Hood: Outlaws & Legends Guide for Beginners

Have you ever wanted to play as Robin Hood and steal gold for the people? In our Hood: Outlaws & Legends Guide for Beginners, we'll teach you the basics of pulling off the perfect heist.

What is Hood:: Outlaws & Legends?

Hood: Outlaws & Legends is a game from Focus Home Interactive that's based on the story of Robin Hood. Players can select from four different playable characters at launch, each of which has their own strengths and weaknesses.

Playing as a grittier version of Robin Hood and his Merry Men, you're vastly outnumbered by the king's men — open combat is not a good idea. You'll have to stay in the shadows if you want to survive and accomplish your mission!

Whatever game mode you decide to play, your ultimate goal is to steal a chest of gold from the King's men in order to give it to the people. That won't be easy, though: it's going to require stealth, cunning, and — most importantly — teamwork.

Getting Started with the Hood: Outlaws & Legends Tutorial

Before you attempt to play the game proper, your first step in this Hood: Outlaws & Legends Guide for Beginners should be to play the tutorial level. The tutorial will give you a quick overview of all four launch characters in the game, highlighting their abilities and showing you how best to use them.

It should be noted that this isn't entirely representative of gameplay. The tutorial lets you play as all four launch characters one at a time; in Training and Heist missions, however, you're unable to switch your character or take control of another player. The tutorial is a demonstration that lets you get a feel for all characters and the basics of gameplay. It's worth playing and should take you around 10–20 minutes, so definitely take the time to play it!

Hood: Outlaws & Legends Character Overview

There are a total of four characters in Hood: Outlaws & Legends, each of which brings something unique to the table.

• Robin (Robin Hood) – A character with a longbow that excels at long-range attacks. His Gear is the Flash, effectively a medieval flashbang that allows you to make a quick escape. Robin can tag enemies for longer, making him an excellent scout. Finally, his "Farsight" ability lets you fire off a devastating arrow that does a lot of damage shortly after it lands.
• Marianne (Maid Marian) – A shorter-range character that excels in stealth and assassination. She does much better in melee combat than Robin, though she can still fire 1–3 arrows out of her crossbow. Her "Smoke" Gear is great for obscuring yourself or your team, and her "Shroud" ability lets her become nearly invisible, making her the perfect assassin. She's great at taking our guards, too — her "Shadow" Trait allows her to assassinate Guards from any direction when in Shroud, in smoke, or in the bushes.
• John (Little John) – John is less about stealth and more about being a force of nature on the battlefield. His Hammer can do a ton of damage if you can actually land the hit, and his "Wrath" Ability greatly increases his offense and defense if you need to have a stand-up fight. John's "Resolute" Trait allows him to lift up portcullises (gates), providing passage for himself or his team during a Lockdown. Finally, his "Bomb" Gear can insta-kill any players (and most guards) caught within the radius.
• Tooke (Friar Tuck) – Finally, Friar Tuck is probably is one of the most challenging characters to play — he uses a massive flair to hit enemies in all directions or deliver a straightforward, devastating hit on a single enemy. His "Respite" trait allows him to regenerate Stamina faster. Tooke also serves as a healer of sorts; his "Instinct" ability highlights all nearby enemies, and — more importantly — can heal him and any nearby allies back to full health. Finally, his "Gas" Gear can drain Stamina and impair vision of anyone caught inside.

A Note on Perks

Playing Heist games (not Training) will increase the Character Rank of the character you used in that mission. As your Character Rank increases, you'll unlock more Perks that can serve as a powerful addition to your character.

Some Perks only have benefits and are always worth taking. Others, however, might also have a downside as a trade-off for the increased power. There's no reason not to take three Perks per character once you've earned them; it's simply a matter of selecting the right ones for your playstyle (and staying mindful of the downsides).

Making Your Party

Whether you're playing a PvE Training mission or a PvPvE Heist, you'll have to create a team that can get the job done. There's no limitation on how many of each character you can have at launch; if you wanted to, you could have a team composed of four Robins and try to play through the game that way.

That said, each character brings something useful to the table. If you don't have a John on your team, you're not going to be able to unlock a Portcullis during Lockdown. Not having a Tooke means that you can't heal yourself or your allies. Carefully consider your team composition before going into battle!

Heavy Characters vs. Light Characters

One key thing I need to mention in this Hood: Outlaws & Legends Guide for Beginners is the idea of "Heavy" characters and "Light" characters. The differences between the two are small but important.

Simply put, the "Light" characters Robin and Marianne are dextrous and work best by avoiding direct combat. Robin can snipe people from range, and Marianne can stealthily assassinate people (and disappear into a cloud of smoke if she messes up.)

On the other hand, the "Heavy" characters do better in a stand-up fight. A Robin or a Marianne going up against a John or a Tooke is going to have a tougher time in close combat.

Critically, some enemies are more heavily armored such as Knights and the Sheriff. These enemies have a purple health bar to signify the heavy armor. Only John and Tooke can damage them from the front in open combat; Robin or Marianne's attacks will simply bounce off of their armor and cause no damage as best as I can tell. In those cases, the only thing that Robin and Marianne can do is try to get behind the enemy and assassinate them.

