MASS EFFECT 2: SQUADMATES GUIDE
Written by The Black Mamba
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Table of Contents CODE: Ctrl+F
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1. Introduction 10intr
2. Know Your Class 20clas
A. Soldier 2Asold
B. Infiltrator 2Binfi
C. Engineer 2Cengi
D. Sentinel 2Dsent
E. Adept 2Eadep
F. Vanguard 2Fvang
3. Know the Enemy Faction 30enem
A. Mechs/Non-Synthetics 3Amech
B. Blue Suns 3Bblue
C. Eclipse 3Cecli
E. Blood Pack 3Dbloo
D. Geth 3Egeth
F. Collectors 3Fcoll
4. The Squad 40squa
A. Garrus 4Agarr
B. Grunt 4Bgrun
C. Jack 4Cjack
D. Jacob 4Djaco
E. Kasumi 4Ekasu
F. Legion 4Flegi
G. Miranda 4Gmira
H. Mordin 4Hmord
I. Samara 4Isama
J. Tali 4Jtali
K. Thane 4Kthan
L. Zaeed 4Lzaee
M. Morinth 4Mmori
N. Liara 4Nliar
5. Squadmate Recommendations 60reco
6. Mission-Specific Recommendations 60miss
7. Collector Base Strategy 70base
8. Other Notes 70othe
9. Credits/Update History 80cred
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| Introduction | 10intr
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This guide is for the second game of the Mass Effect trilogy: Mass Effect 2.
The purpose of this guide is to cover all aspects related to or concerning the
available squadmates in the game. Because squadmate abilities can often
determine the ease or difficulty of getting through missions, it’s important to
have a firm understanding of what each squadmate is capable of. As a result, we
can use enemy factions and the user’s class to determine ideal setups for each
mission. A good squad can make a large difference on Hardcore and Insanity
difficulty.
I hope that you find this guide useful. Feel free to PM me if you have any
questions and/or recommendations regarding it.
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| Know Your Class | 20clas
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One of the best ways to know what squadmates are most efficient is to know what
things Shepard can and can’t handle by himself. The Adept excels at things that
the Engineer doesn’t, but also has weaknesses that an Engineer doesn’t have.
Some classes are sturdier and won’t need damage-soaker squadmates, while others
have excellent crowd control and thus need more damage-dealers.
NOTE: All of the tips that I provide for each class are based upon the builds I
have posted. Suggested squadmates may change based on what your build and bonus
power are.
Soldier 2Asold
**********
Weapons: Pistols, Shotguns, Assault Rifles, Sniper Rifles
Suggested Build:
- Hardened Adrenaline Rush (4)
- Concussive Shot (0)
- Squad Disruptor Ammo (4)
- Inferno Ammo (4)
- Cryo Ammo (1)
- Shock Trooper (4)
- Squad Warp Ammo (4)
The Soldier is the weapons expert of ME2. He has access to every available
weapon type sans SMG’s, and he also gets the most default ammo types of any
class. Adrenaline Rush plays into his weapon mastery as well, allowing him to
slow down time and nail shots while targets seem to “stand still.” Soldier
Shepard also gets the highest passive health bonuses of any class in the game,
and he is generally seen as a more durable combatant.
The Soldier’s expertise with weapons helps him excel at drilling enemies with
pure damage. Whether its shields, armor, or health, the Soldier has an ammo
power to take it down more quickly. The only defense that he does not have an
option for, in fact, are barriers. Warp Ammo is your best option of negating
this. While an extra ammo power might seem redundant on a class that already
has three, Squad Warp Ammo is fantastic against Collectors; not only does it
take care of their barriers, but the Squad evolution allows every teammate to
put more heat on the Collector forces with weapons in deadly crossfires.
If you don’t have access to Warp Ammo or simply don’t want it, then any of the
three durability powers (Fortification, Geth Shield Boost, and Barrier) are
also useful on the Soldier, but be warned: on high difficulties, these defenses
tend to get destroyed very quickly anyway. The cooldown of these abilities also
strongly interferes with Adrenaline Rush, which tends to be a more useful
defensive power anyway – especially if you evolve for Hardened Adrenaline Rush.
Because the Soldier has access to assault rifles, sniper rifles, and shotguns,
he is at a strong advantage when it comes to range. On missions where several
enemies charge you at once (some Collector missions, Blood Pack missions), an
Inferno Ammo shotgun does a wondrous job of taking down enemies. On missions
with geth and Blue Suns forces from afar, a Disruptor Ammo sniper rifle will
drop enemies very quickly. The assault rifle generally is your most useful
weapon, however. It covers every range efficiently and is even more deadly when
combined with Incendiary/Disruptor Rounds.
When planning to spec the Soldier’s powers, it’s important to consider whether
you want Squad evolutions on your ammo powers. Before you spec points into the
final ranks of these abilities, be sure to consider whether your most common
squadmates have ammo abilities or not. Miranda, Kasumi, Samara, Legion, Tali,
and Mordin do not have ammo powers; Garrus, Thane, and Jack do not attain ammo
powers until after their loyalty missions are completed. Zaeed, Grunt, and
Jacob all have default access to ammo powers. In the early stages of the game,
you may want to evolve squadmate ammo powers since it will likely be a long
time before you can fully evolve your abilities to the fourth rank; then, if
you have Lair of the Shadow Broker, you can complete it and respec squadmates
as you wish, allowing you to drop ammo abilities on them if necessary.
Alternatively, you may simply evolve these ammo abilities for the more powerful
evolution as opposed to the Squad option. This is a particularly good idea for
Incendiary Rounds; the Inferno evolution excels at helping you drop health and
armored enemies in a hurry, and most squadmates either have an anti-armor power
or an anti-armor weapon anyway.
Advanced Training: Aboard the Collector Ship, you will have the opportunity to
upgrade Shepard’s assault rifle, shotgun, or sniper rifle. I would personally
recommend taking the Revenant since it offers deadly fire at the expense of a
bit of range. Alternatively, if you prefer to stay back and take enemies out
from afar with the help of Adrenaline Rush, then the Widow is also excellent.
Squadmates: Miranda is perhaps the most ideal squadmate for the Soldier since
her weapon damage and health bonuses benefit him the most; additionally, her
access to both Overload and Warp make her capable of dropping any defense so
that Shepard can tear into enemies with his weapons. Crowd control teammates
are also very valuable; Jack and Samara are both particularly useful since
their recharge times are low. (With Jack, you can actually spec out of her Warp
Ammo if Shepard already has the Squad evolution, and invest fully in her other
abilities.) Against Geth, Tali and Legion’s Combat Drone and hacking skills
make fantastic distractions. Generally, as long as you take squad evolutions on
both Warp Ammo and Disruptor Ammo, you can be a little more free about choosing
squadmates since you’ll always be able to improve everyone else’s
damage-dealing capabilities.
Infiltrator 2Binfi
**************
Weapons: Pistols, SMG’s, Sniper Rifles
Suggested Build:
- Heavy Disruptor Ammo (4)
- Cryo Ammo (0)
- Assassination Cloak (4)
- Incineration Blast (4)
- AI Hacking (1)
- Agent (4)
- Squad Warp Ammo (4) or Area Drain (4)
The Infiltrator is proficient in using sniper rifles and has the added bonus of
possessing some tech abilities. His class-exclusive power, Tactical Cloak, has
multiple functions. In addition to making Shepard invisible for the power’s
duration, the cloak also provides a massive damage bonus to gunfire when the
cloak is broken. This is why the Infiltrator is so good with sniper rifles –
the high-powered shot becomes even more deadly when Tactical Cloak is added on
top of it.
Like the Soldier, the Infiltrator gets both Disruptor and Cryo Ammo (no
Incendiary, unfortunately). Of these two abilities, Disruptor Ammo is
invaluable; it provides a heavy shield bonus and also has stunning effects on
synthetic enemies. This makes the Infiltrator capable of tearing through
heavily shielded factions in a hurry – especially the Geth and Blue Suns. While
Cryo Ammo can find use against health enemies (especially when evolved for the
Squad evolution), it’s not really worth evolving the power when the Infiltrator
has so many other valuable assets that deserve the points more. Additionally,
because the Infiltrator specializes in sniper rifles, the freezing effects from
Cryo Ammo aren’t typically useful since the extreme amount of damage tends to
rip through health enemies anyway.
On the tech side, the Infiltrator gets Incinerate and AI Hacking. Incinerate
helps the Infiltrator deal with armored enemies that aren’t always practical to
snipe – this includes many of the Blood Pack mercenaries, or the countless
FENRIS and LOKI Mechs that you’ll encounter. At Rank 4, Incinerate can be
evolved to have a radius effect. This bonus is very important, so consider
maxing out Incinerate quickly. AI Hacking, on the other hand, is very
situational. It only affects synthetics, and it only works once the enemy’s
defenses are down. However, if you do manage to hack an enemy, it can provide a
valuable distraction or disable a particularly dangerous enemy (like YMIR
Mechs). For this reason, it’s worth putting atleast one or two points into AI
Hacking.
The Infiltrator’s main weakness is dealing with barriers. The best way to
combat this is to select Warp Ammo as a bonus power, much like the Soldier.
Because this power is useful against the tough Collectors, it’s also a good
idea to evolve this for the Squad evolution if you plan on bringing power-based
allies that don’t have ammo abilities. However, on missions where you’re not
facing Collectors or the Blood Pack, the Infiltrator would actually benefit
more from something like Energy Drain. Because it receives tech bonuses, offers
a direct method for removing shields, and restores your own shields, it can
potentially be an invaluable power against shielded or synthetic factions. If
you already know what enemy faction you will be facing on a particular mission,
then it’s recommended that you alternate between these two powers – as long as
you don’t mind using some eezo to do it.
Advanced Training: Aboard the Collector Ship, you will have the opportunity to
either obtain the M-98 Widow for Shepard, or give your Infiltrator the ability
to use assault rifles OR shotguns. For the Infiltrator, I would highly
recommend selecting the Widow. While assault rifles are not a bad option
(especially for missions with lots of barriers), the Widow is too good of a
sniper rifle to pass up. The Infiltrator, being the ultimate sniping class,
will make perfect use of it.
Squadmates: Much like the Soldier, the Infiltrator benefits highly from
squadmates with anti-barrier abilities as well as crowd control powers. Because
the Infiltrator is less durable than the Soldier, any distractions or temporary
stuns/setbacks are always useful, especially for sniping purposes. Once again,
Miranda is one of your best options for her defense-stripping powers and damage
boost. Tali is perfect against heavily shielded factions; her Combat Drone will
help draw enemies out of cover while Energy Drain is a good direct option for
shields. For Collectors, Samara is a fantastic option. You also may want good
tanking characters for missions with lots of enemies rushing you. Grunt
fulfills this role best, but Jacob has the added bonus of Pull to draw enemies
out of cover. In either case, you can evolve Incendiary Ammo for the Squad
evolution in case Shepard wants the fire effect – it’s particularly useful in
close quarters where sniping is not practical.
Engineer 2Cengi
***********
Weapons: Pistols, SMG’s
Suggested Build:
- Area Overload (4)
- Incineration Blast (4)
- Attack Drone (4)
- Cryo Blast (2)
- AI Hacking (1)
- Mechanic (4)
- Warp Ammo (3)
The Engineer specializes in removing defenses, disabling enemies, and distract
through his five tech powers. Overload and Incinerate will take care of most
shields and armor, and both powers can be evolved for extra radius, allowing
you to knock out the defenses of groups of enemies. Cryo Blast enables you to
stop health enemies dead in their tracks – this is very useful against the
Blood Pack faction after you’ve melted armor with Incinerate. As with the
Infiltrator, AI Hacking is situational but still useful for making a
distraction when synthetics are present. However, due to the usefulness of the
Engineer’s other abilities, AI Hacking may not be worth spending any points in
at all.
The Engineer’s unique ability is Combat Drone. If you’ve used this power with
Tali and Legion, you’ll know that it’s extremely useful for giving enemies
something else to look at. Damage-wise it isn’t very effective, although the
Rank 4 Attack Drone evolution can increase its offensive capabilities.
Because the Engineer lacks proper barrier damage, Warp Ammo is once again going
to be one of the best bonus powers. It also greatly helps the Engineer’s weapon
damage, which he lacks greatly in since he is generally a power-oriented class.
However, you may find that investing fully in a bonus power is a hindrance if
you want to instead have access to all five of the Engineer’s tech powers. (See
below for more details.)
When accounting for all of his abilities, the Engineer generally excels against
most factions. He does struggle with Collectors a little more than others,
however. With the exception of Combat Drone, his abilities don’t really offer
much crowd control against them, especially if Cryo Blast isn’t at Rank 4. He
also naturally lacks barrier damage without access to Warp Ammo. For this
reason, be careful when selecting squadmates against them. Choosing a solid
biotic – like Samara or Jack - and a good weapon damage teammate – like Thane
or Zaeed – will greatly benefit you and offset the Engineer’s relative weakness
against the game’s most powerful faction.
Speccing the Engineer’s powers can be somewhat difficult in comparison to other
classes; because the Engineer has such a diverse skillset, it’s desirable to
have access to as many of these skills as possible. Incinerate and Overload
should always be maxed out, as they are your main sources of damage, and the
passive ability provides some good bonuses that you will want. I would also
strongly recommend four ranks in Combat Drone since the Attack Drone evolution
can help you against non-shielded factions. That leaves Cryo Blast, AI Hacking,
and Warp Ammo (assuming it is your bonus power). The Engineer benefits greatly
from taking combat-oriented squadmates with them, and most of these characters
already have ammo powers. For this reason, you might not want to spec into Warp
Ammo at all if you already plan to keep people with you that have Squad ammo
powers. If you do use Warp Ammo, I would suggest taking it only to the third
rank so that you can spare enough points for two ranks of Cryo Blast and one in
AI Hacking, as both will find their uses on specific missions.
Advanced Training: Aboard the Collector Ship, the Engineer will have the chance
to be trained in assault rifles, shotguns, or sniper rifles. Because the
Engineer generally is better a long range, sniper rifles are a very excellent
choice, but assault rifles aren’t bad either and can help you damage barriers
better.
Squadmates: Tech squadmates tend to be inefficient with the Engineer since they
already possess some of the Engineer’s tricks. A solid biotic is a great
choice, especially if Warp Ammo is equipped. As per usual, Samara is an
excellent option (once you gain her loyalty) due to Pull and Reave. Thane
offers a high amount of weapon damage in addition to his armor/barrier damage
from Warp and crowd control with Throw. A loyal Jack is also useful for her
Squad Warp Ammo if Shepard didn’t take it as a bonus ability. Finally, Garrus,
Grunt, and Zaeed are all good weapon-oriented classes that offer Concussive
Shot to damage barriers. I would recommend pairing up one of those three with
one of the biotics listed above for the most efficient results.
Sentinel 2Dsent
***********
Weapons: Pistols, SMG’s
Recommended Build:
- Throw (2)
- Heavy Warp (4)
- Assault Armor (4)
- Area Overload (4)
- Cryo Blast (1)
- Guardian (4)
- Warp Ammo (3)
Often considered the “jack-of-all-trades” class, the Sentinel is capable of
handling any situation in the game. His is the only character in the game that
has two powers capable of destroying every defense (Warp and Overload). He also
has Throw and Cryo Blast for crowd control, and Tech Armor for both defensive
and tactical purposes. This combination of abilities allows the Sentinel to do
very well against every faction in the game.
