Night Nabbers beginner guide
Night Nabbers is a free browser game where you play a raccoon, collect Junk Buddies that earn coins for your den, and sneak into rival dens to nab theirs. This guide covers the first half hour.
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Step by step
- Start with 60 coins. You begin with 60 coins. A delivery truck drops a new buddy onto the belt every 9 seconds (5 slots). Walk up to a slot (within 1.25 m) and buy the cheapest one that fits, such as Lonely Sock for 25.
- Let buddies earn. Every buddy on a pedestal in your den earns coins per second. You start with 5 pedestals; the Slots upgrade adds up to three more. Buy cheap, quick-payback buddies first and reinvest.
- Nab from rivals. Hold GRAB (E) next to a rival pedestal for 0.6 s to lift a buddy, then walk it home onto your den pad (within 2 m). Carrying slows you to 62% speed. The victim keeps a sticker worth 25% of the price.
- Stay out of the light. A lit cone fills your alert meter at 1.15 per second and a full meter means you are caught: you drop the loot and are stunned for 1.2 s. Sneaking fills it at 0.45x speed. Shadows drain it.
- Hatch your first egg. A Speckled Egg sits in a nest under the first street lamp. Carry it home walking (running cracks it), put it on a pedestal and it hatches in 30 seconds.
- Buy your first upgrades. Slots (600 coins), Lock (400) and Light (900) protect and grow your den. Merging two identical buddies makes a level 2 buddy worth 2.2x.
- Aim for your first rebirth. At 1 million coins you can move to a bigger block: coins and buddies reset, but your income gets a permanent bonus. See the rebirth guide.
What to do in the first five minutes
Buy the cheapest buddy on the belt, then keep buying whatever pays back fastest. Payback time is price divided by coins per second, and the tier list shows it for every buddy. Open the egg shop once you can afford the half-price starter egg, and finish the daily and quest goals for Night Pass XP.
Beginner mistakes to avoid
- Running while carrying an egg. Every 2.6 seconds of running is a crack, and 3 cracks break it.
- Standing in a lamp or porch cone to finish a grab. Back out into shadow, let the meter drain, then try again.
- Spending everything on one expensive buddy. Cheap buddies pay back in under two minutes and fund the next step.
- Leaving the den open. After you are robbed you get a short shield, and the Lid seal and Lock upgrade slow thieves down.
Frequently asked questions
How do I earn coins fastest in Night Nabbers?
Keep buddies on every pedestal, buy the quickest-payback buddies first, merge duplicates, and nab from rival dens when their lights point away. Early on, income grows roughly tenfold every five to eight minutes.
Do I need an account?
No. You can play instantly in your browser with no sign-up and no download.
What is the best first upgrade?
Slots at 600 coins adds a pedestal, so one more buddy earns coins. Lock at 400 makes thieves hold GRAB longer at your den.