Jacob Taylor

Jacob Taylor is a human biotic and a former Alliance Marine under the command of Major Derek Izunami, he resigned after surviving the geth attack on Eden Prime. He is also part of Commander Shepard's squad during the suicide mission.

Jacob is a highly experienced fighter, and is skilled in the use of shotguns, heavy pistols and biotics. He works professionally alongside Miranda Lawson, who functions as his informant and later as his superior officer. Jacob is also a potential romance option for a female Shepard.

Mass Effect Galaxy
Jacob is on vacation aboard the passenger liner Arcturian Jade when the ship is attacked by batarian terrorists. After taking out the batarian attackers, and saving the crew and passengers, Jacob arrives at the Citadel and meets his former CO, Major Derek Izunami. Izunami tells Jacob there is a batarian plot to attack the Citadel, and that it originates in the lawless Nemean Abyss, where few humans ever go. However, Izunami knows an informant who can help Jacob, and sends him to Cartagena Station.

When Jacob arrives, he meets Miranda Lawson, who explains that batarian extremists plan to assassinate their own ambassador, Jath'Amon, currently working to heal relations between batarians and the Citadel. Miranda has several leads that might uncover this plot; a turian arms dealer, Illo Nazario on the planet Tortuga who has worked with the batarians for years; the planet Bekke where a batarian army is reportedly gathering; and a rumor that the batarians have kidnapped several scientists who are being held on the Ahn'Kedar Orbital Platform.

As Jacob investigates these leads, he discovers the kidnapped scientists &mdash; including an asari scientist named Batha &mdash; have been convinced to work on a cure for a batarian plague, a cure which requires large amounts of element zero. Jacob finds the batarians' eezo stockpile on Bekke, improperly shielded &mdash; causing Jacob to suffer sickness but also briefly gain increased biotic ability &mdash; and protected by an army of batarians. He also manages to find Illo Nazario, who has been infected with this batarian plague. Illo reveals the plague is a biological weapon that the batarian terrorists mean to unleash on the Citadel, and that Ambassador Jath'Amon is actually the terrorists' ringleader. The target is not Jath'Amon, but the Council.

Jacob races to the Citadel, only to find the batarians have already infiltrated C-Sec and are putting their plans into action. He manages to reach Jath'Amon during his audience with the Council; Jath'Amon tries to talk his way out of it, but when confronted he releases the plague and attacks Jacob. After fighting off Jath'Amon's forces, the batarian ambassador is taken into custody, and Batha begins work on a cure for those who were exposed. Jacob and Miranda return to their ship, and celebrate with a bottle of champagne.

Weapon proficiencies

 * Heavy Pistols
 * Shotguns

Powers
Unlike Shepard's other squadmates, save for Miranda Lawson, Jacob Taylor has 31 points available for distribution.

Dossier
Jacob was born in 2157 and eventually joined the Alliance military. Originally Jacob was part of an Alliance-sponsored group called the Corsairs, a program that contracted independent starship captains to handle missions that fell outside of official Alliance jurisdiction, giving the Alliance plausible deniability. Jacob eventually left the Corsairs and was assigned to Eden Prime, and was present for the geth attack that nearly destroyed the colony. After Eden Prime, and later the attack on the Citadel, Jacob became disillusioned with the ineffectual bureaucracy of the politicians and quit the Alliance. Later that year, after the events of Mass Effect Galaxy, Jacob enlisted with Cerberus for a chance to serve humanity without too much to hold him back, although he remains cautious of some of the organization's more ruthless measures.

Shortly after the destruction of the first Normandy, Miranda hires Jacob as her 'lieutenant' in the Lazarus Cell, whose titular Lazarus Project is tasked with resurrecting Commander Shepard. Over the next two years, while work on Shepard continues, Jacob is technically in charge of security on the Lazarus Research Station. At this time it is implied he and Miranda had some form of relationship, although it didn't work out; Jacob claims he wasn't the right person for Miranda, though they remain effective colleagues.

In 2185, when the Lazarus Project neared completion, project scientist Wilson betrays the organization and hacks the security mechs to attack the station's staff. During the firefight Shepard is awoken earlier than scheduled, and meets Jacob fighting a group of LOKI mechs. Jacob joins Shepard, and together they manage to escape. Of the original members of the first Lazarus Cell, Jacob and Miranda were the only survivors. On the Illusive Man's orders, Jacob accompanies Shepard on a mission to Freedom's Progress, which has recently gone silent. With Miranda's help, they discover the Collectors are behind the mass abductions.

After this mission's completion, Jacob becomes a member of the second Lazarus Cell aboard the Normandy SR-2 where he serves as the Armory Officer, charged with maintaining and stockpiling the team's weapons. During missions he is a calm and collected voice of reason, often siding with Shepard's decisions and trying to defuse conflicts. He later reveals a distrust of mercenaries and believes that assassins are just "precise mercenaries", leading him to recommend caution when dealing with Thane Krios, though no arguments ever develop between them.

Loyalty
When Shepard talks to Jacob after Horizon, he tells Shepard he has received a disturbing message through Cerberus channels. His father, Ronald Taylor, went missing ten years ago along with the starship he was serving on, the Hugo Gernsback. But now a distress signal from the Hugo Gernssback has been detected from a planet in the Alpha Draconis system. Jacob is, not surprisingly, eager to investigate and discover if his father is still alive.

