Squad Rush Workshop, coins and stars explained
In Squad Rush you earn coins in every run, even when you lose. You spend them in the Workshop on two upgrades that stay with you for good: Stronger blasters and Starting squad. Each stage also has three stars to win, so there are 36 stars in all. Coins are only earned by playing; there is nothing to buy with real money.
How do you earn coins?
Coins you pick up during a run show at the top of the screen next to Coins.
| What you do | Coins |
|---|---|
| Break a robot | 5 |
| Cross any gate | 4 |
| Grab a golden box | 10 |
| Stop a robot with a just-in-time door | 30 each |
| Stop a robot with an early door | 5 each |
| Scouts come back | 20 |
| Beat a last-stand wave | 20, then 40, then 60 |
Then, at the end of the run:
| How the run ends | What you get on top |
|---|---|
| You win | The stage reward, from 120 for stage 1 to 400 for stage 12 |
| You win without a single hit | +30 more |
| You win and your squad reached 25 | +20 more |
| You lose | Up to 35 more, for how far down the road you got |
The results card shows the total as Coins earned. "Your coins are safe" even when you lose, so every try helps.
Three ways to lose your run coins: Restart the stage on the pause card, and leaving with Main menu or Save slots ("Coins from this unfinished run won't be added"). Coins you already saved always stay.
All the rewards, stage by stage, are on all 12 stages. Doors and last stands are explained on doors, rescues, convoys and last stands.
What can you buy in the Workshop?
Open the Workshop from the title screen or the results card. "These upgrades stay with you in every stage."
| Upgrade | What it does | Shown as |
|---|---|---|
| Stronger blasters | "Permanent damage per blaster": every shot hits harder | 2.00 at the start, +0.45 per level |
| Starting squad | "Permanent squad at the start": more friends when a stage begins | 5 at the start, +2 per level |
Each upgrade has eight levels. The card shows the level, like "3 / 8", and what the next level gives, like "11 → 13". When it is full, the button says "All powered up".
How much does each upgrade cost?
Both upgrades cost the same. The price goes up by 65 coins every level.
| Level | Cost | Stronger blasters | Starting squad |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start | Free | 2.00 | 5 |
| 1 | 80 | 2.45 | 7 |
| 2 | 145 | 2.90 | 9 |
| 3 | 210 | 3.35 | 11 |
| 4 | 275 | 3.80 | 13 |
| 5 | 340 | 4.25 | 15 |
| 6 | 405 | 4.70 | 17 |
| 7 | 470 | 5.15 | 19 |
| 8 | 535 | 5.60 | 21 |
Maxing one upgrade costs 2,460 coins in all, so both cost 4,920. At level 8, each shot is 2.8 times as strong as at the start, and you begin every stage with 21 friends.
Which upgrade should you buy first?
- Stronger blasters helps everywhere: robots break faster, gate numbers grow faster and big bots go down sooner.
- Starting squad gives you more shooters from the first second, and room for a hit or two early on. It also makes the 25-squad star easier.
A good plan is to buy them in turns. If one big bot keeps beating you, buy Stronger blasters. If you keep losing friends early on, buy Starting squad. There is no difficulty setting in Squad Rush: upgrades are how you make stages easier.
Pick your starting blaster
Under Blaster in the Workshop you choose Pulse, Spread or Rapid. Spread opens when you finish stage 3 and Rapid when you finish stage 6. Choosing is free and you can change any time. "Permanent upgrades stay. Golden pickups upgrade your weapon for this run." All blasters are compared on the blasters page.
How do you win stars?
Each stage has three stars, shown on the results card as Extra challenges:
| Star | How to win it |
|---|---|
| Finish the stage | Beat the big bot. |
| Dodge every hit | Win without a crate, robot or red lane hitting you. Red gates don't count. |
| Grow to 25 squad members | Have 25 or more in your squad at any moment, then win. |
You only get stars when you win. Your best result is kept on the stage card, like ★★☆.
Important: the game keeps your best number of stars from one run. So to get all three stars on a stage, you need to dodge every hit and reach 25 in the same winning run. Two runs with two stars each still give two stars.
In stage 12, a run that used Retry this phase can't win the no-hit star.
Chase all 36 stars
12 stages × 3 stars = 36 stars. After the ending, the button Chase all 36 stars takes you to the stage list. Your stars, coins and upgrades always stay: "Replay is optional." Tips for the hardest stars are on advanced tips.
The ending screen also shows two times: Recorded campaign time, how long you played until you first won stage 12, and Time to win them all, your first winning times for all 12 stages added up. Each stage card shows your Best time once you have won it.
See also
- Number gates and squad size: how to reach 25 squad members.
- Robots, crates and red lanes: how to dodge every hit.
- Beginner tips: spend your first coins well.
- Back to the Squad Rush guide, or play Squad Rush.
