You may be a native Na’vi in Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, but having been raised by the Resources Development Administration (RDA), your character is as new to the alien world od Pandora as any human would be. That, of course, means you’ll be starting from scratch to build up your skills and abilities to not only survive the natural flora and fauna, but also fight back against the invading RDA forces. Skill points are not as easy to come by in this game as others, and after the first one or two skills in a tree, they become quite expensive to unlock. There are a lot of systems and mechanics you can impact with upgrades, but there are certain ones that universally stand as the best investments. If you’re ready to learn the ways of the Na’vi in Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, these are the skills that will help you remember your roots.
The best skills in Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
The skill tree is separated into five categories that each relate to different aspects of surviving and thriving on Pandora. These consist of Survivor, Warrior, Hunter, Maker, and Rider. Rider is initially hidden and only unlocks after you get your ikran as part of the main story.
Survivor
Larger Healing Pouch 1/2: Healing can be done in two ways in Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora. The first is passive regeneration that occurs so long as you have some energy, but that isn’t going to save you if you get caught in a firefight with a couple of mechs. Fruit will be your immediate heals for the heat of battle, but just like everything else, you can only hold so many of them. Your starting capacity is so limited that you’ll be lucky to finish any combat encounter with even one to spare, so getting one extra per level of this skill not only helps you stay alive in more drawn-out battles, but cuts down on you having to go harvest more in the wild.
Vigor 1/2: Vigor is your energy, the secondary bar underneath your health that drains as you perform various actions like running and jumping around. It can only be replenished by eating. The main function of Vigor, however, is to give you that passive HP regen mentioned above. Since the region of Pandora that you’ve set out to explore is so large, and fights are usually quite far apart, a full Vigor bar won’t last more than one fight most of the time. Each additional Vigor level you get increases your base amount by 50%, letting you double it at max level.
Vitality 1/2/3/4: We don’t need to explain why you want more HP, do we? Unless you’re a stealth and combat expert, getting at least a few extra points of HP never hurts. Each level gives +30, 60, 90, and 120 HP respectively.
Warrior
Extra Ammo 1/2: Na’vi may be giants, but their pockets are small. Running out of ammo is a death sentence when a battle kicks off. Maybe you could find cover long enough to craft more, but why risk it when you can come in with double the reserves to get the job done?
Well Prepared: Another way to alleviate ammo worries is to give yourself access to a fourth weapon slot on your quick select. Three is a decent number, but a fourth will give you options for any scenario on the fly.
Tactical Awareness: By using your special Na’vi vision, you can highlight and tag any enemy around, even through walls, from almost any distance. This will become second nature before going into any enemy encampment, so why not get a little extra benefit? All enemies you tag this way take 15% more damage should you need to go loud.
Hunter
Silent Destroyer: The RDA has two primary forms of ground units: normal soldiers and giant mech operators. The latter is clearly the bigger threat, but it also can’t be taken out stealthfully by default. Silent Destroyer gives you the ability to perform a stealth takedown on armored enemies if you can manage to approach their weak points unnoticed.
Expert Hunter: On the other hand, if you prefer a more direct approach, Expert Hunter makes any attacks that hit an enemy weak point deal an additional 25% damage while you’re still in stealth. If you have strong enough weapons, that can be enough for a one-hit kill, letting you remain undetected.
Maker
Expert Ammunition Crafter: Some ammo, such as arrows, can only be crafted. Normally, you can make ammo in small batches, hopefully between fights. Grab this skill to instantly double how much you make at once, which may save your life if you need to craft in a pinch.
Wasteless Cooking: A cooked meal will always restore some of your Vigor, but also comes with various other buffs worth activating before entering a dangerous situation. Cooking the best meals costs rare ingredients, but if you invest in Wasteless Cooking, you get a random chance to get two of whatever meal you make for the cost of one.
Rider
Aerial Fishing 1/2/3: Your ikran has its own dedicated Vigor bar that works just like yours, only it’s also responsible for how much you can boost and perform evasive maneuvers. While you could feed it directly from your personal stash of food, a more efficient way to fill your mount’s belly is through Aerial Fishing. The first level lets it snatch up a meal simply by flying over the surface of a lake, the second increases how much energy that fish restores, and maxing it out adds on the “well fed” buff.
Flying Takedown: This skill makes your ikran more than just a mobility option and lets it join in on the battles. Flying Takedown will give you the chance to stagger any enemy flying vehicle through normal means, then approach and let your ikran deal the finishing blow. Not only is this visually spectacular and satisfying, but it also automatically collects any loot that the ship would have dropped.
