Mass Effect (PC) Guide Essentials Combat

Talents and Abilities

Talent Overview

Shepard and the squad members have a military specialization or "class" with various talents and abilities.

Talents are the more general skill areas in which a character excels, while abilities are the special tactics granted by becoming increasingly more skilled in any given talent.

For example, training a Soldier with the Assault Rifle Talent eventually grants the three levels of the Overkill ability that get increasingly more lethal: Overkill, Advanced Overkill, and finally, Master Overkill.

By spending more points in a talent, a character can eventually become proficient in several master-level abilities that dramatically increase their prowess in battle or grant valuable squad support abilities.

The following talent matrix includes all the classes, talents, characters, and abilities in the game. Use it to cross reference who has what, and even for character planning at the beginning of each new career.

The following sections detail the specifics of each talent and ability in the game. If you’re looking for statistics on your favorites, or recommendations for how best to use them, you’re looking in the right place.

Talent Matrix

Talent	Ability	Soldier	Engineer	Adept	Infiltrator	Sentinel	Vanguard
Assault Rifles	Overkill	þ
Assault Training	Adrenaline Burst	þ					þ
Barrier	Barrier			þ		þ	þ
Basic Armor	Shield Boost		þ	þ
Combat Armor	Shield Boost	þ
Damping	Damping		þ		þ
Decryption	Sabotage		þ		þ	þ
Electronics	Overload		þ		þ	þ
First Aid	First Aid	þ	þ		þ	þ
Fitness	Immunity	þ			þ
Lift	Lift			þ		þ	þ
Medicine	Neural Shock		þ			þ
Pistols	Marksman	þ	þ	þ	þ		þ
Hacking	AI Hacking		þ
Shotguns	Carnage	þ					þ
Singularity	Singularity			þ
Sniper Rifles	Assassination	þ			þ
Stasis	Stasis			þ		þ
Tactical Armor	Shield Boost				þ		þ
Throw	Throw			þ		þ	þ
Warp	Warp			þ			þ

Squad Member Talents

Talent	Ability	Ashley	Kaiden	Liara	Wrex	Garrus	Tali
Assault Rifles	Overkill	þ			þ	þ
Assault Training	Adrenaline Burst	þ				þ
Barrier	Barrier		þ	þ	þ
Basic Armor	Shield Boost						þ
Combat Armor	Shield Boost	þ			þ
Damping	Damping					þ	þ
Decryption	Sabotage		þ			þ	þ
Electronics	Overload		þ	þ		þ	þ
First Aid	First Aid	þ	þ	þ		þ	þ
Fitness	Immunity	þ			þ
Lift	Lift		þ	þ
Medicine	Neural Shock		þ
Pistols	Marksman	þ					þ
Hacking	AI Hacking						þ
Shotguns	Carnage	þ			þ		þ
Singularity	Singularity			þ
Sniper Rifles	Assassination	þ				þ
Stasis	Stasis		þ	þ	þ
Tactical Armor	Shield Boost					þ
Throw	Throw		þ	þ	þ
Warp	Warp			þ	þ

Talent Matrix

Shepard Only Talents

Talent	Ability	Soldier	Engineer	Adept	Infiltrator	Sentinel	Vanguard
Charm	Store Discount	þ	þ	þ	þ	þ	þ
Intimidate	Motivated Buyer	þ	þ	þ	þ	þ	þ
Spectre Training	Unity	þ	þ	þ	þ	þ	þ

Military Specialization (AKA "Class) Talents

Talent	Soldier	Engineer	Adept	Infiltrator	Sentinel	Vanguard
Soldier	þ
Engineer		þ
Adept			þ
Infliltrator				þ
Sentinel					þ
Vanguard						þ

Specialization (Luna Sidequest) Talents

Talent	Soldier	Engineer	Adept	Infiltrator	Sentinel	Vanguard
Shock Trooper	þ					þ
Commando	þ			þ
Bastion			þ		þ
Nemesis			þ			þ
Operative		þ		þ
Medic		þ			þ

Shepard’s Talents

Charm

Talent Description: Opens Charm persuasions in the conversation. Decreases the cost of items in stores. Charm options are grayed out if you do not have a high enough skill rank.

