Mass Effect 2 : LP Complete, Releasing Control.

[Elhoim]

Kind of disappointed, though (not in the LP, great work). Even though Extreme whacked the entire Council, the outcome here is basically the same if he hadn't (I played through as a Paragon). But I guess some reason was needed to make him part of Cerberus' program. Not much of a consequence other than in altering the dialogue, but I'm curious to see what happens when he finally stops by the Citadel to say "hello".

Not much, I assume. Just some different dialogues where you are blamed for killing the council.

 

[Jaedar]

Kind of disappointed, though (not in the LP, great work). Even though Extreme whacked the entire Council, the outcome here is basically the same if he hadn't (I played through as a Paragon). But I guess some reason was needed to make him part of Cerberus' program. Not much of a consequence other than in altering the dialogue, but I'm curious to see what happens when he finally stops by the Citadel to say "hello".

Not much, I assume. Just some different dialogues where you are blamed for killing the council.

Spoiler

if you saved the council they dismiss the reapers first hand and restore your spectre status(no effect whatsoever). If you killed them, you don't even get to talk to the new council

 

[RK47]

Time for an update. While listening to Mass Effect OST.

: I can't have anyone disobeying my commands when we get there.

: I know who to report to. As long as you don't do anything to betray Cerberus. I'll follow your orders.

: What's the matter, Lawson? Worried you're not his favorite anymore?

: I've proven my value to the Illusive Man. Let's hope you are able to do the same.

: Are you naturally this bitchy, or is it just me?

: I have utmost respect for your abilities, Shepard. It's your motivations that concerns me. I believe in what Cerberus stands for. Only time will tell if you prove to be an asset or liability to our cause.

OK, let's move on. Wait. WTF IS THIS?

A mission complete screen? In RPG? I'm confused as fuck when I saw it. Then I read up more and was shocked to realize all XP gains are fixed upon side quest completions or major missions. You gain ZERO exp from combat and hackings. This would be really great if I was allowed a non violent solution like Bloodlines. Too bad 80% of the game is combat.

 

[catfood]

Hmm, I guess this quiz is a "hidden" way to see if the choices you made in the past are the correct. Already done in KOTOR2.

That would have made a nice EXTREME copy protection quiz, if you didn't answer the questions correctly Miranda would shoot you in the head like "thou art not truly the Sheppard".

 

[Elhoim]

Kind of disappointed, though (not in the LP, great work). Even though Extreme whacked the entire Council, the outcome here is basically the same if he hadn't (I played through as a Paragon). But I guess some reason was needed to make him part of Cerberus' program. Not much of a consequence other than in altering the dialogue, but I'm curious to see what happens when he finally stops by the Citadel to say "hello".

Not much, I assume. Just some different dialogues where you are blamed for killing the council.

Spoiler

if you saved the council they dismiss the reapers first hand and restore your spectre status(no effect whatsoever). If you killed them, you don't even get to talk to the new council

Spoiler

And if you kill them, you talk with Anderson (if you chose him as the new leader) and he restores your spectre status. He knows that the reapers are still out there, but can't do anything to convince the other races about it. Same shit, different flavor.

 

[RK47]

Sorry for the short update. I got stuff to do. I'll try to keep it regular but it's hard.

: Are you sure you'll be comfortable following my orders?

: We didn't bring you back from the dead just to second-guess you, Commander. If the Illusive Man says you're in charge, you're in charge.

Alright then.

: We're going to find out who did this and take them down. Nothing gets in our way. Am I clear?

: Perfectly, Commander.

Freedom's Progress. What a shitty name for a colony.

Shepard Sense...tingling.

The colony was devoid of human life. We hacked a few consoles for credits but found no lead so far until we ran into a couple of hostile mechs. Jacob commented that these mechs should not be hostile to humans. Someone had reprogrammed it. A tech expert. Like a Quarian.

Meet the quarians. Soviets in space. It's interesting why the writer chose a Russian accent to represent quarians. They're a nomad race, their home world was taken over by their robotic creations, the geth. Now they're living in huge fleets called flotillas, always looking to salvage techs to keep the fleet in shape. Oh they also have to wear environmental suits to prevent themselves from getting sick, they have weak immune systems since they lived in flotilla all their lives.

A hooded figure emerged with a familiar voice. Tali'zorah Nor Rayya! I fucking typed that out of memory. That's how memorable her name is.

: I'm not taking any chances with Cerberus operatives!

