All vikis
Aion 2
Ananta
ArcheAge Chronicles
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4
Chrono Odyssey
Civilization 3
Civilization 4
Crimson Desert
Deadlock
Diablo 4
Diablo 5
Enshrouded
Fable
Final Fantasy Resonance
Grand Theft Auto 6
Heroes of Might and Magic 3
Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2
Path of Exile 2
Phantom Blade Zero
Slay the Spire 2
Soulframe
ValheimProgression and Unlocks
Wardogs has seven progression tracks: the Wardog career track and six roles (Assault, Medic, Recon, Support, Driver, Pilot). Using a role's gear earns that role XP; reaching a level makes an item available, and you then pay a one-time cash unlock (the Havoc costs $650,000 at Pilot 35 in Season 2). Every track resets at a season wipe; Season 2 (Oct 15, 2026) made level 20 take less than half the Season 1 playtime.
Wardogs progression runs on seven tracks: the Wardog career track and six roles, Assault, Medic, Recon, Support, Driver and Pilot, each with its own levels and its own unlocks. You level a role by using its gear: an assault rifle earns Assault XP, a defibrillator Medic XP, a hammer or wrench Support XP, as Eurogamer explains, and Bulkhead says roles are "totally player-defined". A level only makes an item available: you then pay a one-time cash price to unlock it, then buy it at the vendor every life. Everything resets when a season ends. Numbers on this page are from Season 2 (update 0.2.0, Oct 15, 2026).
Quick facts
| Tracks | 7: Wardog, Assault, Medic, Recon, Support, Driver, Pilot |
| Level 20, Season 2 | 111,500 total XP (Season 1 took more than twice the playtime) |
| Level 50, Season 2 | 1,150,000 total XP |
| Unlock price | Cash, once per season, on top of the vendor price |
| Most expensive unlock | Havoc, $650,000 at Pilot 35 |
| Gold Market | Wardog level 35, $150,000 |
| Max level | Not published by Bulkhead |
| Wipe | Every season; Season 2 reset everyone to level 1 |
Sources: Bulkhead's Season 2 patch notes, Oct 14, 2026; Dexerto's Wardogs database, read Oct 26, 2026; PC Gamer, Sep 25, 2026.
The seven tracks
Bulkhead's Feb 18, 2026 FAQ promised 6 progression tracks, "From Medic to Pilot", and those six roles sit under a seventh, overall track. Bulkhead's Season 1 notes called it "Career" and its Season 2 notes the "WARDOG Progression Track"; Dexerto labels it Wardog. GameSpot explains that the role levels add up to the player level, which unlocks ammo types, armor and general items. There are no classes: anyone can buy any unlocked item, and the role that gets the XP is the one whose gear did the work.
| Track | How it earns XP | What it unlocks | Full page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wardog | Grows with your role levels | Armor, helmets, backpacks, vests, pistols, sights, ammo types, supply pallets, the Gold Market | This page |
| Assault | Rifle kills (Dexerto calls it "Infantry XP"), destroying buildables, IEDs and C4 | Assault rifles, C4, the Molotov | Assault |
| Medic | Healing, revives, SMG kills and assists | Medical gear, SMGs | Medic |
| Recon | Using recon gear and its rifles | Range gear, sniper and marksman rifles, the bow, claymores, the ghillie suit | Recon |
| Support | Building, hammers and wrenches | Hammers, drills, LMGs, launchers, mines | Support |
| Driver | Deliveries, drop-offs, the spawn APC, vehicle kills, artillery, ground vehicle repairs | Trucks, armed vehicles, tanks, the SPH-2 | Driver |
| Pilot | Passengers who jump out (more if they land alive), helicopter repairs | Armored crates, helicopters up to the Havoc | Pilot |
Sources: Eurogamer, Sep 29, 2026; Bulkhead's Season 2 patch notes, Oct 14, 2026; GameSpot, Sep 14, 2026; GamesRadar+ on Driver XP, Sep 17, 2026; GamesRadar+ on helicopters, Sep 16, 2026; Dexerto, read Oct 26, 2026; Game Rant, Sep 15, 2026.
