Late to the Mass Effect 3 MP party, advice welcome.

[Schmaleop]

Hello all,

Long time lurker, recent poster.

I recently got a copy of ME3 from the Simcity launch debacle and i'm looking to try the multiplayer after reading some positive things about it.

I know i'm over a year late and i've read up on some of the basics but i'd like some advice from people who have enjoyed this game mode so that I might get into it quickly and begin to enjoy myself with it too.

Any information is welcome, whether it's weapons/characters to look out for, character setups, ways to rank up quickly, packs to focus my earnings on etc.

Thanks in advance.

 

[CyanideMaximus]

Return the game and buy something better, like, I don't know... Two World II or even Kingdom of Amalur, if you REALLY have to give EA money.

 

[hazabaza1]

Return the game and buy something better, like, I don't know... Two World II or even Kingdom of Amalur, if you REALLY have to give EA money.

He got it for free. Also unless you're planning to add something other than "GUAAAAAH FUCK EA" then please stop.

OT: Krogan classes are pretty OP at lower difficulties, and if you can learn how to play a Vanguard you'll rank pretty high in pretty much every leaderboard. Also make sure to do objectives quickly because you'll get a time bonus and if you fail them you lose the mission straight away. Don't fret about using resources if needed, you can pretty easily grind some cash in bronze or silver to restock with a few packs, but be ready to be annoyed at the random loot system.

 

[TheVampwizimp_v1legacy]

It might take a while to get proficient enough to play on the higher difficulties. It took me the majority of a year before I could reliably win Gold matches. That was the biggest stumbling block for me, that Gold gives you so much more cash than Silver, but you have to be quite good, and lucky enough to find a good team to play with, in order to beat those Golds.

So, to start out, focus on Bronze, play Silver once you level up a class to around 15 or so, and use the credits to buy Veteran packs and Specter packs. Hold off on the Premium Specter packs, as they may be wasted on unlocking the lower level weapons that can be upgraded with the cheaper packs. If you want to unlock a bunch of characters quickly, you can buy the Reserves Pack, but it's also very expensive.

Perhaps the best thing about this MP mode is that with the right build, any single character kit can be effective. Sometimes a kit requires a good weapon to be effective, especially for Soldiers and Infiltrators, but just about any character can be a good choice. Always look for how skills interact with each other (for example, if you are playing an Adept character, it's usually best to upgrade your skills to maximize the power of biotic combos, and the passive skills are more effective when you increase power damage instead of weapon damage).

Also, have fun. If you like the MP, then just enjoy it; if you don't happen to like it, it's not worth it to grind through something you hate. Its effect on the single player game is small, and it doesn't give you anything that you can't achieve without it, just makes some things easier.

 

[Xarathox]

Stick to Bronze until you hit level cap, then switch to Silver. Stay away from Gold or Platinum public matches, as those are just hulk rages waiting to happen. You'll also be expected to have a level X rare or super rare weapon if you're going to attempt Gold/Platinum by a majority of PUBs, so you'll get kicked quite often from the lobby if you don't meet that bare minimum. There are certain classes that are generally discriminated against as well, like Vanguards and Soldiers. So, you get to deal with the "if you don't follow the optimized class/builds guidelined all over the net, you can fuck off" mindset.

Unless, of course, you have the PC version. Then do whatever the hell you want since most of those players are like Canadians. Polite and helpful as hell. ME3 Multiplayer on XBL is just... shit.

 

[Cabisco]

The multiplayer is lovely with friends and just in general is fun. Just play as the character you kinda like rather than going for what your told to be and I'd start bronze and work up, the gold and platinum ranks are horrific to begin with.

On a side note, it seems everyone

ME3 Multiplayer on XBL is just... shit.

Really? I've had fun :/ Then again I do normally play with my friends and have the odd stranger join us.

Return the game and buy something better, like, I don't know... Two World II or even Kingdom of Amalur, if you REALLY have to give EA money.

Well you are certainly a ball of fun.

Edit: If you figure out a way to use your solo polo vision you won't get extra points but you will gain my admiration.

