Marathon NuCal Guide: How to Finish the Contract

If you have picked up Marathon’s early NuCal contract and are wondering why it keeps sending you into a hostile building full of crawling parasites, you are not alone. This objective looks simple on paper, but the route, the access point, and the combat inside can trip up new players fast. The good news is that the mission is straightforward once you know where to go, how to enter, and which room contains the key items.

This guide breaks the task into a clean order of operations. You will learn how to find the building in Columns, how to get inside without wasting time, what to do about the tick nests, and how to complete both objectives before leaving the area. The instructions below are written for clarity, speed, and safety, so you can clear the contract even if you are under pressure from enemy players or running with a low-resource loadout.

What this contract asks you to do

The NuCal mission is a compact scavenger-style objective. Instead of hunting across the whole map, you are sent to one specific structure in the Perimeter zone and told to retrieve an employee ID before using an in-building terminal to download data. The challenge comes from the infestation and the layout, not from a long objective chain.

• Travel to the Columns area in Perimeter.
• Locate the infected building with the obvious organic growth and tick nests.
• Enter through the roof rather than the main door.
• Turn power back on to unlock internal access.
• Grab the NuCal employee ID from inside the building.
• Use the nearby terminal to finish the download objective.

Because the objectives are close together, the mission can usually be completed in a single visit. That makes it one of the more efficient contracts to tackle early, especially if you want to unlock rewards without wandering deep into dangerous territory.

Finding the right place on the map

Your destination is Columns, a section of the Perimeter map positioned between South Relay and Overflow. The area is easy to miss if you are moving quickly, so it helps to slow down once you are in the southern part of the map and look for a standout structure rather than scanning for a generic doorway or marked objective center.

The building you want is visually distinct. It is coated in tick infestation and stands out from the surrounding rock and industrial clutter. In most runs, its appearance does more work than the map marker, because the infestation makes it look like something the game wants you to investigate. If you see a small structure that looks contaminated and sealed off, you are probably close.

How to enter without getting stuck

The front entrance is not the intended route. In fact, trying to force the main door first can waste time and make you a sitting target. The smarter approach is to move around the exterior and look for a ladder on the side of the building. From there, you can climb to the roof and open the structure from above.

Once you are on the roof, search for a hatch or vent cover you can break with melee. This is the entrance path the game expects you to use. After you smash it open, drop down carefully into the storage area below. Entering from the roof is not just a puzzle solution; it is also a safer way to avoid the heaviest tick cluster near ground level.

• Circle the building’s exterior.
• Find the ladder on the outer side.
• Climb to the roof.
• Break the hatch or vent cover with melee.
• Drop into the storeroom below.

If you are traveling with teammates, coordinate before entering. One player can take point while the others watch the exterior or hold angles. Even though the objective is short, the cramped interior can become chaotic quickly if multiple players rush in without a plan.

Dealing with ticks before they overwhelm you

The infestation is the real obstacle in this mission. Ticks tend to multiply pressure rather than pose a single big threat, which means you need to think about crowd control and spawn management. The safest approach is to eliminate the visible nests first, then clear the room methodically.

Close-range weapons are especially useful here. Shotguns and SMGs perform well because the enemies are often inside tight corners, behind doors, or clustered near the nest locations. If ammunition is limited, a melee weapon can still help, though you should only rely on it when you are confident you will not be surrounded.

• Prioritize any glowing nest or pod that is producing new enemies.
• Clear the outer area before moving deeper.
• Use narrow corridors to your advantage.
• Check corners and ceilings before interacting with anything important.

Once the building’s power is restored, internal doors become more manageable, but that does not mean the room is safe. Move slowly, keep an eye on spawn points, and avoid sprinting into unexplored corners if you can hear ticks nearby. A disciplined pace is more valuable here than aggressive speed.

Restoring power and opening the interior

After dropping into the lower section of the building, your next job is to activate the power. Look for the console or control panel close to the locked door and interact with it. This step matters because it restores the building’s internal access and lets you proceed through the connected rooms without fighting the environment itself.

