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Lord Scythican wrote:Ok so I haven't play the multiplay yet. I keep seeing all this about ultra rares and packs. What's the deal?

Basically, Multiplayer is Horde mode. 4 player co-op against 10 waves of enemies and a bonus "extraction" wave, with objectives on waves 3, 6 and 10 to earn credits. Credits are used to buy equipment. When you are just starting, you will have one male human and one female human of each of the 6 classes (Adept, Soldier, Engineer, Sentinel, Infiltrator, Vanguard) starting at level 1, and you will have only the basic weaponry and basic cosmetic options. You can unlock different races for each class that have different abilities (IE all Infiltrators get Tactical Cloak, but only Humans have Cryo Blast. Salarians get Energy Drain, Quarians get Sabotage, and Geth get Hunter Mode).

To unlock the various race/class combos, cosmetic options, and different weapons (and also to get consumable items like extra ammo packs, ops survival packs, medi-gel, etc....) you need to buy packs. There are 3 base packs, and each pack has 5 slots for items:

Recruit Pack (5,000 Credits) - Will always have 4 consumables and 1 common item with a chance for an uncommon item.
Veteran Pack (20,000 Credits) - Will always have 2 stacks of 3 consumables, 1 guaranteed uncommon, and a chance for rare items and additional uncommons. Any slots not filled by common, uncommon or rare items will be filled by different consumables.
Spectre Packs (60,000 Credits) - Will always have 2 stacks of 5 consumables, 1 guaranteed rare, 1 guaranteed uncommon (I think), a chance for additional rare items, and a chance for ultra-rare items. Any slots not filled by Uncommon, Rare or Ultra Rare items will be taken up by extra consumables.

When BioWare does certain events, they occasionally put in variant packs which cost more than the base pack type but have different items in them, and/or better chances for higher rarity items. IE a Premium Specter Pack, which costs 99,000 credits but has a guaranteed 2 rares, and a better chance for ultra-rare items.

Basically all characters, weapons, weapon mods and consumable items are given a certain rarity and can be obtained by purchasing these packs. You get credits for each of the objective waves you complete in a match, and experience for the enemies your whole team kills (IE everyone gets the same XP, which is every players score added up). The XP levels up your characters and gives you access to their powers and abilities, and the credits are used to buy the equipment packs and get better weapons or unlock new characters/cosmetic options. Weapons go from level 1(I) to level 10(X), and each time you get a weapon in a pack you already have it levels up that weapon. Once a weapon is level X, it stops appearing in packs. Character cards give you access to new characters, and unlock different cosmetic options. Any card you get for a character you already have unlocks a new cosmetic option for that race/class combo, and gives you an amount of extra XP for that class depending on rarity (12,500 for common, 50,000 for uncommon, 100,000 for rare).

It's good practice to buy recruit packs until you have all of the basic weapons at level X, which will prevent them from appearing in Veteran Packs. Then buy Veteran Packs until you have most of the uncommon items at level X, which will keep them from appearing in Spectre Packs. Then just buy Spectre Packs unless you need equipment (More Missile Launchers or Medi-Gel for example), because buying recruit packs gives you the best return for your money on basic equipment.

The issue most people have with this setup is that it's basically a random lottery, and while weapons will eventually stop appearing once they reach level X, character cards never stop appearing. For example, I still have not unlocked Geth Engineer or Krogan Vanguard, but I have gotten a fully upgraded Geth Infiltrator and continue to get character cards for Geth Infiltrator even though the character is level 20 and has all cosmetic options unlocked. Unlocking the rest of the weapons I need will give me a better chance of unlocking the characters I want because those weapons will stop appearing and I'll get more character cards, but they won't guarantee that I will ever unlock the two classes I still don't have, even if all of my other classes are maxed out.

Wow I didn't realize there was that much to it. Thanks for your very detailed reply. I am going to have to check out the multiplayer soon.

It's a lot of fun, and there is something for everyone.

