Mass Effect 3 Discussion thread!

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**Aldarionn**

For Phantoms, you can take the pressure off by dropping their barrier and doing a few points of damage to their health. At that point they will break off their attack, cloak, and attempt to take cover to regen their shields. At this point they are vulnerable because when they take cover, they drop Tactical Cloak more often than not making them easy to kill if you have penetration on your weapon. Line up a headshot through cover before they regen their barrier and you're good.

Quick-scoping is a good tactic once you get the hang of it. It helps negate their twitchy movement, and if they are close enough it will scope them while they are cloaked.

**Necros**

I caved and blew $25 on premium specter packs. Got a couple of characters I was missing, and got my widow up to level 3. So, if I add the extra barrel upgrade to it, the damage is like off the chart.. is there a max for damage? Or will it still add to the damage past the line? Since it's so close to max without it maybe I'd be better with a different mod for it.

Got a bunch of other guns I don't really like.. striker level 5. revanant 2, geth shotgun 2... I guess that one's ok, but I'm just not a big fan of shotguns in general, more of a sniper or assault rifle kinda guy.

And I have a batarian soldier now, but I can't really play him at all. I think I prefer having concussive shot.

**Aldarionn**

Necros wrote:I caved and blew $25 on premium specter packs. Got a couple of characters I was missing, and got my widow up to level 3. So, if I add the extra barrel upgrade to it, the damage is like off the chart.. is there a max for damage? Or will it still add to the damage past the line? Since it's so close to max without it maybe I'd be better with a different mod for it.

There is no damage cap. The line is not even all that accurate, so adding a barrel mod is perfectly viable for a Widow. In fact, I'd encourage it. The best mods to take are Barrel and Clip. Since the Widow has penetration you don't need to use that mod, and ammo is always a concern with the big, single shot snipers.

A few tips for using the Widow. On Silver or lower it's fine to use on any character that you want to use a sniper build for, but on Gold it's a liability on anything but a Salarian Infiltrator. The 100% shield gate mechanic means you will need 2 shots to kill any shielded opponent, so unless you are fighting Reapers, who have the least shields of anyone, you will need a means of stripping shields before you fire. Energy Drain is the best option for this, and makes the Widow VERY good on Gold if you can get used to the Cloak > Energy Drain > Fire routine. On most enemies you won't need headshots because the Widow does so much damage.

Necros wrote:Got a bunch of other guns I don't really like.. striker level 5. revanant 2, geth shotgun 2... I guess that one's ok, but I'm just not a big fan of shotguns in general, more of a sniper or assault rifle kinda guy.

The Striker isn't that great. Usually the Falcon is the better option if you want that type of gun. The Revnant is great on a Turian Soldier once you have it at a reasonable level (higher than rank V), though on most other characters it's not really useful. The Geth Plasma Shotgun on the other hand is awesome on any character you put it on. On a Geth Infiltrator or Engineer it's top tier, probably the best weapon you can take, but it's really good on just about any class. I use it on my Batarian Soldier, my Salarian Engineer, my Asari Justicar, and all of my Krogan. It's very strong, but it takes a little getting used to because of the way it fires. Practice with it, and I promise you will like it.

Necros wrote:And I have a batarian soldier now, but I can't really play him at all. I think I prefer having concussive shot.

It's all about Ballistic Blades. I skip the grenades entirely and spec into Blades and melee damage on that character. The Sentinel is much more of a ranged combatant, somewhat like the Asari Adept, but the Soldier is all close quarters combat and doing anything else is kinda a waste of his abilities.

Here's the spec I use on my Batarian Soldier
Ballistic Blades are speced to explode, and Blade Armor/Batarian Enforcer/Fitness are designed to give you the best cooldowns and the highest melee damage possible. You end up with just shy of 1,000 shields and health, and your punches will floor almost anything in the game in 1 shot. In fact, this character is so strong in CQC that I use him specifically to hunt Phantoms and keep them off my teammates. Fire Ballistic Blades to strip their barrier and force them backward, then hit Heavy Melee, which locks them into a sync animation with you and keeps them from tumbling away. 90% of the time the punch is enough to kill them outright, but if not, the explosion from Ballistic Blades will finish the job for you before they can recover. And even if they DO recover and you land a glancing blow, Blade Armor gives you 15% damage reduction from their return hit, and they take 150% of the damage they deal to you in melee, which will kill them. I've had Brutes charge me with their heavy strike and knock my shields off, only to strip half their armor or more from the hit. Follow up with a Heavy Melee and a few shots from the Geth Plasma Shotgun and they go down hard.

