A lot has changed since Super Auto Pets first came out in September 2021, rendering my previous guide out of date. Some of the top tier pets are no longer OP, many of the best builds are now overrated, and we have brand new options to dominate the battlefield. 

With all the developers’ changes, it’s time for an update to help beginners and veterans get more wins. This guide will delve into the game mechanics and strategies to help you win more consistently in Super Auto Pets! 

How to Play Super Auto Pets 

Getting started in Super Auto Pets is straightforward. The game offers a laid-back and enjoyable experience, perfect for gamers seeking fun and strategy. 

At this time, Super Auto Pets currently has two game modes: Arena Mode and Versus Mode. They’re fairly similar, with a couple of key differences.

Arena Mode

The heart and soul of Super Auto Pets is Arena Mode. You’ll be matched with other players online and face off against a new opponent each round.

To be victorious, you’ll need to rack up 10 match wins. Players start with 5 hearts, and you lose a heart every time you lose a round. Interestingly, you’ll be gifted a replacement heart in turn 3 if you’ve lost at least one match to that point.

If you draw in a match – when no living pets are on either side after all abilities and attacks are initiated – you won’t lose any hearts.

The game tries its best to match players based on the number of wins you’ve had to that point and the number of remaining hearts. You’ll be able to see the number of victories and hearts your opponent has at the start of the match.

Arena mode gives you infinite time in the store (more on this when we get to the Versus Mode). Players can spend as much time as they’d like thinking through their store strategy to give themselves the best chance of building a strong team. I’ve even minimized the game and returned hours later to find that the game still has my instances saved in the condition I left it!

Versus Mode

Versus Mode is where things start to get dicey. Here, you face against the same set of opponents until one player is left standing.

You can join a public lobby, join a private lobby, or create your own private lobby. The last option is great if you have other SAP friends to play with. If you don’t, join the TAG discord to be pulled into a community game!

Players have control over several custom rules in Versus Mode. You can determine whether players are locked in the same pet pack as you, choose the number of hearts each person has, the amount of time you have in between rounds, and even life loss!

When you first start, you should play with the default settings. Once you get more comfortable with the game mechanics, you can play around with the custom Versus settings.

Custom Packs: Unleash Your Creativity

Players can unleash their inner game designer with Custom Packs. Craft your own unique pack by mixing and matching pets and food from packs you own. 

You’ll need to select ten pets from each tier and three foods from each tier, except tier one, where you can only select two foods. 

The great thing about Custom Packs is that you can choose combinations of pets and equipment that aren’t normally available in the Standard Packs. Imagine creating a Custom Pack with every summoning pet possible and having Turkeys to buff them to victory!

Weekly Packs: Ever-Changing Challenges

If you’re looking for a fresh challenge, Weekly Packs can scratch that itch. Each week, with a rotating selection of pets and food items, presents a new puzzle to solve. 

You can often find some of the strongest pet combinations for each Weekly Pack on the Super Auto Pets subreddit, but it’s more fun to experiment on your own. Adapt your strategies, embrace the unexpected, and conquer the weekly challenges to prove your adaptability.

As you venture through these game modes, remember that each victory and defeat is a step toward mastery. The Super Auto Pets world is yours to conquer, one battle at a time.

Understanding Health and Attack

Now to the core of SAP. In Super Auto Pets, understanding health and attack mechanics is crucial for emerging victorious. As you progress through the rounds, you’ll want to make sure that you increase your team’s health and attack to be best equipped to take on stronger opponents.

Health Points: The Lifeline of Pets

Every pet in Super Auto Pets comes equipped with a certain number of health points (HP). Think of HP as the lifeline that keeps your furry companions in the fight. 

As battles rage on, pets endure attacks, and their HP decreases. When a pet’s HP reaches zero, it faints, making way for the next in line.

You can increase HP several ways:

• Leveling up your pet
• Giving your pet-specific equipment
• Pet-specific abilities to boost health

Of course, this is only one half of the equation. Players must also optimize for attack strength as they build their team.

Attack Power: Unleash the Furry Fury

Attack power determines how much damage a pet can inflict on its opponents. A pet’s attack power is directly correlated to the amount of HP subtracted from the target. For example, if you have a Fish with 3 attack, it will remove 3 HP from an opponent anytime it hits it.

