Morinth

Morinth is an asari Ardat-Yakshi, suffering from a rare asari genetic disorder which causes her to kill her mates while joining minds with them. In turn she becomes smarter, more powerful, and deadlier after each coupling. She has spent centuries as a fugitive from asari justice, surviving by her wits and cunning. Her powerful biotic abilities, and talent for dominating the minds of others, have kept her alive despite the odds.

Morinth is voiced by Natalia Cigliuti.

Weapon Proficiencies

 * Submachine Guns
 * Assault Rifles

Ardat-Yakshi

 * Rank 1
 * Health: +5.00%
 * Weapon Damage: +6.00%
 * Power Recharge Time: -6.00%


 * Rank 2
 * Health: +10.00%
 * Weapon Damage: +12.00%
 * Power Recharge Time: -12.00%


 * Rank 3
 * Health: +15.00%
 * Weapon Damage: +18.00%
 * Power Recharge Time: -18.00


 * Rank 4 Unlocks choice between Endua-Yakshi or Malian-Yakshi
 * Endua-Yakshi: Morinth's considerable stamina further increases her health and reduces the recharge time of her powers.
 * Health: +20.00%
 * Weapon Damage: +18.00%
 * Power Recharge Time: -25.00%
 * Malian-Yakshi: Morinth's consumption of lives further increases her health as well as her weapon damage.
 * Health: +20.00%
 * Weapon Damage: +25.00%
 * Power Recharge Time: -18.00

Dossier
Morinth was born sometime in the 1700s, one of Samara's three daughters. At the age of forty, Morinth, like her other two sisters, was discovered to be an Ardat-Yakshi, and was offered the choice of either a life spent in comfortable seclusion, or execution. Addicted to the process of melding, Morinth chose to run, prompting Samara in turn to become a justicar and hunt her down.

For 400 years, Samara chased Morinth across asari space, as Morinth became more and more addicted to the high she got from killing her mates. On one planet, Morinth corrupted an entire village and convinced them to worship her. The villagers offered their daughters to her as sacrifices. When Samara arrived, Morinth ordered her worshippers to attack Samara in waves to cover her escape. By the time Samara was finished, Morinth had fled and only the youngest children of the village were left.

Morinth eventually left asari space and travelled to Illium, but her mother continued to hunt her down. Morinth contacted the Eclipse mercenary band, and persuaded them to help her escape off-world aboard the AML Demeter. She eventually arrived on Omega, believing she had earned a reprieve. While she was there, Morinth met a young sculptor, Nef, whom Morinth found irresistible due to her artistic talents. She seduced and murdered Nef, not realising that Samara had picked up her trail with the help of Commander Shepard.

As part of her loyalty mission, Samara asked Shepard to help her find and kill her daughter. She and Shepard investigated Nef's death on Omega, and put together a daring plan: Shepard would act as bait for Morinth, pretend to be seduced by her, and go back to Morinth's apartment. Samara would track them there, and finish Morinth off.

Mornith saw Shepard in the VIP section of the Afterlife Club, her usual hunting grounds. Shepard's actions attracted and excited her, and Morinth invited the Commander to join her at her table. They talked for a while before Morinth decided to invite Shepard back to her apartment; once there she tried to seduce Shepard, only to see her mother enter the room. Morinth and Samara battled; Morinth saw her chance and asked Shepard to help her kill Samara, claiming she was just as powerful as her mother and could serve Shepard's cause.

Shepard then has a choice to kill either Samara or Morinth if the charm or intimidate option was used. Killing Samara is considered to be the Renegade outcome, though Paragon Shepards are also able to choose this outcome as it is not dependent on Paragon / Renegade scores. If Samara is killed, Morinth then replaces her mother on Shepard's team. Their strong family resemblance means no one aboard the Normandy realises Samara has been replaced by Morinth; only Shepard knows the truth.

Romance
If Shepard talks to Morinth on the ship, she will express her desire to mate with the Commander as Shepard is unlike any other person she has had before. She even suggests that Shepard is too strong willed to die if they join with her and proposes that after they complete their mission that they should celebrate by doing so. If they both survive the suicide mission, Shepard can choose to mate with her as promised; however Morinth's claims prove to be a bluff and Shepard painfully dies during joining, leading to a 'critical mission failure' game over message.

Trivia

 * If Morinth has replaced Samara, Kelly and Kasumi notice a change in her behavior, suggesting that her impersonation of her mother isn't perfect.
 * Morinth's description in the Squad Selection screen mistakenly lists her as being trained with Heavy Pistols instead of Assault Rifles.
 * While part of the squad, Morinth normally mimics Samara's voice outside of her quarters on the Normandy. However, in Fortack's lab on Tuchanka, there is a "Talk to Morinth" node where she will break character and make a comment in her true voice. She has unique dialogue with Mordin and Grunt if either are present. Strangely, neither are surprised by her change in voice.
 * Sometimes on the Normandy SR-2 Morinth will wear her original black costume instead of Samara's costume.
 * The game draws numerous parallels between Ardat-Yakshi and vampires. Both are connected with or described as "demons", both drain their victims of life, and both are known for seducing their victims. In conversations with Samara, you learn that Morinth once set herself up as a goddess and was worshipped by an entire village; many vampire stories refer to entire villages being held in thrall. Most telling of all, the name of the vessel that transported Morinth from Illium to Omega is the "Demeter," the name of the ship that carried Dracula to England.
 * Morinth has parallels with the mythology of Lilith, a succubus whose root word translates literally as "female night demon" or "female wind demon" (presumably hence the Ardat-Yakshi's translation as "Demon of the night winds").