How heists work
A heist is any time you lift a buddy off someone else's pedestal and carry it to your own den. Here is the whole loop, with the real numbers.
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Step by step
- Pick a target. Look for a rival den whose lights point away. Bots and players both own dens on the street.
- Approach in shadow. Sneak (<span class="kbd">C</span>) at 2.3 m/s: it makes no noise and fills the alert meter slowly.
- Hold GRAB. Hold <span class="kbd">E</span> within 1.6 m of the pedestal for 0.6 s. A rival's Lock upgrade makes this longer (up to 1.5 s).
- Carry it home. You move at 62% speed while carrying. Step onto your den pad (radius 2 m) to bank the buddy.
- Beat the chase. If the owner tags you within 1.1 m you are chased back and the loot returns. Dogs chase at 5.6 m/s, slower than a run (6.4 m/s).
The economy behind heists
A truck delivers a buddy every 9 seconds and you buy it with coins. Buddies on pedestals earn coins every second. Stealing is the faster route: a nabbed buddy costs nothing, the owner is left a sticker worth 25% of its price, and a robbed den is shielded for 60 seconds so it cannot be farmed back to back.
Getting caught
Your alert meter fills inside light cones and when dogs see you. At 1 you are caught: the loot flies back home, you are stunned for 1.2 s and knocked back, then get 1.6 s of grace in which lights and dogs ignore you, so you cannot be stun-locked.
A close call (meter past 60% that drains with no catch) refunds 8 seconds of your snack cooldown.
Defending your den
- Lid seal: 30 s of seal (plus 5 s per rebirth), then a 90 s cooldown. A sealed den is not a vault: thieves can gnaw through (3x grab time) but gnawing is loud and wakes dogs.
- Upgrades: Lock, porch Light, a sweeping flashlight and a guard dog. See den upgrades.
- Gadgets: traps, decoys and sprinklers. See best gadgets.
Egg heists and the Big Heist
Guarded nests hold eggs: read the eggs guide. Twice an hour the whole city cracks one vault truck together in the Big Heist: see the events calendar.
Frequently asked questions
Can I steal from other players?
Yes. Rival dens on your street belong to other players and to bots. Taking a buddy leaves a sticker worth a quarter of its price and shields the den for a minute.
What happens if I am caught while carrying?
The loot returns to its owner, you are stunned for 1.2 seconds and then protected for 1.6 seconds.
Is Night Nabbers like Steal a Brainrot?
It plays in a similar spirit, a steal-and-collect loop, but it is its own original 3D game with raccoons and Junk Buddies, and it runs free in your browser.