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(Having played and tested this fight many times, the advice to stay put where you start the gunship section is completely wrong. Revised the combat strategy to recommend taking cover to the left, by the crates with respawning ammo.)
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[[File:Platform1.jpg|left|Landing platform - cue Mantis Gunship!|250px]]A cutscene plays showing Shepard and Kasumi exiting onto the landing platform. They are suddenly met with a hail of bullets as Hock appears in a fully armored [[A-61 Mantis Gunship]] with additional shielding. As they take cover they are met with a wave of mercs and LOKI mechs.
 
[[File:Platform1.jpg|left|Landing platform - cue Mantis Gunship!|250px]]A cutscene plays showing Shepard and Kasumi exiting onto the landing platform. They are suddenly met with a hail of bullets as Hock appears in a fully armored [[A-61 Mantis Gunship]] with additional shielding. As they take cover they are met with a wave of mercs and LOKI mechs.
   
{{Note|Combat Strategy:}} This is probably the most challenging fight in Kasumi's loyalty mission, as you will be attacked by mercs, LOKI mechs, and a [[A-61 Mantis Gunship]] all at once. It is NOT a good idea for you and Kasumi to take cover behind the crates right in front of the gate you passed through and stay there for the course of the fight, as enemy waves can spawn on your left or right and potentially flank you from either direction. Most critically, these crates in the middle area where you start do NOT offer perfect protection against the rockets fired by the gunship, and getting hit by said rockets staggers you out of cover and is usually a death sentence at high difficulties. The optimal cover position for this fight is to the left of where you start. Here there are some crates near the rear wall that have a respawning thermal clip on them; this area is also much better cover against flanking attacks as well as the gunship, and you don't need to leave them to pick up ammo as it respawns right on top of you. Kasumi is also afforded better protection in this area, as you can have her hold position against the high cover that is directly in front of your position.
+
{{Note|Combat Strategy:}} This is probably the most challenging fight in Kasumi's loyalty mission, as you will be attacked by mercs, LOKI mechs, and a [[A-61 Mantis Gunship]] all at once. It is NOT a good idea for you and Kasumi to take cover behind the crates right in front of the gate you passed through and stay there for the course of the fight, as enemy waves can spawn on your left or right and potentially flank you from either direction. Most critically, these crates in the middle area where you start do NOT offer perfect protection against the rockets fired by the gunship, and getting hit by said rockets staggers you out of cover and is usually a death sentence at high difficulties. The optimal cover position for this fight is to the left of where you start. Here there are some crates near the rear wall that have a respawning thermal clip on them. This area is also much better cover against flanking attacks as well as the gunship, and you don't need to leave them to pick up ammo as it respawns right on top of you. Kasumi is also afforded better protection in this area, as you can have her hold position against the high cover that is directly in front of your position.
   
 
* Keep in mind that the [[A-61 Mantis Gunship]] has two modes of fire: continuous machine gun/cannon, and two rockets in rapid succession. On insanity difficulty, if Shepard has no protection (shields or barrier), the two rockets will very likely result in instant death.
 
* Keep in mind that the [[A-61 Mantis Gunship]] has two modes of fire: continuous machine gun/cannon, and two rockets in rapid succession. On insanity difficulty, if Shepard has no protection (shields or barrier), the two rockets will very likely result in instant death.

Revision as of 19:58, 29 March 2020

Classy Bekenstein study

Master thief Kasumi Goto has a problem: A ruthless arms dealer named Donovan Hock killed her partner, Keiji Okuda, and stole Okuda's graybox, a neural implant that stores memories and information. Kasumi has planned a daring heist to recover Okuda's graybox and has asked for help in pulling it off. Once this is done, Kasumi can dedicate all her attention to completing Shepard's mission.

Acquisition

This mission is acquired after recruiting Kasumi on the Citadel. Like Zaeed: The Price of Revenge, this mission doesn't require the mission on Horizon to be completed first.

Head to Bekenstein in the Boltzmann system of the Serpent Nebula cluster to begin.

