Miranda Lawson

'"I'm an excellent judge of character. I think you'll find my assessments to be right on the money." '

Miranda Lawson is a human informant, a major protagonist in Mass Effect Galaxy and a squad member in Mass Effect 2. As Jacob Taylor's informant, she gives him guidance and advice during missions, often via hologram. Miranda is very well traveled and has many contacts, extending from Citadel space and the Terminus Systems, to as far as the hostile Nemean Abyss.

Her vast network of contacts may be explained by the fact Miranda is a known Cerberus operative, one who still has friends--or at least friends of friends--in the Alliance military.

Miranda is both voiced by, and modeled upon, the actress Yvonne Strahovski.

Mass Effect Galaxy
Miranda first makes contact with Jacob Taylor after being referred to him through his former commanding officer, Derek Izunami. Izunami arranges for them to meet in a bar called the Fringe on Cartagena Station, a space station in the Nemean Abyss. Miranda greets Jacob after he takes out a group of pirates who had taken over the bar, quipping that she was expecting someone taller.

She then explains the supposed batarian plot to sabotage the peace talks at the Citadel by assassinating Ambassador Jath'Amon. Miranda gives Jacob three sources which may relate to the recent batarian attacks: a turian arms dealer named 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 and are holding them on the Ahn'Kedar Orbital Platform.

Miranda then assists Jacob from his ship during his investigations. On Tortuga, Jacob receives the codes for Nazario's compound from Miranda's salarian contact Ish. After Jacob fights his way through the compound, he and Miranda find that Nazario has been infected with a deadly bioweapon and agree to find a cure in exchange for his information on the batarians. On Ahn'Kedar, Jacob rescues the captive scientists and learns that they need a large quantity of element zero in order to complete a cure.

When they arrive on Bekke, Miranda reports strange readings from the planet surface as the ship comes under fire. She later picks up the massive eezo cache Jacob discovers in the facility. Miranda accompanies Jacob during his interrogation of Nazario, who informs them that Jath'Amon has no intention of a peace treaty, the peace talks being a cover to assassinate the council with the bioweapon. She then accompanies him to the citadel, where Jacob subdues Jath'Amon and saves the council. Miranda later joins Jacob on his resumed vacation on the Arcturian Jade with a bottle of celebratory champagne.

Mass Effect 2
"I'm quite remarkable, really."

Cerberus Officer
Cerberus Officer is Miranda's class power.
 * Rank 1
 * Health: +5.00%
 * Weapon Damage: +6.00%
 * Squad Health: +2.50%
 * Squad Weapon Damage: +2.50%


 * Rank 2
 * Health: +10.00%
 * Weapon Damage: +12.00%
 * Squad Health: +5.00%
 * Squad Weapon Damage: +5.00%


 * Rank 3
 * Health: +15.00%
 * Weapon Damage: +18.00%
 * Squad Health: +7.50%
 * Squad Weapon Damage: +7.50%


 * Rank 4 Unlocks choice between Cerberus Leader or Cerberus Tactician
 * Cerberus Leader: Miranda's coordination of the fire team gives an increased bonus to squad weapon damage.
 * Health: +20.00%
 * Weapon Damage: +25.00%
 * Squad Health: +7.50%
 * Squad Weapon Damage: +15.00%
 * Cerberus Tactician: Miranda's leadership tactics leave no one behind, giving an increased bonus to squad health.
 * Health: +20.00%
 * Weapon Damage: +25.00%
 * Squad Health: +15.00%
 * Squad Weapon Damage: +7.50%

Dossier
Commander Shepard first meets Miranda after being brought back to life by Cerberus after the destruction of the Normandy as part of the Lazarus Project. When the secret Cerberus facility is attacked by unknown assailants Miranda orders Shepard out of bed, to a weapon locker and acts as a guide during the subsequent fight.

Soon after, as the player prepares to board Cerberus Station, Miranda becomes a permanent member of Shepard's squad. She functions as Shepard's second-in-command aboard the Normandy. Additionally, she serves as the Illusive Man's liaison, regularly updating him on the status of Shepard and the mission.

