Cluster Grenade is a biotic grenade power in Mass Effect 3's single-player and multiplayer modes.
Power Ranks[]
Rank 1: Cluster Grenade[]
Lob this biotic grenade cluster at your enemies and watch them fly.
- Damage: 420 (500 multiplayer)
- Force: 1200 N (1000 N multiplayer)
- Radius: 4 m
Rank 2: Max Grenades[]
Increase grenade capacity by 1.
Rank 3: Force & Damage[]
Increase damage by 20%.
Increase force by 20%.
- Damage: 490 (600 multiplayer)
- Force: 1400 N (1200 N multiplayer)
- Radius: 4 m
Rank 4: Force & Damage/Radius[]
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Force & Damage Increase damage by 30%.
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Radius Increase impact radius by 35%.
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Rank 5: Max Grenades/Damage Combo[]
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Max Grenades Increase grenade capacity by 1 (2 Multiplayer). |
Damage Combo Increase damage to already-lifted targets by 100%. |
Rank 6: Shrapnel/Force & Damage[]
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Shrapnel Increase shrapnel count by 2 (1 multiplayer). |
Force & Damage Increase damage by 50%.
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Player Notes[]
- Mechanics
- Grenade powers do not have a recharge time and, thus, can be used immediately at any time, provided grenades are available. Using the power consumes one grenade each time.
- If the player has multiple grenade powers, the grenade pool is shared between them.
- When thrown, the initial grenade immediately splits up into 3 total grenade projectiles. If the Rank 6 Shrapnel evolution is taken in single-player, the grenade splits into 5 projectiles. In multiplayer, 3 grenades are thrown instead of 2.
- At least one of the projectiles always follows a predictable arc lined up with the aiming reticule just like other grenade types, but the other projectiles spread randomly and widely.
- Projectiles do not detonate in air but have a short timer that begins upon colliding with level (horizontal) terrain. They will detonate instantly on contact with an enemy target.
- Damage is per grenade, so if all "split" grenades hit, damage inflicted as well as the force of the grenades will be extremely high. This can be frighteningly effective against any enemy foot-soldier, because on lower difficulties, one "split" grenade can inflict serious damage to weaker enemies or kill them outright. An entire grenade can seriously injure or even kill even the strongest foot-soldier (such as Phantoms, or Centurions). In addition, the force of the blast will knock unprotected infantry off their feet and sometimes launch them great distances.
- Cluster Grenades are "universal detonators"—they can detonate any type of Power Combo. Each individual grenade in the "cluster" can trigger a separate combo (on separate primed targets), potentially resulting in massive devastation.
- The Damage Combo evolution applies to enemies being affected by almost any other biotic power such as Warp or Reave and not just powers that physically "lift" enemies such as Pull. Despite the name, this evolution only boosts the damage of the grenade itself, not any Power Combos it may detonate.
- The first shrapnel of Cluster Grenade to cause a Biotic Explosion will also inflict double damage to its target. Each individual shrapnel is capable of doing the same, however, they must each hit a different target to do so.
- Strategies
- Reave evolved for area damage works very well with Cluster Grenade as it can prime multiple enemies for Biotic Explosions without displacing them or lifting them into the air making them hard to hit. Landing a Cluster Grenade on a group of Reaved enemies can trigger multiple Biotic Explosions, decimating groups of weaker enemies such as Cannibals or Assault Troopers.
- Trajectory is very important as the grenade splits in a forked pattern. This can be devastating against enemies spread out if used correctly, or it can diminish most of the effectiveness the grenade. In general, Cluster Grenade is most effective at short range or in tight quarters.
- While attempting to throw the grenade out of tall cover (at least character height) when peeking to your character's left, sometimes instead of flying gracefully toward your enemies, they will bounce off the wall/cover you're peeking out of, landing slightly behind you and doing nothing. Be mindful of your surroundings and make sure you have enough clearance to throw the grenade in the first place, or you may end up wasting what precious few you have.
- Used in tandem with Warp or Reave at point-blank range, Cluster Grenade can do massive damage even against large armored targets such as Ravagers and Brutes. Warp works especially well with its evolutions that increase the damage of powers and Power Combos.
Availability[]
- Single-Player: Adept
- Multiplayer: Batarian Slasher Adept, Drell Adept, Drell Vanguard, Vorcha Sentinel