New skill ranks open up when you become a Spectre and as you earn Paragon points.

Charm Talent Summary

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/Rank	Ability Description	Charm Score	Store Discount (%)
1			1
2			2
3			3
4	Store Discount	Convinces merchants they should give you a better deal (passive bonus) when purchasing gear	4	2
5			5
6			6
7			7
8	Store Discount	Convinces merchants they should give you a better deal (passive bonus) when purchasing gear	8	5
9			9
10			10
11			11
12	Store Discount	Convinces merchants they should give you a better deal (passive bonus) when purchasing gear	12	8

Intimidate

Talent Description: Opens Intimidate persuasions in conversations. Increases credits gained when selling items in stores.

Intimidate options in conversations will be grayed out if you don’t have a high-enough skill rank to use them. New skill ranks will unlock when you become a Spectre and as you earn Renegade points.

Intimidate

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Intimidate Score	Selling Price Bonus (%)
1			1
2			2
3			3
4	Motivated Buyer	Your intimidating presence bullies merchants (passive bonus) into buying your gear for more credits.	4	2
5			5
6			6
7			7
8	Motivated Buyer	Your intimidating presence bullies merchants (passive bonus) into buying your gear for more credits.	8	5
9			9
10			10
11			11
12	Motivated Buyer	Your intimidating presence bullies merchants (passive bonus) into buying your gear for more credits.	12	8

Spectre Training

Talent Description: Elite agents of the Council, the Spectres have access to special training unavailable elsewhere in the galaxy. Increases health, accuracy, and effectiveness of all attacks and powers.

Spectre Training

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Health Bonus (%)	Maximum Accuracy Bonus (%)	Accuracy Regen/ second (%)	Damage/ Duration Bonus (%)	Squad Health Restored	Squad Shields Restored	Recharge Time (s)	Accuracy Cost (%)
1			5.0	2.0	0.4	1.0
2			5.5	3.0	0.6	1.5
3			6.0	4.0	0.8	2.0
4	Unity	Revives dead squad members, restoring a percentage of their health and shields	—	—	—	—	15	40	150	45
5			6.5	5.0	1.0	2.5
6			7.0	6.0	1.2	3.0
7			7.5	7.0	1.4	3.5
8	Advanced Unity	Revives dead squad members with more health and shields; reduces recharge time and accuracy cost.	—	—	—	—	20	60	120	30
9			8.0	8.0	1.6	4.0
10			8.5	9.0	1.8	4.5
Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/Rank	Ability Description	Health Bonus (%)	Maximum Accuracy Bonus (%)	Accuracy Regen/ second (%)	Damage/ Duration Bonus (%)	Squad Health Restored	Squad Shields Restored	Recharge Time (s)	Accuracy Cost (%)
11			9.0	10.0	2.0	5.0
12	Master Unity	Revives dead squad members with more health and shields; reduces recharge time and accuracy cost.	—	—	—	—	30	100	90	30

Biotics

Barrier

Talent Description: Bolsters you kinetic shields with a mass effect field that can absorb a massive amount of damage.

Attacks that penetrate shields also penetrate this barrier. Each point spent increases the strength and duration of the barrier.

Barrier

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Shield Increase (DP)	Barrier Duration (s)	Recharge Time (s)	Accuracy Cost (%)
1	Barrier	Bolsters your shields with a biotic barrier that will absorb up to 400 points of damage but doesn’t block attacks that bypass shields.	400	10.0	60	80
2			420	10.5
3			440	11.0
4			460	11.5
5			480	12.0
6			500	12.5
7	Advanced Barrier	Bolsters your shields with a biotic barrier that will absorb up to 700 points of damage but doesn’t block attacks that bypass shields. Improves the recharge time and accuracy cost.	700	16.5	50	80
8			720	17.0
9			740	17.5
10			760	18.0
11			780	18.5
12	Master Barrier	Bolsters your shields with a biotic barrier that will absorb up to 1,000 points of damage but doesn’t block attacks that bypass shields.	1,000	23.0	40	80

Lift

Talent Description: Projects a sphere of powerful contra-gravity. Any object or creature struck is lifted into the air. Enemies are temporarily immobilized until they fall back to the ground. Each point spent increases the duration of the lift.