Once power is restored, open the nearby door and move into the next room. Be prepared for additional tick nests in the interior section. The layout is compact, so clearing one room often exposes the next objective space immediately after, which can make the whole task feel like a short chain of small encounters.

Where to find the employee ID

The NuCal employee ID is not hidden in a complex puzzle space. It is usually sitting on a shelf or similar surface in one of the adjoining rooms. After clearing the immediate threats, search the left side of the room or the area adjacent to the doorway you just passed through. The card is easy to overlook if you are focused only on enemies.

When you spot the ID, pick it up immediately. There is no benefit to leaving it in place while you keep clearing the room, because the contract will not progress until you secure the item. If the area is still active, make sure the card goes into your inventory before you start the download step.

• Check the room connected to the power-restored doorway.
• Look at shelves and tabletop surfaces.
• Focus on the left side of the room if you lose track of it.
• Collect the ID before moving to the terminal.

Completing the download objective

With the employee ID in hand, the second part of the mission becomes available. You do not need to leave the building or search for another point of interest across the map. The download terminal is inside the same structure, which keeps the contract compact and reduces the risk of a long extraction route.

Approach the orange or retro-style terminal and interact with it to upload the data. The game should register the objective as complete once the interaction finishes successfully. In many cases, you do not need to survive until extraction for the contract to count, as long as both objectives were completed in the run. That means the focus should be on finishing the steps rather than forcing a risky escape afterward.

Best way to finish the quest safely

The simplest strategy is to keep your route tight and your combat conservative. Do not linger outside longer than necessary, and do not overcommit to unnecessary fights once the interior has been opened. Every extra moment in the building increases the chance of a third-party player showing up or a tick nest spawning more pressure than you expected.

Here is a practical approach that works well in most runs:

1. Arrive in Columns and confirm the correct infected building.
2. Clear the obvious exterior nests if you want a safer entry.
3. Use the roof route to break inside.
4. Restore power and clear the interior room by room.
5. Grab the employee ID as soon as you see it.
6. Use the terminal immediately after.

If you are solo, patience matters. If you are in a squad, coordination matters even more. In both cases, the goal is the same: finish the two objectives without turning the contract into a prolonged firefight.

Quick troubleshooting tips

If you reach the area and cannot tell whether you are at the right building, trust the infestation. The correct structure is visually marked by heavy tick growth and a sense that something has gone very wrong inside it. If you are still unsure, check your surroundings for the ladder route and roof access point.

If the door remains locked after you enter, you likely have not activated power yet. Find the nearby console before assuming the mission is bugged. If the employee ID is not obvious, check shelves, counters, and room edges carefully. The item is usually in plain sight once you know which room to inspect.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to extract after finishing the objectives?

Usually, no. The contract is typically considered complete once the item pickup and data download have both been performed during the run. Extraction may still be useful for loot and survival, but it is not always required to earn credit for the task.

Can I use the front door?

The main entrance is not the intended route and is commonly blocked or unhelpful at the start. The roof access path is the reliable method and is the one most players use to complete the objective efficiently.

What weapons work best inside the building?

Short-range weapons tend to be the most effective because the rooms are tight and the enemies are small, fast, and close together. A shotgun or SMG gives you strong control in narrow spaces, while melee is useful for silent cleanup or emergency saves.

Is the contract difficult for solo players?

It is manageable solo if you move carefully. The main risk comes from getting boxed in by ticks or hesitating too long in the interior. The mission is more about route awareness than raw combat difficulty.

What should I do if another player arrives?

If an enemy squad shows up, prioritize the contract objectives if you can finish them safely. If the situation becomes too dangerous, fall back, break line of sight, and reassess. Since the mission is short, a quick and disciplined push is often better than a long firefight.

Final thoughts

The NuCal contract is a good early example of what Marathon does well: it asks you to read the environment, choose a smart approach, and complete a focused objective under pressure. Once you know that the building is in Columns, that the roof is the real entrance, and that power must be restored before the rest opens up, the mission becomes much easier to handle.

Think of it as a compact test of awareness. Find the infected structure, climb in from above, clear the infestation, collect the employee ID, and use the terminal before moving on. With the right route and a steady pace, you can finish the contract cleanly and move on to the next challenge with confidence.