Door Kickers 2: What to do with your dudes [Weapon Guide]

Hey, I’m a bit of a gun nut, and after some playing, I wanted to help you guys out with general mindsets for how to play your different Squads [Rangers, CIA, SWAT] and help you with the different weapon types each Squad and each Class gets. I’ll also go over the gadgets briefly and give suggestions for loadouts.

What this guide is:
Helps you sort out how to use all the guns and in what roles
Tells you briefly the difference in playstyles (and some basic tips on how to play into them)
Gets you basic loadouts for your crew and tells you how to use em – you’re openly welcome to experiment after getting set up
Hopefully a way to sort through dozens of gun names by thinking about the game in terms of engagement ranges

What this guide isn’t:
I don’t intend to hand-hold you for tactics for individual maps.
I don’t intend to give specific tactics outside of when to use specific gun types
Mandatory to follow.

The starting Squad are the RANGERS. They have innate accuracy bonuses, get access primarily to USA rifles and carbines, and are decently tanky.

For whatever ungodly reason, the game splits the units up into 8 Assault, 4 Support, 4 Marksmen, and 4 Grenadiers, as if having 4 fireteams is a useful concept in a room-clearing game.

No, that baffling choice won’t do, but we can work within our limitations to make effective squads for any mission.

Let’s start out with their gear and I’ll give you a rundown on what to do with them.

[PRIMARIES]

[ALL CLASS]
M1014 SHOTGUN
Listed first, because for whatever reason the M1014 shotgun is equippable by all Ranger classes. I’m sharing this first because it’s probably the most unique out of the other machine gun automatics, and because I was fully intending to list primaries out by class, but this one is apparently equippable by each of the Ranger classes.

The M1014:

• Hits like a ton of bricks, rarely needs a second shot
• Is reasonably fast and can make that rarely needed second shot come out really fast
• If two enemies are basically within each others’ hitbox, they’re probably both going down in one blast
• Risky in hostage rescue, but still can shred enemies – Rangers allegedly get a +100% accuracy buff so if you’ve got a hostage that’s kneeling down, you’re still likely to shoot OVER them

How should you use the M1014, then?

• Use as a first man to enter in a room-clearing stack
• Need someone to cover a hallway with a few doors? Your shotgunner will make sure no one’s going to sneak up behind you

Some other tips:

• Reload often [like, after every kill] – the reloads will auto-interrupt if he sees anyone
• Since you’re guaranteed to be closer to enemies, loading your shotgunner up with other equipment is a good call. Slap charges, for example.
• Due to the nature of how I typically set up my Assault team, I normally put shotguns on 1 or 2 Support and usually use the last 2 Marksmen as shotgunners. Details later with the loadouts.

As for the other classes, we’ll be building our understanding of the Classes off of the Assault class’s use cases, and I’ll explain when you should use the other classes by referring to how to use your Assault dudes.

[ASSAULT]
It’s my personal recommendation to use your Ranger Assault dudes to breach the rooms while the other classes cover from outside buildings. Let’s start with the rifles and I’ll explain when to use them.

M16A4 Rifle
You start with it. It’ll do ranged attacks pretty decently, and has burst fire for CQC, but it’s long. If you’re just starting out, a few tips for you:

• Take corners wide and use CTRL+Left Click or Shift+Left click or use Right Click manually to aim your trooper around corners in a way so they don’t bump their muzzle against the corner and lower their rifle. This is a critical skill to learn for this game.
• A Red dot or preferably a Holo sight is an excellent choice as a first upgrade.
• When you pick a 5.56 rifle, ALWAYS ALWAYS pick the Mk318 SOST ammo. Does more damage for all weapons that can equip it. [If MATCH GRADE AMMO is available, pick that instead though]. It’s like getting old school Call of Duty Stopping Power [like +10 points of damage, enough to cut bullets to kill by a bullet for most guns]. It’s easy to forget.
• While I don’t personally suggest it, the M16A4 can equip longer range optics – the Combat Optic 4x is decent for keeping your Mobility up and giving a slight edge on aiming and accuracy at range, but anything higher gives better aim stats but slower movement speed – take your pick, honestly.

The M16A4 cannot equip a Suppressor.
However, this still overlooks the use case of the rifle. It has some different use cases on the Grenadier and for SWAT Militia, but here’s a quick summary. You’d use the M16A4 when:

• As stated, it’s all you have. Including this because LOL.
• I’d recommend scrolling down to look at the M4 Carbine use-case. The M16A4 is a notably longer M4 that performs worse in CQC, but has the accuracy to be a pseudo-marksman rifle if needed…
• …but anything it can do, other weapons specialize in their role better. It’s a good All-rounder, but you need to specialize to defeat enemies with AKM’s.

I don’t personally recommend the M16A4 for Assault Rangers because the other options are so much better. You can go one of two ways with the guns:

• Shorter and faster [M1014 Shotgun, MP5, Mk18, M4] for speed and maneuverability
• Harder hitting [Mk17, either version, or just use a Marksman] for damage or range

Please note that the guns are pretty similar past this point and it’s a matter of splitting hairs from one to the next – the MP5 is SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT than the MK17 Carbine, but the MP5 is a minor step difference between it and the Mk18, for example. It’s a sliding scale of CQC prowess vs range:
MP5 – Mk18 – M4/URG-I – M16A4/Mk17 CQC – Mk17 Carbine
As a general rule of thumb,

We’ll tackle the CQC weapons first.

MP5A5 SMG
Testing needed. I’ll update this when I can. If it’s anything like the Door Kickers 1 counterpart, it’s a faster, handier CQC weapon that can’t deal with armor well and reloads a slower than the Mk18.

Mk18 Carbine
This in my opinion should be your Go-To weapon for anyone that:

• Has no specific reason to be using a larger gun
• You plan on sending into a building

It’s fast enough (especially with a red dot or Holo optic), short enough, and defeats armor well enough for it to be an excellent CQC weapon.
Please note that the Mk18 will require an extra shot at range vs the M4 or anything longer, unless you use SOST ammo.

M4 Carbine
Mk18 that kills in one fewer bullets at range. Use it if:

• The map is too small for a straight-up sniper rifle, but you’re going to need a few decently ranged attacks (i.e. longer than a building length)
• The trooper in mind that will be covering longer sight-lines might also need to do some room clearing
• You need someone to ‘cover’ a Marksman or Support Gunner (as in, have a second gun to shoot at enemies as well)

Consider the M4 Carbine if you need a trooper that can room clear but also needs to hold a distance longer than a short hallway – AKA anything you’d use the M16A4 for.

M4 URGI-Carbine
Testing needed. I’ll update this when I can. Theoretically a M4 Carbine with a marginally better aim speed at distance and for some reason worse CQC accuracy and crit chance. Preliminary conclusion: Same difference, not worth 20 stars. I’ll have to check the code for how the game handles it vs the M4, so watch this space.

Mk17 CQC/Carbine
These two hit harder than the 5.56 rifles but trade that power for a bit more bulk. I’m going to start with the Carbine vs the CQC version because the CQC version can act as a slightly bulkier Mk18. This makes the two weapons a suitable upgrade if you want something that hits harder than an M16A4 and can still do well at range while also being able to room clear in a pinch
Mk17 CQC is a good option when:

• Any situation you’d use a Mk18
• Any situation you’d use a M4
• Can handle ranged attacks decently too since the higher damage

The downsides include slower fire rate, slightly slower handling, and 20 round magazines [negligible except in massive fire fights anyway]. I personally don’t ever see much difference over Mk18 using SOST ammo
Mk17 Carbine is a good option when:

• Any situation you’d use an M4
• Any situation you’re using your 4 Marksmen already and want another

While the Mk17 Carbine can do well in CQC in a pinch, I recommend throwing on a ranged optic and using it for outdoor work. It can handle sudden CQC threats more easily than semi auto Marksman rifles can.
Special Note: Even though the Mk17 rifles say they have less accuracy than the M16A4, the Rangers all get a +100% Accuracy boost, so excluding extreme ranges where you’d want to use a Marksman anyway, you’re going to be doing better on your hit-chance than the game suggests.

