Trench Decay Extract Checklist
A scannable exfil checklist for the thirty seconds before the beacon — not a full guide.
Use this extract checklist when the objective chain is almost done and your squad needs a yes/no pass before lighting the beacon. It is a tool, not a novel: keep it on a phone or second monitor. For full narrative tactics, open How to Extract after the match.
TRENCH: DECAY (studio rook., early-access BETA 1.1.x) fails most often at exfil — not at the first trench. Gas, melee waves, and loot greed erase Live War Map progress in the last minute. Front-page traffic and visit milestones (1M Visits) make public holds louder; a shared checklist is how four strangers act like a unit without voice chat.
Scan top to bottom. If a box fails, fix it before G on the beacon — not after the wave starts.
Pre-push checklist (before final objective)
- Four living or revive plan known — Do not start final interact while someone is down in a side bunker.
- Ammo check (Tab) — At least one player can still fight ranged; others ready melee (Controls Cheatsheet).
- Gas route agreed — Left/right/back pocket named out loud; see Survive Gas.
- Rear watcher assigned — Informal Squad Role or volunteer who will not tunnel the objective marker.
- No hero loot runs — Side crates wait until after extract unless the crate sits on the extract path.
- Loadout roles mixed — Avoid four identical bolt rifles if holdouts keep wiping; glance Loadouts Tier List between queues.
Why this block exists: most wipes start before the beacon because someone is still looting a rear sap while the interact player is already committed.
Beacon light checklist
- Stack in zone — “Beacon up” + “Hold beacon” (Squad Callouts).
- Faces on entries — Stairs, trench mouths, and rear covered at the same time.
- Block ready — Melee closers love holdouts; B / T hot (Enemies & Anomalies).
- No mid-hold Tab tourism — Inventory only in lulls; panic Tab mid-fog gets you deleted.
- Gas eyes every few seconds — Fog can seal the exit you planned thirty seconds ago.
- Meds assigned — One player watches who is low after the first wave chip.
Lighting the beacon is a commitment. If two players are still outside the volume, cancel the interact and restack — a half-squad holdout is how Live War Map ticks die.
Holdout survival checklist
- Stay in beacon volume — Chasing kills outside often resets progress or strands you in gas.
- Call melee direction — One short line beats silence; “melee left” is enough.
- Share mags verbally — “I’m dry” means Flex covers while you melee.
- Prone/crouch when shelled or exposed — Big Bertha-era crater habits still help (Big Bertha).
- Extract together — Partial exits waste map ticks and medal efficiency from the run.
- Ignore side objectives once the timer is live — optional radios can wait for the next deployment.
Holdouts punish ego. The win condition is everyone who can still move finishes inside the zone, not top damage.
Failed extract recovery (60-second reset)
If you wipe:
- Note where it broke (gas / melee / greed / split / no rear).
- Redeploy with one fewer side objective — speed to beacon beats perfect loot.
- Redeem unclaimed Codes only between runs, never mid-panic in the hub UI if your squad is already queuing.
- Re-read one section of How to Extract while the next queue loads.
- If pubs ignore callouts twice, switch to friends or accept a slower private pace — tools cannot fix silent teammates alone.
Public lobby shortcuts
When chat is chaos after a front-page surge:
- Paste “stack beacon / call gas / no loot” once.
- Take rear yourself if nobody volunteers.
- Do not argue loadouts mid-hold — sort crates after extract via Medals & Crates.
- Bookmark this page on mobile so you can glance without alt-tabbing the whole Guides Hub.
When to leave this tool
| Need | Go here instead |
|---|---|
| First-ever deployment | Getting Started |
| Full extract theory | How to Extract |
| Binding forgot mid-fight | Controls Cheatsheet |
| Enemy archetype confusion | Enemies & Anomalies |
| Patch just dropped | Updates Hub / Secret Update |
| Milestone code flood | 1M Visits + Codes |
Squad printout tip
Paste the three checklist headers into Discord before a private night. Tick them out loud once — muscle memory beats perfectionism. After two clean extracts, most squads stop needing the page and only return when a Secret Update changes hold density.
Tools stay scannable on purpose. Finish the beacon, then theorycraft.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the most common questions.
Is this checklist a substitute for the How to Extract guide?
No. Use the checklist mid-session for yes/no gates. Read How to Extract when you have downtime for full tactics and failure recovery.
When should my squad run this checklist?
Right before the final objective or beacon interact — the moment loot greed and gas mistakes spike.
Do we need all boxes checked?
In public lobbies, hit the critical ones: ammo, gas route, rear watcher, stack on beacon. Perfect checklists matter more in private four-stacks.
What if someone refuses to stack on the beacon?
Call once, then play the hold with whoever is in zone. After the run, share Squad Callouts or queue with friends.
Does the checklist change after patches?
The skeleton stays. Re-verify gas behavior and hold density after Updates or Secret Update notes.