The Hoard
Your pets crack chests around the clock and besiege the 50 gates that unlock the rest of the game.
THE HOARD is where your pets work while you are away. You stand a crew of pets in the hoard and they do two jobs at once: they crack chests around the clock, and — when you send them — they attack the gate, a wall with a huge health bar that remembers every dent between attempts. Chests are the income (Hoard Chests); gates are the progress (Gates).
The gates are the spine of the whole game. Almost every mode and menu — THE ARMORY, BONUS WHEEL, RED DICE, GUILDS, BALL FACTORY, EXPEDITIONS and more — is locked behind a gate, and nothing is grandfathered: every account climbs the same ladder. A gate never hands out a stat. It opens a menu, or a row in THE ARMORY or a world's expedition shop, and your strength comes from what you do with those.
Unlocking the Hoard
The Hoard opens on the intro task ladder and nowhere else: the rungs walk you through crafting your first bars and spending them on the UPGRADES page, and claiming task 14, “Upgrade Gate Accuracy”, opens it. Your Arcade level does not open it. Accounts older than the intro ladder have it open already.
Once it is open, the Hoard is the HOARD tab on the bottom bar, beside ARCADE and BOARD; until then the tab shows a padlock. The screen shows the live chest and its health bar, a strip of the next 5 chests, your crew slots, and the gate standing behind it all.
The crew
You start with 1 free slot and the hoard shows all 16. Every slot you do not have yet says on it where it comes from — its shard or gem price, SKILL TREE, or the number of skins — and tapping it takes you there. The rest come from these:
| Source | Slots | How |
|---|---|---|
 Free | 1 | Open from the start. |
 Gem shop | 3 | HOARD PET SLOT in the SHOP's GEM UPGRADES: 1,000 gems, then 5,000 gems, then 25,000 gems. Accounts that existed when the hoard went from three free seats to one own both already, so no crew lost a seat. |
 Bought with shards | 7 | Prices: 100 → 500 → 1,000 → 2,500 → 10,000 → 50,000 → 100,000 shards (164,100 in all). |
 Slot tokens | shortcut | A CHAMPION CHEST has a 25% chance to drop a pet slot token. It opens one of the same 7 buyable seats for free, so it skips the dearest purchase you have left. |
 Skill tree collars | 4 | The skill tree's collar keystones: ONE MORE COLLAR, THE SECOND COLLAR, THE THIRD COLLAR, THE LAST COLLAR. |
 Skin ladder | 1 | The skin ladder's reward for owning 20 skins. |
The hoard never holds more than 16 pets, whatever you have unlocked.
Any pet you own
The Hoard is its own screen, so any regular or limited pet you own can stand in it — including one equipped on the board, out on an expedition or working in the Ball Factory. It does both jobs at once. (The board and its own jobs still share their pets one at a time — see One pet, one job.) In the PETS menu a crew pet's page has a REMOVE FROM HOARD button (its card carries no banner — it can be on the board at the same time), and it cannot be salvaged or traded until it comes out.
- Pet items do nothing in the Hoard — only the pet itself counts.
- Elusive pets cannot stand in the Hoard.
- The Charm Octopus works here too: with it in the crew, hold it to charm up to 3 crew pets (one per octopus star). A charm multiplies that pet's damage, the same way a purple star does.
What makes a pet strong here
Against the gate, every part of a pet multiplies: its rarity, its level, each fusion and purple star, evolution, being shiny, its nature and a charm. An unfinished pet - low level, short of its top star, low rarity - is far weaker than a finished one; a fully maxed pet of any rarity keeps its full power. A maxed mythic hits about 6,000× as hard as a common Lv 1 pet, and every pet in the hoard after the first multiplies the whole crew by ×2, so a full crew of fifteen equal pets hits about 245,760× as hard as one of them.
| Part of the pet | Gate damage |
|---|---|
| Rarity | COMMON ×1 UNCOMMON ×1.5 RARE ×2 EPIC ×3 LEGENDARY ×4 MYTHIC ×5 |
| …until Lv 100 | A lower rarity starts below its full number and grows into it by Lv 100: COMMON ×0.3 UNCOMMON ×0.4 RARE ×0.55 EPIC ×0.7 LEGENDARY ×0.85 at Lv 1 |
| Level | ×1 at Lv 1, ×5.4 at Lv 100, ×30 at Lv 200 |
| Each purple star | ×2 |
| Fusion stars | At its top star (3★, or a mythic's 2★) ×1.5 a star as before. One star short of the top (a 2★ regular pet) is ÷3.9; two short (a 1★ regular pet) ÷50 |
| Evolved | ×5 |
| Shiny | ×1.05 |
| Each other pet in the hoard | ×2 on the whole crew |
Chests use a much gentler version of the same pet — rarity is ×1 to ×2 there, and chest speed has its own percent model (below).
