28 réponses à ce sujet

[CosmicGnosis]

What are the best weapons to give to the party? For example, is it wise to give Garrus the Particle Rifle? I've read that the party AI doesn't always use certain weapons effectively.

Modifié par CosmicGnosis, 10 février 2014 - 12:11 .

[RedCaesar97]

Avoid giving the Reegar to squadmates. They cannot use it at all effectively.

Other than that piece of advice, I have one question: Do you care about the game giving you any sort of challenge at all?

1) If you do not care about challenge, then give any squadmate with an assault rifle the Typhoon, then sit back and let them kill everything. The Typhoon is completely broken on squadmates.

2) If you do want the game to give you some sort of a challenge, then give your squadmates any weapon not named Typhoon. The Particle Rifle may be the next-best weapon on squadmates, but it is not so overpowered as to remove all challenge.

Other than that, I like the Scorpion on squadmates with a pistol since it can stagger enemies. The Javelin should be the best single-shot sniper rifle for sniper squadmates, although you can make do with the Mantis until you get it.

Squadmates tend not to be too good with charge-based weapons like the Arc Pistol, Venom shotgun, or Geth Plasma Shotgun to use them effectively. So stick with other weapons.

From what I recall, squadmates deal only 30% of base weapon damage by default. Some squadmates do get bonus damage to weapons, but this bonus is calculated off the reduced damage, not the total damage. for example, if a squadmate can deal +70% damage with assault rifles, that does not mean that the -70% damage penalty is negated; rather, the damage penalty is calculated first, then the damage bonus is a calculated from that number.

Practically speaking, say a weapon deals 100 damage per shot. 30% of 100 is 30. +70% of 30 is then 51 damage.

Just so you are aware.

[CosmicGnosis]

Well, it just so happens that I don't have access to the Typhoon, so that's not a factor. So the squad members actually do use the Particle Rifle effectively? That's kind of surprising, since it's kind of a "charge" weapon.

What about submachine guns? Should a character like Liara use a pistol instead?

[capn233]

Yeah the penalty is a 30% multiplier (at least on Insanity), and if you order them to attack they get a temporary "+200%" additive weapon damage bonus (which doesn't amount to much of anything).

Garrus and Ashley are the ones with the good modifiers, since their AR and SR damage evolutions are base damage modifiers, which somewhat counteract the penalty. For Garrus, this is a 1.5 and 1.6x multiplier respectively, and for Ash it is 1.6 and 1.45 respectively (recall that their weapon damage evos are swapped: Garrus has AR at Rank 5, SR at 6, while Ash has SR at 5 and AR at 6).

Basic form would be something like this, peddroelmz did the squad weapon testing a while back:

HenchDamage = 0.3*(BaseModifier)*(BaseWeaponDamage)*[1+SUM(AdditiveWeaponDamageBonus)]

BaseModifier being 1 except for Ash and Garrus if so evolved, and using that class gun. Basically all other squad weapon damage bonuses go in the additive portion, whether they be from an attack command ("200%" mentioned above), their armor, various squad bonuses, or weapon mods.

In any event, most of the guns that are good on Shepard are decent on the squad, just don't expect them to do full damage. Additionally, squadmates don't care about weapon weight whatsoever, nor do they need help with stability. It is unclear to me if accuracy bonuses help at all on the squad (they do have their own accuracy numbers for guns that are different from Shepard's).

The only odd thing is some of the burst guns, like the Valiant and Argus. Valiant is set to only fire 1 shot per burst no matter what. Argus is set from 1 to 2 rounds per burst, but they rarely seem to fire 2. I did do some testing tonight where I manually set it to 3 just to see what would happen. Maybe I will post it, but Garrus and Ash were pretty decent with it set that way, maybe too good.

Black Widow is basically the same deal. They fire it essentially the exact same rate as the Mantis, Widow, or Javelin. I usually give Garrus the Javelin as a result.

If you have Citadel, the Suppressor isn't too bad on the pistol squad mates, if they get a headshot. None of them have the impressive modifiers for pistols though, like Ash and Garrus have for rifles.

