Marathon is a very good game. Marathon is also a very difficult game that can be very confusing even after several hours of play. If you are getting into Bungie’s extraction shooter for the first time or are still trying to figure it out, we are here at My city I have 20 tips to help you mine, get good loot, get more powerful, and hopefully have fun.
It’s tough on Tau Ceti IV. Let us help you. Just keep in mind: you are going to die. A lot. This is to be expected.
You won’t understand everything Let me be very clear: I have played a lot of Marathonand I still don’t understand everything in the game. So if you’re joining for the first time or have only played a few matches, don’t expect to understand what’s going on anytime soon. It will take time and a lot of failures before you begin to understand the map, loot, equipment, stats, and other intricacies of the game. Marathon. Reading this guide and others will help, but ultimately you won’t really understand this game for a long time. It’s good. Part of the process.
Grasp unstable materials At first, you will probably be overwhelmed by all the loot that can be found in Marathon. I would recommend focusing on recovering anything labeled as “Unstable”. Specifically, focus on bringing back unstable diodes and unstable biomass. These will help you unlock some very useful upgrades, including the ability to significantly increase the size of your vault. Don’t sell these materials either. Horde them, you’ll thank me later.
The best starting advice for Marathon! ✅ pic.twitter.com/vqQs87xP8a
– Covent (@ChrisCovent) March 6, 2026
Unlock all factions immediately! Very early in Marathonyou will start receiving quests titled “Introduction”. Complete them as soon as possible. These will unlock the different factions in the game, allowing you to upgrade them and provide more in-game missions, i.e. contracts.
Complete contracts and upgrade factions Remember ABC: always. Be. Execution of contracts in Marathon. This will help you quickly level up the various factions in the game, which in turn will allow you to use all those unstable materials and other junk to improve your stats, unlock new items to purchase from the armory, and much more. You can also spend credits to revive uneventful contracts. Do this if a contract seems too boring or difficult to complete.
Check out each faction’s Agent screen for other ways to improve your reputation. Contracts aren’t the only way to increase your faction’s levels. Each faction will award you bonus XP for completing certain activities during a run or for bringing back faction-related loot. For example, every time you pick a plant Marathonyou’ll get a bit of NuCaloric faction XP (assuming you’ve unlocked them), which can help you rank up that faction while questing for another. Multi-tasking! To find out what each faction expects from you, visit the Agent section of each group’s menu.
Water and squatting can help you sprint more efficiently Runner shells in Marathon can sprint and slide, but this builds up heat. Push your case too far and you risk overheating and not being able to run for a while. It’s rubbish. Fortunately, there are ways to quickly release heat that don’t require any items or skills. First, squat down. This will refresh you faster. Another tip is to look for water. Running even in shallow water will slow heat buildup. The rain will do the same. And yes, you can combine them. Squatting in water will cool you down extremely quickly.
Use Claymores to cover your back Sure, you can stick a claymore on a drone and go crazy Drone war trending on TikTok. But Claymores are also very useful without a drone. When playing solo, I place one or two in doors or near ladders while I’m looting or preparing to mine. This stopped random enemy players from sneaking up on me and saved the day on several occasions when trying to extract myself. This tactic is also useful in co-op.
©Bungie Smoke grenades can save you from deadly robots Did you accidentally anger robot soldiers? Throw a smoke grenade between you and them and use it to cover your escape. Bots are easily knocked back by smoke grenades and can help you escape without having to waste bullets in a fight.
Signal jammers are your friends While we’re talking about ways to avoid The marathon runners Surprisingly deadly robots, here’s another: Signal Jammer kits. These can be triggered like any other consumable and will hide you from enemy robots and turrets. Extremely useful if you are trying to sneak past a large patrol or want to gain an advantage over players hiding from robots and looting.
Shield depleted and health items are not extracted You’ve probably already noticed this if you’ve played a few matches, but just to reiterate: depleted shield kits and health packs don’t leave you when you exfiltrate. So if you have five of them in your inventory, don’t hesitate to use them whenever you need them, because they won’t return to your vault with you if you escape.
Red rockets signal safes Do you have a safe key and don’t know where to go? Look for the red flares! These will appear on any building on a map that contains unlockable safes.
Check the map screen for more objective information If a contract says to go to South Relay to hack a terminal but you can’t find it, open your map and check the right side. There, you’ll see what contracts each of your team members have, and if you hover your cursor over a contract, the game will give you more details. Is this a bad UI choice? Yes! But at least you know now and you can hopefully use the additional information to complete contracts with less stress.
Level up factions to improve Rook Rook, a robotic shell that can’t make contracts but can bring in loot, is fun. You can make Rook more powerful and useful by leveling up factions and purchasing enough upgrades to unlock each group’s “Capstone” node. Each of these strengthens Rook, giving him better equipment and making him a real threat.
Use TADs to spot enemy players At various locations around each of The marathon runners On the maps, you may see small antenna-like structures marked as TAD that you can interact with. And you need to activate them, because they will ping the area around you and reveal enemy players. Keep in mind that other players will see the TAD pulses, so you’re letting those players know they’re not alone. But at least you’ll know where they are in case of an attack.
Mechanic Kits Will Cure Poison Plant Bullshit Those yellowish green toxic plants that explode when you get too close are really annoying. If you want to remove this obnoxious debuff that is thrown at racers who get too close, simply keep a spare Mechanic’s Kit on you or find one in the world. Using it will clear the effects, allowing you to heal normally.
Read our list of things not to do This is a list of useful tips and tricks for new players and people who are just starting their journey in Marathon. But there’s even more to learn about Bungie’s new pull shooter, so check out our list of things NOT to do Marathon to help you survive longer and hopefully come away with some good loot.