Warp and Overload rip through every defense in the game. Warp is invaluable and
should be evolved as quickly as possible; not only does it damage armor, but it
also takes care of barriers that are often present in the Collector and Eclipse
factions. Unfortunately, you must evolve Throw for two ranks before you can put
any points into Warp. As with the Engineer, Overload is a fantastic tool when
facing geth, Blue Suns, and Eclipse, who all have lots of shields. While it
becomes moot against Collectors and Blood Pack, it is still important to invest
in. Cryo Blast and Throw are both aimed at crowd control. Because you are
forced to put two ranks into Throw in order to access Warp, it’s probably
better to focus on Throw for crowd control as opposed to Cryo Blast. Throw’s
high force also makes it better for flinging enemies off of ledges.
Tech Armor is the Sentinel’s signature power. When the armor is activated,
Shepard receives a shield boost of varying values (this depends on the level of
the power); if you lose all of your shields, then the armor detonates, causing
heavy damage in a radius and throwing all enemies back. This feature is
extremely invaluable against hordes of Husks/Abominations, Pyros, krogan, and
varren. At Rank 3 and higher, reactivating the armor will also reset the
cooldowns of every character. For power-intensive squadmates like Miranda,
Samara, and Tali, this is an extremely useful feature since it allows them to
use their abilities almost as often as Shepard can. The final rank gives you
two options. The first, Assault Armor, increases the radius, force, and damage
of armor detonations and also provides an incredibly useful 50% shield bonus
after armor is destroyed. The second, Power Armor, increases your power damage
while Tech Armor is active and also boosts the shields you receive from
initially activating Tech Armor. Personally, I think that Assault Armor is much
more useful, especially if you go with Guardian for the final rank of the
Sentinel’s passive. The backup shielding is the real seller: even when an enemy
attack is strong enough to go through to your health, the shield boost you
receive after detonation will negate all of the extra damage and restore 50% of
shields. The more powerful detonation is also better against melee enemies, and
ME2 has several of them.
Warp Ammo is an easy choice for me as a bonus power. However, due to the way
that the Sentinel’s powers are unlocked, putting four ranks into Warp Ammo
cannot be done if you want to max out Tech Armor, Overload, Warp, and Defender
(and you should want all four of these powers at Rank 4 on higher
difficulties). Still, three ranks in Warp Ammo gives you a hefty 35% damage
bonus against barriers, armor, and health, so even without a final evolution
it’s a very useful ability to fill in the Sentinel’s relative weapon weakness.
Advanced Training: Aboard the Collector Ship, you will gain the ability to use
assault rifles, sniper rifles, or shotguns. Given the nature of the Sentinel’s
abilities, assault rifles are a very good choice. Sniper rifles are a good
option too, but keep in mind that since the Sentinel can withstand more heat
than the Infiltrator, Engineer, or Adept, sniping is somewhat counterproductive
when you can use Tech Armor’s shield boost to stay out of cover more often and
shoot assault rifles.
Squadmates: If Tech Armor is at Rank 3 or 4, then power-oriented classes gain a
huge advantage. This includes Miranda, but keep in mind that her abilities
mirror the Sentinel’s with the exception of Slam. Against geth, a loyal Tali is
invaluable since her relatively long recharge times can be overridden with the
reactivation of Tech Armor. The same goes for Jack and Samara, although both of
them have faster innate recharge speeds when their passives are invested in.
However, because the Sentinel lacks in weapon damage, combat classes are
potentially even more useful. Zaeed and Thane are both great options, and both
of them have useful powers that can be reset with Tech Armor. Legion is also a
good choice once you acquire him.
Adept 2Eadep
*******
Weapons: Pistols, SMG’s
Suggested Build:
- Heavy Warp (4)
- Throw (1)
- Singularity (3)
- Pull (2)
- Improved Shockwave (4)
- Bastion/Nemesis (4)
- Bonus Power (4)
Suggested Bonus Powers:
- Stasis
- Warp Ammo
- Barrier
- Dominate
On higher difficulties where all enemies have protection, the Adept is at a
rather large disadvantage since most of his abilities are only effective on
health targets. Warp is the exception of this rule, and it should be evolved
quickly since it generally gets used often, especially against heavily armored
factions; the barrier damage also helps greatly against some Eclipse troops and
most Collector forces.
Every other ability that the Adept has is designed for crowd control, but only
against enemies with no shields, barriers, or armor. Still, both Shockwave and
Throw have enough force to knock enemies off their feet or briefly stagger
them, and even Singularity and Pull can stagger a little bit. Shockwave is an
extremely useful tool for keeping a whole line of enemies at bay and to
temporarily stop them from attacking; it also does minor damage against
defenses depending on the damage and force of the waves. For this reason, I
would recommend fully investing in Shockwave. While not always necessary, it
will prove invaluable on any mission where enemies tend to rush you.
That leaves Singularity, Pull, and Throw. Singularity is probably the most
useful ability of this bunch since it has an innate radius and does a better
job of suspending enemies than Pull does. Pull and Throw are about even in
usefulness, but because investing in Pull (and Singularity beforehand) is
necessary to access Shockwave, you might as well focus on it and leave Throw at
0. Additionally, having access to both Singularity and Pull makes it easier for
you to create biotic explosions with Warp.
Selecting a bonus power for the Adept can be tough. As you see above, I have
not suggested any single power in my build, because the Adept actually has
quite a few viable options. Most of the abilities listed below also benefit
from biotic research upgrades and the Adept’s Biotic Mastery class, so consider
this when choosing one. Naturally, Warp Ammo is on the list since it offsets
the Adept’s weakness in weapon damage; additionally, the Adept is the only
other class besides the Vanguard that can benefit from the “lift bonus” that
Warp Ammo gives. With the Lair of the Shadow Broker DLC, Stasis becomes
available. Unlike most of the Adept’s other abilities, Stasis works on every
defense; while you can’t damage enemies in the Stasis field, you can stop them
dead in their tracks for several seconds, giving you a chance to keep a
particularly dangerous enemy out of play. Since the Adept lacks rugged
durability, Barrier is also a good choice to help last longer in a fight.
Unfortunately, it does have a rather high cooldown, even with bonuses from the
Adept’s passive ability. The final suggested power is Dominate, if you have
unlocked it from taking the renegade path in Samara’s loyalty mission. Dominate
is essentially an organic version of AI Hacking, and since organics are more
plentiful in the game, it has more use in general. Alas, like so many of the
Adept’s other abilities, it only works with no protection.
The final rank of the Adept’s passive ability is also up to you. Bastion gives
you higher Paragon and Renegade bonuses, so if dialogue is important to you,
then I would go for this. If you do end up choosing Bastion, then Stasis
becomes even more useful as a bonus ability since the duration bonus affects
it. Nemesis gives greater damage to Warp and Shockwave, however, and you will
likely be using those abilities often.
Advanced Training: Aboard the Collector Ship, you will gain a new weapon type.
I would strongly recommend going with sniper rifles; shotguns are impractical
for such a squishy class, and while assault rifles are solid, the Adept may
have a tough time sustaining fire since he can take less damage. Sniper rifles
not only give you minimal time out of cover but are excellent for taking out
enemies suspended by Singularity or Pull.
Squadmates: Against factions with lots of shield enemies (Blue Suns, Geth, and
Eclipse), characters with shield-damaging capabilities should be at the top of
the Adept’s priority list: this includes Garrus, Miranda, Kasumi, and loyal
Tali. Zaeed can also be very beneficial if you evolve Disruptor Ammo for the
Squad evolution. Squadmates like Legion or Grunt that can take more damage are
also good since Adept Shepard is not very durable, and Tali/Legion’s Combat
Drone does a good job of distracting from you. While other biotics aren’t
recommended against heavily shielded factions, any of the five biotics can
synergize well with the Adept since they all have either Warp or Pull, and the
Adept can either detonate a Pulled enemy with Warp or use Singularity/Pull to
suspend an enemy and then have someone detonate with Warp.
Vanguard 2Fvang
**********
Weapons: Pistols, SMG’s, Shotguns
Suggested Build:
- Inferno Ammo (4)
- Cryo Ammo (1)
- Heavy Charge (4)
- Shockwave (3)
- Pull (2)
- Champion (4)
- Area Reave (4)
The Vanguard is a rather interesting character. It has the highest risks of any
class available, but also reaps a lot of satisfying rewards if you use his
abilities effectively. In the case of the Vanguard, he only really needs two
powers to be successful: Charge and Incendiary Ammo. Everything else available
to him, with the exception of his passive class, is generally not suited for
his playstyle. Shockwave can be useful for causing havoc from a distance, but
typically Cryo Ammo and Pull will not be necessary for a Vanguard at higher
difficulty levels.
Because of the Vanguard’s limited skillset, he has few options available for
removing defenses of any kind. This is why it’s a really, really good idea to
take Reave as a bonus power. Not only does it decimate both armor and barriers,
but it provides great health regeneration for the Vanguard. This allows the
Vanguard to refill both his health and barriers with two different powers. In
fact, both Reave and Charge can turn the Vanguard into a surprisingly durable
combatant. Not only do they both provide regeneration of some type, but Charge
slows down time. For as risky of a power as Charge can be, it’s also a very
good defensive tool. When under a lot of weapon fire, a Charge at the right
time can not only restore your barriers but give you an opportunity to get
behind cover.
While the Vanguard can be really destructive on his own, squadmates (especially
on Insanity) can be highly useful since the Vanguard isn’t great at damaging
defenses – even with Reave. Remember that Reave will usually be competing for a
cooldown with Charge. Defense-damaging teammates are invaluable here, as are
long-range fighters for missions where the Vanguard can’t reach perched enemies
(like during Grunt’s recruitment mission) or in situations where using Charge
is a deadly mistake.
As you progress through the game, focus on investing points into Charge,
Incendiary Ammo, and Combat Mastery first, with one or two ranks in Reave as
well. Once those four abilities are maxed, your Vanguard generally has
everything they need to succeed. Shockwave can occasionally be useful for
dealing small shield damage from afar, but generally you won’t need it.
Advanced Training: The Vanguard has the option to either gain the M-300
Claymore Shotgun or gain the ability to use assault rifles or sniper rifles. If
you have the Eviscerator shotgun from DLC, then I would actually recommend
choosing assault rifles instead of the Claymore. While the Claymore is a
powerful shotgun, it isn’t always viable on the highest difficulties since one
shot often won’t be enough to kill even trooper-level enemies, which makes the
Eviscerator better. The Vindicator assault rifle also gives you a very strong
option for mid to long-range combat in scenarios where Charging is not safe.
Squadmates: Miranda is one of your best options here for her Warp and Overload
abilities; Zaeed also proves useful with Squad Disruptor Ammo. This really
helps Shepard on missions against the Geth and Blue Suns where shields are
plentiful. Tali and Legion can provide useful distractions for Shepard as well
with Combat Drone. Garrus is another viable option since he has Overload for
shields and sniper rifles for long distances that the Vanguard can’t handle.
Kasumi also has Overload, and she can make pretty good distractions too after
Shadow Striking a target. Any distractions are very useful for the Vanguard
since he can close in on enemies while others are preoccupied. Against
Collectors or the Blood Pack, Thane can be very useful for damaging armor with
Warp, knocking enemies off balance with Throw, and dealing heavy damage at long
range with his sniper rifles.
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| Know the Enemy Faction | 30enem
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Knowing the enemies that you’ll be facing on specific missions is sometimes
vital to your success. Sure, there are some holes in each class that need to be
filled by squadmates, but it’s inefficient to bring a squadmate suited for geth
on a Collector mission. This section, therefore, is designed to help in
understanding each of the enemy factions at hand and what characters excel
against them. This section does not include single boss enemies that only
appear once; for instance,
NOTE: All of the listed protections assume that you’re playing on Hardcore or
Insanity mode. On lesser difficulties, not all enemies have shields, barriers,
or armor.
Mechs/Non-Geth Synthetics 3Amech
****************************
Enemy Types:
- Assault Drone Shields
- Cerberus Turret Armor
- Combat Drone Health
- FENRIS Mech Health, Armor
- LOKI Mech Health, Armor
- Rocket Drone Shields
- YMIR Mech Health, Armor, Shields
Due to how much they intermix with other factions, I did not include a list of
locations for these mechs as they can show up in almost any faction that isn’t
Collectors or Blood Pack; you’ll typically see them alongside the Blue Suns and
Eclipse factions.
Mechs are fairly easy to defeat. The majority of them have minimal defenses,
and only the YMIR Mech proves to be a sturdy opponent. Assault Drones, Combat
Drones, and Rocket Drones are all dropped very quickly provided you put the
heat on them instantly; Combat Drones in particular can be a nuisance if you
leave them around too long. FENRIS and LOKI Mechs are the next tier up, and
while neither of them are particularly dangerous, they’ll rush you without
hesitation; this can make them dangerous if you’re glued to cover and don’t
take them out soon. YMIR Mechs, on the other hand, are very boss-like in
nature; they take a lot of damage to bring down, and with their turrets they
don’t let off of your squad very easily.
Since mechs usually pop up with the other factions, there’s no real use of
giving squadmate advice against them. Just bring a balanced squad (with more
emphasis on crowd control), and you’ll do fine. They are the easiest faction as
long as you don’t have to face too many YMIR Mechs.
Blue Suns 3Bblue
************
Enemy Types:
- Blue Suns Centurion Health, Shields
- Blue Suns Commander Health, Armor, Shields
- Blue Suns Heavy Health, Shields
- Blue Suns Legionnaire Health, Shields
- Blue Suns Pyro Health, Shields
- Blue Suns Trooper Health, Shields
Locations:
- Dossier: Archangel
- Dossier: The Convict
- Dossier: The Warlord
- Garrus: Eye for an Eye
- N7: Archaeological Dig Site
- N7: Blue Suns Base
- N7: MSV Strontium Mule
- Zaeed: The Price of Revenge
As you can see, every Blue Suns enemy has shields on higher difficulties. For
this reason, it is a very wise idea to choose squadmates who can deal damage to
shields when facing them. This includes powers like Overload, Energy Drain, and
Disruptor Ammo, or squadmates who specialize in SMG’s or assault rifles. It
also doesn’t hurt to have characters that excel in crowd control, because
although the Blue Suns won’t typically rush you as much as geth or the Blood
Pack, they do often have LOKI and FENRIS Mechs that will. Armor damage isn’t
bad either for the mechs, although there are very few Blue Suns organics that
have it.
Because the Blue Suns won’t normally rush you, choosing squadmates that can
fight from a distance are desirable too. For their shield damage and long-range
excellence, Garrus and Zaeed are two of the best against Blue Suns (which is
fitting since both of their loyalty missions have Blue Suns). Kasumi is also a
great choice; between Flashbangs to disorient groups, Shadow Strike to pick off
enemies from afar, and Overload to decimate shields, her abilities are very
well-used against the Blue Suns. Tali is also surprisingly useful against the
Blue Suns. Her Combat Drone distracts well from afar, AI Hacking comes in handy
when the Blue Suns have mech companions, and Energy Drain of course works very
well on their shields. You may want to wait until after gaining her loyalty,
though, as Energy Drain is a critical power.
