Gear

"...if you're going to do such things, at least you should do them properly." - Brigid Tenenbaum This article, Gear , or a section of this article may require overall cleanup.

A gift-wrapped Gear package.

Gear is the passive upgrade system in BioShock Infinite and is similar to Gene Tonics in previous games. Gear is equipped to specific parts of the body, namely the head, torso, legs, and feet. Gear can be changed at any time and allows the player to tailor the Gear load out to the specific situation.

Booker can usually find Gear in gift wrapped packages on numerous locations throughout the game (usually behind locked doors and discreet locations). The Gear one obtains at every drop is randomized upon activation, meaning that reloading from a checkpoint and picking a Gear package up again will not yield the same item (except in certain cases, see below). Some drops appear to only give Gear for one slot, such as the random drop for the Fraternal Order of the Raven, which only seems to give pants.

In the main game, there are 41 different Gear items, though in a normal playthrough the player will not be able to obtain them all. Purchasing the Premium or Songbird Edition adds three more pieces of Gear (Betrayer, Bull Rush and Extra! Extra!), completing the Industrial Revolution online game yields three more (Fleet Feet, Handyman Nemesis and Sugar Rush) and purchasing the Season Pass grants another four Gear items (Ammo Advantage, Eagle Strike, Electric Punch and Ghost Soldier), bringing up the total to a possible 51. The same Gear included in the Premium or Songbird Editions are part of the Columbia's Finest DLC.

History

Much about Gear is a mystery as little is known about how Gear works or the process involved with making it. Gear is not mentioned by any character nor is it featured in any advertisement. Is it found in both Columbia and Rapture, though in Rapture it is less common and only appears in certain areas.

Gear vending machines known as Mendelssohn Kinematic Couture can be found in Columbia though the only two seen are both broken; and a few gear shop displays can be found in Rapture within Fontaine's Department Store though most are ransacked and stolen by Splicers.

Hat

Hat items specialize mainly in transfusing Vigor effects into melee attacks, giving them a chance to burn, shock or even possess enemies, though there are many other effects included, such as granting the player better survivability in protracted battles by making them less vulnerable, especially when it comes to smaller aspects such as reload speed, evasion of mechanical enemies, and more.

Show list
Ammo Cap Burning Halo Electric Punch (Season Pass DLC) Electric Touch Evil Eye (Burial at Sea) Extra! Extra! (Collector's Edition) Gear Head Hill Runner's Hat Quick Handed Rising Bloodlust Sheltered Life Spare the Rod Storm Surprise Element (Burial at Sea) Throttle Control Ticket Puncher (Burial at Sea)

Shirt

Shirt items generally improve the player's effectiveness in the midst of combat, allowing them to thrive even when overwhelmed. Certain shirts even let the player release elemental bursts around them when struck, igniting or shocking nearby enemies. Other aspects include but are not limited to more melee damage, movement speed bonuses, and increased yield of ammunition.

Show list
Ammo Advantage (Season Pass DLC) Better Mousetrap (Burial at Sea) Blood to Salt Bullet Boon Coat of Harms Drop Cloth Executioner Magic Bullet (Burial at Sea) Nitro Vest Pyromaniac Roar to Life (Burial at Sea) Scavenger's Vest Shock Jacket Sky-Line Accuracy Sugar Rush (Unlocked after completing Industrial Revolution) Winter Shield

Pants

Pants items are particularly useful at getting the player out of difficult situations, offering a means of escaping or making a final stand when low on resources. Other pants instead let the player initiate fights with increased effectiveness, allowing them to whittle down the enemy's numbers before they can react. Other aspects include but are not limited to: more melee damage, use of Health as Salts, decreased shield recharge delay, and faster recharge of the shield.

Show list
Angry Stompers Brittle-Skinned Bull Rush (Collector's Edition) Deadly Lungers Death Benefit (Burial at Sea) Filthy Leech (Burial at Sea) Fire Bird Ghost Posse Ghost Soldier (Season Pass DLC) Head Master Health for Salts Last Man Standing Quick-Handed (Burial at Sea) Sky-Line Reloader Spectral Sidekick Urgent Care

Boots

Boots items offer a variety of situational bonuses, enhancing the player's capabilities in specific situations. Boots mainly grant offensive advantages, but also offer more defensive boons such as momentarily invulnerability or a full recovery upon death.

