The Mass Effect games have more than a few mighty villains for the heroic Commander Shepard to face in interstellar combat. In the original game, the robotic Geth and their leader, Saren, are the main threat, along with the powerful Reaper Sovereign. Then, in Mass Effect 2, the insidious Collectors are the main villains, and in the third title, Shepard must face the entire Reaper fleet.
By now, it’s do or die, and Commander Shepard tours the entire galaxy to gather war assets big and small to face this threat with a united galaxy. Everyone is contributing to the war effort, and while everything counts, some war assets are distinctly more impactful than others. Which war assets may change the tide, and which ones are rather minor?
10 MAJOR WAR ASSET: The Normandy SR-2
The Normandy SR-2 is the personal ship of Commander Shepard, and no other vessel can do what the Normandy can. This frigate is based off of both human and Turian enginering, and it also features a massive drive core and advanced weapons, such as Thanix cannons.
Most significant of all is the Normandy’s stealth drive, allowing this vessel to raid enemy territory, perform covert troop insertion missions, spy on enemy formations and far more. Combine that with its speed, and the Normandy is practically untouchable.
9 MINOR WAR ASSET: Diana Allers And Khalisah Al-Jilani
The media plays a huge role in any conflict, to help boost morale on the home front and harden everyone’s resolve against the enemy (or just spread propaganda around). The Reapers don’t watch the news, but everyone else does, and reporters such as Diana Allers and Khalisah Bint-Sinan Al-Jilani always have a hot new headline ready.
Both of these reporters may be convinced to redouble their efforts and rally even more people to the anti-Reaper coalition, though Shepard will need strong words to persuade Khalisah to do this. At first, she has a fairly hostile attitude toward Shepard and chases after sensationalist headlines. But she can do better, and if Shepard steps in, she will.
8 MAJOR WAR ASSET: United Krogan Clans
Everyone fears the aggressive Krogan people, and up until now, the Krogan race was highly fractured. These people were divided into feuding clans or started work as independent mercenaries, but Urdnot Wrex is ready to change that.
The time is ripe to unite the Krogan and give themselves a new future, and with the genophage cure and Bakara’s influence backing him up, Wrex can rally the feuding clans and bring the full fury of the Krogan race to bear on the Reapers’ armies. And that is saying a lot.
7 MINOR WAR ASSET: Dextro Rations
This is a rather minor war asset, and it only applies to the Turian people. But even if it’s a tiny blip on the radar, this war asset proves that many different factors go into fighting a war, not just fancy rifles and large numbers of soldiers. Everyone needs to eat.
Like the Quarian people, the Turians have dextro-amino DNA, and they can only eat certain kinds of foods. If Commander Shepard secures this particular war asset, then Turian squads out in the field can eat a little better, and experience a morale boost as they fight the Reapers on a full stomach.
6 MAJOR WAR ASSET: The Alliance Engineering Corps
The Alliance Engineering Corps, or the AEC, is made up of countless talented engineers and technicians who can build their way out of any problem. These professionals can construct cities or military bases just about anywhere, and reshape entire mountains or asteroids to fit the needs of their clients.
These engineers are also ready for help with the massive Crucible project, and these human tinkerers are all eager to get revenge for the fall of Earth to the Reapers. Anyone who can hold a wrench or draw blueprints is giving it his or her all.
5 MINOR WAR ASSET: Aralakh Company
Urdnot Grunt is a tank-born super soldier, and he was put in charge of the elite Aralakh Company by the year 2186. Grunt has proven his worth to his fellow Krogan, and he led Aralakh Company on a mission to find the husk Rachni queen and destroy it, if need be.
Aralakh Company is symbolically made up of Krogan from many different clans, showing that the Krogan people are stronger when united with a common goal in mind. This squad can’t win a war by itself, but these Krogan can help turn the tide of a smaller engagement and take on the toughest of foes, and win.
4 MAJOR WAR ASSET: Turian Sixth Fleet
The Turians are the peacekeepers of the galaxy, and they boast the most advanced spaceship fleet in known space. This includes the mighty Sixth Fleet, which contains an impressive number of dreadnought-class vessels.
In past decades, this fleet patrolled the galaxy to keep the peace, but now, the Sixth is ready to charge headlong into the Reapers and destroy them, and the fleet’s combined firepower is astonishing. Any space battle involving the Sixth is as good as won.
3 MINOR WAR ASSET: Dr. Gavin Archer
Dr. Gavin Archer boldly pushed the boundaries of VI and AI research for years, and now that the Reaper invasion has begun, Dr. Archer’s borderline illegal research has earned him a spot in the Crucible project, rather than a jail cell.
Dr. Archer can only do so much, but his insights into VI and AI are practically unique, and this may help the Alliance and other alien governments form a stronger bond with the Geth people after the battle for Rannoch. AI’s are here to stay; it’s time to understand them and make friends with them.
2 MAJOR WAR ASSET: Salarian First Fleet
The Salarian people are better known for being inquisitive scientists and researchers than fighters, but the Salarian Union is always ready for a fight, and that includes the Union’s remarkable fleets. Salarian ships don’t hit as hard as Turian vessels do, but they all have ultra-advanced tech under the hood.
In fact, the Salarian First Fleet’s vessels are all equipped with stealth drives based off of the Normandy’s, creating the first-ever stealth dreadnoughts. Eventually, the Reapers will think up a countermeasure, but until then, the Salarian First Fleet boasts a unique, and highly impactful, tactical edge.
1 MINOR WAR ASSET: Vorcha Labor Team
The Vorcha people are best known for being opportunistic scavengers and mercenaries, but a few of them have been taught how to work as professional manual laborers. After all, the Vorcha are also known for their rapid acclimation to just about any hazard, and this allows them to survive in harsh working conditions.
So, these Vorcha laborers (who are obedient and disciplined by Vorcha standards) are ready to help repair engines, infrastructure and more, relying on their adaptable bodies to survive radiation exposure and other hazards. They hardly even need OSHA at all.
