5 Escape From Tarkov: 5 Best Tips for Beginners

Battlestate Games Escape From Tarkov is a realistic and ruthless military simulator. As a result, it typically punishes novice players or overwhelms them with the amount of content to digest. Fortunately, the latest Tarkov wipe, which resets everyone to level one to restore the balance of gear and level the playing field, will take place sometime in August 2023. A new wipe is the ideal time for newcomers to step into the game. So, if you're going to get into Escape From Tarkov for the first time at the start of this wipe, you will want to know the best tips for beginners in this list, which could save your life.

5. Scav and PMCs

The first thing that usually confuses new Escape From Tarkov players is the distinction between Scavs and PMCs. Essentially, a Scav is a playable NPC that loads into an already running raid. Scavs are pre-set with a subpar loadout that can consist of anything from a pistol to a shotgun. You're more than welcome to load into a raid as a Scav, and if you like your loot, you can just leave the raid, or stay in and search for more. Just note, when you play as a Scav, other AI Scavs won't shoot you. Your only target as a Scav is PMCs.

PMC stands for “Player Main Character”. This is the character you will load up with gear from your inventory, which you have obtained from raids. As a PMC everyone is your enemy. If you die as a PMC, you will lose all of this gear. You can, however, “Insure” your gear before entering a raid for a fee, which returns any loot left on your body 24 hours after death. So, if your body doesn't get looted you will get your weapons and armor back. If it is looted, then you pay a fee to get nothing back. It's a bit of a gamble, but we strongly advise insuring your gear every time you go into a raid.

One of the best tips for beginners is to play as your Scav as much as possible. By playing as a Scav you can explore maps with less stress of dying and losing your gear. Furthermore, it's a great way to learn the maps, which can be confusing at the start.

4. Extracting

Regardless of whether you load into a map as Scav or PMC, you will need to extract to exit the raid. There are several extracts for Scavs and PMCs distributed around each map, but they mainly rest near the map's perimeter. You can find out which extraction points are accessible to you by double tapping “O”.

While Escape from Tarkov tells you what these extracts are, it doesn't tell you where you can find them. As a result, before you embark on a raid, one of the best tips for beginners is to load up a map with the extract locations on Google. That way you will know where to go when it's time to get out of the raid, instead of panicking and running all around the map looking for your extraction point.

3. Life-Saving Medical Tips

Escape from Tarkov is serious about its gunplay, but it is equally serious about its healing. Tarkov has a very complex healing system in which different ligaments can be wounded in various ways and require specific medical supplies to mend. So, to save you time from figuring out what each medication does the hard we, you can consult this chart to learn what each med item is used for, and which injury effect it removes.

One of the best tips for beginners is to employ a strategy known as “Pre-paining”. This involves taking a painkiller before entering a combat zone or anticipating a fight. This is done to avoid your character from being unable to walk owing to a broken leg or from being unable to aim due to being shot in the arm.

2. Bullets and Armor

New Escape from Tarkov players typically overlook the type of ammo they use for their weapons. But, with over 100 different ammo types in the game, not all are going to be as reliable as others. As a result, one of the best tips for beginners is to learn which ammo types are best at piercing the six different levels of armor. The higher the bullet's Penetration Power, the more likely they are to pierce higher levels of armor. However, you can turn to this guide for a better reference of which ammo types are best to use for each gun.

The major problem here is that ammo is costly, and you don't always get to use it all. So, you may be tempted to save your money by buying cheap ammo, but don't. It took us a long time to realize how much more successful you are by using decent ammo and how many more fights you will win with it. At the same time, you don't want to cheap out on the armor you use. With stronger armor, you're much more likely to survive a fight or last longer in the fight and not get one shot.

1. Overcoming Gear Fear

There really is an endless amount of tips we can give beginner Tarkov players. However, the biggest challenge that all players eventually have to overcome is gear fear. Because obtaining gear and goods, and selling them, is how you monitor your progress in the game, you may be skittish to use your good gear in fear of losing it right away. However, you're going to have to learn that loot comes and goes – this is the Tarkov way.

As a result, the best of all tips for beginners is to push past that gear fear. You won't have any luck, success, or make any progress by using poor gear, or sitting in a bush and avoiding conflict the whole raid. That's why you must become comfortable with pushing toward shots, taking the fight to other players, and not being concerned about losing your stuff. It's the best way to shake your nerves, improve at the game, and increase your current gear with better stuff. The more you enforce this in your gameplay, the more comfortable you will get in high-pressure gunfights.

So, what's your take? Do you agree with our tips? Are there other best tips for Escape From Tarkov beginners that you would suggest? Let us know in the comments below or over on our socials here!