Xcom 2 Ranger Abilities
The Ranger class, the equivalent of the Assault one from the first XCOM, is a class focusing mainly on close combat, in which the ability to use shotguns (and the. Ranger: Primary: Rifle(default), SMG or Shotgun; Secondary: Sawed-off Shotgun The Ranger class is focused towards operating at medium range with guns (and is quite unlike the vanilla Ranger class, which has been split in to the Shinobi and Assault classes). Their signature ability is to be able to take standard shots without ending turn. The Ranger is the close ranger soldier in XCOM 2. They use a Shotgun as their primary, and a Sword as their secondary weapon. Abilities. The Ranger starts with the Slash ability, allowing them.
hi all, I was thinking of doing an analysis on how to choose which ability is best at each rank for each class. now Im not going to say which is the best choice since each ability has it's moment and all we know is based off the beta information so it may change. but I will explain what I believe you should think about going into your decisions. this will be some what of a guide but I'm no expert so feed back to help me grow and learn from your points of views is greatly appreciated.
also thanks to ChristopherOdd on youtube, we have a full view of how each ability works. here is a link to that series. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLj_Goi54wf0diul-tKNrfbtzLD6x5JeEi
Also remember that this new game now has an ability to reset your abilities, so something may be good for early game while the other is for late game and its ok to switch in the middle of the game for this situation.
so for this post i'll start with the ranger class. the way I see this class is the melee up close and personal type of scout. high damage and high hit chance when your in very close range.
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Phantom vs Blademaster
Xcom 2 Ability Grid
Phantom - When the squad is revealed, this soldier remains concealed.
Blademaster - Deal +2 extra damage on all sword attacks.
so with phantom what this means is that during the concealment phase, your solider will not be participating in the ambush attacks since they will stay concealed. As such, this unit will be a forward scout allowing you to see what the enemy is doing ahead of time. but the problem becomes is that this unit does not do anything else during the time it is concealed. In the early game I dont feel this is valuable enough since you only get 4 soldiers and you'll need all that fire power early in the game. late game I can see it being useful since having 1 unit out isnt too big of a deal. Though this ability does make it very valuable for missions where you do not get a concealment phase, since this unit will start the game off concealed in this mode allowing you to run ahead of the team to search for the enemy.
Blademaster on the other hand simply gives you +2 damage on sword attacks which could make the difference between an enemy surviving with 1-2 hp to a guarantee kill. though if you do not plan to using this unit's blade attacks at all, this ability becomes useless and pointless. This ability does combo well with untouchable and reaper since you require to kill the target for those abilities to trigger.
so the choice here will be if you want a forward scout to make sure where you're going is safe and you dont mind having a unit not dishing out damage during the early bits of the battle, than go for phantom, or if you prefer to use your high damage blade to take out enemies and give you a better chance of a 1 shot kill, than blade master is your choice.
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ShadowStrike vs ShadowStep
ShadowStrike - When Concealed, Gain +25 bonus aim and +25 Bonus Critical hit chance when attacking enemies
ShadowStep - This soldier does not trigger overwatch or reaction fire.
ShadowStrike is a very solid choice, it'll work in every scenario except for the missions where you do not get a concealment phase unless you have the phantom ability. so if you dont take shadowstep then this is a very solid choice. also it does combo well with concealment. though remember that this ability only helps when you are in concealment thus you will only get 1-2 uses out of it per mission unless we get an item/armor that allows units to go into concealment later on down the road.
Shadowstep is like the new Lighting reflexes, except this ability simply does not trigger them. meaning if this unit runs passed an enemy who is on overwatch or has reaction shots, the enemy unit will just not trigger it. thus all other teammates must becareful about this. making this ability only useful to the user, not the team. also with the new mechanic of overwatching being able to be cancelled with damage, this ability isnt as useful as it used to be. Especially since we now have classes that can do guarantee damage such as the specialist with combat protocol or grenadiers with explosives/hail of bullets, or even anyone using a stock on their weapon. though it does mean that the ranger could get up and close to get the job done if need be.
on this rank, I would say both choices are very niche, shadowstrike is only helpful 1-2 times per mission depending on how often you can get back into concealment. and shadowstep really doesnt help the team out unless you can get the ranger up close and hit the enemy that is causing our team a headache. though if later down the road there is a way for rangers to constantly get back into concealment with a utility item or armor, than shadowstrike is the more superior ability in my opinion.
