Crypto is one of the more difficult (and less popular) characters in Apex Legends, and it’s no wonder why. His abilities feel slow and uninspiring compared to most others in the game, offering little to no direct benefit for massive disadvantages, but despite these apparent issues, he can be a devastatingly powerful legend when mastered.
If you are struggling to play well with Crypto, don’t be discouraged. His biggest advantage is that he can gather all kinds of information, and it can take time to learn how best to infer that information. Getting good at Crypto is a long road paved with experience, but these 10 tips can help you find the basics of this drone-based legend and get you on the right track in no time.
10 Scout ahead
Crypto is unique among Recon legends in that his abilities are best suited for long-range scouting and combat initiation instead of scanning in the middle of an engagement. If you want to use him to his full potential, you’ll need to use his drone to scout ahead.
Check buildings to see which have teams bunkered inside, fly closer to battles to find out exactly where they are, and fly high to detect distant layers before they even have a chance to see you. All of this is valuable information, and in most cases Crypto is the only legend who can reliably use his abilities to gather it.
9 Talk to your team
Crypto can get tons of information with his drone, but that information doesn’t help your team if you never share it. While you can communicate simple concepts with pings, the information you get from using the drone is rarely that easy to convey.
If you want to play Crypto at its best, you have to jump on the mic and give your teammates all the details. Remember to keep it short, and don’t overload them with information that isn’t relevant. Your excited Octane doesn’t need to know about the Bangalore ultimate you saw 300 meters away when you’re about to go into battle yourself.
8 Use the drone to cover your back
The drone can and should be used for more than just scouting ahead. At its core, the drone is another set of eyes as it will scan anything that comes within 30 meters of its line of sight. You can use this fact to cover your back when rotating or participating in battles.
Place your drone at a choke point on the map or covering a popular angle outside a point of interest can give you an advanced warning if another team is following you or targeting a third-party match. This type of preemptive drone use comes in handy more often than you’d think. Just imagine the worst case scenario and place your drone somewhere that will tell you if that scenario is about to come true.
7 Check large signs and survey signals
There are two additional ways Crypto can get information with his drone, and they are both extremely powerful. The first is from the large signs that litter the map. These signs, often on cliff faces or buildings, usually display the champion’s banner, but if you look at them in the drone, they tell you how many teams are within 200 meters, the maximum flight distance of the drone. Use this often to determine if there is a team within combat distance of you at the moment.
Survey Beacons are also an incredible tool. When used by the drone, they will reveal the location of each team on the map, which can help you either plan safer rotations or find your next match faster. The only downside to this is that teams will be alerted when scanned this way, allowing nearby enemies to seek you out or prepare for your attack.
6 Start with your EMP
Some would say the best part of Crypto’s kit is his ultimate, EMP. This explosion of 60 meters briefly stuns everyone in the radius and deals 50 damage to the enemy’s shield. It can be an invaluable initiation tool that can help you win matches quickly and cleanly, but to do all that, you need to use it as often as you can.
If your EMP is off cooldown, try to start your next match with it. Communicate with your team so that they are waiting for you, fly the drone close and hide it behind a wall near the enemies. EMP goes through walls so this will keep your drone alive and prevent the enemy team from doing anything to stop the EMP.
5 Deploy the drone on the go
Crypto is the type of legend who wants to stand still, wait a few more seconds while he finds the perfect position for his drone, but this is simply against the game. Almost all other legendaries (and the players using them) want to join the fray as soon as possible, so if you want to fight with your team, you have to adapt.
If you press the button to deploy your drone, Crypto will throw it out in front of him after a short animation, and this process never slows you down. You may lose some accuracy in your positioning, but it’s worth it to keep up with your team. Remember that you can also push when deploying the drone to control the drone for a few seconds while Crypto is still moving forward.
4 Use your drone in every battle
Crypto is useless without his drone; you could even say that the drone is the real legend here. That is why it is important that you try to use it in every match. Don’t worry about your drone being destroyed unless you have a clear use for it in the near future (to scan a Survey Beacon or fire an EMP).
Of course, you want to keep the drone alive as long as possible since its value comes from being the longest scanning ability in the game, but you have to use it first and foremost. If you’re short on ideas, you can quickly deploy your drone and use it like a Mirage Clone to distract opponents or use it when you’re closing in on cover to briefly scout it.
3 Put the drone in the right place
When using your drone in a battle, positioning is key to getting the most out of it. The best place to put your drone is in the air. At about 11 meters tall and looking down, it will be able to scan the most area possible and see behind cover with ease. On the other hand, this also makes it easier for the enemy team to shoot down.
If you can’t use an aerial drone, there is another fantastic option. Putting the drone behind a piece of cover and having it face your position will do that scan any enemy that tries to pressure you, acts as a kind of scanning trap. This type of position does not always pay off, but the drone is at its safest.
2 Remember early and often
You can recall your drone at any time, returning it to you after a short animation, and this ability to return your drone is crucial to getting the most out of it. The drone can be shot down if enemies spot it, and firefights in Apex are often highly mobile with teams advancing and often retreating. If you don’t remember, your drone will either sit in a useless position or be shot down by enemies.
Even if it just means getting a short scan, don’t be afraid to recall the drone. Recalling has the added benefit of keeping your enemies guessing. They may have figured out where your drone was before, but recall gives you another chance to trick them.
1 Play to revive your teammates
Crypto is arguably the best legend when it comes to reviving teammates, and it’s all thanks to his trusty drone. While in the drone, you can both pick up your teammates’ banners and activate respawn beacons (without charging time). And since everything is done through his drone, Crypto never has to put himself in danger to do so.
The only other competitors to Crypto’s respawning abilities are the Support Class legends who can craft their teammates’ banners at crafters. Still, if you play Crypto and a match goes south, consider popping out early in hopes of reviving your teammates.
