Earth Corps: Homefront — FAQ & Support

How do I enter a Username and get MERIT points?

Open MERIT or LEADERBOARD from the home screen and tap JOIN to claim your username (3–16 characters — it’s permanent once claimed, so choose carefully). From then on, every Deployment victory automatically earns MERIT equal to the difficulty level you won at (1–10), replays included — no extra steps. Training Area matches don’t award MERIT. Your MERIT total sets your global leaderboard rank, and every MERIT point also arrives as a Credit to spend at HQ. You can view the board without joining — a username is only needed to appear on it.

What weaponry does my IFV start with on Deployment?

Every deployment, your IFV carries ample 25mm cannon rounds (no limit) and 3 VIPER guided missiles. A fresh install also starts you with 3 Airstrikes and 3 Shields — once those are used, they're gone for good, so restock at HQ before you run out.

What weaponry does my IFV start with in Training Area?

Every training exercise gives your IFV a fresh loadout: ample 25mm cannon rounds, 3 VIPER missiles, 3 Airstrikes, and 3 Shields — every single time, regardless of your real Deployment stockpile. Training Area is for practice reps, not for building up supplies.

How do VIPER guided missiles work?

Select ARM VIPER to load one — an orange line appears showing exactly where it would fly right now, tracking your turret aim live. Press FIRE to launch: that same turret dial then steers the missile's flight in real time, bending its path as you turn it. While it's airborne, the button relabels to DESTRUCT — press it to detonate the missile immediately wherever it currently is, with the same blast as a real hit, so stay clear, since that blast can catch your own IFV too. You get 3 VIPERs a match with no way to restock mid-match, only one can be armed or flying at a time, and the main cannon is off-line for as long as one's in the air.

How do I aim the turret?

Touch or drag anywhere on the TURRET dial's ring — your aim swings instantly to that direction, and the small turret at the dial's center always points where you're aimed. While your finger is on the dial, a range-finder beam traces exactly where a shot fired right now would travel and where a building would stop it — never a rosier preview. Hold the dial's center disc to check that beam without changing your aim. The same dial steers an armed VIPER's aim line, and the missile itself in flight.

Can I snap the turret to a compass direction?

Yes, once you turn it on — TURRET TAP in Settings is off by default. With it on, a quick tap on the TURRET dial near its top, bottom, left, or right edge locks your aim exactly North, South, West, or East. A tap between the compass points aims right where you tapped, and dragging the dial still steers freely — the lock only happens on a tap close to one of the four directions. An armed VIPER's aim line follows the same turret heading, so the snap steers that too.

Can I drive outside the green boundary?

Yes — navigation past the green line is allowed, though not encouraged. Some battlegrounds have impassable terrain (rivers, lakes, and the like); your IFV can route around it by briefly driving outside the mapped area and back in elsewhere. Just know that shots fired from way out there won't travel far enough to hit anything — the real fight is inside the green.

How do I win a match?

Two ways: destroy every enemy on the field, or destroy the enemy base outright. The base is shielded by rotating rings that regenerate over time — fire through a gap to hit the exposed core underneath and take it out directly.

What does the difficulty dial do?

It controls how many enemies you start a match with, how quickly the enemy base produces reinforcements while it still stands, and how much MERIT you earn on a win — same dial, same effect, in both Training Area and Deployment.

Level	Starting aliens	Reinforcements/min	MERIT award
1	6	0	1
2	8	1	2
3	10	2	3
4	12	3	4
5	14	4	5
6	16	5	6
7	18	6	7
8	20	12	8
9	22	20	9
10	24	30	10

How do I earn Credits to spend at HQ?

Every MERIT point you earn is also a Credit: win a match, and its difficulty level (1–10) is added to both your leaderboard MERIT and your spendable Credits at HQ automatically. You can also earn 25 bonus Credits any time by watching a video at HQ. Spending Credits never lowers your leaderboard MERIT score — spending only uses up how much is available at HQ, your competitive record stays untouched.

What are the Silver Star, Cross of Valor, and Good Conduct medals?

Three medals track your service record separately from MERIT — find them under AWARDS on the MERIT screen. The Silver Star is earned by destroying 100 or more aliens in a single real deployment at difficulty 7 or higher, and is awarded again for every deployment that qualifies. The Cross of Valor is earned by surviving 10 real deployments in a row at difficulty 7 or higher, and again for every further 10 in a row — a loss at any difficulty breaks the streak, while a win below difficulty 7 neither helps nor hurts it. Repeat awards show on the medal’s bar: a star from the second award, and the count beside the star from the fifth. The Good Conduct Medal is earned automatically 3 months after you first open the app, with an extra star for every year of service after that; once you’re close, the medal itself shows a countdown. Training Area matches never count toward any of the three, and reinstalling the app restarts Good Conduct’s 3-month clock from zero.

What happens to my username and MERIT if I reset progress?

RESET PROGRESS in Settings clears everything on this device and disconnects it from your leaderboard identity — but your old commander record itself is never destroyed. The username, MERIT, and cities you earned stay on the global leaderboard permanently, preserved as your all-time best. Afterward you start completely fresh: the leaderboard will invite you to register a brand-new username, starting again at 0 MERIT.

One thing to weigh before you reset — usernames are permanent once claimed, so your old name stays with your old record forever and can't be re-claimed by your new identity, even though it was you. Reset only if you're ready to retire that name for good.

Can't find your zip code?

Not sure which pack (if any) covers your zip? Use Search for my zip on the Deployment Zones page — it'll show you the nearest cities and which pack they're in.

Earth Corps: Homefront supports real, populated U.S. zip codes. A small number of official zip codes are assigned to things like PO boxes or single large buildings instead of an actual neighborhood — those don't have real streets or buildings to build a battlefield from, so they're not supported yet. If your zip code doesn't work, this is the most likely reason. We're adding more zip codes over time — if you'd like yours added, email ec-suggest@ard-labs.com and let us know.

What's a ZCTA?

ZCTA stands for ZIP Code Tabulation Area — the U.S. Census Bureau's official definition of a zip code's geographic area, assigned only to zip codes with real residents. It's how we determine which zip codes have an actual neighborhood to build a battlefield from.

Why is my hilly neighborhood completely flat in the game?

Battlegrounds use the real streets, buildings, and water from your zip code, but elevation is deliberately left out. Building the map from real-world hills and slopes would make some zip codes much harder to play than others just by chance of geography — flattening every battleground keeps the game fair and fun no matter where you play.

Have a suggestion or found a problem?

We'd like to hear it. For a bug, a zip code that isn't working right, or any other support issue, email ec-support@ard-labs.com. For feature ideas or general gameplay feedback, email ec-suggest@ard-labs.com instead — two inboxes, so support issues don't get lost behind feature requests.