Rainbow Six Extraction: All Enemies and How to Beat Them - Chimera Parasite, Archæans, and Proteans

Throughout your time as a part of REACT in Rainbow Six Extraction, assessing and containing various forms of the Chimera Parasite is your main goal. You'll find yourself up against various mutant enemies - such as Archæans and Proteans - as you try to contain the outbreak while gathering intel and keeping your team alive.

In this guide, we share all the enemies you can expect to come up against in Rainbow Six Extraction and how to counter them.

Read More: Rainbow Six Extraction: Difficulty Explained

Chimera Parasite

The Chimera Parasite is what all of your enemies boil down to. As a sentient, extra-terrestrial organism, the parasite takes on multiple forms as it reshapes the landscape and develops its own ecosystem further.

Sprawl

Sprawl is a tough biofilm that can be found coating the floors and walls of Containment Zones. The biofilm, made up of structured clusters of cells coated with a polymer matrix, protects itself as it envelopes the environment.

Sprawl itself isn't much to worry about; it will slow you down as you walk through it, and killed Archæans will typically leave Sprawl behind them, so keep that in mind.

Carapace

The Chimera Parasite produces a special protein that chemically solidifies biofilm into an indestructible membrane; this is the Carapace. While the sounds it produces are unnerving, you do not need to worry about Carapace as an enemy, but you will investigate it.

Nests

Nests, organic structures, can be found around Containment Zones. When disturbed (aka, alerted by an angered Archæan), they will endlessly spawn new Archæans. With this in mind, destroy them on sight where you can.

Archæans

Archæans are going to be the main source of trouble for you and your squad. Each one has unique abilities and tactical challenges for you to counter, and there are a lot of them, as explained below.

Tier 1 Archæans

Breacher

The Breacher has a bulbous cocoon-like structure on it's back that is packed with explosive fluids. The Archæan will rush towards you immediately on sight, detonating as soon as it gets close, unless you kill it first. It's damage affects Operators, and other Archæans.

Grunt

The Grunt is a melee attacker that moves at an incredibly fast pace when disturbed. Take them down before they reach you, or stealthily attack them before they see you.

Spiker

The Spiker is an Archæan who, when alerted, will shoot projectile spikes from its arms at you. It is important to stay out of its line of sight, taking it down with a grenade or stealthily taking it out before it sees you is your best bet, if guns fail you.

Bloater

The Bloater has a bulbous sack on its back, much like the Breacher, but is a smaller Archæan. When the Bloater sees you, they will rush towards you and detonate when they are close enough. Once they explode, they release a gas that is toxic to humans and that will obscure your vision. Take these out from a distance wherever possible.

Tier 2 Archæans

Rooter

The Rooter is an Archæan that need eliminating as quickly as possible, before most other threats. They're capable of producing a substance that will damage and immobilise you simultaneously, making you easy prey if you're not already on them.

Sower

The Sower leaves traps behind that look like glowing bulbs. The Archæan itself is pretty easy to take down, but if you miss your step and trigger their traps, the blinding effect that they have makes you an easy target to the Sower. Be sure to look out for traps at all times.

Tier 3 Archæans

Tormentor

The Tormentor is capable of shapeshifting quickly in and out of Sprawl to assault you and your team. They will relentlessly target you with projectiles, so it's important to track and take down Tormentor Archæans early, and remain out of their line of sight where possible.

Smasher

This Archæan is impossible to miss, due to the sheer size of it. To put is simply, the Smasher is a unit. They are completely covered by impenetrable Carapace, making them hard to take down alone without REACT tech. Avoid combatting the Smasher head-on and target their weak-points.

Lurker

The Lurker is primarily a support unit to aid other Archæan mutants. Their main capability is that they can make themselves, and other nearby Archæans, invisible. Fortunately, you can still see their 'invisibility cloak' so to speak; so, if you see them in this state, coordinate an attack and utilise your tech.

Tier 4 Archæans

Apex

This particular Archæan is rather impressive to look at, but is a top predator and can eliminate you and your team with ease if you don't coordinate your attack efficiently. Apex is able to call upon other Archæans to fight alongside them, so they'll be sure to keep you busy.

Proteans

Proteans are an Archæan type that has adopted the form of some of REACT's Operators, even copying the Operators behaviour to an extent. As well as mimicking your own squad, Proteans behave just like other Archæans.

Smoke

Smoke is an incredibly aggressive and mobile Protean that uses noxious gas to control the battlefield, and utilises a simulated shotgun to attack at a close range. Keep a distance from Smoke to avoid attack, and avoid gas clouds at all times to remain alert and mobile.

Alibi

Alibi is a Protean that is capable of creating duplicates of itself. Prioritise seeking out an Alibi and all of its clones as early as possible to avoid some of the most deceptive combat in Extraction.

Sledge

Sledge is a Protean, who wields a hammer, just like Operator Sledge. The Protean will inflict heavy melee damage if not avoided, and has a frontal Carapace that is incredibly resistant to damage as combat progresses. If anything, it is best to avoid Sledge as much as possible rather than try to take him down. If you insist, however, tech and long-range weapons are the way to go, rather than acquiring its attention.

Those are all of the enemies you'll come up against in Rainbow Six Extraction. As you can see, some of them are certainly much tougher to combat than others, with some of them best off just being left alone for the most part. Check out all the Operators available here, and what to expect from Extraction in the near future.