Hell Let Loose puts 100 players into 50 versus 50 WWII combined arms battles modelled on real European and North African battlefields. A Warfare match runs 90 minutes over five strongpoints, and no side wins it without garrisons, supply trucks and somebody willing to command. Twenty maps are in rotation as of mid 2026, from Omaha Beach to Stalingrad.
Starting Hell Let Loose can feel overwhelming. This guide tells you exactly what to focus on during your first hours so you don't waste time on things that don't matter yet. For the full progression path, see our walkthrough.
What Kind of Game Is This?
Hell Let Loose is a fps game built around Five strongpoint tug of war and Garrisons and outposts as spawns. The core loop involves mastering these systems to progress through increasingly challenging content.
What to expect: Time investment in learning mechanics, experimentation, and gradual mastery. The game rewards patience and knowledge.
Choosing Your First Role
| Role | Beginner Rating | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Officer | Good (but demanding) | Place an outpost on every push, call the garrison spot early, and keep the squad grouped inside your radius |
| Rifleman | Excellent for beginners | Hold sectors, resupply the Officer, and take the slot nobody else wants when the squad fills up |
| Medic | Good (but demanding) | Stay one layer behind the front, bandage before moving, and never revive under direct fire |
| Engineer | Excellent for beginners | Build resource nodes early in safe sectors, then fortify whichever strongpoint your team intends to hold |
| Tank Commander | Good (but demanding) | Fight from hull down positions, never push a town without infantry, and reverse out before the second anti tank hit lands |
Our recommendation: Start with Rifleman. The uncapped infantry role, the only one always available, carrying the most spare ammunition of any line slot.
Avoid Tank Commander as your first pick. Leads the armour crew, spots targets through binoculars and calls the shots for the gunner and driver. Once you're ready, check our classes guide for all options.
First Session Step-by-Step
Step 1: Learn Five strongpoint tug of war
Warfare gives each side the two strongpoints nearest its HQ and leaves the middle neutral. Points must be captured in order across a 90 minute timer, and you win by holding the centre at time or by taking every enemy sector.
This is the foundation. Spend your first 15-30 minutes getting comfortable with how Five strongpoint tug of war works before worrying about anything else. Our combat guide breaks this down further.
Step 2: Head to Foy
Snow covered Ardennes map from the fighting around Bastogne, with the town in the middle and open fields on both flanks.
Clear the main content here before moving on. Everything teaches fundamentals you'll need later. See our maps guide for all locations.
Step 3: Get Your First Upgrade
Look for Thompson M1A1: it's the most accessible early upgrade. American submachine gun with a high rate of fire and a short effective range that punishes anyone who takes it into the open.
Step 4: Understand Garrisons and outposts as spawns
Garrisons are team wide spawn points costing 50 supplies in friendly territory and 100 in enemy territory. Outposts are free for Officers to place but only the 2 to 5 players in that squad can use them.
This is the system most new players overlook. Invest time here early. It pays off throughout the entire game.
Step 5: Push to Omaha Beach
The D-Day landing map, where one side crosses open sand into bunkers dug along the bluffs above.
Essential Mechanics Explained
Five strongpoint tug of war
Warfare gives each side the two strongpoints nearest its HQ and leaves the middle neutral. Points must be captured in order across a 90 minute timer, and you win by holding the centre at time or by taking every enemy sector.
Garrisons and outposts as spawns
Garrisons are team wide spawn points costing 50 supplies in friendly territory and 100 in enemy territory. Outposts are free for Officers to place but only the 2 to 5 players in that squad can use them.
Manpower, munitions and fuel
Each team starts with 500 of every resource and generates 30 of each per minute with no nodes built. Captured sectors and engineer built nodes are the only ways to raise that income.
Fourteen roles across four categories
Fourteen roles split across Command, Infantry, Armor and Recon, from Commander and Officer down to Crewman, Sniper and Spotter. Most of them are capped per squad.
Commander tactical abilities
The Commander spends resources from the tactical map, including a 100 supply airdrop that costs 50 munitions on a two minute cooldown, and a remote garrison dismantle costing 100 manpower on a ten minute cooldown.
