Marathon Cores Guide: What Are They and How Do They Work?

Bungie’s new extraction shooter, Marathon, provides players with a desolate planet to explore with Tau Ceti IV and lets them assume the role of Runners who control Shells during runs. These Runner Shells feature multiple modifications to make them more powerful, and Cores are one such element in Marathon.

Read on to find out more about what Cores are in the Marathon Server Slam and how you can use them to enhance your Runner Shells the way you want to.

What are Cores in Marathon?

Cores are equippable modification units that physically alter how your Marathon Runner Shells function, essentially serving as ability modifiers. Unlike Implants, which provide universal stat boosts like health regen or increased heat capacity, most Cores are shell-specific and directly impact Runners’ Prime and Tactical abilities.

Each Runner comes equipped with a unique set of abilities, and Cores are designed to enhance or completely change the mechanics around those abilities. Much like the Marathon weapons, there are a total of 5 Core rarities in the game, which determine the complexity and power of the buff:

• Standard (Grey)
• Enhanced (Green)
• Deluxe (Blue)
• Superior (Purple)
• Prestige (Gold)

How Do Cores Work in Marathon?

Every Runner Shell has two dedicated Core slots, which allow you to stack different buffs to create your customized build that suits your playstyle the best. For example, you can use one Core to make an ability recharge faster and another that boosts the damage or overall impact of the same ability.

You can equip Cores in the Loadout screen before a match. While some Shared Cores can be used by any Runner Shell, the most powerful ones only fit their designated Shell.

How to Get Cores in Marathon

You can find Cores all around the Marathon maps in Core Storage containers, which are mounted on walls in UESC facilities. Additionally, you can also purchase Cores from the in-game Armory in exchange for Credits and loot them from dead Runners. However, much like most other items in Marathon, you have to successfully exfil from a match to keep a rare Core if you find one. If you die with a Core in your inventory, it will stay on your corpse for enemy Runners to loot.

All Cores in Marathon

Since Marathon is still in its Server Slam phase, we only know of a few Cores that will be available when Marathon fully releases. Here is a list of all known Marathon Runner Shell Cores, divided by the Runner Shell they fit with:

All Destroyer Cores

• Heavy Ordnance (Enhanced): Shortens the cooldown of your Search and Destroy ability whenever you secure a kill with explosives.
• Bombardier (Enhanced): Defeating hostiles while your search and destroy is active extends its duration.
• Bombing Run (Deluxe): Each successive missile from Search and Destroy deals increased damage.
• Ankle Breaker (Deluxe): Reduces the heat generated by your Thrusters when in close proximity to an enemy.
• Bullrush (Superior): Prevents your Riot Barricade from draining energy while you are using Tactical Sprint.
• Impact Siphons (Prestige): Converts incoming damage absorbed by your Riot Barricade into personal shield energy.

All Vandal Cores

• Tag! (Enhanced): Increases the direct damage of your Disruptor Cannon and automatically pings any targets caught in the blast radius.
• Cut to the Chase (Deluxe):
• Mechanized Holsters (Deluxe): Performing a Power Slide automatically reloads ballistic weapons from your reserves and restores a portion of your volt weapon’s battery.
• Blast Off (Deluxe): Eliminates self-damage from your Disruptor Cannon, allowing you to use the weapon’s knockback to propel yourself through the air.
• Adrenal Core (Superior): While Amplify is active, movement abilities generate significantly less Heat, and using a Cardio Kick consumable extends the duration of the buff.
• Microjet Efficiency Package (Prestige): Grants an extra Microjet charge and lowers the Heat generated by each use.

All Assassin Cores

• Breathing Space (Enhanced): Grants a significant reload speed bonus whenever you are standing inside a Shroud or any smoke field.
• Ghost Protocol (Enhanced): Any smoke fields last longer before dissipating.
• Patience (Deluxe): Standing still pauses your invisibility countdown, though doing so causes your Runner to accumulate Heat.
• Guerilla (Superior): Accelerates the cooldown recovery of both Active Camo and Shadow Dive as long as you remain within a smoke screen.
• Shadow Strike (Prestige): Dramatically boosts the damage of your melee and knife strikes when attacking from invisibility.

All Recon Cores

• Hot Pursuit (Enhanced): Increases the travel speed and maximum distance of your Tracker Drone before it reaches its automatic detonation point.
• Bad Cop (Enhanced): Performing a finisher grants tactical and prime ability energy.
• On The Trail (Deluxe): Extends the duration of footprint trails highlighted by Stalker Protocol and reduces your accumulated Heat whenever you eliminate a tracked target.
• Cluster Payload (Superior): Upgrades your Tracker Drone to release explosive shrapnel submunitions upon detonation, dealing secondary impact damage.
• Intuition (Prestige): Causes your Awareness pulse to activate immediately upon downing an enemy, bypassing the usual requirement of a physical finisher.
• Early Warning System (Prestige): Grants a tactical HUD notification whenever a rival Runner enters your immediate vicinity.

All Thief Cores

• Greed Is Good (Enhanced): Grants a bonus to your maximum sprint speed and slide distance as long as your backpack is at full capacity.
• Hit And Run (Deluxe): Delivering a melee or knife strike immediately after a grapple “Hacks” the target, forcing them to drop random loot from their inventory.
• Case The Joint (Superior): Significantly extends the scanning distance and visual clarity of your X-Ray Visor.
• Partner In Crime (Prestige): Your Pickpocket Drone emits a periodic radar pulse that pings nearby hostiles whenever it isn’t being actively piloted.

All Triage Cores

• High Voltage (Enhanced): Shortens the cooldown of your next Battery Overcharge whenever you defeat an enemy currently afflicted by an EMP.
• Electron Recapture Sinks (Deluxe): While Battery Overcharge is active, eliminating or downing a foe with a volt weapon instantly restores a segment of that weapon’s battery.
• No Good Deed (Superior): Provides an immediate burst of personal health whenever your Med-Drone successfully links to an ally.
• Samaritan (Prestige): Using Shareware to provide a teammate with a consumable accelerates the cooldown of your subsequent Med-Drone.

All Universal Cores

• Loot Tracker (Standard): Activating either your Prime or Tactical ability emits a pulse that pings the closest loot container.
• Communal Cleanse (Standard): Removing a negative status effect with a consumable also removes it from nearby crew members.
• Cash Flow (Standard): Opening an unlooted container pings a nearby data card.
• Trophy Hunter (Standard): Eliminating a UESC Commander rewards you with a minor restoration of both Tactical and Prime ability energy.
• Worth The Wait (Enhanced): Activating a Shield Charge or Patch Kit triggers the passive regeneration of your shield or health, respectively.

Have you found any powerful Cores in Marathon Server Slam yet? Tell us in the comments below!