Anchored is the twenty-fourth offline mission and the twenty-fifth online mission in Earth Defense Force 2025 and Earth Defense Force 4.1: The Shadow of New Despair. This is also the first mission of 2025 that doesn't have a weapon limit on Inferno difficulty.
Objective[]
2025: The Ravager troops that attacked our defenses were under the mothership's command. Therefore, taking down the mothership would strike a mighty blow. Currently the mothership is anchored at the coast with a group of transport ships. Approach from the ground and attack all ships in the area.
4.1: It seems that the Ravagers' army that entered our defense line is under the direct command of the mothership. If we can shoot it down, we can cause a great deal of chaos in their ranks. Currently, the mothership is hovering around the mountain area, flanked by transport ships. Approach from the ground and destroy the whole fleet.
Storyline[]
HQ starts the mission with ordering all units to destroy the mothership. The ship is hovering above the coast, flanked by flying drones and five transport ships spewing black ants and spiders. Despite what HQ orders it's impossible to destroy the mothership during this mission, so Storm Team has to concentrate on the transport ships. When the Ravagers start losing, the mothership opens its cannon panels and starts shooting. Once Storm Team destroys a couple of cannons the mothership retreats, leaving the rest of their troops to be destroyed. When every hostile is dead the mission ends.
4.1 Changes[]
Istead of the beach the mission is set in the montains. There's also more enemies and red ants will also spawn. Istead of the three Ranger team that spawns in 2025, Storm Team is aided by a Ranger, a Wing Diver and a Fencer team.
Enemies[]
2025[]
| Wave | Spawn | Enemy | Amount | Notes | |
| 1st | Appears at the begining of the mission. | Flying Drones | 20 | ||
| Mothership | 1 | Cannot be destoyed. Flees when most of its panels are destoyed. | |||
| Laser Panels | 40 | Deploy when less than 20 enemies left. | |||
| Plasma Panels | 22 | ||||
| Transport Ships | 2 | ||||
| Black Ants | 20 each | ||||
| Transport Ships | 2 | ||||
| Spiders | 15 each | ||||
4.1[]
| Wave | Spawn | Enemy | Amount | Notes | |
| 1st | Appears at the begining of the mission. | Flying Drones | 50 | 10 around each Transport Ship. | |
| Mothership | Cannot be destoyed. Flees when most of its panels are destoyed. | ||||
| Laser Panels | 40 | Deploy when less than 40 enemies left and 60 passed since the start of the mission. | |||
| Plasma Panels | 22 | ||||
| Transport Ships | 2 | ||||
| Black Ants | 25 each | ||||
| Transport Ships | 1 | ||||
| Crimson Ants | 15 | ||||
| Transport Ships | 2 | ||||
| Spiders | 25 each | ||||
Online Limits[]
Armor Limit
There's no limit for Inferno difficulty.
| Difficulty | Ranger & Air Raider | Wing Diver | Fencer | |||
| 2025 | 4.1 | 2025 | 4.1 | 2025 | 4.1 | |
| Easy & Normal | 683 | 672 | 391 | 386 | 854 | 840 |
| Hard | 1886 | 1995 | 993 | 1047 | 2358 | 2494 |
| Hardest | 3257 | 3871 | 1678 | 1985 | 4072 | 4839 |
Weapon Level Limit
| Game | Easy & Normal | Hard | Hardest | Inferno |
| 2025 | 2 | 31 | 56 | No limit |
| 4.1 | 8 | 31 | 58 | 99 |
Approximate Weapon Drop Rate
| Game | Easy | Normal | Hard | Hardest | Inferno |
| 2025 | 1-5 | 2-6 | 15-27 | 0-52 | 2-62 |
| 4.1 | 0-5 | 1-6 | 17-32 | 0-53 | 3-63 |
Strategy[]
4.1[]
Bring a weapon that can deal with a swarm of giant insects and a sniper rifle or similar high damage, high accuracy weapon.
The players' spawnpoint is on top of a hill at the corner of the map. Before destroying the transport ships, it's a good idea to snipe down flying drones as those don't respawn. Unfortunately a Ranger team will also be there near the closest ship and once the first batch of spiders spawn they immediately attack. You may want to recruit them and take down the first transport ship with them first, or just leave them to their deaths.
Be careful sniping the flying drones near rightmost ship as they are flying low and killing them might aggro the spiders under them. Luckily they are far away so you have plenty of time to snipe them.
The order which you destroy the transport ships doesn't matter that much, but proper aggro management is important, as attacking a ship would aggro all the insects under it. You may want to time your attack just as the transport ships start closing their hatch, as this would give you about 35 seconds to kill all the enemies spawned by that particular ship before new ones spawn. Done properly, you can kill the new spawns as they are dropping out of the transport ships.
Between the two nearest transport ships at low altitude there is a spawnpoint for a team of Wing Divers. If you have destroyed the first transport ship and are not currently in combat, you should be able to recruit them before they aggro any enemies.
Once you are done kill the remaining drones if there are any. Keep in mind that if there's less than forty enemies left then the mothership will start to attack. The remaining two transport ships spawn 25 bugs each so there should be enough until you destroy one of them, but it's possible that you accidentally killed enough to trigger the cannons. When they are triggered start destroying them. If you destroy enough they stop shooting and the mothership flies away.