How XP is earned
XP follows the item. Season 2 rerouted several sources: destroying buildables now gives Assault XP instead of Support, artillery gives Driver XP, IEDs and C4 give Assault XP, and repair XP goes to Driver or Pilot by the vehicle repaired. GameSpot notes that everyone in a vehicle gets Driver XP for kills by its driver or gunner. Logistics pay XP alongside cash: in Season 2 a supply pallet gives 400 XP (500 from a ground vehicle) and a large crate 400, with streak bonuses for runs in a row, and capturing a drill tower gives 300. GamesRadar+ found Driver XP "very slow" in Season 1, best earned by pallet runs, drop-offs and driving the spawn APC. The cash side of each action is on Economy and Cash.
Season 2 XP curve
Each season has "a different XP curve with different item orders", Bulkhead's Season 1 changelog said. Season 2's role tracks need these totals, and Bulkhead says reaching level 20 "now takes less than half the playtime it did in Season 1". In the clip, from Bulkhead's Oct 24 podcast, its developers say they sped Season 2 up for the median player.
| Role level | Total XP needed (Season 2) |
|---|---|
| 10 | 25,000 |
| 15 | 54,750 |
| 20 | 111,500 |
| 25 | 206,600 |
| 30 | 318,200 |
| 35 | 525,000 |
| 40 | 712,500 |
| 45 | 920,850 |
| 50 | 1,150,000 |
Sources: Bulkhead's Season 2 patch notes, Oct 14, 2026.
Level 1 of a role needs 200 XP per Dexerto's Wardogs database. Season 1's curve is harder to state: Bulkhead's Sep 9 changelog and its Season 2 notes give different Season 1 totals for the same levels, so Vi.ki gives no Season 1 table. For scale, PC Gamer's 50-minute Medic match on the winning team earned 9,995 Medic XP with 15 revives.
Max level
Bulkhead has not published a level cap as of Oct 26, 2026. Its Season 2 table stops at level 50, Dexerto lists 100 levels for each combat role, and Dexerto's Wardog track lists unlocks as high as level 140 (.308 Win armor-piercing ammo). In Season 2 the top weapons and vehicles of every role unlock at level 35 or below (the FAL, Super-45, AMR 50, MGL-40, L2A6 and Havoc), though Dexerto counts 40 Assault unlocks through level 50, so smaller items continue past it.
Unlocks cost cash
Levels and cash work together. The unlock prices are much higher than the vendor prices, they are paid once per season, and the most powerful items cost hundreds of thousands. These are the biggest unlocks on each role in Season 2, per Dexerto's Wardogs database, with Bulkhead's notes where they give the figure.
| Track | Unlock | Level | Unlock price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assault | T-21 / Galil / M4 / FAL | 3 / 10 / 28 / 35 | $10,000 / $35,000 / $150,000 / $250,000 |
| Assault | Molotov Cocktail / TCX-SPR | 13 / 20 | $25,000 / $100,000 |
| Medic | Field Resuscitator / MP5 / Medical Bag | 2 / 4 / 14 | $10,000 / $25,000 / $50,000 |
| Medic | Defibrillator / Super-45 | 22 / 35 | $110,000 / $200,000 |
| Recon | SKS / SVD / SV98 | 5 / 12 / 18 | $25,000 / $50,000 / $100,000 |
| Recon | Ghillie suit and headwear / AMR 50 | 26 / 35 | $80,000 and $60,000 / $200,000 |
| Support | RPG-7 / Large Hammer / PKM | 6 / 8 / 15 | $30,000 / $75,000 / $100,000 |
| Support | M249 SAW / Evo-3 Ultra / MGL-40 | 20 / 30 / 35 | $150,000 / $200,000 / $250,000 |
| Driver | Ural / Humvee / T-72B3 | 3 / 14 / 20 | $35,000 / $75,000 / $250,000 |
| Driver | Flakpanzer Gepard / SPH-2 / L2A6 | 25 / 31 / 35 | $300,000 / $350,000 / $500,000 |
| Pilot | Little Bird AH-6M [Miniguns] / Z20 Lakota | 8 / 10 | $125,000 / $35,000 |
| Pilot | Little Bird AH-6R [Rockets] / Havoc | 20 / 35 | $250,000 / $650,000 |
Sources: Dexerto's Wardogs database, Assault, Medic, Recon, Support, Driver, Pilot, read Oct 26, 2026; Bulkhead's Season 2 patch notes, Oct 14, 2026.