Preparation

The combat portions of this mission are substantially more difficult than in most other loyalty missions, due to the unusually high number of enemies in most encounters and the lack of a third squad member. The enemies here are mostly shielded, and the tech-oriented classes will have additional innate advantages. Energy Drain as a bonus power is recommended since there are several long firefights in which ammo can become an issue if you're only carrying two weapons.

Since Kasumi is the one and only squad member for this mission, the main area of preparation consists of when to undertake it. If you're in need of an alternate SMG, you may be tempted to do this mission very early, since doing so unlocks one.

The M-622 Avalanche makes an excellent Heavy Weapon choice for this mission, because you will be facing many rooms crowded with small nimble enemies. The Avalanche's forgiving area of effect and crowd control properties can substantially reduce the difficulty of many of these engagements.

Walkthrough

Traveling to the Party

Kasumi briefs Shepard on the mission.

Only Shepard and Kasumi take part in this mission. On the ride over you can ask about your cover — either Solomon or Alison Gunn, depending on Shepard's gender — and your formal outfit. Kasumi will go over the plan and every detail of it. In a nutshell: you will be going to a party at Hock's house, which will feature some of the biggest scumbags in the galaxy. You and Kasumi will break into Hock's vault and grab the graybox of Kasumi's deceased partner and lover, Keiji, which literally contains a snapshot of his brain. You will bring in a tribute in the form of a statue of Saren, which actually conceals your weapons and armor. Once inside you will arm up, break into the vault, obtain the graybox and leave Hock's complex.

At the Party

Kasumi and Shepard arrive at the party.

When you arrive at the entrance to the party, one of the Eclipse guards takes some issue with your gift and begins scanning it, which brings Hock out. Respond in any way you wish, then the guard turns up nothing and Hock lets you proceed in but insists that your friend (Kasumi) must stay outside, because Hock doesn’t like the way she looks. Respond to that and Kasumi will pull you aside and is understanding of why she must wait outside. Then Kasumi activates her cloak and heads inside with you.

When you are inside move through the party and enjoy yourself while you can. When you reach the end of the corridor off to the left is a security office that Kasumi says you will need to get access to eventually. Then she reminds you about the vault so move on. Hock is currently unavailable for talking at the moment so move out onto the deck and read a datapad. Apparently there is a Chief Roe in charge and Kasumi says that if you can get into the guards' communications it would help. See below.

Heading back inside there is a door that leads to Hock private quarters and is guarded by a merc, Samuels. You can’t get in yet so move to the vault on the lower level.

Getting Into the Vault

When you get close to the door, Kasumi decloaks and examines the vault door. After examining it closely, she says that three things are needed: cut the power to the kinetic barrier, get samples of Hock's DNA from his private quarters for the DNA scanner, and record a voice sampling so Kasumi can reconstruct the password using a programmed version of Hock's voice.

Voice Lock

Kasumi records Hock's bloviating monologue.

Go talk to Hock; follow Kasumi's advice and keep him talking. Use the Paragon or Renegade options to draw Hock into giving a speech, giving Kasumi plenty of material. If you don't have enough morality points, you will have to use the correct dialogue options to keep him talking long enough to get a sample. Head to the security office and Kasumi will decloak, bypass the lock and take out the two Eclipse mercs in the room. Once they fall, Kasumi will say to look around. Access the Wall Safe (+7200 credits) and the medical station next to it for Medi-gel. On the other side of the room is a Datapad with the password for the lock. You can now bypass the voice scanner.

DNA

Hock's Apartment - watch for alarms!

To obtain Hock's DNA you need to get into his private rooms. You have two options for this; one involves subterfuge, the other brute force.

The subtle method requires convincing the guard (Samuels) outside Hock's quarters to let you in. Before he will allow you access, he will want to verify your access with the head of Hock's private security team (Chief Roe). You will need to enter the Security Room (left of where Hock is standing), take out two Eclipse guards, and read the datapad on the desk. The datapad has the password ("Peruggia"), and after reading it, Kasumi will say that she now has a sample of Chief Roe's voice. While you're at it, access the Wall Safe and medical station nearby.