Lift

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Duration (s)	Radius (m)	Recharge (s)	Accuracy Cost (%)
1	Lift	Lifts everything within radius of the target into the air, rendering enemies immobile and unable to attack. Drops them when it expires. Doesn’t work on flying enemies.	6.0	4	60	80
2			6.4
3			6.8
4			7.2
5			7.6
6			8.0
7	Advanced Lift	Increases duration and radius while decreasing recharge time and accuracy cost.	9.0	5	50	60
8			9.4
9			9.8
10			10.2
11			10.6
12	Master Lift	Increases duration and radius while decreasing recharge time and accuracy cost.	12.0	6	40	40

Throw

Talent Description: Projects a mass effect field powerful enough to hurl objects and enemies out of the way. Each point spent increases the strength of the throw, knocking targets farther and inflicting greater damage.

Throw

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Force (Newtons)	Radius (m)	Recharge (s)	Accuracy Cost (%)
1	Throw	Throws objects and enemies away from the caster with increasing force. Doesn’t work on flying enemies.	600	4	60	60
2			650
3			700
4			750
5			800
6			850
7			900
8	Advanced Throw	Increases force and radius while decreasing recharge time and accuracy cost.	1,000	5	50	45
9			1,050
10			1,100
11			1,150
12	Master Throw	Increases force and radius while decreasing recharge time and accuracy cost.	1,250	6	40	30

Singularity

Talent Description: Projects a sphere of dark energy that creates an intense mass effect field. Nearby enemies and objects are drawn into the singularity, unable to escape its gravitational pull.

Each point spent in this ability increases the radius of the singularity.

Singularity

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Radius (m)	Duration (s)	Recharge (s)	Accuracy Cost (%)
1	Singularity	Creates a vortex at its impact point that draws objects toward it. Does not work on flying enemies.	4.00	4	60	80
2			4.25
3			4.50
4			4.75
5			5.00
6			5.25
7	Advanced Singularity	Increases radius and duration of the singularity while decreasing its recharge time.	6.25	6	50	80
8			6.50
9			6.75
10			7.00
11			7.25
12	Master Singularity	Increases radius and duration of the singularity while decreasing its recharge time.	8.50	8	40	80

Stasis

Talent Description: Creates a powerful mass effect field that immobilizes a single target. Each point spent increases the duration of Stasis.

Stasis

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Duration (s)	Recharge (s)	Accuracy Cost (%)
1	Stasis	Makes the target unable to move or attack, but also immune to damage. Squad members will not use Stasis unless selected from the Power Wheel.	12.5	60	80
2			13.0
3			13.5
4			14.0
5			14.5
6	Advanced Stasis	Improves duration and recharge time of the stasis field.	17.0	50	80
7			17.5
8			18.0
9			18.5
Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/Rank	Ability Description	Duration (s)	Recharge (s)	Accuracy Cost (%)
10			19.0
11			19.5
12	Master Stasis	Improves duration and recharge time of the stasis field.	21.0	40	80

Warp

Talent Description: Projects a powerful mass effect field that wreaks havoc on a subatomic level. It weakens armor and inflicts damage over time on enemies. Each point spent increases the duration of the warp.

Warp

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Duration (s)	Damage (/s)	Damage Resistance Effect (%)	Radius (m)	Recharge (s)	Accuracy Cost (%)
1	Warp	Inflicts 6 damage per second, and lowers the target’s damage protection by 50%	7	6	50	4	60	80
2			8
3			9
4			10
5			11
6	Advanced Warp	Inflicts 8 damage per second, and lowers the target’s damage protection by 60%	13	8	60	5	50	80
7			14
8			15
9			16
10			17
11			18
12	Master Warp	Inflicts 10 damage per second, and lowers the target’s damage protection by 75%	20	10	75	6	40	80

Combat

Assault Training

Talent Description: Increases melee and weapons damage; also grants the Adrenaline Burst ability.

