Last War Arms Race Guide: Phases, Rewards and Strategy

The Last War Arms Race is a recurring daily event built around activities you already perform during normal progression: upgrading buildings, training troops, completing research, improving heroes, and using Drone resources. The difference is timing. Performing the right action during its matching Arms Race phase earns event points, which unlock phase chests, Arms Race Badges, daily milestone rewards, and ranking rewards.

For most players, the efficient approach is not to compete aggressively in every phase. Instead, save your resources, identify the phases you can complete cheaply, and aim for the daily badge milestones without wasting speedups or progression materials.

How Last War Arms Race Works

Each Arms Race day is divided into six four-hour phases. Five main activity types rotate through those slots, meaning one type appears more than once during the day.

The six daily slots cover a full 24-hour cycle. Phase order changes as the schedule rotates, so the Arms Race calendar in-game should always be your final reference when planning upgrades.

Scoring requirements are also not identical for every player. Milestone thresholds and some rewards can scale with Headquarters level or the contest segment assigned to your account. This is why a point target shown by another player may not match the number displayed in your own event.

Arms Race Chests and Badge Rewards

Every active phase has three point milestones. Reaching each milestone opens a phase chest and provides Arms Race Badges.

Completing all three milestones in one phase therefore gives six badges. Across six daily phases, the theoretical maximum is 36 badges.

The daily badge milestones are:

• 2 Badges: first daily reward chest
• 8 Badges: second daily reward chest
• 18 Badges: final daily reward chest

Best Strategy for Each Arms Race Phase

Base Building

Base Building rewards construction-related progression. Building power gains and construction speedup usage are the main scoring tools.

A useful preparation method is to start long upgrades before the phase begins. When possible, let completed nonessential buildings remain ready to claim until the building phase becomes active. Completed building upgrades can award their power-related points when the finished building is opened or claimed.

Construction speedups are particularly valuable here because they can both complete a planned upgrade and generate phase points. Avoid consuming large amounts of construction speedups randomly when no matching event is active.

Unit Progression

Unit Progression scores troop training and troop promotions. This makes previously trained lower-tier troops useful because upgrading them to a higher tier can contribute event points without requiring you to build an entirely new army from zero.

Prepare troops before the phase and save training speedups. When Unit Progression becomes active, promote available troops and finish training queues while the event is awarding points.

Promotion is especially useful when you already need those troops upgraded for normal progression. Instead of viewing Arms Race as a reason to create unnecessary units, use it as an opportunity to complete upgrades you intended to make anyway.

Tech Research

Tech Research focuses on technology power and research speedups. Long research projects should be planned so their completion or claim falls inside this phase whenever practical.

You can start major research well before the Arms Race window. The important part is controlling when the scoring action occurs. Research speedups can then be used during the phase to finish projects and push toward the next chest milestone.

Avoid spending your entire research speedup stockpile simply to improve the daily ranking. Research resources are valuable for long-term progression and can also overlap with Alliance Duel scoring.

Drone Boost

Drone Boost is one of the easiest phases to prepare for because its primary scoring resources can be stored. Using Drone Combat Data contributes points, while stamina spending can also score through activities such as zombie attacks, rallies, and qualifying radar activities.

Instead of spending stamina immediately whenever it regenerates, consider whether a Drone Boost phase is approaching. Saving enough stamina for the correct window can turn routine PvE activity into additional Arms Race progress.

Drone upgrades may eventually require additional materials, so do not assume that having large amounts of Combat Data means you can always spend all of it immediately.

Hero Advancement

Hero Advancement primarily rewards manual Hero EXP usage and hero recruitment. Legendary Recruitment Tickets and saved Hero EXP can therefore become an easy source of phase points when accumulated in advance.

Do not automatically spend every EXP item as soon as you receive it. If your main heroes do not urgently need the levels, saving EXP for Hero Advancement can improve event efficiency.

Some hero-related activities used in other events do not necessarily count toward Arms Race. Check the task list shown inside the active phase before spending resources such as Skill Medals or other specialized hero materials.

How to Use Stage Swap

Stage Swap gives players additional flexibility when an inconvenient phase appears at a bad time. The feature allows the currently active phase to be exchanged with a phase scheduled later in the same Arms Race day.

• You can use Stage Swap once per day.
• You can swap only with a future phase.
• You cannot move backward to a phase that has already passed.
• Swapping changes timing rather than creating additional daily rewards.

The best reason to use Stage Swap is convenience. For example, if you have a large troop promotion ready but Unit Progression occurs while you will be offline, moving that phase into your active play session can protect the resources you prepared.

