The train is the strategy
What you can do in a mission is exactly what you coupled at the station. This page lists the parts: 7 locomotives, 29 wagon types, 16 weapons, the boiler, and the 21 enemy types on the other side.
Locomotives
| Locomotive | Character |
|---|---|
| Courier | Light and quick; the train you leave the valley with. |
| Cinder Courier | A hotter Courier: more pull, less patience in the boiler. |
| Double Tender | Long range; carries its own water and coal for the empty stretches. |
| Iron Freight | Heavy hauler for long consists and dense cargo. |
| Vanguard | Armored; takes the hits a lighter engine could not. |
| Frost Service | Built for the White Frontier, where cold works against the boiler. |
| Behemoth | The heaviest engine on the line, with a gun on the roof. |
Wagons
Armed cars: Gun Car, Rifle Car, Scatter Car, Flak Car, Quad Heavy MG Car, Cyclone Car, Grenade Volley Car, Heavy Howitzer Car, Twin Recoilless Car, Siege Car, Railspike Driver Car, Thermite Cannon Car, Hunter Rocket Car, Rocket Salvo Car and Point-Defense Car.
Logistics: Tanker, Oil Tanker, Armored Tanker, Ammo Car, Workshop Car, Filter Module, Valve Car, Bridge Flatbed and Gravel Hopper.
Cargo and people: Passenger Car, Boxcar, Freight Boxcar, Plated Boxcar and Refrigerated Boxcar. People and cargo are wagons: they occupy space, add mass and can be damaged.
Weapons
Machine Gun, Precision Rifle, Scatter Gun, Twin Autocannon, Quad Heavy MG, Lead Storm, Cyclone Chain Cannon, Grenade Volley, Heavy Howitzer, Twin Recoilless, Rail Cannon, Railspike Driver, Thermite Cannon, Hunter Rocket Rack, Saturation Rockets and Point-Defense Autocannon. Aim is manual; on touch screens you can choose twin-stick, tap-to-aim or an optional assist.
The boiler
The gauge runs from 150 °C, the minimum working regime, to 350 °C. Every notch of throttle makes heat in proportion; neutral holds the temperature; a water valve cools it, by hand. At 300 °C a yellow light and a beep warn you; at 330 °C a red light and a siren mark the band where the train already takes thermal damage. Darker smoke and fire from the chimney tell you the same thing without a number.
Enemies
21 types, introduced one family at a time along the campaign:
- Infantry: Runner, Gunner, RPG Trooper, Raider, Jumper.
- Vehicles: Assault Vehicle, Bruiser, Drill Rig, Cable Lancer, Arsenal APC, Arsenal Battle Tank, Arsenal Command Truck, Arsenal Recovery Rig.
- Emplacements: Casemate Bunker, Emplaced Turret.
- On rails: Armoured Railcar.
- Air: Helicopter, Strike Plane, Storm Kite.
- Water: Delta Skimmer, Salt Ram.
Upgrades and the workshop
Wagons are upgraded per unit at the station workshop and locomotives can be reinforced; the garage holds your stock and the shop sells what the crossing has unlocked so far. Nothing here is sold for real money: every part is bought with the credits missions pay.