Best Shotgun Build - Mass Effect: Andromeda (MEA)

This post covers the best Shotgun build in Mass Effect Andromeda. It is a weapon of the weapon types available in the game that is very effective at close range. The fire rate is mostly very slow with small clips, but the damage output is considerably large.

Shotgun Build

The main key of this build is the Shotgun weapon. We want to be close and personal for maximum effectiveness and easily hit enemies. To close the gap we will be using a biotic Charge that allows us to jump right into enemies face. Follow up with the release of multiple shots from the shotgun.

The good thing, compared to other weapon builds, is that Charge also let's detonate various combos. For example, if your companion freezes or electrifies the enemy, you can exploit this for additional combo damage

After this, due to Annihilation you will decrease the enemy's defenses and deal enormous damage with your shotgun. Overall, Ryder will be deadly at close range, sometimes taking out normal enemies in one shot.

Skills allocation

This section covers how skill points should be allocated for the end game on the Shotgun build

Combat Skills

Power name	Upgrades Choices	Description
Turbocharge	Duration Damage & Force Supercharge	One of the main abilities that allow almost any weapon to become overpowered. It boosts weapon clip capacity, fire rate, and damage.
Combat Fitness	Regeneration Heavy Lifting Hold the Line	Provides various stat boosts - max health, shields, weight capacity, weapon damage, etc. The level 6 upgrade, is especially good as it gives 200 damage resistance when HP is low.
Combat Tools	Hover Any Aerial Combat	The skill is not exceptionally important early on. However, it improves aerial combat, allowing Ryder to hover for longer. This unlocks some better angles to take out enemies behind the cover.
Shotguns	Weight Clip Size Damage & Force	Improves shotguns' weapon damage, accuracy, and stability.

There is another option that I would like to recommend.

Biotic Skills

Power name	Upgrades Choices	Description
Charge	Damage & Force Weapons & Melee Bastion	This skill will allow you to cover large distances and appear near the enemy. You can then easily follow up with multiple shotgun shots. Moreover, for 3 seconds weapon damage is buffed and damage resistance is increased after using Charge.
Annihilation	Radius Damage Attractor Draining Field	The main goal of this ability is to weaken enemies by increasing the damage they do by 20%. Moreover, with Draining Field, every killed enemy restores 30% of the shields
Barrier	Unyielding Barrier Biotic Alacrity Saving Barrier	Provides improvements to shields and gives instant shield restore when health is low
Offensive Biotics	Alacrity Exploitation Biotic Warrior	The ability gives bonus biotic power damage and recharge speed. Moreover, it will weaken enemies when a biotic effect is active (Annihilation) and gives bonus damage after each biotic skill use.
Containment	Radius Shield Detonation Event Horizon	This ability is a low priority. It gives bonus duration and effect radius for biotic skills.

Profile

Profile	Description
Soldier	For this build our goal is to get the highest boost of weapon damage, accuracy, and clip size.

Skills Progression

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

Order	Skill	Description
1	Shotguns Lv 4	We unlock Turbocharge, which requires 9 skill points in combat, which we get by taking Shotguns
2	Turbocharge Lv 3
3	Offensive Biotics Lv 4	To unlock the biotic skill for the build, we spend 9 skill points in Offensive Biotics. We take Annihilation Lv 5, as without it, the ability has no use for the build.
4	Charge Lv 3
5	Annihilation Lv 5
6	Turbocharge Lv 6	Maximizes effectiveness while the ability is active with a shotgun weapon
7	Charge Lv 6	Get the Bastion upgrade, as it will greatly improve the survivability of the build
8	Annihilation Lv 6	Unlock the Draining Field for shield restoration after each kill
9	Shotguns Lv 6	MAximizing these skills will be valuable as you get more damage protection, HP, HP regeneration, and shields. Moreover, with these allocations, we will unlock the level 3 Soldier profile.
10	Combat Fitness Lv 6
11	Offensiev Biotics Lv 6	Maximizes biotic damage, moreover, we increase the damage that enemies take from various sources
12	Barrier Lv 6	Increases defensive stats and gives instant shield restore when HP is low
13	Containment Lv 6	Gives a boost to the radius of biotic skills
14	Combat Tools Lv 6	Improves aerial combat

Now, we are done with the base of the build. However, you still need to pump the combat skills to get the Soldier profile to the maximum of level 6 for huge bonuses to weapon damage.