Show list
Betrayer (Collector's Edition) Death from Above Eagle Strike (Season Pass DLC) Fit as a Fiddle Fleet Feet (Unlocked after completing Industrial Revolution) Handyman Nemesis (Unlocked after completing Industrial Revolution) High and Mighty (Burial at Sea) Kill to Live Newton's Law Nor'easter Overkill Tunnel Vision Vampire's Embrace

Gear Locations

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BioShock Infinite

Though most Gear drops are randomized (even when looting Gear from Handymen), certain pieces of Gear only spawn in specific locations. They are the following:

• Burning Halo is found immediately after defeating the first Zealot of the Lady in the Fraternal Order of the Raven's headquarters, next to a vending machine in the following room.
• Spare the Rod can be found behind a Dollar Bill vending machine in the Factory, in a room to the left after exiting the elevator and fighting a group of Vox Populi in the Office of Jeremiah Fink.
• Spectral Sidekick is located in the Bank of the Prophet, right before coming across the Tear there.
• Health for Salts is in Comstock House in the indoctrination area, in one of the rooms near the sign marked "Where We Learn".
• Rising Bloodlust is placed upon a desk right after Health for Salts. Though it is visible when taking the elevator, it can only be reached after passing through the propaganda room.
• Gear added through the purchase of the Premium or Songbird Editions, Season Pass, Columbia's Finest or completing the Industrial Revolution online game will be found at The Blue Ribbon.

There are certain Gear drops located close to checkpoints where it may be advantageous to reload the checkpoint until you get the desired Gear. Recommended locations are as follows:

• In the Fraternal Order of Raven, after taking the elevator down from the chapel but before the first battle with a Zealot of the Lady, there is a Gear located in a room hidden behind a bookshelf.
• Battleship Bay when Elizabeth first throws you a coin, there is one Gear located in the room containing a Voxophone at the end of the hallway. There is also potentially another Gear drop gifted by the Interracial Couple if you chose to throw the ball at Fink in Raffle Square, or by Flambeau if you choose to throw it at the couple.
• After the elevator ride from Soldier's Field Main Street in the area before first picking up Bucking Bronco, there is a locked room (1 lockpick) containing a Gear drop and a Gun Automaton.
• In Patriot's Pavilion, there is a locked room (3 lockpicks) in the Ticket building. It is recommended that the checkpoint at the gondola to the Hall of Heroes is triggered after clearing the area, to allow quick looting.
• In the Hall of Heroes there are two Gear drops located in the workshop rooms of either the Beijing or Wounded Knee exhibits. There is also another piece of Gear that can be reached by entering the maintenance room, but the gate requires Shock Jockey to open.
• Inside the Toy Soldiers shop, behind a door that requires Shock Jockey to open.
• Another in Soldier's Field can be found in the hotel room of Preston E. Downs. Opening the door to the hotel room requires Shock Jockey.
• At the Worker Induction Center docks inside the locked trolley (5 lockpicks).
• At the Plaza of Zeal, on the roof above Gunsmith Shop entrance.
• In Shantytown near a broken vending machine right after the stockades.
• Inside the Factory, in the area after the "Fink MFG" sign which gets destroyed by a Vox Beast.
• In Emporia after killing Lady Comstock for the first time at the Memorial Gardens; behind her crypt on the right hand side is another crypt blocked by a gate. Light the two candles either side of the gate using anything that uses fire such as Devil's Kiss and it will open.

Clash in the Clouds

Gear is provided by the Columbian Sundry and Supply vending machine, which can be accessed between the rounds.

Burial at Sea - Episode 1

In contrary to BioShock Infinite, all Gear in Burial at Sea - Episode 1 spawn at a specific location.

• Evil Eye is found on the counter of Workman's Wear, in the Menswear department.
• Surprise Element can be found in Customer Service, behind a locked door in the Bridal Shop.
• Ticket Puncher is located in a dressing room of the Haberdashery, guarded by a Turret.
• Better Mousetrap is found behind one of the booths on the lower floor of The Daily Bread.
• Magic Bullet can be found under a broken elevator in the Pavilion, with a corpse and a safe.
• Roar to Life is located on the other side of some burst pipes in the Appliances store, on top of a desk.
• Death Benefit is found In the Pavilion Station, before taking the tram to Housewares.
• Filthy Leech can be found in a dressing room on the first floor of the Menswear department.
• Quick-Handed is located inside a locked room in the Ladieswear department, guarded by a Turret.
• High and Mighty is found in the locked room in the souvenir shop in Jack Frost's Village. The door requires Shock Jockey to open.

