Formerly listed as Tali'Zorah nar Rayya, the quarian engineer earned her adult name after helping Shepard defeat Saren two years ago. Tali is currently on a classified assignment for the Migrant Fleet Admiralty Board on Haestrom, deep in geth-controlled space.
Acquisition[]
The Illusive Man provides Shepard with dossiers on three new squadmates after the mission to Horizon.
Preparation[]
Tactical themes of this mission include lots of geth and long fields of fire: AI Hacking, Overload, Disruptor Ammo, sniper rifles, and the squadmates who provide them are all useful. The Area Overload evolution is recommended if playing on Hardcore or Insanity due to the geth numbers and their tendency to clump up in narrow areas. Garrus deserves special mention as his passive can enable his Overload to one-shot the shields of lesser geth enemies even on the highest difficulties if both powers are sufficiently high level.
If you have completed Lair of the Shadow Broker to unlock it (in this or any previous playthrough), Stasis is useful for this mission because of its ability to instantly kill flying drone-type enemies and its ability to freeze and drop enemies even with protection layers still active; otherwise, Energy Drain is an excellent bonus power choice if your chosen class does not possess Overload as it not only kills enemy shields but recharges and reinforces your own.
In terms of heavy weapons, the Arc Projector deals bonus damage to shields and even more to synthetic enemies, and it also possesses several useful secondary effects that can come in especially handy on this mission. There will be one opportunity to change weapons, so you can consider taking one loadout of weapons for the first half of the mission and then switch to a different loadout for the second half, which features some heavily armored opponents, including a "boss" that can be an excellent target for the M-920 Cain.
Note: This Dossier Mission is the only one where you can get up to two weapons for your arsenal. If you wish to acquire the Geth Pulse Rifle, be sure to set the difficulty setting to either Hardcore or Insanity BEFORE landing on Haestrom while aboard the Normandy, or as soon as you land on Haestrom. The M-9 Tempest is a viable alternative to the default M-4 Shuriken (or M-12 Locust if you have it), and is also usable by 5 of the 6 player classes. Therefore, there is a vested interest for doing this mission early for gameplay purposes.
Bringing Legion: Some unique dialogue and cutscenes will occur if you bring Legion on this mission. However, as Legion is acquired after the Reaper IFF mission which also starts a countdown to the Suicide Mission (the conclusion of the main storyline), taking this route will likely have serious consequences for the crew's survival chances.
Walkthrough[]
Tali and her team traveled to Haestrom, a former quarian colony world, to study the unusual things its sun is doing. Unfortunately the planet is under attack by the geth. Solar radiation on the surface is so strong that it will weaken and eventually overload Shepard's shields. You must stay in the shade and run from cover to cover to survive. Do not stay in the sun for any prolonged period of time because it will completely destroy your team's shields. Squad members will stand in the sunlight and take shield damage indefinitely, so it is sometimes required to maneuver Shepard or Order Move commands to put them in a safe spot. Simply put, AVOID THE SUN.
Note: "Shields" here refer to kinetic barriers and biotic barriers; both forms will be stripped from yours and your squadmates all the same. Only Grunt is immune to solar radiation as he relies on armor for defense, even though it recharges like shields do. You can't be killed if you stand in the sunlight directly: your shields will deplete but no damage to health will occur. You will be alerted to the shield drain by a constant beeping sound as well as your shield bar reducing in the HUD.
Legendary Edition: Player shields also throw off blue sparks when in sunlight as an additional visual cue.
Arrival[]
The first area after the drop-off has no combat, though your squadmates will make comments about the shield-stripping rays of Haestrom's sun. Move forward down the ramps to get past the sun and you will eventually reach a small gatehouse with a door on the right.
The building has two lootables: a Damaged Geth (+3,000 credits) and a med-kit with medi-gel. A quarian log next to a dead quarian plays automatically on repeat that gives you some brief background on what has happened. Activate the Gate Controls to open the facility gate outside. Leave the building and go through the gateway to continue the mission. Saving will be temporarily disabled once you open the gate as there will be a fight shortly.
When you go through the gateway, immediately get into cover and note two things: first where the sun falls and second where the enemies are in cover. A Geth Dropship arrives to deploy 4 Geth Troopers. Defeat all the enemies on the ground floor immediately in front of the gateway.
