Best Black Ops 4 specialists for every occasion

Black Ops 4 specialists

Black Ops 4 specialists is a mechanic that has since been foregone in more recent Call of Duty games, but it certainly sets this instalment apart. Black Ops 4 is fast, frantic, and furious when it comes to multiplayer matches, and the specialists can help channel your favorite playstyle. Whether you like to use a flamethrow, grav slam, tactical deploy beacon, or something else entirely, keep reading to learn about the best Black Ops 4 specialists.

Which Black Ops 4 specialist is the best at different jobs though? Some are suited well for aggressive play styles, whereas others are more akin to support classes from other games like Overwatch. Here’s our top four Black Ops 4 specialists, each filling a unique role.

Best Black Ops 4 specialist for Aggressive assault - Ruin

Ruin is the ultimate Black Ops 4 specialist for fast paced objective modes. His normal ability - the Grapple Gun - means you can fly into the objective at speed, all while hip-firing your gun through the air. You’re not particularly accurate but if there’s a cluster of enemies in your way, you can spray bullets to your heart’s content.

As for Ruin’s “ultimate”, welcome to the Grav Slam. A devastating area-of-effect ability, Ruin leaps into the air and comes down on the ground with immense force. Anyone in the vicinity will be destroyed, making the Grav Slam the perfect ultimate for modes like Domination and Hardpoint. There’s nothing cooler than grappling into a control point being captured by the enemy then wiping the full team with your Grav Slam.

Best Black Ops 4 specialist for defence - Torque

While Black Ops 4 is often a fast paced game, there’s a few defensive strategies you can pull off. Torque is by far the most effective defensive specialist, as his equipment is Razor Wire which can be placed across any doorway or path. It takes a lot of bullets to remove, slowing down the enemies gameplay enormously. If they get caught in it, they get slowed almost to a halt and it deals continuous damage - enough to kill them if they don’t retreat right away.

His special ability essentially does the same thing but much more effectively. Called the Barricade, it’s an enormous stationary shield that you can use for cover. It’s got a great spot to aim down but more importantly, it emits toxic gas out the front which impedes any enemies foolish enough to get caught in front of it. Throw down a Barricade and a Razor Wire on one objective and the enemy has to spend a good while breaking through.

Best Black Ops 4 specialist for support - Battery

Rocking the short pink hair, Battery is absolutely badass. The only specialist with grenades as their equipment, she’s rocking Cluster Grenades. They’re sticky so you can throw them directly at walls behind enemies, and when they explode, there’s a ton of mini-grenades that follow suit.

Combine that with the War Machine and you’ve got explosions coming out of the wazoo. The War Machine is a highly powerful grenade launcher with impressive range. The grenades explode on impact and you have a number of shots with it, so it’s a great weapon to clear out hallways, rooms and objectives. 

Best Black Ops 4 specialist for medics - Crash

Unlike hero shooters like Overwatch, there’s no way to directly heal your teammates in Black Ops 4. Instead, Crash is the closest thing to a medic. His standard equipment is an ammo pack that can be dished out to teammates. Pretty normal stuff, but in Black Ops 4, you’ll find yourself running out of ammo frequently if you’re not running Scavenger, which is where Crash comes in very useful.

His ultimate is even more impressive. Called the TAK-5, it instantly heals your entire team and gives them a health buff - from 150 to 200. It may not seem like a tempting choice since the ability is passive, but it’s incredibly underrated when your team is fighting for an objective. If you’re playing with pals and communicating constantly, it’s always worth having one Crash player so you can time your pushes and take full advantage of the health buff.

There are 10 specialists in total and every single one has their place, but these are four of the most powerful ones you can opt for. Combine this knowledge with our Black Ops 4 Blackout Tips and you’ll be nearly unstoppable.

Ford James

Give me a game and I will write every "how to" I possibly can or die trying. When I'm not knee-deep in a game to write guides on, you'll find me hurtling round the track in F1, flinging balls on my phone in Pokemon Go, pretending to know what I'm doing in Football Manager, or clicking on heads in Valorant.