After suffering his untimely death at the hands of the Joker, Jason Todd threw away the identity of Robin to become the Red Hood. Sporting a more lethal approach to Batman’s code of ethics, he once became a fierce enemy of the Bat-Family until he’s been convinced to see the error in his ways. And now that Bruce met his own death at the hands of his fiercest enemies, Gotham Knights will have Jason don the mantle of Red Hood once more, but this time to protect Gotham in honor of his adoptive father.
Armed with firearms and his newfound punishing brand of fierce martial arts, Red Hood of Gotham Knights is easily the team’s heavy-hitter and long-ranged specialist. Possessing a tankier appearance and a more flexible choice of weapons, Red Hood is easily a player’s choice for more aggressive playstyles. How does this work in the context of a Red Hood build, though?
One-Shot Bullet
Of all Batman’s proteges, it’s Red Hood who only ever took it upon himself to use the weapons of Batman’s enemies against them. In Gotham Knights, this meant being the team’s resident weapons specialist, with Tim Drake having to develop special non-lethal rounds just to satiate Jason’s need to shoot something.
This persistence in being a long-ranged specialist allows players to get Red Hood the One-Shot Bullet build, giving Red Hood one of the most hard-hitting builds in the game. With the One-Shot Bullet build, Red Hood has built ridiculously-high damage numbers that he can practically one-shot most opponents to oblivion.
Gear Focus: Building Upon Knockouts
- Suit: High Ultimate Suit
- Melee: Concussive Pistols
- Ranged: Direct Hit Rounds
Since Red Hood’s One-Shot Bullet build needs him to make quick work of enemies with as little effort as possible, his Gear in Gotham Knights gameplay means letting him be extremely capable of taking care of foes consistently. Key to this build is his High Ultimate Suit, where Ultimates not only grant health and damage boost but also Critical Chance and Critical Damage.
This is complemented with Concussive Pistols where general KOs boost Elemental Effect damage and resistance, Momentum-based KOs boost build-up of Momentum, and Perfect Attack-based KOs give more Momentum. Lastly, Direct Hit Rounds ensure each hit boosts Momentum generation, with Heavy Melee knockouts guaranteeing a Critical on the next hit.
Skill Tree Focus: Long-Range Devastation
- Marksman: Perfect Evade, Critical Expertise, Precise Strikes, Focused Fire, Focused Fire+
- Brawler: Human Bomb, Human Bomb Enhanced, Human Bomb Multiplied
- Vengeance: Combined Fire, Unrestricted Fire, Double Vortex
- Knighthood: Mystical Leap, Ranged Terror, Weak Spot Damage+, Combat Mastery, Durca’s Training
Unlike other Gotham Knights who all pull off various martial arts prowess, Red Hood shines when attacking from afar. In turn, of all his skill trees, Brawler gets the least focus except for Human Bomb that allows him to tag people from afar and see his gadgets explode. On the contrary, Marksman gets the most focus, with Red Hood prioritizing Critical Chance and Critical Hit.
Meanwhile, Vengeance and Knighthood should focus on producing as many opportunities from ranged combat as possible. This involves being able to shoot more frequently, and being able to generate Fear from afar to secure Crits (Ranged Terror).
Momentum Abilities Focus: Reload Attacks
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- Ultimate: Mystical Rounds
- Momentum Ability 1: Two-Fisted Reload
- Momentum Ability 2: Spoilsport Reload
- Momentum Ability 3: Barrage
While Red Hood’s general Gotham Knights gameplay allows him to attack from afar a majority of the time, his Momentum Abilities are designed to allow him to better perform in combat with emergency melee attacks. However, the more impressive part of his arsenal are his reloads, with Two-Fisted Reload and Spoilsport Reload allowing him to take breaks in between firing through reloads that still deal damage to opponents.
Other key components in his Momentum Abilities include Barrage that make for an extremely deadly series of shots in front of him, as well as his Mystical Rounds (Ultimate) that are practically guaranteed hits.
Stealth Master
While it’s extremely satisfying taking care of opponents from afar as Red Hood, it’s another level of satisfaction when Red Hood is able to dispatch enemies from afar without them even noticing it. This is precisely what Stealth Master does, as its toolkit allows Red Hood to get stealthy in combat.
Considering how a lot of Gotham Knights gameplay involves facing off multiple enemies at once, the opportunity to eliminate them with firearms from afar can be a godsend in harder difficulties. With the Steath Master build, Red Hood proves massive damage isn’t just dealt up close - he could eliminate foes before they even knew it.
