Noveria: Peak 15

Contact has been lost with Peak 15, the remote facility where Matriarch Benezia went.

Acquisition
This mission is acquired as part of the Noveria: Geth Interest mission. The mission title is changed upon reaching the Peak 15 Research Facility.

Peak 15 Garage
As you enter the garage, the cold hazard will disappear when you enter the first room. Head into the next room and there is a large door. Head to open it, but get in cover first because there are some enemies in the next room. The next room holds a Geth Juggernaut, a Geth Destroyer, a Geth Shock Trooper, and a very annoying Geth Repair Drone. Focus on the repair drone first because it will repair the geth you are trying to destroy. Once all the geth are down, three krogan will come in, two on the floor, and the other on the catwalk above and to left. Take the krogan down before they have a chance to charge you and the squad.

The second the last enemy falls the station’s VI Mira comes over the intercom telling you of the amount of damage that the facility has sustained, if that wasn’t apparent. Before leaving the garage there are two crates on the catwalks and ramps leading on, so they shouldn’t be hard to miss. When you enter the security tunnels your squadmates will comment about the turrets facing the wrong way. There is a security office near the elevator so enter it for two more crates. Take the elevator up.

Once you reach the top save the game and move on to the door. Inside is the cafeteria for the facility and it has some non-eatable guests, geth. There are some Geth Shock Troopers, Geth Troopers, and Geth Rocket Troopers. Take them all out, there is hardly any cover that you can use, and the geth have a lot. Just shoot them when they stick their heads out, and after taking down those shields they love to deploy. Once they all fall, your squadmates will comment about the damage and turning off the heat to kill anything that was released.

When you get close to the stairs there will be a cutscene showing some new enemy, a very large organic enemy. Once you have control again, move away from the stairs because there will be some explosive enemies that will come charging down the stairs. Take down the enemies because if they get near you, they explode and poison you at the same time. Once the small ones are dealt with, send your squadmates up first to have the large enemy focus on them. If you have good biotic skills then use them because these large ones are extremely sensitive to them.

Once they are all down, head into the first room, there is a codex entry and a storage locker in the room. Head out and further down the hall and into the next room. There is med kit in the room just be careful as you exit because there will be another of the large enemies that emerge. Kill it then head to the next elevator.

Repair Peak 15
You emerge in the VI core of the station, or at least outside it. As the door opens and at the other end of the room are more Rachni Workers, take them out before they have a chance to get too close. Once they are down, once one of your squadmates will comment that nearby is what appears to be a backup power system for the station’s VI. Activate it then move to the other side of the room. Take the elevator down to repair the VI. You have two options, use 100 Omni-gel or repair it manually by solving a Tower of Hanoi puzzle. See Below for the solution.

The VI can be manually reinitialized with the following key sequence:
 * Xbox 360: X Y, X B, Y B, X Y, B X, B Y, X Y, X B, Y B, Y X, B X, Y B, X Y, X B, Y B
 * PC: Column 1 -> 2, 1 -> 3, 2 -> 3, 1 -> 2, 3 -> 1, 3 -> 2, 1 -> 2, 1 -> 3, 2 -> 3, 2 -> 1, 3 -> 1, 2 -> 3, 1 -> 2, 1 -> 3, 2 -> 3

If you try to reactivate the core manually, there are a few rules about the puzzle.
 * Only a single box may be transferred to any stack, regardless of whether or not they are adjacent.
 * Only the topmost box will be "picked up" when one presses the corresponding face button. It will be 'placed' in the same order when another face button is pressed. This means that if the top-most box is selected, it will drop into the top most area of any stack it is dropped in. The same applies to the other boxes as well.
 * A box may not be transferred to a space where there will be a blue box directly above it.
 * After transferring a box to another stack, it may be transferred back as many times as required.
 * Only one box may be "picked up" at a time.

Once the core is repaired, Shepard is raised back up and the VI comes online. She will ask for your credentials and you can respond any way you wish, Commander Shepard of the Alliance Military or as a Spectre. Either way, you get Secure Access; apparently, Privileged Access is only available to Binary Helix executives. You can ask some questions, but some questions she won’t answer because of clearance. Eventually she will tell you that the there are two things needed to get the station operation again.
 * Reconnecting the landlines on the roof to restore Mira's full functionality
 * Getting the reactor core back online by fixing the helium-3 fuel lines

Pick whichever option you choose, then head to the appropriate elevator. The landlines are in the elevator behind Shepard, and the reactor is down and off to the left in the main room.

Reconnecting the Landlines
When you reach the roof, exit the elevator and save your game because even on veteran difficulty this fight is hard. When you emerge on the roof itself there are rachni all over the place. About 5 soldiers and 10+ workers; use anything you can to take them out quickly. Once they are down reconnect the landlines and then access the nearby Mira Terminal for an update on the Rift Station and Hot Labs. She can also give you more information on what happened before you arrived. Once you have everything you want, grab the nearby crate and head back down.

