::: ::: ::: :::::::: :::::::: :+:+: :+:+: :+: :+: :+: :+: :+: :+: +:+ +:+:+ +:+ +:+ +:+ +:+ +:+ +#+ +:+ +#+ +#++:++#++: +#++:++#++ +#++:++#++ +#+ +#+ +#+ +#+ +#+ +#+ #+# #+# #+# #+# #+# #+# #+# #+# ### ### ### ### ######## ######## :::::::::: :::::::::: :::::::::: :::::::::: :::::::: ::::::::::: :+: :+: :+: :+: :+: :+: :+: +:+ +:+ +:+ +:+ +:+ +:+ +#++:++# :#::+::# :#::+::# +#++:++# +#+ +#+ +#+ +#+ +#+ +#+ +#+ +#+ #+# #+# #+# #+# #+# #+# #+# ########## ### ### ########## ######## ### ========================================================================= I: ### # # # ##### ##### #### ##### # # #### ##### # #### # # # ## # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # ## # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # ##### # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # ## # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # ## ### # # # # # #### ##### #### #### # # #### # # ========================================================================= This FAQ is about Mass Effect's codex. The codex is one of the selections in Mass Effect's pause menu and as you progress through the game you will get more entries in it. The Codex entries fill you in on the backstory of the Mass Effect Universe. This guide contains what is in all of these codex entries and will soon contain where to unlock them. ======================================================================== II: :'######:::'#######::'##::: ##:'########::::'###:::::'######::'########: '##... ##:'##.... ##: ###:: ##:... ##..::::'## ##:::'##... ##:... ##..:: ##:::..:: ##:::: ##: ####: ##:::: ##:::::'##:. ##:: ##:::..::::: ##:::: ##::::::: ##:::: ##: ## ## ##:::: ##::::'##:::. ##: ##:::::::::: ##:::: ##::::::: ##:::: ##: ##. ####:::: ##:::: #########: ##:::::::::: ##:::: ##::: ##: ##:::: ##: ##:. ###:::: ##:::: ##.... ##: ##::: ##:::: ##:::: . ######::. #######:: ##::. ##:::: ##:::: ##:::: ##:. ######::::: ##:::: :......::::.......:::..::::..:::::..:::::..:::::..:::......::::::..::::: '####:'##::: ##:'########::'#######:: . ##:: ###:: ##: ##.....::'##.... ##: : ##:: ####: ##: ##::::::: ##:::: ##: : ##:: ## ## ##: ######::: ##:::: ##: : ##:: ##. ####: ##...:::: ##:::: ##: : ##:: ##:. ###: ##::::::: ##:::: ##: '####: ##::. ##: ##:::::::. #######:: ....::..::::..::..:::::::::.......::: ========================================================================== You may contact me at theshadowdragon777@yahoo.com but only for the following things. *Errors in my guide *Spelling Mistakes *Suggestions *Praise *Contributions *Constructive Criticism *Asking if you can use this FAQ on your site If you could send me any of the codex entries not in this guide it would be very helpful and I would make sure to credit you for it. Things you should not email to me: *SPAM *Things that have nothing to do with Mass Effect *Hate Mail/Flames *etc... =================================================== III: ____ ____ .__ \ \ / /___________ _____|__| ____ ____ \ Y // __ \_ __ \/ ___/ |/ _ \ / \ \ /\ ___/| | \/\___ \| ( <_> ) | \ \___/ \___ >__| /____ >__|\____/|___| / \/ \/ \/ ___ ___ .__ __ / | \|__| _______/ |_ ___________ ___.__. / ~ \ |/ ___/\ __\/ _ \_ __ < | | \ Y / |\___ \ | | ( <_> ) | \/\___ | \___|_ /|__/____ > |__| \____/|__| / ____| \/ \/ \/ ================================================== Version Number: 1.0 Date Added: 11/26/07 What's New: Everything. Version Number: 1.1 Date Added: 11/28/07 What's New: Fixed a small typo, added Starships: Thrusters and Weapons: Ablative Armor. Version Number: 1.2 Date Added: 12/03/07 What's New: Fixed a few typos, added several more missing entries Version Number: 1.3 Date Added: 12/06/07 What's new: Added Terra Firma Party and Ilos entries. Version Number: 1.4 Date Added: 12/07/07 What's new: Finally added the Prothean entry and added the varios profile entries. Version Number: 1.5 Date Added: 12/07/07 What's new: Added Element Zero and Citadel Station: Serpent Nebula entries. Version Number: 1.6 Date Added: 12/21/07 What's new: Fixed several typos. Version Number: 1.7 Date Added: 12/21/07 What's new: Fixed up some things. Version Number: 1.8 Date Added: 01/03/08 What's new: Added Asari Biology and Government and Life as a Biotic Version Number: 1.9 Date Added: 01/06/08 What's new: Added Salarian Biology, Turian Religion, and Plantary Assault as well as a couple of missing "how to get"s. Version Number: 1.9.1 Date Added: 01/08/08 What's new: Added Salarian Culture and Arcturus Station. Version Number: 1.9.2 Date Added: 01/11/08 What's new: Added a couple missing how to get's. ============================================================================== IV: ######## ## ## ######## ###### ####### ######## ######## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ######### ###### ## ## ## ## ## ###### ### ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ######## ###### ####### ######## ######## ## ## ============================================================================== -Primary -Aliens: Council Races -Asari -Salarians -Turians -Aliens: Extinct Races -Protheans -Rachni -Aliens: Non-Council Races -Batarians -Elcor -Geth -Hanar -Keepers -Krogan -Quarians -Volus -Aliens: Non-Sapient Creatures -Husks -Thresher Maws -Varren -Citadel and Galactic Government -Citadel -Citadel Council -Citadel Space -Spectres -Humanity and the Systems Alliance -Earth -First Contact War -Systems Alliance -Planets and Locations -Planets: Feros -Planets: Ilos -Planets: Noveria -Planets: Virmire -Region: Terminus Systems -Uncharted Worlds -Ships and Vehicles -FTL Drive -Military Ship Classifications -Normandy -Sovereign -Space Combat -Vehicles: M35 Mako -Technology -Biotics -Computers: Artificial Intelligence (AI) -Computers: Virtual Intelligence (VI) -Element Zero ('Eezo') -Mass Effect Fields -Mass Relays -Omni-tool -Weapons, Armor, and Equipment -Body Armor -Kinetic Barriers ('Shields') -Mass Accelerators -Medi-gel -Small Arms -Secondary -Personal History Summary -Profile -Aliens: Council Races -Asari: Biology -Asari: Culture -Asari: Government -Asari: Military Doctrine -Asari: Religion -Salarians: Biology -Salarians: Culture -Salarians: Government -Salarians: League of One -Salarians: Military Doctrine -Salarians: Special Tasks Group -Turians: Biology -Turians: Culture -Turians: Government -Turians: Military Doctrine -Turians: Religion -Turians: The Unification War -Aliens: Extinct Races -Protheans: Beacon -Protheans: Cipher -Protheans: Data Disks -Protheans: Mars Ruins -Aliens: Non-Council races -Geth: Armatures -Geth: Hoppers -Krogan: Biology -Krogan: Culture -Krogan: Genophage -Krogan: Krogan Rebellions -Krogan: Military Doctrine -Quarians: Economy -Quarians: Government -Quarians: Law and Defense -Quarians: Migrant Fleet -Quarians: Pilgrimage -Quarians: Religion -Citadel and Galactic Government -Citadel Conventions -Citadel Station: Citadel Security Services (C-Sec) -Citadel Station: Presidium Ring -Citadel Station: Serpent Nebula -Citadel Station: Statistics -Citadel Station: Wards -Treaty of Farixen -Humanity and the Systems Alliance -Genetic Engineering -Human Diplomatic Relations -Systems Alliance: Geological Survey -Systems Alliance: Military Doctrine -Systems Alliance: Military Jargon -Systems Alliance: Military Ranks -Systems Alliance: N7 -Terra Firma Party -Timeline -Planets and Locations -Stations: Arcturus Station -Stations: Gagarin Station -Ships and Vehicles -FTL Drive: Appearance -FTL Drive: Drive Charge -Space Combat: Combat Endurance -Space Combat: General Tactics -Space Combat: Planetary Assaults -Starships: Crew Considerations -Starships: Cruisers -Starships: Dreadnought -Starships: Fighters -Starships: Frigates -Starships: Heat Management -Starships: Sensors -Starships: Thrusters -Vehicles: Combat Drones -Weapons: Ablative Armor -Weapons: Disruptor Torpedoes -Weapons: GARDIAN -Technology -Biotics: Biotic Amps -Biotics: Life as a Biotic -Biotics: Training -Communications -Communications: Administration -Communications: Methodology -Credits ('Creds') -Weapons, Armor and Equipment -Upgrades ------PRIMARY------- --Aliens: Council Races-- The three most politically important species in the galaxy. ~Asari~ The asari were the first species to discover the Citadel. When the salarians arrived, it was the asari who proposed the establishment of the Citadel Council to maintain peace throughout the galaxy. Since then, the asari have served as the mediators and centrists of the councils. An all-female race, the asari reproduce through a form of parthenogenesis. Each asari can attune her nervous system to a that of another individual of any gender, and of any species, to reproduce. This capability has led to unseemly and inaccurate rumors about asari promiscuity. Asari can live for over 1000 years, passing through three stages of life. In the Maiden stage, they wander restlessly, seeking new knowledge and experience. When the Matron stage begins, they 'meld' with interesting partners to produce their offspring. This ends when they reach the Matriarch stage, where they assume the roles of leaders and councilors. ~Salarians~ The second species to join the Citadel, the salarians are warm-blooded amphibians with a hyperactive metabolism. Salarians think fast, talk fast, and move fast. To salarians, other species seem sluggish and dull-witted. Unfortunately, their metabolic speed leaves them with a relatively short lifespan, salarians over the age of 40 are a rarity. The salarians were responsible for advancing the development of the primitive krogan species to use as soldiers during the Rachni Wars. They were also behind the creation of the genophage bioweapon the turians used to quell the Krogan Rebellions several centuries later. Salarians are known for their observational capability and non-linear thinking. This manifests as an aptitude for research and espionage. They are constantly experimenting and inventing, and it is generally accepted that they always know more then they let on. ~Turians~ How to get: This entry is given after your very first conversation with Joker and Kaiden. It is impossible not to get it. --- Roughly 1200 years ago, the turians were invited to join the Citadel Council to fulfill the role of galactic peacekeeper. The turians have the largest fleet in Citadel space, and they make up the single largest portion of the Council's military forces. As their territory and influence has spread, the turians have come to rely on the salarians for military intelligence and the asari for diplomacy. Despite a somewhat colonial attitude towards the rest of the galaxy, the ruling Hierarchy understands they would lose more than they would gain if the other two races were ever removed. Turians come from an autocratic society that values discipline and possesses a strong sense of personal and collective honor. There is lingering animosity between turians and humans over the First Contact War of 2157, which is known as the "Relay 314 Incident" to the turians. Officially, however, the two species are allies and they enjoy civil, if cool, diplomatic relations. --Aliens: Extinct Races-- Spacefaring species that went extinct thousands of years before the present. ~Protheans~ How to get: Ask the Captain at the very beginning of the game before you go to Eden Prime about them. --- Fifty thousand years ago, the Protheans were the only spacefaring species in the galaxy. They vanished in a swift 'galactic exitinction'. Only the legacy of their empire remains. They are believed to have built the mass relays and the Citadel, which have allowed numerous species to explore and expand throughout the galaxy. Prothean ruins are found on worlds across the galaxy. While surprising intact for their age, functioning examples of Prothena paleotechnology are rare. Time and generations of looters have picked their dead cities and derelict stations clean. Some believe the Protheans meddled in the evolution of younger races. The hanar homeworld of Kahje for examploe, shows clear evidence of Prothean occupation. The presence of a former Prothean observation post on Mars has caused a rebirth of 'interventionary evolutionists' among humans. These individuals believe the god-myths of ancient cilivizations are misremembered encounters with aliens. ~Rachni~ How to get: Talk to the VIs on the Citadel --- Though now extinct, the rachni once threatened every species in Citadel space. Over 2000 years ago, explorers foolishly opened a mass relay to a previously- unknown system and encountered something never seen before or since: a species of spacefaring insects guided by a hive-mind intelligence. Unfortunately, the rachni were not peaceful, and the galaxy was plunged into a series of conflicts known as the Rachni Wars. Attempts to negotiate were futile, as it was impossible to make contact with the hive queens that guided the race from beneath the surface of their toxic homeworld. The emergence of the krogan ended the Rachni Wars. Bred to survive in the harshest environments, the krogan were able to strike at the queens in their lairs and reclaim conquered Council worlds. But when the krogan fleets pressed them back to their homeworld, the rachni refused to surrender, and the krogan eradicated them from the galaxy. --Aliens: Non-Council Races-- Spacefaring species without hte political power to set galactic policy. ~Batarians~ How to get: I don't know if it will be the same for everybody but for me when I returned to the Citadel for the first time after I left and entered the C-Sec accademy I was contacted by a Marine about a girl who was found that was taken by slavers on Mindoir. As soon as I was contacted about this quest It was added to the Codex. --- In the early 2160s, the Alliance began aggressive colonization of worlds in the Skyllian Verge, much to the dismay of the batarians who had been developing the region for several decades. In 2171, the batarians petitioned the Council to declare the Verge a 'zone of batarian interest.' The Council refused, however, declaring unsettled worlds in the region open to human colonziation. In protest, the batarians closed their Citadel embassy and severed official diplomatic relations with the Council, effectively becoming a rouge state. They instigated a proxy war in the Verge by funneling money and weapons to criminal organizations, urging them to strike at human colonies. Hostilities peaked with the Skyllian Blitz of 2176, an attack on the human capital of Elysium by batarian-funded pirates and slavers. In 2178, the Alliance retaliated with a crushing assault on the moon of Torfan, long used as a staging base by batarian-backed criminals. In the aftermath, the batarians retreated into their own systems, and are now rarely seen in Citadel Space. ~Elcor~ How to get: Talk to the Elcor diplomat in the Embassies and ask him about his people. --- The elcor are a Citadel species native to the high-gravity world Dekuuna. They are massive creature, standing on four muscular legs for increased stability. Elcor move slowly, an evolved response to an environment where a fall can be lethal. This has colored their psychology making them deliberate and conservative. Elcor speech is ponderous and monotone. Among themselves, scent, slight movements, and subvocalized infrasound convey shades of meaning that make a human smile seem as subtle as a fireworks