Gears 5: How To Upgrade The Fabricator

Described as "the ultimate co-op survival mode," Gears 5's Horde pits you and four other players against 50 waves of increasingly powerful enemies. The Horde Fabricator mechanic from Gears of War 4 returns in Gears 5, a key (however elusive) component to this fan-favorite cooperative mode. Surviving all 50 waves of Horde means having a solid map strategy and making the most of your fortifications. But it's not quite as simple as it sounds, and a few important steps can be easy to miss.

Each match of Horde begins with you or someone on your team moving the Fabricator to a new location on the map. As soon as you move the Fabricator, it will start working. Now, you'll need to fuel the machine with the Power resource, which is dropped by slain enemies and resembles an illuminated lightning bolt. Simply walk over the Power drop to pick it up, and head back to the Fabricator to deposit your accumulated Power. In Gears 5, everyone instantly gets an equal cut of Power on every pickup. And always remember: if you die before depositing the Power you've collected, it will simply go to waste. So deposit frequently and have a safe route in mind before the run back. Once the Fabricator is fully online, you can craft and upgrade weapons, create additional fortifications, and assign Perks to your character.

But here's another important and easily overlooked detail: if you want to upgrade Fabricator fortifications during your Horde mode gameplay, you'll need an Engineer class character on your squad. At the launch of Gears 5, that means enlisting the gregarious Del Walker or Kat-B320 of Halo: Reach fame. Simply put, no Engineer on your team can spell certain doom on higher difficulties.