Overview
In this guide, I will be going over the basics and a bit more for any player out there who wants a few tips and tricks to playing this amazing game. Hopefully you will notice a definite improvement in your survival abilities.
Characters, Short n’ Sweet
First of all, there is absolutely no difference between the characters that will give one an advantage or disadvantage during gameplay, so don’t worry about who you end up playing. Seriously, don’t complain about who your character is, just make yourself an asset to the team no matter who you are.
Enemies: Who to Shoot First
The majority of the aliens are what are called Drones, the humanoid things with the shiny orange blob on their forhead. These are not dangerous on their own, but don’t let them group up and surround you or one of your teammates, thats when things get dicy.
One of the more annoying drones are the spitters. A toxic green, they stand out in the crowd, and you should definitely watch your surroundings for them during a fight, getting hit by a flying glob of toxic snot can be the difference between life and death. Their brains don’t really stand out, but shoot at where you’d expect the head to be and you’ll likely hit it.
The next most common enemy is the Sapper, with big green heads, they’re pretty easy to see coming. When killed with guns or melee weapons, they explode into a cloud of green, toxic gas that will do some serious damage if you’re not carefull. If you kill it with fire (i.e. napalm grenade or Flamethrower) they will not explode. Be sure not to make them explode in a crucial escape route, or in enclosed spaces if you can avoid it.
Another enemy to watch out for is the Thresher. It crawls on the ground and pounces on you, pinning you to the ground and pounding you with its claws. DEFINITELY SHOOT THIS THING. If it pins one of your teammates, I recommend meleeing it off first (the “Q” key by default) then shooting it, to avoid hitting your teammate.
This next one is a real pain in the neck. The Whiplash, or giraffe, as some people call it, is an alien that runs on all fours and has an elongated neck, making it easy to pick out of a crowd. Again, DEFINITELY SHOOT THIS THING. Like the Thresher, it will pin you and deal damage to you periodically, but it will also carry you to an out of the way corner to make saving you harder. Shoot this one with your main gun to kill it quickly.
Another pain in the neck is the Enrager, this floating blob that sounds like a ship’s horn when it roars. You can see the “enragement waves” emanating from it. These waves will enrage drones caught in them, and they will hunt you down. Killing the enrager takes top priority, because you’ll likely have your hands full with enough drones already before he shows up. Enraged drones will explode when killed, doing a sizable amount of damage, so take them out at a distance, not with melee weapons.
Next, the Beast. You can’t really miss this guy unless you’re blind. As soon as he shows up, your team should split up until he settles on a target. Then the other three nail him in the back (the glowy orange part) for maximum damage. Pull out your main guns and NAIL THIS GUY. He is a serious threat no matter how good you and/or your teammates are. He. Must. Die.
Finally, the Blackout. Quite the challenge on intense and overwhelming difficulties, the blackout is the newest “boss” enemy in the game. with three shields slowly spinning around it (these are destructible) the blackout is fairly hard to hit. Not only that, after a certain amount of time in one spot, it will move to a new location at blazing speed and resets its shields. If you are in its way while it moves, you will be temporarily stunned and unable to see or act. So far the best strategy I have is to throw grenades beneath its shield (arc or frags) and spray at its head. Automatic weapoons are your friend with this guy. Not only do you have to avoid being stunned, but it will periodically shoot out bursts of blue projectiles (3 per player I believe). The projectiles do not home in on you, but the blackout does lead its shots, so be sure to strafe before it shoots. Do not ignore the blackout for any length of time, unless its to take care of an enrager.
Headshots, Headshots, Headshots
Always aim for a critical hit. On the Drones, thats the orange glowy thing on their forheads. The Beasts have a critical hit space on their backs. For all other specials (Whiplashes, Threshers, Sappers) Just shoot them and do NOT miss. I recommend a pistol for the sapper since it’s such a large target and it’s relatively harmless if you know what you’re doing.
Weapons & Ammo
*SW22-This is your starting weapon, fairly accurate, not the best damage, so headshots are you’re go to. Picking up another SW22 while you still have one will allow you to dual wield, at the
cost of some accuracy. Infinite ammo, 15 rounds per clip (30 when dual wielded).
*Vendetta-The only other handgun in the game. It does about the same damage as a Glintek
sniper rifle, as close as I can figure, making it much more useful than the SW22. This weapon can
also be dual wielded. Infinite ammo, however, it only has 8 rounds per clip (16 when dual wielded).
*Berg 930, Shotgun-This shotgun can one-shot a Sapper and drones, Whiplashes and Threshers
take 2-3 shots (All of this is l=only if you get direct hits You get 10 shots in a clip, and 50 extra
shots for a total of 60. Save this for specials or Swarms. Can be refilled at an ammo box, and can
be printed at certain 3D printers.
*EF18, Shotgun-This shotgun one-shots drones and Sappers and takes roughly two shots for
everything else except Beasts. 14 Shots per clip, with 56 extra shots for a total of 70. Save for
Swarms and specials. Can be refilled at an ammo box, and can be printed at certain 3D printers.
*AK67, Assault Rifle-Fully automatic, decent damge, aim for the head. Can be refilled at an ammo
box, and can be printed at certain 3D printers. 40 shots per clip, with an extra 160 shots.
*AK47, Assualt Rifle-Classic Ak47, great damage, but still aim for the head. Saving ammo for
Beasts/Specials is recommended. Can be refilled at ammo box. 40 shots per clip, with an extra
160 shots.
*Combat CVA Rifle, Assault Rifle-Burst fire of 3 shots, good for medium range sniping, save ammo
for swarms or specials. Can be refilled at an ammo box, and can be printed at certain 3D printers.
*Glintek, Sniper Rifle-Excellent long range weapon (although its hip fire is also really accurate. Save
for Specials. Can be refilled at an ammo box. 20 shots per clip, with an extra 80 shots.
*MP5, SMG-Good accuracy, great for headshots, save for swarms or specials. Can be refilled at an
ammo box, and can be printed at certain 3D printers. 60 shots per clip, with an extra 300 shots.
*Grenades-There are frags, napalms, and land mines (proximity based), all best used for Swarms
or Beasts. Cannoot be refilled at an ammo box.
*Harbinger, Minigun-Only 300 rounds, cannot be refilled, save for Beast or when your team is in
danger of all going down.
*Reaper, Flamethrower-Only 160 fuel, cannot be refilled, save for Beast or when your team is in
danger of all going down.
Objectives
Like other games of its genre, the enemies in Earthfall will respawn indefinitely. That means that you always need to be moving towards the objective. Dont stop to pick off a few random drones because you can. A swarm or special could hit your team and decimate you at any time. Never stick in one spot too long, keep your head on a swivel, and your eyes on the prize.
Conclusion
Thank you for reading my guide, if you have any recommendations for new sections, I’m all ears. Tell me in the comments and then we can strike up a conversation once I see it and think it worth while. Remember to stick together, try your best, but above all, have fun!