Bugs / Glitches

•     Though not specifically a bug, a design oversight within the game allows the player to obtain every single random Gear item early on, as well as max out on lockpicks and potentially earn infinite amounts of Silver Eagles. During the chapter Return to the Hall of Heroes, reentering and exiting the Hall of Heroes will cause most of the level to reset, allowing the player to loot certain areas ad infinitum. In particular, the shop near the carousel in Soldier's Field has a locked door inside that can be opened with Shock Jockey, though the player must first lift the shop gate to enter. Inside will be a Gear package alongside a Sniper Rifle and lootable pieces of furniture. The gear box respawns - Repeating the above will allow the player to obtain almost every single piece of Gear in the game, save for those with fixed locations.

Removed and renamed Gear from BioShock Infinite

Many of the Gear have the same or similar names to the earlier Nostrum's. Some Gear were renamed, but still have the names used during development still associated with them in some of the games files. Some of these Gear were to be used in the cut Spec Ops game mode though it is unknown if they would have the exact same effects or would have been adjusted for use in Multiplayer. All the information on these removed and renamed Gear come from a file named ++Arc_XGearComponents_SP.INT that was found in the files of the leaked 2012 Beta build of BioShock Infinite.

• AMATEUR ADDICT: Corpses have a 20% chance to drop vigor ammo.
• AMPLIFIER: (Also known SPOOF BOOSTER) You can spoof targets from farther away.
• AMPLIFIER 2: (Also known SPOOF BOOSTER 2) You can spoof targets at much farther distances.
• BLOODPOWEREDPLASMIDS: (Renamed to Health for Salts) When out of Salts, you will use health to cast Vigors.
• BLOODPOWEREDPLASMIDS 2: If you have too little salt for your Vigor, firing it will consume health instead of salt.
• BRONCO STORM: Killing suspended AIs has a 50% chance to suspend nearby AIs.
• CRITHACKING GEAR: During a hack, player gains additional charge from blue hack tiles.
• CRITHACKING GEAR 2: The player can now critically succeed at hacks on on all objects by completing the hack puzzle within a more difficult timeframe. Vendors offer even better prices, safes offer more money, and patriots, callbox summons, turrets do more damage.
• DASHING STRIKE: (Renamed to Deadly Lungers).
• DEMOLITIONIST: (Renamed to Nitro Vest).
• DRIVEN: (Renamed to Drop Cloth).
• ELECTRIC AURA: (Renamed to Shock Jacket) When struck, 50% chance to shock nearby enemies. Victims take 50 damage, vulnerable for 2 seconds.
• ELECTRIC AURA 2: When hit by a melee attack, you have a 100% chance of shocking all nearby enemies.
• EXECUTIONER 2: Melee attacks against enemies who are reacting or knocked down deal 50% more damage and have a high chance to headshot.
• EXPEDITIOUS RETREAT: (Renamed to Hill Runner's Hat).
• EXPEDITIOUS RETREAT 2: (Renamed to PEAK RUNNER'S HAT) Shield breaking increases movement speed 50% faster for 7 seconds.
• FADETOBLACK: Whenever the player's shield breaks, he becomes invisible for 3 seconds. During this time, AIs can't see or hear him, but will still attempt to fire at his last known location.
• FADETOBLACK 2: Whenever the player's shield breaks, he becomes invisible for 6 seconds. During this time, AIs can't see or hear him, but will still attempt to fire at his last known location.
• FIERYAURA: (Renamed to Pyromaniac).
• FIERYAURA 2: When struck by damaging attacks, you will radiate out a pulse of fire incinerating nearby enemies.
• FIGHTER ACE: (Renamed to Nor'easter).
• FIGHTER ACE 2: When you're riding a sky-line, every time you kill an enemy a temporary shield made of ice will form around you.
• FISTE OF FIRE: (Renamed to Burning Halo).
• FLANKING: Do 150% damage to enemies that are not targeting you.
• FOOLS LUCK: (Renamed to Ammo Cap).
• HAMMERBLOWS: Your melee attacks deal 30% more damage and double their power to cause recoils, knockbacks, and knockdowns.
• HAMMERBLOWS 2: Your melee attacks deal 50% more damage and triple their power to cause recoils, knockbacks, and knockdowns.
