One of the features of Gears 5 is the ability to upgrade your personal robot companion Jack . Jack’s skills are divided into three categories: Offense , Support, and Passive . The player receives new improvements as he progresses through the story campaign. After receiving all the improvements of one of the skills, it will be possible to perform the Ultimate upgrade , for which you have to complete a special mission.
Attack Skills
Flash
Jack will receive this skill during the passage of the second chapter of the first act. Flash allows the robot to blind the enemy and take him out of cover. Upgrading this skill is required to unlock the “I Was Born in Crossfire Hurricane” achievement.
- Fast recharge – speeds up Flash recharge by 25%,
- Increased range – increases the radius of the ability by 50%,
- Daze – Flash deals a small amount of damage when activated,
- Freezing Flash( Ultimate ) – Flash freezes enemies, permanently removing them from combat.
The Ultimate Freezing Flash upgrade can be obtained by completing Act 2. After passing the first gate on Skiff, you can find an old railway tunnel. Enter it, and after the battle with the Loader, the second mission is activated. During Act 2 Chapter 4, locate the two Old Assault Derrick wrecks . Each of them contains the components you need to improve. After completing all quests, “Freezing Flash” will be available for improvement.
Hijacking
Jack will receive this skill during the passage of the first chapter of the third act. Hijacking allows you to lure an enemy fighter Swarm to the player’s side. It should be noted that the ability does not work on opponents Carrier and Snatcher. The game also has an achievement “An Enemy Among Us”, according to which the player needs to kill opponents with four stolen types of opponents, namely – Pouncer, Warden, Stump and Elite Hunter.
- Duration – The duration of Hijacking is increased by 30%,
- Stimulation – enemies hit by the “Hijacking” also receive Stim (increased armor and resistance to aggressive environments),
- Fast recharge – increases the recharge speed of the skill,
- Detonator( Ultimate ) – Enemies affected by Hijacking explode after the expiration of the skill.
The Detonator can be obtained by completing optional Scavenger missions in Act III. At different stages of the passage of the third act, the player will receive requests for help to the scavenger squad in the desert. During the execution of these assignments, it is necessary to find all three parts needed to improve. The components are to be found in the Artillery Battery, City Ruins and Shipwreck locations.
Support skills
Pulse
This is Jack’s basic ability. The skill scans the surrounding area and marks enemies and some interactive objects. The impulse helps to navigate in a space with poor visibility and, when improved, to look for weapons and ammunition.
- Range – increases the radius of the “Impulse” by 50%,
- Improvement of the target designator – doubles the duration of the edging of enemies and objects,
- Object Detection – “Impulse” marks weapons and ammo,
- Marked for Death( Ultimate ) – Enemies marked with Impulse take 20% more damage.
The death mark can be obtained by searching one of the crash sites of the Condor transport plane in the third chapter of the second act.
Steam
Jack will receive this skill during the passage of the fourth chapter of the first act. “Steam” increases the player’s armor, allowing you to avoid death or knocked down in especially dangerous situations. Further improvement of the skill will allow the player to revive comrades who have fallen in battle, which, in turn, will unlock the achievement “Back on Your Feet, Soldier!”
- Fast recharge – speeds up the recharge of “Steam” by 25%,
- Duration – the duration of the “Steam” is increased by an additional 2 seconds,
- Revitalization – “Steam” can revive fallen squad members,
- Deboshir( Ultimate ) – Melee attacks deal three times more damage while Steam is active.
The Deboshir can be obtained by searching one of the crash sites of the Condor transport plane in the third chapter of the second act.
Disguise
Jack will receive this skill during the passage of the fourth chapter of the second act. The skill makes the player and his allies invisible for a short period of time, which allows you to carry out hidden kills and avoid direct clashes with enemies, as well as bypass turrets. To unlock the Seraninja achievement, you must kill three enemies during a single Disguise.
- Agility – allies move 15% faster while in Disguise,
- Extender – kills in “Disguise” extend the duration of the skill,
- Fast recharge – speeds up the recharge of “Disguise” by 15%,
- Assassin( Ultimate ) – Shooting and other actions do not interrupt Disguise.
The Assassin can be obtained by completing the optional Waterworks mission in Act 3. According to the terms of the assignment, the player needs to visit three locations and restore the water supply. Each of these zones – Water Tower, Pump, and Harbor Docks – contains one piece needed to improve Disguise.
Barrier
Jack will receive this skill during the passage of the third chapter of the third act. The skill creates a personal shield that protects against enemy bullets. The player, in turn, can freely shoot through the barrier. One of the improvements will allow bullets to ricochet back at opponents and on the first kill will unlock The Back Atcha achievement.
- Duration – the duration of the “Barrier” is increased by 50%,
- Ricochet – bullets hitting the “Barrier” are reflected back,
- Bastion – increases the size of the “Barrier”,
- Fatal Overload( Ultimate ) – at the end of the skill, the barrier explodes, dealing damage.
“Lethal Overload” can be obtained in the first chapter of the fourth act. In the story, the player must fight Swarmak near the destroyed bar. Explore the bar and its surroundings to find an improvement.
Passive
Jack has all four passive abilities in his base arsenal. Passive abilities do not have ultimates, but ordinary improvements can be applied at any time without fulfilling special conditions. One of the improvements allows Jack to bring heavy weapons to the player, and after the robot has delivered each type of weapon in this way, the achievement Gimme, Gimme, Gimme will be unlocked.
Core
- Hard work – Jack can bring heavy weapons to the player,
- Sniper – headshot kills speed up the cooldown of Jack’s active skills,
- Executioner – finishing moves speed up the recharge of Jack’s active skills,
- Carnage – kills speed up the cooldown of Jack’s active skills.
Zapper
Improved capacitor – allows Jack to shoot longer,
Arc Accelerator – increases the effective shooting distance,
Increasing energy – the longer Jack shoots at the enemy, the more damage it deals,
Separator – Jack can shoot at several enemies at the same time.
Cunning
- Invisibility Amplifiers – Jack can remain in Disguise while accelerating,
- Active stealth – after performing actions, Jack returns to Disguise faster,
- Stealth Shielding – Jack takes less damage while in Disguise,
- Stealthy Delivery – Jack remains invisible while bringing the player a weapon.
Health
- Faster repairs – Jack regenerates health faster,
- Osmium Plates – Increases Jack’s maximum health,
- Self-Resurrection – Jack revives himself twice as fast
- Rescue Order – Jack can resurrect fallen allies.
The rest of the guide can be found on the right in the “Contents” section (if you have entered the site from a PC) or at the very bottom of this page (if you are reading the site from a smartphone).