Powers (Mass Effect 3)

This article is about abilities in the single-player campaign of Mass Effect 3. For a list of all Powers, see Category:Powers. For abilities in the original Mass Effect, see Talents. For abilities in Mass Effect 2, see Powers.

The skills or abilities in Mass Effect 3 are called powers.

Mechanics

Each power, with the exception of First Aid, receives two additional ranks and follows the same algorithm as Powers from Mass Effect 2. As with Mass Effect 2's rank 4, Mass Effect 3's ranks 4-6 give two power choices with the sixth always being passive.

Commander Shepard

Shepard can earn up to 181 progress points to allocate to powers. A new game starts Shepard at level 1 with 3 predetermined points.

The following table shows the amount you earn per level with the total amount once you reach 60. Levels that are grouped give the same amount of progress points with the total amount for that group.

Level(s)	Points Per Level	Total
1	3	3
2 - 30	2	58
31 - 60	4	120
Total	-	181

This gives you the option of maxing out all 8 class powers with 13 points remaining.

Imported ME2 Saves

Depending on Shepard's level in a completed save you can have up to 51 points to carry over to ME3. However, imported saves of levels 26 - 30 will give two additional points per level totaling up to 61 points.

With one exception you can decide how your points are allocated before importing ME2 saves. For an easier explanation, let's assume you have a level 30 Shepard.

• Any class ranks you had in ME2 will be given in ME3 (e.g. Rank 3 Warp).
• You will start with 61 points between spent and unspent points (55 unspent + 6 spent in Rank 3 Warp).
• Any points in a Loyal Power (e.g. Miranda's Slam) will be given back as unspent points.
• If you wish to start ME3 with all 61 points unspent, import a save that has 51 unspent points or choose a different class than your ME2 import during character customization. You may also reset your points in the med bay once aboard the Normandy (this is useful if you use the same class in ME3 as your imported ME2 Shepard, but want to reallocate points).

Base Powers

Each player class has access to First Aid, a power that uses medi-gel to revive fallen squadmates and restore a portion of Shepard's health; Fitness, to increase health, shields and melee damage; a passive class power, to increase reputation and other class-specific bonuses; and 6 active powers.

The following is a list of powers available to each class. Powers available from the very beginning are marked with a ✓, while powers that need to be unlocked by leveling up are marked with a •.

	Power	Adept	Engineer	Infiltrator	Sentinel	Soldier	Vanguard
Combat
	Adrenaline Rush					✓
	Concussive Shot					•
	Fitness	•	•	•	•	•	✓
Ammo
	Cryo Ammo			•		•	•
	Disruptor Ammo			✓		•
	Incendiary Ammo					✓	✓
Grenade
	Cluster Grenade	•
	Frag Grenade					•
	Lift Grenade				•
	Sticky Grenade			•
Biotic
	Biotic Charge						✓
	Nova						•
	Pull	•					•
	Shockwave	•					•
	Singularity	✓
	Throw	•			✓
	Warp	✓			•
Tech
	Combat Drone		✓
	Cryo Blast		•		•
	Overload		•		•
	Incinerate		✓	•
	Sabotage		•	•
	Sentry Turret		•
	Tactical Cloak			✓
	Tech Armor				✓

Class Powers

In addition to their active starting powers, each class has a passive class power that grants a bonus to Reputation as well as other unique bonuses, depending on the class.

	Class	Power
	Adept	Biotic Mastery
	Engineer	Tech Mastery
	Infiltrator	Operational Mastery
	Sentinel	Offensive Mastery
	Soldier	Combat Mastery
	Vanguard	Assault Mastery

Bonus Powers

Each player class is able to learn one additional bonus power. These are unlocked through conversations with your squad or through completion of DLC missions. Each squad member can unlock two bonus powers.

