Axom Perks Guide: Best Perks & How to Unlock Them

What Are Perks in Axom?

Perks are powerful passive bonuses that modify your fortress, units, or commander in Axom. Unlike active abilities or buildings, perks provide permanent, stackable effects that persist across runs. They are a core part of the Roguelite progression system, allowing you to tailor your strategy to the challenges of the procedurally generated alien world.

Each perk belongs to a specific category, and you can equip a limited number of them before starting a run. Understanding which perks complement your playstyle and the current map conditions is key to surviving the later waves of the physical-driven swarm.

How to Unlock and Equip Perks

Perks are unlocked through the Progression System in your hub area. You earn Perk Points by completing runs, defeating elite enemies, and achieving specific milestones. Check the Progression Guide for a full breakdown of unlock conditions.

To equip perks, navigate to the Loadout menu before launching a mission. You have a limited number of Perk Slots, which can be increased by upgrading your Command Center. Each perk has a Cost (in Perk Points) and a Rarity (Common, Uncommon, Rare, Epic). Higher rarity perks offer stronger effects but may require more points.

Best Defensive Perks for Your Fortress

Defensive perks focus on fortifying your walls, increasing your base health, and improving repair speed. These are essential for players who prefer a slow, methodical expansion strategy.

• Reinforced Plating: Increases wall health by 20%. This is a staple perk for any build, especially on higher difficulties.
• Rapid Repair: Boosts repair speed by 35%. Combine this with high-durability walls to recover quickly between waves.
• Nano-Regenerator: Slowly regenerates a percentage of your core's health over time. Ideal for long, drawn-out battles.
• Shield Capacitor: Adds an extra shield layer to your core that absorbs damage before health is affected. This can save you from a single devastating hit.

Top Offensive and Utility Perks

Offensive perks enhance your towers, units, and damage output. Utility perks provide resource bonuses, vision, or unique mechanics.

• Overclocked Turrets: Increases tower fire rate by 15% but reduces their accuracy slightly. Excellent for dealing with large swarms.
• Resource Surge: Increases resource generation from all gathering nodes by 25%. Perfect for players who want to expand and build faster.
• Scout Drone: Reveals a larger portion of the map at the start of a run. This helps you plan your fortress layout and avoid early ambushes.
• Corrosion Rounds: Your attacks apply a stacking damage-over-time effect to enemies. This is very effective against high-health elite enemies. See our Elite Enemies Guide for more details.

Synergies and Build Examples

Combining perks can create powerful synergies. Here are a few effective loadouts:

The Turtle Build: Focus on pure defense.

• Reinforced Plating
• Rapid Repair
• Nano-Regenerator
• Shield Capacitor

The Aggro Build: Maximize early damage to clear waves quickly.

• Overclocked Turrets
• Corrosion Rounds
• Resource Surge (to afford more towers)
• Scout Drone (to find resources fast)

The Balanced Build: A reliable all-rounder for new players.

• Reinforced Plating
• Resource Surge
• Overclocked Turrets
• Scout Drone

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I reset my perk points? You can respec your perk points at the Hub's Terminal for a small in-game currency fee. This is useful if you want to try a completely different strategy.

Can I change perks during a run? No, perks are locked in once you start a mission. You must choose your loadout carefully before deploying.

Are there any hidden perks? Yes, some perks are unlocked by completing secret objectives or finding rare data caches in the procedurally generated world. The Secrets Guide has more information on these.

Do perks stack with upgrades from the Upgrade Tree? Yes, perks and permanent upgrades from the Upgrades Guide stack multiplicatively, allowing for very powerful combinations in the late game.