Mass Effect 2

Story related. If you want more info, continue reading. Otherwise, know that this will unlock through the natural progression of the story.

Here we go, the final mission in Mass Effect 2. And yes, it is pretty epic. The action will actually start on the Normandy as a collector probe has breached the hull in the cargo hold. Expel it as quickly as possible. You’ll need to fight it twice no matter what, but use what you have available to get rid of it. Once you’re on the collector base, you need to figure out who takes the first two tasks, leading the diversion team and who goes into the vents. The best choices are outlined below.

(THESE COMPANIONS MUST BE LOYAL)
Vents: Tali, Kasumi, or Legion
Fire Team Leader: Garrus, Miranda, or Jacob

Take two strong companions with you for this first part. There’s quite a lot of combat against various types of collectors. Zaeed, Grunt, Thane, or Legion are good choices. Along the way, you’ll see green panels. Those are valves that you will have to disable so that whomever goes into the vents can continue to progress through. You will have a limited amount of time to get to each valve, so don’t strand your crewmember for too long. There are eight of these valves in all. There is a meter on the bottom right of the screen that will tell how much danger the person in the vents is in. Once you’re clear of all eight valves, Tali will open the door for you.

In this next section, you’ll be faced with seeker swarms and you’ll need some form of protection. Select one of the ultra powerful biotics to provide a shield for you. The best choices are below. You’ll also need to select a leader for the secondary squad and someone to escort the remaining Normandy crew back to the Normandy.

(THESE COMPANIONS MUST BE LOYAL)
Biotic Specialist: Samara/Morinth or Jack
Fire Team Leader (Part 2): Garrus, Miranda, or Jacob
Escort: Mordin, Kasumi, Tali, or Jack

Stay in the biotic’s bubble while moving through the seeker swarms. You will still be able to attack enemies while inside and the biotic will stop allowing you to take cover. There will also be husks and abominations in this section. When you finish clearing enemies, tell the biotic to continue moving. Be sure to pick up ammo along the way. It’s easy to miss the clips laying around.

Now it’s time for the final sequence. If everyone is loyal or you’re playing on Insanity, pick two of the most reliable with you. Who you take with you has an effect on the chances of your entire crew's survival. Each character has a defensive rating. Grunt, Zaeed, and Garrus are all 3. Thane, Legion, Samara/Morinth, Jacob, and Miranda have a defensive rating of 1. Mordin, Kasumi, Tali, and Jack have a rating of zero. If you add a 1 to each rating if they're loyal, add up all of the ratings, and then divide by the total number of characters holding the line (in short, take an average), if the average rating is above 2.0, then all will survive. If it's below, then anyone that isn't loyal or weak defensively will die.

I took Miranda and Legion with me. That combination was extremely effective. Two things to be aware of though. Make sure that you have the geth sniper rifle researched for Legion. He will be devastatingly lethal with it. Always be aware of where Miranda is. She has a tendency to go Rambo and leave cover unnecessarily. See No One Left Behind   for a further explanation. There is a way to keep everyone alive even if someone isn’t loyal.

This fight will be similar to the sprung trap at the end of the mission on the collector ship. There will be three to four collectors attacking at a time and they will arrive on the floating platforms. After five or six platforms, the one with the main control panel will arrive. This one will have abominations and scions on it, but save your heavy weapons. You will need them later.

Once your final objective is revealed, it’s clear what to do. Destroy the four red tanks while fending off the collectors. You’ll most likely be taking them out one at a time, but with the M-97a Viper sniper rifle, you can take out two at a time if you’re quick enough. Once all four are gone and your objective is down, you’ll have one last decision to make courtesy of the Illusive Man. Now comes the fun part. Remember when I said to save your heavy weapons? Now is a good time to use them. Aim for the eyes. When you see a red build up around the mouth, get into cover…immediately. At the same time, you’ll have collectors attacking you. There are multiple weak spots to aim for. Anywhere you see glowing red, aim there. Once you bring down the life meter in the bottom right corner, enjoy the closing cutscenes.
 

Story related. If you want more info, continue reading. Otherwise, know that this will unlock through the natural progression of the story.

Here we go, the final mission in Mass Effect 2. And yes, it is pretty epic. The action will actually start on the Normandy as a collector probe has breached the hull in the cargo hold. Expel it as quickly as possible. You’ll need to fight it twice no matter what, but use what you have available to get rid of it. Once you’re on the collector base, you need to figure out who takes the first two tasks, leading the diversion team and who goes into the vents. The best choices are outlined below.

(THESE COMPANIONS MUST BE LOYAL)
Vents: Tali, Kasumi, or Legion
Fire Team Leader: Garrus, Miranda, or Jacob

Take two strong companions with you for this first part. There’s quite a lot of combat against various types of collectors. Zaeed, Grunt, Thane, or Legion are good choices. Along the way, you’ll see green panels. Those are valves that you will have to disable so that whomever goes into the vents can continue to progress through. You will have a limited amount of time to get to each valve, so don’t strand your crewmember for too long. There are eight of these valves in all. There is a meter on the bottom right of the screen that will tell how much danger the person in the vents is in. Once you’re clear of all eight valves, Tali will open the door for you.

In this next section, you’ll be faced with seeker swarms and you’ll need some form of protection. Select one of the ultra powerful biotics to provide a shield for you. The best choices are below. You’ll also need to select a leader for the secondary squad and someone to escort the remaining Normandy crew back to the Normandy.

(THESE COMPANIONS MUST BE LOYAL)
Biotic Specialist: Samara/Morinth or Jack
Fire Team Leader (Part 2): Garrus, Miranda, or Jacob
Escort: Mordin, Kasumi, Tali, or Jack

Stay in the biotic’s bubble will moving through the seeker swarms. You will still be able to attack enemies while inside and the biotic will stop allowing you to take cover. There will also be husks and abominations in this section. When you finish clearing enemies, tell the biotic to continue moving. Be sure to pick up ammo along the way. It’s easy to miss the clips laying around.

Now it’s time for the final sequence. If everyone is loyal or you’re playing on Insanity, pick two of the most reliable with you. Who you take with you has an effect on the chances of your entire crew's survival. Each character has a defensive rating. Grunt, Zaeed, and Garrus are all 3. Thane, Legion, Samara/Morinth, Jacob, and Miranda have a defensive rating of 1. Mordin, Kasumi, Tali, and Jack have a rating of zero. If you add a 1 to each rating if they're loyal, add up all of the ratings, and then divide by the total number of characters holding the line (in short, take an average), if the average rating is above 2.0, then all will survive. If it's below, then anyone that isn't loyal or weak defensively will die.

I took Miranda and Legion with me. That combination was extremely effective. Two things to be aware of though. Make sure that you have the geth sniper rifle researched for Legion. He will be devastatingly lethal with it. Always be aware of where Miranda is. She has a tendency to go Rambo and leave cover unnecessarily. See No One Left Behind for a further explanation. There is a way to keep everyone alive even if someone isn’t loyal.

This fight will be similar to the sprung trap at the end of the mission on the collector ship. There will be three to four collectors attacking at a time and they will arrive on the floating platforms. After five or six platforms, the one with the main control panel will arrive. This one will have abominations and scions on it, but save your heavy weapons. You will need them later.

Once your final objective is revealed, it’s clear what to do. Destroy the four red tanks while fending off the collectors. You’ll most likely be taking them out one at a time, but with the M-97a Viper sniper rifle, you can take out two at a time if you’re quick enough. Once all four are gone and your objective is down, you’ll have one last decision to make courtesy of the Illusive Man. Now comes the fun part. Remember when I said to save your heavy weapons? Now is a good time to use them. Aim for the eyes. When you see a red build up around the mouth, get into cover…immediately. At the same time, you’ll have collectors attacking you. There are multiple weak spots to aim for. Anywhere you see glowing red, aim there. Once you bring down the life meter in the bottom right corner, enjoy the closing cutscenes.