Krogans regenerate health superfast

I'm playing through ME1 on Veteran difficulty. So far, every Krogan I've fought, battlemaster or not, regenerates health up to full in two or three seconds when they are knocked down and nearly dead. If I'm not quick to unload my assault rifle on them, they stand up with full health and shields. I actually timed it and from near death to full health and shields, it took no more than three seconds.

Is this intended? It makes battles with krogans a bit hairy.

Solution 1:

Yes - it is intentional that Krogans regenerate their health

It varies depending on difficulty but the game was designed in this manner and does have a solution to the problem you're experiencing.

The way that the weapons systems were designed in Mass Effect was so that you used particular types of ammunition depending on the opponents you were fighting. Ammunitions were segregated into groups which provided bonuses against certain types of enemies but were weaker against others.

In addition to the weapons systems, there are the other combat systems - in particular, biotics. The "Warp" ability will prevent a Krogan from regenerating their health due to it causing damage over time. This ability is only available to you as Shepard if you are an Adept or a Vanguard, however, Liara and Wrex both have the potential to train this ability.

Basically you're going to want to be equipping one of the following ammunition types when fighting Krogan, to prevent them from regenerating their health during combat;

• Incendiary Rounds (low level fire damage over time)
• Inferno Rounds (high level fire damage over time)
• Polonium Rounds (high level toxic ammunition, poisons enemies)

Here is a full breakdown of each ammunition type and the enemies it was intended to be used against;

Anti-armour ammunitions

This included "Armour Piercing Rounds" and "Tungsten Rounds". These were effective against synthetic enemies (ie: the Geth).

Anti-Biotic/Anti-Tech ammunition

Radioactive rounds cause radiation sickness in targets, which is a condition, rather than a damage over time effect. The effects of this condition cause disruptions in deploying biotic and tech based abilities, which makes them good against Asari.

Anti-organic ammunitions

This included "Anti Personnel Rounds" and "Shredder Rounds" and provide a damage bonus versus organic enemies with no downsides. They're especially effective primarily against living enemies that have a red health bar, for example: humans, Rachni, Thorian creepers.

Cold/Frost ammunitions

This includes "Cryo Rounds" and "Snowblind Rounds" - these ammunitions reduce your target's accuracy and can snap freeze your enemies in place, allowing you to shatter them with additional damage or biotics. While these ammunitions reduce your rate of fire, they allow you to fire shotguns, pistols and assault rifles indefinitely due to the fact these weapons will not overheat while firing this ammunition.

Explosive ammunition

High explosive rounds detonate on impact, with an area of effect and additional damage as force, providing the potential for knockback. However, this ammunition also causes rapid overheating of the weapon used (with the exception of when using the Carnage ability).

High impact ammunition

Hammerhead and Sledgehammer rounds provide increases in force like explosive ammunition without the side effect of additional weapon overheating. Sledgehammer rounds in particular can knock an enemy completely off their feet. As a bonus, Sledgehammer rounds also provide a toxic effect in the form of instant damage. While this won't have a poisoning effect that prevents enemies that can regenerate their health from regenerating, it does cause additional damage.

Incendiary ammunitions

Incendiary ammunitions include "Incendiary Rounds" and "Inferno Rounds". These both cause the enemies you're attacking to burst into flames, which provides the effect of preventing enemies that regenerate their health from regenerating. This includes Krogans of all levels. Inferno rounds have the bonus effect of causing panic in living enemies, lowering their accuracy.

Shield piercing ammunition

Phasic and Proton rounds do less actual damage but bypass enemy shields. Proton rounds have more shield bypass and less of a damage penalty in comparison to Phasic ammunitions.

Toxic ammunition

Chemical rounds and Polonium rounds cause damage over time to enemies in the form of toxic damage in the addition to instant damage from the ammunition hitting the enemy.

Polonium rounds also provide a poisoning effect which will prevent enemies that regenerate their health (like Krogans) from regenerating.