Generally, a winning team will have a combination of increased attack and HP vs the base stats of the pet. This is known as “scaling”. unleashed with each battle round, and it subtracts from the target’s HP. By increasing both of these stats, you’ll be significantly more powerful than a similar team composition that hasn’t improved attack and health. 

Abilities and Attack: A Powerful Duo

Abilities, those unique traits that define each pet, can dramatically alter the flow of battle. Some abilities bolster a pet’s attack power, while others provide defensive advantages or unleash devastating effects. 

At the start of a battle, abilities will be triggered based on the attack stat of the pets. Whichever pet has the most attack will have the ability triggered first, followed by the next pet in decreasing order of attack strength. If two pets have the same attack stat, the tiebreaker will go to the pet with the higher HP. 

You’ll want to position your pets such that you get the most benefit out of their in-game ability. For example, because the Ant buffs allies when it faints, you usually want it at the front of the line to increase the power of another pet. You never want to put it last because it won’t have a chance to buff anything!

Super Auto Pets has dozens of different abilities; the best way to learn them is to try various pets. Most are straightforward with easy-to-understand descriptions, but others will take practice to understand when and how to use them. 

Mastering the Order of Attacks and Abilities

As you delve deeper into the fray, comprehending the intricacies of the order of attacks and abilities becomes paramount. Let’s go a bit deeper on how attacking in Super Auto Pets works. 

Attack Sequence: Calculated Engagements

Within Super Auto Pets, the sequence of attacks is more than a mere succession. Rather, it’s a calculated ballet of strategy. 

The position of your pets within the team determines their attack order. The pet occupying your rightmost position in your lineup takes the lead, squaring off against the adversary positioned farthest to the left in the opponent’s team. This arrangement orchestrates a mesmerizing exchange of blows and counterblows.

The timing of attacks transforms each match into a mesmerizing tactical puzzle. As you progress to higher tiers of pets, it becomes even more important how you position your pets. You’ll see more pets with in-battle ability triggers that turn the tide of battle. 

Here are some general tips to follow when thinking about the ordering of your pets:

• Place pets with faint abilities near the front (i.e., Turtle, Stork)
• Pets that buff summoned animals should be near the back, or at least behind the summoned pets (i.e. Horse, Turkey)
• Make sure you have enough room for all your summons. For example, if you put a level 2 Rooster at the front of your 5-pet lineup, it won’t have enough space to spawn both its Chicks
• Try to keep your tankiest pet at the front of your lineup. This way, it will have the best opportunity to kill multiple pets before it faints
• Position your weakest pets – the ones with the lowest health and attack – at the back of your lineup. The exception to this rule is when you have a pet with low base stats with a powerful ability to lead off with. The Scorpion is a great example of this, which will almost always be positioned at the front of your squad 

Unleashing Abilities: Precision and Opportunity

Abilities present a realm of strategic opportunity. These unique traits can trigger under specific circumstances, introducing an element of surprise and innovation to battles. 

For example, some abilities are triggered when a friendly pet faints. Others are triggered by something from the enemy team, such as a summon. Effective ability utilization hinges on timing, ensuring that your pets’ talents are unleashed precisely when they can yield maximum impact.

Execute an ability prematurely, and its potential might be squandered. Time it flawlessly, and you can orchestrate a symphony of devastation that catches your opponents off guard.

As in the last section, you should consider what triggers each ability when deciding where to place a pet in your lineup.

Scaling Pets for Unstoppable Power

In Super Auto Pets, battles are not just about cute faces. As the matches progress, pets have the opportunity to grow stronger through leveling up and consuming food. Scaling pets become increasingly formidable with each level and can become the key players in securing those hard-fought wins!

