Challenge Expert 3 asks you to do something that sounds absolutely insane: complete an entire campaign mission using nothing but your sidearm. In a game defined by machine guns, explosives, and vehicle warfare, restricting yourself to a pistol feels like bringing a knife to a gunfight.
But here’s the secret most players miss: certain missions are practically designed for this challenge. With the right mission selection and strategy, you can knock this out in under 20 minutes and walk away with a valuable Hardware XP Booster for your multiplayer grind. Let me show you exactly how.
Understanding Challenge Expert 3 Requirements
Before we dive into strategies, let’s clarify the rules:
The Challenge:
- Complete any single campaign mission using ONLY your pistol
- Cannot fire any primary weapons (assault rifles, SMGs, shotguns, snipers, LMGs)
- Launchers and vehicle weapons are allowed (more on this later)
- Can be completed on any difficulty setting
- Going down and being revived doesn’t fail the challenge
What Counts as Breaking the Rules:
- Firing even a single bullet from a primary weapon
- Picking up and shooting enemy weapons
- Using mounted turrets or stationary weapons (unless specified otherwise)
What’s Allowed:
- Your equipped pistol (obviously)
- Melee takedowns and knife kills
- Grenades and throwables
- Gadgets and equipment
- Vehicle-mounted weapons (tanks, helicopters, etc.)
- Required launcher segments in certain missions
- Letting AI squadmates do the heavy lifting
The key insight: you’re not required to get all kills with your pistol – you just can’t use primary weapons. This opens up some creative strategies.
Best Mission #1: Night Raid (The Optimal Choice)
Night Raid is hands-down the easiest mission for this challenge, and there’s even a trophy/achievement specifically for completing it with only a pistol. That’s basically the developers telling you this is the intended method.
Why Night Raid is Perfect:
Stealth-Heavy Design:
- The first 40-50% of the mission is pure stealth
- You can knife/melee your way through entire sections without firing a shot
- Stealth takedowns don’t require gunfire at all
Limited Enemy Count:
- When combat does break out, enemy numbers are manageable
- Pax Armata troops have minimal armor, making them vulnerable to pistol rounds
- Your AI squad provides substantial fire support
Structured Encounters:
- Combat happens in controlled waves, not overwhelming rushes
- Plenty of cover to work with throughout the mission
- Clear sight lines for pistol engagements
The Best Part: There’s a trophy called “Silent Professional” or similar for beating Night Raid with only your pistol, confirming this is the intended approach for Challenge Expert 3.
Night Raid Step-by-Step Strategy
Phase 1: Stealth Infiltration (First Half)
The mission opens with your squad infiltrating an enemy position under cover of darkness:
Your Approach:
- Use stealth takedowns exclusively – Don’t even draw your pistol yet
- Stick to shadows and cover – The game naturally guides you through stealth routes
- Follow squad callouts – Your AI teammates will mark targets for silent elimination
- Take your time – There’s no timer, so patience is your friend
Pro Tips:
- Crouch-walk everywhere during this phase
- Use your gadgets to distract guards if needed
- If you accidentally alert enemies, retreat and let them reset rather than engaging
- Save your pistol ammo for when stealth inevitably breaks
Most players can get through this entire section without firing a single round. If you’re struggling with stealth mechanics, our campaign missions guide has more detailed stealth tips.
Phase 2: Active Combat (Mid-Mission)
Eventually, things go loud (they always do in Battlefield):
Combat Strategy:
- Let your squad take point – They’re invincible and draw aggro naturally
- Use cover aggressively – Peek, shoot 2-3 times, duck back
- Aim for headshots – Pistols excel at precision damage
- Pick off stragglers – Focus on isolated enemies, not groups
- Use grenades liberally – They don’t count against the challenge
Pistol Combat Tips:
- Tap fire, don’t spam – Pistol recoil gets wild on full-auto
- Engagement distance: 10-25 meters – Closer than rifles, further than shotguns
- Two-tap headshots work on most enemies at this difficulty
- Reload behind cover – Pistol reload times are longer than you think
The limited armor on Pax Armata troops means your pistol actually deals respectable damage. Unlike heavily armored enemies in other missions, these guys drop in 3-4 body shots or 1-2 headshots.
Phase 3: The Helicopter Defense (The Tricky Part)
The final section throws a curveball: you need to defend a position against waves of enemies AND an attack helicopter.
Here’s the Catch: You MUST use a launcher to destroy the helicopter. Sounds like it would fail the challenge, right? Wrong. The launcher doesn’t count as a “primary weapon” for this challenge – it’s required equipment for the mission objective.