I'm beginning to think the upgrade packs are rigged :( The only class I have still at 20 is an infiltrator. In the last 3 premium specter packs I've gotten 4 infiltrator characters. If I get a regular veteran pack, I still get infiltrators all the time. And now I'm willing to bet if I promote the character, I won't get any. I always use sniper rifles or assault rifles, yet if I ever do get a weapon, it's a pistol, shotgun or SMG.

played like all day yesterday and got 1 whole gun :(

I understand your pain. The packs hate giving me things I actually want.

I just want a Saber, Javelin, or Black Widow.

Is that too much to ask for game?

Kanluwen wrote:Is that too much to ask for game?

Game: "Yes! Now take your Avenger IX and GTFO."

I already have something like five guns at X.

Mantis, Avenger, Shuriken, Katana, and Predator. The "basic" stuff.

I'm really hoping they introduce the ability to buy "specific" guns from the store at some point.

Buy Recruit Packs until you get a X rank of every basic gun. If you don't, they can appear in Veteran and Spectre packs, taking up valuable space that could otherwise be used to upgrade better guns!

Once you have a level X Avenger, Predator, Shuriken, Katana and Mantis, THEN buy a bunch of Veteran Packs and you will stop getting the lower level weapons in those packs. You will only unlock uncommon weapons, and character cards. Then, once you have a reasonable level on most of the uncommon weapons, buy Spectre Packs and you should primarily get rare weapons and character cards.

I started this two weeks ago and I now have all common weapons maxed, most uncommon weapons maxed, and I have a Geth Plasma Shotgun X, a Striker Assault Rifle X, a Revnant X, a Widow VI, and a Black Widow II. I also have every character unlocked but Krogan Vanguard and Geth Engineer.

Also, the Saber is useless. It kicks like a mule and has massive reticule bloom. On anything but a Turian it's not worth taking, and even then there are much better weapons to take on a Turian.


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Kanluwen wrote:I already have something like five guns at X.

Mantis, Avenger, Shuriken, Katana, and Predator. The "basic" stuff.

I'm really hoping they introduce the ability to buy "specific" guns from the store at some point.

They will never do this.

The random lottery is what keeps people playing the game, because it's a Skinner Box mechanic that's designed to make you want "Just ONE more Spectre Pack before I go to bed!" Look up Skinner Box if you don't know what that is, and you'll see what I mean. BioWare will never change the random lottery.

Oh I'm well aware of why they do it.

Doesn't mean I can't hope.

yeah, I got all my noob guns to level 9 in recruit packs, but it seemed like I had to get level 10 from the vet packs. now I think I'm gonna just stick to vet packs till I get the vet guns to 9 at least.

I have a level 1 widow, but it seems like the noob sniper rifle at level 10 is better.. damage is a little less but it's more accurate and a lot lighter. And it sounds cooler too.

Necros wrote:yeah, I got all my noob guns to level 9 in recruit packs, but it seemed like I had to get level 10 from the vet packs. now I think I'm gonna just stick to vet packs till I get the vet guns to 9 at least.

I have a level 1 widow, but it seems like the noob sniper rifle at level 10 is better.. damage is a little less but it's more accurate and a lot lighter. And it sounds cooler too.

The Mantis X will do more damage than a Widow I. The advantage of the Widow is the built-in Piercing mod, allowing you to further increase the Piercing distance with a mod, or skip that mod all together and go for Barrel and Clip, making it more useful in more situations. Besides, it doesn't take THAT long to get the Widow upgraded. Mine is at level VI right now and it's better than my Mantis X in every respect except weight. Once you unlock the Black Widow though, you likely will never use a regular Widow again.

Operation: Exorcist details have been posted.

When it comes to retrieving classified data, Cerberus has been beating the allied forces to the punch. New intelligence has tipped us off to one of their offensives, and it is time to give the N7 teams the payback they want.