Before returning to speak with the guard, walk onto the balcony. There is a Datapad next to a couple sitting on the railing on the side opposite Hock's quarters. It contains a message from Samuels declining some sort of invitation to sneak away from the party. After this, Kasumi will radio and prompt you to speak with the guard again, urging you to tell him Roe sent you. Then, when talking to Samuels, say you have clearance and he will call Chief Roe. Kasumi will tap into the conversation, pretending to be the security chief, and provide you access. Head down the stairs and into the bedroom. If you didn't examine the datapad on the terrace, then the dialogue option for verification with Chief Roe will not appear.

A trio of bored guards by the brute force route

The brute force option is to break into the bedroom from the balcony outside. Head outside and towards the right side nearest the bedroom (the opposite side of the balcony where Chief Roe's datapad is found). There will be a prompt, "Balcony Railing", where you can jump down. When you land Kasumi decloaks and now you have to fight three Eclipse guards that are outside the building. There is little cover so use your pistol and powers to take out the guards.

  • The guards are facing away from you and will not initially turn. You can get as far as the window ledge, but as soon as you shoot or smash the window, they will be alerted.
  • If you sneak up (i.e., just walk) to the guard furthest from the window and hit him with melee from behind, it is likely he will fall screaming off the cliff and be instantly killed.

When they are down, head up the fallen panel and onto the ledge. Shoot out the window and head inside. Be warned that because you snuck in, if you activate the alarm clock in Hock's bedroom it will summon two more guards.

Note: To get all the credits, first head to the security office and go either way you choose because both will be available. There are many things to search. Kasumi recommends the quick and quiet approach, and that's good advice.

  • Couch 1: DNA
  • Couch 2: 1 credit
  • Wineglass: DNA
  • Ashtray: Nothing
  • Plants: Nothing
  • Papers: Gives details on how Hock has been trying to crack graybox, he hasn’t yet.
  • Bypass the Wall Safe (+7800 credits) (Warning: failing the bypass summons the guards)
  • Antique weapons set: DNA but contaminated
  • Keyboard: Nothing
  • Datapad: See below and DNA
  • Alarm Clock: Wakeup call, which will summon guards to attack you if you broke in through the window.
  • Pillow: Nothing

Note: There are multiple copies of some things but each type of item can only be scanned once.

When you have enough, Kasumi will say when, leave and head back up. If you snuck in through the balcony, and didn't activate the alarm clock during your search, you will have to fight two guards on the way out. If you are able to knock one out a window, he will fall out screaming.

Lights Out

The barrier power coils are along the floor to the right when you exit the vault. Kasumi will reset your Omni-tool to scan for the power source. Head up the stairs ahead and around until you reach the fireplace. Pull the statue on the wall and that will disable the barrier.

When you have completed all three tasks head back to the vault and bypass the security systems.

The Vault

Donovan Hock's vault with various objects, including the head of the Statue of Liberty

Kasumi will disable the security while Shepard straps on armor and both grab weapons. As you emerge into the vault Kasumi will trace the signal from the box and you can admire some of the works. Among them are Michelangelo's David, a krogan statue, a Rachni Queen statue, a turian sculpture, a statue of a Creature, a scale statue of the Kara (known as 'the turian Titanic'), some old quarian stone tablets, an ancient Egyptian statue, a Prothean statue, and the head of the Statue of Liberty.

On the table with the graybox are a pair of M-12 Locust submachine guns. Grab the graybox to progress, Kasumi starts to crack it and a holographic head of Hock threatens the two of you. Use a Renegade interrupt to shut Hock up while Kasumi cracks the graybox. Now Hock calls on his guards to attack. Chief Roe is among them. Use the cover and take them out, but be careful, as Roe's Eclipse troopers will try to flank you, while Roe herself attacks with Combat Drones and Incinerate.

Combat Tip: Because all of the enemies will come through the doorway at the end of the vault, they are extremely vulnerable to AoE powers or a blast from a heavy weapon such as the Arc Projector.

