Sniper Elite 4: Complete Guide

A practical guide to Rebellion's Italy-set sniping sandbox: ballistics, sound masking and stealth, loadouts, the eight campaign missions, DLC (Target Führer and the Deathstorm trilogy), co-op, collectibles, and the achievements that need planning.

Researched September 2026 — current as of the final PC build (the game is complete; no balance patches in years). Rebellion's newer releases are Sniper Elite 5 and Sniper Elite: Resistance (January 30, 2025); SE4 also reached iOS, iPadOS and Apple-silicon Macs in January 2025. Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

• Pick difficulty carefully. Difficulties are Cadet, Marksman, Sniper Elite, Authentic, Authentic Plus. On Cadet and Marksman you get an aim-point indicator when you hold breath; higher difficulties remove aids and make wind and gravity matter.
• Hold breath (Empty Lung) before shooting. It steadies aim and slows time briefly. Your heart rate affects sway, so don't sprint and then shoot.
• Mask your shots. Loud noises (planes overhead, generators, artillery, backfiring engines) hide your rifle shots. Fire during them and enemies won't locate you.
• Relocate after unmasked shots. Enemies search your last known position (shown as a silhouette). Move away and they'll look in the wrong spot.
• Tag enemies with binoculars. Marked enemies stay visible and you'll see officers and objectives.
• Every map is a sandbox. You can approach objectives in any order; clear exfiltration points before you're done.
• Use suppressed ammo and suppressed pistols (like the Welrod) for quiet kills. Suppressed ammo is limited; save it for key shots.
• Traps and mines work well for covering your back while you snipe.
• Search bodies for ammo, items, and documents.

Core Mechanics

Ballistics

• Bullet drop: at longer range, aim above the target. Zero your scope using the range finder on higher difficulties.
• Wind: a meter shows wind direction and strength on harder difficulties. Aim into the wind.
• Heart rate: sprinting and taking damage raise heart rate and sway. Rest in cover to calm down.
• Empty Lung: holding breath gives a brief window of stable aim.
• Target Focus: looking at an enemy through the scope marks them faster. (The I See You! achievement is 100 full Target Focus.)

Stealth and sound

Mechanic | What to know

Sound masking | Rifle shots during loud events are hidden. Look for planes, generators, or sabotage opportunities

Relocation | After an unmasked shot, move away; enemies will search where you were

Hiding | Tall grass, dark areas, and corners break sight lines

Light sources | Destroy lights to hide

Bodies | Hide bodies; discovered corpses raise alerts

Booby traps | Trap a corpse or a door for surprise kills

X-Ray Kill Cam

The kill camera follows your bullet and shows organs, bones and tissue breaking. It triggers on impressive shots and on melee and trap kills. You can adjust how often it plays in options. The Organ Grinder achievement asks for killshots on every organ.

Loadouts

You carry a rifle, a secondary weapon, a pistol, and items (grenades, mines, traps, medkits, bandages). Customize loadouts before missions.

• Rifles: a bolt-action sniper rifle is your main tool; semi-automatics give faster follow-ups.
• Secondary: submachine guns for close quarters; some secondaries are suppressed or special.
• Pistols: the Welrod is a suppressed pistol that's excellent for quiet close-range kills.

Weapon mastery and upgrades

Weapons unlock upgrades as you use them (weapon mastery). Upgrades affect scope magnification, muzzle velocity, stability and other traits. A Most Singular Expert is for mastering one weapon; Master-At-Arms needs a fully mastered rifle, secondary and pistol.

Character progression

You earn XP from kills, objectives and discovery. Levels unlock skills (for example, more item capacity, better health, faster movement). Rank achievements are at levels 5, 25 and 50.

Campaign Missions

The campaign has eight missions set in Italy, 1943. Each is a large sandbox with a main objective, secondary objectives, collectibles and optional targets.

Mission | Location | Notes

1 | San Celini Island | Tutorial-style; kill General Tobias Schmidt and learn masking and relocation

2 | Bitanti Village | Find the Partisan leader "Angel"; many sniper perches

3 | Regilino Viaduct | Destroy the railway gun on the viaduct; plenty of vertical routes

4 | Lorino Dockyard | Industrial area; call in a bombing raid on the dockyard

5 | Abrunza Monastery | Hilly monastery with long sight lines; the Mafia alliance storyline (Salvatore Dinelli, Black Brigade leader Piero Capo) plays out around here

6 | Magazzeno Facility | Missile assembly base; kidnap scientist Kessler and steal his notes

7 | Giovi Fiorini Mansion | Hunt Major Klaus Rothbauer in the town of Giovi Fiorini

8 | Allagra Fortress | Final mission: disable the missiles at General Böhm's fortress and stop his jet

Each mission has a Kill List target and several secondary objectives. Two sets of secondary objectives are tracked separately (OSS objectives from Jack Weaver and Mother Hen objectives), and completing every one in each set is an achievement (Weaver's Warrior and Mother knows best).