Some items need no unlock: in Season 2 the AK74 is unlocked by default for Assault and the PP-19 Bizon for Medic, each faction's starter rifle is free, and everyone starts with the MH-6 helicopter (GamesRadar+). Every role's full list is on its own page: Assault, Medic, Recon, Support, Driver and Pilot.
Wardog track unlocks
The Wardog track holds the gear every role wears. Dexerto counts 63 Wardog unlocks; these are the main ones in Season 2.
| Level | Unlock | Unlock price |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Judge | $5,000 |
| 3 | Level 1 Armor / Level 1 Helmet | $10,000 / $7,500 |
| 4 | Kobra Reflex | $7,500 |
| 5 | Mechanical Supply Pallet | $10,000 |
| 9 | Ammo Supply Pallet | $25,000 |
| 12 | Field Backpack | $20,000 |
| 14 | Medium Tac Vest | $10,000 |
| 16 | Fuel Supply Pallet | $50,000 |
| 18 | GGX 17 | $15,000 |
| 20 | Operator Backpack | $25,000 |
| 21 | Compact P-1 Red Dot | $12,500 |
| 26 | Tricon 1.5x Compact Prism Scope | |
| 29 | Music tape "Blue (Da Ba Dee) - Eiffel 65" (Lonestar only) | $25,000 |
| 30 | Level 2 Armor / Level 2 Helmet | $50,000 / $37,500 |
| 31 | Spitfire 3X | |
| 32 | Assault Backpack | $50,000 |
| 34 | Sport Parachute | $25,000 |
| 35 | Gold Market | $150,000 |
| 40 | M1911 | $25,000 |
| 46 | High Capacity Battery | $50,000 |
| 50 | Large Tac Vest | $25,000 |
| 55 | Ruck Backpack | $100,000 |
| 60 | 7.62mm armor-piercing ammo (first AP unlock) | $50,000 |
| 65 | Deagle | $75,000 |
| 70 | Level 3 Armor / Level 3 Helmet | $100,000 / $75,000 |
| 73 | Gunner Backpack + Sling | $125,000 |
| 85 | GGX 18 | $125,000 |
| 100 | Level 4 Armor / Level 4 Helmet | $200,000 / $150,000 |
| 140 | .308 Win armor-piercing ammo | $75,000 |
Sources: Dexerto's Wardogs database: Wardog, read Oct 26, 2026; Bulkhead's Season 2 patch notes (supply pallets, sights, music tape, Gold Market, Deagle and Level 3 levels), Oct 14, 2026. Hollow-point ammo unlocks cost $5,000 each, per Dexerto. The supply pallets were unlocked by default in Season 1.
What Season 2 moved
Season 2 reordered the trees. The Defibrillator moved from Medic 11 to 22 and its unlock rose from $50,000 to $110,000, while the Medical Bag came down from 24 to 14. The M4 went from Assault 20 to 28 and $150,000, C4 and the new Molotov moved into Assault, the Little Bird AH-6M [Miniguns] went from Pilot 4 to 8 because it "was too strong for how early it unlocked", the Havoc's unlock rose to $650,000, the SPH-2 moved from Wardog 90 to Driver 31 for $350,000, and Level 3 armor moved from Wardog 60 to 70. Season 2's day-one Driver exploit let some players unlock tanks at once before Bulkhead fixed it; the temporary fix slowed vehicle progression to Season 1 rates, Rock Paper Shotgun reported.
