Tag Archives: Debuff

Pyro Unit – Ultima Ratio Regis

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Pyro Unit – by Ultima Ratio Regis

Class:
Geth Trooper Soldier

Power Evolutions:

Flamer: Reach (4), Damage (5), Armor Damage (6)
Fortification: Durability (4), Power synergy (5), Durability (6)
Hunter Mode: N/A
Networked AI: Damage & Capacity (4), Power Damage (5), Weapon Damage (6)
Advanced Hardware: Durability (4), Shield Recharge (5), Fitness Expert (6)

Weapons:

This is a flamer build. Flamer is a beast against armor and health, but it’s not very good at stripping shields, so you have to search a weapon to overcome that weakness. I would strongly recommend the acolyte, but as of today, the acolyte seems to be in a nerf process from Bioware, so I don’t know if the acolyte will work as good as is working right now. If you are going to use the acolyte, go for the heavy barrel and the magazine upgrade.

Anyhow, a weapon that doesn’t weight too much is your best option, any cool down below 100% is GOOD. An SMG for finishing enemies can be a good idea. If you have the hurricane that’s your best option, the harrier could work fine, the falcon to slow enemies or the geth plasma shotgun (remember you have 5% more damage with it since it’s a geth weapon) that can stagger enemies very easily. That’s probably the key, have the ability to staggers enemies with certain ease.

Just remember that, although this is a power focused build you will use your weapon a lot. You have no grenades or any other power besides the flamer, and the flamer can only go in one direction and has a limited radius and will not save you if you get surrounded.

Gear:

Fortification gives you 40% damage reduction, and, because this is a flamer build, you will be in very close contact with the enemy, so, if you are going in higher difficulties you must use some kind of shield booster. Anyone that fits your style is good, Shield Booster or Survivor. If you are playing lower difficulties, go for Omni-Capacitors, that will give you extra recharge speed and more flamer damage. For the rest, you can use the same tactic, higher difficulties more shield boost, and lower ones, more power damage.

I would recommend cryo ammo, it’s a great armor debuffer and it also slowdowns enemies, disruptor can work fine also since it staggers enemies very quickly and it’s extremely effective against geth.

Strategy:

You have three advantages, you are quick and agile, your flamer is VERY powerful and you have tons of shields (similar to the ones of a Krogan Soldier), but you have a very LOW health (only 412), so any tactic you use, you must be aware of this limitation and this advantage.

Your best option is to go for pure weapon damage (you did bring a DECENT weapon, right?) until the boss units appear, although this a flamer build, you still have 15% more weapon damage without counting any gears for the weapon, ammo or if you brought a geth weapon. If it’s a brute, just flame it until it’s either dead or is going to charge at you, same thing goes to ANY unit with armor (pyros, ravingers, dragoons, etc). A big problem will be the dragoons, that will act worst than brain hungry zombies and will not stop even if you are cooking them, that’s why you brought a decent weapon to stagger or slow them, scions can also be a pain due to their non stop grenade launching and cannon of death in very close range. Remember than once your shields are down, you are almost dead. Take cover or get away fast.

Flamer does not require a high learning curve, but you can use it in two different ways, one way is to use the flamer in short bursts, mainly to kill or stagger mooks, they will get panic and you can finish them off with your decent weapon, this will make flamer to recharge A LOT faster and since we spec-ed the flamer for radius we have an effective radius of around 15 meters. If you are lucky enough you may have even someone that can detonate fire explosions (overload, arc grenades, etc), this works great on spawns of earlier waves of gold and in almost any wave in silver and bronze, I can’t vouch for platinum since I haven’t try this in plat. If you decide to use the flamer all the way until the power runs out, make sure you do it for a GOOD reason, if your cool down is not very good you will not get your flamer back in six to ten seconds (a typhoon X gives six seconds cool down), but remember that a constant stream of fire will stop almost inmediately husks, abominations and almost every mook. For bosses like the Phantom or Banshee or Atlas you must strip their shields or barriers first, otherwise, you will not do a lot of damage. A Banshee in gold and in the right conditions can’t withstand more than two full rounds with your flamer, Phantoms will go down very very easily once their barriers are down, and Atlas will not withstand more than two rounds. Just take your necessary precautions to not get insta-killed or palm blasted to death.

If the acolyte is still working when you are reading this and you brought your cryo ammo, enemies will be slowed down and will get lots of debuff for their armor. Acolyte is probably your best partner, but don’t count on it for too long.

Otherwise, enjoy this magnificent character. I really do.

N00b Rating: (scale 1-5, 1 is easy for everybody!)
3. You are a front line trooper, so you will be in almost every battle and in very close contact to the enemy. This can be stressful and very very dangerous. But once you master it, is easily one of the most powerful characters in the game.

