If you are looking for ways to manage stress in Aliens: Dark Descent, this guide is for you!
Aliens: Dark Descent is a nerve-wracking game that plunges players into the terrifying depths of a xenomorph-infested world. As you navigate through the treacherous missions, battling not only the relentless alien horde but also the persistent threat of accumulating stress, maintaining composure becomes crucial for survival.
In this article, we delve into the art of stress management, exploring effective strategies and essential techniques to help you keep your Marines focused, composed, and capable of overcoming the insurmountable odds stacked against them.
How to manage or reduce stress in Aliens: Dark Descent
In Aliens: Dark Descent, despite the overwhelming stress faced by Marines, there are several methods available to reduce stress levels and alleviate the detrimental effects it imposes.
You can manage stress in Aliens: Dark Descent by making a shelter, popping a Naproleve, getting your Sergeant to use a special ability and boosting your "Bravery".
Let us discuss them in detail.
Create a shelter while exploring the field
This can be accomplished by welding doors in rooms that show no signs of alien infestation or nests. Each door requires a Tool to secure, and the top of the screen provides information on the number of doors that need to be fortified.
Once the task is completed, taking a rest will restore 100 stress damage, effectively lowering the overall stress level.
Pop a Naproleve
This involves utilizing a medicinal item called Naproleve, which necessitates having Medical Supplies on hand. By selecting the Marine with high stress and opting for Naproleve from the available options, 100 stress points can be relieved, resulting in a reduction of the individual's stress level.
Employ the special ability of your Sergeant
Sergeants become accessible once a Rookie reaches level 3, granting a random selection of two classes.
When a Sergeant reaches level 6, they unlock the Reprimand skill as a class attribute. By utilizing a Command Point, the Sergeant can halt all stress accumulation for 30 seconds, making it particularly advantageous to employ this ability just before an intense onslaught ensues.
Boost the Bravery attribute
A higher Bravery percentage translates to a reduced susceptibility to stress-related harm.
Upgrades such as Honor Ribbons and Common Attributes like Bold, which have a chance of appearing during the levelling-up process, can enhance a Marine's Bravery and decrease the stress damage they suffer.
How does stress work in Aliens: Dark Descent?
In Aliens: Dark Descent, stress emerges as a formidable adversary, rivalling even the xenomorphs themselves in their ability to claim the lives of Marines.
The game's intense and relentless nature, with hordes of hostile creatures vying to use you as an incubator, makes stress accumulation an ever-present threat, leading to detrimental consequences and enduring psychological trauma.
Moreover, engaging in combat with numerous enemies and enduring wounds exacerbates stress levels. As stress intensifies, the rate at which stress damage is incurred per second increases, amplifying the potential harm inflicted on your Marines.
The accumulation of stress not only impairs their combat effectiveness but can also inflict lasting traumas, perpetuating a cycle of deteriorating performance and compromised mental well-being.
What are the different levels of stress in Aliens: Dark Descent?
During a deployment, stress manifests in four distinct levels: Relaxed (White), Anxious (Yellow), Panicked (Orange), and Terrified (Red).
Upon reaching each new level, specific stress effects afflict the Marines, affecting their performance and command skills. These effects range from diminished accuracy to compromised decision-making abilities.
Furthermore, stress can evolve into full-fledged traumas, imposing even greater burdens on the Marines and impairing their efficiency. Taking traumatized soldiers into the field significantly augments the challenges and complexities of their mission.
The highest stress level attained by Marines during a deployment is carried over to their trauma meter. When the trauma meter accumulates three bars, a trauma is inflicted upon the Marine.
Essentially, if a Marine reaches the Terrified status within a deployment, they are vulnerable to experiencing trauma. Subsequently, if they encounter three more traumas, the effects of their existing trauma worsen, compounding the detrimental consequences they endure.