Allied Goal: Kill 1,000,000 Cerberus Phantoms
Squad Goal: Survive until extraction on any map and any enemy on Gold difficulty.

Successful completion of the Allied Goal will grant all players a Victory Pack.
Successful completion of the squad goal awards a Commendation Pack to all squadmates.

Operation Exorcist will run from 6:00PM PST, Friday April 27th until 5:00AM PST, Monday April 30th. Exorcist will be available on PC and Xbox 360 only. Please remember to set “Upload Gameplay Feedback” to “on” in the online options to be able to participate in Operation Exorcist.

Good luck and see you on the battlefield.

Thanks, Sony.

Your'e welcome!

Ouze wrote:Operation: Exorcist details have been posted.

When it comes to retrieving classified data, Cerberus has been beating the allied forces to the punch. New intelligence has tipped us off to one of their offensives, and it is time to give the N7 teams the payback they want.

Allied Goal: Kill 1,000,000 Cerberus Phantoms
Squad Goal: Survive until extraction on any map and any enemy on Gold difficulty.

Successful completion of the Allied Goal will grant all players a Victory Pack.
Successful completion of the squad goal awards a Commendation Pack to all squadmates.

Operation Exorcist will run from 6:00PM PST, Friday April 27th until 5:00AM PST, Monday April 30th. Exorcist will be available on PC and Xbox 360 only. Please remember to set “Upload Gameplay Feedback” to “on” in the online options to be able to participate in Operation Exorcist.

Good luck and see you on the battlefield.

Blargh at the Squad Goal.

Squad Goal is CAKE. Especially if you have a good team and you run Geth. Most people have it down to a science by now.

I'll probably run against Cerberus and 2 birds 1 stone that thing.

So far I've never ever gotten past like wave 4 on Gold :( I somehow always get stuck with the dummies. I need a team of 3 good people who can do most of the work for me, since I suck.

Well, I'd love to show you the glory of crushing on Gold Necros... but you just had to buy a PS3 didn't you.

*patpat* It's okay chief... it's Sony's fault, not yours.

I recommend using the Salarian Engineer against Geth on Gold... and make sure you use Decoy a lot... it will keep your butt alive.

Aye, I'll make sure I get in at least a couple of games, so if the community does the first goal I'll get a pack. However I'd be shocked if I could actually get into a gold group with my N7 rating without being kicked, never mind getting to the the extraction.

Typically it had to be on GW2 Beta weekend as well. heh.

Will do my damndest to get on mind.

*cough*
If you get on in the next few days when I've got some of my lads on, we'll get it going.

Sounds good. If you are on next time I log and are playing ME3 I'll come join thee.

I'm looking--tentatively--at probably Saturday for doing the Gold match.

Okay will try and get on 11pm - midnight ish, so thats 6pm - 7pm EST. If you aren't on by then, I'll just chill on Bronze with randoms till you are.

Sounds good!

I mostly play with my salarian infiltrator. I have a quarian engineer up to like level 16 right now, I like the turret for distracting big things so I can sit back and shoot em. Never tried decoy but I'll give it a shot

For those of you having trouble completing a Gold match, do the easy one.

Select Firebase White and Geth for your match, and set to Gold difficulty. Make sure you have a Salarian Engineer and some form of Infiltrator in the team.

At the start of the match, run down the stairs to the left side of the landing pad and into the lower control room. The Salarian Engineer and two others immediately hop over the console to the left and take cover. The Infiltrator moves to the console in the back, directly across from the door. The Salarian Engineer places a Decoy in the doorway and all of the Geth will funnel either down the stairs from the upper control room, or through the door from the landing pad. For some reason, Geth almost always fixate on the decoy, creating a choke point for the team to kill everything without a whole ton of danger. The Infiltrator being placed in the back will prevent Geth from spawning behind you.

