Across the entire Mass Effect trilogy, players will have the opportunity to select a class for their Commander Shepard from the six available options. Each class allows Shepard to specialize in Biotics, Combat, Tech, or some combination of two of these. By far one of the most popular options is Vanguard, which combines weapons and combat specializations with Biotics to create the ultimate Biotic Warrior. Vanguards across the Mass Effect trilogy are deadliest at close range and engage in high-risk, high-reward combat that often includes charging an enemy and detonating a biotic power or blasting them with a shotgun. This can be dangerous, making Vanguard a tricky class to master.
There are a few differences in a Vanguard's abilities between the three games in the Mass Effect trilogy. In the original series, they are the only class for which all weapons are available. In Mass Effect: Legendary Edition, Vanguards will still have this access, but so will all classes. When building a Vanguard Shepard, players will want to focus on increasing both weapon and power damage output, improving shields, and selecting an appropriate Bonus Power. Here's how to build the Vanguard class in Mass Effect.
How to Spec Vanguard Abilities in Mass Effect: Legendary Edition
Vanguards across the Mass Effect trilogy will have access to most of the same abilities, with a few minor differences. In Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3, after reaching Level 4 on an ability, players can select powerful upgrades for each ability based on their preferred fighting style. For a Vanguard, it is a good idea to select upgrades prioritizing protection and damage output for Shepard or bonus abilities to squadmate ammo.
Vanguard Abilities in Mass Effect
- Assault Training: Boosts weapons damage and significantly increases melee damage; Exclusive to Vanguards and Soldiers
- Tactical Armor: Increases physical damage protection
- Throw: Knocks enemies back, preventing them from firing and making them vulnerable
- Lift: Floats a group of enemies in the air, making them vulnerable
- Warp: Decreases enemy damage protections and deals damage over time through their shields
- Barrier: Boosts Shepard's shields
- Vanguard: Improves Shepard's biotic resistance and damage from shotguns and pistols; Unlocks the Shock Trooper or Nemesis specializations
- Specter Training: Increases health, adds the Unity ability to revive squadmates, and provides a bonus to damage, power duration, and accuracy.
Suggested Bonus Abilities:
- Singularity: Suck multiple enemies within radius to a single point, causing them to float and preventing them from using powers or weapons
- Electronics: Increases shields, allows Shepard to unlock more difficult containers, and unlocks the Overload ability
- Decryption: Unlocks the Sabotage ability and allows Shepard to unlock more difficult containers
- Hacking: Unlocks the AI Hacking ability that makes synthetic enemies attack their own allies
Vanguard Abilities in Mass Effect 2
- Incendiary Ammo: Adds extra fire damage per shot and burns through enemy armor
- Cryo Ammo: Freezes targets after a few seconds on impact; less useful at higher difficulties
- Charge: Moves Shepard through cover across the battlefield into an enemy's face, knocking them back or sending them flying; Imperative, but may require cutting through enemy defenses first.
- Shockwave: Detonates a line of explosions from Shepard to the enemy target, ignoring cover and height; less useful at higher difficulties
- Pull: Lifts weaker, unprotected enemies, causing them to float for a few seconds; damage increased when combined with Warp, Warp Ammo, and other biotic powers
- Assault Mastery: Increases Shepard's health, weapon damage, and Paragon/Renegade scores and decreases power recharge time
- Reave: Drain 2 of 3 protections from an enemy from range
- Slam: Lift a single target and slam them to the ground; Instantly kills husks
- Barrier: Protects Shepard from damage with a second layer of armor for enemies to break through; Improves safety while using Biotic Charge
- Energy Drain: Inflict heavy damage on enemy shields, restore Shepard's barrier, and increase barrier for a brief duration
- Stasis: Stun enemies and take them out of a fight for a moment; Makes stunned enemies temporarily impervious to damage
Vanguard Abilities in Mass Effect 3
- Biotic Charge: Moves Shepard through cover across the battlefield into an enemy's face, knocking them back or sending them flying; Imperative, but may require cutting through enemy defenses first.