Assault Training

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Melee Damage Bonus (%)	Weapon Damage Bonus (%)	AB Recharge Time (s)	AB Accuracy Cost (%)
1			30	1
2			35	2
3	Adrenaline Burst	Resets the recharge times on all your talents so they can be used immediately.	—	—	120	30
4			40	3
5			44	4
6			48	5
7			52	6
8	Advanced Adrenaline Burst	Reduces recharge time.	—	—	90	30
9			56	7
10			60	8
11			64	9
12	Master Adrenaline Burst	Maximum reduction to recharge time.	—	—	45	30

Armor

Talent Description: Enables use of better armor to increase damage protection in battle.

Armor

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Armor DP Bonus (%)	Armor Hardening Bonus (%)	SB Shield Regen/ Second (%)	SB Duration (s)	SB Recharge Time (s)	SB Accuracy Cost (%)
1			5	5
2			8	8
3	Shield Boost	Restores a portion of your shields, even when under fire.	—	—	30	2	45	30
4			10	10
5			12	12
6			14	14
7	***Special	Enables Medium/Heavy Armor depending on class.	16	16
8	Advanced Shield Boost	Increases shield regeneration capability.	—	—	40	2	45	30
9			18	18
10			19	19
11			20	20
12	Master Shield Boost	Maximum increases to shield regeneration capability.	—	—	50	2	45	30

Assault Rifles

Talent Description: Increases accuracy and damage with assault rifles. ***Overkill ability is only available when using assault rifles

Assault Rifles

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	AR Damage Bonus (%)	AR Accuracy Bonus (%)	Overkill Heat Reduction (%)	Overkill Stability Increase (%)	Overkill Duration (s)	Overkill Recharge Time (s)
1	Overkill	Reduces the kickback and heat generation of the assault rifle, allowing long bursts of accurate fire.	—	—	40	20	10	45
2			5	10
3			8	14
4			10	17
5			12	20
6			14	22
7			16	24
8	Advanced Overkill	Increases Overkill’s heat reduction bonus, stability, and duration.	—	—	50	30	12	45
9			18	26
10			19	28
11			20	30
12	Master Overkill	Maximizes increases to Overkill’s heat reduction bonus, stability, and duration.	—	—	60	40	15	45

Pistols

Talent Description: Increases accuracy and damage with pistols. **Marksman ability is only available when using pistols.

Pistol

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Pistol Damage Bonus (%)	Pistol Accuracy Bonus (%)	Marksman Accuracy Bonus (%)	Marksman ROF (shots/sec)	Marksman Heat Reduction (%)	Marksman Duration (s)	Marksman Recharge Time (s)
1			5	10
2			8	14
3	Marksman	Increases the accuracy and rate of fire (RoF) of the pistol.	—	—	60	1.0	30	10	45
4			10	17
5			12	20
6			14	22
7			16	24
8	Advanced Marksman	Increases Marksman RoF, duration, and heat reduction percentile.	—	—	60	1.5	40	13	45
9			18	26
10			19	28
11			20	30
12	Master Marksman	Maximizes increases to Marksman RoF, duration, and heat reduction percentile.	—	—	60	2.0	50	16	45

Shotguns

Talent Description: Increases accuracy and damage with shotguns. **Carnage ability is only available when using shotguns.

Shotguns

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	SG Damage Bonus (%)	SG Accuracy Bonus (%)	Carnage Damage Bonus (%)	Carnage Radius (m)	Carnage Recharge Time (s)	Carnage Accuracy Cost (%)
1			5	10
2			8	14
3			10	17
4	Carnage	Fires a blast of particles from the shotgun, inflicting significant damage to any enemy near the impact point.	—	—	50	2	45	40
5			12	20
6			14	22
7			16	24
8	Advanced Carnage	Increases Carnage damage	—	—	100	2	45	40
9			18	26
10			19	28
11			20	30
12	Master Carnage	Maximum increases to Carnage damage and its blast radius.	—	—	150	3	45	40

Sniper Rifles

Talent Description: Increases accuracy and damage with sniper rifles. ***Assassination ability is only available when using a sniper rifle.

Sniper Rifles

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	SR Damage Bonus (%)	SR Accuracy Bonus (%)	Assassination Damage Bonus (%)	Assassination Duration (s)	Assassination Recharge Time (s)
1			5	10
2			8	14
3	Assassination	Your next sniper shot will be perfectly accurate, and will inflict more damage than usual.	—	—	50	20	45
4			10	17
5			12	20
6			14	22
7			16	24
8	Advanced Assassination	Increases assassination damage bonus.	—	—	125	20	45
9			18	26
10			19	28
11			20	30
12	Master Assassination	Maximizes assassination damage bonus.	—	—	225	20	45

Fitness

Talent Description: Increases health and grants the invaluable Immunity ability.

