Once your Dropship has landed, begin building Wind Generators to provide the energy you need for base maintenance and future expansion. You should also send out a Geo Exploration Group to scout for minerals.

Establishing a base is costly, and your starting resources will quickly be consumed. It is advisable to begin selling minerals to replenish your funds as soon as possible. The current price of all minerals is displayed in the Space Market. The higher the curve, the better the price.

There are two basic types of Missiles: Cruise Missiles for offense and Anti Cruise Missiles for defence. In order to manufacture either, you must have a Factory and access to all four common mineral types.

There are three steps to building Cruise Missiles:

1. Manufacture the required parts in a Factory.
2. Create a Missile Prototype.
3. Use a Factory to construct the Missile from the required parts.

When Missile parts are built, they are moved to Storage for future use. Once the order is given to build a Missile, the parts are moved back to the Factory. Once assembled, Missiles are transported to the appropriate launchers for use.

Base Defence strategies fall into two different categories: active and passive. Radar, which detects enemy Missiles, is the core of active base defence. With one Radar, you will be able to intercept enemy Missiles at short range. If you build a second Radar, the range at which you can intercept will be considerably greater. Passive base defence strategies include deploying Hologram Buildings and building additional Bases. Holograms help draw fire from your real buildings, and additional Bases act as an insurance against a single, concentrated strike on your Dropship.

Buildings without Energy are about as useful as missiles without payload. Without Energy, many of your buildings will cease to function, and Radar will go offline. There are two Energy producing buildings in Direct-Hit: Wind Generators and Nuclear Power Plants. Initially, you will rely on Wind Generators as they are inexpensive, and relatively effective. Remember that building Wind Generators on higher ground increases their output. Nuclear Power Plants require Radiaterium, a rare mineral which also be bought on the Space Market. To prevent shortages as a result of over-zealous construction or enemy attacks, build Sub Stations along with multiple Batteries; these are called Battery Fields and will provide emergency power in the case of a shortage. You can also build Packers to produce Accumulators, which are highly valuable commodities. Remember that you need multiple Battery Fields to produce an Accumulator.

To make more profit more quickly, it is necessary to build a Spaceport, which allows larger trading ships to land.

Technology is the key factor in achieving superiority over the enemy. Constructing a Sci-Centre unlocks Military Research, which allows for the discovery of new, more destructive weapons. Constructing a second Sci-Centre allows Economic Research, enabling you to get the upper hand with enhanced economic efficiency.