The area layout lends to two main paths of advancement: straight ahead, or higher ground via the ramp to the right from your starting position. Each route is guarded by an initial two Troopers, then reinforced as you proceed further. Both routes have terrible sight lines to the other, allowing you to focus on your enemies ahead instead of additionally watching your sides. In terms of sun protection the upper level offers more cover, but has less room for maneuvering. This is a large battlefield, so if you have a sniper rifle you can pick off enemies at a distance. Either route is possible with any weapons though.
About halfway through the battlefield, look to the east. If you're on the upper level, you'll see a medical station next to a ramp that descends to a small chamber at the lower level. This area has a Heavy Pistol Damage upgrade next to a dead quarian. If you're on the lower level, a giant block shields a pathway east that leads to the same aforementioned chamber with the upgrade.
The geth reinforcements spawn from an orange doorway at the far side as you move forward. Each wave consists of 1-2 Troopers and a Geth Rocket Trooper. The door opens at least once. Rushing to the other side cancels reinforcements but then you will have to deal with enemies already present. Typically, you will have to fight 3 Rocket Troopers and a greater number of Troopers.
Combat Strategies: For shorter-range weapons it is a better to take the elevated causeway path as there is lots of cover to fight from compared to staying on the ground where longer range weapons are more suited for use. However, you will actually fight more enemies in the upper level than in the lower one.
- Elevated Causeway / Up the Ramp: There are multiple waist-high crates you and your squadmates can lean out of once you reach the upper level. Aside from the initial two upper level Troopers, there is an additional Trooper charging in from the far side. The reinforcement door triggers earlier here, and you may end up having to scrap 11 or more Troopers. Trooper behavior here is to make a beeline to your location from the exit ramp on the far side while the Rocket Troopers hang back, and you'll face the latter only upon reaching line of sight around the ramp.
- Lower Level / On the Floor: Keep in cover and your squadmates will tell you that the sun is too bright and another way must be found. You can continue or ignore them. The two initial lower level Troopers emerge from the halfway chamber almost immediately after you dealt with the dropship troops, so there's no avoiding them even if you took the other route. When you reach the halfway point, the reinforcement door only triggers for the first time. The two upper level Troopers have no pathing solutions to the lower level until this point, then they will descend from the exit ramp of the upper level. Another Trooper will spawn from the upper level, and typically descend from the midway ramp. You really have little protection here, the farthest area secured from the sun and gunfire is by the ramp before the halfway giant block, so you may have to rely on waiting for the geth to come into sight from this position.
Regroup[]
Once the geth are eliminated, loot the crate of Refined Iridium (+400 iridium) located across from the down ramp of the causeway. Remember the crane contraption you found it in and the resource's green coloring highly visible from afar, as there are many more like it on the next areas. There is one last straggler Trooper in the corridor east of the reinforcement door before you can save safely.
As you proceed through the corridor you hear some pulse rifle sounds. When you turn the corner you'll see two Troopers shooting at something. Eliminate them.
When the dust has settled you're left with a room of organic and synthetic dead bodies: two quarians and a geth phasing in and out of cloak. All of them are lootable: the Damaged Geth Hunter has 6,000 credits, the nearest quarian corpse has an M-9 Tempest, and the farthest quarian has a radio. Note: The Geth Hunter cannot be looted while it's cloaked. Wait for it to become visible.
Warning: Picking up the radio leads to a cutscene, railroading past a point of no return, and a fight, and the same thing happens if you ignore it and proceed directly to the next area. It is a good idea to save before this juncture.
The radio broadcasts a repeating message. Answering it introduces you to Kal'Reegar, the quarian in command of the marines assigned to escort Tali on her mission. A cutscene eventually plays with the quarian marines battling the geth and being killed by a strafing run from a Geth Dropship that also collapses a pillar and blocks Shepard's access to any quarian marines that may be still alive.
Getting the Charges[]
After the cutscene and dialogue options with Reegar that can earn some morality points, you must retrieve two demolition charges to destroy the pillar. But first, you and your squad drop down from the ledge rendering you unable to return to the previous area. In this next one, you'll initially come under attack from a couple of Troopers and a Geth Hunter, very much intact and stalking compared to the dead one earlier. You only have a small square block or some railings for cover in the immediate area, although you can take another option and try flanking the geth via a gap in the railings if they reach your position.
When these first few robots are down, you can now direct your attention to the general layout of the battlefield. Right up north is the pillar you must destroy. West of it is a garage. Farther northwest leads to a bunker. EDI notifies you that the demolition charges are in these last two positions, and they come with heavy geth resistance before AND after you take the charges. There are two Refined Iridium stations in the area (+400 iridium each), one between the garage and the pillar, and one in the area before the bunker. Both locations also have two stashes of medi-gel each, and it's highly recommended you keep them in reserve instead of converting them to credits, as there's a significant possibility your squadmates may faint from too many gunshot wounds.
