Gears 5: How To Upgrade Skill Cards

Gears 5 features an out-of-game progression system governed by a new Skill Card mechanic. Along with abilities, perks, and loadouts, each Hero of Gears 5 has their own unique set of skills tailored around their role, represented by upgradable Skill Cards. As you level up any given Hero in multiplayer, you'll earn new Skills specific to that Hero; and every Skill associated with a Hero is directly unlocked via leveling up. You'll edit your loadout by simply adding the desired Skill Card to an empty slot.

To level up a character's Skills, you'll need to acquire duplicate Skill Cards, which are earned for every five waves of Horde you complete as that hero. Naturally, the higher the difficulty of the match, the higher your chances of acquiring rarer Skill Card duplicates from the drops. Pro tip: you can speed up this upgrade process by using Supply Drop Scrap to craft duplicate Skill Cards. One fundamental element of this system that The Coalition has been very clear on is that Skill Cards and Skills are not purchasable with real-world money.

When it comes to leveling up your characters to unlock new Skill Cards, you can always purchase XP Boosters in the store using Iron, the premium in-game currency of Gears 5. Although your actual skill is still the determining factor, these boosts can significantly increase the amount of experience points you earn during matches. At launch, a total of three XP Booster packages were available, including a 1 Day boost for 250 Iron, a 7 Day boost for 600, and a 30 Day boost for 1,200. So whether you're grinding for XP or cosmetic upgrades in Gears 5, it becomes easy to see that persistence is rewarded at each and every turn.