display. Since their subtlety can lead to misunderstandings with other species, the elcor often go out of their way to clarify when they are being sarcastic, amused, or angry. Dekunna's high gravity impedes mountain formation. Most of the world consists of flat, open plains, which prehistoric elcor wandered across in small family bonds. Modern elcor still prefer open sky, and can become restless and uncomfortable on long starship journeys. ~Geth~ How to get: You will get it when you first meet Ashley. --- The geth are a humanoid race of network AIs. They were created by the quarians 300 years ago as tools of labor and war. When the geth showed signs of self- evolution, the quarians attempted to exterminate them. The geth won the resulting war. This example has led to a legal, systematic repression of artificial intelligences in galactic society. The geth possess a unique distributed intelligence. An individual has rudimentary animal instincts, but as their numbers and proximity increase, the apparent intelligence of each individual improves. In groups, they can reason, analyze situations, and use tactics as well as any organic race. Geth space is located at the trailing end of the Perseus Arm, beyond the lawless Terminus Systems. The Perseus Veil, an obscuring 'dark nebula' of opaque gas and dust, lies between their space and the Terminus Systems. ~Hanar~ Talk to the Hanar Merchant on Noveria, also I hear you can also get this on the Citadel. --- The hanar are a Citadel species known for excessive politeness. They speak with scrupulous precision, and take offense as improper language. Hanar that expect to deal with other species take special courses to help them unlearn their tendency to take offense at improper speech. All hanar have two names. The Face Name is known to the world; the Soul name is kept for use among close friends and relations. Hanar never refer to themselves in the first person in conversation with someone they know on a face name basis. To do so is considered egotistical, so instead they refer to themselves as 'this one,' or the impersonal 'it.' Their homeworld, Kahje, has 90% ocean cover and orbits and energetic white star, resulting in a permanent blanket of clouds. Due to the presence of Prothean ruins on the world, many hanar worship them, and hanar myths often speak of an elder race that civilized them by teaching them language. ~Keepers~ How to get: Talk to the VIs on the Citadel. --- When the asari discovered the Citadel, they also discovered the keepers, a docile multi-limbed insect race that seemingly exist only to maintain and repair the great Prothean station. Early attempts to communicate with or study the keepers were failures, and it is now illegal to interfere with or impede keeper activity. Because they are completely non-threatening, keepers have become virtually invisible to everyone else. Similarly, they seem indifferent to other species, expect for their tendency to help new arrivals integrate themselves into the Citadel. No matter how many keepers die due to old age, violence, or accident, they maintain a constant number. No one has discovered the source of new keepers, but some hypothesize they are genetic constructs: biological androids created somewhere deep in the inaccessible core of the Citadel itself. ~Krogan~ The krogan evolved in a hostile and vicious environment. Until the invention of gunpowder weapon, 'eaten by predators' was still the number one cause of krogan fatalities. Afterwards, it was 'death by gunshot'. When the salarians discovered them, the krogan were a brutal, primitive species struggling to survive a self-inflicted nuclear winter. The salarians culturally uplifted them, teaching them to use and build modern technology so they could serve as soldiers in the Rachni War. Liberated from the harsh conditions from their homeworld, the quick-breeding krogan experienced an unprecedented population explosion. They began to colonize nearby worlds, even though these worlds were already inhabited. The Krogan Rebellions lasted nearly a century, only ending when the turians unleashed the genophage, a salarian-developed bioweapon that crushed all krogan resistance. The genophage makes only one in 1000 pregnancies viable, and today the krogan are a slowly dying breed. Understandably, the krogan harbor a grudge against all other species, specially the turians. ~Quarians~ Driven from their home system by the geth nearly three centuries ago, most quarians now live aboard the Migrant Fleet, a flotilla of fifty thousand vessels ranging in size from passenger shuttles to mobile space stations. Home to 17 million quarians, the flotilla understandably has scarce resources. Because of this, each quarian must go on a rite of passage known as the Pilgrimage when they come of age. They leave the fleet and only return once they have found something of value they can bring back toe their people. Other species often tend to look down on the quarians for creating the geth and for the negative impact their fleet has when it enters a system. This has led to may myths and rumors about the quarians, including the belief that under their cloths and breathing masks, they are actually cybernetic creatures: a combination of organic and synthetic parts. ~Volus~ The volus are a member species of the Citadel with their own embassy, but they are also a client race of the turians. Centuries ago, they were voluntarily absorbed into the Hierarchy, effectively trading their mercantile prowess for turian military protection. Irune, their homeworld, lies far beyond the normal life zone of its star. However, the world has a high-pressure greenhouse atmosphere that traps enough heat to support an ammonia-based biochemistry. As a result, the volus must wear pressure suits and breathers when dealing with other species as conventional nitrogen/oxygen air mixtures are poisonous to them, and in the low pressure atmospheres tolerable to most species, their flesh will actually split open. Volus culture is tribal, bartering lands and even people to gain status. This culture of exchange inclines them to economic pursuits. It was the volus who authored the United Banking Act, and they continue to monitor and balance the Citadel economy. --Aliens: Non-Sapient Creatures-- Common non-sapient life-forms. ~Husks~ How to get: You will get it when you first encounter them on Eden Prime. --- After the geth secure a location, they round up and impale dead and living bodies on mechanical spikes. The spikes rapidly transform these victims into withered husks, extracting water and trace minerals and replacing them with cybernetics. The cybernetics re-animate the lifeless flesh and tissue, transforming the bodies into mindless killing machines. Some Alliance soldiers refer to the husk-generating spikes as Dragon's Teeth, a reference to the mythological berserkers who sprang up from the earth wherever the teeth of the dragon Ares were planted. Dragon's Teeth and husks bear little resemblance to other pieces of geth technology. No one is sure why a synthetic race would bother to drain the miniscule amount of recoverable resources from organic corpses, though the value of reusing them as shock troops is obvious. ~Thresher Maws~ How to get: I got it during the UNC: Missing Marines quest on the planet in the Sparta System of Artemis Tau that you can land on. When you find them on the planet you will be attacked by one. --- Thresher maws are subterranean carnivores that spend their entire lives eating or searching for something to eat. Threshers reproduce via spores that lie dormant for millennia, yet are robust enough to survive prolonged periods in deep space and atmospheric re-entry. As a result, thresher spores appear on many worlds, spread by previous generations of space travelers. The body of a thresher never entirely leaves the ground; only the head and tentacles erupt from the earth to attack. In addition to physical attacks, threshers have the ability to project toxic chemicals and emit bursts of infrasound as a shockwave weapon. The Alliance first encountered threshers on the colony Akuze in 2177. After contact was lost with the pioneer team, marine units were deployed to investigate. The shore parties were set upon by hungry threshers, and nearly the entire assault force was killed. Alliance forces recommend engaging threshers with vehicle-mounted heavy weapons. ~Varren~ How to get: On Feroes, either when you first encounter them or before if you talk to one of the colonists about Varren Meat. --- Varren are omnivores with a preference for living prey. Originally native to the krogan homeworld of Tuchanka, they are, like most life from Tuchanka, savage, clannish, and consummate survivors. They are pack hunters when vulnerable prey is readily available and become scavengers when outnumbered or outclassed. Their supreme adaptability, vicious demeanor, and rapid breeding cycle have made them ubiquitous and dangerous pests on many worlds. Virtually everywhere the krogan have been, varren infestations have followed, wreaking havoc with the native ecology. The krogan have had a love-hate relationship with varren for millennia, alternately fighting them for territory and embracing them as treasured companions. To this day, krogan raise them as beats of war. A common subgenus of varren has metallic silver scales, leading to the rather unusual nickname 'fishdogs'. --Citadel and Galactic Government-- A massive space station that serves as the political and economic capital of galactic culture. ~Citadel~ The Citadel is an ancient deep-space station, presumably constructed by the Protheans. Since the Prothean extinction, numerous species have come to call the Citadel home. It serves as the political, cultural, and financial capital of the galactic community. To represent their interests, most species maintain embassies on the Presidium, the Citadel's inner ring. The Citadel Tower, in the center of the Presidium, holds the Citadel Council chambers. Council affairs often have far-reaching effects on the rest of the galactic community. Five arms, known as wards, extend from the Presidium. Their inner surfaces have been built into cities, populated by millions of inhabitants from across the galaxy. The Citadel is virtually indestructible. If attacked, the station can close it's arms to form a solid, impregnable shell. For as long as the station has existed, an enigmatic race called the keepers has maintained it. ~Citadel Council~ How to get: Automatically once you go to the Citadel for the first time. --- The Council is an executive committee composed of representatives from the Asari Republics, the Turian Hierarchy, and the Salarian Union. Though they have no official power over the independent governments of other species, the Council's decisions carry great weight throughout the galaxy. No single Council race is strong enough to defy the other two, and have a vested interest in compromise and cooperation. Each of the console species has general characteristics associated with the various aspects of governing the galaxy. The asari are typically seen as diplomats and mediators. The salarians gather intelligence and information. The turians provide the bulk of the military and peacekeeping forces. Any species granted an embassy on the Citadel is considered an associate member, bound by the accords of the Citadel Conventions. Associate members may bring issues to the attention of the Council, through they have no input on the decision. The human Systems Alliance became an associate member of the Citadel in 2165. ~Citadel Space~ Citadel Space is an unofficial term referring to any region of space controlled by a species that acknowledge the authority of the Citadel Council. At first glance, it appears this territory encompasses most of the galaxy. In reality, however, less then 1% of the stars have been explored. Even mass-effect-FTL drive is slow relative to the volume of the galaxy. Empty space any systems without suitable drive discharge sites are barriers to exploration. Only the mass relays allow ships to jump hundreds of light years in an instant, the key to expanding across an otherwise impassable galaxy. Whenever a new relay is activated, the destination system is rapidly developed. From that hub, FTL drive is used to expand to nearby star clusters. The result is a number of densely-developed clusters thinly spread across the vast expanse of space, connected by the mass relay network. ~Spectres~ How to get: Talk to Dr. Chakwas about 'The Spectres' or just during your conversation with Captain Anderson and Nihilus. --- Spectres are agents from the Office of Special Tactics and Reconnaissance and answer only to the Citadel Council. They are elite military operatives, granted the authority to deal with threats to peace and stability in whatever way they deem necessary. They operate independently or in groups of two or three. Some are empathetic peacekeepers, resolving disputes through diplomacy. Others are cold-blooded assassins, ruthlessly dispatching problem individuals. All get the job done, one way or another, often operating outside of the bounds of galactic law. The Spectres were founded after the salarians joined the Council. For many years, they operated in secrecy, as back-room 'problem solvers.' Only after the krogan Rebellions did their activities become publicized. Assignment of a Spectre is less contentious than military deployment, but makes it clear that the Council is concerned about a situation. --Humanity and the Systems Alliance-- The Alliance is the government and military of humanity beyond Sol. ~Earth~ How to get: Go and examine Earth --- The homeworld and capital of humanity is entering a new golden age. The resource wealth of a dozen settled colonies and a hundred industrial outposts flows back to Earth, fueling great works of industry, commerce, and art. The great cities are greening as arcology skyscrapers and telecommuting allow more efficient use of land. Earth is still divided among nation-states, though all are affiliated beneath the overarching banner of the Systems Alliance. While every human enjoys longer and better life then ever, the gap between rich and poor widens daily. Advanced nations have eliminated most genetic disease and pollution. Less fortunate regions have not progressed beyond 20th century technology, and are often smog-choked, overpopulated slums. Sea levels have risen two meters in the last 200 years, and violent weather is common due to environmental damage inflicted during the late 21st century. The past few decades, however, have seen significant improvement due to recent technological advances. ~First Contact War~ How to get: Keep talking to Ashley after each mission. Eventually you will get this one. Also you can get it through talking to Navigator Pressly about the 'Turian Spectre'. --- Humanity's first contact with an alien race occurred in 2157. At that time, the Alliance allowed survey fleets to activate any dormant mass relays discovered, a practice considered dangerous and irresponsible by Council-aligned races. When a turian patrol discovered a human fleet attempting to activate a relay, they attacked. One human vessel survived, retreating to the colony of Shanxi. The turians followed, quickly defeating