Hood: Outlaws & Legends Game Modes

There are only two game modes at launch and we'll cover both in this Hood: Outlaws & Legends Guide for Beginners. Each has subtle differences, so make sure you know what you're doing before you jump in!

Training Game Mode

The "Training" game mode is a pure PvE mission — it's you and up to three of your friends trying to steal a chest full of gold from the king's men. This is basically the same kind of gameplay as the Heist mode with some notable exceptions:

• Picking up the chest will trigger Lockdown.
• Enemies will respawn in areas even if you've cleared them.
• You don't have to have four players — you can try to complete the mission with 3 players, 2 players, or even by yourself.
• You can gain Player Rank and Hideout Rank, but you can't gain Character rank by completing these missions.

Heist Game Mode

In comparison, the "Heist" game mode is the meat of the game. This is a PvPvE (Player vs. Player vs. Environment) game mode where two teams of four players are both trying to steal the same chest full of gold while eliminating or avoiding the king's men.

• Picking up the chest will not trigger a Lockdown (unless you're spotted).
• Enemies do not appear to respawn, or if they do, they respawn at a much lower rate when compared to Training.
• You must have two full teams of four, so you may be waiting a while for a match to be ready in off-peak hours or in certain regions.
• You can gain Player Rank, Hideout Rank, and Character Rank by completing these missions.

Hood: Outlaws & Legends Guide for Beginners – Tips and Tricks for New Players

Those are the basics, but we're not done with the Hood: Outlaws & Legends Guide for Beginners — here are some Hood: Outlaws & Legends Tips and Tricks that might make your time in the game a little easier!

Only John and Tooke Can Damage Enemies with Purple Health Bars

I've already mentioned this, but it's worth repeating — only John and Took can do direct damage to enemies with purple health bars such as the Knight or the Sheriff. If you need to take down one of these enemies as Robin or Marianne, you'll have to Assassinate them (or use Robin's special ability).

The Sheriff Can Insta-Kill You

The Sheriff is slow and has a lot of armor. It's pretty easy to knock him down for a while by depleting his health and he doesn't have a ranged attack. If he manages to get into melee range, however, he will pick you up and instantly kill you — don't let him get close!

Tooke is Great for Kiting Heavily-Armored Enemies

Tooke's heavy attack launches his flail where you're aiming. It's difficult to land a hit, but it can do damage to heavily-armored enemies with purple health bars. If you ever have to take on one of these guys one-on-one, Tooke is the best guy to do it with. And if you have a nearby ally, they can always land an assassination from behind.

Using an Ammo Chest or Gear Chest will Consume It, But These Chests Respawn

Ammo Chests are critical for "Light" characters like Robin and Marianne. Gear Chests, on the other hand, are important for all characters. In either case, taking the items out of an Ammo Chest or Gear Chest will temporarily empty it; you'll have to wait a short time for it to respawn before you or someone else can use it.

John Can Kill People with the Portcullis (Including Himself!)

John's "Resolute" Trait allows him to lift up a closed Portcullis and let anyone through. When he drops it, however, the falling gate will do lethal damage to anyone caught underneath it. This includes enemy NPCs, enemy players, allied players, and even himself. Make sure not to get caught underneath the gate — and if you time things right, you can even drop it right on top of a bad guy for an instant kill!

Marianne's Smoke and Tooke's Gas Make a Good Combo

Marianne's Gear can deploy a cloud of smoke and Tooke's Gear can deploy Stamina-draining gas; in both instances, these items will obscure visibility and temporarily disable NPCs. Using these one after another can disable enemy NPCs for quite some time and provide cover for your team — such as when you're trying to winch the gold chest.

You Can Jump Off a Ledge with a Chest

If you're trying to take the chest to an extraction point, you might find yourself on top of a wall or a tall cliff. Rather than run all the way around, you can walk off the edge with the chest; the only consequence is a bit of fall damage and dropping the chest. This is almost always faster than trying to run around the long way — always look for an opportunity to make a speedy exit!

'Training Aggro' Can Be Deadly in Heists

"Training Aggro" is a term from MMOs such as  World of Warcraft where you get a group of enemies to follow you with the ultimate purpose of attacking another player. This can work pretty well in Hood, too!

For example, suppose that you are playing Marianne and there are two enemies winching the chest. You can attract the attention of a bunch of enemy guards, run to the winch, and then disappear (using Smoke, Shroud, or by running into the Bushes) — now, the enemy will have to deal with them instead! Best of all, you can use this distraction to hit the enemy players from behind.

Capturing Respawn Points Can Turn the Tide of Battle

The final tip in our Hood: Outlaws & Legends Guide for Beginner is this: do not underestimate the power of Respawn Points. Capturing the Respawn Point nearest the objective can save you 30–60 seconds of running, letting you get back into the action faster and giving you valuable extra seconds to advance the winch.

Rutledge Daugette and Will Quick contributed to this article.