The Batarian Soldier is the only Soldier class I'll play anymore. They are a lot of fun, and their toolbox of tricks in close quarters is more devastating than a Novaguard or a Krogan Sentinel, and the damage for their heavy melee is surpassed only by Geth infiltrators with a specific spec.....and they are definitely more durable than the Geth.

**Necros**

I'll have to work with the soldier some more. I had a Krogan battlemaster who I specced for melee and I hated it. Just ended up dead half the time. so now I try to never melee anything ever.

Salarian infiltrator is my main character. I specced him to be able to use energy drain while cloaked, so I usually do the drain + headshot thing. For some tougher things I have to drain twice and try to get my shot in before cloak fades.

**Lynata**

Aldarionn wrote:There is no damage cap. The line is not even all that accurate

Mhm, I've seen cases where the damage line barely moved at all even as I slotted a heavy barrel. Or is the damage of this mod depending on a gun's original damage, dismissing any upgrades from gained levels?

Aldarionn wrote:Usually the Falcon is the better option if you want that type of gun.

Speaking of the Falcon, is it just me or is the damage of its grenades really, really low? I love its tactical usefulness, but for killing things I do more damage pistol-whipping them in melee.

Aldarionn wrote:Ballistic Blades are speced to explode, and Blade Armor/Batarian Enforcer/Fitness are designed to give you the best cooldowns and the highest melee damage possible. You end up with just shy of 1,000 shields and health, and your punches will floor almost anything in the game in 1 shot.

T'is true, batarian soldiers are insane!

Didn't know that Blade Armor was that good until now, though. Sounds crazy and effective.

**Necros**

I think since it's a percetage, the barrel extra damage depends on the gun. Since the widow has super high damage, the barrel will add a lot. But adding a barrel to something like a SMG just adds a little.

I usually carry my Locust X as a sidearm, with ultra light materials 5 and extra ammo. Seems a waste to give it the extra barrel.

**Lynata**

Necros wrote:I think since it's a percetage, the barrel extra damage depends on the gun. Since the widow has super high damage, the barrel will add a lot. But adding a barrel to something like a SMG just adds a little.

It does. The barrel I have now is at 20 or 25%. What I mean was the bar not moving by 1/5th or 1/4th but just about 1/10th.

It was just one weapon where I've seen this, though. Will have to check again to make sure which one it was. Could be a bug, could be the barrel depending on the gun's basic damage and not counting any upgrades (higher levels of the same weapon add bonus damage)...

**Aldarionn**

Necros wrote:I'll have to work with the soldier some more. I had a Krogan battlemaster who I specced for melee and I hated it. Just ended up dead half the time. so now I try to never melee anything ever.

Salarian infiltrator is my main character. I specced him to be able to use energy drain while cloaked, so I usually do the drain + headshot thing. For some tougher things I have to drain twice and try to get my shot in before cloak fades.

I have not unlocked the Krogan Battlemaster yet so unfortunately I can't give you any tips for using him, but the nice thing about the Batarian Soldier is that Ballistic Blades hits a relatively wide area and staggers enemies on the initial blast, and staggers them a second time when it explodes (always spec explosion). This gives you PLENTY of time to either retreat (if you can't handle the group), fire off some shots from your shotgun (to ensure everyone dies), or punch someone in the face with your murder-fist. Option #3 is usually best saved for tougher enemies like Phantoms or Geth Hunters, or even Geth Primes, Atlases or Brutes. Of course, never do this to Banshees. That's just asking for death.

Lynata wrote:Mhm, I've seen cases where the damage line barely moved at all even as I slotted a heavy barrel. Or is the damage of this mod depending on a gun's original damage, dismissing any upgrades from gained levels?

The barrel mod is percentage based, so the lower the damage of the weapon, the smaller the benefit of equipping the barrel, however it's usually the best mod to equip on any gun. Small though the damage bonus may be, it adds up. For Snipers with Pen, take Barrel and Clip. For snipers without pen, take Barrel and Piercing. In both cases, armor piercing ammo is usually the best option, since it will extend the range of your penetration (HEY-OHHHHH!! Sorry, couldn't resist.)

Lynata wrote:Speaking of the Falcon, is it just me or is the damage of its grenades really, really low? I love its tactical usefulness, but for killing things I do more damage pistol-whipping them in melee.