	Power	Squadmate	How to get this power
Combat
	Inferno Grenade	Ashley Williams	This power unlocks immediately after recruiting Ashley after Priority: The Citadel II.
	Marksman	Ashley Williams	Talk to Ashley in the Starboard Observation after Priority: The Citadel II. She invites you to the Memorial Wall; talk to her there.
	Proximity Mine	Garrus Vakarian	Talk to Garrus after Priority: Thessia.
	Fortification	James Vega	Talk to James in the Shuttle Bay after Priority: Mars. He will offer to "dance" (spar); have the fight and you get the power.
	Carnage	James Vega	Call James up to your cabin after Priority: Tuchanka.
Ammo
	Armor-Piercing Ammo	Garrus Vakarian	Talk to Garrus in the Main Battery after Priority: Palaven.
	Warp Ammo	Liara T'Soni	Talk to Liara in her quarters after Priority: Tuchanka.
Tech
	Defense Matrix	EDI	Talk to EDI on the Bridge after Priority: The Citadel II.
	Decoy	EDI	Talk to EDI on the Bridge after Priority: Horizon.
	Defense Drone	Tali'Zorah vas Normandy	Talk to Tali in the Presidium Commons after Priority: Rannoch.
	Energy Drain	Tali'Zorah vas Normandy	Invite Tali to your quarters after Priority: Perseus Veil.
Biotic
	Stasis	Liara T'Soni	Speak to Liara after Priority: Thessia. Note: if you do not talk to her immediately after Priority: Thessia, you will miss it.
	Barrier	Kaidan Alenko	This power unlocks immediately after recruiting Kaidan after Priority: The Citadel II.
	Reave	Kaidan Alenko	Talk to Kaidan in the Starboard Observation Lounge after Priority: The Citadel II. Note: if you do not talk to him when you first return to the Normandy, you will miss it.
	Slam	Javik1	Talk to Javik after he joins you on the Normandy.
	Dark Channel	Javik1	Talk to Javik right after Priority: Horizon.
	Dominate	N/A2	Complete Mass Effect 3: Leviathan.
	Lash	Aria T'Loak3	Complete Mass Effect 3: Omega.
	Flare	Aria T'Loak3	Complete Mass Effect 3: Omega.

1. Requires Mass Effect 3: From Ashes DLC.
2. Requires Mass Effect 3: Leviathan DLC.
3. Requires Mass Effect 3: Omega DLC.

Squadmates

Powers

Each squadmate has 4 active powers and 1 passive class power. They get 90 squad points total by level 60. The bonus squadmates available in Mass Effect 3: Citadel get one point fewer.

Squadmate	Power 1	Power 2	Power 3	Power 4
Ashley Williams	Disruptor Ammo	Concussive Shot	Inferno Grenade	Marksman
James Vega	Incendiary Ammo	Carnage	Fortification	Frag Grenade
Kaidan Alenko	Reave	Barrier	Overload	Cryo Blast
Garrus Vakarian	Concussive Shot	Overload	Armor-Piercing Ammo	Proximity Mine
Liara T'Soni	Singularity	Warp	Stasis	Warp Ammo
Tali'Zorah vas Normandy	Defense Drone	Energy Drain	Combat Drone	Sabotage
EDI	Incinerate	Overload	Defense Matrix	Decoy
Javik1	Dark Channel	Lift Grenade	Slam	Pull
David Anderson	Concussive Shot	Frag Grenade	Fortification	Incendiary Ammo
Aria T'Loak2	Flare	Reave	Carnage	Lash
Nyreen Kandros2	Biotic Protector	Lift Grenade	Incinerate	Overload
Urdnot Wrex3	Carnage	Lift Grenade	Barrier	Stimulant Pack
Miranda Lawson3	Overload	Warp	Incinerate	Reave
Jacob Taylor3	Incendiary Ammo	Lift Grenade	Barrier	Pull
Jack3	Shockwave	Pull	Warp	Warp Ammo
Grunt3	Concussive Shot	Incendiary Ammo	Fortification	Frag Grenade
Samara3	Reave	Warp	Pull	Throw
Zaeed Massani3	Carnage	Concussive Shot	Disruptor Ammo	Inferno Grenade
Kasumi Goto3	Tactical Cloak	Overload	Armor-Piercing Ammo	Decoy

Class Powers

Each squadmate has their own unique passive class power. All of these powers grant varying bonuses to health and weapon damage, with many offering additional bonuses.

	Name	Power
	Admiral Anderson	Alliance Admiral
	Ashley Williams	Alliance Officer
	EDI	Unshackled AI
	Garrus Vakarian	Turian Rebel
	James Vega	Arms Master
	Javik1	Vengeful Ancient
	Kaidan Alenko	Alliance Officer
	Liara T'Soni	Pure Biotic
	Tali'Zorah vas Normandy	Quarian Machinist
	Aria T'Loak2	Biotic Boss
	Nyreen Kandros2	Turian Huntress
	Urdnot Wrex3	Krogan Battlemaster
	Miranda Lawson3	Cerberus Officer
	Jacob Taylor3	Cerberus Operative
	Jack3	Subject Zero
	Grunt3	Krogan Berserker
	Samara3	Asari Justicar
	Zaeed Massani3	Mercenary Veteran
	Kasumi Goto3	Master Thief

¹ Requires Mass Effect 3: From Ashes
² Requires Mass Effect 3: Omega
³ Requires Mass Effect 3: Citadel

See Also

• Power Combos