To answer your question about SMG's, I usually give Liara the Punisher.  The SMG's will be ok against mooks, but they will be poor against armor without AP due to the way the damage is calculated.  Really though most of the caster squadmates with SMG and Pistol are there to support you with powers rather than weapon damage, so most of the time I don't worry about it too much.

Modifié par capn233, 10 février 2014 - 05:23 .

[CosmicGnosis]

This next question applies to both the Shepard and the squad: What about the Lancer vs. Particle Rifle? Particle Rifle seems better when it is at full blast, but does the squad take advantage of that?

[capn233]

The Lancer has better DPS in SP, although it is a little less accurate. With Incendiary Explosive Burst, Particle Rifle makes up damage due to higher ROF. The squad doesn't stay in the multiplier as long as Shepard does.

[Derpy]

Screw squadmate weapons just give them avengers and give yourself an Arc Pistol and a Reegar Carbine and nothing will ever stop you.

[cap and gown]

For the Pistol/SMG squadmates the most important thing is having the power magnifier mod. If you have the Hurricance, I would go with that with an HVB and power magnifier. The Suppressor works well with a heavy barrel and power magnifier. I do give Tali the Reegar for the Dreadnaught mission, but the only time I have her use it is during the close quarters fighting in the ops center for when those Hunters sneak up on you. The rest of the time I have her use a pistol with power magnifier. Likewise, with Aria, I never have her use the shotgun. I give her the Hurricane (Tempest if you don't have the Hurricane) with an HVB and power magnifier. With a level V power magnifier and specced for max power damage Aria trully is a biotic boss.

[CosmicGnosis]

So should the Pistol/SMG squadmates focus more on pistols?

Also, the Hornet seems better than the Tempest...

[cap and gown]

When considering squadmate weapon use, you need to consider more than base weapon damage, but how they use the weapon. For instance, the Valkyrie has pretty good weapon damage and a high RoF, but I watched James use it and he was terrible. He would pop out of cover, pull the trigger once, then duck back down. He would have done better with the Saber. I don't know how squadies use the Hornet, but with the Tempest they tend to fire it in long, sustained bursts. I have been informed that in ME2 they will fire the Tempest in 20-25 shot bursts per firing cycle. Or take the example of the Mattock vs Vindicator in ME2. They pull the trigger 3 times per firing cycle for both guns, but for the Mattock that means 3 shots, for the Vindicator it means 9 shots, so they do more damage with the Vindicator per firing cycle, even though it has less base damage than the Mattock. I suspect that your squadies would fire the Hornet in 3, 3 round bursts the way they do with the Vindicator.

Added: Also, I just think the Tempest looks better than the Hornet.

Modifié par cap and gown, 11 février 2014 - 12:13 .

[CosmicGnosis]

At rank 5 of Turian Rebel, should Garrus go with Assault Rifles, or Power Damage?

[capn233]

CosmicGnosis wrote...

At rank 5 of Turian Rebel, should Garrus go with Assault Rifles, or Power Damage?

Depends on if you want him to use Assault Rifles.

I typically give him power damage there since I tend to make him use sniper rifles.  This isn't necessarily optimal from a damage standpoint since he can potentially do more DPS with a high end AR and Assault Rifle damage as long as you are micro managing him.  But he is slightly safer firing single shot rifles, and he can one-shot various trash mobs with a leveled Widow or Javelin, so that is why I go SR damage on him.

[cap and gown]

capn233 wrote...

CosmicGnosis wrote...

At rank 5 of Turian Rebel, should Garrus go with Assault Rifles, or Power Damage?

Depends on if you want him to use Assault Rifles.

I typically give him power damage there since I tend to make him use sniper rifles.  This isn't necessarily optimal from a damage standpoint since he can potentially do more DPS with a high end AR and Assault Rifle damage as long as you are micro managing him.  But he is slightly safer firing single shot rifles, and he can one-shot various trash mobs with a leveled Widow or Javelin, so that is why I go SR damage on him.

Besides, Garrus is a sniper!

[Nitrocuban]

Typhoon. Nuff said.

