Caustic

This article concerns the subject and the content related to it in *Apex Legends*. For the subject in *Apex Legends Mobile*, see Caustic (Mobile). For the background of the subject in Apex Legends universe, see Caustic (character).

 **Voice Actor** | JB Blanc

 **Caustic** is a  Controller Legend. He can be unlocked with either  12,000,  750, or by purchasing the Champion Edition downloadable content.

Caustic is a deadly Legend with poisonous gas-based abilities. His tactical ability  Nox Gas Trap places canisters that fire out toxic gas when damaged or when an enemy comes near them. His passive ability  Nox Vision highlights enemies that are in the gas. His ultimate ability  Nox Gas Grenade throws a grenade that fires toxic gas in a large area around it.

## Abilities

### Nox Gas Trap

 Cooldown

* Info
* Interactions
* Tips
* Bugs

* You can hold up to three charges of this ability, and gain one charge every 20 seconds. Up to six traps can be active on the map at once, and you're able to pick up unactivated traps to regain a charge.
* When an enemy gets close to a trap, it releases a cloud of gas that deals damage per second to enemies caught within, ignoring shields.
	+ A triggered trap lasts 11 seconds. After the barrel expires, the gas lingers for 2 additional seconds.
	+ Each damage tick deals 5 damage to start, then ramps up by 1 every other tick. (e.g. 5, 5, 6, 6, 7, 7, etc.)
		- Each additional source of gas damage will only increase the DPS by 1.
		- On downed enemies, this damage rate stays at a flat 5/sec.
	+ Bullets striking the top of a trap will also cause it to go off. However, shooting the base will destroy it without releasing gas.
	+ Enemies will be slowed inside the gas and are unable to sprint. Squadmates aren't affected by this.
* After being activated, the barrels have 150 HP, and the gas will linger for 2 seconds after the barrel is destroyed.
* If a player is standing on top of an uninflated trap, it will not inflate until the player moves off of it.

* Gas traps are susceptible to friendly damage from both Caustic and his allies.
* Wattson's  Interception Pylons can shoot down traps in mid-air if they would have landed inside the range of the pylon, but not traps that are already fully inflated on the ground.
* The gas can damage both  Wattson's  Pylons and  Perimeter Security nodes.
* Mirage's decoys can trigger the traps to reveal Caustic's location to his squad.
* Lifeline's  D.O.C. Heal Drone will malfunction while inside of the gas and will not be able to heal anyone.
* Crypto's  Surveillance Drone can be damaged by the gas.
* Rampart's  Amped barriers can be damaged by the gas.

* Think of the traps as a short range throwable, and throw it like a short range grenade when needed. In heat of battle, an extra distraction for the enemy can be an extra help for you; they have to either shoot you or the gas trap.
	+ This is especially helpful when an enemy squad is inside a building. They can be thrown inside through doorways and be very deadly if they are in a small space.
* When outnumbered or in a sticky situation, throw multiple traps around you. The enemy's bullets will hit your traps, setting them off, and allowing you to escape or heal to stay in the fight.
* You can use your traps as smoke bombs, to throw some cover for sniper fire or general confusion.
* A squad that manages to get their Caustic to end game (such as Round 6 as it is almost done shrinking) will have the advantage over other squads that don't have a Caustic. Caustic's abilities increase in utility as the play area shrinks. Furthermore, Caustic can prevent scenarios of Heal Off Victories from happening as it's harder to heal in the gas and ring damage.
* It's good to throw a trap in a smokescreen generated by a Bangalore's  Smoke Launcher, especially if enemies are hiding in it. This will also highlight enemies in green due to  Nox Vision, and allow you an unfettered view of the enemies.
* When going through Wraith's  Dimensional Rift portals, throw a trap at the end to catch enemies off guard trying to get your squad from behind and reveal their position due to your passive.
* Throwing a trap in front of a door prevents it from opening to that side. You can use this to block doors and protect yourself, or to trap enemies inside an enclosed room. If they break down the door, the trap will activate and you’ll be informed of their location.
* **COUNTER**:
	+ When Caustic is throwing a trap, shooting the trap before it activates completely will destroy it.
	+ If it's deployed, remember to shoot the base of the trap before it activates will destroy it without releasing the gas.
	+ If it's activated, destroying the trap will aloow the gas to disspate in 2 seconds.

