Killing Floor 2 Etiquette: Manners and Per-Perk Tips

This is a set of unwritten manners for playing Killing Floor 2 with other people, originally written by a Chinese-speaking player to improve the atmosphere in public lobbies. It covers general conduct, a short list of habits for every perk and a section for new players.

General conduct

• If you have high health and a teammate is low, give them the med syringe even if you are not a Medic.
• If a teammate with low health is being chased by an enraged Fleshpound and you are healthy, swap to melee and take a hit to calm it down.
• Think before engaging a large ZED: only do so if your firepower can actually kill it, otherwise call teammates to help.
• Do not re-enrage a calmed Fleshpound when you lack firepower; that can get teammates killed.
• Asking for help is not shameful; being killed alone by a mutant because you lacked firepower is.
• When dying, throw your weapons out: this reduces your own losses and helps the teammate who is looting.
• If there is no Medic on the team, consider buying a weapon that fires healing darts.
• If you sent a voice command by accident, you can cancel it with the negative command.
• If other players repeatedly send you the negative command, it may mean they dislike what you are doing; reconsider whether the perk and role fit you.
• Some maps have traps you trigger by hand. Time them carefully so teammates are not the victims.
• Taunting in front of teammates' line of fire is bad form, especially during ZED time.
• Players on the front line should crouch so back-row teammates keep their view.
• If a teammate keeps behaving badly, try talking. If that fails, vote to kick them during the trader time.
• If you suspect someone of cheating, keep a screenshot or video and send it to the server owner or post it on a community forum. Even in co-op, cheats spoil the game for everyone else and devalue the effort of skilled players.

Perk etiquette

Berserker

• Use EMP to help teammates surrounded by monsters.
• Without a special reason, skip the level 5 skill Resilience: it increases the Medic's workload and may leave healing short.
• You can swap the level 10 skill for Vampire and the level 25 skill for Berserker's Rage to be tougher and ease the Medic's job.
• Berserkers earn a lot of money; early on invest it in the key perks, later give it to poorer teammates.
• Without a Medic, consider a healing melee weapon.
• For the boss wave consider buying a shield and a buzzsaw launcher for different situations.
• Parry to absorb damage for teammates chased by an enraged Fleshpound, and keep parrying even with Resistance at level 15, especially against large ZEDs.

Commando

• A good Commando both shoots well and keeps a regular rhythm of ZED time extension.
• Avoid killing yourself with a high-explosive grenade.
• Without a Medic, a healing weapon helps you and the team.
• Learn to take down large ZEDs on your own.

Support

• You may swap the level 20 skill for the ammo pouch to help teammates.
• Support weapons have expensive ammo; announce it, throw the weapon to a teammate with a free slot who has not yet looted your pack, and save early ammo costs.
• Decide your weapon quickly and leave the buy zone so teammates can take ammo from you.
• Avoid killing yourself with fragmentation grenades and avoid dying early before teammates have looted your pack.

Field Medic

• Buy grenades first: they are a higher priority than weapon ammo.
• Medic buffs can be applied in advance, both with grenades and darts.
• Adrenaline may be the only buff you can drop, depending on the situation.
• The Medic is core to the team, so avoid dying; healing comes before shooting monsters, and the closest teammate comes first when you must choose.

Demolitionist

• Decide your weapon quickly and leave the buy zone so teammates can take grenades.
• If possible, weld explosive doors for some extra money without bothering the team.
• Keep the level 15 sonic resistance skill unless you have a special reason.
• During the boss wave, stick C4 to the boss for easy finishing blows.
• As a chaos-class perk, avoid standing next to bullet-based perks.

Firebug

• Do not hold the fire button on spray weapons.
• Use heat wave and your other skills to help teammates escape large ZEDs.
• Incendiary rounds are your friend when changing ammo or when surrounded; do not use them all up.
• Keep away from bullet-based perks.

Gunslinger

• Seven guns is the final goal.
• Real Gunslingers fire from the hip at close range and use iron sights only at distance.
• Learn to take down large ZEDs by yourself.

Sharpshooter

• Your base damage bonus applies to headshots, so avoid body shots.
• Choose when to switch to the big weapon carefully.
• Poor aim makes this perk a poor choice.

SWAT

• Your priority for large ZEDs is the lowest.
• After dying, switch to SWAT, respawn and switch back: you gain 175 extra health plus one piece of armor.
• On cramped maps, try the level 25 breaching skill.

Survivalist

• Without a Medic, take Medic training and buy a medical weapon.
• Use weapons that are good for both light and heavy attacks and switch fast.
• Think before buying: switching weapons repeatedly turns you into an economic black hole for the team.
• Master the weapon you picked so you can take down large ZEDs.

Tips for new players

• If you have time, avoid grinding perk levels; the skills and knowledge gained along the way matter more than the level number.
• Do not join Hell on Earth with a low level: you may cause a wipe and ruin your own experience.
• If you want to try a perk, play a whole match with it instead of switching every wave and draining your economy.
• Achievements are your main motivation later; unlockers kill your play time.
• Suggested levels: Normal 0-5, Hard 5-15, Suicidal 15-20, Hell on Earth 25.
• The author does not recommend the official Chinese translation and prefers English if you can read it.
• Playing online teaches teamwork that solo play cannot, and you may find like-minded friends.