Items & Equipment

As the newly appointed Director of the Federal Bureau of Control, Jesse Faden gains access to a unique arsenal designed to combat the existential threats within the Oldest House. This section serves as your comprehensive guide to understanding, acquiring, and optimizing Jesse's tools of the trade, from the transformative Service Weapon to powerful personal and weapon modifications, and the essential crafting system that binds it all together.

Mastering your equipment is paramount to surviving the Hiss invasion. We'll delve into the intricacies of each component, providing detailed breakdowns, strategic advice, and actionable steps to ensure you're always prepared for the challenges ahead.

The Service Weapon: Director's Sidearm

The Service Weapon is no ordinary firearm; it's an Object of Power, a living entity that bonds with the Director of the FBC. It can transform into various forms, each suited for different combat scenarios. Unlike conventional weapons, the Service Weapon has infinite ammunition, but each form has a limited energy capacity that recharges automatically after a short cooldown. Understanding when and how to switch between forms is crucial for effective combat.

Service Weapon Forms & Upgrades

Each form of the Service Weapon offers a distinct tactical advantage. Unlocking new forms and upgrading existing ones requires Source (the game's currency) and specific materials obtained from defeating enemies, completing missions, or found within the Oldest House. Upgrades enhance damage, fire rate, accuracy, and reduce energy consumption.

• Grip: The default, all-purpose form. A reliable semi-automatic pistol, good for headshots and general combat.
  • Unlock: Available from the start.
  • Strategy: Excellent for conserving energy on other forms or picking off weaker Hiss.
  • Upgrades: Focus on damage and fire rate early on.
• Spin: A rapid-fire submachine gun, ideal for close-quarters combat and overwhelming enemies.
  • Unlock: Acquired during the main mission "Directorial Override" after defeating the Hiss Corrupted Salvador.
  • Strategy: Best used against multiple weaker enemies or to quickly stagger larger foes. Can chew through energy fast.
  • Upgrades: Prioritize fire rate and energy efficiency.
• Shatter: A powerful shotgun-like form, devastating at close range.
  • Unlock: Acquired during the main mission "My Brother's Keeper" after defeating the Hiss Charged in the Panopticon.
  • Strategy: Perfect for dealing high burst damage to heavily armored Hiss or clearing groups in tight spaces.
  • Upgrades: Maximize damage and spread reduction for optimal impact.
• Pierce: A high-impact, armor-piercing sniper rifle. Charges up for a single, powerful shot.
  • Unlock: Acquired during the main mission "Old Boy's Club" after defeating the Hiss Elevated in the Black Rock Quarry.
  • Strategy: Essential for taking down heavily armored enemies, Hiss Sharpened, or enemies at long range. Requires precise aim.
  • Upgrades: Focus on charge speed and damage.
• Charge: A grenade launcher that fires explosive projectiles.
  • Unlock: Acquired during the main mission "Threshold" after defeating the Hiss Warped in the NSC Power Plant.
  • Strategy: Excellent for crowd control, destroying Hiss clusters, or hitting enemies behind cover. Be mindful of splash damage.
  • Upgrades: Increase blast radius and projectile speed.

Mods: Enhancing Jesse & The Service Weapon

Mods are crucial for customizing Jesse's abilities and the Service Weapon's performance. There are two main types: Personal Mods and Weapon Mods. Mods come in different tiers (I, II, III, IV, V, VI) with higher tiers offering greater bonuses. They can be found as drops from enemies, in hidden caches, or crafted at Control Points.

Personal Mods

These mods enhance Jesse's core abilities, such as health, energy, launch damage, and shield strength. You can equip up to three Personal Mods at a time.

• Health Boost: Increases Jesse's maximum health. Essential for survivability.
• Energy Boost: Increases Jesse's maximum energy, allowing for more frequent ability use.
• Launch Damage: Increases the damage dealt by Jesse's Launch ability. Highly recommended for offensive playstyles.
• Shield Strength: Increases the durability of Jesse's Shield ability.
• Evade Efficiency: Reduces the energy cost of Evade.
• Seize Efficiency: Reduces the energy cost and duration of Seize.
• Melee Damage: Increases the damage of Jesse's melee attack.
• Healing Efficiency: Increases the amount of health gained from health pickups.
• Source Efficiency: Increases the amount of Source gained from pickups.
• Mod Drop Chance: Increases the likelihood of enemies dropping mods.

