All attackers have the option for a secondary gadget to be equipped. Choosing which one you want to equip can be difficult without knowing how to utilize them properly. This means looking into the technicalities and uses for these secondary gadgets to pick the one that suits your needs best. While these gadgets may be basic, they can aid you and hinder your opponent enough to give you the leg up in the match.

Stun Grenade

This throwable canister will blind and deafen any players, including you and your teammates, surrounding it for a total of five seconds, making it useful when needing to impair your enemies. This grenade is not cookable, but it is important to note that it will go off either one second after impact on something or someone, or three seconds after it has been thrown.

Stunning your opponent will give you leverage in any situation. Clearing rooms, gunfights, and planting are just a few that having a stun will benefit you and your team. Be wary as players do have the ability to avoid the blinding effect if they face away and are three meters or more away from the grenade, but they will still be given deafness. The operator, Warden, does possess a gadget that will make him immune to stun grenades if he is standing still.

While stunning your opponent gives you the upper hand, you can also gain ground without needing to. If an opponent is near your stun grenade but not close enough to be affected, they will either push that direction in hopes of catching the one that threw it or move away if they do not want to engage. Meanwhile if they are too close, in fear of getting stunned and being vulnerable the player will rush away. This method can draw opponents out from their hiding spaces, leaving them exposed.

If you are playing a match with an Aruni on the defending team, saving at least one of your stun grenades can help you counter her gadget. Aruni’s gates are very annoying, as they are only able to be disabled by something or someone crossing through them. Carrying a stun on you gives you the ability to throw it at the gate to disable it. This will destroy your grenade, so it is best to be mindful about how many you have left.

Operators with the option to equip stun grenades are Sledge, Thermite, Buck, Blackbeard, Hibana, Dokkaebi, Lion, Finka, Nomad, Amaru, and Flores

Smoke Grenade

Having the ability to obstruct your opponent’s view can be crucial in some situations, which is where smoke grenades come in. These canisters will release a dense cloud of smoke three seconds after being thrown or two seconds after any impact, which will last for ten seconds.

All players, except attacker Glaz and defender Warden with their gadgets, are unable to see through the smoke. This makes it ideal when you are needing cover to plant the bomb or to block an angle. Throwing a smoke grenade down will shield you from opponents, making your movements unpredictable to them. Locations to throw these will depend on the situation at hand, as players' locations are not always the same. Before you throw a smoke down, you will need to pay attention to what players are around you and the open angles that expose you. In the event that you come across an Aruni gate and have a smoke grenade that you do not mind discarding, you can disable it by throwing the canister at it.

Below is an image of what the smoke cloud looks like, to give a visual on its size.

Operators with the option to equip smoke grenades are Thermite, Twitch, Montagne, Glaz, Blitz, Jackal, Ying, Dokkaebi, Nomad, Iana, and Osa

Frag Grenade

While it is nice to carry non-lethal gadgets to help you, a frag grenade can give you the strong force you need. Unlike stun and flash grenades, thisgadget can be cooked for four seconds before it detonates. This can be done in your hand or while you throw it. When cooking the frag in your possession, be mindful of the time since you and your teammates are not immune to the explosion.

Utilizing the frag grenade’s cook time is going to help you out in many scenarios. If cooked to the full time, it will act almost as an impact grenade. This will give you the precision needed to damage a specific player, surface, or gadget. In situations where you know the location of an opponent, throwing one in the area after it is properly cooked will leave the player with no time to run away.

On the other hand, if the frag is not cooked and just thrown, it will roll and move to a location you may or may not want. Usually this comes in handy when needing to roll it under something or bounce it off a wall. While it is satisfying to get a kill from a frag grenade, simply throwing it into a room or area will draw your opponents out as they run away from it.

Be aware of drone holes nearby, as they make great passages for frag grenades. It takes some skill to be able to maneuver one through there, but if you get it right the payout is worth it. These drone holes can give you access to destroy any gadgets on the other side as well as harm those that the frag nears. This is very helpful if there are Bandit’s shock wire or Mute’s signal disruptors on a reinforced wall, for if there is a drone hole nearby you can easily take them out.

