What are the three factions in WARDOGS?

Manticore, Valkyra, and Lonestar. Three factions of 33 players each load into every match.

Can you switch factions mid-match in WARDOGS?

Yes, with restrictions. Once a team is more than 10 points ahead, you can't switch again for 15 minutes after joining a team, and your map and the spawn vehicle stay locked until you first reach the Control Zone.

Does Lonestar get a bonus in WARDOGS Season 02?

Yes. As a Season 02-only Faction Balance Experiment, Lonestar gets a cash and XP win bonus and cash and XP multipliers on teamplay actions. Exact values haven't been published. Separately, any faction at least 40 points behind second place gets 20% off at the vendor.

Factions & Faction Colors — WARDOGS Handbook

Q: Does your faction restrict your loadout in WARDOGS?

No. Your faction does not restrict your loadout. Every faction can buy the same full roster of weapons, gear, and vehicles at HQ. The Lonestar-only music tape is cosmetic.

Q: Are the A-91 and KH-2002 the same weapon?

Yes. The A-91 and KH-2002 are the same rifle, reskinned for Valkyra and Manticore.

The Three Factions

Three factions of 33 players each load into every match. You're assigned to one when you join, and switching sides mid-match is restricted once a team pulls ahead — see Game Modes.

Lonestar

Western Para-Military

The heavy-hitters of the Western para-military world, known for their Texas-tough grit.

blue on the battlefield

Valkyra

Soviet People's Republic

Dedicated to returning the Soviet People's Republic to greatness.

red on the battlefield

Manticore

Kingdom of Persia

The Kingdom of Persia — Tehran's shadow army.

green on the battlefield

What Your Faction Changes

Your Colour

Enemies are shown in their own faction's colour, so colour is how you read the battlefield at a glance.

Switching Sides

You can switch teams mid-match, but once a team is more than 10 points ahead you're locked in for 15 minutes after joining one, and your map and the spawn vehicle stay locked until you first reach the Control Zone. See Team Switching.

Faction Reskins

The A-91 and KH-2002 are the same rifle, reskinned for Valkyra and Manticore. Lonestar's branded starter rifle is the Bushmaster M17s. See Weapons.

Lonestar Music Tape

The music tape "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" by Eiffel 65 is Lonestar-only. It unlocks at WARDOG track level 29 ($25k) and costs $100 at the vendor.

What It Doesn't Change — Your faction does not restrict your loadout. Every faction can buy the same full roster of weapons, gear, and vehicles at HQ. Vehicle manufacturers like PATRIOT, AZAR VM, and Rhineritter are vendor branding, not faction allegiance. The Lonestar-only music tape is cosmetic.

Season 02 Faction Balance

Lonestar has a notably lower win rate than the other two factions. The developers point to Lonestar's uniform visibility and certain spawn positions, but name sentiment around the blue team as the biggest reason players avoid it. Season 02 runs as a "Faction Balance Experiment" to see whether rewards change Lonestar's win rate and how players feel about the faction.

Lonestar Win Bonus

Lonestar gets a cash and XP bonus for winning. Season 02 only; exact values haven't been published.

Lonestar Teamplay Bonus

Lonestar gets cash and XP multipliers on teamplay actions. Season 02 only; exact values haven't been published.

Losing-Team Discount

Any faction that's at least 40 points behind second place gets 20% off at the vendor. This applies to all three factions, not just Lonestar.

Team Spawns

Each of the three faction spawns on Bakurani has its own purpose-built routes to the zone. See Maps.

Community server hosts caught exploiting the faction bonus will be punished. More desaturated Lonestar uniforms were mentioned in the Season 02 preview but aren't in the patch notes, so they're unconfirmed.