 

[Xarathox]

The multiplayer is lovely with friends and just in general is fun. Just play as the character you kinda like rather than going for what your told to be and I'd start bronze and work up, the gold and platinum ranks are horrific to begin with.

On a side note, it seems everyone

ME3 Multiplayer on XBL is just... shit.

Really? I've had fun :/ Then again I do normally play with my friends and have the odd stranger join us.

Return the game and buy something better, like, I don't know... Two World II or even Kingdom of Amalur, if you REALLY have to give EA money.

Well you are certainly a ball of fun.

Edit: If you figure out a way to use your solo polo vision you won't get extra points but you will gain my admiration.

Yeah, my friend list on XBL is pretty small to begin with. I'm not a Multiplayer junkie, so I tend not to rack up a big list. I also only play MP when I feel like it, which isn't often, so I usually have to stick with PUBs. And PUBs are utter shit in ME3. But, the lobby design is also to blame for some of its failings, too.

 

[Edguy]

First, ask yourself a couple of question; Are you a seasoned RPG player, and do you understand how to utilize different powers and skills together?

If so, then google ME3 multiplayer builds, or even better try to figure some out yourself.

If you're more of a straight up shooter kind of guy, then this is what you do; take a Krogan/Batarian sentinel (or any other soldier or sentinel if you haven't unlocked any), spec up Tech Armor/Barrier for max health/shield bonus, leave all recharging powers unused, spec up grenades and weapon damage (as opposed to lower recharge times).

Equip a heavy weapon, preferably a heavy shotgun, and remember to turn your Tech Armor/Barrier on at the start of each match. With a build like this, bronze and silver will be a walk in the park. Even gold will be doable, as long as you have a supportive team (though that is one thing you shouldn't depend on).

 

[Cabisco]

The multiplayer is lovely with friends and just in general is fun. Just play as the character you kinda like rather than going for what your told to be and I'd start bronze and work up, the gold and platinum ranks are horrific to begin with.

On a side note, it seems everyone

ME3 Multiplayer on XBL is just... shit.

Really? I've had fun :/ Then again I do normally play with my friends and have the odd stranger join us.

Return the game and buy something better, like, I don't know... Two World II or even Kingdom of Amalur, if you REALLY have to give EA money.

Well you are certainly a ball of fun.

Edit: If you figure out a way to use your solo polo vision you won't get extra points but you will gain my admiration.

Yeah, my friend list on XBL is pretty small to begin with. I'm not a Multiplayer junkie, so I tend not to rack up a big list. I also only play MP when I feel like it, which isn't often, so I usually have to stick with PUBs. And PUBs are utter shit in ME3. But, the lobby design is also to blame for some of its failings, too.

Fair enough and a bit of a shame really, I feel the multiplayer really comes into its own when it's your friends running away from a Brute screaming profanities at you rather than a speechless randomer.

 

[Happiness Assassin]

Singularity then warp combo for human adepts are great for crowd control in the lower difficulties. Also be sure to download all the DLCs for the MP before starting (some characters are completely OP).

 

[Full]

If you are starting out, I personally say go only for recruit packs to get all of the basic common human and weapon upgrades out of the way. All of those characters are solid to good, but the weapons aren't, and you don't want to be still getting those after buying Spectres in gold. You'll still also likely be getting some Silver level equipment, characters and weapons.

As a noob class, I recommend a Human Adept with singularity and warp specced to Biotic Explosion damage. Take the Predator and Shuriken with you, it is much better against armor.

Now for some miscellaneous gameplay tips to keep in mind while playing.

-Soft cover (aka stand-right-in-front-of-wall) is much more useful than traditional press-space-to-stick-to-wall mode, due to you being able to run away and shoot out of it faster.

-"Blind-firing" (or not aiming) from cover makes you do less damage than if you were to aim down sights.

-Thermal Clip Packs (or right on the D-pad, don't know what it is on PC), or the consumable item that can give you an automatic ammo refill, also increases weapon damage for a few seconds after use. Very helpful when in a jam.