Scaling pets into their full glory demands a tactician’s touch. Here’s how you can nurture their growth:

• Strategic Feeding: Amp up your scaling by feeding your pets wisely. Certain food items can immediately increase the stats of your pets. Others are triggered in battle, and there are even items that give a temporary boost for the upcoming round. It’s a recipe for turning fledgling fighters into apex predators.
• Positioning Mastery: Where you place your scaling pets within your lineup matters. Ensure they’re flanked by comrades whose abilities amplify their newfound strength, creating a harmonious symphony of tactics. I referred to this in a previous section, but you should ensure that triggered effects that buff the rest of your team are not wasted by poor positioning.
• Leveling Your Pets: One of the most straightforward ways to scale your pet is by increasing their level. You can do this by combining two of the same pet (more on this in the next section), ability triggers, or by feeding your pet chocolate. 

Navigating the Shop Mechanics

The shop stands as a pivotal arena where your tactical decisions shape the destiny of battle. In this section, we’ll look at how your shop choices reign supreme.

A Treasure Trove of Choices

The shop is a treasure trove brimming with possibilities. Here, you’re presented with a lineup of pets and items, each holding the promise of enhancing your battle prowess. The shop evolves as you progress through tiers, granting access to more powerful and diverse options.

Craft Your Dream Team

Selecting pets from the shop isn’t a mere transaction – it’s a strategic masterpiece. Every pet you choose contributes to your carefully crafted squad. Consider synergies between abilities, envision how each pet will complement your existing team, and strategize for the battles ahead.

Remember that your squad will evolve over time, both in terms of level and the types of pets on your team. Be flexible in swapping out pets when you find one that is a better fit for your build. In the shop, you can sell any pet for an amount equal to its level. For example, a level 1 Mosquito will sell for 1 Gold.

There are a few exceptions to this rule based on pet abilities, but those will be stated clearly for each pet.

Strategic Spending: Pets and Items

Gold is your currency within the shop, and every decision is an investment in victory. To start, every pet and/or equipment costs 3 gold (except for the Pill, which is 1 gold). 

There are pets, like the Squirrel and Gold Fish, which reduce the costs of items in the shop. It’s a common tactic for teams to take advantage of shop discounts to increase the speed you can scale your team. 

Spend wisely, for your choices ripple through the fabric of your battles. Will you bolster your ranks with a powerful pet, stock up on items to fortify your pet’s abilities, or strike a balance between the two? Every scenario is different, and adaptability is key.

The Art of Adaptation

Adaptability is your ally within the shop. With each visit, you’re presented with fresh offerings, demanding on-the-fly decision-making. 

A flexible mindset is key to seizing opportunities and countering opponents effectively. One beginner mistake is getting too attached to a certain pet, even if it isn’t adding value to the team. This can especially be the case when you level up a Tier 1 or 2 pet early in your journey.

Don’t be afraid to sell off any pet that isn’t increasing your chances of winning later battles! 

The Path to Triumph

Your mastery of the shop is integral to securing victory. Make each visit count, refine your tactical choices, and elevate your team’s potential. 

Most pets have moderately attractive level 1 abilities. You should prioritize getting your most valuable pets to level 2 as early as possible to maximize their untapped potential.

In our next chapter, we’ll explore the diverse avenues of building your team, crafting strategies that cater to different playstyles. 

Exploring Different Types of Builds

As you delve deeper into the world of battling critters and cunning tactics, you’ll uncover a wealth of possibilities regarding team composition. Brace yourselves as we embark on a journey through the diverse landscape of different types of builds. Each offers a unique path to victory.

The Art of Synergy

In Super Auto Pets, building a team isn’t just about tossing together a random assortment of pets. It’s an intricate dance of synergy, where each pet contributes to a greater whole. 

Synergy arises when the abilities of certain pets complement each other. This creates a harmonious ensemble of powers that can be greater than the sum of their parts.

For example, pairing a Jellyfish with a Clownfish can be a powerful combination because they both benefit from friendly level-ups.

Aggressive Builds: Striking First

Aggressive builds focus on seizing the initiative and overwhelming opponents early. These setups often include pets with high attack and low health, aiming to deal heavy blows swiftly. 

For this type of build, you may consider the following pets:

• Scorpion
• Sword Fish
• Piranha
• Praying Mantis

Then, you’ll want to have a high-health pet at the back of the lineup to clean up whatever is left of the remaining enemy team. This build is high risk, high reward, and can be a fun composition of pets with deadly attacks.

The key is to secure victory before opponents can mount a counteroffensive. You’ll usually achieve this by taking out the opposing team’s strongest pets early in the round.