Romance
Jacob is a possible romantic partner for the female Commander Shepard. Unlike Kaidan, Jacob does not show any interest in Shepard. When she brings up the idea of them getting more intimate, he admits that he did not consider her an "option" &mdash; presumably because he did not know her well enough, thought she was out of his league, or was discouraged by the fact that she is his commanding officer. Shepard replies to that by stating she's interested and "that should be enough to get things going".

In between missions he will have brief conversations, eventually leading to him mentioning his father. Regardless of the outcome after completing Jacob's loyalty mission, he will be more personal with Shepard; now his father's fate is behind him, he can focus on more important things, namely their mission and Shepard. If Shepard asks how he's handling the fate of his father, he'll admit that he's fine and that it's not a concern anymore. He switches the conversation so that he asks Shepard what she's letting eat away at her, to which she has various responses. Shepard can admit she's lonely &mdash; her entire team broke apart and changed, but her mind is the same as it was two years ago. Jacob comments that he feels sorry for them and they probably only changed because they lost her. Shepard can also admit feelings of guilt at the losses she could not prevent. Jacob praises her for her compassion and says without it, she will become like the Illusive Man &mdash; someone who never feels guilt anymore. He takes her hands in his and she gives him a kiss on the cheek.

When approaching the Omega 4 Relay, Jacob will go to Shepard. He comments that there is a heavy risk sneaking into the Commander's quarters, but the prize is well worth it. Depending on Shepard's initial response, Jacob may or may not admit that he loves her. Shepard's first Renegade response will get Jacob to confess his love for her.

If both Shepard and Jacob survive the mission, Shepard can approach Jacob and ask how he's doing. Jacob will take her into his arms and kiss her, saying that there are no words, but he's looking forward to spending some time with her. Shepard can reply likewise or she can call off the entire relationship.

Lair of the Shadow Broker
After completing Lair of the Shadow Broker, Shepard may invite Liara aboard the Normandy to catch up. If the right dialogue options are chosen, she will ask Shepard what she's fighting for, and if it's a chance for drinks and dancing with Jacob. The Commander will respond that Jacob is a good man. Liara remarks that Jacob's solid and stable, and that Shepard may need that more than she thinks in the time to come. Liara then wishes them both happiness.

Mass Effect 3
If Jacob survives after the assault against the Collectors, he begins to see Cerberus for what it really is and leaves the organization. He spends some time in the Mediterranean after that. All that fresh air and the meditation makes him see the importance of believing in what he is fighting for and the need for a personal touch with it. Sometime later, he meets Dr. Brynn Cole, a Cerberus scientist, through a mutual friend in the Mumbai cell. He finds a lot in common between them.

Later, Dr. Cole requests Jacob's help to protect a group scientists who had also become disaffected with Cerberus and deserted the organization, taking refuge at a secret location. Unfortunately, Cerberus finds the location of the scientists and attacks the base. If Shepard choose to assist them, Shepard finds Jacob wounded trying to hold off the Cerberus assault. Shepard carries Jacob into the base and learns that he is in a relationship with the lead scientist, Brynn Cole. If a female Shepard had romanced Jacob, she confronts Jacob about it but he defends himself by asking whether Shepard "wanted him to wait forever", referring to the time when she allowed herself to be placed under arrest for an indefinite period of time by the Alliance. After speaking with Cole, it is revealed that Jacob is still in love with Shepard, but nothing will come of it. He declines Shepard's invitation to return to the Normandy, preferring to remain with the scientists. After a successful evacuation from the base, Jacob will assist in the construction of the Crucible.

Jacob turns down formal reinstatement into the Alliance marine corps, feeling his past with Cerberus disqualified him from their company. Instead, Taylor becomes a consultant, advising the Alliance on Cerberus tactics and defenses. He also participates in missions that target the Illusive Man's holdings.

Sometime after, Jacob sends Shepard an e-mail saying he can be found in Huerta Memorial Hospital. When spoken to there, Jacob states that Dr.Cole is pregnant with his child, a girl. He decides that he will become a better father than his was. He also mentions that Cole is planning on naming their child "Shepard", to which Shepard is honored by, but then adds that he plans on talking Cole out of it.

If Jacob is contacted before the final battle for Earth, he suggests a celebration in a little bar in Rio once they win.

If Shepard chooses to merge organic and synthetic life, Jacob is seen with Brynn. If the Reapers are destroyed or controlled, he will be seen speaking to Alliance personnel.

Trivia

 * Mass Effect Galaxy was originally titled "Jacob's Story".
 * Jacob is notable in that he is the only character other than Joker to reference the Illusive Man's artificial eyes, asking "is there anything human in them?"
 * Jacob's abilities in Mass Effect 2 are vastly different from Mass Effect Galaxy. In Mass Effect Galaxy, Jacob could use an assault rifle, use tech overloads, and use heavy weapons.
 * Jacob's dialogue with Commander Shepard implies that he and Miranda may have been romantically involved between the events of Mass Effect Galaxy and Mass Effect 2.


 * As with all squad members, Jacob has unique dialogue that can be heard at various locations, during missions or assignments, or if a specific squad member is in the selected team.
 * The Shadow Broker has files on Jacob Taylor which can be accessed aboard his ship.

Jacob Taylor