The Mass Effect games are filled with many weird and wonderful creatures, and Mass Effect: Andromeda is no exception. Whilst the developers did not get to include as many new races as they would have liked, they did introduce us to the Angara and the Kett. The Kett are the first race encountered in the game, and they are immediately hostile, killing and injuring several members of the Andromeda Initiative.
Despite their presence all over the Heleus Cluster, it emerges that they are not native to the region. Just like the Milky Way arks, they have travelled many lightyears to be there. Unlike the Arks, they come as conquerors and not explorers. The further the player progresses in the game, the more they learn about the Kett. Here are some things you might have missed.
10 Kett Architecture Includes Neobrutalism And Contemporary
In earlier designs, Kett structures had a more ornate appearance which was almost treelike. The designers rejected this because it wasn’t imposing enough for the game’s main villains. Instead, they switched to something more akin to neobrutalism mixed with contemporary stylings – two contrasting architectural styles.
Neobrutalism was popular in the UK in the 1950s and 1960s and incorporates minimalism, absence of decoration, and monochrome colours. Contemporary architecture is a very diverse style and, unlike neobrutalism, there is an emphasis on how a building looks. The mix of the two creates a unique style for the Kett.
9 The Kett Are Structured Similarly To The Roman Empire
The Kett’s government consists of a Senate, and the most powerful Kett are those who belong to the oldest genetic lines. This is similar to the Roman Empire where the Senate was dominated by men from the oldest families known as the patricians.
Also like the Roman Empire, the Senate would give command of an army to a general who would have a large degree of autonomy away from the centre of the empire. Mass Effect: Andromeda takes place far away from the Kett home planet of Sarhesen, and so, the Archon is in charge.
8 Bioware Considered Having The Kett Naked For The Whole Game
In the preliminary design of the new species for Mass Effect: Andromeda, designers discussed several ways in which to differentiate the Kett and Angara from the existing aliens. Since virtually every alien species featured so far has appeared kitted out in armour, it was suggested that perhaps one way to distinguish the Kett was a differing attitude to clothing.
Sketches (that have never been released) were created of what this might look like, but the idea was ultimately abandoned. The developers felt that naked bipedal aliens were just too different, and it would be a distraction during in-game conversations.
7 The Kett Are A Bit Like The Reapers
The Reapers strove to assimilate all organic life in order to better preserve it. The Kett do something similar, although with the aim of conquest rather than preservation. The process is called exaltation and is the means by which Kett reproduce.
Those that undergo exaltation are subjected to painful torture that strips away their previous allegiance and leaves them in a state of compliant peace. Although they may remember their previous life, they do not care about it. They are then injected with Kett DNA which converts them physically. Genetically, they retain only the smallest traces of their previous genome.
6 Kett Religion And Military Are Linked
The Kett don’t have a religion featuring gods or similar entities, but they do regard exaltation as a religious experience. The process is inefficient, but its religious significance is why the Kett continue to reproduce in this way, rather than researching cloning technology. Angara that go through exaltation are given the quasi-religious title of “Chosen”.
Their military ranks continue the religious titles with Anointed, Destined, and Ascendant. The exaltation process informs their military tactics, as well. Since enemy combatants can be converted into Kett and retain no ties to their previous species, capture is more important than killing.
5 They Have A Lot Of Bones
If there is one thing that is noticeable about the Kett, it’s all the bones sticking out everywhere. In fact, Kett have 332 bones in total – many more than an adult human’s 206. These bones are incredibly hard and are estimated to be as strong as a Krogan’s head plate.
As well as providing defence against impacts, their exoskeleton allows them to survive in the harshest environments. The bones contain fluid-filled sacks that can release oxygen into the blood, or change pressure in reaction to external changes. This means that Kett can even survive for a time in the vacuum of space.
4 There Are Apparently Male And Female Kett, But It’s Hard To Tell
Several Kett, notably Primus, are referred to as female in Mass Effect: Andromeda, but there is very little to distinguish them from the male of the species. Externally, there are no differences with the same exoskeletal structures on their bodies. The Kett that are identified as female use the same character models as the male.
Kett also don’t reproduce sexually, and so they have no sexual organs to define gender. The female Kett have female voice actors and, therefore, have slightly higher voices. But it’s never explained in-universe what makes them biologically female (if anything). It’s possible that it is based on their gender before exaltation.
3 Despite Exaltation, The Kett Have A Number Of Vassal Races
You would think that Kett wouldn’t bother using any species for anything other than exaltation, but they do have a large number of species that serve them in some way across various planets. The ones identified in Mass Effect: Andromeda are the Eealen, the Sirinde, and the Thusali.
It’s unknown why the Thusali have not been exalted, but the Sirinde poisoned themselves to prevent it. They now rely on Kett science for the survival of their species. The Eealen had been exalted in the past, but their numbers were reduced to such a level that it was no longer viable.
2 The Archon Has A Little In Common With His Dragon Age Namesake
The Archon is the leader of the Kett in the Heleus Cluster and the main antagonist of Mass Effect: Andromeda. Bioware has used the title before in its Dragon Age games. The Archon in Dragon Age is the leader of the Tevinter Imperium. Tevinter Archons are mages, just as the Kett Archon displays magic-like powers (possibly biotics).
Both the Kett and Tevinter also have Senates, although the Tevinter Archon has the power to overrule the Magisterium. Despite both the Kett and the Tevinter having similarities to the Roman Empire, Archon is actually an ancient Greek title.
1 Kett Ships Can Travel Over Long Distances, But Not Efficiently
It’s mentioned that, over short distances, Kett ship drives have similar performance to Milky Way ships, and they also use element zero for their cores. The Kett can travel longer distances, however, by using gravity to contract space in front of the ship and expand it behind, thereby allowing the ship to move long distances in a short time.
It is similar to how the Mass Relays of the Milky Way Galaxy work, although the Kett drives are not nearly as efficient. They, therefore, use their own versions of arks and stasis technology for very long journeys (such as their travel from their home planet to the Heleus Cluster).
NEXT: 10 Crazy Things You Didn’t Know Happened Between Mass Effect 3 And Andromeda
