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Gears Tactics – 6 combat tips to turn each encounter into victory
Gears Tactics is a surprisingly solid affair where the intensity of the action game translates brilliantly to the world of turn-based strategy gaming, so we're gearing up for victory with these tips!
Microsoft’s Gears of War has been around for a couple of console generations, with the tactical and brutal third-person cover-to-cover action cementing it as one of the most iconic shooter franchises of the past decade. Gears Tactics is a little different. A standalone PC release (for now) that answers the Internet-age question ‘How about Gears,but like XCOM?’.
An interesting premise, and the Gears franchise is such that its lore, tech, characters, and chainsaw-bladed weaponry are rich enough to branch out into other genres and mediums. Available now on Steam, the Windows 10 Store and as part of Xbox Games Pass for PC, Gears Tactics reinvigorates the series by recreating and highlighting what makes it so appealing. Tactical and nuanced combat that sits alongside over-the-top and often brutal displays of cartoon hyperviolence.
With that in mind Gears Tactics plays a lot differently to other turn-based tactics games out there and presents a challenging experience even for those well versed in the ways of failing after trying to make a shot with only a 63% chance to hit a target.
So, strap on your oversized shoulder pads, refuel your Lancer, and read on as we provide six combat tips you’ll need to turn each encounter into blood-soaked victory.
Just Roughtist
© Microsoft
Sliders – Moving That Little Bit Further
Fluid is not only a word that can describe the flow of combat in Gears Tactics (in addition to the oozing of the red stuff from fallen Locust) but also the movement. Instead of the rigid grid-based setup seen in most tactics games, your four Gear squad can move freely in all directions, jumping over cover and sliding up into a doorway. Depending on how many Action Points you want to devote to running of course. But, it’s the slide-into-cover that becomes an invaluable tool with all movement in Gears Tactics. And is the way with Gears of War, being in cover is usually the right choice when staying alive is the priority. As a bonus the slide in Gears Tactics lets you move a little bit further by not factoring into the Action Point allocation for movement. The result; always slide. Always.
Class Diversity – The Four Quadrants of Success
At its core Gears Tactics uses the iconic weaponry of the series as the foundation for each class of soldier. The Longshot rifle becomes the weapon of choice for snipers, the Mulcher for heavies, the Gnasher Shotgun for scouts, and the Lancer and Retro Lancer for all-rounders and support. Whereas in Gears of War you might only switch away from the Lancer rifle when you run out of ammo, Gears Tactics is all about heading into each encounter with a full arsenal. This means making sure you have one of each and don’t double up or stack a single class. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses, heavies are great for Overwatch and keeping close threats contained, snipers perfect for high-accuracy shots on far-away targets, and those equipped with Lancers are primed to move in and slice any Locust threat in two.
Hotzone? I don't like the sound of that...
© Microsoft
Overwatch – Creating the Perfect Kill Cone
Overwatch in Gears Tactics works as it does in other turn-based tactics games, where you get to define a cone of death; and during the enemy phase, any movement within that space will be fired upon and interrupted. It’s an invaluable tool and with all the cover strewn throughout the maps, it’s perfect for setting up grub traps at key choke points. Overwatch is something that should be used on just about every turn, with the Locust always looking to push forward or in the case of Wretches, charge right on in. It’s handy for interrupting and halting shotgun wielding foes from getting too close, and when stacked on top of each other – that is having units next to each other cross their Overwatch streams – it can create deadly kill cones capable of taking out a few enemies long before your next turn begins proper.
Exploding Grubs – Frag Grenades for Days
Characters that wield the iconic Lancer, including main protagonist Gabe Diaz, are equipped with Stim Grenades. That is, explosive healing. But support classes also have access to healing skills in their skill trees, so one of the first things you should do when going through a support Gears’, err, gear – is equip them with a Frag Grenade instead. As you have precise and direct control over where you can throw a grenade to maximise the amount of grubs hit – the frag in Gears Tactics, is king. Heading into a mission with four soldiers should also mean you’re heading into a mission with four frags. A single grenade throw, which only takes a single action-point before going into cooldown, can take out two Locust soldiers at once or if you’re lucky a group of four or five Wretches. This also means that any skill or mod or passive that deals with frag grenades in terms of damage or cooldown reduction is worth its weight in emulsion.
Last stand...
© Microsoft
Gear Corner - Passive Abilities Over Damage
There’s a deep RPG-like mini-game in Gears Tactics where loot found lets you equip each of your soldiers with armour pieces and several weapon mods. At first things like +30 Damage may sound like the way to go but as a single turn usually means firing off more than a single shot this isn’t always the case. Extra ammunition is far more useful for classes that lean heavily into Overwatch, and bonuses to Accuracy are a godsend for snipers. High end and legendary gear also come equipped with passive abilities ranging from cooldown reduction to auto-healing and boosts to evasion. The tactical possibilities are seemingly endless, and the general rule of thought before heading into any encounter should be the opposite of simple brute strength.
You Go That Way - Welcome to Splitsville
Certain missions in Gears Tactics force you to split up your four-person squad in terms of where they’ll focus their attention, and this is something that should apply to all missions in Gears Tactics. From giant boss battles to rescuing prisoners, splitting up your squad has the added benefit of forcing the Locust to do the same. That is waste time and spend their own respective Action Points reacting to a divided threat via confusion. And when you’re dealing with exploding Tickers and grenade launcher-wielding Boomers, you’ll not only have more breathing room to properly map out an attack plan you’ll be setup to properly flank too. Also, the appearance of an Emergence Hole won’t be as hair raising as it normally is.
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