Fuck. Good job on wearing uniforms Miranda & Jacob. What kind of secret organizations run around in uniform, parading their fucking logo around like a major corporation?

: Put those weapons down!

Yeah, she's right to be scared.

Coz Shep's always has a bad ass line for every situation.

: Tali'zorah, you served on my ship. You know what I do to people who threaten me.

: Prazza! Tell your team to put their weapons away!

: Banal. Shit. Boring.

: I know Cerberus has a bad past, but they're the only group investigating these missing colonies. The Council turned its back on humanity, I haven't

Plot Criticism: Yes, despite putting humanity as the major influence on the Council they still didn't give a shit when whole colonies gone missing in outer reaches of space.

: Banal. Shit. Boring.

: I'm not trusting anyone, Prazza. But we're going to need help searching the area. One of our people was here on Pilgrimage. His name was Veetor. We came to find him.

Lore: Pilgrimage is a rite of passage for young quarians to leave their flotilla and get something valuable for their fleet. Return with some useful stuff, and they pass the Pilgrimage. Tali underwent one in Mass Effect 1 by getting useful data on geth culture after helping Shepard tear apart 3 geth moon bases.

: Everyone else is dead. What makes you think Veetor survived?

: Banal. Shit. Boring.

: You saw him? Then why isn't he with you already?

: Veetor was injured, and he was always, ah, nervous.

: Banal. Shit. Boring.

: When he saw us landing, he hid in warehouse on the far side of town. We suspect he also programmed the mechs to attack anything that moved.

: You should head back to your ship. We'll let you know when we find Veetor.

: Banal. Shit. Boring.

: Neither am I, Prazza. I don't want to fight you, Shepard. but I can't just let Cerberus handle this. Besides, we need to work together. Head for the warehouse through the center of the colony. We'll circle around the far side and draw off some drones to clear your path.

We start to get hit by heavy weapons along the way. Fucking rocket drones nearly killed me a couple of times before I decided to just throw magic missiles from cover. It's a good thing their shields dropped quickly from Overload.

Looks like the quarians bit off more than they can chew.

One of them got stomped on. This looks big.

Meet the YMIR battle mech. The first boss packs a punch. Its left arm holds a rocket launcher while the right arm brandishes a machine gun capable of ripping shields off in short bursts. We're playing INSANITY remember?

YMIR has three layers of protection. Shields. Armor, and Health. This makes it fucking frustrating to take down for beginners since all you can do is Overload to chip away at his shield. Then you have to peel off its thick armor with Incinerate or Armor Piercing rounds. The worst squad to bring in this sort of fight is a Biotic since the Shield will prevent most powers from affecting it.

Anyway, the intro to this fight will show that rockets can blow up some crate covers, so it's best to find a solid wall to hide behind. Once that's done, just plink away at it. Tell your squad to do the same and you'll wear it down in no time. According to the game guide you can blow up individual arms to disable its weapon, but I never managed to do it in Insanity difficulty. There's just not much time to aim before it tears off my shield. Better to just Warp him behind cover.

We blew up the YMIR and went to find Veetor holed up in a surveillance room, hyperventilating.

: Veetor?

: Hey, I'm talking to you!

Time to wake Alice up. with a bang.

This is a new feature for ME2 that was promised in the first game. Sometimes you can interrupt conversation with a Renegade or Paragon response. In this case Shepard just fired a warning shot to snap the babbling quarian out of it. The problem with this feature is, I really have no fucking idea what Shepard will do. Except left click triggers Renegade response, right click is Paragon. Dumbed down or Cinematic? You decide!

: You're..not one of them. You're human. They...they didn't find you?

: Who didn't find us?

: The monsters. The swarms. They took everyone.

: Why didn't the colonists fight back, Veetor? What happened?

: Looks like security footage. He must've pieced it together manually.

: What the hell is that?

: (Intelligence) Is that some kind of alien?

No shit, Sherlock.

: They're species from somewhere beyond Omega 4 relay. Only a few people have seen one in person.

Jacob, I thought you just muttered 'wth is that?' how the fuck are you so well-informed?

: The Collectors have advanced technology.They could have a weapon that disables an entire settlement at once.

: The seeker swarms. No one can hide.The seekers find you. Freeze you. Then the monsters take you away.

: Why didn't they take you?

: Maybe his enviro-suit kept him from showing up on their sensors.

: Or maybe they were using technology specifically designed to detect humans. Only human colonies have been hit.

