Xenonauts 2 Beginner’s Guide – Tips, Base Build Order, and How to Survive [1.0]

Updated April 8, 2026: Xenonauts 2 officially launched its 1.0 version on April 2, 2026, after nearly three years in Early Access. The tips below are verified against the 1.0 release.

Xenonauts 2 is a turn-based strategy inspired by X-COM, and if something is the same, it's the difficulty. Yes, X2 is unforgiving, and if you don't plan your actions carefully, you'll lose. I've played over 20 hours only to realize I made mistakes in base planning and technology research, making it impossible to face stronger aliens and repel an invasion.

This beginner's guide will help you avoid certain defeat by teaching you how to set up your base, earn more money, choose the right technologies to research, build a strong squad, and, finally, push the aliens back.

What Difficulty Should I Choose in Xenonauts 2?

Xenonauts 2 has four difficulty levels: Recruit, Soldier, Veteran, and Commander. On top of that, you can toggle Ironman mode, which locks you to a single auto-updating save file -- no reloading after mistakes.

• Recruit: Recommended for players new to XCOM-style games entirely. Forgiving enough to learn the systems without being punished too hard early on. Start with the recruit difficulty if you're still learning the system.
• Soldier (our recommendation): A good entry point if you've played the modern XCOM games (XCOM: Enemy Unknown, XCOM 2) but haven't touched classic X-COM (Terror From the Deep) or Xenonauts 1. Keep in mind that playing on Soldier difficulty is harder than the latest XCOM titles.
• Veteran: Intended for players familiar with classic X-COM mechanics. Expect to take heavy losses and restart multiple times until you learn every trick there is.
• Commander: Only for experienced Xenonauts players who know the systems deeply and are not afraid to lose often. If you're easily frustrated by enemy bullets flying from the other end of the map and killing your veteran sniper, avoid this difficulty!
• Ironman Mode: Available on any difficulty. Prevents loading earlier saves. Only recommended if you have strong nerves.

The game also has an Extended option, which is significantly slower (at least 30 hours of play), but it tends to be repetitive as you'll play the same missions multiple times. If you're not in a hurry to complete the game, choose the extended option, as it's closest to the classic XCOM experience, where you don't need to be in a hurry all the time.

NOTE: Xenonauts 2 has that roguelike mechanic where losing soldiers is expected and acceptable as long as you complete your mission successfully. Don't reload if you lose someone, as that dilutes the atmosphere of the game (unless you lose your best soldier in a very silly way).

Best Starting Base Location

Traditionally, the best position for your base is on a spot that covers the most ground (and air). Best positions cost 1.5 million, but you'll notice you can get almost the same position by moving a bit around the map. I usually choose the Soviet Union, near the Middle East, as it covers multiple continents. Strong starting locations include:

• East Africa: Covers Europe, Africa, and the Middle East from one position.
• Western China: Covers the Soviet Union, Asia, and parts of the Middle East.
• Central America: Covers North America, Latin America, and part of the Atlantic.

Why does location matter so much? Your monthly funding comes from regional blocs, and regions with high panic reduce their contributions -- or stop paying entirely if they fall. If your radar covers more land, you intercept more UFOs, respond to more missions, and keep regional panic lower across the board. Less panic means more money, which funds everything else.

NOTE: You can't cover the whole world with one base, so be sure to build another one with radar and interceptor, as soon as you have enough money.

Best Base Build Order in Xenonauts 2

It's very important to know the best base build order, as constructing structures takes time and a lot of money. Here is the recommended early build order:

Best early contractions build order: Hangar > Generator > Radar > Hangar > Generator > Medical Center

• Hangar: Your single most important early purchase. All progression in Xenonauts 2 depends on shooting down UFOs, and you need hangars to house interceptors. Build additional hangars as soon as you can afford them. Two interceptors are fine at the start, until you research more efficient ones.
• Generator: Every building costs power, and you start with limited capacity. Without a generator, you won't be able to build much else.
• Radar: You can build up to three additional radar modules to extend your base's detection range. Just one radar isn't enough; you'll want to cover as much ground as possible.
• Medical Center: This is the most important building after the hangar, as you want to keep your soldiers alive and out of the sick bay asap. It significantly reduces soldier recovery time and improves survival chances. NOTE: If you have around 15 soldiers, you can get away with injuries, but your soldiers will level up more slowly.
• Laboratory: Research is how you progress the entire game. An extra lab adds more scientists, which significantly speeds up your research. Build these in pairs if possible for the adjacency bonus. While it may sound important to have more scientists, investing in faster research is very expensive (500k per building + hiring scientist expenses).
• Workshop: Less critical in the very early game when you're researching more than building, but you'll need it once you start manufacturing equipment and vehicles. Also benefits from adjacency bonuses.
• Training Center: Useful for developing soldiers, but expensive in both money and power. This can wait until your base is more established.

