Easy Headshots and Critical Hits – ICARUS

Or, how to one-shot most of the ICARUS fauna with even a basic Wood Bow and some Bone Arrows, every time, no Talents needed! And, no, you do not need impressive aiming skills to do this.

The basic idea is, of course, to just aim for the head. But, if you are as much of an FPS rookie as I am, you will be happy to know that ICARUS comes with a generous aiming system that, when you are still undetected by your target, gives you a very large error margin for a headshot.

Shoot anywhere within the acceptable area and the game will give you an impressive stealth attack damage: in 4,000 to 6,000 range or even higher! With lower-HP targets like wolves, hyenas, lionesses, and herbivores this triggers an instant kill. Do keep in mind that larger animals like Bears, Polar Bears, Mammoths, and Elephants will likely not die from this shot, and you will need to land more headshots with less leeway to continue dealing critical damage during the battle.

Still, even when it comes to the larger targets, you should never underestimate the amount of damage a critical shot will get you. The benefit of initiating even your boss fights with this trick is absolutely tremendous. No matter what, try to land your first hit from stealth and always aim for the head. (Or top of the head with the Elephants and Mammoths.)

How to Land a One-Hit Stealth Attack

Here is everything you need to understand to make your first shot a critical hit in ICARUS:

Shoot your target from stealth. Release your shot as you aim slightly ahead or above of the animal’s head.

If you master this trick, you will be able to dispatch all of the smaller animals of Icarus in a single headshot, so definitely go out there and practice. The best early targets for practice will be chamois and wolves. Unfortunately, there is no critical hit targeting for bunnies or (should they be re-introduced to the game) raccoons.

If you are not understanding what to do, think about it this way: imagine as if the animal is running — you would be shooting a little ahead of its head in anticipation of the movement. Do the same when your target is still calmly strolling along.

You will know when you have correctly landed your shot when the camera follows the arrow, hitting the animal right in the head and notifying you of the multiplier you got from your stealth attack.

Remember that it takes a couple of seconds for the “rigor mortis” to kick in before you can skin your kill. Even if you do not want the materials, pick the corpse up to retrieve your arrow before you move on.

Critical Shots During Battle

The convenient leeway of a stealth attack goes away when you are discovered. It’s still very possible to dispense critical hits left and right (albeit, with a less impressive multiplier), as long as you aim for the head with your melee or ranged weapons. (With the Elephants and Mammoths, you should aim for the top of their head.)

You will find it easier to do with the animals that run with their head facing you, as opposed to leaving you only their behinds to shoot at — that is, the predators. Thus, you will find it even more important to land the stealth kill on the prey animals when you are trying to quickly collect some resources.

We hope you found this ICARUS guide on critical hits of use! How quickly did you master stealth attacks? What weapon set do you tend to use? Do you have some tips for stealth attacks, critical hits, and critical damage you could share with us?

Please let us know in the comments below!