It was nerfed a while back. It used to be a lot higher, and since then its gone down. The thing is, the damage is higher for direct hits than it is for glancing blows or splash damage. I tend to put a Barrel and Piercing mod on it if I use it at all, and I take Cryo Ammo, because the spash damage is enough to freeze most targets, and chill any you cant freeze. It's more of a support weapon than a kill weapon, but it can do some serious damage in the hands of an Infiltrator who knows what he's doing.

Lynata wrote:T'is true, batarian soldiers are insane!

Didn't know that Blade Armor was that good until now, though. Sounds crazy and effective.

Blade Armor is your protection against annoying melee targets like Husks, Phantoms and Brutes. It returns 150% of the damage to anyone that melees you. IE, if a Phantom has had her shields stripped and you force her into hitting you (charge her, basically), she will KO herself on your blade armor. Brutes always charge you, and their initial hit does massive damage (enough to strip shields on almost anyone) and their secondary hit does nearly as much. When they charge a Batarian though, they take enough damage to nearly kill themselves with the initial swing. Husks just die on your armor, and any basic infantry that melees you will do significant return damage to themselves. The Blade Armor is there not so much to protect you from damage directly, but to punish anyone with the balls to smack you in melee. Just be careful though, because you can still die. Phantoms at full shields will slap you, strip half their own barrier, then sync kill you with a 1 shot and walk away. There's a time and a place to dive into melee, and being familiar with that is necessary.

**Necros**

If your gun has penetration, wouldn't it be good to add the mod too to make it even better? or does it not really stack that good?

I was able to melee phantoms with my krogan, but all the stars had to be aligned just right for it to happen. But, I'd launch myself at em, then just keep doing heavy melee hits. This was just on silver games though. I guess the battarian would work better once I get the hang of it

**Lynata**

Aldarionn wrote:The barrel mod is percentage based, so the lower the damage of the weapon, the smaller the benefit of equipping the barrel, however it's usually the best mod to equip on any gun.

Yeah, I'm just confused by 1/4th obviously not being 1/4th on the bar. It should be much higher, but as it looks like "almost nothing" I swapped it out for something else.

Aldarionn wrote:For Snipers with Pen, take Barrel and Clip. For snipers without pen, take Barrel and Piercing.

Yup, naturally - that's how I run my Widow and Valiant. Or used to; nowadays I've grown so fond of the Valiant that it's the only sniper rifle I take into battle. <3

Aldarionn wrote:(HEY-OHHHHH!! Sorry, couldn't resist.)

Here's yo shades.

Aldarionn wrote:Brutes always charge you, and their initial hit does massive damage (enough to strip shields on almost anyone) and their secondary hit does nearly as much. When they charge a Batarian though, they take enough damage to nearly kill themselves with the initial swing.

As I said, insane!

Necros wrote:If your gun has penetration, wouldn't it be good to add the mod too to make it even better? or does it not really stack that good?

This is something that would be of interest to me, too. I'm currently under the assumption that Penetration does not stack at all.

**Aldarionn**

Necros wrote:If your gun has penetration, wouldn't it be good to add the mod too to make it even better? or does it not really stack that good?

It depends entirely on the situation. Only a few guns in the game have innate penetration, and those guns are the Widow, Black Widow, Javelin, and Crusader. The Black Widow has 0.25 meters of penetration, the Widow has 0.5 meters, and the Javelin has 1 meter. Not sure about the Crusader but I think it's the same as the Black Widow.

If you take Armor Piercing Ammo III it gives you something like an extra 1 meter pen, and the piercing mod gives you 1.3 meters I believe at rank V. On a Black Widow with Armor Piercing Ammo III you can penetrate over 4 feet of walls (~1.25 meters) which should be more than enough to go through light cover. On a Widow, it's even better with about a 5 foot penetration depth. The Javelin blows everything out of the water with over 6 and a half feet of penetration using Armor Piercing Ammo III. The thing is, you really can't take advantage of this penetration depth unless you can see through walls. Most of the time, if an enemy is visible, the distance of cover you need to penetrate is less than 1 meter, which means armor piercing ammo alone is enough to do the job.

