Gear

GEAR

Starting Equipment

Adept

M-3 Predator or M4 Shuriken
Omni-Blade or Monomolecular Blade
Stock Light Armor

Engineer

M-3 Predator, or M-4 Shuriken, or M-8 Avenger
Omni-Taser, Omni-Blade, or Omni-Torch
Stock Light Armor or Stock Medium Armor

Infiltrator

M-3 Predator, M-4 Shuriken, or M-92 Mantis
Omni-Taser, Omni-Blade, or Monomolecular Blade
Stock Light Armor

Sentinel

M-3 Predator, M-4 Shuriken, or M-8 Avenger
Omni-Blade, Omni-Hammer, Monomolecular Blade, or Riot Shield
Stock Light Armor, Stock Medium Armor, or Stock Heavy Armor

Soldier

Choose two from M-3 Predator, M-4 Shuriken, M-8 Avenger, M-92 Mantis, and M-23 Katana
Omni-Blade or Omni-Hammer
Stock Light Armor, Stock Medium Armor, or Stock Heavy Armor

Vanguard

M-3 Predator, M-4 Shuriken, or M-23 Katana
Omni-Blade, Omni-Hammer, Monomolecular Blade, or Riot Shield
Stock Light Armor or Stock Medium Armor

Weapons

Weapon Properties
Many weapons have special properties related to their use, as shown in the Weapons List

Weapons like most equipment have four separate Rarities.

Common (Black) are the most common and easily acquired, all starting weapons are of common quality. Common is also easily buy able after the game starts.
Uncommon (Green) may be purchased but at a price or acquired from looted corpses.
Rare (Blue) Only purchasable by special access or acquired via looted corpses.
Spectre (Purple) extremely restricted to only those with special Spectre access,or acquired via looted corpses.

Weapon Proficiency
You must be proficient with a weapon type to add your proficiency modifier to the attack roll. There are 7 distinct weapon types and all weapons fall into one of the following types.

Assault Rifles. The most common weapons of the military. These are generally medium-range weapons that deal average damage with a high heat capacity.
Heavy Pistols. The most common gun type in the Mass Effect universe. Simple but effective.
Sub-machine Guns (SMGs). Single-handed, rapid fire weapons that have a short range.
Shotguns. Close-range, high-damage blasts.
Sniper Rifles. Precision instruments meant for long range or stealthy combat.
Melee. Used in close-quarters combat. Damage resulting from melee weapon attacks by-pass shields.
Heavy Weapons. Specialty weapons that deal massive amounts of damage. Heavy Weapons do not have a proficiency requirement

Thermal Clips (Ammo)

It was discovered that, in an age of kinetic barriers, most firefights were won by the side who could put the most rounds downrange the fastest. As such, detachable heat sinks, known as thermal clips, were adopted first by the geth, and shortly thereafter by organic arms manufacturers. Ammunition may never be a concern with modern arms, but the availability of thermal clips is; weapons without thermal clips have nowhere to disperse their heat and are incapable of firing. Luckily, thermal clips litter modern battlefields and can be obtained from fallen enemies or found around the environment.

Using Thermal Clips
When you reload your weapon, you expend a thermal clip.

Armor Capacity: 10
All armor comes standard with 10 thermal clip slots. Some armor and mods allow you to increase this amount.

Weapon Heat
Each Weapon has a different Heat or shots before you have to reload. Example M-8 Avenger has 9 heat, so it has 9 shots before a reload.

Resupplying: ~100 credits
Thermal clips are easily looted from almost every enemy wielding a weapon. However, you can also resupply all of your thermal clips at a gun shop or military depot for about 100 credits.

Heavy Weapons
Heavy weapons require charges to be used. A charge is a generic term that can refer to a missile, energy source, or raw material.

Resupplying: ~5,000 credits
If you’ve got your hands on a heavy weapon, you’re either a military specialist or damn lucky you survived the battle. It’s not easy resupplying your charges. You’ll need to have some serious military or black market connections. If military, you might get special permission to keep the weapon and granted a steady stream of charges (once per long rest). That’s between you and your Galaxy Master.

Otherwise, you’ll have to pay a pretty penny on the black-market to recharge your Heavy Weapon (5,000-7,000 credits for a complete resupply of charges). In most cases, it’s easier to scavenge or steal ammo. Or simply leave the damn thing where you found it.

Armor

To survive in the galaxy, your character needs to wear armor. Not only does armor abate damage from extremely powerful, futuristic weapons but armor also supplies shield points, also called shields (outlined below). Luckily, almost all garments in the mass effect world provide some form of protection. Diaphanous night-gowns can even provide a modicum of protection. Thus, in Mass Effect 5e, almost all operatives are wearing armor and are afforded shield points, unless the player or GM explicitly states your character is not wearing armor.

