The Cardinal

The Cardinal
Faction	Kett
Weapons / Attacks	Electrical Lightning Ball Orb Beam Attack
Abilities	Force Field Sync kill
Health	Very High
Shields	–
Weak Points	Cardinal's Orb Head

The Cardinal is the female Ascendant in charge of an exaltation facility on Voeld. She firmly believes in the supremacy of the kett, and sees the work they're doing as a "gift" that must be spread throughout Andromeda.

Mass Effect: Andromeda

The Cardinal is first seen inside a temple-like chamber in the facility giving a "fortunate welcome" to the angara who have been "chosen to be exalted". Following a diversion that Pathfinder Ryder's angaran allies trigger, she is quickly questioned by the Archon if Moshae Sjefa is ready for transport. She replies that she is being prepared for final exaltation, the process of genetically transforming angara into kett.

By the time Moshae Sjefa is about to be exalted, Ryder has successfully breached the chamber they're in, prompting the Cardinal to escort the Moshae to a hangar bay. The Pathfinder's team persistently pursues her there, where she challenges them into a fight, all the while frantically shouting to her subordinates to defend the Moshae.

After the Cardinal's defeat, she pleads mercy to the Pathfinder, begging to have the base (or temple as she calls it) to be spared. In return, the Cardinal will order to have all captured angara at the base to be released. Jaal Ama Darav votes on keeping the base so that the Resistance can rescue the captives, while Moshae Sjefa declares that the base must be destroyed.

If the Pathfinder accepts the Cardinal's offer, she keeps her word and departs the scene. She muses that Ryder's decision is apparently the product of them seeing the merits of becoming a kett. Ryder can disagree by shooting her down, or opt to let it slide. If her offer is rejected, she is dismayed and attempts to stop the intruders, though she's shot dead by Jaal in the process.

Capabilities

Offensive

The Cardinal's conventional attack is a targeted electric shock. Alternatively, she can unleash a ball-lightning-like attack which conducts electricity to nearby enemies. This heavily-damaging attack ignores cover and can stagger characters out of it.

At close range, she can grab a target in a gravity-sphere, then collapse the sphere to crush the victim for an insta-kill.

Defensive

The Cardinal is accompanied at all times by her Orb. This small device orbits her and projects an energy force field that protects her from all attacks. The Cardinal may only be harmed once her orb is destroyed, but she will quickly generate a new orb after a few seconds.

Tactics

• The Cardinal is, in essence, just an Ascendant colored red but with a lot more hitpoints as befitting a gameplay "boss" character. Most tactics for dealing with Ascendants also apply to her.
• The Cardinal is able to continuously summon kett forces during the fight. This means all due focus should be on her and not the minions, only thinning out the herd if they become too inconvenient.

Trivia

• Within the Catholic Church, the word "Cardinal" is the title of a senior ecclesiastical priest, next below the Pope and appointed by him to assist him as a member of the college of cardinals. The word is also used to define something of the great or fundamental importance.