Best Sniper Build

Best Sniper Build - Mass Effect: Andromeda (MEA)

By zanuffas
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This post covers the Best Sniper Build in Mass Effect Andromeda. This is a weapon category that has a very long range followed by high damage and a low rate of fire. This encourages precise aiming with aim down sights to land the perfect shot on enemy weak spots.

Sniper Build

The build's idea is to concentrate on using a Sniper rifle and maximize our damage with it. This unlocks long-range combat with very high damage to enemy weak spots. By the end, you should be able to take down most of the shield-protected enemies with a single shot

single shot kill sniper build mass effect andromeda

The boss-like enemies may be more difficult as their weak spots are harder to hit. This will more depend on your ability to target them precisely while aiming down sights. As you get more experience with the game this will come naturally.

The build has been tested on Insanity difficulty

Also, you would think that this makes Sniper build stationary. However, you could not be more wrong. Thanks to the Tactical cloak and how Andromeda hover jets work, you can find the best shooting angle anytime

hover sniper build mass effect andromeeda

If this build looks exciting and your cup of tea, let's take a look at how to achieve it

Skills Allocation

This section covers how Squad points should be allocated for the end game on the Sniper Build

Check this post on how to reset Ryder skill points and start using this build

Combat skills

sniper build combat skills mass effect andromeda

Power name Upgrades order Description
barricade mass effect andromedaBarricade
  1. Duration
  2. Weapon Feedback
  3. Regeneration
This skill plays an important role in the build. It will allow always to have cover, increase Shield regeneration and improve weapon damage. There are no downsides to using and it greatly improves Sniper build's combat prowess
turbocharge mass effect andromedaTurbocharge
  1. Duration
  2. Damage & Force
  3. Supercharge
Hanks to this ability, you will be able to increase your sniper damage. Moreover, it will increase clip size without costing additional ammo. This will allow shooting multiple times before the need of reload. The 4th level upgrade Recharge Speed is my preferred one, as I would like to use the ability again as soon as possible (specifically after each reload)
sniper rifles skill mass effect andromedaSniper Rifles
  1. Weight
  2. Any
  3. Damage & Force
The main passive ability of the Sniper build. It improves the clip size, and damage, and reduces weight. My preferred upgrade for level 5 is Clip size. However, with Turbocharge, this improvement is not large, and taking Reload might be your preferred choice
combat fitness mass effect andromedaCombat Fitness
  1. Regeneration
  2. Heavy Lifting
  3. In the Trenches
This ability provides general bonuses to stats and improves survivability. What is great, is that with the Heavy Lifting upgrade, you will get a larger clip size, which is important for Sniper build. Moreover, In the Trenches perfectly synergizes with Barricade.
combat tools mass effect andromedaCombat Tools
  1. Hover
  2. Any
  3. Aerial Combat
This skill should have low priority. Mainly it improves airborne combat by allowing to hover longer and increasing accuracy,

Tech skills

Power name Upgrades order Description
tactical cloak mass effect andromedaTactical Cloak
  1. Damage Bonus
  2. Duration
  3. Escape Artist
This is a very powerful ability. The big decision is which upgrade to take for Level 6. Going with Combat Cloak enables additional 2 seconds of bonus damage (that is 2-3 shots with Sniper Rifle). However, you then lose a way to restore HP. By taking Escape Artist, we get one shot with bonus damage and also HP regeneration via Life Support upgrade.
offensive tech mass effect andromedaOffensive Tech
  1. Any
  2. Any
  3. Technical Rounds
We only take this ability for the last upgrade - Technical Rounds. After Tactical Cloak is activated Ryder gains an additional 30% weapon damage boost.
auxiliary systems mass effect andromedaAuxiliary Systems
  1. Weapon Mass Reduction
  2. Enduring Tech
  3. Omni-Vents
Provides some duration bonuses for Tactical Cloak. This in turn will decrease its cooldown as % of the power you use impacts the time. However, Omni-Vents is a very powerful upgrade, and this is why we take this option.
team suport mass effect andromedaTeam Support
  1. Squad Offense
  2. Team Recovery
  3. Life Support
Generally, this ability is very powerful. By taking the Life Support upgrade you will restore HP after tech skill use. Moreover, Tactical Cloak does not allow HP regeneration, but the Escape Artist upgrade enables this, giving you an easy way to survive most game situations.