• HANDYMAN MANHANDLER: (Renamed to Handyman Nemesis).
• HEADHUNTER: (Renamed to Head Master).
• HEADHUNTER 2: Your headshots with precision weapons deal 100% additional bonus damage.
• ICEFLECKEDVIGOR: Bucking Bronco and Murder of Crows have a 75% chance to chill their targets for 5 seconds. Enemies that are chilled take 50% extra damage from all sources.
• ICEFLECKEDVIGOR 2: Bucking Bronco, Murder of Crows, Mesmerize, and Undertow all apply the chilled state for 5 seconds. Enemies that are chilled take extra damage from all sources.
• JOURNALIST: (Renamed to Extra! Extra!).
• LEFT HAND SPELLS LOVE: (Renamed to Kill to Live).
• LEFT HAND SPELLS LOVE 2: The player has a 75% chance to gain a health pack from a successful melee execution.
• MACHINEWHISPERER GEAR: You can "use" allied machines like turrets and Motorized Patriots that you've hacked to heal them for 10% of their total health. There is no cooldown on this effect.
• MACHINEWHISPERER GEAR 2: You can "use" allied machines like turrets and Motorized Patriots that you've hacked to heal them for 35% of their total health. There is no cooldown on this effect.
• MESMERIZING MELEE: (Renamed to Spare the Rod).
• NEIGHBORHOOD CHEMIST : (Also known as AMATURE CHEMIST. Renamed to Blood to Salt).
• NEIGHBORHOOD CHEMIST 2: Corpses have a chance to drop extra salt.
• ONE INCH PUNCH: (Renamed to Bull Rush).
• ONE IN THE CHAMBER: (Renamed to Bullet Boon]]).
• ONE IN THE CHAMBER 2: (Renamed to Ammo Advantage).
• OVERDRIVE: Allies that you've hacked (or Mesmerized) gain 100% bonus health and 50% additional damage output while under your control.
• OVERDRIVE 2: Allies that you've hacked (or Mesmerized) gain 200% bonus health and 100% additional damage output while under your control.
• PHOENIX: (Renamed to Fire Bird).
• PHOENIX 2: When you transfer from a Sky-line to another Sky-line or to the ground causes a wave of fire around you.
• REINFORCED SHIELD: (Renamed to Sheltered Life).
• RIGHTHANDSPELLSHATE: (Renamed to Coat of Harms).
• RIGHTHANDSPELLSHATE 2: The window of low health an enemy has to have to be melee-executable becomes much larger.
• RISINGBLOODLUST 2: Every time you kill an enemy, your damage output increases by 10%. This bonus stacks up to 10 times but resets after 20 seconds without a fatality.
• RUSH PATCH JOB: (Renamed to Urgent Care).
• SECONDCHANCE: (Renamed to Last Man Standing).
• SECONDCHANCE 2: When the player is about to die and kills an enemy, he immediately gains lots of health. Can only happen every few seconds.
• SECURITY SHADOW: (Renamed to Gear Head).
• SKY-LINE ACCURACY 2: Your accuracy when locking-on to an enemy from the sky-line is near-perfect.
• SKYLINE MELEE BOOST: Was to allow the player to jump farther from Sky-lines to melee attack enemies.
• SKYLINE POTENCE: (Renamed to Death from Above).
• SKYLINE POTENCE 2: (Renamed to Eagle Strike).
• SOUL TRAP: (Renamed to Ghost Posse).
• SOUL TRAP 2: (Renamed to Ghost Soldier).
• STORM 2: When an enemy dies, status effects on them (Bucking Bronco, Shock Jockey, Devil's Kiss, Brittle-Skinned) have a high chance to propagate to nearby enemies.
• STUNNING: All of the player's time-based powers (Shock Jockey, Bucking Bronco, Undertow's Bind, Murder of Crows, Mesmerize) last longer.
• STUNNING 2: All of the player's time-based powers (Shock Jockey, Bucking Bronco, Undertow's Bind, Murder of Crows, Mesmerize) last much longer.
• TAINTED LOVE: (Also known as BREACH COAT). When Liz has no instantiation resource, you can open a Tear by sacrificing a large amount of health.
• TAINTED LOVE 2: When Liz has no instantiation resource, you can open a Tear by sacrificing health.
• THIRD HAND: (Renamed to Spectral Sidekick).
• THIRD HAND 2: Dropping weapons will create a ghost posse weapon that will briefly fight for the player, at a cost of some ammo.
• THIRST FOR BLOOD: (Renamed to Vampire's Embrace).
• THIRST FOR BLOOD 2: (Renamed to VAMPYR'S EMBRACE 2). Every time you kill a human with a melee attack, you recover 30% of your health.
• TRICK HANDS: (Renamed to Quick Handed).