Gear Focus: Quiet Kills Get More Benefits
- Suit: Stealth Suit
- Melee: Instant Effect Pistols
- Ranged: Vampiric Rounds
Similar to other builds Gotham Knights gameplay, Red Hood’s Stealth Master build shines not in how it gives Red Hood the chance to go sniper on foes. Rather, it’s how his Gear gives Red Hood a reason to focus on stealth in the first place. For instance, his Stealth Suit gives Red Hood not just additional Stealth Attack damage, but it also doubles the Elemental Effect build-up at full health, while at the same time allowing Stealth Attack knockouts to give Momentum and even boost his Critical Damage and general damage output with Gotham Knights gadgets.
Meanwhile, his Instant Effect Pistols focus on knockout effects - where Stealth Attack KOs give more Momentum, Heavy Melee KOs give more health, and Criticals add even more momentum Lastly, Vampiric Rounds give health when dealing Critical Damage and doing Momentum Abilities, while Precision Aim KOs increase Elemental Effect damage.
Skill Tree Focus: The More Shots, The More Fun
- Marksman: Critical Expertise, Precise Strikes, Focused Fire, Focused Fire+, Quickfire Expert
- Brawler: Human Bomb, Human Bomb Enhanced, Human Bomb Multiplied
- Vortex: Coup de Grace, Combined Fire, Unrestricted Fire, Double Vortex
- Knighthood: Mystical Leap, Ranged Terror, Weak Spot Damage+, Combat Mastery, Shadow Vengeance
While the ideal way for Red Hood’s Stealth Master to work is to dispatch opponents before they even notice him, it also counts if Red Hood manage to eliminate his opponents in the shortest time possible even after detection. In the context of Gotham Knights gameplay, he achieves this through getting as many opportunities to boost his attack numbers.
For instance, Marksman skills such as Quickfire Expert and Focused Fire allows him to fire more shots at opponents. This is similar to Vortex and its Unrestricted Fire, Combined Fire, and Double Vortex. Meanwhile, Brawler and its Human Bomb as well as Knighthood and its Shadow Vengeance ensures other combat options let Red Hood grab more hits.
Momentum Abilities Focus: Attacks From All Ranges
- Ultimate: Mystical Rounds
- Momentum Ability 1: Portable Turret
- Momentum Ability 2: Two-Fisted Reload
- Momentum Ability 3: Barrage
Given how this Stealth Master build focuses on allowing Red Hood to become a stealthy assassin, he should be able to deal with all sorts of situations in overall gameplay in the Batman game. In this regard, his Mystical Rounds (Ultimate) serve as a nifty attack-all option in emergency situations.
In the case of emergencies, Portable Turret can ensure he gets more health back from attacks, while Barrage and Two-Fisted Reload can accommodate hitting an enemy up close or even if they’re with other enemy combatants.
All-Rounder Marksman
When Batman faces Red Hood as an enemy, he’s become an exceptionally difficult enemy to deal with - and not just because he knows Batman’s modus operandi as the second Robin. Rather, Red Hood’s expertise with firearms has transformed him into a jack of all trades of all things guns, similar to how Batman has become with martial arts.
In Gotham Knights gameplay, this is reflected with the All-Rounder Marksman build, where Red Hood displays deadly efficiency in ensuring his shots give him the most benefits. With the All-Rounder Marksman build, Red Hood gets not just massive damage from his bullets, but also sustains and even decent defense.
Gear Focus: Boost Overall Damage
- Suit: Counter-Talon Suit
- Melee: New Kngiht Pistols
- Ranged: Linked Rounds
When it comes to choosing the optimal Gear for Red Hood against Batman’s villains, Gotham Knights gameplay makes it more viable for him to take options that boost his damage as often as possible. Key to this build is the Counter-Talon Suit boosting his defenses at full health to encourage taking smarter risks in combat.
Meanwhile, his New Knight Pistols allows his Momentum Abilities to not just boost base damage but even give heals, where full health doubles the build-up of Elemental Effects. Lastly, Linked Rounds allow Momentum-based KOs to double the damage of the next attack, and ordinary KOs will now boost the wearer’s Elemental Effect resistance.
