Escape from Tarkov is a military simulator and survival shooter where you need to go to combat zones and look for equipment and weapons. You must choose your side, create your operative, and engage in tarkov power leveling to unlock new items.
Your character is the main character who will grow in levels and who will lose everything if he dies, so you need to take care of him and take utmost care in quests and hunting for resources and valuable items.
You can play for the side of Russia and the United States, which are represented by the private military campaigns BEARS and Terra.
The difference will only be in the language of negotiations on the radio and the active weapons that these countries use in real armies – AK, SCAR, and so on.
Beginning of the game
You will appear at a military base, where you will plan your gameplay.
You will have starting equipment and weapons that can neither be called good nor bad, they are just normal for the start, but you will have to look for a replacement in neutral territories, including accessories – a sight, a silencer and other aids for fighting, because they will not be available at the beginning.
Next, you will need to look for a bulletproof vest, a helmet and an unloading – a special vest with a large number of pockets in which you can place cartridges, grenades and first aid kits.
The cartridges that you will use and find will have different quality, which also needs to be treated carefully, otherwise you will risk getting a wedge of weapons, and it will need to be urgently reloaded to resume shooting.
You will complete quests and explore territories to increase your Tarkov level, increase the loyalty of local NPCs to obtain better trading conditions, and sell goods that you managed to bring from military forays.
Weapons and equipment
To resist representatives of enemy PMCs and bandits, of whom there are many on the territory of Tarkov, you need good equipment and weapons.
You won’t be able to get it initially without full-fledged combat sorties, inspecting trophy points and bringing it to your territory.
To do this, it is advisable for you to initially remember all the entry and exit points to the neutral territory, because you will not have the opportunity to interact with the interactive map – you will always have to open the real one and deploy it, and all this time your character will be vulnerable.
Weapon
You can use any weapon you can find in Tarkov – from a pistol to an assault and sniper rifle. All weapons have their own quality, which affects the range and accuracy of fire, accuracy and rate of fire.
It is advisable to have two types of weapons with different types of ammunition in order to switch between them in battle as needed.
In general, you can take any type, but it is better to pay special attention to assault and sniper weapons, because most of the battles will take place at long distances, and you need not only a good overview, but also the destruction radius, which is given by these types of weapons.
You will need a scope and silencer, which can be found during combat missions, or simply buy them from merchants who provide goods lost by other players.
The sight can be x2, x4 and x6, which provides a degree of zoom. For a sniper rifle you need to look for the maximum option, while for an assault weapon x4 is enough, because if you choose to zoom in too much, then with close contact you risk simply not seeing the enemy, or rather losing him from sight and most likely dying.
A silencer is an extremely important attribute of a shooter, because in a situation where you engage in battle with enemies and do it first, it is better to hide the place of fire, not only for your target, but also for enemies who may be nearby.
You need a fire stabilizer knob for accuracy and larger ammo magazines to fight
All this needs to be looked for, or bought, but collecting starting weapons is not all.
If you die in battle, you will keep your agent and his Tarkov boost, but you will lose all your equipment, which will be taken by your killer or wandering players.
This can be prevented if you take out insurance in advance for all valuable equipment and weapons that you are afraid of losing. This option will allow you to pick up all insured equipment at the base after death.
Equipment
Everything that will be useful to you in battle is more extensive than it might seem at first glance.
The main thing is body armor and a helmet – two means of protection that ensure your survival. They do not guarantee that you will not be killed, but they will help you withstand more damage without death.
Next, you need an unloader – this is a vest with a large number of pockets for equipment in which you can put cartridges, grenades and medicine.
By the way, this is also a life hack for taking out more valuable items for yourself, or for sale – just take more unloadings and fill them with valuable items for the military – one unloading for equipment takes up much less space, but contains a lot of useful things.
Grenades and medicines
It is extremely important for you to look for and always keep a supply of grenades and medicines, as means that can help you change the outcome on the battlefield.
Grenades can be explosive or concealment.
Attack grenades are needed in order to have the initiative in battle. A thrown grenade towards the enemy will force him to hide more, or quickly change cover, and such an action in defense will help you move to another position while the enemy is escaping from the explosion.
Smoke grenades create a barrier to the vision of your enemies and can help you approach them more safely, or, conversely, retreat. Enemies can shoot through the smoke screen, but the chance that their bullets will reach you is not that great.
Medicines are needed to eliminate the consequences of battles and wounds of varying severity.
Try to carry with you and collect as much medicine as possible, because they can really extend the life and boost of your operative’s in EFT, and any excess can always be sold to the nurse upon returning to base and raise the level of loyalty with her, or simply put aside until the next trip.
Factions and NPCs
In addition to the players and their feuds at the level of private military campaigns, there are also non-player factions of merchants with whom you can exchange goods, complete their tasks, accumulate, or lose a level of trust with them.
It is better not to neglect this mechanic, because completing tasks will allow you to earn Tarkov rubles and increase your level of trust with the merchant faction.
The better your interactions, the more discount options will be available to you, and this will also affect the time and quality of renting a wild character.
Wild character
During each combat foray for money, equipment and boosting in Escape from Tarkov, you will always risk your hero and the valuable equipment that you have already received. The problem can be partially solved by an insurance system for individual items, but it is better to rent a wild character.
This is a neutral agent who has no enmity with all PMCs and even bandits and can collect any equipment safely, but your time will be limited.
If any player attacks you in this status, he will lose his loyalty level with the merchant faction and worsen his conditions for renting a wild character.
All rented characters have disgusting equipment and rusty weapons and ammunition that will not allow you to fully kill players and NPCs.
When you complete tasks from the merchant guild, you will receive a boost in EFT and improve the starting equipment for the wild character and the rental time. This will allow you to take out more trophies during combat sorties and even ambush PMCs in order to bring their equipment and weapons to the base.
Flea market
If you know how to earn Tarkov rubles, then you can spend them at a flea market, where goods that players lose during combat missions are presented, and all interested gamers can buy back this equipment at their discretion and place unnecessary trophies there in order to quickly sell them and earn money.
Raids
Tarkov has a raid format – this is an entrance to special territories, where there are many rare and unique rewards that are of great value and can be brought for sale, or to your personal storage.
To do this, you need to find an entry device – like a pass to the laboratory.
Finding it is quite difficult because it is a rare item, but it all depends on your luck. Just check all the weapon caches and search the enemies, and sooner or later you will get lucky.
When you get to the laboratory, remember that time and your carrying capacity are not limited, so collect items quickly, but wisely. You need to deliver everything to the base and this can be done on foot, risking everything, or order a paid and quick evacuation by transport.
Conclusions on the main mechanics of Tarkov that beginners need to know
Tarkov is one of the most realistic military simulators, in which you choose your side of the conflict and go on combat missions to obtain new equipment and weapons that need to be found and brought to the base.
Death on the battlefield means the loss of all uninsured property, so either rent a neutral wild character to farm, or proceed with caution.
Increase your trust level with NPC factions to get better trading conditions and increase the rental time of a wild character and his basic equipment.
Don’t forget to constantly search for cards to enter raids, where there are always more unique accessories and better weapons and equipment that you need to carry out on foot, or order evacuation.
The guide was prepared and written by Skycoach.gg