Trainer / Drills / Contour route
Low-level contour flying in Wardogs
Hugging the ground hides you from lock-ons and gunners, but only if you can hold a ceiling over rolling terrain without ballooning over every crest.
Updated 2026-09-28
When to fly low
Low flying defeats infrared lock-ons: Hieb says that very near the ground the Talon and the shoulder-launched missiles cannot lock you. OneTaps' advice when flares fail is to get as low as possible, because anti-air sits high to see you coming.
Not every pilot wants to be low all the time. OnMapleWings argues for nap-of-the-earth flying on the final approach into the fight, but not on the transit from main base. Down low is risky, and you give up the height to look over the battlefield and change your plan. Hieb adds a caveat of his own: too low and you are easy prey for RPGs, which one-shot you with no warning.
How to fly it
- Look ahead, not at the altimeter. Hieb thinks about three seconds ahead and uses gaps such as bridge arches and breaks in the trees.
- Stop or hop. OnMapleWings' rule for obstacles: climb over it or stop before it. Master that before flying in towns or confined spaces.
- Climb just enough for each crest, then get back down on the far side.
- Always keep an escape. Know where you will pull up when the cover runs out.
The drill
Fly the winding route through every gate and land on the end pad, staying under the ceiling above the ground. Hills come on for this one. Each gate is two posts 40 m apart with a bar at the ceiling height; the next gate is amber, flown gates turn green and missed ones red. Going over the ceiling does not end the run, but the debrief counts breaches, time over and the worst excursion. Choose a 10, 15, 20 or 30 m ceiling.
Fly the contour route drill All drills
Related drills
Sources
- OnMapleWings: WARDOGS Pilot Guide: J-Hooks & Double Your Profit From A Real Pilot (YouTube, 256k views)
- Hieb: MASTER the Helicopters in WARDOGS... (Expert Guide) (YouTube, 147k views)
- OneTaps: The Secret War Dogs Controller Settings the Top Pilots Use! (YouTube, 10k views)
- Your Chopper Pilot: Never waste a flare again! WarDogs Flare tutorial (YouTube, 31k views)