For objective waves, ONLY the Infiltrator moves. If it's a 4 point objective he just cloaks up and runs to each one to cap it. If it's a hack objective in the lower control room, two team members shift to the back console and stand there til its done. If it's in the upper control room the team moves as a whole and just sets up shop there until the end of the wave. It will take a missile or two to clear the room out, so make sure you save them. If the hack point is on the landing pad, the catwalk, or the walkway outside the control room, the Infiltrator goes alone and cloaks on cooldown. If he makes it quickly enough, the hack will complete with 10-15 seconds left over.

Kill objectives are easy because the NPC's you need to kill will almost always come to you. Occasionally Rocket Troopers will be flagged as kill enemies and sit up on the catwalk where you can't get to them. In that case, the Infiltrator runs out and kills them, then runs back.

For extraction, the team holds the room until there are 30 seconds left on the timer, then someone fires a missile to clear the room, and another to clear the stairs, and everyone makes a mad dash for the landing pad. Then, just duck behind the fighter and wait for the time to tick off the clock.

This strategy offers near guaranteed success as long as the Salarian Engineer ensures the Decoy is always active, and the Infiltrator knows the map and where each of the objectives are and how to get there undetected. The other two people can play anything they want except for melee classes. No Krogan, no Vanguards, no Batarians speced for melee.

There are plenty of lobbies designed specifically to do this, so queue up and you can easily complete the objective. The REAL challenge is completing the team goal WITHOUT doing this strategy

Excellent writeup Aldarionn. That's always a good solid plan.

For a slightly faster game, run Firebase Glacier against Geth instead.

On the start, blitz down to the bottom of the Map. That'll be the lowest point, straight through the Evac, throught the doors to the left, then right, then left. You should be running with 2 Salarian Engineers and at least 1 Infiltrator. Then something with a ton of firepower like a Soldier or a Human Engineer.

Split in two teams of two... one hanging up at the lowest point at the bottom of the long ramp. Plant a Decoy on the Ramp and keep it up. The other Team will drop a Decoy on the higher side, in the ramp that goes up, then they'll camp behind the consoles and crates.

It splits your firepower, but your non-engineers can bounce back and forth to assist when need be, communication is always important.

As per the above, just following the protocol for Infiltrators completing the objectives is the way to go. If you need to hack, move as a group and lay down some missile fire.

You can also camp effectively on Fire Base Hydra, in the control room at the back with the glowing orb. If you want to make it braindead easy, take two Salarian Engineers as above, and put one on each door with two people bouncing back and forth as needed. Place the decoys in the hallway at the back, and on the catwalk just outside the front door and murder anything that gets close. Infiltrator moves as mentioned above to clear objectives.

For standard Gold matches, if you are playing against Cerberus, always bring an Asari Adept. Stasis Bubble allows them to absolutely demolish Phantoms, which are really the only threat when fighting Cerberus. Atlases are slow as hell, and the only other thing to fear is Grenades and Turrets. Having a Quarian Infiltrator to hack turrets and Atlases makes it even easier, since the Turrets will often turn around and murder the Engineer that put them down, then follow up by killing Guardians for you, because they usually have their back to the turret.

Against Reapers, Biotic Combos are your friend. Some guys did a sub 14 minute speed run against Reapers on Fire Base White, using a Human Vanguard, Drell Adept, Human Sentinel and Salarian Infiltrator. The Infiltrator sat up on the catwalk above the landing pad and killed anything that spawned on the pad. The other three ran from spawn to spawn killing everything with massive biotic combos. The Drell through Reave to set up combos and Cluster Grenade to detonate them, the Sentinel threw Warp to set up combos, and the Vanguard took Half Blast so he could charge and detonate combos and keep half his barrier up. Toward later waves they were firing missiles at spawns to kill the 3-4 Banshees that would pop up each wave. It was insane.

@ Chemical Cuthroat - Dunno what you have planned but a friend and I are going to knock out a few Gold matches after I get off work. I should be online by about 6pm Pacific time if you care to join in.

I would like to join you guys, actually. I don't think I have your gamertags though.