Now that you know how to prepare for a fight and what to do once you’re actually in the middle of one, it’s time to see what you’re up against.
CERBERUS
While the Reapers are the greatest threat to the entire galaxy, Cerberus’s actions throughout the conflict, from start to finish, cannot be underestimated.
The Illusive Man’s forces have dallied with extremely dangerous technologies derived from the Reapers to enhance themselves to better fight the forces of the Citadel and further weaken already-failing alliances.
Tactically proficient and very well armed, Cerberus forces provide some of the most intense cat-and-mouse battles throughout the game.
Assault Trooper
Armament: M-25 Hornet Submachine gun, electrically charged shock stick, frag grenades
Threat Level: Low to medium
Being the most basic soldier of the Cerberus forces does not make Assault Troopers harmless. On the contrary, their aggressiveness tends to place them on your flanks while driving you out of cover with well-placed grenades.
The lack of shielding makes them susceptible to Biotic attacks, but they possess the uncanny ability to combat roll out of harm’s way, evading Biotics and Techs with alarming frequency in the higher difficulties.
Centurion
Armament: M-96 Augmented Mattock Assault Rifle, electrically charged shock stick, smoke and frag grenades
Threat Level: Medium to High
Larger and tougher than Assault Troopers, Centurions have armor with shielding, making them tougher targets to kill. The semiautomatic rifles they wield possess great stopping power at any range, and as always, they will try to flush out stubborn players with frag grenades.
What makes the Centurion a real threat is the smoke grenade, which can cover wide swaths of the battlefield with obscuring clouds to disguise potential flanking maneuvers or ambushes.
Guardian
Armament: M-358 Talon Pistol, ballistic shield
Threat Level: Medium
Slow-moving, the Guardians do not seem initially too dangerous when compared to other Cerberus units, until you notice just how resilient their ballistic shields really are as they march through barrages of fire, get close to you or a squadmate, and start beating them senseless with those shields.
The heavy shields offer Guardians excellent protection from threats directly in front of them, save for the view slot carved into the shield. Sniper rifles or any sufficiently accurate weapon can put rounds through the slot for headshots on the Guardian.
Biotics can use a wide variety of powers such as Cluster Grenades, Singularity, and Pull to quickly get the shield away from them.
Combat Engineer
Armament: M-5 Phalanx Pistol, sentry turret, repair tools
Threat Level: High
By itself, a Combat Engineer is not intimidating. What it can bring to the battlefield, however, is very intimidating. The sentry turrets they can deploy can suppress a squad in a very short time, causing extreme damage on exposed characters.
Their shields and armor also ensure a turret can survive concentrated fire, but even worse, an Engineer can use their repair kits to keep them up and running, even while under fire!
In a battle consisting of multiple units, target the Engineers first, as their turrets and repair abilities can shift the battle dramatically against you.
Be mindful of their presence when the Cerberus Atlas is in play, as Engineers like to constantly repair their shields and armor.
Nemesis
Armament: M-13 Raptor Sniper Rifle
Threat Level: Medium to high
Fast on their feet and accurate with their rifles, the Nemesis is aptly named, hounding Shepard and any squadmates who stay still for too long. Nemesis snipers tend to shoot any part of a target that is even remotely exposed, a dangerous habit when combined with a height advantage.
Fortunately, they aren’t very tough once their shields are exposed. If possible, have a squadmate hit a Nemesis with Cryo Blast to slow them down; even if their shields are still up, it will help with drawing a bead on them.
On higher difficulties, the damage caused by a Nemesis is substantial, making them priority targets if the enemy is still at a decent distance away from you.
Phantom
Armament: Sword, high-powered arm cannon, Biotic defenses, tactical cloak
Threat Level: High
Arguably the most dangerous opponent for its size, Phantoms employ heavy use of their tactical cloaks to slip around a player’s view and strike their flanks. Their Biotic barriers are incredibly resistant to many Techs, combat powers, and gunfire.
To make matters worse, Phantoms can literally brush aside incoming powers and fire. Their swords are further cause for headache, as they can deflect incoming fire and are an instantly lethal melee weapon up close.
It is possible to shoot the sword out of a foe’s hand to take away their instant-kill ability, but it’s difficult to manage given how much Phantoms like to move.
Slow them down with Cryo Blast, or stun them with Disruptor Ammo or Electric Explosion combos if you can; they can’t be allowed to get close or stay close for very long. Shredder and armor-piercing mods are also viable tools against a Phantom, as a lucky shot can pierce through them and shatter their sword.
