Doloc Town Combat Drone Guide — Unlock, Upgrades & Best Loadouts (2026)

Doloc Town's combat all runs through one machine: the combat drone, an auto-firing companion that follows you into the wastes and handles most fighting while you focus on positioning, dodging and grabbing loot. It's not a handheld gun — weapons are mounted on the drone, and the whole system is modular: frame, weapon, engine, support gear and enhancement chips. This guide covers how to unlock it, how its AI works, what to upgrade in what order, and the loadouts the community runs for each region.

Here's what you'll learn:

• How to unlock the combat drone and the Engineering Hangar & Gunworks
• Auto-fire vs manual (stick) aim, and when to use each
• The five equipment slots and what each one does
• Weapon modules, from the Double Shooter to the 1.0 part sets
• Enhancement chips — the best early investment (see the drone chips guide for the full list)
• Drone loadouts for the River Valley, Wetlands, caves and Old City Ruins
• Repair, maintenance, and the common mistakes players make

Official resources: Steam store page · CGMagazine review (8/10) · Doloc Town on Wikipedia · TechRaptor beginner guide

How to Unlock the Combat Drone

The drone arrives early, but not instantly. The unlock chain, per CGMagazine's review and TechRaptor's beginner guide:

1. Complete the opening quests — the tutorial arc that sets up your farm and introduces the town.
2. Open the River Valley — after the initial story milestones, the valley route unlocks.
3. Join the guild — speak to Orlando, complete a few tasks for him, and he lets you into the guild. This grants the combat drone, the double jump during the entry quests, and access to drone module crafting.

From there, the Engineering Hangar & Gunworks in the lower level of town (right side of the river) becomes your home base. Cod sells weapons and strengthening chips and runs a simulated gun range where you can test loadouts free (time is frozen; modifications are undone when you leave). Mody sells drone frames, drone accessories, and — usefully — clears the rockslide to expand your farm. The shop is open 10:00 AM–8:00 PM every day except Tuesday.

How the Drone Works: Auto-Fire vs Manual Aim

The drone has two control modes, and switching between them is half of combat skill:

• Auto-fire (default): the drone targets the nearest enemy while you run, dodge and collect resources. This is the forgiving setting for exploration and for town-adjacent fights.
• Manual (stick aim): you aim the drone with the right stick. This is required for weak points and boss windows — enemies in the Old City Ruins hide vulnerability phases, and the Drone 33 fight in the River Valley is far easier with focused manual fire.

Two resources matter in combat: your stamina (dodges) and the drone's energy pool (which recharges over time). If both are empty, retreat — the Wetlands poison punishes greedy pushes, and 1.0 rebalanced enemies so they can no longer be permanently stun-locked by bullets.

The Five Equipment Slots

Drone equipment is not one pool. Separating these slots is the single biggest "why won't it equip" fix in the game:

A part that won't equip usually belongs to another slot — or needs a frame with that socket available. The 1.0 patch also moved several recipes off Old Chips onto standard Chips crafted with the Assembly Shaper, so check the current recipe before hoarding obsolete materials.

Weapon Modules: What to Use and When

Weapon modules determine your attack pattern and damage type. From Early Access to 1.0 the meta has settled around these:

• Double Shooter — the reliable early workhorse: two fast shots, cheap to upgrade, fine through the River Valley.
• Melee modules (the drone sword) — high damage but risky; community threads call it the love-it-or-hate-it option. 1.0 buffed tool damage against monsters, so your pickaxe isn't a joke anymore, but the drone still out-damages handheld tools.
• Firearms (pistol/shotgun-type modules) — the 1.0 patch "rebalanced firearms to reduce the performance gap between weapons of the same tier" and raised the critical damage multiplier from 1.5× to 2×. A crit-focused build is now much stronger.
• 1.0 part sets — the full release added "10 sets of combat drone parts" plus new accessories, giving late-game builds distinct identities (pierce, rapid-fire, area damage).

Per the official 1.0 patch notes (Steam), "the critical damage multiplier of firearms" was raised "from 1.5× to 2×", "the stats of Enhancement Chips" were adjusted "so that every chip type has a practical use", and "a series of new combat drones and related components" were added.

The Best Early Upgrade Order

Money is tight early, so spend it in the order that compounds:

1. Attack-speed enhancement chips first. They scale every weapon you'll ever equip — the highest-value early investment (full list in the drone chips guide).
2. The first frame upgrade (~1,000 G). More sockets beat a slightly better gun.
3. A weapon module that fits the region you're about to enter — pierce or area damage for the Wetlands' swarms, high single-target for the Drone 33 fight.
4. A lighting module before caves. The caves guide drills into this: dark tunnels without a lighting module are where unprepared players lose runs.

Loadouts by Region

Different regions need different drones (map context in the regions guide):

The 1.0 finale in the Old City tests full loadout mastery — under-upgraded drones fail the DPS checks on the optional challenge modes, so bring your best build (and see the 1.0 new features guide for what the endgame expects).

Repair, Maintenance and Common Mistakes

• Repair mid-encounter: the drone can be patched up during fights if you carry repair kits — don't save them for town.
• Don't confuse the drones: agricultural/farm automation drones (1.0) are a completely different system — they tend crops from base stations and are detailed in the best farm layout guide. Players have wasted hours trying to "repair" combat drones at farm drone stations.
• Don't skip your own weapon upgrades: while the drone fights, you still need melee/tool damage for breaking objects and the moments the drone is recharging.
• Hide the drone for cutscenes if it bothers you: 1.0 added a toggle, along with Display Stands that show off complete drones with their components.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I get the combat drone in Doloc Town?

Complete the opening quests, open the River Valley, then join the guild through Orlando. The guild entry quests grant the combat drone and the double jump. Cod sells weapons and chips, Mody sells frames, at the Engineering Hangar & Gunworks.

How does drone combat work in Doloc Town?

The drone follows you and auto-fires at the nearest enemy; you move, dodge and collect. Switch to manual (stick) aim for weak points and bosses. Your stamina fuels dodges, the drone has its own energy pool that recharges over time.

What is the best drone loadout in Doloc Town?

Start with attack-speed enhancement chips and a frame upgrade; they scale everything. Then match the weapon to the region — pierce/AoE for Wetlands swarms, high single-target for Drone 33, lighting module for caves, and a full crit build (1.0 raised firearm crits to 2×) for the Old City Ruins.

Can I repair my drone in Doloc Town?

Yes — carry repair kits and patch the drone mid-encounter. At town, Mody at the Engineering Hangar handles frames and parts. Note that farm automation drones are a separate 1.0 system and can't repair combat drones.

Is the combat drone different from farm automation drones?

Completely. The combat drone is your fighting companion with frame/weapon/engine/chip slots. Agricultural drones are 1.0 automation units that sow, water, fertilize and harvest from base stations on your farm.

Related Guides

• Doloc Town Drone Chips — Every Chip Type & Best Builds
• Doloc Town All Regions Guide — Maps, Unlocks & Resources
• Doloc Town Caves Guide — Exploration, Resources & Dangers
• Doloc Town Beginner's Guide — First Week & Progression (2026)
• Doloc Town 1.0 New Features — Full Release Breakdown

Last updated: August 14, 2026.