Base construction in Xenonauts 2 operates on a 6x6 grid, and planning your layout matters mostly because of certain bonuses. Some buildings provide an adjacency bonus when placed next to identical structures: two laboratories next to each other research faster, two workshops next to each other speed up item constructions, etc. Knowing that, plan your layout around these bonuses from the start.

How to Earn More Money in Xenonauts 2

Cash is almost always tight in Xenonauts 2, especially in the first couple of months. There are several ways to increase your income beyond the basic monthly funding from regional blocs.

1. Progress the plot research and Cleaner missions

The fastest way to increase your monthly funding is to push through the main storyline research projects and complete Cleaner missions. These unlock funding upgrades and are the primary driver of long-term income growth.

2. Keep scientists busy -- or let them generate idle income

When no research project is assigned, each scientist generates $350 per hour passively. This is a small but real income stream, which means there's no waste in keeping extra scientists on your roster even during downtime. The same goes for engineers, who get you $250 per hour when not working on a project.

3. Sell your mission loot strategically

After missions, you'll recover alien corpses, equipment, and other items that can be sold in the Base Stores screen. There's also a "Sell Junk" button that automatically offloads items your organization can't actively use. Two important rules here:

• Never sell Alloys or Alenium: These alien resources are essential crafting materials later in the game. Selling them early is a mistake you'll regret.
• Sell in bulk when possible. Item sale prices decrease each time you sell the same type of item (prices can drop to around 40% of the original value over time). Hoarding a large stack and selling it all at once is more profitable than selling small batches repeatedly.

4. Use Operations Points to Raise Funds

Operations Points can be spent directly on the Geoscape map to generate immediate cash. This is a useful emergency option when you need money fast, though Operations Points are also needed to manage regional panic and recruit Supporters, so spend them wisely.

5. Recruit Supporters in each region

Each world region has four Supporters across five categories: Funding, Intelligence, Scientist, Engineer, and Security. Recruiting a Funding Supporter increases your monthly income from that region. Recruiting all Supporters in a region provides a large bonus to the organization. Prioritize neutralizing Infiltrators and recruiting Funding Supporters early.

6. Keep panic low

This is indirect but critically important. Regions with high panic contribute less funding each month, and regions that fall entirely stop paying you. Every UFO you shoot down and every mission you complete, helps keep regional panic in check -- which means more money flowing in at the end of each month.

Best Research Order in Xenonauts 2

Research is the backbone of your progression in Xenonauts 2. Every major upgrade -- better weapons, better armor, better aircraft, better vehicles -- requires research first. There's no single "perfect" order since the research tree has branching paths, but there are clear priorities for the early and mid-game.

Early Game Research Priorities:

1. Combat Vehicles -- Research this early to unlock the MARS combat platform, which is a powerful unit that can absorb hits your soldiers can't. It's expensive to build ($250,000 + upkeep) but worth the investment.
2. Plot Research Projects -- Push these as consistently as possible. They unlock new funding tiers and key story missions that drive the campaign forward.
3. Alien Technology Research -- After winning tactical missions, you'll gain access to new research options based on what you recovered. Prioritize anything that improves soldier weapons and armor. The progression from ballistic to laser technology is the most impactful early-game weapon upgrade.
4. Alien Interrogations -- Capturing an alien (rather than killing it) unlocks an interrogation research project for that species. Each completed interrogation improves your Training Rate by 1 and increases damage dealt to all aliens of that species by 10%.

Should You Invest in Accelerated Weapons?

While community consensus is to skip Accelerated weapons and invest directly into laser technology, you should always invest in new snipers. That said, accelerated weapons are not significantly stronger to justify a complete switch. You should definitely invest in lasers as soon as you can, but drop them as soon as you get your hands on plasma weapons.