Three pets exist only for this mode — see Hoard Pets.
Chest speed and gate damage
The Hoard has two separate numbers, and upgrades feed one or the other:
| Chest Speed | Hoard / Gate Damage | |
|---|---|---|
| Used for | Opening chests | Breaking gates |
| Shape | A percentage. 100% = the hours printed on the chest. Every source adds. | A damage number with no ceiling. Sources inside one menu add; different menus multiply each other. |
| From the crew | +5% per pet standing in the hoard, +2% per purple star on them, +2% per evolved pet | Each pet's gate power (rarity, level, stars, evolution, nature, charm — see above), times ×2 for every other pet in the hoard, then your Damage per Pet Star and Evolved Pet Damage upgrades |
| From upgrades | Every Chest Speed row (shard shop, achievements, skill tree, Armory, artifacts, statues). These are small on purpose. | Hoard Damage, Pet Power, Team Damage and Hoard Swing Speed share one additive pool; then Gate Damage compounds source by source, then crits, mega hits and ferocity. |
| Read it on | The HUD chip, e.g. “271% CHEST” | The gate page: damage per attempt, accuracy, armor |
Shards and the Shard Shop
Chest Shards are the Hoard's own currency. Every chest pays them, and they are only spent here: on pet slots (above), on the SHARD SHOP's upgrade rows below, and on the artifact rows. Tier II and III rows open at later gates and pay double and four times a level.
| Upgrade | What it does | Per level | Levels | Maxed | First | Last | Total shards | Needs gate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Crowbars | Chests break open faster. | +0.5% Chest Speed | 20 | +10% | 60 | 46,900 | 158,551 | — |
 Deep Pockets | Every chest pays more balls, gems and shards. | +4% Chest Loot | 15 | +60% | 90 | 31,600 | 92,251 | — |
 Shard Sieve | Chests drop more of the shards you spend in this shop. | +5% Shards from Chests | 12 | +60% | 120 | 24,200 | 62,995 | — |
 Artifact Nose | A chest is likelier to carry an artifact. | +4% Artifact Chance | 12 | +48% | 150 | 30,300 | 78,845 | — |
 Second Look | A chance the chest rolls its ARTIFACT twice. | +2% Double Artifact Roll | 10 | +20% | 200 | 30,800 | 71,633 | — |
 Point Magnet | Chests drop skill points more often. | +1% Skill Point Drops | 10 | +10% | 180 | 27,700 | 64,371 | — |
 Whetstones | Every pet in the hoard hits harder. | +2% Hoard Damage | 20 | +40% | 70 | 54,800 | 185,098 | — |
 War Drums | The hoard swings faster. | +3% Hoard Swing Speed | 15 | +45% | 90 | 31,600 | 92,251 | — |
 Den Lore | With two or more pets in the hoard, every pet hits harder. | +3% Team Damage | 10 | +30% | 140 | 21,600 | 50,134 | — |
 Battering Ram | Swings at the gate hit harder. | +5% Gate Damage | 15 | +75% | 120 | 42,200 | 123,065 | — |
 Keen Sights | More swings land through the armor. | +8 Gate Accuracy | 15 | +120 | 100 | 35,100 | 102,439 | — |
 Quick Breath | The gate cooldown is shorter. | +1% Gate Cooldown Cut | 10 | +10% | 160 | 24,600 | 57,258 | — |
 Wedge Bits | Ignore more of the gate’s armor. | +4 Armor Pierce | 12 | +48 | 140 | 28,200 | 73,523 | — |
 Killing Instinct | A swing is likelier to crit. | +2% Crit Chance | 10 | +20% | 220 | 33,900 | 78,849 | — |
 Pack Training | Every pet’s own damage goes up. | +3% Pet Power | 15 | +45% | 110 | 38,700 | 112,747 | — |
 Star Polish | Each star on a hoard pet (fusion and purple stars) makes it hit harder. | +0.1% Damage per Pet Star | 12 | +1.2% | 160 | 32,300 | 84,079 | — |
