Worms Armageddon: Complete Guide

Everything you need to go from lobbing bad grenades to sniping worms off the map: controls, the physics that matter, the key weapons and utilities, the Ninja Rope, single-player content, WormNET online play and community schemes.

Researched September 2026. Current as of version 3.8 (the big community-developed patch released July 2020). WormNET's servers were migrated in December 2024 and online play works. Check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

1. Wind moves some projectiles and not others. Bazooka shells, mortars and similar fired shells drift with the wind. Grenades, cluster bombs and banana bombs ignore it. Check the wind bar before every shot.
2. Set grenade fuses with 1 to 5 (seconds), and toggle bounce with + and -. A 1-second grenade dropped at your feet is a different weapon from a 5-second lob.
3. Water is instant death. Knocking an enemy worm into the water is worth more than any amount of damage.
4. Fall damage is real. Worms take damage from long drops. A good push off a cliff hurts twice.
5. Your turn has a timer. Plan your shot during the enemy's turn.
6. Learn the Ninja Rope. It's the single most important skill in competitive Worms, for movement and positioning.
7. Do the training modes. They're the fastest way to learn the physics.
8. Keep strong weapons for the right moment. The Holy Hand Grenade and Super Sheep are game-changers, so don't waste them on a worm with 10 health.
9. Sudden Death comes. When the round timer runs out, the water starts rising (and depending on the scheme, worms' health is cut). Plan for high ground.

Controls (Default Keyboard)

The F-key rows group weapons by type, so memorizing the row for your favorites saves seconds every turn.

The Physics You Must Understand

• Wind: affects most fired projectiles, such as the Bazooka and Mortar. It doesn't affect thrown bombs such as grenades, cluster bombs, banana bombs or the Holy Hand Grenade.
• Power: hold Space longer for more power. Full power is often wrong, so learn partial-power throws.
• Knockback: explosions push worms. Hitting the ground just behind a worm pushes it forward, toward water or off a ledge.
• Terrain destruction: everything except indestructible borders can be blown away. Dig under a worm and it'll fall.
• Mines and oil drums: mines arm after a short delay and oil drums explode when hit. Both are chain-reaction tools.

Weapon Tiers (What to Use When)

Everyday weapons

Strong but limited

Chaos and super weapons (crates)

Crate-only super weapons such as Earthquake, Armageddon, Concrete Donkey and Indian Nuclear Test can swing a game, as can the special weapon each team picks in the team editor (Wikipedia notes every team selects one). Chaos weapons like Mad Cows, Old Woman, Skunk and Salvation Army are also in the arsenal. Many competitive schemes turn the super weapons off.

Utilities

The Ninja Rope

The rope is what separates casual and competitive Worms:

1. Fire it at terrain above and to the side, then swing with the arrow keys.
2. Release and re-fire mid-swing to gain momentum and distance.
3. Lengthen and shorten the rope with Up/Down to control the arc.
4. You can fire some weapons while on the rope. Dropping Dynamite or a Sheep from a swing is a classic finisher.
5. Practise in the training modes and on "Shopper"-style maps.

Single-Player Content

• Training: five training modes, including Sheep Racing, Crazy Crates and Advanced Weapon Training, as described on the store page. Do them first.
• Missions: a campaign of more than 40 premade missions with specific goals and handicaps.
• Deathmatch: matches against increasingly difficult computer opponents, which earn you ranks.
• Quick match and custom games against CPU teams let you practise specific schemes.

Mission tips: read each mission's objective carefully, because some aren't "kill everything." Use utilities creatively, and save hard-hitting weapons for the worms that matter.

Multiplayer

• Local hotseat: multiple players share one PC and take turns. It's the original party mode.
• Online via WormNET: Team17's online lobby service. It was migrated to new servers on 17 December 2024, and Team17 confirmed that online play resumed and that the question-mark text bug in server room names was fixed. Community tools should point at the new server.
• Schemes: hosts pick a scheme (the weapons, health, turn time and rules). Common community formats include:
  • Intermediate / Pro-style general-purpose schemes
  • BnG (Bazooka and Grenade), a pure physics-skill format
  • Shopper, where you rope around to grab crates and fight with what you find
  • Roper, which is all about Ninja Rope skill

Ask the host what scheme is loaded before you join a ranked-style game.

