Introduction
When a server in Age of Apes reaches day 300, T6 troops become available, along with a host of additional supporting content. This milestone presents players with a choice: push their buildings to advance towards T6 now or wait for a potentially more advantageous time to maximize benefits. If you’ve ever wondered about the opportunity cost of delaying, this post is for you. We’ll offer a simple, detailed mathematical analysis, tailored to various situations rather than a one-size-fits-all approach. While our post is designed with free-to-play players in mind, it offers valuable insights for players of all types.
Disclaimer: This is a numbers heavy post! If you’re not interested in the details, skip to the Opportunity Cost Breakdown section!
The Knowns
To determine the opportunity cost, we first need to establish the known factors. Once these are identified, we can compare the baseline data to calculate the opportunity cost. To facilitate this, we’ve created a set of sub sections that outline the key knowns.
T6 Requirements
In our T6 Guide: How to Unlock T6 Troops in Age of Apes, we cover the basic information for unlocking T6 Troops. However, we didn’t mention that, unless you were among the fortunate few who got a KVK4 (Glacial Star) before your server hit 300 days, it’s virtually impossible to gather enough Nu-Ape Caps to meet all the T6 requirements without spending real money. Additionally, if your early game strategy didn’t include doing Inferno Modified Mutants in the first available cycle, you might not have accumulated enough Nu-Ape Caps to start gathering.
But don’t worry—we’re here to help you plan for the future. Below, we’ve provided the cliff notes on the key information for unlocking T6, assuming you already have at least one T5 troop unlocked.
| Category |  |  |  |  | *Original Time |
| Research | 387,650,000 | 335,612,000 | 0 | 94,744,300 | 2630d 18h 35m |
| Buildings | 443,900,000 | 443,900,000 | 37,500 | 18,099,500 | 237d 17h 28m |
| Total | 831,550,000 | 779,512,000 | 37,500 | 112,843,800 | N/A |
Warehouse
| Level | Level 5 Caps Reward | Daily Caps (x3) |
| 30 | 0 | 0 |
| 31 | 26,000 | 78,000 |
| 32 | 29,300 | 87,900 |
| 33 | 32,500 | 97,500 |
| 34 | 35,790 | 107,370 |
| 35 | 39,000 | 117,000 |
Research Lab
| Level | Cap Regen Reduction | Regen Time | Caps Rewarded | Daily (24hr) |
| 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 31 | 2 | 1h | 5,000 | 120,000 |
| 32 | 4 | N/A | 5,000 | 120,000 |
| 33 | 6 | N/A | 5,000 | 120,000 |
| 34 | 8 | N/A | 5,000 | 120,000 |
| 35 | 10 | ~55m | 5,000 | 130,909 |
Popup Packs
| Level | Cost (USD) | Caps Rewarded |
| 31 | N/A | N/A |
| 32 | $19.99 | 800,000 |
| 33 | $99.99 | 4,000,000 |
| 34 | $99.99 | 4,000,000 |
| 35 | $99.99 | 4,000,000 |
| Total | $319.96 | 12,800,000 |
T6 Release Event – Advanced Forces
| Objective | Caps Rewarded |
| Upgrade City Hall to 31 | 100,000 |
| Upgrade Research Lab to 35 | 300,000 |
| Total | 400,000 |
City Expansion Fund – Free Cap Rewards
| Level | Caps Rewarded |
| 31 | 30,000 |
| 32 | 50,000 |
| 33 | 70,000 |
| 34 | 100,000 |
| 35 | 100,000 |
| Total | 350,000 |
Building Power
| Building | Start Level | End Level | Total Power Gained | KOA Power Score |
| City Hall | 30 | 35 | 937,177 | 14,994,832 |
| Research Lab | 30 | 35 | 624,787 | 9,996,592 |
| Warehouse | 30 | 35 | 624,787 | 9,996,592 |
| Hitters’ Camp | 30 | 32 | 57,857 | 925,712 |
| Pilots’ Camp | 30 | 32 | 57,857 | 925,712 |
| Shooters’ Camp | 30 | 32 | 57,857 | 925,712 |
| Wall Breakers’ Camp | 30 | 32 | 57,857 | 925,712 |
| Total | 2,418,179 | 38,690,864 |
The Math
Value Metric
In short, a value metric is a measurable unit that can be directly tied to the value you are receiving. We’ll use this to create a real world USD conversion of opportunity cost later.
