Choosing ammunition begins with the mission’s requested effect, not a generic damage ranking. IRON NEST includes destructive, obscuring, illuminating, chemical, and messaging roles. The dispatch, target class, nearby friendlies, timing, and current inventory determine the correct match.
2950790, Windows base-game public 1.0, checked 2026-08-09. Shell names cited from the developer FAQ are examples; exact radius, duration, damage, cost, and unlock remain live-game facts.Identify what the objective actually asks
Underline the verb in the dispatch: destroy, penetrate, illuminate, screen, deny, disperse, warn, or another explicit action. Identify whether the target is armored, exposed, an area, a route, or a communication objective. Do not substitute “hit” for the requested effect.
Plot friendly observers, protected locations, and uncertainty. An area-effect round needs greater confidence about what lies around the target than a simple point mark suggests.
Destructive target classes
HE fragmentation is a developer-named example suited conceptually to exposed targets or area fragmentation, while armor-piercing is the named answer category for protected targets. The current shell description and mission response must confirm the actual use.
Do not publish a blast radius copied from a Demo guide. If testing area effect, record patch, shell, target, map scale, impact position, and repeated observed boundary. A visually large explosion is not an exact gameplay radius.
Support and visibility effects
Smoke and star illumination are official examples with non-identical purposes. Smoke can shape visibility or concealment; a star shell supplies light. Read whether the objective wants an area affected, a route covered, or a specific target revealed.
Fire and Light community searches show that operators can confuse landing accuracy with effect sequence. Wait for the operation response after each support shot and do not assume a second round is required because the first was not destructive.
Chemical and messaging roles
Phosgene, tear gas, and leaflet ammunition are also named by the developer. Their presence does not justify inventing duration, lethality, faction reaction, or ending consequences. Use them only when the current order and in-game description establish the role.
Narrative choices can be spoiler-sensitive. A shell used near a city, hospital, friendly force, or civilian context may influence records or medals, but causal claims need repeatable saves or reliable full-run evidence. Consult Endings before deliberately testing spoilers.
Match shell to geometry
Correct ammunition cannot fix a wrong target. Complete triangulation and measure from the Nest. For an area target, determine the intended center from mission evidence rather than aiming at the most visible map icon. For a moving target, verify that intelligence is current.
The calculator result must use the actual shell and charge combination. If a different round is loaded, recalculate even when bearing and range are unchanged.
Protect friendly and medal constraints
Mark friendlies and protected areas before requisitioning. Keep support effects and destructive effects clearly separated. If an objective or medal penalizes expenditure, assistance, collateral behavior, or repeated shots, inspect the current result criteria instead of relying on an incomplete gold chart.
Complete a first run for understanding, then test one optimization variable per replay. Record the newspaper and medal output after each attempt.
When a correct hit does not progress
Re-read the effect requested, shell label, objective stage, and whether a new dispatch is waiting. Confirm the impact belongs to the intended barrel and current target. An accurate hit with no response is often an effect or state mismatch.
Update before diagnosing High Tide end-state behavior; PATCH 1.0 (1547) fixed an incorrect or duplicate newspaper and record. Preserve the save and provide exact operation, shell, stage, and patch in a report.
Build a target-effect observation
Record the exact dispatch verb, target description, selected shell, impact position, visible effect, mission response, patch, and nearby friendly state. Repeat before claiming a radius or duration. When another shell succeeds, do not conclude the first can never work unless target position and mission stage were equivalent. This record turns “wrong ammo” advice into evidence a later patch can recheck.