Controls & Keybindings — Iron Nest Wiki
Every control and keybinding in IRON NEST: Heavy Turret Simulator — movement, station interaction, clipboard shortcuts, gasmask and aiming inputs, explained.
Launch Version / Updated: August 6, 2026
IRON NEST is a hands-on simulation: you walk around inside a 5,000-ton machine and physically operate its stations. There is no aim-assist and no auto-load — everything below is a lever, wheel or valve you control yourself.
Movement & Interaction
| Input | Action |
|---|---|
| WASD | First-person movement |
| Space | Jump |
| Left Shift | Sprint |
| Ctrl | Crouch |
| E | Start interacting with a station or component |
| Left Click (hold) | Move objects, pull levers, turn valves, draw lines on the map |
| Right Click | Remove items — clipboard notes, drawn lines, placed tokens |
| Escape | Open the menu or stop the current interaction |
The Clipboard
The clipboard is the information hub of the game — clicking text in teleprinter reports copies it there automatically.
| Input | Action |
|---|---|
| Caps Lock | Toggle clipboard visibility |
| Tab (hold) | Bring the clipboard into full focus with a movable cursor |
| Right Click | Remove a line from the clipboard |
Equipment & Tools
| Input | Action |
|---|---|
| G | Equip / unequip the gasmask (required for phosgene operations) |
| 1–4 (number row) | Quick-select map tokens (Iron Nest, spotters, targets, reference points) — placement is done on the map table |
Aiming the Guns
Aiming is done at two stations with two different controls:
- Turret rotation — heavy lever for fast traversal, fine wheel for precision. The rotation counter must match the target bearing exactly. Return the heavy lever smoothly — sudden movements damage machinery.
- Gun elevation — moves in two stages: approximate with the lever, then fine-tune with the wheel once the gun has stopped. Do not touch the wheel while the gun is still moving or the mechanism can jam.
The twin guns can be elevated and operated independently, so you can prep the left barrel for one shell type while the right barrel holds another.
Firing
At the trigger station:
- Arm the gun — pull the lever on the left side (each gun arms separately)
- Confirm systems — verify all readiness indicators
- Flip all five switches
- Pull the large central cord to fire
After firing, the elevation resets to zero and locks until the next load is complete.
Settings & Rebindings
The game supports full control rebinding through the settings menu. If the default layout feels awkward:
- Bind Tab (clipboard focus) somewhere you can hold comfortably — you will use it constantly.
- Consider a dedicated mouse button for E (interact) if you prefer one-handed station work.
- Check the settings for aim smoothing options — the demo had toggleable camera smoothing that some operators disable for finer wheel control.
Missing or Broken Inputs?
- Controls unresponsive after a malfunction? Equipment failures lock stations until repaired — check for steam leaks and blown hydraulics before assuming an input bug.
- Wheel not fine-tuning? The gun must come to a complete stop before fine adjustment.
- Can't place a token? You must be at the tactical map table, holding the token with the left mouse button, and the map must be cleared of conflicting markers.
For more on the station workflow, see the beginner guide and the loading & aiming guide.