WARDOGS Economy: Starting Cash, Respawn Costs and Gold Bars

How does the starting $10,000 work?

It is your opening balance for a continuing economy, not a new allowance every respawn. You purchase weapons, gear, utility and vehicles for each life, and cash continues between matches. Keep money available for the next attempt.

A weapon’s price excludes the rest of the kit. Add ammunition, protection, attachments and any vehicle before deciding what a life costs. Repeating purchases without reviewing the total makes spending difficult to control.

What happens to your cash when you die?

You buy the next life using the balance available in the purchase screen. Dying does not restart your account with a fresh $10,000. The next purchase is the decision to manage.

If your cash drops to zero, the game provides a bankruptcy safety net: each faction offers a $0 starter assault rifle (A-91 for Valkyra, Bushmaster M17S for Lonestar, and KH-2002 for Manticore). This ensures you can always spawn with a viable primary weapon to rebuild your wallet through teamplay and objective control.

How do you know whether a kit is affordable?

Ask whether you can replace it and still continue in a useful role. Check these costs together:

Purchase	What to include
Weapon	Compatible ammunition and selected parts
Protection	Weight, required slots and the rest of the kit
Utility	The task it enables and how often you will use it
Vehicle	Passengers, destination and replacement

The community database helps compare records. The purchase screen settles the charge, while the loadout planner explores carrying weight.

Vendor price hikes: FOB deployables and construction tools

Early Access significantly increases prices on critical team infrastructure to prevent reckless solo spam. In pre-release tests, low vendor costs allowed individual players to place Forward Operating Bases without coordination. The launch economy shifts these into deliberate team investments:

1. FOB Deployables ($4,500+): Forward spawn tents previously priced at $2,500 now cost $4,500 to $5,000 depending on vendor zone modifiers. Placing a FOB is no longer a casual purchase for an individual infantryman; squads must pool cash or commit significant match earnings to establish and protect a forward spawn route. See the building guide for fortification durability and repair mechanics.
2. Large Hammer ($2,400): The high-tier construction tool (unlocked at Support Level 7) increased from $1,600 to $2,400. While the Large Hammer builds defensive walls and barricades twice as fast as the standard starter hammer, its elevated price tag ensures fast construction is prioritized by dedicated Support specialists.
3. Scavenger Alternatives: If vendor prices strain your early wallet, explore contested point-of-interest structures. The scavenger economy loot routes outline industrial buildings and military crates where FOB kits and building tools spawn as free world loot.

Ammunition logistics: 155mm shells and 122mm rocket ordnance

Heavy artillery and rocket ammunition feature massive slot weights that require vehicular supply lines rather than infantry backpacks. BULKHEAD balanced heavy ordnance in Early Access to ensure destructive fire support relies on coordinated team logistics:

• 155mm HE Artillery Shells: Each shell occupies 6 inventory slots (a 3×2 grid footprint) and weighs 70 kg. Carrying a single shell fills standard backpacks and immediately plunges an infantryman into severe encumbrance penalties, drastically slowing sprint speed and draining stamina.
• 122mm Rocket Pods: Multi-rocket ordnance packs similarly exceed solo infantry capacity, restricting field reload operations to vehicular cargo bays.
• Dedicated Transport Logistics: Sustained fire missions with indirect fire vehicles like the SPH-2 cannot be fed by infantry carrying shells by hand. Squads must designate transport trucks (such as the Ural Defender) or APCs to ferry ammunition crates from main base depots directly to the firing battery. Protecting this supply line is just as critical as protecting the artillery piece itself.

How can you earn without chasing kills?

Revive teammates, transport friendlies, control the objective and provide useful spotting. Teammates can also tip support such as healing, repairs, refuelling or a ride.

The cash guide connects each task with its risks. A reward is gross income; compare it with what the attempt cost before repeating it.

What are gold bars and the Gold Exchange?

BULKHEAD describes exchanging in-game cash for gold bars used on seasonal cosmetics. Its Gold Bars explanation says the exchange rate changes daily. Check the displayed rate before converting cash you may need for equipment.

Cosmetics, equipment purchases and progression unlocks serve different purposes. A cosmetic purchase does not unlock a weapon or fund the next kit. See progression and skills for the difference.

Is WARDOGS pay-to-win?

BULKHEAD describes WARDOGS as having no pay-to-win purchases. Steam sells the game and a Supporter Pack; inspect that pack’s contents before buying. The ordinary equipment economy is earned through play.

For resets, community-server behavior or future seasonal systems, read the active announcement before assuming your balance or stored items are permanent across every change.

Sources

• WARDOGS on Steam
• Team17 game overview
• BULKHEAD — Gold Bars and exchange rates
• BULKHEAD — progression, purchases and persistence Q&A

Source: Latest game version.