Skill Tree Focus: Fast Firing
- Marksman: Perfect Evade, Critical Expertise, Precise Strikes, Focused Fire, Quickfire Expert
- Brawler: Human Bomb, Human Bomb Amplified, Human Bomb Multiplied
- Vengeance: Coup de Grace, Combined Fire, Double Vortex,
- Knighthood: Mystical Leap, Ranged Terror, Weak Spot Damage+, Shadow Vengeance
Considering how this particular Red Hood build focuses on dishing out as much damage as possible, the ideal skill choices here should let him deal various kinds of attack opportunities. Key to this is the Marksman tree that can enhance Red Hood’s overall Critical Chance and Critical Damage opportunities, as well as Vengeance that allows Red Hood to deal more hits with his attacks.
Likewise, his Brawler and Knighthood skill trees further diversify his combat options. Examples of these are Human Bombs that transform grabs into an explosive AOE, and Shadow Vengeance that let Red Hood’s Ultimate deal more attacks.
Momentum Abilities Focus: Fire Away
- Ultimate: Mystical Rounds
- Momentum Ability 1: Barrage
- Momentum Ability 2: Two-Fisted Reload
- Momentum Ability 3: Harness Rage
When it comes to fulfilling Red Hood’s potential to deal all-around damage, his Momentum Abilities must be designed to for consistent damage build-up. For instance, Mystical Rounds ensure Red Hood can hit all of his opponents, while Harness Rage is an ideal buff for his performance.
Likewise, Barrage makes Red Hood an effective character against tough single-target enemies. Meanwhile, Two-Fisted Reload ensures even the idle reload animation can contribute in Gotham Knights gameplay.
Ultimate Crit Focus
With Red Hood being the most aggressive among Batman’s proteges, it’s natural for him to have a penchant for the punchiest of ranged attacks. For players who want to capitalize on Red Hood’s safety via damage numbers and distance, the Ultimate Crit Focus build is easily the ideal choice for a build approach.
At its core, the Ultimate Crit Focus build ensures that Red Hood has all the means to slowly build up his Critical stats, while at the same time being able to proc his Mystical Rounds Ultimate often in order to seal the finisher against foes.
Gear Focus: Secure Ultimates, Knockout Benefits
- Suit: High Ultimate Suit
- Melee: Critical Momentum Pistols
- Ranged: Overtime Effect Rounds
Players who want to make the most out of Red Hood in Gotham Knights gameplay might want to ensure he’s able to get effects from his heaviest-hitting attacks: his Ultimates and knockouts. In this regard, the Ultimate Suit is a nifty Suit as unleash Ultimates not only grant extra health and damage but the next attack gets a massive boost in Critical Chance.
Likewise, his Critical Momentum Pistols give his headshots more Critical Chance, while Momentum-based KOs boost his Critical Chance and Momentum generation. Lastly, his Overtime Effect Rounds will have his Perfect Evades give him more Momentum buildup as well as more health.
Skill Tree Focus: Secure Criticals
- Marksman: Critical Expertise, Precise Strikes, Quickfire Expert, Focused Fire
- Brawler: Human Bomb, Huan Bomb Enhanced, Human Bomb Multiplied
- Vengeance: Unrestricted Fire, Double Vortex
- Knighthood: Ranged Terror
When it comes to Red Hood wanting to secure as much damage from his attacks as much as possible, his build needs his Gotham Knights gameplay to secure his Criticals. This forms the other half of his build, where his skill trees build upon his Critical potential. Key to this approach is the Marksman tree that has skills that allow Red Hood to consistently boost his Criticals.
Likewise, his Vengeance tree allows him to deal more damage against foes through extra shots. Bonus skills for this build are acquired through Brawler and Knighthood that allow him to transform grabs into explosive AOEs (Human Bomb), and for his attacks to scare more foes (Ranged Terror).
Momentum Abilities Focus: Secure The Shot Count
- Ultimate: Mystical Rounds
- Momentum Ability 1: Two-Fisted Reload
- Momentum Ability 2: Spoilsport Reload
- Momentum Ability 3: Portable Turret
Due to how Red Hood’s arsenal more often than not encourages him to strike from afar, players who want to capitalize on his Ultimate Crit build may as well secure ranged damage numbers. Key to this is his Mystical Rounds (Ultimate) that let him attack all his opponents without having the need to aim.
Improving upon this Ultimate are other complementary Momentum Abilities, such as Two-Fisted Reload and Spoilsport Reload that add more damaging options while reloading. Lastly, Portable Turret is an ever-reliable attack to give Red Hood time to recuperate from injuries.
Gotham Knights was released in 2022 for the PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC