turn named player setups into a starting selection, a target configuration, and a sequence you can follow.

Choose a build you can start today

These are target selections for players who own the pieces. If a Captain is missing, use your familiar unlocked Captain and read its trade-off before starting. If Bumper or Reset Lever is missing, choose an owned Artifact whose effect works with the equipped weapon; do not spend every reroll trying to recreate the table.

The starters come from doom_hamster's September 12–20 Steam posts and RoKit's Ram/Dash suggestions. The stage-by-stage priorities below are our editorial route through those choices, adjusted for the official 0.9.14 changes. See the sources at the end for the original configurations.

Ram: finish the pass before starting another

Use Ram in Front as the main damage source. Bumper is the speed-related melee Artifact in the player's starter. Leave room beyond the target before committing to contact. Pick an isolated enemy for the opening passes so you can judge where the castle finishes its turn.

1. Develop Ram first. When offered a choice, decide whether you need a stronger hit or better access to the target; a damage upgrade helps only if the collision connects.
2. Add Dash in Back for the exit. Keep its active available when approaching a dangerous target.
3. Add Top Mortar for another attack while repositioning, and Side Arms when that slot is offered. Keep early upgrades concentrated on the attack already landing.
4. After contact, leave the enemy's attack area, release boost to allow recovery, then line up the next pass. Since 0.9.8, Nitro regeneration begins 0.5 seconds after boost use.

Duelist has a cost: the official 0.9.10 note still leaves a 20% extra-damage-taken penalty while boosting. If the approach repeatedly costs too much health, change the Captain or angle before adding another damage card. With Companion, you are choosing a Back damage tool instead of Dash; reserve enough Nitro for the exit when making that swap.

Cannons: build a useful firing angle

Keep Side Cannon as the first damage investment. Add Cannon Tower in Top and Front Cannon in Front as the appropriate slots become available. Dash or Mine Layer can occupy Back; choose escape or pursuit damage according to the problem ending your runs.

For each encounter, approach with a way out, turn until the side cannon can bear on the target, use the active burst, and reposition while it recovers. A Front Cannon needs a front-facing opportunity of its own. Adding it does not remove the need to aim the Side Cannon.

Prioritize damage for the cannon attack that is connecting, then its attack availability. If a burst misses because the target passes out of the firing angle, practise the turn before spending levels on a second weapon. Add optional cannon Artifacts only after reading which projectile or event they affect. Artifacts explains how to distinguish a cannonball trigger from a general damage bonus.

For a Side Cannon active build, the same player's September 15 follow-up recommends the slowdown upgrade, an extra active volley, and Lead Core's cannonball knockback. Those are a control-and-burst package: slow the pursuer, land the volley, then turn away during recovery. Develop active cooldown alongside the volley if waiting for another shot is what leaves you exposed. This is a more specific route than taking every automatic and active upgrade equally.

PatchyThePirate's incoming enemy-cannon penalty was reduced from 50% to 25% in 0.9.10. Keep that cost in mind when ranged enemies are cutting the run short. Changing to a familiar Captain is a useful way to separate a positioning problem from the extra incoming damage.

Spiderburg mages: one engine, then the second Top

Start with Lightning Mage, named Electric Mage in official patch notes, and add Fire Mage to the other Top position during the run. The reported complete layout is Teleporter in Front, two mages in Top, and Dash in Back. Use the Spiderburg unlock guide if the chassis or second Top option is blocking your start.

Develop the first mage before dividing upgrades between two unfinished weapons. In 0.9.14, Electric Mage's automatic attack reaches seven base targets, up from five. Once Fire Mage is available, choose improvements that make it contribute along the route you are driving. Read whether a card affects one module or all Top modules before comparing it with a narrower upgrade.

Use the lightning active when enemies are within its effective range, move through clear ground, and save Teleporter or Dash for a threatened exit. Tankbert's Nitro regeneration penalty is 30% slower after 0.9.10, so avoid using both escape tools to enter a fight. Keep one available for leaving.

If incoming cannonballs keep cutting off that route, Force Mage can replace Teleporter in Front, while Dash stays in Back for escape. Its active projectile cancellation is documented in 0.9.9. This trades a second repositioning tool for a way to interrupt projectiles; use the active when the shots threaten your path, rather than expecting its automatic attack to provide the same protection.

For Overtime, watch whether the particular enemy actually responds to stun. 0.9.14 changes Overtime stun resistance; a successful early-map control window does not guarantee the same window against a late Overtime enemy.

Upgrade for the next encounter

Use these checkpoints when choosing between an upgrade to your main attack and another module. You do not need every support piece before the build starts working.

For a different chassis, compare vehicle slots and unlocks before buying modules. Tankenburg has a different Front/Back layout; the three starters here are not layouts to copy onto every vehicle.

Slot conflicts and useful substitutions

Fix the part that is failing

If you reach a boss with weak damage, identify which attack is landing and concentrate the next upgrades there. If you die between attack windows, preserve an exit tool and shorten the approach. If the loadout works until Overtime, review enemy control and Nitro recovery separately from ordinary-map damage. Turn on the damage numbers added in 0.9.13 to see whether your attacks are connecting.

For your next attempt, change one choice that addresses the failure: Captain penalty, main weapon investment, or escape slot. This makes the result useful even when the map changes. For purchase planning, continue to Silver farming.

Adjust a build for Overtime pursuers

The September 15–16 replies in the build thread focus on relative movement speed and control, especially against the rotating-blade enemies. Their practical warning for Ram is useful: accelerating through contact can carry you back into the pursuer after the hit. End the pass in open space instead of planning the next collision immediately.

For cannons, the player's active-volley, slow, and knockback combination aims to create separation between shots. For mages, the reported choice is a shorter-cooldown Lightning Mage active while preserving a movement tool. These are candidate adjustments for a run that already clears the ordinary map. The later 0.9.13 enemy balance changes and 0.9.14 stun-resistance changes are why this guide does not promise the thread's older survival time or Silver earnings.

Sources and review date

Reviewed October 19, 2026: doom_hamster's starters, active-cannon upgrades, and RoKit's Ram/Dash suggestions, the reported dual-mage configuration, official 0.9.8 Nitro changes, 0.9.9 Force Mage changes, 0.9.10 Captain trade-offs, and 0.9.13–0.9.14 changes. The original player posts predate 0.9.14. Loadout results are player reports; stage priorities and substitutions are editorial guidance, without site-measured DPS or win-rate claims.