Salarian InfiltratorTactical Cloak: 4-damage, 5-recharge speed, 6-sniper damage
Proximity Mine: 4-radius, 5-damage taken
Energy Drain: 4-damage, 5-drain, 6-armor boost
Salarian Operative: 4-weapon damage, 5-headshots, 6-weapon damage
Fitness: 3
I really like the Black Widow out of all the sniper rifles. It can shoot three rounds per mag, but still packs a punch. The Valiant and Indra are good, but not particularly great on him. And the Javelin is far greater on the Geth Infiltrator. In my opinion, the Black Widow is the best overall bar none. However, I can see the M-98 Widow, Mantis, or even Viper as effective alternatives.
As for ammo mods, you can't go wrong with Armor Piercing. You can use Phasic rounds, but the beauty of the SI is that he has Energy Drain, so Phasic rounds are not necessary. Disruptor rounds are great for Geth. Warp rounds are great for Reapers/Collectors, but I tend to save them for my biotic characters.
We all know and love/hate Tactical Cloak, so no need to explain why I take all damage evolutions, right?
Proximity Mine is used for boss-level enemies so that they can be taken down quicker. I almost always take the radius and damage taken evolution to debuff clusters of enemies. It makes for a great support power. For the SI, recharge speed is completely unnecessary when cast under TC because the TC recharge overrides Proxy Mine's recharge. Also, the damage evolution is negligible compared to 3 ranks in Fitness, so I skip evolution 6 of Proxy Mine altogether. For enemies that are hard to pin down like Phantoms and Banshees, use TC and Proxy Mine from a distance and they will engage their shields, forcing them to stand still for a moment. Free headshots.
As demonstrated by Caineghis.
What makes the SI a great sniper is Energy Drain, which helps to bypass enemy shield gate, which is a great hindrance to snipers. The damage and drain evolutions are there to restore your shields. The more damage you do with Energy Drain, the greater percentage of your shields are restored. However, I found the armor boost evolution to be more useful than the extra damage. Overall, I think 40% damage reduction for 10 seconds is going to keep you alive better than 40% extra damage. That's my experience, anyway.
In addition, it stuns lesser enemies (including Dragoons!) for a short time, letting you line up an easy headshot. It's also very useful as a survival tool against bosses and damage over time effects. Always keep an eye open for shields/barriers that can be leached.
For the passives, all weapon damage since your sniper rifle is your main focus. Then 3 ranks in Fitness for slightly better durability. I found this build to be much more durable than a pure damage build with no Fitness, and honestly the mediocre power damage bonuses are pretty negligible compared to added survivability.
The real key to this build is mastery of your sniper rifle. They require more aim than your other weapons, but they are very rewarding especially on Infiltrators. Practice practice practice. And use your sniper rifle rail amps!
That's about it for the guide. Wish I could put up a sniper rifle guide, but I'm not that good at sniping. Plus I'm a lowly console scrub, I couldn't possibly aim with those clunky thumbsticks. =)
Cheers, enjoy the build, stay classy.
-Grun7mas7er
The SI is my favorite character, and this is exactly how I spec him. I will use Phasic rounds since I'll often snipe boss enemies from across the map, and I find it hard to use energy drain from that distance.
ReplyDeleteHaving just watched a video I did of the SI on gold, I stand corrected. You can use energy drain from across the map. I'll have to give Drill rounds a try.
DeleteYes, he's a top-notch character for sure.
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