The Guard

The Guard are the architects of Sanctuary itself — the faction that built the megastructure humanity once called home, and now defend its ruins with drone swarms, disposable platforms, superior reconnaissance, and experimental war machines that rewrite the rules mid-battle. In Sanctuary: Shattered Sun, the Guard occupy the engineer’s lane of RTS design: information, attrition, and clever trades instead of raw mass.

Identity and lore

Before the sun shattered, the Guard maintained Sanctuary’s infrastructure. After the collapse, they weaponised that expertise. Where EDA mobilises human populations behind artillery and armour, and the Chosen refine themselves into shielded post-human elites, the Guard ask a different question: why lose expensive crews when a drone can die instead?

Guard commanders think in sensor coverage, production chains for swarms, and timing windows for prototypes. Their fantasy is control — seeing the map first, picking fights on favourable terms, and drowning careless opponents in expendable steel.

Core strengths

Drone swarms and expendable units. Guard armies can absorb losses that would bankrupt other factions. Cheap platforms screen expensive experiments, chase retreating extractors, and flood choke points. Players comfortable with constant micro — or with automating it through queues — feel at home here.

Superior reconnaissance. Vision is a weapon. Guard players who scout early and often dictate where battles happen. Pair recon habits with the playstyle guide to see when informational advantage beats brute force.

Experimental war machines. Late Guard tech is less about incremental stats and more about new behaviours: weapons that reshape terrain, platforms that punish blobbing, tools that flip a losing fight if timed correctly. These units are Flux-expensive — protect your economy using the Flux economy guide.

Weaknesses and counters

Guard units trade durability for cost efficiency. Frontal brawls against EDA mass or Chosen shield lines without preparation end badly. Experimental weapons require setup time; rush-heavy opponents who deny expansion can starve the Guard before prototypes land.

Players who dislike multitasking may find Guard overwhelming. Success requires cycling production, maintaining vision, and knowing when to sacrifice drones to save time — skills covered in Attack Move and broader map-control guides.

Who should play the Guard

Playstyle	Fit	Why
Recon / map control	Excellent	Vision and harassment tools
Macro with tech timing	Strong	Swarm economy into experiments
Aggressive all-in rush	Moderate	Weaker until swarms scale
Beginner-friendly	Moderate	Needs multitasking basics

Unsure? Read how to choose a faction or roll dice with the faction picker.

Matchups at a glance

Vs EDA: Slow the game down. Win trades with drones, deny vision, and survive until experimental units arrive. Never let EDA stabilize a wide economic lead uncontested.

Vs Chosen: Harass extractors and split attention. Chosen elites are deadly but expensive — force them to spend Flux reacting to cheap threats across the map.

Economy on the shattered shell

Guard extractors behave like any faction’s — Flux still wins wars — but Guard players should treat information as income. Every minute you see an undefended EDA expansion lane is a minute you can drop a cheap drone raid that forces overspending. When Flux turns positive, split production between swarm cycles and a single experiment line rather than chasing every prototype at once. Overbuilding labs without map control is how Guard commanders lose to faster Chosen timing pushes.

Weather and elevation matter more when your units are fragile. Use recon to identify artillery lanes before marching swarms uphill. The Dyson Sphere’s curved corridors reward players who rotate around blind spots — a Guard strength if you practice patience.

Team synergy

In allied games, Guard vision feeds teammates’ focus fire. Pair with EDA front lines or Chosen elite anchors while you harass logistics. Communicate sensor coverage so allies do not duplicate scouting while leaving another flank dark.

First-hour checklist

1. Prioritize sensors and forward relays before luxury production.
2. Use drones to reclaim wrecks safely — economy fuels experiments.
3. Do not commit prototypes into unknown fog — scout first.
4. Practice Attack Move on swarms instead of individual right-clicks.
5. Raid extractors when the opponent commits elsewhere — trade drones for time.

Pre-release note

Guard unit names, experiment timings, and balance are subject to change in the pre-alpha demo and upcoming Early Access. Use this guide as doctrine, not gospel. New players should start with how to play the demo.