That said, there is a Geth Infiltrator build that uses a Javelin + Piercing Mod + Armor Piercing Ammo for about 3.3 meters (just shy of 11 feet!) of penetration, combined with Hunter Mode to see enemies through walls. The Javelin is also the highest damage rifle in the game, and at rank 10 it can 2 shot Geth Primes through 11 feet of walls/cover. Basically, you play on Fire Base Glacier, which lets you see every enemy on the map through walls from almost anywhere. You basically move to anywhere enemies AREN'T, and fire at them through the walls. On Silver this absolutely dominates, but on Gold it's not that effective because of Shield Gate. It can be done with a Black Widow but it does cut almost 30% off your penetration depth, and significantly reduces your per-bullet damage.

Barring that situation though, the guns with penetration usually have enough penetration to do what you need them to do without adding a mod, and usually ammo is more of a concern than being able to hit someone hiding behind cover, so the extended clip capacity mod gives you a much better benefit than 1.3 meters of extra penetration.

Necros wrote:I was able to melee phantoms with my krogan, but all the stars had to be aligned just right for it to happen. But, I'd launch myself at em, then just keep doing heavy melee hits. This was just on silver games though. I guess the battarian would work better once I get the hang of it

Well I would think the Krogan Vanguard would be reasonably effective at heavy melee against Phantoms. Biotic Charge followed up by a heavy melee is a good combo, especially since it usually won't send a Phantom flying across the map. Batarians can effectively do the same thing, because Ballistic Blades will cause a Phantom to step back after the shot. It won't "stagger" them, like it does for other targets, but it will stop them in their tracks long enough for you to line up a heavy melee hit. Be careful though because they can still hit you during the wind-up for the punch. They just can't tumble out of the way.

Automatically Appended Next Post:

Lynata wrote:Yeah, I'm just confused by 1/4th obviously not being 1/4th on the bar. It should be much higher, but as it looks like "almost nothing" I swapped it out for something else.

Don't use the bar as a guide. It's inaccurate and generally means nothing, and I'm really not sure why they use it or how numbers affect the bar one way or another. The numerical values of the weapon are what matters, and if a mod gives you 25% more damage, and the gun does 100 damage per shot, it will increase the damage to 125 per shot no matter how much the bar shows.

Lynata wrote:Yup, naturally - that's how I run my Widow and Valiant. Or used to; nowadays I've grown so fond of the Valiant that it's the only sniper rifle I take into battle. <3

The Valiant has surprisingly low damage listed for its numerical value considering how much it actually does in practice. It's about 3/5 what the Black Widow is listed at. A Black Widow I has 514.1 base damage, and a Valiant I has 317.2, which seems a bit low. Considering the Valiant can 1 shot almost anything the Black Widow can 1 shot, and both can 2 shot most shielded enemies, I don't see much difference between the two in practice, and the Valiant is much more stable and will stay on target for 3 shots. The Black Widow kicks like a mule and you have to pace the shots or you will miss.

Also, I didn't realize just how much more damage the Widow does than the Black Widow. Base value at rank I the Widow does 867 damage. Just shows you how inaccurate the bar is when you look at the actual numbers. I have a Widow VII, a Black Widow II and a Valiant I, which have damage values of 1011.53, 528.38 and 317.2 respectively, but my Widow VII comes just shy of filling up the damage bar. The Black Widow fills up the damage bar about 85%, and the Valiant fills it up about 75%. If the damage bar were a 1:1 ratio for numerical damage and the Widow VII filled the bar about 98%, the Valiant should only fill it up about 1/3 of the way, but that's obviously not the case. I don't really understand the formula they use.

Lynata wrote:This is something that would be of interest to me, too. I'm currently under the assumption that Penetration does not stack at all.

To be clear, yes, penetration DOES stack, at 100% value.

**Kanluwen**

Operation: Shieldwall announced!

The Reapers are targeting our training centers, and your mission is to draw their fire and attention. Put them on the defensive! Buy us time, and the reinforcements in training will soon back you up.

Allied Goal: Promote 50,000 characters.
Squad Goal: Promote 3 characters.
Special Circumstance: Due to the failure of Operation SILENCER, more banshees will spawn with Reaper enemies and might also spawn with other enemies.

Squad Goal Success: Squad members awarded a Commendation Pack.
Allied Goal Success: All players awarded a Victory Pack (high chance of containing a Rare weapon).

Chris Priestley clarified, and the "Squad Goal" is in fact a "Personal Goal".

**Lynata**

Aldarionn wrote:Don't use the bar as a guide. It's inaccurate and generally means nothing

That's what I feared, then...
Oh well, by now I've found a pretty good set-up for all the classes I like to play.

