Getting Started in Angels Fall First

Overview

Angels Fall First can be a little overwhelming at first. This guide will help cover the basics and get you comfortable enough to fully understand and enjoy the experience.

Introduction

Angels Fall First is different from most online experiences in several ways. At the time of writing this the game does not yet have an in game tutorial (devs are working on it). This guide will walk you through some of the basics and offer some tips on areas of the game where many new players get confused. I will also post some video tutorials in here on some subjects and links to more in depth guides on subjects as I discover them.

In general, Angels Fall First (or AFF) is a mixed unit shooter that takes place in space and on the ground. There are currently two game modes (Territories and Incursion) and two factions (AIA and ULA). While the game is designed primarily to be played in multiplayer, it has very robust bot support and can be played as a locally hosted singleplayer experience.

Time to kill is generally higher than a lot of FPS games. This is by design. Time to kill also varies widely depending on which type of armor or vehicle you use. Typically the faster you move, the less armor/health you have. It takes some time to get used to, but it is quite balanced and caters to a lot of different play styles.

Infantry and Vehicle Loadouts and Progression

The progression system of Angels Fall First is a little different from other online shooters. When you start the game, all equipment is unlocked so you have access to everything. However, there is a budget system that determines how much of that equipment you can use at one time on any suit or vehicle. You can watch the video I made and/or read this section.

First off, as you play the game, you level up three fields:

Command: is earned by completing objectives you have been ordered or by people following orders you have given them.
Support: is earned primarily by actions like reviving,healing or resupplying ammo to other players.
Combat: is earned by damaging other players or their vehicles.

As you earn points in these fields, they rank up and each rank adds to your budget in that field. Each piece of equipment requires a certain amount of budget points in one or more of these fields to equip. So ranking up each field allows more flexibility in how you put together a loadout.

If you are new to the game and don’t want to bother with loadouts quite yet you can download and install this Customized Loadout INI File[www.dropbox.com] and use the loadouts I have crafted. They aren’t the best, but they should be better than the default options and get you started. Read the instructions in the zip file before installing it as it will replace all of your fittings.

If you are comfortable making your own fittings and want to better understand your options I recommend checking out this Weapon Overview Guide.

Tips:

Try out the default infantry fittings for a while and adapt them to your play style as you progress.
Each Faction has weapons only available to that faction. There are also Non Faction weapons which either side can equip.
Three main roles you will likely fill will be “Attacking Objectives”, “Defending Objectives” and “Anti-Vehicle” activities. Having one of each of these and perhaps a “General Purpose” fitting will serve most of your infantry needs.
Early game, you have a very limited budget. You can create loadouts with only one primary weapon and pick up a second during a match from killed players. This allows you to put budget points in other areas (like suit upgrades or weapon attachments).
Many pieces of equipment (such as suit and weapon mods) are balanced with advantages and disadvantages. Read their descriptions and know that sometimes less is more.
It is a good idea to make an equivalent loadout for both factions as you will not always play on the same side.
Currently, vehicle loadouts are not very well set up, so I recommend going through and giving them basic equipment. This is especially important for space maps since you will mostly be using these ships.
Check all the options in each loadout tab as there are a lot. For example, there are multiple types of grenades as well as a remote detonator in your infantry explosives slot.
Most weapons can hold different types of ammo with their own strengths and weaknesses.
If at any time you want to restore your default loadouts, you can just delete the AFFLoadout.ini file in your game folder. Though be warned, this will make your recreate all of your fittings again.
When you max out your rank in Command, Support and Combat you will get the option to reset them all to 1 and let you start over the process again. Each time you do this you will unlock a new camo pattern.

Chain of Command and Communication

Angels Fall First has a slightly more complex chain of command than similar games and understanding how it works is important. You can watch the video I made and/or read this section.

Player Commander/Milnet:
One player per team can be voted in as Commander or if no one opts in the AI Milnet will take the role. Commander is primarily responsible for giving orders to Squad Leaders. Either by using the command wheel (default “C”) or in the tacmap (much easier). Commanders are also given special powers as a match progresses and depending on the map type. If you are a Commander you should see a pop-up in game letting you know you can use it in the tacmap.

In the tacmap on the right you should see a list of your team’s Squad Leaders. it will cycle between their name and their current objective. You can click on their name to highlight one or more Squad leader, then click on anywhere in the map to send an order for them to attack/defend or move to that location.
You can also select one or more Squad leaders and press CTRL+[a number] to save that group of Squads. So for example if there are 6 squads you could group them into 3 groups of 2 squads each and quickly re-select them by pressing 1-3 to send new orders.

Squad Leaders:
Squad Leaders have the power to set orders as well. As squad lead, you can either use the “C” command menu to order your team to Freelance (which passes along any orders from the commander) or give them orders yourself. You can even use the Tacmap to micromanage your squad and send individuals on separate orders.

All Players:
If you are just a squad member, you still have options to communicate. You can use the command wheel to ask for new orders if an objective is completed. You can target enemies to spot them for other players. You can also use the communication wheel (default B) to give various call outs. The most commonly used are asking for a revive, medic or ammo. If you use the call out system an icon will appear over your head letting nearby players know who needs assistance. Bots will also sometimes respond to these requests!

Tips:

The game will place human players as squad lead until all squad lead roles are filled, so it is good to understand how this all works. If you don’t want to be squad lead, you can join another squad.
The AI is generally much better at following orders than humans, and not all human Squad Leaders know how to pass down orders, so leading human teams can be more of a challenge.
Don’t be afraid to communicate tactics in team or squad chat. Especially if you are commander and have abilities to use. Giving your team a heads up to prepare for an opening can make a big difference.
“T” opens chat to all players, “U” opens chat to just your team and “I” opens up chat to just your squad.
Being Commander is more of a part time job, you should regularly check in to make sure everyone has a task, but otherwise join the fight with everyone else.

Space Matches

Matches that take place in space are typically the most difficult for players to get comfortable in. There is a lot going on and it is easy to get lost or feel like you aren’t doing well if you aren’t prepared.

Loadouts:
First thing you want to do is go through the loadouts of all space ships (including larger reward ships) and make sure they have the basics. You want to prioritize having a main gun, countermeasures, missiles, ship mods and mines (likely in that order). I also recommend putting a range improving mod on your primary weapon once you can fit it, as space combat tends to happen at longer ranges.

Map:
On your tacmap in the lower center and lower right, you can switch between different sections of the map. This is very important to understand as space maps take place both in space with ships and inside ships (and sometimes stations) as infantry. You will occasionally need to navigate the tacmap to change where you spawn in depending on what is happening. You may want to spawn on an enemy battleship to destroy it from within or board a space station to capture or defend and objective.

Battleships:
Each team can have one battleship at a time on the map. These are large reward ships that can do a lot of damage and also serve as a mobile platform for launching ships. However they are valuable targets and can be taken out quickly if you aren’t careful. Battleships have large interiors and can be boarded by the enemy with dropships and destroyed from within.

Dropships:
Dropships can be deployed from most hangars and used to place spawnpoints for your team on enemy battleships or space stations. The main section of the ship has seats for a pilot and two side gunners. The rear of the ship is a Drop Pod which detatches from the dropship and remains in place as a spawnpoint. Two important things to note. The drop pod spawn point can be destroyed by enemy fire (requiring it to be defended and/or replaced). When you deploy a drop pod you can return to a resupply location and get a new one attached to your dropship (allowing you to repeatedly deploy Drop Pods with the same ship).

Capital Ships:
In addition to battleship you can be offered several other ships (similar to how ground maps offer vehicles). While powerful in their own right, the strongest tactic is to combine forces. An organized team will attempt to create a fleet of Capital ships close together to defend each other and melt outnumbered enemy Capital ships quickly. This is why taking out enemy Capital ships quickly is very important. These larger ships turn much slower than fighters so it can be difficult to keep an eye on your surroundings. Hold Alt while moving your mouse to enter freelook mode.

Dogfighting:
Combat in space maps will primarily involve dogfighting in various ships. There are a few general tips I have for you.

Default middle mouse button toggles between gravity assist and Newtonian flight modes. Newtonian flight mode continues your flight path in the direction you use thrust regardless of where you aim after (and you don’t slow down). Try out both modes and learn how to take advantage of them. Experienced pilots will switch between both modes frequently depending on the situation.
Guns generally benefit from increased range, while missiles generally benefit from faster tracking.
Like infantry suits, choose the fighter type that matches your play style. Lighter ships are more maneuverable and better suited to players with faster reflexes.
Mines can be placed on objectives as you capture them to deter enemy fighters attempting to recapture it. You can also fly very close to a capital ship and deploy them as they will home in and do some damage.
Check the max range of each weapon in the stats to get an idea of how close you need to get to an enemy to engage them. For example torpedos on a bomber have a max range of 5km. You can get to just within that range and launch them at a static target far more safely than flying right up to it.

Boarding

You can use a dropship to board enemy battleships or space stations in some maps. Here is a walkthrough video and some quick tips:

I may be incorrect in the video on the number of dropships each team can have deployed at once (and it may vary per map).
Dropships are high priority targets so whenever possible defend yours and attack your opponents.
Consider using “Y” team chat to let your team know if you are planning on doing a boarding run so that they can provide cover.
You can rearm your dropship and get a new drop pod at any resupply location. This is faster than waiting for a new dropship to respawn.
Drop pods are physical objects which can be destroyed (either from space or on ground). Defend your pods to maintain the spawn point.

Using the Tacmap and Vehicle Acquisition

Navigating some maps can be confusing for new players. The Tacmap shows a transparent 3D map of the game space, but in some situations the game space can be split up into several separate locations. Often the only (or primary) way to reach these locations is to redeploy and navigate the Tacmap. In the lower center you can scroll left or right through the options, or on the lower left there is a Location key which will show all locations. I’ve made a video to help explain and walk you through the steps.

