Controls
Left clickRun the squad there: faster, narrower cone, weapons down, no shooting. Weapons come up as soon as they stop. The label at the cursor says what a click will do: move, take cover, focus fire, revive, pick up, open the main egg. Shift queues moves.
HostilesHostile squads are clones of the roster: same health, speeds, eyes, weapons, grenades and abilities, run by the squad AI. You see them only when one of yours does. They guard posts or patrol, hear shots, call nearby squads, fight from cover, flank, throw frags and smoke, mortar, plant turrets and cameras, and revive each other (the Medic first). Click one to focus fire (a crawling one too). Low cover in front of a merc can stop bullets. The mission is won when no hostile is on its feet.
Your mapOutpost › Your map, or drop a .psd (or a saved level .json) anywhere on the page. Layers: walls, cover_cargo / cover_dumpster / cover_barrier / cover_plastic / cover_collector, squad_spawn, enemy_assault … enemy_scout, enemy_mirror, patrol, drone_home, pickup_arm / pickup_leg / pickup_head / pickup_torso (add _2, _3 for Mk II, III), pickup_chip_targeting / pickup_chip_ocular (egg, den, den_first, main_egg, exit for Pest Control). 1 px = 5 uu. Every other layer is art: it becomes the backdrop.
Click a mercCommand that merc alone (Shift adds). Double-click a merc, Q or Esc: back to the whole squad.
Double clickWalk there instead, shooting on the way: mercs turn to enemies they see and strafe on.
Right clickLook that way (drag to sweep), held until the next order. A running squad drops to a strafing walk facing it.
Run-firstOn by default (Run panel). Untick to swap: click walks and shoots, double-click runs, and a look click waits until a runner stops.
1 2 3Single out a merc
OutpostBefore each job: pick up to three of the five characters, their weapon and their grenades. Weight over a character's free limit costs move speed and reload time. The sidebar shows each merc's magazine bar and what they carry.
GAim a grenade, left click to throw. G again steps to the next grenade: one merc at a time through the squad, or only the selected merc's own. Grenades bounce on from where you aim; a frag goes off 3 s after it stops, smoke 1.5 s. The dashed ring is the aim limit.
TEngineer turret: click where to plant it (drag to set its facing). One per mission. It sees, turns and shoots creatures like a merc, never moves, never shoots eggs.
CScout camera: click a wall or crate face (drag to aim). One per mission. Vision only: a cone, no ring. Creatures ignore it.
VScout recon drone: one pass over the whole map. Everything it sees shows as a red marker that fades. The enemy can see it fly over, so they know they've been spotted. It flies back to the Scout and recharges (30 s).
InjuriesGoing down can injure a body part; going out can cost an arm or a leg. Injuries lower stats (aim, awareness, health, strength, reload, speed) until healed in the Healing tank (sits out a mission, costs credits) or replaced by a robotic part (Augmentation). Health is back to full after each mission.
PickupsRobotic parts and chips lie about some maps (blue boxes). Walk a merc over one to pick it up; it goes to the outpost's inventory after the mission.
CornersA merc standing (not running) at a wall or crate corner looks round it: the fog clears round the corner. Vision only: they stay hidden and don't shoot from there. A move near the end of a wall snaps the merc nearest the corner to it, a quarter of a body back from the edge, facing round it; the others keep their places unless they'd bump into them.
MHeavy mortar: click anywhere on the map, no vision needed; it flies over everything. 2 rounds. While he sets up and packs up he can't move or shoot and sees only his perception ring.
BMove cover: click a barrier with grip marks, then where it goes (drag to aim it, right-click turns 45°). The selected mercs grab the near side and push it there; it stays solid on the way. They can't shoot while holding it; any new order drops it.
FSmoke straight away (from the selection): the cloud blocks all sight both ways, yours and the creatures'.
Friendly fireOff by default (Rules › Design calls). On: bullets hit squadmates in the way, so a merc with a squadmate in its line of fire steps sideways to shoot; in cover it holds fire instead.
PositionsSquad order (outpost lockers) sets places: at a wall 1st left end and 2nd right end, looking along it, 3rd in the middle looking away; behind cover 1st left, 2nd right, 3rd middle.
DownAt 0 hp a merc crawls: slow, perception ring only, no shooting. Creatures keep clawing at reduced damage. Anyone revives a crawler (click them); once the crawl bar runs out they're out, and only the Medic can revive them. Select a crawler with its card or number key to crawl it to safety.
RRocket launcher (drone crate, carried by whoever picks it up): click up to 3 targets, then right-click or R fires one rocket at each. Rockets home on creatures.
DSend the drone, left click the drop point
CameraFollows the squad. Drag or W A S D to look around; Space snaps back. Wheel or + − to zoom.
PPause (co-op: the host pauses everyone on the same tick)
XCo-op: ping the map at the cursor for your teammate
Co-opHost a game (Co-op panel), send the link; each player takes two lockers in the outpost lobby and commands only their own two mercs. Vision, the wallet and the drone are shared: anyone can order the drone, one order at a time. Your teammate's mercs, cursor and pings show in teal.
EscCancel aiming, then back to the whole squad
TouchTap to run, double-tap to walk and shoot, long-press to look, tap a merc to single it out, drag to pan