* If you throw the trap underneath you, there will still be a hitbox for the trap even though they do not inflate. This may be because traps used to be able to inflate on players, allowing them to sit inside it.
* Throwing the trap under Lifeline's  Care Package before it lands will cause the trap to slowly fly away.
* Occasionally if you or a teammate touch a recently placed trap, It will begin to slide away.
* Placing a gas trap right next to a closed-door when the player is right next to the door or when a trap is deploying next to a closed-door that is propped open causes the player located where the trap was deployed to be crushed.
* Gas traps which are deployed on top of Gilbratar's  Dome of Protection will stay "floating" at their positions after the shield is gone.
* Throwing a trap on the ground from a high height before the player hits the ground and landing on the trap can remove/reduce the fall stun, similar to Horizon's  Spacewalk ability.

### Nox Vision

 Cooldown

* Info
* Interactions
* Tips

* Caustic is immune to the effects of Nox Gas whether it belongs to him or an enemy Caustic.
* Enemies inside the gas created from your  Nox Gas Traps and  Nox Gas Grenades abilities are highlighted green, similar to Digital Threat Optics. This vision is obstructed by walls or other obstacles.

* Highlighted enemies can be seen through Bangalore's  Smoke Launcher.

* Your squadmates do not share this vision, so be sure to communicate to them the locations of enemies you can see.
* Your threat vision doesn't work against other Caustics, forcing you to prioritize them, as they are immune to all Nox Gas effects and they can see your allies even if they are in your gas.

### Nox Gas Grenade

 Charge time

* Info
* Interactions
* Tips

* Lasts 15 seconds.
* Other than the wider area of effect, the gas's function is identical to that of  Nox Gas Traps.

* The grenade can be shot down by Wattson's  Interception Pylon. However, if the grenade has already detonated, the pylon can't block any of the gas, and will even take damage from it.

* Do not use Nox Gas Grenades and expect them to kill an entire squad. Similar to Bangalore's  Rolling Thunder, its main utility comes in the fact that enemies are forced to either evacuate the area or suffer the consequences of damage, the inability to sprint and being highlighted by  Nox Vision.
	+ Since gas deals damage and slows enemies, use  Nox Vision to hunt down and kill them while they are weakened. If you have Grenades, throw them into your gas when an enemy is caught-- this combo has the capability of wiping out full squads if enough players are caught in your gas.
* Using this ability in large, open areas is often a waste. Try to save it for when enemies are occupying a building, a small area, or are hiding behind a cover too dangerous to bypass.
	+ You can also use this ability to block chokepoints or cover/punish revives.
* Try saving this for the last few rounds as his abilities increase in utility as the safe area shrinks. Furthermore, he can prevent scenarios of Heal Off Victories from happening as it's harder to heal in the gas and ring damage.

### Fortified

 Cooldown

* Info
* Tips

* Take 15% less damage from every attack, except headshots.

* Don't overestimate this ability, 15% less generally translates to surviving 1 more shot.

## Lore

*Main article:* Caustic (character)

As he toiled in secret, Nox began to see the beauty in his creations and their ability to destroy anything they touched. But the head of Humbert Labs soon discovered his gruesome experiments, and their confrontation ended with the lab in flames.

## Cosmetic Items

### Skins

There are a total of 86 Legend skins for Caustic; 3 Mythic, 29 Legendary, 14 Epic, 26 Rare and 16 Common.

