The planet of Tau Ceti IV is ripe for the picking when it comes to shooting and looting in Marathon, Bungie’s new extraction shooter FPS.
In this particular genre, made famous by games like Escape From Tarkov and ARC Raiders, mission-givers are a core part of the experience as they give you a narrative reason for playing beyond eliminating other players and grabbing better loot.
In Marathon, they help gear you up and also supply you with swag, like skins and cosmetics, but they’re also just incredibly stylish and bad-ass.
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What are factions in Marathon?
Factions in Marathon are separate unique entities in the game world that have vendors who offer you missions and allow you to purchase items and gear. Leveling up with factions unlocks new abilities and cosmetics for your Runners.
Each faction has a Vendor (like a Trader in ARC Raiders or Escape From Tarkov) that offer rewards for completing missions. These missions are also central to telling the story and narrative of the world of Marathon.
Much of Marathon’s factions is still shrouded in secrecy (or under NDA), so here’s what we know so far.
All Marathon factions
To tease Marathon’s factions, Bungie has released several short videos to introduce them to players, including their Vendors who will be the ones giving out missions and hoping for your allegiance.
Arachne
- Vendor: Charter
Arachne is described as a “death cult” in Marathon’s universe, and their aesthetic certainly drives home that vibe. The most ruthless killers will want to apply to continue feeding the cycle of death while leveling up.
CyberAcme
- Vendor: ONI
CyberAcme is “interlinked” with your Runner’s consciousness, meaning that in the game world, the company is responsible for how the whole thing works: inserting your mind into disposable Runner shells.
MIDA
- Vendor: _gantry
Returning from the original Marathon games (and from some Easter Egg-named weapons in Destiny), MIDA’s expertise is explosives, so they may be a good fit for you if you enjoy playing the Destroyer class. The vendor _gantry describes MIDA as “anti-corp” and “anti-UESC,” so it’ll be big with the most rebellious of gamers.
NuCaloric
- Vendor: Gaius
“Our mission is to ensure humanity’s survival by meeting its most basic needs,” the vendor Gaius says, explaining NuCaloric’s agricultural mission to supply nutrition.
Sekiguchi
- Vendor: Nona
Sekiguchi is a bioscience company, responsible for the creation of Runner shells with those cool/creepy little caterpillars threading them together.
Traxus
- Vendor: Vulcan
Described as “major investors in the original Marathon expedition,” Traxus is trying to recoup its losses. That means you doing their bidding, and it sounds like they have the money to back it up and give you all the reason you need.
Marathon faction rewards
While currently unknown in detail, Marathon’s factions can all be leveled up, meaning there’s no being locked to one specific group. Playing and completing all of the faction’s missions will be the way to go, helping to unlock whatever they have to offer beyond mission-based items and currency.
This article will be updated as more information about Marathon’s factions is revealed.