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Versa-Utility – by CoreyImperia

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Build Title: Versa-Utility

Class: Volus Adept

Map Difficulty Rating: This build has the potential for Gold gameplay, if you choose to play Platinum, make sure your team covers the bases.

 

Power Evolutions:
Stasis: (4) Stasis Strength, (5) Recharge Speed, (6) Bubble
Biotic Orbs: (4) Radius, (5) Recharge Speed, (6) Expose
Shield Boost: (4) Shields, (5) Regeneration, (6) Protection
Volus Training: (4) Damage & Capacity, (5) Shield Boost
Fitness: (1), (2), (3)

 

Weapons:
I recommend either the M-358 Talon or the N7 Hurricane. Both deal respectible damage and both allow high recharge speeds. When taking the M-358 Talon, apply High Caliber Barrel and Piercing Mod. When taking the N7 Hurricane, apply High Velocity Barrel and SMG Recoil Systems. Both hit hard against bosses and infantry. My preference is the N7 Hurricane because I just prefer something that can give a constant stream off damage, but it really doesn’t matter which you choose. If you can’t decide, use whichever one is the highest level. Both of these are difficult to get, if you have neither, use the M-12 Locust with High Velocity Barrel and Heat Sink or the M-6 Carnifex with Piercing Mod and High Caliber Barrel. Take the Acolyte with Extended Magazine and Pistol Heavy Barrel if taking an SMG.

 

Gear:
Use Warp or Cryo Rounds for this build, their armor weakening pairs excellently with Expose Biotic Orbs. For your weapon and armor bonuses, use the respective rail amp (SMG or Pistol) and Power Efficiency Module. I recommend Expert Package for your gear bonus for +12% SMG Damage and +12% Recharge Speed. If you aren’t using the Hurricane or Locust, use Structural Ergonomics for +15% Recharge Speed. Again, as with the Volus Engineer, you want to optimize Recharge Speed for this build, allowing you to use the powers quicker.

 

Strategy:
When players look at the two Volus, it’s pretty clear who the favourite of the Adept and Engineer is with the community. Personally on the XBOX360, I don’t see half as many Volus Adepts as I do Volus Engineers. Volus Adepts are harder to play and don’t have the same skill set as their Engineer counterparts but are just as effective if played right. Again, a Volus that gets 10000 points from spamming Shield Boost isn’t an asset to the team in the long-run. We’ll look at its powers, how he fares against the enemies and then look at his limitations.
For Stasis, your standard Stasis spec applies. You shouldn’t need the extra Duration on Stasis to make a kill, considering Stasis and Biotic Orbs is a biotic explosion. Bonus Power on Stasis is nice… but only when it works, you’re better off have the flat recharge increase everytime. You should always spec Stasis for Bubble, never Vulnerability. It is a crowd control ability. As for Biotic Orbs, it is evolved in a similar way to Proximity Mine. Radius allows it to affected multipe targets and Recharge Speed allows you to benefit from the Orbs when you aren’t using them for debuff, with +45%/+30%/+15% Recharge Speed with 3/2/1 Orbs on you. Expose is the money on this power, it’s like a Warp that stacks 3 times. 45% more damage for 6 seconds. Biotic Orbs also detonates Biotic Explosions and other explosions as well (pairing well with Dusruptor, Cryo and Incendiary Ammo). Shield Boost is the basic, best spec for maximum recovery and protection. Volus Training applies more damage to Biotic Orbs and empowers Shield Boost further, adding to your versatility and utility.
The Volus Adept doesn’t have a niche particularly because it’s versatile all-round. It is good against Cerberus because of Stasis but less so against Collectors or Reapers because of Stasis (too many armored units). But Expose is effective against and should be used everything, plus Stasis is just always handy for your Phantoms, Hunters, Marauders and Possessed Abominations. He works effectively at killing trooper enemies, having little trouble aside from being staggered. If the Volus Adept becomes staggered, you better hope you can use Shield Boost in the next few seconds. Stasis is effective against all troopers without armor, and Biotic Orbs will weaken Bombers, Turrets, Pyros and Dragoons so your Hurricane (or Talon, Locust, or Carnifex) can finish it off.
Smaller boss enemies like Scions, Ravagers and Brutes shouldn’t cause much trouble either. For the first two you need to be wary of their protectile attacks and if you are hit by one it is likely you’ll be hit with the others and I don’t believe the Volus can survive all three, make sure to Shield Boost if this happens. Keep a respectable distance, far enough to aim accurately. Otherwise Ravagers will down you quickly with their swarmers and Scions and Brutes both have relatively quick sync-kill techniques. Weaken them with Biotic Orbs and kill them with your team from afar.
As for the big bosses (Altases, Primes, Banshees, Praetorians), you’ll be throwing your Biotic Orbs a lot. You want to keep that Expose effect going for as long as possible while Shield Boosting inbetween when you need to. Try to make sure that you have Orbs up when you Shield Boost to make the cooldown faster. Fire shots of your Hurricane inbetween this. If you work with your team, the bosses can go down very fast; especially if you have Proximity Mine users or other debuffers on your squad. Keep a respectable distance, far enough to aim accurately but not close enough to be sync-killed. Volus have the power to make or break teams.
Do not forget about the light melee Tactical Cloak the Volus characters receive either. You need to use this often and whenever possible to keep you out of fire. Use this to your advantage for objectives and when battling in general. You can sneak around Exposing targets your team is on, particularly effective with bosses are near the ends of rounds.
The Volus Adept is a sturdy character with Shield Boost at the ready…and incredibly flimsly without it ready. With 625/188, it will die nearly immediately on Gold with no shields active. Play with your team, supporting them with Shield Boost and Biotic Orbs. You have more of a chance to survive with another player near you, providing they aren’t getting killed every 5 seconds. Unfortunately, the Volus characters got awesome powers with lengthy cooldowns. Biotic Orbs has the longest cooldown of all biotics and Stasis isn’t fast either. Shield Boost, while not as long to cooldown, doesn’t get off easily either. Use the recommended gear and supplies to counteract this. He also cannot get into cover, and on Gold, even though you don’t use cover often, it is frustrating thinking you are in cover to avoid that Praetorian Particle Beam, but then you remember you are a Volus. I also recommend not fighting Collectors with the Volus Adept. I said he is viable for all factions, which is true, but he has the most trouble with Collectors. If he is ever caught amongst them in melee range, you can expect to use a medi-gel from all the staggering going on. You’ll never “dominate” with a Volus character, but it isn’t impossible to be leading the pack. Play to your strengths, play to your team and play intelligently.

