Adrenaline Rush

Adrenaline Rush is a power granted to the Soldier class in Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3. For a brief moment it slows down time around the player, giving a small window to line up the perfect head-shot with the sniper rifle or other weapons, as well as increasing the damage dealt, including melee damage.

The Xbox 360 and the PC description does not list the damage bonus, see the Discussion Page for more information on this bonus.

Power Ranks

 * Rank 1
 * Recharge Time: 5.00 seconds
 * Duration: 5.00 seconds
 * Time Dilation: +50.00%
 * Damage Bonus: +100.00%


 * Rank 2
 * Recharge Time: 4.00 seconds
 * Duration: 5.00 seconds
 * Time Dilation: +50.00%
 * Damage Bonus: +100.00%


 * Rank 3
 * Recharge Time: 3.00 seconds
 * Duration: 5.00 seconds
 * Time Dilation: +50.00%
 * Damage Bonus: +100.00%

Rank 4

Choose to evolve the power into one of the following,

Hardened Adrenaline Rush

 * Your endorphins block out pain and trauma in addition to speeding your reaction time. Health damage is reduced for the power's duration.
 * Recharge Time: 3.00 seconds
 * Duration: 5.00 seconds
 * Time Dilation: +50.00%
 * Damage Bonus: +100.00%
 * Health Damage Taken: -50.00%

Heightened Adrenaline Rush

 * Your reaction time is the stuff of legends. When you are "on," enemies seem to stand still.
 * Recharge Time: 3.00 seconds
 * Duration: 5.00 seconds
 * Time Dilation: +70.00%
 * Damage Bonus: +140.00%

Player Notes

 * The cooldown period for Adrenaline Rush doesn't begin until after its effect has worn off.
 * In contrast to most other powers/upgrades that boost damage, the damage bonus from Adrenaline Rush is multiplicative and not only applies to weapon base damage but to upgrades and increased rag-doll/frozen damage as well.
 * Damage from ammo powers is not increased.
 * The damage bonus is not applied to heavy weapons.


 * The fire rates of weapons do not speed up to match the time dilation of Adrenaline Rush. Because of this, you might actually do less damage depending on the weapon you are using.
 * The 40% damage difference between Heightened and Hardened Adrenaline Rush seems a big advantage; however, they also have different time dilation effects. For example, a soldier with Heightened Adrenaline Rush will be able to fire 2 bursts from the Vindicator or 1 round from the Widow or Phalanx. On the other hand, a soldier with Hardened Adrenaline Rush (or lower ranks) will be able to fire 3 bursts from the Vindicator or 2 rounds from the Phalanx HP, but only 1 round from the Widow. In short, for bolt-action weapons 40% makes a huge difference, but for semi/full automatic weapons Heightened Adrenaline Rush is lower in relative damage dealt.

Rank 1: Adrenaline Rush
Accelerate reflexes, granting time to line up the perfect shot.
 * Recharge Speed: 11.17 sec
 * Duration: 4 sec
 * Weapon Damage Bonus: 50%

Rank 2: Recharge Speed
Increases recharge speed by 25%.
 * Recharge Speed: 8.82 sec

Rank 3: Duration
Increase duration by 30%.
 * Duration: 5.20

Rank 4: Hardening/Damage
Hardening

Increase Health and shield bonuses by 15%
 * Health & Shield Bonus: +15%

Damage

Increase damage by 15%.
 * Weapon Damage Bonus: 75%

Rank 5: Duration/Melee Damage
Duration

Increase duration by 40%.
 * Duration: 6.80

Melee Damage

Increase melee damage by 50%.

Rank 6: Shield Boost/Power Use
Shield Boost

Increase shield strength by 50%.

Power Use

Use 1 offensive power while Adrenaline Rush is active.

Player Notes

 * If the current weapon has spent any part of their clip, upon activating Adrenaline Rush, provided the soldier has the spare ammunition, is refilled to max. If used right, double a soldiers ammunition output before they need to reload, particularly with long reload weapons like the Widow and Revenant.
 * While it isn’t ideal against tougher enemies that can destroy shields in one or two hits, the Rank 6 Shield Boost evolution can provide an opportunity to get away from a bad scenario. For example, being surrounded, backed into a corner with a powerful enemy, or your shields have been depleted and you need a few extra seconds to get to a safe location.
 * In multiplayer, there is no time dilation like in single player and as such, Adrenaline Rush shouldn’t be used to try line up a headshot with a precision weapon. More than likely, you will end up getting shot if you attempt to do this.

Availability

 * Single-Player: Soldier
 * Multiplayer: Human Soldier, Battlefield 3 Soldier