Star Wars Battlefront II (2017): Complete Guide

A practical guide to DICE's Star Wars Battlefront II (2017, Celebration Edition on Steam): classes, heroes, modes, Star Cards, and how to actually get games in 2026, including the community-run Kyber servers.

Researched September 2026. The game's final content update was April 2020 (Scarif / Rogue One content); official servers remain online, and the community Kyber launcher has been in open beta since December 2025. Live games change, so check the linked sources if something differs.

Status note: EA and DICE ended new content on April 29, 2020, calling the game's vision "complete". Official matchmaking still runs, and player counts spiked in 2025: Steam concurrents hit roughly 19,000 in May 2025 and nearly 36,000 during a June 2025 sale. Cheaters have been a recurring problem on official servers since 2021. Kyber (kyber.gg) is a free, community-made PC launcher that adds community-hosted servers, a server browser, private games, and mod support. It went open beta on December 20, 2025 and open source in January 2026.

Quick Start

Play the campaign or Arcade first. The campaign (Iden Versio's story, set between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens) and offline Arcade teach you the classes and heroes without pressure.
Start with Co-Op or Instant Action if official PvP feels sweaty. Both put you against AI on the big ground maps.
Battle Points (BP) are everything in a match. You earn them for kills, objectives, and assists, then spend them at spawn on reinforcements, vehicles, and heroes.
Play the objective. Objective play earns BP faster than chasing kills, and it wins Galactic Assault.
Stick near your squad. Squad spawning and fighting together share BP and keep you alive.
Level the class you play. Progression is linear: playing a class or hero earns skill points for its Star Cards. No loot-box RNG is involved since the March 2018 overhaul.
Equip Star Cards and weapon mods on every class. The defaults are much weaker than an upgraded loadout.
Use Kyber (PC) if official lobbies are empty or full of cheaters in your region.

Modes

Mode	Players	What it is
Galactic Assault	40 (20v20)	Multi-phase attack/defend on large maps. The flagship mode
Supremacy / Capital Supremacy	40 players + AI	Capture-and-hold command posts; Capital Supremacy adds a phase where you board and attack the enemy capital ship
Co-Op	4 players + AI teammates	PvE objective play on the big maps (added September 2019)
Starfighter Assault	24 players + AI	Objective-based space battles
Heroes vs. Villains	8 (4v4)	Hero-only team fights with a target-hero objective
Hero Showdown	4 (2v2)	Round-based hero duels
Blast / Strike / Extraction / Ewok Hunt	smaller	Team deathmatch and objective variants. Some rotate in or out of the menu
Instant Action / Arcade	offline	Solo or split-screen practice vs AI

Supremacy and Co-Op are the friendliest for newer players. Heroes vs. Villains is where hero mastery really shows.

Classes and Reinforcements

Four trooper classes, plus reinforcements you buy with BP.

Class	Role	Key tools
Assault	Mid-range fighter, flanker	Blaster rifle, Scan Dart, Vanguard (shotgun burst), grenade options
Heavy	Frontline anchor	Heavy blaster (heat-based), Sentry mode, Combat Shield, grenade options
Officer	Support and buffer	Pistol, Battle Command (team buff), Squad Shield, Turret/Flash grenade
Specialist	Long-range pick and trap	Sniper rifle, Infiltrate, Vigilance, Trip Mine

Reinforcements cost BP and come in several types that change by era and faction. They include Enforcers (tough heavies such as Death Troopers or Wookiee Warriors), Aerial units (jump troopers, Clone Jumptroopers), and Infiltrators, plus era-specific units like Droidekas, B2 Super Battle Droids, and ARC Troopers.

Vehicles and hero ships also cost BP. On ground maps you'll see AT-STs, speeder bikes, tauntauns, AATs, and more. In space you get fighters, interceptors, bombers, and hero ships (Millennium Falcon, Slave I, Scimitar, Anakin's Jedi Starfighter, and others).

Heroes

Heroes are the power spike of every match. You buy them with BP at the spawn screen once you've earned enough. Only one of each can be in play per team.

Light side: Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa, Han Solo, Chewbacca, Lando Calrissian, Yoda, Rey, Finn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, BB-8.

Dark side: Darth Vader, Emperor Palpatine, Boba Fett, Bossk, Iden Versio, Kylo Ren, Captain Phasma, Darth Maul, General Grievous, Count Dooku, BB-9E.

Beginner-friendly heroes:

Hero	Why
Darth Vader	Very tanky. Choke and Saber Throw are forgiving
Obi-Wan Kenobi	Defensive saber kit with crowd control; forgiving for learning blocking
Iden Versio	Ranged hero backed by a droid companion; lets you play heroes without saber skills
Chewbacca	Durable, with high damage up close and crowd control
Rey	Mind Trick and Insight make her a strong flanker

Tips for lightsaber heroes:

Blocking (hold the block button) deflects blaster fire and saber hits but drains stamina. Blocking ranged fire from the front makes you very hard to kill.
Heavy attacks break guard and hit harder. Mix them in rather than spamming light attacks.
Don't dive four troopers alone. Heroes die quickly to focused fire, especially from Heavies and Ion weapons.