Aldarionn wrote:To be clear, yes, penetration DOES stack, at 100% value.

Sweeeet. Thanks for clarifying.

Kanluwen wrote:more banshees will spawn with Reaper enemies and might also spawn with other enemies

lol - can't wait to see Banshees working in tandem with Phantoms and Primes.

**Kanluwen**

Firebase: White on Gold with Geth just got more amusing.

**Ouze**

Oof, I just promoted some characters - this is going to take some doing.

I got the Krogan Battlemaster yesterday, though! Great fun.

Automatically Appended Next Post:

Aldarionn wrote:A few tips for using the Widow. On Silver or lower it's fine to use on any character that you want to use a sniper build for, but on Gold it's a liability on anything but a Salarian Infiltrator. The 100% shield gate mechanic means you will need 2 shots to kill any shielded opponent, so unless you are fighting Reapers, who have the least shields of anyone, you will need a means of stripping shields before you fire. Energy Drain is the best option for this, and makes the Widow VERY good on Gold if you can get used to the Cloak > Energy Drain > Fire routine. On most enemies you won't need headshots because the Widow does so much damage.

As always, you're a font of useful information. I was familiar with the shield gate mechanics but never really considered exploiting them in this way. I might try it this weekend; as I have to level up my infiltrator anyway. I really like the concept of the big sniper guns but I seem to play a lot more effectively with main battle rifle type guns like the Sabre, this might have me try it again. I still have no Black Widow, though.

Aldarionn wrote:The Batarian Soldier is the only Soldier class I'll play anymore. They are a lot of fun, and their toolbox of tricks in close quarters is more devastating than a Novaguard or a Krogan Sentinel, and the damage for their heavy melee is surpassed only by Geth infiltrators with a specific spec.....and they are definitely more durable than the Geth.

I'm with you on this one. I don't play solider as often as I did initially but the Batarian definitely seems to bring the most to the table - charging Krogan is fun but at that point it seems Sentinel is better. Batarian makes for a great all-rounder. I haven't exploited your blade theories yet though - perhaps I'll try that this weekend as well.

**Necros**

I have an infiltrator at 20, but I'm hesitant to promote him. I can work on other characters that are close though

But I just don't like my battarian soldier. I respecced him for all melee and he does great melee damage, but melee just isn't my play style at all. I just end up dead over and over.

**Aldarionn**

I'm a habitual promoter so that won't be an issue. I have Engineer and Infiltrator both at level 20 right now and Sentinel/Soldier at 18 or 19, can't recall. Here's hoping for another Valiant upgrade!

Oh, and they also announced the Rebellion DLC.

Reinforcements are being deployed to all N7 forces, bringing out some heavy hitters thanks to the new Mass Effect 3 Rebellion DLC Pack! Arriving on Xbox Live, the PlayStation Network and PC on Tuesday, May 29 (Wednesday, May 30 on the PSN in Europe), the Mass Effect 3 Rebellion Pack will be bringing you more gear, more weapons, more maps, and more kits, available at no additional cost for anyone who redeemed an Online Pass for Mass Effect 3 on PC, PS3 or Xbox 360.

The Rebellion Multiplayer Expansion opens two new fronts against the Reapers: Firebase Jade’s jungle reservoir and Firebase Goddess on Thessia. In-game reinforcement packs now include three new weapons (Reegar Carbine, Krysae Sniper Rifle, Cerberus Harrier) as well as equipment, consumables, and six new characters from species that have lost lives or whole planets to the Reapers: Quarian Engineer and Infiltrator, Vorcha Soldier and Sentinel, Ex-Cerberus Adept and Vanguard. The battle continues!

NEW CHARACTERS
Vorcha Soldier

Thanks to their unique physiology and their Bloodlust ability, the Vorcha are joining the fight and are perfectly suited for the utilitarian soldier kit.

Vorcha Sentinel

The innate aggressiveness found within the Vorcha make them shockingly durable combatants, and when coupled with their Flamer skill, the Vorcha sentinel is a force to be reckoned with.

Male Quarian Engineer

Quarians have spent centuries at perpetual salvage and ship repair; the survival of their species depends on this technical expertise. When bringing the new Arc Grenade to the fray, the Quarians prove their prowess as effective engineers on the battlefield.

Male Quarian Infiltrator

The Male Quarian Infiltrator must actively rely on stealth while in the heat of battle, and when they make use of their Tactical Scan ability, they quickly prove their mettle while continuously dishing out the pain.