The only two classes that will have a slightly rougher time fighting the Blue
Suns are the Adept and Vanguard, who have no access to shield-stripping powers.
This makes it all the more important to pick squadmates who can. For the most
part, however, they are not a particularly tricky faction to fight against.
Eclipse 3Cecli
*********
Enemy Types:
- Eclipse Commando Health, Armor, Barriers
- Eclipse Engineer Health, Shields
- Eclipse Heavy Health, Shields
- Eclipse Operative Health, Armor, Shields
- Eclipse Trooper Health, Shields
- Eclipse Vanguard Health, Barriers
Locations:
- Dossier: Archangel
- Dossier: The Assassin
- Dossier: The Justicar
- Kasumi: Stealing Memory
- N7: Captured Mining Facility
- N7: Lost Operative
NOTE: The Shadow Broker troops are very much like the Eclipse faction, so when
playing the DLC consider that the enemies will be very much like them.
Eclipse is quite similar to the Blue Suns, but there are a few differences that
set them apart. Unlike the Blue Suns, they do not have any Pyros, and they also
have less weapon-oriented attackers. To balance this out, they instead have
several power-oriented enemies. Engineers and Operatives can summon Combat
Drones and shoot Incineration blasts while Commandos and Vanguards have biotics
at their disposal (as well as shotguns). Eclipse is also more diverse in
defenses than the Blue Suns; several enemies do still have shields, but
barriers are also thrown in via the fairly common Vanguards. Like the Blue
Suns, Eclipse will often use mechs, although probably even more so. This makes
armor very prominent among their defenses too. Finally, Eclipse has several
annoying powers that can easily tie you up if you’re not careful. Combat Drones
should be hacked/killed quickly, as their stunning will be a huge annoyance.
Incinerate and Warp blasts also have a tendency to catch you off guard and
stagger you, so target the Engineers and Vanguards first if at all possible.
Choosing squadmates against the Eclipse is easier than any other faction due to
the diversity of enemy types you’ll normally face. Great abilities to have
against them include Overload, Energy Drain, Disruptor Ammo, Warp, Concussive
Shot, Reave, Incinerate, and most ammo types. Biotic controllers like Pull,
Throw, or Shockwave are great too once you strip defenses.
All in all, you can’t really go wrong with any squadmate when facing them.
Everyone has something that’s useful for the faction. The only recommendation I
would make is to ensure that you have someone with an anti-shield power on the
squad, because even though they have diverse defenses, shields are still
dominant and need to be taken care of.
Blood Pack 3Dbloo
************
Enemy Types:
- Blood Pack Boom Squad Health, Armor
- Blood Pack Pyro Health, Armor
- Blood Pack Trooper Health, Armor
- Blood Pack Warrior Health, Armor
Locations:
- Dossier: Archangel
- Dossier: The Professor
- Jack: Subject Zero
- Mordin: Old Blood
- N7: Blood Pack Base
- N7: Blood Pack Communications Relay
NOTE: The numerous krogan fought during Dossier: The Warlord and the end of
Grunt’s loyalty mission are very much like the Blood Pack krogan.
The Blood Pack characters never have shields, and only the bosses will have
barriers. Everything else is purely health and armor. In some ways, this makes
them an easier faction, especially if you’re an Adept or Vanguard; however,
their enemies are capable of dishing out damage very quickly, and charging
krogan are not good if your squad can’t handle them. Taking squadmates that
don’t specialize in armor damage can also be a major setback, so choosing
accordingly is important.
One important thing to remember about the Blood Pack is that they can
regenerate health, and as a result anti-health powers are just as important as
the anti-armor powers. This includes practically anything biotic along with
abilities like Cryo Blast and Concussive Shot; for armor, go for Warp,
Incinerate, or Reave. Most ammo powers aside from Disruptor Ammo are also
highly useful for the faction, and Shredder Ammo can make a sizeable impact too
once armor is down. Warp Ammo is probably a better alternative though since
it’s effective against all Blood Pack defenses. If you evolve Jack for Squad
Warp Ammo then she becomes one of the most effective squaddies against the
Blood Pack. Finally, anti-barrier abilities will come in handy for the rare
bosses, so try to make sure that atleast one squad member has something at
their disposal to use; if you already have something like Warp or Reave then
that should do nicely.
One more thing: the Blood Pack enemies have a tendency to rush you more than
the other two merc factions (especially krogan), so Infiltrators and Engineers
are at somewhat of a disadvantage. This can be stopped by bringing someone like
Grunt or Jacob to tank more damage, or simply a good biotic like Samara or Jack
that will disable health enemies before they reach you. However, Infiltrators
also get a slight advantage since Blood Pack enemies don’t have many long-range
offensive options, making them easy targets for a sniper.
Geth 3Egeth
******
Enemy Types:
- Geth Colossus Health, Armor, Shields
- Geth Destroyer Health, Shields
- Geth Hunter Health, Shields
- Geth Prime Health, Armor, Shields
- Geth Recon Drone Health, Shields
- Geth Rocket Trooper Health, Shields
- Geth Trooper Health, Shields
Locations:
- Dossier: Tali
- Legion: A House Divided
- N7: Anomalous Weather Detected
- N7: Imminent Ship Crash
- Overlord
- Overlord: Atlas Station
- Overlord: Prometheus Station
- Tali: Treason
Geth retain several of their unique enemies from Mass Effect, but in general
the faction has a lot of changes. Geth Shock Troopers are replaced by Geth
Hunters while Geth Snipers, Hoppers, Ghosts, and Juggernauts no longer exist.
Destroyers now have flamethrowers and Primes can now summon annoying drones.
However, in comparison to ME1 the geth faction is much more streamlined, making
it easier to manage the various types on the battlefield. Additionally, there
are far fewer geth missions than in ME1.
With 100% synthetic enemies, no barriers, and a whole lot of shields, there are
a few characters that shine against geth. Zaeed is very preferable when he has
Squad Disruptor Ammo, and even without four ranks of the ability the rounds
will only expand upon Zaeed’s exemplary weapon damage. While Tali normally
takes a back seat to other characters, her skills are naturally very suited for
the faction. Legion too has the skillset to battle them efficiently. While it
lacks Tali’s Energy Drain, Legion still has great durability with Geth Shield
Boost and also has far more range than Tali does with its sniper rifles;
additionally, the bonuses from its passive ability give it a quicker recharge
speed than Tali. As usual, anything with Overload works well. Area Overload
becomes even more effective in the cramped quarters during Tali or Legion’s
loyalty missions, as well as some of the areas of Overlord.
The two classes that naturally have a disadvantage against geth are Adepts and
Vanguards. Remember that the use of SMG’s will help greatly in tearing through
shields, and you can also use Advanced Training specifically for geth missions
to get Energy Drain, and then change it afterwards. Or you can simply ensure
that your selected squad can effectively handle shields.
Collectors 3Fcoll
************
Enemy Types:
- Abomination Health, Armor
- Collector Assassin Health, Barriers
- Collector Drone Health, Barriers
- Collector Guardian Health, Barriers
- Harbinger Armor, Barriers
- Husk Health, Armor
- Scion Armor
- Praetorian Armor, Barriers
Locations:
- Collector Base: Infiltration
- Collector Base: The Long Walk
- Collector Vessel
- Derelict Reaper
- Final Battle
- Horizon
- N7: Abandoned Mine (Husks, Abominations only)
Last but certainly not least, the Collectors are probably the most challenging
faction to face in the game. With some of the most powerful trooper-level
enemies, some really annoying horde-style creatures, and abilities unique to no
other faction, the Collectors can possibly make short work of you on Insanity
unless you have the right skills to succeed against them.
Take a look at the composition of Collector defenses. It’s a pretty good
balance between health, armor, and barriers, although the vast majority of
enemies you face (except for the Reaper IFF mission) will be the three trooper
types. For this reason, it is highly important that you bring atleast one
person that can knock out barriers with ease. The best power for this,
naturally, is Warp, but in case you’re not a Sentinel or Adept and you don’t
feel like bringing Miranda or Thane with you, Reave and Concussive Shot also
work well. Reave can actually be great against patches of troopers when evolved
for the area evolution, so be sure to consider this if you’re using it as a
bonus power (or if you bring Samara with you). Because I have recommended Warp
Ammo as a bonus power for five out of the six classes, this is also naturally a
very good ability to have with you, especially if evolved for the Squad
evolution.
With a lot of health enemies running around, Collectors are surprisingly
vulnerable to simple biotic attacks; anything that quickly neutralizes pesky
enemies or barrier-ridden troopers are golden on Collector missions. Pull does
an excellent job of forcing enemies out of cover while Throw or Concussive Shot
can knock back charging enemies easily. Shockwave is invaluable in later parts
of Horizon and the Collector Ship and a damned near lifesaver on the Reaper IFF
mission where you get swarmed by tons of Husks and Abominations. Other great
disabling powers include Cryo Blast, Singularity, and Reave since it offers you
health regeneration while stopping any enemies hit by it. Speaking of which;
for all of the listed abilities above, radius evolutions are extremely useful
if you have enough points for them.
Armor is last priority but is still very important. If you already have Warp or
Reave then they’ll work fantastically against armor, but for groups of Husks or
Abominations you may consider Inferno Grenades of Incinerate (when evolved for
the radius). Incendiary, Warp, and AP Ammo are all great as well, especially if
multiple squad members can have them for cross-firing. Snipers are also very
effective against armor, and typically they’re the best for damaging Scions
from afar anyway. Don’t count on them for groups of Husks or Abominations,
though.
So which squadmates are we looking for here? Biotics are usually great,
especially if the character has Warp or Reave – as a result, Thane, Samara, and
Miranda are some of your best options. Other crowd controlling biotic powers
are good too. Jack is good for this, but she falls short of others unless you
have Warp Ammo unlocked. On the other hand, you can go for a combat-oriented
type that can deal solid damage through weapons. Garrus and Zaeed are good
options since they both have Concussive Shot, and they both also have
anti-armor powers. Garrus’ Squad evolution on Armor-Piercing Rounds proves very
useful. Mordin is the only other tech character that’s really suited for
Collectors since his abilities are more focused on disabling and melting armor,
although remember that he has no anti-barrier ability. Finally, Kasumi provides
an extremely useful distraction against Harbinger-possessed Collectors with
Shadow Strike, and her Flashbangs are useful for temporarily disabling whole
groups of Collector troops.
The classes that will struggle the most with Collectors are probably the
Infiltrator and Engineer due to their lack of an anti-barrier power (and in the
case of Engineer, a lack of range). Try to remedy this by picking a good bonus
power beforehand if you haven’t already. You can’t really go wrong with Warp
Ammo – especially on the Infiltrator – and Reave is awesome too if you don’t
mind having a biotic ability on a tech character.
============================================================================
============================================================================
+++++++++++++
| The Squad | 40squa
+++++++++++++
As the purpose of this guide is to provide useful information regarding squad
setup, it’s important to understand more about the squad available. This covers
the ten regular in-game squadmates (as well as Morinth), the two DLC
squadmates, and Liara, the DLC-specific squadmate.
I have provided a build for each squadmate. These builds are designed to give
the most optimal results against the factions as a whole, rather than specific
ones. However, I have also given notes for different circumstances with
different classes, as some builds work better for different classes than for
others. Additionally, I have provided notes for Collector builds. However, it</pre><pre id="faqspan-2">
can possibly be redundant to spec into these builds if you don’t have Lair of
the Shadow Broker to respec powers. If you do not, then taking the most
balanced build is the best choice.
NOTE: I have not given a specific Rank 4 evolution for any of the ammo
abilities; this is largely up to you. Different circumstances with different
classes may make one evolution better than the other.
Garrus Vakarian 4Agarr
******************
Acquisition Dossier: Archangel
Specialization Combat, Tech
Weapons Assault Rifles, Sniper Rifles
Health: 200
Shields: 250
Suggested Build:
- Concussive Shot (2)
- Area Overload (4)
- Turian Rebel (3)
- Armor-Piercing Ammo (4)
Garrus is one of the first available squadmates in the game, albeit having one
of the toughest recruit missions.
Garrus is one of the few squad members to have a power dedicated to every
defense in the game. With Overload, Garrus easily strips enemy shields.
Concussive Shot makes a dent in barriers and also knocks down health enemies,
while Armor-Piercing Ammo greatly improves his weapon damage against armor. His
versatility makes him able to take on any faction efficiently; this is a trait
that is very are in Mass Effect 2.
Additionally, Garrus excels on missions where there are long, clear lines of
fire for sniping. Garrus is best when left in a spot to pick off enemies around
the battlefield without having to get into the heat of things; he is not a very
durable squadmate. As a result, it’s a good idea to pair him with another
character that uses a shotgun/SMG or is more durable, like Grunt, Jack, or
Jacob.
Garrus is a decent character against Collectors, but he lacks a bit of rugged
durability and Overload also becomes a moot power for the faction. If you’re
planning on using him during the Collector Base, spec out of Overload and
invest full points into all of his other abilities instead (if you have Lair of
the Shadow Broker).
Grunt 4Bgrun
*******
Acquisition Dossier: The Warlord
Specialization Combat
Weapons Assault Rifles, Shotguns
Upgrades M-300 Claymore Heavy Shotgun, Krogan Vitality (x2)
Health: 300
Armor: 300
Suggested Build:
- Concussive Shot (2)
- Incendiary Ammo (4)
- Krogan Pureblood (4)
- Fortification (3)
Another squadmate available early in the game, Grunt fills the “tank” role in
Mass Effect 2. With two special health boosts, strong passive health increases,
passive health regeneration, AND his loyalty Fortification power, Grunt is able
to withstand a lot of damage at high levels. He reaches an all-time durability
high when paired with a Cerberus Tactician Miranda.
His durability and use of shotguns makes him a valuable asset on missions where
several smaller enemies attempt to rush the squad. The most ideal mission for
him is perhaps the Reaper IFF mission very late in the game; it features tons
of husks and abominations that run straight at you. Grunt can not only
withstand these enemies, but you can use his Concussive Shot ability to knock
them down (especially if it’s specced with an area affect).
Grunt doesn’t perform as well on missions where long-range combat is favorable;
he also lacks against shielded enemies due to his lack of anti-shield powers.
However, against Collectors, Blood Pack forces, and mechs, he is very useful,
especially when paired with a Warp character. Although Grunt has Concussive
Shot for barriers, it doesn’t provide as much raw barrier damage, and Warp can
also help with the direct decimation of armor.
Be sure to research the three Grunt-specific upgrades in the research lab; the
health boosts and the powerful shotgun make him considerably more powerful.
Jack 4Cjack
*******
Acquisition Dossier: The Convict
Specialization Biotics, Combat
Weapons Pistols, Shotguns
Upgrades Subject Zero Biotic Boost
Health: 200
Barriers: 250
Suggested Build:
- Improved Shockwave (4)
- Pull (2)
- Subject Zero (3)
- Warp Ammo (4)
Jack is a handy character for classes that can’t control crowds very well, and
also for missions where hordes of enemies rush at the same time. After
investing in power recharge speed bonuses from Jack’s passive ability, she can
effectively hold off whole groups of health enemies with Pull and Shockwave
alone, especially if either of the powers is evolved for a radius evolution. If
Shepard is a Sentinel or Adept (or if Miranda, Thane, or Liara is on the
squad), then you can also take advantage of Pull to create explosions with
Warp, neutralizing several health enemies in a hurry.