Star Cards and Progression

Since the March 2018 progression overhaul, loot crates contain only credits and cosmetics. Star Cards come from gameplay:

Playing a class, hero, or ship earns XP. Level-ups grant skill points for that unit.
Star Cards have tiers. Spend skill points to unlock or upgrade them. Each unit equips up to three cards, and heroes have their own separate set.
Crafting parts from milestones and daily rewards help upgrade cards too.
Weapons and attachments unlock through milestones, meaning kills with a given weapon or class. Grind the one you like.
Credits buy cosmetics, emotes, and victory poses. The Celebration Edition already includes everything released up to December 20, 2019.

Card suggestions to start with:

Unit	Solid picks
Assault	Rapid Recovery-type healing card, a stronger Scan Dart, Vanguard (shotgun) upgrades
Heavy	Improved Combat Shield, Sentry upgrades, health-on-kill cards
Officer	Battle Command and Squad Shield upgrades. Your job is keeping squadmates alive
Specialist	Vigilance and Infiltrate upgrades. Trip Mines for objective defense

(Card names vary per class. Check the Star Card screen, and pick survivability and BP-generation cards first.)

Maps and Eras

Maps span all three trilogies plus Clone Wars and Rogue One-era content. Highlights include Naboo, Kamino, Geonosis, Kashyyyk, Felucia, Hoth, Endor, Death Star II, Yavin 4, Bespin, Tatooine (Mos Eisley), Jakku, Takodana, Starkiller Base, Crait, Ajan Kloss, and Scarif (the final map added in April 2020). Space maps include Fondor, Kamino, Ryloth, Endor, Unknown Regions, and D'Qar.

Combat Fundamentals

Heat, not ammo. Most blasters overheat. Tapping reload at the right moment (the active cooldown indicator) vents faster. Learn each weapon's rhythm.
Headshots and burst discipline matter even with sci-fi guns. Short bursts beat holding fire at mid-range.
Third person vs first person: Third person gives more awareness around corners, and first person gives more precise aim. Many players toggle depending on the situation.
Use cover and elevation. Heavy ion fire and splash grenades punish open fields.
Watch the objective timer. In Galactic Assault, a slow defense wins. Stall with shields and turrets rather than trading kills in the open.

Starfighter tips

Throttle control: Slowing down tightens your turn radius. Boosting everywhere makes you overshoot targets and fly straight into their wingmen.
Evasive maneuvers break missile locks. Time them after the lock warning, not before.
Bombers kill objectives. Interceptors kill fighters. Fighters are generalists.
Hero ships are strong but not invincible. Stay near your team's fighters.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Saving BP forever for a hero. A timely Enforcer or vehicle that wins the objective beats a late hero that shows up after the phase is lost.
Playing Specialist on an objective map from the spawn. Snipers who never touch the objective lose Galactic Assault matches.
Ignoring Star Cards. Unequipped or tier-1 cards are a big handicap.
Heroes rushing alone. Use them to push with your team, not to farm kills in isolation.
Standing still in Heroes vs. Villains. Stationary heroes get focused down. Rotate, heal, and play around cooldowns.
Queueing only on official servers late at night in a low-population region. Use Kyber's browser or Co-Op instead.

Advanced Tips

BP farming: Objective play, Officer buffs, and assists add up. Squad play shares BP among squadmates, so stay in formation.
Reinforcement timing: Buy Enforcers and Aerials right before a phase flip or objective push, not in the lull after one.
Counter heroes deliberately: Ion weapons and Heavy classes shred shields and heroes. Coordinate focus fire on the enemy's hero.
Sabers vs blasters: Heroes like Vader, Luke, and Obi-Wan are vulnerable when their block meter is empty. Watch their stamina and push when they're out.
Settings: Turn off motion blur and chromatic aberration, raise the FOV, and cap your frame rate slightly below your refresh rate for smoother frame pacing.
Kyber extras: Kyber offers modded servers, a reimagined Conquest mode, automatic team balancing, and stats pages. Check the server's rules before joining.

FAQ

Is Star Wars Battlefront II (2017) still playable online in 2026? Yes. Official servers are still up, and the 2025 player surges showed there's an active base. On PC, the community Kyber launcher adds more servers and modes.

Is the game still getting updates? No new official content has arrived since April 2020. EA still runs sales (for example 90% off in June/July 2025), and the game is on EA Play and Game Pass.

Does Battlefront II still have pay-to-win loot boxes? No. Since the 2018 overhaul, crates only contain credits and cosmetics. Star Cards and gameplay power come from playing.

What is Kyber and is it safe? Kyber is a free, community-developed PC launcher for SWBF2 (2017) with community servers and mod support. It's open source as of January 2026. You need to own the game on PC.

Which mode should I play first? Co-Op or Supremacy vs AI to learn the maps, then Galactic Assault once you're comfortable.

How do I unlock heroes? All heroes are unlocked. You spend in-match Battle Points to spawn as them.

Can I play offline? Yes. The campaign and Arcade work without other players, though the EA app still has to launch the game.