: What happened next, Veetor?

: I think that's probably all we're getting out of him, Commander.

: We finally find a witness, and he's so off his nut he can't even tell us what he saw.

: I studied them. The monsters. The swarms. I recorded them with my omni tool. Lots of reading. Electro-magnetic. Dark energy.

: We need to get this data to the Illusive Man. Grab the quarian and call the shuttle to come pick us up.

: What? Veetor is injured! He needs treatment, not an interrogation!

C'mon Tali.

: You don't have to take Veetor and go. We could work together. Just like old times.

: I'm still trying to accept that you're even alive. And you're with Cerberus. I've got responsibilities now. I've got a mission of my own. I can't walk away from that. Not even for you.

: The people at Cerberus won't hurt him, Tali. You have my word. But we need that info, and it's clear the quarians don't want to share.

: Damn it, Shepard! I trusted you!

: We need a pickup. Have a med bay standing by.

: What? No! I don't understand!

: Good luck, Shepard. I hope what you get from Veetor is worth it.

That's it for today. Next update: Omega!

 

[Brother None]

wtf? You couldn't even punch out Tali?

Also the "quest complete!" screen is stupid.

 

[lightbane]

Kind of disappointed, though (not in the LP, great work). Even though Extreme whacked the entire Council, the outcome here is basically the same if he hadn't (I played through as a Paragon). But I guess some reason was needed to make him part of Cerberus' program. Not much of a consequence other than in altering the dialogue, but I'm curious to see what happens when he finally stops by the Citadel to say "hello".

Not much, I assume. Just some different dialogues where you are blamed for killing the council.

Spoiler

if you saved the council they dismiss the reapers first hand and restore your spectre status(no effect whatsoever). If you killed them, you don't even get to talk to the new council

I hope you don't have to see that mission complete screen every time you complete a quest/sidequest. Also:

Spoiler

So the Council, supposing you were generous and allowed them to live, despite being witnesses (and victims) of a direct attack from a reaper they don't believe you when you comment about the reapers? WTF? That's true biowhare retardation

 

[RK47]

I hope you don't have to see that mission complete screen every time you complete a quest/sidequest

Can't be done.

 

[Cassidy]

I have to thank you for both this LP and the previous one. They eliminated all my doubts about both games. Not worth even the bandwidth to warez them.

 

[random_encounter]

I hope you don't have to see that mission complete screen every time you complete a quest/sidequest. Also:

Spoiler

So the Council, supposing you were generous and allowed them to live, despite being witnesses (and victims) of a direct attack from a reaper they don't believe you when you comment about the reapers? WTF? That's true biowhare retardation

The mission complete screen occurs every time you finish off a major quest or side quest, likely because of how it handles denouements now.

And about your spoiler:

Spoiler

They downplay the Reaper as a "Geth invention", something they cooked up on their own because we don't know how far along they've actually come. It plays off of the angle that Shepard was the only one to have experienced the "visions" of Sovereign talking to anyone and that he was under the same kind of suggestion that Saren used to dominate the geth.

It's thin ice considering that a trail of Prothean artifacts were what led to Sovereign's defeat via the gate from Ilos to the Citadel. That alone should have proven that the "geth excuse" was already pretty weak, but I guess they needed some reason to sever Shepard's relationship with Citadel space without making it too complicated. So they made it seem geth were easier to believe in than Cthulhu in space.

 

[Twinkle]

Save your time and go for XXXtremely emo bad ending, bro. BTW, cool LP.

 

[RK47]

But I wanna carry him over to ME 3. Shepard will finish the job!

 

[kris]

But I wanna carry him over to ME 3. Shepard will finish the job!

Is it only me or do your Shepard looka bit different from ME1? My converted one looked very similar, but your bad-ass one looks younger and like he has a broader face.

There are some pretty funny "left-click" actions in the game. The game would probably been better if every scene was resolved with a left or right click action.

 

[Jaedar]

But I wanna carry him over to ME 3. Shepard will finish the job!

You should manipulate events so only your No.1 favorite character and Shephard survives.

 

[RK47]

A little squad review to act as filler. Sorry for being slow on updates. Been busy at work and planning to visit family overseas. I think I might be able to update my LP if my brother has photoshop on his comp, but we'll see.

Jacob
Cerberus Operative
Weapon Training: Pistol , Shotgun
Powers: Pull , Incendiary Ammo , Barrier
Comments:
As a character, he's a tougher Kaidan. He's got the 'honest soldier' persona covered and romance option for female Shep.