* Mythic
* Legendary
* Epic
* Rare
* Common

* Apex Contagion
Tier 1
* Apex Contagion
Tier 2
* Apex Contagion
Tier 3

* Sixth Sense
 1,200
* Divine Right
 1,200
* Philosopher's Stone
 1,200
* Blackheart
 1,200
* Third Emperor
 1,200
* Synthesis Chamber
 1,200
* The Trophy Hunter
Needs Blackheart
* Dark Cloud
Needs Divine Right
* Prince of Darkness
Level 25
* The Last Laugh
* Claustic
* Waste Management
Needs Philosopher's Stone
* Necrosis
* Gasbuster
* Bloodthirsty
Needs Sixth Sense
* Killing Joke
* Sweet Dreams
 4,000
* Mad King
* Deputy of Death
* Silverback
 2,500
* Inmate Nox
Needs Blackheart
* Jaeger
* Field Research
Level 50
* So Serious
* Lion Guard
* Furnace Fury
* Noxious Nobleman
* Toxic Terminator
* Professor Nox

Note:

1. ↑ Included in the Dark Humor Bundle.
2. ↑ Included in the Silverback Bundle.

Story of Caustic:

1. ↑ **Blackheart**: Alexander Nox denies involvement an infamous prison break on Gaia asserting the culprit was merely lookalike. However, the individual who corroborated his account can no longer be located.
2. ↑ **Necrosis**: Caustic, sensing his death was imminent, at one point sought to become a Simulacrum. His project proposal was rejected after the results of his psychological exam proved troubling.

* Daemon Hunter
 400
* Fiber Optics
 400
* Illegal Operation
 400
* Heat Sync
 400
* Neural Net
 400
* Barracuda
 400
* Tiger Blood
 1,000
* Barrel of Laughs
* Grave Robber
* Acid Bubble
 1,000
* Boiling Point
* Marine Toxicologist
* Bad Blood
Level 1
* Twilight Torturer

* Absolution
 60
* Bloodline
 60
* Collider
 60
* Dark Web
 60
* Desert Scorpion
 60
* Green Screen
 60
* Hypnotic
 60
* Interdimensional
 60
* Prehistoric
 60
* Sizzle Reel
 60
* Snakeskin
 60
* Unholy Alliance
 60
* Vicious Cycle
 60
* Volcanic
 60
* Wishbone
 60
* Bloodshot
Season 2
* Freezer Burn
Level 37
* Chemical Compound
October 2019
* Geometric Anomaly
January 2020
* Cyber Sludge
Level 60
* Future's Past
 500
* Chilled Out
Season 8
* Cold Blooded
April 2021
* Terrestrial Shell
* Black Into Blue
Level 80
* Fractal Power
Season 14

* Original
Default
* Arctic
 30
* Cardinal
 30
* Clearwater
 30
* Evergreen
 30
* Flamingo
 30
* Hydro
 30
* Limelight
 30
* Mandarin
 30
* Midnight
 30
* Orchid
 30
* Rage
 30
* Sahara
 30
* Skyward
 30
* Vino
 30
* Yellowjacket
 30

### Finishers

*Main article:* Finisher
* Parting Gift
Default
* Last Breath
 1,200
* Strike Three
 1,200
* Toxic Scream

1. ↑ Can only be performed when Tier 3 of the Apex Contagion skin is equipped.

### Heirloom Set

*Main article:* Heirloom

The set contains:

* A Banner Pose: Hammer Time
* A Melee weapon skin: Death Hammer - A hammer with a skull at the back equipped with Nox gas.
* An Intro Quip: "I look forward to getting my hands on you."

### Prestige Skin Set

 File:Caustic prestige skin.png
The set contains:

* A skin set: Apex Contagion
	+ Tier 1: instantly earned.
	+ Tier 2: deal 30,000 damage with Caustic to obtain.
	+ Tier 3: deal 100,000 damage with Caustic to obtain.
* A finisher: Toxic Scream, unlocked at Tier 3. Can only be used while Tier 3 of Apex Contagion is equipped.

### Skydive Emotes

*Main article:* Skydive Emote
* Feel the Power
Level 30
* Knox Powered
Level 30
* Chemtrails
Level 92
* Unstable Footing
Level 73

### Emotes

*Main article:* Emote
* Noxious Discovery -  1,200
* Take Notes -  1,200
* Reluctant Celebration
* Eau de Nox
* Design Flaw -  400
* Knockout Gas - Level 75
* Waltz for One
* Once More With Apathy
* Sample Testing - Default

### Banner Frames

* Legendary
* Epic
* Rare
* Common

* Biochemical Romance
 1,200
* Corrosive Agent
 1,200
* Cruel and Unusual
 1,200
* Hard Nox Life
 1,200
* Method in Madness
 1,200

