Sniper Rifles

Sniper Rifles refers to both a type of weapon and its corresponding unlockable combat-oriented talent, available to Soldiers, Infiltrators, and the Turian Agent. The talent increases accuracy and damage with sniper rifles, and grants the Assassination ability.

Sniper rifles are slow and usually overheat after two shots in quick succession. However, they make up for this in range and damage - higher-level sniper rifles retain accuracy at incredible ranges, and they will often kill weaker enemies in one shot. Beware, though; close-range encounters are not recommended, due to the fact that you will more than likely miss any shots in close combat. To counter this inaccuracy at close range, kneel but do not zoom in, and then fire when the reticle turns red.

Tapping the "use" button ("E" on the PC) will zoom your view. It should be noted that the close-in view from a sniper rifle makes an excellent telescope, useful for scouting out enemies at a distance whether you fire at them or not.

Sniper rifles have a rate of fire of 0.6, i. e. one shot every 1.67 seconds.

See also: Sniper Guide

Talent Levels

 * Level 1: Increases damage by 5%. Increases accuracy by 10%


 * Level 2: Increases damage by 8%. Increases accuracy by 14%


 * Level 3: Assassination


 * Level 4: Increases damage by 10%. Increases accuracy by 17%


 * Level 5: Increases damage by 12%. Increases accuracy by 20%


 * Level 6: Increases damage by 14%. Increases accuracy by 22%


 * Level 7: Increases damage by 16%. Increases accuracy by 24%


 * Level 8: Advanced Assassination


 * Level 9: Increases damage by 18%. Increases accuracy by 26%


 * Level 10: Increases damage by 19%. Increases accuracy by 28%


 * Level 11: Increases damage by 20%. Increases accuracy by 30%


 * Level 12: Master Assassination

Assassination
Assassination is a powerful damage boost to the next shot from the sniper rifle. This can quickly dispatch enemies which would normally take two or three shots with a single round. While this skill is active your sniper rifle scope will have no shake, allowing you to accurately place a shot. Though slow, this attack is deadly when combined with the right ammunition. While lining it up, direct your squad members to give you cover, or use Lift to bring enemies out for a clear shot.

Some enemies, such as mercenaries, Geth Hoppers or Geth Snipers, also use Assassination. This is characterised by a distinct red beam just before they fire. On higher difficulty settings, or if your shields are already damaged, one shot can kill you instantly. Once you see the red beam, either get behind cover, put up a Barrier or Shield Boost, or take down the attacker before they have time to fire.

Assassination
Only available when using sniper rifles.
 * Next shot will inflict weapon damage +50%
 * Duration: 20s
 * Recharge time: 45s.

Advanced Assassination
Only available when using sniper rifles.
 * Next shot will inflict weapon damage +125%
 * Duration 20s
 * Recharge time: 45s.

Master Assassination
Only available when using sniper rifles
 * Next shot will inflict weapon damage +225%
 * Duration 20s
 * Recharge time: 45s.

Specialization
Commandos gain Assassin Specialization at level 12.
 * Level 12: Assassin Specialization: Reduces the recharge time on Assassination and Marksman by 25%.

Classes
These classes have access to the Sniper Rifles talent:
 * Infiltrator Unlockable
 * Soldier Unlockable
 * Turian Agent Unlockable

Sniper Rifle types
Below is a list of types of Sniper Rifles and their base stats:

Mass Effect 2
Sniper Rifles are powerful, long-ranged weapons available to the Infiltrator and Soldier classes. The Infiltrator slows down time when at first aiming down the scope.

M-92 Mantis Sniper Rifle

 * Default ammo: 1 / 9
 * Available after the tutorial.

M-97 Viper Sniper Rifle

 * Default ammo: 12 / 48
 * Can be found during The Assassin recruitment mission.

M-98 Widow Anti-Material Rifle

 * Default ammo: 1 / 12
 * Powerful sniper rifle that can be chosen as bonus on the Collector Cruiser. Legion can be given this rifle as an upgrade.
 * Feels like each shot does ~3x more dmg as the Viper, but it may actually do less DPS due to having to reload between each shot. It still takes 3-4 shots to take down a single Eclipse hero (with barrier & armor) even with cloaked headshots on Veteran.  Given the limited ammo capacity, it's a waste to use it on normal enemies but doesn't feel powerful enough to be better than an SMG on harder targets.

M-29 Incisor Rifle

 * Default ammo: 15 / 45


 * Burst-fire sniper rifle, available as part of the digital deluxe editions of Mass Effect 2.

AP Sniper Rifle (Tungsten Sabot Jacket)
Cost: 15000 Platinum

Increases damage by +50% against armor. Improves sniper rifles for entire squad. Increasing the tungsten content of slugs and recalibrating the weapon's computer greatly improves penetration against heavily armored targets.

Note: Changes the letter designation from M to S (ie. S-92 Mantis Sniper Rifle)

Sniper Headshot Damage (Combat Scanner)
Cost: 25000 Platinum

Sniper rifles deal +50% headshot damage. This bonus affects the entire squad. Normandy's scientists have prototyped a modification to the traditional smart-targeting module commonly incorporated into high-end weaponry. While this technology is normally used to compensate for wind and recoil, it was adapted to slightly deflect rounds to strike a more vital part of an enemy's head.

Note: Changes the letter designation from S to X (ie. X-92 Mantis Sniper Rifle)

Sniper Rifle Damage 1-5 (Scram Pulsar)
Cost: 2500/5000/7500 Platinum

Provides +10 sniper rifle damage. Improves sniper rifles for your entire squad. This upgrade improves the mass effect field generator, increasing the mass and acceleration of each slug fired.

Note: For each damage upgrade, a letter designation will be added to the name of the weapon. 1/5 = a, 2/5 = b, etc.