Proteans are the biggest threat you’ll face in Rainbow Six: Extraction. These twisted armored monsters are clones of your Operators — yes, really. After entering a strange portal, you’ll have to fight a Protean with the abilities of one of the Operators. This clone is random, and even drops special customization gear for the matching Operator so they can look like an alien monster too. When you face off against the Protean, you’ll want to bring the right team for the job. Certain Operators that are useless for other objectives absolutely excel here, no matter what Protean you’re fighting. Here, we’ll offer a few tips to make Protean extermination a lot easier.
Protean portals only ever spawn on the third section of your map. Each map is split into three sections, with a random objective in each area to clear. You won’t always have to face off against Proteans, but the further you get into the game, the more likely you’ll encounter these objectives in the last round. If you’ve got the right team, and you’re brave enough to risk everything for that big bonus at the end, then you can enter the Protean portal and teleport to an alien arena. The fight can be absolutely crushed with the right Operators.
More Rainbow Six: Extraction guides:
Beginner’s Guide | 10 Tips & Tricks | Best Operators | How To Turn Sledge Into A Tank | How To Play Solo | Giant Shark Easter Egg
How To Kill The Protean | Best Operators
The Protean is a powerful Archaean boss that appears during the Gateway objective. Gateway only appears on the third section of a map. Your team interacts with an orb-shaped portal and teleports into the Protean area. Proteans are designed to emulate the Rainbow Six Operators. For example, the Smoke Protean uses poison gas bombs for area denial. Each Protean has a special skill that matches one of the Operators.
The Protean fight begins with the boss attacking. Shoot it until it retreats, summoning a horde of low-level enemies. Wipe them out, then take on the Protean again. That’s how each battle goes. To make it easier, you’ll want to lockdown the Protean and deal as much damage as possible.
- Damage Dealer Operators:
- Tachanka is one of the best Operators for the Protean. Unlock two turrets for Tachanka at higher levels to deal insane damage if you lock down the Protean.
- Hibana can also laydown extreme damage against the Protean. Hibana uses Armor Piercing Remote Sticky Grenades. You can drop multiple onto the Protean and detonate at the same time or set traps while it charges for you.
- Smoke is another powerhouse if your team slows / stuns the Protean. Smoke’s gas grenades deal constant damage to anything caught in the area of effect. Stop the Protean in its tracks and drop poison at its feet.
- Lockdown Operators:
- To slow Protean movement, use Glue Grenades or Ela’s Proximity Mines. You’ll want to stun the Protean and deal massive damage while it is reeling.
- Gridlock uses specialized ground traps that slow targets caught in the blast. Gridlock isn’t a common Operator, but she is useful for locking down targets.
- Alibi is another good choice for slowing down the Protean. Alibi can summon holographic decoys. This distracts and lures enemies like the boss to a specific spot. Combine with other lockdown operators or unleash hell with multiple damage-dealers to wreck the Protean fast.
For the Protean fight, scanning and detection is mostly useless. You’ll need offensive operators that can slow down Archaeans or deal damage fast. I would recommend bringing at least two of the operators listed above, with an additional support Operator around to keep you on your feet — Operators like Doc, Finka and Rook can keep your team going during the harder objectives.
If you can make it to the Protean with a few leveled-up Operators using the right skills, this boss doesn’t stand a chance. You can claim your unique customization rewards after the fight — make sure to check your customization menu, even if the game doesn’t show what you’ve just unlocked.