Ex-Cerberus Vanguard

When the Illusive Man turned to indoctrination in order to ensure the loyalty of his troops, many Cerberus operatives defected and joined the Alliance in order to stop the Reapers. Now that we’re on the same team, Ex-Cerberus Vanguards (along with their new Lash attack) are quickly proving their worth.

Ex-Cerberus Adept

A result of the Illusive Man’s early experiments in enhanced human physiology, Ex-Cerberus subjects are highly skilled combat and biotics specialists. As a result, Ex-Cerberus Adepts can lay waste to the enemy with their Smash and Singularity powers.

NEW MAPS

Firebase Jade – Surrounded by huge waterfalls, Firebase Jade overlooks an ancient reservoir built by the salarians centuries ago. Set up strategic chokepoints inside the base’s main buildings to get the jump on your enemy, and work with your team to meticulously clear each room to achieve victory.

Firebase Goddess – Nestled in the epicenter of a Thessian metropolis, Firebase Goddess is one of the last strongholds of asari resistance against the Reapers. With its circular layout, Firebase Goddess is a tough location to control. This arena combines heavy cover and elevated firing positions, so stay light on your feet.

NEW WEAPONS

Cerberus Harrier Assault Rifle – These Cerberus-modified Mattock rifles are fully automatic. Cerberus gunsmiths reined in the recoil issues, resulting in a gun that stay on target, but delivers slightly less punch per round than a standard Mattock. As such, the weapon is typically utilized by Cerberus’ elite troopers, who train constantly to make every burst count.
Reegar Carbine Shotgun – This electrical weapon improves upon the arc pistol’s design by generating a sustained current on its target. This weapon is named for the Quarian Reegar family, whose marines have served valiantly against the Geth.
Krysae Sniper Rifle – This Turian antimaterial rifle is modified to kill Reaper enemies. The Krysae’s scope uses a rangefinder that adjusts to keep the target in proper proportion to the shooter, which comes in useful when the sniper is forced into close range. Its specialized ammunition is both armor-piercing and explosive. In a desperate move, the Turians released its specifications over the extranet so that nearly anyone with a fabricator could manufacture this weapon to help the war effort.

FAQ
When is the Rebellion Pack available?

The Rebellion Pack is available on May 29 for PlayStation 3 in North America, Xbox 360 and PC worldwide. The pack will be available on May 30 for PlayStation 3 in Europe..

What is included with the Rebellion Pack?

Firebase Jade and Firebase Goddess are available to play on as soon as the Rebellion Pack is downloaded. The new weapons, characters, and equipment are available as rewards inside Reinforcement Packs.

Does each new character come with new abilities?

Yes the new characters will have their own unique abilities and loadouts.

How much does the Rebellion Pack cost to download?

The Rebellion Pack is available at no additional cost to download.

How do I get new characters and weapons from the Rebellion Pack?

The new items in the Rebellion Pack will be available as rewards inside existing Reinforcement Packs. Make sure to look out for promotional packs and weekend challenges for other ways to unlock the content.

The maps will be nice. I always like new environments, but I would very much like to see a new game mode. The Characters are definitely interesting. I have no interest in the Vorcha, personally I hate the race and their aesthetic, as well as their horrible voice acting and their attitude. I suppose if they tone down the voice acting I can live with them though. The Quarians and the Ex Cerberus on the other hand I find VERY interesting. The Male Quarian Infiltrator sounds cool with the new Scan power (something similar to Hunter Mode?) and the Engineer will have new powers as well. I never liked Fire/Ice for Quarian Engineer, so perhaps the new power build will bring them more in line with my style of play. The Cerberus Adept disappoints me a little because it has Singularity (not a good power in MP), but the Smash power sounds like fun. Also a Vanguard with an actual offensive power other than Nova sounds amusing as well.

I think I'm looking forward to the guns most of all, particularly the new Sniper Rifle. The dynamic scope could be very good or very bad depending on how its coded, and depending on damage/reload, it could compete with the Valiant/Black Widow on Gold. It all depends on how much Penetration it has, and how the explosive rounds work. If they bypass shield gate and are not host-dependent, it could be a very strong gun indeed. The new Mattock variant sounds like a good gun for my Engineers/Sentinels, especially Turian, and the Reegar Carbine has the coolest name of any gun. Hopefully it will compete with the current top-tier shotguns (GPS and Claymore).

