Marathon: How to Play as Rook

Rook is the most unique class in Marathon, since it can only be used solo, rather than with a team. This Shell's main purpose is to loot as much as possible, which it exceeds at due to the fact that Rook's only spawns into a match when it's halfway done. Since Rooks spawn into a match later than others, there are fewer players and enemies that you'll have to worry about.

While Rook can be beneficial in refilling your armory, it also puts you at a disadvantage compared to other players, due to Rook's limited abilities and traits. Because of this, you need to pay extra attention to your surroundings to ensure that other players don't get the jump on you.

If you are interested in using Rook in Marathon, this guide is for you. Read on to learn about Rook's abilities, the best strategies to focus on when playing as Rook, and the best time to select this Shell.

Rook Abilities, Explained

Unlike other Shells in Marathon, Rook only comes equipped with two abilities: Recuperation and Signal Mask. Below is a full description of these two abilities.

• Recuperation (Prime): Activate your prototype frame's emergency repair system to slowly restore health. Interrupted when you take damage.
• Signal Mask (Tactical Ability): Activate a temporary holodisplay mask to deceive UESC forces, making them unaware of your presence. Disrupted when you sprint or take damage.

Since Rook doesn't come with any traits, and only has two abilities on offer, he is not very versatile in combat encounters. However, the two abilities he does have are very useful and help him do what he does best — loot and get out.

Rook Strategies

The first thing you need to know when playing as Rook is that you can't bring any of your gear into a match. Instead, you will get a random starter kit when selecting Rook.

When playing as Rook in Marathon, your main strategy is to hit all nearby buildings and loot as much as possible. Don't think too hard about which building to tackle, as you can pretty much find great loot everywhere on Marathon's maps.

When looting the buildings, make sure to take your time and keep on the lookout for any enemies. I recommend doing an entire match in stealth, rather than sprinting everywhere (unless it's to the next building), since sprinting creates loud footsteps noises that can alert other players.

If you enter a building that hasn't been hit yet by other players, and there are a good number of UESC enemies there, make sure to activate your Signal Mask ability to prevent them from spotting you. You should also use this ability immediately after getting spotted by a UESC enemy, if you aren't prepared for combat.

Feel free to complete any contracts that you may have during a match, as long as they don't involve killing other players. The last thing you want to do is to start a fight with a team, since you'll be outnumbered and be at a significant disadvantage.

Once you have filled up your backpack with as much loot as possible and are satisfied with what you have found, make your way to the nearest Exfil site. I don't recommend going to a guarded Exfil, since it would be very tough to defeat all UESC enemies as a solo player.

When Should You Use the Rook Shell?

The best time to use Rook in Marathon is when you are running really low on materials, weapons, health kits, shields, etc. Pretty much, if your armory is looking bare bones, then it's probably time to use Rook.

While the game does offer free kits where you don't have to bring any of your own gear to Tau Ceti, you won't have Rooks advantage of spawning late into a match. Your chances of going undetected and successfully extracting with a ton of gear is much higher when playing as a Rook than when selecting a free kit.

Rook can also be very useful when it comes to completing contracts. Since Rook travels solo, it's harder for other players to pinpoint your location, giving you space to complete objectives.