the local forces. Shanxi was occupied, the first - and, to date, only - human world to be conquered by an alien species. The turians believed the handful of ships they defeated represented the bulk of human defenses. So they were unprepared when the Second Fleet under Admiral Kastanie Drescher, launched a strong counteroffensive, evicting them from Shanxi. The turians mobilized for full-scale war, drawing the attention of the rest of the galaxy. The Council quickly intervened, forcing a truce. Fortunately for humanity, the First Contact War was ended with a diplomatic solution. ~System Alliance~ How to get: This entry is given after your very first conversation with Joker and Kaiden. It is impossible not to get it. --- The Systems Alliance is an independent supranational government representing the interests of humanity as a whole. The Alliance is responsible for the governance and defense of all extra-solar colonies and stations. The Alliance grew out of the various nation space programs as a matter of practicality. Sol's planets had been explored and exploited through piecemeal nation efforts. The expense of colonizing entire new solar systems could not be met by an one country. With humans knowing that alien contact was inevitable, there was enough political will to jointly fund an international effort. Still, the Alliance was often disregarded by those on Earth until the First Contact War. While the national governments dithered and bickered over who should lead the effort to liberate Shanxi, the Alliance fleet struck decisively. Post-War public approval gave the Alliance the credibility to establish its own Parliament and become the galactic face of humanity. --Plants and Locations-- The Milky Way galaxy contains 200 to 400 billion stars, most with a host of planets. ~Planets: Feros~ How to get: Talk to the captain about Feros when you are about to leave the Citadel. --- Feros is a habitable world in the Attican Beta cluster. Two-thirds of the habitable surface is covered with the ruins of crumbling Prothean megatropolis. In the millennia since the Prothean extinction, the ruins have been picked over by looters many times. Feros was considered a poor prospect for colonization, as little open ground remains for agriculture. The only sizeable fresh water sources are the poles, which are tapped by the decaying Prothean aqueduct system. The dead cities, while in good condition considering their antiquity, are of uncertain stability. Ground level is congested by a dozen meters of fallen debris, and the air is fouled by dust. In 2178, the human ExoGeni Corporation announced its intention to place a permanent colony on Feros, to thoroughly explore the ruins. The pioneer settlement was placed on the upper levels of the several intact skyscrapers, using the surviving Prothean aqueducts and rooftop hydroponics gardens to support the population. ~Planets: Ilos~ How to get: Get to Ilos in the main story --- Like the ancient human city of Troy, Ilos is a world known only through second-hand sources. References to Ilos have been found at several other Prothean Ruins, though direct study of the world is unlikely to occur. Ilos lies in a remote area of the Terminus Systems only accessible by the legendary Mu Relay. Four thousand years ago, the Mu Relay was knocked out of position by a supernova and lost. Since then, Ilos and its cluster have been inaccessible. Occasionally, a university will organize an expedition to chat a route to Ilos using conventional FTL drive. These never get beyond the planning stages due to the distance and danger. The journey could take years or decades, passing through the hostile Terminus Systems and dozens of unexplored systems. ~Planets: Noveria~ How to get: Talk to the captain about Noveria when you are about to leave the Citadel. --- Noveria is a cool, rocky world, with most of its hydrosphere locked up in massive glaciers. A privately-chartered colony world, the planet is owned by Noveria Development Corporation holding company. The NDC is funded by investment capital from two dozen high technology development firms, and administrated by an Executive Board representing their interests. The investors built remote hot labs in isolated locations across Noveria's surface. These facilities are used for research too dangerous or controversial to be performed elsewhere, as Noveria is technically not part of Citadel space and therefore exempt from Council law. By special arrangement, Citadel Special Tactics and Reconnaissance agent have been granted extraterritorial privileges, but it remains to be seen how committed the Executive Board is to that principle. Given its unique situation, it is understandable that Noveria is often implicated in all manner of wild conspiracy theories. ~Planets: Virmire~ How to get: When the council tells you about the quest to go there. --- Virmire is a lush world located on the frontier of the Attican Traverse. Its vast seas and orbital position on the inner life zone have created a wide equatorial band of humid, tropical terrain. Only the political instability of the region has impeded efforts at colonization. Many times, the Citadel has opened negotiations to settle Virmire with the various criminal gangs and petty dictatorships in the nearby Terminus Systems. All fell apart due to internal power shifts within the opposing parties. The Citadel has written off the colonization of Virmire as impossible without significant political change. The Terminus powers themselves are unlikely to ever settle Virmine. Most lack the resources to support settlement of a virgin world, finding it more expedient to steal from their neighbors than build for themselves. ~Region: Terminus Systems~ How to get: You can get it while talking to the Captain and Nihilus at the very beginning of the game on the Normandy before the cutscene where you go to Eden Prime. --- The Terminus Systems are located on the far side of the Attican Traverse, beyond the space administered by the Citadel Council or claimed by the humans Systems Alliance. It is populated by a loose affiliation of minor species, united only in their refusal to acknowledge the political authority of the Council or adhere to the Citadel Conventions. Their independence comes at a price; the Terminus is fraught with conflict. War among the various species is common, as governments and dictators constantly rise and fall. The region is a haven for illegal activities, particularly piracy and the slave trade. At least once a year, a fleet from Terminus invades the nearby Attican Traverse. These attacks are typically small raids against poorly-defended colonies. The Council rarely retaliates, as sending patrols into the Terminus Systems could unify and disparate species against their common foe, triggering a long and costly war. ~Uncharted Worlds~ There are between two and four hundred billion stars in the galaxy, and less then 1% of them have ever been visited or had their systems properly surveyed. Humanity's early expansion into the Attican Traverse was haphazard; a desperate race to claim habitable planets where populations can be economically settled. Ignored in the wake of this land grab were thousands of less hospitable worlds, each potentially rich with industrial resources. The wealth of entire solar systems remain untapped, waiting for corporate survey teams or independent pioneers to discover and exploit them. This, however, is not an easy task. In addition to the environmental hazards, the fact that uncharted worlds are largely ignored makes them popular bases for criminals, revolutionaries, cults, and others who wish to remain unnoticed by galactic society. --Ships and Vehicles-- The technologies of space travel and surface mobility. ~FTL Drive~ Faster-than-light drives use element zero cores to reduce the mass of ship, allowing higher rates of acceleration. This effectively raises the speed of light within the mass effect field, allowing high speed travel with negligible relativistic time dilation effects. Starships still require conventional thrusters (chemical rockets, commercial fusion torch, economy ion engine, or military antiproton drive) in addition to the FTL drive core. With only a core, a ship has no motive power. The amount of element zero and power required for a drive increases exponentially to the mass being moved and the degree it is being lightened. Very massive ships or very high speeds are prohibitively expensive. If the field collapses while the ships moving at faster-than-light speeds, the effects are catastrophic. The ship is snapped back to sublight velocity, the enormous excess energy shed in the form of lethal Cerenkov radiation. ~Military Ship Classifications~ Larger warships are classified in one of four weights: FRIGATES are small, fast ships used counting and screening larger vessels. Frigrates often operate in wolf-pack flotillas. CRUISERS are middle-weight combatants, faster than dreadnoughts, and more heavily-armed then frigates. Cruisers are the standard patrol unit, and often lead frigate flotillas. DREADNOUGHTS are kilometer-long capital ships mounting heavy, long-range firepower. They are only deployed for the most vital missions. CARRIERS are dreadnought-sized vessels are also carry a large amount of fighters. Smaller vessels are exclusively used in a support role to the warships during combat: FIGHTERS are one-man craft used to perform close-range attacks on enemy ships. INTERCEPTORS are one-man craft optimized for destroying opposing fighters. ~Normandy~ The Normandy is a prototype starship, developed by the human Systems Alliance with the assistance of the Citadel Council. It is optimized for scouting and reconnaissance missions in unstable regions, using state-of-the-art stealth technology. For most ships, the heat generated through standard operations is easily detectable against he absolute-zero background of space. The Normandy, however, is able to temporarily sink this heat within the hull. Combined with refrigeration of the exterior hull, the ship can travel undetected for hours, or drift passively for days of convert observation. This is not without risk. The stored heat must eventually be radiated, or it will build to levels capable of cooking the crew alive. Another component of the stealth system is the Normandy's revolutionary Tantalus drive, a mass effect core twice the standard size. The Tantalus drive generates mass concentrations that the Normandy 'falls into', allowing it to move without the use of heat-emitting thrusters. ~Sovereign~ How to get: At the end of Feros. --- Sovereign is the flagship of the rogue Spectre Saren. An enormous dreadnought larger than any other ship in any known fleet, Sovereign is crewed with both Geth and krogan. At two kilometers long, its spinal-mounted main gun is likely capable of penetrating another dreadnought's kinetic barriers with a single shot. How Sarren acquired this incredible warship is unknown. The prevailing opinion is that Sovereign is a geth construct, while others believe it is a Prothean relic. Its design, however, hints at a more alien and mysterious origin. The attack on Eden Prime demonstrated Sovereign's ability to generate mass effect fields powerful enough to land on a planetary surface. This implies it has a massive element zero core, and the ability to generate staggering amounts of power. ~Space Combat~ Ship mobility dominates space combat; the primary objective is to alight the mass accelerator along the bow with the apposing vessel's broadside. Battles typically play out as artillery duels fought at ranges measured in thousands of kilometers, though assault through defended mass relays often occur at 'knife fight' ranges as close as a few dozen kilometers. Most ship-to-ship engagements are skirmishes between patrol vessels of cruiser weight and below, with dreadnoughts and carriers only deployed in full-scale fleet actions. Battles in open space are short and often inconclusive, as the weaker opponent generally disengages. Once a ship enters FTL flight the combat is effectively over; there are no sensors capable of tracking them, or weapons capable of damaging them. The only way to guarantee an enemy will stand and fight is to attack a location they have a crested interest in, such as a settled world or a strategically- important mass relay. ~Vehicles: M35 Mako~ How to get: Examine the Mako on the Normandy. --- The 'Mako' infantry fighting vehicle was designed for the System Alliance's frigates. Through the interior is cramped, an M35 is small enough to be carried in the cargo bay and easily deployed on virtually any world. With it's turreted mass accelerator and coaxially-mounted machine gun, the Mako can provide a fire team with weapon support as well as mobility. Since Alliance marines may be required to fight on any world, the Mako is environmentally-sealed and equipped with microthrusters for use on low-gravity planetoids. The Mako is powered by a sealed hydrogen-oxygen fuel cell, and includes a small element zero core. While not large enough to nullify the vehicle's mass, the core can reduce it enough to be safely air-dropped. When used in conjunction with the thrusters, it also allows the Mako to extricate itself from difficult terrain. --Technology-- The everyday pieces of technology that support modern lifestyle. ~Biotics~ Biotics is the ability of rare individuals to manipulate dark energy and create mass effect fields through the use of electrical impulses from the brain. Intense training and surgically-implanted amplifiers are necessary for a biotic to produce mass effect fields powerful enough for practical use. The relative strength of biotic abilities varies greatly among species and with each individual. There are three branches of biotics. TELEKINESIS uses mass-lowering fields to levitate or impel objects. Mass-raising KINETIC FIELDS are used to block or pin objects. DISTORTION uses rapidly shifting mass fields to shred objects. Most organic species are capable of developing biotic abilities, though there are risks involved. Biotics are the result of in-utero exposure to element zero. This usually causes fatal cancers in the victim, but in rare cases it coalesces into nodules within the fetus's developing nervous system. ~Computers: Artificial Intelligence (AI)~ Keep talking to Tali after each main mission and eventually you will get it. --- An artificial intelligence is a self-aware computing system capable of learning and independent decision making. Creation of conscious AI requires adaptive code, a slow, expensive education, and a specialized quantum computer called a 'blue box'. An AI cannot be transmitted across a communication channel or computer network. Without its blue box, an AI is no more than data files. Loading these files into a new blue box will create a new personality, as variations in the quantum hardware and runtime results create unpredictable variations. The geth serve as a cautionary tale against the dangers of rouge AI, and in Citadel Space they are technically illegal. Advocacy groups argue, however, that an AI is a living, conscious entity deserving the same rights as organics. They argue that continued use of the term 'artificial' is institutionalized racism on the part of organic life, the term 'synthetic' is