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Health Increase (%)	Immunity Duration (s)	Immunity DP Bonus (%)	Immunity Recharge Time (s)	Immunity Accuracy Cost (%)
1			10
2			14
3			17
4	Immunity	Boosts the effectiveness of your armor plating, reducing the amount of damage taken.	—	10	50	60	30
5			20
6			22
7			24
8	Advanced Immunity	Increases duration and DP bonus while reducing recharge time.	—	15	60	45	30
9			26
10			28
11			30
12	Master Immunity	Increases duration and DP bonus while reducing recharge time.	—	20	80	30	30

Tech

Damping

Talent Description: Increases the explosion radius on your tech proximity units. Use Damping to shut down your enemies’ tech and biotic abilities.

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	3 Second Stun affects:	Damping Radius (m)	Target Talent Recharge Time Added (%)	Damping Recharge Time (s)	Damping Accuracy Cost (%)	Proximity Mine Base Damage	Proximity Mine Radius Bonus (%)
1	Damping	Disables enemy biotics and tech for a percentage of their normal recharge time; also stuns enemies for a short duration. Damping is delivered as a proximity mine that explodes when enemies are nearby for bonus damage.	Minions	6	30	60	60	50	—
2									10
3									14
4									18
5									20
6	Advanced Damping	Increases Damping parameters and proximity mine effects while reducing recharge time. Stuns enemies up to Elite level.	Elites	8	45	50	60	100	—
7									22
8									24
9									26
10									28
11									30
12	Master Damping	Further increases Damping parameters and proximity mine effects while reducing recharge time. Stuns enemies up to Sub-Boss level.	Sub-Bosses	10	60	40	60	150	—

Decryption

Talent Description: Allows you to open secure containers, increases tech mine explosion damage, and grants the Sabotage ability.

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Decryption Skill	Sabotage Radius (m)	Sabotage Duration (s)	Sabotage Recharge Time (s)	Sabotage Accuracy Cost (%)	Sabotage DOT (/s)	Proximity Mine Base Damage	Proximity Mine Damage Bonus (%)
1	Sabotage	Can use Decryption skill on easy objects. Overheats enemy weapons so they can not fire, and burns them for damage over time. Sabotage is delievered from a proximity mine that explodes when enemies are nearby for bonus damage.	Easy	6	15	60	60	2	50	—
2										10
Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/Rank	Ability Description	Decryption Skill	Sabotage Radius (m)	Sabotage Duration (s)	Sabotage Recharge Time (s)	Sabotage Accuracy Cost (%)	Sabotage DOT (/s)	Proximity Mine Base Damage	Proximity Mine Damage Bonus (%)
3										14
4										18
5	Advanced Sabotage	Increases Decryption skill level; increases Sabotage proficiency including radius, duration, and overheat damage, while reducing recharge time; proximity mine damage increased.	Medium	8	20	50	60	3	100	—
6										20
7										22
8										24
9	Master Sabotage	Further increases Decryption skill level; increases Sabotage proficiency including radius, duration, and overheat damage, while reducing recharge time; proximity mine damage increased.	Hard	10	25	40	60	4	150	—
10										26
11										28
12										30

Electronics

Talent Description: Increases the strength of your shields and also lets you use the Electronics skill to repair or bypass objects.

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Personal Shield Bonus	Electronics Skill	Overload Radius (m)	Overloaded Target Shield Damage	Overload Recharge Time (s)	Overload Accuracy Cost (%)	Mine Base Damage	Target Damage Vulnerability - 10 sec (%)	Vehicle Repair Bonus
1	Overload	Can use Electronics skill on easy objects. Damages the shields of enemies near the target, and reduces the effectiveness of their armor plating. Overload is delivered as a proximity mine that explodes when enemies are nearby for bonus damage.	-	Easy	6	200	60	60	50	20	-
2			30								400
3			60								600
4			90								800
5	Advanced Overload	Can use Electronics skill on Medium secured objects. Further increases the effectiveness of all electronics parameters.	-	Medium	8	400	50	60	100	25	-
6			120								1200
7			150								1400
8			180								1600
9	Master Overload	Can use Electronics skill to override Hard secured objects. Further increases the effectiveness of all electronics parameters.	-	Hard	10	600	40	60	150	30	-
10			210								2000
11			240								2200
12			270								2400

Hacking

Talent Description: Recharges your tech proximity mines more quickly and grants the AI Hacking ability.

