Overview

It’s nice to be rewarded for all your hard work. As you complete various series of actions, you unlock Perks—improved abilities that give you an edge over your enemies. There are 18 Perks in the game, plus an ability column for each contraption, divided into three categories. Each Perk includes five levels that increase the rewarded benefits. In this chapter, you’ll find a breakdown of all Perks and contraption abilities, their requirements, and their rewards. Use this knowledge to adjust your strategies and tactics with the aim of earning the rewards that best benefit your playstyle and aid your progress through the Campaign.

Stealth Perks

All Stealth Perks focus on silent kills and avoiding alarms being raised during missions.

|| Stealth Takedowns

Requirement: Silently kill enemies from behind using stealth takedowns.

Reward: Increased movement speed when crouched.

A stealth takedown is accomplished by sneaking up behind an enemy and killing him with your hatchet. For every 10 stealth takedowns you make, you increase your movement speed while crouched by 10%. Achieve 50 stealth takedowns to max out this Perk at a 50% increase in crouched movement speed. This makes traversing levels using stealth tactics much easier.

|| Hatchet-Throw Kills

Requirement: Kill enemies by throwing hatchets at targets.

Reward: Increased total hatchet capacity.

Your hatchets can be used against enemies in two ways: for melee attacks, and as thrown weapons. The latter use unlocks this Perk. For every 10 enemies you dispatch with a hatchet throw, you increase the total number of the hatchets you can carry by one. You start out with a capacity of three hatchets. Accomplish 50 hatchet-throw kills to max out your capacity at eight total hatchets. Having so many hatchets on hand is a great way to expand your tactical options for any situation.

|| Enigma Codes

Requirement: Collect Enigma Codes from dead Kommandants.

Reward: Kommandant alarm signals are jammed, delaying alarm activation.

As you kill Kommandants, be sure to grab the Enigma Codes they carry. For every five codes you collect, you increase the time it takes a Kommandant to sound an alarm once you’re detected by 0.2 seconds. Once you collect 25 Enigma Codes, you increase this delay by an entire second—precious time during which you can act.

|| Quick Kommandant Kills

Requirement: Kill Kommandants before they sound the alarm.

Reward: Increased damage dealt with suppressed weapons.

It’s always a good idea to kill Kommandants before they can sound the alarm and summon reinforcements. This Perk offers a bonus incentive. For every 10 Kommandants killed before they alert other enemies to your presence, you increase the damage inflicted by your suppressed weapons by 10%. Kill 50 Kommandants meeting this requirement, and your suppressed weapons deal half again as much damage as they did originally. Nice!

|| Takedowns or Tampers

Requirement: Perform takedowns on, or tamper with, robotic enemies.

Reward: Tampering earns diesel or laser ammo.

Takedowns and tampering, when applied to robotic enemies, are similar in nature. A takedown is a hatchet kill performed on an active robotic enemy, such as an ÜberSoldat. Tampering, meanwhile, involves destroying an inactive robotic enemy before it activates. For every two takedowns/tampers you perform, you gain the ability to grab one diesel or laser ammo pickup when you tamper; the ammo type depends on which type of weapon you’re carrying. Max out this Perk at 10 takedowns/tampers for five ammo pickups when tampering. If you like getting in close to kill ÜberSoldaten, leveling this Perk is a cinch.

|| Constrictor Kills

Requirement: Kill enemies while using the Constrictor Harness ability. (Must have chosen the Constrictor Harness contraption.)

Reward: Increased movement speed when using the Constrictor Harness.

This Perk can only be unlocked if you’re equipped with the Constrictor Harness. For every five kills you make while using the Constrictor Harness ability, such as performing stealth takedowns while squeezed into small pipes or ducts, you increase your movement speed while using this contraption by 10%.

Mayhem Perks

While you kill most enemies with firearms, Mayhem Perks reward you for using other means.

|| Combat Takedown

Requirement: Kill enemies using combat takedowns.

Reward: Increased rate of health regeneration.

The hatchet is a powerful weapon, and its melee attacks are quite lethal regardless of whether you sneak up on an enemy or attack outright. Killing an alerted enemy with a hatchet is a combat takedown. For every 10 kills you achieve in this manner, you increase your health-regeneration rate by 10%. Max out this Perk at 50 combat takedowns to increase this rate to half again as much as it was originally. This Perk is definitely worth the effort—you need all the health you can get.

|| Dual-Wield Kills

Requirement: Kill enemies while dual-wielding weapons.

Reward: Increased number of ammo rounds from weapons dropped by enemies.

Once you’re able to use two firearms at the same time, you can perform duel-wield kills. To do this, have both weapons out when you dispatch an enemy. For every 50 enemies killed in this manner, you increase the amount of ammunition dropped by enemies by one round, up to an increase of five rounds when you max this Perk at 250 dual-wield kills.

|| Heavy Weapon Kills

Requirement: Kill enemies using heavy weapons.

Reward: Increased magazine size in detached heavy weapons.

You can pick up heavy weapons from defeated enemies. These include the Lasergewehr, Dieselgewehr, Hammergewehr, and Übergewehr. You can also detach these weapons from turrets. For every 20 enemies you kill using one of these heavy weapons, you increase the weapons’ magazine size by 20%. If you kill 100 enemies following these rules, you double the magazine size. Pretty handy!

Note that kills made using your Dieselkraftwerk/Laserkraftwerk don’t count toward this Perk’s criteria, and neither of these weapons benefits from the Heavy Weapon Kills Perk.

|| Overcharged Kills

Requirement: Kill enemies while health is overcharged.

