WARDOGS Loadout Budget Planner
A working WARDOGS loadout calculator: enter cash, tick gear, see cost per life and how many lives you can fund.
Last checked: 16 September 2026 · early access Season 1 build. Early-access numbers change between patches; the in-game vendor is the final word.
What this tool actually does
This is a plain front-end calculator. You type the cash you have, tick the gear and vehicles you want for one life, and the script adds up the price. It then tells you how many lives that bankroll funds at that spend level, and what is left over. If your cash cannot cover even one life of the kit you picked, it suggests a cheaper fallback and shows how many lives the fallback buys instead.
The calculator makes no calls to any server. There is no tracking, no external script, and no network request. Everything runs in your browser from the numbers printed on this page.
The pricing table (Season 1 changelog, 9 September 2026)
Every price below is transcribed from the single-source Season 1 changelog. A single source means BULKHEAD can move these between patches, so the in-game vendor screen is always the authority.
| Item | Price | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Bushmaster M17S rifle | Free | Starter rifle |
| T-21 rifle | $600 | Cheap upgrade |
| GGX17 pistol | $5,000 | Widely regarded as not worth buying first |
| Binoculars | ~$75 | Scout staple |
| Large Hammer | $2,400 | Needed for mortar and building |
| Forward Operating Base (FOB) | $7,500 | Was $2,500 before Season 1 |
| Dune Buggy | $25,000 | Unlocks at Driving 8 |
| Z20 Lakota | $35,000 | |
| URAL | $35,000 | Unlocks at Driving 3 |
| Kodiak Flatbed | $35,000 | Unlocks at Driving 10 |
| Little Bird (with cannon) | $50,000 | |
| 6–10x MRAD scope | $40,000 | |
| 6–10x MOA scope | $45,000 | |
| Artillery Tank | $500,000 | Also needs career level 90 |
The math, written out
The tool applies three simple formulas:
- Per-life cost = sum of every ticked item’s price.
- Lives fundable = floor( your cash ÷ per-life cost ).
- Leftover = your cash − (lives fundable × per-life cost).
The fallback kit is a fixed reference: the T-21 rifle at $600 plus Binoculars at ~$75, which comes to roughly $675 per life. That is the cheapest sensible rifleman loadout once you have outgrown the free Bushmaster. If your selected kit costs more than your cash, the planner recommends dropping to that fallback and reports how many lives $675-per-life buys.
The planner
Tick the gear and vehicles you want for a single life:
How to read the output
A “life” in WARDOGS is one deployment. Cash is kept between matches, but the gear you buy for a life is lost when you die, so the per-life cost is the number that actually drains your bankroll. A starting player with $10,000 and a taste for the Little Bird at $50,000 cannot even fund one life of it — the planner will push you to the $675 fallback, which that same $10,000 funds for about 14 lives.
The fallback exists because the verified brief does not rank weapons. We are not telling you the “best” gun; we are telling you what your money physically allows. If you want to know which cheap kit to actually run first, see the starter loadout breakdown.
What the tool does not do
It does not connect to the game, does not read your account, and does not predict patch changes. It does not recommend weapons, because damage and recoil figures are outside the verified fact list. It also does not account for the level-9-and-below store discount or the career-level gates on vehicles, and the vendor will simply refuse a sale you are not eligible for.
Common input mistakes
- Leaving the cash box empty returns a prompt to enter a number; the script never guesses.
- Ticking nothing returns a reminder to select at least one item.
- Typing text instead of a number is caught by
parseFloatand treated as invalid. - Remembering the Artillery Tank’s $500,000 but forgetting it also needs career level 90 — the planner sums the price regardless, because eligibility is a separate gate.
BULKHEAD’s 12 September 2026 stance still applies here: cash-bug abuse and organised XP farming are punishable. This planner is for honest budgeting only; earning cash through normal play is the only fair path to a bigger bankroll.
Where to go next
For the full itemised list with the “rent-before-buy” traps, open the vehicle and gear prices page. For the fastest legitimate ways to grow the cash you are planning with, the make money fast guide covers the verified payout rates.
Frequently asked questions
Where do the prices in this planner come from?
They are transcribed from BULKHEAD's Season 1 changelog dated 9 September 2026. The changelog is a single source, so treat every figure as patch-dependent.
Does the calculator tell me the best weapon?
No. The tool only adds up prices you select. It does not rank weapons, because weapon damage and recoil numbers are not part of the verified brief.
Why does my budget buy fewer lives than I expected?
Cash in WARDOGS is per-life. Every death loses the gear you bought for that life, so a $50,000 kit burns through a $10,000 starting bankroll in well under one life.
Is the Artillery Tank selectable here?
It is listed at $500,000 and needs career level 90, but the planner just sums price. You still need the XP unlock before the vendor will sell it to you.