So Many Assault Rifles

One of the many things I’ve always liked about the Mass Effect video games is the wide range of weapons at Shepard’s disposal.  In Mass Effect there is a weapon for everyone.  Do you want a pistol, assault rifle, submachine gun, sniper rifle, shot gun, grenade launcher, missile launcher or flamethrower?  It’s not over once you’ve chosen a type of weapon.  Each type of weapon has multiple models for you to choose from.  After you have your weapon and model in Mass Effect 3 you can also choose 2 upgrades among dozens of choices.  Want a scope for your pistol?  No problem.  Want a larger magazine for your sniper rifle?  No problem.

I like assault rifles.  With Mass Effect 3 playing a Vanguard class I can start the game with one!  Lets take a look at three of the more popular assault rifles; the M-8 Avenger, M-96 Mattock and M-55 Argus. 

Avenger:  What can I say, the Avenger is the standard assault rifle of the game and the one you start out with in Mass Effect.  What’s not to like about the Avenger?  It is lightweight. In Mass Effect 3 this is important because you are now weight capped in weapons and as a bonus you incur a power recharge penalty related to weapon rate that can be as much as 200 percent.  That is long wait to recharge in a fight. Once you reach a certain combined weight you can’t carry another.  The Avenger puts out a high-sustained rate of fire and has a low to moderate recoil that results in a mild nose pull.  All the better for keeping rounds on your target.  The Avengers main drawback is, as far as assault rifles go, relatively low damage.  The Avenger makes up for that with a high rate of fire and being able to carry 440 rounds of ammo.  That is the most ammunition holding capability of any assault rifle in the game.  A little bit of damage multiplied by 440 is a great deal of damage.  Looking at the screen and seeing you have 440 rounds makes you feel good.  No worrying about where the next pile of ammo is.  All that ammo comes in handy if you find yourself in one of those fights where ammo is hard to find or get to.  Overall you can’t go wrong with the Avenger on just about any mission.

Argus:  The Argus is new assault rifle for Mass Effect 3.  For the moment you can only get the Argus by purchasing the “Collectors Edition” of Mass Effect 3.  Maybe in the future you will be able to buy it separately or as part of some weapons package.  I was very excited to have the Argus so I used it a great deal at first.  The nice qualities about the Argus are that it puts out some heavy damage.  You can take out Cerberus Guardians pretty easily with the Argus just by shooting their shields.  The Argus fires in three round bursts, which helps you to conserve ammo.  On the negative side the Argus fires in three round bursts because the recoil on this bad boy is ridiculous.  Usually your third round is above your target’s head.  So aim at their feet if you want to get three hits.  It also takes some time to get your point of aim back down after a 3 round burst.  Don’t be afraid to take the Argus because of its recoil. The Argus kills things fast.  Just keep its recoil in mind and move your aim point down after each burst that way you make every shot count.

Mattock:  The Mattock is my favorite assault rifle.  I mix up the weapons I take on missions for variety but always come back to the Mattock.  The Mattock is another high damage assault rifle. The Mattock’s damage is a less than the Argus but much greater than the Avenger.  Another nice characteristic is that the Mattock has little recoil so it is highly accurate.  If you add a recoil dampener to the Mattock then the recoil is almost negligible. The Mattock has a 16 round clip.  Although it is a semi-automatic you can quickly shoot an entire clip into a target without having to re-aim.  Woo-hoo!  Sixteen Mattock rounds brings the pain to any enemy on the receiving end.  On the minus side the Mattock is very heavy weapon.  If you take it on a mission be prepared to not take other weapons to mitigate the weight penalties for having a high combined weapons weight.  Also the Mattock’s standard load is only 64 rounds.  You have to keep your eyes on your fries when using the Mattock.

Of course there are many other assault rifles in the game you can check out and use.  Whatever your tastes you'll find a weapon you like in Mass Effect. What is your favorite assault rifle and why?