Atlas
Armament: Homing missile launcher, heavy cannon, antipersonnel claw
Threat Level: High
Atlases are powerful heavy mechs that are resistant to almost all forms of damage to one degree or another. Once an Atlas drops onto the field, your priorities must switch accordingly. Fortunately, Atlases are quite slow, making it easy to line up everything you have.
Atlases have two large vulnerabilities to exploit: the thruster mounts on the back of the unit and the cockpit canopy. Ambushing an Atlas from behind is a sure way to cause heavy damage before it turns its attention to you, but if you’re clever, you’ll have squadmates on the other side, exploiting that same weakness.
The canopy glass can actually be shattered with enough concentrated fire, exposing the pilot to direct damage. Killing the pilot leaves the unit open for hijacking, and on higher difficulties this is one of the best ways to deal with an Atlas and its reinforcements.
THE REAPERS
The Reapers aren’t merely the collective consciousness found within each of their enormous cruisers and dreadnoughts that are pounding the fight out of every planet they’ve attacked.
Every race they’ve struck has had members harvested, indoctrinated, and “improved” through Reaper technology.
Without mercy, and barely any sense of self-preservation, Reaper ground forces consume the best a species has to offer and turn it against them.
Husk
Armament: None
Threat Level: Low to medium
Former humans, Husks were originally believed to be a geth creation intended to intimidate humanoid species in battle, but it is now apparent that the Reapers produce Husks as basic ground troops.
Husks can be harmful in melee combat but are otherwise not very dangerous alone or even in small groups.
What truly makes them threatening is their ability to engage players in a melee hold that leaves them open to attack from any direction.
Deal with Husks quickly, as they are a distraction to more dangerous units. Incendiary powers and Biotics are especially effective at stopping their mindless rushes.
Cannibal
Armament: Arm cannons grafted onto their flesh
Threat Level: Medium
The fate of batarians who fell before the early waves of the Reaper invasion, Cannibals are fairly proficient in close- and medium-range combat. They can absorb a surprising amount of damage before going down. They become more dangerous as their allies fall around them.
Cannibals absorb the corpses of fallen enemies and allies alike, gaining a chitinous layer of armor that serves to further increase their resilience. Don’t let Cannibals get free meals—make them pay for remaining stationary long enough to consume a corpse.
If one is armored, it is possible to freeze or incinerate the new armor layer and make them more vulnerable to incoming fire.
Marauder
Armament: Phaeston Assault Rifle
Threat Level: Medium-High
Marauders are turians that have fallen during the assault on their homeworld Palaven. They are similar to the Cerberus Centurion, being more resistant to incoming fire thanks to their shields and being more dangerous at range due to their accurate assault rifles.
Marauders serve as the combat support unit for Husks and Cannibals, having a unique ability to improve those units from a distance, forcing them to grow additional armor layers for protection.
While doing this, a Marauder is very vulnerable, so line up some headshots or close the distance and use heavy melee if it’s safe. You want to burn them down before they enhance too many Husks or Cannibals.
Brute
Armament: Grafted arm blades, super-strength
Threat Level: High
A hybrid of turian intelligence and krogan physical strength, Brutes are fast, strong, and smart enough to know how best to use these gifts. Thickly armored, Brutes can bound through walls of fire and survive to take huge swipes at players with their arms.
Be especially careful at close range with a Brute, as they can grab careless players and kill them in a single stab through the gut! Your best bet is to use their incredible speed against them, dodging out of the way of their charges, and lighting them up with any armor-breaking powers at your disposal.
Sniper rifles are also good for hitting their weak spot—the turian head grafted onto the torso. However, it will take some skill to hit that target while a Brute is on the move.
Ravager and Swarmer
Armament: Heavy Cannons
Threat Level: Medium to high
Ravagers present two major threats to players. The first is their high-powered cannon shots, which are accurate and have decent area of effect. At range, a Ravager is more than capable of melting shields and barriers and tearing apart what lies beneath.
Once you see the blue laser sights of a Ravager fall onto your character, find cover or pay the consequences. The other threat Ravagers provide come in the form of Swarmers, buglike enemies that are carried in the sacs of flesh hanging from the Ravagers. Once these burst open, the bugs streak toward any nearby victims.
While not especially dangerous by themselves, Swarmers do prevent shields and health from regenerating. Combine this with everything else the Reapers are throwing your way, and you can find yourself dead very fast.
Banshee
Armament: Biotics
Threat Level: High
Probably one of the scarier units the Reapers possess, Banshees are the unfortunate husks of defeated asari known as Ardat-Yakshi, living up to their namesake with ear-piercing howls.