Best Squad Loadout in Xenonauts 2

Your Skyhawk dropship can carry up to 8 soldiers (MARS takes up one spot). Each soldier should bring a Medikit and smoke grenades (unless they're too weak to carry their weapon and a Medikit). One extra weapon clip is enough for most missions. Also, all Riflemen and Snipers should wear the Tactical Module to increase their accuracy.

A balanced squad composition for early-to-mid game looks like this:

• x2 Riflemen: Until they become better shooters, you'll use them mostly as grenadiers and medics. It's best to have at least 55 Accuracy to hit from mid-range.
• x2 Snipers: Devastating at range, especially in open terrain. Your snipers should have at least 65 Accuracy to be efficient.
• x2 Assault soldiers do most damage thanks to their shotguns, especially at the start. But to get close enough, you need enough TU (Time Units) and good Reflexes for avoiding overwatch and for efficient melee attacks.
• x1 Grenadier: Best for dealing with clustered enemies and destroying obstacles.
• x1 MARS combat platform acts as a powerful frontline absorber. Highly recommended.

Snipers are particularly valuable in Xenonauts 2 because of how much open terrain features in early missions. In tight UFO interiors and building assaults, short-range weapons like shotguns become more useful. Ideally, your squad can handle both environments.

NOTE: Each soldier should wear a Rebrither (gas mask) to protect themselves from smoke. Use smoke often to protect your soldiers when you can't find a place to hide. A smoke grenade is also ideal for raiding alien ships, as it's almost impossible to be hit by enemies. Combine this with a flash grenade to remove enemies' overwatch.

Soldier Stats Explained

Unlike XCOM 2, there's no rigid class system forcing you into fixed roles. Each soldier has different stats, so you should put them in roles that maximize their abilities.

• Time Units (TU) -- The action points available each turn for moving, firing, and interacting. More TUs mean more flexibility each turn.
• Health -- Maximum hit points in combat. Increases as you level up other attributes.
• Accuracy: Most important stat as it determines hit chance when firing weapons.
• Strength: Determines carrying capacity, grenade throw distance, and recoil management when burst-firing.
• Reflexes: Affects melee hit chance and the likelihood of triggering overwatch shots.
• Bravery: Low Bravery soldiers are vulnerable to panic and mind attacks from certain alien types.

Soldiers gain Progression Points (PP) through combat actions specific to each stat. 1,000 PP raises a stat by 1 point. Killing an enemy grants 200 PP distributed across all stats, so veterans become significantly more capable than fresh recruits over time.

What Stats to Prioritize When Recruiting

When reviewing new soldier candidates, look for high base stats, especially Bravery, Accuracy, and Strength. Soldiers with red stat values in any category are generally not worth hiring. There are no dump stats; every attribute matters in some scenario.

Should I Build a MARS Unit?

Yes, you should build MARS (Mobile Armored Robotic System) as it's one of the strongest units in the game. It doesn't die from wounds the way soldiers do; it can be equipped with either a missile turret or a heavy armor-piercing cannon, and it absorbs hits that would kill your veterans. To build a MARS unit, you first need to research Combat Vehicles. Once that's complete, manufacture it through the Engineering department.

How to Shoot Down UFOs More Effectively

Air-to-air interception is a direct, real-time mini-game in Xenonauts 2 (not just auto-resolved numbers). When you intercept a UFO, you control your fighters and must maneuver into range while avoiding enemy fire. A few key things to know:

• Build three interceptors early. UFOs often require multiple aircraft to bring down, especially as the invasion escalates. Having a third fighter in reserve means you can keep pressure up even when others are damaged and refueling.
• Try to shoot UFOs down over land. When a UFO crashes over land, you get the option to bomb it for money and resources or send your squad to recover the crash site. Both options are more rewarding than a UFO crashing into the ocean. Trail the UFO until it crosses land, then engage.
• Use formations. When intercepting multiple aircraft, the interception screen offers template formations. Use them to maximize firing coverage while minimizing the chance that all your aircraft will be in the same firing arc.
• Upgrade your air fleet over time. Better aircraft unlock through research. The early Angel Interceptors are serviceable but will struggle against heavier UFO types. Research air technology as a parallel priority alongside ground equipment.