-Don't stick to a single piece of cover on a single spot for a very long time. With most classes on most maps, just keep moving. The enemies are surprisingly smart most times, and will flank and snipe the shit out of you if you don't watch your six and at least keep your guard up, ready to combat roll away any second. I don't really mean kite around the map in circles every time, either (except if you're the only one alive). This is almost necessary with classes that don't have a dodge move, because they don't have that ace-in-the-hole of combat roll/side step. Be ready to run away at any second, basically.

Just some basic things to hopefully get you on your way.

 

[skywolfblue]

The enemies are cheating bastards.

Repeat this line after me "Mwhahaha, They're Dead!".
Now you are officially a true Krogan! Now go fight like one!

-Soft cover (aka stand-right-in-front-of-wall) is much more useful than traditional press-space-to-stick-to-wall mode, due to you being able to run away and shoot out of it faster.

Along that line, an additional word of warning to new players: If you're playing against collectors, the Praetorian eye-beam-of-death will go through soft cover, you have to be either behind a really thick wall or in hard (A-button) cover. I can't count the number of times I've moved behind something I thought would protect me from that only to get beamed to death.

-Don't stick to a single piece of cover on a single spot for a very long time. With most classes on most maps, just keep moving. The enemies are surprisingly smart most times, and will flank and snipe the shit out of you if you don't watch your six and at least keep your guard up, ready to combat roll away any second. I don't really mean kite around the map in circles every time, either (except if you're the only one alive). This is almost necessary with classes that don't have a dodge move, because they don't have that ace-in-the-hole of combat roll/side step. Be ready to run away at any second, basically.

^ This is probably the most important advice. Enemies are fast to bunch up on a position. Knowing when to get the heck out of dodge and moving to another section of the map is about 80% of all you'd need to know to survive. Hell, people can SOLO the game by using extensive knowledge of spawn mechanics and moving around a lot.

 

[Gatx]

Make sure to take weight into account. When I started I was also bringing an assault rifle and a shotgun because I didn't realize they had a weight system now. It makes such a difference with cooldown times.

If you're going for the rarer characters (N7 and what not) I'd say save up for the Premium Spectre Pack instead of Reserves.

 

[FFP2]

I haven't played it in a while so they may have balanced this but the Asari Adept coupled with the Talon pistol is massively OP. Biotic explosions do a ton of damage.

If you wanna grind for points then just do Gold on Firebase White with 4 Asari Adepts. You can get around 45K credits per match that way.

If you like playing a powers based build then you need to keep your weight really low so that you can just spam powers.

Remember, if all else fails. The Krogan melee will get you through anything.

But since you just started I doubt that you'll have the above classes/weapons. Just experiment and find what works for you.

Along that line, an additional word of warning to new players: If you're playing against collectors, the Praetorian eye-beam-of-death will go through soft cover, you have to be either behind a really thick wall or in hard (A-button) cover. I can't count the number of times I've moved behind something I thought would protect me from that only to get beamed to death.

They put Collectors in?! Since when?

 

[IrishSkullpanda]

Stasis no longer worksas well on Cerberus to the extent it once did with the addition of Dragoons, and the other 3 races have a ton of armored units.

Geth got an absolutely horrific buff, and are far and away the hardest faction to skilled players because of BS staggers. On the plus side, no Sync-kills whatsoever on Geth, so they are relatively easy on the lower difficulties. Still BS overall though. Collectors are genuinely difficult on pretty much all difficulties depending on your kits and weapon strengths. Cerberus are the second-easiest faction now instead of the weakest because their weakness (lack of coverbusting units) was plugged with Dragoons. Also, Phantoms are BS to the extreme, and now have a bubble they can deploy to nullify powers. Reapers are the easiest faction because their only coverbusting units are husks, which are pathetic, Brutes, which are easy to spot, and Banshees, which are their boss unit and are honestly not as scary as they look, especially since they had their coding nerfed to not sync-kill 24/7.

Top tier classes are as follows

*Literally every Infiltrator that isn't the base Human Infiltrator

*pretty much every Turian aside from the Turian Vanguard

*pretty much every N7 class

*pretty much every Drell except for the Drell Vanguard, and that's debatable

Every class in the game is still extremely potent on Gold, and most are still definitely Platinum Viable if you have good gear (which will take a loooooooong time)

Top tier guns are

The Cerberus Harrier (ABSOLUTELY THE BEST WEAPON IN THE GAME)

Claymore

Reegar Carbine

N7 Typhoon

Prothean Particle Rifle

Talon pistol

Black Widow

Collector Sniper Rifle

Do the objectives. Objectives are the only way to fail a match aside from a full party wipe, because of time limits. Concentrating on doing them efficiently also rewards you with more credits and exp, so that's good.

