Yes, you can change class between games in Mass Effect Legendary Edition: when you import Shepard into Mass Effect 2 or Mass Effect 3, the game lets you keep your class or pick a new one. You cannot change it in the middle of a game, and in the first Mass Effect, your choice is locked until you start over.
Your story choices are not affected. Here is where the option appears, what it costs you, and which moves are worth making.
Where You Can Change Class
| Game | Can you change class? | When |
|---|---|---|
| Mass Effect 1 | Only by starting a new game | Your class locks in when you finish character creation |
| Mass Effect 2 | Yes, on import or a new game | On the customization screens, after the opening section |
| Mass Effect 3 | Yes, on import or a new game | On the character creation screens, before you confirm on the Review screen |
How to Change Class in Mass Effect 2
- Finish the first game through the credits so you have a completed save.
- In Mass Effect 2, choose New Game, then Import ME1 Character, and select your career.
- Play through the opening section. The customization options do not come up right away, so do not panic when they are not on the first screen.
- When customization appears, keep your class or select a different one.
You get the same screens if you start fresh with no import.
How to Change Class in Mass Effect 3
- Finish Mass Effect 2 through the credits, with Shepard alive.
- In Mass Effect 3, choose New Game, then Import ME2 Character, and select your career.
- On the character creation screens, change your Military Class.
- Check the Review screen. You can go back and change Shepard’s details until you confirm there. After that, you are locked in until the next game.
What Changes When You Switch
| Keep your class | Change your class | |
|---|---|---|
| Story choices | Stay | Stay |
| Romance | Stays | Stays |
| Mass Effect 3 starting level | Stays | Stays |
| Spent power points | Stay about where you left them | Reset, so you can spend them again |
Nothing about Shepard’s history changes. Dialogue and decisions from earlier games carry over the same way, which is what our guide to what carries over between games covers in detail.
Mass Effect 2 does not carry your level over directly from the first game anyway. Your final level becomes a starting bonus, whether you change class or not.
Which Class Moves Make Sense
The classes do not perform the same in each game, so a switch can be a real upgrade. Our class guide compares all six, but these are the moves we would consider:
- Soldier to Infiltrator, at Mass Effect 2. The Soldier is at its best in the first game. The Infiltrator gains Tactical Cloak in Mass Effect 2.
- Adept to Sentinel, at Mass Effect 2. The Adept is strong in the first game but relies on squadmates for damage in the second. The Sentinel keeps biotics, and adds tech powers and Tech Armor.
- Anything to Vanguard, at Mass Effect 2. The Vanguard has no Biotic Charge in the first game, so moving to it once Charge is available skips its weakest stretch.
- Engineer into something else, or into it later. The Engineer is the weakest class in the first game and gets better over the series, so it makes more sense as a sequel pick than as a start.
If you like your class, stay with it. There is no bonus for switching and no story reward either.
What You Cannot Do
You cannot change class in the middle of a game. Once you have confirmed your choice, it stays until the next game or a new start.
New Game Plus does not help. It carries your character over with the same class in Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 2, so it is not a way around the lock.
Retraining is not the same thing. You can reassign your power points without touching your class. In Mass Effect 2, buy the Retrain Powers upgrade at the Research Terminal on the Normandy, using Element Zero. In Mass Effect 3, use the Normandy’s Med Bay, which charges credits. Neither one changes your class, but both help if you just spent your points badly.
Your Mass Effect 1 weapon training stays with your class. BioWare lets any class use any weapon there without penalty, so you may not need a new class just to use a shotgun or rifle. See what the remaster changed for the rest of the first game’s updates.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you change class in Mass Effect 2 when you import? Yes. You can keep your class or choose a new one on the customization screens after the opening section.
Can you change class in Mass Effect 3 when you import? Yes. Change your Military Class on the character creation screens before you confirm on the Review screen.
Can you change class in Mass Effect 1? Not after character creation. Your only option is starting a new game.
Do you lose anything by changing class? Your spent power points reset. Your story choices, romance, and history do not change, and your Mass Effect 3 level stays.
Can you change class partway through a game? No. You can only do it at the start of a game, including when importing.
Can you change your appearance at the same time? Yes. The import also lets you rebuild Shepard’s looks, though that means a full rebuild rather than a small tweak.
Can you reset your powers without changing class? Yes. Mass Effect 2 has Retrain Powers at the Research Terminal, and Mass Effect 3 has a retraining option at the Normandy’s Med Bay.