Removed Gear from Burial at Sea - Episode 1

• Brittle Bullets: Bullet based weapons shoot brittle bullets that do less direct damage but make enemies take 2x damage for 5 seconds.
• Coat of Harms: Enemies are easier to execute.
• Little Bang Theory: Explosive Crossbow bolts are muffled (stealth is maintained). Likely removed as the Crossbow was cut from the game.
• Make Soup: Performing an Elemental/Plasmid Combo gives a chance to get a Winter Shield.
• SoulTrap: A renamed version of the Ghost Posse Gear.
• System Overload: Enemies killed while affected by two states do an AoE explosion.
• Urgent Care: Decreases shield recharge delay by 1 second, and increases shield recharge at twice the rate.

Gallery

Concept art and Promotional Images

Protecto-Gear, an early version of Gear.

Models for the unused Protecto-Gear by Paul Presley.

Box model for the unused Protecto-Gear.

Concept art for the Gear (and the Whistler and ammunition).

Image from a scrapped store that sold Gear.

A diagram showing an example of a Gear loadout in a Clash in the Clouds gameplay demo.

An unused Gear Icon for an unknown Gear but there is a high possibility it is for a Gear called "Rush Patch Job" that decreased the time for a Health Battery to heal the player.

An Atlas found in the game files linking to both Gear and Nostrums. Icons for Coat of Harms and Fit as a Fiddle are seen here.

BioShock Infinite

Urgent Care, one of the Gear items Booker may come across.

User Interface for picking up a new Gear. The Gear Icon seen here is an earlier version of the Winter Shield Icon.

The Gear Comparison User Interface.

Burial at Sea - Episode 1

A Gear in Rapture.

A Gear display in Fontaine's Department Store.

Gears destroyed and picked clean by Splicers.

Behind the Scenes

• Gear works similar to Rapture's Gene Tonics, especially Gear's specific equip slots in the format of Rapture's Combat, Engineering, and Physical Tonics.
• Before the Gear system was implemented, the game's passive upgrades came in the form of Nostrums, unstable solutions which would have granted the player a variety of permanent bonuses. Though the latter were replaced by Gear, the idea of permanent augmentations survived in the form of Infusions.
• According to the game's files, Gears used to pertain to Lungs, Heart, Brain and Arms before becoming clothing. There are references that there were seven locations that could mount Gear. The Head, Chest, Legs, Waist, Feet, Neck and Pocket.
• At one point in development Gear, called Protecto-Gear, could be found in large boxes. Protecto-Gear was made of leather and seemed to to be some form of armor rather than the later versions that give additional abilities. At one point in development, one of the supplies Elizabeth was able to throw to Booker with was listed as "Armor".
  • The concept art for this was made by Robb Waters.
  • Some Founder and Vox Soldiers are seen to wear armor later in the game. While not the same, this armor looks similar to Protecto-Gear.
• Concept art for the in-game Gear was made by Chris Chaproniere.
• Game files indicate that at one time there was a color coded rarity rating for Gear. There were four different ratings. Common (Green), UnCommon (Light Blue), Rare (Gold) and Epic (Royal Purple). It is unknown how this rarity rating system would have worked in game. It is possible that this rarity system was to be used with the canceled Spec-Ops Co-Op game mode.

• Gear was originally meant to be buyable and switched using the Mendelssohn Kinematic Couture. It was supposedly meant to be used in the same way as Rapture's Gene Bank and Gatherer's Garden, but the idea got scrapped later in development for unknown reasons. However, the vending machine itself is still seen in-game, often in shambles with a single piece of Gear by its side. Files in the game reveal voice clips meant for the store usage, as well as menus allowing Gear options for switching. This implies that you could buy Gear rather than finding it scattered around Columbia.