You can take the charges in whichever order, although it's recommended to go for the garage demo charge first because it is much nearer and easier, not to mention it has likely spawned some Trooper defenders on approach. The charges cannot be claimed while enemies are still active in the area, so trying any sneaky infiltration tactics to steal them won't work.
Note: Both garage and bunker have proximity spawning triggers wherein if you trip a certain distance from these locations from any direction Troopers will spawn: 2 Troopers from the garage, 1-2 Troopers from the bunker. This is continuous: kill a wave, another replaces it as long as you're not within a certain distance from the bunker or garage. You can reduce the number of Geth Troopers you need to fight by simply going to the target location, though you will have to seek immediate cover against any hostiles already present. Once the defenders at a location are all down, Trooper spawning in the other area is temporarily suspended until after you've picked up the demo charge and fought your way out.
If you wish to go deploy heavy weapons, this section of the mission is an appropriate time as there are two ammo refill opportunities here and afterward.
Demo Charge 1 - Garage[]
Most of the cover going to the garage is in shade so don't worry about the sun.
The garage is defended by at least 4 initial Troopers, plus a few more Troopers and a Hunter emerging from the ramp at the back of the room. To cut down on "infinite" Trooper spawn, you may have to take cover behind the crates below the garage doors as you eliminate the garage defenders.
Aside from the demo charge, the garage contains a med kit, a medical station above the ramps, a free thermal clip on the desk with the demo charge, and Tali's journal where she complains she can't get the data she needs because the quarians' equipment kept dying. She then recalls your stint with the mining laser on Therum and hopes she can get a core sample using demo charges.
It's recommended you save before taking the demo charge, because you'll face heavy resistance afterward.
As you exit the garage a Geth Dropship will fly in and drop off 2 Geth Troopers and a Geth Prime. Careful planning can make this battle much simpler to complete. Proper selection of cover is essential.
- Place your squadmates into cover before you trigger the Geth Dropship. You or your squadmates can be positioned in the area behind the ET3 vehicle at the back of the bay. With your two squadmates assigned positions in cover behind the yellow vehicle before the geth wave is activated, the whole wave can be picked off with no real danger. You can actually order a squadmate into the cockpit of the ET3, from whence they will be well-protected from enemies while still able to fire on them, or you can take advantage of it yourself.
- Once you've triggered the dropship, it's best to have Shepard retreat rapidly to the back of the room and into cover near your squadmates behind the yellow vehicle.
- Shepard can take cover on the wall directly in front of the med-kit with the ramps upwards right above you. The Geth Prime will walk up the ramp onto the landing trying to get to Shepard, point down its weapons at point blank range at Shepard, but be unable to fire on Shepard. The Combat Drones the Geth Prime spawns will be right above Shepard but unable to get you either. Your squadmates in cover behind the yellow vehicle can use weapons and powers to destroy the Geth Prime easily from their vantage point.
- The remaining Geth Troopers tend to stay to cover out in the room but will tend to break cover and storm your position once the Geth Prime falls. Kill the remaining Geth Troopers quickly or they will overrun your position behind the yellow vehicle.
- Using AI Hacking on the Geth Prime or on lesser geth to distract the Prime can be a helpful tactic here.
After the battle, save your game before continuing on to the second demo charge in the bunker.
Demo Charge 2 - Bunker[]
The second charge is hidden in a bunker you can reach by heading left (or north) as you leave the garage. The Geth Trooper "infinite" trickle will take place until you reach a point where multiple Troopers and a Geth Destroyer suddenly appear, which is around the ramp leading upstairs. It's also the farthest relatively secure location you can hunker down on without getting burned (the couple of debris just before the sunlight are also cover, but more vulnerable to flanking).
When the geth wave spawns you have a couple of options to kill the geth off:
- Option 1: Fight them on more or less even terrain. The ramp crates only have room for two people, and the large block in the middle has poor sight lines to the geth positions, so one of you three may have to use the debris cover below the ramp. The only danger here is the Destroyer which always bears down on its target's position to flush it out, so once that's dead dealing with the other Troopers is easy. They just strafe around rarely attempting flanking maneuvers.