Version 3.8 and Modern PCs

Version 3.8 (July 16, 2020) was a major free update from Deadcode and CyberShadow, the two programmers Team17 recruited to maintain the game. Their updates address bugs and compatibility issues and also add new features. Worms Armageddon runs well on modern Windows.

Update history on Steam

What 3.8 added that you should actually use

• Windowed Mode: turn it on in Advanced Settings. It's the first thing to try if fullscreen misbehaves on a modern monitor, or if you want to alt-tab during long online games.
• Tweening: movement is interpolated between engine frames, so worms and projectiles move smoothly instead of at the old 50 fps engine rate. It's purely visual; the physics don't change.
• Streaming Mode: hides IP addresses when you host or join online games. Turn it on if you stream or record WormNET matches.
• Extended Scheme Options: over 70 new scheme settings that let hosts tweak physics, allow more than one weapon per turn, make worms bounce around the landscape, and more. This is why modern community schemes can do things the 1999 game couldn't.
• CPU teams online: CPU teams can be added to online games, and all-CPU matches can be started online or offline. It's handy for filling out a game with friends.
• Mapshot: save a snapshot of the current landscape mid-game with the /map command or Alt + Pause. It's a quick way to grab a map you want to replay.
• Compatibility: the patch improved Windows 10 support, added OpenGL rendering improvements, and made the game run better under Wine/Proton on Linux. It also added translations for Finnish, French, German, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Swedish.

Troubleshooting checklist

1. Let Steam finish updating the game so you're on 3.8 or later and have the options below.
2. Fullscreen flickering or the wrong resolution: switch to Windowed Mode in Advanced Settings first.
3. Can't see WormNET rooms: Team17 said DNS changes after the December 2024 migration could take up to 72 hours to propagate, and that community-hosted tools must point at the new server. If it still fails, contact Team17 Support.
4. Hosting problems online: check the host's scheme and your connection before blaming the game. Streaming Mode only hides IPs; it doesn't fix NAT.

Console versions

Worms Armageddon: Anniversary Edition brought the game to Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S on September 26, 2024. The core game is the same, but WormNET, schemes and community tools discussed here refer to the PC version.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Ignoring wind on bazooka shots. Look at the wind bar first.
• Full-power everything. Most throws want partial power.
• Standing on ledges over water. You're one Baseball Bat away from losing a worm.
• Using super weapons early. Save them for clusters of enemy worms.
• Forgetting the fuse timer. A default fuse on a grenade you meant to drop is a classic self-kill.
• Ending your turn exposed. Use leftover movement or a Girder to hide.
• Clustering your own worms. One Cluster Bomb can wipe your team.

Advanced Tips

• Bounce grenades off walls with low-bounce settings to reach worms behind cover.
• Push, don't damage. A 5-damage Prod that drops a worm into water beats a 45-damage shot.
• Dig in during Sudden Death. Get high, or tunnel into terrain away from the rising water.
• Use the Girder defensively to block lines of fire and seal holes.
• Rope-drop combos: swing over the enemy, release Dynamite, then swing away before it goes off.
• Watch the timer. Plan during the enemy turn and act fast during yours.
• Learn the "BnG" basics even if you play casually. Bazooka and grenade accuracy carries into every scheme.

FAQ

Is Worms Armageddon still playable online? Yes. WormNET was migrated to new servers in December 2024 and online play resumed.

What's the latest version? Version 3.8 is the last major update, released July 16, 2020. Community sites such as worms2d.info track any later minor fixes.

Is Worms Armageddon better than Worms World Party? Armageddon is the one the community still plays. World Party added content in 2001 but kept the same core.

How do I stop grenades bouncing? Press + or - to toggle between low and high bounce before throwing.

Is there local multiplayer? Yes. Hotseat multiplayer on one PC.

How do I play in a window? Since version 3.8 there's a Windowed Mode option in Advanced Settings.

Can I add CPU teams to an online game? Yes, since 3.8. You can also start matches with only CPU teams, online or offline.

Is Worms Armageddon on consoles? Yes. The Anniversary Edition launched on Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S on September 26, 2024.

Is there a new Worms game? Team17 announced Worms: Galactic Tactics (a 3D tactical roguelike) at Gamescom 2026, for release in 2027.

Sources

• Worms Armageddon on Wikipedia
• Steam store page (app 217200)
• Steam news: WormNET migration (Dec 2024), patch 3.8 (July 2020), Galactic Tactics announcement (Aug 2026)
• Steam news API: patch 3.8 and Windows 10 compatibility patch notes