considered the politically correct alternative. ~Computers: Virtual Intelligence (VI)~ How to get: Talk to the VIs on the Citadel about VIs. --- A virtual intelligence is an advanced forms of user interface software. VIs use a variety of methods to simulate natural conversation, including an audio interace and an avatar personality to interact with. Although a VI can provide a convincing emulation of sentience, they are not self-aware, nor can they learn of take independent action. VIs are used as operating systems o commercial and home computers. Menial VI 'agents' are also available. Agents are compact and specialized. Some serve as personal secretaries, filtering calls and scheduling meetings based on user- defined priorities. Other are advanced search engines, propagating themselves across the extranet to collate user-requested data. Commercial VIs in a variety of stock personalities are available at any software retailer. Boutique firms and hobbyists also build unique VIs to personal specification. Although software emulation of living personalities is illegal, reconstructions of famous historical figures are common. ~Element Zero ('Eezo')~ How to get: Examine the element zero core of the Normandy in the engine room, you have to look up directly at it. --- When subjected to an electrical current, the rare material dubbed element zero, or 'eezo', emits a dark energy field that raises or lowers the mass of all objects within it. This 'mass effect' is used in countless ways, from generating artificial gravity to manufacturing high-strength construction materials. It is most prominently used to enable faster-than-light space travel. Eezo is generated when solid matter, such as a planet, is affected by the energy of a star going supernova. The material is common in the asteroid debris that orbit neutron stars and pulsars. These are dangerous places to mine, requiring extensive use of robotics, telepresence, and shielding to survive the incredible radiation from the dead star. Only a few major corporations can afford the set-up costs required to work these primary sources. Humanity discovered refined element zero at the Prothean research station on Mars, allowing them to create mass effect fields and develop FTL travel. ~Mass Effect Fields~ How to get: --- Element zero can increase or decrease the mass of volume of space-time when subjected to an electrical current. With a positive current, mass is increased. With a negative current, mass is decreased. The stronger the current, the greater the magnitude if the dark energy mass effect. In space, low-mass fields allow FTL travel and inexpensive surface-to-orbit transit. High-mass fields create artificial gravity and push space debris away from vessels. In manufacturing low-mass fields permit the creation of evenly- blended allows, while high mass compaction creates dense, sturdy construction materials. The military makes extensive use of mobility enhancing technologies, with mass effect utilizing fighting vehicles standard front-line issue in most military forces. Mass effect fields are also essential in the creation of kinetic barriers of shields to protect against enemy fire. ~Mass Relays~ Mass relays are feats of Prothean engineering advanced far beyond the technology of any living species. They are enormous structures scattered throughout the stars, and can create corridors of virtually mass-free space allowing instantaneous transit between location separated by years or even centuries of travel using conventional FTL drives. Primary mass relays can propel ships thousands of light years, often from on spiral arm of the galaxy to another. However, they have fixed one-to-one connections: a primary relay connects to one other primary relay, and nowhere else. Secondary relays can only propel ships a few hundred light years, however they are omnidirectional: a secondary relay can send a ship to any other relay within its limited range. There are many dormant primary relays whose corresponding twins have not year been located. These are left inactive until their partner is charted, as established civilizations are unwilling to blindly open a passage that might connect them to a hostile species. ~Omni-tool~ Omni-tools are handheld devices that combine a computer microframe, sensor analysis pack, and manufacturing fabricator. Versatile and reliable, an omni- tool can be used to analyze and adjust the functionality of most standard equipment, including weapons and armor, from a distance. The fabrication module can rapidly assemble small three-dimensional objects from common, reusable industrial plastics, ceramics, and light alloys. This allows for field repairs and modifications to most standard items, as well as the reuse of salvaged equipment. Omni-tools are standard issue for soldiers and first-in colonists. --Weapons, Armor, and Equipment-- Advances in technology have made individual soldiers more dangerous and survivable than ever before. ~Body Armor~ How to get: You can get it by opening the crate near the dig site on Eden Prime. --- Combat hard-suit use a dual-layer system to protect the wearer. The inner layer consist of fabric armor with kinetic padding. Areas that don't need to be flexible, such as the chest or shins, are reinforced with sheets of lightweight ablatic ceramic. The outer layer consists of automatically-generated kinetic barriers. Objects traveling above a certain speed will trigger the barriers reflex system and be deflected, provided there is enough energy left in the shield's power cell. Armored hard-suits are sealable to protect the wearer from extremes of temperature and atmosphere. Standard equipment includes an onboard mini-frame and a communications, navigations, and sensing suite. The mini-frame is designed to accept and display date from a weapons' and sensing suite. The mini-frame is designed to accept and display date from a weapon's smart targeting system to make is easier to locate and eliminate enemies. ~Kinetic Barriers ('Shields')~ How to get: On Eden Prime investigate Jenkin's body after he is killed by the Geth. This has to be done before the Geth attacking Ashely are killed. --- Kinetic barriers, colloquially called 'shields', provide protection against most mass accelerator weapons. Whether on a starship or a soldiers' suits of armor, the basic principle remains the same. Kinetic barriers are repulsive mass effect fields projected from tiny emitters. These shields safely deflect small objects traveling at rapid velocities. This affords protection from bullets and other dangerous projectiles, but still allows the user to sit down without knocking away their chair. The shielding afforded by kinetic barriers does not protect against extremes of temperature, toxins, or radiation. ~Mass Accelerators~ A mass accelerator propels a solid metal slug using precisely-controlled electromagnetic attraction and repulsion. The slug is designed to squash or shatter on impact, increasing the energy it transfers to the target. If this were not the case, it would simply punch a hole right through, doing minimal damage. Accelerator design was revolutionized by element zero. A slug lightened by a mass effect field can be accelerated to greater speeds, permitting projectile velocities that were previously unattainable. If accelerated to a high enough velocity, a simple paint chip can impact with the same destructive force as a nuclear weapon. However, mass accelerators produce recoil equal to their impact energy. This is mitigated somewhat by the mass effect fields that rounds are suspended within, but weapons recoil is still the prime limiting factor on slug velocity. ~Medi-Gel~ How to get: Investigate the Medi-Gel dispencer in the doctor's area. --- Medi-gel is a common medicinal salve used by paramedics, EMTs, and military personnel. It combines several useful applications: a local anesthetic disinfectant, and clotting agent all in one. Once applied, the gel is designed to grip tight to flesh until subjected to a frequency of ultrasound. It is sealable against liquids - most notably blood- as well as contaminants and gases. The gel is a genetically-engineered bioplasm created by the Sirta Foundation, a medical technology megacorp based on Earth. Technically the medi-gel violates Council laws against genetic engineering, but so far, it has proved far to useful to ban. ~Small Arms~ All modern infantry weapons from pistols to assault rifles use micro-scaled mass accelerator technology. Projectiles consist of tiny metal slugs suspended within a mass-reducing field, accelerated by magnetic force to speeds that inflict kinetic damage. The ammo magazine is a simple block of metal. The gun's internal computer calculates the mass needed to reach the target based on distance, gravity, and atmospheric pressure, then shears off an appropriate sized slug from the block. A single block can supply thousands of rounds, making ammo a non-issue during any engagement. Top-line weapons also feature smart targeting that allows them to correct for weather and environment. Firing on a target in a howling gale feels the same as it does on a calm day on a practice range. Smart targeting does not mean the bullet will automatically find the mark every time the trigger is pulled; it only makes it easier for the marksman to aim. ------SECONDARY----- --Personal History Summary-- Background Profile for Commander Shepard. ~Profile~ Your profile depends on the options you choose at the beginning of the game. One of the first three (Earthborn, Colonist, or Spacer) will combine with one of the other three (War Hero, Ruthless, Sole Survivor) based on what you picked to become your profile. --Colonist-- You were raised on Mindoir on the fringes of the Attican Traverse. When you were sixteen, the colony was raided by slavers. The entire settlement was razed and your friends and family were slaughtered. A passing Alliance patrol rescued you, but all you loved was destroyed. --Earthborn-- You were born on Earth, but you never knew your parents. A child of the streets, you learned to live by your wits and guts, surviving in the hidden underbelly of the megatropolises of humanity's home world. --Spacer-- Both of your parents were in the Alliance military. Your childhood was spent on ships and stations as they transferred from posting to posting. Following in your parents' footsteps, you enlisted at the age of eighteen. --Ruthless-- Eager to find a better life, you joined the Alliance military when you came of age. You were assigned to the campaign to rid the Skyllian Verge of batarian slavers and other criminal elements. The final battle came when Alliance forces laid siege to Torfan, a slaver base built miles below the surface of a desolate moon. The superiority of the human fleet was wasted in the assault on the underground bunker, but you led a corps of elite ground troops into the heart of the enemy base. Nearly three-quarters of your own squad perished in the vicious close-quarters fighting... a cost you were willing to pay to make sure not a single slaver made it out of Torfan alive. --Sole Survivor-- One of your first missions was an expedition to investigate Akuze, a lush world on the outskirts of Alliance space that had suddenly dropped out of contact. Arriving on the surface, your patrol found the settlement intact, but there were no survivors. At nightfall, the thresher maws struck - mindless abominations of teeth and tentacles that rose from beneath the earth. Constant gunfire couldn't drown the shrieks of your fellow soldiers as they were dragged down to a gruesome death. Fifty marines died on Akuze. You were the only one to make it back to the landing zone alive. A monument on the planet commemorates the massacre, a grim reminder of the price humanity must pay as they spread throughout the stars. --War Hero-- You enlisted with the Alliance military and were posted on Elysium. You were there during the Skyllian Blitz, an attack on the colony by a massive coalition force of slavers, crime syndicates, and batarian warlords. You rallied the civilian inhabitants, leading them in their desperate fight to hold off the invaders. When enemy troopers broke through the colony's defenses, you single-handedly held them off and sealed the breach. After hours of brutal fighting, reinforcements finally arrived and the enemy broke ranks and fled. Because of your actions, Elysium was saved, and you are regarded throughout the Alliance as a true here. --Aliens: Council Races-- The three most politically important species in the galaxy. ~Asari: Biology~ How to get: Talk to Liara after each mission. --- Asari have a robust cellular regenerative system. While they do not heal faster than other species, asari are known to reach 1000 years of age. Although asari have one gender, they are not asexual. An asari provides two copies of her own genes to her offspring. The second set is altered in a unique process called melding. During melding, an asari consciously attunes her nervous system to her partner's, sending and receiving electrical impulses directly through the skin. The partner can be another asari, or an alien of either gender.Effectively, the asari and her partner briefly become one unified nervous system. This unique means of reproduction is the reason asari are talented biotics. Their evolved ability to consciously control nerve impulses is very similar to biotic training. Asari believe that their offspring acquire the best qualities of the "father" from the melded genes, but evidence is anecdotal. Asari pass through three climacteric life stages, marked by biochemical and physiological changes. The Maiden stage begins at birth and is marked by the drive to explore and experience. Most young asari are curious and restless. The Matron stage of life begins around the age of 350, though it can be triggered earlier if the individual melds frequently. This period is marked by a desire to settle in one area and raise children. The Matriarch stage begins around 700, or earlier if the individual melds rarely. Matriarchs become active in their community as sages and councilors, dispensing wisdom from centuries of experience. While each stage of life is marked by strong biological tendencies, individuals do make unexpected life choices. For example, there are Maidens who stay close to home rather than explore, Matrons who would rather work than build a family, and Matriarchs who have no interest in community affairs. ~Asari: Culture~ How to get: Talk to Liara inbetween main mission. --- Because of their long lifespan, asari tend to have a 'long view' not common in other races. When they encounter a new species or situation, the asari are more comfortable with an extended period of passive observation and study than immediate action. They are unfazed that some of their investments or decisions may not pay off for decades or centuries. Matriarchs can seem to make incomprehensible decisions, but their insight is evident when their carefully- laid plans come to fruition. In interstellar relations, this long view manifests in the unspoken policy of centrism. The asari instinctively seek to maintain stable balances of economic, political, and military power. Traditionally, asari spread their influence through cultural domination and intellectual