Concord: How to Unlock Tier 2 Variant Characters

Concord enters the sea of Hero Shooters next month but brings with it some exciting twists. The most notable so far is the Variants system. Here’s how to unlock Tier 2 characters in Concord and why they’re worthwhile.

What Do Variants Do in Concord?

Each Freegunner available in Concord has set weapons, abilities, and Combat Traits. Variants keep the characters’ weapons and abilities intact but change the Combat Trait. Every Freegunner in Concord has a Variant Level attached, indicated by a Roman numeral. So far, the only Variants we’ve seen are at Level 2.

It is worth noting that Variants’ unique Combat Traits do not stack with the original. Rather, players will have to choose to replace the ones on offer from other Variants of the character. Players will have to decide which tradeoffs to take, which provides a unique aspect to balancing Concord‘s Freegunners. For example, Lennox’s default Combat Trait at Level 1 allows him to reload his weapons while doing a dodge roll. The Level 2 Variant (pictured above) does away with this Combat Trait but also increases the Magazine size for Lennox’s weapons.

Variants also have a unique look to them. The two Variants shown so far each have a unique skin from the default version of the character. This gives players a way to show off their progressed Freegunner. The unique skins also signal to other players that these Variants will have a different Combat Trait than the default version.

Related: Concord Character Tier List: All Freegunners Ranked

Unlocking Freegunner Variants in Concord

The first Variant players have been able to try out in Concord is a Level 2 Lennox. But there doesn’t seem to be any way to earn Lennox in the Beta, and the developers may have just enabled the Freegunner to give players a way to check out the feature and give feedback. However, the Teo character has a Level 2 Variant players can earn from a challenge.

In the Freegunners tab of the Job Board, there is an unlock challenge for Teo 2. Players will need to deal 8,000 damage with abilities and will be rewarded with the Variant and an Elite rarity “Tactical Storm” skin for Teo. This Variant comes with the “Extra Munitions” Combat Trait, which gives the character’s weapons extended magazines, as well as adding extra grenades.

The countdown timer above the challenge seems to indicate that there will be another Variant in time for next weekend’s Open Beta. It is currently unclear how often these Variants will be available to unlock and if there will be any other ways to unlock them when Concord fully launches. Assuming this trend continues, weekly challenges for Variants could be a great way to incentivize players to return to the game and reward those who stick with it.

Concord is currently in Beta early access and will fully launch on PS5 and PC August 23, 2024