Feros: The Thorian

Saren sent the geth to Feros to destroy an alien life form known as the Thorian. Why Saren wants this parasitic plant creature destroyed is still unclear, but it has evidently taken control of most of the colonists back at Zhu's Hope.

Acquisition
This mission is acquired after the destruction of the Geth Dropship and after a radio communication from Joker. The mission is the continuation of the Feros: Geth Attack mission.

ExoGeni Headquarters
In the lab, use the appropriate controls to get the PSI to 31-34. When you do, a warning will be displayed in the lower right hand corner. Activate the shuttle bay door to cause it to shear through the claw that is holding the Geth Dropship to the building. The claw is sheared through and the cutscene switches to the exterior of the skyscraper where the dropship is starting to fall. The other two claws fail and the ship drops into the rubble that covers the surface of Feros. The cutscene jumps again to where the forcefield that was and the blue field drops while one of your squadmates points out that it should be down now.

The second it falls, Joker comes over the comm and apparently is desperate to contact the Commander. Reply and Joker will tell you that the colonists have gone crazy and are clawing at the Normandy’s hull. You can respond but no matter the action the crew will stay in the ship to prevent the crazed colonists from getting in. He also says that there are a lot of geth heading Shepard’s way, so be prepared. Head back up the stairs, check the area again for crates and back to the main room where the forcefield was. Meeting you there is Lizbeth Baynham and now you can confront her with the information you retrieved from the ExoGeni VI.

She confesses to knowing and she says the reason she stayed behind was to send a distress call but got cut off before the transmission was sent, so she hid. You can interrogate her further and she gives up all the details of the Thorian project and why she was suspended. She was apparently very vocal in expressing her displeasure with the project and what it was doing. When you are done, she wants to come back with you to try and help.

When you regain control Lizbeth will be gone but apparently gets into the Mako when you do. When you turn to leave don’t think that your trip back will be easy, more geth have positioned themselves along the skyway and are just looking to stop the squad from getting back.

Getting to Zhu’s Hope
When you exit the ExoGeni garage, on the other side are two Geth Armatures and two Geth Juggernauts outside that are just waiting for you to come out. There are also some Geth Rocket Troopers and Geth Shock Troopers as well, but they aren’t the biggest threat. Deal with them, use the garage door if necessary to avoid their fire, and then roll down the skyway and back to the ExoGeni bunker.

As you get closer you hear another radio transmission from Juliana Baynham asking for help, Ethan Jeong is then heard telling her to get away from the radio. Lizbeth asks about it then you hear Juliana again using a general distress call and then is cut off. When you get near the bunker a cutscene plays where Lizbeth asks for the Mako to be stopped and she exits and head down the ramp, follow her.

ExoGeni Bunker
When you get far enough down the ramp a cutscene will play where Lizbeth and the squad are hiding and watching the action unfold. Jeong has some of the ExoGeni Security leading Juliana away while she is telling him that he won’t get away with something. Lizbeth jumps up, Shepard reaches to grab her, but misses and Lizbeth runs to her mother and they hug. Jeong orders Shepard and the squad out and they leave cover and Jeong proceeds to tell Shepard that he found some very interesting things about Shepard in the ExoGeni database. Also because the comms have been restored, ExoGeni wants the colony purged and the colonists have a problem with that.

You have a few options from here, if you don’t have the necessary Charm/Intimidate points, 10 Intimidate or 12 Charm, then you can’t reason with Jeong and Shepard shoots him when Jeong draws his pistol. If you have the necessary options then you can convince Jeong that saving the colony is worth ExoGeni’s time and money, either by appealing to the “against all odds” approach paragon, or by threatening him with Shepard’s Spectre status renegade. If you choose to use the options then Jeong will agree to support and expand the colony with ExoGeni resources, and you bank a lot of morality points and can significantly impact the fate of the Feros colony. Either way Juliana will ask to speak with you before you leave for Zhu’s Hope.

