The short recommendation
If you want one launch-window answer, Scoundrel is the strongest editorial starting recommendation for Hawks, not an official best-in-slot verdict. PC Gamer’s guide favors it because its setup-oriented kit can expose targets, work through defenses, and improve assist-driven turns around Hawks. That reasoning is useful, but its evidence tier is a third-party editorial assessment rather than an EA balance statement.
EA’s official guidance takes a different approach and never names one universal winner. It recommends Soldier or Assault for players new to turn-based tactics, Gunslinger, Soldier, or Heavy for a damage-first approach, and Scout or Scoundrel for players who enjoy planning. The practical answer is therefore Scoundrel for deliberate setup play, Soldier or Assault for the clearest first campaign, and a damage option only when the rest of the squad can cover its gaps.
Class versus specialization
EA calls the Operator combat-role system Specializations. Every Operator has a Specialization, and the official guide confirms that players can choose or change Specializations for Hawks and recruited Custom Operators. On this page, “class” follows the language players type into search, while every recommendation refers to that verified Specialization system.
The eight officially confirmed names are Assault, Gunslinger, Heavy, Medic, Scoundrel, Scout, Sharpshooter, and Soldier. Their abilities are organized into Ultimate, Standard, and Passive types, with some Specializations containing more than one Passive. This page does not invent exact upgrade values, cooldowns, unlock cycles, or a hidden respec cost because those details are not established by the P0 material used here.
Class choice is separate from Hawks’ voice selection. No verified source connects voice presentation to combat role or power, so treat presentation and tactical specialization as independent decisions.
Choose by playstyle
New to turn-based tactics: Soldier or Assault
EA recommends Soldier or Assault with a Blaster Rifle for players who are new to turn-based tactics games. The value of this recommendation is clarity rather than an official promise of maximum power. A clear role makes it easier to learn positioning, target priority, shared resources, and how one Operator’s action creates an opening for another.
Soldier and Assault are the verified beginner-facing options, but EA publishes no numerical difficulty rating or guaranteed win rate for either one. Starting from that explicit beginner branch is safer than presenting a launch-day tier list as fact.
Damage-first play: Gunslinger, Soldier, or Heavy
For players who want to deal as much damage as possible, EA lists Gunslinger, Soldier, or Heavy and pairs that goal with the Repeater weapon class. This is a playstyle recommendation, not a three-way ranking. The official material does not say which of those choices has the highest damage per turn across every mission.
Check whether the squad already has recovery, scouting, or setup support before using this branch. Any exact damage table, ability multiplier, or version-specific ranking remains to be confirmed until supported by current first-party data.
Planning-heavy play: Scout or Scoundrel
EA directs players who enjoy planning and tactical decision-making toward Scout or Scoundrel. This is the official support behind using Scoundrel as a plausible Hawks choice, but EA still stops short of calling it the best. The appeal is alignment with a setup-first player who wants actions to create better follow-up actions.
PC Gamer goes further and recommends Scoundrel as the best starting choice in its launch guide. Its reasoning centers on making enemies vulnerable, penetrating defenses, and improving assist damage in a way the writer believes fits Hawks’ leadership tools. Those details explain the editorial pick, but they remain an attributed guide opinion rather than an official balance claim.
Squad-fit checklist
Start by naming the job Hawks must perform on the next mission. If the squad needs a readable frontline or general-purpose starting role, use EA’s Soldier or Assault branch. If it lacks direct pressure, compare Gunslinger, Soldier, and Heavy; if it needs more deliberate setup, compare Scout and Scoundrel.
Next, check role overlap across the standard four-Operator squad. Two Operators with similar combat goals are not automatically wrong, but the duplication needs a reason connected to the objective. Without that reason, Hawks may be more valuable covering a missing job than repeating one already handled by an authored or Custom Operator.
Then check how the choice supports the game’s verified shared systems. Bonds unlock combat synergies, and Advantage is a shared resource, so a class decision should be judged by the turns it enables for the whole squad rather than by isolated damage alone. The Den and Galaxy Map Operations also frame the campaign around roster and mission management, which makes a flexible decision process more durable than a fixed ranking.
EA confirms that Hawks and Custom Operators can change Specializations, so the opening choice is not described as permanently locked. Exact respec timing, costs, and upgrade refunds are to be confirmed, so review the live interface before committing resources.
Our non-numeric evaluation method
This guide does not assign invented scores. It checks whether a pick has first-party playstyle support, whether its intended job is easy to explain, whether it fills a real squad gap, and whether the recommendation is official guidance or an attributed editorial opinion. Scoundrel leads the launch recommendation only under that labeled, setup-oriented context.
What the video shows
The collected beginner video below is useful for seeing how a creator evaluates combat flow, assists, cover, shared Advantage, Bonds, and squad positioning. It is a P2 creator source, even though EA contacted the creator for the guide, so this page uses it as a visual explanation rather than the authority for class names or balance facts. When the transcript conflicts with EA Help, the official EA record controls this page.
Use the footage to ask whether Hawks creates a clean follow-up, whether Operators can use cover without competing for one position, and whether the chosen role spends shared resources at the right moment. Those questions remain useful when balance numbers change and show why a class cannot be judged in isolation.
Common mistakes
The first mistake is treating Scoundrel as an EA-certified winner. It is a documented editorial recommendation with a clear rationale, but the official guide publishes branches by player goal instead of a universal ranking. Keep that evidence label beside the recommendation whenever you share it.
The second mistake is choosing only from a damage fantasy. EA’s damage branch is valid, but a standard squad still has multiple jobs to cover and only four normal deployment slots. If Hawks repeats an existing job without helping the objective, a theoretically aggressive pick can make the whole turn harder to organize.
The third mistake is importing unsupported numbers from a video, old screenshot, or search snippet. Exact talent values, unlock cycles, balance rankings, and respec costs can change or may be misread without a current first-party record. This guide marks those details to be confirmed instead of filling the gaps with plausible-sounding data.
The fourth mistake is mixing identity choices with combat choices. Hawks’ voice presentation is not a class modifier, and no verified source connects it to Specialization availability or power. Build the tactical role from mission and squad needs, then make presentation choices separately.
Final verdict
Choose Scoundrel when you want the launch guide’s strongest setup-oriented recommendation and understand that it is a third-party judgment. Choose Soldier or Assault when you want the most directly supported beginner route from EA. Choose from Gunslinger, Soldier, or Heavy for an official damage-first branch, or Scout or Scoundrel for EA’s planning-first branch.
There is no official universal best class for Hawks. The most defensible build decision starts with EA’s verified role guidance, labels outside recommendations by source type, and checks the four-Operator squad before committing upgrades. Revisit the choice when the mission or roster changes, and leave any unsupported numerical ranking marked to be confirmed.