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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Gaming Mass Effect Series

Discussion in 'Community' started by Valyn, Sep 7, 2012.

  1. DarthCane

    DarthCane Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 30, 2002
    I got started last night ... so far I must say that Flare is going to be extremely familiar tactics-wise to players that practiced clearing rooms in ME1. The sheer damage and radius is comparable to what you got from using overload/sabotage on fuel canisters or using certain wide-area biotic powers, so it's best to use it like a grenade - flip it off at the very start into a packed bunch of adversaries, possibly with a power of your own to add a combo explosion, and then mop up the horribly maimed survivors with gunfire. As far as incorporating it later as a bonus power, I'd say the one that would really benefit from it might be an adept. The long cooldown time is counterproductive to a vanguard's tactics and the cooldown penalty on tech armor could make it horribly slow for a sentinel. However, an adept with a very fast cooldown time might well turn into an explosion-spamming nightmare - Jack's concept of "biotic artillery" in action. Of course, you might say the same for an engineer, but in general I like to restrict biotic powers to biotic classes.
     
  2. Handmaiden Yané

    Handmaiden Yané Manager Emeritus star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 15, 2002
    Just finished Omega and really enjoyed it. Can't wait to try out Lash or Flare as a bonus power in the future...

    Nyreen... :( @};-
     
  3. DarthCane

    DarthCane Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 30, 2002
    I'll be interested to see if some of the new weapon mods prove worthwhile in New Game+. With Level V weapons the weight increase from the Assault Rifle High Velocity Barrel, Shotgun and Pistol Heavy Barrels, and Sniper Rifle Thermal Scope just screw up the nice balance my sentinel has between weapons, tech armor, and cooldown times. On the other hand, the new barrel mods and the Shotgun Omni-Blade give squadmates some nice damage bonuses.
     
  4. DarthCane

    DarthCane Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 30, 2002
    Just finished it - have to say it's only the second time in the entire series where my soldier wasn't the trailblazer (did Arrival with my infiltrator first and now my sentinel was the first to hit Omega). That last fight was a bear; trying to remember the last time I had to run and gun like that. Still, loved Aria's line once she comes in to help - "I'm back, ****ers."
     
  5. Saintheart

    Saintheart Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2000
    Hey guys, a bit of an offbeat notice here -- not really sure exactly how to put it, but here goes ...

    Basically, I'm mostly an RPF guy on these boards. Over there we do mostly freeform, play-by-post roleplaying in pretty much any franchise that people can come up with support for, and for a while now I've been toying with the idea of doing a "Mass Effect 4" RPG in the RPF. That is, a ME RPG set about 10 years after the events of ME 3 (two, to be honest: one thread following the consequences of a Control ending, and one thread following the consequences of a Destroy ending.)

    Reason I raise the topic here is because I'm still developing it, and frankly my knowledge of codex and lore probably isn't totally up to par. I've got a private conversation started up talking on this topic if anyone wants to stick their mitts up in this thread as interested (come on, Handmaiden Yane ... I know your past ... :D :D :D ) or wants to just provide some lore-derived insight or thoughts on what direction the galaxy's various races might have taken after such an ending, I'll flick you an invite...

    (More details in the conversation - but, by way of quick context: the "Control" thread would assume the Paragon-iest of Paragons in that universe, i.e. it would assume Wrex alive, genophage cured, Quarians and Geth reconciled, Rachni Queen out there somewhere. By contrast, the "Destroy" thread would assume the ruthless options: Wreav alive, Wrex dead, genophage sabotaged, Quarians alone on the homeworld, Geth dead, EDI dead, Tali dead, Rachni extinct.)
     
  6. Reynar_Tedros

    Reynar_Tedros Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Jul 3, 2006
    As long as I can play an Elcor with anger management problems, I'm good.
     
  7. Saintheart

    Saintheart Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2000
    With barely controlled rage: Human. Are you talking to me.
     
  8. Reynar_Tedros

    Reynar_Tedros Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Jul 3, 2006
    Ooh, an Elcor with anger management problems and insomnia who moonlights as a taxi driver. I like it.
     
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  9. DarthCane

    DarthCane Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 30, 2002
    "Badassfully ..."
     
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  10. DarthCane

    DarthCane Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 30, 2002
    Finished Omega with my vanguard. First time I've used the N7 Hurricane in combat; knowing what the final fight was going to involve I wanted to keep my recharge time low, have something to knock out the stasis field nodes at mid-range, and maintain some brutal close-quarter firepower. A stabilized Hurricane did the trick; once I broke Aria out I switched over to the N7 Piranha and returned to my usual blasting. Glad I took Reave as a bonus power; Reave+Nova was an excellent way to finish off Adjutants.

