Thanks to their incredible durability and physical might, Reapers are the deadliest beings in the Mass Effect universe. Yet, their greatest asset isn’t their giant lasers or impenetrable armor; it’s their indoctrination ability. As long as the large machines or one of their artifacts are close to a target, they can worm their way into victims’ minds and gain control. During a cycle of extermination, having some brainwashed troops makes the Reaper’s job much easier as it causes in-fighting between each species.
Throughout the Mass Effect series, many characters have fallen under the synthetic’s spell. Some have been turned into mindless Husks, whereas others have been able to retain their personality but not control their actions. Here is everyone who has been indoctrinated.
Note: Some characters are believed to be indoctrinated by the Reapers, but 0nly in speculation. This list includes only those that are confirmed by canon.
15 Desolas Arterius - ME: Evolution
Long before his brother, Saren, attacks the Citadel, Desolas Arterius gets hold of a mystical artifact in Mass Effect: Evolution. Reapers aren’t a well-known entity at the time, but it becomes clear that it’s their technology once it starts turning people into Husks.
While not explicitly stated, it seems obvious that Desolas is indoctrinated shortly after uncovering the item. As a result, he begins to turn his followers into Reaper slaves too.
14 Ben Hislop - ME: Evolution
Ben Hislop also appears in Mass Effect: Evolution on the side of humans. However, he doesn’t keep his humanity for long, because after he touches a strange Reaper artifact, he transforms into a Husk.
Initially, he’s just like a typical mindless drone. Over time, though, he starts to gain some of his own thoughts back. Yet, he never regains full control over his actions.
13 The Illusive Man - ME: Evolution, ME 2, ME 3, and More
Throughout most of the series, The Illusive Man is one of the few attempting to stop the Reaper threat. His plan is to use his near-unlimited resources to control the all-powerful machines. However, all his research into Reaper technology eventually comes back to haunt him.
The synthetics manage to stick their hooks into the leader of Cerberus and have him do their bidding. He becomes one of their most valuable agents as he makes Shepard’s job of stopping them much harder. Plus, the indoctrination puts him among the evilest characters in the series
12 Saren Arterius - ME: Evolution, ME: Revelation, and ME 1
If you consume all of the Mass Effect media in release order, Saren is among the first indoctrinated individuals you meet. He and his Geth army are all under Sovereign’s control throughout the first game.
The Turian knows about the brainwashing and tries his best to avoid it, but even he’s not strong enough. Instead, he tries to help the Reapers get back from Dark Space to wipe out civilization once again.
11 Edan Had’dah And Dr. Shu Qian - ME: Revelation
During Mass Effect: Revelation, a Batarian entrepreneur named Edan Had’dah finds a strange piece of technology that he wishes to learn more about. So, he gets helps from expert scientist Dr. Shu Qian to unlock the artifact’s secrets.
However, the ‘artifact’ turns out to be Sovereign itself, which brainwashes both people researching him. Not long after, Saren comes along and takes the Reaper for himself.
10 Kai Leng - ME: Foundation, ME: Retribution, ME: Deception, and ME 3
For those who don’t read the comics, Kai Leng’s introduction in Mass Effect 3 is a little abrupt. He seems to come from nowhere and instantly proves himself to be among the strongest people in the galaxy. Those who do read the comics will know a bit more about him.
What makes him even more dangerous, though, is the fact that he’s under Reaper control. He was likely indoctrinated once his organization, Cerberus, started to research the Old Machine’s tech.
9 Matriarch Benezia - ME 1
The true power of the Reapers’ brainwashing is proven when you find out that even Matriarch Benezia is under their spell. She is among the most respected and strongest Asari in the universe.
Her transformation into a puppet proves how difficult it is to avoid being controlled by the machines. They stuck their hooks into her when she tried to be a positive influence on Saren. And, she ends up serving as his loyal second-in-command.
8 Shiala - ME 1, ME 2, and ME 3
Matriarch Benezia doesn’t join Saren’s side alone; a team of Asari commandos follows her. One of them is named Shiala, and Saren gives her to the Thorian to gain the Cipher.
Shepard meets the Asari later after fighting a bunch of her clones. At this point, she’s free of Sovereign’s indoctrination and can help the protagonist on their journey. Whether she remains alive to feature in the next two games depends on Shepard.
7 Menos Avot - ME 1
Along with cloning Krogan, the purpose of Saren’s facility on Virmire is to research the effects of indoctrination. The test subjects they use are captured members of Captain Kirrahe’s recon team.
During the mission, you meet a few of them, but most are simply enemies that aren’t worth mentioning. There’s one, however, named Menos Avot with who you engage in conversation. He’s not a mindless drone, yet he seems very shifty. It isn’t until the interaction with Shepard is over that his indoctrination becomes obvious.
6 Rana Thanoptis - ME 1 And ME 2
Another character that’s located on Virmire is Rana Thanoptis, who later works for Warlord Okeer in ME 2. In both interactions with the character, she comes off as witty and slightly naive. She certainly doesn’t seem to be brainwashed when Shepard meets her.
In the third game, though, an Alliance News Network report reveals that she murders several Asari military officials while displaying signs of indoctrination.
5 Collector General - ME: Ascension, ME: Redemption, and ME 2
In Mass Effect 2, the Reapers are still in Dark Space, far away from the civilization they want to exterminate. Yet, one of the machines, Harbinger, is still a threat to humanity as it uses the Collectors to harvest people.
Its control over the bug-like creatures comes from the brainwashing of the Collector General. The Reaper has direct influence over the General and, as a result, his troops.
4 Paul Grayson - ME: Ascension, ME: Retribution, and ME: Deception
There are some things in the Mass Effect universe that you only learn from reading the books. For instance, Paul Grayson’s harrowing story doesn’t make it into the games. He begins as a Cerberus operative, but the organization’s use of his daughter sours the relationship.
However, much later, he is forcibly brought back to the company and implanted with Reaper tech as part of their experiments. The man tries to resist, but the synthetics eventually gain full control over his mind and body.
3 Dr. Chandana - ME 2
Little is known about Dr. Chandana other than that he was a member of the Cerberus research team investigating a derelict Reaper. A series of work logs left behind by the team show that Chandana was their leader.
They also reveal that the Doctor became indoctrinated due to time spent around the remains of the synthetic. Those videos are the only time Chandana is mentioned in the series.
2 Dr. Amanda Kenson - ME 2
Amanda Kenson features as the main antagonist in one of Mass Effect’s better DLCs, Arrival. She and her team’s initial intentions are to stop an imminent Reaper invasion through the Alpha Relay. They figured out the impending doom by studying an artifact known as Object Rho.
The Reaper item, however, also leads to Kenson and her team all being indoctrinated. The Doctor then serves her masters by trying to stop Shepard from halting their invasion.
1 Zymandis - ME 3
A sidequest in Mass Effect 3 sees Shepard (and possibly Kasumi) help Jondum Bau on an investigation. The Salarian Spectre is trying to figure out which member of the Hanar diplomatic staff is indoctrinated.
The Reaper servant turns out to be Zymandis, who was brainwashed years earlier while raiding a Batarian science lab. During the quest, he tries to damage his homeworld’s planetary defense system with a virus, seemingly to help his masters invade.
NEXT: Mass Effect: 10 Things Worse Than The Reapers
