1) A trash zed specialist



The above figure is the perk information for the S.W.A.T. provided by the Tripwire Interactive Officials (TWI). I personally agree with most of the description. S.W.A.T. excels in trash zeds clearance and crowd control, you may find the perk is exceptionally outstanding in dealing with:

Cysts/Clots/Slashers and Rioters (They start spawning on wave 1):









Crawlers (They start spawning on wave 2):



A special case is the stalker (They start spawning on wave 2):



The S.W.A.T may have a hard time in handling stalkers. This is because you starting weapon- MP7, CAN NOT finish the kung-fu girl in a single head-shot.




5 Body-Shot (BS) is needed to get a stalker killed, not to mention they will dodging around to avoid your bullets (Well that's BS)


It is worth noting that stalkers are spawned in groups, particularly on higher difficulties like suicidal and Hell On Earth. Sometimes 5-6 can come to you at the same time. Hence, it is recommended to use a higher-tier weapon to fight against them. Any of the Tier 2 SMGs is enough to kill stalkers in a single Head-shot (HS)

The MP5:


The Tommy Gun:


The HM-TECH 201 SMG



2) Acceptable Medium zed slayer

The reason I use the word "acceptable" is that the S.W.A.T. CAN NOT get a clean kill on the gorefasts/gorefiends.






3) Occasional Big zed hunter (Scrakes, Quater-pounds and Fleshpounds)







Since the S.W.A.T perk is intended to be a trash zed killer, it is preferred for you to lane with a designated big zed hunter such as the Sharpshooter, Gunslinger and Demolitionist.




Avoid staying together with the commando since both of you shares the identical targets. (Reminder: Commando needs to kill trash zeds to refresh Zed Time. If you took his zeds, that means limited ZT can be offered by the commando.) A solution to the scenario is to split lanes.



However, it does not mean you are not allowed to touch big zeds at all. Under several circumstances the S.W.AT. can also be a big zed terminator.

1. Following Up teammates' failed take-down on the big zeds

2. Co-operating with teammates to take them down

3. You have enough back-pedaling or flashbang (perk grenade) to take them down

Assumption: 6-player, Hell On Earth Difficulty

On wave 1:



On waves 2-10:



Level 5: Heavy Armor Training VS Tactical Movement

It is believed that Heavy armor training is more welcomed by KF2 player, especially for those new to the game. It is probably due to the elevation in the "tankiess" for the S.W.A.T. Although such perk ability is quite tempting to possess, tactical movement is quite important when it comes to big zeds take-down. Such unique ability allows the SWAT to SOLO big zeds without using flashbang. Further elaboration will be provided on part 5.

Level 10: Close Combat Training VS Tactical Reload

Close Combat Training should be taken on wave 1 as the skill allows you to 3 HS a bloat or Gorefiend, extra 75 dosh can be gained by selling the extra 9mm at the trader. Do not under-estimate that 75, it allows you to purchase several mags for your SMG(s) and that pile can determine whether you can have enough ammo to live through the next wave.


Tactical Reload universally benefits all SMGs and 9mm for the SWAT. Consider taking it from wave 2.

Level 15 : Suppression Rounds VS Ammo Vest

Suppression rounds offer you with extra stumbling power who allows you to solo big zeds easily. However, if you decided to collaborate with your teammates to take big zeds down. Avoid selecting the skill since pre-mature stumble of big zeds can occur. Stumbling=missing shots (Not only those from you, but also those from your teammates)

Extra 30% of ammo is generally useful on S.W.A.T and such capability shaped the S.W.A.T. into a bullet-hose perk. If a support is present on wave 1, you can grab loadsa-ammo from him for you MP7.

Actually you can enjoy both skill by performing a trick called Over-Capping:


To sum the clip up:

1) After the wave ends, get to the trader and get the guns you want [The step can be skipped if you have already completed your load-out]

2) Open the menu by pressing Esc, configure skills by switching from Suppression Rounds to Ammo Vest

3) Buy ammo and armor

4) Throw them onto the ground (DON'T get spotted by teammates as some may steal them and sell it, try to do it at some corners but close enough to the trader.)

5) Switch Ammo Vest back to the Suppression Round

6) Acquire SMG(s)

NOTE: Avoid getting ammo from support or pick up any ammo boxes after you have performed steps 1-6. Otherwise, ALL OF YOUR HARD WORKS, GONE!

Level 20: Assault Armor VS Cripple

Assault armor allows you to possess 100 armor on wave 1 and permits you to have 150 armor maximum. However, Cripple provides much more utility for the SWAT in SOLOing big zeds. The skill is quite similar to the "Skull Cracker" on the Gunslinger. By scoring head-shots consistently on SC/QP/FP, it is probable that they can't even hit you before they get wrecked by SMGs.


Level 25 (activated during ZED TIME): Battling Ram VS Rapid Assault

Rapid Assault is the far superior choice compared with the Battling Ram counterpart. SWAT doesn't need to consume ammo and kill pretty much everything that comes into his eyes during Zed Time. With the proper Zed Time Refreshes offered by the commando, it is possible for the SWAT to eliminate multiple big zeds in a well orchestrated Zed Time refresh.

Despite the fact that the SWAT has a diverse selection of load-outs, the Kriss Vector is a must-have. This is because the BEAST possess insanely high Rate Of Fire (ROF) and abundant ammo pool.