- Option 2: Use the high ground. The catwalk above is very exposed to the sun, although there are a few protected positions where you can pick off Troopers below. You can even use this in conjunction with Option 1, where you leave your teammates by the ramp crates while you do the shooting from above. Alternatively, the catwalk leads to a room east where you can open shutters so you can also flank and shoot at the geth below. Again, the only threat here is the Destroyer if it manages to reach your teammates, so dispose of it as soon as you see it, preferably before you go upstairs.
When the area has quieted down you can listen to another journal entry from Tali in the catwalk. Again she complains about fried equipment, and insists the star shouldn't be dying quickly as it was stable centuries ago.
No additional geth will spawn until you grab the second demo charge. The area has the following lootables: a medical station in the upstairs room connected to the catwalk, a free thermal clip in the same room, and in the bunker itself another medical station, power cells, a thermal clip, and the demolition charge. Saving before taking the demo charge is again recommended, and once more prepare for a fight. Note: If you have enough heavy ammo for the moment, leave the power cells until after the upcoming battle as the power cells will also restock the ammo of all your other weapons. If need be, you can grab the power cells during the battle as well.
When you exit the bunker once again the geth will ambush you: an initial 2 Rocket Troopers in the catwalk, 2 Troopers and a Destroyer by the ramps. Reinforcements may periodically arrive from the door on the upper end of the catwalk, disgorging either Troopers or Rocket Troopers, though thankfully this isn't an infinite spawn situation. They really don't want you to get to Tali, or at least not before they can get to her. When the geth wave spawns you have a couple of options to kill the geth off:
- Option 1: Keep fighting on the ground. Highly risky because of the combined Destroyer and Rocket threat. There is a big slab of rock outside the bunker you can hole up in, though if the going gets tough you can retreat to the bunker itself at the cost of reduced sightlines to the battlefield.
- Option 2: Use the high ground. Dash to the door ahead to your left and proceed up the ramp to the room with the shutter controls. After spending some time on ground level one of your squadmates will suggest this option anyway. Opening the shutters (if you haven't already) will allow you to pick off the Rocket Troopers and then many of the enemies below. Some of the enemies below may remain in positions where it's difficult to snipe them from above but once you've simplified the battle by removing the troops from the catwalk you will find many effective ways to deal with them.
Once the geth are eliminated move back to the pillar and plant the demo charges. You now have 10 seconds to get away before there is a rather large explosion. Even though your squadmates warn you to take cover and a rather ominous countdown appears on your screen, the detonation won't actually kill anyone, just knock your shields down.
Past the Pillar[]
Beyond the pillar is a door, then a small room with another door that loads the area beyond when you open it. Welcome to the quarians' base camp, where again you see nobody alive. Quarians and geth have killed each other to the last being, the only "survivor" being a badly damaged geth crawling towards you (reminiscent of the damaged LOKIs in the Prologue: Awakening mission, though this one doesn't explode). Put it out of its misery or not, it eventually runs out of steam anyway.
There are a lot of interactable things in the base camp. The room is a veritable treasure trove, if you can look past the abattoir. The door forward is locked, so might as well take your time. Your squadmates will have some comments on your surroundings. A few moments after your arrival, Tali appears on holo hailing her base camp. Call her back later when you're not busy.
- Disassembled Geth Rifle (Assault Rifle Damage (Kinetic Pulsar)). Unfolds to a Geth Pulse Rifle when taken (cosmetic effect only)
- Red Damaged Geth (3,000 credits)
- White Damaged Geth (6,000 credits)
- Ancient Wall Safe (bypass for 6,000 credits)
- M-9 Tempest from the nearest dead quarian (if you didn't take it during the introduction to Reegar)
- Weapons Locker for munitions refill and/or loadout reconfiguration
- Tali's Journal (waxing nostalgic about the place and wishing Shepard is here to appreciate the sights)
When you are ready, talk to Tali via the comm system to continue. She's surprised you're there, and isn't willing to talk about joining up with you just yet. Reegar's marines shepherded her to safety on an observatory beyond the locked door beside the comms. You can ask her about her mission, if anyone else is still alive with her, or if bringing down the Normandy SR-2 can help, though she doubts the latter because heavy firepower may collapse the fragile centuries-old buildings around you.
The chat concludes only one way: you asking her to unlock the base camp door. She complies and pleads with you to keep Reegar alive if possible. Morality points may be gained depending on your first two responses. This is a good point to save the game.