- $319.96 USD (cost of packs) / 12,800,000 Nu-Ape Caps (rewards) = ~$0.000025/Nu-Ape Cap.
Potential Daily Caps Earnings
Before we do any forecasting, we must determine what our potential daily caps earnings is. We will do this by taking the figures for a level 35 Warehouse and Research Lab.
- 117,000 (Level 5 Convoys x3) + 130,909 Nu-Ape Caps (Research Lab Conversion for 24hrs) = ~247,909 Nu-Ape Caps/Day
Potential 1x Cap Earnings
We must determine what our potential 1x Cap earnings are so that it is factored into everything. We do that by simply taking the T6 Release Event – Advanced Forces Total and adding them to the City Expansion Fund – Free Cap Rewards Total.
- 400,000 Nu-Ape Caps (T6 Release Event – Advanced Forces) + 350,000 Nu-Ape Caps (City Expansion – Free Cap Rewards) = 750,000 Nu-Ape Caps
- Note: Must be within the T6 Release Event – Advanced Forces. If this event has passed, then your opportunity cost is reduced by 400,000 Nu-Ape Caps, giving you a reduced Potential 1x Cap Earnings of 350,000.
Building Power
We need to determine how much power we’re gaining by leveling our buildings outside of the confines of King of Apes (KOA). This part is simple, we just determined the total power for each building using our Buildings page.
- 2,418,179 Building Power (The sum of all building’s total power gained from the table above) * 16 points (Points awarded on Day 6 of King of Apes) = 38,690,864 KOA Points
Opportunity Cost Breakdown
Opportunity cost is the perceived value of you gaining or losing value based on choosing one path vs. another. We’ll break down the opportunity cost in our scenario in a few different ways so that you can rationalize with whichever value makes the most sense for your situation. Each listed item below is independent of one another.
Value Metric
If you wait 1 day to push your buildings from 30 to the minimum requirements for T6, your opportunity cost is $24.95 USD. Each consecutive day you wait costs you $6.20. This is because days are irreversible and the daily reward is unable to be obtained for the day missed afterwards.
- Day 1 Opportunity Cost = (750,000 Nu-Ape Caps (1x Cap Earnings) + 247,909 Nu-Ape Caps (Daily Cap Earnings)) * $0.000025 USD (Value Metric) = $24.95 USD
- Note: Must be within the T6 Release Event – Advanced Forces. If this event has passed, then your opportunity cost is reduced by $10.00 USD. This is a result of losing out on the additional 400,000 Nu-Ape Caps, giving you a reduced opportunity cost of $14.95 USD
- Additional Day Opportunity Cost = 247,909 Nu-Ape Caps (Daily Cap Earnings) * $0.000025 USD (Value Metric) = $6.20 USD/day
KOA Scoring Potential
Each day you wait, you gain a KOA Scoring Potential of 38,690,864 KOA Points. Inversely, if you don’t wait, you lose the same amount in scoring potential.
- Calculation noted in the Building Power section of The Math
Potential Daily Cap Earnings
If you wait 1 day to push your buildings from 30 to the minimum requirements for T6, your opportunity cost is 997,909 Nu-Ape Caps. Each consecutive day you wait, you lose out on 247,909 Nu-Ape Caps. If you do not push your buildings before the T6 Release Event – Advanced Forces ends, you lose a day 1 earning potential of 400,000 Nu-Ape Caps. In other words, players who upgrade on time will stay ahead of you by N Nu-Ape Caps each day, where N depends on the specific scenario and timing of both players upgrade.
- Calculation noted in the Potential 1x Daily Earning section of The Math
Conclusion
Whether you choose this path is entirely up to you. However, in a game that significantly disadvantages free-to-play players, it’s essential to understand what you might be missing out on. Time, in our view, is the one true currency. Since most players won’t have enough Nu-Ape Caps by Day 300 to access T6 troops, it’s beneficial to understand your trade-offs. This knowledge helps you gather resources more effectively and make the most of your time to maximize your progress.
