Beginner

First waves: buttons, green cards, and Titanhorn

Learn the four top buttons, claim the five green index cards, and treat wave 10 as Titanhorn.

First waves: buttons, green cards, and Titanhorn

Learn the four top buttons, claim the five green index cards, and treat wave 10 as Titanhorn.

The official description says your egg is on the dino menu. You build a fort, set traps, fight waves, earn cash for every dinosaur you stop, open crates for weapons, and protect the egg. The description does not give the egg a hit-point number. Watch the egg. Do not treat a number from a card as the egg's health.

Servers list a maximum of 6 players. Other plots on the grass belong to other people. Their VALUE labels are not your cash.

Buttons you need first

The top bar, left to right, is orange Shop, green Fight, blue Base, and 1x. Fight starts the wave. While the wave runs, that same slot becomes a red Stop button. The frames used here show the speed button sitting on 1x. A higher speed is not documented until a frame shows another label.

The left rail, top to bottom, is Abilities, Shop, and Dinos. Dinos opens DINO INDEX. Shop opens the rotating defense list. Abilities is a real label. Its menu was not captured as a readable list, so no ability names or cooldowns are listed here.

Cash is the large green number at the bottom left. A popup such as +$61 is one stop paying into that total. Under the cash, the clear line in the wave 13, 28, and 51 frames reads Friend Boost: +20%. An early blurry look at the same line was not +201. The bonus does not rewrite the DMG pill on a card.

Buy the green cards

Green headers are waves 1 through 9. Skip nothing in this set while the prices are still single dollars and tens. The timer shop's filmed rows started at $3,450. These cards do not.

Wave Card HP DMG SPD Price
1 Compsognathus 20 4 26 $6
5 Triceratops Calf 80 16 18 $22
6 Pegomastax 40 7 22 $8
7 Microraptor 55 9 21 $11
9 Dilophosaurus 110 18 19 $26

Compsognathus is the first buy because it is the wave 1 card and the fastest green card, SPD 26. With your first $10, buy Compsognathus. If you still have $8, Pegomastax is the next cheap damage pill. Microraptor is $11. Dilophosaurus is the last green card and the highest green HP and DMG.

Open Dinos, buy the card, and look for the green CLAIMED bar. Index prices stay on the card. Shop rows can leave when the timer ends.

Wave 10 is Titanhorn

The first red card says TITANHORN, BOSS - WAVE 10, HP 6K, DMG 90, SPD 3.5, $900. 6K on this index means 6,000. SPD 3.5 is slow next to Compsognathus at SPD 26. Your green DMG pills are 4, 16, 7, 9, and 18. One green dinosaur does not erase that boss. Place the cards you already unlocked and keep the cash coming from each stop.

The Roblox badge Trike Titan reads Topple the Trike Titan. There is no index card with that name. Play the Titanhorn card. Compy Tamer reads Survive your first wave. You should already have that if wave 1 ended.

The HUD bar saying Wave: 13 means you are in wave 13. Pachycephalosaurus saying DINO - WAVE 13 means that card's slot. Those are the same numbering, not two different calendars, but one is the fight you are in and the other is a card's unlock.

Leave the expensive shop alone

On the restock that was filmed, Bone Mender was $17,500, Tar Pit was $180,000, Spine Roller was $240,000, and Salvage Crane was $300,000. Your first cards cost $6 to $26. Buying nothing from the timer shop until the green cards are claimed matches those prices.

If the run feels stuck

  • You cannot find a Codes button. The recorded HUD does not have one. Cash comes from stops, not from a code.
  • You spent the first cash in Elite Traps and now cannot buy Compsognathus. Stop the next dinosaurs. The $6 card is still on the index.
  • Wave 10 is moving slowly. That is Titanhorn's SPD 3.5 and 6,000 HP, not a broken wave. Check that the green cards say CLAIMED.
  • A neighbor's base shows a huge VALUE number. That number is not your cash and not a Frost Egg price.
FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the shop keep the same items?

No. Dino Shop and Elite Traps both show a New items in timer. Prices on this site for Bone Mender, Pterodactyl Perch, Tar Pit, Spine Roller, and Salvage Crane come from one restock filmed on 27 September 2026. Read the live row before you spend.

What is Build a Dino Defense?

It is a Roblox tower defense game by Big Chomp Games. You place traps and turrets, fight waves of dinosaurs, earn cash for every dinosaur you stop, and keep the egg alive. The Dino Index holds 33 dinosaur cards, and boss cards continue on a separate tab.

What should I buy first?

Compsognathus. The card says DINO - WAVE 1, HP 20, DMG 4, SPD 26, and $6. Open Dinos on the left rail and buy it before you open the timer shop.

Who is the first boss?

The first red boss card is Titanhorn at wave 10: HP 6K, DMG 90, SPD 3.5, $900. The Roblox badge Trike Titan says Topple the Trike Titan. That badge name is not printed on the wave 10 card.

Are there Build a Dino Defense codes?

No code string was printed in the official description on a 29 September 2026 reading, and the recorded HUD had Shop, Fight or Stop, Base, 1x, Abilities, Shop, and Dinos. There was no Codes button in that layout. This site does not list a code until one is actually printed.

How do I read a dino card?

The header is the name plus DINO, MINI BOSS, or BOSS, and the wave. Under the portrait, left to right, the pills are red HP, orange DMG, blue SPD, and a green dollar price. CLAIMED means you already own that card. The header color is not the same thing as the green price pill.