Combat performance is poor however, his only saving grace is Incendiary Ammo which burns living enemies and armor. Boost this up to Rank 4 to spread the buff to the whole squad. Weapon selection is above average, but what we really need in Insanity is special abilities. At least his Incendiary Ammo boosts 40% dmg squad-wide damage.

There's better option elsewhere. Pull biotic only works on non-shielded and non-armored so its usage is limited. Verdict: Skip.


Miranda
Cerberus Officer
Weapons Training: Pistol, SMG
Powers: Warp, Overload, Slam
Comments:
This is a romance option for Shepard. Less bossy than Bastila with killer bod (explained later) Too bad she looks like Michael Jackson on some angle. Covers the 'strong, independent woman' persona.

Combat performance is excellent. Warp and Overload is staple armor and shield destroyer. Her passive ability also boosts the squad's overall damage. SMG is average all rounder and pistol is servicable at long range. Verdict: Excellent.

 

[Brother None]

Sorry for being slow on updates. Been busy at work and planning to visit family overseas.

It is what it is.

So Miranda's useful and Jacob is not? For some reason I expected it to be the other way around.

Also, even though I rag on BioWare's female design and writing (and it is a joke in both Mass Effect and DA:O, haven't played ME2), I gotta say they might deserve less flak in it in this game. Miranda's body is stupid and she's not attractive especially because she's trying too hard, but just modeling her face after an existing attractive women was the right call, considering their history in making interesting female faces.

 

[MetalCraze]

A real RPG. All 4 lead to the same outcome but you can click on them! C&C

And of course none of the choices made in the previous game matter because rocks fall - everybody dies. But that's real C&C and true RPG for ya

 

[Elhoim]

A real RPG. All 4 lead to the same outcome but you can click on them! C&C

And of course none of the choices made in the previous game matter because rocks fall - everybody dies. But that's real C&C and true RPG for ya

It's even more funny since you can select the optional renegade response (Now you can't question him.) and then you can select the optional paragon response (That your idea of due process?). Schizophrenic Shepard FTW!

 

[Volourn]

Are you sure those are paragon/renegade options. Soemtimes options are just extra questions/thoguhts and don't deal with para/rene at all.

 

[PlanHex]

Usually those options are less extreme/goody-two-shoes

 

[Elhoim]

Are you sure those are paragon/renegade options. Soemtimes options are just extra questions/thoguhts and don't deal with para/rene at all.

Somewhat sure. I'm pretty sure that they are many times contradictory statements. For example, when you find Veetor in the flotilla and you handed him over to Cerberus. He says that they tortured him, so you have two options there, one saying something along the lines of "I shouldn't have trusted them!" and the other something like "I'm pretty sure they didn't do that". But you can choose one, and then chose the other. Sounds kinda schizophrenic, even if they don't give out paragon and renegade points. I remember that in ME when these "questions" (they are more like character statements) appear, and you chose one, the other disappeared.

 

[RK47]

Sorry for being slow on updates. Been busy at work and planning to visit family overseas.

It is what it is.

So Miranda's useful and Jacob is not? For some reason I expected it to be the other way around.

Also, even though I rag on BioWare's female design and writing (and it is a joke in both Mass Effect and DA:O, haven't played ME2), I gotta say they might deserve less flak in it in this game. Miranda's body is stupid and she's not attractive especially because she's trying too hard, but just modeling her face after an existing attractive women was the right call, considering their history in making interesting female faces.

Well, the defensive layers you have to punch through is changed in the sequel. Now the enemies have: Barrier > Shield > Armour > Health

Not all of them has access to Barrier / Shield. But most of them have Armour & Health.
Unlike ME 1 where you can lift and push people around at will, Lift Biotics doesn't work at all against Shielded and Armoured targets, making its utility very limited.

Also, you can no longer buy ammo mods, these are ability exclusives to certain classes. Hence, biotic classes are forced to rely more on their skills and less on gunplay.

I'm just saying Jacob pales in comparison with other classes whose abilities are more flexible and spammable. I'll elaborate more later when I gain access to more people.

Oh, Sentinel Shepard kicks ass.

 

[RK47]

Mission: Impossible

: Unfortunately the quarian you brought back didn't give us any useful info. He's too far gone. He'll be returned to the Migrant Fleet. But more importantly, you confirmed the Collectors are behind the abductions.

