Geth Juggernaut: First Impressions

Welcome everyone to another first impression guide. Today we will be looking at the Geth Juggernaut. I'm just going to start by saying that the Juggernaut is a support character. I know everyone was looking forward to playing as a Geth Prime and laying waste to the battlefield with your Siege Pulse and Geth Spitfire, but it doesn't work that way.

For one, the Pissfire is garbage compared to the Geth Spitfire of the singleplayer. Take a look at the Mass Effect Wiki and compare the two. As you can see, the multiplayer version is vastly inferior to the singleplayer version in virtually every way except for the ability to refill ammo. Recently there was a small buff, but it only lives up to its ultra-rare status on a few characters with massive weapon buffs. In other words, not the Juggernaut.

Then, consider the Juggernaut's lack of mobility. Even with an Adrenaline Module III, you're not very mobile. You can't take cover and your massive shield strength only goes so far when you're a walking hitbox. As a result, this character is most effective in (or at least is forced into) a defensive support role, such as during objective waves.

Onto powers! Siege Pulse can be specced passively as damage reduction or as an active power for dealing damage. You can also choose between a crowd control approach or direct damage. I don't know if evolution 6a is additive or multiplicative. If it's the latter, then it's a good choice. But right now I'm using evolution 6a because it means more damage reduction, greater chance of knockdown, and an extra shot in the chamber. Siege Pulse has a chance to knock down any unarmored enemy, even if they have their shields up (hint: that means Phantoms lie down). This is a great power for suppressing aggressive enemies like Phantoms and Dragoons. But just like all Biotic Orb-like powers, its performance is affected by network speed. Off host, you will likely experience an added delay between shots.

A reincarnation of the Geth Shields from the first Mass Effect, the Hex Shield can be specced as an area of effect power or as a defensive power. The top row in particular works well in close quarters, which you will often be forced into because of your lack of mobility. However, I find that on higher difficulties, the damage evolutions become more and more insignificant and the defensive evolutions become more and more useful. Nevertheless, it stuns humanoid enemies that pass through it and the pulse it emits when cast offers some crowd control.

Mostly, it is great as portable cover, giving you and your teammates a right-hand advantage anywhere. Also, it's great for blocking Atlas missiles, Banshee warps, Geth Prime pulse blasts, etc.. You see a projectile streaking toward your face? Pop up your Hex Shield and you're good. Note that your shield blocks your teammates' shots as well as your own, so be considerate when you place it.

The Geth Turret is most useful for keeping up your shield gate, since you are a walking hitbox and constantly having your shields chipped away. Depending on how many points you have available, you can put in a lot of points or just skip it, since your heavy melee restores shields as well. I find rank 5b restore range to be useful for restoring teammates' shields in a wide area, while rank 6b is not as essential. If you're not on cooldown take a second to pop up a Geth Turret near you and your teammates, preferably in a place where it won't get shot down. Your team will thank you.

The Juggernaut has excellent weapon passives (added stability and ammo capacity) that are tailored to weapons like the Spitfire and Typhoon. Great if you're using a weapons build. However, it's nothing special for a caster build, except for the weight capacity. Even then, that's more of a weapon-related perk than a power-related one. So if you're not planning on using weapons very often, it may not even be worth spending points here; it would be better to max out your powers. Either way, the Juggernaut is not exactly an offensive powerhouse.

Finally, your Fitness power can make you a walking tank, but at the cost of reducing the damage you deal. You can recharge your shields by using your heavy melee to drain the energy from your enemies. However, enemies are not always within melee range. I recommend taking shield recharge to jump-start your shields -- durability is basically the only strength of this character. That and being immune to sync-kills. In fact, you're the one doing the sync-killing this time. Phantoms are particularly fun to grab.

Now, I've seen a lot of Juggernaut users running around sync-killing everything. What these young bloods need to understand is that it's not an efficient or effective way to play. Your heavy melee is not an offensive power, it is another support capability. When your team gets swarmed by a group of Phantoms, don't just grab one and zap her while your teammates get sliced up. Pick one up and drop her, then pick up another. Incapacitate them first and make it easier for you and your teammates to finish them off. Draw aggressive enemies such as Banshees and Phantoms away from your teammates. You have the durability and sync-kill immunity to keep them off your teammates backs.

To be continued...

-Grun7mas7er

Check out Megabeast's thread on BSN: How to play the Juggernaut effectively (by megabeast37215)

Also check out this video guide by Caineghis with commentary by Megabeast.