After you complete her loyalty mission, you also gain access to one of the best
anti-Collector powers in the game: Warp Ammo. When evolved for the Squad
evolution, your weapons will practically tear through Collectors since every
Collector enemy is comprised of health, barriers, armor, or a combination of
them – and these three defenses are all vulnerable to Warp Ammo. The
combination of the ammo type and the crowd control abilities make Jack
particularly effective against hordes of Husks and Abominations; she is also
pretty decent against mechs and the Blood Pack.
Her real difficulty lies in shielded enemies. It is not recommended that you
take her on missions where geth or the Blue Suns are primary enemies as her
powers can’t effectively deal with them. Also, while she is preferable against
the weaker Collector forces, she struggles a bit with the troops and Scions
unless she has a teammate that can drop barriers first. Luckily Warp Ammo
contributes to this a bit.
Jacob Taylor 4Djaco
**************
Acquisition Default
Specialization Biotics, Combat
Weapons Pistols, Shotguns
Health: 200
Barriers: 250
Suggested Build:
- Pull (2)
- Incendiary Ammo (4)
- Cerberus Specialist (4)
- Barrier (3)
Available for the entirety of Mass Effect 2, Jacob shares a lot of traits with
Grunt. Instead of Concussive Shot, he has Pull, which is also useful for
neutralizing health enemies. Both have Incendiary Ammo, and Barrier replaces
Fortification as a defensive power. However, Jacob ultimately falls short of
Grunt due to his lesser passive abilities; Grunt benefits greatly from health
regeneration and an overall higher health rating, which Jacob does not have.
Additionally, Concussive Shot does direct damage to barriers while Pull does
not. Jacob does have one perk over Grunt, though; a Pulled enemy can be
detonated by any character with Warp, resulting in massive damage.
Still, Jacob is applicable in a lot of the same situations that Grunt is.
Miranda is a particularly effective squadmate to pair him with; she can remove
defenses with Overload or Warp and then Jacob can follow up with Pull. This
also applies to Sentinel Shepard himself, and the Squad Incendiary Ammo can be
quite useful if Shepard has no ammo powers of his own.
Jacob is at his best against mechs or Blood Pack members. While he also has
some perks against Collectors, several squadmates out-perform him due to better
abilities. For instance, Jack has Warp Ammo instead of Incendiary, which is
more useful for damaging ALL Collector defenses. Jacob’s abilities just aren’t
optimal in comparison.
Kasumi Goto 4Ekasu
**************
Acquisition Citadel (Kasumi – Stolen Memory DLC)
Specialization Tech
Weapons Pistols, SMG’s
Health: 200
Shields: 250
Suggested Build:
- Rapid Shadow Strike (4)
- Area Overload (4)
- Master Thief (3)
- Flashbang Grenade (2)
Kasumi’s strong combat versatility along with her early acquisition (she can be
recruited as soon as you finish with Freedom’s Progress) make her an excellent
squadmate.
While she lacks weapon strength and durability, Kasumi can serve many functions
on the battlefield. With Overload at her disposal, she is a prime option for
knocking out enemy shields in a hurry; her use of SMG’s also helps. For crowd
control, she can use her Flashbang Grenades (after loyalty) to disorient whole
groups of enemies. However, her real perk is Shadow Strike, an ability
exclusive to her character. Shadow Strike serves many functions. It’s a great
damage-dealer, for starters; it’s usually capable of dropping a health enemy
after any defenses have been removed. The power also creates a distraction on
the battlefield, allowing Shepard and another squadmate to fire away; this is
very useful for Vanguards, since less heat makes it easier to engage in
close-quarters combat.
As a result, Kasumi generally excels against any faction she’s up against.
While she lacks a solution for barriers, this only generally causes issues
against Collector Drones and Guardians, and even then as long as you have a
squadmate with an anti-barrier power you should be fine.
Legion 4Flegi
********
Acquisition Reaper IFF
Specialization Tech, Combat
Weapons Assault Rifles, Sniper Rifles
Upgrades Widow Anti-Material Rifle, Geth Shield Strength (x2)
Health: 200
Shields: 350
Suggested Build:
- AI Hacking (2)
- Attack Drone (4)
- Geth Assassin (4)
- Geth Shield Boost (3)
With its very high starting shield amount, its two available shield strength
upgrades, and the Geth Shield Boost ability, Legion is capable of withstanding
a lot of shield damage when leveled up properly. As a result, it becomes one of
the most durable characters in the game.
Legion is also capable of using a powerful sniper rifle with the appropriate
upgrade. While its passive ability doesn’t boost weapon damage as much as Thane
or Zaeed, it is still capable of dishing out a high amount of sniper rifle
damage. Its Combat Drone ability also allows it to distract enemies to make
them easier targets for itself and the rest of the squad. With AI Hacking,
Legion can also manipulate Geth and mech forces; however, this power loses
usability on higher difficulty levels since AI Hacking doesn’t go through
shields or armor.
Legion’s main weakness (other than the fact that you acquire it so late in the
game) is that it has no abilities that deal direct damage to defenses. This is
why it’s important to pair Legion with a squadmate like Zaeed, Miranda, or
Garrus so that you can use the latter to remove defenses for Legion. While
Legion generally excels against other geth and mechs, it has such a late
acquisition that often times there are few available missions left for it to go
on. Try leaving Tali’s loyalty mission or the Overlord mission for the period
after Legion’s acquisition so that you can use it in a few of them.
Miranda Lawson 4Gmira
****************
Acquisition Default
Specialization Biotics, Tech
Weapons Pistols, SMG’s
Health: 200
Shields: 250
Suggested Build:
- Area Overload (4)
- Heavy Warp (4)
- Cerberus Leader (4)
- Slam (1)
Miranda is arguably the most useful squadmate in the game. With an answer for
every enemy defense, crowd control, and a passive ability that actually boosts
squadmate stats, it’s hard to go wrong with taking her on any mission. For
armor, she has Warp, which also serves as a debuff and a biotic detonator. For
barriers, she also has Warp. Warp alone makes her proficient against Collectors
and the Blood Pack; her bonus ability, Slam, also vastly improves her crowd
control ability against the health enemies of these factions. Finally, Overload
gives her an edge against geth, Blue Suns, and other members of the Eclipse
faction. This allows her to basically handle any faction in the game with ease,
as you’ll always be able to make use of atleast two of her powers.
The second reason for Miranda’s versatility is her passive class power. With
the possibility to increase squad health by 15% or squad weapon damage by 15%,
she can offer great bonuses to teammates. With all bonuses considered,
characters like Zaeed and Thane can attain weapon damage comparable to
Shepard’s in the presence of Miranda.
For this reason, Miranda is one of the best teammates against Collectors if you
pair her up with a weapon-oriented squad member. Grunt benefits from the health
boost at Rank 4, but he is really the only character that does, so weapon
damage is more preferable in my opinion.
Mordin 4Hmord
**********
Acquisition Dossier: The Professor
Specialization Tech
Weapons Pistols, SMG’s
Upgrades Mordin Omni-Tool
Health: 200
Shields: 250
Suggested Build:
- Incineration Blast (4)
- Full Cryo Blast (4)
- Salarian Savant (4)
- Neural Shock (0)
Mordin specializes in armor damage and disabling health enemies, and he does a
very good job at both of these aspects. Incinerate is one of the best
anti-armor powers in the game; while it lacks the debuff of Warp, it can hit in
a radius at Rank 4, which increases its effectiveness against groups of LOKI
Mechs or vorcha. It also does respectable health damage. Cryo Blast and Neural
Shock are somewhat redundant when both are invested in since they both pretty
much do the same thing, and Neural Shock is even less useful since it only
works against organics. For this reason, it’s usually a better idea to spec
fully into Cryo Blast and opt out of Neural Shock completely.
He is most useful against the Blood Pack faction or any mechs. Due to his lack
of anti-shield or barrier powers, it’s recommend that when facing other
factions (particularly Blue Suns or geth) you bring a character with Overload,
Energy Drain, or Squad Disruptor Ammo. While Mordin has powers that excel
against Collectors, he doesn’t have anything to strip barriers so characters
with Concussive Shot, Reave, or Warp are desirable for those missions.
Samara 4Isama
*********
Acquisition Dossier: The Justicar
Specialization Biotics
Weapons Assault Rifles, SMG’s
Health: 200
Barriers: 250
Suggested Build:
- Throw (2)
- Pull (3)
- Sapiens Justicar (4)
- Area Reave (4)
At first glance, Samara does not look like a particularly useful squadmate.
Pull and Throw are extremely similar in function, and neither one of them works
against protected enemies. However, once you gain her loyalty to access Reave
and attain enough points to invest fully in her passives, Samara becomes one of
the most powerful squadmates in the game against Collector forces, and makes a
formidable opponent against other groups as well.
The extremely low recharge time of her powers with the Sapiens Justicar
evolution gives her the ability to use her three powers liberally. Area Reave
is a wonderful skill on her; not only does it function defensively for her when
used against health targets, but it’s perfect for knocking out barriers and
armor like Warp – only unlike Warp, it hits in a radius. Additionally, Pull and
Throw work well for stopping advancing enemies or drawing stuff out of cover.
After loyalty, Samara is most useful against Collectors or Blood Pack enemies,
or the Eclipse faction due to the barriers of asari Vanguards and Commandos.
While the Reaper IFF mission is potentially one of the toughest in the game,
Samara greatly helps in dealing with the hordes of Husks and Abominations. She
pairs up very well with an Overload kit, like Garrus or Miranda. The former can
offer long-range weapon damage while Miranda’s Warp combos well with Samara’s
Pull.
Tali 4Jtali
*******
Acquisition Dossier: Tali
Specialization Tech
Weapons Pistols, Shotguns
Health: 200
Shields: 250
Suggested Build:
- Attack Drone (4)
- AI Hacking (2)
- Quarian Machinist (3)
- Area Drain (4)
Tali’s usability in Mass Effect 2 ranges from destructive to almost useless,
depending on the faction. Against geth and any merc faction that has mechs,
Tali makes short work of enemies once Energy Drain is unlocked. Against
everything else... she suffers greatly. Because AI Hacking only works on
synthetics and Energy Drain only affects shielded enemies, she is at a severe
disadvantage against Collectors and the Blood Pack, as Combat Drone becomes her
only useful power.
For this reason, maxing out Combat Drone early is a great idea. While the power
isn’t exactly a game-changer, it does an admirable job of giving enemies
something else to shoot at; it’s especially good for stalling tough/dangerous
enemies like Harbinger, rocket troopers, or mid-tier bosses while you work on
defeating the weaker forces. Unfortunately, Combat Drone has a rather high
cooldown that can’t really be negated; unlike Legion, Tali has no recharge
speed bonuses from her passive ability.
Energy Drain functions like Overload, so be sure to invest fully in this power
once you’ve unlocked it. You may even want to save points for Energy Drain
until you do complete Tali’s loyalty mission so that you can immediately invest
them afterwards (or, if you have Lair of the Shadow Broker, simply respec on
Liara’s terminal). As said above, Tali’s combination of skills makes her most
efficient against any faction with lots of shields or synthetics.
While she is not 100% useless against the Blood Pack and Collectors (her drone
can still be a solid asset), it is not recommended to bring her on Insanity
difficulty.
Thane 4Kthan
**********
Acquisition Dossier: The Assassin
Specialization Biotics, Combat
Weapons SMG’s, Sniper Rifles
Health: 200
Shields: 250
Suggested Build:
- Throw (2)
- Heavy Warp (4)
- Drell Marksman (4)
- Shredder Ammo (3)
Thane shows a lot of versatility as a squadmate, capable at many ranges against
many targets. His skillset makes him most useful against health, armor, and
barriers – perfect for Collectors or Blood Pack forces. One Warp can usually
knock out the barriers or armor of troop level enemies and put a sizeable dent
in boss types. Throw is a good stun and knock out power for unprotected health
enemies. This gives Thane both practical damage and a dose of crowd control.
He is also one of the few squadmates that has fantastic weapon damage along
with useful powers. Along with Zaeed, Thane has the highest weapon damage
passives in the game at a maximum 50% extra. Additionally, when facing organic
targets, Shredder Ammo provides even more damage to health. This makes Thane
capable of inflicting heavy sniper rifle damage on unprotected enemies, often
times enough to kill them with one shot – even against targets with high health
values. With all of Thane’s abilities considered, he is one of the most ideal
Collector squadmates in the game. If you have Squad Warp Ammo or have Jack as a
second squadmate, then you can actually activate it instead of Shredder Ammo to
give Thane an even greater edge against the Collectors.
Thane’s only real weaknesses are his lack of durability and his relative
weakness against shields, although his use of SMG’s does supplement that
slightly. He still does respectable damage against shielded factions though,
and he’s good for seeking out the Blue Suns and Eclipse targets that tend to
stay back in cover.
Zaeed 4Lzaee
********
Acquisition Zaeed: The Price of Revenge (DLC)
Specialization Combat
Weapons Assault Rifles, Sniper Rifles
Health: 200
Shields: 250
Suggested Build:
- Concussive Shot (2)
- Squad Disruptor Ammo (4)
- Mercenary Warlord (4)
- Inferno Grenade (3)
Zaeed’s early acquisition, instant loyalty mission access, and diverse skillset
make him one of the most diversely useful squadmates throughout the course of
the game. For starters, Zaeed’s weapon damage compares to that of Thane’s; he
too gets a 50% weapon damage bonus at the last rank of his passive power.
Against synthetics or shields, this number is increased further due to the
boost of damage from Disruptor Ammo. These stats make Zaeed a formidable
opponent against geth, Blue Suns, Eclipse, and mechs. Additionally, his Inferno
Grenades and Concussive Shot account for armor and barrier damage,
respectively, and the Concussive Shot works well for downing unprotected
enemies.
With so many options for dishing out damage and controlling crowds, it’s hard
to really know what points to spend and what to opt out of on Zaeed. I think it
ultimately depends on how you plan to use him. If you would prefer to make him
a Collector killer, then Disruptor Ammo should go. If you would rather he
decimated geth and highly shielded factions, then the last ranks in Concussive
Shot might be worth getting rid of. Or you could distribute points between the
three active powers. In any case, I would recommend leaving the full points in
the passive, as his weapon damage bonuses are quite unsurpassable given their
uniqueness.
Zaeed’s only real weakness is that he doesn’t do well with larger groups of
enemies given his low durability and his lack of close-range weaponry. For this
reason, consider bringing someone like Grunt or Jack with him to counter his
low crowd control.
Morinth 4Lmori
**********
Acquisition Samara: The Ardat-Yakshi
Specialization Biotics
Weapons Assault Rifles, SMG’s
Health: 200
Barriers: 250
Suggested Build:
- Throw (2)
- Pull (3)
- Endua-Yakshi (4)
- Improved Dominate (4)
Morinth shares three of the same abilities as Samara: Pull, Throw, and her
passive talent (while they have different names, Ardat-Yakshi has the exact
same evolutions as Asari Justicar does). Her third power, Dominate, replaces
Samara’s Reave. In my opinion, this is a much less useful power. While Dominate
can potentially turn dangerous organics against eachother and do some good, but
the power in general suffers too much from the fact that it can only be used
when an enemy is reduced to health. Pull and Throw also have this limitation,
so essentially none of Morinth’s abilities can be used on protected enemies.