Getting to the Observatory[]
Past the door, on the right there is a medical station with medi-gel. Continue down the ramp but be careful as you approach the doorway. There are 2 Geth Recon Drones waiting just beyond, though they shortly activate camouflage and disappear without attacking, eliciting a comment from one of your squadmates and heralding the arrival of more drones that do attack.
This next area is tricky because while the cover is shaded, it is easy for the geth to flank you. There's a lot of sun to your left (west), and the area has multiple pillars providing the shadows. There are 3 main paths to the other side, distinguished by the amount of sun protection. The westernmost is the least protected from both sun and gunfire; conversely, the easternmost is the most protected. Conventionally you'll be fighting it out in the center and eastern paths.
The Recon Drones continuously spawn in groups approaching from a distance until you reach the other side of the area. As you move forward, the Geth Recon Drone spawn points move further back in the room but the "faucet" doesn't shut off completely until you've reached the other side and killed any other geth in the area.
Also, as you move into the area you will encounter two Geth Primes: one hovering near the midway point of the area, and a second one closer to the far side. The first Prime tends to stay behind a large piece of cover patrolling back and forth. The second Geth Prime shows up after you move forward towards the door at the other side of the map. For whatever reason the Primes in this area don't try to advance aggressively on your position as Primes usually try to do—but hedge your bets all the same.
Combat Strategy: It's a good idea to "leapfrog" forward, ordering your squadmates to take specific cover locations before moving up yourself, and so on. The Recon Drones come in distinct waves with breaks in between, so clearing them out quickly gives you more time to deal with the Prime(s). Long range powers and weapons tend to work best for this since you don't have to move up into dangerous territory and risk getting caught in the open by more drones when they show up. Rank 4 Area Overload is excellent for destroying the drone swarms; Adepts can use Singularity to create a floating "flytrap" that will destroy any drones that enter it. Unfortunately, AI Hacking is not effective here, as it won't stop the drones from attacking you or cause them to turn on each other; the most it will do is distract a nearby Prime briefly. It is generally safe to advance between waves of drones, because any new wave will stop in front of your position rather than moving past or flanking you.
Tip: Remember that powers such as Overload don't actually need be close enough to "lock on" to an enemy to hit them, they have near infinite range so merely aim the crosshair on target and the power should hit home.
Prime #2: The second Prime can be prevented from spawning if you advance close to where the first Prime is before destroying it. This can be a risky strategy but saves on time and fighting. Engineers can accomplish this relatively safely through aggressive use of their Combat Drone, which can often befuddle the Geth Prime into retreating. Getting the drone close enough to the exit door can also prevent additional enemy spawns. Infiltrators might be able to sneak through the area with Tactical Cloak. Another strategy is to wear the first Prime down to the point where it's almost dead, wait for a gap in the drone waves, and quickly advance to its location and kill it only once you get there. The Vanguard can accomplish this easily with a Charge.
You know when you are at the end when you see a vehicle pointing towards a door. There is nothing to pick up in this area once the geth are killed.
Warning: Once you've killed all the geth in the alley, be aware that if you go backtrack to pick up ammo or for any other reason, another wave of Geth Recon Drones may spawn unexpectedly even though the battle is "officially" over. It is OK to get ammo at this point, just expect the Geth Recon Drones to come in and take them down as you move forward towards the door at the other side of the room.
Go through the door and save your game before you continue on.
You arrive at a small sealed room. Nothing in there but an initially locked door, a Security Console, and an Ancient Wall Safe (+6,000 credits) you can bypass. To continue the mission, you have to lift the security lockdown by accessing the Security Console. Once you've done so, the door behind you permanently seals shut. A cutscene plays where the room's shutters open, showing the vast amount of geth blocking your way to Tali's position. The first thing you will notice is the Geth Colossus trying to break through. This Colossus also has a unique self-repair ability, so some additional tactics will be needed to deal with it.
Note: On easier difficulties the Colossus may be killed at this point without leaving the room with the help of heavy weapons if the shots are well placed. This effectively skips the geth waves should you decide to fight it close, as well as a scripted dialogue below, and this method is not recommended.
Note: If you have a sniper rifle, it can be put to decent use picking off geth from the windows in the room before you exit. Don't shoot at the Colossus yet, it will just repair itself. Shepard can kill geth from the windows in cover while watching out for the bolts the Geth Colossus shoots at Shepard. This will simplify your life at the beginning of the upcoming battle.
