Rolling downhill in WARDOGS isn’t an exploit, and BULKHEAD’s CEO is right about that. But a teammate of mine drove a loaded Ural backwards at 142 km/h, nearly double its top speed, and held it all the way to the play zone, about three kilometres away. That’s a different thing. I’ve driven Urals all season, and I don’t think a real truck could do that, so here’s the maths.
What did BULKHEAD’s CEO say about rolling downhill?
On 18 October, Joe Brammer replied to a player who’d been told that drifting in reverse was an exploit.
https://x.com/Brammflakes/status/2111879051363205259
His point was that cars rolling in gear, or in neutral down a hill, is what happens in real life: “Definitely not an exploit… incredibly realistic.” He also said BULKHEAD hasn’t decided whether to keep that behaviour. On the rolling, fair enough. My problem is the distance and the speed, and I’m not sure he’s seen the version I saw.
What does the Ural backwards trick look like?
I watched it on stream on 17 October, on a Europe server. A teammate got his Ural going backwards with a spin turn and told me to “just let it ride”. I asked him how fast it went and he said 142. My own Ural tops out at 79 km/h going forwards, and I was flat out behind him the whole way while he slowly pulled away, his truck pointing the wrong way.
I tried it twice myself and never got anywhere close. Rolling backwards down a hill, the best I managed was 29 km/h. I didn’t even know you could put a truck in neutral, if I’m honest. I thought it was forwards or backwards.
Could a real Ural keep 142 km/h for three kilometres?
No, not on any normal hill. Here’s what the numbers say for the real Ural-4320, which weighs about 8,440 kg empty and carries up to 6,000 kg, so around 14.4 tonnes loaded (Ural-4320).
Getting to 142 km/h takes a drop of at least 79 metres, and that’s with zero friction and zero air resistance. The truck’s weight doesn’t change that number, because gravity speeds up a heavy truck and a light one the same.
Then it has to keep going. On a dirt track, a loaded Ural rolling from 142 km/h falls back under its own top speed in roughly 870 metres and stops in about 1.4 km. Even on tarmac it drops under top speed within about 1.7 km. Three kilometres through trees at 142 isn’t on.
To actually hold 142 km/h for three kilometres on dirt, you’d need a steady 7.6% downhill the whole way, about 229 metres of drop. On grass it’s closer to 12%, around 350 metres. That’s a mountain road, not a slope down to the zone.
Does the weight of a loaded Ural help it roll further?
A bit, but nowhere near enough. Rolling resistance goes up with the weight, so that cancels out. The only thing a heavier truck beats is the air, so a loaded Ural coasts from 142 down to 79 in about 870 metres on dirt, against about 700 empty. And if you leave it in gear, like Brammer says, the engine slows it down even faster.
These numbers use typical rolling resistance for tarmac, dirt and grass, and a boxy-truck drag figure, with engine braking left out, so a real truck would stop even sooner. WARDOGS doesn’t have to follow real physics. That’s kind of my point: something in the game is letting a truck do what a real one can’t.
Should BULKHEAD keep the Ural backwards trick?
No. Rolling down a hill and keeping your momentum is fine, I can do that myself. But turning up at the play zone at nearly twice the speed the truck is meant to go, for three kilometres, is absurd.
It’s also a risk to try. BULKHEAD has been temp banning Season 2 exploiters and resetting their cash and XP (WARDOGS on X). Until it says the backwards Ural is fine, that’s a risk. You can find more on the WARDOGS hub.
FAQ
Is rolling downhill an exploit in WARDOGS? No. Joe Brammer said on 18 October that rolling downhill in gear or in neutral is realistic and not an exploit, though BULKHEAD hasn’t decided whether to keep it.
How fast can a Ural go in WARDOGS? My Ural tops out at 79 km/h going forwards. A teammate hit 142 km/h by driving his backwards after a spin turn.
Can you get banned for the Ural backwards trick? BULKHEAD hasn’t said. It has been temp banning Season 2 exploiters and resetting their cash and XP, so it’s a risk until it does.