Biotic Skills

sniper build biotic skills mass effect andromeda

To unlock Barrier, you will need to allocate 9 points to Biotics, just pick any skills. Or you should have taken Biotic Training when starting the game.

Power name Upgrades Choices Description
Any 9 points - Need this to unlock Barrier.
barrier mass effect 3Barrier
  1. Unyielding Barrier
  2. Biotic Alacrity
  3. Saving Barrier
Provides improvements to shields and gives instant shield restore when health is low

Profiles

You will need to spend 232 skill points in total for Combat to reach Soldier profile level 6.
Profile Description
soldier profile icon mass effect andromedaSoldier Gives all the needed stats for a Sniper build - clip size, weapon damage, accuracy, and damage resistance. This maximizes your combat potential

Skills Progression

This section covers detailed ability progression for Sniper Build. This is just a suggested progression, feel free to adjust it based on your needs.

Order Skill Description
1 barricade mass effect andromedaBarricade Level 2 These are two of the three main abilities from the combat tree. Take Recharge Speed upgrade
2 turbocharge mass effect andromedaTurbocharge Lv 4
3 offensive tech mass effect andromedaOffensive Tech Lv 4 Unlocking Tactical Cloak requires spending 9 points in the tech tree. Get the Damage Bonus upgrade
4 tactical cloak mass effect andromedaTactical Cloak Lv 4
5 sniper rifles skill mass effect andromedaSniper Rifles Lv 4 Take Duration and Weapon Feedback for Barricade. Now you will get bonus damage when using it
6 barricade mass effect andromedaBarricade Lv 5
7 tactical cloak mass effect andromedaTactical Cloak Lv 6 Getting the last upgrade Escape Artist should greatly improve the total damage you do while stealthed
8 combat fitness mass effect andromedaCombat Fitness Lv 4 Continue further to improve passive stats. It is important to get the 6th-level upgrade Damage & Force for Sniper rifles.
9 sniper rifles skill mass effect andromedaSniper Rifles Lv 6
10 turbocharge mass effect andromedaTurbocharge Lv 6 I recommend getting Damage & Force and Dump Heat upgrades, for maximum damage and number of shots.
11 offensive tech mass effect andromedaOffensive Tech Lv 6 Getting the last upgrade Technical Rounds will improve the damage by 30% after using Tactical Cloak
12 team suport mass effect andromedaTeam Support Lv 6 Allows restoring HP after using Tech ability via Life Support upgrade.
13 combat fitness mass effect andromedaCombat Fitness Lv 6 I think it is very important to get In the Trenches upgrade for Combat Fitness, to get the most out of the Barricade.
14 barricade mass effect andromedaBarricade Lv 6
15 auxiliary systems mass effect andromedaAuxiliary Systems Lv 6 By getting these passive skills you will marginally improve the build. This will not have any major impact.
16 combat tools mass effect andromedaCombat Tools Lv 6

After this, continue spending points in the Combat tree, to unlock higher-level Soldier profiles.

Tactics

This section will cover how to best play Sniper build in Mass Effect Andromeda.

Maximum Damage

To deal maximum damage, I recommend activating your main abilities in this order:

  1. Barricade - 15% weapon damage
  2. Turbocharge - 35% weapon damage
  3. Tactical Cloak - 90% weapon damage + Offensive Tech bonus 30% weapon damage.

maximum damage combat sniper rifle mass effect andromeda

After this, you can release 3-4 shots one after another for maximum damage. In total, each shot will deal 180% extra damage. The Sniper Rifles are already powerful by themselves. However, together with these skills, they are even more powerful

By stacking all of these bonuses, taking out stronger-tier armored enemies will be a breeze.