Wipes and what XP is kept for
Every track resets at a season wipe: Season 2 put everyone back to level 1 on Oct 15, 2026, and Dexerto says a wipe resets cash, levels and role XP. Bulkhead told Insider Gaming that XP earned in Early Access is being banked and will be applied retroactively to future long-term systems such as player skills. Those skills are planned, not in the game: Brammer described Tarkov-style skills that improve with repetition, such as tactical sprint duration, and a future "intel" resource for gun parts (PC Gamer). See Seasons and Wipes and Early Access and Roadmap.
The endgame critique and Bulkhead's response
The grind was the first big complaint. In Season 1, PC Gamer's Morgan Park found ranking up slowed from every round or two to about one rank a night around Medic 18, with 177,619 XP at level 17 against 337,000 for the Medical Bag at level 24, about 13 more hours. The other complaint was the top of the tree: once players reached Level 4 armor and the best vehicles, the endgame was lopsided. Bulkhead CEO Joe Brammer agreed on Sep 29, 2026: "I think the endgame is a bit sh*t," he told PC Gamer, adding that players are "playing 25% of the game" and that Season 1 was kept "short deliberately" because of it.
Season 2 answered the grind by speeding progression up, and that went wrong the other way. On Oct 17, 2026 Bulkhead said on X that it "sped up progression deliberately ... but it was the wrong call", and PCGamesN reported that some players reached tier-four armor and MBTs within days, "so the wipe never really landed"; Bulkhead ruled out a quick reset and said it would bring Season 3 forward "significantly." On Oct 25 Brammer said, as PCGamesN reported, that Bulkhead is moving away from Season 1's "heavy vertical progression," where "all of the 'best stuff' was at the end of the tree," and that Season 3, targeted for Nov 12, 2026 per his reply on Steam, brings a fresh economy reset and limited servers without the power weapons and vehicles. Both are plans as of Oct 26, 2026, not yet in a Bulkhead news post. In the clip, from Bulkhead's Oct 24 podcast, its developers describe Season 1's tree the same way and Season 2 giving some power earlier.
Frequently asked questions
How does progression work in Wardogs? Wardogs has seven tracks: the Wardog career track plus Assault, Medic, Recon, Support, Driver and Pilot. Using a role's gear earns that role XP, a level makes items available, and you pay a one-time cash price to unlock each one.
What is the max level in Wardogs? Bulkhead has not published a level cap as of Oct 26, 2026. Its Season 2 XP table stops at level 50, Dexerto lists 100 levels per role, and the top weapons and vehicles of each role unlock by level 35.
How much XP do you need for level 20 in Wardogs? In Season 2, a role needs 111,500 total XP for level 20, and Bulkhead says that takes less than half the Season 1 playtime. Level 50 needs 1,150,000.
Do unlocks cost money in Wardogs? Yes. After reaching the level you pay a one-time cash unlock, from $5,000 for the Judge up to $650,000 for the Havoc in Season 2, and then the vendor price each time you buy the item.
Does progression reset in Wardogs? Yes: levels, role XP and cash reset at the end of every season, and Season 2 started everyone at level 1 on Oct 15, 2026. Bulkhead says Early Access XP is being banked for future long-term systems such as player skills.
How do you level Driver fast in Wardogs? Supply pallet and crate runs, dropping teammates at the zone and driving the spawn APC earn the most Driver XP, per GamesRadar+, and Season 2 adds streak bonuses for deliveries in a row. Artillery and vehicle repairs also give Driver XP since Season 2.
When does the Gold Market unlock in Wardogs? At Wardog level 35, for $150,000 in Season 2. It sells cosmetics for Gold Bars.
