Like most RPGs, the Mass Effect trilogy gives players the opportunity to select a class for their unique Commander Shepard. In Mass Effect, there are six classes combining weapons combat, biotic, and tech abilities. Three classes, Soldier, Adept, and Engineer, are the pure combat, biotics, and tech classes, respectively. The other three, Vanguard, Sentinel, and Infiltrator, combine abilities from two classes to allow Shepard a greater range of combat options. The Infiltrator class, a combination of combat and tech, is the closest thing to a rogue class in the Mass Effect universe. Infiltrators can sabotage enemies and can even enter a form of stealth in the second and third game of the trilogy.
Infiltrators can be deadly fighters at any range, but they are most effective as snipers. They typically carry a loadout that includes a Sniper Rifle, and a Pistol or SMG, though they can be dangerous with all available weapons. In Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3, Infiltrators will receive the Tactical Cloak ability, which prevents enemies from detecting them. When building an Infiltrator Shepard across the Mass Effect trilogy, players will need to focus on increasing the strength of their sabotage abilities, taking advantage of power and weapons bonuses, and selecting equipment and squadmates who can fill in for weaknesses.
How To Spec Infiltrator Abilities In Mass Effect: Legendary Edition
Infiltrators 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 one based on their preferred fighting style.
Infiltrator Abilities in Mass Effect
- Tactical Armor: Increases physical damage protection; unlocks Shield Boost at higher levels
- Fitness: Increases total health and amount of time Shepard can spend out of cover; unlocks Immunity at higher levels to make Shepard nearly impervious to damage for the duration of the ability
- Electronics: Grants the Overload ability, used to remove shields and soften enemy weapon damage; increases shield capacity
- Damping: Stuns enemies and deals damage
- Decryption: Unlocks the Sabotage ability and allows Shepard to unlock more difficult containers
- First Aid: Increases the amount of health restored by medi-gel
- Infiltrator: Improves Shepard's tech abilities and reduces weapons heat; allows Shepard to further specialize as a Commando or Operative
- Specter Training: Increases health, adds the Unity ability to revive squadmates, and provides a bonus to damage, power duration, and accuracy.
Suggested Bonus Abilities:
- Hacking: Unlocks the AI Hacking ability that makes synthetic enemies attack their own allies; useful for the Operative specialization
- Warp: Decreases enemy damage protections and deals damage over time through their shields
- Stasis: Stun enemies and take them out of a fight for a moment; Stunned enemies are temporarily impervious to damage until higher levels of this ability are unlocked.
- Lift: Floats a group of enemies in the air, making them vulnerable to sniper rifle attacks; useful for the Commando specialization
Infiltrator Abilities in Mass Effect 2
- Tactical Cloak: Key Infiltrator ability that allows Shepard to sneak around out of cover undetected by enemies, flank, boost damage, and escape enemy fire
- Cryo Ammo: Freezes targets after a few seconds on impact; less useful at higher difficulties
- Incinerate: Burns through enemy armor and health and somewhat through barriers; stops enemy health regeneration once armor has been destroyed; produces massive AOE damage effect at Rank 4 when players select the Blast upgrade.
- AI Hacking: Makes synthetic enemies attack their own allies; useless against Geth and YMIR Mechs until armor and shields are down
- Disruptor Ammo: Destroys shields; disables synthetics who no longer have armor and shields; useless against organics, barriers, and armor
- Operative: Increases Shepard's health, weapon damage, and Paragon/Renegade scores and decreases power recharge time
- Geth Shield Boost: Greatly increases shields and, at Rank 4, can provide a 10% damage bonus
- Energy Drain: Boosts Shepard's shields by draining enemy shields or synthetic enemies in general
- Warp Ammo: Cuts through biotic barriers; increases damage against targets affected by biotic abilities like Pull or Singularity
- Reave: Drain armor or shields from an enemy from range; grants temporary health regeneration
Infiltrator Abilities in Mass Effect 3
- Tactical Cloak: Key Infiltrator ability that allows Shepard to sneak around out of cover undetected by enemies, flank, boost damage, and escape enemy fire; in Mass Effect 3, disabling the Cloak before it wears off decreases power cooldown
- Cryo Ammo: Freezes targets after a few seconds on impact; cuts through armor
- Incinerate: Burns through enemy armor and health and somewhat through barriers; stops enemy health regeneration once armor has been destroyed; includes a bonus against frozen targets
- Sabotage: Disables enemy weapons, causing damage over time
- Disruptor Ammo: Destroys shields; disables synthetics who no longer have armor and shields; deals bonus damage to Barriers and can stun organics in Mass Effect 3
- Sticky Grenade: Sticks a grenade onto an enemy, causing a powerful explosion that deals massive damage and launches shrapnel at nearby enemies
- Fitness: Increases Shepard's health, shields, and melee damage
- Operational Mastery: Increases Shepard's weapon and power damage, sniper time dilation, reputation, and carrying capacity.
