Sawerin
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Mass Effect. Class Guide: Soldier.
At the very beginning of Mass Effect 3 you will be offered to choose a warrior class. All of them offer different abilities, tactical maneuvers, strategy tricks and specials. Each class has a corresponding class talent which improves abilities important to that class. Some of class talents will be at your service from the very beginning, others have to be unlocked while you progress through the game. Here’s the list of available classes in Mass Effect 3:
1. Adept;
2. Engineer;
3. Infiltrator;
4. Soldier;
5. Sentinel;
6. Vanguard.
Soldier
Soldiers are soldiers and that pretty much explain everything. These are tough guys with big guns ready to do everything their authorities are willing to command. Soldiers are always ready to face their enemies in close combat and are not afraid of using all special ammo types as well as grenades. Their ability to carry heavy guns turns soldiers into the deadliest tools of war. They do not bother much about powers and if you find this occupation boring too, playing as a soldier will allow you to complete the game mostly like a shooter. Soldiers are allowed to carry the heaviest and the best weapons in the game and the only power that should be used constantly in the battle is Adrenaline Rush. Also, Combat Mastery gives them an incredible amount of extra weight capacity. On the top of all – soldiers have more health than any other class which is perfect for run and gun activity.
Powers
Class powers
Adrenaline Rush
Adrenaline Rush is one of the most important powers in soldier’s arsenal. Soldiers are pretty tough guys themselves but with the Adrenaline Rush they can do crazy things. When activated, it does the following:
- Slows down time;
- Increases damage;
- Reduces damage taken (in particular situations);
- Gives a small boost to shields (in particular situations);
On the top of that Adrenaline Rush can automatically replenish your clip meaning that you can shoot nonstop without the need to reload the gun. When it runs out of ammo, but you are in the state of Adrenaline Rush, it will automatically start using the reserve (of course, if there is one). This can be really useful with the weapon that has slow fire rate or reload time. A good example is a powerful sniper rifle or a shotgun. If by any chance your soldier suffers from high damages from all the enemies, it might be a good idea to take the Rank 4 Hardened evolution and the Rank 6 Shield Boost evolution power. They will improve the situation seriously. Adrenaline Rush is not that effective against tougher enemies but if you have it upgraded up to rank 6 Shield Boost, you can at least get away from a bad scenario, especially when you are surrounded by enemies. Also, Adrenaline Rush can be activated while running giving you even more time to either hide or attack. And, if you choose Shield Strength evolution, during Adrenaline Rush some of your shields will restore.
Adrenaline Rush: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Adrenaline Rush
Recharge Speed: 10 sec (6 sec multiplayer)
Duration: 4 sec
Weapon Damage Bonus: 50%
Time Dilation: 30%
Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec (4.80 sec multiplayer)
Duration: 4 sec
Weapon Damage Bonus: 50%
Time Dilation: 30%
Rank 3: Duration
Increases duration by 30%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec (4.80 sec multiplayer)
Duration: 5.20 sec
Weapon Damage Bonus: 50%
Time Dilation: 30%
Rank 4: Hardening/Damage
Decreases Health and Shield damage taken by 25%. (40% multiplayer)
Damage: increases damage by 25%. (20% multiplayer)
Increases Time Dilation by 15%
Recharge Speed: 8 sec (4.80 sec multiplayer)
Duration: 5.20 sec
Weapon Damage Bonus: 75% (70% multiplayer)
Time Dilation: 45%
Rank 5: Duration/Melee Damage
Duration: increases duration by 40%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec (4.80 sec multiplayer)
Duration: 6.80 sec
Hardening: 50%
Weapon Damage: 75% (70% multiplayer)
Time Dilation: 30% (Hardening), 45% (Damage)
Melee Damage: increase melee damage by 50%
Rank 6: Shield Boost/Power Use
Shield Boost: increases shield strength by 50%. (100% multiplayer)
Power Use: use 1 offensive power while Adrenaline Rush is active.
Concussive Shot
Concussive Shot is not, actually, a damaging attack but at the same time it can stun small enemies or even knock them off their feet. By the way: with proper aiming concussive shot can also be curved around cover to flush out enemies and this might be more than just helpful. Concussive shot is surprisingly effective against Cerberus Phantoms and also can be used to interrupt the firing animation of Cerberus Nemeses or Reaper Ravagers. However, it is very ineffective against larger enemies like Atlases, Geth Primes, Brutes and Banshees. If the targeted enemy is suspended by biotic powers, the physics damage from the shot will be multiplied and depending on the power evolution, the impact of Concussive Shot can send the enemy flying a significant distance. By aiming slowly off the target and due to the fact that projectiles travel in an arc, you can take off enemies hiding behind the cover. One of the biggest problems about Concussive Shot is that it is pretty useless against protected enemies, so that is why Acolyte will be a perfect companion for this power. Acolyte is powerful enough to cope with Phantoms’ easily. When the shields are down, you can concentrate on using Concussive Shot and send a particular enemy to the other dead in no time. You should also consider combining Warp Ammo with the level 6 Amplification evolution of Concussive Shot. This allows your Concussive Shot to detonate Biotic Explosions on enemies already under the effect of biotics. When used correctly it can be very devastating.
Concussive Shot: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Concussive Shot
Flatten your enemy with a precise blast at short or long range.
Recharge Speed: 5 sec
Damage: 100 (200 multiplayer)
Force: 300 N
Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25%.
Recharge Speed: 4 sec
Rank 3: Force & Damage
Increases force and damage by 20%.
Damage: 120 (240 multiplayer)
Force: 360 N
Rank 4: Force & Damage/Radius
Force & Damage: increases force and damage by 30%.
Damage: 150 (300 multiplayer)
Force: 450 N
Radius: increases impact radius by 1.50 meters.
Rank 5: Shatter/Recharge Speed
Shatter: increases force and damage to frozen targets by 100%.
Increases recharge speed by 35%.
Recharge Speed: 3.13 sec
Rank 6: Amplification/Shredder (Singleplayer)
Amplification: Power Concussive Shot with the properties of the active ammo power, enabling it to burn, freeze, disrupt, warp, or pierce armor.
Damage: +15%
Shredder: increases damage to organics by 100% over 10 seconds. Increase force by 50%.
Force: 600 N (Force & Damage), 510 (Radius)
Rank 6: Hammer/Shredder (Multiplayer)
Hammer: increases damage by 50% and radius by 1 meters.
Damage: 400 (Force & Damage), 340 (Radius)
Radius: +2m (Force & Damage), +3.5m (Radius)
Shredder: increases damage to organics by 200% over 10 seconds. Increase force by 50%.
Force: +50%
Frag Grenade
Frag Grenades are called that way for a particular reason: they literary rip your enemies apart with the shrapnel giving you an opportunity to win the match or eliminate the enemy in one throw. They also specialize in taking out squads of enemies and usually detonate 1 second after they come into contact with the surface. However, if you hit a target with a frag grenade – it will detonate immediately. This is especially useful when fighting heavy armored or heavy shielded enemies. Also, with just a few updates you can turn frag grenades into even deadlier weapon. By the way: if your enemy is on fire and you kill him with a frag grenade, the Fire Explosion will be produced hitting the nearby standing targets.
Frag Grenade: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Frag Grenade
Rip your enemies apart with this shrapnel-packed grenade.
Damage: 600 (900 multiplayer)
Radius: 6.50 m
Rank 2: Max Grenades
Increases grenade capacity by 1.
Rank 3: Damage
Increases damage by 20%.
Damage: 720 (1080 multiplayer)
Radius: 6.50 m
Rank 4: Damage/Radius
Damage: increases damage by 30%.
Damage: 900 (1350 multiplayer)
Radius: 6.50 m
Radius: increases impact radius by 30%.
Damage: 720 (1080 multiplayer)
Radius: 8.45 m
Rank 5: Max Grenades/Bleed Damage
Max Grenades: increases grenade capacity by 2.
Bleed Damage: increases damage to organics by 40% (50% multiplayer) over 10 seconds (5 seconds multiplayer).
Rank 6: Armor-Piercing/Shield Overload
Armor-Piercing: increases damage to armor by 50% (75% multiplayer).
Shield Overload: increases damage to shields by 50% (75% multiplayer).
Fitness
Fitness is soldier’s passive attack and can be used to boost your melee damage and your shields or health. It might be a good idea to update your fitness level to rank 3 adding extra 25% to shield strength. However, you should leave the rest for later. This power becomes available at Level 3 for Soldiers in single-player.
Fitness: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Fitness
Health & Shield Bonus: +15%
Melee Damage Bonus: +15%
Rank 2: Durability
Increases health and shield bonuses by 10%.