How to Manage Panic and Avoid Losing Regions

The Doomsday Counter represents global nuclear tension -- if world powers panic long enough over the alien invasion, they trigger a nuclear war, and you lose. Early in the game, this is your main threat. Later, the Doomsday Counter transitions to Regional Panic, where individual regions can fall to the alien threat (similar to XCOM games). If two regions hit a Panic rating above 100 for a full month, it's game over. Here's how to keep panic under control:

• Complete tactical missions promptly. Ground combat missions help directly reduce panic in the region where they occur. Don't let crash sites and abduction missions expire.
• Spend Operations Points on Reducing Tension. This is a reliable direct intervention when panic is spiking somewhere you can't reach in time.
• Recruit Security Supporters. Each Security Supporter reduces your daily Doomsday counter accumulation. Recruiting them in high-risk regions is a long-term investment.
• Eliminate Infiltrators. Infiltrators are Supporters who have been turned by the aliens and actively increase the Doomsday counter. Use Operations Points to eliminate them as soon as they appear.
• Cover multiple continents from your base. The more land you can respond to, the more missions you can run, and the more panic you can prevent.

When Should I Build a Second Base?

A second base extends your radar coverage, lets you intercept UFOs in regions your first base can't reach, and allows parallel research and engineering. However, building a base that isn't properly equipped is a waste of money.

Only build a second base once you can outfit it with at least one radar and one hangar. A base without aircraft is almost useless. The cost of building, powering, and staffing a second base is high. You'll need to generate enough income so it doesn't cripple your first base. As you won't have enough money during the first phase of the game, build another base only when the Doomsday counter is replaced by the panic mechanic.

Essential Combat Tips for Beginners

Tactical combat in Xenonauts 2 is slower and more deliberate than the modern XCOM games. Here are the most important principles to internalize:

• Use a cover constantly. Low cover (crates, fences, low walls) gives a 40% miss chance. Tall cover (full walls, hedges) gives a 100% miss chance. Never end a turn in the open if you can avoid it.
• Crouch before shooting. Crouching costs 4 TUs and increases your Accuracy by 10% while making your soldier 10% harder to hit. Always factor this in before engaging.
• Manage your Time Units carefully. TUs are your most valuable resource. Every action, like moving, shooting, crouching, and picking up items, costs TUs. Soldiers that end a turn with TUs remaining have a better chance of triggering reaction fire against moving enemies.
• Slow is fast in missions without timers. Take your time. Move methodically. Don't sprint into rooms. Use smoke grenades to cover advances.
• Suppression is powerful. Hitting near enemies (not necessarily hitting them) applies Suppression, which drains their remaining TUs and reduces their starting TUs by 50% on their next turn. Use LMGs and burst fire to suppress clustered enemies before moving up.
• There is friendly fire. Be aware of your soldiers' positions before shooting through tight corridors or throwing grenades.
• Capture enemies when possible. Stunning an alien and bringing them back alive unlocks interrogation research, which improves training rates and damage against that alien species. Use smoke grenades and stun batons to subdue weakened targets.
• You can retreat. If a mission is going badly, use the ESC menu to abort and retreat. Make sure all living soldiers are back on the Skyhawk first; anyone left behind is counted as dead.

How Do Soldiers Level Up in Xenonauts 2?

Soldiers improve through a Progression Points system. Each stat has its own method of generating PP, and reaching 1,000 PP in a stat raises it by 1 point. Killing an enemy gives 200 PP across stats. Here's how each stat specifically generates PP:

• Accuracy: Gain 20 PP for every TU spent firing at enemies.
• Strength: Gain 10 PP for every TU spent moving while carrying 80% or more of max capacity.
• Reflexes: Gain 20 PP for every TU left unspent at the end of your turn.
• Bravery: Gain 50 PP for every point of Suppression received.
• Time Units and Health: Increase automatically as other attributes level up.

There are diminishing returns: PP requirements increase as stat levels rise. This means high-base-stat soldiers are significantly more valuable than low-stat ones, since they'll reach powerful levels faster. Dismiss soldiers with very low starting stats rather than investing time in them.

Setting up a Training Center and capturing alien species also improves training rates. Each completed alien interrogation research project raises the Training Rate by 1 and increases damage against that alien species by 10%.

Xenonauts 2 Beginner's Guide FAQ

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