MP5SD6 SMG
This one gets its own section. It’s a double-edged stealth weapon, trading lethality for sneak attack criticals and a 2.5m audible range. REMEMBER TO EQUIP THE M1156 147gr JHP SUBSONIC AMMO it does more damage iirc

Rangers don’t really have a general use-case for the MP5SD6 – it’s more a specialty tool. If you played Door Kickers 1 at all, you’ll know all the benefits of the Stealth class and how handy it is to have a weapon that can kill enemies silently.

I’m including this section because suppressors aren’t really all that important for the Rangers – they’re fast and accurate enough to get away

The only weapons the Rangers’ Assault Class can use are:

• MP5SD6 [Intergral, 2.5m sound radius]
• Mk18 Carbine [45m sound radius]
• M4 Carbine and M4 URG-I Carbine [40m sound radius]
• Mk17 CQC [50m sound radius]
• Mk17 Carbine [48m sound radius]

…As you can see, if you’re going to use suppressors, your enemies are still going to hear, but [and i’m guessing] it’s going to be the difference between “HEY THEY’RE SHOOTING” and “Huh? What was that noise?”, and enemies might simply turn in place rather than kick doors to get to you.

The bigger downside is that they make your weapon longer. You DON’T want to put suppressors on your Mk18 carbines, because they’ll maneuver like M4 carbines…which means you clip a corner too fast after telling your guy to push into a room, and they’re getting blasted. You certainly can make Mk18-suppressed WORK in cqc, but it won’t be as easy.

Suppressors make more sense for outdoor ranged shots or if you’re using the MP5SD6 for indoor work and REALLY NEED those executioners NOT to be alerted [like on Speed is Life]

The Support class can equip M1014 shotguns as well, so I won’t go further aside from saying “if you want a dedicated shotgunner, borrowing one from the Support or Marksman classes makes sense, even if it’s temporary work”. I personally have two dedicated Marksmen shotgunners, and it’s not a bad idea to have the last two slots be Support Shotgunners as well, and swap them out for machine guns if you need.

The Support LMG Primaries are:
M249SPW
M240L GPMG
Mk48 Mod 1 LMG [Don’t have much experience with this]
XM338 [Don’t have much experience with this]

We’ll start with the M240L – the other weapons are balanced in different ways and have different use cases.

M240L GPMG.
Quintessential LMG for your support class. It’s a great workhorse, but you gotta make sure you can find some cover to plant it on. Use it if you:

• Have a long sightline with some cover to bipod-up on [Anywhere you’d want a Marksman, really]
• Aren’t going to get shot at immediately – i.e. you can get ‘set up’
• Don’t plan on moving your dude once he’s in position

I highly recommend the MG Optic 6x and putting it on a long sightline. Set it up [maybe with someone to help with cover fire – I typically use an Assault dude with an M4 and stick him nearby so that he can deal with potential flankers faster than the MG dude can, as well as help pick off shots] and let him tear through enemies. Use Suppressive Fire to force him to shoot faster if you see multiple enemies at once.
The M240L cannot equip a suppressor. It is the only LMG option that can’t.

The M240L should be your default LMG you equip. From there you have a few options:

M249 SPW
It fires faster. Do you wish your M4 and Mk18 dudes would shoot full auto? That’s where the M249 comes into play. It’s light enough to be useful not bipod’d up.
I recommend the Dual Role Optic 1/4x, but a Holo-Sight 1x works great too.
Consider it as your Go-To machine gun if any of the following apply:

• REALLY want suppressive fire indoors
• They need to run quite a ways to get into position
• There’s a chance they’ll need to fire without being bipod’d up
• You got any desire to try to room clear with an actual machine gun instead of a Mk18 or Shotgun

It’s only 5.56, but it WILL shoot more than 3 bullet bursts.

Mk48 Mod 1 LMG
Allegedly a M249 SPW in terms of weight, but uses the heavier 7.62x51mm ammo. Haven’t used it much.
Can’t tell you much about it until I test it, but it seems like a straight upgrade over the M249 you start out with. I wouldn’t recommend using it not-bipod’d up, but in the short term i can recommend using it if:

• You want the harder hitting 7.62×51 over 5.56, and
• You gotta run your trooper a ways before getting them into position, and
• You plan on moving them around between different firing positions [say, a few windows to bipod up on]

XM338 LMMG
Look, I dont have any experience with this, but i’d say “Break it out if you’re at ranges you want to be using a Marksman for the sake of actually having a chance at hitting distant kills”.
Like the map “All The Way: Bridge Assault”.
I’d like to say “Use this to wallbang enemies” but I don’t think that’s in the game yet…

This’ll be quick.

There’s not much use-case for sniper rifles in this game. Anything you can do with a sniper, you’re either dealing with

• “I’m too close to bother” [Use M4 instead]
• “They can’t shoot at me anyways” [Let your troopers take pot-shots as they please]

You’d want to break out a marksman if:

• EXTREME distance. Like, All The Way: Bridge Assault distance.
• You NEED a distant shot made without alerting anyone [Good use-case for suppressed snipers]
• You’d like a shotgunner and you’re already using 8 assault and don’t feel like changing their kit

There’s two flavors.
Squad DM Rifle [accurized M16A4 rifle]
and the 7.62×51 rifles.

Squad DM Rifle
Remember when I said not to use the M16A4 for the Assault Class? This is one reason why. It’s slightly slower to fire, but has burst fire for emergency CQC, and has perfect accuracy.
Use it when:

• You were planning on using an M4 dude to post outside but would rather have the extra fire power to clear a building, but still don’t have a crazy sight range and MIGHT need them to defend themselves by themselves from a direction that’s kinda too close for comfort.
• Mid-range outdoor engagements and you think you NEED the 30 rounds

It’s not bad, but the niche of the 7.62x51mm rifles are better reasons to pick marksmen.

The three 7.62x51mm rifles do the same thing. Just pick one.
The M14 EBR is the best long-range sniper due to the crit chance not falling, but can’t be suppressed.
The M110A1 SDMR is the better of the two Suppressor Sniper choices based on in-game stats since it’s faster to aim and reload.
According to game statistics, the Mk20 SSR and Mk17 Long Barrel are outclassed otherwise, though the Mk17 Long Barrel should be able to handle itself in CQC decently thanks to having full auto capability.

I’ll be honest, I haven’t tested the M14 EBR, Mk20 SSR, or the Mk17 Long Barrel. The Accuracy difference should be negligible for the Mk17 Long Barrel until extreme distances, and until that point it’s a matter of ‘how fast can it aim and shoot’.

Use the Mk17 Long Barrel if you need to maneuver a 7.62x51mm sniper inside a building, then have him aim outside that window at a distant target AND WILL BE CLEARING THE BUILDING WITH THAT SNIPER ALONE.
Use the M110A1 SDMR if you need a suppressed sniper
Use the M14 EBR if you’re going loud and want a sniper
I wouldn’t use the Squad DM Rifle once you unlock a 7.62x51mm rifle, but you can use it like I’m suggesting for the Mk17

You got three options aside from the M1014 Shotgun, and I don’t recommend the shotgun on this class.

M16/M203 GL
M4/M203 GL
Mk18/M203 GL

The M203 launchers this class [and the SWAT Leader] has access to can be considered a hybrid thrown grenade (with much farther range) / slap charge (that you can deploy from range…but you’ll hurt anyone close to it on your side of the door/window you aim it out). It is slow to fire and can’t be interrupted, so don’t fire one if enemies are shooting at you.

We’ll start with the M16/M203 GL, and I’ll be brief.
Anything the M16A4 / Squad DM Rifle can do, the M16/M203 GL can do it AND have a grenade launcher at the end.
Use the M16/M203 GL whenever:

• You need to bust a window from range and don’t want to or can’t use a slap charge
• Any outdoor use-case for the M4 I mentioned earlier as well as some mid-range Marksman options
• Any chance you might want to throw a grenade from a decent range and can’t get close enough with thrown grenades due to distance or gunfire

It’s simple, really. It’s a lite-sniper with a grenade launcher. Don’t forget Rangers get +100% accuracy, so they can make use of a non-sniper rifle like this. The burst fire is useful in a pinch, but likely they’ll just be taking aimed semi-auto fire when they see someone while you focus on your other guys.

Right. That was a lot of information, so now let’s summarize.

The longer the weapon, the worse it’ll do in Indoor maneuverability.
The shorter the weapon, the worse it’ll do in Outdoor ranged shots.

It’s kind of a spectrum.

