Dungeon Settlers WASD, Mouse, and the Pause Key

Dungeon Settlers uses mouse for selection and placement and keyboard for camera, combat, and menu navigation. The controls below are confirmed from the current in-game help overlay. Controls may shift between patches — check the in-game help screen for the authoritative list.

Mouse controls

Action	Control
Select unit	Left-click
Move unit	Right-click ground or target
Attack target	Right-click enemy
Use ability	Left-click ability icon, then target
Select building	Left-click
Place building	Left-click in valid location
Rotate building	R key while placing
Cancel action	Right-click or Escape
Camera pan	WASD or edge pan
Camera zoom	Scroll wheel
Camera rotate	Middle-click drag
Inspect settler	Left-click settler, then click Inspect

Keyboard hotkeys

Action	Key
Pause / Unpause	Spacebar
Open character menu	C
Open inventory	I
Open settlement menu	O
Open quest log	J
Open research	U
Toggle auto-pickup	Y
Cycle through units	Tab
Select all units	Ctrl+A
Stop current order	X
Use selected ability	Number keys 1–5
Toggle formation	F
Quick save	Ctrl+S
Quick load	Ctrl+L

Camera controls

The camera in Dungeon Settlers covers both the settlement view and the dungeon expedition view. Use WASD to pan the camera across the map. Edge panning (moving the mouse to the screen edge) also works if enabled in options.

Scroll wheel zooms in and out. This is critical in the dungeon — zoom out to see more of the floor layout, zoom in to check details on loot or enemy positioning.

Middle-click and drag rotates the camera. This is useful for checking line of sight and adjusting angles in tight dungeon corridors.

Combat controls

Pause is the most important control in Dungeon Settlers. Press Spacebar to pause, issue orders while paused, then unpause to execute. The game is explicitly designed around pause discipline, not APM.

Practical combat flow:

1. Pause with Spacebar
2. Left-click to select a settler
3. Right-click ground to move or right-click enemy to attack
4. Left-click ability icons to queue abilities
5. Press Spacebar to unpause
6. Watch for 3–5 seconds
7. Press Spacebar to pause again and reassess

The Tab key cycles through your party members. This is faster than clicking portraits when you need to issue orders to a specific settler.

Auto-pickup and quality of life

Toggle auto-pickup with Y. When enabled, the game automatically collects items from defeated enemies and gather nodes. This prevents the classic “I forgot to pick up that book” problem on long runs.

Formations (F key) arrange your party in preset patterns. This is useful for dungeon entry and boss fights where spread positioning matters.

Accessibility notes

The game uses a keyboard-driven UI for menus, but combat relies heavily on mouse for targeting. Players who cannot use a mouse may find combat targeting difficult. Steam Deck support is rated Playable but some icons remain mouse-shaped.

Small text and low-contrast UI elements have been reported. Increase UI scale in the options menu if text is difficult to read on your display.

Steam Deck notes

Dungeon Settlers is rated Playable on Steam Deck. Players have reported the following:

• Some UI elements remain mouse-shaped rather than adapting to controller
• Small text can be hard to read — increase UI scale
• Camera controls work with the trackpad
• Pause and hotkeys are keyboard-based; some controller mapping may require third-party tools

For the best experience on Steam Deck, connect a keyboard or configure controller mapping before starting a campaign.

See the getting started guide for the beginner checklist and the combat guide for pause discipline basics.