Starship Troopers: Extermination: Complete Guide

A trooper's guide to Starship Troopers: Extermination: the six classes, every game mode, base building that actually holds, the bugs you will face, how progression works, and what Update 12 (X-11) and the upcoming Update 13 change.

Researched September 2026 — current as of Update 12 Hotfix 1 (August 21, 2026); Update 13 is announced for October 2026. Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

• This is a 16-player co-op game. Squads work together across one big map. Stick with your squad and follow pings; lone wolves die.
• Pick a class that fills a gap. Six classes: Ranger, Sniper, Demolisher, Guardian, Engineer, and Medic. A lobby with no Engineers cannot build well, and one without Medics bleeds troopers.
• Build before the wave, not during it. Walls, towers, and ammo stations only help if they are up before the swarm arrives. Use the ping system to coordinate what goes where.
• Ammo is a logistics problem. Build ammo stations near defensive positions and learn where your team's resupply is.
• The Carnage System changes the battlefield. Bug corpses pile up and become physical terrain. Big piles can create ramps over your walls, so clear or shape them.
• Watch the environment. Sandstorms on Valaka, volcanic hazards on Agni Prime, and dynamic weather and time of day all affect visibility and routes.
• Take the Field Shower seriously. Added in Update 11, it extinguishes burning troopers, cleans off gore, restores health, and a full shower gives a short boost to movement, jumping, climbing, accuracy, and Morale XP.
• Do daily missions. Update 11 added daily missions; they are an easy source of progression every session.

Classes

Class | Role | What they do best

Ranger | Assault infantry | Fast jetpack movement, close-quarters combat, scouting and hit-and-run; the tip of the spear

Sniper | Marksman and recon | Long-range fire support with jump jets for high positions; picks off priority bugs

Demolisher | Explosives specialist | Area-of-effect destruction; clears swarms and armoured targets

Guardian | Heavy defence | Anchors the front line with the Morita MK3 SAW; Siege Mode trades mobility for defence and weapon stability

Engineer | Support and logistics | Builds, maintains, and repairs structures; backbone of any defence

Medic | Support and healing | Medical UAV drone and stim-launchers for healing and long-distance revives

Which class for new players?

• Ranger if you want to shoot bugs and learn the maps.
• Engineer if you want to be useful immediately; teams always need builders.
• Medic if you like support play; revives swing matches.

Class tips:

• Ranger: use the jetpack to reposition, not just to escape. Cover objectives the defence cannot reach.
• Sniper: get high, call targets, and focus elite bugs. Tiger Elites and other priority targets are your job.
• Demolisher: save your big explosives for dense packs at chokepoints and for tough bugs.
• Guardian: plant in Siege Mode where the wall is weakest. Do not wander.
• Engineer: build walls to funnel bugs into kill zones, then towers and ammo stations behind them. Repair between waves.
• Medic: position behind the line with sightlines on the whole squad. Long-distance revives mean you do not need to run into the swarm.

Game Modes

Mode | Objective

AAS (Advance and Secure) | Complete missions, gather resources, and build defendable bases against bug attacks

ARC | Collect ore and gas to power the ARC structure while defending it from waves

Horde | Defend a mobile HQ (MHQ) through ten increasingly difficult waves

Hive Hunt | Infiltrate bug hives, deploy T.O.A.D canisters to destroy them, then reach extraction

S.O.G. missions | Mission-based operations (the patch notes reference S.O.G. missions on Agni Prime)

Per Wikipedia, the game also includes a single-player campaign of 25 missions featuring Casper Van Dien as an older General Rico.

AAS tips

• Split the team: builders at the base site, escorts with the resource runs, and a mobile squad for side objectives.
• Refineries and resource gathering fuel your building; protect them.
• Hold a clear retreat line to the base when the big wave comes.

ARC tips

• Ore and gas runs are the heartbeat of ARC. Escort resource carriers.
• Build the defensive ring before the ARC's later power stages, when waves intensify.
• Use the new X-11 ARC build zone to learn a fresh layout (added in Update 12).

Horde tips

• Build a layered defence around the MHQ: outer walls to slow, inner walls to hold.
• Stockpile ammo near the MHQ; do not run for resupply mid-wave.
• Since Update 1.10.3, Horde waits for navigation to initialise before the first phase starts, so the first build phase can take a few minutes. Use it.

Hive Hunt tips

• Travel as a tight group through tunnels; bugs come from every side.
• Protect whoever is carrying and placing T.O.A.D canisters.
• Save a bit of ammo and health for the extraction run.