Pistols/Shotguns – MP5 – Mk18 – M4 – M16A4/Mk17 CQC – Mk17 STD – Sniper Rifles

The Mk18 is ideal for room clearing. The longer rifles are better for outdoor use. Sniper rifles are obviously more useful for extreme ranges – the largest maps. Please note that your rangers get +100% accuracy buffs so even a Mk18 is likely to at least score hits at range – they just won’t be quick about aiming or killing.
If the unit will stay outside, M16A4 or 7.62x51mm (Snipers, Mk17, LMGs). Rangers shoot semi auto at range anyway, so might as well make sure their weapons are strong.

SETTING UP DEFAULT LOADOUTS
Big shout out to windwalker129 for his guide that got me started with this whole mess: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2900410474
His guide’s pretty gucci, and while he focuses on keeping mobility above 8, he has a good starting point – it’s what I used as my baseline.

Rangers and SWAT have enough troopers that it’s probably wise to designate one or two dudes for variable loadouts and have the rest in a static composition, only changing for tighter maps. Here’s my suggestion:

ASSAULT

• 4x Mk18 Pointmen [There’s enough room for one or two to be Flex]
• 2x M4 Pointmen
• 2x Mk18 Breachers

Now, what do I mean?
Pretty simply put, at some point you’re going to actually want someone to be pushing into buildings, and you’re generally going to want to use rifle-grade ammunition for armor piercing – the Mk18 is a happy middle ground between the fast MP5 (or pistol use) and the longer M4 or stronger Mk17 CQC.
Pretty simple, then: whenever you need a SMG to push a room, use a Mk18 Pointman. They’re great filler on maps where you don’t have enough specialty roles as well. What are specialty roles? Well, those are your machine gunners and your snipers – once you get your preference for those figured out, fill in with Mk18 dudes.
But look ahead in the map – if there are any particularly long hallways or sight-lines your breachers are going to need to hold, consider an M4 Pointman or giving one of your dudes a bigger weapon like a Mk17 CQC. Otherwise, I like using an M4 Pointman
If you’re going to need a wall breached, you can consider either looking ahead to the Mk18 Grenadiers (I give them all wall breaching charges) and grab one of those, or use one of your dedicated Mk18 breachers as you please.

I generally have one dude as a designated ‘Flex-Fill’ in case I want a stronger weapon, additional equipment, etc etc;
Use your Pointmen for anything you gotta do in a building. Your M4 dudes might have a bit more trouble with corners so keep an eye out for that.
Oh, and Red Dots/Holo Sights on your Pointmen. You can get away with the Combat Optic 4x or Dual Role Optic 1/4x for your M4 dudes, but i wouldn’t use anything stronger unless you’re playing with a Mk17 STD as a pseudo Marksman for your flex dude – use the LPVO 1-8x for that then.

If you need a suppressed MP5SD6 for a map, switch out your Mk18 Pointmen loadouts first – I’d still leave one with everything figured out so that you can go back and copy the loadouts back onto your other guys. There’s a few maps where suppressed SMGs are important, and Extreme Rescues 2: Speed is Life is one of them, but I only needed 1x MP6SD6 to clear out the roaming Executioners (and a lot of resetting for RNG / learning enemy rotations); the rest of the troopers can still be using Mk18’s and get away with it.

SUPPORT
This one’s simpler:

• 2x LMG dudes [Start with M240L and tweak things to your liking from there]
• 2x M1014 Shotgunners [Flex – you can trade these out for more LMGs if the map calls for it]

There’s a few maps where you might want a third or even a fourth LMG (like Raptor Down); that’s where the fact that you get 4 supports comes into play, but most maps you rarely need more than 2.
One thing of note is that the game starts you off with Smoke grenades instead of flashes on your Support dudes – switch that out for your shotgunners.
Use the Shotgunners like you would your Pointmen and set them with 2x Flash, 2x Frag, but also 3x Slap charges.

MARKSMAN

• 2x Snipers
• 2x Shotgunners

M14EBR for loud, M110A1 for Suppressors.
Unlike Support, where you might need a 3rd or 4th LMG, there’s not really ever a good reason you need 3 snipers, but there’s a few maps where I’ve wanted more than 2 shotgunners,
Special Note: your handgun choice on your Snipers actually matters – Pistols do good work in this game, much better than snipers will ever do in cqc. If for some reason you need a sniper to fire out of a building, pay attention to their sidearm choice – G22 is a good damage upgrade over the M9, and the M1911 trades capacity for damage/crits.
Shotgunners get 3x Slap Charges, unless you wanna do something else.

GRENADIER

• 2x M16/203
• 2x Mk18/203

This one’s easy.
Any time you want a dude outside keeping overwatch but might want a 40mm grenade to blow up a window or exterior door, use a M16/203. Treat them like a pseudo-sniper.
Any time you’d want a 40mm inside a building, Mk18/203. Treat them like a Pointman.
Oh, and give these guys a Wall Breaching Charge (or consider a M136 AT4 Launcher). You’ll thank me later.

I really only care to edit one or two troopers’ loadouts for any given map – my Flex guys, but equipment is a bit more variable.
Their equipment should generally be:

• Primary, of which I personally name them after [I.e. Mk18Pointman1, Mk18Pointman2, Breacher1, etc etc
• Sidearm of choice. your Pointmen should have the lighter pistols (M17/M18/G19X), but if you just equip everyone with M1911’s or leave them with the basic M9, that’s fine. Personal preference is everyone gets M1911’s – if I start hearing those pistols go off, it’s a warning to get that trooper behind cover and reload their main weapon (notable exception being pre-planning a sniper to use a pistol to help clear a building before they snipe out of that building)
• I’ll touch briefly on Helmets: You start with the Low-Cut Helmet, and it’s good enough. High-Cut Helmet for cases where you need that extra point of mobility, Next-Gen Helmet is best overall. Santa Hat gives a bunch of mobility but it might
• Armor is a matter of preference. Raid Armor gives you speed but no side armor (worth it tbh), Rangers Vest is a good middle ground, Extended Vest are for those times where you just keep losing dudes (I’d rather just chuck grenades down the line). IV plates are superior but heavier than III but is unnecessary unless you actually see anyone using PKMs, SVDs, or those Foreign Advisors using those crazy fast 9x39mm SMGs. Just don’t use “Soft Armor Only”. This game doesn’t have enough maps (or any for that matter) where enemies are only using handguns and smgs
• 2x Flash, 2x Frag for all your Ranger dudes. Consider smokes for your mid-range guys (M4, M16A4 Grenadiers, Marksmen; it’s too slow for your LMG dudes to be messing with throwables when they’re already in position though so don’t bother), and remember that enemies can see past the very extremities, so you might need 2 or 3 smokes if you’re going to use them. Don’t forget the Thermal Torch – they cut through wire fences, and it’s important for [Tiny Troubles 3: Night Bird]
• Last slot is flex, but I give Shotgunners get 3x Slap Charges (since they can’t use their shotgun to breach locks yet), Breacher ASSAULT and Grenadiers get Wall Breach Charges. Breacher shotgun is too slow, Dynamic Hammer isn’t suitable for indoor use (since it’s slow); Spy Camera should be considered on your Flex guy if you want, and Rocket Launchers are just ranged Wall Breach Charges – use them how you please.

Weapon Attachments:

• CQC guys get Red Dot / Holo Sights.
• 5.56x45mm guns get SOST ammo if available.
• Mid-range dudes (M4/M16A4/Mk17 any) get 4x optics
• M240L should get the 6x MG Optic
• Snipers – either LPVO 1-8x or LR Optic 3-18x. The maneuverability loss on the LR Optic 5x25x isn’t worth it imo
• If the handgun can attach an optic, use it.

MAP PLANNING AND UNIT COMPOSITION
When you’re planning out your attack on any given map, you’re inevitably going to need to consider who’s doing what. My recommendation is to work out how many bodies you need doing things other than door kicking and figure out their weapons first.

This includes:
Are there any locked doors you want to blow up with Slap Charges?
Are there any super long sight-lines where a Marksman makes sense?
Are there any walls you want to breach to create another flank? [Wall Breach Charges]
Would a belt-fed machine gun make sense anywhere for Suppression Fire?

