Introducing: Arachne

Introducing: Arachne is a CyberAcme Liaison contract that unlocks the Arachne faction by proving that a Runner is capable of going up against other human operators. Arachne is the PvP-focused faction in Marathon, running a shadowy enterprise that profits from Runner conflict and data harvested from combat. Their introduction contract skips the subtlety of other faction introductions and asks for something direct: deal damage to enemy Runners and take one of them down. Performance against other Runners is the only currency Arachne respects.

The contract has two objectives with no zone restriction: deal 60 damage to enemy Runners across any number of runs, and down at least one enemy Runner. Kills count double toward the damage threshold, so aggressive and precise PvP play accelerates completion. The contract awards 1x WSTR Combat Shotgun, 4x Random Enhanced Weapon Mod, 3x Unstable Gel, 18x MIPS Rounds, and 1,000 Credits upon completion, and permanently unlocks Arachne as a playable faction. The reward emphasis on a combat shotgun and ammunition reflects Arachne's close-quarters, confrontational identity as Marathon's premier Runner-versus-Runner faction.