Mass Effect 3 and how your Shep prepared to meet the Reapers.

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So, I've been frequenting BSN, and see miles and miles of lovely debate on the pros and cons of doing things certain ways.

I'm curious how you, ESFer, have prepared to meet the Reaper threat for ME3.

As a full disclosure, I have the entire leaked game script as of early to mid fall, and can actually tell you how some of your decisions and bets are going to turn out. If your interested and not spoiled by spoilers, I can hit you with some info from conversations written up to that point.

For myself, my main Shepard has saved the Rachni, left Ashley Williams on Virmire, talked down Urdnot Wrex, saved Zhu's hope on Ferros, destroyed the collector base, screwed Cerberus at every turn, saved the genophage cure data from Maleon, killed Morinth, perfect suicide mission run and put an end to the Overlord project.

How is your save game looking? What are your thoughts on your choices?
 
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I will play it as a new game, like I did with Mass Effect 2, new Sheppard every time, kinda had bad outtakes/choices or didn't care about them that much, so yeah, new game for me.
 
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I made every Paragon decision I could, and will continue to do so. Because thats the way I roll. In decisions relating to my team, My Team>Everything else. All of them are alive. Like bawses.
 
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For myself, my main Shepard has saved the Rachni, left Ashley Williams on Virmire, talked down Urdnot Wrex, saved Zhu's hope on Ferros, destroyed the collector base, screwed Cerberus at every turn, saved the genophage cure data from Maleon, killed Morinth, perfect suicide mission run and put an end to the Overlord projec

Wow, that's exactly my play through. out of interest, what did you do with the geth?
 
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For myself, my main Shepard has saved the Rachni, left Ashley Williams on Virmire, talked down Urdnot Wrex, saved Zhu's hope on Ferros, destroyed the collector base, screwed Cerberus at every turn, saved the genophage cure data from Maleon, killed Morinth, perfect suicide mission run and put an end to the Overlord projec

Wow, that's exactly my play through. out of interest, what did you do with the geth?
I was torn until the last second, ultimately using democracy to solve the problem with the individual processes that make up Legion. They were slightly in favor of rewriting the heretics, and so I did.

These things have interesting effects in ME3 as well, not every outcome was forseen, though it appears that we are well on the road to the "perfect" ending, as labeled by Bioware's dev staff.
 
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Well lets see. Ashley is alive (and really pissed at me for getting killed and resurfacing with cerberus), i saved Zhus hope, i saved the rachi, sacrificed human lives to protect the council, made sure ambasador Udina (or what ever his name is) became the bootlicker instead of council member, overwrote the Geth, Talked down Wrex, dont remember what i did with the Genophage data, destroyed the collector base, said **** you to the mystery man at cerberus and lost the good doctor on the suicide mission.
 
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Well lets see. Ashley is alive (and really pissed at me for getting killed and resurfacing with cerberus), i saved Zhus hope, i saved the rachi, sacrificed human lives to protect the council, made sure ambasador Udina (or what ever his name is) became the bootlicker instead of council member, overwrote the Geth, Talked down Wrex, dont remember what i did with the Genophage data, destroyed the collector base, said **** you to the mystery man at cerberus and lost the good doctor on the suicide mission.
All this is Deja Vu for me. The only thing I am not sure is about the Geth, I can't seem to remember what that decision was about. I even lost Mordin during the suicide mission on my first try, even though Joker mentions everyone is safe. So I looked online and it seems its a bug of some sort. Then I did it again and sent the Krogan back with the civvies. Everyone lived this time.
 
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Well lets see. Ashley is alive (and really pissed at me for getting killed and resurfacing with cerberus), i saved Zhus hope, i saved the rachi, sacrificed human lives to protect the council, made sure ambasador Udina (or what ever his name is) became the bootlicker instead of council member, overwrote the Geth, Talked down Wrex, dont remember what i did with the Genophage data, destroyed the collector base, said **** you to the mystery man at cerberus and lost the good doctor on the suicide mission.
Oh, sorry to Hear that about Doctor Solus.

The following is very spoilerific, coming from the leaked information, so don't click if you don't want to know:

You can't get the best ending for the Genophage sub plot now, even if you saved the data from Maleon. The cure will be more difficult for you to secure, and might cost the Krogan their eventual renaissance. You will get to enjoy the confidence of one Salarian STG member named Padok Wiks, however. Regardless, you have one strike against you out of three concerning the help of the Krogan race if you don't find a cure, which ultimately damages your chances of defeating the Reapers in the end game scenario.
 