Planets and Maps

Planet | Notes

Valaka | Blinding sandstorms reduce visibility

Agni Prime | Volcanic hazards and hellfire

Planet X-11 | A lonely asteroid outpost; nearly doubled in size in Update 12

Boreas | Has its own cosmetic pack in the Sky Marshal Edition bundle; check the in-game mission select for current availability

What Update 12 added to X-11 (August 20, 2026)

• New areas: a tunnel network with abandoned research labs and bug cages, the Terrarium (a replicated biosphere used for Arachnid research), the Weather Station (Federation tech for managing X-11's sudden environmental changes), and the Quarry (a large excavation area with room for a new base location).
• New missions: 3 AAS, 1 ARC, 1 Horde, and 1 Hive Hunt.
• The Galactic Front returns with X-11 as its focus, bringing new Perks and the Morita 3.
• Hotfix 1 (August 21) fixed navigation in the X-11 Quarry tunnel, floating MHQ screens in Horde, the Toxic Sunrise Supporter Pack not unlocking on Steam, and Galactic Front localisation.

Enemies

Bug types documented for the game include Drone, Warrior, Gunner, Plasma Grenadier, and Tiger Elite variants, plus bosses and new types added across updates.

Bug | How to handle it

Drones and Warriors | Swarm infantry. Walls and focused fire; don't let them surround you

Gunners | Ranged threat; use cover and prioritise them before they wear down defenders

Plasma Grenadiers | Long-range plasma threat; hunt them before they hit your base

Tiger Elites | Tough elite bugs; focus fire from Snipers and Demolishers

Coming in Update 13 (October 2026): the Hopper Bug, an aerial Arachnid threat, plus Camp Rasczak, an expanded and revamped Building Tutorial.

Base Building

The core rule: walls funnel, towers kill, ammo sustains.

• Scout the approach with a Ranger or Sniper to see where bugs come from.
• Engineers place walls to create chokepoints; leave a single kill zone.
• Towers and defences go behind walls with overlapping fields of fire.
• Ammo stations go behind the main line so defenders never leave position.
• Field Shower near the base for healing and the post-shower combat boost.
• Repair between waves. Damaged walls fail at the worst moment.

Carnage System tips: bug corpses persist as terrain. Over a long defence, corpse piles in front of walls can let bugs climb over. Use explosives to clear piles or build a second wall line further back.

Progression

• Class progression: each class has its own progression, unlocking weapons, equipment, and specialised perks.
• Weapon mods: Update 11 added more weapon mods; experiment to fit your role.
• Daily missions and Galactic Front events provide extra rewards and unlocks.
• Double XP events run during sales (for example, during the 2026 Steam Summer Sale).
• Utility items: support gear like the Stim Dart and Scan Dart pistols scale with perks such as Utility Utilization and Utility Satchel (fixed in 1.10.3).

Editions and DLC

The Sky Marshal Edition bundles the base game with year-one DLC: Sparta Supporter Pack, Valaka Cosmetic Pack, Agni Prime Supporter Pack, Planet X-11 Cosmetic Pack, Boreas Cosmetic Pack, Stinging Fury Supporter Pack, and Warrior Supporter Pack. These packs are cosmetic and supporter content; the base game has all modes.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Running off solo. You will get overwhelmed and cost your team a revive.
• Building walls with no kill zone. Bugs must be funnelled somewhere your team can shoot.
• Forgetting ammo logistics. Defenders who run back for ammo leave holes.
• Ignoring corpse piles. The Carnage System can turn your wall into a ramp.
• Everyone picking Ranger. Balance your squad with builders and healers.
• Wasting explosives on single weak bugs.

Advanced Tips

• Ping everything. Coordinated build pings make 16 players act like a team.
• Rotate Guardians in Siege Mode at the weakest wall while Engineers repair behind them.
• Snipers call elites early so Demolishers can prepare.
• Plan for weather and night. Visibility drops, so tighten your defensive perimeter before dark or a storm rolls in.
• Use Field Showers before big waves to get the accuracy and movement boost.
• Report performance issues with the Server ID now shown on the scoreboard (added in 1.10.3).
• Server maintenance: matchmaking runs on Epic Online Services. Scheduled EOS outages (for example, September 22, 2026 at 6am UTC for up to 90 minutes) disconnect sessions.

FAQ

Is Starship Troopers: Extermination still being updated? Yes. Update 12 arrived August 20, 2026, and Update 13 is planned for October 2026 with the Hopper Bug and Camp Rasczak.

Can I play solo? The core experience is co-op for up to 16 players, and the game also includes single-player campaign content.

Which class should I play first? Ranger for mobility and learning maps, Engineer if you want to help your team win, or Medic for support.

What is the Carnage System? Bug corpses stay on the battlefield as physical terrain, changing bug paths and sometimes letting them climb over walls.

Is it crossplay? Yes. The Steam store page lists Cross-Platform Multiplayer, and the game is on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S (early access from May 17, 2023; full release October 2024), with sessions running on Epic Online Services.

Is the Guardian's Siege Mode worth it? Yes, when holding a line. Per the store description it boosts defensive stats and weapon stability at the cost of mobility, turning the Guardian into a turret with the Morita MK3 SAW.

What's in the Sky Marshal Edition? The base game plus all year-one DLC packs (mostly cosmetic and supporter packs).

Sources

• Steam store page: Starship Troopers: Extermination
• Steam news: Update 11, Update 12, Development Update August 2026, EOS outage
• Wikipedia: Starship Troopers: Extermination