Combat Strategy: The initial starting cover for Shepard is one of the best places to be for the whole battle. Chief Roe will stay in cover, launching Incinerate bolts and Combat Drones towards Shepard but the Combat Drones get hung up on the pedestal next to Shepard unable to get to Shepard. The remaining mercs will run around but will go to cover. Kasumi can be used to draw fire of the mercs to give Shepard a chance to focus on Chief Roe but Kasumi usually dies on higher difficulty levels. Kasumi will come back to life after the battle so don't waste Medi-gel to revive her.


Getting Out

Giant Head of Donovan Hock

Head toward the door that the mercs came out of, be sure to grab Medi-gel from the medical station to the left of the door before you walk through the door. After you exit the room, you can change out your arsenal at a Weapons Locker on the left.

Combat Tip: Before you access the door into the next section, keep in mind that weapons lockers can change weapons but they also completely refill conventional ammo for all weapons. Make sure to access the weapons locker before and after the upcoming battle to refill your ammo for free.

Go through the next door and quickly take cover, because you will come under attack almost instantly from more Eclipse Troopers and an YMIR Mech. Take out the first two Eclipse Troopers then hop into cover, the YMIR Mech will not enter your part of the garage, so you can sit back and take it down at your leisure. Once the YMIR Mech falls, move up and take out the remaining mercs. Once you get far enough down the driveways, Hock will seal you in, so head up the stairs to the right and through the door. Hack the PDA (+4200 credits) on the floor before you leave.

At the other end of this hallway are eight YMIR Mechs in storage, however none will activate. Move up to the next door and take cover, because there are more Eclipse Troopers and an Eclipse Heavy in this room. This room holds even more YMIR Mechs in storage and several missiles that will keep traveling overhead. Eventually you reach a point where you need to blow some tanks, but Eclipse Troopers and some LOKI Mechs won’t make it easy. Take the mercs down before approaching the parked M-080's mass accelerator weapon.

Combat Tips: If you get into trouble, firing the cannon will instantly kill almost every enemy in the room.

  • Using Adrenaline Rush, Tactical Cloak, or Tech Armor you could run past the some of the enemies and trigger the cannon to wipe them all out. Very useful on higher difficulties, though rushing past all the enemies at once is only recommended with Tactical Cloak - others should winnow the pack a bit first.
  • If you are an Engineer, you can place Kasumi into cover close to the tanks, drop a Combat Drone, and then make a run for the cannon as the door is opening. They should draw enough fire, even on Insanity to make it to the cannon and wipe out the back-up units.
  • Some Heavy Weapons and the M-98 Widow are also powerful enough to take out the tanks.
Nothing is true, everything is permitted - Kasumi about to off someone stealthily

Before you activate the M-080's mass accelerator weapon (if you didn't use it during the battle), there are several items to collect in this area. Near the M-080's cannon is a crate of Refind Platinum (+1000 platinum), salvageable Spare Parts (+4800 credits) and a med-kit with Medi-gel. In the LOKI mech room next to the explosive tanks is another salvageable Spare Parts (+1200 credits).

When you're ready, activate the M-080's mass accelerator weapon to explode the tanks. Hock doesn’t sound too happy over the intercom as you move through the hole in the wall.

Warning: When you drop down into the next area you are unable to go backwards. Save before you drop down into the next section.

When you drop down through the hole in the wall turn right and take cover. More Eclipse Troopers, an Eclipse Heavy, and another YMIR Mech will be coming down on the attack, so use cover and take them all out.

Combat Tip: The YMIR Mech will be unable to advance on your position like the prior encounter with a YMIR Mech. Staying on that small crate cover next to the door you dropped down from looking down the long hallway and you can eliminate all of the mercs and the YMIR Mech with ease.

When the mercs are all down, move up, but take note of the cover as a truck will pull up with two more Eclipse Troopers, an Eclipse Vanguard, and an Eclipse Heavy on it. Move as you need to in order to take them out.

Once they are down, head for the door. You'll find a Tech Damage research upgrade on a Dead Merc to the left of the door and a med-kit with Medi-gel to the right of the door.

