Iron Marines+ Distress Call Veteran Mission Guide

To beat Mission 2, Distress Call, on Veteran difficulty in Iron Marines+, lead the opening march with your hero to prevent squad casualties, build a Gatling Turret at the primary choke point immediately after securing the base, and deploy Snipers behind your defensive line. On Saghan-1, Veteran difficulty increases alien swarm density and damage, making early unit preservation and targeted defense essential.

Reaching the Distress Beacon

Your detachment starts in hostile territory and must navigate toward the distress beacon without suffering early casualties. Replacing fallen troops drains Ether needed for base infrastructure.

1. Scout ahead with your hero: Move your hero slightly forward to draw attacks from wandering Fell bugs and reveal ambushes.
2. Form a firing line with Rifle Marines: Keep your standard infantry within weapon range just behind the hero so their rapid kinetic fire clears melee bugs before they deal damage.
3. Hold special weapons: Save consumable items and drop strikes for defensive base phases; standard basic attacks and your hero's cooldowns can handle initial patrols.
4. Clear before activating: Eliminate all ambient bugs around the beacon landing zone before triggering the objective to avoid taking crossfire while your units are locked in place.

Establishing the Base Perimeter

Once you activate the distress beacon, enemy forces launch waves from several corridors. Prioritize static defenses at the main avenue of approach before investing in new infantry squads.

Build your first Gatling Turret facing the corridor indicated by the earliest swarm warning. The turret acts as both sustained area suppression and a durable obstacle. Position your hero nearby to intercept melee units, preventing the turret or your core command hub from taking concentrated structural damage.

Transitioning to Snipers and Prioritizing Targets

Relying solely on standard Rifle Marines leaves your line exposed once armored variants and ranged acid spitters appear. Convert a squad slot into Snipers to add essential long-range single-target damage.

• Protect your Snipers: Keep Snipers stationed strictly behind your hero and turret line. Their slow aim and low health pool make them vulnerable to fast-moving swarms in melee range.
• Snipe ranged acid spitters: Ranged spitters can bombard your base installations from outside basic turret range. Direct your Snipers or target hero abilities to kill them before they chip away at your structures.
• Hold the line during dual-lane attacks: If enemies attack from two directions at once, let your Gatling Turret stall the weaker lane while your hero and squads burst down the heavier threat.
• Fall back when breached: If a perimeter choke point collapses, retreat Snipers back toward the central hub rather than leaving them to fight in close quarters.

Ether Discipline and the Final Wave

Surviving the final assault timer requires disciplined resource management and active hero movement:

• Kite around your defenses: Do not leave your hero stationary against heavy swarms. Move your hero in tight circles within the firing arc of your Gatling Turret to distribute damage safely.
• Keep an Ether reserve: Avoid spending all your Ether on unnecessary troop replacements. Keep a buffer so you can immediately rebuild a destroyed turret during the final assault wave.
• Use defensive abilities as stalling tools: When large swarms threaten to overrun your units, trigger your hero’s primary defensive ability to absorb burst damage until the mission timer expires.