Here's exactly how you want to play Newcastle, including the best compositions for Newcastle, the right weapons to use, and some general tips on how to use his abilities.
Apex might work like other battle royales in some respects, but the Legends offer a wholly separate element of gameplay to master. When should you use your ult? What kind of role should you fill in the squad? And what kind of equipment should you try to find? To answer those questions and more, we've put together a series of complete guides for the Legends. Today, we'll be tackling everyone's favorite long-lost brother: Newcastle.
Who Is Newcastle?
Newcastle is Bangalore's long-lost brother, Jackson. They grew up as part of a military family and were best friends, but they would always compete with one another. The story of how they came to be in the Apex games is very long, but we'll condense it. Basically, Jackson abandoned a suicide mission and ran away from the military to start a new life. When he ran away he also had to abandon his sister Bangalore, who has been looking for him ever since.
In the time they were separated, Jackson took on a new name and started a family, but in his new hometown, some gangsters were causing trouble. The actual Newcastle owed the mob money and couldn't pay, so rather than watch him die, Jackson stepped in to pretend to be Newcastle and get the mob their money back. This is how we came to find Bangalore again.
How Good Is Newcastle?
Quite; he isn't a wasted pick, but he definitely isn't the meta. Here's a quick overview of how Newcastle stacks up in-game:
| Rating | Comment | |
Difficulty | 4/5 | Newcastle is simple on paper but it takes a lot of practise and good decision making to use his abilities effectively. They can very easily be wasted and achieve nothing, so you really do need to get in some warm-up matches with Newcastle if you want to try him out. If he is too difficult for you, try out one of the best beginner Legends instead. |
Viability for Battle Royale | 3/5 | The second true support Legend in the game obviously has a role to play in the Battle Royale. But Newcastle's abilities are really a combination of other Legend's abilities, slightly tweaked and reworked. So while he's decent, he's not truly meta. |
| Viability for Arenas | 4/5 | Newcastle has a set of abilities that work well for the Arena. Not his ult so much, but you're rarely popping your ult in Arenas anyway so it's not a problem. He isn't quite S-Tier because his reviving ability is less useful than Lifeline in close-range combat, but he's definitely a worthwhile pick. |
What Abilities Does Newcastle Have?
Tactical: Mobile Shield
- Deploy a remote control drone that powers a two-part energy shield. The energy shield has a top and bottom section which have to be independently destroyed by the enemy.
This is the best and worst part about Newcastle. The drone is not as easy to control as it should be, especially in the heat of the moment, and so it's easy to waste this ability. But if you deploy and use this ability correctly, then you have one of the better tactical abilities in the game.
Passive: Retrieve The Wounded
- You can drag downed characters, and when you do so your Knockdown Shield deploys in front of you and the person you're dragging. It's significantly larger than a normal Knockdown Shield, but it can be destroyed in just the same way.
Retrieve The Wounded is distinctly less powerful than the obvious rival to Newcastle: Lifeline. But it's not weak by any stretch. This is the kind of ability that can save the squad when used correctly. The real trick is to never overestimate the strength of the shield you get, it can still be easily broken, and you need to be patient with your revives.
Ultimate: Castle Wall
- Newcastle leaps forward and drops a Castle Wall (pictured below) in front of himself. You can lock on to allies when deploying the wall to make sure you land in the right place.
This is the least impressive part of Newcastle's kit. It's a bottom-tier ult in all honesty, and you won't find much use for it outside the end-game. In those final few moments it can be clutch though, and for its mobility aspect alone you can use it to achieve more than just temporary cover.
How Should You Play Newcastle?
Newcastle's General Playstyle
Newcastle is one of only two true supports in Apex, so you really need to play your life for the sake of your team. This is not Octane you're playing. So stay with at least one other member of the team, and allow the third to hit those long routes and make rotations. You want to play more passively than the rest of the squad, and support them from range. By preserving your own health and shield, you can jump in to deploy cover and get in the revives.
Newcastle's Role Within The Team
Newcastle would be described in other shooters as an anchor. In a battle royale context, this isn't going to be quite the same, but in general, you're going to hold down power positions, and offer support to your squad. Allow the Legends with more mobility to go and finish kills or investigate nearby fire. The one exception to this is when you're using your Tactical Shield on the push, but this ability can be destroyed without too much trouble by the enemy, so don't fool yourself into thinking it's good enough to solo push with.
The Best Weapons & Equipment For Newcastle
As we've been mentioning above, you want to play Newcastle passively and offer distance from afar. We suggest using an LMG as your main, and keeping an SMG for emergencies in the back pocket.
| Primary | Devotion, Spitfire, Rampage |
| Secondary | R-99, C.A.R. SMG |
Which Are The Best Legends To Play With Newcastle?
The number one rule with Newcastle is to try and avoid overlapping with similarly skilled Legends, and the two most obvious examples of that are Lifeline and Gibraltar. So never pair up with those two, instead go with one solid leader who can ideally bring intel, and then an aggressive, mobile Legend who can push the flanks.
- Bloodhound
- Pathfinder
- Horizon
- Octane
- Ash
And, if you really care about the lore, you should consider Bangalore (they have loads of unique dialogue when paired together).
How Should You Counter A Newcastle?
Here are some general tips to countering Newcastle:
- The abilities are very destructible, so if you see a Newcastle deploy the shield or pop up a wall, then keep firing, you don't need to feel particularly put off by these abilities.
- Many Newcastle's impatiently revive their teammates when they're still vulnerable. Capitalize on this mistake and push when you see them trying to revive.
- Castle Wall only faces one direction, it doesn't cover the sides very well at all. Send a mobile Legend round on the flank, and they should be able to render this ult useless.
Those are some basic tips to help you fight Newcastle, he can be a menace, so good luck!