Sources
- WARDOGS - TOP QUESTIONS, Bulkhead (Steam news), Feb 18, 2026
- Pre-Load Live & Season 1 Changelog, Bulkhead (Steam news), Sep 9, 2026
- WARDOGS | Season 02 Patch Notes, Bulkhead (Steam news), Oct 14, 2026
- ANNOUNCEMENT, Wardogs on X, Oct 17, 2026
- How To Level Up Each Skill In Wardogs, GameSpot, Sep 14, 2026
- How To Make Money Fast In Wardogs, TheGamer, Sep 11, 2026
- The Best WARDOGS Loadouts For When You're Completely Broke, Game Rant, Sep 15, 2026
- How to fly a helicopter in Wardogs, GamesRadar+, Sep 16, 2026
- How to earn Driver XP in Wardogs, GamesRadar+, Sep 17, 2026
- I did the math on my Wardogs XP grind, and now I wish I hadn't, PC Gamer, Sep 25, 2026
- Wardogs boss talks balance, XP, and why 'the endgame is sh*t' right now, PC Gamer, Sep 29, 2026
- Wardogs early access review - a shooter for the gig economy, Eurogamer, Sep 29, 2026
- How to make Wardogs money fast, PCGamesN, Sep 11, 2026
- Wardogs Season 3 could be brought "significantly" forward, PCGamesN, Oct 17, 2026
- "We've got to slow down," Wardogs developer admits after Season 2's rocky rollout, PCGamesN, Oct 25, 2026
- "We were wrong": Wardogs devs end Season 2's team-specific cash and XP bonus experiment, Rock Paper Shotgun, Oct 16, 2026
- Wardogs players will keep long-term XP progress despite seasonal wipes, Insider Gaming, Oct 9, 2026
- Dexerto's Wardogs database: Roles, Oct 15, 2026; Wardog, Assault, Medic, Recon, Support, Driver, Pilot, Sep 5, 2026; Wipes explained, Sep 22, 2026; all read Oct 26, 2026
- WARDOGS | Game Mode Explained, Bulkhead, Feb 12, 2026 (video)
- WARDOGS | Answering Your Questions, Bulkhead, Mar 3, 2026 (video)
- WARDOGS | Road to Season 02, Bulkhead, Oct 9, 2026 (video)
- THE HOTZONE | Ep 1 | "The Wipe", Bulkhead, Oct 24, 2026 (video)
Moments
WARDOGS | Game Mode Explained
BULKHEAD
WARDOGS | Answering Your Questions
BULKHEAD
THE HOTZONE | Ep 1 | "The Wipe"
BULKHEAD
WARDOGS | Road to Season 02
BULKHEAD
- Season 2 reordered the trees. The Defibrillator moved from Medic 11 to 22 and its unlock rose from $50,000 to…
- Every track resets at a season wipe: Season 2 put everyone back to level 1 on Oct 15, 2026, and Dexerto says a wipe…
- The grind was the first big complaint. In Season 1, PC Gamer's Morgan Park found ranking up slowed from every round or…
Related
-
AchievementsWardogs has 10 Steam achievements, one of them hidden ("That was rude": punch Kristopher in the Tutorial). "Top Dog" asks you to finish a match as the top cash earner across all three teams; "Big Spender" ($100,000 on one loadout) is the rarest, held by 0.0% of players on Oct 26, 2026.
-
-
Gold Bars and the Gold MarketGold Bars are Wardogs' endgame currency: you get them by exchanging in-game cash, and leftover cash turns into Gold Bars at the end of a season, so they survive wipes. They are spent on camos in the Gold Market, which unlocks at Wardog level 35 for $150,000 in Season 2. Bulkhead has pledged never to sell cash, Gold Bars or camos for real money.
-
-
FactionsWardogs has three factions: Lonestar (blue), a Western paramilitary company; Valkyra (red), out to restore the Soviet People's Republic; and Manticore (green), Persia's shadow army. They play the same, but blue has lost more often since the betas, and Season 2's one-day Lonestar bonus did not fix it.
-
-
-
See also
-
-
-
-
-
SupportSupport is the Wardogs progression track for building, heavy weapons and logistics. In Season 2 it unlocks the Light Drill at level 1, the Medium Hammer at 3, the RPG-7 at 6, the Large Hammer (needed for the mortar) at 8, the PKM at 15, the M249 at 20, the Evo-3 Ultra at 30 and the MGL-40 at 35.
-