WIKI / GUIDE

Getting started

Your first match, from the first solar plant to the first win. Aether Ascent plays like the classic RTS games it descends from — if you've built a base and boxed an army before, you're most of the way home.

The first five minutes

You start with a Construction Yard — it builds every structure, and losing your last one loses you the match. Get the economy standing before anything else:

1. Solar Plant first. Everything runs on power, and a brownout slows the whole base.
2. Refinery next, placed close to a resource deposit — it comes with a free Harvester that starts working immediately. Short trips are everything: a refinery beside the deposit out-earns a distant one several times over.
3. Barracks, then a few Marines. Not because you're attacking — because your opponent eventually is.
4. A second Harvester when credits allow. Two trucks per deposit cluster is a healthy start.

Credits are global across your whole operation; raw resources (regolith, metals, water) belong to the world they were mined on. The Trade Hub turns surplus stock into credits automatically — it always keeps a reserve so automated selling can't strip what your rockets will need.

The combat triangle

Cost for cost: Marines beat Rocket Troopers, Rocket Troopers beat Tanks, Tanks beat Marines and Buggies. Scout Buggies are fast infantry-shredders that melt against armor. Mixed groups beat pure-anything — check the units table for the exact multipliers when you're ready to min-max.

Research

The University generates science, and science buys techs in four branches — Economy, Military, Space, Science (the full tree). Early picks that rarely disappoint: Improved Drills (more per harvest) and whichever military tech matches the army you're already building. The Space branch is how you eventually leave the planet — Launch Pad Plans unlocks the Spaceport.

Defense that works

• Gun Turrets cover ground; they ignore aircraft. AA Turrets are the reverse. You need both eventually.
• Walls slow a push and shield turrets from siege fire.
• A Radar Station widens your vision and warns you when a colony on another world comes under attack.
• Units return fire when shot and prefer enemy units over buildings — trust them to fight sensibly, and use attack-move (not plain move) when advancing into contested ground.

Winning

Kill every enemy Construction Yard and MCV and the match is yours. Before you march: scout. The map remembers what you've seen, but only the fog you've lifted. When your army outnumbers what you've scouted of theirs, push — hesitation feeds the enemy economy exactly like it feeds yours.

Difficulty, saves, and not losing heart

• The FIRST MATCH preset in the setup screen is tuned for a first game. Easy gives you a long grace period before anything serious arrives.
• Save anytime. Six slots, and with an optional free account they follow you across devices.
• Lost anyway? The economy guide is usually the reason and the cure. A stronger economy forgives almost every tactical sin.

When home feels solved, it's time to leave it: Going off-world.

REFERENCE GENERATED FROM LIVE GAME DATA — BALANCE v51 · 2026-07-28 · NUMBERS UPDATE WITH EVERY RELEASE