Operators with the option to equip frag grenades are Sledge, Glaz, Finka, Maverick, Nøkk, and Iana

Breach Charge

Carrying a breach charge with you gives you the ability to open up an angle or entry way without relying on a soft breacher. There is a placing animation for the breach charge, but the detonation is almost instant after you press the button. If you ignite the charge on a soft wall, the whole wall panel will be destroyed.

Breach charges are able to destroy soft walls and castle barricades in terms of surfaces. If there is a soft floor, placing a charge on it gives you the opportunity to play vertically. A huge hole will not be made as there are metal bars across the floor for stabilization, but the planks surrounding them will be demolished to give you a look into the level below you. If there is a hatch nearby that has not been reinforced, using a breach charge on it will break apart all the wood inside its metal outline.

Once a breach charge is placed, it will not go off until you press the button. This gives you the ability to control the detonation which can be helpful in situations where you want to use the charge as a distraction or to wait for the perfect time to set it off.

Operators with the option to breach charges are Thatcher, Ash, Fuze, Blitz, IQ, Hibana, Zofia, Nomad, Kali, and Ace

Hard Breach Charge

If you are needing more force than a regular breach charge, a hard breach charge is the way to go. This deployable device follows the same idea, except it can also cut through reinforced surfaces. The hole that it creates is just enough space for you to crawl or jump through, but on hatches it will demolish the whole thing.

Typically, you will equip hard breach charges when your team does not have a hard breacher, or when you are wanting to enter at a separate point than your hard breacher is going. Unlike a regular charge, these heavy-duty gadgets cannot be detonated remotely; instead, they begin cutting the reinforced surface as soon as the placing animation is through.

A side-by-side comparison for the holes created by the two different charges is below.

Operators with the option to equip hard breach charges are Montagne, Fuze, Buck, Capitao, Ying, Nøkk, Amaru, and Zero

Claymore

Defenders set traps for attackers, so it is nice that attackers can return the favor with claymores. When the portable mine is placed, three visible lasers will shine out of it that will act as tripwires. When a player comes in contact with one of these lasers, the gadget will explode after a half second delay. You and your teammates are able to walk freely through the lasers without worry, but not if an opponent sets one off next to you then you will take damage as well.

Since claymores are able to be placed and left alone, most players use them as a means to prevent defenders from flanking them. There is nothing worse than thinking you have the upper hand, only to get shot in the back by an enemy that had been roaming. While a free kill is always nice, using the claymores to block a roaming defender's path can be a smart tactical move. If placed correctly, a defender will only be able to see the red lasers, rather than the mine itself. This will cause them to not be able to shoot it, therefore they are left to find an alternate path unless they want to cross the red lasers.

If you communicate with your teammates, you could pull off a tactical play with a claymore and Nomad. When Nomad places her airjab gadget, a claymore can be set nearby so that when an opponent gets knocked away by the airjab they will get pushed into the claymore.

Operators with the option to equip claymores are Thatcher, Ash, Twitch, IQ, Blackbeard, Capitao, Jackal, Zofia, Lion, Maverick, Kali, Ace, Zero, Flores, and Osa

What Should I Equip?

These secondary gadgets are all beneficial, so there is not a wrong one to equip. You will want to keep in mind your play style, the operators your teammates have chosen, and the map you are on, as some are more situational. Regardless of which one you carry, incorporating more tactical uses of your secondary gadgets into your gameplay can grant you the smallest advantage that could change the tides of the match.

Using What You Have Learned

Every operator is granted a secondary gadget to use at their disposal. Knowing how to use them properly is going to be crucial if you want the tactical edge in a match. While you may want to use your special gadget as it can be "flashier", utilizing these fundamental tools in calculated ways can work just as well to give you an advantage. In the end, these secondary gadgets may be the help you need to turn the match in your favor.