How To Unlock All Risk of Rain 2 Characters

After releasing four expansions and a 1.0 Launch Update, the number of unlockable characters in Hopoo Games’ sci-fi roguelike has grown considerably.

As of 2023, there are currently 14 playable characters, or “Survivors,” each with a different playstyle and unlock method.

In this guide, we’ll explain how to unlock all Risk of Rain 2 characters and provide step-by-step instructions to follow along the way.

We’ll be updating this guide as new Survivors are added in the future, so make sure to check back and let us know if we missed any details!

Related:Risk of Rain 2 Tier List

Longtime Risk of Rain fans will instantly recognize the Commando as the main protagonist from the first game.

Sporting a brand-new 3D model, the Commando appears in RoR2 as the first playable character by default.

Although the Commando is available from the start, you’ll have to play at least one game as him to unlock his guide entry.

Unlocking the Huntress previously required you to earn the ‘Warrior’ achievement by successfully clearing stages one, two, and three in a single run without dying.

However, this method has since been transferred to the Bandit, with Huntress now available by default.

Her agile playstyle makes Huntress a worthy alternative to Commando for new players learning the ropes of the game.

Like we mentioned earlier, unlocking Bandit requires you to survive three stages in a single run without dying.

Note that a stage is only considered cleared if you’ve activated the teleporter and defeated the boss.

This can be done on any difficulty setting either solo or with a multiplayer party.

If you find yourself having trouble getting through all three stages, we recommend bumping the difficulty down to ‘Drizzle’ (Easy).

To unlock the MUL-T, you’ll have to clear the first stage a total of five times, making sure to trigger the teleporter and eliminate the boss each time.

The best way to do this is to complete the first stage and exit out over and over again until MUL-T becomes available.

To unlock the Engineer, you’ll have to clear a total of 30 stages.

Thankfully, the game tracks this cumulatively, meaning you don’t need to clear all 30 stages in a single run.

Feel free to follow the previous method and farm the first stage repeatedly, or just play the game normally.

To unlock the Artificer, you’ll have to complete five tasks; first, collect 11 Lunar Coins, a rare type of currency that has a chance of spawning any time you kill an enemy.

Next, search each stage until you find a Newt Statue, which appears blue. Once you’ve found one, approach it and spend one Lunar Coin to spawn a blue orb.

Proceed to the stage’s teleporter as normal but don’t immediately enter once it becomes available; instead, wait for a Lunar Portal to open beside the teleporter.

Enter that portal and you’ll be transported to the Bazaar Between Realms; here, you can spend 10 Lunar Coins on the Bazaar’s mysterious crystal to unlock the Artificer.

To unlock the Mercenary, you’ll have to complete four tasks: first, during a single run, continue to clear stages until the game cycles back to the starting stage.

On your second visit, the area will be littered with white Celestial Portals.

Enter one of these portals, and you’ll be transported to a new area where you’ll have to solve a jumping puzzle to reach the bottom.

At the bottom, you’ll find a massive pillar; interact with it and your character will instantly die, ending your run and unlocking the Mercenary in the process.

To unlock Rex, you’ll have to first retrieve the battery pack from the back of your escape pod at the start of a fresh run.

Once you have the item in your inventory, the goal is to keep it with you until you reach the fourth stage, the Abyssal Depths.

However, there’s a catch to carrying this item: if your Survivor’s health drops below 50% at any point, the battery pack will explode, instantly killing you and ending the run.

We recommend playing as safely as possible and purchasing as many defensive/healing items as you can until you reach the Abyssal Depths.

Once there, make your way to the top of the stage using the jump jets until you arrive at a small platform with a deactivated Rex you can insert your battery pack to restore.

To unlock Loader, you’ll have to defeat the Alloy Worship Unit boss in Siren’s Call; however, the boss will only spawn if Siren’s Call is your fourth stage visited.

This means you’ll have to either keep playing until you get a lucky roll, or complete a third stage and access Siren’s Call directly via the portals in the Newt Shop.

Once you’re in Siren’s Call, start looking for and destroying blue vulture egg nests scattered throughout the stage.

Destroy enough and a message will appear that reads, “You hear a distant whirring…” Keep destroying nests until you get the message “The whirring grows loud…”

This will trigger the Alloy Worship Unit to spawn in the middle of the map; defeat it and you’ll receive the ‘Guidance Offline’ achievement, unlocking Loader.

To unlock Acrid, you’ll have to stabilize the cells located in the Void Fields, which is only accessible via the Bazaar Between Time hidden realm.

Beneath the path to the Bazaar, you’ll notice a series of large beams that you can drop down onto; descend until you reach a tunnel emitting a yellow light and fog.

Enter and you’ll find a black portal that transports you to the Void Fields; once there, start searching for Void Cells, indicated by purple beacons appearing in the sky.

You’ll have to charge 9 Void Cells by approaching them and surviving until the process is complete; each one has a safety zone you can use to heal while charging.

Once a cell is fully charged, enemies will despawn and the safety zone will shrink until disappearing completely, giving you a couple of seconds to recover health.

After all nine cells have been charged, you should receive the “…To Be Left Alone” achievement, unlocking Acrid in the process.

If you’re not concerned about spoilers, just know that unlocking Captain requires you to beat Risk of Rain.

You’ll first need to reach Sky Meadow and then align the teleporter with the moon to access Commencement, the game’s final stage.

After you’re teleported to Commencement, the game will start spawning really tough enemies you’ll need to survive past to reach Mithrix, RoR2’s final boss.

Mithrix has a pre-determined moveset but can dish out insane amounts of damage, so try to keep your distance throughout the battle.

Once Mithrix is defeated, you’ll need to hitch a ride on a spaceship to leave the planet befor the moon self-destructs.

Defend the rescue ship for one-minute to beat the game and unlock Captain as a playable character.

Heretic, or “Kur-skan,” is a secret unlockable Survivor that cannot be selected from the character select menu.

To transform into him, you’ll have to collect the following four items in the Heresy set during a single run:

• Visions of Heresy
• Hooks of Heresy
• Strides of Heresy
• Essence of Heresy

The method for obtaining every item has changed over time, with the current being to complete the Blockade Breaker Challenge by defeating 15 bosses in a single run.

This includes both teleporter bosses and bosses that spawn naturally in stages. You’ll have to do this every time you want to play as Heretic.

The Railgunner is a new Risk of Rain 2 playable character that was added in the Survivors of the Void expansion.

Described as a “lethal and skillful markswoman,” she enters combat with her signature railgun, a longrange weapon with smart homing rounds and powerful piercing shots.

Players can unlock the Railgunner by purchasing the Survivors of the Void DLC; after installing, they’re automatically added to your account.

The Void Fiend is a new Risk of Rain 2 playable character that was added in the Survivors of the Void expansion.

Described as an “eldritch, void-mutated monstrosity,” it harnesses the Void as a lethal weapon by building up corrupted energy until it reaches a critical point.

Players can unlock the Void Fiend by purchasing the Survivors of the Void DLC; after installing the content, they’re added automatically to your account.