You can skip Mass Effect: Andromeda's multiplayer with Strike Teams - here's how
As the new Pathfinder for all of humanity in Mass Effect: Andromeda, you are bestowed with the ultimate power of leadership: delegation. If you don't want to hop online to do a multiplayer mission but you still want the single-player campaign rewards, you can just send one of your Strike Teams to do it for you.
Wait, you can do multiplayer… in single player? For a more thorough explanation, here are some in-depth snippets from a Twitter Q&A session with Mass Effect: Andromeda multiplayer producer Fernando Melo and lead designer Ian S. Frazier.
Striking out on your own
On the 6th day of MP-mas, the MP dev team gave to you: Strike Teams. Don't want to play Missions in MP? Send STs out from either SP or MP. pic.twitter.com/s0LlO6pNLkMarch 7, 2017
.@TheAestivation @katerinafm Play Msn: get msn funds & pathfinder loot. Use ST: also get ST xp. Or play MP: also get mp xp/credits.March 7, 2017
@argeesaman @akgeesaman Missions become available periodically and you choose which to do. Or play a custom mission (i.e. Normal mp match).March 7, 2017
@of_somebody @DiscoBabaloo APEX Missions, which are the ST missions that can be played in MP, can be failed and retried. The rest cannot.March 7, 2017
Giving more options
@tmtek haha - SP is still main focus of course, but trying to provide good options for MP players, those that play both, or SP onlyMarch 7, 2017
@shiva_sam_G both, but you'll only get the mission rewards for 1st time completedMarch 7, 2017
@badbohrok it should - you'll still need to be online to manage teams but you wouldn't need to worry about trying to sustain an mp sessionMarch 7, 2017
Assembling your Strike Teams
re Strike Teams - you can recruit/upgrade npc teams that you send on Apex missions in your stead. If successful, you'll get the msn rewards.March 7, 2017
@Frei_Daddy no, they are randomly created but exist as an single squad entityMarch 7, 2017
@frobank It's fairly abstracted, though you do see the rough racial composition of each team.March 7, 2017
Becoming veterans
@RobTheSith @katerinafm yes, they gain xp & level up (and you can upgrade them) for better chance when taking on tougher missionsMarch 7, 2017
@TheRandomGamer Depending on the mission and if they succeed/fail, they may acquire traits that affect their performance in the future.March 7, 2017
@RobTheSith @GambleMike night missions, the all krogan team to a assault mission, etc. Their traits determine what they're good at.March 7, 2017
And some similarities to Dragon Age: Inquisition's War Table
@Metascent very similar - if successful, you get the rewards (and your ST gets its own xp)March 7, 2017
@femshep_com @GambleMike Similar, but add to that a trait mechanic, gear upgrades, and the ability to play key missions yourself in mp. :)March 7, 2017
@Adam_Barling essentially :)March 7, 2017
I'm planning to play a decent amount of multiplayer in Mass: Effect Andromeda, but it's cool to know that the option will be there if I'd rather just tell my Strike Team to do it. Or maybe have my Strike Team deployed in one mission while I'm matchmaking for another…
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I got a BA in journalism from Central Michigan University - though the best education I received there was from CM Life, its student-run newspaper. Long before that, I started pursuing my degree in video games by bugging my older brother to let me play Zelda on the Super Nintendo. I've previously been a news intern for GameSpot, a news writer for CVG, and now I'm a staff writer here at GamesRadar.