Gears 5 Best Jack Upgrades and Which to Get First
You’ve decided to play Del’s weird robot, but what now? What role do you fill? With 11 skill cards, which upgrades should you focus on first?
Horde players either love or hate playing Jack.
I love Jack. As Jack, I am the MVP. I generate more power than taps. I can heal and revive through walls. I can get to those nubs that ran way out into left field and died.
So why the hate? The biggest complaint I’ve heard from other players is that Jack is boring and they have nothing to do.
My response? They don't know how they should be playing Jack. Quite frankly, most of those players don’t know jack about Jack.
Today I’m going to explain the best upgrades for Jack that you should go after first. In doing so, you will get a better idea of the role you should play as Jack. Trust me; it’s far from boring. I haven’t been this busy since Scout in Gears 4!
#1: The Optimizer Card (AKA Forge Card)
Gears of War 5’s horde is different from its predecessor in the way that power is collected. There are three ways that your team can earn power in horde:
- Retrieving power dropped by fallen enemies.
- Extracting power from claimed fabricators each round.
- Dismantling guns in the forge.
Building a forge is expensive, and upgrading it is even more so. With an engineer that’s rocking discounts on fortifications, it can cost 36,000 power to build and upgrade the forge to level four. Engineers like Del can reduce that amount further with the right cards.
Optimizer increases the amount of power earned by Jack when smelting weapons. This card first becomes available at level four and starts with a measly 50 percent increase. Focus on upgrading this card as quickly as possible, and you’ll be rewarded with a 200 percent power bonus.
For high-tier guns like boomshots, dropshots, and torque bows, a max-level card will net you 360 points per gun. That’s 1,800 points to a five-person team per gun that you scrap. I can scrap 15+ guns most rounds. While those guns may not always be high-tier, I’m pulling at least 3,000 points per player each round.
The optimizer card is green, or common. You can earn this card playing horde on any difficulty. Like all cards, you can upgrade optimizer by:
- Earning duplicate optimizer cards.
- Using your scrap to avoid waiting for duplicates.
If you have the scrap to spare, I recommend upgrading the optimizer card as quickly as possible. More power = better, smoother horde runs with fewer casualties and less wasted time.
Finally, here are a few ways you can optimize your optimizer:
- Tell your engineer that you have the forge card so that they will build and upgrade a forge for you.
- You’re visible while carrying guns! Don’t grab weapons that are behind a wall of enemies that will shoot at you. A dead Jack is a bad Jack!
- Heal and revive while carrying weapons back to the forge — you’re visible anyway!
#2: The Healing Reach Card
Jack is arguably the best medic in Gears of War 5’s horde mode. Playing as Jack means you’re invisible as you zoom about the map, so long as you don’t use any abilities, carry a weapon, or bump into an enemy. Jack also has the best, most fluid movement of any character. Jack can fly over things that other characters must run around and even reach the second level of maps with ease.
Together? This combination alone makes Jack an excellent support choice.
Jack has a healing beam that can be used at long distances to revive and heal team members. Players have the option of upgrading healing rate and reach. While healing rate is another great card to upgrade, you should focus on healing reach first.
Why? That’s easy:
- Heal through walls, including from different floors.
- Heal while hiding behind cover or around a corner.
- Keep a safer distance when following a character that’s charging into the fray.
Healing reach is earned at level two. The card begins at a low 20 percent increased healing distance. At level 5, your healing distance is increased to 60 percent.
Like the optimizer card, healing reach is a green, commonly acquired card in horde. You can upgrade healing reach by:
- Earning duplicate healing reach cards.
- Using your scrap to avoid waiting for duplicates.
If you’re limited on scrap, I recommend focusing on maximizing the optimizer card before healing reach. Optimizer provides more power to the group. That means your engineer will be able to build and upgrade more fortifications, thus increasing your group’s survivability. While healing reach is a fantastic ability, it takes a backseat to the card that really lets Jack shine.
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