Shepard can talk to Miranda to discover her origins. She explains that she doesn't have a mother, only a father who was influential, extremely wealthy,and extremely 'egotistical'. Using a modified copy of his own genome, Miranda was genetically engineered to be a specimen of human perfection. Everything, from her intelligence, physical constitution, biotic abilities, to her appearance were designed before birth to be excellent; as she sums up, "I'm quite remarkable really". If Shepard calls her out for being cocky, she retorts that she's only stating the facts.

However, Miranda’s gifts proved to be a burden growing up. Despite her accomplishments throughout her youth, Miranda’s perfectionist father never showed approval or pride towards his daughter. He always expected more and better from her- forever chiding her to be greater than she already was. Miranda remarks that he treated her more like a science project than a daughter. The constant pressure and lack of affection led Miranda to relinquish her privileged lifestyle and run away from home as a teenager. She says her father used his extensive network of contacts to chase her across the galaxy, but she managed to elude him nonetheless.

At some point she encountered the Illusive Man and joined Cerberus. She was drawn to the organization partly for their desire to help humanity, but also because they appreciated her gifts and constantly challenged her. Miranda also enjoys the amount of latitude their clandestine operations afford her; she is given an objective, all the resources she needs, and nothing more.

Unfortunately, Miranda still retains some of the insecurities that drove her from home. Despite leading an illustrious career, Miranda doesn’t believe she’s truly earned her accomplishments. Because of her father's genetic tampering which gave her the innate advantage to succeed, she still feels like she's living under his shadow. She feels that her failures are the only thing she truely owns. Miranda admits that this has made her somewhat jealous of Shepard, whose vast accomplishments can be credited to his/her own skill, talent, and drive.

Loyalty: The Prodigal
To gain Miranda's loyalty, Slam and a chance for a relationship, you must talk to her and unlock her personal mission. During the events of the mission, you discover that Miranda has a sister, Oriana, who is 19 years old. Oriana is genetically Miranda's twin, but much younger. Miranda stole her from their father when she was a baby. Should the mission go well then you can start flirting with her.

After gaining the loyalty of both Miranda and Jack, the next time Shepard boards the Normandy Joker will radio in about a fight aboard the ship. Jack wants Miranda to admit what was done to her by Cerberus was wrong, but Miranda refuses to acknowledge that Cerberus was at fault claiming it was a splinter group not Cerberus calling the shots. Choosing one will lose you the loyalty of the other and the chance for romance with them so pick wisely. They do however still keep their alternate outfit and additional skills. Alternatively, if you have a high enough paragon or renegade score, you can choose one of the neutral options and keep the loyalty of both.

Romance
Miranda is a potential love interest for a male Shepard, and can be courted after completing her loyalty mission.

Suicide Mission
If Shepard's squad manages to successfully reach the Collectors' base after passing through the Omega 4 Relay, Miranda is an excellent choice to lead the 1st and/or 2nd fire team.

If Miranda goes with Sheppard to battle the Human-Reaper, and Shepard opts to destroy the Collectors' base despite the Illusive Man's objections, the Illusive Man will order her to set off the radiation pulse. Miranda will then refuse, confirming her loyalty to Shepard, state her resignation from Cerberus, and drop the Illusive Man's comlink.

Trivia

 * Once Yvonne Strahovski signed on to voice the character, the development team decided to model the character's face based on the actress'. Additionally, the character's original Scandinavian surname was changed to better match Strahovski's Australian accent.
 * Miranda's original surname was Solheim, Norwegian for "Sunhome." This was chosen in part because she is one of the relatively rare characters born on Earth (i.e. from the Sol system).
 * Early ideas of Miranda pegged her as a blonde, but once they created her Cerberus uniform, black hair seemed to better complement the "femme fatale" look.
 * Miranda is the only known character in the Mass Effect series to have long hair (below her shoulders).