Intel loop: complete Tactical Missions and explore to obtain Intel; spend that Intel on Operations; check expiration timing before another Tactical Mission advances the Cycle.

Where Intel comes from

The approved official materials identify two verified routes:

  • Tactical Missions can award Intel through campaign play.
  • Exploration can reveal additional Intel between deployments.

This guide does not assign exact farming values because the approved sources do not provide a controlled reward table for every mission and location.

What Operations do

Operations are non-combat assignments on the strategy layer. They cost Intel and exist alongside Tactical Missions rather than replacing tactical play.

The important planning constraint is time: Operations can expire between Tactical Missions. Because completing a Tactical Mission advances the Cycle, opening the next battlefield can close an opportunity elsewhere.

A safe decision order

  1. Return to the Den and inspect the current Operation list.
  2. Note which opportunities can expire.
  3. Compare the Intel cost with the outcome you need now.
  4. Finish exploration or other Den tasks that may change your options.
  5. Commit to the next Tactical Mission only after the strategy layer is settled.

Common mistakes

  • Treating Intel as a combat currency: Advantage fills that role during combat; Intel belongs to the campaign layer.
  • Advancing the Cycle automatically: a Tactical Mission is a time decision as well as a combat decision.
  • Waiting for a perfect Operation: an expiring useful opportunity can be more valuable than unused Intel.
  • Claiming a universal farm route: rewards and campaign context need direct verification before a route can be called optimal.

The one-line model

Missions and exploration produce information; Intel converts that information into off-field action; Cycles limit how long the choice remains open.