Warning: The siege pulse fired from the Colossus' head homes in on whatever it's aiming at (usually you). The only way to avoid getting hit is to get in cover or to juke the shot by strafing and changing directions at the right time, which is easier at long range. The Colossus will continuously fire the pulse whether it can see you or not (even if you are cloaked as an Infiltrator), so listen for the "whistle" of the shot as it travels and wait for it to strike cover if your sight is blocked to know when it's safe to move.
Past The Shutters[]
Go out the door and down the stairs. Right next to a med-kit and some thermal clips, you encounter Kal'Reegar, the last surviving quarian marine accompanying Tali. You can't ignore him; attempting to get past him will initiate a dialogue anyway. He informs Shepard that the Geth Colossus as well as a large number of other geth forces are blocking the way to Tali. You can ask him about the tactical situation and what the best strategy is for approaching the Colossus, so it's a good idea to take the time to talk to him thoroughly if playing this level for the first time.
Continuing the conversation with Kal'Reegar, you ask him to either provide cover fire with his missile launcher or tell him to stay down. If you tell him to stand down because he is injured, he will argue that he can still fight and his job is to protect Tali. If you die during the ensuing fight, the autosave loads this moment so you can adjust or uphold your decision promptly.
Persuading Reegar to stand down requires a Paragon interrupt and rewards a good amount of Paragon points. Immediately agreeing to let him stay in the fight grants Renegade points. If he is convinced to stand down, Shepard can later change their mind and ask for his help after all, though no additional morality points are awarded. If Reegar stays in the fight, he will take potshots at the Geth Colossus with his missile launcher every so often dealing a small amount of damage.
Warning: On all difficulty settings, allowing Reegar to fight gives you only a limited amount of time to get close to the Colossus and engage it (close enough to disable its repair protocol). If you take too long to do this, Reegar will eventually comment nervously that he has drawn the Colossus' attention and die soon after (possibly drawing a reaction from your squad). If he survives, Kal'Reegar can appear later in both this game and the next, so think carefully if you want him to fight as you can't get him to stand down once he starts firing.
Note: There is a bonus to not having Kal'Reegar fight for you. After the conversation is over, if you chose to have him stand down, talk to him again, and again say "stand down". By doing this conversation your squadmates will automatically be revived if they were killed. You can repeat this process as many times as you want as long as you choose the "Stand Down" answer when talking to him.
Get to Tali[]
Before proceeding in any direction, take a moment to clean out the geth approaching your position. This will make life safer whichever strategy you are going to try.
If you listened to Reegar's battlefield layout assessment, you have three routes of approach: left, right, and center, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. All routes have infinite spawning geth (Troopers and Destroyers but more of the former), forcing you to be highly mobile. Killing the Colossus is the only way to stop the reinforcements from coming, and you can only do it conventionally near it due to its repair protocol.
To the Left: The left path is well-covered from the Geth Colossus but is more vulnerable to the continually spawning individual troopers. This path can be better if you or your squad lacks long-range weaponry. Keep picking off the geth that spawn, and eventually you will reach a covered area, which is to the left of the Geth Colossus. From here, you can shoot at the Colossus from behind cover, but be careful of the ordinary Geth Troopers and especially Destroyers who might flank you. Position your squadmates such that they can take out the regular geth while you start to chip away at the Geth Colossus.
Combat Tip: You may ultimately find it safer to pursue the path to the right because the high ground makes it much harder for enemies to approach and gives you clear vision of any that do.
To the Right: The right path has a sniper’s post and a lot of cover. However, it is mostly exposed to the sun, so take that into account. Clean off any geth you can see up there before heading up the ramp. Crouching along the guard rail on the left will protect you from the sun, and there is a very safe position behind a wall on the right at the very beginning of the catwalk. This path is good for combat-heavy squads and squads with assault rifles and sniper rifles.
There will be a few Troopers and a Destroyer that will spawn when you arrive at the halfway point, so keep on shooting them until you can reach the overlook above the Colossus. Be particularly ready for Destroyers and duck behind one of the boxes on the left where the guard rail will protect you from the sun. Don't be afraid to retreat at this point as you don't want to be caught between a flamethower and the Colossus.
Once you reach the overlook, your team can hide and shoot the Geth Colossus to death with their regular guns at their leisure, just watch your back as another wave of geth can appear. In the correct position Geth Colossus shots will be blocked by a pillar, and spawning geth cannot approach directly.