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Conceal vs Run and Gun
Conceal - Immediately enter concealment once per mission
Run and Gun - Take an action after dashing (3 turn cooldown)
so conceal allows you to get back into concealment after you've been revealed. I can see this being used in 3 ways. 1. you conceal yourself after you finish dealing with your current pod and thus make this unit your pointman again to hunt down the next one. once you find them, you can than set up an ambush with the rest of your team by putting them at the edge of their sight and putting them on overwatch and attacking with your ranger. or 2. simply just go into concealment just to get the bonuses from shadowstrike to hit an enemy with almost guarantee precision. or 3. go into concealment to avoid being targeted by the enemy but I find that this would be a waste since hunker down could probably do a better job at this. also take into consideration that if you use conceal while in the enemy's detection range, you wont be able to move since they'll see you and you'll be unconcealed immediately.
Run and gun is another solid pick which can be used in pretty much all situations. the ability to take both movements and shoot afterwards is just extremely useful allowing more options.
the choice here I find is easy with run and gun being the default. I'd choose conceal if I was going for a shadowstrike build or if I can deal with pods quickly before the next one walks within our battle. but in majority of the cases I'd find run and gun to be the better choice.
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Implacable vs Bladestorm
Implacable - If you score one or more kills on your turn, you are granted a single bonus move.
Bladestorm - Free sword attacks on enemies that enter or attack from melee range.
Implacable is an interesting ability, it basically allows you to do hit and run tactics. since the ranger is a close range unit, chances are you want to get him as close as possible to the target to inflict as much damage possible with the highest hit chance. Though usually when you do this, you put the ranger at risk of being vulnerable to enemy attacks. so this ability helps negate this issue. though with careful planning and liberal use of explosives, this shouldnt be too much of a factor.
bladestorm is the new close and personal, but its nerfed a bit. instead of using your shotgun when enemies get too close, you now use your sword if they get right up to your face. so you'd have to manuver this unit into choke points where the enemy has to run pass you in order to get into good position. this does wonders against enemies who only have melee attacks such as berserkers, faceless or chryssalids.
in this rank I feel implacable is the default ability to get since being able to reposition yourself after a kill is huge, you can flank an enemy and put yourself in a better position afterwards. I do like bladestorm a lot as well but it is very situational. I would make a few rangers to be melee oriented specificly for maps were you know you'll be fighting those melee enemy units.
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Deep Cover vs Untouchable
Deep Cover - If you did not attack this turn, hunker down automatically.
Untouchable - If you score a kill during your turn, the next attack against you during the enemy turn will miss.
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Deep cover may not seem too impressive at first but if you think about it, it is triggered by a few things. you can trigger it by using both actions to dash into a good position to hit the enemy hard. you can trigger it by overwatching allowing you to get into solid defensive position while pinning down the enemy reducing their options. or you can use it to reload to help get ready for the fight next turn while still being very safe.
Untouchable is another great skill as well though since it allows you to miss any attack (including explosives) after you've scored a kill that turn. though this only applies to the next attack so if you have multiple targets hitting you, than you will only miss the first one. again we spoke about how the ranger is going to want to get up and close to their target and kill them but it might leave them exposed, this is a great way to counter this as long as there arent many enemy units to target you the next turn.
in this rank I think i'd take deep cover if I already had implacable since implacable and untouchable combined is a bit overkill in my opinion. though I do feel untouchable is a stronger ability than deep cover since the ranger would want to kill more than doing anything else. but deep cover would be great for a forward point man that dashes often and scouts out for new targets. the hunker bonus will help the unit survive any attacks if he does find new pods.
Xcom 2 Ranger Skills
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Rapid Fire vs Reaper
Rapid Fire - Fire twice in a row at an enemy. Each shot suffers an Aim penalty of -15. There is no cooldown on this ability
Reaper - A devastating chain melee attack where the first melee attack cannot miss. Each melee kill in Reaper mode grants an extra action, but further melee attacks deal reduced damage. (4 turn cooldown)
Rapid fire is a returning ability but this time it has no cooldown. Though even without a cooldown, it still consumes 2 ammo thus you will run out of ammo quickly and will require reloads fairly often, but an auto loader or extended mags will help with this dilemma. with the -15 aim penalty, you'll want to get as close as possible to negate this effect, or equip aim boosting items. the ranger class isnt very known for high accuracy stats so this may be a challenge.
Reaper is more of a finisher ability. due to it's 4 turn cooldown and requiring the enemy to die, I would say it is best to weaken all the enemies with the rest of your team and once they are low enough, you can go in and clean up with your ranger. especially since the ability gets weaker with each kill you do, you'll want the enemies to be as low as possible and start with the highest health target first and work your way down. also it is highly suggested that you pick up the blademaster ability if you plan to use reaper to further increase the potential kills you can get. also take note that attachments on your gun will not apply to the melee strikes.
so really on this rank its all about how you built your ranger, if it was melee focused, go for reaper. if it was shotgun focused than rapid fire makes a better choice.
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so this is the end of the first class, i'll be posting another one tomorrow about the grenadier class. so please send in the feedback and lets all theory craft and learn together on how to build the perfect soldier for our needs and play style.