Health & Shield Bonus: +25%
Rank 3: Melee Damage
Increases melee damage by 20%.
Melee Damage Bonus: +35%
Rank 4: Melee Damage/Durability
Melee Damage: increases melee damage bonus by 30%.
Melee Damage Bonus: +65%
Durability: increases Health and shield bonuses by 15%.
Health & Shield Bonus: +40%
Rank 5: Martial Artist/Shield Recharge
Martial Artist: increases melee damage by 75% for 30 seconds after an enemy is killed by a heavy melee.
Shield Recharge: decreases shield recharge delay by 15%.
Rank 6: Melee Synergy/Fitness Expert
Melee Synergy: increases melee damage bonus by 30%.
Increase weapon damage bonus by 25% for 20 seconds after an enemy is killed by a heavy melee.
Melee Damage Bonus: +95% (Melee Damage), +65% (Durability)
Fitness Expert: increases health and shield bonuses by 25%.
Health & Shield Bonus: +65% (Durability), +50% (Melee Damage)
Combat Mastery
Combat Mastery is another soldier’s passive power and it also focuses on character's health and weapon damage. However, in addition it can upgrade player's storm speed. On the top of that you are going to get bonuses to Paragon and Renegade points. Do not forget to add bonus to Reputation as well.
Combat Mastery: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Combat Mastery
More speed.
More strength.
More charisma.
Reputation Bonus: 4%
Weapon Damage Bonus: 5%
Weight Capacity Bonus: 20
Rank 2: Influence & Mastery
Increases weapon damage bonus by 5%.
Increases reputation bonus by 4%.
Reputation Bonus: 8%
Weapon Damage Bonus: 10%
Weight Capacity Bonus: 20
Rank 3: Influence & Capacity
Increases reputation bonus by 4%.
Increases weight capacity bonus by 30 points.
Reputation Bonus: 12%
Weapon Damage Bonus: 10%
Weight Capacity Bonus: 50
Rank 4: Damage/Influence & Duration
Damage: increases weapon damage bonus by 5%.
Increases power damage by 10%.
Reputation Bonus: 12%
Weapon Damage Bonus: 15%
Weight Capacity Bonus: 50
Influence & Duration: increases power duration by 25%. Increases reputation bonus by 8%.
Reputation Bonus: 20%
Weapon Damage Bonus: 10%
Weight Capacity Bonus: 50
Rank 5: Squad Bonus/Headshots
Squad Bonus: increases squadmate weapon damage by 20%.
Headshots: increases headshot damage by 20%.
Rank 6: Weight Capacity/Weapon Master
Weight Capacity: increases weight capacity bonus by 50 points.
Weapon Master: increases weapon damage bonus by 10%.
Increases damage of all ammo powers by 40%
Cryo Ammo
Cryo Ammo is an ammo power and does pretty much what you expect it to do: it freezes unprotected enemies and slows their movement speed. Cryo Ammo also reduces damage protection when used against hardened armored targets: Brutes, Cannibals and Husks suffer from its impact by the percentage listed below. The only unpleasant thing about this power is that it brings no bonuses to the weapon damage which kind of sucks.
Cryo Ammo: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Cryo Ammo
Flash freeze and shatter unprotected enemies.
Slow down the rest.
Freeze Duration: 3 sec
Movement Speed: -15%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Rank 2: Freeze Chance
Improves the odds of freezing a target by 30%.
Rank 3: Freeze Duration
Increases freeze duration by 40%.
Freeze Duration: 4.2 sec
Movement Speed: -15%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Rank 4: Freeze Duration/Squad Bonus
Freeze Duration: increases freeze duration by 40%.
Freeze Duration: 5.9 sec
Movement Speed: -15%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Squad Bonus: squadmates gain Cryo Ammo at 50% effectiveness.
Rank 5: Ammo Capacity/Headshots
Ammo Capacity: increases ammo capacity by 30%.
Headshots: increases headshot to frozen enemies by 35%.
Rank 6: Freeze Chance/Damage Combo
Freeze Chance: improves the odds of freezing a target by 50%.
Decrease a frozen target's movement speed by an additional 20%.
Damage Combo: increases damage to frozen targets from all sources by 50%.
Weaken the armor of chilled targets by 25%.
Disruptor Ammo
Disruptor Ammo is the ammunition capacity boost and only applies on the active ammo power. This is not a bad power but I would not recommend investing in it right away as far as there are lots of other things you might consider adding to your Mass Effect personality. However, Disruptor Ammo is very effective against Geth and Cerberus and fighting them with Disruptor Ammo is rather a pleasure than a challenge. This power makes a perfect couple with Tech Bursts and when you have one, use it first and then throw a Frag Grenade or launch a Concussive Shot. This will either stun or make organic enemies to panic.
Disruptor Ammo: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Disruptor Ammo
Bring down your enemy's barrier and shields.
Chance to stun.
More weapon damage.
More damage to shields and barriers.
Health Damage Bonus: 5%
Shield & Barrier Damage: 20%
Rank 2: Stun
Improves the odds of stunning a target by 15%
Rank 3: Damage
Increases health damage bonus by 2%
Increases shield and barrier damage bonuses by 8%
Health Damage Bonus: 7%
Shield & Barrier Damage: 28%
Rank 4: Damage/Squad Bonus
Damage: increases health damage bonus by 3%
Increases shield and barrier damage bonuses by 12%
Health Damage Bonus: 10%
Shield & Barrier Damage: 40%
Squad Bonus: squadmates gain Disruptor Ammo at 50% effectiveness.
Rank 5: Ammo Capacity/Headshots
Ammo Capacity: increases ammo capacity by 30%
Headshots: increase headshot damage by 25%
Rank 6: Damage/Stun
Damage: increase health damage bonus by 5%.
Increases shield and barrier damage by 20%.
Health Damage Bonus: 15%
Shield & Barrier Damage: 60%
Incendiary Ammo
Incendiary Ammo is another ammunition capacity boost that only applies on the active ammo power. This power is extremely effective against enemy armor. Due to its penetration peculiarities, Incendiary Ammo is capable of burning the already mentioned armor and quickly take down the shield. However, it is not effective against Geth but it causes panic reaction against organic enemies. The way Incendiary Ammo destroys the armor is called Explosive Burst and here’s how it works:
- Explosive Burst has a 50/50 chance to trigger from any shot and weapons fire rate is not the deciding factor. However, automatic weapons benefit the most.
- Explosive Burst won’t harm enemies using shields but it will harm those standing next to the shielded person.
- Explosive Burst allows guns with low damage to become more effective against armor.
- Explosive Burst deals immediate damage but does not always sets the enemy on fire. However, the Explosive Burst explosion has a chance to make the surrounding enemies panic.
- Explosive Burst gets really devastating when used with high rate of fire weapons such as the Geth Pulse Rifle.
Incendiary Ammo: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Incendiary Ammo
Shoot and your enemies will burst into flames.
More weapon damage.
Weakens Armor.
Chance to make an enemy panic
Weapon Damage Bonus: +10.50%
Armor Damage Bonus: +10.50%
Rank 2: Panic
Improves the odds of panicking an enemy by 15%
Rank 3: Damage
Increases health and armor damage bonuses by 4%
Weapon Damage Bonus: +14.50%
Armor Damage Bonus: +14.50%
Rank 4: Damage/Squad Bonus
Damage: increases health and armor damage bonuses by 6%
Weapon Damage Bonus: +20.50%
Armor Damage Bonus: +20.50%
Squad Bonus: squadmates gain Incendiary Ammo bonus at 50% effectiveness
Rank 5: Ammo Capacity/Headshots
Ammo Capacity: increases ammo capacity by 30%.
Headshots: increases headshot damage by 25%
Rank 6: Damage/Explosive Burst
Damage: increases health and armor damage bonuses by 10%
Weapon Damage Bonus: +30.50%
Armor Damage Bonus: +30.50%
Explosive Burst: ignites enemies with an intermittent explosion that covers 2.50 meters for 105.00 damage
Bonus Powers
Fortification
When you are taking heavy damages from enemies, Fortification is exactly THE power you need to turn to “In case of Emergency.” When being used, it provides a substantial boost to melee damage. Playing as a soldier usually requires you to run into the battle and fight enemies at closer ranges which also opens a totally different perspective. Fortification is not something extremely unique and special. Its basic and predictable enough feature is that it dramatically increases power cooldown times, thought it changes almost nothing in your combat abilities. The good thing about Fortification is that it can be activated while moving and you do not have to stop in order to turn on this power effect. If you want to add extra damage to your melee attacks, you’ll need to purge Fortification every 20 seconds. Even with a lot of extra weight Fortification’s cooldown time is pretty quick which means you can take a heavy loadout and still remain fairly effective. Or, you can forget about the heavy weapon and concentrate on something really light for near-instantaneous cooldowns.
