The loop: leaves spawn on the surface; workers and scouts haul energy home to the queen. She turns surplus energy into eggs; workers carry each egg to the dashed nursery chamber underground, where it hatches. The queen burns energy every second a starved queen collapses.
Snacks: golden crumbs restore energy and blue water drops heal wounds ants grab them automatically when weak.
Pheromones: ants navigate by scent trails. Carriers lay Food trails, scouts Intel, diggers Expansion, fighters Danger. Rain washes every surface trail away.
Combat triangle: Soldiers shred Workers, Scouts shred Soldiers (15% dodge), Worker swarms of 5+ shred Scouts. Any foe mobbed by 3+ ants loses half its armour.
Victory: Regicide (slay the enemy queen), Extinction, or Starvation. Their nest hides in the fog send scouts to find it.
Danger: the Jumping Spider hunts lone ants near its stone but flees from pairs, and dies against swarms of 5+. The rare Beetle crushes crowds with acid. Use the Lens to scare spiders off.
Commands: select ants, then tap anywhere to send them. Tap a leaf to fetch it home, an enemy to attack, a rock to break it down. Right-click does the same with a mouse.
Mouse: left-drag box-select wheel zoom middle-drag or WASD pan Tab layers Esc menu.
Tablet: tap an ant to select, then tap the ground to send them there drag pans pinch zooms long-press orders bottom-right buttons switch layers and open the brood chamber.