| Risen Blood | Evolved pets in the hoard hit harder. | +2% Evolved Pet Damage | 12 | +24% | 180 | 36,300 | 94,519 | — |
| False Bottoms | A hidden compartment in every chest — a little more of everything. | +2% Chest Loot | 10 | +20% | 240 | 36,900 | 85,865 | — |
| Rich Seam | A dealt chest is sometimes one tier better. | +1% Chest Tier-Up Chance | 8 | +8% | 300 | 32,200 | 65,745 | — |
| Night Shift | The hoard sweeps up after itself — every chest leaves more shards. | +2% Shards from Chests | 12 | +24% | 130 | 26,200 | 68,300 | — |
| Whetstones II | Every pet in the hoard hits harder. | +4% Hoard Damage | 20 | +80% | 5,000 | 100,000 | 657,650 |  20 |
| Whetstones III | Every pet in the hoard hits harder. | +8% Hoard Damage | 20 | +160% | 20,000 | 249,000 | 1.86M | 35 |
| Battering Ram II | Swings at the gate hit harder. | +10% Gate Damage | 15 | +150% | 5,000 | 100,000 | 499,390 | 20 |
| Battering Ram III | Swings at the gate hit harder. | +20% Gate Damage | 15 | +300% | 20,000 | 251,000 | 1.42M | 35 |
| Keen Sights II | More swings land through the armor. | +16 Gate Accuracy | 15 | +240 | 5,000 | 100,000 | 499,390 | 20 |
| Keen Sights III | More swings land through the armor. | +32 Gate Accuracy | 15 | +480 | 20,000 | 251,000 | 1.42M | 35 |
| Wedge Bits II | Ignore more of the gate’s armor. | +8 Armor Pierce | 12 | +96 | 5,000 | 100,000 | 403,390 | 20 |
| Wedge Bits III | Ignore more of the gate’s armor. | +16 Armor Pierce | 12 | +192 | 20,000 | 250,000 | 1.14M | 35 |
| Pack Training II | Every pet’s own damage goes up. | +6% Pet Power | 15 | +90% | 5,000 | 100,000 | 499,390 | 20 |
| Pack Training III | Every pet’s own damage goes up. | +12% Pet Power | 15 | +180% | 20,000 | 251,000 | 1.42M | 35 |
The rest of the mode
- Hoard Chests — the five chest tiers and everything they drop.
- Gates — the 50-gate ladder, its health, armor and unlocks.
- Artifacts — 25 one-time finds that multiply their shard-shop row.
- Achievements (gate 11), Bounties (gate 11) and the Skill Tree (gate 12).
- Hoard Pets — three pets only chests can pay.
See also
- Hoard Chests — The five Hoard chest tiers: open times, loot, the chest cycle, banked chests, keys and every rare drop.
- Gates — The 50-gate ladder: how attacks work, health and armor for every gate, and everything each gate unlocks.
- Artifacts — 25 one-time finds from Hoard chests. Each multiplies its own shard-shop row: ×2 Worn, ×3 Gilded, ×4 Divine.
- Skill Tree — One long tree of 55 nodes and 5 keystones, bought with skill points from chests and gates.
- Achievements — 151 one-time goals in three tiers — Easy, Hard and Extreme — and the Achievement Shop their points buy.
- Bounties — Craft bars and collect ore while a bounty is live - or, rarely, win a raid or grove run - for Bounty Points, build a streak for bonus points, and spend them on upgrades that reset each prestige.
- Hoard Pets — Rampart Ram, Vault Pangolin, Warlord Hyena — three pets only Hoard chests can pay, each built for one Hoard job.
- The Armory — The permanent bar shop that opens at gate 1. 32 rows that survive every prestige — each unlocked by a gate — including the extra daily dice runs.
- Pet Natures — Every regular and limited pet has one of 13 natures: +15% at one job, −10% at another. The full grid, what each job means, how natures are rolled, and the one-pet-one-job rule.
- Intro Tasks — The 25-step tutorial bar at the top of the board: every task, its reward, the free pets it pays and which menus each step unlocks.