ROB RUN Guide: How to Play, From Your First Robbery to Owning a House, a Weed Farm and a Settlement

This ROB RUN guide takes you from your very first minute in the game to running a weed farm, owning a whole settlement and, if your clan is strong enough, ruling the map as Shadow Governor. Kefir's free-to-play crime sandbox launched in Early Access on November 4, 2026, and it throws a lot at you with very little explanation: masks, Notoriety, dirty and clean cash, documents, plots, research trees and a server that wipes every week. Here's how it all fits together, step by step, based on Kefir's own explanations and the best-tested numbers from the community.

ROB RUN is in Early Access and Kefir changes the balance often, so prices and timings can shift between updates. Where a number comes from a community guide rather than Kefir, we say so.

ROB RUN at a glance

What is ROB RUN?

Kefir calls it an extraction shooter with a crime-empire layer on top. You drive into the city of Looty Bay, rob stores, banks and other players, and try to get out alive with the loot. Every cop and every criminal is a real player. The money you make funds a base out in the desert, businesses like farms and labs, and a climb up what Kefir calls the Power Pyramid: Hobo, Settlement Resident, Settlement Owner, District Owner and finally Shadow Governor. Then the server wipes and you start again.

The ROB RUN progression path in one list

1. Leave prison as a Hobo and use Lenny's Motel as your home.
2. Make your first money from small robberies and dumpsters.
3. Sell at a Fence and open a bank account.
4. Buy a Land Plot Title and rent a plot in an owned settlement.
5. Build your house, storage, a Workbench and a Laundering Desk.
6. Set up a Grow Room (weed farm) and other businesses.
7. Save up to buy a whole settlement and collect taxes.
8. Join or build a clan to take districts, and fight for Highlands.

Part 1: Your first hour in ROB RUN

1. Leave prison and head to Lenny's Motel

Everyone starts "fresh out of prison with no cash and nowhere to live", as Kefir puts it, so you begin as a Hobo crashing at Lenny's Motel. The motel is a safe zone where players can't shoot each other, and Lenny will store your cash (not stolen goods) until you have a base. Do the introductory quests and talk to Lenny: according to KeenGamer's beginner's guide, that unlocks the Black Market.

2. Get your free car

Everyone starts with a cheap rental car. KeenGamer notes you can rent one free at a Parking Terminal if you don't have an active vehicle. Your car matters more than your gun: Kefir says criminal cars are more manoeuvrable than police cruisers, and ramps around the city help you shake off a chase.

3. Explore Looty Bay as a Civilian first

You only become a Criminal when you put on a mask. Until then you can drive around Looty Bay safely, look at targets and plan escape routes. Each time you enter the city you choose to be a cop or a criminal, or just look around first. Note: taking your mask off doesn't clear Criminal status; you have to leave Looty Bay and come back.

4. Find a weapon

You start empty-handed. Kefir decided against a free pistol after every death because "working your way up from nothing is an important part of ROB RUN", but at launch it cut the price of the basic pistol and added more starter weapon spawns around the city. Pick one up before your first proper robbery.

Part 2: How to make money in ROB RUN

5. Start with small stores

Looty Bay is full of targets, "from small corner stores and jewelry shops to high-value targets like bank vaults and police armories". Start small: pick a store with no other players nearby, park facing your exit, mask up, intimidate the staff and grab the cash and valuables. Kefir's advice for clean jobs is to disable the alarms and use lockpicks: tripping an alarm can bring "the whole precinct" down on you. Leave before the police arrive; a smaller bag you keep beats a bigger one you lose.

6. Check dumpsters

Kefir increased the cash in dumpsters at launch. It's not much, but it's free money between jobs, especially in your first minutes on a server.

7. Understand Notoriety

The longer your crime spree goes on in Looty Bay, the higher your Notoriety climbs. Higher Notoriety means "better loot and higher payout rates", but more risk. Solo players start at Notoriety level 4 and get bonuses when selling goods and collecting loot, according to Kefir's November 13 FAQ.

8. Sell your loot at a Fence

Take your bag to a Fence (the dollar-sign van in Looty Bay) and sell it. KeenGamer warns that the cash lands on the counter, not in your pocket, and other players can grab it, so pick it up straight away. Kefir also says drop-off points can be camped by other players on purpose, so scout before you drive in.