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	Hackable Enemies	Hack Duration (s)	Recharge Time (s)	Accuracy Cost (%)	Mine Recharge Rate Reduction (%)
1	Hacking	Drives synthetic enemies berserk so they will attack anything nearby, including their former allies.	Minions	20	60	80	—
2							6
3							9
4							12
5							15
6							18
7	Advanced Hacking	Increases duration of hack while decreasing recharge time.	Elites	25	50	80	—
8							21
9							24
10							27
11							30
12	Master Hacking	Further increases duration of hack while decreasing recharge time.	Sub-Bosses	30	40	80	—

First Aid

Talent Description: Increases squad healing by improving the effectiveness of all medi-gel use.

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	First Aid Bonus	Healing Amount	Recharge Time (s)	Accuracy Cost (%)	Notes
			Squad Members				Heal Squad: Shepard Only
1	First Aid	Restores health for all wounded squad members.	40	40	60	30	Values from squad member’s First Aid Talents and Medicine Talents also improve Shepard’s Heal Squad Ability by increasing the amount healed and the talent’s recharge time.
2			50
3			60
4			70
5			80
6	Advanced First Aid	Increases health restored.	100	40	60	30
7			110
8			120
9			130
10			140
11			150
12	Master First Aid	Maximum increases to squad health upon use.	180	40	60	30

Medicine

Talent Description: Improves the recharge time on squad healing and grants the Neural Shock ability that devastates organic enemies.

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Ability Description	First Aid Recharge Bonus (%)	NS Toxic Damage	NS Duration (s)	NS Recharge Time (s)	NS Accuracy Cost (%)
1	Neural Shock	Knocks out an organic enemy and inflicts toxic damage.	—	40	1	45	60
2			10
3			14
4			17
5			20
6			22
7	Advanced Neural Shock	Knocks out an organic enemy and inflicts toxic damage.	—	80	3	45	60
8			24
9			26
10			28
11			30
12	Master Neural Shock	Knocks out an organic enemy and inflicts toxic damage.	—	120	5	45	60

Class Talents

Adept

Talent Description: Biotic specialists can use focused training to optimize their abilities. Increases biotic resistances and reduces recharge rates for all biotic abilities.

Talent Rank	Biotic Recharge Bonus (%)	Biotic Protection (%)
1	4	6.0
2	6	9.0
3	8	12.0
4	10	15.0
5	12	18.0
6	14	21.0

Engineer

Talent Description: Tech specialists can use innovative tricks to get the most out of every resource. Reduces the recharge time on all tech abilities and increases resistance to tech attacks.

Talent Rank	Tech Recharge Bonus (%)	Tech Protection (%)
1	4	6
2	6	9
3	8	12
4	10	15
5	12	18
6	14	21

Infiltrator

Talent Description: Relying on strength and reconnaissance, infiltrators prefer to take their enemies out from a distance. Increases damage done by tech mines and reduces overheating on sniper rifles and pistols, their preferred weapons.

Talent Rank	Tech Mine Damage Bonus (%)	Sniper/Pistol Overheat Reduction Bonus (%)
1	5	5
2	7	6
3	9	7
4	11	8
5	13	9
6	15	10

Sentinel

Talent Description: Special training allows sentinels to use tech and biotics more efficiently than other classes. Reduces the recharge time of tech and biotic abilities. Increases damage and accuracy with a pistol and also grants the Marksman ability.