They possess immense Biotic power, their barrier being some of the strongest defenses in the game, even against attacks meant to defeat Biotic barriers.
Banshees seem slow at first as they hover toward you, but they suddenly close the gap with lightning-fast Biotic dashes that have them dancing through incoming fire and into melee range. Do not let them get so close, as they can finish Shepard or any squadmate in a single melee strike.
It is possible to save a squadmate caught in this lethal attack by causing enough damage to the Banshee, forcing them to drop their victim. Banshees are not limited to close-range combat. The Biotic blasts they fling can rapidly drain shields and prevent health from regenerating.
Harvester
Armament: Heavy cannons grafted to their heads
Threat Level: Low to medium
Like dragons, Harvesters sweep through the skies in search of victims to take back to Reaper processing centers. These monsters are not regularly occurring enemies throughout the main story, but they do show up during certain events.
The gravest threat they present comes from the cargo they carry. Whenever a Harvester appears, drive it away or destroy it quickly by exploiting its weakness to anti-armor powers, lest they unload their troops into the fight.
THE GETH
The geth are enigmatic synthetics currently in possession of the quarian homeworld, Rannoch. Created by the quarians to act as their servants, the geths’ eventual rise as a collective intelligence came as a surprise to their creators, who tried to destroy them preemptively, only to fail.
It has come to light that the geth that once served the Reaper Sovereign have been considered “heretics” by another faction of geth. Despite this split in their collective structure, the geth are not conflicted when it comes to defending themselves from organic hostility.
While not as dynamic compared to the Reaper or Cerberus forces, the geth make up for it with brutal precision and efficiency in combat.
Geth Trooper
Armament: Pulse Rifle
Threat Level: Low to medium
A lone Geth Trooper is not particularly dangerous. It is slow to move, has a large head vulnerable to sniper rifles, and lacks any form of protective shielding, so a Trooper can be fodder for any class.
However, when encountered in groups, you will find that Troopers focus their fire on single targets with great accuracy, able to burn down an unprotected victim in seconds.
Techs such as Overload or Sabotage work very well against Troopers, allowing you to disrupt their advances with ease.
Geth Rocket Trooper
Armament: Rocket Launcher
Threat Level: Medium
A step up from the Trooper platform, Geth Rocket Troopers provide heavy fire support for other geth platforms. The homing rockets they fire are difficult to evade and can blast players out of cover and expose them to other assaults.
On higher combat difficulties, Rocket Troopers can fully strip away shielding or bring a player to critical health in one shot, so keep an eye out for the projectiles streaking toward you and find good protection.
Geth Hunter
Armament: Plasma Shotgun, tactical cloak
Threat Level: Medium to high
Using their cloaks to get close to their selected targets, Geth Hunters can do astounding levels of damage with one charged shot from their plasma shotguns. In the heat of battle, it’s easy to miss cloaked Hunters among the visual clutter until it’s almost too late to react.
If you suspect Hunters are near, use area-of-effect abilities to break their cloak. Being shielded makes Hunters tough targets, so bring Disruptor Ammo or characters with Overload to help deal with them. Unchecked, Hunter teams can be murderous.
Geth Pyro
Armament: Flamethrower
Threat Level: Medium
Boasting a layer of shielding and an armor layer, the Geth Pyro can be a close-quarters powerhouse. Its flamethrowers can bypass low cover, shields, armor, and barriers with equal ease.
If you see a Pyro closing in, focus everyone’s attention on it, particularly on higher difficulties where you simply will not survive a sustained burst from their weapons.
Fortunately, Pyros have one very glaring weakness: the fuel tanks on their backs. A use of Overload or a well-aimed shot from a high-powered gun can puncture the tank and lead to a devastating explosion that can heavily damage or kill nearby geth.
Geth Prime
Armament: Plasma Cannons, combat drones, defense turrets
Threat Level: High
While slower than the other geth, the Prime platforms are powerhouses, able to wade through heavy fire while delivering punishing barrages.
The heavy plasma cannons a Prime is armed with are bad enough, but their ability to deploy combat drones and defense turrets turn a Prime into a one-geth flanking machine.
It is not surprising to see turrets deployed behind Shepard in order to bypass any hard cover, while the Prime continues to march forward, laying down plasma fire and sending its combat drone out to harass the Spectre.
The dual layers of shields and armor protection makes taking down a Prime a tough prospect. It’s best to keep them at a healthy distance, if only to give yourself a chance to better react to incoming fire.