Shot of Adrenaline
In Evolve, each team’s offense depends on the team’s defense and backup force. Mutual nods are utmost necessary in hunting the monster out before it cracks Stage 3, but so is balancing it out while within combat. That’s when a team can break or pose a real threat to the monster. We have covered the Trapper class in a previous article and here we are, revising another vital class for the hunters – the Medic. I’ve gone down as the monster within my first level itself, because I was in awe of the way the Hunter team defended and stood out for each other. We have also taken great hits before coming close to the Monster’s prowess, because oft we would be disoriented and seek out targets individually. A weak group is symbolized by the lack of a role playing Medic.
The Medic vs Team:
The Medic is the most important target for the monster, and automatically becomes the only weak spot in an otherwise formidable team. However, if you play your Medic role out well, that weak spot can only turn into a solid sucker punch every time on the towering savage. For those who play all other roles except the Medic, keep your damn eyes on the Medic like you keep them on for the monster. If the Medic goes down, shit goes hard for the team. It is also important that you stay in range of the Medic, for continuous healing and stop chasing the monster all by yourself. With the Medic paired up with the Assault, while the Support keeps a check of the duo and the Trapper hitting all the harpoons on the floor, nothing can go right for the monster.
Val the First Medic:
I couldn’t get much time to play as a Medic in the online modes, so I went back to offline Evacuation scenarios and played by share of being a Medic, could unlock only one more character beyond Val, but Val is so good as a Medic that you should actually stick with her to learn the Medic rules. Val has the personality that challenges the robust manlike imageries of Hank and Hyde. Val, or Valerie Wolski, is a Medic, long range sharpshooter and a monster drugger. Her role within the group equips her with an arsenal that best fits the towering personality of this one-of-a-kind Medic. She keeps her feet off the ground; she is always healing teammates after a combat round and doing her bit of helping the monster show its weaker side.
The most important gun that Val has is the Med Gun. It allows her to heal teammates from a great distant only if they are in clear sight. As Val, try to perch high above the rest and heal teammates without drawing much attention of the monster. Your most important target to heal would be the Assault, because if he stays immortal, the monster is sure to drop off some health. Combine with the Support class to stay invisible, especially when the Monster is primarily seeking out the Medic via the green Med Gun orbs.
The Armor Piercing Sniper Rifle is more than the icing on the cake for someone like Val. Even though she is vulnerable to clear animal attacks and monster bashing, she does have something to cling on to as a weapon of choice, the Armor Piercing Sniper Rifle. Not only does it damage the creatures, but also marks weak points within the target, for the other classes to hit and take out maximum health from. Of all the fights I have been in, I have tried to swap my guns around quick, and get Val to a more offense opener mode. The precision markers open up the game for your teammates, without which it is some task to injure the monster. Getting some precision markers up on the eggs speed up killing them in the Nest mode.
The Tranquilizer Rifle may seem irrelevant but it is the harpoon gun of the Medic class. If you are competing against a fast and frisky target like the Wraith or when you see the Goliath gear up for a ram and charge move, make sure to shoot two dosages of tranquilizer at the monster in order to slow it down for a while. This gives your team enough spread to do some damage to the monster that is drugged and wants to regain its original mobility. The Tranq Rifle is also another way to slow down an escaping target, run as fast as you can with Maggie at side and give her lights to drop the dome, that’s the way to go. Besides these, Val can recharge a bunch of allies with her Burst Heal grenade, that quickly replenishes health in a close radius. This makes Hunters stick around each other when they are going down fast.
Lazarus, the Second Medic and a bloody Med Wizard:
Lazarus is the second Medic you unlock when you One Star each of Val’s class moves, and Laz is by far the most dependable character to have in your team. Forget your selfish self and protect Lazarus if he chooses to side in for the round, because he is your man, even when you are dead. Named after the famous Lazarus who could reawaken the dead in his pit, Lazarus of Evolve can actually make it monstrously hard for the creature to take down the group. He doesn’t let his teammates die with the next respawn counter ticking for 2 minutes, instead he reincarnates them from the ground. Every time I played as the Monster, I dreaded and pleaded to God to give me another Medic target apart from Lazarus, because he is a Monster’s nightmare.
The Lazarus Device is the reason why Lazarus is oft dreaded and marked by all monsters as their VIP target, it reawakens dead and fallen team mates, who do not suffer a lower maximum health mark unlike the other times you die and come back. The Lazarus device reanimates teammates quickly and act as a counter defensive weapon in times you are down to two or three living teammates.
The Silenced Sniper Rifle keeps Lazarus acting with a low profile, he keeps himself on top of high towers and secluded spots and pin points weak spots in the monster’s body in order to open up offense. The high firing rate is countered by the low damage on the monster, providing enormous amount of stealth the gun provides to both the team and the character.
The makers of Evolve understood the possibilities of dropping a vital character like Lazarus into the fray, heck he is going to be marked by the monster at all times. Thus, they gave him a self-defense ability in the form of a Cloaking Device. Lazarus can gain brief invisibility especially when he has been spotted in the crowd by the monster, he can simply evade his line of sight and operate from another end of the combat zone. Besides escaping, Lazarus can gain invisibility when he is reviving fallen teammates, in that ways he keeps his profile hidden from the monster and does what he does best, bring unreasonable and invincible firepower to the team. Lazarus also gets a Healing Burst grenade, which if popped, grants health to the surrounding teammates and himself in a pool.
As Lazarus, try to do what Wraith does best, sneak in, sneak out, operate. If you get spotted, chances are that you will get ripped to shreds in seconds, and no Support class wants to shield a Lazarus in his dying moments. And with Lazarus gone, the company is seriously under a lot of pressure. Do not engage with the monster unless your team is ready, and do not ever wander off isolated, if you get pounced upon and eaten alive, the team is in due for a crushing blow.
Even though I prefer my primary role of being a Trapper, I love what I am seeing in the Medic class, and have high hopes to see what each Medic looks like with all their attributes at 3 stars potential. While the Trapper can be called as the Eyes of the team, the Medic is sure bound the Heart of the team. Do not let it stop beating. We will be back tomorrow as promised, uncovering yet another class, a class that carries the maximum responsibility for downing the monster, as quick as possible, the sinews of the team – The Assault. Until then, Happy Hunting!