Shepard Only

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Tech Recharge Bonus (%)	Biotic Recharge Bonus (%)	Pistol Damage Bonus (%)	Pistol Accuracy Bonus (%)
1		3	3	2	4
2		5	5	4	7
3		7	7	6	10
4		8	8	8	13
5		9	9	10	16
6	Marksman

Kaidan Alenko

Talent Rank	Tech Recharge Bonus (%)	Biotic Recharge Bonus (%)	Pistol Damage Bonus (%)	Pistol Accuracy Bonus (%)
1	3	3	2	4
2	5	5	4	7
3	7	7	6	10
4	8	8	8	13
5	9	9	10	16
6	10	10	12	19

Soldier

Talent Description: Front-line warriors are trained to withstand the physical punishment that comes with combat. Investing additional points in this class talent increases health and allows for limited health regeneration.

Talent Rank	Health Bonus (%)	Health Regen/second
1	4	3.0
2	6	3.5
3	8	4.0
4	10	4.5
5	12	5.0
6	14	5.5

Vanguard

Talent Description: Vanguards are trained for close-range combat, and can use their own abilities to counter enemy biotic attacks and get into short range positions. This talent increases biotic resistances and damage with shotguns and pistols.

Talent Rank	Pistol/Shotgun Damage Bonus (%)	Biotic Protection Bonus (%)
1	5	6
2	6	9
3	7	12
4	8	15
5	9	18
6	10	21

Specialization Talents

Specialize! Specialize! Specialize!

Agents are highly encouraged to pursue advanced military specialization training on the Luna Colony to heighten their talents and abilities in ways not possible through other means.

Specialization is the only way to achieve the ultimate training your class allows.

Overview

Upon completion of advanced training on the Luna Colony, successful agents are granted certification in a specialization of their choice.

Each class has two advanced levels of specialization available, as illustrated in the following diagram.

Note that your base class talent ranks only go to level 6.

After you complete the advanced specialization training, the talent ranks then rise to level 12 and the new specialization bonuses are available once Talent Points are allocated appropriately.

Bastion

Description: Bastions use biotics for defence or for opponent immobilization. Overall, ranking up reduces the recharge times for all biotic abilities and specifically improves Barrier and Stasis Talents.

Bastion Specialization for Adept/Sentinel Classes

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Biotic Talent Recharge Bonus (%)	Barrier Shield Recharge/sec	Barrier Shield Bonus (%)	Barrier Duration Bonus (%)	Target Can Be Damaged in Stasis?
7		4
8		6
9	Barrier Specialist	8	40	25	25
10		10
11		12
12	Stasis Specialist	14				Yes

Commando

Description: Commandos rely on lethal efficiency and precision strikes rather than brute force to eliminate their opponents.

Overall, their specialization increases damage inflicted with all weapons and specifically improves their most lethal talents including: Immunity, Marksman, and Assassination.

Commando Specialization for Soldier/Infiltrator Classes

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Weapon Damage Bonus (%)	Immunity Recharge Bonus (%)	Marksman Recharge Bonus (%)	Assassination Recharge Bonus (%)
7		6
8		9
9	Immunity Specialist	12	25
10		15
11		18
12	Marksman/Assassination Specialist	21		25	25

Medic

Description: Medics combine tech and healing abilities to boost the efficiency of the entire squad.

Overall, medic specialization improves the recharge times on all medical abilities and specifically the First Aid and Neural Shock abilities.

Medic Specialization for Engineer/Sentinel Classes

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	First Aid/Shock Recharge Bonus (%)	NS Duration Bonus (%)	NS Toxic Damage Bonus	Immune to Toxic Attack Damage?	Squad Healing Bonus	Healing revives dead members?
7		6
8		9
9	Neural Shock Specialist	12	25	40
10		15
11		18
12	First Aid Specialist	21			No	80	Yes

Nemesis

Description: The nemesis is a biotic specialist who uses mass effect fields to inflict heavy damage against opponents.

Overall, a nemesis specialist has access to significantly increased duration and damage to all biotic abilities and specifically improves both Warp and Lift Talents.

Nemesis Specialization for Adept/Vanguard Classes

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Biotic Damage/ Duration Bonus (%)	Warp Radius Bonus (m)	Warp DOT Bonus (%)	Lift Radius Bonus (m)
7		4
8		6
9	Warp Specialist	8	2	25
10		10
11		12
12	Lift Specialist	14			4

Operative

Description: Operatives are masters at manipulating their environment to maximum advantages.