Fortification: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Fortification
Reinforce armor using protective Foucault currents.
Purge the current and send its charge to your gauntlets for increased melee damage.
Slows power usage by 60% (50% multiplayer).
Recharge Speed: 5 sec
Damage Reduction: 15% (25% multiplayer)
Melee Damage Bonus: 50%
Melee Damage Duration: 20 sec
Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25% when armor is purged.
Recharge Speed: 4 sec
Rank 3: Melee Damage
Increases melee damage bonus by 20% when armor is purged.
Melee Damage Bonus: 70%
Rank 4: Durability/Melee Damage
Durability: increases damage protection by 5%.
Damage Reduction: 20% (30% multiplayer)
Melee Damage: increases melee damage bonus by 30% when armor is purged.
Melee Damage Bonus: 100%
Rank 5: Recharge Speed/Power Synergy
Recharge Speed: increases shield recharge rate by 15%.
Power Synergy: increases power damage and force by 20% (30% multiplayer) while fortification is active.
Rank 6: Power Recharge/Durability
Power Recharge: reduces power speed penalty by 30%.
Power Speed Penalty: 30% (20% Multiplayer)
Durability: increases damage protection by 10%.
Damage Reduction: 30% (40% multiplayer) (Durability), 25% (35% multiplayer) (Melee Damage)
Defense Matrix
Defense Matrix is very good for reducing significant damage. When in use, it restores a portion of your shield and can even be evolved to fully restore shields. Those soldiers who are focused on running in the room and fighting all the bad guys by themselves will definitely enjoy this power because it is perfect for tanking characters. The shield restore can increase the total amount of damage Shepard can survive much more than the amount of shielding would seem to indicate. This happens because of the Shield Gate effect.
Defense Matrix: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Defense Matrix
Reinforce armor with protective foucault currents. Purge the currents to restore shields.
Slows power use by 60%.
Recharge Speed: 10 sec
Damage Reduction: 15%
Shields Restored: 50%
Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec
Rank 3: Shield Bonus
Increases shield restoration by 20% when purging armor.
Shields Restored: 70%
Rank 4: Durability/Shield Bonus
Durability: increases damage protection by 5%.
Damage Reduction: 20%
Shield Bonus: increases shield restoration by 30% when purging armor.
Shields Restored: 100%
Rank 5: Shield Recharge/Power Synergy
Shield Recharge: decreases shield-recharge delay by 15%
Power Synergy: increases tech power damage by 25% while Defense Matrix is active.
Rank 6: Power Recharge/Durability
Power Recharge: reduces power speed penalty by 30%.
Power Speed Penalty: 30%
Durability: increases damage protection by 10%.
Damage Reduction: +10%
Barrier
Barrier is good for providing significant damage reduction. When in use it lifts and damages the nearby standing enemies. It also provides close-range crowd control to the soldier. It does increase your cooldown time but when playing with light weapon in your arms, you won’t have any problems with that. Barrier has almost no animation and is activated instantly. Your screen will turn bluish-purple for a few seconds and then things will turn back to normal. However, the only vulnerable part of this state is when the character throws his head backwards.
Barrier: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Barrier
Recharge Speed: 10 sec
Damage Reduction: 15% (25% multiplayer)
Blast Damage: 90 (500 multiplayer)
Blast Radius: 3 m
Rank 2: Recharge
Increases recharge speed after detonation by 25%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec
Damage Reduction: 15% (25% multiplayer)
Blast Damage: 90
Blast Radius: 3 m
Rank 3: Blast Effect
Increases damage, force and radius of the detonation by 20%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec
Damage Reduction: 15% (25% multiplayer)
Blast Damage: 135 (600 multiplayer)
Blast Radius: 4.5 m
Rank 4: Blast Effect/Barrier Strength
Blast Effect: increases damage, force, and radius of the detonation by 30%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec
Damage Reduction: 15% (25% multiplayer)
Blast Damage: 162 (750 multiplayer)
Blast Radius: 5.4 m
Barrier Strength: decreases damage taken by 5%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec
Damage Reduction: 20% (30% multiplayer)
Blast Damage: 135 (600 multiplayer)
Blast Radius: 4.5 m
Rank 5: Shield Recharge/Power Synergy
Shield Recharge: increases shield regeneration rate by 15% while Barrier is active.
Power Synergy: increases power damage and force by 25% (30% multiplayer) while Barrier is active.
Rank 6: Power Recharge/Barrier Strength
Power Recharge: reduces power speed penalty by 30%.
Barrier Strength: increases damage protection by 10%.
Damage Reduction:
Blast Effect: 25% (35% multiplayer)
Barrier Strength: 30% (40% multiplayer)
Blast Damage: 162 (750 multiplayer) (Blast Effect), 135 (600 multiplayer) (Barrier Strength)
Blast Radius: 5.4 m (Blast Effect), 4.5 m (Barrier Strength)
Energy Drain
Energy Drain is a perfect addition to your soldier’s abilities because it is one of those things that will deal with barriers and shields nice and easy. Also, its shield restoring properties provide an alternative to the armor-type powers. Energy Drain replenishes player's shields when it hits any synthetic enemy protected by a barrier or a shield. It is also a perfect way to take down Turrets and Atlases. Using this ability on higher difficulties can turn this power into is a useful survival tool, again, by weakening enemies and restoring precious shielding at the same time. Using Energy Drain against Geth can turn you into almost invincible character and here’s the reason why: with a short recharge time Energy Drain will restore your shields and stun enemies faster than they can kill you. Pretty cool, don’t you find? At Rank 4 Energy Drain is very useful in taking down large groups of enemies due to its Radius improvement. And let’s not forget about multiplayer: it might not be the deadliest power there but it will almost always stun enemies making them very vulnerable.
Energy Drain: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Energy Drain
Hit an enemy with this energy pulse to inflict damage and to steal barrier and shield power.
Recharge Time: 8 seconds
Damage: 220 points
Radius: 1.50 meters
Shields Restored: 50%
Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25%.
Recharge Time: 6.40 seconds
Rank 3: Damage
Increases damage by 20%.
Damage: 264 points
Rank 4: Damage/Radius
Damage: increases damage by 30%.
Damage: 330 points
Radius: increases impact radius by 100%.
Rank 5: Drain/Recharge Speed
Drain: increases shield restoration rate by 50% when draining shields, barriers or power from synthetic enemies.
Shields Restored: 100%
Recharge Speed: increases recharge speed by 25%.
Recharge Time: 5.33 seconds
Rank 6: Damage/Armor Boost
Damage: increases damage by 40%.
Damage: 418 (Damage), 352 (Radius)
Armor Boost: reduces damage taken by 15% (40% multiplayer) for 10 seconds by gaining a temporary layer of armor by draining shields, barriers or energy from synthetics.
Marksman
Marksman is an interesting alternative to Adrenaline Rush. It is most useful with weapons that have very high recoil, weapons that fire at very high rates, or weapons that have good damage, but poor rate of fire (like the M-12 Locust, M-99 Saber, or M-97 Viper). Unfortunately, semi-auto rifles like the Vindicator or the Mattock don't benefit that much. Marksman power is kind of a tricky power and works like this: it DOES NOT increase the actual damage but it increases the damage per second. In other words – if you happen to have a single shot weapon, it is not recommended to use this power. Also, even with the Adrenaline Rush bonus you won’t be able to activate Marksman during Adrenaline Rush. Marksman's main benefit is its accuracy bonus. With the help of Marksman you can turn some rifles into 100% accurate weapon. Needless to say that this will increase the number of headshots bringing you more and more headshot bonuses.
Marksman: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Marksman
Boost weapon accuracy and firing rate for a short time.
Recharge Speed: 10 sec (6 multiplayer)
Duration: 6 sec
Rate-of-Fire Bonus: 30% (25% multiplayer)
Accuracy Bonus: 30% (35% multiplayer)
Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec (4.80 multiplayer)
Rank 3: Duration
Increases duration by 30%.
Duration: 7.80 sec
Rank 4: Accuracy/Firing Rate
Accuracy: increases accuracy by 30%. (15% multiplayer)
Accuracy Bonus: 60% (50% multiplayer)
Firing Rate: increases firing rate bonus by 20%. (15% multiplayer)
Rate-of-Fire Bonus: 50% (40% multiplayer)
Rank 5: Duration/Headshots
Duration: increases duration by 40%.
Duration: 10.20 sec
Headshots: increases headshot damage by 25%.
