Builds | Mass Effect Andromeda Wiki

Builds in Mass Effect Andromeda

 

Builds Information

Sniper Build

Profile: Soldier
Abilities: Cloak, Barricade, Turbocharge
Weapons: Black Widow, any Assault Rifle, any pistol
Tactics: Barricade then turbo, and cloak last

Your first shot with the Widow should have over 1200 damage given you choose the right points for max damage output.
If you choose combat cloak as the last in that skill you may be able to pop off a few more rounds with that damage before your buffs timeout.

 

Close Combat Build

Profile: Vanguard
Abilities: Incinerate, Charge, Nova
Also invest points in: Pistols or Assault Rifles, Shotguns, Combat Fitness, Offensive Biotics

Use Incinerate from a distance to prime an enemy for a combo explosion, then detonate it with Charge, which also near-instantly teleports you into the fray. Finish off nearby enemies with your melee weapon and shotgun, and if you get into trouble, drop Nova and use your jetpack dash to zip out.

 

Biotic Build

Profile: Adept
Abilities: Pull, Throw, Singularity
Also invest points in: Barrier, Offensive Biotics, Containment, Rifles, Combat Fitness

This build is for biotic lovers. Pull can be upgraded to string in and prime multiple enemies at once, while Throw acts as a detonator or just a fun way to fling enemies into acid. Singularity is nice for priming and sweeping up the grunts of the litter while you make a getaway or wait for Throw to recharge.

 

Sentinel Build

Profile: Sentinel
Abilities: Energy Drain (Must have: Rank 5 "Extended Drain"), Backlash, Lance
Also invest points in: Barrier, Offensive Biotics, Combat Fitness, Team Support, (weapon of choice, such as pistols)

This build is the best combo build i've played around with; the tech combos are high damage and easy to prime with the rank 5 "Extended Drain" being the must have crux of this build. The backlash is just useful as it protects you while the energy drain and lance recharge and once ready just hit a target with energy drain then use a biotic lance to detonate and deal massive damage. Personally I use the high damage Ushior Pistol and it has served me well so far (sidenote: in SP the ushior can be modded with both Charged Plasma & Seeking Plasma to create a high damage seeking bolt which is fun).

 

Universal Build

Profile: Explorer
Abilities: Energy Drain, Charge, Incinerate (see below)
Also invest points in: all Passives in the Biotic and Tech trees (see below), plus Combat Fitness and Combat Tools, Assault Rifles and another weapon of choice (see below)

DISCLAIMER: I am by no means saying this the ultimate "best" build; everyone has a different playstyle, and what one considers "optimal" may not be so for someone else.
This build is simply one that I have found to be consistently effective across the greatest number and type of encounters/situations in the game.

This build has the first slot in my favorites, and is what I consider my "default" build, the one that I always start with or go back to in a fight.

This build is for those who are indecisive, or those who want to play the Explorer's "a bit of everything" to it's logical extreme.  This build is also VERY SPECIFIC in both what powers to have and how they are upgraded.  This build can tank, play offense, play defense, support the team, and even go solo.
This build does not require any particular weapon (sans an assault rifle like the Avenger or Mattock), and does not require any research (though it's certainly helpful).

The only real limitation to this build is that full effectiveness requires a minimum total of 252 skill points invested for the listed skills, and that Rank 6 of the Explorer profile requires 78 points in each skill category; the biotic and tech trees will have enough invested in them just by the skills on this list, but unless you take another weapon passive (like Pistols) to Rank 6, you'll need to invest in another Combat skill to reach the 78 points needed to get Explorer to Rank 6.
Overall, this build is better suited for a high-level Ryder, an Insanity run, and/or NEWGAME+

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Energy Drain must have Rank 4 "Recharge Speed", Rank 5 "Extended Drain", and Rank 6 "Team Drain"
Charge must have Rank 4 "Damage" and Rank 6 "Bastion" (Rank 5 is a toss-up, I prefer the "Power Synergy")
Incinerate must have Rank 4 "Radius", Rank 5 "Anti-Armor", and Rank 6 "Detonator"

These three powers cover everything from stripping enemy defenses to closing to attack range. (stay on target!)

As for passives, these are also very specific (warning, a bit of a doozy ahead); for ease of reference, the upgrades are listed in numerical order (4, 5, 6)
Note: upgrades that are imperative are italicized and in orange, the others listed are highly recommended, but the "other option" can work just as well when deciding.

Combat Fitness (Regeneration, Heavy Lifting, Hold the Line)
Combat Tools (Hover, Aerial Melee, Aerial Combat)
Assault Rifles (Spare Ammo, Reload, Shatter Defenses)
Barrier (Unyielding Barrier, Biotic Alacrity, Saving Barrier)
Offensive Biotics (Alacrity, Detonation, Biotic Warrior)
Containment (Radius, Shield Detonation, Event Horizon)
Auxiliary Systems (Weapon Mass Reduction, Impact Dilation, Omni-Vents)
Offensive Tech (Anti-Armor, Detonators, Technical Rounds)
Team Support (Support, Tactical Revive, Life Support)

As for another weapon of choice, that one is entirely up to you; if you really can't decide, just bring another assault rifle.
Ideally, have one rifle for long-range/precision, and another for full-auto/blindfire.
I specify Assault Rifles because of how versatile they are by default and because Shatter Defenses is just so darn useful.

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In summary:

• Your powers can be used as fast as possible and be strung together in nearly any order
• Tech powers grant health regeneration
• Incinerate covers a large radius and does maximum bonus damage to armor
• Energy Drain covers a large radius and provides maximum shield boost to yourself and teammates
• Charge hits for greater damage (especially against shields), restores more of YOUR shields, and improves damage-resist/melee damage
• All styles of attack are improved (long range, close range, melee, hover)
• Everything you do synergizes with something else in your arsenal, it's like a game of rock-paper-scissors you play on your own where the more you play the more you win.

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EXTRAS: these do require research, but fit the build extremely well.

Armor Set: N7 (lots of bonuses to shield strength and biotics, can be crafted with tech-recharge augmentations for balance)
Armor Mod: Rapid Deployment (huge boost to power recharge speeds, the weapon-damage penalty isn't too bad and can be halved with the right Cryo-Pod perk)
Weapon Augmentations: Bio-Converter (you'll be using tech powers so often that with Life Support you'll get back the health you lose)

SOURCE: A passion for Mass Effect, Level 100 Ryder, intense scrutiny of game mechanics

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