General tips

*If someone is shooting at something and that something isn't a boss unit or an extremely strong elite unit such as a Phantom, Don't bother shooting at it. There are more important things to shoot at elsewhere and that guy has probably got it covered.

*If you find yourself trapped in a cycle of deaths-revives-deaths between 2 or more players, do NOT be afraid to cobra missile the surrounding area. Missiles are a generally plentiful item and completing the mission my give you a minimum of 5 more if you buy any pack.

*Do not be afraid to Med-gel if you are in a position that is detrimental to your team to attempt to revive you, but at the same time, give your team time to revive you if at all possible. Wasting med-gel is silly, but never using it is just as bad.

*Timing Ops packs is an extremely beneficial skill to learn. Ops Packs give you 1.5 seconds of invincibility, cancel all dots on you such as Banshee warps and Atlas missiles, and restore both your shields and health to maximum. Proper use of ops packs essentially doubles your med-gel capacity.

*There is a maximum amount of enemies spawned at any one time on the level, which is 8. Once you remember this, if the situation gets hairy, you realise that running away is probably the best thing to do. You are more likely to survive if you walk into a spawn without realising if you just run for it, and there is unlikely to be anything more scary where you are running to. It's by no means a perfect rule, but it's a solid tactic to realise at least.

*Cooldown percentages lie to you because they do not scale linearly. For example, on a power with a large CD time, the difference between 100% CD and 150% CD can be up to 5 seconds or more on the longest powers. In contrast, the difference between 150% CD and 200% CD is usually closer to a second at best, and is often closer to .3 seconds or lower. If you have a kick ass awesomesauce gun that you want to run on your adept, for example, as long as the CD is ~170% or so the damage increase from your gun will more than make up for a .3 second recharge on Warp. Guns have the highest DPS in the game above all powers- remember that.

Reddit Mass effect coop has a ton of in-depth info with players that have played since the demo debuted all the way to the current day and is laid out wonderfully for new players to ease them into it. It is well worth the time to check out for more info.

 

[ImmortalDrifter]

They put Collectors in?! Since when?

Since the update that brought in the Volus and the Havoks I believe.

OT: Stick to what you're comfortable with, forget the top character crap. Try all of the classes at least once and decide which ones you like. Buy spectre packs from the start, and don't bother with premiums until you feel comfortable enough to play gold.

As a side note I play gold pub matches all the time on XBL and I almost never get kicked. It's more about having Decent equipment rather than having the best. Walking into gold with a Mark I Avenger will net you a kick of course. Most times though your powers do more than your guns on the higher difficulties. Being level 20 with a good stock of medigel is far more important than having a Mark X Black Widow or whatever.

 

[Tom_green_day]

Human Vanguard is such an overpowered class if you can use it right. Biotic charge, Nova, heavy melee. Rinse and repeat. Biotic fills your barriers, Nova staggers everyone around you and the heavy melee finishes them off. Then because Nova stole your barriers charge again into another group to do it all again.
When you get decent unlocks you can use more fun classes.
I'd recommend saving up for premium spectre packs, or if you're looking for something specific reinforcement or arsenal packs.
I play gold frequently on PSN. Everyone is good enough and has decent equipment, and I never get kicked. Bronze is worse as everyone is pretty bad at it, as well as stealing kills before they get downed. Silver is funner as people are good at working in a team and it goes quite quickly, enemies aren't too hard. Platinum is just... crazy. Unless you're level 20 you'll get kicked immediately, and you need decent equipment and survival skills just to stay alive. Recommend infiltrators. Especially Alliance Infiltration Unit.

 

[Cette]

Until you get some decent weapons built it's not a bad idea to stick to power based classes with a light loadout. Engineers adepts and sentinels can usually make up for low weapon damage. The default human versions of most of the classes are really good so you won't be at a disadvantage until you get some wilder stuff.