A useful technique to use during this encounter is to keep you and your squad mates behind the door after you exit the elevator. You can open the door and inflict damage on the Rachni and retreat back behind the door and it closes behind you stopping the Rachni from attacking you. This method is slow but it makes the encounter a lot easier.

Reactivating the Reactor
Head to the elevator, the left one coming from the VI core. If you already reconnected the landlines, then a Rachni Soldier will emerge from a grate on the left hand side. Take it down and move to the elevator.

The first room contains a locker, a crate, and a Mira terminal. When you exit the room, on either side there will be geth in the reactor. Geth Destroyers and Geth Stalkers are in the core and will charge the moment they see you. If you get overwhelmed then head back inside because the doors will not open for the geth. Even if they are at the doors so use the room as a fall back point if necessary.

Once all the initial geth are down, your radar should still be jammed because there is still one enemy. If you head out to the right then turn around because a Geth Juggernaut is on the upper level and will launch rockets at you. Take it down or head out to the left and up the ramps to take it in close quarters. If you have lift and throw you can actually throw it off the platform and into the core. Otherwise just shoot it until it keels over.

When you have cleared the core, if you aren’t on the top level head up because there is a locker in the upper room and a weapons locker in the same area that the Juggernaut was in. Then head down and to the back of the room to open the H3 fuel lines. Then head back up, talk to Mira if you want, and out.

When you re-enter the main room a Rachni Soldier will emerge from a grate to the left and on the far side of the room. Take it down and move on either across the room or up to the landlines. When you get to the tunnel you have a few options to proceed. Go into the office and grab the three crates in the room. Access the Mira terminal to figure out how to proceed. You have three options
 * Repair the plasma vents and watch the bugs burn
 * Have Mira open the door and shoot them
 * Bypass the door and then shoot them

Ironically, the one that gives the most XP is the easiest, for once. Repair the vents and watch the bugs burn. As you leave the room make sure to turn around because the grate will pop up and another Rachni Soldier will emerge. Take it down then head into the tunnel. Open the door on the other side and four Rachni Workers will emerge, shoot them before they get too close. Head out and into the tram to get access to Rift Station.

Peak 15 Rift Station
When you exit there will be no enemies and only one way to proceed. Head up the elevator and you run into Captain Ventralis is at the top with a few guards. You can ask him about the situation and what has been happening. When you end the conversation he will give you a pass card to the Hot Labs and more rachni will come up. Take them out and then move back into the station. When you enter a large room there will be a door to the right that leads to the guard quarters. Head inside and crack the two weapons lockers inside. In the main room are a few people you can talk to, Alestia Iallis, Petozi, and Dr. Palon. Petozi, the elcor has some things to sell, limited but you can unload anything that you won’t use from now on.

There are three other doors on the left, when entering the room. The first leads to the scientists quarters, the second leads down the med lab, the third leads to a sealed off section of the base. Be warned hacking the door here will turn all the guards against you. In order to progress the story you need to get into the secure lab, and the only way to do that without setting off every alarm is to get access to the maintenance area. To get access head down the center door to see Dr. Zev Cohen in the med lab. Talk to him and he will say that Ventralis has sealed off a lab where they were researching a bio-weapon however Ventralis mistakenly believes that it is still viable. Cohen assures Shepard that it is neutralized because of a brief exposure period, and he needs the cure they were researching to heal the other members of his team.

So go back and see Ventralis and after some persuasion he will give you access to the lab; head to the scientists quarters to get access to it. When you exit on the lower level you see Han Olar, talk to the volus to get information about the rachni and what happened at the station. Once you have all the information you want, before heading into the lab decrypt the locker and if necessary access the Medical Station. Then head over to the guard and head inside.

At the other end of the room is what you need to make the cure. Before you make the cure however head into the second door on the right and grab the med kit, the third room has a storage locker, and there is a crate next to the table. Access the research notes to figure out how to make the cure and the use the next station to make the cure. For that just push Change Vial button each time progress bar reaches proper concentration (is between two sliders). When you make the cure however you have some company.

Alestia enters with some Geth Troopers and some Geth Shock Troopers. Talk to her but there is no way out of this without fighting. So when the conversation ends use whatever cover you have to take out your attackers. It is a cramped space and offers little cover. If you have throw or singularity then use them to offset the cramped quarters. Focus on Alestia first however, because she is the greatest threat. Once she is down focus on the geth. Once they are all down head out of the lab and Han Olar will tell you that they came from the maintenance areas. With that information then head back up the elevator and head to Dr. Cohen to get the pass. When you talk to Cohen you can also weasel some medi-gel out of him. If you choose talk to Ventralis again to tell him about Alestia but it isn’t worth it. Before leaving talk to Petozi because it will be your last chance.