Up the Middle: The middle path is only good if you stay in cover; otherwise it is suicide. Well really it's mostly just suicide, but it can be done on lower difficulty levels. You have plenty of cover from the ordinary geth, but the Colossus has a firing solution on you the whole time. The harder the level, the more suicidal this path is.
Class-specific: The Vanguard can use Charge to easily advance on the Geth Colossus, regardless of chosen path. However, you will be on your own against the Colossus for as long as it takes for your squadmates to reach you (assuming they can reach you at all). Despite that, this is still a viable strategy, even on Insanity, if you reach cover immediately after reaching the Colossus and empty your heavy weapon on the behemoth between its return strikes. The Arc Projector is uniquely suitable for this, both for the bonus damage to shields and synthetics, and because it will also hit any other geth that approach in the vicinity. Keep looking at the map to ensure no geth are in your rear, and try using Charge to move to the other side of the Colossus if you are flanked. Keep in mind that even once the Colossus goes down, you'll still have to deal with any other geth in the area and any Destroyers are particularly dangerous.
No matter what path you choose, keep in shaded cover and avoid the Geth Colossus main cannon fire at all costs; while being hit won't instantly kill you at full health and shields as it would in the original Mass Effect, it will stagger you briefly which can be fatal if you're already under fire or damaged. As Reegar already told you if you talked to him, either path has its pros and cons; the key is to advance slowly and patiently. It's a good idea to set up "kill zones" with your squad in good vantage points, then move forward until a wave of geth is triggered, then retreat, letting the enemies advance for you to pick them off, then move your squad up incrementally, repeating this until there is enough of a lull for you to get good damage done on the Colossus. If a geth wave threatens to overwhelm you, don't hesitate to keep your squad healthy with a medi-gel or bust out a heavy weapon such as the Arc Projector or the Avalanche to quickly disable or destroy several of them at once; there will be ample refills for heavy weapon ammo following the fight. If you want to use heavy weapons against the Colossus instead, the best option for this is the Cain, though a single shot is not enough to kill it outright on higher difficulties.
The Colossus is protected with heavy shielding and armor. Once damage is done to its armor and Shepard is still too far away, it will collapse into a defensive position, enter into a repair mode to rapidly regenerate its shields, and on Hardcore/Insanity, armor. The only way to prevent this is to fight your way in close, which permanently disables the repair protocol from activating again. A good way to know you've gotten close enough is if you hear loud mechanical chattering from the Colossus. To accomplish this means you need to thin out the other geth in the area first to make sure that isn't suicidal. Once you get close enough to the Colossus that your squadmates can start shooting it, they can actually take it out by themselves while you cover them from any other geth, as the Colossus tends to attack you exclusively (though it can and will attack your allies at close range if it can't see you). Be careful as at close range the Colossus will also fire a rapid-fire cannon in addition to the siege pulse from its head.
Note: The Colossus always ignores other geth under the effects of AI Hacking.
After you destroy the Colossus, be sure to take down any remaining geth that you may have missed. Tali notifies she'll unlock the door when you eliminate all stragglers.
Without any enemies it's now safe for looting. There are two medi-gels in the area. The first is a med-kit next to Kal'Reegar. The second is a med-kit located in the sniper's nest on the right side of the battlefield. There are four crates of Refined Iridium (+200 iridium each, +800 iridium total) to collect located on the four crane objects around the battlefield. There are also two power cells: One is to the right of the observatory door, and the second is on the wall opposite from the left of the observatory door.
Proceed through the observatory door when you're finished. In the observatory, you will find three disabled geth platforms next to Tali. You can salvage a Damaged Geth (+9,000 credits). On Hardcore or Insanity difficulty levels, you can find an Intact Pulse Rifle that awards a Geth Pulse Rifle on another one of the platforms.
Once you encounter Tali in person, you can ask her what she and the marines were doing there, and about what she has been up to for the last two years. You then ask Tali to join you. If Kal'Reegar survives, he will take the data and upload it. If he is dead, then Tali is disappointed that she is the only survivor of her whole team and she uploads the data herself over a secure channel. If you brought Legion with you, Tali becomes hostile and tries to shoot it while shouting a warning about enemy geth. A Paragon interrupt is available, otherwise Legion will simply take cover until Tali ceases fire. While she doesn't entirely buy Shepard's justification for allying with a geth, she agrees to save the discussion for later. Shepard, the squad, and Tali then return to the Normandy.