Rank 6: Accuracy and Firing Rate/Recharge Speed
Accuracy and Firing Rate: increases Accuracy and Firing Rate bonuses by 20%. (10% multiplayer)
Accuracy Bonus: 80% (60% multiplayer) (Accuracy), 50% (35% multiplayer) (Fire Rate)
Rate-of-Fire Bonus: 50% (45% multiplayer) (Accuracy), 70% (50% multiplayer) (Fire Rate)
Recharge Speed: increases Recharge Speed by 40%.
Recharge Speed: 6.06 sec (3.63 multiplayer)
Warp Ammo
Warp Ammo is the ammunition capacity boost and can be applied only on the active ammo power. It can serve as a penetration tool with pretty good armor and barriers damaging possibilities. On the top of that it has a fair bonus in damaging health and when used in conjunction with the lifting powers, it can do even more damage. Warp Ammo is very effective against armor used by Atlases, Ravagers or Geth Pyros but it is pretty useless against armor plates protected enemies like Brutes, Cannibals or Husks. When combined with the Rank 6 Amplification evolution of Concussive Shot, Warp Ammo allows the Concussive Shot to detonate Biotic Explosions. This happens under the effect of biotic powers such as Singularity, Pull or Slam. But, this detonation is less powerful than a detonation triggered by a power such as Warp or Reave.
Warp Ammo: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Warp Ammo
Blast vulnerable opponents already lifted by biotics for a damage bonus, and weaken the armor of grounded targets.
More weapon damage. More damage to barriers and armor.
Health Damage Bonus: 15%
Armor Damage Bonus: 15%
Barrier Damage: 30%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Lifted Target Damage: 50%
Rank 2: Biotic Combo
Increases damage to lifted targets by 25%.
Health Damage Bonus: 15%
Armor Damage Bonus: 15%
Barrier Damage: 30%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Lifted Target Damage: 75%
Rank 3: Damage
Increases health and armor damage by 5%.
Increases barrier damage by 10%.
Health Damage Bonus: 20%
Armor Damage Bonus: 20%
Barrier Damage: 40%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Lifted Target Damage: 75%
Rank 4: Damage/Squad Bonus
Damage: increases health and armor damage by 7.50%.
Increases barrier damage by 15%.
Health Damage Bonus: 27.50%
Armor Damage Bonus: 27.50%
Barrier Damage: 55%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Lifted Target Damage: 75%
Squad Bonus: squadmates gain Warp Ammo at 50% effectiveness.
Rank 5: Ammo Capacity/Headshots
Ammo Capacity: increases ammo capacity by 30%.
Headshots: increases headshot damage by 25%.
Rank 6: Damage/Enhanced Warp
Damage: increases health and armor damage by 12.50%.
Increases barrier damage by 25%.
Health Damage Bonus: 40% (Damage), 32.50% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Damage Bonus: 40% (Damage), 32.50% (Squad Bonus)
Barrier Damage: 80% (Damage), 65% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Weakening: -25%
Lifted Target Damage: 75%
Enhanced Warp: increases damage to lifted targets by 50%.
Weaken armored targets by an additional 25%.
Health Damage Bonus: 27.50% (Damage), 20% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Damage Bonus: 27.5% (Damage), 20% (Squad Bonus)
Barrier Damage: 55% (Damage), 40% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Weakening: -50%
Lifted Target Damage: 125%
Armor-Piercing Ammo
Armor-Piercing Ammo does extra damage to armor and health and as a good addition can cut through different solid covers. Also, if you are shooting at enemies that stand one after the other, there is a great possibility that your bullet will hit the enemy teammates standing behind. Armor-Piercing Ammo is very effective against Atlas, Ravagers or Geth Pyros and their armor. In addition, it easily penetrates through the armor plates protecting enemies such as Brutes and Cannibals. The following weapons deal 50% more damage against armored enemies: Krysae Sniper Rifle, N7 Typhoon and Collector SMG. And these weapons have latent penetration power: Javelin, Widow, Black Widow, N7 Valiant, N7 Typhoon, N7 Crusader, N7 Hurricane, Blood Pack Punisher, Executioner Pistol.
Armor-Piercing Ammo: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Armor-Piercing Ammo
Health Damage Bonus: 10%
Armor Damage Bonus: 10%
Armor Effectiveness: -50%
Penetration: 0.50 m
Rank 2: Pierce
Increases ammo's cover penetration by 40%.
Health Damage Bonus: 10%
Armor Damage Bonus: 10%
Armor Effectiveness: -50%
Penetration: 0.70 m
Rank 3: Damage
Increases health and armor damage by 4%.
Health Damage Bonus: 14%
Armor Damage Bonus: 14%
Armor Effectiveness: -50%
Penetration: 0.70 m
Rank 4: Damage/Squad Bonus
Damage: increases health and armor damage by 6%.
Health Damage Bonus: 20%
Armor Damage Bonus: 20%
Armor Effectiveness: -50%
Penetration: 0.70 m
Squad Bonus: squadmates gain your ammo power at 50% effectiveness.
Rank 5: Ammo Capacity/Headshots
Ammo Capacity: increases ammo capacity by 30%.
Headshots: increases headshot damage by 25%.
Rank 6: Damage/Pierce
Damage: increases health and armor damage by 10%.
Health Damage Bonus: 30% (Damage), 24% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Damage Bonus: 30% (Damage), 24% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Effectiveness: -50%
Penetration: 0.70 m
Pierce: increases ammo's cover-penetration by 60%.
Decrease the effectiveness of armored targets by 25%.
Health Damage Bonus: 20% (Damage), 14% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Damage Bonus: 20% (Damage), 14% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Effectiveness: -75%
Penetration: 1 m
Weapons of Choice
Soldier is a universal warrior and thanks to this amazing feature you can equip him with almost any weapon to your liking. Not only this allows you to be very accurate at the battlefield but also opens amazing opportunity to choose whatever playstyle you prefer. If you plan to be effective in any possible situation, it might be a good idea to pick one long-range weapon and one short-range weapon. By all means you can add more by sacrificing your cooldown time.
One of the most decent choices is a shotgun for short range attacks, an assault rifle for mid-range attacks and a sniper rifle for long range attacks. Depending on the weapon choice (the lighter – the better) a set like this will likely set Adrenaline Rush's cooldown somewhere between 20 and 30 seconds.
Assault Rifles
Among the variety of Assault Rifles it is highly recommended to choose something like Mattock, Vindicator, or N7 Valkyrie and pair it with a decent shotgun to compensate rifle's ineffectiveness at close range. At the same time, if you plan to choose a sniper rifle as your secondary weapon, a suppressive assault rifle such as the Phaeston, Avenger or Revenant would be a perfect fit. For certain missions involving Geth or other shielded enemies, Synthetic Rifle powered by Firefight Pack will work just great.
Heavy Pistols
Usually, heavy pistol is not a weapon of choice for a soldier due to the fact that this class warrior can do crazy things with a lot heavier weapons like assault or sniper rifles. But, if you still want to try it out in action, Carnifex will serve you well. At the same time the Paladin with a scope mod will also work great but at longer distances. Soldiers who prefer heavy pistols as short range weapon, should stop their decision on the Talon or N7. However, the last one has one of the most unpleasant recoils.
Shotguns
Obviously, shotguns are very effective at the close range and if you plan to turn your Soldier into a heavily armored tank, there definitely has to be a decent shotgun in your arsenal on every battlefield. The Claymore, AT-12 Raider and Wraith are highly recommended for close range combats due to their damage levels. But game’s specialty also allows you to be effective at longer distances with the very same class weapon in your hands. That is why at longer distances you should choose something like the Plasma Shotgun, N7 Crusader or Graal Spike Thrower. The Disciple offers adequate damage at almost any distance and a deadly one at short range.
Sniper Rifles
Given the nature of the Soldier, it is more likely to see him in the center of the battle dealing with enemies almost barehanded but if you plan on being effective at different distances including the long range, N7 Valiant, Incisor, Raptor or Viper will be good for that. All rifles have pretty adequate damage level and will be good for taking enemies from the distance. The Indra is not a bad choice and while its damage possibilities are far from being perfect, this problem solves easily with the high fire rate. However, it is not recommended to use one shot heavy sniper rifles as M-98 Widow. The trick is that with the Adrenaline Rush activated the Widow won’t benefit from the power.
Submachine Guns
SMG is not, usually, a perfect choice for a soldier but it might be effective enough when paired with Adrenaline Rush or Marksman. A very good strategy is to use Tempest with some ammo powers. It will turn the flow of bullets into a deadly swarm of killing bees. Also, do not forget about different modifications to compensate the heavy recoil.