Warning: When you enter the door into the next area the door will slam shut behind you and you are unable to go backwards. Save before you open the door into the next section.

As you enter the next room, Hock will tell his forces to keep you busy, as he will handle the situation himself. You will encounter Eclipse Troopers, an Eclipse Vanguard, and an Eclipse Heavy in here, so watch your step. Use the cover near the door, as it gives you clear lines of fire to the whole room. When you move up, more mercs will come out including an Eclipse Engineer and another Eclipse Heavy. An additional Eclipse Vanguard sometimes spawns after the Eclipse Engineer if you advance too slowly.

When you take out all the mercs, there are several items to collect in this area. You'll find some salvageable Spare Parts (+1800 credits), two crates of Refined Platinum (+500 platinum each, +1000 platinum total), a PDA (+1800 credits) on a truck, and a Storage Crate (+1200 credits). When you have everything, save your game before you head for the door.

Landing Platform

Landing platform - cue Mantis Gunship!

A cutscene plays showing Shepard and Kasumi exiting onto the landing platform. They are suddenly met with a hail of bullets as Hock appears in a fully armored A-61 Mantis Gunship with additional shielding. As they take cover they are met with a wave of mercs and LOKI mechs.

Combat Strategy: This is probably the most challenging fight in Kasumi's loyalty mission, as you will be attacked by mercs, LOKI mechs, and a A-61 Mantis Gunship all at once. It is NOT a good idea for you and Kasumi to take cover behind the crates right in front of the gate you passed through and stay there for the course of the fight, as enemy waves can spawn on your left or right and potentially flank you from either direction. Most critically, these crates in the middle area where you start do NOT offer perfect protection against the rockets fired by the gunship, and getting hit by said rockets staggers you out of cover and is usually a death sentence at high difficulties. The optimal cover position for this fight is to the left of where you start. Here there are some crates near the rear wall that have a respawning thermal clip on them. This area is also much better cover against flanking attacks as well as the gunship, and you don't need to leave them to pick up ammo as it respawns right on top of you. Kasumi is also afforded better protection in this area, as you can have her hold position against the high cover that is directly in front of your position.

  • Keep in mind that the A-61 Mantis Gunship has two modes of fire: continuous machine gun/cannon, and two rockets in rapid succession. On insanity difficulty, if Shepard has no protection (shields or barrier), the two rockets will very likely result in instant death.
  • Be sure to keep a close eye on any LOKI mechs, as they will attempt to drive you out from cover by approaching to point blank range. The AI Hacking ability is very useful here, to prevent that as well as annoy your foes.
  • Shooting to kill the A-61 Mantis Gunship at this point is not possible during this portion of the battle. The A-61 Mantis Gunship will retreat every time a new wave of mercs appear to recharge its shields. It is best to only focus on the waves of ground forces while staying away from the A-61 Mantis Gunship's fire as best you can. Kasumi will soon tell you that if she can get close enough to the A-61 Mantis Gunship she will be able to take out its shields permanently.

You will eventually be treated to a cut scene where Kasumi pulls off some amazing acrobatics and disables the A-61 Mantis Gunship's shields.

Kasumi vs

There are two ways to get to the point the cut scene triggers where Kasumi takes down the shields on the A-61 Mantis Gunship. There is a set dialogue string from Hock that you can let play out as you fight off recurring waves of guards, or you can skip some waves by taking down the shields yourself once, and allow Hock to re-appear with the shields recharged. Either way will lead to the cutscene and eventual final showdown. It also doesn't seem to matter that Kasumi might be down at this time, she will miraculously come back to life and perform her astonishing gymnastics, so save your Medi-gel if you are close to this point.

After the cut scene, now Hock's A-61 Mantis Gunship will be like any other gunship that Shepard has encountered and can be killed. Keep chipping away at its armor until it is destroyed, although the priority is still the mercs and LOKI mechs on the ground. Alternatively if you leave one merc alive from the first wave, and have Kasumi target the A-61 Mantis Gunship, no more mercs will spawn and you can just focus on the gunship.