Arms Race and Alliance Duel

One of the strongest Arms Race strategies is coordinating it with Alliance Duel. The modern Arms Race schedule is designed to align more closely with the activities required during different VS days, allowing the same resource expenditure to contribute to both events when the matching windows overlap.

This overlap is important because speedups, Hero EXP, recruitment tickets, and other progression resources are limited. If one action can advance your account while scoring in two events, it is normally more efficient than spending the same resource during an isolated Arms Race window.

Check both event calendars before committing a large resource stockpile. Schedule details can change with game updates, so current in-game information should take priority over an older routine.

Best Daily Arms Race Routine

1. Check the calendar after daily reset. Identify the phases that fit your play schedule.
2. Choose your strongest three phases. Look at the resources you already have instead of trying to complete everything.
3. Save phase-specific resources. Hold construction, training, and research speedups for their matching windows.
4. Prepare completions early. Start buildings and research before their scoring phases whenever possible.
5. Keep stamina and Drone Combat Data ready. Use them during Drone Boost rather than spending without a plan.
6. Store Hero EXP and recruitment tickets. Release them during Hero Advancement when you need phase points.
7. Use Stage Swap if real-life timing gets in the way. Move a valuable future phase into a period when you can actually play.
8. Claim phase chests before the window closes. Do not leave earned Arms Race Badges uncollected.

Common Arms Race Mistakes

• Using speedups immediately: Random speedup usage makes it harder to complete phase milestones efficiently.
• Trying to win every phase: Ranking can consume far more resources than the milestone rewards require.
• Ignoring the 18-badge target: Three complete phases can be enough for all daily badge milestones.
• Spending stamina outside Drone Boost: Routine PvE activity becomes more valuable when timed with the correct phase.
• Recruiting heroes immediately: Saved tickets can contribute to Hero Advancement later.
• Forgetting troop promotion: Existing lower-tier troops can be useful scoring material during Unit Progression.
• Following someone else’s point thresholds: Chest requirements may change with HQ level, contest segment, or game updates.
• Using Stage Swap too early: You only get one daily swap, so keep it available until you know where it provides the most value.

Should You Chase the Daily Ranking?

Daily ranking rewards can be useful, but they should usually come after your milestone plan. Arms Race matchmaking places you against other players at a broadly similar progression level, and some opponents may have far larger resource reserves available on a particular day.

If you can improve your ranking with actions you already intended to perform, there is little downside. However, burning several days of speedups solely to move up a temporary leaderboard can weaken your performance in Alliance Duel or delay important progression projects.

A sustainable strategy is to secure your preferred badge milestones first, check the ranking near the end of the day, and only push higher when the additional score requires a reasonable amount of resources.

Optional Faster Starting Point

Players who prefer to begin from a more developed position rather than progressing every system from an early account can also browse Last War accounts for sale on Heaven Guardian. Compare the account’s existing progression, heroes, troops, and server situation with your own goals before choosing.

FAQs

How often does Arms Race happen in Last War?

Arms Race is a daily recurring event. The event day is divided into six phases covering the full 24-hour cycle.

How long does each Arms Race phase last?

Each phase lasts four hours. When one phase ends, the next phase begins with a different set of scoring activities.

How many Arms Race Badges do I need for the final daily chest?

You need 18 Arms Race Badges to reach the final daily badge milestone.

Do I need to complete all six phases?

No. Fully completing three phases awards six badges per phase, which provides the 18 badges needed for the final daily milestone.

What is the best Arms Race phase?

There is no single best phase for every account. The strongest option is the phase where you already have a large stockpile of useful resources. A player with training speedups and promotable troops may prefer Unit Progression, while another player may complete Drone Boost more easily with stored stamina and Combat Data.

How many times can I use Stage Swap?

Stage Swap can be used once per Arms Race day and only with a phase scheduled later in the day.

Are Arms Race point requirements the same for everyone?

No. Phase chest requirements and rewards can vary with Headquarters level or the contest segment assigned to your account. Always use the values displayed in your own event interface.

Should I save resources for Arms Race or Alliance Duel?

Whenever possible, use them during a period where the matching Arms Race phase overlaps with the relevant Alliance Duel activity. This allows the same progression action to contribute to both events instead of forcing you to choose between them.

Conclusion

The key to the Last War Arms Race is resource timing rather than constant spending. Check the daily phase calendar, prepare buildings and research in advance, promote troops during Unit Progression, save stamina for Drone Boost, and hold Hero EXP and recruitment tickets for Hero Advancement.

For most players, reaching 18 badges through three well-prepared phases is a more sustainable target than trying to dominate every four-hour window. Combine those phases with Alliance Duel whenever possible and keep Stage Swap available for inconvenient scheduling.

For more event strategies, progression tips, and gameplay breakdowns, explore our additional Last War guides.