KF2 Beginner Overview: ZED Threat Categories, Characters, Berserker

This is a translated and condensed version of a Russian-language beginner overview of Killing Floor 2. It draws on the Russian fan wiki and covers the basics of a match, ZEDs sorted into threat categories, a few playable characters and the Berserker perk. Some parts were never finished by the author, so treat it as an introduction. For current information on specimens see the bestiary in Russian and the perk pages.

What the game is

Killing Floor 2 is the sequel to Killing Floor, a session-based co-op first-person shooter with survival horror and RPG elements, developed by Tripwire Interactive on an improved Unreal Engine 3. One to six players are dropped onto a map and must survive 4, 7 or 10 waves of ZEDs, genetic-mutant clones, then defeat a boss. The number of waves sets the size of the enemy groups and the length of the session.

Specimens by category

The ZEDs came from horrifying genetic experiments by the Horzine corporation, started by Dr. Clamely (the Patriarch) and improved by the former Nazi scientist Dr. Hans Volter. The guide groups them from the harmless category E to the deadliest category A; the most dangerous ZED in a category gets a plus sign.

Category	ZEDs	Role
E	Cyst, Clot, Slasher (E+)	Weak swarmers that surround and pin players so stronger ZEDs can do damage
D	Crawler, Stalker, Gorefast (D+)	Weak but cunning and quick; the Crawler uses vents and narrow spaces, the Stalker is invisible until it attacks, the Gorefast is fast and deadly in melee
C	Bloat, Husk, Siren (C+)	Support: Bloats shield Sirens, Husks fire at long range, Sirens have a wide sonic radius
B	Scrake, Fleshpound (B+)	The main combat power; one careless player and even two of them can wipe a team
A	Patriarch, Dr. Hans Volter (A+)	The wave-ending bosses

Cyst: the least dangerous specimen in the game, category E.

Clot: an older, more successful version of the Cyst, category E.

Slasher: a fast, mobile Clot variant, E+; it often attacks alongside E and D specimens.

Crawler: weak alone but attacks in groups of four or more through vents.

Stalker: invisible until the attack, fragile to almost any damage.

Gorefast: the most dangerous of the lower categories, very fast with a weak head.

Bloat: especially dangerous in close quarters and in groups with E-category ZEDs or a Siren.

Husk: the only non-boss ZED that fires from long range.

Siren: C+, often hiding behind a Bloat.

Scrake: lots of health and heavy damage, but with weaknesses an experienced player can exploit.

Fleshpound: B+, huge health and damage that can flatten an unprepared squad within seconds.

Patriarch: category A, considered the hardest wave-ending boss.

Dr. Hans Volter: A+, a former Nazi scientist kept alive by cyber implants and genetic boosters; the guide considers him less dangerous than the Patriarch.

Characters

Characters differ in looks, backstory and voice lines but not in gameplay. The guide lists a few of them, selectable in the main menu under Equipment:

• Reverend Alberts: physically strong and gentle, a former army chaplain.
• Tom Banner: dreamed of medieval knights; exclusive to owners of Chivalry, who also get the Sword.
• Rob Briar: a constable from age 17 until a "riot" that was not what his bosses thought.
• Mr. Foster: a day trader who came from a mediocre private school.
• Ana Larive: a travelling photographer of abandoned places and death metal fan.
• Bill Masters: a soldier who wanted to be a hero and got stuck with terrorists.
• Donovan Neal and Hayako Tanaka are also described, though the author left the section unfinished.

Perks and the Berserker

A perk (class) sets your style, weapons, priorities and squad role, and each has 25 levels. Experience comes from killing ZEDs with the perk's weapons, with a bonus for kills within 2 metres of other players. The per-level bonuses listed are 1 percent weapon damage per level (up to 25 percent), 3 percent damage resistance every 5th level (up to 15 percent), night vision and resistance to ZED grabs.

Berserker is the shield that keeps mutants off the squad. Its strengths are durability, melee damage and weapons that need no ammo; its weakness is being surrounded ("a surrounded Berserker is a dead Berserker"). Parrying is essential.

Level	Choices
5 Survival	Dreadnought (+75% max health) or Swashbuckler (+20% move speed, +25% sprint, regenerates 1 HP/s)
10 Combat	Vampire (+4 HP per kill, +20% attack speed) or Butcher (+20% attack speed, +25% damage)
15 Melee	Resistance (+20% damage resistance, +20% vs poison and sonic) or Parry (blocks 40% more effective, plus attack speed and damage bonuses for a short time)
20 Power	Smash (+50% heavy-attack damage, +25% to the head) or Massacre (+30% light-attack damage, 5% faster attacks)
25 Advanced	Spartan (Zed Time does not slow your movement and attacks) or Berserk Rage (Zed Time restores 25% health and nearby ZEDs try to flee)

Difficulty bonuses to the perk XP shown are +6 on Easy, +8 on Normal, +10 on Suicidal and +14 on Hell on Earth. Berserker has nine achievements: five for reaching levels 5 to 25, one for level 25 on all perks and four for finishing a game on each difficulty. The "how to earn money" section was never written.