If you managed to talk Jeong down then Juliana thanks you; if you shot him then she sees it as a bad sign because ExoGeni may pull out. She will ask you to spare as many colonists as possible and after some talking she speculates that using a modified nerve gas might be the best thing to help take down the colonists because of their weakened immune systems. The nerve gas isn’t weapons grade but is enough to take down the colonists without harming them, the only other option is to melee them. Or you can do neither and just kill everyone.

If you want you can drop off the data from Feros: Data Recovery with Gavin Hossle but you can still wait until after the mission for that.

Back on the Road
When you are ready head back up to the Mako and head out of the Weigh Station and back on the last part of the skyway to Zhu’s Hope. If it wasn’t already obvious the geth are mounting a final defense to prevent Shepard from getting back. Just beyond the door are more Rocket Troopers, Juggernauts, Armatures, and Shock Troopers. Deal with them either on foot or from the Mako. If you are able to use a sniper rifle, then positioning yourself behind the pile of dirt in the middle of the road, you might be able to take them all down without them being able to hit you. Your squad members should stay out of the line of fire as well, because their helpfulness when doing this, will be questionable. When the geth are down move up and when you reach the part where the skyway broke and a large section goes down to the lower level there are two final Armatures that block your path to Zhu’s Hope, so make sure to take out this final road block. Then move along the skyway until you reach the garage door to Zhu’s Hope.

Assault on Zhu’s Hope
When you get close enough to the door, Shepard and the squad will exit the Mako and observe a creature on the ground folded up like the geth in storage mode. When the squad gets close to it, it wakes up, stands up and attacks. You regain control so shoot the thing dead. When it falls your squadmates ask what it was and you have two options that do affect your squad’s actions. If you choose the “Don’t shoot the colonists” dialogue option, then your squadmates will only fire on the creepers and not the colonists; the other option will cause your squadmates will shoot at everything including the colonists. A display in the lower right hand corner will let you know how many colonists are still alive, starting at 16; the number of colonists you kill will have an impact on the colony's ultimate fate. It is recommended you save before you open the door.

When you regain control open the garage door and you will come under fire from the barricades on the upper level, equip the Anti-Thorian Gas to your grenades, if paragon, and then fling a grenade at the colonists; aim for the middle because you have a chance of taking down all four in one shot. Actually you should equip the gas either way because it is a one hit kill for the creepers as well. When you have dealt with the colonists, focus on the creepers, you can’t damage them when they are folded up so don’t bother, just shoot them when they stand up and their health bar appears. If you run out of grenades, don't worry, meleeing the colonists knocks them out instead of killing them. This gives the same effect as the gas grenades, as you won't kill the colonists. Remember that storming into an enemy causes you to make a melee attack; if you're having trouble pulling off melee attacks with your attack button without accidentally shooting the colonists, charging headlong into them is a good alternative strategy.

It is worth using shotguns, even for squad members who aren’t trained in them, to take down the creepers. It is also worth taking out all the creepers for the experience they provide as well. When the creepers are biodegrading and the colonists are either dead or incapacitated, then head into the elevator.



When you exit the elevator go around to the left and there will be more creepers and through the door will be two more colonists, use a grenade to take them all out quickly or just shoot them. The creepers will not rise until a certain amount are down and they will rise in order but when if you gas the two colonists that are behind the barrier then they will all get up. When they are down move down the stairs and combat more creepers along the way as they rise and sometimes charge up the stairs to attack you.

When you reach the bottom of the stairs there are the barriers from before, about 5 to 7 creepers, and more colonists. Use a grenade to incapacitate the colonists or just shoot everything, your choice. When you have dealt with the enemies at the gates, move up and around, the freighter will be locked so you can’t go through it, so head right and up to the elevated catwalk. When you get up there is a box on the ground that will give you five more grenades to use them wisely. There are also some creepers on the catwalk so watch your step. When you get to the other side, there are more barriers, creepers, and the last of the colonists. Use the grenades on the colonists first because they have guns and are a bigger threat, then shift your focus to the creepers. When the all are down, one way or the other, one of your squadmates will ask if Shepard can work the crane to get access to the Thorian. Just walk over to the crane controls and activate them.