* Double Feature
 400
* Gassed Out
Level 61
* Failed Emissions
Level 36
* Research Grant
Level 60
* Gas Powered
Level 16
* Ghost in the Gas
Level 11
* King of the Jungle
 2,500
* Pressure Paranoia
Level 83
* Venom Eggs
Level 89
* Chaos Theory
Level 55
* Noxious Waste
* No Solace
Level 75
* Midnight Meltdown

* Breathe Easy
 60
* Fuming
 60
* High Pressure
 60
* Skullcracker
 60
* Spine Chilling
 60
* Ocean's Deep
 60
* Slaughterhouse
Level 88
* Battle Royalty
Level 58
* Nerve Striker
Season 2
* Last Rites
Level 68
* Crystal Core
Season 8
* Pulp Friction
Season 14

* Rookie Card
Default
* Biohazard
 30
* Chemistry
 30
* Noxious
 30
* Watcher
 30

### Banner Poses

* Mythic
* Epic
* Rare
* Common

* Hammer Time

* Hard Reset
 400
* Morning Brew
 400
* Peacekiller
 400
* Think Tank
 400

* Bad Listener
 60
* Bad Medicine
 60
* Last Rites
 60
* Mad Scientist
 60
* Nevermore
 60
* Not to Be
 60
* Unstable Genius
 60

* Surgical

### Holosprays

*Main article:* Holospray
* Join My Experiment
 1,200
* A Man Of Science
 400
* Breathe It In
 400
* Evil Laugh
 400
* My Favorite Part
 400
* The True Test
 400
* You Are The Nail
 400
* One More
Level 74
* Close Encounter
* Death Inspires Me
Level 78
* Cut Them Down
Level 52
* Beg For Mercy
Level 74

1. ↑ Included in the Silverback Bundle.

### Music Packs

*Main article:* Music Pack
* Caustic Music Pack
Level 85

### Transitions

*Main article:* Transition
* Blackheart's Rage
Level 34
* Confounding Variables
Level 18

## History

May 10, 2022 Patch* Fortified
	+ No longer reduces headshot damage.

February 08, 2022 Patch* Nox Gas Trap
	+ Nox Gas Traps are now destroyable after detonation:
		- The Barrels now have 150 hp.
		- Gas effects will now linger for two seconds after barrel destruction or expiration (gas particles still linger a bit longer as they dissipate).
		- Detonated traps will now expire at 11 seconds (+2 second gas lingering) instead of 12.5 seconds (no lingering).
	+ Fixed issue where barrels that are still being deployed (mid-throw) were not being deleted after Caustic dies.

August 03, 2021 Patch* Gas damage starts at 5, increases by 1 every other tick indefinitely.
* Nox Gas Trap: Reduced cooldown from 25 to 20 seconds.
* Nox Gas Grenade:
	+ Reduced cooldown from 3.5 to 3 minutes.
	+ Reduced duration from 20 to 15 seconds.

March 09, 2021 Patch* Nox Gas Grenade: Increased cooldown from 2.5 minutes to 3.5 minutes.
* Gas damage is now a flat 5 rather than 6-12.
* Fixed a bug that was causing the gas to flicker for some players affected by it.
* (Undocumented) Reduced the amount of particles from the gas, effectively providing less cover from the outside.

February 04, 2021 Patch* Nox Gas Grenade: Fixed an edge case where the gas would persist even after his squad was eliminated.

February 02, 2021 Patch* All gas now dissipates as soon as Caustic's team is wiped.
* Nox Vision: Sonar abilities no longer stop Caustic's highlight vision.

November 04, 2020 Patch* Nox Gas Trap/ Nox Gas Grenade: Nox Gas no longer causes a blur effect. Damage increased from 4–10 to 6–12.

October 06, 2020 Patch* Fixed Caustic barrels from being placed at an angle on shipping crates.

September 03, 2020 Patch* Removed an inappropriate Caustic voice line.
* Fixed an issue where Crypto’s  Surveillance Drone in Caustic gas would play to the whole server.

