Ultimate abilities in Apex Legends can single-handedly turn the tide of any fight—they’re called “ultimate” for a reason, after all. If one ultimate is good, two must be better, right? The best ultimates in Apex synergize well with others, making for some truly game-defining moments.
Knowing exactly how an ultimate ability behaves is incredibly important when figuring out which ultimates pair well together since most of these abilities serve multiple purposes. For example, Crypto’s EMP ultimate stuns enemies and delivers shield damage, which are its two obvious uses. But the ability also destroys most placeable tactical abilities in the game in its radius, removing items like Caustic traps and Wattson fences in the process.
Understanding ultimates will help players know exactly which ones pair best with others and how different ultimates can be used in different ways. That knowledge, in turn, helps players improve and win more games.
Want to improve your ability usage? Here are the best ultimate combos in Apex Legends.
EMP + Defensive Bombardment
Gibraltar’s ultimate, Defensive Bombardment, is called “defensive” for a reason: it’s big, it’s loud, and it comes with plenty of red warning markers that show where its ordinances are landing. As such, it’s generally used to prevent teams from advancing through the territory it covers. When paired with Crypto’s EMP, though, Defensive Bombardment gets an offensive edge.
EMP stuns enemies and instantly depletes their shields, making it harder for players to get out of the radius of Defensive Bombardment. Its ability to destroy several tactical abilities also extends to the best tactical in the game: Gibraltar’s Dome of Protection. A well-placed Dome can negate most damage-dealing ultimates in Apex, and it’s not uncommon to see a full team standing in a Gibraltar bubble, waiting to run out in safety.
EMP destroys Dome of Protection instantly. A team that thought it was safe is suddenly completely vulnerable to a Defensive Bombardment falling from the sky and is stunned by the EMP. Worried about Wattson’s Interception Pylon preventing the Defensive Bombardment from reaching enemies? As long as you set the EMP off before starting Defensive Bombardment, the former will destroy the Interception Pylon as well as the Dome of Protection.
If you need to blow up an enemy with decent cover and a shield protecting them, pairing Crypto and Gibraltar’s ultimate abilities is the best way to go.
Nox Gas Grenade + Beast of the Hunt
Caustic’s ultimate is usually thought of as working best for Caustic. He’s the only one that can see through the visual clutter he creates, after all, to spy enemies caught in his gas. Unless, of course, another legend uses their ultimate as well.
Bloodhound’s Beast of the Hunt ultimate not only lets them see enemies trapped in Caustic’s gas; they’ll also be able to spy enemies beyond it, as well. It goes without saying just how powerful this combination can be, as it gives Bloodhound free rein to fire at enemies while they can’t see them through the smoke (provided they’re not also playing Bloodhound, of course).
With obscuring vision being a vital part of Caustic’s ability kit, you’ll probably be fighting in and around gas whenever you have a Caustic on your team. That makes Bloodhound an absolute no-brainer to pair with the gas man, and the pair’s ultimate combo is a perfect example of that synergy.
Exhibit + Dark Veil
Catalyst’s introduction to the game brought with it the Dark Veil, a massive wall-like ultimate ability that will blind and slow enemies that attempt to pass through it. The wall is also supposed to stop scan abilities from functioning through the wall, although many players have noted that has only happened so far with some scan abilities and not all of them.
Still, the Veil is a great deterrent to teams that don’t have their own vertical movement abilities. And if both teams get caught on either side of the Veil, throwing down a friendly Seer ultimate will instantly give your team a significant advantage. Since the Veil doesn’t slow or blind friendlies, your team can peek through the wall at different places, knowing exactly where the enemies are while they don’t know where you’ll pop out next.
This combination of ultimates simultaneously denies your enemies information while also providing your team with an abundance of it. In the stalemate that the Dark Veil can create, possessing that information can be the difference between winning and losing the fight.
Death Totem + Phase Tear
RevTane is dead. RevenAsh is the future.
One of the most infamous metas in Apex was the combination of Revenant’s Death Totem and Octane’s Launch Pad. Teams could enter death form and place a pad right next to the totem, launching themselves onto unsuspecting teams. If and when the team knocked you out of Revenant’s ult, you simply returned right to where the Launch Pad was placed and get to push the opposing team a second time.
Nerfs to the distance players could travel on Octane’s pad made this combination significantly weaker, however, to which the alternative of Ash’s Phase Tear makes a good substitute. It can travel a comparable distance to Octane’s Launch Pad but is much better at traversing vertical distance and keeps players invulnerable while in the Phase Tear. You can’t get beamed out of the sky and sent straight back to the totem without doing any damage to the enemy if you’re not even on their plane of existence while you race toward them, right?
This combo also makes Ash’s portal a bit safer since it can only be used one way. The Phase Tear suddenly isn’t an all-or-nothing ultimate for pushing a team if it comes with the safety net of the Death Totem. And if you or a squadmate gets sent back quickly, there’s probably enough time to take the portal back again and finish the fight.
Creeping Barrage + The Motherlode
Bangalore’s ultimate is one of the most difficult ones to use offensively in Apex. Yes, it covers a huge area, and landing hits with the ordinance give enemies one of the longest stun and slow effects in the game. But it’s also very easy to see coming and avoid, meaning it’s mostly used as a tool for area denial.
To get maximum value out of the ultimate’s damage and stun abilities, you need to wrangle a team in one spot and prevent them from leaving the ultimate’s area of effect. To do that, players might want to say “G’day” to The Motherlode.
Fuse’s ultimate specializes in keeping teams in one place. That makes them vulnerable to not only his ordinance but ordinance from his teammates as well. And its long-lasting effect gives Bangalore’s ultimate enough time to drop from the sky and explode. Bangalore even gets the benefit of Fuse’s ultimate scanning enemies trapped inside of its ring of fire, giving her the cue to throw down her ultimate. And if enemies try to run through The Motherlode, they’re sitting ducks due to the massive damage and slow effect of The Motherlode.
If you want to make an explosive impression on an enemy team, Fuse and Bangalore’s ultimates can do exactly that.
Interception Pylon + Castle Wall
Want to create the ultimate defense, even in places where there’s no cover to play behind? Combining Wattson and Newcastle’s ultimates can do exactly that.
Wattson and her Interception Pylon have long been best indoors, using the nooks and crannies that smaller rooms and buildings usually provide to hide her ultimate from sight. That way, it can do its job making sure no grenades sneak in on the team while simultaneously sticking around to heal a team’s shields up. But with Castle Wall, Interception Pylon becomes an important synergy piece for creating new places to play out in the open, where previously, a team would get shot from all angles.
Using the wall for cover is great, but it doesn’t do much to protect a team from Gibraltar, Bangalore, or Caustic ultimates that can drop from the sky or otherwise go over the wall. That’s where the Interception Pylon comes in, making sure none of those things breach the solid protection of the Castle Wall.
If you plan on using this combo, just make sure to coordinate where exactly the Castle Wall will be placed. It’s usually best to put the Interception Pylon right along the inside of the wall, so teams on the other side can’t shoot it. And try to find spots with natural cover behind the Castle Wall, making it harder for teams to sneak up behind you. If you can’t find that, well, it’s time to put Wattson’s fences to work.