Defense Strategy:
Positioning:
- Stay inside the building with your squad
- Don’t venture outside unless absolutely necessary
- Use doorways and windows as chokepoints
- Let enemies come to you rather than pushing out
Dealing With Infantry:
- Camp corners and wait for enemies to enter your kill zone
- Your squad will handle most threats if you stay grouped
- Focus on enemies that get past your squadmates
- Hipfire works at extreme close range when surprised
Dealing With the Helicopter:
- Grab the launcher when prompted
- Lock on and fire at the helicopter
- This DOES NOT fail the challenge – it’s mission-required equipment
- Return to pistol immediately after destroying it
- Finish off remaining ground troops
If You Go Down: Don’t panic. Your squad will revive you automatically if you stay near them. Getting downed doesn’t fail the challenge – only using primary weapons does.
Duration: The entire Night Raid mission takes 15-20 minutes if you play carefully and around 25-30 minutes if you’re being extra cautious with stealth.
Best Mission #2: Nile Guard (The Alternative)
If Night Raid isn’t clicking for you, Nile Guard offers a completely different approach – one that’s arguably even easier, just less “pure” to the challenge’s spirit.
Why Nile Guard Works:
Tank-Heavy Design:
- You spend 60-70% of the mission inside a tank
- Tank weapons don’t count against the pistol-only challenge
- Only one brief infantry section at the very end
Minimal Gunfighting:
- The infantry section has maybe 8-12 enemies total
- Plenty of cover available
- Your squad provides fire support
- Combat duration is under 5 minutes
Already Recommended: We covered this mission in detail in our Challenge Expert 2 guide, and it works just as well here.
Nile Guard Quick Strategy
Tank Section (70% of Mission):
- Just play normally with your tank
- Destroy enemy armor and complete objectives
- Vehicle weapons are allowed for this challenge
- Follow the mission markers until you’re forced to dismount
Infantry Section (30% of Mission):
- Grab the shotgun if you want… then immediately drop it
- Equip only your pistol
- Clear the 8-12 enemies in the final area using the tactics from Night Raid
- Approach the helicopter to end the mission
Total Time: 12-18 minutes depending on your tank driving skills.
The beauty of Nile Guard is that you can fail combat repeatedly during the infantry section and just keep retrying that checkpoint. The tank section is already done, so you’re not replaying a long mission.
Alternative Missions (For the Brave)
While Night Raid and Nile Guard are optimal, some players prefer variety:
The Rock (Short but Intense)
- Duration: 12-15 minutes
- Difficulty: Medium-High
- Requires solid pistol aim and game sense
- More enemy density than Night Raid
- Check our The Rock collectibles guide for mission layout
Moving Mountains (Stealth Option)
- Duration: 20-25 minutes
- Difficulty: Medium
- Has stealth sections you can exploit
- See our Moving Mountains guide for details
NOT RECOMMENDED:
- Always Forward – Too combat-heavy
- Operation Gladius – Heavily armored enemies resist pistol fire
- Operation Ember Strike – Vehicle sections with required primary weapons
Stick with Night Raid or Nile Guard unless you’re trying to challenge yourself specifically.
Essential Tips for Pistol-Only Success
Difficulty Settings Matter
The challenge doesn’t require specific difficulty, so always choose Recruit for Challenge Expert 3. There’s zero benefit to making it harder:
On Recruit:
- Enemies have less health (2-3 pistol shots instead of 5-7)
- They deal less damage to you
- Their AI is less aggressive
- Your revive window is longer if you go down
Save heroic difficulty runs for when you’re NOT handicapped to pistol-only.
Pistol Selection
You’re stuck with whatever pistol your character has for the mission, but here’s what to look for:
Best Pistol Stats:
- Damage per shot > Fire rate
- Magazine capacity – More rounds = fewer vulnerable reloads
- Effective range – Some pistols are better at 20+ meters
In-Mission Pickups: If the mission allows you to choose your loadout beforehand, pick a high-damage pistol. If you’re locked into the mission’s default, work with what you have.