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All this is Deja Vu for me. The only thing I am not sure is about the Geth, I can't seem to remember what that decision was about. I even lost Mordin during the suicide mission on my first try, even though Joker mentions everyone is safe. So I looked online and it seems its a bug of some sort. Then I did it again and sent the Krogan back with the civvies. Everyone lived this time.
There's actually a formula for it. If Mordin is not loyal he is highly likely to die. If Mordin is loyal, he can still die if your "Hold the Line" score is too low in the suicide mission. (If you have Garrus, Grunt and Zaeed with you, your chances of having a high enough hold the line score are huge, better if you take squishies like Mordin, Jack or Kasumi with you.)

I usually save Mordin by having him be loyal and take the crew back, or being loyal and taking him with me.
 
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He was loyal but he still died. So I kept him with me the next time just to be sure. Seemed to work then.

Will you be able to enjoy the game after being spoilt so much? I am pretty anti-spoiler for everything since it kind of detracts from the gameplay knowing whats going to happen.
 
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He was loyal but he still died. So I kept him with me the next time just to be sure. Seemed to work then.

Will you be able to enjoy the game after being spoilt so much? I am pretty anti-spoiler for everything since it kind of detracts from the gameplay knowing whats going to happen.
I'm of the nosy sort, so spoilers usually don't bother me. In addition, even though my script is pretty expansive, I was told by Bioware staffer Jennifer Merizan that the script is accurate only to a point, but old, and it has already seen several rewrites in certain areas.
 
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Good stuff. My Vanguard can't wait to shotgun people in the face again.
 
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Good stuff. My Vanguard can't wait to shotgun people in the face again.
Then you will like the new Vangaurd power, Nova. Apparently the Devs are giggling like little kids over how awesomesauce it is.
 
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:devgrin:

I like how it sounds.
 
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:devgrin:

I like how it sounds.
I have one vanguard playthrough, and I'm excited (knowing how it works). Also new Krogan shotgun, the graal, looks fun as all get out. Tight spread, accurate at range, and causes bleeding damage because the projectiles are mass effect launched flechettes.
 
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Mmmm.... I hope it can carry more loaded shells though. My previous Krogan shotgun needed to be reloaded in 2 shots. :-/
 
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Any good sniper rifles round for my infiltrator though?
 
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Mantis, Viper, Incisor, and Widow all return. Same with shotguns, if it was in your ME2, it is in ME3.

Spoilers on weapons follow:

M112-Raptor
The Raptor is a human version of a turian weapon developed for a conflict on the low-gravity world of Amar. Fighting at longer ranges than they had expected, the turians optimized a low-recoil, semi-automatic rifle with a scope and issued it to their regular infantry, creating a hybrid weapon that was half assault rifle and half sniper. Cerberus Centurions use a version with an underslung grenade launcher, usually equipped with smoke grenades to conceal their movement.

Assault rifle/sniper rifle hybrid with semi-automatic fire and low recoil.

Javelin

Called the Javelin by Alliance marines, this geth weapon holds a reservoir of ferrofluid, magnetically drawn into the firing chamber and expelled at lethal speeds. Like a high-pressure water-jet, the ferrofluid cuts through nearly anything it hits, causing terrible wounds and so much heat that its jet resembles a beam of light. A complex system optimizing repulsion power is visually displayed as the Reticule Sine Cadence; firing in time with the sine wave can increase damage dramatically.

A geth sniper rifle with thermal imaging that allows shooting through walls.

Havoc

A mass-accelerator heavy weapon, the Havoc projects large, concentrated bursts of kinetic energy that slam into groups of enemies, flinging them across the battlefield. Recently created by the Alliance, this experimental gun is popular with resistance forces on Earth: the Havoc's burst effect means a single soldier can fend off entire crowds with judiciously-timed shots.


Valkyrie

After the carnage of the Battle of the Citadel, Alliance officers commissioned an upgraded rifle for their ground forces. Improving on the popular Avenger design, the Valkyrie is now standard issue for new recruits. Exceptionally well-crafted, accurate, and packing ample firepower, the rifle is a hot black-market item on the rare occasion it surfaces

Argus

The Argus is a high-powered rifle favored by senior C-Sec officers. Its accuracy allows them to control the battlefield with deadly precision, and firing bursts ensures ammunition conservation during lengthy conflicts. Other law-enforcement agencies across the galaxy are adopting the Carbine as their standard rifle, as much for its intimidation factor as its suppression power.

Hurricane

While some militaries pass up the Hurricane because of a slow firing rate, the Alliance finds this compact SMG's burst-fire capabilities offer flexible battle tactics. With pistol-like accuracy, a well-placed 3-round burst from the Hurricane chews through shields, armor, and flesh at an alarming rate. Alliance officers were so pleased with field results that the Hurricane is now many squadrons' standard-issue SMG.

