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Disambiguous This article is about the assault rifle in Mass Effect 2, Mass Effect 3 and Mass Effect: Andromeda. For the assault rifle in Mass Effect, see Elkoss Combine. For the sniper rifle in Mass Effect, see Hahne-Kedar.

The M-8 Avenger is an assault rifle in Mass Effect 2, Mass Effect 3 and Mass Effect: Andromeda.

Mass Effect 2[]

Description[]

A common, versatile, military-grade assault rifle. Accurate when fired in short bursts, and deadly when fired on full auto. The Avenger is effective at penetrating shields, armor, and biotic barriers.

The modular design and inexpensive components of the Avenger make it a favorite of military groups and mercenaries alike. The avenger [sic] has a reputation for being tough, reliable, easy to use, and easy to upgrade.

Manufactured by the Elkoss Combine.

Acquisition[]

This is the default assault rifle acquired during the Freedom's Progress mission at the beginning of the game, provided the player is a Soldier. This weapon can be acquired later on for other classes by accepting assault rifle specialization on the Collector Cruiser.

Squad Use[]

This weapon can be used by Garrus, Grunt, Legion, Samara/Morinth, and Zaeed. Squadmates deal 45% less damage than Shepard.

Player Notes[]

  • The Avenger's main drawback is its low damage per shot, as this forces the player to remain out of cover for longer than with weapons like the M-96 Mattock.
  • The Avenger is not very accurate at longer ranges but is fairly stable, with less recoil than the M-9 Tempest SMG but more recoil than the M-15 Vindicator Battle Rifle.
  • With fully automatic fire and the largest ammo capacity of any assault rifle except the M-76 Revenant, the Avenger can be a decent weapon for protracted fights against large numbers of weaker enemies.
  • The Assault Rifle Accuracy (Targeting VI) upgrade reduces the bullet spread, making the Avenger more effective at medium ranges.
  • Before researching Assault Rifle Accuracy, the most accurate way to fire is to repeatedly press and release the trigger. This minimizes crosshair spread and muzzle climb.

Mass Effect 3[]

Description[]

The Avenger is a common, versatile, military-grade assault rifle manufactured by the Elkoss Combine. It's accurate when fired in short bursts, and deadly when fired on full auto. The modular design and inexpensive components of the Avenger make it a favorite of military groups and mercenaries alike. The rifle has a reputation for being tough, reliable, easy to use, and easy to upgrade.

Acquisition[]

Singleplayer

The M-8 Avenger can be found during Prologue: Earth, next to the radio. Shepard picks it up in a cutscene if the player does not do so.

Multiplayer

The M-8 Avenger is one of the five starter weapons. Upgrades are randomly rewarded through purchases of item packs. The Avenger is categorized as common.

Player Notes[]

  • The Avenger deals low damage but is very light especially at higher levels, making it passable for a power-focused character.
  • The Avenger's standout features aside from low weight are a decent rate of fire, a large amount of spare ammunition, moderate accuracy, and a relatively fast reload. However, as one of the default starting weapons in both single-player and multiplayer, it is fairly weak in general and should be ditched in favor of alternatives as soon as they become available.

Mass Effect: Andromeda[]

Description[]

A common and versatile assault rifle. The M-8 Avenger's modular design and inexpensive components made it a favorite of military groups and mercenaries in the Milky Way. Many Avengers were acquired for Andromeda Initiative security forces. The sturdy rifle has a reputation for being reliable and easy to use.

Features[]

The S variant features boosted damage, clip size, rate of fire, and max ammo compared to the regular multiplayer Avenger. Most of these were tweaked in the final multiplayer update. Reload time also decreased from 1.5 seconds to 1.4 seconds.

Previous balance changes mostly increased the S variant's damage, with one update changing the base weapon's damage.

Strategies[]

Stats[]

Singleplayer
Rank Damage Rate of Fire Max Clip Size Max Ammo Accuracy Weight
I 30 525 30 300 52 25
II 32 525 30 308 56 24
III 35 525 30 317 58 22
IV 37 525 30 325 60 21
V 39 525 30 333 61 19
VI 42 525 30 342 62 18
VII 44 525 30 350 63 17
VIII 46 525 30 358 64 15
IX 49 525 30 367 64 14
X 51 525 30 375 65 13

Multiplayer I-X
Rank Damage Rate of Fire Max Clip Size Max Ammo Accuracy Weight
I 39 525 30 300 52 25
II 40 525 30 308 56 24
III 42 525 30 317 58 22
IV 43 525 30 325 60 21
V 45 525 30 333 61 19
VI 46 525 30 342 62 18
VII 48 525 30 350 63 17
VIII 49 525 30 358 64 15
IX 50 525 30 367 64 14
X 52 525 30 375 65 13

Multiplayer S
Rank Damage Rate of Fire Max Clip Size Max Ammo Accuracy Weight
I 82 550 40 315 52 25
II 83 550 40 323 56 24
III 85 550 40 332 58 22
IV 86 550 41 340 60 21
V 88 550 41 350 61 19
VI 90 550 42 359 62 18
VII 92 550 42 367 63 17
VIII 94 550 43 375 64 15
IX 96 550 43 384 64 14
X 98 550 44 394 65 13

Development[]

Rank Rd icon milkyway orange Blueprint Unlocked Omni-gel canister icon Omni-Gel Canister Iron icon Iron Cadmium icon Cadmium Element zero icon Element Zero MEA Augmentation Slot For Tables Augmentation Slots
I Level 1 20 80 40 10 0
II Level 6 20 90 40 10 2
III Level 11 20 100 50 10 2
IV Level 21 30 110 50 10 2
V Level 31 30 130 60 20 2
VI Level 41 30 140 70 20 2
VII Level 51 30 145 70 20 2
VIII Level 61 40 150 70 20 2
IX Level 71 40 155 70 20 2
X Level 81 40 160 80 20 2
Total N/A 300 1260 600 160 N/A

Trivia[]

  • Many cutscenes show Shepard and other squad members using the Avenger, even if they don't have it equipped in-game.
  • Weapons Lockers show an Avenger picture as their icon.
  • The appearance is based on the default Hahne-Kedar Lancer assault rifle in Mass Effect – the original Elkoss Combine "Avenger" rifle had the same 3D model but a red texture without the M8 markings.
  • The side of the rifle's scope is emblazoned with the words "Hard Lock." One place where it is easy to see this is at the end of Mass Effect 2, when Joker is providing covering fire, shooting down the Collector infantry.
  • The N7 Valkyrie is a variant of the Avenger.
  • Like the Mattock and Vindicator, the Avenger's integrated scope was removed from its model in Mass Effect 3, likely to avoid looking redundant if the player adds a scope mod. This is a purely visual difference and has no gameplay effect.
  • There are two versions of the Avenger seen in Mass Effect 3: one similar in appearance to its previous incarnation, carried by NPCs, and one without the built-in scope, carried by Shepard and the squad.
  • In Mass Effect Galaxy, Jacob Taylor is using a variant of the M-8 Avenger with no heat mechanism or thermal clips.
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