Iron Marines+ Broken Arrow Spec Ops Defense Strategy

To clear the Broken Arrow Spec Ops mission in Iron Marines+, lock down natural approach chokepoints with heavy frontline units, manually focus down ranged Fell Spitters with snipers, and reserve your Ether for emergency squad replacements instead of mid-wave retraining.

Because Broken Arrow is an endurance defense mission with a fixed operational footprint and tight Ether generation, avoiding unit wipeouts is essential to prevent resource depletion.

Squad Roles and Lane Positioning

Survival depends on setting up overlapping firing arcs where heavy armor absorbs incoming melee waves while ranged damage dealers eliminate high-threat targets from behind safety barriers.

Unit Type	Tactical Role	Primary Target	Positioning Rule
Bouncers / Mechs	Frontline Anchor	Swarm melee units, burrowing infiltrators	Station directly at choke mouths
Snipers / Rangers	High-Value Elimination	Fell Spitters, aerial threats, carapace elites	Hold backline behind barriers
Commandos / Marines	Rapid Suppression	Medium swarmers, stray flankers	Station mid-line to plug gaps
Hero Unit	Area Denial & Burst CC	Clustered packs, priority bosses	Roam actively between lanes

Set your frontline anchors to hold their ground at the narrowest bottleneck on the path. When units chase fleeing enemies into open ground, they break defensive cohesion and expose backline gunners to surrounding swarms. If the perimeter contains defensive platforms, repair and upgrade available Gatling or missile turrets early so they can absorb early runner aggro.

Wave Management and Target Priority

Late-wave surges combine fast melee chaff, armored carapace elites, and subterranean flankers. Handle incoming threats in this operational order:

Fell Spitters (Ranged): Manually command your Snipers to eliminate Spitters immediately upon arrival. Unchecked Spitters melt clustered defenders and defensive structures with acidic splash damage.
Subterranean Flankers: When burrowers surface behind your defensive perimeter, peel your mid-line Marines or Hero backward to clear them. Never pull your frontline Bouncers back from the choke, or the main swarm will overrun the position.
Heavy Carapace Elites: Focus armor-piercing fire and hero burst abilities onto armored elites once they make contact with your frontline.
Fast Creepers and Chaff: Let passive turret fire, Bouncer shield shockwaves, and area-of-effect hero skills clean up low-tier melee swarms.

Hero Ability Timing and Ether Economy

Your Hero acts as a mobile response unit to counter sudden defensive breaches. Maximize ability efficiency with the following rules:

Wait for Swarm Compression: Hold high-damage active skills, orbital strikes, or stasis abilities until the swarm packs tightly against your Bouncers. Firing into scattered vanguard units wastes cooldown cycles.
Protect the Hero: Position your Hero behind armored mechs when fighting elite units. Losing your commander removes your primary burst damage and crowd control.
Bank Ether for Losses: Do not burn Ether switching unit classes mid-engagement. Maintain your initial squad composition and spend Ether only to replace fallen frontline units immediately before the line collapses.