I generally go through my troops as follows:

• Is there a static sight-line that’s super long where a Marksman-Sniper makes sense over a LMG? [Marksman Sniper]
• Do I need or want LMGs for anything? [Support LMG, consider someone outside as well helping like a M4 Pointman / M16 Grenadier]
• Are there any Wall Breaches inside a building I want to do? [Grenadier Mk18 / Assault Breacher]
• Are there any Exterior walls I want to breach? [Grenadier M16 preferably, but honestly anyone who’s staying outside can equip a rocket launcher. Use Wall Breach for entry and Rocket for staying back and just gaining vision]
• Shotguns are great and can solo breach, as such I should only have one per breaching team – How many routes will I breach? [Support/Marksman Shotgunners]
• How much Overwatch do I need inside or around a building? [M4 Pointmen]
• Do I have at least 1 slot left? [Make adjustments for at least 1 Mk18 Pointman, generally a good idea for at least one to go with the shotgunner. An M4 is fine too.]

Any additional slots can be filled in with Mk18 Pointmen for anyone going in a building and M4 Pointmen for anyone holding medium sightlines.

Ho boy, now ya done it. You did yourself dirty peeking into this part of the guide.

The CIA squad only has 4 members, but you’re generally going to be changing their loadouts (mainly just their guns, but there’s some nuance) for most maps. Unlike the Rangers you only get 4 members:

• 2x Undercover
• 2x Black Ops.

Because there are so few, you can’t afford to be complacent with how you equip them, especially with the Concealment mechanic.

Firstly, there’s a decent CIA guide already: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2611806579
Take a glance at them for a good overview. This guide will go more in-depth about the tools your CIA Ground Branch units use.

There’s only 4, so I’ll be brief.

• AKS-74U Carbine
• AK-47 Underfolder
• SVD-63 Dragunov
• VSS Vintorez

The CIA team is vastly different than the Rangers, and that starts with the fact that the more gear you have, the less Covert you have. Also, the choices of primaries are so vastly different in their roles that it’s no longer a spectrum, but bringing the right tool for the job.

Now generally, you’re going to want to go quiet with your CIA team – the name of the game is generally one of two ways, playing your Undercover units as one of two ways:

• Team Fortress 2 Spies (“Backstabbing” unsuspecting enemy units [Pull your gun out and shoot them from a direction they’re not looking] and “Cloaking” [Play Civilian])
• Using them as movable directional cameras to scout for your Black Ops troopers

The latter obviously doesn’t require guns, but having a weapon to deal with a pesky dude that won’t push your Black Ops dudes is always useful.

We’ll be tackling the primaries differently than the Rangers’ and the Nowhereski SWAT due to how vastly different you’ll need to play them.

Special Note: Primaries on Undercover agents draw faster than handguns – they pay for it with larger size, but the option for playing them as 3rd (or fourth) Black Ops units that have the option to Play Civilian is an interesting play.

First of all, let’s look at the AKS-74U.

• Naked AKS-74U Carbine or with PSO-1M2 4x: -1 Concealment COVERT
• AKS-74U Carbine w/Suppressor: -2 Concealment COVERT
• AKS-74U Carbine w/KS AS 1x or PO 3.5x: -2 Concealment COVERT
• AKS-74U Carbine w/Suppressor AND KS AS1x or PO 3.5x: -3 Concealment SUSPICIOUS

As you can see, unless you’re wanting to play sightlines and gucci up your AKS-74U, you can’t fully trick out your AKS-74U and expect enemies to let you walk by them. Because the Concealment meter is so important, the AKS-74U essentially becomes multiple separate weapons:
COVERT OPTIONS

• Naked AKS-74U – An odd choice if you plan on going loud, it competes with the AK47 Underfolder in this category as a weaker, shorter range, faster-in-CQC weapon. Remember, after you shoot, you can play civilian and still be COVERT with just this. And by “just this” i mean no equipment or armor or anything else, we’re just taking this in isolation right now.
• AKS-74U Suppressed, No Optic – this is the equivalent of a suppressed Mk18 (semi-auto only) and is a replacement option vs your sidearms and the VSS Vintorez in terms of having a suppressed weapon.
• AKS-74U with KS AS1x optic, unsuppressed – An odd choice, going loud in a CIA unit, but you’ll have the upper-hand if you’re holding a corner, letting enemies come to you as they hear you shoot.
• AKS-74U with PO 3.5x or PSO-1M2 4x, unsuppressed –
• AKS-74U with PSO-1 M2 4x, suppressed – An alternative to the VSS Vintorez

SUSPICIOUS OPTIONS

• AKS-74U Suppressed + PK AS 1x – Theoretically a decent option if you need a third rifleman, need 30 rounds, and will be room clearing. Getting into position will be difficult since you’re automatically suspicious, but at least you’ve got a faster weapon than your enemies are using.
• AKS-74U Suppressed + PO 3.5x – According to the .xml file, theoretically this is useful like an ACOG would be – you’re essentially bringing a semi auto Mk18 with a decent mid-range scope in.

In short, the AKS-74U is a weak (for rifle’s sake), long (compared to pistols), loud (even when suppressed and using the subsonic ammo DONT FORGET TO EQUIP IT IF YOU PUT A SUPPRESSOR ON) all-arounder for your Undercover agents. For the Rangers, the M4 could do it all; for the Undercover CIA unit, the AKS-74U can do anything but not one thing particularly well.

AK47 Underfolder
Why
It can’t take optics, it can’t take a suppressor, and why on earth would you want to go loud with the CIA?
…Actually there are a few good use-cases for it.
Remember when I said it’s weird to use a AKS-74U without a suppressor?
Enemies are attracted to noise, for better or for worse.
This is going to screw with your thinking, but what if you put a loud gun in a room with one entrance and then made every other enemy look in that direction? And then you put a suppressed weapon looking perpendicular at the entrance?
In this picture, the Undercover agent with the Cyan line has an AK47 Underfolder, he’ll be going loud.
Orange meanwhile has a suppressed AKS-74U.
The gameplan is that Cyan will go loud and enemies will come storming in. Orange spots for Cyan while also scouting ahead or picking off enemies as well. Enemies will be attracted to Cyan.
Essentially you’re playing the map backwards vs how you’d play with Rangers.
I don’t like playing like this, since you’d be playing a Ranger with no armor, but it’s an option. It’s also only 1 Concealment point cost to equip, so if you want to have a loud primary and a quiet secondary for some reason, this isn’t terrible. Just be aware your troopers never shoot full auto (unless otherwise specified)

SVD Dragunov
…on an Undercover unit? An odd choice, but if you have a mission where you can’t afford to use your Black Ops agents as snipers, it’ll do. You’re automatically suspicious with a Dragunov, so you’ll have to maneuver him into place without getting spotted.
If you must use a Dragunov on an Undercover agent, Play them like a Ranger Marksman. Keep them in the back.

VSS Vintorez
What if you had a silent sniper you could use indoors?
And it actually can shoot bursts/full-auto?
Remember the use-case i had for the AK47? Yeah, that’d be 100% better with the Vintorez here. It hits harder and is suppressed, and you could even slap on a PSO-1M2 4x on it without becoming suspicious. Turns out enemies don’t tend to charge rooms when you go loud. Maybe one or two, but considering you have no rifle-stopping armor as an Undercover agent, you’re better off staying quiet.
It’s only got 10 rounds though, but can at least shoot full auto. You’ll be reloading often…
Still, for some reason the AKS-74U isn’t shot full auto. If you can micromanage your ammo, you can sweep entire maps [like the one immediately above in the AK47 use-case] without an enemy firing a shot – you’re best off using your second Undercover agent to spot enemies for you so you don’t get shot.
In summary: you’re a glass cannon with this build. Low ammo, Low armor, but an amazing weapon.

Ho boy there’s a lot of toys you can play with.

