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Ghost Recon Breakpoint guide

Ghost Recon Breakpoint has been out for a little while now and is the latest in Ubisoft's open-world military shooters. This time around you'll be facing off against an enemy with technology more advanced than your own, complete with big hulking metal automated tanks and radar scrambling technology to disorientate you. With these Ghost Recon Breakpoint tips, they should help you get started with the liberation effort, including how to change class.

Ghost Recon Breakpoint guide

Our Ghost Recon Breakpoint guide will provide some information to get you started with the game, as well as our Ghost Recon Breakpoint tips to help you in both PVE and PVP. There are now also a selection of guides about the brand new Raids that were introduced in December 2019.

Ghost Recon Breakpoint UI

Ghost Recon Breakpoint UI

The first thing we should probably cover in our Ghost Recon Breakpoint guide is the rather cluttered user interface. While the majority of Ghost Recon Breakpoint's UI is self-explanatory, there is an added layer of complexity due to the fact that it bombards you with tutorials that you may not remember hours in. Pressing Tab on keyboard and mouse will bring up the user interface, which includes ammunition count, a mini-map, and the list of pinned objectives. Your class skill can be activated by pressing Z on keyboard and mouse, which does have a cooldown timer that you'll be able to see.

Other things of note are that it will always display your region and your current location within said region in the bottom right underneath the map. As for the ammunition count and health, those are on the bottom left. If the health bar has red sections, it means you've sustained a minor injury, which you will need to treat with Health Kits or Syringes. You can also see here if you currently have a silencer on your weapon, toggleable with the F key.

So how do you pin objectives? In the objectives menu, you'll be able to select missions by going to that mission type and selecting a mission to "Pin" by pressing the space bar on keyboard and mouse. You can save up to three missions on the objectives board for the team, and anyone can override it, so agree on which objectives you are going for before heading out.

One thing that isn't explained well is how items work. You can equip items to your item wheel from the menu. Holding down the ALT key on keyboard and mouse will bring up the item wheel. Use the mouse to select an item and press G to use it. With grenades, holding down G will bring up the throwing arch, allowing you to cook the grenade. Otherwise, most items require a set time to use them.

Other parts of the UI can be confusing at first, particularly if you skip any tutorials, so have a look at our Ghost Recon Breakpoint weapons and our Ghost Recon Breakpoint blueprint locations guides for more on guns and attachments.

Guided mode vs Exploration mode

There are two different ways that you can play missions in Ghost Recon Breakpoint. Guided mode will bring up dots on the map, while Exploration mode doesn't. You'll still have clues for each stage of the mission you are on, which give three clues to where on the map you need to go. These usually include which province you need to be in, where specifically in that province you need to be, and a nearby landmark for reference.

Ghost Recon Breakpoint Bivouac

How to change class - Bivouacs

You'll first find a Bivouac in the Erewhon hub area, but they're scattered throughout the island of Auroa. Ideally, if you're looking for Bivouacs, you'll want to begin by grabbing a chopper. Finding them from the air is really easy, as you can just look for smoke and descend through the fumes to unlock the Bivouac. These can then be used to fast travel around the map. To use it, simply approach it on-foot and press the button prompt to set up camp.

From here, you'll be able to do a bunch of things. The first thing that you should always do is to activate a bonus in the "Preparation" option. Each one lasts an hour of real-time and gives you a small bonus to a particular stat. The preparations are:

  • Eating - Injury resistance +40%
  • Hydrate - Fatigue resistance +80%
  • Tech review - Drone speed +40%
  • Stretching - Stamina +20%
  • Weapon review - Accuracy +20
  • Resources - XP bonus +10%

"Tactics" is the next option on the list and it is here that you can change your class to another one that you have unlocked. Each class has its own set of challenges to complete to unlock different stages. Find out more about classes and skills in our Ghost Recon Breakpoint skills  guide, which contains the full skill list and class abilities - as well as the conditions you need to meet to unlock new ranks.

You can also set up equipment presets here and have slots for up to three. This is more useful late-game as your equipment will not constantly be on rotation, but if you want to switch quickly, this is where you set it up.

