Wanderburg Beginner Guide: Controls & Your First Run

Start by learning driving and one attack, then use upgrades to support that attack. Wanderburg is a single-player game about driving a growing fortress, consuming smaller targets, and building a modular arsenal. The practical first-run task is to control your movement while recognizing what your equipped module does automatically and what requires an active ability.

Controls with a source you can check

• Driving: players describe WASD and mouse steering in the original controls discussion ↗. Those reports concern the demo; the September feedback also refers to A/D steering, but a complete current default binding chart remains unverified.
• Stats: Ctrl, changed from Alt in official hotfix 0.9.6.
• Pause and quests: a September 13 player report (#7, EA 0.9.10–0.9.11) ↗ describes Esc for pause and Tab for active quests. These are reported keyboard inputs, not a controller mapping.

Boost, module activations and rebinding: a current default-key chart and exact settings path have not been verified. September 8 replies in the keybindings thread ↗ report missing remapping, so this guide cannot promise a rebinding menu. Use the prompts visible in your installed game; do not substitute a guessed Shift or Space binding.

Controller steering changed after 0.9.15?

Check the Alternate Controller Layout setting first. The October 22 hotfix ↗ changed its default to Off and applied a one-time reset to Off. If you had been using the alternative layout, the update can therefore change your selected mode without you choosing a different vehicle.

1. Open the current options interface and find the named Alternate Controller Layout option. Check its actual value; the patch notes do not supply a complete current controller-button chart.
2. If you want the alternative style again, enable that option deliberately. Compare steering in a familiar area, then keep the setting that matches your intended handling.
3. If the problem is repeated keyboard/controller icon switching, a frozen menu or a game exit, use the input symptom check or crash guide instead. The documented one-time reset does not establish a fix for those separate symptoms.

Do this comparison before spending Silver on movement equipment to compensate for an unexpected setting change. This is a decision sequence based on the official reset, not a controller playtest by this site.

A short first-run checklist

1. Choose the input method before committing to a run. The game supports mouse/keyboard and controller. On controller, compare the alternative driving style added in 0.9.8 if the original feels awkward; 0.9.15 turns that option Off once, so check it again after updating. Use the bindings displayed by your installed version rather than a demo-era key chart.
2. Learn movement before chasing a complicated loadout. Practise steering around a small target and identify your boost input. The official game loop includes consuming villages, sheep and smaller fortresses; it does not mean every larger enemy can safely be consumed immediately.
3. Read the automatic and active effects on your module. Pick one job to learn. For example, Side Ballista’s active and automatic attacks were changed in opposite directions in 0.9.9, so treating them as the same attack can lead to the wrong upgrade choice.
4. Leave time for Nitro to begin recovering. There is a 0.5-second delay after boosting in 0.9.8. Repeated tapping is not evidence that regeneration is broken. A Captain can impose a further regeneration penalty.
5. Use the current stats shortcut when comparing a change. The official 0.9.6 note changed it from Alt to Ctrl. On a controller or a differently configured setup, follow the binding shown in the game.
6. After the run, choose the next unlock for a reason. If you want additional module rerolls, check the six-unlock threshold in the module guide. Do not combine the module count with the artifact count.

What should you unlock after the first run?

Choose the next usable loadout piece before chasing another reroll threshold. After a boss kill, collect its tombstone: 0.9.9 made these collectible for Silver, and 0.9.13 sets a minimum of 50 Silver from every boss. These are reward rules, not a promise of a particular farming rate. ^[1]

1. Check the missing piece: if you want Spiderburg but lack a second Top module, prioritise a compatible Top choice before buying an unrelated Side module. Use the unlock and slot checks to distinguish access from equipment.
2. Count each unlock category separately: the official 0.9.10 thresholds award one extra new-Module reroll per six Modules, and one extra Artifact reroll per six Artifacts. At five unlocked Modules, one more reaches the first Module threshold; buying an Artifact instead does not. ^[1]
3. Compare the actual price with your Silver: use the price shown in your game. A boss minimum does not establish an exact number of runs to buy an unlock, because prices, other rewards and your results differ.

If the loadout already works, the sixth unlock can add choice. If the vehicle cannot start, resolve the required slot first. This is a suggested spending order derived from the slot and reroll rules, not a measured fastest progression route.

Three common first-run misunderstandings

• “An active buff improves all damage.” Check which attack changed; automatic damage may have changed differently.
• “A boost penalty applies all the time.” Duelist’s extra damage taken is tied to boosting. Tankbert’s drawback concerns Nitro regeneration. These are different costs.
• “A demo guide describes the current release.” The demo was retired at Early Access launch. Use the current release and demo explanation when comparing old videos.

Your next useful page

Choose active attacks or control for a concrete build direction, or look up the Captain penalty that changes the way you drive. You do not need a universal strongest build to learn these choices.