superiority. They invite new species of advanced development to join the galactic community, knowing that their ideals and beliefs will inevitably influence the existing culture. ~Asari: Government~ How to get: You can get it through talking to Liara after each mission. The asari came late to the concept of world government. For centuries, their homeworld of Thessia was dotted with loose confederacies of great republican cities. The closest Earthly equivalent would be the ancient Mediterranean city-states. Since the asari culture values consensus and accommodation, there was little impetus to form larger principalities. Rather than hoard resources, the asari bartered freely. Rather than attack one another over differing philosophies, they sought to understand one another. Only in the information age did the city-states grow close. Communication over internet evolved into an 'electronic democracy'. Asari have no politicians or elections, but a free-wheeling, all-inclusive legislature that citizens can participate in at will. Policy debates take place at all hours of the day, in official chat rooms and forums moderated by specially-programmed virtual intelligences. All aspects of policy are opened to plebiscite at any time. In any given debate, the asari tend to lend the most credence to the opinions of any Matriarchs present, nearly always deferring to the experience of these millenia-old 'wise women'. Achieving consensus through public debate may take too long in a crisis. In cases where prompt, decisive action is required, the asari defer to the wisdom of local Matriarchs. ~Asari: Military Doctrine~ How to get: Talk to Liara inbetween main missions. --- The asari military resembles a collection of tribal warrior bands with no national structure. Each community organizes its own unit as the locals see fit, and elect a leader to command them. Units from populous cities are large and well-equipped, while those from farm villages may be only a few women with small arms. There is no uniform; everyone wears what they like. The asari military is not an irregular militia, however; those who serve are full-time professionals. The average asari huntress is in the maiden stage of her life and has devoted 20-30 years studying the martial arts. Asari choose to be warriors at a young age, and their education from that point is dedicated to sharpening them mind and body for that sole purpose. When they retire, they possess an alarming proficiency for killing. Huntresses fight individually or in pairs, depending on the tactics preferred in their town. One-on-one, a huntress is practically unbeatable, possessing profound tactical insight, a hunter's eye, and a dancer's grace and alacrity. Biotics are common enough that some capability is a requirement to be trained as a huntress; lack of biotic talent excludes a young asari from military service. While fluid and mobile, asari can't stand up in a firestorm the way a krogan, turian, or human could. Since their units are small and typically lack heavy armor and support weapons, they are almost incapable of fighting a conventional war, particularly one of a defensive nature. So asari units typically undertake special operations missions. Like an army of ninja, they are adept at ambush, infiltration, and assassination, demoralizing and defeating their enemies through intense, focused guerilla strikes. As a popular turian saying puts it, 'The asari are the finest warriors in the galaxy. Fortunately, there are not many of them.' ~Asari: Religion~ Talk to Liara inbetween main missions. --- The pantheistic mainstream asari religion is siari, which translates roughly as 'All is one.' The faithful agree on certain core truths: the universe is a consciousness, every life within it is an aspect of the greater whole, and death is a merging of one's spiritual energy back into greater universal consciousness. Siarists don't specifically believe in reincarnation; they believe in spiritual energy returning to the universal consciousness upon death will eventually be used to fill new mortal vessels. Siari became popular after the asari left their homeworld and discovered their ability to 'med' with nearly any form of life. This ability is seen as proof that all life is fundamently similar. Siari priestesses see their role as promoting unity between disparate shards of the universe's awareness. Before the rise of siari pantheism, asari religions were as diverse as their political opinion. The strongest survivor of those days is the monotheistic religion worshipping the goddess Athame. Like the asari, the goddess cycles through the triple aspects of maiden, matron, and matriarch. ~Salarians: Biology~ Salarians are noted for their high-speed metabolism, which allows them to function on just one hour sleep a day. Their minds and bodies work faster than most sapient races, making them seem restless or hyperactive. The drawback of this active metabolism is a short lifespan of around 40 human years. The salarians are amphibian haplo-diploid egg-layers; unfertilized eggs produce males and fertilized eggs produce females. Once a year, a salarian female will lay a clutch of dozens of eggs. Social rules prevent all but a fraction from being fertilized. As a result, 90% of the species is male. Salarians have photographic memories and rarely forget a fact. They also posses a form of psychological 'imprinting', tending to defer to those they knew in their youth. Salarian hatching is a solemn ritual in which the clan Dalatrass (matriarch) isolates herself with the eggs. The young salarians psychologically imprint on her and tend to defer to her wishes. During the hatching of daughters, the Dalatrasses of the mother and father's clans are present at the imprinting. This ensures the offspring have equal loyalty to both, ensuring the desired dynastic and political unity. ~Salarians: Culture~ The rare salarian females are cloistered on their worlds out of tradition and respect. Powerful female Dalatrasses are dynasts and political kingpins. They determine the political course of their respective regions through shrewd negotiation. Though male salarians rise to positions of great authority in business, academia, or the military, they rarely have any input on politics. Due to their method of reproduction, salarians have no concept of romantic love, sexual attraction, or the biological impulses and social rituals that complicate human lives. Male-female relationships are rare (due to the scarcity of females) and more akin to human friendship. Sexuality is strictly for the purpose of reproduction. Ancient social codes determine who gets to fertilize eggs, which produces more daughters to continue a bloodline. Fertilization generally only occurs after months of negotiation between the parents' clans, and is done for purpose of political and dynastic alliance. No salarian would imagine defying this code. Salarian names are quite complex. A full name includes - in order - the name of a salarian's planet, duchy, barony, fiefdom, family, and finally, the given name. ~Salarians: Government~ How to get: On Virmire after talking to the Salarian Commander right before you go on the main mission. --- The salarian government is called the Salarian Union. It is a labyrinthine web of matrilineal bloodlines, with political alliances formed through interbreeding. In many ways, the salarian political network functions like the noble familys of Earth's Medieval Europe. Structurally the government consists of fiefdoms, baronies, duchies, planets, and marches (colonization clusters). These are human nicknames; the original salarian is unpronounceable. Each area is ruled by a single Dalatrass (matriarchal head-of-household) and represents an increasing amount of territory and prestige within the salarian political web. Approaching 100 members, the first circle of a salarian's clan comprises parents, siblings, uncles, aunts, and cousins. The next circle includes second cousins, etc., and escalates to well over 1000 members. The fourth of fifth circle of a clan numbers into the millions. Salarian loyalty is greatest to their first circle and diminishes from there. There photographic memories allow salarians to recognize all their myriad relatives. ~Salarians: League of One~ How to get: Find one of the League of One Medallions while surveying a planet. --- Before they joined the Citadel Council, the salarians' most potent military tool was a small reconnaissance team known as the League of One. Their primary training was in espionage and assassination. Never more than a dozen strong, the team was adept at infiltrating the tightest defenses and eliminating all necessary obstacles. Only a few top members of government and military were privy to the League's identities. League members wore no distinguishing garments, and held no particular rank. The only evidence of their participation in the League was a small medallion presented to each member upon induction. This secrecy was maintained until the formation of the Council. In an afford to dispel rumors and appease their new asari partners, the Salarian Union released all classified documents pertaining to the League. The League of One was suddenly exposed and in danger of being hunted by enemies of the salarians. Before any harm could be done, the team mysteriously disappeared. Most assumed this was a convenient lie to help hide their identities, but a few months later, the inner cabinet was murdered. Though there was no incriminating evidence, it was clear who was responsible. Realizing the threat posed by this rogue outfit, the Special Tasks Group dispatched a team of hunters. When they didn't return, the STG dispatched ten of its brightest operators with broad discretionary powers. Only two returned; they reported no evidence of the League. No further incidents were reported and it was assumed the League was wiped out. Some recently declassified documents, however, have suggested there may have been a thirteenth member who eluded the salarian military. ~Salarians: Military Doctrine~ How to get: On Virmire after talking to the Salarian Commander right before you go on the main mission. --- In principle, the salarian military is similar to the Alliance, a small volunteer army that focuses on maneuver warfare. What differentiates the salarians is not their equipment or doctrine, but their intelligence services and rules of engagement. The salarians believe that a war should be won before it begins. Conventional wisdom holds that the salarians know everything about everyone, and this is not far from the truth. In war, the unquestioned superiority of their intelligence services allows them to use their small military to maximum effectiveness. Well before fighting breaks out, they possess complete knowledge of their enemy's positions, intentions, and timetable. In every war the salarians have fought, they struck first and without warning. For the salarians, to know an enemy plans to attack and to let it happen is folly. To announce their own plans to attack is insanity. They find the human moral concepts of 'do not fire until fired upon' and 'declare a war before prosecuting it' incredibly naive. In defensive wars, they execute devastating preemptive strikes hours before the enemy's own attacks. On the offensive, they have never telegraphed their intentions with a declaration of war before attacking. Biotics are virtually unknown in the salarian military. Those with such abilities are considered too valuable to be used as cannon fodder and assigned to the intelligence services. While capable of defending themselves against most threats, the salarians know that they are small fish in a universe filled with sharks. As a point of survival, they have cultivated strong alliances with larger powers, particularly the turians. Though the relationship between the two species was rocky at first due to the krogan uplift fiasco, the salarians take pains to keep this relationship strong enough that anyone who might threaten them risks turian intervention. ~Salarians: Special Tasks Group~ How to get: Talk to the Council about them when they are telling you about Virmire. --- Salarian intelligence field agents are grouped into an organization called Special Tasks Group. STG operators work in independent cells, performing dangerous missions such as counterterrorism, infiltration, reconnaissance, assassination, and sabotage. The STG is a proactive organization, puncturing worrisome trends before they become movements. At any time, a dozen groups are operating covertly within the lawless Terminus Systems, sowing dissent among the various factions. Civilians analysts also note how troublesome 'hinge point' individuals in Terminus frequently meet unexpected deaths. STG operators are feared throughout the galaxy for their clear-eyed, remorseless practicality. They are willing to do whatever it takes to achieve their mission, even if it kills civilians or results in the team's own destruction. In many ways, they are akin to the Council Spectres. ~Turians: Biology~ How to get: Talk to Garrus inbetween main missions. --- The turian homeworld, Pavaven, has a metal-poor core, generating a weak magnetic field and allowing more solar radiation into the atmosphere. To deal with this, most forms of life on Palaven evolved some form of metallic 'exoskeleton' to protect themselves. Their reflective plate-like skin makes turians less susceptible to long-term, low-level radiation exposure, but they do not possess any sort of 'natural armor'. A turian's thick skin does not stop projectiles and directed energy bolts. Although life on Palaven is carbon-based and oxygen-breathing, it is built on dextro-amino acids. This places the turians in a distinct minority on the galactic stage; the quarians are the only other sapient dextro-protein race. The food of humans, asari, or salarians (who evolved in levo-amino acid-based biospheres), will at best pass through turian systems without providing any nutrition. At worst, it will trigger an allergic reaction that can be fatal if not immediately treated. ~Turians: Culture~ How to get: Talk to Garrus inbetween main missions. --- While turians are individuals with personal desires, their instinct is to equate the self with the group, and to set aside all personal desires for the good of all. Turians are taught to have a a strong sense of personal accountability, the 'turian honor' that other races find so remarkable. Turians are taught to own every decision they make, good or ill. The worst sin they can make in the eyes of their people is to lie about their own actions. Turians who murder will try to get away with it, but if directly questioned, most will confess the crime. Turians have a strong inclination toward public service and self-sacrifice, so they tend to be poor entrepreneurs. To compensate, they accepted the mercantile volus as a client race, offering protection in exchange for their fiscal expertise. The turian military is the center of their society. It is not just an armed force; it is an all-encompassing public works organization. The military police are also the civic police. The fire brigades serve the civilian population as well as military facilities. The corps of engineers builds and maintains