Defensive Builds: Fortress of Resilience

For those who favor a more cautious approach, defensive builds are the answer. These teams prioritize high health and protective abilities, weathering opponents’ assaults and biding their time. 

Some pets that fall into this category are:

• Armadillo
• Mammoth
• Seal
• Orangutan
• Sauropod

While these pets don’t have great attack base stats, you can raise their damage with equipment. This way, you take advantage of their large health pools and dish out a decent amount of damage in battle. 

As battles progress, defensive builds gradually assert dominance through sheer resilience.

Versatile Builds: Adapt and Conquer

Versatile builds thrive on adaptability, featuring a mix of pets with varied abilities. This strategy allows commanders to respond dynamically to opponents’ tactics, adjusting their playstyle on the fly. 

These are some of my favorite builds, and tend to work in many different scenarios (pet order from left to right, with the right-most pet being at the front of your lineup):

• Swan (get to level 3 early to trigger the Bison scaling), Fly, Snake, Bison, Deer
• Monkey, Penguin, Crocodile, Tiger, Hippo
• Spinosaurus, Anteater, Clownfish, Jellyfish, Orca
• Dragon, Caterpillar, Llama, Eagle (4 pets to take advantage of the Llama scaling)

Versatile builds excel at countering a wide range of threats. If you’re lucky enough to see a shop with this combination of animals, you’ve got a good chance of securing ten wins!

Sniper Builds: Ending Battles Swiftly

Sniper builds remain popular in Super Auto Pets for their ability to end a round before it even begins. These builds revolve around pets who attack at the start of the round, often eliminating an opposing pet before it can perform its move.

Here are some of the strongest snipers in the game:

• Crocodile
• Dolphin
• Vulture
• Sword Fish
• Leopard

These teams have a tougher time in late rounds (15+) since opposing teams have scaled their health significantly by this stage in the game. However, if you can assemble an early group of strong snipers, you’ll be unstoppable in the early rounds. 

Hybrid Builds: Best of Both Worlds

Hybrid builds strike a balance between offense and defense, offering a versatile blend of strengths. These teams often revolve around one or two pets who greatly increase the overall power of your squad. Target these pets for some nice hybrid builds:

• Tyrannosaurus (give tier 5 friends or higher attack and health)
• Stegosaurus (give random friend without food perk attack and health – multiply with turn number)
• Siberian Husky (give friends with no food perks attack and health)

Include pets with a mix of high attack and health, allowing them to both dish out damage and endure battles of attrition.

The Strategy Puzzle

Building your team is akin to assembling a puzzle, where each pet is a unique piece contributing to the grand design. As you explore different types of builds, consider your preferred playstyle, the strengths you wish to emphasize, and the challenges you anticipate.

Enhancing Your Pets with Food and Equipment

As the battle rages on and victory hangs in the balance, two potent tools await your command – food and equipment. These elements are more than mere consumables. They are the key to unlocking the hidden potential of your dominant team.

Fueling the Fire: The Power of Food

In the vibrant world of Super Auto Pets, food is a catalyst for growth and evolution. Each morsel you feed your pets contributes to their development, enhancing their stats and potentially unlocking new abilities. 

Deciding which pet to feed and when requires careful consideration. Will you invest in a scaling pet, nurturing its growth over time? Alternatively, you could bolster an already formidable ally for immediate impact. Ultimately, Your choices will determine the ebb and flow of battles.

Consider which pets can benefit from specific types of food. If you have a tanky pet, like a Bison, increasing its tankiness with a Melon or other armor is great. If you have a summoning pet, like a Deer, throwing a Mushroom on would be great. 

For other food that grants generic buffs, like a Pear, you have some optionality. You can give it to a weak pet to make it stronger or make your strongest pet even stronger!

Synergy and Adaptation

Food and equipment are more than isolated elements. They synergize with your pets’ abilities, creating dynamic combinations that reshape battles. 