- Cryo Ammo: Freezes targets after a few seconds on impact; less useful at higher difficulties
- Incendiary Ammo: Adds extra fire damage per shot and burns through enemy armor
- Nova: Turns Shepard into a living grenade who can detonate in a shockwave, at the cost of any remaining biotic barrier; Excellent when used in combination with Biotic Charge.
- Pull: Lifts weaker, unprotected enemies, causing them to float for a few seconds; damage increased when combined with Warp, Warp Ammo, and other biotic powers
- Shockwave: Detonates a line of explosions from Shepard to the enemy target, ignoring cover and height; less useful at higher difficulties
- Fitness: Increases Shepard's health, barriers, and melee damage, and minimizes power loss when using Nova; More important for Vanguards than most other classes
- Assault Mastery: Increases Shepard's weapon and power damage, force, reputation, and carrying capacity.
- Reave: Drain 2 of 3 protections from an enemy from range
- Dark Channel: Inflict a persistent, damaging biotic field on an enemy
- Energy Drain: Inflict heavy damage on enemy shields, restore Shepard's barrier, and increase barrier for a brief duration
- Fortification: Provide damage reduction for Shepard, but inflicts a 50-60% cooldown on abilities; Stacks with Biotic Charge's damage reduction buff for up to 90% total protection
- Flare: Throw enemies with a biotic detonation, inflicting massive damage
In the original Mass Effect, players should prioritize investing points into Charm or Intimidate to buff their Paragon or Renegade score. These unlock special dialogue options. Higher Charm scores provide bonuses to first aid and power cooldown time, while higher Intimidate scores increase power and weapon damage.
In Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3, players should prioritize maxing out the Assault Mastery ability. In Mass Effect 2, it provides a bonus to overall Health and weapons damage, lowers power recharge time, and provides a significant bonus to Paragon or Renegade points when making decisions. This also allows Shepard to choose a specialization between Champion and Destroyer. Champion comes with further bonuses to Paragon/Renegade scores, health, and power recharge and duration. Destroyer increases weapons and power damage. In Mass Effect 3, Assault Mastery significantly increases weapon and power damage, force, reputation, and carrying capacity right away.
How to Select Vanguard Equipment and Squadmates in Mass Effect: Legendary Edition
When playing a Vanguard Shepard in Mass Effect: Legendary Edition, players should expect to spend a lot of time charging enemies and clearing a path for the rest of the squad. However, particularly in Mass Effect 3 when dealing with Cerberus, and across the trilogy when dealing with enemies using Barrier, Vanguards are likely to struggle. Choosing the right equipment and squadmates is key.
While Shotguns are by far the most popular weapon choice for fans playing Vanguard, other weapons work well too. Shotguns are appropriate because they are only effective at short range. Shepard can use Biotic Charge to hit an enemy, then use a Shotgun in a deadly combination to devastate enemy forces. However, when dealing with larger enemies at range, Assault Rifles can also be an effective choice. When combined with Incendiary or Cryo Ammo, Assault Rifle fire can burn through enemy armor and effectively cull some of the weaker fighters so the squad can focus on deadlier targets.
Armor pieces that improve damage output and shields will be imperative for Vanguards. In Mass Effect 2, the Kestrel Armor pieces or Collector Armor set are especially useful. In Mass Effect 3, the Blood Dragon Armor, Collector Armor, or Inferno Armor are solid choices for augmenting damage output and shields.
When playing a Vanguard Shepard, it is a good idea to select teammates who can take down Shields most effectively, so squadmates with Energy Drain and Overload, like Tali and Garrus, are good choices. Squadmates with good long-range fighting capabilities like Thane, Garrus, and Zaeed, or with powerful biotic abilities, like Samara, Jack, Liara, and Kaidan, can help round out a squad.
Mass Effect: Legendary Edition launches May 14, 2021 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, with forward compatibility for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.