Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Find the answers to some of the most important questions about HWS.
In order to help you quickly understand what kind of place HWS is, we've collected the most important questions and answers for you in this one place. If you have more questions, feel free to visit the rest of our wiki or ask in our Discord server at https://discord.hws-rust.com.
What is HWS?#
HWS is a 10+ year old community, originating from the game called Empyrion - Galactic Survival. One of our biggest priorities is to create an enjoyable long-term experience together with our community. A server that appeals to the widest variety of playstyles, and a place people can call Home.
Why should I support you?#
Anyone can play on HWS for free. We have spent many days and nights creating an environment that we believe in, and which we're proud to host for you. The servers are not free, though. I, Dr. Dark, pay for the servers out of my own pocket. HWS is not some large cooperation with hundreds of employees. Despite this, we put in a lot of hours improving HWS for you, the community. We've solved thousands of support tickets over the years, for both our free users and our supporters.
As of writing this, approximately 50% of our tickets in the last 6 months have been replied to in less than 5 minutes, and 25% are solved in less than 15 minutes. Based on the ratings that our players give us in tickets, it would not be inaccurate to say that we provide some of the best support out there, and it's clear to us that our community appreciates us almost as much as we appreciate you.
Keeping HWS running and for us to keep improving it is only possible thanks to our supporters, and we greatly appreciate it! If you're interested in helping us keeping HWS running, please visit https://support.hws.global.
Do I get benefits by subscribing to your Patreon page?#
Although we work closely together, HWS Rust and HWS Empyrion have separate owners. Dr. Dark owns the HWS Rust servers, while RexXxuS runs the HWS Empyrion servers, as he has for the last 10 years. While HWS does have a Patreon page, it belongs to the HWS Empyrion servers, and the money does not go to the HWS Rust servers.
If you'd like to support HWS in Rust, you should pay a visit to our HWS Frontier website at https://support.hws.global.
Which features does HWS have?#
You will find various cool and unique features on HWS. A lot of them are similar between our Empyrion and Rust servers. Most of all, our web-interface in HWS Frontier is the core of the HWS Rust servers.
Some of our most significant features are:
- A Quest System that grants you HWS Chips (our primary HWS Frontier currency), as well as XP counting towards your HWS Level, which is prefixed in front of your name in-game.
- Daily Events which trigger around prime-time (respectively in EU and NA), giving you unique opportunities to compete against the rest of the community.
- The Orbital Cargo Drone, which lets you carry items across a full wipe, so you don't lose all your progress with every wipe.
- A player-driven HWS Marketplace where you can easily trade with other players using HWS Chips.
- Cross Server Warp (CSW), so you can travel freely between our servers, taking your inventory with you. Each server has a different seed and different players.
- A custom Clans System, letting you manage your clan from the HWS Frontier website.
- And more! Join us in-game and discover what more we have to offer.
Is HWS pay-to-win?#
In short, no.
While we do reward our supporters with benefits as a thank you, it will not give you any major advantages compared to non-paying players. You cannot buy weapons or armor, a base, or rare loot. We strive to sell convenience. In some cases, such as for our Hero Actions, supporter packages may trigger server-wide benefits that affect all players.