Common Beginner Mistakes
1. Running off alone from the squad leader
Outside the radius you lose the spawn logic and the squad loses a rifle.
2. Bleeding out instead of waiting for a medic
Calling your position and holding still gets you back into the same fight.
3. Building garrisons on the objective itself, where they lock out the moment an enemy comes within 15 metres
4. Taking a specialist role with no intention of using it
An Engineer who never builds a node is worth less than another Rifleman.
5. Ignoring the supply truck
Logistics is unglamorous and it is the only reason your team has forward spawns at all.
First 5 Hours Checklist
- Understand Five strongpoint tug of war and Garrisons and outposts as spawns
- Choose Rifleman as starting role
- Clear Foy main content
- Acquire Thompson M1A1 or equivalent upgrade
- Reach Omaha Beach
- Garrisons cost 50 supplies in friendly territory and 100 in enemy territory. Build the cheap ones behind your line and only pay double when a forward garrison genuinely opens a push.
- A garrison locks out entirely when an enemy is within 15 metres and shows a red ping from 50 metres. If your spawn suddenly goes dark, somebody is standing on it.
Tips for New Players
- Garrisons cost 50 supplies in friendly territory and 100 in enemy territory. Build the cheap ones behind your line and only pay double when a forward garrison genuinely opens a push.
- A garrison locks out entirely when an enemy is within 15 metres and shows a red ping from 50 metres. If your spawn suddenly goes dark, somebody is standing on it.
- Only the 2 to 5 players in the placing squad can spawn on an outpost, but outposts cost nothing. Use outposts for squad tempo and garrisons for team tempo.
- The Commander can airdrop 100 supplies anywhere on the map for 50 munitions on a two minute cooldown. If you are an Officer with no supply truck nearby, ask before you start walking.
- The Support role carries a 50 supply box on a five minute cooldown. One Support in every infantry squad means the squad can build its own garrison without waiting on logistics.
- Each team starts with 500 of every resource and passively earns 30 per minute. Engineer built nodes and captured sectors are the only way to raise that, and a team without nodes runs dry in the second half.
- Garrison redeploy runs on a 40 second cycle. Timing a squad wide spawn together hits far harder than trickling in one player at a time.
- Proximity voice carries a realistically short distance and squad radio is separate. Say what you see, where it is and which direction it is moving, because there is no killcam to fill the gaps.
- Strongpoints must be captured in consecutive order. Attacking a point out of sequence accomplishes nothing, and it is the single most common misunderstanding among new players.
- Tanks die to flanks rather than frontal duels. A Tank Commander fighting hull down with infantry screening the sides will outlive a better gunner who pushes alone.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many players are in a Hell Let Loose match?
One hundred on a full server, split 50 versus 50, organised into squads drawing from 14 available roles across Command, Infantry, Armor and Recon.
How long does a Warfare match last?
Ninety minutes. You win by holding the centre strongpoint when the timer expires, or by capturing every enemy sector before it runs out.
What game modes are there?
Warfare, the symmetric fight over five strongpoints, Offensive, where one side attacks and the other defends, and Skirmish, a smaller mode played on cut down versions of the maps.
How many maps does the game have?
Twenty in rotation as of mid 2026. Juno Beach and Lake Balaton are among the recent additions, alongside long standing maps like Foy, Carentan, Omaha Beach and Kursk.
What is the difference between a garrison and an outpost?
A garrison is a team wide spawn built with supplies that anyone can use. An outpost is free for an Officer to place but only the 2 to 5 players in that squad can spawn on it.
More Hell Let Loose Guides
- Hell Let Loose Hell Let Loose Overview
- Hell Let Loose Best Builds
- Hell Let Loose Tier List
- Hell Let Loose Walkthrough
- Hell Let Loose Tips & Tricks
- Hell Let Loose Weapons Guide
- Hell Let Loose Combat Guide
- Hell Let Loose Boss Guide
- Hell Let Loose Maps & Locations
- Hell Let Loose Crafting Guide
- Hell Let Loose Classes & Characters
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