9. Don't sell valuable items by accident

Some loot is worth far more used than sold. Kefir gives examples: "a key can unlock a safe, a lottery ticket can land a huge payout, or a jammer is needed to steal the Buletti from the Grand Hotel." If you don't know what something does, store it rather than selling it.

Part 3: Police, dying and surrendering

10. Know what you lose

Every cop is a real player. If they catch you, you can surrender: Kefir says cops then only confiscate what's in your bag and your equipped gear stays. Dying as a Criminal costs far more. Your gear also loses durability every time you die, and there's no repair yet (it's planned). Cops can also accept a bribe, but that's their choice.

11. Solo against cops: don't fight, outplan

Kefir's own tips for solo players: scout your route, hide your getaway car, disable alarms, intimidate NPCs and use ramps. Cops respawn longer after each death and start each new server with pistols only, so early on the odds are more even.

12. Or play as a cop

You can choose to be police when you enter Looty Bay, if there's a free slot (Kefir admits it can be hard to get one and plans to improve it). Cops get free equipment and earn a percentage of confiscated loot, with extra bonuses if they turn on the siren and demand a surrender. It pays less than crime, but it's lower risk. Cops can trade Police Badges for better gear.

Part 4: Banking and laundering your cash

13. Open a bank account

Open an account at the Looty Bay Bank as a Civilian, without your mask. KeenGamer puts the cost at $5,000.

14. Launder dirty cash

Stolen cash is "dirty" and can be stolen back. To make it safe, you launder it at a Laundering Desk at your base. Once laundered, it's in your bank and, as Kefir says, "laundered cash is safe from thieves" (until the weekly wipe). Withdraw it at an ATM when you need it, but remember withdrawn cash can be stolen again. Kefir massively increased how much cash the desk can hold at launch, and KeenGamer's laundering guide notes the Banknote Counters upgrade raises it further.

Part 5: How to get a house and base in ROB RUN

15. Research and buy a Land Plot Title

Since the November 4 update, Tier 1 settlements and land rentals "cost documents instead of cash". The document you need is a Land Plot Title. According to Timesaver.gg's plot guide (using robrun.info's game data), you research titles in Larry's Tree (Documents branch) and buy them on the Trade Laptop; KeenGamer says you can also buy one from Lenny's Black Market. The reported costs:

• Level 1 Land Plot Title: $50,000 to research, $100,000 to buy (about $150,000 in total).
• Level 2: $200,000 research, $800,000 purchase.
• Level 3: $1,000,000 research, $2,000,000 purchase.

Prices may vary by server.

16. Rent a plot in an owned settlement

Bases live on a shared global map of districts and settlements. Kefir's rule: "To rent a plot for your base, the settlement must be owned either by you or another player. You can't claim land in an unowned district." Find a vacant plot in an owned settlement, go to the sign next to it and use your title to sign the rental. You're now a Settlement Resident, which unlocks your base, businesses, new Shipments, the district Sales Center (where Kefir says prices can be "significantly higher" than in Looty Bay) and discounted contraband.

17. Build your house

Building in ROB RUN is "fully item-based": houses, fences, farms, garages, safes, racks, workbenches and more are placed straight from your inventory, so you buy them or find them in loot. Your main building starts with a laptop, a first-aid kit and a few cabinets. Your base also becomes a respawn point.

18. Fit out your base in the right order

Community guides agree on the order: storage first, then a Workbench (you can dismantle cargo shipments on it for better returns, and upgrade it with modules), then the Laundering Desk. Later, add a garage for more cars, a helipad if you find a helicopter, and a lift to swap car modules yourself.

19. Protect it

No base is completely safe. Kefir suggests defensive modules, raid alerts for you and your allies, or simply looking poor so you're "a waste of rare breaching tools". Raiders need Breach Decoders, which can't be bought off a shelf. Timesaver.gg reports a full takeover needs an Eviction Right, bartered for 50 Raid Decoders, and every Security System hacked first. You can move your whole base, with everything in it, at any time.

