Star Wars Zero Company guide: best talents and specialisations for your squad

Star Wars Zero Company gives players a lot of control over how their squad develops, but picking the right combination of class specialisation and talent can be the difference between a smooth mission and a costly retreat. With ten talents and several specialisations to choose from, knowing which synergies work best early on helps you build a team that can handle the galaxy's toughest threats.

All talents in Zero Company

There are ten talents available to recruitable operators in Star Wars Zero Company. The Bigger They Are… increases ranged and melee damage against elite and boss enemies, starting at +2 and scaling up to +6 at level three. Anticipation grants stacks of evasion that let the operator dodge the next attack, usable once per turn at base and up to three times per turn at max level, with the added option to apply it to an ally. Cold-Blooded applies stacks of vicious, guaranteeing a critical hit, beginning with one use per combat and rising to three uses that each grant two stacks.

Taunt forces a selected enemy to target the operator, and at higher levels it reduces the target's damage output by up to six. A Life of Labor provides a straightforward stat boost: bonus health, defense, melee damage and critical hit damage that maxes out at +7 health, +2 defense, +4 melee damage and +4 critical hit damage. Thievery earns extra credits when the operator completes a combat mission, starting at +150 and climbing to +300, while Espionage adds bonus intel rewards, from +5 up to +12.

Sabotage lets the operator trigger an explosive object on the battlefield, usable once per combat at base and becoming unlimited at level three. Grit applies a stack of invulnerable that blocks all damage from the next attack, also increasing health, and at level three it grants +12 health and two stacks of invulnerable per turn. Fortitude raises defense while the operator is injured, and at level three it also removes the chance-to-hit penalty from being wounded.

Best talents for each class

While every talent has its place, some pair much more effectively with specific specialisations. For the Heavy class, which functions as a tank, Grit is a top-tier choice. The invulnerable stacks let the Heavy absorb hits that would otherwise cripple a squishier squadmate, and the health bonus reinforces the class's role as a damage sponge. Taunt also works well on a Heavy, since the class already has skills that draw enemy attention, and the damage reduction on the taunted target makes the Heavy even harder to kill.

For the Scout, Anticipation is a strong pick. Scouts can operate at a distance from the rest of the squad, and having multiple evasions per turn keeps them safe while they mark enemies and generate action points. The level three upgrade that lets you pass evasion to an ally is especially valuable, since it turns the Scout into a defensive support unit as well as a recon one.

Soldiers benefit from A Life of Labor, which boosts their durability and melee damage, complementing their ability to daze foes with melee attacks and use a rocket launcher. Cold-Blooded is another solid option for Soldiers, as guaranteed critical hits pair well with their grenade and blaster damage passives.

Choosing a class specialisation

When creating Hawks, the class specialisation you pick governs active skills and passive bonuses. Scout is an excellent early choice because its attacks mark foes, increasing the accuracy of your team's ranged attacks, and its combat recon ability scans a small area to grant one action point for every enemy detected. This makes it cheap and fast to set up powerful moves for the rest of the squad.

Heavy is the game's dedicated tank, with a passive that boosts health and an active skill that taunts enemies in an area while raising defense. Its Unstoppable skill grants stacks of retaliation, letting the Heavy hit back whenever an enemy connects with a ranged or melee attack. Another passive adds a taunt effect to standard blaster shots, giving the Heavy excellent battlefield control.

Soldier might seem like a generalist, but it offers a lot of value. Its melee attack dazes targets, incapacitating them and preventing them from acting, which is crucial for shutting down dangerous enemies. Passives buff grenade range and damage as well as blaster damage, and the Soldier gets a rocket launcher that is well worth its high advantage point cost.

The unique operator Cly Kullervo

Players will encounter a unique operator named Cly Kullervo during their playthrough. The decision to hire Cly or not is a relatively simple one, according to reports. The choice affects how you build your squad, but the sources do not specify the exact consequences of accepting or declining Cly's offer.