Raider

Carried by the batarian military's notorious Special Intervention Unit, the Raider is a semi-automatic shotgun that fires rapidly at medium range. Rather than eliminating recoil, the Raider's integral compensators make it predictable and vertical. Its adjustable choke allows for effortless switching between tight and broad shot-grouping, making it extremely versatile.

Crusader

Bruised and bloody Alliance marines on Torfan attributed their survival against waves of batarian mercenaries to the sheer stopping power of the Crusader. With a design patterned on riot shotguns, this durable weapon has a moderate rate of fire, high damage rate, and tight pellet spread. As its accuracy allows little room for error, the Crusader is primarily found among highly trained soldiers.

Indra

Reverse-engineered from the Cerberus Arc Projector, the Indra is a prototype sniper-rifle that fires a path of ionized air, then electrifies targets with a bolt of lightning-like energy. The Indra maximizes its damage by first piercing its targets with a high-powered shot, and electrifying them second.

N7 Sniper Rifle: Valiant

The Valiant is a high-powered sniper rifle tested by Alliance soldiers during a series of harsh survival exercises on the planet Kruljaven. A redesign of the M-96 Mattock, this streamlined weapon employs a sophisticated fire-control system that improves accuracy by stabilizing the barrel during targeting. While this comes at a cost of reduced capacity and rate of fire, most soldiers find the increase in precision and lethality to more than make up for the tradeoff.

N7 Eagle

When the Alliance's Offensive Handgun Project received funding to update one of designs, its engineers chose to upgrade the already-impressive Phalanx pistol. Like its predecessor, the Eagle is a compact, semi-automatic hand-cannon that delivers unprecedented accuracy and punch with a fast firing rate. The Eagle is named after the Desert Eagle, a classic handgun which has gained a romantic reputation among gun collectors thanks to its popularity in 20-21st century Earth action movies.

Powerful, accurate handgun. Upgrade of the Phalanx heavy pistol.

Arc Pistol

An innovation of Admiral Daro'Xen, the Arc Pistol is a scaled-down Arc Projector that has had its power problems solved so it only requires thermal clips. The Arc Pistol uses a nonvisible laser to ionize the air and create a path for a high-ampere electric shock. It can be charged up for a more damaging blast.

An electrical weapon that can be charged up for a more damaging blast.

M-358 Talon

The Talon is a close-range pistol favored by Cerberus Guardians. Firing heavy-gauge shotgun pellets, it delivers massive trauma to unarmored targets. Its waste heat is punishing enough that it carries six separate ammunition blocks that rotate like a twentieth-century revolver to prevent any chance of shaver jam or misfire due to premature melting of the shot.

Shotgun-pistol hybrid with damage boost at close ranges.

M-237S Hornet SMG

The Hornet is a longer-range submachine gun, featuring an integral laser sight and a sound suppressor for covert operations. Its relatively low rate of fire is its tradeoff for high stability, allowing Cerberus troopers to place shots with little fear of recoil.

Scorpion Defensive Ordnance Pistol

Originally issued to the salarian STG to allow small units to contain much larger forces, the Scorpion pistol now sees service galaxy-wide. It fires low-velocity, squash-head projectiles with dual uses. The high-explosive filler within the projectiles contains an adhesive that sticks the projectile to the target during impact. An infrared signal can then be fired from the pistol with the touch of a button, detonating the explosive instantly or arming its motion detectors, turning the projectile into a proximity mine.

Fires adhesive explosives for use as a firearm or proximity mine.

Unnamed Reaper LMG

Reaper Plasma based Semi-Automatic Assault Rifle. It has a high Re-fire, high damage output and very high recoil because of its size. A unique bayonetta like apparatus allows the weapon to be used at close range.

Disciple

Originally hand-crafted by asari Justicars for their own exclusive use, schematics for the Disciple shotgun were passed down to asari commandos after centuries of negotiation with their order. The Disciple uses shotgun shells packed with micro-scale sub-munitions to deal staggering amounts of close-range damage. Its eezo-powered core can also generate a mobile kinetic barrier, though this quickly depletes the heat sinks that soak up the shotgun's electrical discharge.

Geth Spitfire

The Spitfire is the Alliance's name for a geth minigun of devastating firepower. Similar to their so-called "plasma shotgun," the Spitfire fires charged superconducting toroids that rupture on impact, arcing electricity and flash-converting to plasma. Electrical shock, fragments, and burn trauma then destroy shields and flesh alike. Rotating barrels help cool the weapon, allowing for sustained fire.

Full-auto weapon firing a hail of rounds that produce plasma on impact.

There are some changes, for instance the Batarian one might have become the Graal, so take the leak with a grain of salt, the Valiant is definitely in, as its announced as a CE bonus.

Also, any upgrades to the Normandy, your weapons, and even your levels follow through into ME3 from ME2, with the level limit now at 60.

*edited to add more weapons that I found when using different search strings*
 
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