Sir We Have an Orc Problem Combat Upgrades

Combat upgrades in Sir, We Have an Orc Problem cover every node that raises direct damage, fire rate, penetration, explosion radius, ability cooldown, or ability damage. They sit beside economy nodes on the same persistent tree. When orcs reach the base in hundreds, combat picks are the fix - but they spend currency earned thanks to Economy Upgrades, so balance both using Upgrade Priority and the Upgrade Planner.

This page walks through each tower line, shared missile stats, and demo additions Headhunter, Damage Statistics, and Power Shot. For ability-specific cooldown chains, also read Missiles, Bombing Runs, and Orbital Laser and Nukes.

Gunner upgrades

The Gunner is the first tower unlock. It fires bullets along player-drawn lines and scales with straightforward nodes:

• Damage - small incremental increases (for example +0.1 per node) that stack across many purchases
• Fire rate / shots per second - raises output without new placements
• Penetration - bullets continue through multiple orcs in a line; extremely strong at narrow chokes
• Maximum tower count - documented under economy, but combat-relevant because it multiplies Gunner DPS

Early campaign priority: one damage or fire rate node, then cap upgrades, then penetration once orcs stack. Players frequently report penetration as a breakpoint upgrade - one purchase can clean a map that previously leaked constantly.

Gunner lines compete with Cannons on straight paths. Consult the Turret Tier List before investing past the mid-game if Cannons are already unlocked for the same lane.

Flamethrower upgrades

Flamethrowers apply fire damage over time - orcs burn for a duration and take tick damage. Demo balance patches increased base fire duration and tick rate so even a zero-upgrade Flamethrower applies at least one full tick; tick damage per second was lowered to compensate.

Upgrade focus:

• Fire duration - more ticks on fast-moving orcs
• Tick damage - higher DPS on crowded fronts
• Maximum Flamethrower count - place along the entire width of the approach so every orc catches fire once

Flamethrowers excel when the entire wave passes through a wide arc. They underperform on single-tile chokes where Cannons or Gunners with penetration win. Damage Statistics helps confirm whether your layout actually feeds the whole horde through the flame cone.

Community feedback often ranks Flamethrowers high on open maps; treat tier list ranks as map-dependent.

Mortar upgrades

Mortars lobs arcing shots with explosion damage and explosion radius. They ignore line-of-sight constraints that Gunners face and punish clumps.

Key nodes:

• Explosion damage - more per shell
• Explosion radius - wider splash; strong when paths merge
• Fire rate - more shells per minute; watch friendly fire on tight maps
• Maximum Mortar count - secondary Mortars cover parallel paths

Mortars pair with manual missile bursts on overlapping cooldowns. Upgrade missile radius if Mortar shells often land behind the pack due to movement speed scaling per level.

Some players note occasional scatter on uneven terrain - tighten placement toward the choke before buying a third radius node.

Cannon upgrades

Cannons fire piercing cannonballs rather than large AoE blasts. Upgrades mirror Gunners in places:

• Damage per hit
• Penetration - additional targets per shot
• Fire rate
• Maximum Cannon count

Use Cannons on long straight segments where a single line hits dozens of orcs. They overlap functionally with Gunners but start with different baseline damage and unlock costs. Prefer Cannons when Gunner penetration nodes are still expensive; prefer Gunners when you need flexible drag placement.

Missile combat nodes (player ability)

Missiles are your always-available active attack. Combat nodes include:

• Missile damage
• Missile explosion radius
• Cooldown reduction / faster shots
• Hold to fire continuously - changes input style; does not always remove cooldown, so read tooltips

Missiles remain relevant endgame for manual burst during ability downtime. One radius upgrade often matches two damage upgrades for crowd control. Full timing guide: Missiles.

Ability damage and cooldown nodes

Beyond missiles, the tree includes strafing / bombing runs, orbital lasers, and nukes. Shared patterns:

• Cooldown reduction nodes shorten downtime between emergency clears
• Damage upgrades increase kill threshold on ultra-dense waves
• Unlock nodes gate the ability entirely - mid-tree purchases

Do not max ability damage while Gunner caps remain low. Abilities wipe clumps; turrets pay for everyday kills. The Abilities Hub orders unlocks by campaign phase.

Demo combat modifiers

Headhunter

Headhunter-style nodes prioritise high-value targets - useful when tankier orcs survive the initial wave and walk through weakened lines. Buy after baseline AoE is stable; it does not fix volume leaks alone.

Damage Statistics

Not a damage boost - a readout of which towers and abilities contributed after each battle. Essential for optimising ambiguous nodes (+0.1 damage vs cap). Treat unlocking it as a combat efficiency upgrade before grinding further.

Power Shot

Adds a burst or enhanced shot pattern (exact numbers vary by patch). Best on timed ability windows or when manual missiles need extra punch between cooldowns. Late mid-game purchase per Upgrade Priority.

Combat vs economy: when to spend

Signal	Buy combat	Buy economy
Orcs die but slowly leak	Penetration, radius, fire rate	HP if leaks are tiny
Orcs flood untouched	Cap + unlock new tower	Income if broke
Same map failed five times	Spike combat	Percentage income
Perfect clear one orc away	HP or micro missile radius	-

Synergies with placement

Combat upgrades assume reasonable placement. Gunner penetration needs a line through the pack; Mortars need shells landing at merge points; Flamethrowers need frontal coverage. Revisit placement between purchases rather than buying a fourth damage node for a misaligned tower.

Recall shortcuts (such as R to recall towers) let you reposition between farm runs without refund penalties beyond your time - use them when testing a new choke.

Patch awareness

Balance notes regularly adjust Flamethrower tick damage, orc move speed per level, and missile knockback direction. After updates, run one level with Damage Statistics before continuing an old combat route. Combat upgrades are permanent; their relative value is not.

Related pages

• Upgrade Priority - order of purchases
• Economy Upgrades - funding combat spikes
• Economy Meta - farming for big nodes
• Turret Tier List - which tower to feed
• Upgrades Hub - full tree overview