spaceports, schools, water purification plants, and power stations. The merchant marine ensures that all worlds get needed resources. ~Turians: Government~ How to get: Talk to Garrus inbetween main missions. --- The turian government is a hierarchical meritocracy. While it has great potential for misuse, this is tempered by the civic duty and personal responsibility turians learn in childhood. Turians have 27 citizenship tiers, beginning with civilians (client races and children). The initial period of military service is the second tier. Formal citizenship is conferred at the third tier, after boot camp. For client races, citizenship is granted after the individual musters out. Higher-ranked civilians are expected to lead and protect subordinates. Lower-ranking citizens are expected to obey and support superiors. Promotion to another tier of citizenship. Promotion to another tier of citizenship is based on the personal assessments of one's superiors and co-rankers. Throughout thier lives, turians ascended to the higher tiers and are occasionally 'demoted' to lower ones. The stigma associated with demotion lies not on the individual, but on those who promoted him when he wasn't ready for additional responsibility. This curbs the tendency to promote individuals into positions beyond their capabilities. Settling into a role and rank is not considering stagnation. Turians value knowing one's own limitations more than being ambitious. At the top are the Primarchs, who each rule a colonization cluster. The Primarchs vote on matters of national import. They otherwise maintain a 'hands-off' policy, trusting the citizens on each level below them to do their jobs competently. Turians enjoy broad freedoms. So long as one completes his duties, and does not prevent others from completing theirs, nothing is forbidden. For example, there are no laws against recreational drug use, but if someone is unable to complete his duties due to drug use, his superiors step in. Judicial proceedings are 'interventions.' Peers express their concern, and try to convince the offender to change. If rehabilitation fails, turians have no qualms about sentencing dangerous individuals to life at hard labor for the state. ~Turians: Military Doctrine~ How to get: Talk to Garrus inbetween main missions. --- Although they lack the brutality of the krogan, the skill of the asari, and the virtuosity of humans, the turian military has formidable discipline. Officers and NCOs are 'lifers' with years of field experience. Enlisted personnel are thoroughly trained and stay calm under fire. Turian units don't break. Even if their entire line collapses, they fall back in order, setting ambushes as they go. A popular saying holds: 'You will only see a turian's back once he'd dead.' Boot camp begins on the 15th birthday. Soldiers receive a year of training before being assigned to a field unit; officers train for even longer. Most serve until the age of 30, at which they become part of the Reserves. Even if they suffer injuries preventing front-line service, most do support work behind the lines. Biotics are uncommon. White admired for their exacting skills, biotics' motives are not always fully trusted by the common soldier. The turians prefer to assign their biotics to a specialist teams called Cabals. Command and control is decentralized and flexible. Individual squads can call for artillery and air support. They make extensive use of combat drones for light duties, and practice combined arms: infantry operates with armor, supported by overhead gunships. Strategically, they are methodical and patient, and dislike risky operations. Tradition is important. Each legion has a full-time staff of historians who chronicle its battle honors in detail. The oldest have records dating back to the turian Iron Age. If a legion is destroyed in battle, it is reconstituted rather than being replaced. The turians recruit auxiliary units from conquered or absorbed minor races. Auxiliaries are generally light infantry or armored cavalry units that screen and support the main battle formations. At the conclusion of their service in the Auxiliaries, recruits are granted turian citizenship. ~Turians: Religion~ How to get: Talk to Garrus between missions. --- Although Turians have a strict moral code, their belief in individual responsibility means that the concepts of good and evil are simply the individual's choice between egotism and altruism in any given decision. They have no concept of 'good' deities that encourage noble behavior or 'evil' ones that tempt individuals to misdeeds. Turians believe that groups and areas have 'spirits' that transcend the individual. For example, a military unit would be considered to have a literal spirit that embodies the honor and courage it has displayed. A city's spirit reflects the accomplishments and industry of its residents. An ancient tress's spirit reflects the beauty and tranquility of the area it grows within. These spirits are neither good nor evil, nor are they appealed to for intercession. Turians do not believe spirits can affect the world, but spirits can inspire the living. Prayers and rituals allow an individual to converse with a spirit for guidance or inspiration. For example a Turian who finds his loyalty tested may appeal to the spirit of his unit, hoping to reconnect with the pride and honor of the group. A Turian who wishes to create a work of art may attempt to connect with the spirit of a beautiful location. Turians enjoy absolute freedom of religion and can practice whatever appeals to them so long as it does not impede anyone's ability to perform their duties. There are many practitioners of the asari 'siarist' philosophy. Since opening dialog with the human Systems Alliance, some Turians have embraced Confucianism and Zen Buddhism. ~Turians: The Unification War~ How to get: Find a Turian Emblem while surveying a planet. --- At about the time the salarians and the asari were forming the Council, the turians were embroiled in a bitter civil war. The Unification War, as it was later named, began with hostilities between the colonies furthest from the turian homeworld, Palaven. These colonies were run by local chieftains, many of whom had distanced themselves from the Hierarchy. Without the galvanizing influence of the government, the colonies became increasingly isolated and xenophobic. Colonists began wearing emblems or facial markings to differentiate themselves from members of other colonies and open hostilities became common. When war finally broke out, the Hierarchy maintained strict diplomacy and refused to get involved. After several years of fighting, less and less factions remained and the Hierarchy finally intervened. By that time, the chieftains were too weak to resist; they were force to put an end to fighting and renew their allegiance to the Hierarchy. Though peace was restored, it took several decades for animosity between colonists to fade completely. To this day, most turians still wear the facial markings of their home colonies. As a point of interest, the turian term 'barefaced' refers to one who is beguiling or not to be trusted. It is also a slang term for politicians. --Aliens: Extinct Races-- Spacefaring species that went extinct thousands of years before the present. ~Protheans: Beacon~ How to get: Talk to Liara inbetween main missions. --- The beacon was a Prothean artifact unearthed on the Alliance colony of Eden Prime. Its resemblance to the Prothean data banks recovered on Mars provoked an immediate interest from the Alliance and the Citadel Council. It proved to be a solid state data storage device, part of a galaxy-spanning comm network similar to the modern extranet. Intact Prothean 'paleo-technology' is rare; the beacon seemed to promise another quantum leap of technology, akin to the discovery of the mass effect drive and relays. Unfortunately, the beacon also drew the attention of the rouge Spectre Saren Arterius and his synthetic allies, the geth. A dawn raid by his flagship Sovereign resulting in hundreds of civilian casualties. The beacon was badly damaged. The motives behind the attack are still being investigated. During the recovery operation, the beacon fired a pulse of energy at the Executive Officer of the Alliance frigate Normandy. Lieutenant Commander Shepard survived and appears to have suffered no ill effects. Afterwards, the beacon fell inert. The mechanism appears to be dead. ~Protheans: Cipher~ How to get: At the end of Feros. --- The Prothean beacon downloaded its knowledge into Lt. Commander Shepard on Eden Prime, causing confusing dreams and visions. While the imagery is becoming clearer with time, the meaning of the beacon communication remains elusive. It has been suggested that Protheean data recording is highly dependent on a certain point of view, what Carl Jung described as the collective unconscious. The 'cipher' needed to comprehend the images implanted in Shepard's mind is the cultural knowledge of a Prothean: the archetypes, biological instincts, and common experiences universal to the race. Since the Protheans have been dead for millennia, it may be impossible to acquire this 'cipher'. ~Protheans: Data Disks~ How to get: Find one of them while surveying. --- Despite all the evidence confirmed the Protheans, little is known about their culture and society. From time to time, dig sites will yield new clues, but after 50,000 years of decay, little of value is unearthed. Recent research has focused on the discovery of Prothean data discs. On their own, they are frail and rarely found in one piece. Occasionally, however, an intact disc will be discovered within a console or reading device. To date, over three dozen discs have been recovered and few have been restored to the point where researchers can begin analyzing them. Though it may be some time before scientists discover a way to transfer the data off the discs, they are currently considered the most tangible leads for learning more about the Prothean culture. ~Protheans: Mars Ruins~~ How to get: Examine Mars. --- After twenty years of manned research outposts and nearly a century of robotic exploration, the European Space Agency's Lowell City became the first permanent settlement on Mars in 2103. Within a decade, the United States and China had founded permanent settlements, as well. The south polar region of Promethei Planum developed a 'Bermuda Triangle' reputation. Satellites detected intermittent mass concentration and magnetic field shifts. In 2148, prospectors working near Deseado Crater discovered an underground complex: a Prothean observation post. The odd phenomena were generated by the operation and discharge of a mass effect core, struggling to function despite fifty millennia of neglect. Earth was electrified with the news. Humanity was unequivocally not alone. While courts battled who owned the ruins, the international scientific community coordinated a massive effort to access, translate, and interpret the databanks recovered from the facility. The facility proved to be a biosciences observation post built when homo sapiens were first evolving on Earth. While the motives of the Protheans are not certain, trnslated records indicate that the facility was in regular communication with automated observation platforms in Earth orbit and the lunar nearside. The half-dozen mass effect spaceships found in the facility were presumably used for first-hand observation. --Aliens: Non-Council Races-- Spacefaring species without the political power to set galactic policy. ~Geth: Armatures~ How to get: When you first encounter them you will get it. --- Armatures are quadruped all-terrain heavy weapons platforms, akin to the armored fighting vehicles of other races. Geth being synthetic intelligences, armatures are not crewed vehicles, but intelligent entities, capable of independent decision-making and learning. Armatures are equipped with heavy kinetic barriers. Their main cannon mounted on the articulated 'head' turret, appears to be a highly efficient conventional mass accelerator. It is capable of firing in anti-personnel and anti-tank modes. Some armatures carry drones into battle, presumable for reconnaissance purposes. Others host a swarm of insect-sized repair microbots. ~Geth: Hoppers~ How to get: When you first encounter them you will get it. --- The geth models collectively dubbed 'hoppers' by Alliance forces are electronic warfare platforms. They can project electromagnetic radiation across a broad spectrum as an offensive weapon. They can also perform cyber warfare attacks against the onboard computers of body armor hardsuits and weapons, adversely affecting their performance. The structure of hoppers consist of an advanced and highly elastic artificial muscle material. This allows a hopper to compress its entire body for powerful leaps. Hoppers also have thousand of molecule-scale 'barbs' on the surfaces of their hands and feet, which are used to cling to walls and ceilings. Hoppers are very difficult to target, leaping from one surface to another in rapid succession. The quarians have no record of any geth model similar to hoppers. This new morphotype must have been developed over the last three hundred years by the geth themselves. This is troubling proof that the geth are continuing to move towards technological singularity. Experts in synthetic life are intrigued that hoppers appear to be even more organic then the baseline geth. The identified subtypes of hopper have been codenamed Sapper, Stalker, and Ghost. ~Krogan: Biology~ How to get: Talk to Wrex inbetween main missions. --- The krogan evolved in a lethal ecology. Over millions of years, the grim struggle to survive larger predators, virulent disease, and resource scarcity on their homeworld, Tuchanka, turned the lizards into quintessential survivors. Perhaps the most telling indicator of Tuchanka's lethality is the krogan eyes. Although they are a predators species by any standard definition, their eyes evolved to be wide-set, as any Earth prey species like deer and cattle. Krogan eyes have a 240-degree arc of vision, better suited for spotting enemies sneaking up on them than for persuit. Physically, the krogan are nigh-indestructible, with a tough hide impervious to any melee weapon short of a molecular blade. While they feel pain, it does not affect their ability to concentrate. They have multiple functioning examples of all major organs, and can often survive the loss of one or two of any type. Rather than a nervous system, they have an electrically conductive second circulatory system. A krogan can never be paralyzed - they may lose some fluid, but it can be replaced by the body in time. The hump on krogan's back stores water and fats that help the krogan survive lean times. Large humps are a point of pride; being well-fed implies the krogan is a superior predator. The most widely-known biological feature of the krogan is their incredible birth rate and rapid maturity. Once freed from the hostile cauldron of Tuchanka, the krogan population swelled into a numberless horde. Only the genophage kept them from out-breeding the combined Council races. Now the rare krogan females capable of bringing a child to term are treated like strategic resources: warlords will trade them at