With the sheer freedom players have to make a viable build, there will always be some level of disagreement as to which tactical items are the best in The Ascent and which ones are the worst. Some at the bottom of the list might work perfectly in one build and some at the top might be utter nonsense in another build. So why bother to rank them at all?
Even with ideal builds, some tactical items are the star of the show, while others do their best to keep pace. It's alright to have a supporting cast member, every player needs one or two gadgets that exist to amplify other abilities, but this doesn't mean it's alright to ignore the superstars. Some tactical gear takes center stage while others should probably stay behind the scenes.
10 Pocket Mech
Not to be too negative regarding the Pocket Mech, it provides a suit of armor with a built-in mini-gun. When it is destroyed, the player pops out with all their life intact. And they can gain tactical points while in the suit, opening up the possibility to chain Pocket Mechs back-to-back.
But for being the most expensive tactical skill in the game, there are some legitimate drawbacks. The suit itself is slow and using the evasion roll is disabled while inside. And though the minigun is decent, it's certainly not as strong as a fully upgraded player weapon. There is a lot of love and hate for the game and the Pocket Mech really embodies this love/hate dynamic.
9 Shockwave Grenade
The Shockwave Grenade is cheap and that is certainly a plus. It's the easiest cast of all the tactical gear, requiring only 250 to charge up. It deals no damage, but the moderate stun it applies comes in handy.
But what beginners learn about the game quickly is that time spent letting enemies live is time that they build up forces. The stun is fine and all, but while one group of enemies is stunned, another two are spawning somewhere else. It's time better spent shooting.
8 G4 Frag Grenade
The visual effects on each of the frag grenades are spectacular, but the damage is sometimes underwhelming. No frag grenade embodies this weakness more than the G4 Frag Grenade.
Frankly, players who interrupt their shooting to toss this will notice a substantial drop-off in damage. Some might think about using it against enemies with shields, but by the time they come up, it would take four or five direct hits from this to actually polish them off. Sell it.
7 G6 Fragmore Grenade
The radius is small and the targeting is difficult (like with most grenades), but what saves this from being a bottom-tier option is the fire damage that comes along with it.
Crafty players will be able to toss down the G6 Fragmore Grenade at a tactical location that enemies are forced to run through. This will set them ablaze. The damage isn't incredible, but for a moderate charge cost of 550, it feels balanced.
6 GX-43 "Sweet Justice"
There are a couple of drawbacks to the "Sweet Justice." Its radius is small and it lifts enemies in the air, which often makes it impossible to target them with traditional weaponry.
However, this is mostly offset by the sheer damage it causes, which will outright kill most average mobs. And a great build that utilizes a rocket launcher can cause some splash damage to these suspended enemies.
5 G92 EMP Grenade
Don't make any bones about it, mechanical enemies are the toughest opponents in the game. Whether it's a gigantic mech, automated sentries, or the Megarachnoid itself, these are serious stumbling blocks for most players.
The G92 EMP Grenade isn't a weapon to use all of the time, but it's handy in the moments that matter the most. The damage to organic targets is nothing exciting, but it saves the day by shutting down the toughest opponent on the battlefield.
4 GR8 Fragmost Grenade
The weakest part about grenades is that they are so hard to land. The GR8 Fragmost was designed in a way that compensates for this weakness. The area of effect is nothing short of breathtaking.
And the damage is nothing to sneer at, either. This can be a great option for builds that don't routinely use explosives or area damage in their cycles. It can clear out half of the map, no exaggeration, with a single toss.
3 Statis Drone
Drones get the nod over grenades because of how quickly enemies move in The Ascent. Unless grenades are one of the fixes the game might be considering, then the abilities that target enemies on their own will be supreme for a while to come.
The Statis Drone stuns a target, allowing the player to kill it, then that target explodes, killing anything around it, and then, for its final act, finds another target to stun so that the process can be repeated.
2 AT4 Auto Turret
While it's tough to top a mobile stun drone, the AT4 Auto Turret adds an element to the game that has no substitute. It acts as an effective tank, doing a better job getting enemy attention than anything in the game, including augmentations that are designed to keep an enemy's attention.
And the damage is filthy. Careful, it's capable of friendly fire and just a second in front of it can knock the Indent out cold. but that's a testament to its greatness. If it can kill the player in a second, imagine what it does to enemies.
1 Rejuv Field
After understanding how armor works, it can be understandably frustrating that the game really wasn't designed for somebody to "tank." The enemies just deal too much damage, even to the best armor.
But Rejuv Field feels like downright invincibility. The game is balanced based on slowly losing life and having a field that rapidly heals the Indent completely ruins this balance in the player's favor. Yes, it heals enemies in the radius as well, but they won't get nearly the benefit that the player does out of it.