Headhosts (Weak points) and skills

Once you effectively hit the enemy's weak point (for example heads), the damage will start to stack up. This will allow killing most of the protected grunt enemies with a single shot

sniper build mass effect andromeda

Be sure to use Barricade + Tactical Cloak to maximize the shot damage.

Use the agility to your advantage

Mass Effect Andromeda provides unique hovering mechanics. With these and the Sniper build you can take out entrenched enemies. This does not mean that you have to be tucked in and waiting for the enemy to come.

hover sniper build mass effect andromeeda

Use Tactical Cloak + Jets and get the best angle to land your shot. After landing on the ground, I would usually sprawl a barricade as this way you will be sure to have some protection until Turbocharge and Tactical Cloak recharge

Squad

Here are the companions that I recommend for Sniper in Mass Effect Andromeda. Check the squad builds recommendations. The build does not rely on any Tech or Biotic combos, so almost any companions work. However, because we are using Bio-Converter there is one important choice

Cora

cora skills mass effect andromeda

Core has a Shield Boost skill that restores shields and HP. Moreover, she also has freezing bullets once you maximize Asari Commando, they make the combat much easier

If you have her in the group permanently, I would try Tactical Cloak + Combat Cloak level 6 upgrade for a huge damage boost. She can then restore HP, instead of you using Tech skills

Equipment

This section will cover what equipment you should be using with Sniper Build.

Weapons

Name Mods Augmentations
isharay mass effect andromedaIsharay SR Barrel
SR Receiver
SR Tactical Scope
With these augmentations, this sniper rifle becomes extremely powerful, as long as Ryder can restore HP (Team Support skill, Cora Shield Boost skill, etc.)
black widow mass effect andromedaBlack Widow SR Barrel
SR Receiver
SR Tactical Scope

Melee Weapons

Even if you do not use melee weapons, the augmentation bonuses still apply always in combat. So it is good to fill them with your preferred bonuses.

Name Augmentations Description
asari sword mass effect andromedaAsari Sword Even though you may not use melee weapons, their bonuses from augmentations always apply. Due to this, we want to maximize weapon damage

Armors

Here is my go-to armor loadout that concentrates on increasing general weapon damage

Armor piece Stats Augmentation options
kett helmet mass effect andromedaKett Helmet +3%-12% Combat Power Damage
+1%-10% Weapon Damage
maverick armor mass effect andromedaMaverick Chest +3%-12% Weapon Headshot/Weak Point Bonus
+3%-15% Weapon Spare Ammo
+5%-20% Weapon Damage 
kett legs mass effect andromedaKett Legs +3%-12% Combat Power Damage
+1%-10% Weapon Damage 
kett arms mass effect andromedaKett Arms +3%-12% Combat Power Damage
+1%-10% Weapon Damage 

However, for maximum damage, you could go for something a little different that concentrates on weak spot damage. This is perfect if you manage to land headshots often and can easily target Fiend's ribs.

Armor piece Stats Augmentation options
maverick helmet mass effect andromedaMaverick Helmet +3%-12% Weapon Headshot/Weak Point Bonus
+3%-15% Weapon Spare Ammo 
maverick armor mass effect andromedaMaverick Chest +3%-12% Weapon Headshot/Weak Point Bonus
+3%-15% Weapon Spare Ammo
+5%-20% Weapon Damage 
maverick legs mass effect andromedaMaverick Legs +3%-12% Weapon Headshot/Weak Point Bonus
+3%-15% Weapon Spare Ammo 
maverick arms mass effect andromedaMaverick Arms +3%-12% Weapon Headshot/Weak Point Bonus
+3%-15% Weapon Spare Ammo 

Conclusion

Thank you for reading this post on the best Sniper build in Mass Effect Andromeda. I covered recommended abilities and their progression, best equipment, and tactics.

Feel free to leave a comment below!

Discussion

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Post author zanuffas avatar zanuffas
Gamestegy Founder. I have been writing game guides and builds for 4 years. I like to push myself to create something wonderful for the readers!