The Guardian of the Rift in Cookie Run: Kingdom has taken the community by storm, with players competing for the Top 1% leaderboard rewards and mastering this unique tower-defense challenge. In this guardian of the rift crk guide, we’ll break down everything you need to know, from basics and strategy to high-score tips that help you clear Wave 40 and beyond.
What Is Guardian of the Rift CRK?
Guardian of the Rift is a limited-time event in Cookie Run: Kingdom where you defend your tower against relentless waves of enemies. Instead of the usual campaign, this mode focuses on strategic cookie summoning, merging, and upgrades under pressure. Monsters loop around your tower, and your only defense is your cookie team and tower buffs.
How the Event Works
Summoning Cookies
You earn Guardian Coins during the run and spend them to summon cookies. These cookies appear randomly in four rarities: Normal, Rare, Elite, and Hero. Every 10 waves, you get a choice of three cookies, sometimes even a chance at Hero-tier cookies.
Merging & Bonds: Key to Power
When two identical cookies are on the field, they merge into higher tiers: 2 Normal become Rare, 3 Rare become Elite. Hero cookies only appear through special bonds when specific cookies combine. These bond combinations are crucial because Hero cookies greatly boost your chances of surviving later waves.
Upgrading Cookies & Tower
Each cookie can be upgraded to Level 10 using Cookie Cards earned after runs. Upgrading increases Attack (ATK) and Critical Rate (CRIT%), significantly impacting your damage output.
In-Run Upgrades
During a run, you can spend points into ATK Speed to attack faster, ATK for more damage per hit, and SUM% to increase the chances of summoning higher-tier cookies. Balancing these is essential, especially maxing out summon rate early to get more Elite and Hero cookies.
Best Tower Core Choices
Your tower core affects battle performance. Fire Core deals damage and buffs allies and is considered the best overall pick for steady progression. Other cores like Poison, Ice, Earth, and Lightning offer utility effects but are generally less impactful than consistent damage and buff synergy.
Strategy Breakdown
Early Game (Waves 1–10)
Summon cookies aggressively to get units on the board fast. Focus on SUM% upgrades up to Level 6–8 before investing deeply into ATK. You’ll face a boss at Wave 10, ensure you have enough damage to beat it while building your lineup.
Mid Game (Waves 11–30)
Continue maxing summon rate to bring in more Elite and Hero cookies. Recall cookies that don’t help bonds to free space for better ones. Watching bond progress helps unlock Hero cookies quicker.
Late Game (Waves 30–40)
Aim to get multiple Hero cookies as these are your best damage sources. Max out ATK and ATK Speed around Wave 33–34 to handle the final enemies and bosses. Position your strongest units to deal continuous damage.
Tips to Score Big
Focus on Hero unlocks, more heroes equal higher score potential. Maxing your SUM% early increases the likelihood of stronger cookies showing up later. Upgrading cookies outside runs with Cookie Cards is essential as higher cookie levels make wave clearing easier. This mode has a lot of RNG involved, so multiple tries might be necessary for luckier cookie draws.
Why You Should Go For Top Scores
The harder Hard Mode leaderboard offers valuable rewards like Rainbow Cubes and Iron Radiant Biscuit Dough that make grinding Guardian of the Rift extremely rewarding, especially for free-to-play players aiming to strengthen their kingdom.
Rewards & Why Guardian of the Rift Matters
Guardian of the Rift is one of the most dynamic and strategic events in Cookie Run: Kingdom. By following this Guardian of the Rift CRK guide, using smart summoning, upgrade planning, and focusing on cookie bonds, you’ll be well on your way to clearing Wave 40 and climbing the high-score leaderboard. Success in Guardian of the Rift depends on both skill and RNG, so keep refining your strategy to dominate the event.
Our popular reads:
