Evolve Assault Unlock Priorities Guide

Evolve Assault Unlock Priorities Guide by TomsMeatPlatter

If you’re here, chances are you are new to Evolve and new to playing Assault! With the new unlock system it can be quite a grind to unlock just a couple of characters. Now nothing is more frustrating than spending all those Silver Keys to unlock an Assault you play twice and then learn, just isn’t your style or doesn’t really help your team.

I’ve put together a list of what I believe is the best Assaults for newbies and what order you should unlock them in, so you can get a basic idea of it before you spend your hard earned Silver Keys.

The Goal of a Good Assault

There are a couple of different factors I use in Ranking the Assaults in this guide.

• DPS Threat
• DPS Potential
• Relative Ease of Use
• Ability to Draw Monster Focus
• Skill Floor and Skill Ceiling

While all of these factors play a part in Ranking the Assaults, I weighted Skill Floor and Skill Ceiling as well as Relative Ease of Use when making these Rankings. This of course is just my opinion having played this game for quite a while, but some people may be better at more advanced characters than others. You’re mileage may vary.

Rankings

1. Hyde

• Good Overall Assault with Utility
  • DPS
  • Area Control
• Flamethrower is forgiving and has surprising Range
• Minigun gives Hyde Long Range capabilities
• Toxic Grenade is fantastic for Area Denial or Punishing a body camper
• Relatively easy to stack Flamethrower, Flame DOT and Toxic Grenade DOT once timing is learned.

Overall Hyde has a lower Skill Floor and a Moderate Skill Ceiling so I like him for newbies. Even if they only use the flamethrower they will get both the Damage from the Flamethrower and the Flame DOT as well.

2. Markov

• Lightning Gun ( LG ) is auto lock-on with decent range.
• Assault Rifle ( AR ) is more accurate at Range than Hyde’s Minigun but has a smaller magazine.
• Arc Mines are good passive Area Denial (set & forget).

Overall, Markov has a Lower Skill Floor and Medium Skill Ceiling. With Markov slow and steady wins the race. Against Mobile or Airborne targets the LG is very useful, but can be out damaged by the AR provided you have the accuracy. Arc Mines can be good, but are often easily countered by even mediocre Monster Players and are almost useless against the Kraken.

3. Parnell

• Combat Shotgun and Multifire Rocket Launcher have good Long range and Short range compliment.
• Super Soldier ( SS ) is key for burst damage and can be used in pursuit of Monster.
• Positioning is very important for the character.

Overall Parnell has a higher Skill Floor and higher Skill Ceiling. This is the first character where newbies have to really watch positioning in combat. Shotgun has more range than expected and SS can be wasted if not activated while in good position. Can Evolve Punish and Body Camp Punish like nobodies business.

4. Lennox

• Closest Range Assault
• Plasma Lance has good Range
• She cannot be tumbled because of her Thunder Child’s Passive Ability
• Autocannon cannot hit weakpoints but gives consistent Range option.
• Thunder Strike is good for starting off a battle like a pounce.

Overall Lennox has a moderate Skill Floor and High Skill Ceiling. With Lennox positioning and Timing is key to success. Team coordination helps, especially to lock down a Monster or bring down a Kraken.

5. Blitz Markov

• Tesla Gun ( TG ) has huge DPS potential.
• Assault Rifle ( AR ) has more recoil and higher rate of fire than Regular Markov’s >AR as well as smaller magazine size.
• Tesla Mines do more damage the longer they sit out before being Triggered.

Blitz has a High Skill Floor and High Skill Ceiling. While the TG and Tesla Mines have huge Damage Potential, if not used to at least half potential you will do worse than Regular Markov. Positioning, Mobility and Map Knowledge (especially in domes) is key to performing well with this character. TG beam changes color when damage increases, signaling to Monster that higher damage is coming. Tesla Mines are easy to avoid/counter, however the Gold Aura of a full power mine may blend in to Desert maps!

6. Torvald

• Long Range Assault
• Mortars require planning to fire
• Shrapnel Grenade helps team and synergizes with Autofire Shotgun

Torvald has the Highest Skill Floor and a High Skill Ceiling. Hardest Assault to Master. New Players WILL be inconsistent, especially against airborne targets and highly mobile targets. Shotgun fires marshmallows if too far away. Requires Positioning, Team Coordination, Cooldown Management and Forethought to use this character effectively.