- This is a resource management gate defense game. Manage your resources appropriately to defend your gate.
- Ranged damage is calculated against penetrations, resistances, armors, and shields. Ranged also can crit as well as fail-crit, which is called transpierce. Only high powered snipers will transpierce.
- Melee damage is direct damage to health. Resistances and shields do not apply. Armor does apply, but most melee weapons go through armor 100%...
- You can stack different levels of modules, e.g., you can stack a damage i, ii, iii, and more into a single weapon. This stacks by addition, so you won't get multiples of multiples. A damage i+ii combo will net you 10% + 25% for a total of 35% increase in damage.
- Adding slots never gets expensive when compared to building/crafting mods/weapons. Adding mods increase maintenance costs however, which will reduce your profit at the end of the missions.
- Don't add healing rays to any of your girls, as they will focus entirely on engaging the enemy. Add them to your combat units instead, and they will heal you when not fighting.
- Upgrades to your combat units and drones aren't necessary, but can be helpful.

The weapons that I've particularly enjoyed:

Service Rifle
- A3 variant - provides consistent 3-round bursts

Antique Rifle
- A1 variant - provides consistent single-shots

Submachine Gun
- A2 variant - high burst at 150 dmg

Shotgun
- Standard version - spray of 12 projectiles at 200 dmg
- Double Barrel variant - spray of 20 projectiles at 250 dmg
- Buckshot variant - spray of 6 projectiles at 540 dmg

Sniper
- Heavy Sniper - A whopping 1,250 dmg sniper with a decent reload and slow rotation. Build rotation mods to counteract.
- Rapid-Firing Gun - A respectable 700 dmg sniper with a long reload and forgivable rotation. Build rotation mods to counteract.

Machine Gun
- Heavy Machine Gun - Just a pre-req for the Vulcan Cannon...
- Vulcan Cannon - 90 round 700 dmg gatling with a 36s reload - built speed, rotation, and reload mounts to make up for this beast!

Spray / Arc combos
- Flamethrower + Frost Spray - This combination will cause the Melt status effect, which will negate armor and bullet resistances!
- Flamethrower + Oil Spray Gun - Oil 'em up to increase fire damage and enhance the Heat status effect!
- Electric Cannon + Water Spray Gun - Cause the Wet status effect and then chain kill with the electric cannon!

Main Modules:
- Can also be added to the gate
- HP is ok, but not a priority.
- Resistance gets exponentially better the higher it is.
- Shields are great, and shield restore and repair make them even better.
- All other modules are either situation or character specific.

Foot Modules:
- Speed, Rotating Shaft, and Claw modules are mandatory for all characters.
- Torque Converter is beneficial, so is Power Amplifier
- All other modules are either situation or character specific.

Mounted Objects:
- Vests, Armor, and Chainsaws only apply to the orientation you place it in. Orientation is left-to-right on both front and back mounted slots, meaning if you want it square on the front or back of your mech, you need to put it in the 2nd slot/column of that row.
- Vests boost resistance. More useful in high amounts.
- Will soak up damage before your mech actually takes damage. Useful if you're only expecting to get hit <5 times (or less than the damage the armor is rated for).
Chainsaw - Useful for melee-specific mechs and situations. Won't hit unless you're literally touching the enemy.
Advanced External Hydraulic Press - 1 mandatory for all mechs. More than one is not recommended. Mount on the back, assuming you're expecting to get hit in the front of your mech.
Advanced External Drive - 1 mandatory for all mechs, recommended 2 (or more for your less mobile charcters). Mount on the back, assuming you're expecting to get hit in the front of your mech.
Advanced External Bomb Bay - Useful for long reloads >5 seconds. I mount on the sides of those that need the extra reload boosts.
All other mounted objects are character/situation specific.

Others:
Yes, there's actually an Other category. This modifies the mech or character, but cannot modify the gate.
Weapon expansion slots are not needed - a +1/+2 increase isn't really worth it unless you can equip a demonstrably better weapon on the mech you're thinking about.

Mary
A top student who graduated with honors. Amiable and gentle in social interactions, yet unyielding in matters of principle.
Age: 21
Combat Style: Follower Defense **See My Recommendation
Preferences: Coffee and Medals
Dislikes: Cigarettes
Ranger - Standard empire armor with no distinctive features of glaring flaws, equipped with lengthened power feet, capable of leaping over objects when sprinting. Recommended setup: Similar to that of the leader mecha's.
+10/+10 Ranged
+5/+5 Melee
1 Drone
3 Grenades
Elastic Feet (non-removable) - You can jump over obstacles without being affected while sprinting.
My Recommendation: Despite her description being "Combat Style: Follower", her default AI strategy is actually Defense, where she take cover behind defensive positions to fight. As the MC, Mary doesn't have a loyalty stat to worry about, therefore you can gift her anything. I found the Service Rifle A3 tree best on her for both arms.