: Tell me what you know about these Collectors.

Plot Criticism: Uh, they're just making up new evil race(tm) out of thin air. There was no mention of these guys in Mass Effect, and suddenly they start abducting colonies wholesale? There's no mystery to Mass Effect 2 villains anyway. Prepare to be disappointed. In Mass Effect 1, Saren served as a figurehead. A face to hate. In this one, it's just a collective race, not enough engagement on a personal level.

: They periodically travel to the Terminus Systems, looking to gather seemingly unimportant items or specimens. Usually in exchange for their technology.

Eh? They trade?

: When their transactions are complete, they disappear as quickly as they arrived, back beyond the unmapped Omega 4 relay. Until now, we've had no evidence of direct aggression by the Collectors.

: Why is the Omega 4 relay unmapped? What do we know about it?

: Only that no ship passing through it has ever returned.

: Any ideas on why they've shifted their focus on humans?

: If they're agents for the Reapers, it could be any number of reasons. Obviously, humanity play a huge role in Sovereign's destruction. That might have been enough to draw their attention. What really concerns me is why they bother abducting the colonists. Once the humans are paralyzed, why not just kill them?

: You're holding something back. How do you know the Reapers are involved?

: The patterns are there, buried in the data. The Council and the Alliance want to believe the Reaper threat died with the Sovereign. You and I know better.

SIGH.

: I hate waiting, but I'll need a team. A good one.

: I've already compiled a list of soldiers, scientists and mercenaries. You'll get dossiers on the best of them. Finding them and convincing them to work with you could be challenging, but you're a natural leader. I'll continue to track the Collectors. When they make their next appearance, I'll notify you and your team. Be ready.

: Keep your list. I want people I trust -- the ones who helped me stop Saren and the Geth.

: (Jesus, my fucking eyes) That was two years ago, Commander. Most of them have moved on... or their allegiance have changed.

: Ashley Williams' still with the Alliance. Promoted, I believe. Her file is surprisingly well-classified.

: What about Tali? She already helped us on Freedom's Progress.

: That was unexpected. I need more intel before I'll commit to that.

: Where's Garrus Vakarian?

: The turian disappeared a few months after you were declared dead. Even we haven't been able to locate him.

: What about Liara T'soni?

: She's on Illium. My sources say she's working for the Shadow Broker. If so, she can't be trusted.

That's a huge leap. Shadow Broker's an info seller willing to work for any side. What could possibly that naive blue chick want to do with them?

: Okay, I get it. They're not available.

: You're a leader, Shepard. You'll get who you need.

: You worry about the Collectors. I'll make sure my team's ready.

: Good. Two things before you go: First, head over to Omega and find Mordin Solus. He's a brilliant salarian scientist. Our intel suggests he may know how to counteract the Collector's paralyzing seeker swarms.

: Sounds good. And what else?

: Someone you can trust.

Oh, as long he ain't a cripple and is a smart mouth...

FFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU---

: Look who's talking. I saw you get spaced.

: Got lucky, with a lot of strings attached. How'd you get here?

: It all fell apart without you, Commander. Everything you stirred up the Council just wanted it gone. Team was broken up, records sealed, and I was grounded. The Alliance took away the only thing that mattered to me. Hell yeah I joined Cerberus.

: You really trust the Illusive Man?

: And there's this.

Some things just never change.

Yeah, I'd name it Skyway if I could, but you know Bioware.

Time to hit the relay to Omega Systems.

 

[RK47]

Bow-Chika-Bow-Bow

The Commander is reunited with his ship. Both once broken, now remade.

: Acquiring Prof. Solus seems like the most logical place to start.

: Who are you?

: Shut that thing down. I don't want it on my ship.

: Have I offended?

: Your distrust is logical, Shepard. Unlike the irrational mistrust of most humans. However, I am no threat to you or anyone else. I observe and offer analysis and advice. Nothing more.

: Jacob and I should return to our posts. Come find us if you have any questions.

Hmmmm.

Dossiers

Sounds like a vigilante. Sniper ability should be useful in long range.

Not sure about combat capability as a medical expert, but he is essential to the anti-swarm research.

Uh. A Krogan scientist? Sounds hardcore. Let's hope I don't have to kill him like Wrex.

Ok. This guy's probably a biotic specialist. Doesn't sound too appealing. I'll prioritize Omega missions first since there are two recruits there. Before that, let's check my email.

Anderson. Hah. I'll drop over later after I'm done with Omega.