Armor Proficiency Just like 5th edition, anyone can put on armor. However, only those proficient in the armor type know how to wear it effectively. Your class gives you proficiency with certain types of armor (light, medium, or heavy). If you are wearing 2 or more pieces of armor that you lack proficiency with, you have disadvantage on any ability check, saving throw, or Attack roll that involves Strength or Dexterity. If you are wearing 4 pieces of armor you lack proficiency with, you cannot cast spells.

Armor Class (AC) Armor protects its wearer from attacks. The armor you wear determines your base Armor Class.

Shield Points Shield points are a special type of regenerating hit points that protect your from fast-moving projectiles and provide advantage in certain situations against some tech and biotic powers.

Shield devices
All armor chest pieces come standard with 5 shield points and a regen of 5. However, more advanced mods and armor sets can provide additional shields. Additionally, personal shield generators are available which can provide shields without the operative equipping armor.

Damage
When you have shield points and take damage, the shield points are lost first, and any leftover damage carries over to your normal hit points. For example, if you have 5 shield points and take 7 damage, you lose the shield points and then take 2 damage. Some abilities “bypass” your shield points. In these instances, you subtract damage from your hit points leaving your shield points unchanged.

Melee Weapons
All damage resulting from a melee weapon attacks bypass shield points.

Shield Regeneration
Your armor’s shield points are managed by the onboard VI, which is taxed during combat as it manages other systems: your omni-tool or biotic implant, HUD, etc. Thus, once a threat is properly neutralized, or you are able to temporarily remove yourself from the fray, your VI can route power back into your shields for immediate regeneration.

Out of combat
Your shield points regenerate completely on a short or long rest or when combat has ended for at least 1 minute.

In combat
To attempt to regenerate your shields during combat, you must attempt to remove yourself from the chaos, meeting one of the following conditions on your turn:

Take the Hide action
Take the Dodge action
Take the Disengage action
Have full cover at the end of your turn
Then, if you take no damage until the start of your next turn, your shields begin to regenerate and you gain shield points equal to your armor’s regen stat. You continue to gain shield points equal to your regen stat at the start of each of your turns. If you take damage or you reach your maximum shield point capacity, the regeneration ends.

Lightning Damage
All shields are vulnerable to lightning damage. In the event that a lighting attack removes all shield points, the following steps outline how to divvy up the damage:

Double the lightning damage done to the target.
Subtract the shield points from the total damage.
Reduce the remaining damage by half
Apply the new amount to the target’s hit points.

Mix & Match
Unlike D&D 5th edition, armor in Mass Effect 5e can be mixed between armor placements on the body. There are 4 armor placements: Head, Chest, Arms, and Legs.

Your base AC is 10 and each piece of armor provides an AC bonus depending on its type and placement as listed in the Armor / AC table. Additionally, there are bonuses and limitations for the combination of armor types you are wearing, explained in the Armor Bonuses and Limitations table.

Heavier Armor. Heavier armor interferes with the wearer’s ability to move quickly, stealthily, and freely. If the Armor Bonuses and Limitations table shows “Str 12” or “Str 16” in the Strength column for an armor type, the armor reduces the wearer’s speed by 4m unless the wearer has a Strength score equal to or higher than the listed score.

For simplicity’s sake, you cannot mix armor within placements. I.e., you cannot have a heavy piece of on your right arm and a light piece of armor on your left.

Placement/Type	Light	Medium	Heavy
Chest	+1	+2	+3
Arms	+0	+1	+2
Legs	+0	+1	+2
Head	Unless otherwise listed headware provides no bonus

Armor Bonuses and Limitations

If you are wearing…	Dexterity Bonus	Minimum Strength	Stealth
..Three or more pieces of Heavy armor	none	16	disadvantage
..two pieces of Heavy armor	none	15	disadvantage
..one piece of Heavy armor	none	13	disadvantage
..three or more pieces of Medium armor	Max +2 bonus from Dexterity modifier	13	disadvantage
..two pieces of Medium armor	Max +2 bonus from Dexterity modifier	12
..one piece of Medium armor	Max +2 bonus from Dexterity modifier
..Light or no armor	Add Dexterity modifier to your AC
Body Armor is considered three pieces (arms, chest, and legs)

Variant Encumbrance
If you are using the Variant: Encumbrance rules, use the Armor Piece Weights table to determine the total weight of the armor you’re wearing.

