Tundra's debut roguelike takes FTL's paused ship combat and drops it into a techno-gothic future where the Solar Empire worships the Immortal God King Hyperion and three Ruinous Cults want the same prize you do. A run crosses exactly six sectors and the sixth is always the Imperial Coreworlds, whose final node is the Vault of Souls. Every playable hull carries 30 hull points and room for at most nine installed systems, and the only ship unlocked when you start is Imperial Cruiser A, the Triumph of Heaven. Crew come from seven human factions with more than seventy distinct types between them, so boarding parties are built rather than drafted.
These tips go beyond the basics. They're the strategies experienced players use to play more efficiently, the hidden mechanics most people miss, and the optimizations that compound over a full playthrough. If you're just starting, check our beginner's guide first.
Essential Tips
1. Shield power only moves in steps of two, and each additional barrier costs two upgrade levels
Shield power only moves in steps of two, and each additional barrier costs two upgrade levels. Budget for that before you buy a third weapon you then cannot power.
2. Nine systems is the hard ceiling per hull
Nine systems is the hard ceiling per hull. Installing a system you never intend to power is a wasted slot you cannot reclaim later in the run.
3. Crew standing in a system room make that system run better
Crew standing in a system room make that system run better. An empty Engines room during a fight is a measurable loss of evasion, not a cosmetic detail.
4. All three Vault of Souls bosses carry shield boosters
All three Vault of Souls bosses carry shield boosters. Bring an ion heavy loadout, a missile or bomb to knock the shields out early, or a boarding party willing to kill the crew instead.
5. The bosses swarm you with boarding parties of their own
The bosses swarm you with boarding parties of their own. A crew that cannot win a fight in your own corridors will lose the run even if your guns are fine.
6. Hoard repair drones and repair equipment through the last two sectors
Hoard repair drones and repair equipment through the last two sectors. The final fights either destroy or heavily ion your systems, and repairs mid fight are what keep weapons online.
7. The Death Cult boss floods rooms with poison clouds
The Death Cult boss floods rooms with poison clouds. A psyker with Purify, or a stock of Antidote, turns that phase from lethal into an inconvenience.
8. Route through Imperial Shrineworlds if you want Imperial Citizen crew, since that trait shows up far more often there than in neutral space
Route through Imperial Shrineworlds if you want Imperial Citizen crew, since that trait shows up far more often there than in neutral space.
9. High Threat Target nodes are usually a large ship with four weapons, and beating one unlocks a new hull in the hangar
High Threat Target nodes are usually a large ship with four weapons, and beating one unlocks a new hull in the hangar. Take them when your build has already come together, not before.
10. Resonance accumulates whether you win or lose, so a failed run in sector four still buys progress toward variants like the 5000 Resonance Type B Sunhammer
Resonance accumulates whether you win or lose, so a failed run in sector four still buys progress toward variants like the 5000 Resonance Type B Sunhammer.
Advanced Strategies
Build Optimization
The difference between an average build and an optimized one is massive. See our builds guide for full breakdowns.
For The Empire (A-Tier):
- Focus on Reactor power across nine system slots combinations for maximum output.
- Core gear: Cannons
- Stat priority: Offensive stats first
For Raider Clans (A-Tier):
- Versatile approach that handles any situation.
- Core gear: Beam Armaments
- Stat priority: Balanced stats
Mechanic Interactions
Understanding how Void War's systems interact is where the real optimization lives. Our combat guide covers this in detail.
Reactor power across nine system slots + Cannons, beams, lances and missile templates: Systems do nothing until the Reactor feeds them, and no hull accepts more than nine installed systems, so every purchase is also a decision about what you will never fit. Combined with Cannons, beams, lances and missile templates, cannons never pierce shields but each hit strips one layer, beams sweep multiple rooms in a single burst and bounce off any shielding at all, and lances start pre charged and punch straight through shields for a limited number of shots per battle.
Boarding actions with faction crew and wargear + A six sector run to the Vault of Souls: You recruit crew from the human factions and equip them with weapons, armour and operational gear before sending them over. When paired with A six sector run to the Vault of Souls, six sectors, chosen from types such as protostar wastes, raider clanworlds, imperial shrineworlds and forge enclaves, then the imperial coreworlds at the end.
Resonance unlocks between runs scaling: Runs pay out Resonance whether you finish them or not, and Resonance buys the B and C variants of hulls you have already reached. The Type B Sunhammer costs 5000, and other ships unlock instead by clearing the Vault of Souls with a specific hull or by killing a High Threat Target.
