Squad Members Guide

For information on the controls, general gameplay mechanics, and AI behaviors of NPC allies, see Squad.

This Squad Members Guide is meant as a general overview of the various squadmates Commander Shepard can acquire in Mass Effect, summarizing their abilities, strengths, and weaknesses in combat. The proper selection and use of squad members can significantly reduce the challenge of a given mission or assignment, especially on the higher difficulty settings.

See also: Squad Members Guide (Mass Effect 2), Squad Members Guide (Mass Effect 3), Squad Members Guide (Mass Effect: Andromeda)

Overview

This page focuses on what makes a particular squad member stand out compared to others and is meant to serve as a starting point for how to assemble a team. For recommendations on what squadmate choices work well for specific player classes, see the individual Class Guides. For in-depth information on the various abilities, equipment, and weapon options, investigate those individual pages as most will contain notes and recommendations on squadmate use. Finally, for recommendations on which squadmates to take on specific missions, see the Walkthrough page for that mission or assignment.

Note: When the terms "squadmate" or "squad member" are used in this guide, they are only referring to other NPC characters and not Shepard. If Shepard is meant to be included, the terms "party" or "party member" will be used.

Note: Squad members are listed in approximately the order they become available.

Kaidan Alenko

• Availability: Prologue | First Playable: Prologue: Find the Beacon
• Specialty: Biotics, Tech, First Aid
• Weapons: Proficient with pistols (via the Sentinel class talent)
• Equipment: Human Armor (light), Omni-tool, Biotic amp

Talents

Class: Sentinel  Throw  Lift Unlocked at Throw 7  Barrier  Stasis Unlocked at Barrier 6  Decryption  Electronics Unlocked at Decryption 4  First Aid  Medicine Unlocked at First Aid 5

Overview

Kaidan brings excellent utility to a squad, possessing not only both tech and biotic talents, but also the fast recharge times needed to deploy them often in a fight thanks to the Sentinel talent. With Throw, Stasis, Neural Shock, Lift, and Sabotage, Kaidan is better at disabling and suppressing enemies than any squad member except Liara. He can absorb most conventional firepower well with Barrier; however, with only light armor at his disposal, damage sources that bypass shields such as melee attacks or rockets should be avoided. His weapon damage is mediocre, having some pistol proficiency but without the benefit of Marksman.

One of Kaidan's other standout features that shouldn't be overlooked is the Medicine talent, which makes Kaidan an effective medic for the squad, significantly reducing the recharge time of First Aid. Especially when playing at low levels or with relatively low grade armor and weapons, the ability to deploy medi-gel often can be the difference between being able to stay in a fight and being forced to retreat (or worse).

Ashley Williams

• Availability: Prologue | First Playable: Prologue: Find the Beacon
• Specialty: Combat
• Weapons: Proficient with assault rifles, sniper rifles, pistols, and shotguns
• Equipment: Human Armor (light, medium, or heavy)

Talents

Class: Soldier  Pistols  Shotguns Unlocked at Pistols 4  Assault Rifles  Sniper Rifles Unlocked at Assault Rifles 7  Combat Armor  First Aid Unlocked at Combat Armor 6  Assault Training  Fitness Unlocked at Assault Training 5

Overview

A true combat specialist, Ashley shoots down everything in sight while having the durability to withstand the return fire. Ashley is the only squadmate that can train with all four weapon types, and the only squadmate other than Garrus who is truly proficient with sniper rifles. Investing a lot of talent points in all four weapon talents usually ends up being a waste; it's a better idea to focus on 2-3 weapon talents at most and funnel the extra points into other talents, the most important being Fitness, unlocking the vitally important Immunity ability. At maximum level, Immunity plus heavy armor will keep Ashley alive through almost anything, enabling her to take point for the squad and counter-snipe dangerous enemies at range.

Avoid being tempted to put too many points into her Soldier class talent; a max level Immunity and a few extra points in First Aid are much more effective in the long run at keeping her healthy during a fight. Equipping Armor Upgrades that reduce cooldown times is a good idea to ensure Immunity can be active as often as possible. In Legendary Edition, it's no longer possible to keep Immunity active for long periods, though Fitness is still useful for the health bonus. Instead, Combat Armor should be prioritized for the passive damage reduction, Shield Boost, and to enable the wearing of heavy armor.

Ashley lacks Electronics or Decryption, so Shepard or the third squad member will need to compensate if those skills are needed. She also possesses no ability to disable enemies in any way other than by knocking them down with a properly modded weapon, or of course, killing them.

Garrus Vakarian

• Availability: Chapter 1 | First Playable: after Citadel: Garrus*
• Specialty: Long-range combat, Tech
• Weapons: Proficient with assault rifles, sniper rifles
• Equipment: Turian Armor (light or medium), Omni-tool

*Optional mission
Talents

Class: Turian Agent  Assault Rifles  Sniper Rifles Unlocked at Assault Rifles 6  Tactical Armor  Assault Training Unlocked at Tactical Armor 5  Decryption  Damping Unlocked at Decryption 4  First Aid  Electronics Unlocked at First Aid 7

Overview

Garrus provides superior damage potential to the squad with both his weaponry and his ability to destroy enemy shields with Overload. Sabotage is also an invaluable tool for suppressing incoming enemy fire, and Damping can suppress enemy tech and biotic abilities. Empowering his tech skills also ensures the party can access any hackable object. The only other dedicated sniper aside from Ashley, his Turian Agent class talent enables Garrus to become the best marksman on the team, but his damage and versatility do come with some downsides. He possesses no real ability to totally disable or knock down enemies aside from what his weapon fire may do, and he lacks the protections afforded by Barrier, Immunity, or heavy armor. In battle, keep Garrus in the back line away from sources of damage that can overwhelm or bypass his shields while the rest of the party disables any major threats, or failing that, tanks the incoming damage.