Rate of Fire: 1200 Rounds Per Minute (RPM)


Ammo pool: 66+644=710 (Provided that the LV15 skill Ammo Vest is selected)


1) Spray and Pray build

Tier 4 Kriss SMG


with one of the Tier 3 SMGs:


Pair with one of the Tier 2 SMGs:


Load-out ONE allows you to possess more than enough bullets to survive. Such load-out is also preferred if players are not confident enough for head-shooting zeds.


2) Weapon Upgrade Mastery

Tier 5 Kriss SMG + Tier 5 Nailgun/P90/UMP/MP5 + HM-TECH 101



The above figure is my personal favourite load-out. This is because the upgraded Kriss Vector shreds everything below an FP. The upgraded HRG nailgun licences the SWAT to take down FP/QP effectively thanks to its Piercing damage type. It can also be a back-up weapon if you run out of ammo on your Vector.

Upgraded P90/UMP/MP5 is also a handy weapon to have. Nevertheless, FP/QP are highly resistant to SMG damage types and that's why the introduction of HRG nailgun brings SWAT to another level in which he can take down pounders easily (just like the FN-FAL for the commando perk)

HM-TECH 101 provides healing to your team-mates

Assumption: 6-player , Hell On Earth difficulty

WAVE 1 with the skill configuration LLRLR







HS stands for Head-Shots, BS stands for Body Shots


From the above table, it is not exaggerated at all to say that the SWAT is a precision-based perk in which HS is far more effective than BS ZEDs.

WAVE 2 with the skill configuration RRRRR:



By comparing the 3 SMGs at Tier 2, each has its own niche:



1) MP5 has the highest ROF among 3

2) Tommy gun has the greatest per bullet damage among 3

3) HM-TECH 201 SMG has the ability to heal and the cheapest ammo cost among 3

Hence, it all comes down to your preference and what your teammates need. For instance, you may consider buying the HM-TECH 201 SMG if the team has no medic.


Waves 3-4: You may keep using the T2 SMG or sell it for Tier 3 ones (P90/UMP/HRG NAILGUN)

Again, comparing those 3 SMGs:


1) P90 has the greatest magazine size among 3

2) UMP has the highest per bullet damage among 3

3) HRG nailgun has the ability to deal additional damage to FP/QPs due to its piercing damage type

Hence, it all comes down to your preference and what your teammates need. For instance, you may consider buying the HRG nailgun if your team doent have a big-zed hunter, or you need to SOLO a lane.


Waves 5-6: Get yourself a Kriss Vector

With the aid of flashbang, you can even use Tier 2/3 SMGs for taking SC down



Things will get much easier if you possess the Kriss Vector





Reminder-You only have 5 flash-bang maximum. It is better to conserve it for emergent situations such as:

1) Defense Line breached

2) Multiple big zeds appeared

3) Cornered by zeds

You may wonder if there is an alternative way to kill big zeds WITHOUT using a flash-bang. The solution to that is your skill selection should be:



The combination of Tactical Movement, Suppression Rounds and Cripple allows you to handle big zeds safely without the aid of flash-bang



There is something special related to FP take-down. Despite it is not recommended to use Kriss Vector to terminate FP (costs more than 1 Mag for each FP), it can still be performed without flash-bang.


HRG Nailgun is the preferential choice for FP/QP since they are more vulnerable to the piercing damage type associated with the weapon.



Points to note:

1) Tier 3 HRG Nailgun can stumble a calm FP before it rages while that CANNOT be done at Tier 4 and Tier 5.




2) QP (regardless of calm or raged) can be stumbled with HRG Nailgun


3) Head tracing is the key to operate a successful take-down on FP/QP (Practice makes Perfect)

4) If (multiple) QP/FP is/are spawn-raged, request help form your team-mates. It is extremely tricky to SOLO couple of big zeds for the SWAT.

1) A feature for the HM-TECH 201 SMG is it can spam healing darts infinitely DURING ZED TIME




2) Being a SWAT on wave 1 can save you a lot of dosh- Free 100 armor and an extra 9mm means total of 300+75=375 dosh thanks to the level 5 (Heavy Armor Training) and level 20 (Assault Armor)







3) It is NOT SUGGESTED to use SWAT on the boss wave. This is because the DPS for the SWAT is underwhelming when compared with other DPS powerhouse such as the Gunslinger and Sharpshooter with the railgun. If you really wanted to focus trash zeds on boss wave, it is better to switch to the commando.

4) If you performed well in a match, it is inevitable that you can get the MVP "HEAD POPPER"



5) If you got a support on wave 1, you can choose the skill ammo vest since you can get many ammo from him.

KF-TestingMapRedux all credit to Fauxy_

Killing Floor 2 WIKI [wiki.killingfloor2.com]

Some Final Words:

SWAT is a niche pick in KF2 as he is specialized in trash zed clearance. Problems can begin to occur when it comes to medium zeds such as leaving the body moving around after getting a decap on gorefast/gorefiend. Considering the factors such as Time to Kill (TTK) and ammo consumption, it is not an over-statement to say SWAT may have a hard time against Larger Zeds (Just like the profile picture of my guide)



If you really a fan of SMGs and enjoy the wild fire rate of them, don't hesitate to give SWAT a chance. (At least on wave 1, HEHE BOI)



Below are my guides to other perks in kf2, feel free to check them out

Commando

Sharpshooter

Gunslinger

Support

Medic