"Craft" allows you to make all sorts of items, including healing items, rations for temporary buffs, and even some explosives like mines or grenades. You'll find the components either in the vegetation, by hunting animals, or destroying and looting drones.

"Vehicle" is a lifesaver, particularly if you've been separated from your vehicle of choice. You can select from any owned vehicles, such as cars, bikes and helicopters. If you're part of a team, the last selected vehicle is the one that spawns nearby the Bivouac upon breaking camp.

Finally, there is a "Shop" which has all sorts of items that are purchasable with Skell Credits - the game's currency. You can buy weapons and armour, as well as other important items like vehicle types.

When you do decide to break camp, you'll have a choice at what time you depart. You'll have more visibility in daytime hours, but you may also have the element of surprise if you go for a nighttime assault.

Ghost Recon Breakpoint map

Ghost Recon Breakpoint menu shortcuts

Navigating menus can be a bit of a pain, so instead of trying to fumble through them the same way you would if you lost your keys, here are some useful shortcuts to the most used parts of the menu:

  • L - Loadout (PVE only)
  • I - Inventory
  • O - Lobby (PVE only)
  • M - Map
  • K - Skill
  • J - Store

There are also some shortcuts for quickly swapping around your equipment too:

  • 1 - Primary weapon slot 1
  • 2 - Primary weapon slot 2
  • 3 - Sidearm
  • 4 - Scroll items
  • 5-0 - Equip consumable item cells 1-6.

Ghost Recon Breakpoint Azraël drones

How to evade Helicopters and Azraël drones in Ghost Recon Breakpoint

In Ghost Recon Breakpoint, there's a bit more of an emphasis on stealth. This is confounded by the fact that there are two things to always be on the lookout for: Helicopters and Azraël Drones. You'll hear the helicopters before you see them, so have time to find cover, but the drones are silent.

The only detection you'll have for Azraël Drones though is an on-screen prompt. Unless you are already in conflict, you should stop what you're doing and take evasive measures, otherwise, you'll be detected by the drone. You do not want this to happen. If you are detected, the mini-map will turn into static before the heavily armed Wolves descend upon you in great numbers.

They are heavily armed and while it is entirely possible to defend against them, it's better to grab the nearest vehicle and flee the scene. They can appear at any time, even during particularly tense moments, so just be aware of the warning. Luckily if you go prone (default controls for this are "C" on keyboard and mouse), and then activate the prone camo, you'll be able to avoid being detected by both helicopters and Azraël Drones. Being indoors will also hide you from the drones.

Ghost Recon Breakpoint radar drones

How to use the drone in Ghost Recon Breakpoint

If there's one basic thing to get a good grasp on, it's using your radar drone to scout out an area before storming in. After completing the first mission and obtaining the radar drone, you'll be able to activate it by pressing the X key. This will then put you in the perspective of the drone and you can fly around. If you are about to be seen while piloting a drone, you'll lose control of it and may need to take some evasive action. If you ever see the word Focus, pressing and holding H on keyboard and mouse will shift the camera so you can see the enemy.

The general idea when scouting is to look for the source of the red circles on your mini-map. When you detect an enemy or civilian, you'll wipe one of the red circles and have their AI icon (whether they're a rifleman, sniper, civilian, etc) show instead. If you still have red circles, it means there's someone you haven't spotted with your drone. Note that unmanned vehicles and drones, including artillery, scouting, and turrets, can also be detected, as well as power generators that can be taken out to disable certain drones.

You don't have to get too close to the ground as the drone comes equipped with a camera that can zoom in quite far. This is done on keyboard and mouse controls by scrolling the mouse wheel. If you do get too close to enemy soldiers or drones, your drone will be detected and the enemy will likely be on the lookout for you.

Drones can be a useful scouting tool, but there are a couple of things you need to keep in mind when using them. Firstly, there's only so far that your drone can scout. Each large settlement has at least some cover, whether that is a bush or a hut of some sorts, that you can hide in, allowing for you to keep a decent signal. If you get too far away, the bars will drop. Too far and you may lose your drone for a short time.