Still, she can find some use against Collectors and other organic factions,
especially on lower difficulties where there are no protections on many of the
weaker enemies. However, unless you’re aiming to play as a pure Renegade in
Mass Effect 2, I would just recommend keeping Samara. Reave is much more useful.
Liara 4Kliar
**********
Acquisition Lair of the Shadow Broker (DLC only)
Specialization Biotics
Weapons Pistols, SMG’s
Health: 200
Barriers: 350
Suggested Build:
- Singularity (2)
- Heavy Warp (4)
- Asari Controller (4)
- Stasis (3)
In comparison to Mass Effect, Liara’s skillset is much more restrictive in ME2.
While she does have access to Warp, and excellent power for removing the armor
and barriers of the Shadow Broker troops, the effectiveness of her other two
powers are diminished by restrictions placed upon them. The main problem with
Singularity is its high cooldown. Although this is lessened when points are
invested into her passive ability, it still doesn’t make the power worth it
since it only lifts unprotected enemies. Stasis has a shorter cooldown but
doesn’t allow you to damage enemies in the Stasis field, making it redundant
unless you simply want to temporarily remove a powerful enemy from the playing
field. In this case, Stasis is probably more worth it than Singularity.
Since Liara is a default squadmate on only the Lair of the Shadow Broker
mission, I would recommend bringing a squadmate with Overload, Energy Drain, or
Disruptor Ammo since a lot of the Shadow Broker agents have shields. Garrus,
Kasumi, Miranda, Zaeed, and a loyal Tali are all great options. Of course, if
Shepard has anti-shield powers then he would be efficient himself. If you can’t
bring a direct shield-damaging power, try to pick characters with assault
rifles or SMG’s.
============================================================================
============================================================================
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
| Squad Recommendations | 50reco
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
In the final section I will point out notable squad configurations that are
either solid versus any faction or particularly successful against a specific
one. These squads usually fit with any class.
Garrus/Grunt
**************
Weapons: Assault Rifles (x2), Shotgun, Sniper Rifle
Active Powers: Concussive Shot (x2), Overload
Ammo Powers: Armor-Piercing, Incendiary
Other: Fortification (Grunt)
The biggest perk of Garrus and Grunt is that they can cover any range
efficiently. Garrus’ use of sniper rifles and Grunt’s shotgun expertise allow
you to kill from near and afar; plus you get powerful assault rifles on both.
Additionally, you get two ammo powers to choose from if you’ve evolved them for
the squad evolution. This is an efficient use of firepower against any faction.
Plus, with two Concussive Shots, enemies can be knocked about quite frequently.
These two compliment eachother well against Collectors since they pick up on
eachother’s weaknesses. Garrus can snipe at Collector troopers hiding from afar
while Grunt takes care of close-range troops and Husks/Abominations. Grunt’s
high durability also makes him a tough combatant against a very destructive
group.
The only minor weakness here is that neither character has a power for dealing
direct armor damage; however, because Armor-Piercing Ammo and Incendiary Ammo
are both excellent against armor, this shouldn’t be an issue.
Garrus/Kasumi
****************
Weapons: Assault Rifle, Sniper Rifle, SMG, Pistol
Active Powers: Overload (x2), Concussive Shot, Flashbang Grenade, Shadow
Strike
Ammo Powers: Armor-Piercing
This squad has a heavy emphasis on picking out single targets and destroying
them. Garrus’ high sniper rifle damage packs a lot of punch into one target, as
does Kasumi’s Shadow Strike. Additionally, access to double Overloads allows
you to knock out almost any shields with the use of both powers at once (this
won’t usually be necessary, however). Garrus also has the ability to briefly
stagger targets with Concussive Shot and Kasumi can disorient everyone with
Flashbangs. Needless to say, this pairing packs a lot of damage into their
powers, and even though they are probably more useful against synthetics, they
also excel against most factions in general.
However, this group does not excel against hordes of enemies. Because Garrus is
a sniper and Kasumi’s trademark ability is designed for single enemies, using
this pairing against missions with lots of advancing mechs, varren, or
Husks/Abominations is not the best idea.
Garrus/Miranda
****************
Weapons: Assault Rifle, Sniper Rifle, SMG, Pistol
Active Powers: Overload (x2), Concussive Shot, Warp, Slam
Ammo Powers: Armor-Piercing
This setup is ideal against synthetics or for missions in wide, open areas...
in actuality, however, this is an excellent pairing for any class against any
enemies. With two powers for barriers, two powers for shields, and one power
for armor + another anti-armor ammo power, all defenses are covered with this
group at all ranges. The pair also has good mutual benefits for weapon damage;
Miranda boosts Garrus’ stats with her passive ability, and Garrus offers
Miranda an anti-armor power that considerably raises her weapon damage as well
against health and armor.
This is a highly efficient pairing that works against any faction with any
class. It’s especially useful if Shepard is a close-range class that can take
on hordes and keep them at bay, but it’s not necessary.
Garrus/Tali
*************
Weapons: Assault Rifle, Sniper Rifle, Shotgun, Pistol
Active Powers: AI Hacking, Combat Drone, Concussive Shot, Energy Drain,
Overload
Ammo Powers: Armor-Piercing
This is arguably one of the greatest combinations in the game against
synthetics. With two anti-shield powers plus AI Hacking and the drone for
distractions and more shield damage, Tali and Garrus can handle geth with ease.
Plus they get the added bonus of having varied range with Tali’s shotgun and
Garrus’ sniper rifle. Mechs and geth won’t get very far with the constant
damage output, hacking, and stunning that this group brings to the table.
The downsides to this pairing is that they generally have a hard time
incapacitating health enemies – especially organics. Garrus’ Concussive Shot
can only do so much, and the drone doesn’t always work. Additionally, the group
struggles a bit against armor and barriers. Garrus does have AP Ammo, though.
This is a great go-to group for geth missions or possibly Blue Suns, however.
Garrus/Thane
**************
Weapons: Sniper Rifle (x2), Assault Rifle, SMG
Active Powers: Concussive Shot, Overload, Warp, Throw
Ammo Powers: Armor-Piercing, Shredder
While double snipers wouldn’t seem like the most efficient option, it is
incredibly efficient if you’re facing enemies that don’t charge right at you.
Garrus and Thane excel at wiping out single targets from afar, and they also
have the abilities to counter every defense. This makes them perfect against
Blue Suns and Eclipse, and possibly Collectors if you’re not on a mission with
tons of Husks or Abominations. Additionally, you can tailor Thane’s powers away
from Shredder Ammo if Garrus already has Squad Armor-Piercing; the extra armor
damage proves to be much more useful for such a heavy weapon damage dealer like
Thane. Plus, this gives Thane the ability to maximize his efficiency with his
other two abilities + his outstanding passive stats.
This group can potentially be useful against the Blood Pack; after all, there
is a high amount of armor damage here and good crowd control with Throw and
Concussive Shot. Despite this, the pairing is not good up close, so Shepard
would likely need to cover that aspect. The same goes for the Husk/Abomination
horde missions.
Garrus/Zaeed
**************
Weapons: Assault Rifle (x2), Sniper Rifle (x2)
Active Powers: Concussive Shot (x2), Inferno Grenade, Overload
Ammo Powers: Armor-Piercing, Disruptor
Another double-sniper pairing, Zaeed differs in his role from Thane slightly.
He brings Disruptor Rounds to the squad instead of Shredder, which improves
versatility. Inferno Grenades affect more enemies than Warp but they deal less
armor damage and nothing to barriers; Concussive Shot is quite similar to Throw
although the former has added barrier damage. Put him together with Garrus, and
you have some of the best versatility in the game for dropping defenses. You
can alternate between Disruptor and Armor-Piercing Ammo depending on the
mission; Disruptor is better for geth, Blue Suns, and Eclipse, while AP Ammo
excels for Collectors and the Blood Pack.
What weaknesses do they have? Dealing with enemies at close range. This can go
one of two ways. Either the enemies won’t reach Garrus and Zaeed quickly enough
due to the high amount of DPS the two give out, or Shepard needs to be able to
hold the line if enemies make it to them. Therefore, this is one of the best –
if not THE best – pairing for a Vanguard in the game.
Grunt/Legion
**************
Weapons: Assault Rifle (x2), Sniper Rifle, Shotgun
Active Powers: AI Hacking, Combat Drone, Concussive Shot
Ammo Powers: Incendiary
Other: Fortification (Grunt), Geth Shield Boost (Legion)
This is a rather interesting setup made of two of the most durable squadmates
in the game. Grunt has health regeneration and Fortification while Legion gets
a hearty shield boost from his bonus ability. Additionally, Grunt covers
long-range combat while Legion picks off enemies from afar with its Widow
sniper rifle. The squad also offers various methods of crowd control that are
particularly effective against geth due to the nature of Legion’s abilities.
Also, because Geth Destroyers and Hunters tend to get up close and personal,
Grunt’s resilience in close-combat accounts for that while Legion can pick off
geth further out, such as Rocket Troopers and Primes. Also, oddly enough this
is a great group against the Blood Pack too. Legion’s sniper rifles rip through
armor quite well, especially when combined with Squad Incendiary Ammo. If it
stands back and lets Grunt do the tanking against krogan, then Legion can deal
significant damage.
This squad has two weaknesses. For starters, it cannot effectively deal with
shields or barriers unless Shepard has that covered, and the only two classes
that have answers for both shields and barriers are the Soldier and Sentinel.
Secondly, Legion’s very late acquisition makes the pairing useful for only so
many missions. Still, this is not a bad choice for Legion’s loyalty mission, or
parts of Overlord (Prometheus Station in particular).
Grunt/Miranda
***************
Weapons: Assault Rifle, Shotgun, SMG, Pistol
Active Powers: Concussive Shot, Overload, Slam, Warp
Ammo Powers: Incendiary
Other: Fortification (Grunt)
A pairing that covers almost all of the bases, Grunt and Miranda work very well
together for taking on any faction that has rushing enemies with defenses of
all types. For starters, Miranda’s passive health boosts will turn Grunt into
an even more powerful tank. Additionally, Grunt’s combat expertise combined
with Miranda’s focus on powers makes for a formidable group. Grunt’s Squad
Incendiary Ammo gives Miranda more weapon damage while Miranda improves Grunt’s
health in return. They are a very complimentary arrangement. Better yet, they
are excellent against almost any faction.
The only weakness is that they don’t really excel at long-range combat, but
this won’t be an issue on the majority of maps you come across. Plus, if
Shepard is a Soldier or Infiltrator, his use of sniper rifles balances this
squad almost perfectly.
Grunt/Mordin
**************
Weapons: Assault Rifle, Shotgun, SMG, Pistol
Active Powers: Concussive Shot, Cryo Blast, Incinerate, Neural Shock
Ammo Powers: Incendiary
Other: Fortification (Grunt)
A squad ideal for tackling armored targets, Grunt and Mordin have three
abilities for disabling health targets, one anti-armor ammo ability, and one
anti-armor power that can hit in a radius. This makes the pair not only useful
for the likes of Collectors and the Blood Pack, but even more so for specific
missions where enemies come at you in hordes. Mordin can continuously fire off
Incineration Blasts to melt the armor of groups while Grunt charges on and
takes out husks. Or, if the armor is already down, use one of Mordin’s
disabling abilities to stop health enemies in their tracks. Concussive Blast on
Grunt is also great for this.
Do NOT use this squad for any faction that has a lot of shields. This includes
geth, the Blue Suns, and most Eclipse missions (Samara’s loyalty mission is one
exception where there are mostly troops with barriers). The squad simply
doesn’t have the powers to deal with it, unless you plan on making Shepard take
them out on his own.
Grunt/Thane
*************
Weapons: Assault Rifle, Sniper Rifle, Shotgun, SMG
Active Powers: Concussive Shot, Throw, Warp
Ammo Power: Incendiary, Shredder
Other: Fortification (Grunt)
An interesting relationship exists between Grunt and Thane’s abilities that
proves deadly against armored opponents. Grunt excels at short-range combat
while Thane offers some of the highest sniper rifle damage in the game. Both
enemies have decent crowd control options with Concussive Shot and Throw, and
Grunt’s Incendiary Ammo combined with Thane’s Warp will decimate the armor of
mooks and bosses alike. This is one of the most ideal setups in the game
against Collectors and the Blood Pack as a result. Rushing enemies will quickly
be decimated by Grunt while Thane will pick off troops hiding in cover.
However, their effectiveness is lessened against heavily shielded bunches such
as the geth or Blue Suns. Eclipse isn’t as bad as long as Shepard has an option
for shields.
Grunt/Zaeed
*************
Weapons: Assault Rifle (x2), Sniper Rifle, Shotgun
Active Powers: Concussive Shot (x2), Inferno Grenade
Ammo Powers: Disruptor, Incendiary
Other: Fortification (Grunt)
Like most squads that have Zaeed in them, this is a versatile combination.
However, this one differs slightly from most in that Grunt accounts for Zaeed’s
relative lack of durability while Zaeed compliments Grunt’s shotgun usage with
sniping. With an extra Concussive Shot and Inferno Grenade to melt the armor of
groups, the Reaper IFF mission becomes ridiculously easy with these two,
especially if Shepard has another anti-armor ability like Area Incinerate or
Area Reave. The group also makes short work of all merc factions. Also,
although the pair has no direct anti-shield abilities, this is still a viable
faction against Geth if you evolve Zaeed’s Disruptor Ammo for the squad
evolution.
If you’re a biotic or an Overload class in need of some manpower, however, this
is a great pairing for almost any situation. Classes without an ammo type also
get the benefit of being able to switch between Squad Disruptor and Squad
Incendiary Ammo depending on the situation.
Jack/Miranda
**************
Weapons: Pistol (x2), Shotgun, SMG
Active Powers: Overload, Pull, Shockwave, Slam, Warp
Ammo Powers: Warp
If Shepard deals high weapon damage, then this is a very good combination to
bring alongside him for two reasons. For starters, Jack’s inability to strip
defenses is covered by Miranda’s Warp and Overload. Once defenses are gone,
then Jack can easily lift an enemy with Pull or topple several with Shockwave.
Jack offers up Squad Warp Ammo, which will boost her weapon damage, Miranda’s,
and Shepard’s against all defense types but shields. If Squad Warp Ammo has
already been obtained, then this group will make very short work of Collector
forces.
Neither squadmate is particularly durable, however. Neither have very much
range either. This is why it’s good if you can handle sniper rifles or assault
rifles, as enemies that are far away and hiding in cover will not be
susceptible to all of this group’s abilities.