 

N00b Rating:
5 – You’re playing a Volus. That in itself is never simple. The Volus Adept doesn’t have Proximity Mine to stagger enemies at will, just Stasis which cements them in place but has a longer cooldown. You only have 625 shields and 188 health: one shot from a trooper on Gold will down you instantly. Play with your team. This Volus is versatile because it can cause havoc on its own but also support a team. If you have another biotic on your team that you stick with, your road will be easier. It’ll take time to get use to a Volus character in general, let alone one which plays aggressively and defensively.
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Weakening Whirlwind – by CoreyImperia

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Build Title: Weakening Whirlwind

Class: Volus Engineer

Map Difficulty Rating: This build has the potential for Gold gameplay, if you choose to play Platinum, make sure your team covers the bases.

 

Power Evolutions:
Recon Mine: (4) Radius, (5) Recharge Speed*, (6) Invasive Scan
Proximity Mine: (4) Radius, (5) Damage Taken, (6) Recharge Speed
Shield Boost: (4) Shields, (5) Regeneration, (6) Protection
Volus Training: (4) Damage & Capacity, (5) Shield Boost*
Fitness: (1), (2), (3)

 

*You may choose to switch Rank 5 of Recon Mine out for Damage. This build uses it more as a debuff power, but it has it’s uses. You can create killstreaks with this power. If you choose to do this, I also recommend switching Rank 5 of Volus Training for Power Damage, just to increase it that little bit more.

 

Weapons:
My recommendations are the N7 Hurricane and the Acolyte or Scorpion, or the M-358 Talon. You can use the N7 Hurricane by itself, or with Acolyte or Scoprion or you can use the M-358 Talon. If using the Hurricane, you need SMG Recoil Systems and High Velocity Barrel. If using the Scorpion or Acolyte, make sure it has Pistol Heavy Barrel and Extended Magazine on it. For the M-358 Talon, use Extended Barrel and Piercing Mod. You are using light weapons to maximize the Recharge Speed of the Volus’s powers, which come with long cooldown times.

 

Gear:
You have many choices for Ammo bonuses. Armor-Piercing shreds bosses, Incendiary allows Fire Explosions with Proximity Mine, Disruptor allows Tech Bursts with Proximity Mine and Shield Damage, Cryo Ammo gives an armor debuff and allows Cryo Explosions with Proximity Mine. Phasic is viable for Geth and Explosive Rounds III can cause staggers on targets and pairs excellently if using the Scorpion. My personal preference is Armor-Piercing/Incendiary. Use the respective Rail Amp for your primary weapon (Hurricane or Talon) and use Power Efficiency Module for armor bonus. For gear bonus, I go for the Expert Package when using the Hurricane for +12% Recharge Speed and +12% SMG damage or Pistol Amp when using the Talon for +15% or Structual Ergonomics for +15% Recharge Speed. Remember, Recharge Speed is important.