At the very beginning of Mass Effect 3 you will be offered to choose a warrior class. All of them offer different abilities, tactical maneuvers, strategy tricks and specials. Each class has a corresponding class talent which improves abilities important to that class. Some of class talents will be at your service from the very beginning, others have to be unlocked while you progress through the game. Here’s the list of available classes in Mass Effect 3:
1. Adept;
2. Engineer;
3. Infiltrator;
4. Soldier;
5. Sentinel;
6. Vanguard.
Soldier
Soldiers are soldiers and that pretty much explain everything. These are tough guys with big guns ready to do everything their authorities are willing to command. Soldiers are always ready to face their enemies in close combat and are not afraid of using all special ammo types as well as grenades. Their ability to carry heavy guns turns soldiers into the deadliest tools of war. They do not bother much about powers and if you find this occupation boring too, playing as a soldier will allow you to complete the game mostly like a shooter. Soldiers are allowed to carry the heaviest and the best weapons in the game and the only power that should be used constantly in the battle is Adrenaline Rush. Also, Combat Mastery gives them an incredible amount of extra weight capacity. On the top of all – soldiers have more health than any other class which is perfect for run and gun activity.
Powers
Class powers
Adrenaline Rush
Adrenaline Rush is one of the most important powers in soldier’s arsenal. Soldiers are pretty tough guys themselves but with the Adrenaline Rush they can do crazy things. When activated, it does the following:
- Slows down time;
- Increases damage;
- Reduces damage taken (in particular situations);
- Gives a small boost to shields (in particular situations);
On the top of that Adrenaline Rush can automatically replenish your clip meaning that you can shoot nonstop without the need to reload the gun. When it runs out of ammo, but you are in the state of Adrenaline Rush, it will automatically start using the reserve (of course, if there is one). This can be really useful with the weapon that has slow fire rate or reload time. A good example is a powerful sniper rifle or a shotgun. If by any chance your soldier suffers from high damages from all the enemies, it might be a good idea to take the Rank 4 Hardened evolution and the Rank 6 Shield Boost evolution power. They will improve the situation seriously. Adrenaline Rush is not that effective against tougher enemies but if you have it upgraded up to rank 6 Shield Boost, you can at least get away from a bad scenario, especially when you are surrounded by enemies. Also, Adrenaline Rush can be activated while running giving you even more time to either hide or attack. And, if you choose Shield Strength evolution, during Adrenaline Rush some of your shields will restore.
Adrenaline Rush: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Adrenaline Rush
Recharge Speed: 10 sec (6 sec multiplayer)
Duration: 4 sec
Weapon Damage Bonus: 50%
Time Dilation: 30%
Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec (4.80 sec multiplayer)
Duration: 4 sec
Weapon Damage Bonus: 50%
Time Dilation: 30%
Rank 3: Duration
Increases duration by 30%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec (4.80 sec multiplayer)
Duration: 5.20 sec
Weapon Damage Bonus: 50%
Time Dilation: 30%
Rank 4: Hardening/Damage
Decreases Health and Shield damage taken by 25%. (40% multiplayer)
Damage: increases damage by 25%. (20% multiplayer)
Increases Time Dilation by 15%
Recharge Speed: 8 sec (4.80 sec multiplayer)
Duration: 5.20 sec
Weapon Damage Bonus: 75% (70% multiplayer)
Time Dilation: 45%
Rank 5: Duration/Melee Damage
Duration: increases duration by 40%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec (4.80 sec multiplayer)
Duration: 6.80 sec
Hardening: 50%
Weapon Damage: 75% (70% multiplayer)
Time Dilation: 30% (Hardening), 45% (Damage)
Melee Damage: increase melee damage by 50%
Rank 6: Shield Boost/Power Use
Shield Boost: increases shield strength by 50%. (100% multiplayer)
Power Use: use 1 offensive power while Adrenaline Rush is active.
Concussive Shot
Concussive Shot is not, actually, a damaging attack but at the same time it can stun small enemies or even knock them off their feet. By the way: with proper aiming concussive shot can also be curved around cover to flush out enemies and this might be more than just helpful. Concussive shot is surprisingly effective against Cerberus Phantoms and also can be used to interrupt the firing animation of Cerberus Nemeses or Reaper Ravagers. However, it is very ineffective against larger enemies like Atlases, Geth Primes, Brutes and Banshees. If the targeted enemy is suspended by biotic powers, the physics damage from the shot will be multiplied and depending on the power evolution, the impact of Concussive Shot can send the enemy flying a significant distance. By aiming slowly off the target and due to the fact that projectiles travel in an arc, you can take off enemies hiding behind the cover. One of the biggest problems about Concussive Shot is that it is pretty useless against protected enemies, so that is why Acolyte will be a perfect companion for this power. Acolyte is powerful enough to cope with Phantoms’ easily. When the shields are down, you can concentrate on using Concussive Shot and send a particular enemy to the other dead in no time. You should also consider combining Warp Ammo with the level 6 Amplification evolution of Concussive Shot. This allows your Concussive Shot to detonate Biotic Explosions on enemies already under the effect of biotics. When used correctly it can be very devastating.
Concussive Shot: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Concussive Shot
Flatten your enemy with a precise blast at short or long range.
Recharge Speed: 5 sec
Damage: 100 (200 multiplayer)
Force: 300 N
Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25%.
Recharge Speed: 4 sec
Rank 3: Force & Damage
Increases force and damage by 20%.
Damage: 120 (240 multiplayer)
Force: 360 N
Rank 4: Force & Damage/Radius
Force & Damage: increases force and damage by 30%.
Damage: 150 (300 multiplayer)
Force: 450 N
Radius: increases impact radius by 1.50 meters.
Rank 5: Shatter/Recharge Speed
Shatter: increases force and damage to frozen targets by 100%.
Increases recharge speed by 35%.
Recharge Speed: 3.13 sec
Rank 6: Amplification/Shredder (Singleplayer)
Amplification: Power Concussive Shot with the properties of the active ammo power, enabling it to burn, freeze, disrupt, warp, or pierce armor.
Damage: +15%
Shredder: increases damage to organics by 100% over 10 seconds. Increase force by 50%.
Force: 600 N (Force & Damage), 510 (Radius)
Rank 6: Hammer/Shredder (Multiplayer)
Hammer: increases damage by 50% and radius by 1 meters.
Damage: 400 (Force & Damage), 340 (Radius)
Radius: +2m (Force & Damage), +3.5m (Radius)
Shredder: increases damage to organics by 200% over 10 seconds. Increase force by 50%.
Force: +50%
Frag Grenade
Frag Grenades are called that way for a particular reason: they literary rip your enemies apart with the shrapnel giving you an opportunity to win the match or eliminate the enemy in one throw. They also specialize in taking out squads of enemies and usually detonate 1 second after they come into contact with the surface. However, if you hit a target with a frag grenade – it will detonate immediately. This is especially useful when fighting heavy armored or heavy shielded enemies. Also, with just a few updates you can turn frag grenades into even deadlier weapon. By the way: if your enemy is on fire and you kill him with a frag grenade, the Fire Explosion will be produced hitting the nearby standing targets.
Frag Grenade: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Frag Grenade
Rip your enemies apart with this shrapnel-packed grenade.
Damage: 600 (900 multiplayer)
Radius: 6.50 m
Rank 2: Max Grenades
Increases grenade capacity by 1.
Rank 3: Damage
Increases damage by 20%.
Damage: 720 (1080 multiplayer)
Radius: 6.50 m
Rank 4: Damage/Radius
Damage: increases damage by 30%.
Damage: 900 (1350 multiplayer)
Radius: 6.50 m
Radius: increases impact radius by 30%.
Damage: 720 (1080 multiplayer)
Radius: 8.45 m
Rank 5: Max Grenades/Bleed Damage
Max Grenades: increases grenade capacity by 2.
Bleed Damage: increases damage to organics by 40% (50% multiplayer) over 10 seconds (5 seconds multiplayer).
Rank 6: Armor-Piercing/Shield Overload
Armor-Piercing: increases damage to armor by 50% (75% multiplayer).
Shield Overload: increases damage to shields by 50% (75% multiplayer).
Fitness
Fitness is soldier’s passive attack and can be used to boost your melee damage and your shields or health. It might be a good idea to update your fitness level to rank 3 adding extra 25% to shield strength. However, you should leave the rest for later. This power becomes available at Level 3 for Soldiers in single-player.
Fitness: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Fitness
Health & Shield Bonus: +15%
Melee Damage Bonus: +15%
Rank 2: Durability
Increases health and shield bonuses by 10%.
Health & Shield Bonus: +25%
Rank 3: Melee Damage
Increases melee damage by 20%.
