You Think Your Job Is Stressful? Try Being an Aliens: Dark Descent Marine

Work can be extremely difficult at times. You might have to put in long grueling hours and only have a brief respite, until you have to do it all over again. But, at least you don’t have to travel to an alien planet in order to eradicate hostile lifeforms. Aliens: Dark Descent does just that, placing you in command of a team of Colonial Marines whose job it is to stop an Xenomorph outbreak on planet Lethe. This doesn’t come without its fair share of sever traumatic and stressful situations. Something that your team will not only be susceptible to, it will almost be a guarantee. Having to focus on your teams mental capacities can be quite a tough task, since you’ll already be managing their every move. So let’s take a quick break and figure out how to reduce stress and remove traumas in Aliens: Dark Descent.

How to Reduce Stress and Remove Traumas in Aliens: Dark Descent

As you take on missions with your set of marines, you’ll notice how there are certain debuffs that carry over from each level. This is not something that you can just ignore and push through the game. As the more stressed you get, the larger potential you have for more sever trauma. Stress will place an insignificant debuff on one of your marines, while trauma will place a more deadly, and more terrifying status ailment.

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Reducing your stress, much like the stress itself, can be done a lot simpler and quicker, when compared to getting rid of trauma. Because of this, it’s recommended that you attempt to reduce stress levels when you get them, as your highest stress level on a marine will carry over between missions. Trauma on the other hand, is a much more time consuming task should you need to take care of it. We’re going to take a look first at how to reduce stress in Aliens: Dark Descent.

How to Reduce Stress in Aliens: Dark Descent

Stress is split between 4 different levels: Relaxed (White), Anxious (Yellow), Panicked (Orange), and Terrified (Red). And as stated above the highest level of stress you reach in a mission, even if you reduce it later in the level, will be carried over to the next. There are a total of four way for players to reduce the stress of a marine in a mission. The first one requires you to make a shelter, which can be done by welding doors to a room shut. You’ll need to make sure you aren’t next to an alien infestation, and welding doors requires you to have 1 tool per door. After all the doors are secured and you’re safe, you can rest in the room, which will allow marines to recover 100 stress damage.

Along with resting in rooms, you can reduce a marines stress by taking Naproleve. This requires the player to have medical supplies, and on use will recover 100 stress damage from said marine. If you have progressed enough to level up a Rookie and gotten lucky to promote them to a Sargent, you can reduce a marines stress by having a Sargent use the Reprimand skill on them. This is a skill that they can unlock at level 6, which will cost one Command Point, and stops all stress for 30 seconds. Lastly, players can upgrade a marines Bravery, to further reduce stress damage. You’ll have to raise their Bravery to 15% in order to receive the stress reduction, but a little damage reduction goes a long way.

How to Remove Traumas in Aliens: Dark Descent

Now if you attempted to reduce a marines stress but weren’t able to successfully do it before too long, they will now develop trauma. These are significant debuffs that can make even stress reduction techniques inconsequential. Because of this bringing any marines into a mission that have trauma should be avoided at all costs. In order to cure a character of trauma, you’ll need to unlock the Psychiatric Care Unit aboard the Otago. This will become available to players when you complete Mission 2: Berkley’s Docks. By leaving any traumatized soldiers in the PCU, their problems will wane over time, before being completely extinguished.

The only other way for a character to be rid of their trauma, would be for them to unlock the Mind of Steel attribute. This removes any and all trauma a marine has after just 3 days of receiving the debuff. Which depending on the type of trauma someone has, it might be worth the risk.

That’s just about does it for players who were wondering how to get their marines back into tip top mental shape. Be sure to follow our Facebook page for the latest gaming news and updates. For more articles and guides on all kinds of games, be sure to stay locked in right here at Gamer Journalist.