Risk of Rain 2: How to Unlock All Characters

Risk of Rain 2 is the 2019 sequel to the 2013 Roguelike shooter from Hopoo Games. Like other examples in the genre, players have to try to survive a harsh environment while battling enemies and collecting additional gear. Many of the Risk of Rain 2 characters have carried over from its predecessor, giving players plenty of choices when it comes to playing through the campaign.

These characters all offer a variety of different strategies for users to approach the next run. All of them have diverse strengths and weaknesses, with special abilities and varying stats. In total, there are six new characters in Risk of Rain 2, although not all of them are available immediately.

In fact, only the Commando is playable when the game first starts. All characters in Risk of Rain 2 are locked besides him. Players will have to complete specific objectives to get access to the others. This guide should give you a good understanding of how to unlock all characters in Risk of Rain 2.

Commando

• Health – 110 (+33 per level)
• Damage – 12 (+2.4 per level)
• Primary Skill – Double Tap: Shoot twice for 2×90% damage.
• Secondary Skill – Phase Round: Fire a piercing bullet that hits all enemies in a line for 230% damage. Cooldown: 3 seconds.
• Utility Skill – Tactical Dive: Roll a short distance. Cooldown: 4 seconds.
• Special Skill – Suppressive Fire: Fire rapidly, stunning enemies for 6×100% damage. Cooldown: 9 seconds.

“The Commando is a jack-of-all-trades character that is reliable in all situations of the game.”

The Commando is the default hero. He is available from the start of the game and operates as a sort of middle ground between all of the other options. But unless you start unlocking other characters, you’ll be spending a lot of time with this guy.

MUL-T

• Health – 200 (+60 per level)
• Armor – 20 (16.67% damage reduction)
• Damage – 11 (+2.2 per level)
• Primary Skill – Auto-Nailgun: Rapidly fire nails for 60% damage. Fires six nails when initially pressed.
• Secondary Skill – Blast Canister: Launch a stun canister for 220% damage. Drops stun bomblets for 5×44% damage. Cooldown: 6 seconds.
• Utility Skill – Transport Mode: Zoom forward, gaining 200 Armor, and additional speed. Deals 250% damage to enemies in the way. Deals more damage at higher speeds. Cooldown: 8 seconds.
• Special Skill – Retool: Switches his primary fire between the rapid Auto-Nailgun and a piercing heavy-damage Rebar Puncher that deals 600% damage.
• Additional Skills – Multifunctional: MUL-T can hold two equipment at once. The active equipment is swapped by using Retool. Cooldown: 0.5 seconds.

“MUL-T is an aggressive survivor who has the tools necessary for any job!”

The MUL-T robot can be unlocked by completing the Verified achievement. This involves completing the 1st teleporter event at least five times in total. As soon as the achievement unlocks, MUL-T will be available.

Huntress

• Health – 90 (+27 per level)
• Damage – 12 (+2.4 per level)
• Primary Skill – Strafe: Fire a seeking arrow for 150% damage. Can be used while sprinting.
• Secondary Skill – Laser Glaive: Throw a seeking glaive that bounces up to 6 times for 250% damage. Damage increases by 10% per bounce. Cooldown: 7 seconds.
• Utility Skill – Blink: Disappear and teleport forward. Cooldown: 7 seconds.
• Special Skill – Arrow Rain: Teleport into the sky. Target an area to rain arrows, slowing all enemies and dealing 225% damage per second. Cooldown: 17 seconds.

“The Huntress is an extremely mobile but fragile survivor with a high damage output.”

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Unlocking the Huntress involves completing the Warrior challenge. That means that players have to reach and complete the 3rd teleporter event without dying. A good tip for those struggling with this is to play at a lower difficulty in co-op multiplayer,

Engineer

• Health – 130 (+39 per level)
• Damage – 14 (+2.8 per level)
• Primary Skill – Bouncing Grenades: Charge up to 8 grenades that deal 100% damage each.
• Secondary Skill – Pressure Mines: Place a mine that deals 300% damage when an enemy walks nearby. Can place up to 10. Cooldown: 8 seconds.
• Utility Skill – Bubble Shield: Create an impenetrable shield that blocks all incoming damage. Cooldown: 25 seconds.
• Special Skill – TR12 Gauss Auto-Turret: Place a turret that inherits all your items. Fires a cannon for 100% damage. Can place up to 2. Cooldown: 30 seconds.

“The Engineer is a unique class that requires planning and positioning to be successful.”

Unlocking characters in Risk of Rain 2 can be a bit of a grind occasionally and the Engineer is one example of that. The Engineer becomes available after completing 30 areas. 

Artificer

• Health – 110 (+33 per level)
• Damage – 12 (+2.4 per level)
• Primary Skill – Flame Bolt: Fire a bolt for 200% damage that ignites enemies. Hold up to 4. Cooldown: 1.3 seconds.
• Secondary Skill – Charged Nano-Bomb: Charge up a nano-bomb that deals 400%-1200% damage and stuns all enemies. Cooldown: 5 seconds.
• Utility Skill – Snapfreeze: Create a barrier that freezes enemies for 100% damage. Enemies at low health are instantly killed if frozen. Cooldown: 12 seconds.
• Special Skill – Flamethrower: Burn all enemies in front of you for 1700% damage. Cooldown: 5 seconds.

“The Artificer is a high burst damage survivor who excels in fighting large groups and bosses alike.”

For those wondering how to unlock Risk of Rain 2 characters, the Artificer is a little different. To get this character, players will need to collect Lunar Coins from defeated enemies. This currency carries over between runs. Once you have 11 Lunar Coins, the Artificer can be unlocked. Simply find a Newt Altar to pay the cost to make the character available.

Mercenary

• Health – 140 (+42 per level)
• Armor – 20 (16.67% damage reduction)
• Damage – 12 (+2.4 per level)
• Primary Skill – Laser Sword: Slice in front for 130% damage. Every 3rd hit strikes in a greater area for 300% damage.
• Secondary Skill – Whirlwind: Quickly slice horizontally twice, dealing 2×200% damage. If airborne, slice vertically instead. Cooldown: 2.5 seconds.
• Utility Skill – Blinding Assault: Dash forward, stunning enemies for 200% damage. If you hit an enemy, you can dash again, up to 3 total. Cooldown: 7 seconds.
• Special Skill – Eviscerate: Target the nearest enemy, attacking them for 110% damage repeatedly. You cannot be hit for the duration. Cooldown: 6 seconds.
• Additional Skills – Cybernetic Enhancements: The Mercenary can jump twice. Increased Health Regeneration: While all other characters have a Health Regen of 1.5/seconds (+0.3 per level), the Mercenary’s is 3.75/seconds (+0.75 per level).

“The Mercenary is a high skill melee survivor that uses his many dodges to weave in and out of combat.”

Unlocking the Mercenary involves beating each of the game’s main environments in a single run. After this, you will be transported back to the starting area where Celestial Portals will spawn. Travel to the bottom of one of these portals and interact with the large obelisk structure. This will unlock the Mercenary and also the True Respite Challenge.