• PM-63 RAK PDW
• Mini Uzi SMG
• Mp5K [suppressable]
• Sawed-off shotgun
• Mk IV Hush Puppy [Integral suppressor]
• PPK Pistol [suppressable]
• G19 Pistol [suppressable]
• G19 Customized
• G22 Pistol
• M18 Pistol
• M17 Pistol
• Mk24 Mod 0 Pistol [suppressable]
• M1911

The options above can be loosely categorized as follows

• Suppressed/suppressable handguns [MkIV, PPK, G19, Mk24]
• Suppressed Mp5K
• Loud handguns [G19 Cust., G22, M18, M17, M1911]
• Loud SMGs [PM-63 RAK, Mini Uzi, Mp5K unsuppressed]
• Double Barrel

Let’s get the Loud SMGs out of the way.
PM-63‘s only use case is having superior maneuverability (as in getting around corners) and no / marginal concealment. You can’t have a suppressed primary AND a PM-63 and still be Covert. It’s got a cheap star cost and reloads fast at least.
Mini Uzi should be your option for a loud SMG if that’s your choice. I need to test it but it should be decently accurate fire and kill faster in CQC than the AK47 Underfolder…however it costs 2 Concealment points if you already have a primary, so you can’t take it and a rifle and still be Covert. Works decent at mid-range, at least.
Mp5K Unsuppressed seems to only have superior crit chance in the range you’d want to be sneak-attacking anyway, but that’s it.
Loud SMGs by themselves are a strange choice for a unit with no armor, especially since you can easily just walk into a non-suspicious zone and play civilian to get away rather than continue risking going loud.

The Double Barrel, I’ve honestly never used. It’s a weird choice for an undercover unit since it’s loud and only has two shots, but anything you point at (indoors) dies, then you have to reload. It sounds pretty bloody fun, ngl, but it’s antithetical to what you should be doing with the CIA agent.

The Suppressed guns can be bunched together – while I’d say the Mp5K is its own beast, it’s more of a spectrum of use cases.

• The MkIV Hush Puppy is the quietest of suppressed options at 2m. It’s unfortunately weak – I’ve had instances where it doesn’t crit kill and the undercover agent spends 4 rounds plinking at the guy while they turn around and have the time to hit my agent with 4 AK rounds, dropping him.
• The PPK can accept a suppressor and can be equipped along with a AKS-74U Suppressed / VSS VIntorez [NO OPTIC], AND still let you carry two throwables. In my opinion this is a moot point unless you plan on having a Vintorez with a 4x and want an Undercover agent that can take ranged shots. Not a bad plan tbh.
• The G19 Suppressed is an excellent middle ground for a suppressable semi-auto handgun and can be a reliable only-gun-choice for what the Undercover really ought to be doing: getting behind an enemy and doing silent take downs. It’s my Go-To for Undercover agents generally. DON’T FORGET TO EQUIP THE SUBSONIC AMMO, It brings down sound to 3.5m
• Mp5K Suppressed is notably more reliable at killing than the G19 Suppressed and should be used in a similar manner. Using with Subsonic Ammo [DON’T FORGET TO EQUIP IT] is an unfortunate 5.5m sound radius, though, so there’s a workable trade-off; it’s a Sidegrade to the G19 Suppressed.
• Mk24 Mod 0 Suppressed takes the reliability of the M1911 (vs 9mm handguns) and slapps a suppressor on it.

The PPK is the only pistol you can take suppressed with a suppressed primary and still be Covert.
Otherwise, G19, Mk24, or Mp5K, pick what you like best.
MkIV is too unreliable for my tastes.

I’ll be honest, I never play with the Loud handguns, so I’ll be talking theoretics here.
Handguns have their place in Door Kickers as faster-to-fire alternatives to CQC rifles. Even SWAT militia can outshoot Insurgent riflemen – they might take 6 shots with an M9 to down someone, but while they’re plinking away, they’re suppressing the enemy faster than they can fight back.
…Unfortunately, Undercover CIA operatives can’t take armor that will block rifle bullets, so risking getting shot at all is problematic.

Your choices are:

• G17 Default Handgun. Upgrade when you can.
• Unsuppressed versions of the suppressed pistols mentioned above. The only use-case is the G19 Pistol [unsuppressed] if you for some reason want a loud sidearm to go with a suppressed AKS-74U or VSS Vintorez. The PPK is the only pistol you can take suppressed with a suppressed primary and still be Covert.
• G19 Customized – Go to straight-upgrade if you like 9mm. You can’t take it with a suppressed primary though.
• G22 Pistol – If you want a modest damage buff over the G17 and want to go loud but still want capacity, here ya go
• M17/M18 Pistol – Not worth it. for Rangers, the M18 and M17 are good for being lighter than the M9 – even if they’re worse performance-wise vs the M9, sometimes you really need a sidearm as a ranger, so picking one there will give you that point of Mobility back. CIA have PPK/G19 Pistol as options to keep their mobility high with a heavy primary like the Dragunov, and will cost Concealment points vs the PPK Suppressed/G19 Pistol (unsuppressed) if you’re taking a VSS Vintorez or Suppressed AK74U.
• M1911 Pistol – When you absolutely must slap your enemies over the head in CQC and do it loud.

Black Ops troopers don’t get the SMG or Double barrel options, so their weapon suggestions are a bit simpler.

There are 18 CIA Black Ops Primaries.

SMGs:

• Mp5K PDW [-2 Concealment, Suppressable]
• MP5A5 SMG [-3 Concealment, Suppressable]
• MP5SD6 SMG [-4 Concealment, Integrally Suppressed]
• Mp7A1 PDW [-3 Concealment, Suppressable]

Rifles:

• AKS-74U [-2 Concealment, Suppressable]
• MCX RSAR [-3 Concealment, Suppressable]
• Mk18 Carbine [-4 Concealment, Suppressable]
• AK-105 Alpha [-3 Concealment, Suppressable]
• AK47 Underfolder [-2 Concealment]
• Mk17 CQC [-3 Concealment, Suppressable]
• M4 Carbine [-3 Concealment, Suppressable]
• Mk17 Carbine [-3 Concealment, Suppressable]

LMGs for some reason:

• M249 SPW, [-4 Concealment, Suppressable]
• Mk48 Mod 1 LMG [-5 Concealment, Suppressable lol]
• PKP Pecheneg LMG [-4 Concealment

Marksman Rifles:

• SVD-63 Dragunov [-4 Concealment]
• VSS Vintorez [-3 Concealment, Integrally Suppressed]
• M110A1 SDMR [-5 Concealment, Suppressable]

Note 1: Black Ops with NOTHING but the Traditional hat have a Concealment rating of 8. That means anything other than just a G19 Pistol (not even suppressed!) makes them suspicious.
Note that the Poncho will replenish 5 Concealment points.

Your strategy for using Black Ops units is going to be different than how you use your Rangers, but please keep in mind the use-cases are similar.

• Use SMGs for pure Indoor/CQC maps [Mp5K, Mp5A5, Mp5SD6]
• Use Compact Carbines for any map where you might have a long hallway [AKS-74U, Mk18 Carbine, MCX RSAR]
• Use Mid-length Carbines for any situation where your Black Ops unit will have to do double duty – both longer ranged attacks and indoor work [AK 105 Alpha, M4 Carbine, Mk17 CQC/Carbine]
• Sniper rifles [M110A1] are more useful if your Black Ops unit needs to hold a position far away from units like [All The Way: Bridge Assault], but I’ve had success with them on maps like [All The Way: Toll Takers] where a single shot is necessary – take the shot, then fade behind cover.

I think the following guns don’t have suitable use-cases to be worth picking:

• Mp7A1 PDW only shoots semi-auto, even in close quarters. It’d be different if it fired short bursts, as it would be a compact bullet hose, the shortest SMG you have available, but alas…
• AK47 Underfolder. lol. lmao, even.
• LMGs generally don’t have a use-case – you almost always have to have your Black Ops units do double duty ranged + CQC work, so a heavier belt fed weapon isn’t useful. The M249 might work for indoor suppressive fire, but at closer ranges I’d rather use something lighter/more agile or just throw a grenade – and if you need more firepower than an M4 Carbine, you can either make use of a M1101A1 or just pick the Rangers.
• the SVD Dragnuov is inferior to the M1101A1 in every way that matters.

Which leaves the other guns.

Let’s start with the obvious choices of tactics – What will your Black Ops unit be doing?

The Poncho is an interesting but somewhat underwhelming option that opens up a few other playstyles. You get effectively 3 Concealment points back [+5 in actuality, but Black Ops start at 8 Concealment for balance purposes rather than 10 like Undercover], allowing you to either

You could

• play a Black Ops unit as a third moving camera, spotting enemies and keeping track of sightlines for your Undercover units [or your other Black Ops unit], eventually going loud once they get into a position where they can safely hold with their superior firepower [or actually have an armored pistoleer]
• Sneak a heavier weapon in with no armor or gadgets and pray you don’t get slaughtered once you go loud.

