Apex Legends Mobile is almost here, and with it, its first exclusive character: Fade. Coming from a shadowy family full of “military-tech hunters,” Fade is the last member of his family alive. And with abilities stemming from a suit that originally took him into a different dimension, he’s sure to shake up the Apex Games.
Fade is an interesting character who can use his abilities to get both himself and his team out of trouble in an instant. Most of Fade’s abilities come with a drawback, however, so learning how to best use his kit in certain situations is key to succeeding on the new character.
Here’s how to play Fade in Apex Legends Mobile.
Fade’s abilities
- Passive: Slipstream
- When Fade ends a slide, he gains a short movement speed boost. Slipstream comes with a 10-second cooldown.
- Tactical: Flashback
- Fade’s tactical lets him phase backward, returning him to the place that he was a couple of seconds previously. During the phase, Fade’s primary weapon is reloaded. Fade is also invulnerable during the phase.
- Ultimate: Phase Chamber
- Fade’s ultimate is a bit like a grenade, but instead of doing damage when it explodes, Phase Chamber sends every character in the blast radius into the void. Characters are temporarily phased from the material plane that the Apex Games take place on, similar to Fade’s tactical or Wraith’s abilities. All characters sent to the void cannot deal or take damage, and their movement speed is slowed.
How to play Fade in Apex Legends Mobile: Tips and tricks
Since so much of Fade’s kit relies on some form of phasing to get himself and his team out of trouble, it’s easy to compare Fade to Wraith. Where much of Wraith’s abilities lead to maneuvering her team around the map, however, Fade is more satisfied by fighting. Many of his abilities focus on getting the jump on opponents, allowing him and his squad to gain advantageous positions.
Tips: Slipstream
The sliding mechanic is one of the most beloved parts of Apex and learning where to slide is some of the best base-level knowledge of the game a player can learn to improve their movement. Fade’s passive ability takes this one step further, adding a boost at the end of his slides for even more speed. Properly using this ability can send players flying.
To enjoy the full benefits of the speed boost, make sure you’re at full sprint speed before you begin a slide and then look for downhill slopes. Sliding down hills builds up even more speed and can really get the most out of Slipstream. Adding a jump at the end of the slide will let a player maintain the speed for even longer, so get used to slide-jumping with Fade.
Players should also keep track of the cooldown on Fade’s passive since not many other passives have a cooldown. The speed boost on slides can only be activated every 10 seconds, so players trying to speed into (or out of) a fray might not get the effect they wanted if they try to slide or slide-jump multiple times in succession.
Tips: Flashback
Flashback, another take on Wraith’s phase ability, works backward—literally.
It’s a useful trick that can help Fade surprise enemies, as shown off in the Prime Time trailer. But using it with enemies hot on your tail can be very risky since enemies might very well turn right around to see Fade pop back up in front of them, or worse, you time the Flashback incorrectly and drop yourself directly in front of an enemy squad in hot pursuit.
Flashback is great, however, because it allows Fade to be aggressive while giving him an excellent option to escape. Pushing forward to get aggressive angles on an enemy squad works well with Fade since he can always use Flashback to quickly get back to his own team and be invulnerable in the process.
If you think you’re pushing into a situation where you’ll need to use Flashback, look to cover as much ground as you can as quickly as possible. Since Flashback teleports you back to the spot you were a few seconds before, you’ll want to drop in on an enemy for a quick few shots, or a well-placed grenade, and then hit the tactical to make sure you flash back to a safe distance away. You’re going to want to use your Slipstream ability before you use Flashback or try out an Octane pad or Pathfinder zipline. Those things will get you into the fray quickly and Flashback can get you out just as fast.
Tips: Phase Chamber
Phase Chamber is Fade’s most interesting ability. Usually, phases in Apex are abilities for characters to use on themselves and their allies. Phase Chamber turns those abilities into a weapon Fade can use against enemies.
The most obvious use of Phase Chamber is to throw it at an enemy squad while your team advances. Since enemies will be slowed and can’t do damage, Fade’s team can maneuver into an advantageous position and wait for the enemy team to become vulnerable again.
Phase Chamber can also be used defensively, however. Third parties are common in Apex, but Fade can use a well-placed Phase Chamber on an enemy trying to advance on his squad to slow their approach and give his team a bit more time to recover or get out of danger after winning a fight.
Finally, there’s one last sneakier way to use Fade’s ultimate: on himself and his team. Sometimes, an enemy ultimate or other ability comes raining down on your team and you can’t get away from it. A good Gibraltar or Bangalore ultimate in the final circles can spell death for a team without any cover. Phase Chamber will slow Fade and his teammates, but it will also make them invulnerable for the duration. If you don’t have any other options for your team to escape, just staying in the same spot and using Phase Chamber can be your ticket to survival.
