Omega

Location: Milky Way / Omega Nebula / Sahrabarik

Description
Built in the mined-out husk of a metallic asteroid, Omega has been a haven for criminals, terrorists, and malcontents for thousands of years. At times the station has lain idle and abandoned for centuries, only to be reactivated by a new group of outlaws seeking a fresh start. The space station's original elegant design has given way to haphazard expansion by scrabbling factions of every species. There is no central government or unifying authority on Omega, and nobody can recall a time there ever was one.


 * Population: 7.8 million
 * Orbital Distance: 2.43 AU
 * Orbital Period: 6.9 Earth Years
 * Total Length: 44.7 Km

Additional Description
Omega is described as "the Terminus Systems' dark, twisted counterpart to the Citadel." Close to the planet Shelba, it is a huge mining station built from the remains of a massive, irregularly shaped asteroid with twisting streets populated with homes, shops and warehouses. Omega's inhabitants are usually lawless. Territory is controlled by the strongest faction in that area and frequently changes hands, often after brutal violence. The ruler as of Shepard's visit appears to be an asari named Aria. As of 2185 the Omega Station has a population of 7.8 million people, composed of various different species. The station's major export is element zero. 

The heavy-metal-rich core of the original asteroid was mined until the asteroid was almost completely hollow, providing the initial resources used to construct Omega's buildings and facilities. Over the years, these have been expanded until they completely cover every exposed inch of its surface, making Omega a bizarre mishmash of architecture and technology. Its exact age is unknown, although galactic historians agree the station was originally built by the Protheans before they disappeared. However, nobody agrees on which was the first species to resettle it once the Protheans vanished and it is now home to dozens of species, including batarians and Lystheni salarians, as well as many other species not welcome in Citadel space.

While humans refer to it as Omega, the asari name for it translates as 'the heart of evil', the salarian name as 'the place of secrets', the turian name as 'the world without law', and the krogan name it as the 'land of opportunity', clearly reflecting their cultural attitudes towards the society within Omega.

Codex Entry
Originally an asteroid rich in element zero, Omega was briefly mined by the Protheans, who eventually abandoned it due to its thick, impenetrable crust. Thousands of years later, nature did what even the Protheans could not: a collision with another asteroid broke Omega in half, exposing its trove of element zero for easy mining.

A rush ensued as corporations and private individuals tried to strike it rich on Omega, and thieves and outlaws followed in their wake. As space became tight, construction of processing facilities extended vertically from the asteroid, creating Omega's jellyfish-like silhouette. To prevent future collisions, the station is ringed with enormous mass effect field generators that redirect incoming debris.

Today, Omega is a major hub of narcotics, weapons, and eezo trafficking without even a pretense of civilian government or military control. Only mercenary groups have been able to instill a limited order; the most ruthless is an asari syndicate run by the notorious Aria T'Loak.

Mass Effect: Ascension
A large part of the story in Mass Effect: Ascension takes place on Omega. Cerberus controls a large warehouse and smuggling operation here, lead by Pel, a Cerberus operative. Pel finally betrays Cerberus, leading to the deaths of all of his team, and there has been no word about the warehouse since.

Mass Effect: Redemption
In Mass Effect: Redemption, Liara hitches a ride to Omega on a batarian freighter in order to meet an informant with news of the then-missing Shepard.

Mass Effect 2
Shepard travels to Omega to rendezvous with Mordin Solus, a salarian operative. Mordin is rumored to have developed a cure to a biological weapon that is affecting Omega. Shepard also recruits Archangel. Shepard must work through mercs in order to save Archangel from the combined forces of the three most powerful merc groups in the Terminus Systems. If the DLC pack Zaeed Massani is installed Shepard recruits him just down the hall from the Normandy's airlock. While Omega does not have the grand visual style or the huge architectural scale of the Citadel, it is an extensive location in the game and contains a lot to explore.

Mass Effect: Retribution
Omega is the location of many key points in the novel. Paul Grayson is working there at the beginning of the story for Aria, only to be captured and hauled off by Cerberus. After being implanted with Reaper technology, Grayson returns to the station to meet Kahlee Sanders, which ends up being a trap ultimately set up by the Illusive Man. One instance in particular to note is when the Reapers controlling Grayson decide to scan the station, comparing it with what Grayson describes as a blueprint he half-remembers, and the Reaper voice stating that their technology is eternal, possibly connecting Omega's true origins with the Reapers.

Notable locations

 * Fortune's Den
 * Omega Clinic
 * Pel's warehouse
 * The Afterlife Club
 * Omega Market

Trivia

 * Omega (&Omega;) is the 24th and last letter of the Greek alphabet.
 * According to the Collector's Edition Concept art book, the team based the design on a mushroom cloud.
 * According to Mass Effect: Incursion, in 2183 there were 853,245 humans living on Omega.