On silver or higher don't be afraid to use missiles. No need to spam them but if things go pear shaped they can save you and the whole teams lives.


Don't get married to a defensive position and have a backup or two in your head if you have to bail.



If a teammate goes down under a dogpile and you're not 100% that you can save them and get alive then hang back. Both of you being down hurts the team more than just the one who did something stupid.


Watch out for getting tunnel vision. It's easy to get so focused on killing a target that you can get blindsided or bite off more than you can chew. Everyone being alive is far more important than any single target going down.


Don't kill steal Vorcha or Krogan that are going for melee. They build stacks that help them stay alive based off killing and can get them killed doing this.


Battarians get massive damage resistance while using their falcon punch so if you're playing one and caught in the open don't be afraid to start punching heads off.

and on a lighter note pushing the button on Hazard Reactor is pretty much the best thing ever.

 

[Schmaleop]

Thanks for all the advice currently, far to much to quote all individually but I appreciate every bit nonetheless.

Regarding classes, I think I got the most ridiculous beginners luck as I got the Geth Juggernaught in my gift pack which was opened along with my starter pack.
I've been casually walking around battlefields tanking everything while my friends learn the nuances of their classes.
In my other gift pack I got an N7 Hurricane which i've paired with the juggernaught, it seems ok for now but I guess I should spend my credits on trying to improve my weapons as I have a very safe class to earn credits/exp with.

It does feel a bit like a double-edged sword though, as I'm not learning to use cover or maneuver around it correctly so when I decide to try another class I'm going to be in trouble.

Keep the advice coming guys, enjoying the MP thus far and expect to be playing for a while.

Thanks.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

Sometimes things will go badly. It happens even to good teams with experienced players.

If one of your teammates gets downed in the middle of a large group of enemies, in particular if its far away, don't immediately rush over to revive him, unless you're an infiltrator. That's a recipe for disaster, especially on higher difficulties. Chances are he'll get stomped while you're underway and in your hurry, you can make mistakes that'll get you downed as well. Better to lure the enemy away first and then go for it. Or even better, coordinate with a teammate.

And in some situations, it's simply too dangerous to try reviving because of various reasons. Too many nearby enemies. Teammate downed in a wide open spot. Teammate is an idiot that keeps getting himself killed. Harsh as it seems, in these cases, it can be better to let the teammate bleed out and preserve the rest of the team. There have been times when I moved too far from the team, got downed and told the rest to not come get me, even when I was out of Medi-Gel.

If you ever find yourself the last man standing, don't try to bunker down. Instead, apply hit and run tactics. Quickly take out one or two enemies and then run away towards the other side of the map. Rinse and repeat. It also helps if you study the maps and learn where enemies spawn, so you don't accidentally run into them. Just kite enemy mobs around and slowly whittle them down. Don't take any risks, just focus on surviving the wave.

Also, when in this situation, try to keep boss enemies alive for last. This is because of the way enemy spawning works in the ME3 MP. There can only be a certain number of each enemy type on the map at the same time. The AI will try to keep this number topped off until it runs out of its allotted spawn credit for that wave. For example, a wave could have quota of 4 Cerberus Troopers, 2 Centurions, 1 Nemesis and 1 Atlas. If you kill one Trooper, the AI will spawn another one to bring the number back up to 4. If you ignore the cannon fodder and kill the Atlas instead, the AI will spawn another Atlas. And another. And another. Until the wave runs out.

Mostly ignoring the boss(es), picking off weak mooks and legging it is safer than taking the boss(es) on multiple times. Sooner or later, the wave will run out, leaving only the boss(es) and they're much easier to fight without any mooks supporting them. You can still soften them up though, so long as you don't kill them. On higher difficulties and on certain maps, this is also a viable tactic with your team still at full strength.

What else?

When playing a melee oriented class, never, EVER try to melee the following enemies unless you really know what you're doing and even then: Phantom, Banshee and Praetorian. Chances are high they will grab you for an insta-kill. The Scion, Brute and Atlas can also do this, but they're generally less grabby. Still dangerous though.