Weapon Mods

Weapon Mods are specific to each Service Weapon form and enhance its attributes. Each form can equip up to three Weapon Mods. It's important to match mods to the form's strengths or compensate for its weaknesses.

• Damage Boost: Increases the raw damage output of the weapon form.
• Fire Rate Boost: Increases how quickly the weapon form fires.
• Accuracy Boost: Reduces bullet spread, making shots more precise.
• Reload Speed Boost (Energy Recovery): Increases the rate at which the weapon's energy recharges.
• Headshot Damage: Increases damage specifically when hitting enemy weak points.
• Projectile Speed: Increases the speed of projectiles for forms like Charge and Pierce.
• Spread Reduction: Narrows the cone of fire for forms like Shatter.
• Stun Chance: Increases the chance to stun enemies with each hit.
• Ammo Efficiency (Energy Cost Reduction): Reduces the energy consumed per shot.

Strategy Tip: Don't be afraid to experiment with different mod combinations. For example, a Shatter form with high damage and spread reduction can become a precision close-range killer, while a Spin with fire rate and energy recovery mods can sustain continuous fire for longer.

Crafting & Upgrading

The crafting system in Control allows Jesse to create new mods, upgrade Service Weapon forms, and even craft new Personal Mods using Source and various materials. Crafting is done at any Control Point.

Crafting Materials

Materials are dropped by defeated Hiss enemies, found in containers, or awarded for completing missions and Bureau Alerts. There are several types, each with varying rarity:

• Untapped Potential: Common material, often dropped by basic Hiss.
• House Memories: Uncommon material, dropped by more advanced Hiss or found in specific areas.
• Hidden Traces: Rare material, dropped by elite Hiss or found in secret locations.
• Corrupted Samples: Very rare material, dropped by specific Hiss types (e.g., Hiss Charged, Hiss Elevated) or found in challenging areas.
• Astral Plane Essence: Extremely rare material, often tied to specific side missions or boss encounters.

The Crafting Process

1. Locate a Control Point: These are your safe zones and fast travel points.
2. Interact with the Control Point: Select the "Crafting" option.
3. Choose Your Category: You can craft "Weapon Forms," "Weapon Mods," or "Personal Mods."
4. Select Item to Craft/Upgrade:
   • Weapon Forms: Here you'll spend Source and materials to unlock new forms or upgrade existing ones. Each upgrade tier requires more resources.
   • Weapon Mods / Personal Mods: You can craft random mods of a specific tier (e.g., "Craft Tier III Weapon Mod"). This is a good way to get higher-tier mods if you're struggling to find them. The specific mod type is random, but the tier is guaranteed.
5. Confirm Craft: Once you have the necessary resources, confirm your selection.

Strategy Tip: Prioritize upgrading your most used Service Weapon forms first. When crafting mods, focus on higher tiers (IV-VI) as they offer significantly better bonuses. Don't hoard materials; use them to improve your loadout as you progress.

Other Useful Items & Collectibles

While the Service Weapon and mods are your primary tools, other items and collectibles contribute to Jesse's effectiveness and understanding of the Oldest House.

• Health Pickups: Small, glowing blue cubes dropped by defeated enemies or found in the environment. Crucial for in-combat healing.
• Source Pickups: Small, glowing yellow cubes that grant Source, the game's currency. Used for crafting and upgrades.
• Collectibles (Documents, Case Files, Research & Records, Multimedia): While not directly equipable, these items provide invaluable lore, background information, and hints about the Oldest House and its inhabitants. Collecting them all unlocks achievements and deepens your understanding of the world.
• Hidden Areas & Caches: Many areas of the Oldest House contain hidden rooms or secret caches that often yield rare crafting materials, high-tier mods, or large amounts of Source. Exploration is highly rewarded.

By thoroughly understanding and utilizing all aspects of Jesse's items and equipment, you'll be well-prepared to face the Hiss and reclaim the Federal Bureau of Control.