Overall, operatives have access to significantly reduced recharge times for all tech attacks and specific improvements to both Overload and Sabotage Talents.

Operative Specialization for Engineer/Infiltrator Classes

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Offensive Tech Talent Recharge Bonus (%)	Overlaod Radius Bonus (m)	Overload Shield Damage Damage	Overload Mine Damage	Overload Increases Target’s Damage Vulnerability By (%)	Sabotage Radius Bonus (m)	Sabotage Mine Damage Bonus	Sabotage DOT (Damage/sec)	Sabotage Duration Bonus (s)
7		4
8		6
9	Overload Specialist	8	2	200	50	5
10		10
11		12
12	Sabotage Specialist	14					2	50	1	5

Shock Trooper

Description: Shock troopers are highly trained killing machines; they excel in all combat situations.

Overall, their increased health and damage protection can turn them from strong soldiers into formidable tanks with specific improvements to Immunity (or Barrier), and Adrenaline Burst abilities.

Shock Trooper Specialization for Soldier Class

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Health Bonus (%)	DP Bonus (%)	Immunity Recharge Rate Bonus (%)	Adrenaline Burst Recharge Rate Bonus (%)
7		4	6
8		6	8
9	Immunity Specialist	8	10	25
10		10	12
11		12	14
12	Adrenaline Burst Specialist	14	16		25

Shock Trooper Specialization for Vanguard Class

Talent Rank	Abilities Granted/ Rank	Health Bonus (%)	DP Bonus (%)	Barrier Shield Regen/sec	Barrier Shield Bonus	Immunity Recharge Rate Bonus (%)	Adrenaline Burst Recharge Rate Bonus (%)
7		4	6
8		6	8
9	Barrier Specialist	8	10	40	25	25
10		10	12
11		12	14
12	Adrenaline Burst Specialist	14	16				25

Alien Class Talents

Your alien squad member’s classes are quite similar to their human counterparts but each has their own specific flair, as outlined below.

Asari Scientist

Talent Description: Liara’s background allows her to maximize her biotic abilities. This talent reduces recharge time of biotics, and improves both the amount of health restored and the recharge time on squad healing.

Talent Rank	Biotic Recharge Bonus (%)	First Aid Healing Bonus	First Aid Recharge Bonus (%)
1	4	20	1
2	6	30	2
3	8	40	3
4	10	50	4
5	12	60	5
6	14	70	6

Krogan Battlemaster

Talent Description: Wrex is one of the last true krogan battlemasters, as they are a dying breed—something for which the rest of the galaxy is grateful.

This skill improves health regeneration, increases physics resistance, and increases melee damage.

Talent Rank	Health Regen/sec	Physics Protection (%)	Melee Damage Bonus (%)
1	3.0	25	50
2	3.5	30	75
3	4.0	35	100
4	4.5	40	125
5	5.0	45	150
6	5.5	50	175

Turian Agent

Talent Description: The required military service of his people has given Garrus expert training in assault and sniper rifles. This skill increases accuracy with all weapons and increases damage with both assault rifles and sniper rifles.

Talent Rank	Weapon Accuracy Bonus (%)	Assault/Sniper Rifle Damage Bonus (%)
1	4	4
2	7	5
3	10	6
4	13	7
5	16	8
6	19	9

Quarian Machinist

Talent Description: Though young, Tali is a true genius when it comes to dealing with mechanical or electronic equipment. This skill increases tech resistance and shields.

Talent Rank	Tech Protection Bonus (%)	Shield Bonus (%)
1	10	60
2	15	90
3	20	120
4	25	150
5	30	180
6	35	210

Combat Hazards

In any combat situation it pays to take note of a few dangerous objects in your immediate surroundings.

Objects like those shown in this sidebar possess certain volatile characteristics that opportunistic agents can and should use against their adversaries to cause all sorts of unpleasant effects ranging from mild shocks to death.

Always quickly and immediately assess the nearby combat hazards during any combat situation and work them into your battle plan.

Fuel tanks make excellent ambush points. Lure enemies toward them as you move away, then cause the tanks to explode with a few well-aimed shots.

Experiment with combat hazards in your surroundings to see if your adversaries are foolish enough to stand too close to a plasma containment cell: Toss a grenade into their midst.