Get that Castle Wall down and protect your team!
Newcastle has a unique power in Apex Legends. The defensive legend can drag downed teammates to safety, and can place strong cover that makes the unplayable playable in those tight endgames.
He has struggled for popularity since he joined the Apex Games. Newcastle is hard to play, and certainly is much stronger in games that have more people alive in the final rings. That makes him pretty lame in pubs, but in Ranked he can certainly make an impact.
Our Apex Legends Newcastle Guide will have you building and protecting the fort in no time.
Apex Legends Newcastle Guide: What makes Newcastle a good legend?
Newcastle excels at resetting from fights and finding playable space where there is none. His abilities can be bypassed in wide open spaces, which is why he is so strong in later stages of the game. He's received some buffs in recent seasons to give him a little bit of extra mobility.
Strengths:
- His Retrieve the Wounded can save a teammate who usually would not be safe to revive.
- The Castle Wall can make unplayable space playable.
- Leap across the map to help teammates in trouble.
Weaknesses:
- A well placed Grenade can cause serious issues for Newcastle.
- If you can't find a good knockdown shield Newcastle feels much less powerful.
- Newcastle is a large character and can be picked off in open spaces.
Newcastle Tactical:
- Throw a drone that projects a moveable energy shield.
- The shield consists of an upper half and lower half. Each half has 500 health, and can be destroyed separately.
- Lasts 20 seconds or until destroyed.
- Can be maneuvered into whatever position you wish.
The Mobile Shield is a moveable, but destroyable shield. It allows Newcastle to quickly produce cover to help protect teammates. Being moveable, it is more flexible than some rival abilities.
Tips for Mobile Shield:
Tip #1:
The Mobile Shield can be a great way to avoid being hit by ordinance and explosive abilities. If you're caught in a flurry of grenades, you can manoeuvre and rotate the shield in order to block each grenade just as it explodes. This can be tricky to do and will take some practice.
Tip #2:
Being able to move the Mobile Shield can make it very useful for closing the gap on your opponents. The Shield moves at a reasonable speed. You can move it towards an enemy and stay safely behind it. If the shield is destroyed, your enemies will be low on ammunition and you can take advantage while they reload.
Tip #3:
Like with Gibraltar's Dome of Protection, the shield can allow for close range Shotgun fighting. You can get extra tactical with this, given you can move the shield. Move the shield away from your opponent, or dance around in circles with it perhaps.
Newcastle Passive:
- Drag downed allies as you revive and protect them with your Revive Shield.
- The health of the Revive Shield is dependent on the level of Newcastle's Knockdown Shield.
- The Knockdown Shield starts to regenerate after 1 second.
Retrieve the Wounded allows Newcastle to expand a knockdown shield to protect his downed ally. Additionally, he can drag them around while reviving to get them somewhere safe.
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Tips for Retrieve the Wounded:
Tip #1:
Perhaps the most pertinent tip for Retrieve the Wounded is that you don't actually have to move while reviving. If it's safer to remain in position, you can do so.
Tip #2:
If you have a strong knockdown shield, it is possible to get a revive off mid fight. Obviously, your revived ally will be low on health so they might not be much use to you! However, if you have the Gold Knockdown shield this can be a very powerful tactic.
Newcastle Ultimate:
- Leap to an ally or target area and slam down, creating a fortified stronghold.
- Target an area, which Newcastle will leap to. Upon landing, a large wall will be constructed facing the direction Newcastle is looking.
- Leaping has a maximum range of 35 meters.
- Can choose to target a squadmate or squadmate's Death Box to land on, which extends the range to 75 meters.
- The wall is made of 9 segments, each with 750 health.
- The outward facing side is electrified for 30 seconds, stunning and dealing 20 damage to enemies who attempt to climb over it.
The Castle Wall is Newcastle's most powerful ability. It allows him to place large and high HP cover. It forms a semi circle, with different heights in each segment. The Wall can stun enemies when it it first placed, and even has a knockback effect on those closest by.
Tips for Castle Wall:
Tip #1:
Newcastle's Castle Wall will be placed in the direction you're facing. That can be an inconvenience. What if you leap to a teammates aid but want to place the wall in the opposite way to you were facing?
You can turn around in mid-air to face the exact angle you wish the wall to face.
Tip #2:
Watch the ground that you choose to place the wall on. If the ground is especially uneven there could be gaps underneath certain segments. This would allow enemies to shoot through the gaps and potentially hit your feet.
Tip #3:
The Castle Wall will destroy any doors nearby when you place it. So, if you're placing the wall inside a building, perhaps to make extra cover in an open building, beware of destroying your doors. This could actually make a building less playable than before!
What legends work well with Newcastle?
Undoubtedly, Newcastle is much more suited to a passive playstyle. He is especially powerful in tight busy endgames that feature lots of different teams. You can play spots with Newcastle that would otherwise be unplayable thanks to his Castle Wall.
Aggressive Playstyles:
Clearly Newcastle isn't really intended to be an aggressive legend. However, he can provide a nice insurance policy. His revive abilities and the huge leap he has with his Ultimate can let you rescue an over extended teammate.
Passive Playstyles:
Wattson is the perfect match with Newcastle. His biggest weakness is grenades. One arc star behind his wall, grenades thrown into his path or past his mobile shield. The Wattson Pylon blocks all throwables. It itself is vulnerable to being destroyed. What better than the Castle Wall to protect it? The two abilities go perfectly hand in hand.
Sure, Newcastle isn't the ultimate pub stomping legend. He isn't flashy and aggressive, and some can find him boring to play as a result. However, in those sweaty ranked endgames (especially with Wattson!) he is a strong legend and can certainly deliver wins and intense moments.
Thanks for checking out our Apex Legends Newcastle Guide.
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