The former is the better option if you’re going to use a Poncho. You play the map watching out for your Undercover units, and whenever you need a third gunman for a simultanious execution or are in a situation where you might have to Go Loud, you trade places between your Undercover dudes and your Poncho Black Ops dude.

So what about what guns you can equip?
If you’re rocking a Poncho, you can choose to either stay Covert by:

• No armor or throwables, in which case virtually any primary will keep you Covert
• 1 set of throwable grenades or small gadget, in which case you can still pick a -4 Concealment primary [or combination primary/secondary and still be Covert
• 2 sets of throwable grenades or small gadgets, in which case you can only pick a -3 concealment primary [or combination primary/secondary] and still be Covert

Having one set of additional gear will prevent you from taking -5 Concealment combination of weapons. This is important because it locks you out of options such as:

• Any -4 Concealment weapon with any sidearm or G19 Suppressed
• Mk48 Mod 1 LMG [lol]
• M110A1 Suppressed [No Sidearm]

Having two sets of additional gear will prevent you from taking a -4 Concealment combination of weapons. This includes:

• Armor + Any pistol other than G19 unsuppressed
• G19 Suppressed with any primary other than AKS74U or AK47 Underfolder [lol]
• Mp5SD6
• Mp5A5/Mp7A1 if you throw a suppressor on
• All suppressed rifles [excluding AKS-74U Suppressed, that’s allowed]
• All LMGs [lol]
• VSS Vintorez + G19 Suppressed

Note that the G19 by itself on the Black Ops does not invoke concealment penalties. Adding a suppressor does have it invoke a concealment penalty, though.

So what does this mean?
If you want to stay Covert, the Poncho makes you give up a lot of useful equipment for the benefit of being able to potentially sneak something stronger than a pistol past the map’s forward guards.

But what if you don’t mind being Suspicious and carrying heavier equipment?
Please don’t. You won’t be able to get out of the entry gate with your sussy baka Black Ops with his “”””concealed”””” Mk48 Mod 1 LMG. It’s one thing if you can sneak in a back door, but in that case you’re better off just going with a suppressed rifle and have a better gadget anyway.

So what’s the plan then for Poncho use?
Sure, here’s my suggestions.

Option 1: Suppressed Pistol

• No Primary
• G19 Suppressed REMEMBER TO CHANGE THE AMMO TYPE
• Traditional Hat
• Armor of choice; I’d recommend Raid Vest for the point of mobility
• One light gadget – Frags or Flashes
• If you can sneak your dude and use another gadget early, you could get away with a Slap Charge or a Thermal Torch – once you use it, you’ll no longer be Suspicious

Option 2: CQC Suppressed Primary – Mp5SD6

• For Indoor use, Mp5SD6 SMG w/Red Dot [Holo sight gives another -1 Concealment]
• No Sidearm
• Traditional Hat, no armor
• You get one set of equipment before you become suspicious, so make it count. Frags are a great way to make noise away from you. I wouldn’t take flashes, since you’re already not making enough noise for enemies to notice you (dont forget to maneuver your Undercover units to ensure you attack without being overwhelmed!)

Shout out to a few other weapons you could use:

• Mp7A1 PDW has subsonic ammo that’ll reduce the Sound Radius to 3m. That’s really good! Too bad it doesn’t fire quick enough; Mp5SD6 shoots in 3 round bursts in close quarters, while the Mp7A1 shoots semi auto [Unless I’m mistaken]
• MCX RSAR will give you back a point of Concealment, but you’re dealing with 5m of sound whenever you shoot – that’s risky.
• AKS-74U Suppressed will give you two points of Concealment back, but with the subsonic ammo choice you’d have to deal with 6m sound radius.

Option 3: Mid-Ranged Suppressed Primary – M4

• The M4 Carbine doesn’t have any subsonic ammo, but you can improve its performance with Match-Grade ammo. You can give it an optic but to keep the Concealment rating, you’re stuck with at most a Red-Dot or the LPVO 1-6x. I prefer the Red-Dot optic if I know the Black Ops guy will be going in buildings, but the LVPO 1-6x is a great all-rounder otherwise.
• no sidearm, M4 is good enough, and since the unit count is lower, you need to be picking your battles carefully, so reloading the M4 is better than fumbling with a sidearm.
• Traditional Hat, no armor
• You get one small gadget.

Shout outs to a few other weapons you could use:

• VSS Vintorez gives you back a point of concealment even with a 4x scope, but you only have 10 rounds, and I noticed it feels kind of weak at range. You’re also giving up magazine size, which is a bit more important when your single guy is doing the work of what should be like 2+ rangers at any given point.
• Mk17 CQC/Carbine are interesting alternatives for mid-range versatile weapons. The Rangers prefer having superior accuracy with 5.56 weapons (and having a few more muzzles pointed down range), but the harder hitting 7.62x51mm weapon has a better chance to shine for the single Black Ops agent.

Option 4: Gonna go sniping?
You really only have one option if you’re gonna snipe with a suppressed rifle and use a poncho.

• M110A1 Suppressed with LPVO 1-6x.
• Nothing else.

You could probably make do with the Mk17 Carbine [suppressed and with an optic], incidentally.

Right, things get slightly less interesting and a little more obvious for your Black Ops units if they’re not even attempting to stay hidden. You get your options back, but they play similar to the Rangers.
You’ve got:

• LMGs (lol)
• Sniper rifles (really just the M110A1 and Pseudo-Marksman rifles like the Mk17 Carbine)
• Auto Rifles and SMGs for interior redecorating
• and Carbines for All-around wetwork.
• And since you’re going loud, you get to equip a sidearm too if you like.
• And armor! Yippie!

But wait! There’s more!

You also get the Large Equipment slot to play with, including

• Breacher Shotgun [It’s slowwwww]
• 3x Smoke weed every day
• 3x Frag for more games of “Catch”
• 3x Flash [obviously use for hostage clearing or if civilians are present]
• 3x Slap Charge
• Dynamic Hammer [No, don’t]
• Spy Camera
• And both Rocket launchers, the M136 AT4 and the RPG-26 [M136 has a bigger lethal radius – 3m to the RPG-26’s 2m radius]

However, you only get 2 Black Ops dudes. You have the luxury of specialization with Rangers/SWAT, but you kinda have to pick a generalist rifle if you’re going to use a Black Ops due at all. Luckily it’s pretty similar in theory to how the Rangers should specialize based on engagement range.

M4 [Suppressed] is an obvious go-to choice, though it is a little noisy. From this point, consider where you’ll be using your Black Ops dude. Other options include:

• Exclusively indoors? MP5SD6 for maximum silence, MCX RSAR [Suppressed] for more power, or just switch to your suppressed handgun ahead of time
• Vss Vintorez is a decent side-grade, but I prefer it on the Undercover agents since it’s fast to holster and is as loud as the G19 Suppressed
• M110A1 for all your sniping needs, though i wouldn’t do more than 1 in any given map. Mk17 [either version] is a bit sluggish for indoor work but you’re welcome to try it out for maps where longer distances [not cross-map the largest ones] are important.

The CIA Unit’s specialty is stealth kills at the cost of a notable lack of raw manpower. They are the Scalpel to the Ranger’s Hammer and the Nowhereski SWAT’s Wrecking Ball.

However, because of the lack of Squad size with only 4 dudes, it’s better to conform your units to the necessities of the mission. With only 4 dudes to manage, though, it’s a lot easier to plan ahead.

I’m not going to tell you how to play, as that’s a matter other guides touch on better, but I’ll give you suggestions for loadouts for your dudes once you figure out how you want to play a mission.

We’ll start with the Undercover dudes.

• G19 Suppressed is an easy pick. Remember, your Undercover dudes need the element of surprise to make up for the fact that their armor doesn’t block rifle rounds (and therefore you don’t use any)
• If you want to use a Primary, your real only choices are the AKS-74U or the VSS Vintorez, and if you pick them, you can’t pick a pistol besides the PPK (you can put on a suppressor!) or the G19 Pistol (No suppressor allowed or you’re sus) AKS-74U draws and holsters fast and is a suitable CQC alternative while having some range (use it like an Mk18 if you have to go loud) while the Vintorez doubles as a somewhat weak integrally suppressed sniper rifle
• Traditional Hat, and don’t bother with armor. You’re not gonna get shot unless the enemy is quick on the draw for some reason
• 1x+1x Frag. You get to play “Catch the Frag” with your enemies if you so please. Don’t need flashes, since you’ll be picking enemies off one by one rather than doing dedicated room clearing.
• You’re sus if you bring a rocket launcher in no matter what, but once you fire the rocket, it’s out of your inventory, so it might be worth consideration. Be sure to watch for the sus zones though.