Melee Damage Bonus: +35%
Rank 4: Melee Damage/Durability
Melee Damage: increases melee damage bonus by 30%.
Melee Damage Bonus: +65%
Durability: increases Health and shield bonuses by 15%.
Health & Shield Bonus: +40%
Rank 5: Martial Artist/Shield Recharge
Martial Artist: increases melee damage by 75% for 30 seconds after an enemy is killed by a heavy melee.
Shield Recharge: decreases shield recharge delay by 15%.
Rank 6: Melee Synergy/Fitness Expert
Melee Synergy: increases melee damage bonus by 30%.
Increase weapon damage bonus by 25% for 20 seconds after an enemy is killed by a heavy melee.
Melee Damage Bonus: +95% (Melee Damage), +65% (Durability)
Fitness Expert: increases health and shield bonuses by 25%.
Health & Shield Bonus: +65% (Durability), +50% (Melee Damage)
Combat Mastery
Combat Mastery is another soldier’s passive power and it also focuses on character's health and weapon damage. However, in addition it can upgrade player's storm speed. On the top of that you are going to get bonuses to Paragon and Renegade points. Do not forget to add bonus to Reputation as well.
Combat Mastery: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Combat Mastery
More speed.
More strength.
More charisma.
Reputation Bonus: 4%
Weapon Damage Bonus: 5%
Weight Capacity Bonus: 20
Rank 2: Influence & Mastery
Increases weapon damage bonus by 5%.
Increases reputation bonus by 4%.
Reputation Bonus: 8%
Weapon Damage Bonus: 10%
Weight Capacity Bonus: 20
Rank 3: Influence & Capacity
Increases reputation bonus by 4%.
Increases weight capacity bonus by 30 points.
Reputation Bonus: 12%
Weapon Damage Bonus: 10%
Weight Capacity Bonus: 50
Rank 4: Damage/Influence & Duration
Damage: increases weapon damage bonus by 5%.
Increases power damage by 10%.
Reputation Bonus: 12%
Weapon Damage Bonus: 15%
Weight Capacity Bonus: 50
Influence & Duration: increases power duration by 25%. Increases reputation bonus by 8%.
Reputation Bonus: 20%
Weapon Damage Bonus: 10%
Weight Capacity Bonus: 50
Rank 5: Squad Bonus/Headshots
Squad Bonus: increases squadmate weapon damage by 20%.
Headshots: increases headshot damage by 20%.
Rank 6: Weight Capacity/Weapon Master
Weight Capacity: increases weight capacity bonus by 50 points.
Weapon Master: increases weapon damage bonus by 10%.
Increases damage of all ammo powers by 40%
Cryo Ammo
Cryo Ammo is an ammo power and does pretty much what you expect it to do: it freezes unprotected enemies and slows their movement speed. Cryo Ammo also reduces damage protection when used against hardened armored targets: Brutes, Cannibals and Husks suffer from its impact by the percentage listed below. The only unpleasant thing about this power is that it brings no bonuses to the weapon damage which kind of sucks.
Cryo Ammo: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Cryo Ammo
Flash freeze and shatter unprotected enemies.
Slow down the rest.
Freeze Duration: 3 sec
Movement Speed: -15%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Rank 2: Freeze Chance
Improves the odds of freezing a target by 30%.
Rank 3: Freeze Duration
Increases freeze duration by 40%.
Freeze Duration: 4.2 sec
Movement Speed: -15%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Rank 4: Freeze Duration/Squad Bonus
Freeze Duration: increases freeze duration by 40%.
Freeze Duration: 5.9 sec
Movement Speed: -15%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Squad Bonus: squadmates gain Cryo Ammo at 50% effectiveness.
Rank 5: Ammo Capacity/Headshots
Ammo Capacity: increases ammo capacity by 30%.
Headshots: increases headshot to frozen enemies by 35%.
Rank 6: Freeze Chance/Damage Combo
Freeze Chance: improves the odds of freezing a target by 50%.
Decrease a frozen target's movement speed by an additional 20%.
Damage Combo: increases damage to frozen targets from all sources by 50%.
Weaken the armor of chilled targets by 25%.
Disruptor Ammo
Disruptor Ammo is the ammunition capacity boost and only applies on the active ammo power. This is not a bad power but I would not recommend investing in it right away as far as there are lots of other things you might consider adding to your Mass Effect personality. However, Disruptor Ammo is very effective against Geth and Cerberus and fighting them with Disruptor Ammo is rather a pleasure than a challenge. This power makes a perfect couple with Tech Bursts and when you have one, use it first and then throw a Frag Grenade or launch a Concussive Shot. This will either stun or make organic enemies to panic.
Disruptor Ammo: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Disruptor Ammo
Bring down your enemy's barrier and shields.
Chance to stun.
More weapon damage.
More damage to shields and barriers.
Health Damage Bonus: 5%
Shield & Barrier Damage: 20%
Rank 2: Stun
Improves the odds of stunning a target by 15%
Rank 3: Damage
Increases health damage bonus by 2%
Increases shield and barrier damage bonuses by 8%
Health Damage Bonus: 7%
Shield & Barrier Damage: 28%
Rank 4: Damage/Squad Bonus
Damage: increases health damage bonus by 3%
Increases shield and barrier damage bonuses by 12%
Health Damage Bonus: 10%
Shield & Barrier Damage: 40%
Squad Bonus: squadmates gain Disruptor Ammo at 50% effectiveness.
Rank 5: Ammo Capacity/Headshots
Ammo Capacity: increases ammo capacity by 30%
Headshots: increase headshot damage by 25%
Rank 6: Damage/Stun
Damage: increase health damage bonus by 5%.
Increases shield and barrier damage by 20%.
Health Damage Bonus: 15%
Shield & Barrier Damage: 60%
Incendiary Ammo
Incendiary Ammo is another ammunition capacity boost that only applies on the active ammo power. This power is extremely effective against enemy armor. Due to its penetration peculiarities, Incendiary Ammo is capable of burning the already mentioned armor and quickly take down the shield. However, it is not effective against Geth but it causes panic reaction against organic enemies. The way Incendiary Ammo destroys the armor is called Explosive Burst and here’s how it works:
- Explosive Burst has a 50/50 chance to trigger from any shot and weapons fire rate is not the deciding factor. However, automatic weapons benefit the most.
- Explosive Burst won’t harm enemies using shields but it will harm those standing next to the shielded person.
- Explosive Burst allows guns with low damage to become more effective against armor.
- Explosive Burst deals immediate damage but does not always sets the enemy on fire. However, the Explosive Burst explosion has a chance to make the surrounding enemies panic.
- Explosive Burst gets really devastating when used with high rate of fire weapons such as the Geth Pulse Rifle.
Incendiary Ammo: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Incendiary Ammo
Shoot and your enemies will burst into flames.
More weapon damage.
Weakens Armor.
Chance to make an enemy panic
Weapon Damage Bonus: +10.50%
Armor Damage Bonus: +10.50%
Rank 2: Panic
Improves the odds of panicking an enemy by 15%
Rank 3: Damage
Increases health and armor damage bonuses by 4%
Weapon Damage Bonus: +14.50%
Armor Damage Bonus: +14.50%
Rank 4: Damage/Squad Bonus
Damage: increases health and armor damage bonuses by 6%
Weapon Damage Bonus: +20.50%
Armor Damage Bonus: +20.50%
Squad Bonus: squadmates gain Incendiary Ammo bonus at 50% effectiveness
Rank 5: Ammo Capacity/Headshots
Ammo Capacity: increases ammo capacity by 30%.
Headshots: increases headshot damage by 25%
Rank 6: Damage/Explosive Burst
Damage: increases health and armor damage bonuses by 10%
Weapon Damage Bonus: +30.50%
Armor Damage Bonus: +30.50%
Explosive Burst: ignites enemies with an intermittent explosion that covers 2.50 meters for 105.00 damage
Bonus Powers
Fortification
When you are taking heavy damages from enemies, Fortification is exactly THE power you need to turn to “In case of Emergency.” When being used, it provides a substantial boost to melee damage. Playing as a soldier usually requires you to run into the battle and fight enemies at closer ranges which also opens a totally different perspective. Fortification is not something extremely unique and special. Its basic and predictable enough feature is that it dramatically increases power cooldown times, thought it changes almost nothing in your combat abilities. The good thing about Fortification is that it can be activated while moving and you do not have to stop in order to turn on this power effect. If you want to add extra damage to your melee attacks, you’ll need to purge Fortification every 20 seconds. Even with a lot of extra weight Fortification’s cooldown time is pretty quick which means you can take a heavy loadout and still remain fairly effective. Or, you can forget about the heavy weapon and concentrate on something really light for near-instantaneous cooldowns.