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In both space and ground matches most maps allow special vehicles to spawn in and take part in the battle. As you play, you will likely be offered a vehicle during a match. This will help you better understand how that process works.

Vehicle offers are tied to your score, so the better you do, the more offers you will get.
If you decline a vehicle offer it will speed up and increase the chance you will be offered a better vehicle.
Each special vehicle is limited to how many can be on the map at one time. So if someone on your team is flying a gunship and only one per team is allowed on the map at a time, no one else will be offered a gunship until that one is destroyed.
Destroyed vehicles will dock a percentage of progress from your team if destroyed. So sometimes it is wise to decline a vehicle if you don’t need it or don’t think it will offer your team an advantage at that time.
You have 60 seconds to accept or decline a vehicle when it is offered. Use this time to complete a task or do a suicide run, as accepting a vehicle will force you to respawn anyway.

Incursion Matches

Incursion matches involve one team attacking and another defending a series of objectives over several stages. If the defending team successfully defends the current objectives for the set time (regardless of stage) they win.

Generally the earlier stages are easier to capture and the final stage is easier to defend.
Attacking team typically also has to capture a set of drop pod locations to move their spawns further up and closer to the next set of objectives. If the defending team destroys these drop pods the attackers will no lose their spawn points (and likely the match).
Space Incursion matches typically take place in separate areas of the map, requiring you to navigate the Tacmap and keep track of where you should spawn in as stages progress (see space matches section).
Attacking objectives in Incursion can be a real challenge, especially for the final objective. The entire opponent team will be guarding a single location so it will be very well defended. Utilize area effect weapons like grenades and MNL to soften targets. Use smoke to either give cover for your team to advance or directly on the objective to cause confusion.
If you are commander and attacking, order your team to gather behind cover away from an objective until you reach an acceptable threshold of the team spawned in and together, then order them to attack. If you don’t do this your team will spawn in and attack objectives in small numbers allowing defenders to easily pick you off.
If you are defending, make full use of deployables like medpacks, ammo crates, shields and turrets as you will primarily be holding stationary positions.

Territory Matches

Territory matches involve capturing and holding as many objectives on the map as possible and preventing your opponent from doing the same. It’s a very straight forward game mode.

If you are new, I suggest lone wolfing objectives where you do not see action. generally you will see on the map enemy objectives with no ally team members nearby and lots of blips from both teams in another section of the map as most players tend to rush to the action. Go for the objectives with no action and you should meet little to no resistance.
Alternately, go to undefended objectives your team owns and expect to encounter enemy lone wolves or squads doing the same.
Alternately, run a support fitting and drop ammo, medkits where there is a lot of action. especially if there is an objective that flips sides often or a choke point.
If you are a squad lead, set your squad to follow you and move slowly so that they stay close to you. Attack objectives with your squad.
Some Territory maps have secondary objectives to deploy a drop pod, giving you or the enemy an additional spawn point closer to the action. Holding these gives you a big advantage so consider them a highly valuable target. If the enemy captures it, destroy it ASAP.

General Tips

Here are some general tips that might help in any game mode:

Time to Kill is fairly high and headshots do more damage, so take the time to aim for the head.
You can lean (default Q and E) around cover. Most players don’t use it but it can offer cover if you are firing at a distant target from a stationary position.
Be sure to check the controls in the game menu and change them to your liking.
Use the multitool to revive players and restore their armor. Use a medkit to restore health to an injured player.
Hardpoint ammo has the ability to penetrate some surfaces (and sometimes players). So don’t worry, shooting through walls is literally part of the game 🙂
Smoke grenades and smoke underbarrel rockets are very powerful tools. They will effectively blind AI and make vision very difficult for players. placing smoke between you and the enemy will give you considerable cover when trying to advance or hack an objective.
You can pick up weapons from fallen enemies and team mates. Early game it might be worth creating loadouts with only one primary weapon and picking up the second during the match. This will allow more budget flexibility and let you try out different weapons and configurations. It can also be useful if someone drops an AV weapon and there is an enemy vehicle causing trouble.
Grenades come in multiple formats and can often hold two types of explosive (or doubled for extra effect). Learn your options and see what works for you, or what works best for certain scenarios.
Each weapon in your loadout can only be resupplied a certain number of times, so eventually ammo crates will be ineffective. The easiest example is grenades. You start of carrying default 2 grenades, you can only be resupplied 2 more before you need to redeploy to get more.
Your kill:death ratio isn’t tracked beyond individual matches. Depending on how quickly respawn time is and how far away your spawn point is to the action, death can be a tactical action.
You level up Command, Support and Combat points in single player matches you host on your computer. Don’t be afraid to practice against less difficult bots or try out the Commander mode. Or max out the bot difficulty and have a good time.

Angels Fall First Guide