Profiles and Tactics.

Yeah I tend to switch between that and Vanguard the most!

I know. I miss the mod that "stabilizes" the sniper rifle so you can lock into your target and get that head shot. It's very hectic and I really appreciate SMGs and ARs a lot more in Andromeda than I did in the trilogy. 

I do not miss ME1 and using an SR. I looked like I had too much coffee to drink haha had to get my skills up to stop the shaking!

Sigh...
Every-time.
Any time I try to start a run of this game there is an update and I have to start completely over.
So can't really say how it is but my plan is to run:
Invasion, Incinerate, Overload and the combat passives along with the weapon passives.

I can't really say that I can feel the biotic run of this game... still don't know what power(s) to use to get back the warp ability.

Then Lance, Pull (lift) and Throw combination for biotics... something I will have to test thank you.

I really like the Sentinel profile. It's not the tanky god of bullet sponge that the Sentinel in ME2 was, but it's got some great bonuses.

I generally run Incinerate, Energy Drain and Throw, with Incinerate evolved to become a detonator, and Energy Drain evolved to prime. This gives me 2 detonators and two primers, with a third pure detonator with a fast cooldown in Throw.

The Sentinel bonuses play into this quite well, with tech cooldown reduction to help bring Incinerate/Energy Drain's cooldowns closer to Throw's, and the Sentinel's combo damage bonuses further enhance this style.

Add some armor with +Weapon damage bonuses, a few Kinetic Coils in your melee weapon and primary firearm (I like the Valkyrie, modified to full auto) and the rest of your gear augmented with +Combo damage, you've got a great build for survivability (Energy drain refills shields, the right tech passives refill health with tech power usage, and Sentinel's Tech Armor gives some damage reduction) with great skill synergy and a decent amount of weapon damage to fill in the gaps while your powers are on cool down.

There are better pure damage builds (a pure adept with Annihilation field, Pull and Throw, with every piece of gear rigged for + Combo damage is insane, and a Soldier with Invasion, Turbocharge and Cloak, plus the right weapons, can melt Fiends in 3-4 seconds on insanity) but the Sentinel is a great generalist build.

Energy drain also has the bonus that if you cause a tech combo with it, it leaves an electric field on the ground that acts as a minor AoE stun. Mooks caught in the field almost always get stunlocked for a few seconds, leaving them very vulnerable to a deadly burst from your weapon. Incinerate also has bonuses to damage due to the burning effect, and the large armored enemies are affected quite nicely. It's not a HUGE damage boost, but every bit helps.

Edit:  My armor set usually goes Maverick chest with Pathfinder arms and legs.  Helmet I usually run the Andromeda Elite helmet we got from the briefings (I just really like the look of the thing), but eventually I switch.  This run, I'm eventually gonna try out a Kett helmet, see if it looks halfway decent, since that gives a bit more + Weapon damage, but in previous runs I've gone with the Pathfinder helmet.  I don't like the faceplate extending over the top of the head, though.  That looks janky as all hell.  

I've never been a fan of biotics in any of the mass effect games. I would have preferred they get left out entirely, I just don't like the "space magic" thing.

I've always played either an engineer or infiltrator. Overall my preference is engineer but in the trilogy weapons were limited based on class type so I often went with an infiltrator just for more firepower access.

I love turrets and drones, just wish there were more options available with them. The turret is super useful for me in multiplayer but not so much in single player due to enemies being significantly easier to kill and fewer in number. I do really wish we had a multiplayer character that had both the turret and vi though, I like running that setup in single player - though the 3 ability limit is a real pain. If we had 4 ability slots it would work out beautifully with vi, turret, and a primer/detonator combo.

I'm really not missing either the concentration mod or the time dilation.  I'm finding the Valiant just super stable and have no problem even getting headshots when using it like a shotgun.  The Raptor is also quite stable and works well, IMO, as a pure sniper substitute for an AR (although I'm now replacing the Raptor with the P.A.W.)  The ability to see through objects allows me to line up distance shots while they enemies are tucked behind cover... just aim above their head a little and fire right when they start to stand up.

BTW - My Voeld weather factor has definitely disappeared and the planet is now behaving as though I'm post vault reset (even though I haven't even activated the monoliths yet).  The only place I get a life support bar showing is around the main Resistance base.

Thematically and functionally, the closest is Annihilation, but obviously that is a sustained effect centred on the user rather than a hitscan ranged attack.

I agree, it was one of my faves - standard choice for my ME2/3 Vanguard. 

yeah while I like the time dilation effect in the trilogy I'm not missing it that much either as I kind of felt that iin MEA the tactical cloak got me through situations well enough anyway in my biotic Infiltrator playthrough that I didn't really need it.

yeah I used backlash a lot in my first playthrough when I was out of ammo and such so I could defend myself while picking up more worked a treat.