Battlefield 1 released in October 2016 and put the series in the First World War, where Operations chains two or three maps into one long attack and defence battle fought across a stack of battalions. When a team falls badly behind, the game hands it a Behemoth: the six seat Airship L30, the six seat Armored Train or the four seat Dreadnought. Gas grenades, bolt action rifles and cavalry horses make it the most deliberate shooter DICE has shipped in the modern era.
This walkthrough takes you from your first session to endgame content. Each phase has specific goals, priorities, and milestones. New to the game? Start with our beginner's guide first.
Quick Progression Summary
| Phase | Area | Focus | Role | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Start | Amiens | Operations mode basics | Medic | 1-2 hours |
| 2. Early | Argonne Forest | Behemoths mastery | Medic | 3-5 hours |
| 3. Mid | Sinai Desert | Elite kits + gear | Assault or Medic | 5-10 hours |
| 4. Late | Monte Grappa | Build optimization | Assault | 5-10 hours |
| 5. Endgame | St Quentin Scar | Min-max | Assault or Cavalry | Ongoing |
See our maps guide for detailed area breakdowns.
Phase 1: Getting Started (Amiens)
A shelled French city of shopfronts, courtyards and a central square. Fighting is short ranged and vertical, and the trailing team gets the Armored Train running the line along the map edge.
Level/Difficulty: Conquest and Operations Key Rewards: Square control, building interiors, Armored Train behemoth
What to Do in Amiens
- Learn Operations mode. Attackers spend battalions pushing through linked sectors on consecutive maps while defenders try to drain every battalion. Spend your first session getting comfortable with this.
- Pick Medic as your starting role. See our builds guide for why.
- Choose the weapon variant deliberately. A Trench variant adds hip fire accuracy and drops the sight quality, an Optical variant does the opposite, and picking the wrong one makes a perfectly good gun feel broken.
- Acquire your first weapons upgrade: Automatico M1918 or whatever's available.
- Clear all main content before moving on.
Phase 1 Checklist
- Understand Operations mode fundamentals
- Medic selected and functional
- Amiens main content cleared
- Ready for Argonne Forest
Phase 2: Early Game (Argonne Forest)
Dense woodland cut by bunkers and trench lines, one of the tightest maps in the game. Sightlines rarely open past 40 metres, which makes shotguns and submachine guns dominant.
Level/Difficulty: Conquest and Operations Key Rewards: Bunker complexes, trench networks, Armored Train behemoth
What to Do in Argonne Forest
- Work on Behemoths. The Airship L30 flies over St Quentin Scar and Monte Grappa, the Armored Train runs the rails on Amiens, Sinai Desert and Argonne Forest, and the Dreadnought shells coastal maps from open water. This system becomes critical from here on.
- Farm for Automatico M1918 if you haven't already. It's the key upgrade for this phase.
- Operations is the mode the maps were built for. Attackers get several battalions, so losing the first attempt is normal, and later battalions arrive with better support including a Behemoth.
- Complete all objectives before pushing to Sinai Desert.
- Consider whether Assault might suit your playstyle better than Medic.
Phase 2 Checklist
- Behemoths integrated into gameplay
- Automatico M1918 acquired
- Argonne Forest fully cleared
- Ready for Sinai Desert
Phase 3: Mid Game (Sinai Desert)
Wide open desert with a village, a canyon and a rail line. Horses cross the empty ground quickly, and the Armored Train can pin an entire flank if nobody brings anti tank tools.
Level/Difficulty: Conquest and Operations Key Rewards: Village flags, canyon flank, cavalry and Armored Train behemoth
What to Do in Sinai Desert
- Master Elite kits. Sentry, Flame Trooper and Tank Hunter sit on the map as pickup crates. This unlocks a new layer of gameplay.
- Start working toward Hellriegel 1915. It's the best weapon and becomes accessible around now.
- Behemoths die to focused fire, not to individual heroics. Field guns, anti aircraft emplacements and Tank Hunter kits stacked on one target bring an Airship down quickly, while single riflemen do nothing at all.
- This area is the main skill check. If you can clear it, you're ready for late game.
- Start investing in Weapon variants for the tactical depth you'll need going forward.