[Brickyracer8655]

The Typhoon seems to be popular, I'll have to try it on squaddies. I've played Mass Effect Trilogy over a dozen times and honestly, I've relied on trial and error. I know it's not the most effective way, but I just try different weapons and see what works best for me and my squad. I definitely agree that your squad does not perform well with charged weapons. Here's what I find works well for my team:

 

Heavy Pistols:  Carnifex, Talon (with a bigger clip), Eagle, Suppressor

Subs: Hurricane, BPP, Tempest

Shotguns: Graal Spike Thrower (with spare clip), Eviscerator

Snipers: Mantis, Black Widow, Indra

Assault Rifles: Saber, Falcon, Particle Rifle, Vindicator, Lancer

 

Just a few observations I've made:

Ashley used to be great with the Revenant when her Marksman ability worked. (Revenant in ME3 is inferior to the beast it was in ME2)

When I used a Level X Saber with upgraded Warp ammo - it tore through Brutes so fast I had to check to see if my game was still set to Insanity

Level X Particle Rifle with Incendiary ammo is pretty awesome.

.

For my Shepard, I like using the Lancer, Black Widow, Indra, Scorpion, Talon, Saber, and Executioner Pistol with Cryo Ammo because its fun. Sometimes I even bring the Shuriken as an extra weapon for the heck of it. It is certainly an improvement over the one in ME2 which was awful.

[RedCaesar97]

Sometimes I even bring the Shuriken as an extra weapon for the heck of it. It is certainly an improvement over the one in ME2 which was awful.

 

What???

 

ME2 Shuriken was awesome.

ME3 Shuriken shoots spitballs.

[Quarian Master Race]

AR's: Typhoon. No contest. It is broken on squadmates. If you don't want to cheese the game, they are also good with the PPR, Revenant and Saber.
SR's :Javelin, Widow or Raptor. The former two are best single shot rifles because squadmates don't take advantage of the Black Widow's ROF. They're basically interchangable because unlike in MP, the Javelin does no more damage than the Widow. The Raptor they can fire on full auto for some reason.
Shotguns: Wraith or Claymore with smart choke. Squaddies tend not to run right up to the enemy unless you tell them to, and since these have the best range of the non charge guns, they will do better with them than others.
SMG's: Hurrdurricane or Tempest. They don't make very good use of the Hornet.
Pistols: Carnifex or Paladin

Stay away from: charge up weapons. Squadmates never charge them. The Graal and Geth Plasma Shotgun also causes squadmate AI's to hang around at the ranges that they normally would with non shotgun weapons instead of moving in close, even further reducing their effectiveness.

Also the Reegar Carbine, unless you want to micromanage them all the time so they are actually shooting something.

[capn233]

The former two are best single shot rifles because squadmates don't take advantage of the Black Widow's ROF. They're basically interchangable because unlike in MP, the Javelin does no more damage than the Widow.

 

You are correct about the BW, it has the same practical ROF as the single shot SR's on squadmates in SP.

 

The other bit is incorrect.  The Javelin is the best SR in SP since every base game weapon received their MP balance changes up through the beginning of Dec 2012 with the last patch.  Incidentally, this also means that BW overtook the Mantis, which it lagged behind at launch.

[Quarian Master Race]

You are correct about the BW, it has the same practical ROF as the single shot SR's on squadmates in SP.

 

The other bit is incorrect.  The Javelin is the best SR in SP since every base game weapon received their MP balance changes up through the beginning of Dec 2012 with the last patch.  Incidentally, this also means that BW overtook the Mantis, which it lagged behind at launch.

Good to know. I always use the Javelin anyway if I am going for a single shot SR because of the free thermal scope, so that is all the more reason to choose it over the Widow and BW.

So weapons recieved the same nerfs/ buffs as MP up to that point, but what about powers? It's my impression that tactical cloak for example, is still ridiculously OP in SP with much higher damage modifiers and duration than the current MP one.

[RedCaesar97]

So weapons recieved the same nerfs/ buffs as MP up to that point, but what about powers? It's my impression that tactical cloak for example, is still ridiculously OP in SP with much higher damage modifiers and duration than the current MP one.

 

Some powers did. Check this thread for more information.