When you do, a section of the freighter will rise exposing a stairwell leading into the underworks of the colony. Just as Shepard is about to step down Fai Dan comes around and says that the Thorian wants him to kill Shepard, but while the pain is apparently immense, he still manages to resist and shoot himself in the head. Head down the stairs and you are treated to a cutscene where Shepard and the squad descend into the Thorian’s lair.

The Thorian
When you regain control you get your reward from either killing or gassing the colonists, you get two points for each colonist either killed or saved. Head down the stairs and just keep going because there will be no enemies. Before you reach the bottom, however, save the game. When you reach the bottom a cutscene plays. One of the squadmates starts talking about finding a central core, and the team is soon confronted with the enormity of the Thorian. The large creature notices the team and expels a green-skinned asari.

The Asari Clone starts speaking to you, and explains that the Thorian was attacked by Saren to prevent Shepard from gaining access to the knowledge to understand the beacon’s vision. The Thorian absorbed the essence of the Protheans and gave the knowledge to Saren in exchange for her and an understanding that the Thorian would be left alone. Saren broke the agreement and attacked, however, so the Thorian does not want to talk to any 'meat bags' such as the team. The conversation ends abruptly and you regain control.

The first thing you should do in this fight is use Throw to throw the asari off and into the abyss below the Thorian. Then turn to the Thorian creepers that are scattered around, use powers, gunfire, grenades, and well anything else to take them down, just don’t let them get close. When they are down, one of your squadmates notices something in the next room, so go and investigate. In the room is a large ball of organic material that is attached to the wall, shoot it and the node will eventually be destroyed. The second it is destroyed, the Thorian groans, or screams, and your squadmates will comment that that hurt it and now you have to hunt down the rest of the nodes. You are also treated to another cutscene where the Thorian produces yet another clone.

Level 2
From this point on, it is highly recommended that you use your shotgun, even if you are not trained in it. Shotguns make this entire chain of events surprisingly easier and less frustrating. This is especially noticeable on lower difficulties, where both creepers and asari clones can be killed with a single shotgun blast.

This next part is very linear so just follow the path forward and you will complete the mission. However, head past and under the dead node and up the stairs, don’t worry about the creepers, they won’t wake up, well at least right now. Head up the stairs and you will run into more creepers and eventually when you reach the landing send in your squad first because there are more creepers and the close and they are determined to keep you away from the next node. If the asari is in the right position, then she can be thrown off again. Once you have dealt with the Thorian creepers and the clone, head to the opposite side of the room and access the weapons locker.

In the room with the node are more Thorian creepers; now you have two options on how to deal with this problem. If you shoot the node until it bursts, it will kill all the creepers even if they aren’t up yet. However, you lose out on the exp they provide, and the node's health is directly proportional to the number of living creepers "attached" to it, so it will take longer to kill while the creepers are still alive. The other option is to shoot the node and when the creepers rise up then deal with them, then get back to shooting the node. When the node is dead move up the rubble and to the next level.

Level 3
The next room contains even more creepers and another clone. If you are sneaky enough, then you can throw the clone off and then you only have to deal with the creepers. Move into the room and take out the creepers and then look to your left as you can see the node from here. The best way to deal with it is to shoot it from this room and deal with the creepers as they come, otherwise you can get overwhelmed very quickly.

Put your squadmates in cover near the door and start shooting the node and then deal with the creepers as they come down the tunnel. Eventually you will run out of creepers and the node will run out of health and blows up. Move into the room where the node was and then put your squadmates in cover near the door as the next room has more of the same. Just shooting down the tunnel should be enough to attract their attention. So deal with the creepers and the clone as they come. When you are done head into the large room and decrypt the medical station at the other end of the room before going into the room with the node.