Tactics

This section will cover playing the best Shotgun build in Mass Effect Andromeda.

Charge skill

The build is very close to what a Vanguard should be (and it was in the Original Trilogy), where you use shotgun heavily. The problem with this weapon category is that it works at close range, and may be good in medium with some weapon variations.

However, Charge allows getting up close to the enemy and easily releasing a volley of pellets at them. This makes combat much easier and you do not need to risk your health/shields. Ryder is invincible during the Charge animation

Another aspect of Charge is that it instantly restores shields to 100% (with Bastion upgrade). So if you are close to dying and the skill is not under the cooldown, find the nearest enemy and lunge into them

This creates opportunities for extremely aggressive gameplay, where you do not need to sacrifice your tempo and always be on the offense.

Main Combat rotation

Here we come to the key part of this build. Generally, I use this build very aggressively - shotguns work the best when in close range. Here is simple logic that I use:

1. Before combat activate Annihilation (I sometimes forget this)
2. Find the protected enemy, like Pariah, Sharpshooter, or any other "leader-type". I suggest avoiding strong armored ones, like Fiends, and leaving them last.
3. Use Charge to get close to them and activate Turbocharge.
4. Start shooting, you should be able to take out normal enemies with 1-3 shots
5. Be aware of the battlefield and use Charge to move to the next enemy/group of enemies.
6. Continue with your shotgun

Overall this makes for very exciting close-quarter combat.

Companions

The build is powerful on its own especially once you get augmentations on your Shotgun. Genreally, any companions work. Check the squad builds recommendations. However, one companion shines the most.

Core has a Shield Boost skill that restores shields and HP. This is especially useful once you get Bio-Converter and don't want to die fast. Moreover, she also has freezing bullets once you maximize Asari Commando, they make the combat much easier.

Equipment

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

Weapons

Name	Mods	Augmentations
N7 Piranha	Shotgun Barrel Shotgun Receiver	Bio-Converter - use HP to reload Seeking Plasma System - projectiles track enemies. Kinetic Coil - increases weapon damage
Dhan	Shotgun Barrel Shotgun Receiver	Bio-Converter - use HP to reload Kinetic Coil - increases weapon damage

Melee Weapons

Name	Augmentations	Description
Asari Sword	Kinetic Coil - increases weapon damage	Even though you may not use melee weapons, their bonuses from augmentations always apply. Due to this, we want to maximize weapon damage with 5 slots.

Armors

Armor piece	Stats	Augmentation options
Kett Helmet	+3%-12% Combat Power Damage +1%-10% Weapon Damage	Biotic Damage Booster - increases biotic damage
Maverick Chest	+3%-12% Weapon Headshot/Weak Point Bonus +3%-15% Weapon Spare Ammo +5%-20% Weapon Damage	Shield Oscillator - provide shield restoration on kill Biotic Damage Booster - increases biotic damage
Kett Legs	+3%-12% Combat Power Damage +1%-10% Weapon Damage	Biotic Damage Booster - increases biotic damage
Kett Arms	+3%-12% Combat Power Damage +1%-10% Weapon Damage	Biotic Damage Booster - increases biotic damage

Fusion Mods

Name	Description
Fusion Mod of Adrenaline	You can try out this fusion mod, which provides instant skill recharge after killing an enemy. The thing is that the Shotgun build mostly relies on the weapon and not skills. So if you fight a strong single enemy, a few seconds should not change much. However, you can always skip it if you do not prefer this mechanic.

Conclusion

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

Feel free to leave a comment below!