 

Off the top of my head, as far as we can tell:

1) Tech Armor received the MP changes

2) Fortification received the MP changes

3) Energy Drain received the MP changes

4) Proximity Mine received the MP changes

5) Concussive Shot received the base damage buff

6) Stasis received the cooldown increase

[Brickyracer8655]

What???
 
ME2 Shuriken was awesome.
ME3 Shuriken shoots spitballs.

.


Really, I have to disagree with you on that one. I hated the Shuriken in ME2. I would play Kasumi's mission early on just to get the Locust, so I could ditch the Shuriken. It is by no means a great weapon in ME3, but I definitely thought is was an improvement. Now the Viper and Revenant took a turn for the worse in ME3.

I did however, agree with your advice on the Typhoon. Wish I had started using it sooner.

[capn233]

I am in the Shuriken was better in ME2 camp.  Shuriken is judged a little unfairly in ME2, IMO, due to external factors.  Largely the fact that people use it predominantly early game and compare it to later game SMGs after upgrades are applied.  It is a close range weapon though, so getting some damage protection upgrades might be helpful.  Once you get Shield Piercing and Extra Rounds, it is very good on CQB characters.  You have to minimize refire time and get the hang of the recoil though.

[RedCaesar97]

 

Really, I have to disagree with you on that one. I hated the Shuriken in ME2. I would play Kasumi's mission early on just to get the Locust, so I could ditch the Shuriken. It is by no means a great weapon in ME3, but I definitely thought is was an improvement. Now the Viper and Revenant took a turn for the worse in ME3.

 

cap233 explained it best (see previous post). And for the most part, your choice of SMGs in ME2 comes down to preference anyway since they all perform about the same against shields and barriers. Locust is definitely better from longer range, and can score a lot of easy headshots for extra damage, which is why a lot of players prefer it.

 

In ME3, the Shuriken lost damage (or at least damage relative to enemy health), lost its defense multipliers against shields and barriers, and lost its ability to pulse fire. Basically, anything that made it good in ME2 was removed.

 

I do agree that the Revenant became worse (although I would argue that it was also never that good in ME2 either).

 

The Viper is fine, although I have no idea why they changed its look and called it the Raptor. (That is my way of saying the Viper is worse and they replaced it with a different gun for seemingly no good reason. You could also argue that the ME2 Viper is replaced with the Valiant).

 

The Katana is worse as well.

[Quarian Master Race]

cap233 explained it best (see previous post). And for the most part, your choice of SMGs in ME2 comes down to preference anyway since they all perform about the same against shields and barriers. Locust is definitely better from longer range, and can score a lot of easy headshots for extra damage, which is why a lot of players prefer it.

 

In ME3, the Shuriken lost damage (or at least damage relative to enemy health), lost its defense multipliers against shields and barriers, and lost its ability to pulse fire. Basically, anything that made it good in ME2 was removed.

 

I do agree that the Revenant became worse (although I would argue that it was also never that good in ME2 either).

 

The Viper is fine, although I have no idea why they changed its look and called it the Raptor. (That is my way of saying the Viper is worse and they replaced it with a different gun for seemingly no good reason. You could also argue that the ME2 Viper is replaced with the Valiant).

 

The Katana is worse as well.

Don't forget the Eviscerator. It was monstrous combined with TC or AR, but in ME3 It hardly even kills unshielded insanity mooks in one hit. The Wraith is basically the same thing as ME2 eviscerator  with one less shot, though.

Viper is still actually a half decent mook killer in ME3 singleplayer despite its horrible sustained DPS in comparison to the Raptor. It still has enough power to one shot unshielded insanity mooks and two shot marauders/centurions. Given, a Raptor with good ammo, barrel mod, and all the headshot damage armour mods can do almost the same with much better boss killing ability, so it's still inferior.

[ZipZap2000]

Whatever you go with remember that some of those squaddies have ammo powers. You can upgrade incendiary ammo for intermittent explosions for example and disruptor rounds can cause a stasis like effect these are better for rapid fire weapons.  

 

I think it was said already to watch how they use them, Tali for example will charge her shots if she's using a Spike Thrower and moves outside of cover a lot where as Liara tends to stick to cover and spray with the tempest.