Urdnot Wrex

• Availability: Chapter 1 | First Playable: after Citadel: Wrex*
• Specialty: Close combat, Biotics
• Weapons: Proficient with assault rifles, shotguns
• Equipment: Krogan Armor (light, medium, or heavy), Biotic amp

*Optional mission
Talents

Class: Krogan Battlemaster  Assault Rifles  Shotguns Unlocked at Assault Rifles 5  Combat Armor  Fitness Unlocked at Combat Armor 4  Warp  Throw Unlocked at Warp 7  Barrier  Stasis Unlocked at Barrier 6

Overview

With access to Immunity, Barrier, and heavy armor, Wrex is by far and away the most resilient squad member, excelling at damage-sponging for the team in almost any situation. His Krogan Battlemaster class talent can also make him highly resistant to being knocked down by forceful enemy attacks such as melees, making him the perfect candidate for taking on his own kind in battle without falling (literally). His weapons training and biotics make Wrex far more than just a meat shield. He is the only squadmate other than Liara who can utilize Warp to soften up hard targets, and Throw and Stasis give him some ability to put enemies out of action as well. His only major failing is a total lack of tech skills including First Aid, so the rest of the party has to pick up the slack in that area if needed.

Tali'Zorah nar Rayya

• Availability: Chapter 1 | First Playable: end of Citadel: Expose Saren
• Specialty: Tech, Anti-synthetic, Combat
• Weapons: Proficient with shotguns, pistols
• Equipment: Quarian Armor (light), Omni-tool

Talents

Class: Quarian Machinist  Pistols  Shotguns Unlocked at Pistols 6  Basic Armor  First Aid Unlocked at Basic Armor 5  Electronics  Damping Unlocked at Electronics 4  Decryption  Hacking Unlocked at Decryption 7

Overview

Tali is the tech specialist of the team, possessing not only the full suite of Overload, Sabotage, and Damping, but AI Hacking as well, which aside from making her devastatingly effective versus the geth, reduces the cooldown times of the other three abilities to the point where at high level and with the right gear, Tali can be using all of them almost constantly. Like Garrus, Tali lacks the protections afforded by Barrier, Immunity, or heavy armor and must rely on her shield for survival, which luckily is above average thanks to her Electronics, Basic Armor, and Quarian Machinist talents. Despite her ability to train with shotguns, the close-range nature of the weapon means it may be better to focus on pistol training instead as Tali's light protections make her vulnerable especially to shield-bypassing attacks.

In the very early part of the game when characters are at low levels, Tali can be used as a locksmith for opening secured objects, giving other party members freedom to spec into more combat-oriented abilities immediately. Tali is the only squad member for whom Electronics has no prerequisite.

Liara T'Soni

• Availability: Chapter 2 | First Playable: after Find Liara T'Soni
• Specialty: Biotics
• Weapons: No special proficiency
• Equipment: Human Armor (light), Omni-tool, Biotic amp

Talents

Class: Asari Scientist  Throw  Lift Unlocked at Throw 6  Warp  Singularity Unlocked at Warp 7  Barrier  Stasis Unlocked at Barrier 5  First Aid  Electronics Unlocked at First Aid 4

Overview

Her Singularity talent alone makes Liara unparalleled at disabling groups of enemies, making them easy prey for the rest of the squad; having access to the full range of other biotic talents as well is icing on the cake. The only thing that really limits Liara's potential is the amount of points she can pump into her biotics; the priority after Singularity should be Asari Scientist to maximize her recharge times, with the added party-wide benefit of reducing First Aid's recharge time. Lift is also a must-have ability for disabling crowds, and at max level it can affect the toughest enemies in the game. Warp, while excellent for softening up hard targets for the guns of the squad to finish off, should not be prioritized for point allocation over abilities that can disable dangerous foes.

If her unmatched biotic prowess wasn't enough, Liara can also level up her Electronics talent to gain access to Overload for stripping shields from enemies. Unfortunately, due to a limitation in the game's UI, if Liara learns all of her actively usable biotic abilities, Overload becomes hidden in the HUD/Power Wheel. In that situation, Liara will only be able to use Overload if the Squad Power Usage option is set to "Active". One way to avoid this is to invest no points in the Stasis talent—though it should be noted that once all of her abilities are at high levels and her gear is optimized, Liara can spam them so often that keeping Squad Power Usage on "Active" is practically required to unlock her full potential.

Talent Reference Table

See also: Talents#Talents Chart: NPC Squadmates

Key: ✓= Starting, ● = Unlockable, x = Starting Ability w/ Extra Point
	Squad Member	Ashley	Wrex	Garrus	Tali	Liara	Kaidan
	Class Talent	Soldier	Krogan Battlemaster	Turian Agent	Quarian Machinist	Asari Scientist	Sentinel
	Weapons
	Assault Rifles	✓	✓	✓
	Pistols	✓			✓
	Shotguns	●	●		●
	Sniper Rifles	●		●
	Armor
	Basic Armor				✓
	Combat Armor	x	✓
	Tactical Armor			✓
	Combat
	Assault Training	x		●
	Fitness	●	●
	Tech
	Decryption			x	x		x
	Electronics			●	x	●	●
	Hacking				●
	Damping			●	●
	Biotic
	Barrier		x			✓	✓
	Lift					●	●
	Singularity					●
	Stasis		●			●	●
	Throw		●			x	x
	Warp		x			✓
	Health
	First Aid	●		x	●	x	✓
	Medicine						●