If you choose to go to the Hot Labs after making the cure and before confronting Benezia, the guard that Alestia killed will register as one of the hostiles you will have to fight. Shooting him will ironically revive him only for you to have to kill him again.

Confronting Benezia
Head back down and into the maintenance area. You will enter unopposed and without being detected. On the way there is a Rachni Soldier, so kill it and enter the back door. When you walk through there is a crate on the catwalks and then when you reach a door on the right, bypass it because there is an upgrade kit in the next room. Don’t bypass the door unless you want to start a fight with the guards, however since they can’t reach you right now you can just get the small amount of exp associated with it. Once you are done head back to the door and save your game before entering.

Inside is Matriarch Benezia on an upper platform. You can talk to her and get a few questions answered. If you have Liara in your party, there are some words exchanged between mother and daughter. Once you are done Benezia will place the whole squad in stasis while her commandos move into position. When you regain control run to the right and to a platform that has some good cover that you can use. This platform will also provide a great spot to combat the enemies.

When you defeat the first wave of commandos Benezia will again freeze the squad while geth move in along with a few commandos. Take out the geth but keep your squadmates at the platform because that is where they are safe. Once the final geth falls Benezia will again freeze the squad, but her power is weakening. The last wave is the same as the second. Use cover, powers, and gunfire to end the conflict.

Once they are all down you will begin another conversation with Benezia. She will start out defiant but her attitude changes quickly. Benezia says that the real threat is Sovereign and that Saren is just a tool. Ask questions and Benezia says that Saren sent her here to recover the location of the Mu Relay from the Rachni Queen. You can ask more questions however eventually the indoctrination overpowers Benezia and she and three final commandos attack. Defeat them and the last conversation with Benezia occurs. You can earn a few morality points depending on your conversation options when Benezia dies. There is additional dialogue if Liara is with the shore party.

Fate of a Species
When Benezia finally passes, you will enter another conversation with the Rachni Queen through one of the dead commandos. You can ask questions about her history and her plans if Shepard releases her. Now you have the ultimate choice, activate the acid tanks and kill off the rachni once and for all, or allow the Queen to leave and begin anew. Once you make your choice you get a cutscene showing your actions.

Once you are done collect two crates from the top platform, then on the lowest platform on the south side of the lab, are two more crates. Once you have them all leave and head to the Hot Labs.

The Hot Labs
Head into the left elevator, the other is locked down now, and down into the hot labs. The hot labs only have one occupant however Yaroslev Tartakovsky. Talk with him to figure out what happened in the labs. He will give the complete history of the Rachni Project. He says that the rachni in the labs are beyond saving and you must activate the neutron purge to kill them all. When you are ready talk about the purge and he will go over the arming procedure but before he can finish, he gets a rachni claw in the chest. The Rachni Soldier flings him across the room and now you have to kill it.

Retrieve the code from Tartakovsky's corpse and head into the next room. BEFORE you talk to Mira, save your game because you will soon have a lot of rachni between you and the exit once you initiate the purge. Activate the purge by giving Mira the code and now you have 120 seconds or two minutes to get out, however getting out will not be easy. Rachni Soldiers and Workers have filled the main room and they will not let you go easily. Shoot them all for maximum experience (you should have plenty of time even in Insanity difficulty), or you can just run through (you will want to activate the Immunity skill if you have it); once you activate the elevator, any knocked-out squadmates will recover. As the elevator rises, you hear a series of blasts.

Now there is nothing left to do but to head for the tram. You will return to the SSV Normandy.

Once you enter the Hot Labs after receiving access, you cannot leave without activating the purge. If you activate the purge before dealing with Matriarch Benezia then go back to the survivors, they will all attack you at the same time under the Matriarch's orders.

Onboard the Normandy
When you board the tram you automatically return to the briefing room of the Normandy. You can earn a few morality points for your conversation options and a few more depending on your conversation with the Council. The Council is frightened if you released the Queen, and admonishes you if you kill her, with the turian member asking you "Do you take pleasure in committing genocide, Shepard?"

Maximum Experience Scenario
To get the maximum amount of experience on Noveria and at Peak 15, follow the following order of events.
 * Don’t go to the Hot Labs first
 * Make the cure
 * Get in the back way
 * Fight Ventralis and his guards
 * Fight Benezia
 * Go to the Hot Labs

Going through the above sequence will give every drop of experience you can milk out of Noveria.

Enemies

 * Alestia Iallis (Optional)
 * Asari Commando
 * Captain Ventralis (Optional)
 * ERCS Guard (Optional)
 * Geth Armature
 * Geth Destroyer
 * Geth Juggernaut
 * Geth Rocket Trooper
 * Geth Shock Trooper
 * Geth Sniper
 * Geth Trooper
 * Krogan
 * Rachni Soldier
 * Rachni Worker