diplomacy or (more frequently) fight wars over them. ~Krogan: Culture~ How to get: Talk to Wrex inbetween main missions. --- The harsh krogan homeworld conditioned the krogan psychology for toughness just as it did the body. Krogan have always had a tendency to be selfish, unsympathetic, and blunt. They respect strength and self-reliance and are neither surprised nor offended by treachery. The weak and selfless do not live long. In their culture, 'looking out for number one' is simply a matter of course. After their defeat in the Rebellions, the very concept of krogan leadership was discredited. Where a warlord could once command enough power to bring entire solar systems to heel and become Overlord, these days it is rare for a single leader to have more then 1000 warriors swear allegiance to him. Most krogan trust and serve no one but themselves. This solitary attitude stems in part from a deep sense of fatalism and futility, a profound social effect of the genophage that caused krogan numbers to dwindle to a relative handful. Not only are they angry that the entire galaxy seems out to get them, the krogan are also generally pessimistic about their race's chances of survival. The surviving krogan see no point to building for the future; there will be no future. The krogan live with an attitude of 'kill, pillage, and be selfish, for tomorrow we die'. ~Krogan: Genophage~ How to get: Talk to Wrex inbetween main missions. --- The genophage bioweapon was created to end the Krogan Rebellions. From the start, the krogan had overwhelmed the Council. Only timely first contact with the turians saved the Council races. The turians fought the krogans to a standstill, but the sheer weight of krogan numbers indicated the war could not be won through conventional means. The turians collaborated with the salarians to genetically engineer a counter to the rapid breeding of the krogan. The genophage virus gained the energy to replicate by 'eating' key genetic sequences. Every cell in every krogan had to be altered for the weapon to be fullproof; otherwise the krogan could have used gene therapy to fix the affected tissues. Once a genophage strain could find no more genes to eat, it would starve and die, limited spin-off mutation and contamination. This 'created' genetic flaw is hereditary. The salarians believed the genophage would be used as a deterrent, a position the turians viewed as naive. Once the project was complete, the turians mass produced and deployed it. The krogan homeworld, their colonies, and all occupied worlds were infected. The resulting mutation made only one in a thousand krogan pregnancies carry to term. It did not reduce fertility, but offspring viability. The rare females able to carry children to term became prizes the krogan warlords fought brutal battles over. The krogan are a shadow of their former glory. While the Rebellions took place centuries ago, they are constantly reminded of the horror of the genophage and of their inability to counter it. The release of the genophage is still controversial, bitterly debated in many circles. ~Krogan: Krogan Rebellions~ How to get: Talk to Wrex inbetween main missions. --- After the Rachni War, the quick-breeding krogan expanded at the expense of their neighbors. Warlords leveraged their veteran soldiers to seize living space while the Council races were still grateful. Over centuries, the krogan conquered world after world. There was always 'just one more' needed. When the Council finally demanded withdrawal from the asari colony of Lusia, krogan Overlord Kredak stormed off the Citadel, daring the Council to take the worlds back. But the Council had taken precautions. The finest STG operators and asari huntresses had been drafted into a covert 'observation force', the Office of Special Tactics and Reconnaissance. The Spectres opened the war with crippling strategic strikes. Krogan planets went dark as computer viruses flooded the extranet. Sabotaged antimatter refineries disappeared in blue-white annihilation, Headquarters stations shattered into orbit-clogging debris, ramming by pre-placed suicide freighters. Still, this only delayed the inevitable. The war would have been lost if not for first contact with the turians, who responded to krogan threats with a prompt declaration of war. Being on the far side of krogan space from the Council, the turians advanced rapidly into the lightly-defended krogan rear areas. The krogan responded by dropping space stations and asteroids on turian colonies. Three worlds were rendered completely uninhabitable. This was precisely the wrong approach to take with the turians. Each is first and foremost a public servant, willing to risk his life to protect his comrades. Rather then increasing public war weariness, krogan tactics stiffened turian resolve. The arrival of turian task forces saved many worlds from the warlords' marauding fleets, but it took the development of the genophage bioweapon to end the war. There were decades of unrest afterwards. Rouge warlords and holdout groups of insurgents refused to surrender, or disappeared into the frontier systems to become pirates. ~Krogan: Military Doctrine~ How to get: Talk to Wrex inbetween main missions. --- Traditional krogan tactics were built on attritional mass-unit warfare. Equipped with cheap rugged gear, troop formations were powerful but inflexible. Command and control was very centralized; soldiers in the field who saw a target contacted their commanders behind the lines to arrange fire support. Since the genophage, the krogan can no longer afford the casualties of the old horde attacks. The Battle Masters are a match for any ten soldiers of another species. To a Battle Master, killing is a science. They focus on developing clean, brute-force economy of motion that exploits their brutal strenth to incapacitate enemies with a swift single blow of overwhelming power. This change of focus from mass-unit warface to maximal efficiency has increased employment demand in the fields of security and 'muscle for hire'. Due to the unsavory reputation of the krogan, most of these jobs are on the far side of the law. Battle Masters are not 'spit and polish', but they do believe in being well- armed and equipped, preferably with a gun for each limb. They are callous and brutal, but methodical and disciplined. They use any means at their disposal to achieve their goals, no matter how reprehensible. Hostage-taking and genocide are acceptable means to ensure a quiet occupation with few krogan casualties. The krogan serving with Saren's forces appear to be returning to the old style of mass attritional combat. They also work in close cooperation with supporting geth units, who fill in the roles occupied by combat drones in other armies. Biotics are rare among the krogan. Those that exist are viewed with suspicion and fear. The krogan see this aura of fear as a useful quality for an officer, and often promote them. Combat drones and other high-tech equipment are likewise in short supply. ~Quarians: Economy~ How to get: Talk to Tali inbetween main missions. --- The Migrant Fleet has little economic base, operating in a state of perpetual 'hand-to-mouth'. White quarian ships include light manufacturing and assembly plants, they lack heavy industries such as refining and shipbuilding. The fleet has tankers for water purification and oxygen cracking, but with the space-intensive nature of agriculture limits food production. A single disaster could destroy the fragile balance. The quarians earn income in creative ways. Because the government is obliged to provide food, water, air, and medical support for every individual, the Conclave strategically determines the course of the Fleet to bring in resources and income. A species who suspects the Migrant Fleet is heading towards their space often offers a 'gift' of surplus starships, fuel, and resources to alter course. As the fleet passes through the a system, swarms of mining vessels work over asteroids for metals and siliceous materials and cometary bodies for water ice and organics. Quarian miners are adept at locating and strip-mining space- borne resources. This sparks conflict with corporations already working the system. Large mining concerns spend millions on lobbyists and public relations portraying the quarians as locusts, devouring the resources of a system before moving on. The greatest asset of the quarians is their rarified skills. Most are experienced miners. Due to their life of perpetual salvage and repair, they are skilled engineers and technicians. More than once, they very corporations that lobby against the quarians have made back room deals with the Fleet, arranging for skilled quarians to fill space engineering jobs that other species would demand higher wages for. Quarians are widely hated among the working classes. 'The quarians are coming to take our jobs' is a common response to the Fleet's approach. ~Quarians: Government~ How to get: Talk to Tali inbetween main missions. --- Due to the quarians' precarious existence and the need to enforce strict rationing, government is somewhat autocratic. The Migrant Fleet's operations are directed by the Admiralty, a board of five military officers who are advised by a legislative body called the Conclave. Each vessel in the Fleet has the right to send representatives to the Conclave aboard the flagship. The number of representatives is based on crew size. Larger clans, with bigger ships and more votes, form the cores of political blocs. Opposition comes from the Outriders' Coalition, with delegates from thousands of smaller ships. The Admiralty defers to the Conclave's decisions in most circumstances. However, if all five members agree a Conclave decision jeopardized the survival of the fleet, and cannot get the Conclave to address their concerns, they have the right to summarily overturn the legislative decision. After the Admiralty uses this extraordinary power, they must resign. If the Admiralty does not step down after using their veto the rest of the military is obliged to arrest them. Each ship captain has authority over the vessel, but is advised by an elected civilian Council, just as the Admiralty is advised by the Conclave. This relationships may range from cooperation to polite tolerance to outright hostility, but any captain who overrules his council without good reason is relieved of command by the Admiralty. Many quarian ships are owned by clans who pool their resources to purchase used vessels from private sellers. Large ships are prestigious for big, rich clans, but a small ship means status for a small clan with enough personal wealth to afford a private vessel. Clan vessel captains are not subject to dismissal by the Admiralty; abusive captains are a 'family' problem if they do not disrupt the operations of the fleet. ~Quarians: Law and Defense~ How to get: Talk to Tali inbetween main missions. --- Although the Conclave establishes civil law much as any planet-based democracy, enforcement and trials are more unique. After the flight from the geth, there were few constables to police the millions of civilians aboard the Fleet, so the navy parceled out marine squads to maintain order and enforce the law. Today, quarian marines have evolved training and tactics akin to civilian police, but remain adept at combat in the confined spaces of a starship, and fully under the command of the military. Once taken into custody, the accused is brought before the ship's captain for judgment. While the ship's council may make recommendations, tradition holds that the captain has absolute authority in matters of discipline. Most are lenient, assigning additional or more odious maintenance tasks aboard the ship. Persistent recidivists are 'accidentally' left on the next habitable world. This practice of abandoning criminals on other people's planets is a point of friction between the quarians and the systems they pass through. Captains rarely have another choice; with space and resources at a premium, supporting a non-productive prison population is not an option. In the early years, many quarians freighters were armed and used as irregular 'privateers'. Civilian ships still show a strong preference for armament, making them unpopular targets for pirates. Though they have rebuilt their military, there are still mere hundreds of warships to protect the tens of thousands of ships. The quarian navy follows strict routines of partol, and takes no chances. If the intent of approaching ship can't be ascertained, they shoot to kill. ~Quarians: Migrant Fleet~ How to get: Talk to Tali inbetween main missions. --- The Migrant Fleet is the largest concentration of starfaring vessels in the galaxy, sprawling across millions of kilometers. It can take days for the entire fleet to pass through a mass relay. When the quarians fled their homeworld, the Fleet was a motley aggregation of freighters, shuttles, industrial vessels, and the odd warship. After three centuries, all have been modified to support larger crews as comfortably as possible. As the quarians achieved stability, they began weeding out the ships least suitable for long-term habitation, selling them and pooling the money to buy larger and more spaceworthy hulls. This process is ongoing, as vessels wear out and break down. While some ships enjoy dedicated cabins with full privacy and sanitary facilities, many more are former freighters, whose cargo bays and containers are pressurized and divided into family spaces using simple metal 'cubicle' bulkheads. The quarians enliven these austere space s with colorful quilts and tapestries, which also help muffle sound. The day-to-day operation of the fleet - traffic control, station-keeping, supply distribution, and so on - are under military jurisdiction. Though ship captains have the authority to deviate from their assigned positions and may leave the fleet at any time, they are assumed to do so at their own risk. As the Migrant Fleet moves around the galaxy, many ships split off to persue individual goals, returning days or years later. ~Quarians: Pilgrimage~ How to get: Talk to Tali inbetween main missions. --- When quarians of the Migrant Fleet reach young adulthood, they must leave their birth ship and find a new crew to accept them as permanent residents. To prove themselves, they must recover something of value. This is offered to their prospective captain as proof that they will not be a mere burden on the shoestring resources of the ship. This process is called the Pilgrimage. Stripped of ritual, the Pilgrimage is merely an attempt to maintain genetic diversity within the small, relatively isolated population bases that make up the Migrant Fleet. If the young stayed and married within their birth vessel, the risk of inbreeding would increase sharply. Quarians are surgically fitted with their various immunity-boosted implants in preparation for leaving on Pilgrimage. Having grown within the sterile, controlled environments of the Migrant Fleet ships, quarians have virtually no natural immune system. ~Quarians: Religion~ How to get: Talk to Tali inbetween main missions. --- The ancient quarians practiced ancestor worship. Even after abandoning faith for secularism, quarians continued to revere the wisdom of elders. As time