Last Updated on by Samuel Franklin
The Cycle Best Loadout For Beginners Guide (White & Green)
With our guide to the best loadout in the The Cycle: Frontier you’ll have efficient and effective equipment to get your missions done and have a fighting chance in PvP engagements that you encounter along the way. Focused on white and green tier equipment which are the staple of your early to mid game progression in The Cycle this article explores the pros and cons of your respective options and how to combine them together into the best loadouts for beginners and your budget.
While some of these decisions come down to playstyle, your current objective and if you are playing solo or in a group their are some options that should be strongly favoured to spend your K-Marks on. This can be a combination of factors such as cost to value provided, availability or flexibility offered by the loadout which are all discussed below. This best loadout guide covers armour, backpacks, weapons and healing items to ensure you have everything you need for an adventure down to the surface of Fortuna III.
The Cycle Best Loadout (White Tier)
Starting with the white tier of equipment in The Cycle this will be your best budget loadout and your initial loadout for new players. While this is the worst tier of equipment in The Cycle it is still more than capable of keeping you safe from the common Bright Sands enemies (Striders and Rattlers) while also being useful for loot runs and basic quest completion. Your PvP effectiveness is limited though and you’ll be unlikely to win most PvP engagements unless your enemy is also running white tier equipment.
White tier equipment in The Cycle is always readily available to players from the Stockpile Quick Shop located in the middle of Prospector Station and can also be acquired from non upgraded supply crates. So whether you are down on your luck in The Cycle or want the cheapest gear money can buy you’ll gravitate to white items. A white gear set can cost you anywhere from a few thousands K-Marks up to ten thousands depending on your choice of weapon.
The best loadout with white tier equipment in The Cycle will contain:
- Small Backpack (Common)
- Shield (Common)
- Helmet (Common)
- 5-10 x Weak Stim (Common)
- Common weapon of your choice (B9 Trenchgun, C-32 Bolt Action or AR-55 Autorifle preferred)
- 1 inventory slot of ammunition for your weapon choice
This above loadout gives you decent protection from the dangers of Fortuna III, an avenue to heal any damage you do take and a suitable weapon to defend yourself. If your current objective is likely to have you running to a number of locations in Fortuna III and avoiding all combat players can also swap in the tactical variants to improve your stamina regeneration. In terms of weapon choices players will want to consider the following:
- B9 Trenchgun: A fantastic default weapon when using white tier equipment given it provides an extremely effective weapon against basic creatures types. While you do need to get close to these creatures for this weapon to be effective they will rarely be able to attack you back given the high damage and stagger this weapon can inflict on enemies. It’s also a surprisingly deadly PvP weapon at close range so you’ll want to try fight accordingly and can make it difficult for players to chase you into small rooms. If you do get caught by another player in wide open areas your only option will be to run away until you can fight on your terms or lose them.
- C-32 Bolt Action: A devastating weapon against players and creatures the bolt action is the most expensive white tier weapon in The Cycle. While it can be used as a solo player it’s effectiveness is significantly enhanced when running with other players as you’ll be able to hang back to attack creatures and other players which offsets the slow fire rate of this weapon. If you do opt for this weapon you’ll want to spend the extra K-Marks required to obtain a 2x optic to boost your effective range significantly. This weapon also stays relevant when you upgrade to green tier equipment provided you are in a group as noted above.
- AR-55 Autorifle: Falling somewhere between the two other options above in the white tier the autorifle is an option for those that prefer to have a little more range compared to the shotgun. It’s still capable of fighting your basic creatures although does consume ammunition at a higher rate that will warrant two stacks in your loadout if your focused on killing creatures as part of your current faction mission or job. It also gives you some additional distance to return fire at other players although given it is a white tier weapon you’ll likely be outmatched by most players.
The Cycle Best Loadout (Green Tier)
The jump to the green tier of equipment is a big jump in overall power and cost but is likely where you’ll spend the most of your time in The Cycle. The green tier of equipment in The Cycle is an effective PvE and PvP point of progression where you’ll be able to easily dispatch all the Bright Sands creatures and start setting your foot into the weaker areas of Crescent Falls.
Unlike the white tier of equipment that is easily purchased though players you will need to rely on crafting equipment or purchasing from the various factions as the primary methods to acquire these items. Upgraded supply crates can also provide these items as can stealing green tier equipment from other players on the surface. These limitations to availability does mean that some times you may have to return to the white tier temporarily or use a mixture of tiers. I recommend being careful with the latter though as mixed tier options in The Cycle can be awkward and is more likely to put your limited green items at risk then be useful to your goals.
The best loadout with green tier equipment in The Cycle will contain:
- Medium Backpack (Uncommon)
- Shield (Uncommon)
- Helmet (Uncommon)
- 5-10 x Strong Stim (Uncommon)
- Uncommon weapon of your choice with white attachments (Manticore or Bulldog preferred)
- 1 or 2 inventory slots full of ammunition for your weapon choice
With green tier items you’ll want to upgrade all your core equipment slots to the uncommon variants which are available through the crafting station on Prospect Station. These are reasonably easy to craft though with a combination of Polymetallic Prefabricate, Spinal Base and Altered Nickel required that are common resources across Bright Sands. Similar to the white tier of armour you have choices of the normal helmet and tactical although a restoration variant is now also available that provides some minor healing. Given the price of healing items is relatively cheap the higher armour value of the standard green armours is likely to be your best bet for survival. In addition to survival the larger backpack size of the Medium Backpack in the green equipment tier ensures your successful adventures are significantly more profitable. This is important given this best loadout option quickly gets expensive as it can set you back tens of thousands of K-Marks even though some of the equipment is crafted.
If you have the Strong Stim available from levelling the best faction in The Cycle (Osiris) then these ensure good survivability. If you have not reached that point yet though then consider bringing additional Weak Stims to ensure you can adequately heal damage you take and protect your green tier equipment from being lost.
In terms of weapon choices players will want to consider the following:
- Manticore: One of the best mid game weapons that offers great damage and flexibility given its assault rifle archetype. Whether you need to fight up close or from range this weapon ensures you are equipped to face everything that comes your way. It’s recommended that you add a 2x optic to this weapon to increase your effective range for both PvP and PvE. K-Marks should also be invested in white tier attachments to make you an even deadlier opponent. Given this weapon can quickly chew through ammunition depending on your quest you might even want three stacks in your inventory.
- Bulldog: Despite the small clip size the bulldog can handle most PvE encounters on Bright Sands with ease given it offers serious damage at close range. It is also a deadly PvP weapon at close range although with the small magazine size you’ll quickly need to retreat if you miss your shots. If you are planning to primarily engage in PvE this can be an effective choice although cannot be modified with attachments like the Manticore above.