Jack/Thane
************
Weapons: Sniper Rifle, Shotgun, SMG, Pistol
Active Powers: Pull, Shockwave, Warp, Throw
Ammo Powers: Shredder, Warp
Between Jack and Thane there aren’t many biotic abilities that you don’t have;
for this reason, this is not a good pairing if Shepard is an Adept or even a
Vanguard. However, considerable strength can be found in this pair versus
Collectors and other heavily armored factions. Like the Jack/Miranda combo,
this squad has access to both Squad Warp Ammo and Warp itself. The difference
is that Thane deals a considerably higher amount of weapon damage than Miranda
does, so Warp Ammo actually ends up benefiting him more. It even makes his own
ammo power, Shredder Ammo, somewhat moot since Shredder Ammo only affects
health whereas Warp Ammo affects health plus two other defenses. This pairing
also has greater range and also versatility of range since Jack wields shotguns.
The main weakness in comparison to Miranda is that Thane cannot disable
shields. For this reason, unless Shepard has Overload or Disruptor Rounds, it
is not advisable to take this pairing against geth, Blue Suns, or Eclipse.
Still, there is a high amount of crowd control mixed with armor damage in here,
making this pairing very ideal for missions with hordes of armored enemies –
i.e., the Reaper IFF, the Quarian Crash Site, The Long Walk, the Hahne-Kedar
Facility, etc. Blood Pack forces are trivial with this pairing.
Jacob/Miranda
***************
Weapons: Pistol (x2), Shotgun, SMG
Active Powers: Overload, Pull, Slam, Warp
Ammo Types: Incendiary
Other: Barrier (Jacob)
The game’s default squadmates actually have a lot of synergy with eachother,
especially if you’re an Infiltrator. Of course, Miranda tends to synergize well
with most squadmates, but Jacob’s durability, ammo power, and low-cooldown Pull
go together well with Miranda’s defense-stripping abilities. As with anyone who
has Overload, a quick Overload + Pull renders almost any trooper-level merc
helpless. For Blood Pack vorcha and most Collector troops, a Warp + Pull does
the same thing. This is a highly effective combination to have. Of course, you
can also use Pull + Warp for biotic explosions.
With Squad Incendiary Ammo added on, this group will bust through armored
targets easily and do pretty well against barriers and shields too. The only
thing that’s lacking here is range; once again, if Shepard is an Infiltrator,
this is covered very well. An Infiltrator also has Disruptor Rounds. With the
Squad evolution, you can swap out with Incendiary ammo whenever you’re against
a highly shielded faction.
Kasumi/Legion
****************
Weapons: Sniper Rifle, Assault Rifle, SMG, Pistol
Active Powers: AI Hacking, Combat Drone, Flashbang Grenade, Overload,
Shadow Strike
Other: Geth Shield Boost (Legion)
One of the game’s better options for synthetics, Kasumi offers Overload for
shield damage while Legion brings AI Hacking. Combat Drone also does a good job
of distracting enemy synthetics and dealing shield damage, and Shadow Strike
can also draw the attention of enemies. All of these abilities together make
this a rather great group for keeping the pressure off of Shepard. Plus Kasumi
can fire off Flashbang Grenades to disorient enemies. Additionally, the two are
excellent for dealing with enemies hiding far away; Kasumi can reach them in a
hurry with Shadow Strike and Legion can easily snipe at them.
However, this group is not advisable for factions with lots of barriers or too
much armor. This pretty much rules out Collectors; although Kasumi does fine
against them, Legion has more trouble since none of his abilities are
particularly suited for them.
Kasumi/Miranda
****************
Weapons: SMG (x2), Pistol (x2)
Active Powers: Overload (x2), Flashbang Grenade, Shadow Strike, Slam, Warp
Another excellent squad against synthetics, Kasumi and Miranda are both highly
power-oriented, which fits well for a Soldier or Vanguard. With two Overloads,
anything synthetic will get decimated on this squad, and shields drop very
quickly, enabling weapon classes or biotics with powers like Pull to make short
work of the unprotected enemies that are left over. Additionally, Miranda and
Kasumi have other cool abilities like Warp, Flashbangs, and Shadow Strike to
manipulate enemies in other ways. Warp, of course, is useful in a variety of
circumstances, and it accounts for the group’s otherwise incompetence with
armor. Flashbangs do an excellent job of stunning groups, and Shadow Strike
will draw enemy attention, which is perfect for a Vanguard that needs to close
in or a Soldier who wants to tear into enemies with weapon damage.
This squad doesn’t really have any weaknesses outside of the fact that they are
both highly power-reliant and neither one is particularly durable. This is why
the Soldier does well with these two, and the Vanguard also benefits highly.
The Adept will also enjoy the double Overloads, which lighten the Adept’s
weaknesses considerably.
Kasumi/Tali
*************
Weapons: Pistol (x2), Shotgun, SMG
Active Powers: AI Hacking, Combat Drone, Energy Drain, Flashbang Grenade,
Overload, Shadow Strike
Here’s another pair that’s effective against geth, synthetics, and shielded
enemies. Again, this group has two options for destroying shields, and for Tali
this also works as a defensive measure. With so many “disabling” techniques in
the combined skillset, this pairing can also keep geth in check almost
constantly. Hack one, throw a Flashbang to overheat weapons, release a
distracting drone... there’s a lot you can do for battlefield control.
On the downside, neither of them are durable, neither have the most effective
anti-armor abilities (except Kasumi’s Shadow Strike), and neither have
effective anti-barrier methods either. Additionally, while the pair has good
disabling techniques, they can’t handle groups or hordes of enemies well, even
though Tali has a shotgun. It’s best to limit this combination to groups of
purely shielded enemies, and even then Shepard will have to compensate for the
relative weakness against armor this group possesses.
Kasumi/Zaeed
**************
Weapons: Assault Rifle, Sniper Rifle, SMG, Pistol
Active Powers: Concussive Shot, Flashbang Grenade, Overload, Shadow Strike
Ammo Powers: Disruptor
Here’s another excellent squad versus synthetics, and this one is unique in
that it doesn’t just offer two anti-shield active powers, but one regular power
and an ammo power. When evolved for the Squad evolution, not only will you have
Kasumi’s Overload, but also a whole squad cross-firing with little disruptors
in the bullets. Additionally, due to Inferno Grenades and Zaeed’s high weapon
damage, the combination will decimate armored foes in the process. This makes
the squad practically invaluable against any geth or mechs.
While this squad is very good against the Blood Pack and Collectors too, it’s
more practical to spec out of Overload and Disruptor Ammo if you know that
you’ll be facing them. You’re still left with two great abilities on Kasumi
(Shadow Strike is awesome for trolling Harbinger) and an anti-armor and
anti-barrier power on Zaeed. While the overall power of the two is lessened,
they can still hold their own against Collectors quite well.
Legion/Tali
*************
Weapons: Assault Rifle, Sniper Rifle, Shotgun, Pistol
Active Powers: AI Hacking (x2), Combat Drone (x2), Energy Drain
Other: Geth Shield Boost (Legion)
Now here’s a rather interesting pairing; on paper, this does not look good due
to the doubling up of two abilities, but when you pit Legion and Tali against
geth, they are nigh unstoppable. Why is this? If you spec the two so that they
each specialize in either AI Hacking or Combat Drone (for the purposes of
making efficient usage of points, it’s better to take Legion’s AI Hacking to 4
and Tali’s Combat Drone to 4) and then fill in the rest of their points in the
passive and bonus ability, then you have two very distinctive characters that
no longer share the exact same abilities, but also kick butt against geth.
In addition, Tali and Legion cover both short and long ranges well with their
weapons. Legion also has a very high durability with all of its shield bonuses
from upgrades and its passive bonus power, and Tali gets Energy Drain to
restore shields.
The only weakness of this pairing is that until Tali has unlocked Energy Drain,
the pairing can’t actually deal any direct damage against shields with powers
alone, and will have to rely on Shepard to deal it. They also don’t have a lot
going for them against geth armor. In fact, with the exception of Legion’s
sniper rifle, a lot of the damage in this setup has to come from Shepard. If
Shepard is a weapon-oriented class, then this should not be an issue.
Legion/Zaeed
**************
Weapons: Assault Rifle (x2), Sniper Rifle (x2)
Active Powers: AI Hacking, Combat Drone, Concussive Shot, Inferno Grenade
Ammo Powers: Disruptor
Other: Geth Shield Boost (Legion)
Here’s another excellent combination for geth forces. This one is probably
slightly better than Legion/Tali since Zaeed gets an anti-shield power to start
with as opposed to during his loyalty mission, and with loyalty he gets the
Inferno Grenades to melt armor. This covers your bases against geth a lot
better, and Legion can also benefit strongly from a Squad evolution of
Disruptor Rounds.
The disadvantage of this group, however, is that they cannot effectively deal
with enemies up close. This is why the squad is most efficient when Shepard is
a Vanguard, or possibly an Adept so that you can use your biotics to keep
enemies in check when they get near you. The extra shield damage with your guns
will also help biotics greatly.
Miranda/Mordin
****************
Weapons: SMG (x2), Pistol (x2)
Active Powers: Cryo Blast, Incinerate, Neural Shock, Overload, Slam, Warp
Miranda and Mordin are another very power-centric group, but an interesting
synergy exists between Miranda and Mordin’s powers. Miranda can easily remove
any defense with Overload or Warp, and Mordin can follow it up with a Cryo
Blast or Neural Shock to immobilize the health target. This synergy also works
in other ways. The two can use their combined abilities to practically destroy
any armored boss; Miranda can drop their shields/barriers with Overload/Warp,
then Mordin uses Incinerate to start melting armor, then Miranda lays down
another Warp, and then when you reach the health, Mordin unleashes Cryo
Blast/Neural Shock to finish them off.
While most pairings with Miranda generally excel against several factions, this
one in particular is excellent against almost anything if you can throw in ammo
power to the mix; Disruptor is pretty good, or possibly Warp for added barrier
damage against Collectors. If you’re an Infiltrator and you have both ammo
abilities, then this is a fantastic squad for you. Just keep in mind that
neither one of them is very durable, so try not to let them get overwhelmed too
quickly, although this shouldn’t be a problem given their ability to drop
health targets quickly. They are also somewhat weak against larger boss enemies
like Praetorians and YMIR Mechs (Scions are not an issue since they both have
good armor-damaging powers).
Miranda/Samara
****************
Weapons: SMG (x2), Assault Rifle, Pistol</pre><pre id="faqspan-3">
Active Powers: Overload, Pull, Reave, Slam, Warp, Throw
With a plethora of biotic abilities + Overload, Miranda and Samara are pretty
well suited for anything. In fact, Samara serves almost the exact same role as
Mordin does, only she has one better weapon than Mordin and has slightly
greater durability due to Reave’s health regeneration. Additionally, Samara’s
Pull works exceptionally well with Miranda’s Warp for biotic explosions. Like
Mordin, Samara also exhibits high synergy with Miranda’s defense-stripping
abilities: most enemies can be completely disabled with a quick Warp/Overload +
Pull/Throw combination. On missions with a high amount of armored enemies,
Samara’s area Reave can also be put to good use.
While not completely advisable against geth (unless Shepard also has an
anti-shield ability; Disruptor Rounds are once again very good), this pairing
can take on almost any faction in the game to great effectiveness. Until you
get Samara, Mordin and Miranda are great, but once Samara is with you, she
accomplishes nearly the same thing as Mordin with a few extra perks.
Miranda/Tali
**************
Weapons: Pistol (x2), Shotgun, SMG
Active Powers: AI Hacking, Combat Drone, Energy Drain, Overload, Slam, Warp
This is probably one of the most effective anti-geth setups in the game if
Shepard is a combat-oriented class. As long as Tali has Energy Drain unlocked,
these two will tear through shields through a combination of Overload and
Energy Drain. When stripped to health, Miranda can either fling them around
with Slam, or Tali can hack the synthetics for greater crowd control; if
stripped to armor, Miranda can also Warp them down, although another anti-armor
ability wouldn’t hurt this group. Incendiary Ammo classes are particularly good
since they also offer a squad ammo ability.
While best against geth, this group is also pretty useful for the other
shielded mercs as well, and since they usually come with synthetic mechs and
drones, AI Hacking still maintains its uses. Just don’t expect this pairing to
tear bosses up too much; they can only deal so much damage outside of their
powers.
Miranda/Thane
***************
Weapons: SMG (x2), Sniper Rifle, Pistol
Active Powers: Warp (x2), Overload, Slam, Throw
Ammo Powers: Shredder
Here’s a pretty excellent anti-Collector squad that works effectively before
both characters have gained loyalty. Like the Miranda/Mordin and Miranda/Samara
pairings, both characters feature anti-armor abilities, only in this case,
having double Warps gives you the potential for extremely high damage against
heavily armored targets like Scions, Praetorians, Harbinger, krogan, and all of
the boss-type merc enemies. This feature does not go unnoticed on a Collector
mission. Additionally, Thane has access to Throw and Miranda to Slam (after
loyalty), which gives the group strong crowd control once defenses are down.
Finally, unlike the two pairings listed above, Thane gives the squad greater
weapon damage, especially when combined with Miranda’s bonuses.
The expense of this group is that they cannot effectively deal with enemies at
close-range or hordes that are too big. While area versions of Slam and Throw
are available, this alone isn’t good enough for two fragile characters like
Miranda and Thane. A shotgun-wielding class will do the two well. Additionally,
tech-based classes (besides the Sentinel) will find the group’s anti-barrier
abilities to be very useful. There are a lot of classes that can strongly
benefit from this arrangement.
Miranda/Zaeed
***************
Weapons: Assault Rifle, Sniper Rifle, SMG, Pistol
Active Powers: Concussive Shot, Inferno Grenade, Overload, Slam, Warp
Ammo Powers: Disruptor
This is arguably one of the game’s greatest pairings. It matches a versatile
power character with a very versatile weapons character, and their strengths
are mutually beneficial. Zaeed provides high weapon damage where Miranda
cannot, and Miranda boosts Zaeed’s weapon damage even further. Zaeed has
Inferno Grenades for lesser damage on groups of armored enemies; Miranda has
Warp for high armor damage on a single armored target. Again, Miranda offers
high shield damage with Overload while Zaeed gives the entire squad passive
shield damage through Disruptor Rounds. Finally, barriers are tackled through a
mix of Warp and Concussive Shot, and health enemies are disabled through
Concussive Shot or Slam. There are multiple options for every single defense.
There is no one faction that really suffers more than another from this
pairing. In fact, you can actually respec the pair’s powers for the most ideal
effects against the faction at hand. For Blood Pack and Collectors, Miranda
drops Overload and Zaeed drops Disruptor Rounds (while not practical to do this
constantly, it is a good idea to respec without these powers when you go on the
Suicide Mission, where it’s all Collectors).
Because this pairing is so great at filling in every gap, there is also no one
class that gets a bigger advantage than another with this grouping. Adepts and
Vanguards will love the anti-shield potential here, while Infiltrators and
Engineers will make use of the anti-barrier powers. Soldiers will enjoy the
ability to strip lots of defenses before tearing into enemies with weapon
damage, and they also get Miranda’s damage bonus. A Sentinel, on the other
hand, puts this squad into the stratosphere, as you will have THREE options for
every defense in the game.
