Number powers in LAN: why a 7³ outlasts a 7²

Updated 26 October 2026 · by marcojlv

If you've been climbing in LAN for a while, you'll have noticed numbers start carrying a little figure at their top right: 7², 3³, 1⁴… That's their power, and since version 1.1.0 it's the only way numbers get stronger. This guide explains what each power is worth, when it steps up and what to do with that knowledge.

The rule: nothing grows unseen

A number is only stronger if it has a higher power, and that power always shows: on the board, in the bestiary and even in the GIFs you share. Two 7³ are exactly the same number, whether at 900 meters or at 1,300. If a number feels tougher than before, look at its exponent: that's the explanation.

During a run, the ? button in the upgrade bar opens the help, and the legend with what each power gives is there. And in the bestiary, every number shows the power it has at your record height.

What a power is worth

	Health	Attack	Defenses
No power (¹)	catalog value	catalog value	catalog values
First power (²)	×6	×3.8	+12 to each
Each further power	×4.38	×2.41	+12 to each

So a 7³ has 4.38 times the health of a 7², hits 2.41 times harder and has 12 more points of both numeric and literary defense. Powers stack: a number at ⁵ has 48 more points of each defense than at ¹, so one that had none now only lets two thirds of every hit through.

When each number steps up

Each kind of number gains one power every 500 meters, but not all at once. Its first step comes 150 meters after the height where it first appears, and from there, every 500 meters. Since numbers appear at different heights, their steps are spread out: roughly, some kind steps up every few meters, and never all of them together. The weakest, which are the ones that appear first, step up first.

Here is how the numbers from the first meters work out:

Number	Appears	²	³	⁴	⁵
1	0 m	150 m	650 m	1,150 m	1,650 m
2	20 m	170 m	670 m	1,170 m	1,670 m
3	60 m	210 m	710 m	1,210 m	1,710 m
7	180 m	330 m	830 m	1,330 m	1,830 m
0	220 m	370 m	870 m	1,370 m	1,870 m

A number that appears late arrives already carrying the powers its slot in the schedule gives it: it doesn't start from scratch while the others are on their third.

Bosses too: they take the power of their zone. The 42 you meet at 1,000 meters, for example, is already a 42³.

Further up: fewer weak numbers, and no ceiling

From 2,000 meters, the weakest groups of numbers start appearing four times less often, one group after another every 500 meters, to make room for the strong ones. They don't vanish: they keep showing up, with their power, just less. The 0 never steps aside.

Powers have no ceiling. Around 2,000 meters you'll typically see numbers at ⁵, and around 4,500 meters, at ¹⁰.

What to do with this

1. Watch the common numbers' steps. When 1, 2 or 3 gain a power, waves suddenly feel much tougher, because they're the ones that show up most. If your squad keeps falling around the same height, check the table: it likely matches one of those steps.
2. Tap more when they step up. Your taps' damage ignores defenses, so right when numbers gain defense is when tapping pays off most.
3. Mix damage types. Every power adds defense against both types, but numbers that already resisted one now resist it enormously. Bringing both kinds of damage matters more than ever (see the squad and formations guide).
4. Level your letters regularly. Each level gives 15% more health and attack; a number stepping up a power multiplies its own by more than four. Ticket copies are what let you keep pace: the currencies guide explains what each level costs.

Why it works this way

In the game's first versions, numbers grew stronger little by little with height, out of sight. It worked, but it wasn't fair: a 7 at 900 meters wasn't the same as a 7 at 300, and nothing told you so. With powers, the game always shows you why a number holds out as long as it does, and every step up becomes a small challenge you can see coming.