Equipment Efficiency
| Equipment | Best Use Case | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Cannons | Stripping shield layers so a beam or boarding party can do the real work | Armaments that fire one or more physical rounds or energy bursts per salvo. |
| Beam Armaments | Follow up damage across three or more rooms once shields are already down | Beams fire in one continuous burst over several seconds and cut through multiple rooms on a single pass, which makes them the highest total damage option in the game per shot. |
| Lances | Opening bursts against heavily shielded ships and High Threat Targets | Lances begin every battle pre charged, travel at high projectile speed and pierce shielding outright, which no other armament category does reliably. |
| Ion Armaments | Permanently suppressing enemy shields or medical systems during a boarding action | Ion weapons attack a system's capacity to draw power rather than the hull. |
| Missile Bays | Answering a specific problem mid fight when your main weapons cannot solve it | A Missile Bay holds up to three Missile Templates simultaneously and you switch between them manually during a battle. |
Location Efficiency
Protostar Wastes (Sector 1 through 4, can repeat): One of the few sector types that can appear more than once in a single run and can also be your starting sector. It is unclaimed space, which means the encounter mix leans toward hazards and fights rather than merchants, so plan to leave it with less scrap than you entered.
Raider Clanworlds (Sector 2 through 5): Home space for the loose alliance of pirates descended from old starship crews and spaceyard workers. Raider crew are common recruits here, and the faction occasionally makes common cause with anti Imperial rebels, which changes how encounters resolve if you have pledged against the Empire.
Imperial Shrineworlds (Sector 2 through 5): Devotional Imperial space where crew carrying the Imperial Citizen trait turn up far more often than anywhere else. If you want a crew built around Imperial troops rather than cultists or raiders, this is the sector to route through while you still have jumps to spare.
Forge Enclaves (Sector 3 through 5): Technocult industrial space, run by priests of the Machine Cult who put knowledge and rationality above everything else. It is the sector to visit when your ship needs parts rather than people, since the encounter tables lean toward systems, modules and upgrades.
Imperial Coreworlds (Sector 6, final): Always the sixth and final sector, ending at the Vault of Souls. The Vault is guarded by a hostile ship representing one of the three Ruinous Cults, and on your first three completions you meet them in a fixed order: the Doom Engine, then the Necropolis Barge, then the Ariokine Starflayer.
Mistakes Even Veterans Make
- Buying a third weapon before the Reactor can run it alongside Shields and Engines, which leaves you with an expensive system sitting unpowered during every fight.
- Sending the whole crew on a boarding action and leaving Engines and Shields unmanned, so the ship you are trying to capture wins the exchange at home.
- Treating Lances as a main weapon. They pierce shields and start charged, but the per battle shot cap means the fight has to end quickly or you have nothing left.
- Arriving at the Vault of Souls with no repair equipment. The bosses ion or destroy systems faster than an unassisted crew can fix them.
- Spending every jump chasing combat in Exclusion Zones, then reaching sector five with no shipyard visited and a hull that is still on its starting loadout.
Pro Quick Tips
- Shield power only moves in steps of two, and each additional barrier costs two upgrade levels. Budget for that before you buy a third weapon you then cannot power.
- Nine systems is the hard ceiling per hull. Installing a system you never intend to power is a wasted slot you cannot reclaim later in the run.
- Crew standing in a system room make that system run better. An empty Engines room during a fight is a measurable loss of evasion, not a cosmetic detail.
- Start with Raider Clans, switch to The Empire when ready
- Invest in Cannons above everything else
- Clear areas in order: Protostar Wastes → Raider Clanworlds → Imperial Shrineworlds → Forge Enclaves → Imperial Coreworlds. See our maps guide
- Reactor power across nine system slots + Cannons, beams, lances and missile templates together are stronger than either alone
More Void War Guides
- Void War Void War Overview
- Void War Best Builds
- Void War Tier List
- Void War Walkthrough
- Void War Beginner's Guide
- Void War Weapons Guide
- Void War Combat Guide
- Void War Boss Guide
- Void War Maps & Locations
- Void War Crafting Guide
- Void War Classes & Characters
Similar Games
If you enjoy Void War, check out these related guides:
- Risk of Rain 2 Tips & Tricks: roguelike game with similar mechanics
- Hades Tips & Tricks: roguelike game with similar mechanics
- Darkest Dungeon Tips & Tricks: roguelike game with similar mechanics
