For those of you born to dominate the battle royale scene, you’ve probably already racked up 2,000+ kills in Apex Legends, revived hundreds of teammates, won a bunch of matches, and unlocked any Legends you’re interested in playing. For the rest of the players out there who are trying to take in and study every ounce of strategy they can bring to the fight, here’s our final guide:
10 tips to master Apex Legends.
1. Fast-switch
Whether you’re playing a fast hard-hitter like Bangalore or Octane, or a slow and steady powerhouse like Gibraltar or Caustic, speed is key to success in Apex Legends. Weapons in the game have shallow clips, and even when you put a stock on your weapon, the switch speed to pull out your secondary gun is still more than enough to leave you vulnerable.
To perform a fast-switch, all you need to do is crouch while switching weapons. Luckily the concept is easy, because having the wherewithal to actually do it is another story entirely. Trust us, though; it’s worth it. Practice it in training to try and get the timing just right. Every second counts in a firefight, and this small trick can make all the difference.
Complete Guide to Apex Legends
Read Now ►2. Keep together, but not too close
Apex Legends is a squad-based battle royale, and playing with your team in mind will vastly improve your chances of survival once you hit ground. The exception to the rule might be Octane, however, as his Stim lets him engage and evade on his own (be careful not to get overwhelmed, though). While sticking together leaves you in a better place to help and be helped by your teammates, it also can make you all vulnerable to AoE attacks like Bangalore’s Ultimate, gunfire from both sides, or even a well-placed grenade.
Sticking close together is also a bad idea at the start of the match. Everyone’s scrambling for weapons and equipment, and with two other players working with you, there’ll be a shortage of goodies to go around. The best advice is to head towards the same general vicinity as your team, but break off before you land. Aim towards a building that no one else has gotten to yet, grab what you can, then make your way towards your squad. Later on, try and stick to spots where you can get to your team within five seconds, but can avoid grouping up for easy multi-kills.
3. Respawn in half the time
Apex Legends lets players revive defeated teammates at respawn beacons, but the task can be daunting. It puts them in a high-risk area where they have to recover your beacon (often through gunfire), then they have to make it to a respawn beacon safely. Better players might also sacrifice some equipment once you return, since you’ll be landing without a weapon or ammo.
Since the process to revive a teammate is two-part, divide the responsibility between two members of your squad. As long as someone recovers the banner, you don’t have to be the one carrying it to revive. Any green dots on the map signify respawn beacons; you don’t need your teammates to ping them for you if you just look. Have a teammate recover the banner while another teammate makes a beeline for a respawn beacon.
As soon as your friend is carrying the banner you’ll be able to resurrect your fallen comrade.
4. Refresh shields instantly
Shield Cells and Phoenix Kits are the obvious ways to restore your shields, but the process takes valuable time (less so if you’re playing as Lifeline). You can move, crouch, and even slide while charging your shield, but you can’t fire, and that makes you an easier target to eliminate.
In the middle of a firefight you might not want to spend the time restoring your shields. If there’s a player box (from a dead player) nearby, though, you can just loot it and take the armor they were wearing. That armor might be of lower quality, but it’s guaranteed to be full. Save yourself the time in a firefight and restock your armor (as well as ammo, grenades and healing supplies) through player boxes instead of scrounging around the map. Do that after the fight is over!
Is Apex Legends better than Fortnite?
READ NOW ►5. Maximize jump distance
Movement is key in Apex Legends, and if you’re reading this guide you probably already spend more time sliding than running, more time mantling than opening doors, and more time sprinting with weapons holstered than with them in your hands. There’s always more you can do to get that little bit of extra speed though.
When you perform a running jump, you’ll land with momentum that usually gets wasted. Instead of simply landing and hoofing it another few yards, instead try sliding. Crouch right after a running jump and you’ll get that extra couple yards of distance that can get you safely behind cover, down a hill, or right behind an enemy player.
6. Third-party enemy teams
This one’s pretty obvious, but it still usually happens by accident rather than on purpose. How many times have you been locked in a fight with another team, when a few more players randomly join the action and make your job twice as hard? You scramble to relocate and curse their luck for stumbling upon you at a moment of weakness, but what if it wasn’t an accident?
As the zone gets smaller and smaller, it can be very enticing to shoot before you think, to engage before you’re spotted. Hold out just that little bit longer, though, and you might be amply rewarded. Wait for the enemy team to come into contact with a third party, then after a couple of players get downed, make your entrance, ideally with your teammates firing from multiple directions. Remember kill streaks don’t guarantee you the win – just outlasting everybody else.
Apex Legends intermediate tips
Read Now ►7. Pair Bloodhound with Bangalore
Bangalore’s tactical ability to fire a smoke grenade is so ubiquitous that we’ll spend no more time going over what it does; you’ve probably seen it used so many times that you can smell the smoke (check your PC; it might need help). Bloodhound’s Ultimate can see right through the smoke, which can be helpful when you’re going up against Bangalore players, but use this ability on purpose and you can really start to dominate the battlefield.
Have Bangalore pop smoke on an enemy location, then activate Beast of the Hunt right after. Bloodhound will be able to see without impediment, and the enemy team is going to be in disarray. Take them down using the smoke to cover you, and you might even come out completely unscathed. Beware that some enemies will have attachments to help them see through smoke, however. This tactic also works for seeing through Caustic’s gas, though Bloodhound will still suffer some of the debuffing effects.
8. Bait with downed players
This is such a useful tip. As we mentioned in our intermediate tips, a downed player can still be extremely useful to his teammates. As such, now most players have learned to simply go for the kill rather than leaving them crawling on the floor pinging their every move.
This makes killing them very tempting, but hear us out: Most teammates will come to help their fallen buddies, and that will lead them right to you – or more accurately to their friend. Use this bait to your advantage! Position yourself to expect them when they come charging in. If you’re playing Caustic this is an excellent time to place some traps.
9. Ride the electric doors
A simple tip for mobility, many of the buildings in Kings Canyon have big doors on them. These slide up slowly and are typically found on big warehouses like the Hydro Dam or Repulsor. Characters like Pathfinder or Octane will have no trouble scaling these warehouses, but the rest of the Legends can’t do so quite as easily.
If you get just the right angle, though, you can actually climb to the top of these doors before opening them. Look down at your feet once you’re standing on the threshold, and activate it with yourself on top! You’ll be able to ride to the top of the building. This is great for re-positioning and bamboozling enemy players, but is especially good early in the game when you’re trying to get loot quickly.
Apex Legends beginner tips
Read Now ►10. Hit the ground running
We mean that one literally. There’s no fall damage in Apex Legends, so obviously there’s no worry about leaping off huge buildings or hopping down cliffs. Once you actually connect with the ground though, you’re stunned for a little over a second. If you kick as you land, you can avoid the pause and ignore the stun effects. Don’t forget how awesome your Legend is!
And that wraps up our advanced tips guide! Stay tuned for more on Apex Legends, and don’t forget to check out our full character guide right here for more specific tips on each Legend:
Apex Legends ultimate character guide
Read Now ►