Guardian

Guardians are a class of Cerberus soldiers encountered in Mass Effect 3. Described as "human tanks", Guardians are heavily fortified soldiers equipped with a nearly impenetrable shield.

Description
 title=Codex/Organizations include=#Cerberus: Guardian reset=categories includetrim=true 

Capabilities
Offensive

Guardians are armed with the M-358 Talon pistol. They can also use their shields as an effective melee weapon if they get close enough. Guardians also carry electrical batons, much like the Centurions and Assault Troopers, but only use these when their shields are gone.

Defensive

Guardians are distinguished by the nearly impenetrable shields they carry. Few weapons and powers can stagger them. They almost always come in pairs, which helps mitigate flanking tactics and allows for them to cover each other and other Cerberus soldiers.

Tactics
General Tactics
 * There is a tiny lid open high in the center of the shield. A skillful sniper shot can go through the hole and will count as a headshot. This is required for the Mail Slot Achievement. Such a shot can also be achieved with a M-96 Mattock assault rifle, although not reliably, or with other accurate weapons such as most heavy pistols, though it will not necessarily be an instant kill.
 * Guardians rely on their shields for protection; without them, Guardians are as vulnerable to attacks as Assault Troopers.
 * Hitting a Guardian's shields with certain powers (e.g. Concussive Shot, Carnage, Shockwave can cause it to stagger and momentarily hold the shield away from its body. However, you must be quick as it will quickly redeploy its shield.
 * Powers that knock the Guardian off its feet force it to drop its shield on the ground, after which it can be easily finished off. However, these powers must hit the Guardian instead of his shield for this to occur, which is normally achieved by flanking.
 * If a Guardian cannot be rid of its shield, the fastest way to finish it off is to attack it from behind, rendering the shield useless. Since such a maneuver can be difficult, however, the alternative is to focus fire on the shield's "mail slot". Sustained assault rifle fire may be only minimally effective, but a sniper rifle round through the mail slot can kill a Guardian in one hit.
 * If hitting the shield's "mail slot" proves too difficult, Guardians can be killed fairly easily by firing at their weapon-hand or feet.
 * Pull will instantly strip a Guardian of its shield, and because of the fairly quick recharge, it is perfect for engaging groups of Guardians.
 * Guardians that are hit by Stasis will drop their shields, making them vulnerable. It is recommended however to get the Stasis Bubble Evolution at Rank 6 to make it easier to get multiple Guardians in one fell swoop.
 * Since the M-98 Widow is an anti-material rifle, simply zooming in and shooting at the shield will cause the bullet to go through the shield and kill them instantly. The same effect occurs when using the Black Widow or Javelin. In fact, because the Javelin's default scope nicely highlights its targets through cover, it is a trivial task to get head shots through the shield, always killing the Guardian in a single head shot, even on insanity.
 * With an upgraded Mantis or Widow, it is possible to shoot a Guardian in the foot and kill them instantly. On higher difficulties, this may need significant and multiple weapon damage upgrades.
 * A well aimed Proximity Mine shot at their feet can kill them with just one mine.
 * At extreme close range, a Proximity Mine fired directly at the shield may fail to hit the Guardian and plant itself on the ground behind him, then explode and likely kill him.
 * Armor-Piercing Ammo can pierce the Guardian's shield, allowing Guardians to be quickly dispatched by sustained fire from an Assault Rifle. Armor Piercing Ammo can also make a powerful weapon like the Mantis, or M-300 Claymore capable of one shotting a Guardian (sometimes regardless of the body part(s) hit).
 * Similarly to armor-piercing ammo, piercing/shredder mods (available for all weapons except SMGs) can also allow Guardians to be taken down through a raised shield. Such mods are especially effective on powerful weapons like the M-96 Mattock or the M-99 Saber.
 * While the Kishock Harpoon Gun cannot penetrate cover, it can innately penetrate a Guardian's shield. Due to their large profile and slow movement, a player with the Kishock can dispose of Guardians with relative ease.
 * The Particle Rifle is useful against Guardians because it staggers them and causes them to move their shields, similar to Concussive Shot.
 * On high difficulty levels, it is advised to keep distance from Guardians, their heavy melee and M-358 Talon will make close-range combat difficult. Usage of a high power assault rifle or a semi-automatic sniper rifle (such as the M-96 Mattock or the M-97 Viper) is advised to remove them from the fight quickly.
 * The shield's protection is directional. Grenades thrown right behind or beside them will ignore the shields. Powers that arc to the target can be finagled to go around the shield with some practice.

Class/Character Specific Tactics
 * A cloaked Infiltrator can easily kill a Guardian by placing a Sticky Grenade on its back.
 * A Soldier is capable of taking out Guardians with relative ease if the Frag Grenade power has been significantly upgraded. Either drop the grenade underneath or behind the Guardian, or throw it directly at the shield of the Guardian to deal significant damage. With highly upgraded Frag Grenade, you can instantly kill a Guardian with a single throw.
 * A Vanguard can charge at the shield of a Guardian, which will stagger the Guardian and allow them to safely take care of them with their weapon of choice from point-blank range. This might require more than one Charge, since even a powerful shotgun may not deal enough damage for a one-shot kill.
 * An Engineer can use a Combat Drone to turn the Guardian around. If used while targeting the Guardian, the drone will appear behind the Guardian and shoot it in the back, causing it to face the current greatest threat. You then fill his back with bullets. If the Engineer has taken the Neural Shock upgrade at rank 5 of Overload, you can use it once the Guardian turns around to incapacitate him and drop his shield permanently, as well as giving you a few more seconds to deal damage to him while he's on the ground.
 * It should be noted that a Combat Drone with the rank 6 rocket upgrade is significantly less effective on Guardians, as the drone will typically attempt to retreat to a distance where it can fire its rocket instead of using its much faster shock attack.
 * A krogan's light melee can stun the Guardian and cause him to expose himself to fire. A krogan's heavy melee, though rare, can cause knock a Guardian to its feet.

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