Gonna save this weekends credits for this pack!

**Necros**

Sounds cool.. now, do I farm all weekend and buy equipment packs to try and get the old stuff upgraded so there's less of a big pool of stuff later? Or, save it all and try to get new stuff out of said bigger pool?

**Lynata**

Meh, I'd rather they give us the opportunity to play as a Phantom.

The new maps sound amazing, though.

... need to grind some more packs before this DLC hits, else I'll have an even harder time unlocking that last customization option for my Asari. >.<

**vodo40k**

I defiantly like the sound of the modded Mattock, i always wanted a burst/auto version of that. The ex-cerberus units also sound VERY interesting (que to never ever unlock any of those in upgrade packs). I also very much like the idea of a permanent upgrade, I hate going on gold, putting all level 3 upgrades on and then finding out I have a pathetic team and go down on wave 3.

**Kanluwen**

I, for one, cannot wait for the male Quarians and the Ex-Cerberus Adept.

Singularity+Slam=Winner!

**Aldarionn**

Lynata wrote:Meh, I'd rather they give us the opportunity to play as a Phantom.

Interesting that you should mention that. A friend and I were discussing the possibility of them adding a new game mode, similar to the Left 4 Dead 2 multiplayer, where 8 random people are thrown into a game, and 4 play an N7 team, while the other 4 play random enemies. The problem is the reward system is too easily abused in a PVP environment, because the etiquette becomes for one side or the other to always throw the match, allowing for the fastest possible payout.

The other mode we though would be interesting was something similar to 5 man dungeons in World of Warcraft. IE instead of a small sandbox-style map with random enemy spawns based on player location, they develop something closer to a campaign style level, with objectives that unlock new areas, culminating in a boss fight of some sort. With the galaxy being relatively well established and multiple worlds fleshed out in concept, it would not be that hard to create a 4 player co-op separate from the single player campaign but taking place at the same time, revolving around the war effort. I can think of 5 or 6 off the top of my head that would make for interesting gameplay. But unfortunately I don't see this being released for ME3. Perhaps a future project, but not ME3.

**Lynata**

Aldarionn wrote:Interesting that you should mention that. A friend and I were discussing the possibility of them adding a new game mode, similar to the Left 4 Dead 2 multiplayer, where 8 random people are thrown into a game, and 4 play an N7 team, while the other 4 play random enemies. The problem is the reward system is too easily abused in a PVP environment, because the etiquette becomes for one side or the other to always throw the match, allowing for the fastest possible payout.

Oh, I dunno. It'd basically be Counter-Strike with a matchmaking routine, wouldn't it? And humans are greedy. The vast majority will be too focused on their own gain to even consider co-operation. Unless you allow an option to choose your opponents, then I'd guess what you said is going to happen.

Aldarionn wrote:The other mode we though would be interesting was something similar to 5 man dungeons in World of Warcraft. IE instead of a small sandbox-style map with random enemy spawns based on player location, they develop something closer to a campaign style level, with objectives that unlock new areas, culminating in a boss fight of some sort.

Yup, I've seen this idea a number of times and have voiced it myself on the BSN, too. Basically just make an "assault" style map where your team has to capture or destroy certain key objectives whilst the enemy focuses on defense. Throw in stationary turrets and maybe even a boss at the end.

Even better would be if this map could be generated randomly by using pre-designed "sections" ... since there are no Waves to consider and people just need to go from A to B, the layout won't have to follow any of the rules of the maps we have now. Or, if you do fixed levels, include different paths to choose from that all pose a different challenge or opportunity (automated defenses, patrol paths, environmental hazards, etc).

But yeah, I won't get my hopes up on seeing anything like this soon. Would be fun, tho!

**Ouze**

Ok, so, here are my guns. I know posts previously said to keep getting veteran packs until I get all my uncommons to X, which is just about done, but does that include weapon mods too?

**Necros**

Didn't know you could link a profile like that ... here's me

**Kanluwen**

And here's mine.

For some reason, my Geth Infiltrator shows as having one more slot to go, when in reality he has full customization options.

**vodo40k**

...and I cant see any of them.

**Lynata**

Here's mine - too bad it only shows unlocks and doesn't track accuracy or at least the medals. Always found such stats interesting and fun.

**Aldarionn**

Here's my manifest, for those that are interested

**Ouze**

I just unlocked the Javelin. Using it with my Hunter Mode Geth Infiltrator is the balls.