Now in its eighth ‘Mayhem’ season, Apex Legends has acted as the wild-card option for battle royal fans. Long-time players of Apex remember the original cast of characters and probably still main one or two of them to this day. Octane was the first unlockable character in Apex Legend’s debut season. Since then, he’s been a staple of every successful squad. You can still unlock Octane today for 12,000 Legend coins (in-game currency) or 750 Apex Coins ($7.50). Here’s everything you need to know about the speedster of Apex Legends, Octane.
Octane’s lore
According to his official bio, Octavio “Octane” Silva is the heir to the CEO of Silva Pharmaceuticals who frequently succumbed to boredom. To entertain himself, he recorded himself “performing death-defying stunts and posting holovids of them for his fans gawk over.”
One of those stunts was fragboosting through the Gauntlet seen in Titanfall 2. In fact, it appears Respawn was inspired by the current world record holder in the Gauntlet, as Octane also tossed grenades and used them to run and jump faster. Unfortunately, he miscalculated the finish and ruined his legs. Luckily for him, though, his pal Lifeline helped him with a forgery order for bionic legs. The high-tech legs gave him unique healing abilities and also allowed him to run faster. Knowing he could succeed, the 24-year-old decided to try his luck at the Apex Games.
Octane’s abilities
Octane’s abilities perfectly align with his need for a constant adrenaline rush. Like all legends, Octane has a passive, tactical, and ultimate ability:
Passive: Swift Mend
Octane has one of the best passive abilities of the bunch. Swift Mend lets Octane gradually regenerate health, as long as he isn’t taking damage. It’s a bit of a slow drip, though, as you only restore one health point every other second. The other perk of Swift Mend is that it saves inventory space since you don’t need to carry as many health items. Plus you can let your non-health regenerating teammates have more.
Tactical: Stim
Octane’s tactical ability is a perfect encapsulation of how much he is willing to risk to go fast. Activating Stim increases your movement speed by 30 percent for six seconds. That may not sound like a lot, but you can catch up to fleeing players in a hurry or flee yourself. Using Stim costs 10 percent of your health, so it’s best only to use it when you’re shielded and not close to death.
Ultimate: Launch Pad
Octane’s ultimate ability deploys a launch pad that you and your teammates can use to launch into the air. It doesn’t send you as high as the red balloon ziplines, but you can vault onto and clear relatively tall buildings. The problem with Octane’s ultimate is that it isn’t super practical. Wraith’s portals are more versatile and useful, and even Pathfinders zipline lets you travel with more direction and less conspicuously. It is fun to use, though, and Octane is all about stunts.
Octane’s combat
Octane’s speed-focused abilities make him an ideal legend for those who prefer to do their damage up close. His tactical ability is incredibly useful inside structures and building complexes. Let’s face it. It’s quite hard to get the upper hand on someone when they move faster than you. Octane’s tactical ability accomplishes just that, letting you catch opponents off guard. The 10 percent sacrifice is worth it, considering after you kill your mark, you’ll start regenerating health anyway. Speed kills, after all.
This means that Octane can be an absolute machine with weapons such as shotguns, SMGs, automatic rifles, and even sidearms. Any weapon that is most effective at close to midrange is ideal for Octane’s skill set. Octane’s movement speed via tactical ability and his health regeneration make him a great option for healing, too. No, he’s not a substitute for Lifeline, but he offers an interesting skill set for your squad.
As for his Ultimate, you and your team can use it to sneak up an unsuspecting squad through the air, but Octane’s best ability is Stim. It lets you gain a unique edge when used effectively.
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