How to get and use Skill Cards in Dead Island 2

Skill Cards in Dead Island 2 are essential for arming your characters with various zombie-slaying abilities that you will need going forward in the game. Unlike the previous installment's Skill Tree system, Dead Island 2 opts for Skill Cards that you can use to enhance different aspects of your Slayers.

Different skills have synergic effects with one another that can give you the upper hand over various types of adversaries. Most Skill cards in Dead Island 2 are switchable, and you can swap them out at various points in the game without spending anything.

Here are the types of Skill Cards you can acquire from Dead Island 2.

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Different types of Skill Cards and how to get them in Dead Island 2

How to get skill cards in Dead Island 2?

Skill Cards can be found periodically as you advance through the main mission. They will be available quite early in the game. Leveling up your characters and completing side quests will give you card slots and Skill Cards.

Other than that, you can find them in the explorable regions of the game or from occasional drops after defeating certain Apex Zombies.

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All types of Skill Cards in Dead Island 2

Skill Cards in Dead Island 2 (Image via WIRED GAMING/YouTube)

1) Innate Skills

Innate skills are predetermined and exclusive to the Slayers (Image via Dambuster Studios)

Innate Skills are available from the beginning of the game and are unique to each character. These are mostly passive skills that each character already possesses and can take advantage of in various ways.

Innate skill cards accentuate each Slayer's fighting styles and cannot be swapped out or utilized by other Slayers. A useful tip for combat would be to find other skills that blend well with your Slayer's Innate skills.

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2) Abilities

The Abilities category has five card slots (Image via ColossalKiwi/YouTube)

Abilities are the usual base abilities of the game characters. They enhance different aspects of the slayer’s abilities and increase your offensive and defensive skills. There are five ability slots in the game that represent these sub-categories:

• Defense skill
• Air Kick skill
• Special Attack skill
• Fury skill
• Fury Special Attack skill

Defensive skills (like blocking and dodging) help evade attacks, while the rest of them enhance offensive skills (like jump kicks, special attacks, and such). Fighting styles will largely depend on these abilities, so take your time when choosing the essential Skill Cards for an effective loadout for your Slayer.

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3) Survivor

The Survivor category has four card slots (Image via ColossalKiwi/YouTube)

Survivor skills in Dead Island 2 are mostly passive abilities that help your character survive the challenges of the game. These skills include health regeneration, increased attack speed, and speed boost, among others.

Survivor skills can also amplify base Ability skills like air-kick skills, defensive skills, special attacks, and fury. They can also negate some of the damage taken from oncoming attacks, making them vital for survival in combat situations.

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4) Slayer

The Slayer category has four card slots (Image via ColossalKiwi/YouTube)

Similar to the prior category, Slayer skills also have a passive effect on the character's stats. They provide damage boosts and agility buffs every time you attack a zombie. Performing different combat maneuvers gives health boosts and regeneration.

Slayer skills can create effects (like exploding finishers) for area damage in Fury mode or provide damage buffs in exchange for a few health points during heavy attacks. There are also other offensive effects that make use of your melee attacks to provide various buffs.

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5) Numen

The Numen category has two card slots (Image via ColossalKiwi/YouTube)

Numen Skills are powerful skill attributes that you can unlock later in the game. These are exceptional skills that allow Slayers to use the virus to generate attacks that resemble those of their adversaries.

For example, you can use the Spitting Cobra skill to spit acid at zombies. Seismic Stomp creates a powerful surge from Skull Stomp attacks that destabilizes nearby zombies. Using them in tandem with other skills can produce great results during combat.

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Some of the skills in Dead Island 2 use the Autophage system to provide offensive benefits in exchange for a few drawbacks. Use them wisely to suit your style of play. Check out our Dead Island 2 review for more.