 

Strategy:
The Volus got a mixed reception coming into the Mass Effect 3 Multiplayer scene, but I’ve thoroughly enjoyed their appearance and welcomed them warmly. From laughing at them tumbling to dying on a stairwell and rolling down it to watching a Banshee try to stick its arm through me, the Volus is a hilarious but powerful class. Most people choose to play the Volus characters as Shield Boost Spammers but this is bad. If your teammate spams Shield Boost and gets 10000 points at the end of the match, is that helpful? This Volus is played more aggressively and an intelligent player will be difficult to kill. As with my other builds, I’ll brief the powers, then the how he fairs against the enemies and then the difficulties my Explosive Volus faces.
Recon Mine is an interesting power, and on the Volus Engineer it is evolved for maximum debuffing not damage. It should kill trooper-level enemies within its massive radius but the beauty is its weakening powers. Radius increase the Explosion Radius to 9 metres and the Scan Radius to 12 metres. I would often go for Damage on Recon Mine to make it more multifunctional but it has a long Recharge Speed, so we substitute the loss of damage for the cooldown, remembering that this build plays best with low cooldowns. Invasive Scan is where the money’s at. Targets that enter the Scan radius receive 25% more damage from all sources and move 30% slower. The Armor Damage would be nice, it would mean you could take a bigger chunk of Armor from bosses, but we’re focusing on debuffing. Proximity Mine is a no-brainer. You always should evolve it to at least Rank 5 with Radius and Damage Taken. Taking on Recharge Speed is just to assist with the power synergy. Shield Boost should never be evolved differently. This is the best way to do it. Just remember that the invulnerability frame is just for you and not the others. You don’t need to max out Fitness because you have Shield Boost, which is augmented further with Rank 5 of Volus Training.
As a Volus, you’re actually one of the few classes that are versatile enough to be prepared for all factions. You also have the added benefit of having a poor-man’s Tactical Cloak light melee. You need to toss your Recon Mine at a choke-point, or a spawn, or someplace you know will have a concentration of enemies. If heaps of trooper-tier enemies are in it, detonate it to get the killstreak. You’ll be visiting that place often to use Proximity Mine. Since Proximity Mine and Recon Mine stack, enemies affect by both will receive 45% more damage from all sources for 8 seconds and then 25% more damage from all sources as long as they are in the Scan Radius. For when you’re fighting away from the Recon Mine, you’ll be using the light melee Tactical Cloak a lot. This is interesting because it won’t break no matter what you do but it only lasts for about 4 seconds. Light melee to cloak, then fire your Hurricane/Talon to prime a target and then Proximity Mine to detonate the ammo effect. If you are using Warp or Armor-Piercing or an ammo power that doesn’t detonate, Proximity Mine first and then fire. If you’re taking too much fire, get out of there and use Shield Boost.
For trooper-tier enemies, you can use this strategy. If you stick with another player, you’ll chew through these enemies but just be careful of Phantoms, the others (Cannibals, Marauders, Geth Hunters, Geth Troopers, Geth Pyros, Geth Rocket Troopers, Assault Troopers, Centurions, Nemeses, Dragoons, Combat Engineers, Collector Troopers and Collector Captains), the Volus can handle pretty easily. The timing of your powers can be tricky, as if you need to Shield Boost while its recharging, you’ll need to hide quickly. Geth Boombers will cause you trouble, best leave these to your teammates.
For Brutes, Ravagers and Scions, Proximity Mine them at fire at them with your teammates. If you can, lure them into the Recon Mine Radius to allow more incoming damage to them to kill them quickly. And for big bosses, keep them in Recon Mine and keep up the Proximity Mines. They’ll be taking masses of damage from you and your team.
The Volus has its perks (light melee to help with objectives etc) but it has its downfalls. It is incredibly weak: 625 Shields and a miserable 188 Health. You need to be careful that you don’t Proximity Mine when you need to Shield Boost or you’ll die instantly. Your shields need to be up as if you take one shot from anything on Gold when your Shields are down, you’ll go down with them. His other issue is his recharge speed. Recon Mine has a large cooldown as does Shield Boost and Proximity Mine is one of the powers in the game that has a slightly longer cooldown as well. This is why it is imperative to maximize Recharge Speed wherever possible. This class cannot “dominate” scoreboards, but you can top them if you play it right. This Volus does support and survival as well as it deals damage. Volus can make or break teams depending on how the Volus is being played.

 

N00b Rating:
5 - It’s a Volus. An aggressive Volus. It isn’t easy to play with character that has 625/188 defences with Fitness at Rank 3. Shield Boost is your friend and your allies best comodity when they are near you. You are the Aggressive-Supportive Grand Debuffer. You debuff with Recon Mine and Proximity Mine; Support with Shield Boost and show Aggression with your merciless weapon firing. But play smartly or be a lump of fleshy squish on the pavement.
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