Fortification: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Fortification
Reinforce armor using protective Foucault currents.
Purge the current and send its charge to your gauntlets for increased melee damage.
Slows power usage by 60% (50% multiplayer).
Recharge Speed: 5 sec
Damage Reduction: 15% (25% multiplayer)
Melee Damage Bonus: 50%
Melee Damage Duration: 20 sec
Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25% when armor is purged.
Recharge Speed: 4 sec
Rank 3: Melee Damage
Increases melee damage bonus by 20% when armor is purged.
Melee Damage Bonus: 70%
Rank 4: Durability/Melee Damage
Durability: increases damage protection by 5%.
Damage Reduction: 20% (30% multiplayer)
Melee Damage: increases melee damage bonus by 30% when armor is purged.
Melee Damage Bonus: 100%
Rank 5: Recharge Speed/Power Synergy
Recharge Speed: increases shield recharge rate by 15%.
Power Synergy: increases power damage and force by 20% (30% multiplayer) while fortification is active.
Rank 6: Power Recharge/Durability
Power Recharge: reduces power speed penalty by 30%.
Power Speed Penalty: 30% (20% Multiplayer)
Durability: increases damage protection by 10%.
Damage Reduction: 30% (40% multiplayer) (Durability), 25% (35% multiplayer) (Melee Damage)
Defense Matrix
Defense Matrix is very good for reducing significant damage. When in use, it restores a portion of your shield and can even be evolved to fully restore shields. Those soldiers who are focused on running in the room and fighting all the bad guys by themselves will definitely enjoy this power because it is perfect for tanking characters. The shield restore can increase the total amount of damage Shepard can survive much more than the amount of shielding would seem to indicate. This happens because of the Shield Gate effect.
Defense Matrix: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Defense Matrix
Reinforce armor with protective foucault currents. Purge the currents to restore shields.
Slows power use by 60%.
Recharge Speed: 10 sec
Damage Reduction: 15%
Shields Restored: 50%
Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec
Rank 3: Shield Bonus
Increases shield restoration by 20% when purging armor.
Shields Restored: 70%
Rank 4: Durability/Shield Bonus
Durability: increases damage protection by 5%.
Damage Reduction: 20%
Shield Bonus: increases shield restoration by 30% when purging armor.
Shields Restored: 100%
Rank 5: Shield Recharge/Power Synergy
Shield Recharge: decreases shield-recharge delay by 15%
Power Synergy: increases tech power damage by 25% while Defense Matrix is active.
Rank 6: Power Recharge/Durability
Power Recharge: reduces power speed penalty by 30%.
Power Speed Penalty: 30%
Durability: increases damage protection by 10%.
Damage Reduction: +10%
Barrier
Barrier is good for providing significant damage reduction. When in use it lifts and damages the nearby standing enemies. It also provides close-range crowd control to the soldier. It does increase your cooldown time but when playing with light weapon in your arms, you won’t have any problems with that. Barrier has almost no animation and is activated instantly. Your screen will turn bluish-purple for a few seconds and then things will turn back to normal. However, the only vulnerable part of this state is when the character throws his head backwards.
Barrier: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Barrier
Recharge Speed: 10 sec
Damage Reduction: 15% (25% multiplayer)
Blast Damage: 90 (500 multiplayer)
Blast Radius: 3 m
Rank 2: Recharge
Increases recharge speed after detonation by 25%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec
Damage Reduction: 15% (25% multiplayer)
Blast Damage: 90
Blast Radius: 3 m
Rank 3: Blast Effect
Increases damage, force and radius of the detonation by 20%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec
Damage Reduction: 15% (25% multiplayer)
Blast Damage: 135 (600 multiplayer)
Blast Radius: 4.5 m
Rank 4: Blast Effect/Barrier Strength
Blast Effect: increases damage, force, and radius of the detonation by 30%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec
Damage Reduction: 15% (25% multiplayer)
Blast Damage: 162 (750 multiplayer)
Blast Radius: 5.4 m
Barrier Strength: decreases damage taken by 5%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec
Damage Reduction: 20% (30% multiplayer)
Blast Damage: 135 (600 multiplayer)
Blast Radius: 4.5 m
Rank 5: Shield Recharge/Power Synergy
Shield Recharge: increases shield regeneration rate by 15% while Barrier is active.
Power Synergy: increases power damage and force by 25% (30% multiplayer) while Barrier is active.
Rank 6: Power Recharge/Barrier Strength
Power Recharge: reduces power speed penalty by 30%.
Barrier Strength: increases damage protection by 10%.
Damage Reduction:
Blast Effect: 25% (35% multiplayer)
Barrier Strength: 30% (40% multiplayer)
Blast Damage: 162 (750 multiplayer) (Blast Effect), 135 (600 multiplayer) (Barrier Strength)
Blast Radius: 5.4 m (Blast Effect), 4.5 m (Barrier Strength)
Energy Drain
Energy Drain is a perfect addition to your soldier’s abilities because it is one of those things that will deal with barriers and shields nice and easy. Also, its shield restoring properties provide an alternative to the armor-type powers. Energy Drain replenishes player's shields when it hits any synthetic enemy protected by a barrier or a shield. It is also a perfect way to take down Turrets and Atlases. Using this ability on higher difficulties can turn this power into is a useful survival tool, again, by weakening enemies and restoring precious shielding at the same time. Using Energy Drain against Geth can turn you into almost invincible character and here’s the reason why: with a short recharge time Energy Drain will restore your shields and stun enemies faster than they can kill you. Pretty cool, don’t you find? At Rank 4 Energy Drain is very useful in taking down large groups of enemies due to its Radius improvement. And let’s not forget about multiplayer: it might not be the deadliest power there but it will almost always stun enemies making them very vulnerable.
Energy Drain: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Energy Drain
Hit an enemy with this energy pulse to inflict damage and to steal barrier and shield power.
Recharge Time: 8 seconds
Damage: 220 points
Radius: 1.50 meters
Shields Restored: 50%
Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25%.
Recharge Time: 6.40 seconds
Rank 3: Damage
Increases damage by 20%.
Damage: 264 points
Rank 4: Damage/Radius
Damage: increases damage by 30%.
Damage: 330 points
Radius: increases impact radius by 100%.
Rank 5: Drain/Recharge Speed
Drain: increases shield restoration rate by 50% when draining shields, barriers or power from synthetic enemies.
Shields Restored: 100%
Recharge Speed: increases recharge speed by 25%.
Recharge Time: 5.33 seconds
Rank 6: Damage/Armor Boost
Damage: increases damage by 40%.
Damage: 418 (Damage), 352 (Radius)
Armor Boost: reduces damage taken by 15% (40% multiplayer) for 10 seconds by gaining a temporary layer of armor by draining shields, barriers or energy from synthetics.
Marksman
Marksman is an interesting alternative to Adrenaline Rush. It is most useful with weapons that have very high recoil, weapons that fire at very high rates, or weapons that have good damage, but poor rate of fire (like the M-12 Locust, M-99 Saber, or M-97 Viper). Unfortunately, semi-auto rifles like the Vindicator or the Mattock don't benefit that much. Marksman power is kind of a tricky power and works like this: it DOES NOT increase the actual damage but it increases the damage per second. In other words – if you happen to have a single shot weapon, it is not recommended to use this power. Also, even with the Adrenaline Rush bonus you won’t be able to activate Marksman during Adrenaline Rush. Marksman's main benefit is its accuracy bonus. With the help of Marksman you can turn some rifles into 100% accurate weapon. Needless to say that this will increase the number of headshots bringing you more and more headshot bonuses.
Marksman: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Marksman
Boost weapon accuracy and firing rate for a short time.
Recharge Speed: 10 sec (6 multiplayer)
Duration: 6 sec
Rate-of-Fire Bonus: 30% (25% multiplayer)
Accuracy Bonus: 30% (35% multiplayer)
Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25%.
Recharge Speed: 8 sec (4.80 multiplayer)
Rank 3: Duration
Increases duration by 30%.
Duration: 7.80 sec
Rank 4: Accuracy/Firing Rate
Accuracy: increases accuracy by 30%. (15% multiplayer)
Accuracy Bonus: 60% (50% multiplayer)
Firing Rate: increases firing rate bonus by 20%. (15% multiplayer)
Rate-of-Fire Bonus: 50% (40% multiplayer)
Rank 5: Duration/Headshots
Duration: increases duration by 40%.
Duration: 10.20 sec
Headshots: increases headshot damage by 25%.