I touched on this a bit in the previous section, but here are more examples of great synergies:

• Badger + Honey (make sure to put your Badger in the last position on your team)
• Popcorn + any Tier 6 pet (best on summoning pets)
• Steak + any low-attack pet that has an ability trigger at the end of the turn (think about Poodles and Monkeys)
• Lemon + any pet that triggers its ability when it gets hurt 
• Grapes + any pet that gives you a gold buff (Swan, Hammerhead Shark, Gold Fish)

Some equipment is better for certain pets than others, but it comes down to buying the right thing at the right time.

Food and equipment are the tools you wield to sculpt your team into an unstoppable force. Each decision you make is a brushstroke on the canvas of victory. Embrace the culinary and mechanical dimensions of Super Auto Pets, and you’ll harness the true potential of your companions.

Mastering Trumpets and Summons 

As you guide your pets through the battlefield, the resonating notes of trumpets will echo your triumphs. This unique game mechanic introduces an advanced way to create winning tactics in Super Auto Pets.

A Harmonious Mechanic

Each trumpet introduces a way to turn the tables in your favor. At a base level, your trumpets will summon a Golden Retriever with the same stats as your number of trumpets. For example, if you generate 4 trumpets from your first 3 pets, a 4 attack/4 HP Golden Retriever will be automatically summoned right before your last pet takes a turn.

Whether it’s summoning allies, bolstering stats, or disrupting opponents, the harmony of trumpets weaves into the tapestry of your strategy.

Each pet in your team can wield a trumpet, but the artistry lies in choosing the right one. You can use food like Cherries to gain trumpets on faint. Certain pets generate trumpets from their abilities, like the Black Necked Stilt. Regardless, you’ll need to figure out the best way to use your generated trumpets.

Strategically deploying trumpets adds a layer of depth to your decision-making. Consider the synergy between your pets’ abilities and the trumpet’s effects. It can be a fine tactic to generate as many trumpets as possible to summon a powerful Golden Retriever. The other strategy is to purchase pets that use trumpets to initiate devastating abilities.

Consider where you place your pets to take advantage of the generated trumpets in the latter method. If you have a pet that gains trumpets when your friends faint, like the Saiga Antelope, try to position it at the back of your lineup. You’ll also see pets like the Nurse Shark, which spend trumpets when they faint.

Try to understand the trumpet mechanics of the pets on your team to position them optimally. 

Mastering Strawberries

Like trumpets, strawberries add a layer of complexity to the available strategic options. This food was introduced in the Star Pack, opening the door for new ways to attack, defend, and scale your team.

Players can purchase strawberries from the start of the first round. A typical strawberry team will have a Hummingbird and at least one friendly pet with a strawberry equipped. Then, you can take advantage of the Kiwi to further buff your strawberry friend after selling the small bird.

If you go the strawberry route, plan carefully to pick up some of these powerful pets who rely on the juicy fruit for viability:

• Cassowary – If there is a strawberry friend, gain attack and health
• Pelican – End of turn and start of battle, give random strawberry friend attack and health
• Shoebill – End turn, give strawberry friends attack and health
• Velociraptor – Start of battle, give coconut perk to random strawberry friend

By building around these pets, you can form a deadly squad fueled on strawberries!

Leveling Up Pets: The Path to Greatness

As you progress through battles, you’ll have opportunities to give your pets experience. At certain experience checkpoints, your pet will level up, increasing their stats and granting access to a new tier of ability usage.

As previously mentioned, there are a few ways to level up your pets:

1. Players can combine two of the same pet in the ‘shop’ phase. Each pet has a base experience value of d. If you combine two base pets, the result is one pet with two experience points. When a pet reaches its first three XP, it will level up to level two! When combining pets in the shop, if you create a level two pet through the combination the store will gift you a choice of two pets of a tier level one beyond your current shop level. For example, if you form a level two Fish in turn 3, you’ll see two new tier 3 pets in your shop’s inventory (in addition to the standard tier 1 and 2 pets that are normally available in turn 3).
2. Another straightforward way to gain XP is to feed your pet Chocolate. This food item costs the standard three gold from the shop and gives one XP to whichever pet you feed it to. Similar to the level one combination strategy, the shop will give you a choice of two pets from the next highest tier when you form a level two pet using Chocolate.
3. Some pets grant XP from their ability. The Flying Fish gives experience to friends summoned in battle. Pugs give the nearest friend ahead additional experience at the start of battle. A Blobfish will grant the nearest friend behind attack, health, and XP when it faints. Pay close attention to how your pet triggers an XP bonus since many of these can be utilized in the shop phase to grant permanent experience boosts.

