Kripp's Force Field Dooley Build

Core Synergies

• Armored Core has very respectable scaling during the early game, but of course can fall victim to Poison.
• • Duct Tape can carry you for a few days if you're lucky with matchmaking.
• Mech-Moles provides a solid combined Damage/Shield scaling, but reliable targeted Haste is a must.
• • Cog or Power Sander are some common enablers.
  • You can mix in an assortment of Small Weapons to play more proactively (instead of relying on dodging Poison).
• Brick Buddy is another scalable Shield option, best used if you've picked up an assortment of Friends.
• Blast Doors can fill in any gaps on board and is particularly useful against all the Burn/Weapon builds.
• Battery will be very useful later on alongside Force Field to give it an additional kickstart.

Tips & Tricks

• Committing early to a Shield build can be very risky as Poison is essentially an auto-loss.
• • Finding Force Field early is the best incentive to dive in. An early Defense Grid or Reserve Shield can also help.
• Sat-Comm and/or Temporal Navigator are useful source of income. It's worth picking one up if you can afford it.
• Unless you're tight on funds and need to purchase immediately, always buy Crypto.

Common Filler Items

• Barbed Wire
• Chris Army Knife
• Cool LEDs
• Copper Ed
• First Aiden
• GPU
• Harmadillo
• Induction Aegis
• Levitation Pad
• Micro Mach
• Soldering Gun
• Wallace
• Welding Helmet

Core Synergies

• Force Field weaponizes your Shield scaling and has huge one-shot potential. Good Shield items are usually enough until the mid game.
• • Later on, it's extremely important to have either Defense Grid or Reserve Shield (or both!), as the scaling won't be fast enough to compete.
  • These skills create a one-time burst of Shield, hopefully enabling Force Field to get a OHKO.
• Radar Module is a great source of Crit Chance, but does vary in effectiveness depending on the matchup.
• • Knowing this, it helps to acquire some Crit via skills when possible.
• Metronome can help accelerate the build early on, but will likely be dropped later once the OHKO machine is online.
• Epsilon Ray provides extra Shield scaling alongside Armored Core. If playing Rays, you can also include Beta Ray for some disruption.

Tips & Tricks

• If you haven't found Force Field by the mid game, you're probably going to want to pivot to another build entirely.
• Schematics is another Economy item if you have the space/funds.

This build can be more or less complete by the mid game, but these extra additions can take it to a whole new level.

Core Synergies

• Bunker greatly improves Force Field's Damage ceiling, adding Multicast to the one-shot combo.
• • Dino Saddle + Thrusters serves the same purpose if you find those instead.
• Fiber Optics can greatly accelerate the startup time, as well as potentially enable a few more hits before your Shield wears off.
• Chronobarrier may be the play if you're utilizing mostly Tech items. The one-sided Bonk effect can be a huge swing.
• Coolant and Plasma Grenade are solid flex disruption tools.
• • While these can be found earlier, they are much less effective without upgrades (ideally Gold/Diamond for Coolant).

Tips & Tricks

• Prioritize speed and burst potential over scaling. The goal is to act fast, and win with the Shield from Defense Grid and/or Reserve Shield.
• • If they survive the initial burst, chances are you've lost. So focus everything on improving this game plan.
• Scrap Metal is always worth buying if you have the time and funds to complete its Quest.