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Apex Legend Catalyst has proven a popular pick since her debut in Respawn Entertainment’s battle royale. With potent crowd control, strong versatility, and a fascinating backstory, there’s a lot to learn and unpack about this Legend.
That’s exactly what we’re going to do here. We’ll walk you through everything you need to know about Apex Legend Catalyst, from her backstory to her powers, and how she plays into the current meta. If you’re wondering who her voice actor is, or where she fits into our rankings for the best Legends in Apex, we’ve got you covered.
Catalyst’s class, abilities, and skills
Catalyst is a control class Legend. Here’s a breakdown of her abilities.
Passive: Barricade. On holding ‘X’, Catalyst can reinforce doors, locking them. She can also use this on empty doorframes. The reinforcements aren’t bulletproof, but to take significant effort to break through.
Tactical: Piercing Spikes. Catalyst throws out a patch of ferrofluid which turns into a sheet of slowing and damaging spikes when enemies are in close proximity. Catalyst herself is fully immune to the tactical.
Ultimate: Dark Veil. Catalyst raises up a long, thin wall of ferrofluid. Bullets can’t pass through it, but characters can. When enemies pass through it they are temporarily slowed and partially blinded.
Catalyst’s backstory and lore
Teressa Crystal Smith is a native to Boreas, the planet on which the Broken Moon map is set. That moon in question, Cleo, is a cornerstone of Smith’s backstory. In her youth she got involved in an attempt to sabotage a mining operation set for the dying moon, resulting in her fleeing her first home, later settling on Cleo and becoming a member of the Cleo Recovery Council.
In her role on the Council, she’d rediscover ferrofluid technology she had once come into contact with when sabotaging the mining operation. With a natural affinity for it, she utilised and mastered control over the technology for use in terraforming operations.
Later, Eduardo Silva and Seer would announce the construction of a new Apex Games arena on Cleo, halting the work of the Council and forcing them to disband. Smith took up the title of Catalyst, reworking her ferrofluid tech for combat and entering the Games with intent to use the prize money to support herself and her found family from the Council, and potentially one day save the broken moon.
Did you know?
Catalyst is the first canonically transgender Legend in Apex.
What is Catalyst good at in Apex Legends?
Catalyst’s abilities are all about maintaining maximum control over a battlefield, and she’s often held up as the epitome of her class for good reason. All three abilities cut off access routes and maintain area denial, giving her a great deal of manipulation over the routes open and closed to enemies. Taking a gamble against a closed route gives an obvious advantage to her and her team, but taking a remaining open route into an engagement is often well-prepared for. It’s a win-win situation for Catalyst.
She excels best in confined spaces with clear entrances and exits, though struggles when fighting in the open over longer distances. She’s also not as mobile as some other Legends, and her abilities are naturally more ergonomic from a defensive posture than an offensive one, making it riskier for her to take the initiative.
That covers everything you should need to know about Apex Legend Catalyst. Don’t forget to check out our breakdown of other legends like Conduit, Octane, Bloodhound or Ballistic to help get a broader picture of the characters in-game and what they can offer you.
Apex Legends Catalyst FAQ
How much does Catalyst cost to unlock?
Catalyst can be unlocked for 12,000 Legend Tokens or 700 Apex Coins. This is the same amount as any other Legend.
When was Catalyst added to Apex Legends?
Catalyst was added to Apex Legends in Season 15, Eclipse.