Part 6: How to start a weed farm in ROB RUN

20. Research the Grow Room and Grow Table

The weed farm is the Grow Room. According to TPose Gaming's Grow Room guide, you open Larry's Tree (Production branch), research the Grow Room and then the Grow Table, and buy both from the Trade Laptop at your base. Its reported costs: Grow Room $150,000 research + $100,000 purchase; Grow Table $30,000 research + $40,000 purchase. That's about $320,000 for the room and first table, on top of your plot. Each extra table is $40,000, and a room holds up to six tables of six bushes.

21. Find Growing Bushes

Bushes are loot in Looty Bay. TPose Gaming lists the most reliable spawns as the Gear Store, the Gun Shop on the south side of downtown and Rusty's Burgers Café, with the S Club jewellery store office and pharmacy back rooms as less reliable options. Bushes count as cargo: draw a weapon and you'll drop it, and police can seize it. Solo players should grab one and drive straight home.

22. Grow, harvest and sell

Place a bush on an empty Grow Table; a clock shows while it grows and a tick when it's ready. Harvesting takes a few seconds and gives two to four Harvest Bags, and the bush regrows at the same rarity. TPose Gaming reports bags worth about $4,000 (Uncommon), $6,000 (Epic) and $8,000 (Legendary). Sell the bags at a Fence or your district's Sales Center, then launder the cash. Kefir "massively increased" base business profits at launch, so farms are one of the best steady earners.

23. Upgrade your tables

TPose Gaming lists three Grow Table modules: a Fan (+12% growth speed), a Water Pump (+14%) and a UV Lamp (+24%), unlocking at higher tiers. Don't spend heavily on upgrades right before the wipe.

Other base businesses work the same way: Kefir lists farms, warehouses and laboratories (chemical reagents go into the lab), plus contraband, smuggling and cargo cracking. Cargo found in the city can be opened at your base.

Part 7: Owning a settlement, a district and becoming Shadow Governor

24. Buy a whole settlement

Once you have enough cash you can buy an entire settlement and rent its plots to other players. As a Settlement Owner you collect taxes on residents' laundered money and Black Market purchases, place your own base free, and "no one can seize your settlement before the wipe". Kefir warns you have to collect your cut in person, and "getting out alive with the cash is another" matter. Timesaver.gg reports a Level 1 Settlement Title costs about $300,000 in total (research and purchase).

25. Take a district with your clan

The next tier needs a clan (up to 100 players, on one server). The clan controlling a district takes a cut of all taxes paid to settlement owners there and launders money faster; the higher the district's level, the bigger the boost.

26. Rule Highlands as Shadow Governor

The leader of the clan holding the central Highlands district becomes the Shadow Governor, the only one in the game world. Their clan gets the best laundering rates and taxes every other clan on the map.

Part 8: Wipes, servers and clans

27. Plan for the weekly wipe

Each server wipes after seven days. Kefir says the richer you are at the wipe, the longer your prison sentence, which is a badge of honour that carries over. KeenGamer reports that cosmetics, your character, tutorial progress and jail time carry over, while money (even banked cash), weapons and property don't. Spend before the wipe, not after.

28. Join a fresh server

A new server opens every day in each region (EU at 5pm UTC / 6pm CET, East US at 8pm ET), and more open when needed. A fresh server is the best time to start. Switching servers currently means surrendering and going back to prison; Kefir plans to make it easier.

29. Party up or go solo

Parties are capped at three: Kefir tested bigger groups and found they cut down random encounters. Solo is viable, with built-in perks, but you'll want to avoid straight fights with full parties.

Is ROB RUN free to play?

Yes. ROB RUN is free on Steam, and Kefir says only cosmetic items are sold, "offering zero gameplay advantages". It doesn't plan to change the price when Early Access ends.

Is there a ROB RUN trailer?

Kefir's official trailer and cinematic trailer play on the ROB RUN Steam page, and its official news posts explain each system in more detail.

Sources

Game mechanics come from Kefir's official Steam posts. Costs, spawn locations and payouts are community figures from KeenGamer, Timesaver.gg and TPose Gaming, and may change with updates.

More survival and crime game guides on iGame Magazine

• How to Play Rust in 2026: A Beginner’s Guide With 15 Tips for Your First Wipe: another game with wipes and raids
• WARDOGS Guide for Beginners: How the Cash, Control Zone and Roles Actually Work: another beginner's guide for a new shooter

FAQ