When the A-61 Mantis Gunship is finally destroyed, along with Hock, Shepard's shuttle will arrive on the other side of the landing platform. Note: Before entering the shuttle, be sure to scout around as there are three med-kits with Medi-gel and a medical station near the entry door with Medi-gel. There is also some power cells next to the staircase up to the shuttle. Once you're ready to leave move up to the shuttle to leave the mission.

Shuttle Ride Back

Kasumi "accesses" a memory of her and Keiji.

The shuttle will touch down and on the ride back Kasumi will examine the graybox and be treated to memories of her time with Keiji, as well as a warning: if the information in his graybox were made public, the consequences for the Alliance could be severe. She has trouble letting go, and the scenes behind her show that their relationship was much more than professional. After the scene is over, you can persuade Kasumi to keep or destroy the box. Regardless of your decision, Kasumi will be loyal to you.

Mass Effect 3 Consequences

Kasumi returns in Mass Effect 3 during Citadel: Hanar Diplomat. If Shepard undertakes that mission, Kasumi will assist during the mission and afterwards will be recruited to work on the Crucible. She still appears if her loyalty mission wasn't done, but won't join the war effort.

Enemies

Datapads

Pvt. Reems:


No way we can sneak out of that party. The place is locked down tight, and Security Chief Roe's in charge. No way Roe would let that get past her.

I'd rather stand around bored on guard duty than risk her wrath. Sorry.

--Samuels


--Nance:


I have that problem, too. So many passwords around here, can't keep them straight. The password for tonight is *PERUGGIA*, so it's not even that easy to remember.

It's no big deal. That voice scanner means the password's only useful to Hock, anyway.

After this party, want to grab some beers? Let me know.

--Samuels


"Okuda" Decryption Project Update:


Little progress to report. We have now completed dictionary attacks using words and phrases from 4800 galactic languages. Research into the Okuda family has not produced any matches. It is unlikely that a random brute-force approach will produce a result within our lifetimes.

Given the nature of the graybox technology, it's possible that the decryption key may not be a password at all. It could be a memory, an emotion, even a smell -- the permutations could be infinite. I suggest that we begin investigating alternative methods for breaking through the security on the box.

Mission Summary

The heist was successful. Keiji Okuda's graybox was recovered and destroyed/remains in Kasumi Goto's possession.

Donovan Hock was killed in the destruction of his gunship. Kasumi is loyal.

Trivia

  • Once the mission is completed, the formal wear becomes one of the casual outfits Shepard can wear while aboard the Normandy.
  • The Creature statue is an easter egg to the Ogre monster found in Dragon Age: Origins, another BioWare game.[1][2]
  • The name of the achievement for completing this mission is "Broke, Blind, and Bedlam," which is a possible reference to Ocean's Eleven. In the film, the explosives expert, Basher, is tasked with throwing the power so the heist can take place. In response, he asks "Do you want broke, blind, or bedlam?" to which Danny Ocean says, "How about all three?"
  • On a television, in the security room where Shepard learns the password for the vault, an image from Mass Effect Galaxy can be seen showing Nax firing his assault rifle.
  • As Kasumi covertly enters Donovan Hock's vault, she is seen in security camera footage for a few moments. However, the camera stutters, and Kasumi seems to vanish instantly. This scene may also be another reference to Ocean's Eleven, in which a similar scene occurs as a result of the team rigging the casino's security feed to display footage from an empty replica of the room they will actually be entering.
  • After examining the Statue of Liberty's Head, there is a Codex entry which details how it got detached in the first place.
  • While walking around the party, guests will comment on various missions that you have or haven't completed yet.
Keiji's highly incriminating memories
  • When Keiji's avatar reveals the sensitive information stored in the graybox, an image of what appears to be a Reaper is seen in the first frame.
  • In the inaccessible area of Hock's art gallery behind Liberty's head, there appear two pieces of art that resemble miniature mass relays similar to the mass relay monument found in the Citadel's Presidium.
  • Upon examining the head of the Statue of Liberty, Kasumi comments "Damn you, Hock!". This is likely a reference to the film Planet of the Apes.

References