Mordin/Samara
****************
Weapons: SMG (x2), Assault Rifle, Pistol
Active Powers: Cryo Blast, Incinerate, Neural Shock, Pull, Reave, Throw
As you can see, Mordin and Samara share very similar abilities. They both have
an anti-armor power (Incinerate, Reave) plus two powers for disabling health
targets (Cryo Blast and Neural Shock, Pull and Throw). While this would seem to
make them redundant together, they are not if you pit them against enemies
where their strengths lie, much like Tali and Legion. In this case, this
pairing decimates the Blood Pack and Collectors, especially if you have evolved
for radius evolutions. Even though the squad is not overly durable, there is
such a high amount of crowd control going on that neither one of them should
really be in danger unless you let a stray krogan or group of husks get close.
Even that’s pretty hard to do since every power available to the two can be
evolved for a radius evolution.
This is a killer pairing for any combat class against the factions mentioned
above. A Soldier or Vanguard will also be able to provide Incendiary Ammo,
which only furthers the armor damage being dealt. Just don’t pit this group
against the geth or Blue Suns unless you want to deal with all of the shields
yourself...
Mordin/Thane
***************
Weapons: SMG (x2), Sniper Rifle, Pistol
Active Powers: Cryo Blast, Incinerate, Neural Shock, Throw, Warp
Ammo Powers: Shredder
Another ideal combination against heavily armored foes, Thane’s replacement of
Samara has its positives and negatives. On the plus side, Thane has the highest
squadmate weapon damage in the game, and Warp is probably a better anti-armor
ability against bosses; it also combos well with Singularity/Pull classes. He
also gives the squad Shredder Ammo, although typically it’s not worth evolving
Thane’s ammo ability to Level 4, as it forces you to remove a final rank from
either Warp or his passive – neither of which is a good idea, in my opinion.
On the negative side, Thane has less crowd control and cannot deal armor damage
in a radius. Luckily, Mordin covers this. You can typically use Mordin’s
Incinerate on groups of weakly armored enemies and focus Thane’s Warp on
heavily armored targets, like Harbinger or Scions.
This squad is applicable in all of the same situations that Mordin and Samara
are.
Samara/Thane
**************
Weapons: SMG (x2), Assault Rifle, Sniper Rifle
Active Powers: Throw (x2), Pull, Reave, Warp
Ammo Powers: Shredder
Another biotic powerhouse team, Samara and Thane are once again only
recommended against non-shielded factions, but when you put them up against the
likes of the Blood Pack or Collectors, they excel. There is great potential
here for flinging enemies off of ledges or for knocking back hordes of husks
and abominations, which makes this group ideal for the Reaper IFF mission – or
any circumstance where you need sufficient crowd control. Samara can devastate
groups of armored targets with Reave while Thane tears away at boss armor with
Warp. Both can make the weaker ones fly with Throw, and Samara can Pull a few
enemies to set up a nice explosion with Warp. Both offer pretty good weapon
damage as well. This pair has a lot of synergy with eachother.
In fact, if you’re a character that has Overload or even Disruptor Rounds, this
squad can potentially be great against anything. Because they both have SMG’s
and Samara uses assault rifles, shields actually aren’t too big of a problem.
The squad’s versatility outside of shield damage is very, very useful for most
classes in the game, especially those that don’t have the best options against
barriers.
Tali/Zaeed
************
Weapons: Assault Rifle, Sniper Rifle, Shotgun, Pistol
Active Powers: AI Hacking, Combat Drone, Concussive Shot, Energy Drain,
Inferno Grenade
Ammo Powers: Disruptor
A fantastic pairing against geth forces, Tali’s Energy Drain combined with
Zaeed’s Squad Disruptor Ammo are ideal for tearing apart enemy shields and
stunning synthetics. Zaeed also makes up for Tali’s lack of armor damage with
Inferno Grenades, which allows the group to handle Primes more easily than
normal. There’s also a good amount of range here with Tali able to get in close
with shotguns and Zaeed to snipe/shoot from afar with his rifles. Throw in a
fair bit of crowd control with Concussive Shot, AI Hacking, and Combat Drone,
and this pair is set to go against the geth or any heavily shielded merc
faction.
There are no real drawbacks when this squad is faced against geth, Blue Suns,
or Eclipse, so if Shepard can contribute some more armor damage or crowd
control to the group (which any biotic can do perfectly), they’ll be good to go.
Thane/Zaeed
**************
Weapons: Sniper Rifle (x2), Assault Rifle, SMG
Active Powers: Concussive Shot, Inferno Grenade, Throw, Warp
Ammo Powers: Disruptor, Shredder
Thane and Zaeed have the highest weapon damage passives of any character in the
game, and both of them also wield sniper rifles. This makes them capable of
dishing out tons of damage from afar; this number is increased even further
when facing shielded enemies if Zaeed has Squad Disruptor Ammo. If you throw in
an Overload or Energy Drain from Shepard, this squad will decimate against any
faction since both characters can also adequately deal with armor and barriers.
Because of their high focus on weapon damage, this squad is ideal for a
power-oriented class; tech types will benefit from their barrier damage more,
however. Or, if you’re an Adept with good crowd control and you’re facing an
armored faction, bring Thane and Zaeed along to deal the solid weapon damage
for you while you throw stuff around and send out Warps. A biotic combined with
these two can make quick work of Collectors.
Be careful though, because this group is not the best for dealing with enemies
up close. It shouldn’t ever come to this due to their good group-stopping
ability in Throw Field and Concussive Blast, but it is a possibility.
============================================================================
============================================================================
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
| Mission Recommendations | 50reco
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Due to the circumstances of various mission layouts, some squads may be more
useful than others.
NOTE: These squads are ONLY recommended if you’re more concerned with gameplay
as opposed to dialogue and story. There are often better squadmates if you want
to hear unique lines.
Dossier: The Professor
*************************
Primary Factions: Blue Suns, Blood Pack
Suggested Squad: Zaeed and Garrus/Grunt
Other Suggestions: Miranda, Jack
While there are some Blue Suns enemies on this mission, they are very few in
comparison to the vorcha and krogan encountered later on. Additionally, because
the streets of Omega offer a lot of opportunity for sniping, Garrus and Zaeed
can put this to very good use. However, there are also sections where several
krogan and vorcha will come at you simultaneously; Grunt is able to handle
these sections quite well. Miranda and Jack don’t have the range of Zaeed or
Garrus; however, both have abilities that come in handy for the varied enemies
of this mission. Jack’s Shockwave is also highly useful for knocking the large
groups of enemies in the latter part of this mission off their feet, and Pull
is great for getting vorcha off of balconies.
Dossier: Archangel
*********************
Primary Factions: Eclipse, Blood Pack, Blue Suns, Mechs
Suggested Squad: Kasumi and Miranda
Other Suggestions: Grunt
This dossier mission features every main mercenary faction, so you will
predominantly have a lot of armor and shields to work through with a sprinkling
of barriers from the Eclipse Vanguards. As such, double Overloads from Kasumi
and Miranda are invaluable here, and Kasumi’s ability to sneak around
Archangel’s hideout with Shadow Strike to pick off hiding targets is really
nice. However, be warned that there is one very difficult bit of this
recruitment mission that features a lot of Blood Pack forces coming at you at
once. Grunt is extremely useful for this bit since he doesn’t go down as
easily, so if you would prefer to swap him out with Kasumi or Miranda, it will
not be an issue and should make that section easier.
Dossier: The Convict
**********************
Primary Factions: Blue Suns
Suggested Squad: Garrus and Zaeed
Other Suggestions: Kasumi, Miranda
Shield-damaging abilities are incredibly powerful here, as every Blue Suns
trooper will have shields on Insanity. In essence, any of the four characters
with anti-shield powers will do well here, but Garrus and Zaeed are
particularly more useful since they can snipe in the very large rooms aboard
Purgatory, where enemies don’t rush you very quickly. In fact, shotgun-users
are at something of a disadvantage here since it’s a dangerous idea to get too
close to the big crowds. Double Concussive Shots are also great for getting
enemies off their feet if they poke out of cover.
Dossier: The Warlord
***********************
Primary Factions: Blue Suns, Krogan
Suggested Squad: Miranda and Garrus/Zaeed
Other Suggestions: N/A
Unless you want to hear the dialogue of other squadmates, I wouldn’t stray too
far outside of Garrus, Zaeed, and Miranda on Insanity. There are a surprising
amount of spots on this mission where enemies are far away and shooting rockets
at you; not only does this make shotguns next to useless for those bits, but
Kasumi’s Shadow Strike also becomes a moot ability, because similar to how the
Vanguard cannot reach these places, Shadow Strike can’t either. Garrus and
Zaeed are both excellent here for their sniping ability. However, Miranda is
almost necessary in my opinion due to Warp. There is a portion of the mission
where you will face several krogan at once, and Warp is the easiest way to drop
their armor. Zaeed does have Inferno Grenades if his loyalty mission has been
completed, but they won’t melt as much armor, and Garrus won’t yet have
Armor-Piercing Ammo.
N7: Hahne-Kedar Facility
***************************
Primary Factions: Mechs
Suggested Squad: Jack and Mordin
Other Suggestions: Grunt, Jacob
Available early in the game once you complete the two relevant side missions
that are prior to it, the Hahne-Kedar Facility is one of the unique parts of
the game where armored enemies tend to relentlessly rush at you. For this
reason, Jack and Mordin are invaluable characters to bring with you. A constant
use of Shockwave combined with Incinerates and Cryo Blasts will keep the mechs
at bay, allowing Shepard the chance to easily drop them and advance along the
line – and LOKI Mechs are VERY relentless. Snipers have a difficult time here,
although Zaeed’s Inferno Grenades can be useful for the groups of armored
mechs. If Jack or Mordin are not available, then Grunt and Jacob can make good
damage soakers too that also burn through the mechs with Incendiary Ammo.
Horizon
*********
Primary Factions: Collectors
Suggested Squad: Miranda and Grunt/Zaeed
Other Suggestions: Garrus, Kasumi, Mordin
Miranda is somewhat of an essential squadmate here since she is the only one
with access to Warp. Although Overload is useless here, Warp is going to be
useful almost 100% of the time since every enemy will have either armor or
barriers on Hardcore/Insanity. I would also recommend Grunt as your second
since his Concussive Shot functions as both crowd control and barrier damage,
and his close-range demeanor make him perfect for the hordes of Husks that
you’ll encounter later on. Zaeed is also a great second to Miranda IF you’ve
unlocked Inferno Grenades, which are very helpful for the Husks. Garrus,
Kasumi, and Mordin are also decent choices, but these characters only have
powers suited for either armor or barriers instead of both.
Dossier: The Assassin
************************
Primary Factions: Eclipse, Mechs
Suggested Squad: Miranda and Garrus/Zaeed
Other Suggestions: Jack, Samara (loyal), Tali (loyal)
This mission has a LOT of enemies that have every defense type. For this
reason, a combination of Miranda, Garrus, and Zaeed is probably most ideal
since they can handle every defense and dish out a lot of damage; however, if
Shepard himself is competent in handling defenses, then you should be able to
stray from this arrangement a bit to bring in someone like Tali or Jack that
offers more crowd control. There are a lot of mechs on this mission, so Tali’s
AI Hacking proves useful, and Jack’s Shockwave can topple the crowds of enemies
that like to hide behind crates and walls. If both Tali and Samara are loyal,
then the two of them can actually make a really fantastic squad if Shepard is a
weapon-oriented class.
Dossier: The Justicar
***********************
Primary Factions: Eclipse, Mechs
Suggested Squad: Miranda and Thane
Other Suggestions: Garrus, Grunt, Jack, Mordin
Unlike other instances where you face Eclipse mercs, Samara’s loyalty mission
has enemies mostly comprised of barriers with few shielded ones. Also, because
this environment includes canisters of acid that improve biotics, both Thane
and Miranda will receive benefits from it. Adding in the long, open sight
lines, and Miranda and Thane are definitely the most ideal choices for this
one. Double Warps allow you to drop barriers quickly, and Thane can use Throw
to knock enemies around. Miranda’s Overload will also be useful for the few
shielded rocket troopers your meet. If Thane is not available or you don’t wish
to use Miranda, then there are a plethora of other characters that can make
good squadmates here. Mordin’s Incineration Blast comes in handy for the groups
of mechs that you’ll encounter, and Jack can use Pull to get enemies out of
cover to be detonated by a Warp from Thane/Miranda.
Dossier: Tali
***************
Primary Factions: Geth
Suggested Squad: Garrus and Zaeed
Other Suggestions: Kasumi, Miranda, Legion
Overload, Disruptor Ammo, and sniper rifles are your best friends in this
mission, and the Garrus/Zaeed pairing fits these necessities extremely well.
Should you not wish to bring one of them, then Kasumi and Miranda are excellent
backups. Also, should Legion be on your team at the time of Tali’s recruitment,
it is not only a rather useful teammate for hacking geth but it also has a lot
of unique dialogue...
Collector Ship
****************
Primary Factions: Collectors
Suggested Squad: Thane and Garrus(loyal)/Jack(loyal)/Miranda
Other Suggestions: Grunt, Kasumi, Zaeed
While the entirety of the Collector Ship mission is difficult, the toughest bit
– and arguably the toughest of the entire game – is the fight on the platforms
in the enormous central chamber. Here, you will benefit most from teammates
that can pick enemies off from afar or offer up barrier damage. Because Thane
fits the bill on both of these roles, I would consider him a mandatory
squadmate for the mission if you’re having trouble passing it on Insanity.
The second squadmate can be a variety of teammates. If Jack is loyal, then I
would suggest her for two reasons: first, her Squad Warp Ammo is incredibly
beneficial to the squad if Shepard doesn’t have it (and if Shepard doesn’t,
then I would recommend it for this mission unless a loyal Jack is going).
Secondly, Jack’s Shockwave comes in handy near the end of the mission when you
face off against several clustered Collectors and hordes of Husks/Abominations.
As always, Miranda is a worthy combatant since Warp tears through every
Collector defense, and Miranda’s passive squad boosts are really useful.
Finally, a loyal Garrus with Squad Armor-Piercing Ammo – or even just AP Ammo
for himself – can do some good damage against Scions and Praetorians, and his
Concussive Shot is great for barriers too.
Grunt, Zaeed, and Kasumi are also good choices, especially if they’re loyal.
Ultimately, choosing a squad here is not that difficult since most everyone
with the exception of Tali will benefit the team in some way. Experiment a bit,
and if you find out that your current squad can’t handle the fight on the
platforms well enough, then simply restart the mission and adjust. There’s no
fighting up until the platform battle, so you won’t have to replay too much.
Zaeed: The Price of Revenge
******************************
Primary Factions: Blue Suns
Suggested Squadmate: Garrus
Other Suggestions: Kasumi, Miranda
Shields, shields, and more shields. An Overload character is very ideal for
your second squadmate, and Garrus happens to be even more suited for this
mission due to the long sight lines. Kasumi and Miranda are still great
options, though. While a loyal Tali also has good shield damage, her hacking
ability won’t be as handy here since there are few mechs to fight.
Jacob: The Gift of Greatness
*******************************
Primary Factions: Hunters, Mechs
Suggested Squadmate: Miranda
Other Suggestions: Garrus, Mordin, Zaeed
The Hunters have shields, and the plethora of mechs here will have lots of
armor. Miranda is probably your best all-around option, but if Mordin has
Incineration Blast or Zaeed has unlocked Inferno Grenades, then those area
armor abilities will become more useful.
