Best bonus for a vanguard

[ShockerCyclone]

So I'm going to make another attempt but a can't decide on a bonus power. In ME3 Fortification sounds great as it give damage protection and a melee boost when purged and since I'm going for a melee heavy build I thought that would be good.

In ME2 Fortification does grant a damage protection bonus but since it's a combat power there's no cooldown bonus. So should I take barrier for the bonus or stick with fortification for continuity. I'm playing on casual btw.

[[JP] getrad]

In casual mode, it shouldn't matter what bonus you take. You could almost melee everything to death.

If you want to use a defensive power, use Geth Shield Boost, not Fort or Barrier.

The best bonus power for Vanguard is Slam. A single point allows you to trigger warp explosions, and it has an ultra-fast cooldown which is the lifeblood of all ME2 Vanguards.

Running a party of Thane and Miranda is also very helpful to this end, allowing the Vanguard to make rapid forward progress.

[ShockerCyclone]

Putting that off for now. I'm trying for the asari ally achievement. I needed to get some power achievements anyway for future playthroughs.

[MENACING!]

So the question is if the cooldown bonus is needed in a casual run? The answer is no, take Fortification if you like it and want continuity.

If you want real advice, don't take any. Biotic Charge recharges your shields, takes you at shotgun range, and damages/staggers enemies all with a 4 sec cooldown compared to the massive 12 from Barrier or Fortification. It's easily spammable especially in ME3 where Vanguards are literal gods with even less cooldown (Biotic Charge > Nova and immediately charge again).

[a_mouse]

Stasis is fantastic. Best at level 1, so it doesn't take away points from other powers. Heavy charge, squad cryo ammo, pull field, champion, and go to town:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2SztJFG7XI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCvQUCJwS_U

Originally posted by ShockerCyclone:

So I'm going to make another attempt but a can't decide on a bonus power. In ME3 Fortification sounds great as it give damage protection and a melee boost when purged and since I'm going for a melee heavy build I thought that would be good.

In ME2 Fortification does grant a damage protection bonus but since it's a combat power there's no cooldown bonus. So should I take barrier for the bonus or stick with fortification for continuity. I'm playing on casual btw.