    Somehow despite being far less formidable than Banshees those things creep me out even more.
     
  11. Saintheart

    Saintheart Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2000
    Shameless plug: if any of you are into freeform roleplaying, I've set up a "Mass Effect 4" RPG over on the RPF, with a thread each for a ME universe in the aftermath of a Control ending, and a ME universe in the aftermath of a Destroy ending. More details needed? Send me a PM... :) Hope to see you all over there!
     
  12. Darth_Invidious

    Darth_Invidious Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 21, 1999
    Saintheart and GenAntilles like this.
  13. DarthCane

    DarthCane Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 30, 2002
    Hmm. Guess I'll make sure to keep my characters in a pre-Thessia holding pattern. Still have to walk my soldier and infiltrator through Omega, and my engineer restart has yet to do Grissom Academy or Sur'Kesh. If that doesn't tide me over I just started an adept in ME1 ... although I suspect that will go really, really slowly. Right now I'm still mired in the whole bunch of Citadel side missions before taking command of the SR-1 Normandy.
     
  14. DarthCane

    DarthCane Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 30, 2002
    Decided to advance my adept through ME1 after playing a crapload of ME3, just for variety. Kind of fun to just cut loose with the biotics; it was really amusing to hit that blasted krogan at the end of Liara's recruitment mission with a biotic lift while he was charging and watch him go flying out of control into a wall. A well-timed throw or lift has saved my tail a few times when confronted with an enemy heavy at close range.
     
  15. Ichor_Razor

    Ichor_Razor Jedi Grand Master star 3

    Registered:
    Nov 6, 2004
    Bought the first ME off of PSN on Saturday (though the download/auto-install continued through to the early morning hours of Sunday) & am going through that. To see just how things, for better or worse, changed from then to 3... Better in how the combat in 2 was a huge step forward from the first which 3 practically perfected but worse in the streamlining/eliminating of many of the RPG aspects such as armor & weapon upgrades (still prefer thermal clips/ammo though & 3 did allow for weapon upgrades to an extent) and a reduction in the amount of powers/weapons for your squaddies, aside from how you can't give them different sets of armor &/or customize it anymore. It's both relieving and depressing in hindsight.
     
  16. DarthCane

    DarthCane Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 30, 2002
    Wait until you start bumping up against the 150-item cap. Then you'll be spending an inordinate amount of time trying to figure out what to do with redundant/obsolete mods, weapons, and armor. One of my big impetuses for doing this adept character (my sixth) is to get to ME3 and try playing through with an entirely different set of weapon and armor choices; might be the first time I use a character heavily reliant on an SMG as a primary weapon. Even my engineer typically packs a rifle on missions, unless it's going to be entirely CQB.

    Another reason was to finally get around to playing Shep as a jerk. This is the first time I've tried hitting on both Ash and Liara simultaneously, not sure which one to go with when it blows up in my face.
     
  17. Ichor_Razor

    Ichor_Razor Jedi Grand Master star 3

    Registered:
    Nov 6, 2004
    Yeah that is preety annoying & all & why I liked how once you picked up weapon/armor upgrades during missions in 3 (or even if you bought them), you wouldn't need to acquire more of them for every squadmate you have. Still, they could have done something similar with armor for ALL your squaddies like they did with weapon modding in 3, am I right?
     
  18. Saintheart

    Saintheart Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2000
    How do the ME 1 graphics stack up on the PS3, guys? I've got ME 1 on PC after playing ME 2 on PS3 and remember being rather underwhelmed - admittedly, ME 1 was a 2007 release and all, but I looked at the blocky textures of the original on my high-end new PC and couldn't restrain myself from going "Ugh." Did they do any tweaks, or does it just look better on PS3?

    (In passing: I've got a Paragon from ME 2 sitting ready for upload to ME 3; had to go back and tweak some decisions based on how I want it to turn out in ME 3. And I've been playing Female, Renegade, Vanguard for the first time in ME 2 after being just a soldier all this time. Geez, this is a hell of a fun ride. Heavy Charge through the roof, Claymore shotgun, Inferno Ammo, all shotgun upgrades (Extra Rounds FTW!), biotic damage upgrades done, and the Tempest sub-machinegun. MURDER TRAIN A'COMIN. )

    I might even give the game a try on Insanity. I've not done this before - what can I say, I'm navel lint, I play on Normal. :D I'm not a decent gamer, and Vanguard is about the first time I've ever tried to play a FPS on other than in a camping, sniper-ish way. I don't know quite how they made it so much fun to just go screaming right into the thick of a bunch of enemies, but boy, it works.
     
  19. DarthCane

    DarthCane Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 30, 2002
    Heh, I just play Normal as well. If I want a challenge I try to get through the game without using any medi-gel.