The second and most important thing is battery life. These drones do recharge quickly when not in use, but they have terrible battery life, lasting a couple of minutes at full charge. Keep an eye on the battery life as you scout around and if you sense that you're about to run out of power, bring the drone back.

Cover image for YouTube video

Ghost Recon Breakpoint tips

Finally, we've had a bunch of Ghost Recon Breakpoint tips to keep in mind while playing both PVE and PVP, both in the video above and the bullet points below:

  • For some, it might be preferential to have a controller plugged in to control vehicles exclusively, allowing for more reliable cornering when driving on road. I personally use it exclusively for piloting helicopters.
  • If you can, try to play with three other players. Having someone able to watch your back, the ability to scout with radar drones of their own, and use the mounted gun while you drive cars is worth the slight increase in difficulty.
  • Outside of Erewhon, the main hub, you will find an assortment of vehicles including a helicopter. They're the safest way to travel as you only need to worry about other helicopters and any missiles that could be fired from the ground.
  • Unlock the different vision types as soon as you can for both you and your radar drone. By pressing V on keyboard and mouse, you'll be able to switch between normal, night-vision, and thermal vision.
  • Tinker with your weapons in the loadout menu by editing weapons in the Gunsmith. These include improvements that you've unlocked along the way.
  • Try to only use weapons while being stealthy that use silencers. Many do use silencers and allow you to kill enemies from afar without detection. If you're in a fight though, taking the suppressor off will increase the damage output.
  • Speaking of taking out enemies from afar, try to estimate how far enemies are with the scope. Most can be killed by pointing the crosshairs directly at their heads, but if they're further out you'll need to calculate for ballistics by aiming slightly higher.
  • You can use the scenery to take cover or hide from enemies. Move into bushes and the screen will darken slightly, indicating you are hidden. Moving into a wall will automatically cling your character to the wall.
  • If you're about to be detected, you'll hear a pulsing sound. The sound is different and more high-pitched if a drone is about to detect you.
  • Running downhill will reduce your stamina gauge. If you run out, you'll stumble, which will steadily deal damage to you and potentially inflict and injury. Managing your stamina gauge is therefore vital when fleeing enemies.
  • Syringes are quicker at healing than Health Kits. Keep some on hand for if you're in a tight spot and need healing quickly.
  • You'll regularly lose a chunk of stamina if you sprint too much, represented by the red bit on your stamina bar. Recover this by drinking from the canteen, which can be refilled with water at any clean water source, and the red bit should turn green.
  • Don't take on more than you can deal with. If enemies are upon you and you're heavily outnumbered, a strategic retreat may save your life.
  • Enemies have levels, so try not to fight those who are significantly higher level than your current equipment level - found in the loadout screen.
  • On the map, if you are playing in Guided mode, you can click the dots to pin their related mission to the objectives board for your team. Otherwise, you'll need to use the Objectives menu to pin objectives.
  • EMP grenades and rocket launchers are your best friend when trying to take out bigger drones, such as the Behemoths.
  • While playing with other players in either PVE or PVP, communicate with your teammates and ping (Q on keyboard and mouse) if you see an enemy but you can't properly tag them in time before they disappear.
  • Enemy players in PVP can revive downed players, so make sure you keep an eye out for enemies scrambling to save their teammates.
  • Doors can be unlocked by picking up the nearest dead soldier and carrying them to the door in question. You can't climb up ladders with them, however.
  • Unlocking the Panther class early gives you sprays that you can use to infiltrate the Behemoth defence sites early on, avoiding conflict with the high-powered drone tanks that patrol the area. They can be refilled at Bivouacs.

Ghost Recon Breakpoint fighting

Ghost Recon Breakpoint guide links

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Dave Irwin avatar

Dave Irwin

Former Guides Writer

Dave was a guides writer for Rock Paper Shotgun from 2018-2020. He previously worked as a freelancer for TheSixthAxis, Tech Advisor and Kotaku, producing hundreds of guides to help people get better at their favourite games. He now writes guides for PCGamesN.

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