Black Ops

• I’d recommend against use of the Poncho.
• M4 Suppressed is a good starting ground. MP5SD6 or MCX RSAR for dedicated interior work (careful with the MCX’s 5m sound radius!), M1101A1 for sniping
• G19 Suppressed for a sidearm is a good starting point. DON’T FORGET SUBSONIC AMMO
• I don’t recommend the Poncho, but if you’re going with it, don’t take armor. Otherwise, Raid Vest will keep your speed up.
• 2x Flash + 2x Frags, consider swapping out flash for a Lockpick gun if speed’s important.
• Last Slot is whatever you want. Of note is the M320 GL and the Spy Camera – the M320 GL gives you Grenadier-lite opportunity (make sure you cover the unit while they do work) while the Spy Camera lets you check a room no one else is watching, so those are worth mentioning aside from the 3x Frag/Flash/Slap Charge options.

The Spy Camera is an especially interesting option since you can peek into a room and watch reactions while your Undercover agents clean up in a flanking room – that way you can be prepared (mentally, if anything) if you have anyone reacting.

What you do with your equipment slots on your CIA units is up to you, just remember you have a large equipment slot, and putting anything in there will make you suspicious no matter what. Remember, your CIA unit is a small unit, so you have to make do with what you’re given for any mission. They are designed for slow, sneaky precision and need to be carefully maneuvered based on enemy position in order to keep your spy unit alive, but the Undercover units’ ability to Play Civilian and therefore act as mobile cameras gives you a greater advantage than just having another rifle pointing down range ever will – intelligence.

Sometimes you don’t need more boolet. Sometimes you just need to wait until the enemy turns around to put boolet you have into their back…and for that, your suppressed guns will do.

Good luck. AND REMEMBER TO TOGGLE ON SUSPICIOUS AREA MARKING ALWAYS ON on the bottom middle-right of your screen every time you start a level!

Firstly, shout-out to this guide for being pretty helpful: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2796777764

SWAT excel in two places:

• Half-a-dozen muzzles in any given corridor [Militia]
• Invoking memories of Battlefield: Bad Company 2 [What’s a wall? I have rockets and demolition charges!]

They are made up of 4 squads, two of which are low single-digits
1x Leader
8x “Assault” [hereby referred to as “SWATAssault”]
2x Sappers
12x Militia [They cost half a Deployment Slot per Militia Fighter!]

Nowheraki SWAT don’t have the +100% Accuracy buff that the Rangers have, and have worse HP / Suppression resistance / Armor / weapons / attachment choices / no ammo choices. Militia are particularly bad with the above, but the Assaulters, Sappers, and Leader are somewhere in the middle between Miliita and the Army Rangers.

So what do you do, then?
Focus on Volume of Fire and/or making half the map not exist.

I’ll be honest there’s only three real ways to play this if you’re gonna be unique:

Grenadier
Sniper
SMG

The full list of Primaries are:

• AKM/GP34 GL [Default, is pretty good]
• M4/M203 GL [Strictly an upgrade, can attach a suppressor. Unlock this when you can and use it how you would any Grenadier from the Rangers – It’s an M4 so it’s good for mid-range between how you would use an M16A4 Grenadier and a Mk18 Grenadier)
• AK-47M SF Carbine [Honestly never used it, I imagine it’s a slower Mk18?]
• Vulcan Rifle [Good all-around weapon tbh, but Opportunity Cost of not having a grenade rifle or a sniper means it’s not worth taking on your Leader]
• APC9 K [Suppressable SMG. If you absolutely need your Leader to breach interiors, it’s an excellent way to set him up for success. Great way to train him on smaller maps as well, as unlike the Rangers or CIA your SWAT dudes will just spray full auto until the bad guy drops [and a few extra bullets because of poor reaction time lol]
• SVD-63 Dragunov [A Sniper rifle is a sniper rifle. If the map calls for it, your Leader is the only one that can use a dedicated sniper rifle, which means no grenadier rifle…a pity, but you gotta take what you can get for the situations you’re presented with]
• SVU-A Bullpup [The only use-case i can see if is you want to clear a room and then snipe outside, but the M4 is just as good for that…or just switch to your pistol. The inferior stats aren’t worth imo]

And your secondaries are:

• Mini Uzi [An interesting choice! Your Leader and your SWATAssault dudes get access to a machine pistol secondary. Always a plus in my book, though it’s slightly slower on the initial draw vs a handgun for room clearing
• M9 Pistol [the SWAT dudes aren’t as well trained at using it, so it might take 6 shots to down a single dude, but while they’re firing, the enemy tends to get suppressed. I’ve seen SWAT dudes do good work with it. Can take a suppressor but they aim slower at range]
• G17 [Haven’t tried it with the SWAT dudes
• HS-45 Pistol [13 rounds of .45, but your SWAT dudes fires them like it’s a .44 magnum. I’ve seen them take three shots to kill a dude, and it takes over a second. Bit of a gamble tbh]

Oddly enough for armor, you have to pay to get helmets – the Leader gets a Beret as his starting item and has to pay a whopping 9 stars just for a Low-Cut Helmet.
Armor is whack too.

• The Leader starts out with either no armor…
• …or a Sappers Combat Vest. [Only Lv III]
• You have an option to buy a single front SAPI plate as well [Front-Plate only III] which is better than nothing, but you’ll have to be on your A-Game with them
• There’s also SAPI Front/Back [III Raid Vest], and
• ESAPI / Sami Combo [Sniper grade IV Armor front, III Back Raid Vest]

For throwables you get 2 slots of 1x Frag, 1x Flash, 1x Smoke, 1x Molotov
The Molotov is new, it’s basically an instant detonation frag that deals damage in a single place for a while, making enemies not want to walk into the fire. If you think that’s useful enough to pick over a standard frag [or just having a muzzle or two aiming at a door], you could use it to block off a door or path.
No Large Equipment. Would be nice to have a rocket here ngl

In short:
Primary: SVD Dragunov due to exclusivity, AK or M4 Grenadier, or APC9 K
Secondary: M9 or Mini-Uzi
Head: Helmet if you really want
Armor: Either single plate to keep your mobility up [You won’t be getting in close much anyway] or Sapper if you’re gonna breach and clear with the other dudes for some reason [like you have a reason to specifically need a 40mm grenade inside a building]
Equipment: Frags, Molotov if you want

Nowheraki SWAT Assault troopers have limited inventory and can’t specialize as much as the Rangers can, but what they have that make them unique are:

• RPK LMGs [40 round assault rifles with the ability to perform suppressive fire]
• M249 LMG [while it doesn’t make sense for CIA or Rangers, now you can have EIGHT MACHINE GUNS]
• Shields [This makes a little more sense for the Sappers since they can layer up the armor and become a walking tank but it’s there]
• RPG-26 [While not specifically unique to SWAT Assault, it’s either this or a Dynamic Hammer, which…ew]

As such, you have the potential to have a lot of dakka.

Ironically this isn’t my favorite unit , but it’s fine, maybe you’ll have more fun than I do.

There’s a few ways to play them due to their primaries:

• Riflemen [AKM/M4 – Play them like an M4 Pointman: They’re flexible enough to do door kicking or hold longer sight-lines, but won’t excel in either]
• SMG Pointman [APC9 K]
• Shotgun Pointman [M500-MEK – please note it’s notably worse than the M1014 at everything – slower (this one’s HUGE), smaller ammo reserve, and remember the SWAT unit are weaker]
• Machinegunners [RPK for Pseudo-Riflemen, M249 for bullets bullets bullets]
• Shield wait are we just repeating Door Kickers 1 again

Since you start with AKMs, they’re fine. Instead of buying the red dot though, upgrade to M4’s when you can.

But yeah. M4’s will be your primary workhorse rifle due to speed and accuracy, and then you bring in other weapons as you please.
RPK and M249 are of special note for being useful examples of indoor suppressive fire, give it a try!