Combat Fundamentals
Headshots Are Critical:
- Body shots take 3-5 hits on average
- Headshots take 1-2 hits on average
- Practice your aim – pistol iron sights are harder than rifle optics
Cover Discipline:
- Never stand in the open
- Peek, shoot 2-3 times, duck back
- Move between cover points during enemy reloads
Ammo Conservation:
- You have limited pistol ammo
- Make every shot count
- Melee enemies when possible to save rounds
Health Management:
- If your screen is red, STOP FIGHTING
- Hide and regenerate before re-engaging
- Use med packs if available in the mission
Audio Awareness
Speaking of awareness, having proper audio settings helps tremendously:
- Use High Dynamics or Default Mix for best enemy detection
- Turn up dialogue to hear squad callouts clearly
- Lower music volume so you can hear enemy footsteps
- Proper audio gives you advance warning of enemy positions
What NOT to Do
Don’t Pick Up Primary Weapons: Even accidentally picking up an enemy rifle can tempt you to use it. If you do grab one, drop it immediately.
Don’t Forget About Equipment: Grenades, flashbangs, and gadgets are your friends. Use them liberally – they don’t count against the challenge.
Don’t Rush: Pistol-only is about patience and precision, not speed. Slow is smooth, smooth is fast.
Don’t Fight Fair: Let your AI squad do heavy lifting. You’re not trying to prove anything – you’re trying to complete a challenge efficiently.
Don’t Skip Checkpoints: If you’re deep into a mission and haven’t used primary weapons, don’t risk it by playing recklessly. Preserve your progress.
Reward: Hardware XP Booster Explained
Completing Challenge Expert 3 unlocks a Hardware XP Booster, which is actually quite valuable:
What It Does:
- Increases XP gains for weapons and equipment
- Does NOT boost player level/rank XP
- Helps you unlock weapon attachments and camos faster
- Stackable with other XP boosts
Why It Matters: Leveling up individual weapons in multiplayer can be a grind. This booster helps you unlock the best attachments faster, making your weapon loadouts more competitive sooner.
How to Activate: Check our XP Boosters guide for detailed instructions on using your reward.
Complete Challenge Checklist
✅ Select Night Raid or Nile Guard
✅ Set difficulty to Recruit
✅ Equip your best pistol (if selectable)
✅ Complete mission using only pistol, melee, grenades
✅ Launchers and vehicle weapons are allowed
✅ Don’t pick up or fire any primary weapons
✅ Claim your Hardware XP Booster reward
Combining Challenges for Efficiency
Smart players stack challenges when possible:
Night Raid Can Complete:
- Challenge Expert 3 (Pistol Only) – this guide
- Collectibles for that mission – our Night Raid collectibles guide
- Campaign-specific trophies/achievements
Nile Guard Can Complete:
- Challenge Expert 2 (No Revives) – our Challenge Expert 2 guide
- Challenge Expert 3 (Pistol Only) – this guide
- Collectibles – our Nile Guard collectibles guide
Pro Strategy: If you’re confident, attempt Nile Guard with both pistol-only AND no revives simultaneously. It’s harder but saves time if you succeed.
Troubleshooting Common Issues
“I keep dying in the final section of Night Raid”
- Stay inside the building, don’t venture out
- Let your squad handle most enemies
- Use doorways as choke points
- Remember: you can get revived, it doesn’t fail the challenge
“My pistol damage feels too weak”
- You’re probably not on Recruit difficulty
- Focus on headshots instead of body shots
- Let your squad soften targets before you engage
“I accidentally picked up a rifle”
- Drop it immediately (weapon swap button)
- As long as you didn’t fire it, you’re fine
- Be more careful around weapon pickups
“The challenge didn’t complete after finishing”
- You likely fired a primary weapon at some point
- Restart the mission and try again
- Double-check you’re not using restricted weapons
Final Thoughts: Easier Than It Sounds
Challenge Expert 3 initially sounds brutal, but with the right mission selection, it’s actually one of the easier expert challenges. Night Raid’s stealth focus and Nile Guard’s tank segments mean you’re not really handicapped for most of the mission.
The key mindset shift: you’re not trying to beat the mission with just a pistol in the traditional sense. You’re exploiting mission design to minimize gunfighting, then handling the small combat sections with a sidearm. It’s more about smart mission choice than raw pistol skill.
Compare this to Challenge Expert 1 (no firing weapons) or Challenge Expert 4 (30 headshots), and you’ll realize pistol-only is actually quite manageable.
Ready to earn that Hardware XP Booster? Load up Battlefield 6, select Night Raid on Recruit difficulty, and show the campaign who’s boss with nothing but your sidearm. The Battlefield community will respect the hustle.
For more campaign challenges and guides, check out our complete Achievements & Trophies Guide to track your progress toward 100% completion.
Now get out there and prove that sometimes, less really is more. Your pistol is waiting.