    The Tempest was a nice little CQB weapon in ME2 (and with a recoil damper from the Leviathan DLC it's a pretty good backup weapon for a power class), but my fave was the M-12 Locust from Kasumi's loyalty mission. It pretty much cures your blues over not having an assault rifle, as it out-damages the Avenger and has more ammo than the Vindicator. It was nerfed for ME3, but I still like it as a light backup weapon for my sentinel and engineer. Also, it has that Special Forces feel to it - it's kind of the ME universe descendant of the modern H&K MP-5 the SEALs and other commando units carry.

    If you love the vanguard in ME2, wait until 3. Nova turns you into a human bomb, and biotic combo detonations mean you can dish out some serious pain. Mine took Reave as a bonus power, which gives her some armor-busting capability, a damage reduction buff, and the ability to set up or set off combo detonations. You also get a wider choice of shotguns; my personal favorites are the Disciple for its light weight and decent stopping power and the N7 Piranha for sheer dakka. If you like "boomsticks" like the Claymore, there's also the Graal Spike Thrower and Geth Plasma Shotgun. Those can be charged up to actually out-damage the Claymore and have more ammo to work with. Then there's the Venom, which is actually a grenade launcher. If you charge it, the shot splits into five submunitions on impact, which means you can either bounce a cluster bomb off a wall and right into some bad guys in cover or blow the hell out of something big. I usually carry it on the end of Priority: Tuchanka because one charged shot will take down a Brute.​
     
  20. Saintheart

    Saintheart Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2000
    I had the Locust before I picked up the Tempest, but because I'd always played Soldier up until now I never took much notice of it. Your attention tends to shift when you go from Mattocks and the Widow to the Kassa Locust as your most accurate weapon at range :p :p I just like the Tempest because, like the Revenant (which I've never actually picked up) it just has the whole "depress trigger and listen to the bullets fly" dynamic that I'm enjoying so much. :D
     
  21. DarthCane

    DarthCane Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 30, 2002
    Yeah, well so far my vanguard, sentinel, and engineer all picked up sniper rifles (Viper, to be specific) as the bonus weapon in ME2, which meant the Locust was my mid-range gun. The Revenant is fun - I played it with AP Ammo as my bonus power. On Normal I've knocked the final boss down to probably 55-60% armor in one clip.

    When you get to ME3, if you're willing to shell out $1.99 for the Groundside Resistance Pack DLC you can pick up the N7 Typhoon, which is a more dakka upgrade to the Revenant. For my soldier and sentinel it's the go-to weapon if I know I'm going to run into serious heavies. Right now in those playthroughs I have Shep, Ash, and Garrus all packing that puppy. If SMGs are more your thing and you have the N7 Collector's or Digital Deluxe editions, you get the N7 Hurricane. Recoil is a pain (even the level V recoil damper doesn't totally cure it), but it snarls when you pull the trigger. Since squaddies aren't affected by recoil, you can give it to Liara and EDI and watch those two mow down mobs of mooks.
     
  22. Saintheart

    Saintheart Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2000
    Whirled through the first two thirds of LoTSB last night ... the fight with Tela Vasir was epic, even on Normal. Although my favourite part was a bit before that, finally figuring out how to do combined arms tricks: I had Liara and Zaeed with me, and when those skiffs full of engineers turned up, I'd hit them with Singularity/Inferno Grenade/Reave from me. Good times! I hardly fired a shot.
     
  23. Jedi_Jason5001

    Jedi_Jason5001 Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2001
    Can someone tell me if, in ME3, there is planet mining again, or something similar? As much as I'm an RPG fan and like to go around to each planet and collect most of the minerals, it can take a long bloody time to do so!
     
  24. Saintheart

    Saintheart Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 16, 2000
    I gather (pardon the pun) that whilst mining per se is gone, you still do have to travel to planets in solar systems and scan them briefly to pick up sidequest items. It's much, much less time-consuming than watching those spiky lines in ME 2 (although I liked that minigame, to be honest...)
     
  25. DarthCane

    DarthCane Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 30, 2002
    There is a "Search and Rescue" feature where you hunt for war assets, intel upgrades, fuel dumps, and credits. Basically it involves scanning a system with sensor pulses (in most cases, each pulse increases the odds Reaper forces will detect the Normandy; after a certain number of scans Reapers will enter the system and force you to run for your life or be captured). Once the pulse finds something on a planet, you go into the ME2 scanning mechanic, which is similar to how you found anomalies/N7 missions in that game - find the source and drop a probe on it. It's far less tedious than the ME2 resource scanning, although avoiding detection/capture can be a pain and I did like how going nuts on resource scanning basically gave you an unlimited upgrade budget.