Once the mothership is gone destroying the remaining transport ships is trivial. If you need backup there's a Fencer spawnpoint on the path behind the rightmost transport ship, but at this point you should be fine.
| 1-10 | Reconvene • Spreading Disaster • Winged War Goddess • Setting Sun • Wind Break • Underground Cave • Eruption • Retaliation • Beach Fear • The Return |
| 11-20 | Air Force • Day of the Demons • Takedown • Preventing Landfall • Land Collapse • Fortress Siege • Valley Shadows • Artillery • Breaking Through • Shining Stronghold |
| 21-30 | Into the Depths • A Trap • Giant Robots • Summit Ship • Anchored • Silver City • Crimson • High-Speed • Bloody Mountain • Brute Force |
| 31-40 | Charge Phase 1 • Charge Phase 2 • Dark Prisoner • Charge Phase 3 • Thunder • Infiltration • Convergence • Inferno • Starship • Dense |
| 41-50 | Crossing • Search • Waterside Bugs • Annihilation • Natural Calamity • Steel Beast • Void Ship • Blue Fighters • Earth Defenders • Fleet Attack |
| 51-60 | Mountain Pass Trap • Fortress Frenzy • Pincer • Ravages of War • Air Mobilization • Bug Invasion • Transport Ship Surprise Attack • Bug King • Crazy Skies • The Fleet Below |
| 61-70 | Bad Premonition • City of Horror • Mountains Ablaze • Breaking Through (2) • Bug Tower • Fortress Attack • Mountain Liberation • Sniper Attack • Mountain Giants • Towering Beast |
| 71-80 | Teeth of the Universe • Giant Ship • Spearhead • Tower Siege • Den of Thieves • Death Queen • Machine Squad • Monster Party • Labyrinth of Light • City Flaws |
| 81-90 | Monster Camp • Fallen Flagship • Heaven's Army • Encircling • Divine • The Threat • Troubled Valley • Battle to the Death • Massive Mobilization • Legion of Monsters |
| 91-94 | Scorching • Demon Army • Surrounded! • Star Eaters |
| DLC 1: Special Forces | Exploration • Giant's Advance • Silver Camp • Citadel • Floating Fleet |
| DLC 2: Mutant Rampage | Advance • Mountain Assault • Enemy Camp Infiltration • Underground Advance • Giant Robots • Battle Species • Beast Mountain • Dark Arena • Gathering Around • Armored Species • Iron Wall • Mountain of Change • Whirlwind of Death • Bugged City • The Tough • Golden Darkness • True King • Final Impact • Into Destruction • Ship of Dragons |
| DLC 3: Beyond Despair | Tracking • Underground Complex • Blocked Pass • Close Formation • Dragon Ship Fleet • Heavy Artillery • Bloody River • Dangerous Goldmines • Beast Mobilization • Total Protection • Aerial Bombing • King of Armor • Cannon Defenders • Traps Behind • Four Kings of Nightmares • Resistance Against the Twilight • Shivering Nexus • Three Giants • Crimson Lotus • Starry Prison |
| 1-10 | Reconvene • Spreading Disaster • Winged War Goddess • Setting Sun • Wind Shear • Underground Cave • Eruption • Retaliation • Beach Fear • The Return |
| 11-20 | Air Force • Day of the Demons • Takedown • Preventing Landfall • Land Collapse • Fortress Siege • Valley Shadows • Artillery • Breaking Through • Shining Stronghold |
| 21-30 | Into the Depths • A Trap • Giant Robots • Summit Ship • Anchored • Silver City • Crimson • Assault • High-Speed • Bloody Mountain |
| 31-40 | Brute Force • Charge Phase 1 • Charge Phase 2 • Dark Prisoner • Charge Phase 3 • Thunder • Infiltration • Convergence • Inferno • Starship |
| 41-50 | High Density • Dozing Beast • Crossing • Search • Waterside Bugs • Annihilation • Natural Calamity • Steel Beast • Void Ship • Blue Fighters |
| 51-60 | Earth Defenders • Fleet Attack • Mountain Pass Trap • Fortress Frenzy • Pincer • Ravages of War • Crash • Air Mobilization • Bug Invasion • Transport Ship Surprise Attack |
| 61-70 | Bug King • Crazy Skies • The Fleet Below • Ill Omen • City of Horror • Mountains Ablaze • Breaking Through (2) • Bug Tower • Fortress Attack • Mountain Liberation |
| 71-80 | Battle of Giants • Sniper Attack • Mountain Giants • Towering Beast • Teeth of the Universe • Giant Ship • Spearhead • Tower Siege • Den of Thieves • Death Queen |
| 81-90 | Machine Squad • Monster Party • Labyrinth of Light • City Flaws • Monster Camp • Fallen Flagship • Heaven's Army • Encircling • Divine • The Threat |
| 91-98 | Troubled Valley • Battle to the Death • Massive Mobilization • Legion of Monsters • Scorching • Demon Army • Surrounded! • Star Eaters |
| DLC 1: Time of the Mutants | Air Offensive • Giants Advance • Recon • Dust Town • Defense Line • Underground Advance • War Breed • Mountain Assault • Enemy Camp Infiltration • Dark Arena • Beast Mountain • God's Army • The Gathering • Armored Species • Iron Wall • Silver Base • Shifting Mountain • Whirlwind of Death • Bugged City • Toughness • Golden Darkness • True Sovereign • Final Impact • Floating Fleet • Into Destruction • Ship of Dragons |
| DLC 2: Extreme Battle | Tracking Bogeys • Underground Complex • Blocked Pass • Close Formation • Dragon Ship Fleet • Heavy Artillery • Overflight • Dangerous Goldmines • Beast Mobilization • Total Protection • Bombs Away • King of Armor • Cannon Defenders • Bloody River • Three Giants • Traps from Behind • The Four Horsemen • Cross the Line • Facing Off • Crimson Lotus • Shivering Nexus • Last Bastion • Starry Prison |