Rank 6: Accuracy and Firing Rate/Recharge Speed
Accuracy and Firing Rate: increases Accuracy and Firing Rate bonuses by 20%. (10% multiplayer)
Accuracy Bonus: 80% (60% multiplayer) (Accuracy), 50% (35% multiplayer) (Fire Rate)
Rate-of-Fire Bonus: 50% (45% multiplayer) (Accuracy), 70% (50% multiplayer) (Fire Rate)
Recharge Speed: increases Recharge Speed by 40%.
Recharge Speed: 6.06 sec (3.63 multiplayer)
Warp Ammo
Warp Ammo is the ammunition capacity boost and can be applied only on the active ammo power. It can serve as a penetration tool with pretty good armor and barriers damaging possibilities. On the top of that it has a fair bonus in damaging health and when used in conjunction with the lifting powers, it can do even more damage. Warp Ammo is very effective against armor used by Atlases, Ravagers or Geth Pyros but it is pretty useless against armor plates protected enemies like Brutes, Cannibals or Husks. When combined with the Rank 6 Amplification evolution of Concussive Shot, Warp Ammo allows the Concussive Shot to detonate Biotic Explosions. This happens under the effect of biotic powers such as Singularity, Pull or Slam. But, this detonation is less powerful than a detonation triggered by a power such as Warp or Reave.
Warp Ammo: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Warp Ammo
Blast vulnerable opponents already lifted by biotics for a damage bonus, and weaken the armor of grounded targets.
More weapon damage. More damage to barriers and armor.
Health Damage Bonus: 15%
Armor Damage Bonus: 15%
Barrier Damage: 30%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Lifted Target Damage: 50%
Rank 2: Biotic Combo
Increases damage to lifted targets by 25%.
Health Damage Bonus: 15%
Armor Damage Bonus: 15%
Barrier Damage: 30%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Lifted Target Damage: 75%
Rank 3: Damage
Increases health and armor damage by 5%.
Increases barrier damage by 10%.
Health Damage Bonus: 20%
Armor Damage Bonus: 20%
Barrier Damage: 40%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Lifted Target Damage: 75%
Rank 4: Damage/Squad Bonus
Damage: increases health and armor damage by 7.50%.
Increases barrier damage by 15%.
Health Damage Bonus: 27.50%
Armor Damage Bonus: 27.50%
Barrier Damage: 55%
Armor Weakening: -25%
Lifted Target Damage: 75%
Squad Bonus: squadmates gain Warp Ammo at 50% effectiveness.
Rank 5: Ammo Capacity/Headshots
Ammo Capacity: increases ammo capacity by 30%.
Headshots: increases headshot damage by 25%.
Rank 6: Damage/Enhanced Warp
Damage: increases health and armor damage by 12.50%.
Increases barrier damage by 25%.
Health Damage Bonus: 40% (Damage), 32.50% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Damage Bonus: 40% (Damage), 32.50% (Squad Bonus)
Barrier Damage: 80% (Damage), 65% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Weakening: -25%
Lifted Target Damage: 75%
Enhanced Warp: increases damage to lifted targets by 50%.
Weaken armored targets by an additional 25%.
Health Damage Bonus: 27.50% (Damage), 20% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Damage Bonus: 27.5% (Damage), 20% (Squad Bonus)
Barrier Damage: 55% (Damage), 40% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Weakening: -50%
Lifted Target Damage: 125%
Armor-Piercing Ammo
Armor-Piercing Ammo does extra damage to armor and health and as a good addition can cut through different solid covers. Also, if you are shooting at enemies that stand one after the other, there is a great possibility that your bullet will hit the enemy teammates standing behind. Armor-Piercing Ammo is very effective against Atlas, Ravagers or Geth Pyros and their armor. In addition, it easily penetrates through the armor plates protecting enemies such as Brutes and Cannibals. The following weapons deal 50% more damage against armored enemies: Krysae Sniper Rifle, N7 Typhoon and Collector SMG. And these weapons have latent penetration power: Javelin, Widow, Black Widow, N7 Valiant, N7 Typhoon, N7 Crusader, N7 Hurricane, Blood Pack Punisher, Executioner Pistol.
Armor-Piercing Ammo: Power Ranks
Rank 1: Armor-Piercing Ammo
Health Damage Bonus: 10%
Armor Damage Bonus: 10%
Armor Effectiveness: -50%
Penetration: 0.50 m
Rank 2: Pierce
Increases ammo's cover penetration by 40%.
Health Damage Bonus: 10%
Armor Damage Bonus: 10%
Armor Effectiveness: -50%
Penetration: 0.70 m
Rank 3: Damage
Increases health and armor damage by 4%.
Health Damage Bonus: 14%
Armor Damage Bonus: 14%
Armor Effectiveness: -50%
Penetration: 0.70 m
Rank 4: Damage/Squad Bonus
Damage: increases health and armor damage by 6%.
Health Damage Bonus: 20%
Armor Damage Bonus: 20%
Armor Effectiveness: -50%
Penetration: 0.70 m
Squad Bonus: squadmates gain your ammo power at 50% effectiveness.
Rank 5: Ammo Capacity/Headshots
Ammo Capacity: increases ammo capacity by 30%.
Headshots: increases headshot damage by 25%.
Rank 6: Damage/Pierce
Damage: increases health and armor damage by 10%.
Health Damage Bonus: 30% (Damage), 24% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Damage Bonus: 30% (Damage), 24% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Effectiveness: -50%
Penetration: 0.70 m
Pierce: increases ammo's cover-penetration by 60%.
Decrease the effectiveness of armored targets by 25%.
Health Damage Bonus: 20% (Damage), 14% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Damage Bonus: 20% (Damage), 14% (Squad Bonus)
Armor Effectiveness: -75%
Penetration: 1 m
Weapons of Choice
Soldier is a universal warrior and thanks to this amazing feature you can equip him with almost any weapon to your liking. Not only this allows you to be very accurate at the battlefield but also opens amazing opportunity to choose whatever playstyle you prefer. If you plan to be effective in any possible situation, it might be a good idea to pick one long-range weapon and one short-range weapon. By all means you can add more by sacrificing your cooldown time.
One of the most decent choices is a shotgun for short range attacks, an assault rifle for mid-range attacks and a sniper rifle for long range attacks. Depending on the weapon choice (the lighter – the better) a set like this will likely set Adrenaline Rush's cooldown somewhere between 20 and 30 seconds.
Assault Rifles
Among the variety of Assault Rifles it is highly recommended to choose something like Mattock, Vindicator, or N7 Valkyrie and pair it with a decent shotgun to compensate rifle's ineffectiveness at close range. At the same time, if you plan to choose a sniper rifle as your secondary weapon, a suppressive assault rifle such as the Phaeston, Avenger or Revenant would be a perfect fit. For certain missions involving Geth or other shielded enemies, Synthetic Rifle powered by Firefight Pack will work just great.
Heavy Pistols
Usually, heavy pistol is not a weapon of choice for a soldier due to the fact that this class warrior can do crazy things with a lot heavier weapons like assault or sniper rifles. But, if you still want to try it out in action, Carnifex will serve you well. At the same time the Paladin with a scope mod will also work great but at longer distances. Soldiers who prefer heavy pistols as short range weapon, should stop their decision on the Talon or N7. However, the last one has one of the most unpleasant recoils.
Shotguns
Obviously, shotguns are very effective at the close range and if you plan to turn your Soldier into a heavily armored tank, there definitely has to be a decent shotgun in your arsenal on every battlefield. The Claymore, AT-12 Raider and Wraith are highly recommended for close range combats due to their damage levels. But game’s specialty also allows you to be effective at longer distances with the very same class weapon in your hands. That is why at longer distances you should choose something like the Plasma Shotgun, N7 Crusader or Graal Spike Thrower. The Disciple offers adequate damage at almost any distance and a deadly one at short range.
Sniper Rifles
Given the nature of the Soldier, it is more likely to see him in the center of the battle dealing with enemies almost barehanded but if you plan on being effective at different distances including the long range, N7 Valiant, Incisor, Raptor or Viper will be good for that. All rifles have pretty adequate damage level and will be good for taking enemies from the distance. The Indra is not a bad choice and while its damage possibilities are far from being perfect, this problem solves easily with the high fire rate. However, it is not recommended to use one shot heavy sniper rifles as M-98 Widow. The trick is that with the Adrenaline Rush activated the Widow won’t benefit from the power.
Submachine Guns
SMG is not, usually, a perfect choice for a soldier but it might be effective enough when paired with Adrenaline Rush or Marksman. A very good strategy is to use Tempest with some ammo powers. It will turn the flow of bullets into a deadly swarm of killing bees. Also, do not forget about different modifications to compensate the heavy recoil.
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