Workbench manual
Build the maze with your tools
Every tool is both a tower and a wall. Shape a long route across the graph-paper bench, cover the flying lanes, and keep the traced pattern intact through the final wave.
The first five moves
- Choose a tool. On touch, tap its card; with a mouse, click the card or drag it onto the bench.
- Build a legal route. Ground creeps must always have a path. The bench refuses a placement that closes every route or lands on a creep.
- Read the arrows. Ground waves may enter from the west or north. Flyers ignore the maze and cross an air band or air lane.
- Reshape the maze. Standard tool sales return the full amount invested, including upgrades, so a wall can become a new firing line.
- Protect the pattern. Every leak tears away pattern integrity. Survive the final wave before it reaches zero.
Touch, mouse, and keyboard controls
| Input | Action |
|---|---|
| Tap a tool, then the bench | Park its outline; use Place, Turn, or Cancel beside it. |
| Drag on the bench | Aim precisely while the placement preview stays above your fingertip. |
| Tap a placed tool | Open upgrade, sell, re-arm, and detailed statistics. |
| Two fingers | Pinch to zoom and pan the bench. |
| Mouse drag or card click | Place once by dragging, or arm a tool for repeated placement by clicking. |
| 1–9, 0, Q, W, E, T, Y | Select a tool from the palette. |
| R / W A S D / Enter | Rotate, nudge, and place an armed tool. |
| U / S | Upgrade or sell the selected tool. |
| Space | Send the next wave early for bonus gold. |
| F / P / M / H | Cycle speed, pause, toggle sound, or open help. |
Choose the right play mode
Standard
The unrestricted game. Rebuild freely, save and watch replays, ask Strategy Finder for a continuation, or follow a Strategy Runbook. Every saved run remembers how it was played.
Ranked Challenge
A locked run with a server-chosen seed. Finder and guided builds are disabled. A completed run earns CERT once the server has replayed it and reached the same result.
Study the bench
Handbook
Meet all 15 tools and 17 creep types before they arrive.
Difficulties
Compare the six difficulties, from 60 relaxed waves to a 200-wave gauntlet.
Strategy tools
Watch portable replays, search a paused board, and follow build guides in Standard.