Mass Effect: Andromeda is out, and players are finally creating their own Ryders and going off on unique journeys across the Andromeda galaxy. Thanks to the skills system and profiles system, it’s easy to create a character suited to whatever kind of play style you want, so let’s check out some great builds for Biotic, Tech and Combat-focused Ryders.

General Character Build Tips

You aren’t locked into one class in Andromeda, so players can upgrade from any skill tree at any time. This means you can create your own hybrid classes and pick whatever skills you want your character to have.

Even if you do want to focus all on one area, it’s still worth checking out the other skill trees. For example, even if you want to focus on being the best Biotic master in Andromeda, you will still be using guns. Putting skill points into the specific gun skills you use, like pistol or assault rifle, will still be highly beneficial for any player.

Only three skills can be used at any time, but skills can be swapped out in favor of other ones. Try experimenting with different skills until you find the combination you like best, then go in and level each skill to it’s maximum power. Also, try tapping the skill use button and holding it down. Many skills have two different uses, depending on how the buttons are pressed.

After hitting Rank 3 on any of the skills, they will start splitting off into two different upgrade paths. You can pick one of the two options for ranks 4 through 6, but you can’t have both. Choose wisely before locking in your choice, or make a save point from before you upgrade, so you can jump back and make any changes to upgrades you didn’t care for.

There is also a player respec station located on the Tempest.

Biotic Build Tips

There are two ways to approach a Biotic build: damaging as many people as possible, or damaging one person heavily. Once you decide on how you want to play, picking the skills to upgrade is easy.

If you want to do crowd control and be able to handle multiple enemies at once, level up the following skills:

• Singularity

• Annihilation

• Backlash

• Shockwave

Singularity is especially helpful if you want to set enemies up for your squadmates to attack. Mixing attacks generally leads to damage combos, which can deal a serious blow to enemies.

For dealing high amounts of damage to a single target, focus on the following skills:

• Pull

• Throw

• Nova

• Lance

• Charge

Many of these skills can be upgraded to affect more than one enemy, if you still are worried about getting overrun.

Tech Build Tips

Tech powers honestly aren’t smart to focus on exclusively, but are great to compliment other skills. They typically are specialized to deal with one type of enemy, making them pretty weak against others. They also tend to have long recharge times, so make sure you know what you want to do before relying too much on these.

If you want to play as a Sniper, Tech is definitely the way to go. The Tactical cloak allows you to become invisible on the battlefield for a short time, meaning you can line shots up much more easily. The Assault Turret skill also creates an additional target for enemies to focus on, drawing attention away from you.

If you want to more easily deal with shielded enemies, Overload is the way to go. If armored enemies are giving you trouble, Incinerate and Flamethrower will help out most. Remember that shielded enemies have the extra blue health bar, while armored enemies have a yellow health bar.

Combat Build Tips

Combat powers are fairly versatile, but many require greater aim than the Biotic and Tech powers. With a heavy focus on guns, it also means taking down specialty enemies, like armored and shielded enemies, can be harder to deal with. However, with proper usage of consumables like Disruptor ammo, many of these problems become much more manageable.

If you do invest in Combat skills, be sure to spend points in the passive skills area. The Combat Fitness skill especially will give you more health and improve your shields, so it’s helpful no matter what play style you pick.

It also helps to focus on the guns you use consistently before leveling up with every weapon. Save your points for the pistol or the shotgun if you find yourself using those more, instead of adding points into something you don’t use as frequently.

Remember to mix and match as many skills as you want to find the right build for you. If you do as many quests as you can, you’ll end up drowning in skill points. Don’t be afraid to experiment a little and try out new combinations. You can always re-do your skill point distribution once back on the Tempest.

For more on Mass Effect: Andromeda, be sure to check out all of our other guides:

• Andromeda Romance Guide

• Andromeda Beginner’s Guide

• Andromeda Multiplayer Guide

• Andromeda Multiple Saves Guide

• Andromeda APEX Rating Guide

• Andromeda Character Import Guide

• Andromeda Trophies List: 56 Challenges For Your Inner Completionist

So what do you think? Are you going to focus on one area, or dabble in all three? Do you like this style of open-ended character building in Mass Effect: Andromeda or the original trilogy’s class system? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.