Geth Plasma Shotgun

The Geth Plasma Shotgun is a shotgun in Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3.

Description
This three-barrelled geth weapon fires miniature but potent cluster rounds of superconducting projectiles and has a longer range than standard shotguns. A two-stage trigger system allows for either quick fire-capacitors or a charge-and-release attack to electrify the projectiles as they exit the weapon. As the rounds hit the target, they fragment and electricity arcs between the pieces, flash-converting the air to conductive plasma. The resulting impact, heat, and electrical charge overloads shields and barriers and causes massive trauma to unarmored targets.

Acquisition
Available through purchase of the Firepower Pack DLC.

Squad Use
This weapon can be used by Grunt, Jack, Jacob and Tali.

Player Notes
Important Notes
 * This weapon fires 3 plasma balls instead of the standard 8 pellets. The second and third plasma balls will do only 30% base damage if they hit the same target as the first. This means that all 3 plasma balls, with full-charge, on a single target, will do only 556.4 base damage instead of the expected 1043. To maximize overall damage, one should aim to hit a different target with each pellet. If fired while aiming down the sights, the plasma will seek enemies slightly.
 * The Geth Plasma Shotgun has a charged-shot feature. A fully charged shot expends two ammo instead of one. If only one shot is left in the sink, the charged shot will only expend one shot. The weapon cannot be charged whilst Shepard is in cover. While charging, the player should stand around corners, behind tall cover, or face away while behind short cover to minimize exposure. A full-charge can be "held" by simply holding down the fire button, and then released when desired. Sprinting or using powers will not interrupt this. However, opening the HUD or Pause Menu will. Squadmates are incapable of firing charged shots with this weapon.
 * By firing a regular shot then briefly charging the second shot, two shots can be fired in quick succession. This can also be done by performing a melee attack while firing a partially or fully charged shot, or through extremely careful timing. However, due to the required charging interval, this will not increase DPS.
 * With all shotgun upgrades and either Heavy Disruptor Ammo or Heavy Warp Ammo, this weapon is extremely effective against shields and barriers. With damage-increasing armor parts (notably the Kestrel Armor), a fully-charged shot can kill most ordinary enemies. Tougher enemies, such as krogan, can be defeated by quickly following up with any of your squadmates' damage-inflicting powers.
 * Due to this weapon's innate bonus against shields and barriers, Armor Piercing, Warp, and Incendiary ammunition are good choices for standard missions depending upon which types of enemies encountered because of their various bonuses against armor and health bars.
 * Squad members do not suffer from accuracy issues, making this weapon a good choice for them.
 * When charged, a Soldier in Heightened Adrenaline Rush at close range can kill many opponents in one shot with this weapon when playing on Hardcore difficulty or below. Insanity may require a follow up shot or a power used simultaneously by a teammate.

Class Specific Notes
 * An Infiltrator's Tactical Cloak (especially with Assassin) makes a charged-shot able to decimate powerful foes even on Insanity. Cloak should only be activated after the weapon has started charging as releasing a charged-shot while cloaked doesn't cancel the cloak, and if you cloak and then start charging, the cloak is dropped before the weapon finishes charging.
 * A Soldier with Shock Trooper can fire up to 3 shots in a single Hardened Adrenaline Rush using either of the methods above to fire more shots in rapid succession. If planning to use a fully-charged shot, Adrenaline Rush should be activated after charging, as the time dilation will exacerbate the charge time.
 * A Vanguard's Charge used with a "held" full-charge allows one to shoot right after impacting.

Description
This three-barreled geth weapon fires miniature but potent cluster rounds of superconducting projectiles and has a longer range than standard shotguns. A two-stage trigger system allows for either quick-fire capacitors or a charge-and-release attack to electrify the projectiles as they exit the weapon. As the rounds hit the target, they fragment and electricity arcs between the pieces, flash-converting the air to conductive plasma. The resulting impact, heat, and electrical charge overloads shields and barriers and causes massive trauma to unarmored targets.

Acquisition

 * Single-player: Priority: Rannoch (during reaper base mission right before overriding blast doors)
 * Multiplayer: Randomly rewarded by purchasing a multiplayer item pack.

Player Notes

 * The Geth Plasma Shotgun's shots have a very basic tracking capability and will sometimes group and curve slightly toward their target, even at medium range.
 * The shotgun consumes two rounds per shot when fully charged. Despite this, it can still be charged even when only a single round remains in its magazine.
 * Like in Mass Effect 2, the Geth Plasma Shotgun's charged shot pairs beautifully with Tactical Cloak for incredible amounts of damage. Keep in mind that the charging process must be started before cloaking, otherwise the cloak will cancel as the shot is "registered" when it begins charging, not when it is actually fired.
 * Additionally, ammo powerups allow for massive damage, if the weapon is fired while charged. Upgraded ammos applied to the plasma shotgun can kill some foes outright on Hardcore and Insanity. Great examples include one-hit charged kills on a Marauder with Incendiary Ammo and the same effect against a Geth Rocket Trooper with Disruptor Ammo.
 * Due to glitches, it is possible to release a charged shot in situations where it is impossible to shoot normally, e.g. in the middle a melee attack/combo, immediately after overloading a Tech Armor and while stunned from an enemy attack.
 * The Geth Plasma Shotgun can also fire (charged or not) while running, which can make any person wielding this weapon more than capable of closing the distance, while firing. Many strategies can be done using this method, one can do a literal "hit and run" strategy, an aggressive charge that can pound enemies, or even suppressing fire while you make your way to cover.

Trivia

 * The Geth Plasma Shotgun was designed to be an "unshotgun," allowing players to reliably deal damage at longer ranges than normally allowed. Wanting to preserve the "heavy hitting" aspect of shotguns, the overcharge ability was added to compensate for its lessened effectiveness at shorter range.
 * In Mass Effect 3, when in the modification screen, the High Caliber Barrel attachment will only appear on the top-right barrel, whereas in-game, the attachment will affect both the top barrels.
 * Also, if a Bayonet Attachment is added, it will seemingly be placed on the lower barrel, blocking it. This does not affect performance in-game.