With six factions at your disposal, new Marathon players might want to know whether they are investing their time wisely by choosing to complete contracts for a specific one. The truth is, there is no “bad choice” per se, as every faction is useful, given their rewards and upgrades.
However, as you might have figured out by now, visiting Tau Ceti is less of a traditional extraction run and more of an all-out deathmatch, making survivability and movement essential if you want to successfully extract or complete contracts.
Taking that into account, let’s talk about what the best faction is to level up first in Marathon.
Level up CyberAcme first to get rid of the “Heat” in Marathon
CyberAcme (CyAc), the very first faction you unlock, is not only the place where you’ll unlock the other factions, but it is also the faction you’ll need to focus on early in the game. The reason? You need to better manage your “Heat,” most commonly known as your stamina.
By investing credits and resources in the Heat Management section of its upgrades (Heat_Sink.exe, Quick_Vent.exe, and Active_Cool.exe), CyAc will increase your Heat Capacity and your Heat Recovery Rate.
This means more sprinting and more abilities before your Shell overheats, which is vital in a game that can be particularly competitive. Complement this with Firm_Stance.exe to increase your Fall Resistance and Informant to increase your data card credit rewards, which will, in turn, help you acquire more upgrades.
With that being said, you can also spend some resources and credits to upgrade your Vault Size or unlock Enhanced and Deluxe Weaponry for purchase. Rewards-wise, expect a bunch of backpacks to increase your inventory size per run, which will help you in your scavenging ventures.
Factions to focus on leveling up next in Marathon
After CyAc, you can choose to focus on other factions to get valuable upgrades. Choosing MIDA for Flex_Matrix.exe might be a wise choice, as it will increase your movement speed and jump height. In conjunction with your improved Heat Management, you’ll practically fly through Tau Ceti.
Picking NuCaloric as your next faction to level up might also be the way to go, as the Shielded and Armored upgrades unlock Enhanced and Deluxe Shield Implants for purchase in the Armory, which positively impact your survivability.
Arachne will allow you to unlock weapons in the Armory, Traxus upgrades unlock weapon mods, and Sekgen unlocks Shell-specific items in the Armory. These three are useful, but you should focus on CyAc, NuCaloric, and MIDA first if you want your baseline bot to be as proficient as possible.
Marathon is available now on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
