Threat Levels — who dies first
Most wipes aren't a DPS problem — they're a target-priority problem. This ranking is built from Cold Iron's official enemy briefings (via G2A) and GamingBolt's hands-on behavior notes.
The priority order
| Priority | Enemy | Why it dies first |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Siren | Calls reinforcements — every second alive grows the wave (G2A) |
| 2 | Exploder | Splash self-destruct on walls/ceilings — kills stacked squads (G2A) |
| 3 | Harbinger | Grabs and immobilizes a Marine — remove its victim-selection (G2A) |
| 4 | Spitter / snipers | Ranged pressure that punishes tunnel vision (GamingBolt) |
| 5 | Warden / riot shields | Lane controllers — beat them with angles, not uptime (G2A) |
| 6 | Drones, Runners, Strikers | Melee pack — dangerous up close, fragile under focus fire |
| 7 | Crusher / heavies | High HP but predictable — sidestep the charge, punish recovery |
Why "kill the big one first" is wrong
The instinct to focus the biggest model on the field is how squads lose to a Siren screaming off-screen. Cold Iron's briefings repeatedly frame counters around mechanics — reinforcement calls, grabs, splash — not health bars (G2A). Big targets are usually the most predictable thing in the room.
Difficulty changes the math
On Extreme and Insane, high-threat enemies spawn in greater numbers (GamingBolt), so priority discipline matters more, not less. Friendly fire is also live at those tiers (GamingBolt) — the worst outcome of an Exploder rush is a panicked teammate's grenade. Read the difficulty guide before queueing Intense+.
Sources: G2A — Cold Iron enemy briefings, GamingBolt — 10 New Details, GamingBolt — 15 Things. Back to the full bestiary.