Phase 3 Checklist
- Elite kits mastered
- Hellriegel 1915 acquired or in progress
- Sinai Desert fully cleared
- Ready for Monte Grappa
Phase 4: Late Game (Monte Grappa)
Italian alpine forts stacked up a mountainside, connected by tunnels and switchback paths. Attacking uphill is punishing, and the Airship L30 hangs over the ridge for the losing side.
Level/Difficulty: Conquest and Operations Key Rewards: Fort interiors, tunnel routes, Airship L30 behemoth
What to Do in Monte Grappa
- Finalize your build. You should be running Assault or Medic with optimized gear.
- Hellriegel 1915 should be your primary. If you don't have it yet, prioritize getting it.
- Elite kits sit on the map as crates and reset after a while. Sentry is a mobile roadblock that cannot sprint, Flame Trooper clears a fixed position, and Tank Hunter is the fastest way to punish careless armour.
- Bayonet charge optimization starts here. Small improvements compound into massive advantages.
- Farm this area for the resources needed to push into St Quentin Scar.
Phase 4 Checklist
- Build fully optimized
- Hellriegel 1915 upgraded to max
- Monte Grappa fully cleared
- Ready for St Quentin Scar
Phase 5: Endgame (St Quentin Scar)
Ruined French farmland with a wrecked village at one end and open fields between objectives. Armour rules the open sections, and the Airship L30 arrives for whichever side is behind.
Level/Difficulty: Conquest and Operations Key Rewards: Village ruins, open field armour lanes, Airship L30 behemoth
What to Do in St Quentin Scar
- St Quentin Scar tests everything. Come prepared with your best build and gear.
- Suppression genuinely degrades aim in Battlefield 1. Sustained Support fire near a defender blurs their screen and widens their spread, so shooting at a covered enemy is useful even when you cannot hit them.
- The endgame loop: run St Quentin Scar, optimize gear, push harder content.
- Experiment with Cavalry for a fresh take once you've mastered the standard builds.
- This is where Bayonet charge mastery separates good players from great ones. See our tips guide for advanced strategies.
Phase 5 Checklist
- Endgame content on farm
- Best-in-slot gear acquired
- St Quentin Scar fully cleared
- Ready for challenge content
Common Progression Mistakes
- Judging a weapon by its base name while ignoring variants, then concluding the Lewis Gun or Cei-Rigotti is unusable when a different variant fixes the exact complaint.
- Treating a Behemoth as a win button. An Airship with an uncoordinated crew is a large slow target that feeds the enemy score.
- Playing Scout on Argonne Forest, where sightlines close inside 40 metres and a bolt action loses almost every engagement it enters.
- Charging with the bayonet across open ground instead of using it to finish the last two metres against someone who is reloading.
- Ignoring anti aircraft guns and then blaming pilots. Most maps place two or more AA emplacements specifically to answer air control.
Key Tips for Smooth Progression
- Choose the weapon variant deliberately. A Trench variant adds hip fire accuracy and drops the sight quality, an Optical variant does the opposite, and picking the wrong one makes a perfectly good gun feel broken.
- Operations is the mode the maps were built for. Attackers get several battalions, so losing the first attempt is normal, and later battalions arrive with better support including a Behemoth.
- Behemoths die to focused fire, not to individual heroics. Field guns, anti aircraft emplacements and Tank Hunter kits stacked on one target bring an Airship down quickly, while single riflemen do nothing at all.
- Elite kits sit on the map as crates and reset after a while. Sentry is a mobile roadblock that cannot sprint, Flame Trooper clears a fixed position, and Tank Hunter is the fastest way to punish careless armour.
- Suppression genuinely degrades aim in Battlefield 1. Sustained Support fire near a defender blurs their screen and widens their spread, so shooting at a covered enemy is useful even when you cannot hit them.
For more advanced strategies, see our tips & tricks guide.
More Battlefield 1 Guides
- Battlefield 1 Battlefield 1 Overview
- Battlefield 1 Best Builds
- Battlefield 1 Tier List
- Battlefield 1 Beginner's Guide
- Battlefield 1 Tips & Tricks
- Battlefield 1 Weapons Guide
- Battlefield 1 Combat Guide
- Battlefield 1 Boss Guide
- Battlefield 1 Maps & Locations
- Battlefield 1 Crafting Guide
- Battlefield 1 Classes & Characters
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