August 18, 2020 Patch* Fixed an issue with  Nox Gas Traps clipping to  Mobile Respawn Beacons.
* Fixed an issue with Pathfinder and Revenant taking less damage from Nox gas.

June 23, 2020 Patch* Nox Gas Trap:
	+ Can now be destroyed by shooting the bottom before it fully inflates.
	+ Teammates can now ping a friendly trap.

May 12, 2020 Patch* Nox Gas Trap:
	+ Friendly gas no longer slows teammates.
	+ Traps no longer triggered from the other side of a door.

July 02, 2019 Patch* Fortified:
	+ Damage reduction increased from 10% to 15%.
	+ Now immune to slow effects from weapon fire.
* Nox Gas Grenade: The magnitude of the slow is reduced by 50% when affecting teammates.

June 04, 2019 Patch* Nox Gas Trap:
	+ Caustic barrels can now be triggered or disabled by friendly teammates.
	+ Fixed a rare issue with using consumables while having a Caustic gas canister out.

May 20, 2019 Patch* Fortified: Fixed issue where damage would be taken through shields.

April 16, 2019 Patch* Fortified Passive Perk added which reduces damage taken by 10%.
* Gas Damage per tick increased from 1 to 4
* Nox Gas Grenade: Throw distance increased from 28 meters to 33 meters.

March 19, 2019 Patch* Adjusted hitbox to better align with shape.
* Nox Gas Trap:
	+ Reduced cooldown of Traps from 30 to 25 seconds.
	+ Increased radius and proximity radius by about 10%.
	+ Removed a 1-second delay on the smoke dealing damage to players.
* ~~Nox Gas Grenade: Reduced cooldown from 2:30 to 2:00 minutes.~~ (This change was listed in the patch notes but never shipped.)
* Fixed ADS view being blocked when using Caustic legendary skins with certain weapon/ optic combos

## Trivia

* For some reason, Caustic's eyes previously appeared to glow in the dark under certain circumstances. It is currently unknown why, but it could have had to do with his Nox Vision passive ability.
* As explained by writer Tom Casiello, the Nox Gas is a corrosive gas, that eats through clothes, skin, and metal, unless countered by a chemical compound only he possesses so it doesn't affect him, which explains why the gas still affects Pathfinder, Bloodhound, Revenant, and Ash.
* An inappropriate voice line between Caustic and Crypto was removed in the September 03, 2020 Patch; where Caustic says as thanks to Crypto, “You’ll regret the day you crossed me, gutter rat,” due to the word “rat” being a derogatory term towards Asians.
* During the  3rd Anniversary collection event, two skins were released based on Caustic's Blackheart skin - Golden Guardian for Gibraltar and No Chill for Revenant.

## Gallery

Videos

Images
* Caustic killing Dr. Franklin Humbert.
* Death report for Alexander Nox. of Caustic.
* Early concept art of Caustic.
* Concept art of Caustic.
* Model of Caustic's head, showing his face.
* Concept art of the Nox Gas Traps.
* Concept art of Caustic's Prince of Darkness skin.
* Concept art of Caustic's The Trophy Hunter skin.
* Concept art of Caustic's Killing Joke skin.
* Concept art for Caustic's Necrosis skin.
* Concept art for Caustic's Gasbuster skin.

Merchandise
* A Funko Pop of Caustic released on November 2019.
* Action figure released by Jakks Pacific.
* Plush of Blackheart skin.

## References

1. ↑ Caustic Loading Screen Text "Blackheart's Rage"
2. ↑ From Pathfinder's Quest, chapter 9
3. ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/apexlegends/comments/pdiohx/til\_that\_caustics\_s7\_battlepass\_kill\_quip\_is\_a/
4. ↑ Death Certificate - Caustic - Apex Legends Characters - EA Official Site
5. ↑ Prog Wang on Artstation
6. ↑ Kejun Wang on Artstation
7. ↑ William Cho on Artstation
8. ↑ Danny Gardner on Artstation
9. ↑ Brandon Pirruccello on Artstation
10. ↑ Kejun Wang on Artstation
11. ↑ X Yang on Artstation
12. ↑ Luca Xu on ArtStation