The Division 2 Specialization Guide: Should you pick the Demolitionist, Survivalist, or Sharpshooter

Guide by James Billcliffe Guides Editor

Published on June 13, 2019

The Division 2 is free this weekend! And if you're quick, you'll be able to pick a specialization before the days are through.

Your character in The Division 2 is highly customisable, and not just because of the plethora of equipment, cosmetics, and abilities you can unlock. Once you hit the level cap, you gain access to powerful “Specializations” which take your prowess in combat to the next level.

If you’re having trouble reaching level 30, take a look at our Division 2 fast levelling guide, which has a few tips on how to make the most of your XP.

The Division 2 Specializations

The following video from Arekkz Gaming runs you through all of the specifics of Specializations, but we’ll take you through it as well below:

Unlocking the Specializations

Once you’ve finally hit level 30, you might think you’re ready for your end-game Specialization - but there’s still a little bit more left to do.

To get your Specialization, you first have to complete all of the Strongholds on The Division 2’s map.

These are:

District Union Arena
Roosevelt Island
The Capitol Building

After you’ve cleared all three of the strongholds a cutscene will trigger, and you’ll be placed in World Tier 1.

Now go back to your Base of Operations and you’ll see a new desk you can interact with next to the Quartermaster.

Which Specialization should you pick?

Before we go through the pros of every Specialization, it’s worth noting that you aren’t locked into a Specialization once you pick it. If you change your mind you can swap out to a different one, as well as transferring your unlock progress, too.

This means that there’s not really much to lose from trying one out over another, then swapping if you’re not sure.

Each Specialization is based around a signature weapon:

Demolitionist - Grenade Launcher
Survivalist - Explosive Crossbow
Sharpshooter - .50 Cal Sniper Rifle

Based on these, you could call the Demolitionist the run-and-gun-style class which uses a combination of devastating explosions, mobility, and fast-firing weapons to take out enemies.

The Sharpshooter is best for a more considered, long-range approach. Survivalist is a little bit different, giving you new ways to heal allies in your group as well as some strong buffs to popular weapon types.

Each Specialization also has its own skill tree of buffs, which synergize with the signature weapon.

Demolitionist New Skills and Modifiers

Incombustible - 20% more burn resistance
Explosive Ordinance - +25% explosive damage
Vital Protection - Reduce incoming Critical chance by 20%
Demolitionist Tactical Link - Group members get 5% damage buff against targets out of cover
Frag Grenade - New grenade that cause bleed damage
Diceros Special - Access to a Magnum revolver
Gunslinger - +10% sidearm damage
Signature Weapon Damage - +145% Signature Weapon Damage
Spray and Pray - +15% SMG damage
Onslaught - +15% LMG damage
Small laser pointer - A new underbarrel attachment
Artillery Turret - A new skill variant for your Turret skill
Cyclone Magazine - Increase Turret ammo
SHD CPU V2 - Increase Turret damage
X-Stat Armor Kit - Heals 70% damage, boosts weapon handling by 100% for 15 seconds, after those 15 seconds, heals another 30%
40mm Grenade acquisition - Kills with thrown explosive yield signature weapon drops
Group Signature ammo supply - Explosive multikills have chance to yield Signature ammo for whole group
Crisis Response - Refills ammo when armor drops to 0
Braced for impact - Ignore an explosive once every 60 seconds
Demolitionist Uniform - Unique outfit

Survivalist New Skills and Modifiers

Elite Defence - +20% protection from Elites
Triage Specialist - +25% Healing to team members
Crunch Time - +10% Cooldown reduction in cover
Vital Protection - Reduce incoming Critical chance by 20%
Survivalist Tactical Link - Group members have +10% damage against enemies with status effects
Incendiary Grenade - New grenade that deals burning damage
Survivalist D50 - A new magnum with a optical slot
Gunslinger - +10% sidearm damage
Signature Weapon Damage - +145% Signature Weapon Damage
Running the Gun - +15% Shotgun damage
E.M.I - +15% assault rifle damage
Infantry 5.56 magazine - Unlock assault rifle mag attachment
Flicker Mod - New variant of the Seeker Mine (follows allies and repairs armor)
Magnetic Disc - Reduce Seeker Mine cooldown
Larrea Tridentata Infusion - Increase healing from Seeker Mine
Distributed Repair - Armor kit that heals over 5 seconds, but also heals teammates in a 10 metre radius
Explosive Bolt Acquisition - Status Effect kills yield Signature Ammo Drops
Group Signature ammo supply - Multikills of Status Effected enemies has chance to yield Signature ammo for whole group
Scraping By - Get 5 ammo per second for weapon when moving cover in combat
Survivalist Uniform - Unique outfit

Sharpshooter New Skills and Modifiers

One in the Head - +25% Headshot damage
Deft Hands - +30% increased reload speed
Breath Control - +30% weapon stability and reduced recoil
My Home is my Castle - Increased armor in cover
Vital Protection - Reduce incoming Critical chance by 20%
Sharpshooter Tactical Link - Group members get +10% headshot damage when they’re closer to the target than you
Flashbang Grenade - New blinding grenade
Sharpshooter 93R - New three-round burst sidearm
Gunslinger - +10% sidearm damage
Signature Weapon Damage - +145% Signature Weapon damage
This is my Rifle - +15% Marksman Rifle damage
Digital Scope - Unlock Digital scope attachment
Tactician Drone - New Drone Variant (marks enemy locations for group)
Graphene Battery
Carbon Fiber Frame
X-Stat Armor Kit Supplementary - Armor heals 50% less, but removes status effects.
.50Cal ammo Acquisition - Headshots yield Signature Ammo (except with Tac 50C Rifle)
Group Signature Ammo Supply - Kills with Signature Weapons have a chance to yield Signature Ammo for whole group
Round after Round - Receive 5 rounds every 10 seconds after 20 seconds in cover
Sharpshooter Uniform - Unique outfit

In terms of picking a Specialization, the Survivalist’s armor kit will be very powerful for team-focused players, however more solo-oriented agents might lean towards the Demolitionist because of their buffed SMG, LMG, and Turret damage.

If you enjoy picking off enemies from cover, then the Sharpshooter is definitely for you - but if you prefer automatic weapons, then choose the Survivalist or Demolitionist because of their weapon damage buffs.

For more on The Division 2, check out our guide to finding faction keys.