The Batarians

Batarians are a race of four eyed bipeds who have garnered a negative reputation among the sentient species of the galaxy. Formerly members of Citadel space, the Batarian Hegemony closed its embassy and cut all ties to the Citadel Council after a dispute with the humans ended poorly for them, politically and militarily. Funding criminal and mercenary organizations, the Batarian Hegemony has waged a less than covert war against humanity and their Citadel allies, though this has come to an abrupt and violent end with the Reaper invasion. Striking Hegemony space first, the Reapers immediately took hold of the batarian homeworld of Khar’shan, and within days overwhelmed the empire. Survivors of this vicious opening assault have fled into neighboring human and Citadel systems, seeking refuge from the Reapers. Many batarians have fallen into despair over the fate of their loved ones and their nation, but others refuse to cower in the face of annihilation, and are joining the fight.

Similar to the krogan, batarian classes combine extreme melee prowess with survivability.In melee combat, both the batarian Soldier and Sentinel possess a dangerous melee combo whose range is extended due to the fact that batarians swing their guns like improvised baseball bats. With the batarian classes unique Blade Armor power, their defenses not only help soak up more damage, but punish enemies who get in close to try and melee them. Melee attacks on Blade Armor equipped batarians has a large percentage of the damage returned to the attacker and can stagger them, which sets up the batarian heavy melee. The slowest heavy melee in the entire game, it is still worth using due to the sheer power it possesses.

Batarians also possess a pair of offensive powers unique to their race. For Soldiers, the Ballistic Blades ability causes heavy damage in addition to damage over time on any target they hit, with the damage being greater the closer they are to the victim. Sentinels can use the Submission Net to immobilize a victim from afar, a perfect ability to use during Assassination missions where the target is constantly fleeing.

Like the krogan and the turians, batarians do not have evasive maneuvers to rely on while under attack, and must rely on cover to avoid enemy fire. Consider bulking up the health and shield reserves of a batarian through their two passive abilities, particularly for the harder difficulty battles where an all out offense is not as feasible.

Batarian Powers by Class