Armor Piece Weight

Placement/Type	Light	Medium	Heavy
Chest	3	6	10
Arms	1	2	3
Legs	1	2	3
Head	2	2	2

Mods
Armor and Weapon mods allow you to upgrade your equipment, providing powerful bonuses. Weapon and armor mods have their own costs. Operatives who are proficient with Tinker’s tools can craft mods but most can be purchased from your local equipment shop. Once you’ve acquired your mod, you can install it yourself (if you’re proficient with Armorsmith’s, Tailor’s, or Weaponsmith’s tools) or you can have an equipment shop install it for you.

Mods are not available yet

Medi-gel

Medi-gel (medical gel) is an all-purpose medicinal salve combining an anaesthetic and clotting agent used by paramedics, EMTs, and military personnel, produced by the Sirta Foundation. It heals various wounds and ailments, instantly sealing injuries against infection and allowing for rapid healing by having the gel grip tight to flesh until subjected to a frequency of ultrasound. It is sealable against liquids – most notably blood – as well as contaminants and gases.

Using Medi-gel
As an action, use a medi-gel pack on yourself or a willing creature within 2m. The target regains hit points equal to the medi-gel’s potency as listed in the Medi-gel Types table.

Armor Capacity: 4
All armor comes standard with a capacity for 4 medi-gel. Some armor and mods allow you to increase this amount.

Resupplying: varies
As long as you’re in a relatively civilized environment, you can easily resupply your medi-gel at a medical facility. However, you would need insider or black-market connections to get Superior or Ultimate medi-gel. Since Ultimate medi-gel is so rare, the cost is entirely dependent on the people you know, favors your owed, or ability to break into a medical facility.

Type	Rarity	Cost	HP Regained
Standard	Common	~200 credits	2d4=2
Enhanced	Uncommon	~500 credits	4d4+4
Superior	Rare	~1,500 credits	8d4+8
Ultimate	Very Rare	?	10d4+20

Grenades & Mines
Grenades and mines provide various types of explosive mechanics to use in the heat of combat.
Armor Capacity: 2
All armor comes standard with 2 grenade slots. Some armor and mods allow you to increase this amount.
Resupplying: ~500 credits per grenade
Grenades are a military resource, so, depending on your campaign setting they might be an uncommon or rare item. If your character is part of a military outfit, you can resupply every time you return to base (or to your ship). Otherwise, finding grenades may be a bit more difficult, requiring you to barter, steal, or loot them.

A recommended cost is 500-1000 credits per grenade or mine.

Higher Marks
Grenades and Mines can range in power from Mark I to Mark X. Each grenade description describes the effect of higher marks. It is recommended that each higher mark costs at least 1.5 times more credits than the previous mark:

Each rank of grenade or mine is more difficult to acquire which will effect its cost, along with the type of grenade it is.

I: 500
II: 750
III: 1,250
IV: 1,800
V: 2,500
and beyond

Omni-gel
Omni-gel is a technological material that can be obtained by breaking down unwanted items, such as weapons, armor, and upgrades. Doing so will usually give an amount of omni-gel based on the item that was dismantled.

Equipment	Yield
Armor & Weapon Mods, Tools & Kits	1
Heavy Pistols, SMG’s, and Head, Leg and Arm armor	3
Assault Rifles, Shotguns, Sniper Rifles, and Chest Armor	6
Heavy Weapon	10

Omni-gel is composed of common, reusable industrial plastics, ceramics, and light alloys kept in a semi-molten state. It is designed for use with omni-tools to do electronics and decryption work, make general repairs, and even craft new upgrades. Each “charge” of omni-gel is stored in a canister and is worth 1,000 credits.

Tools and Kits
A tool helps you to do something you couldn’t otherwise do, such as craft or repair an item, forge a document, or hack a security system. Your race, class, background, or feats give you proficiency with certain tools. Proficiency with a tool allows you to add your proficiency bonus to any ability check you make using that tool. Tool use is not tied to a single ability since proficiency with a tool represents broader knowledge of its use.

Omni-tool Programs

Omni-tools are handheld devices that combine a computer microframe, sensor analysis pack, and minifacturing fabricator. The fabrication module can rapidly assemble small three-dimensional objects from common, reusable industrial plastics, ceramics, and light alloys. This allows for field repairs and modifications to most standard items, as well as the reuse of salvaged equipment.

Most omni-tools come with a standard set of functionality, including scanning, remote interfacing, and some fabricator designs. However, there exist in the galaxy a number of advanced omni-tool programs that are not available for the general population’s consumption. These programs tend to be of military design, experimental hacks or deprecated programs that have been scrubbed from the exonet.

Most Omni-Tool Programs are not available at the start of the game.

Tools and Kits Weights

Item	Light	Weight
Disguise Kit	3 lb
Hacking Tools	2 lb
Medical Kit	3 lb
Tailor’s Tools	3 lb
Thieves’ tools	1 lb
Tinker’s Tools	3 lb + what else you want in it