Reward: Reduced rate of deflation on health overcharge.

If you pick up enough first-aid kits, you can increase your health up to twice its normal capacity. However, this extra health, called “overcharge,” drains away over a short period of time. Kill enemies while your health is overcharged to unlock this lifesaving Perk. For every 10 such kills you make, you decrease the rate at which your health overcharge deflates by 20%.

|| Grenade Kills

Requirement: Kill enemies using Handgranate.

Reward: Increased grenade capacity.

You can carry three Handgranate at the start. By killing enemies with your grenades, you increase this number. You add one Handgranate to your capacity for every 25 enemies you kill in this way. Max out this Perk at 125 grenade kills to net yourself a capacity of eight Handgranate.

|| Ram Shackles Kills

Requirement: Kill enemies by tackling them with the Ram Shackles ability. (Must have chosen the Ram Shackles contraption.)

Reward: Increased amount of armor from armor pieces dropped by enemies.

This Perk can only be unlocked by choosing the Ram Shackles contraption. This device gives you the ability to kill enemies by tackling them while sprinting. For every 10 enemies killed this way, you increase the amount of armor you get when picking up armor dropped by defeated enemies by 10%.

Tactical Perks

While rushing in with guns blazing can be effective, looking for other advantages or opportunities helps you earn these Tactical Perks.

|| Headshot Kills

Requirement: Kill enemies by shooting them in the head.

Reward: Increased damage dealt when aiming down sights.

To get a headshot kill, you must hit an enemy in the head with the first shot you fire at that enemy. If your first shot lands anywhere else on the body, the kill doesn’t count as a headshot, even if you hit the head on a subsequent shot. For every 50 headshot kills you make, you increase the damage you inflict when aiming down the sights of your weapon by 5%.

|| Kills by Burning

Requirement: Kill enemies with flame weapons.

Reward: Reduced damage taken from diesel weapons.

This Perk rewards you for using flame weapons such as the Dieselgewehr and Dieselkraftwerk. For every 10 enemies killed by the flames, you decrease the amount of damage you take from diesel weapons by 10%.

|| Environment Kills

Requirement: Kill enemies utilizing explosive objects inthe area.

Reward: Reduced damage taken from explosives.

In some levels you find explosive objects such as fuel tanks. Shooting them causes them to blow up, potentially eliminating nearby enemies. Kill 10 enemies this way to reduce the damage you take from explosives by 10%. Max out this Perk to cut damage from explosives in half.

|| Electro Stun Kills

Requirement: Stun mechanical enemies with electricity, then destroy them while they’re incapacitated.

Reward: Reduced damage taken from laser weapons.

Once you add the Electric Upgrade to your Handgranate, you can stun robotic enemies. For every five robots you destroy while they’re incapacitated, you reduce the amount of damage you take from laser weapons by 10%.

Mayhem Perks

|| Enemy Grenade Kills

Requirement: Kill enemies with their own grenades.

Reward: Increased time before enemy grenades explode.

When an enemy lobs a grenade at you, you have a short amount of time in which to pick it up and toss it back before it detonates. Or shoot the grenade in your enemy’s hand before it’s thrown, so it blows up and inflicts damage on nearby enemies; this also counts toward the Perk’s criteria. Kill 10 enemies using these methods to increase the time before enemy grenades explode by 0.25 seconds. Kill 50 enemies to max out this Perk, giving you an extra 1.5 seconds in which to act. It might not seem like a long time, but every bit helps!

|| Battle Walkers Kills

Requirement: Kill enemies while using the Battle Walkers ability. (Must have chosen the Battle Walkers contraption.)

Reward: Increased amount of ammo from weapons dropped by enemies.

This Perk can only be unlocked if you have the Battle Walkers contraption. While this device is activated, you can perform melee attacks from the Battle Walkers' elevated position. Kill 20 enemies while using the Battle Walkers ability to increase the amount of ammo you pick up from dead enemies by 10%. Complete 100 of these kills to get half again as much dropped ammo as you were able to grab when you started the Campaign.

Contraption Abilities

Later in the game, you gain access to contraptions. Out of three options, you must choose one. Each provides unique special abilities, so read ahead to determine which one best suits your playstyle.

As with Perks, contraption abilities are categorized by type: Stealth, Mayhem, and Tactical. Each contraption is designated as one of these types. When you choose your contraption, you unlock its full column of abilities—with the exception of the final ability, which must be unlocked by completing missions aboard Evas Hammer.

Constrictor Harness

Stealth

Upon activation, the Constrictor Harness compresses your torso, allowing you to enter narrow spaces. Keep in mind that using the Harness prevents you from breathing properly. Prolonged use causes damage and eventual death due to lack of oxygen. The Constrictor Harness activates automatically when applicable, as long as you’re moving in a crouch.

Abilities

Ram Shackles

Mayhem

The Ram Shackles is a metal reinforcement rig that protects your upper-body joints: elbows and shoulders. It allows you to ram through obstacles, smash open doors and crates, and pummel your enemies. It activates when you’re sprinting.

Abilities

Battle Walkers

Tactical

This mechanical actuator system is mounted on your legs and activated on demand. Once it’s activated, mechanical supports extend, allowing you to access new areas, vertical cover, and other tactically advantageous positions. When extended, the indestructible mechanical supports provide good protection against mines and area-denial grenades, and allow you to perform melee attacks from an elevated position. Double-press the Jump button to activate the Battle Walkers.

Abilities