Skip to main content
Team Respawn Logo

Halo Wars Hub

Halo Wars resource simulator

Plan your supply pads, Temple and base upgrades, and see the exact second you can afford a Scarab. The record to beat is 5:08.

Watch the build in actionI made the most UNBEATABLE SCARAB in Halo Wars 1!Team Respawn on YouTube · 39:56

Build order simulator

Stack up supply pads, a Temple, and upgrades, then see exactly when your bank hits the target. It starts loaded with the fastest known 1-Scarab build.

Setup

Supplies to reach

Bases

Base 1 starts as a Keep. Extra bases start empty. The delay is how long an extra base is unusable (clearing it, walking there) before you can build.

Add to build order

Your build order

    Import / export as text

    Format: SUPPLY 1, TEMPLE 1, U_SPLY 1, U_BASE 2 — the same format as the original project's results.

    Reaches target at

    --:--

    Peak income
    --
    Supply pads
    --
    Orders run
    --
    Temple done
    --

    Supplies over time

    Hover the chart to read it.

    • Supplies in bank
    • Income per second (right axis)
    • Order paid for

    Fastest known build orders

    Found by simulating hundreds of thousands of random build orders; the original project then tested its fastest builds in the real game. Pick a target and base count, then load any order into the simulator above to tweak it.

    1 Scarab · 3,000 supplies · 1 base · best 5:33

    1. #15:33333s
      • Supply pad ×4
      • Temple
    2. #25:38338s
      • Supply pad ×4
      • Temple
      • Pad upgrade
    3. #35:41341s
      • Supply pad ×3
      • Temple
      • Supply pad
    4. #45:42342s
      • Supply pad ×3
      • Temple
      • Pad upgrade
      • Supply pad
    5. #55:42342s
      • Supply pad ×3
      • Temple
      • Supply pad
      • Pad upgrade
    6. #65:43343s
      • Supply pad ×2
      • Temple
      • Supply pad
      • Pad upgrade
      • Supply pad
    7. #75:43343s
      • Supply pad ×2
      • Temple
      • Supply pad ×2
      • Pad upgrade
    8. #85:43343s
      • Supply pad ×4
      • Temple
      • Pad upgrade ×2

    Results from the original project's random search. Times are replayed through this page's simulator so they match what you see above. Steps run in the listed order, one per second as supplies allow. B1/B2/B3 mean base 1, 2 or 3.

    See Scarabs in action

    The simulator tells you how fast a Scarab can happen. These Team Respawn videos show what it does when it lands.

    All Halo Wars 1 videos →

    How the Halo Wars economy works

    You start a match with 800 supplies and a Keep. Almost all of your early income comes from supply pads, so a Scarab build is a race: spend supplies on pads fast enough to snowball, then stop spending on growth early enough that the bank reaches 3,000.

    Each base builds one thing at a time, and a base that is being upgraded cannot build anything until it finishes. Orders in the simulator run in sequence, one per second: an order that is unaffordable waits for supplies, and one that is impossible (no free slot, no Temple for an upgrade) is skipped and flagged in your list.

    Costs and build times

    ItemCostTimeNote
    Supply pad10030sEarns supplies. Needs a free slot.
    Supply pad upgrade22517.5sNeeds a Temple. Roughly 40% more income per pad.
    Temple50030sAdds a tech level. Only one is modeled.
    Build a new base (Outpost)50030s3 build slots.
    Upgrade to Keep30015s5 build slots. Your starting base is already a Keep.
    Upgrade to Citadel40030s7 build slots.

    Why more pads give less each

    PadsSupplies/sEachAll upgraded
    13.93.905.5
    27.13.5510.0
    412.13.0216.9
    615.72.6222.0
    818.52.3125.9
    1020.72.0729.0
    1222.51.8831.5
    1423.91.7133.5

    Income = pads × rate × 1.75 ÷ (total pads ÷ 9 + 1), floored to 0.1. Rate is 2.5 for a regular pad and 3.5 for an upgraded one. The bank is rounded down to a whole number every second, as in the original project.

    What the simulator assumes

    • It tracks supplies only. A Scarab also needs tech level 3; the original project assumed a map with four reactors, where holding two of them plus a Temple gets you there.
    • No leader perks, leader powers, teammate donations, or income from anything other than supply pads.
    • The extra-base delay is a flat wait before an extra base can be built on. Use it to model clearing or walking to a second base.
    • Only one Temple is built, and orders you add to a base that has no free slot are skipped.

    Built on HaloWarsSimulator

    This page is a browser port of HaloWarsSimulator, an experiment Andy (AndyTheNerd) built in Python in 2024 to find the fastest way to a Scarab. It simulates the in-game economy second by second, then generates and tests hundreds of thousands of random build orders to find the fastest.

    That search took the Scarab from a personal best of 7:10 down to 5:08, and found a 8:27 build for two Scarabs on two bases. The full write-up, with the economy equation, the design and the experiments, is in the project's PDF report. The source for the simulator and its raw results is on GitHub.

    Common questions

    What is the fastest Scarab build order in Halo Wars?

    In the original simulator's search, the fastest way to bank 3,000 supplies was 5:08 (308 seconds) using two bases: Supply pad (base 1) → Base upgrade (base 2) → Supply pad (base 1) → Supply pad (base 2) → Supply pad (base 1) → Supply pad ×2 (base 2) → Supply pad (base 1) → Temple (base 1). With a single base the best found was 5:33: Supply pad ×4 → Temple. That beat the previous personal best of 7:10. Load either one into the simulator above to see every step.

    How much does a Scarab cost in Halo Wars?

    The simulator uses 3,000 supplies for one Scarab, and a Scarab also needs tech level 3. The simulator tracks supplies only, so it tells you when your bank is ready; it assumes you reach tech level 3 in time, for example on a map with reactors where controlling two reactors plus a Temple gets you there.

    How does Halo Wars supply income work?

    Every supply pad adds income, but the more pads you own the less each one gives you. The model uses pads × rate × 1.75 ÷ (total pads ÷ 9 + 1), with a rate of 2.5 for a regular pad and 3.5 for an upgraded one. That is why this page's best builds stop adding pads at a certain point and spend on a Temple and upgrades instead.

    How accurate is the Halo Wars resource simulator?

    The economy formula was fitted against real in-game supply rates, and the original project reported that its fastest builds played out very accurately in the real game. Replaying that project's recorded results through this page's engine reproduces the same times for every one-base build and for its fastest two-base builds. It does not model leader perks, teammate donations, or fights.

    Can I share my build order?

    Yes. Use "Copy link to this build" and the target, number of bases and your whole build order are saved in the link. You can also copy the build as text, for example SUPPLY 1, SUPPLY 1, TEMPLE 1, U_SPLY 1, and paste it back in later.

    Who made the Halo Wars simulator?

    The economy simulation and the fastest-order search come from HaloWarsSimulator, a Python project by Andy (AndyTheNerd) from 2024. This page is a TypeScript port of that engine so it runs in your browser, with the original project's results as the "fastest known" list.

    Got a faster build?

    If you beat a time on this page, tell us in Discord or on stream. New Halo Wars 1 videos, Scarab rushes and live games land on Team Respawn every week.