To upgrade gear effectively in Last War, stop leveling equipment slots evenly across your squad. Allocate enhancement ore unequally based on row placement: rush the Railgun to level 40 on your primary back-row damage dealer first, while splitting defensive ore between Heavy Armor and Radars on your front-row tanks.
Distributing ore equally across all four slots leaves tanks without the bulk needed to survive opening skill bursts, while attackers lack the firepower to pierce enemy lines. Concentrating resources into role-defining slots delivers immediate combat value.
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Back-Row Upgrade Priority
Back-row carries rely entirely on burst damage and critical strikes. Their survival depends on front-row protection rather than their own defensive stats, meaning defensive pieces yield minimal value in the opening seconds of a fight.
| Priority | Slot | Primary Stat Focus | Upgrade Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Railgun | Attack, Critical Hit | Rush to level 40 on primary carry, then secondary carry |
| 2nd | Data Chip | Attack, Defense, Skill Power | Level up after primary offensive weapons reach cap |
| 3rd | Radar | HP, Critical Resistance | Keep at baseline until offensive slots are finished |
| 4th | Heavy Armor | HP, Physical Defense | Lowest priority for back-row damage dealers |
Follow this upgrade sequence for back-row attackers:
- Max the Primary Weapon: Bring your main carry's Railgun (such as Kimberly or DVA) to level 40.
- Arm the Secondary Carry: Level the second attacker's Railgun to 40 before investing in defensive slots.
- Advance Data Chips: Upgrade Data Chips on backline carries to secure secondary skill and attack scaling.
- Delay Armor and Radars: Leave backline defensive gear at baseline levels until the team's offense is secure.
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Front-Row Upgrade Priority
Frontline tanks like Murphy, Williams, Lucius, and Carlie absorb incoming fire and generate defensive buffs. Sinking ore into their weapons wastes resources because their primary purpose is longevity, not damage output.
Invest in defensive gear using a dual priority:
- Heavy Armor: Provides base physical defense and maximum HP. Armor acts as the foundational buffer against normal basic attacks and kinetic frontline clashes.
- Radar: Grants maximum HP, critical hit resistance, and energy defense. Radars prevent tanks from being eliminated immediately by energy-based burst damage.
- Data Chip and Railgun: Keep these slots at low investment. They function as luxury upgrades to revisit only after your tanks survive complete skill rotations.
Balance upgrades between Heavy Armor and Radars to give your tanks both physical mitigation and energy resistance.
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Priority Adjustments by Squad Archetype
Tailor your slot investments slightly based on the damage types and defensive profiles of your squad:
- Tank Squads: Built around physical mitigation and energy burst. Prioritize Kimberly's Railgun above all other pieces in the team. On the frontline, Murphy and Williams require early Radar investment to withstand mirror-match energy damage.
- Aircraft Squads: Rely on fast, aerial burst damage. Prioritize DVA's Railgun first. Equip frontliners Carlie and Lucius with upgraded Radars to resist energy burst while their crowd control abilities activate.
- Missile Squads: Focus on heavy burst to counter aircraft lineups. Carries like Tesla and Schuyler demand immediate Railgun investment to punch through enemy frontlines, while tanks like McGregor need Heavy Armor to endure steady kinetic fire.
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