Generally, pet abilities scale with increased levels. You’ll see exceptions like the Scorpion and Microbe, which don’t have any change in ability, but the other pet abilities get more powerful as you scale. 

Unleashing the Power of Toys

These whimsical tools of strategy infuse a touch of playfulness into the fray. The effects of toys can tip the scales of battle. 

In the Super Auto Pets, toys are more than child’s play; they’re game-changers. Each toy introduces a unique effect that can profoundly impact battles. 

Toys can only be obtained if you purchase specific pets. One pet from each tier can introduce new toys to the rotation.

Like pets, toys also come in different tiers. The critical thing to note is that higher-tier toys will activate in battle before lower-tier ones. 

Additionally, only one toy can be used at a time. As with all things in Super Auto Pets, you must adapt to your changing team to select the right toy for your team composition. 

The Toybox of Strategy

Strategically deploying toys requires finesse. Do you opt for a toy that enhances the strength of a specific pet, amplifying its role within your team? Or perhaps a toy that confounds opponents by reshuffling the battlefield? 

You can treat toys as an in-battle buff to your team. Many of the toys replicate pet abilities, so they are straightforward once you understand the basics of Super Auto Pets. 

Mastering toys involves understanding the delicate balance of timing. Deploying a toy at the right moment can catch opponents off-guard or bolster your pets’ strengths at a crucial juncture. 

Toys often impact a pet based on its location in the lineup, so this is another thing to consider as you plan out your team’s pet ordering. You can check out the full list of toys here for reference.

Synergy in Simplicity

There’s an element of synergizing with toys in Super Auto Pets. Animals like the Flying Squirrel work especially well with toys. This pet brings back your toy after it breaks!

You can also use toys to buff your pets if your respective pack doesn’t have access to specific food items. For example, the Garlic Press gives Garlic to your pets in battle, further increasing their durability.

Toys are your tools of tactical surprise, granting you the ability to sway battles in your favor with a whimsical touch. As you master the art of toy deployment, you’ll discover the joy of outwitting opponents and securing triumphs through unconventional means.

Understanding Status Effects and Pet Abilities

Pets can inflict status effects on opponents, impacting their performance in battles. Combining these effects with your pets’ abilities is essential for creating powerful synergies that dominate the battlefield. 

Here are the current status effects in Super Auto Pets:

• Weak – make a pet take 3 additional damage when it is attacked
• Ink – make a pet deal 3 less damage

Additionally, these ailments can be inflicted by items such as Toilet Paper and the Pen. Understanding these effects is the key to becoming a true master of pet warfare!

Celebrating Achievements 

Super Auto Pets rewards your skill and dedication with a variety of achievements. Players will unlock a sticker for each pet with which they achieve level 3 in the game. You’ll also earn an orange ribbon if you win with a level 3 pet.

There are also hidden achievements available in Super Auto Pets. These are available for pets that you can’t purchase in the shop. Examples include the Bee, Bus, and Zombie Fly. Players typically need to apply a Sleeping Pill to the primary pet to earn hidden achievements to get the resulting summon in their lineup permanently. 

Exploring Purchasable Packs and Weekly Packs

Expand your roster of adorable pets with purchasable packs and DLC. These content additions offer new and exciting pets with unique abilities, providing countless possibilities for building your dream team. 

In addition to the default Turtle Pack, players can purchase the Golden Pack, Star Pack, and Puppy Pack. Each has unique pets and equipment to increase the game’s replayability.

Additionally, weekly packs add variety to the game, providing fresh challenges and opportunities to explore new strategies. These free packs combined pets and equipment from all packs in a rotating mash-up. Keep your eyes open for these exciting opportunities to enhance your pet collection!

Improving your Win Rate in Super Auto Pets

Super Auto Pets is all about experimentation. By combining these tips with your own trial and error, you’ll quickly see what tactics work best.
Additionally, if you want to learn more from the Average Gamer community, join our Discord server! We have plenty of people who can share their advice on getting more wins in Super Auto Pets!