Miranda: The Prodigal
***********************
Primary Factions: Eclipse
Suggested Squadmate: Garrus
Other Suggestions: Kasumi, Tali (loyal), Zaeed
Garrus is the most solid option here due to the long sight lines and the mix of
shields and barriers, which is perfect since he has Overload and Concussive
Shot at his disposal. Kasumi and Zaeed are also good options due to their
anti-shield abilities, and a loyal Tali can hack mechs and drain shields with
Energy Drain.
Jack: Subject Zero
********************
Primary Factions: Blood Pack
Suggested Squadmate: Grunt
Other Suggestions: Jacob, Mordin, Samara (loyal), Thane
Biotics that can fling health enemies about are very useful here, but Grunt is
even better since he can handle the packs of varren and charging krogan very
well and still contribute with his Incendiary Ammo and Concussive Shot to knock
enemies about. Basically, anything that has access to solid armor damage or
incapacitation is really useful for the very aggressive enemies on this mission.
Mordin: Old Blood
********************
Primary Factions: Blood Pack
Suggested Squadmate: Thane
Other Suggestions: Grunt, Jack, Samara (loyal)
Unlike the encounters with the Blood Pack during Jack’s loyalty mission, you’ll
have more freedom to snipe enemies from afar during Mordin’s encounter, meaning
that Thane is ideal since he offers both long-distance sniping and solid
armor/barrier damage and incapacitation with Throw. If Thane isn’t present,
however, there are a variety of teammates that work well here. Jack can topple
the groups with Shockwave, a loyal Samara can fling enemies around with
Pull/Throw and drop armor with Reave, and Grunt can do his usual tanking and
armor damage with Incendiary Ammo.
Grunt: The Rite of Passage
*****************************
Primary Factions: Blood Pack
Suggested Squadmate: Samara (loyal)
Other Suggestions: Jack, Mordin, Thane, Zaeed
Another Blood Pack mission. The difference here is that there will be a lot of
armored enemies rushing you at once, and the Klixen in particular are very
durable. This means that characters with good armor damage and incapacitation
are better if they can recharge their abilities quickly, and a loyal Samara
fits the bill here. Jack is also really excellent for providing crowd control
at a quick pace, even though she won’t have any direct armor damage. Squad Warp
Ammo is extremely useful, however. Zaeed’s Inferno Grenades are also quite
handy, as is his Concussive Shot. Mordin also can use Incineration Blast quite
effectively. Thane is yet another option, but Warp doesn’t have a radius.
Garrus: Eye for an Eye
************************
Primary Factions: Blue Suns
Suggested Squadmate: Kasumi
Other Suggestions: Legion, Miranda, Tali (loyal), Thane, Zaeed
Snipers and shield-damagers are great on this mission. Because there are
several high profile targets as well, Kasumi’s Shadow Strike is remarkably
useful for knocking them out and providing distractions; there is a lot of
gunfire going on. This is why Tali is also an excellent choice if she’s loyal,
as there are several mechs to hack as well in addition to the shields to drain.
AI Hacking is particularly useful for the double mech battle near the end.
Miranda, Thane, and Zaeed are all good companions too.
Tali: Treason
***************
Primary Factions: Geth
Suggested Squadmate: Garrus/Legion/Zaeed
Other Suggestions: Jack, Kasumi, Miranda
While a sniper wouldn’t be my first choice for the cramped rooms aboard the
Alerei, the geth that you’re facing on this mission are very susceptible to
shield damage, so Garrus and Zaeed are great choices here (although Zaeed loses
some of his worth if Disruptor Ammo doesn’t have the squad evolution). Other
Overload characters like Kasumi and Miranda are excellent choices too, and
Jack’s access to Shockwave is perfect for toppling the hordes of geth that you
encounter in the small rooms. However, should Legion be present, taking it is
good for two reasons; its AI Hacking ability is great for geth, and it causes
some rather interesting dialogue among the quarian admirals and during the
trial.
Reaper IFF
************
Primary Factions: Collectors (only Husks, Abominations, and Scions)
Suggested Squad: Grunt and Samara
Other Suggestions: Jack, Mordin, Zaeed
The Reaper IFF mission can be either a very smooth experience or a disaster
depending on your squad. The vast majority of this mission features enormous
hordes of husks and abominations charging at you and your teammates; while
these enemies are easy to defeat individually, this is not the case when you’re
on Hardcore/Insanity difficulty and facing several of them at a time. They will
overwhelm your team very quickly if you don’t drop them in a hurry; if they
don’t overwhelm you, then the Scions with their constant shockwaves will. As a
result, you need squadmates that can handle them.
Grunt is perhaps the biggest no-brainer here for a few reasons. First of all,
he is durable enough to withstand the pressure of several Husks and
Abominations coming at him at once. Secondly, his use of shotguns combined with
Incendiary Ammo allows him to rip through the armor of all enemies encountered
here. Finally, he can use Concussive Shot (or even better, Concussive Blast) to
topple the enemies after their armor is gone. Assuming that Samara is loyal,
her abilities compliment Grunt’s extremely well. If you are already at Level
30, then you can max out Pull Field, Sapiens Justicar, and Area Reave to
cripple the enemies on this mission. Not only are the two area powers
incredibly useful for the hordes of Husks and Abominations, but Samara gets a
very quick recharge speed if you evolve her passive to Rank 4. She can
constantly send out Pulls and Reaves to keep all of the enemies at bay while
Grunt tanks.
Other great alternatives here include Jack, Mordin, and Zaeed. Jack is very
similar to Samara in function; the exception is that she has Warp Ammo instead
of Reave. If Shepard doesn’t already have Warp Ammo as a bonus ability, then
Squad Warp Ammo from Jack will be a lifesaver in addition to Pull and
Shockwave. Similar to Samara, Mordin can rattle off constant Incineration
Blasts and Cryo Blasts to keep the numerous enemies at bay; he does have longer
cooldowns than Samara, however. Zaeed’s Inferno Grenades are perfect for the
hordes of armored enemies and his Concussive Shot works well for disabling them.
While Miranda and Thane are also good since they have Warp for armor and
Slam/Throw for disabling the Husks and Abominations, it’s important to note
that Warp does NOT hit in a radius, meaning that it will lose a lot of utility
against the hordes in comparison to Area Reave, Inferno Grenades, or
Incineration Blast.
============================================================================
============================================================================
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
| Collector Base Strategy | 70base
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
WARNING: The following part of this guide details every correct and incorrect
choice that you can make during the Collector Base. For this reason, I wouldn’t
advise reading this guide if you don’t want to be spoiled to details regarding
how to make it through the Base with zero casualties.
Collector Base: Infiltration
*******************************
Tech Specialist: Tali, Legion, or Kasumi (must be loyal)
Fire Team Leader: Jacob, Miranda, or Garrus (must be loyal)
Suggested Squad: Thane and Kasumi/Legion
Other Suggestions: Garrus, Grunt, Samara
First of all, be warned that choose a non-ideal or non-loyal tech specialist or
fire team leader will result in the death of your tech specialist. This means
that even a loyal Tali, Legion, or Kasumi can die if your fire team leader
isn’t the correct choice.
The first segment of the Collector Base features – you guessed it – Collectors.
However, there are a few twists to this mission. For starters, you’re often
under time constraints to activate valves so that your tech specialist can get
through without being fried; reach the valve too late, and they’re dead. For
this reason, distractions are a good thing, and both Kasumi and Legion can do
this quite well with Shadow Strike and Combat Drone (respectively).
Additionally, Legion is also fairly durable with its Geth Shield Boost, making
it easier for it to stay alive while the fights are ensuing. Harbinger appears
quite a bit, and since Kasumi can troll him very well with Shadow Strike, she
is another great option. Thane brings about more solid barrier/armor damage,
and the various open areas give him good opportunity to snipe.
Note that the loyalty of your squadmates in this section do not matter.
Collector Base: The Long Walk
********************************
Escort: Jack, Mordin, Kasumi, or Tali (must be loyal)
Barrier Specialist: Samara/Morinth or Jack (must be loyal)
Fire Team Leader: Miranda, Garrus, or Jacob (Garrus/Jacob must be loyal)
Suggested Squad: Garrus/Thane and Samara/Jack
Other Suggestions: Legion, Mordin, Zaeed
Note that the escort actually doesn’t matter as long as they’re loyal; however,
Mordin, Kasumi, Tali, and Jack are all good choices since they offer the lowest
rating for the Hold the Line section of the third mission. Since Jack is a
possible barrier specialist, I wouldn’t choose her to go unless you know you’re
going to pick Samara/Morinth instead. Keep in mind that your chosen escort will
not be able to accompany you during the Long Walk OR during the final battle,
though.
When it comes to the barrier, Samara/Morinth or Jack are the only ideal
choices, and they must be loyal as well. If they are not, then one of your
squadmates that you choose to go with you under the barrier will die at the
end. For the fire team leader, a non-ideal or non-loyal fire team leader will
die. The only exception to this rule is Miranda, who will not die regardless of
loyalty. The fire team leader has no effect on any part of this mission other
than themselves, however.
Once you’ve chosen your specialists and escort, then it’s time to pick a squad
for the Long Walk. This mission features more Collector troops, but this time
there will also be several Husks/Abominations and Scions too. Snipers have an
advantage here since they can deal a lot of damage from the confinement of the
bubble; shotgun classes are weaker since they don’t have the range. Garrus and
Thane are both excellent choices. For your second squadmate, consider going
with either Jack or Samara (the one that isn’t holding up the barrier,
obviously). Samara is the more useful of the two since she has access to Reave,
but Squad Warp Ammo from Jack is also very handy.
Like the first section, the loyalty of your squadmates doesn’t matter here. If
the barrier specialist is not ideal, then loyalty still won’t matter as the
game has a preset list for squadmates that automatically die.
Collector Base: Final Battle
*******************************
Suggested Squad: Thane and Miranda/Samara (must be loyal)
Other Suggestions: Jack, Legion, Mordin
First of all, one huge thing to consider during the final phase: your Hold the
Line rating. Assuming that you’ve recruited everyone possible, had no
casualties throughout the base mission, and you sent an escort earlier, you
will have nine squadmates holding the line while you head to the central
chamber. Each squadmate has a value for the “Hold the Line” sequence (if the
character is not loyal, then they will have the lower value):
3 or 4 – Garrus, Grunt, Zaeed
1 or 2 – Jacob, Legion, Miranda, Samara/Morinth, Thane
0 or 1 – Jack, Kasumi, Mordin, Tali
The nine squadmates that are left behind count for your “Hold the Line” rating.
This rating is determined by adding together all of the values of the nine
squadmates left behind and then averaging them. If the average is above 2.0,
then there will be no casualties.
Assuming that all of your squadmates are loyal, anyone that you take on the
final squad will survive. Additionally, if all of your squadmates are loyal,
then it is far more likely that no one will die holding the line since greater
values will increase your averaged score. For greater safety, leave atleast two
of the characters with a “3 or 4” value behind to ensure that your average is
high enough. It is impossible to lose a squadmate if you do this – even if you
chose an escort that has a higher value.
If certain squadmates are not present or if you didn’t secure everyone’s
loyalty, then things get increasingly trickier if you’re trying to save
everyone. Taking squadmates to the final battle that have low values is a wise
choice; if you bring along a loyal Jack and Mordin, for instance, and you sent
back a loyal Kasumi/Tali as an escort, then you can have several disloyal
characters holding the line without losing any of them. (There eventually comes
a point where too many disloyal teammates drags your average down too much,
however.)
For the sake of the final mission and its challenges, Miranda and Thane are a
rather excellent pairing. Although they have medium Hold the Line ratings, this
still leaves Garrus, Grunt, and Zaeed behind, which will practically ensure the
success of the other team. Miranda can spam Slam and Warp on the Collector
troops while Thane also spams his abilities and snipes. Samara is an excellent
alternative to either character, and Jack’s Squad Warp Ammo is highly useful as
well. Legion with its Widow sniper rifle is also a surprisingly powerful
teammate here, especially if you’re using a squad ammo power like Warp or
Incendiary Ammo. It is also rather survivable due to the Geth Shield Boost, and
its drones are great for distracting Harbinger.
============================================================================
============================================================================
+++++++++++++++
| Other Notes | 60reco
+++++++++++++++
- For simplicity, you’ll find that Garrus, Miranda, and Zaeed are your three
most versatile squadmates in the game, especially after loyalty. All have
powers tailored for every defense in the game. Other teammates are better
specialists in certain areas. Thane and Samara, for instance, have powers that
destroy the Collector faction. Mordin and Grunt are tailored for the Blood
Pack. Tali is obviously invaluable against Geth, and Kasumi shines against the
Blue Suns.
- Building squadmates can be somewhat difficult before you have gained their
loyalty. If you are sure that you want to spend several points in a bonus power
tree but haven’t yet gained the character’s loyalty, then consider not spending
points. This task is solved with the completion of the Lair of the Shadow
Broker DLC, however; I would recommend doing it as quickly as possible.
- Once you unlock the Retrain Powers option in Mordin’s lab, use it to your
advantage. An Engineer or Sentinel Shepard may consider dropping Overload for
missions with Collectors and instead investing fully in Incinerate or Warp;
similarly, when you fight Geth or Blue Suns, retrain your powers again and
evolve Overload.
- Ammo powers are tricky to evolve. On one hand, Shepard is going to benefit
the most from them out of anyone, so if you’re a Soldier, Infiltrator, or
Vanguard, it is a good idea to take the more powerful evolution so that you can
do max damage. However, you’ll find that the game’s sniper characters (Legion,
Thane, Garrus, and Zaeed) benefit tremendously from squad ammo powers. While
Garrus, Zaeed, and Thane already have their own ammo powers, these powers
aren’t always useful. For instance, Zaeed’s Disruptor Ammo is not an ideal ammo
power versus Collectors. Overriding it with a squad ammo power like Warp Ammo
is a good choice. In Legion’s case, using any squad ammo power will be very
useful for its damage.
- In the case of squadmates, I would almost always recommend evolving for the
squad evolution, unless Shepard already has the ammo power.
- Don’t underestimate the seemingly “weak” powers on Insanity, like Pull,
Throw, Concussive Shot, Cryo Blast, or Combat Drone. These powers are
surprisingly useful for immobilization. Because squadmate powers will hit
instantaneously if the squadmate is not in your vision, activating the power
wheel and then using a quick immobilizer can often mean the difference between
living and falling.
- Some characters are powerful before loyalty while others gain their most
viable asset after loyalty. Jack, Tali, and Samara are cases where they have
very limited usage before loyalty since their loyalty power gives them an edge
or stronger diversity; Garrus and Zaeed are also similar, but they are still
quite viable beforehand. Characters like Miranda, Mordin, and Thane are
extremely usable before loyalty since their loyalty ability is not as useful.
============================================================================
============================================================================
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
| Credits & Update History | 80cred
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Credits:
- Mass Effect Wiki for their plethora of ME-related information.
- Bioware for making a fantastic game.
- You for reading this.
I hope you found this guide useful; it is a simple one, but the point is to
inform and to recommend for using your squadmates, and I believe it
accomplishes that purpose.
Thank you again!
Update History
****************
6/11/14 – First version completed.