The room with the node also contains 10-12 creepers and they will follow the usual “waking up when you shoot the node so kill me now” routine. When all the creepers or the node is destroyed, head up the rubble and onto the next level.

Level 4
When you get up you can throw the clone or a creeper off the ledge. Unlike the rest of the rooms this one opens to the right and has a lot less enemies than the three previous ones. Take down the clone and creepers as they come, throw a few off for a few laughs, and then turn around and shoot the node. You can even do that first but remember you will lose the exp. Once the node is destroyed head down where the node currently blocked you and you arrive at the first staircase. Head up the stairs and then you will be forced to deal with those creepers that you had to bypass earlier. They will wake up, in droves, and attack along with the clone while you are trying to climb the staircase to the last node. Take them down with shotguns, powers, gunfire, and any grenades you have left. When all the enemies are on the ground, resume climbing the stairs and onto the final level.

Level 5
Once on the top there are two rooms with creepers, and a final clone. Take down the ones in the middle and then get into cover and use the same tactics as before, or whichever tactics that work best for you. When you have dealt with the final creepers, finish off the node and you are treated to the nodes you destroyed collapsing and the Thorian falling into the abyss.

Then the scene jumps to a pod like structure and a blue-skinned asari falls out. She starts talking and she introduces herself as Shiala and she served Matriarch Benezia. Talk to her and you will learn that Saren came to get the Cipher and understand the disjointed images from the Beacon on Eden Prime. She will tell you that Saren gave her in exchange for the Cipher and then tried to kill the Thorian, to keep Shepard from getting to it. Apparently Saren knows that Shepard is searching for the Conduit and is doing everything possible to stop Shepard.

She will give you the Cipher and then her fate is in your hands. You can choose to kill her, or allow her to help the colony to recover, which will affect the colony's survival chances. Either way you head back up to the colony automatically when the dialog ends.

Leaving
The ExoGeni personnel are here from their bunker, and will greet you with either respect or distrust as you learn the consequences of your actions for the colony's future. Your results here can be predicted by a simple formula, as follows:

Colony health is cumulative, so 11 surviving colonists and three sidequests nets a health of 14, for example.
 * Colony health
 * For each sidequest completed (varren meat, geth in the tunnels, etc), add 1
 * For each surviving colonist, add 1

Colony leadership is not cumulative; if Jeong agrees to help, it doesn't matter what you do with Shiala, you still only get 12 points.
 * Colony leadership
 * If Shiala survives, leadership is 5
 * If Ethan Jeong agrees to help the colony, leadership is 12

For Feros to survive, the total value of colony health + colony leadership must be thirteen or higher. So, for example, if you kill Shiala and Jeong, you need to spare at least 13 colonists, or spare at least 9 colonists and complete all four sidequests. If you convince Jeong, to help, you only need to do one sidequest or save one single colonist. Meet this bar and the remaining colonists will thank you for your help and cheer about the colony's newly bright future. Fall short, and they'll dejectedly explain that the colony is being shut down.

With this conversation done, you can talk to the various people left, trade with Ledra, and give Gavin his data if you recovered it, or simply head straight back to where the Normandy is docked and leave this planet behind.

Normandy
If you have Liara in your party she will offer to join your minds again to try and make sense of the vision, but the meaning will remain elusive. You can also choose to report to the council or not. If you do they make comments about the Thorian and how it was a problem and they should have been informed. Also they comment about if the colony was saved or not. If the colony was being shutdown then the asari councilor is disappointed that the colony couldn’t be saved and the turian councilor approves saying the mission came first. If the colony was saved the salarian councilor will approve and the turian councilor will disapprove.

Enemies

 * Asari Clone
 * Colonist (enemy)
 * Geth Armature
 * Geth Destroyer
 * Geth Juggernaut
 * Geth Rocket Trooper
 * Geth Shock Trooper
 * Geth Trooper
 * Thorian Creeper