SPRAWL zero Speedrun Guide
The practical route from The Graveyard to the Silas finale — movement first, combat second.
A SPRAWL zero speedrun is a movement-first run. The game rewards knowing where enemies spawn, which doors are real, and when a fight is skippable versus when it is a gate. This guide covers the practical route from The Graveyard to the Silas finale.
This page assumes you have finished at least one full playthrough. Speedrunning requires knowing the levels, not learning them.
Core speedrun principles
Movement beats shooting. The fastest path through any room is the one that keeps you moving. Stopping to empty a gun is slower than finding the gap in the architecture that lets you skip the encounter entirely.
Skip what you can, fight what you must. Not every encounter is a gate. The story-required fights are the only mandatory combat. Between those gates, look for alternate routes, high paths, and doors that open from the other side.
One gun at a time means one gun decision at a time. The fastest decision is often: grab the first usable weapon, use it until it is empty, throw, pull the next. Do not spend time evaluating weapon quality mid-run unless the difference is between a door and a wall.
The adrenaline meter is a shortcut tool, not a combat tool in speedruns. Bullet-Time for a captain you cannot reach cleanly saves time. Bullet-Time for a room you could have skipped saves nothing.
Movement drills for faster play
Before attempting a timed run, practice these movements until they are automatic:
Gravity Gloves snap pickups. Aim at the gun you want, press grab, and let the gloves pull it. This is faster than walking to every corpse. Practice pulling from range in The Graveyard until it is reflex.
Slide-cancel for gaps. Sliding into a jump extends your horizontal distance. In narrow corridors between firefights, slide-cancel instead of walking to save seconds.
Elevator skip awareness. Some multi-floor sections have elevators that are slower than a well-timed jump to a higher platform. In Buried, the transition between street level and rooftop paths has at least one elevator that experienced runners skip with a precise jump.
Door versus wall reading. The game uses painted doors that look like walls. On speedruns, spend a bullet on the wall before assuming it is solid. The sound cue of a bullet stopping versus passing through tells you instantly.
Chapter-by-chapter time saves
The Graveyard
The opening compound has two paths: the front breach and the stealth sniper line. The sniper line is faster if you know the route. The front breach is faster if you fight cleanly. On a first speedrun, use the sniper line and accept that the route is learnable but not obvious.
Time save: 30-60 seconds over the front breach if you know the sniper path.
Buried
Buried has the most alternate routes of any demo-level chapter. The Seraph fight is a gate — you must defeat the helicopter before the chapter progresses. The street portion before the Seraph has at least two vertical paths that bypass ground-level encounters.
The elevator at the mid-chapter transition is skippable. Watch for a grate on the left side of the building as you approach the elevator shaft. Shooting the grate opens a drop that lands you directly at the Seraph approach, skipping the elevator ride.
Time save: 20-40 seconds on elevator skip.
Domination
Domination is an LZ-secure chapter. The Untouchable achievement requires no interruptions, which is also the speedrun principle. The fastest route through Domination is the one that touches the fewest hostile zones. Cut through the middle of the map rather than the edges.
Adusta Terra through Eden
These chapters are the least speedrun-optimized in the campaign. They are built for narrative pacing rather than alternate routes. The time save here is in combat efficiency: fight clean, skip nothing mandatory, and use Gravity Gloves to grab weapons from range rather than backtracking for pickups.
Acrophobia
Acrophobia is where speedruns can gain or lose significant time. The Tsuchigumo boss fight is a gate. The three secret weapons in this chapter (Finders Keepers achievement) are optional and should be skipped in a pure speedrun.
The Spider Tank approach has a long exposed crossing. Move to the far side immediately upon entering the arena. Spending time in the open while the tank circles is pure time loss.
Time save: Skip all three secret weapons — approximately 2-3 minutes if you know where they are.
The Spire and Zero
The penultimate chapter has a secret cache (Long Haul) that is skippable in a speedrun. The vertical sections in The Spire reward movement mastery. Wall-adjacent jumping in the Spire structure can shave 10-20 seconds off the standard path.
Zero is the Silas finale. The three-stage Synapse defense is not skippable. Fight it clean, use checkpoints to full-heal, and do not waste adrenaline on enemies that are not threatening the Synapse.
Loadout for speedrunning
The best speedrun loadout is the one on the floor. Do not spend time looking for a specific weapon. The guns that matter for speedruns:
Sniper from stealth routes. Skipped encounters with a well-placed headshot save more time than any close-range weapon.
Junta specials for Amalgam chapters. Amalgam fights are gates. Bring the right faction tool.
Fire shotguns for interior corridors. Fast room clears in Adusta Terra and Eden benefit from a close-range option.
Difficulty for speedruns
Unstoppable is the speedrun difficulty. Enemy aggression is lower, which means fewer interrupts during movement sections. Formidable is the standard setting; Martyr adds damage that can force restarts without saving time.
Practice order
- Run The Graveyard three times on Unstoppable, focusing on the sniper line
- Run Buried three times, focusing on the elevator skip
- Run Domination and Adusta Terra, focusing on movement-only
- Run the boss chapters (Acrophobia and Zero) last, because they are gates regardless
For the full walkthrough with detailed routing, see walkthrough. For weapon-tier context on encounters, see weapons.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers for FIVE's first hours in the Sprawl.
What is the fastest route in The Graveyard?
The stealth sniper line is faster than the front breach if you know the path. It requires learning the route, which takes 2-3 runs before it becomes faster.
How do I skip the elevator in Buried?
Look for a grate on the left side of the building as you approach the elevator shaft. Shoot the grate to open a drop that lands you directly at the Seraph approach, skipping the elevator ride. Saves 20-40 seconds.
Should I fight every enemy in a speedrun?
No. Only mandatory story encounters are required. Between gates, look for alternate routes and skip what you can. Movement is faster than shooting.
What difficulty is best for speedrunning?
Unstoppable. Lower enemy aggression means fewer interrupts during movement sections and fewer forced restarts.
Should I collect secret weapons in a speedrun?
No. Skip all optional collectibles in a pure speedrun. The three secret weapons in Acrophobia alone can cost 2-3 minutes if you know where they are but still choose to collect them.