..Mass Effect 3..

(Continuation)

Click on any of these shortcuts to see the different sections of our Mass Effect 3 Multiplayer Guide:

• Introduction
• Choosing your Class
  • The Adept
  • The Soldier
  • The Infiltrator
  • The Engineer
  • The Sentinel
  • The Vanguard
• The Games
• The Opponents
  • Cerberus
  • Geth
  • Reapers
• Unlockables and Galactic Readiness

The Soldier

Specialization: Weaponry

Roles: Tank, Damage Dealer, Weapons Specialist, Melee

Ideal Loadout: Assault Rifles and Shotguns. The Mattock will be your best friend. Otherwise, use whatever you want - you're the weapons guy, after all. If you're a Krogan, feel free to just wield a shotgun, and come out the door swinging.

Strengths:  Can take an extreme amount of punishment, and deals obscene damage when built properly. Concussive shot is an excellent stun tactic, and Frag Grenade is ideal for taking on groups of enemies.

Weaknesses: Heavily reliant on weaponry, with few powers compared to other classes. May have trouble with biotic enemies and shielded foes.

Races:

Human [Adrenaline Rush, Concussive Shot, Frag Grenade, Alliance training, Fitness(Soldier]

Krogan [Carnage, Fortification, Inferno Grenade, Krogan Berserker, Rage]

Turian [Marksman, Concussive Shot, Proximity Mine, Turian Veteran, Fitness(Soldier)]

Battlefield 3 [Adrenaline Rush, Carnage, Frag Grenade, Alliance Training, Fitness(Soldier)]

Play If:

• You're a fan of the "shoot it until it's dead" approach.
• You want to be capable of shrugging off massive amounts of damage.

Avoid If:

• You want to rely more on powers than gunplay.
• You're looking for a class that's a little more versatile.

Tips:

• As I've already said, assault rifles are your friend. The Mattock is one of the best in the game, and becomes downright godly once fully upgraded.
• Fitness and Alliance Training are both very important abilities for the soldier, who relies on their hit points and weapon damage more than any other class.
• The only Soldier who can effectively go full melee is the Krogan. Everyone else is probably better off gunning down their foes.

The Infiltrator

Specialization: Tech

Roles: Stealth, Ranged Damage

Ideal Loadout: Sniper Rifles. Boom, headshot.

Strengths: Deadly in the hands of someone who knows how to land a headshot, ability to cloak allows for easy disengagement from hairy situations, can complete objectives while cloaked. 

Weaknesses:  When you do get hit, you're going to feel it. Since your shields don't recharge while cloaked, you've gotta keep a close eye on your health. Close combat is death for an infiltrator.

Races:

Human [Sticky Grenade, Tactical Cloak, Cryo Blast, Alliance Training, Fitness (Infiltrator)]

Salarian [Energy Drain, Tactical Cloak, Proximity Mine, Salarian Operative, Fitness (Infiltrator)]

Quarian [Sticky Grenade, Tactical Cloak, Sabotage, Quarian Defender, Fitness (Infiltrator)]

Play If:

• You're that player who always goes for the sniper rifle in shooters.
• You favor indirect confrontation and stealth over direct, explosive firefights.
• You want to be able to complete objectives quickly, cleanly, and efficiently as possible, while everyone else mops up the enemies.

Avoid If:

• You aren't skilled at landing headshots with a sniper rifle.
• You prefer something a little more direct.
• You enjoy close-quarters combat rather than distance fighting.

Tips:

• Caution is extremely important as an infiltrator. Let the Vanguards and Soldiers run screaming into the fray. Hang back, and pick off enemies before they're even aware of you.
• As an addendum to the above, don't get cocky, and don't rush things. Go at a slow, careful pace.
• Your shields don't regenerate while cloaked. Remember that. It might be worth falling back from danger for a bit and letting your shields recharge, rather than risking your life to pick up a kill.
• If you're human, chances are good that you'll have some trouble with barriers and shields. Make sure you've got a biotic or tech specialist handy to take care of them.

The Engineer

Specialization: Tech

Roles: Damage, Defense

Ideal Loadout:  As with the Adept, you're going to want to go with weapons that have as little an impact on your cool-downs as possible. Ranged weaponry is a good choice for the engineer, given their ability to spawn drones, turrets, and decoys.

Strengths:  Engineers are a synthetics' worst nightmare. Incinerate tears armor to shreds, Overload is a devastatingly powerful ability, and the ability to spawn drones, decoys, or turrets makes the Engineer a perfect choice to defend an objective. Given that most of your enemies have at least some synthetic components, a well-played engineer is an angel of death on the battlefield.

Weaknesses: Same deal as Adepts. They don't have much in the way of damage mitigation, and against enemies that utilize Biotics, they might fall somewhat short without a fully-upgraded Overload. Against larger groups of enemies, they may start to run into trouble, as well. In higher difficulties, their drones/turrets can leave something to be desired in damage.

Races:  

Human [Incinerate, Overload, Combat Drone, Alliance Training, Fitness (Engineer)]

Quarian (Incinerate, Cryo Blast, Sentry Turret, Quarian Defender, Fitness (Engineer)]

Salarian(Incinerate, Energy Drain, Decoy, Salarian Operative, Fitness (Engineer)]

Play If:

• You want to be able to dig in and set up a defensive perimeter, letting your enemies come to you.
• You want to be devastatingly effective against the Geth and several Reaper/Cerberus troops.

Avoid If:

• You favor a more direct role in combat, and prefer attack to defense.
• You're looking for more damage mitigation.

Tips:

• Overload (or energy drain for the Salarian) is your bread and butter. Max it as soon as possible, along with Combat Drone/Sentry Turret/Decoy.
• Incinerate is incredibly useful for taking down armored targets, and can also be used to great effect against weaker enemies.
• As I've stated, ranged weaponry's a good choice for an engineer, though you can also pick up a shotgun if you're planning on holing up in enclosed quarters.

(Continued on the Next Page...)