Suggested hands
The Skirmisher
Thermal Detonator, Jump Pack, Personal Shield
This is a balanced assault setup that works well for most situations. You’ll enjoy the adaptability of getting to places quickly with the Jump Pack and the punchy, straightforward boom of the Thermal Detonator for starting a fight with a health advantage or sending a wounded enemy flying. A mid-range carbine fits the Skirmisher best, so either the A280C or the E-11 is ideal. Slot the Survivalist trait card for quicker recovery time to continue your momentum. If things look dicey, click on your Personal Shield and regroup with teammates.
The Demolitionist
Impact Grenade, Thermal Detonator, Explosive Shot
When it’s time to rock and roll, the Demolitionist is a powerful killing machine. At the expense of defensive abilities, this hand is all about delivering intense damage up close with double grenades. The Demolitionist embraces a berserker mentality—rush in, toss grenades, and deal as much punishment as possible before meeting death. The DLT-19 or RT-97C laser hoses are perfect trigger-hammering choices for pouring on the hurt. Burning an Explosive Shot card during sustained fire will melt through enemies like a lightsaber through a Jawa. Scout is a useful trait for this hand; staying off the minimap empowers superior positioning and preparing little surprises around corners. Alternatively, swap to Bodyguard for added explosive mitigation.
The Vanguard
Flash Grenade, Barrage, Personal Shield
The Vanguard is a tank and hard-to-kill harasser, a defense-oriented specialist capable of absorbing plenty of laser fire and incoming grenades. Your role is support and control—with the Personal Shield and Flash Grenade cards, you can hamper enemy vision while soaking up incoming damage. You’re not a complete juggernaut, though, so grab cover when you can. Mix in some Barrage with long bursts of the DLT-19 to lock down lanes and buy time for teammates to move up or rejoin. Equip the Bodyguard trait to shrug off grenade damage; with the added ease of avoiding death using this hand, you should be able to rack up enough kills to get your trait to level 3 which adds additional blaster protection.
The Sapper
Ion Torpedo, Ion Grenade, Ion Shot
Rebels, take note: you’ll need at least a few soldiers on your team to run this hand for countering Empire armor. The Sapper fits right into Walker Assault or Supremacy modes, but this hand is also situational in smaller arenas if enemies frequently lean on powerups such as turrets and probe droids. As vehicles only spawn in Battlefront’s largest maps, you’ll need a weapon suitable for mid- to long-range, so either the burst-fire EE-3 or the steadily accurate E-11 works here. Employ the protection of your team for uninterrupted Ion Torpedo locks and—if you can get close—an Ion Grenade or two. The Ion Shot is useful for chipping away AT-AT health during Y-wing phases, but it also comes in handy for bypassing Personal Shields in case you need to defend yourself. If a vehicle sets its sights on you, the Bodyguard trait will help cut down incoming heavy laser damage (which is counted as explosive) while you re-position.
The Marksman
Pulse Cannon, Smoke Grenade, Focus Fire
The Marksman mixes traditional long-distance sniping with a pinch of utility when you need it. This hand excels at objective overwatch and spotting enemies from afar. Toss a Smoke Grenade to mask your movements and post up nearby a capture point or uplink—elevated perches such as Endor’s tree huts or Hoth’s snowy drifts are preferred—to give yourself a clear view of incoming threats. The T-21B rifle has fantastic magnification and a damage range congruent to slow, carefully placed shots with the drawback of a low overheat threshold—perfect for the Marksman’s gameplay style. The Pulse Cannon is a speedy single-target neutralizer, so prioritize it for enemies getting too close. Using a charge of Focus Fire greatly increases your weapon’s accuracy for a few moments, a fitting bonus for the Sharpshooter trait which shortens hand cooldowns on successful headshots.
The Gunslinger
Smoke Grenade, Scout Pistol, Scan Pulse
With pistol firmly in hand, the Gunslinger relishes getting up close with dominating damage and a bag of tricks that would earn a smirking smile from Han Solo himself. Any of Battlefront’s trio of blaster pistols best fits the Gunslinger: the SE-14C is the most forgiving with its effective 5-round burst, but both the DH-17 and DL-44 offer sheer stopping power per shot. This is a hand for dirty fighting and outsmarting opponents. A Gunslinger clears indoor areas with ease; toss in a Smoke Grenade and either use a Scan Pulse to frame nearby enemies in revealing red outlines or simply wait for your enemies to inevitably blunder through the smoke and into your waiting barrel. If your primary pistol singes close to overheating, swap to the Scout Pistol for a quick two-shot of pain. The Scout trait keeps your scoundrel deeds off radar. Push it to level 3 to reset your heat every time you nab a kill.
The Anti-Hero
Homing Shot, Barrage, Explosive Shot
When Luke Skywalker cuts down squads of stormtroopers single-handedly or Boba Fett’s hushed tauntings become too much, the Anti-Hero hand comes into play. Indirect damage is the goal of these cards, as most Heroes can block direct fire with ease—Luke and Darth Vader can even deflect your shots right back at you. Thus, Homing Shot and Barrage deliver unblockable splash onto rampaging Heroes while Explosive Shot (use it with a fast-firing blaster such as the RT-97C) achieves the same result at a smaller yield. Make no mistake: you’ll likely die spectacularly once a Hero faces your way, but with this hand, you’ll make sure it’s a costly death. The Anti-Hero works with any trait card, but Scout is perhaps the most helpful for its stealthy qualities.
The Assassin
Jump Pack, Bowcaster, Scan Pulse
The Assassin is an efficient killer with far-reaching firepower and surprising reserves of mobility. Like the coldly skilled Boba Fett, you’ll capitalize on your Jump Pack speedily closing gaps between you and your mark for a clean Bowcaster shot. The Scan Pulse is excellent for tracking targets behind walls and around corners, so use it generously for added enemy intel while on the move. The EE-3 carbine can drop a target in two quick bursts, a fitting primary weapon for this hand’s theme of ruthlessness. The best part is the keystone Bounty Hunter trait which, at level 3, resets card cooldowns on each kill. Combined with the Jump Pack, you can chain together Jump-Caster kills across the map for spectacular streaks.
