Augmenting equipment | Equipment Mass Effect: Andromeda Guide

In the two previous chapters you learned how to get blueprints and crafting materials required to create them but also how the crafting process looks. Creating equipment gives you a rather good amount of options but augmenting it allows you to fully customize weapons or armor parts so that they can suit your style.

Augments are special items that can boost stats of your weapons and armor parts but some of them can even completely change the way in which they work. Weapon augments are a good example - they can change the projectiles so, for example, an assault rifle can change into a grenade launcher, a sniper rifle can shoot powerful homing missiles and a shotgun can shoot plasma. Similar things happen with armor parts. It is best seen in the case of leg armor where augments can boost the melee damage performed while in air - they can deal additional damage (fire, electricity) or freeze you enemies. As you can easily notice this completely changes the way in which weapons and armor parts work giving you much more options.

A Weapon or an armor part can have up to 4 augment slots.

You can augment every weapon or armor part but there is a small catch. You can only install them in items that you made yourself - augments can't be installed in acquired armor parts or weapons.

In order to install an Augment you must select Development screen that can be accessed from a Research Center, select the item that you want (weapon or armor part) and then press the button on the bottom of the screen to augment said item - in the picture above you can see a crafted weapon with four Augments. Now you only have to craft that item. Your unique weapon or armor part is ready to use.

If you want to use augments you should remember about a few things:

• Develop all Milky Way, Heleus and the Remnant Augments as quickly as possible because they give you the access to powerful and unique options while modifying your equipment. All of them can be found in Research Center, the Research tab.
• Buy Augments from merchants. Most of the merchants in the game sell weak weapons and armor parts so there is no point in buying them. This allows you to quickly save up a lot of Credits - you can spend them on Augments which in turn allows you to create powerful items.
• Think twice before you install an Augment in a weapon. Changing your assault rifle into a grenade launcher can be tempting but this change greatly reduces weapon's reach (grenades descend after they are shot) which completely changes the way in which that weapon works. The same goes for sniper rifles - what is the point of a weapon that can shoot exploding plasma projectiles that deals an absurd amount of damage if those projectiles won't even reach your enemies?
• When augmenting armor and weapons focus on those that can boost your character. There is no point in investing in Augments that give you shield bonuses if the survival of your character is based on health points and damage reduction.
• Remember that during dismantling process of an item with Augments you get back all of them. This means that you can experiment without any problems. But remember to not sell a weapon that has Augments because you won't get them back!