- Energy Drain: Boosts Shepard's shields by draining enemy shields or synthetic enemies in general; useful with Tactical Cloak
- Dark Channel: Inflicts a persistent, damaging biotic field on an enemy that destroys barriers and armor and jumps to other targets when the previous one is killed
- Decoy: Creates a hologram of Shepard to fool enemies into attacking it
- Defense Matrix: Provides damage reduction for Shepard, but inflicts a 60% recharge reduction on abilities; Purging Defense Matrix restores 50-100% of Shepard's shields
- Stasis: Stun enemies and take them out of a fight for a moment; does not affect armored targets
- Warp Ammo: Cuts through biotic barriers; increases damage against targets affected by biotic abilities like Pull or Singularity
- Dominate: Allows Shepard to command most organics into fighting for them
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 Operative/Operational 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 Agent and Assassin. Agent reduces power cooldown time, adds further bonuses to Paragon/Renegade scores, boosts health, and increases power duration. This is especially useful for Tactical Cloak. Assassin increases weapons and power damage and provides a greater sniper slowdown while scoping. In Mass Effect 3, Operational Mastery significantly increases weapon and power damage, sniper time dilation, reputation, and carrying capacity right away.
How To Select Infiltrator Equipment And Squadmates In Mass Effect: Legendary Edition
While players can use any weapons they prefer in Mass Effect: Legendary Edition, Infiltrators typically do their best work with Sniper Rifles and Pistols or SMGs. Some players prefer to take a more Vanguard class build approach to playing an Infiltrator, getting close to enemies while using Tactical Cloak, then inflict massive damage with Shotguns. Ultimately, it is up to player preference. In Mass Effect 3, players need to be mindful of carrying weight and choose no more than one heavy and one light weapon in their loadout to avoid increased cooldown times on abilities.
Infiltrators will have access to the best Sniper Rifle in the game, the M-98 Widow, which is exclusive to an Infiltrator or Soldier Shepard. This can be obtained during the Collector Ship mission in Mass Effect 2 or during Priority: Thessia in Mass Effect 3. It has the power to one-shot kill many of the enemies in the game.
Shepard should purchase or research armor upgrades that improve headshot damage, increase ammo carrying capabilities and storm speed, and boost shields or health. Good options include:
- Off-Hand Ammo Pack
- Kuwashii Visor
- Kassa Fabrication Chestplate
- Rosenkov Materials Chestplate
- Armax Arsenal Shoulder Plates
- Stimulator Conduits
- Kestrel Armor set
- Collector Armor set
- Blood Dragon Armor set
Additionally, an Infiltrator Shepard will want to bring along squadmates who can fill in for some of their weaker points, particularly when it comes to eliminating enemy barriers. Biotics specialists like Kaidan, Miranda, Jack, Samara, and Liara will be valuable in combat as an Infiltrator. Additionally, a Sniper Rifle Infiltrator will need squadmates able to keep up with them in firepower, so other squadmates who are good with Sniper Rifles, like Garrus and Legion, can be beneficial to bring along. Thane is often a good choice for his ability to keep up with an Infiltrator Shepard in combat and take down barriers using biotics.
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.