Otherwise there’s the Vulcan Rifle [Never used], the AK47 Underfolder [which is strictly worse than the AKM], the M16A4 [You’ll be buying it for the Militia, so if you want an alternative to the AKM, it’ll be there].

Shields are…interesting. You only get two options: Lv III and Lv IV. I’ve never tried it but the Lv IV is slightly heavier – you won’t see it if you’re using an M9 and just a front plate, though.

Secondaries are the same as the Leader, but I’d argue you should stick with the M9 for everyone simply because managing sidearms are annoying for everyone except CIA, and primaries are better than the Mini-Uzi sidearm anyway.

If you want hard loadout details, I’d say:

• 1x Flex
  
• 3x M4 SWATAssault
• 1x M249
• 1x RPK
• 2x Shotgunners [though i typically use a Sapper shotgunner too – I dont need 3 shotgunners with all the CQC help you’ll be getting

And then for other equipment

• Everyone gets M9 pistols [or Mini-Uzis if you care enough]
• I never bought helmets yet lul
• Single SAPI Plate
  
• Frags
• RPG-26 Launcher because sometimes you gotta breach from a distance

Ya get 2.
They get Sappers Combat Vests.
They’re the only units on your team to get Door charges (1x or 4x) and especially 3x Demolition charges.

Their primaries include everything the SWATAssault get minus the RPK and M249.
Apparently they get helmets even if the rest of your crew don’t? Like it’s a separate unlock?

Honestly they’re glorified breachers. I would have liked that they got LMGs as well, but as it stands they’re really only good as “the dudes with breaching charges” and occasionally “dude decked out in full III armor”.

I’d play one with an M4 or APC9 K and the other with a shotgun. Give them 3x Demolition charges and 2x Door charges and slap the Demo charges on any wall connected to a room you don’t feel like kicking six doors to get into, and the door charges on any locked door you don’t wanna use a 40mm nade on.

Any map you wanna blow up 2-3 walls with, use a Sapper – pick one with either the rifle or shotgun to your preferences. If you wanna blow up 4-6 walls, bring the other sapper. Any more, and bring some SWATAssault dudes with rockets. Like, bro, go wild.

…I’m sorry I’m not as enthusiastic with this group. If they would have had grenade launchers or LMGs then we’d be cooking with petrol, but as it stands they just have heavy armor and 3x Demo charges to make them unique. It’s whatever. Set them up like your SWATAssault and blow up walls as you please.

ok I need to be real with you here

Militia aren’t great. They’re mediocre at best.
But if you have 5 muzzles pointed into a room and hit the ‘detonate’ button on the wall, you have a lot of mediocre.
And Mediocre times 5 equals a lot of suppression and eventually a lot of things dead.

That or your own dudes getting outshot/suppressed and picked off one at a time.

It’s a double-edged sword.

Furthermore there’s only four primary options, and you don’t get optics

• AK47 Underfolder [Ew]
• M16A4
• Mini-Uzi
• FAL

Their only armor choices are

• Nothing
• Single SAPI plate

They only get 1x Frag/Flash/Smoke/Molotov [two slots, of course]

They don’t get Large Equipment

They don’t even get helmets!

But they cost half a deployment slot.

So what do you do with them? Pretty simple, really

If you’re gonna breach a room, send one with a Mini-Uzi with the other guy who’s breaching [never breach alone unless it’s a CIA Black Ops (due to necessity) or a Ranger with an M1014. The Mini-Uzi Miliita isn’t going to be accurate, but the moment he starts firing, the bad guy is suppressed, and then your other guy can clean up. Heck, I’ve seen them suppress with the M9 pistols! One time it took 6 M9 bullets to down an enemy, but each shot suppressed the dude (visibly made them lower their rifle)! Couldn’t stop laughing!

Want someone to hold a hallway or stand in front of a door to look down the Fatal Funnel? M16A4 dude. They always shoot 3 round bursts, so they’re likely to Suppress your enemy – works better in pairs, even.

Want a sniper in another line of sight that aint your Leader? That’s where the FAL comes into play. Just…don’t expose them to more than one enemy at a time, Militia generally get suppressed super easily.

Sidearms!
…Use the M9.

Okay, okay – there’s also the G17 (marginal differences) and the HS-45 pistol (The Militia can’t handle the recoil so they fire it slowly like it’s a heavy revolver, so you’re basically playing the coin-flip for crits with a slow-fire rate weapon)

Overall Suggestions for loadouts:
Everyone gets:

• M9 Pistol
• Headwear doesn’t matter
• Single SAPI plate
• Frag and Flash, unless you wanna use a molotov somewhere

4x Uzi dudes
6x M16A4 dudes
2x FAL dudes

Mini-Uzi (or have FAL dudes switch to pistols) for room clearing SMG
M16A4 for Mid-range / Defense
FAL for Pseudo Sniping

You probably noticed a pattern when reading this. You want to specialize when you can, but sometimes you can’t. Since each Squad [Rangers, CIA, Nowheraki SWAT] is so different, you get different sets of gear for different situations.

To summarize:

Primaries:
Pick your primary depending on the anticipated job you’re going to use.

• Close Range / Door kicking: Handguns, Shotguns, SMGs, Short Rifles/Carbines. Anyone kicking in a door should have as short a gun as possible. Pistols will do in a pinch, but otherwise preferably use SMGs, Shotguns, short rifles (Mk18’s for example).
• Mix of Close Range and distance shots: M4/AKM is middle ground
• Mid-Range: Anyone holding an outside line of sight should have a longer weapon – M16A4, Mk17 CQC/Carbine, etc. LMGs are useful in this range out to Long-range. Machine Guns are clumsy and slow but Suppressive Fire can help them shoot faster than the game reaction time will allow normally.
• Long-range: Any extreme distances can be handled with a decent optic, though consider LMGs or dedicated sniper rifles. [M110A1 for Rangers/CIA, Dragunov/FAL for SWAT; this is where you’d consider breaking out the XM338]

Equipment:

• Consider 40mm Grenade launchers for Window and Door Breaches. Don’t forget you might want that done inside a building, so a shorter gun might be worth bringing in (Mk18 or M4 M203)
• Don’t like a building layout? Make your own dynamic entry with a Wall Breach or rocket launcher.
• Rangers can get up to 7x frags per ranger. If you’re having any trouble, you’re not throwing enough frags [or there’s civilians/hostages/bombs, so throw flashes instead]

CIA plays so differently due to Playing Civilian and Suppressor use that it might be hard to play the game like a heist rather than an explosive simulator. It’s best you use your Undercover for the ‘Freebie’ kills while also opening routes of mobility (busting windows, etc) and prepare your Black Ops units (if you get any in the map) for stealthy insertion, but you can get away with going loud too. If you’re struggling, I’d recommend:

• Undercover: Try to pull pistols out slightly further away than the enemy’s red radius around them. They can sense slightly further out – I’d go at least a body width outside it (give it room for your dudes’ arms to reach towards the enemy)
• Undercover: Don’t open doors with guns out – you make noise when you do
• Black Ops: Best to play them Overt with no Poncho. Play them like Stealth from the original Door Kickers, but you have 2 mobile Cameras that can spot enemies for you
• Undercover: Don’t forget enemies leave sus zones when they die, make sure you’re nowhere near anyone you want dead if you’re shooting with your Black Ops dudes.

SWAT is a higher difficulty setting with your real only advantage being potentially outnumbering your enemy [Militia], having an insane number of wall breaches to work with [one per SWAT Assault and 3x per sapper, potentially], plus 2 grenades per person [Not much individually but when you have 12 people instead of 8…]. If you’re struggling, bring more dudes with LMGs, chuck more grenades, or have more muzzles pointing into a room [Don’t forget maybe switching a dude with a longer weapon with a handgun sometimes! Pistols are fast in this game!]

I’m not perfect either, but this should get you started.

Oh, a few more tips:

• If you’re out of stars, stumped on a map, and want to unlock another gun or piece of equipment, do some randomly generated maps to earn yourself some stars.
• Enemies crouching behind cover and shooting blindly over it – Use a frag if you can, but you could also crouch behind cover [if there is any] and wait for them to stop
• Speed is Life is stupid. Try having a dude wall breach between the left two offices to stop the executioner from getting the hostage in there, and send another dude to the SW glass conference room with a suppressed weapon (MP5SD6 is a personal choice) to clean up the roaming executioners first.