Collectibles

Collectible | Where/how

Last Letters | Found on specific bodies and locations

Letters From Home / Letters To Home | Found around maps

Stone Eagles | Shoot them; hidden around maps

Sniper reports | Hidden documents

Workbenches | Found in maps; worth hunting as you explore

The Collector needs all Last Letters, Letters From Home and Letters To Home; A Bird in the Hand... needs all Stone Eagles; Greatest Hits needs all sniper reports.

DLC

DLC | Missions | Notes

Target Führer | Single mission | Hitler assassination with many creative kill methods

Deathstorm Part 1 | Inception | Train, destroyer, crane; torpedo

Deathstorm Part 2 | Infiltration | Auditorium, island, Valkyrie reinforcements

Deathstorm Part 3 | Obliteration | Extract scientists Wernicke, Hänel and Kehrer

Target Führer achievements include killing Hitler with the submarine, a torpedo rack, a casserole, a testicle shot, the Eagle at the ceremony, a sea mine on the VIP boat, and exfiltrating undetected. Plan multiple playthroughs.

Co-op and Multiplayer

• Campaign co-op: play every campaign mission with a friend online.
• Overwatch: one player snipes and the other operates on the ground as a spotter/infiltrator. Achievements for Overwatch 1 and Overwatch 2.
• Survival: co-op wave defense (Survival of the Fittest needs all waves).
• Competitive modes (deathmatch-style, long-range and objective modes such as radio capture; the Channel Changer achievement is for capturing an enemy-held radio with seconds left). Player counts are low in 2026; you may need friends to fill lobbies. Competitive Nature requires one match in each mode.

Difficulty Guide

Difficulty | For whom | Notes

Cadet | Story players | Generous aids

Marksman | Default experience | Some aids remain

Sniper Elite | Experienced | No aim point; wind and gravity matter more

Authentic | Veterans | No HUD aids, tougher enemies

Authentic Plus | Masochists | Hardest setting, with its own achievements

The "no manual saves" achievements (Authentic and Authentic Plus) are the hardest in the game. Practice missions on lower difficulty first.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Shooting without masking. Enemies swarm your position.
• Not relocating. Staying in the same spot after an unmasked shot is how you die.
• Forgetting heart rate. Sprinting then firing causes big sway.
• Wasting suppressed ammo. Save it for important targets.
• Ignoring traps. Mines and tripwires protect your back.
• Rushing objectives without scouting. Tag enemies first.

Advanced Tips

• Sabotage generators to create a sound-masking loop, then fire during the noise.
• Shoot explosive items like fuel tanks and vehicles for multi-kills.
• Environmental drop kills (dropping heavy objects on enemies) give an achievement (On Yer Head, Son).
• Satchel charges destroy vehicles, pillboxes and Panther turrets (Demolition Fan for 25).
• Snipers first: enemy snipers are the biggest threat; the Sniper Interrupted achievement is for killing 5 before they see you.
• Rifle-only runs (My Rifle is My Best Friend) are easier on early missions.
• Artillery strikes can multi-kill (Fire and Brimstone for 5 with one strike).

FAQ

Do I need to play Sniper Elite 3 first? No. The story continues loosely from SE3 but stands alone.

Is the whole campaign co-op? Yes. All campaign missions can be played with one partner online.

Which difficulty for the X-ray fun and less frustration? Marksman. Try Sniper Elite once you understand masking and relocation.

How do I get Target Führer? It's a separate DLC mission (also included in some editions and bundles). Check the Steam store page's DLC list; editions and bundles change over time.

Are the Deathstorm missions worth it? Yes. They're large missions with good challenges and achievements.

Is multiplayer alive? Small but existing. Co-op with friends is the reliable option in 2026.

Sources

• Wikipedia — Sniper Elite 4
• Steam — Sniper Elite 4 achievements
• Steam store — Sniper Elite 4
• Steam news — Rebellion announcements