Normandy[]
Jacob greets Tali in the briefing room and welcomes her aboard. She is thankful for their timely rescue but she has concerns about working with Cerberus. Once you alleviate her concerns, she says that she will be in Engineering. On her way out, Jacob tells her to introduce herself to the ship’s AI, EDI; Tali responds only with a wordless glance.
From then on, Tali can be found across from Gabriella Daniels and Kenneth Donnelly in main engineering. Kelly then suggests to a male Shepard that Tali may want to be more than friends. Shepard also receives a private message from the Admiralty Board of the Migrant Fleet approving her transfer to the Normandy (see below).
Email[]
After the mission, Admiral Rael'Zorah of the quarian Migrant Fleet (Tali's father) sends Shepard an email (titled "Transfer Request Approved") regarding her decision to join Shepard:
Mass Effect 3 Consequences[]
If Kal'Reegar survives this mission, he is featured in a news article.
If this mission is never completed, Tali is not recruited; as this precludes upgrading the Normandy's shields, this will inevitably lead to the loss of a team member during the suicide mission, preventing their future appearance if the game is imported to Mass Effect 3. Tali will likewise not appear in Mass Effect 3, presumably due to her not being rescued from the geth on Haestrom, and her quite significant story function is passed off to other characters, resulting in some major potential story outcomes being unattainable. During the docking tube segment of Priority: Geth Dreadnought, if Shepard looks at Rannoch with the view prompt that appears, Joker and Shepard will have a brief exchange over the comm that confirms her death. Despite this, Tali's name does not appear on the memorial wall of the Normandy SR-2 (her name will appear there if she perishes either on the suicide mission or at the conclusion of Priority: Rannoch).[1]
Enemies[]
- Geth Colossus
- Geth Destroyer
- Geth Hunter
- Geth Prime
- Geth Recon Drone
- Geth Rocket Trooper
- Geth Trooper
Mission Summary[]
Recruited Tali'Zorah for the team.
Though loyal to Shepard, Tali’Zorah's antagonism toward Cerberus necessitates observation. Also sending recon units to examine geth activities in case activities on Haestrom provoke action.
- Experience: 1,000 (1,250)
- Credits: 69,000
- Cerberus Funding: 30,000
- Credits Found: 39,000
- Weapons:
- M-9 Tempest Submachine Gun
- Geth Pulse Rifle (only on Hardcore and Insanity)
- Upgrades:
- Resources:
- Iridium: 2,000
Note: Although the mission summary screen may display a maximum credit award total of up to 69,000 (reporting the accurate maximum of 39,000 credits that can be found on the mission from pickups), the maximum you can actually receive from Cerberus funding and credits found is capped at a combined 60,000. This does not apply to credits gained from salvaging medi-gel or power cells. This has been confirmed on PC, Xbox 360, and PS3.
Bugs[]
- While fighting the Colossus at the end of the level, there is a glitch which allows you to revive your allies without using medi-gel. Firstly, it is required that you perform the Paragon action when prompted to intervene with Kal'Reegar, thus saving him, and when your comrades are down talk to him again and they'll get up.
- If you are playing as a Vanguard, there is a glitch when fighting the Colossus. When you first come into sight with the Colossus (before talking to Kal'Reegar) you can charge across the battlefield at the Colossus which will trigger the conversation with Kal'Reegar. After the conversation with Kal is over you will be right next to the Colossus. When this glitch is performed the Colossus will not attack you throughout the battle, it will just sit there, allowing you to attack it.
- If you attempt the aforementioned glitch, there is a chance that it might backfire. The Colossus will not fire, but the game will spawn never-ending squads of Geth Troopers and Destroyers that will aggressively attack in waves.
- After defeating the Colossus, grab 800 units of Refined Iridium from the 4 containers in the area. Walk up to Tali. If you go back outside, each of the 4 containers will contain 1 unit of Refined Iridium, for a maximum of 4 per set. Repeat as necessary for the slowest way to farm iridium.
- If you reload at any point during the mission (including after death) you can access previous looted containers of Refined Iridium a second time. After you have gathered 2000 units, however, each subsequent container will only contain 1 unit of Refined Iridium.
Trivia[]
- Upon arrival on Haestrom when entering the sun for the first few times your squadmates will make comments about staying in the shade. This is probably a reference to the quip, "then we will fight in the shade", attributed by Herodotus to the Spartan Dienekes at the Battle of Thermopylae, which has been re-popularised by the film 300.
- Despite the statement that Dholen's radiation shorts out all electronic devices and kinetic barriers, shields on geth enemies are completely unaffected by the sun.