Kuroku
An obedient soldier, gentle and kind in interpersonal relationships.
Age: 20
Combat style: Follower
Preference: Toys and sweets
Dislikes: Books
Hussar - Standard empire armor Type 2 with some enhancement modules removed and a higher capacity of throwing objects. Its knee joint has been modified, making it possible to shoot while crouched. Recommended setup: Similar to that of the leader mecha's.
+12/+6 Ranged
+12/+5 Melee
2 Drones
6 Grenades
Roller Skates (non-removable) - Equip to use roller skates while sprinting. It has a short duration.
Grenade Launcher (non-removable) - Throwing object cooldown -30%
My Recommendation: She will follow you and stick close, without regards to dodge enemy gunfire… The Rapid Firing Weapon sniper is great, and you can pick any +6 ranged weapon to compliment, such as the LMG, Ancient Rifle A1S, Electric Cannon, etc. Load up her grenade slots to maximize status effects and crowd control.

San
A fearless mecha pilot, enthusiastic and generous, acting a little impulsively.
Age: 23
Combat style: Charger
Dragoon – A specialized melee mecha with a lot of room for melee weapon enhancements and less for other weapon types. Its high movement speed is balanced by its low durability. Recommended setup: Rapid-firing or spreadshot weapons, heavy armor.
+6/+5 Ranged
+12/+12 Melee
1 Drone
4 Grenades
Default-equipped with a Mounted Chainsaw in front.
Jumping Feet (non-removable) – Jump into the middle of a group of enemies to knock back and stun them (click the sprint button). **game typo, click the jump button. She also jumps to your cursor, whereas all other characters jump in the direction they’re moving.
Plastic Steel Armor (non-removable) – There is a high chance to absorb attacks with a final damage lower than 250.
My Recommendation: She charges straight into enemies to engage in melee, without regard to enemy gunfire… Paired fire/ice spray weapons or water/lightning weapons are great, but make sure you build strong melee weapons for her to use. Capitalize on her Plastic Steel Armor with resistance mods early game. Late game, build her for speed so that as you rush around enemies you can move faster than they can aim or shoot at you.

Ocher
A well-behaved soldier, rational and calm, not talkative.
Age: 20
Combat style: Sniper
Preference: Books
Hates: Frivolous (fashionable) things.
Horse Archer - Equipped with a sniper rifle and features a quick-turn turret and almost no armor, resulting in low durability, slightly slow movement speed, and high rotational speed. Recommended setup: Sniper weapon, light armor.
+18/+5 Ranged
+5/+5 Melee
3 Grenades
3 Drones
Tracks (non-removable) – Equip to use tracks when sprinting. It has a long duration, but can be stuck on obstacles.
Sniper (non-removable) – Bullets higher than 500 have a 10% chance to execute the targets (ineffective against bosses).
My Recommendation: She will sit there and shoot anything that comes into range, but never move herself… Equip either the Rapid Firing Weapon or the Heavy Sniper on her main ranged, and back it up with the light sniper with a damage mod. This will guarantee she has a reliable chance to one-shot 99% of enemies. Use tracer rounds on her weapons to prevent transpierce (fail-crits), and also give her bullet bounce mods so that her weapons can kill more than one enemy per shot. Stack Rotation. Add crouch mods to help with deflecting gunfire.

Claire
A battle-hardened soldier, mature, and stable, but likes to joke.
Age: 27
Combat style: Conservative
Preference: Collectibles
Dislikes: Childish Items
Paladin - A heavy mecha with adequate defense and slow speed. Recommended setup: Spreadshot weapon, speed enhancement.
+12/+12 Ranged
+8/+5 Melee
4 Grenades
1 Drone
Tracks (non-removable) - a long duration sprint, but can get stuck on obstacles.
Turret (non-removable) - When crouching - Resistance and Explosive Resistance are doubled, Firing Range is greatly increased, no Recoil
My Recommendation: Don’t worry about adding movement speed too much… She’ll sit there regardless. Pair Vulcan Cannon (+Execution mod when available) with a Service Rifle A1, or 2 Light Machine Guns. Stack Rotation + Reload