Fireteam Elite 2 hands you six classes, and the shiny one, the Specialist, is the one you can't have yet. If you've just dropped in, that's actually good news. Trying to rush the Specialist is the fastest way to bounce off the early game frustrated. Here's a saner opening.
Learn the five before you build the sixth
The base roster is the Duelist, Machinist, Marauder, Hunter and Medic. The Specialist is a build-your-own class that pulls abilities from all five, and you unlock it by levelling those five and banking their ability pieces first. So there's no shortcut: the Specialist is an endgame toy, and it only makes sense once you actually understand what you're mixing. Treat your first several hours as a tour of the other roles, not a countdown.
Pick roles by the problem, not the fantasy
When the Specialist does open up, the trap is stacking your favourite abilities into one marine and calling it a build. It works far better the other way round: look at what your squad keeps dying to, then build the answer. Short on healing and getting swarmed? Lean sustain. Melting on the tougher enemy types? Build for that specifically.
On that note, the Specialist pairs beautifully with a dedicated Medic. Its hybrid kit can cover a gap in any lineup, and enough self-sustain means your actual Medic can babysit the other three marines instead of you.
Respect the roster you're shooting at
This isn't only Xenomorphs anymore. You're also up against pathogen-warped creatures and synthetics, and they don't die to the same approach. Rushers want crowd control and space; the tougher stuff wants focused, sustained fire. Read the wave before you commit your cooldowns.
Last thing: crossplay is on from day one, so there's no excuse to solo it with bots if your mates are on other boxes. This is a game that gets a lot better with three people who actually talk. For the launch rundown, see our day-one piece.
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