passed and technology advanced, they inevitably turned their knowledge to preserving the personalities and memories of the elderly as computer virtual intelligences. These recordings became a repository of knowledge and wisdom, stored in a central databank and available through any extranet connection. They held no illusions that this was like a form of immortality; like all virtual intelligences, their electronically-preserved ancestors were not truly sapient. This was considered a surmountable problem; sapience could surely be reduced to simple mathematics. The quarians began exhaustive research into creating artificial intelligence so they could learn to escape the bounds of mortality and give their ancestral records true awareness. Unfortunately, the life the quarians created did not accept the same truths they did. The geth destroyed the ancestor databanks when they took over. The the centuries since they evacuated their homeworld, most quarians have returned to religion in various forms. Many believe the rise of the geth and the destruction of their 'ancestors' were chastisement for arrogantly forsaking the old ways and venerating self-made idols. Others have a more philosophical outlook, believing their race was indeed arrogant, but no supernatural agency lay behind the geth revolt. Rather, the quarians' actions wrought their own doom. Either way, every quarian would agree that their own hubris cost them their homeworld. --Citadel and Galactic Government-- A massive space station that serves as the political and economic capital of galactic culture. ~Citadel Conventions~ These diplomatic talks occurred in the wake of the Krogan Rebellions, as a response to the destruction of the conflict and an attempt to distance the Council from the brutal krogan warfare. The Conventions regulate the use of Weapons of Mass Destruction. A WMD causes environmental alteration to a world. A bomb that produces a large crater is not considered a WMD; a bomb that causes a 'nuclear winter' is. Use of WMD is forbidden on 'garden' worlds like Earth, with ecospheres that can readily support a population. If a habitable world is destroyed, it will not be replaced for millions of years. The Conventions do not forbid the use of WMD on hostile worlds or in sealed space-station environments. Many militaries continue to develop and maintain stockpiles. The Conventions graded Weapons of Mass Destruction into tiers of concern. Tier I is the greatest treat to galactic peace. TIER I: Large kinetic impacters, such as asteroid drops or de-orbited space stations. Effectively free and available in any system (in the form of debris left over from planetary accretion), kinetic impacters are the weapons of choice for terrorists and 'third galaxy' nations. TIER II: Uncontrolled self-replicating weapons, such as nanotechnology, viral or bacteriological organisms, 'Von Neumann devices', and destructive computer viruses. These weapons can lie dormant for millennia, waiting for a careless visitor to carry them on another world. TIER III: Large energy-burst weapons such as nuclear or antimatter warheads. TIER IV: Alien species deliberately introduced to crowd out native forms necessary for the hearth of an ecosystem. Ecological tampering can take years to bear fruit, making it difficult to prove. ~Citadel Station: Citadel Security Services (C-Sec)~ How to get: Talk to the C-Sec Captain about it while on the Citadel. --- Citadel Security is a volunteer police service answering to the Citadel Council. The 200,000 constables of C-Sec are responsible for maintaining public order in the densely populated Citadel. They also provide pirate suppression, customs enforcements, and search-and-rescue- throughout the Citadel cluster. C-Sec has six divisions: ENFORCEMENT - Uniformed officers who patrol the Citadel and respond to emergencies. INVESTIGATION - Detectives who puzzle out the truth behind crimes and bring perpetrators to justice. CUSTOMS - Screen the thousands of passengers and cargo containers that pass through the Citadel's ports every day. NETWORK - Deals with "cybercrimes" like identify and copyright theft, hacking and viral attacks, and illegal artificial intelligence. SPECIAL RESPONSE - Deals with hostage situations, bombs, and heavily armed criminals. In the unlikely event that attackers board the Citadel, they are also the front line of defense, armored with military grade equipment. PATROL - Naval arm, with ships stationed throughout the Citadel cluster. Unlike the other divisions, they are rarely seen at the Citadel, nor do they stay in one place long. Joining C-Sec is prestigious; applications must be sponsored by a Citadel Councilor or the ambassador of an associate Council race. Generally, applicants have many years of distinguished service in the military or police forces of their nations, but an inexperienced applicant with demonstrable talent will be fairly considered. C-Sec and Spectres are often at odds. May C-Sec members, notably the current Executor Venari Pallin, believe that allowing Specters to be 'above the law' is a dangerous practice, the actions of Saren Arterius lend credence to this position. The Spectres, in turn, are aggravated within C-Sec's dedication to procedure and due process hampers their investigations. ~Citadel Station: Presidium Ring~ How to get: Talk to the Embassy secretary about it. --- The Ring is an enclosed loop of park-like space serving as the connection point for the Wards. The interior walls are lined with the embassies of influential species and private residences for the galaxies elite. The Presidium is full of 'open-air' restaurants, bars, and luxurious meeting areas. Gravity is about 1/3 Earth-normal. A holographic 'sky' is projected over the 'ceiling' of the ring. unlike the 24/7 bustle of the Wards, the Presidium maintains a 20-hour day schedule, with a six-hour 'night' where lights are dimmed and the sky goes through a night cycle. Offices and residences are often open to the interior. It is not unusualy for embassies to have no exterior wall at all. This does not cause a crime problem due to the heavy C-Sec presence and ubiquitous monitoring devices on the Presidium. Thieves are quickly identified and apprehended. The Ring is the location of the Citadel's spaceports. Being closer to the center of the spin, there is less motion for a ship to match, and the reduced spin gravity makes handling cargo easier. Hundreds of ships pass through the Citadel every day, and every species with an embassy is granted a private dock. The Tower, at the center of the Ring, holds the administration of the Citadel Council. The Tower rises over a kilometer from the ring, appearing to thrust forward parallel to the ward arms. As the Tower is at the center of the spin axis, it experiences little centrifugal force. Gravity is maintained using mass effect fields at a 90-degree angle to the Ring and Wards. A Consular dock can be found at the base of the Tower. While normally used for diplomatic couriers and Spectre business, the shuttles docked here can evacuate the Council government in an emergency. ~Citadel Station: Serpent Nebula~ How to get: Observe the 'view of the nebula' which you can see looking off of the balcony in front of the med center in the wards. --- The Citadel is surrounded by a blue-tinted reflection nebula. The light of the nebula is actually light from the Citadel, scattered and reflected back at the station. At first, the Serpent Nebula was assumed to be made of microscopic construction debris. Prevailing theory holds the Protheans used molecular nanotechnology to manufacture the incredibly durable materials used to make the Citadel. But unlike other nebulae, the Serpent does not dissipate over time. Therefore, it must be replenished constantly. The current popular theory is that the non-recyclable waste collected by the Citadel's keepers is somehow rendered down to the atomic or molecular level, and ejected into the clouds. The thick nebula resents a navigation hazard. Beyond the relatively clear areas around the Citadel, electrical discharges are common. These are not blocked by kinetic barriers, and can severely damage metal-framed starships. In addition, some dense knots of dust can overwhelm the repulsion of kinetic barriers on smaller ships. If such a vessel is moving fast enough at the time, the effects are similar to being hit by a sandblaster. Attempting to reach the Citadel through open space navigation is unadvisable; the only safe approach is through the various mass relays that orbit it. ~Citadel Station: Statistics~ Although the Citadel is equipped with mass-effect-generating element-zero cores, most of the gravity on the station is generated by the centrifugal force of rotation. Rotation: 3.5 minutes per revolution Rotational Gravity in Wards: 1.02 Earth Rotational Gravity in Presidium: 0.3 Earth Total Length (Open): 44.7 km Diameter (Open): 12.8km Ward Length: 43.6km Ward Width: 330m Presidium Ring Diameter: 7.2 km Presidium Ring Width: 553 m Exterior Armor Thickness: 13 m Population: 13.2 million (not including keepers) Gross Weight: 7.11 billion metric tons Height of the Presdium Tower: 1047 m ~Citadel Station: Wards~ The majority of the Citadel's population lives in the Wards, the five massive arms of the station that house the residential and commercial districts. Many galactic races have established cultural enclaves here. Population density and cost of living are extremely high, akin to Earth cities such as Hong Kong and Singapore. The Wards are open-topped, with skyscrapers rising from the superstructure. Towers are sealed against vacuum, as the breathable atmosphere envelope is only maintained to a height of about seven meters. The atmosphere is contained by the centrifugal force of rotation and a 'membrane' of dense, colorless sulphur hexafluoride gas, held in place by carefully managed mass effect fields. The view from the Wards is spectacular. In the background, stars, Serpent Nebula, and the nearby blue giant called 'the Widow' move across the sky as the station rotates to stabilize itself. In the foreground, the lights of buildings and vehicles on the opposing Ward arms perpetually shine. The Citadel has no real day or night. While the station keeps to standard galactic time for political functions, business rarely close, and residents acclimate to sleep and work according to personal need rather than a day-night cylce. Additions and modifications are constantly being constructed, though they must stay within certain specifications that will not compromise the operation of the station. Occasionally, the keepers will descend on an area of the Ward and move or change the architecture without explanation. Residents have learned to live with these inexplicable intrusions. ~Treaty of Farixen~ Due to the destructive potential of dreadnoughts, the Council races agree at the Farixen Naval Conference to fix a ratio of dreadnought construction between themselves. At the top of pyramid is the peacekeeping turian fleet. Below the turians are the other Council races, currently the asari and the salarians. Council associate races are at the bottom. The human Systems Alliance is part of this last group. The ratio of turian to Council to associate dreadnoughts is 5:3:1, for every dreadnought the humans are permitted to build, the asari have three, and the turians five. --Humanity and the Systems Alliance-- The Alliance is the government and military of humanity beyond Sol. ~Genetic Engineering~ How to get: Talk to Kaiden inbetween main missions. --- In the 22nd century, manipulation of the human genome became commonplace. Techniques for genetic engineering advanced to the point where the rich could custom-build fetuses that grew into stronger, smarter, and more attractive adults. In more permissive regions, custom-designed life forms and 'uplifted' animals occupied an ill-defined niche between 'property' and 'sapient being.' Travel to planets with unique forms of life brought an awareness that Earth's biodiversity could be lost if it spliced and hybridized to gain useful alien qualities. The Sudham-Wolcott Genetic Heritage Act was passed by the Systems Alliance Parliament in 2161. It imposed sharp restrictions on controversial uses of genetic engineering, but provided government subsidies for beneficial applications. SCREENING AND THERAPY: Most governments provide free assessments and corrective therapy for genetic diseases in prospective parents. This has nearly eliminated everything from cystic fibrosis to nearsightedness. The earlier screening and therapy is performed, the more comprehensive the results. Though ideally performed on artificially fertilized zygotes in a lab, procedures are available for embryos in the womb and newborns, out of respect for personal beliefs. ENHANCEMENT: Improvements of natural human abilities is legal, but adding new abilities is not. Treatments to improve strength, reflexes, mental ability, or appearance are permitted; adding a tail or the ability to digest cellulose is not. Some genetic enhancement is provided for free to Alliance military recruits, but the average citizen must pay for the privilege. The process can take years to reach fruition in an adult. ENGINEERING: Artificial hybridization of genes from compatible non-human species with human genetic code is illegal. Creation of designed life is broadly legal (and mainly used for terraforming and medial applications), but sentient creatures are heavily regulated, and creation of sapient life is outlawed by both the Systems Alliance and the Citadel Council. ~Human Diplomatic Relations~ Humanity has encountered many galactic species. Wars have been few, but mistrust is rife. Politically, the Alliance is a peaceful trade partner of the TURIANS. As a practical matter, however, there is simmering antagonism and bigotry between both populations over the First Contact War of 2157. Though humans know better than to unconditionally trust and SALARIAN, their shared restless, reckless ways make them natural allies against the conservative turians and asari. The KROGAN have no unified government, but individuals are generally treated as potential criminals, a reputation most krogan enjoy living down to. The Alliance has no formal contact with the QUARIANS. Their Migrant Fleet has not yet passed through any human-settled system. The batarians are rivals for control of Skyllian Verge. They severed their treaties with the Citadel to prosecute a colonial conflict against the Alliance. Officially, there is no war, but neither is there any peace. ~Systems Alliance: Geological Survey~ How to get: Survey a planet with one of these on it and unlock the quest for it. --- As the human race expands its territory and raises the general standard of living, demand for industrial resources continues to grow. Many planets, moons and asteroids contain a wealth of resources, but many systems have been barely charted, let along thoroughly surveyed. Unmanned probes are one solution, but they are often lost to space hazards, unforeseen circumstances, or theft by salvagers. In recent years, AGeS, the Alliance Geological Service, has offered bounties to private individuals or teams willing to perform mineralogical surveys on the frontier. This survey data is made publicly ava