Grow A Colony Controls

Commanding a colony in Grow A Colony feels different from third-person Roblox combat games. You are the queen ant coordinating AI troops — Workers, Majors (Soldiers), and Drones (Tanks) — while digging nest terrain and responding to bugs, creatures, rival colonies, and bosses like the Queen Bee. Smooth controls separate players who react to raids from players who lose entire hatcheries because orders lagged. This page covers PC and mobile layouts, troop orders (Follow, Scavenge, Attack), and dig/build inputs so you can focus on strategy in Getting Started and beyond.

Roblox allows rebinding on PC through the standard shift-lock and camera habits, but Grow A Colony uses experience-specific buttons for troop management. Learn those first before customizing.

PC controls overview

Exact labels can shift slightly after updates — verify in-game after patches listed on Updates — but the core layout follows Roblox sim conventions:

Action	Typical PC input
Move queen	W A S D
Camera rotate	Hold right mouse button + move mouse
Zoom	Mouse wheel
Jump / climb (if enabled)	Space
Interact / confirm build	Left mouse click or E
Cancel build / menu back	Esc or on-screen X
Open main menus	On-screen icons (Shop, Settings, Daily reward)

The queen is not your only unit — most combat happens via ant orders, not manual WASD kiting.

Troop order buttons (Follow / Scavenge / Attack)

Troop automation is the heart of Grow A Colony:

Follow

• Keeps selected ants near the queen or a rally point.
• Use when relocating after a dig, retreating from PvP in War and PvP, or pulling Workers off a depleted food zone.
• Shortcut tip: select ant group icons on the HUD before tapping Follow to avoid sending Majors away mid-fight.

Scavenge

• Workers search for food pickups on the map.
• Default for early economy in Food and Water.
• If Workers ignore pickups, check line-of-sight blockers from dig terrain — see Dig and Build.

Attack

• Majors and Drones engage hostile bugs, creatures, or enemy colony ants.
• Combine with Drone front line and Major DPS per Eggs and Ants and Beat Bugs and Bosses.
• Misclicking Attack on Workers sends fragile gatherers into death zones.

Many players bind muscle memory: Scavenge for Workers, Attack for fighters, Follow for retreats.

Selecting and grouping ants

Selection methods vary by platform but generally include:

• Clicking role icons (Worker / Major / Drone counts).
• Drag-select or tap individual units near the queen.
• Cycle selection through HUD tabs if the server population lags.

Before Queen Bee raids or player wars, pre-select Majors and Drones separately so a single order does not pull Workers into boss arenas.

Dig and build controls

Terrain editing uses dedicated tools in the build bar:

Tool purpose	Usage notes
Dig tunnel	Remove voxels to open paths; watch ceiling stability in deep nests
Place block / floor	Seal chambers or create choke points
Build ramp / surface cover	Control approach angles for PvP
Delete / undo (if offered)	Fix misclicks before hardening clay

Hold right mouse to fine-tune camera while placing blocks. Mobile players pinch-zoom instead — see below.

Misbuilt entrances are harder to fix under attack. Practice dig patterns in Dig and Build during peacetime.

Mobile controls (iOS / Android)

Roblox mobile uses virtual joysticks and touch overlays:

Action	Mobile input
Move queen	Left virtual thumbstick
Camera	Drag right side of screen
Interact / build	Tap highlighted prompts
Troop orders	HUD buttons — Follow, Scavenge, Attack
Menus	Top or side icons (Daily reward, Settings)

Mobile commanders struggle most with precise dig placement. Zoom fully before carving tight PvP choke tunnels. Consider smaller nest expansions per session to avoid mis-taps wasting food on wrong egg types.

If troop buttons overlap chat, resize UI in Roblox settings or play landscape mode.

UI elements worth memorizing

• Food and water meters — colony-wide starvation warnings.
• Egg hatch queue — Worker vs Major vs Drone selection.
• Daily reward — claim on login (Getting Started).
• Skill tree (Update 5.2) — spend points via dedicated menu in Skill Tree.
• War declare prompts — appear near rival colonies (War and PvP).

Missing daily reward popups after an update? Check Updates — HUD moves happen in QOL patches like 5.3.

Controls for multiplayer (12 players)

Shared servers mean camera clutter near large battles. Reduce chaos:

• Lower Roblox graphics slightly for FPS during wars.
• Use Follow to pull your queen backward before issuing Attack — queen death ends momentum.
• Disable unnecessary emote menus covering order buttons.

Spectating huge fights without joining? Stay out of Attack selection range so you do not accidentally contribute.

Common control mistakes

1. Attack order on Workers — sends gatherers to die; reassign to Scavenge.
2. Digging without food backup — building while starving pauses egg production.
3. Ignoring water — thirst debuffs gather speed; see Food and Water.
4. Chasing PvP without Drone tank line — Majors melt; hatch Drones first.
5. No camera reset — getting lost underground delays rescue digs.

Practice drill (five minutes)

1. Spawn, select Workers, tap Scavenge, watch pickups.
2. Hatch one Major, select Majors, tap Attack on a nearby bug.
3. Dig a short tunnel segment, then Follow all troops home.
4. Open skill tree and back out without mis-spending — read Skill Tree before confirming nodes.

Repeat until orders feel instant. Then link to Tier List for which roles deserve hotkeys on your HUD muscle memory.

Controls do not replace strategy, but they remove friction when executing the guides on eggs, bosses, and colony wars across Grow A Colony’s ant-sim sandbox.