Special Weapons marines live, eat, and dream firepower: the bigger the gun, the higher your chances of finding it in a Special Weapons's hands. They leave nothing in their wake but empty shell casings and alien innards plastered all over the scenery.
Playable characters[]
Used skills[]
Autogun Damage (Class-specific)
Piercing Bullets (Class-specific)
Speed Bonus (Wildcat only)
Health Bonus (Wolfe only)
Class-specific weapons and items[]
Autogun a heavy machine gun with a humongous magazine and auto-aim
Devastator a automatic shotgun
Minigun similar to the Autogun, but with a large spread, higher fire rate, spinup-time, and no auto-aim
Strategies[]
Basic[]
- If you're just starting out, Special Weapons is the only recommended class and should be chosen if available. Both marines have excellent firepower and the Autogun (the weapon you should start with) has auto-aim and a huge magazine, so you don't have to worry about reloading often. Plus their main function is simply killing aliens, making them a pretty straightforward class.
- Be extremely careful of friendly fire with the Minigun. You can turn a fellow marine into Swiss cheese in just a few seconds, and in less time with hardcore friendly fire!
- Cover the Medics and the Techs, as they don't have as much firepower as you do. Stay close to the Officer and he'll automatically give you a damage boost.
Advanced[]
- Spin around frequently and check corners. Your Autogun will highlight aliens even in the dark.
- Firing the Autogun or the Minigun slows you down to a walk. When taking on large packs, walk backwards while firing to maintain distance from the bugs.
- Medics are your best friends. Stay close to them and they will be able to heal you anytime.
- If using the Minigun and defending a point, keep the barrel spinning using Alt-Fire. You don't need to move anyway, and you'll be able to fire instantly at the waves of incoming aliens.
- Your Piercing Bullets skill allows you to take on several targets at a time. Try to align several aliens at once while firing.
Recommended Weaponry[]
- The Autogun and the Minigun are superb pieces of armament. Your first decision will always be which one to bring, if not both.
- Taking both machine guns provides you with a total of 1000 rounds of ammo shared between the two guns, and allows you to fight well both offensively and defensively. However, you'll always suffer a movement speed penalty since both guns have one.
- The Autogun is best suited for offensive maneuvers and to pick off small group of Swarm. It fires instantly and requires little aim, allowing you to handle advancing Swarm with relative ease. It's also very good at picking out hidden enemies, thanks again to its auto-aim. However, its power does have a limit. If a wave of Drones gets up close, you're likely to get hit before you can take them all down. Avoid using it if forced to remain in the same area for a long time. Use it when you expect to face a steady trickle of individual foes rather than huge waves.
- The Minigun, on the other hand, works best as a defensive weapon and a horde shredder. Its wide spread and lack of auto-aim make it unwieldy to those accustomed to the Autogun's accuracy, and its spin-up time forces you to plan ahead of ambushes. On the other hand, it has a superior rate of fire, and its spread allows it to kill several enemies at a time. Use it on maps that require defensive play, such as Cargo Elevator and Rydberg Reactor. It also works well on Deima Surface Bridge due to the large hordes that present themselves.
- Your Autogun/Minigun should suffice for all of your damage-dealing needs, so your secondary weapon should be geared towards helping out your team. Take either an Ammo Satchel or a sentry gun, depending on the map. The ammo satchel can also be used to easily refill your own magazine with minimal fuss. Wildcat's damage and piercing skills work well with the PDWs so consider those if you like to "run and gun".
- As a Special Weapons marine, you're going to get hurt very often. Take a Heal Kit or Armor if you don't have a Medic or if you tend to go solo, maybe Electric Charged Armor if you know you'll run into a parasite. This is especially true for Wildcat, who doesn't share Wolfe's or the Officers's Health Bonus.
- Under the effects of a Damage Amplifier, you will literally rip through swathes of enemies without breaking a sweat. Carry some if you're going to defend a point.
- You'll likely be responsible for dealing heavy damage to Shieldbugs. Freeze Grenades can be very helpful for this.
Wolfe or Wildcat?[]
- Wolfe is the typical heavy weapons guy. He's tough and slow, and has the highest Autogun Damage skill of the two. He works best on defensive maps and should stay around his team. Pair him up with a Minigun for some serious damage potential.
- Wildcat has neither Wolfe's toughness nor as much of an Autogun damage bonus, but she happens to be the fastest character in the game. As such, she can operate perfectly well by herself, and can scout ahead to take care of ambushes. She works best with the Autogun, but her high Damage Bonus means you can outfit her with any weapon and she'll still be a threat to the Swarm. Use her to target high-priority enemies such as Shieldbugs, Boomers and Mortarbugs.
Notes[]
- The Special Weapons class resembles the Heavy Weapons Guy from the Team Fortress series, also made by Valve. Both have minigun-based weaponry and are geared towards high damage output.
- Wolfe and Wildcat both have names linked to the animal world. One could also compare their relation to the contrast between cats and dogs, based on their names and characteristics.
- If both Wolfe and Wildcat are present in a game and in close proximity, they often trade banter and comment on each other's kills. Their lines vary depending on who is ahead in the kill-count competition.