Mass Effect 2

[Vampire_Hunter_Bob]

Yeah, my advice if it's your first time through is just to do the main missions, and maybe a few of the more fun side ones (Armstrong Nebula for massive Geth genocide). It's a more focused experience. And you can always do those side missions later. Just be sure to keep multiple saves.

That's a good point. I do enjoy the Geth slaughters. Question, are you able to continue the game once you finished or do you have to start a new one?

 

[Aazealh]

I love this game, only complaint are the side missions lacking so much.

Honestly, while the environments can be bland and not very varied, and while some missions are borefests, there are also some excellent ones. Most of the stuff involving Cerberus for example, which for info ties into the main plot of the second game. And the independent Geth missions are pretty challenging as well. In order to minimize the tedium, I would recommend you to avoid exploring the planets and go straight to the mission objectives (use the map to check where to go). You will miss some neat details if you do that of course, but if the assignments bore you in general it'll help.

Great list, Aaz. I plan on making a post similar to yours with my main Shepard when I get home tonight. However, I should note that mine is not NEARLY as complete yours.

Hahaha, you should see my equipment. =) Everyone's wearing Colossus X except for Wrex who has a Battlemaster X armor. I only use Savant X and Logic Arrest X as well. And all characters but one or two are full Spectre gear when it comes to weapons (only reason not all of them are maxed is because I'm lazy... I have had 9,999,999 credits and 999 omnigel since forever). That being said it's not hard to achieve at all when you complete every mission, and even less if you do a few runs on the same career.

My second Shepard is a soldier, specializing in Shock Trooper. I've missed this game.

You forgot to mention you've chosen the Barrier ability as a bonus from your previous run. Immunity + Barrier =

Question, are you able to continue the game once you finished or do you have to start a new one?

You have to start over. If you want to do additional assignments you should save before venturing on Ilos.

 

[Vampire_Hunter_Bob]

Honestly, while the environments can be bland and not very varied, and while some missions are borefests, there are also some excellent ones.

Oh I meant that they were just not fleshed out like the main story. I find the exploring part enjoyable. The biggest problem I have is that the enemies don't fight the same way they do in the main game, where the enemies seem more interested in seeking cover, the side quest enemies just seem to run at you.

You have to start over. If you want to do additional assignments you should save before venturing on Ilos.

Sounds good, thanks for the heads up.

 

[Dar_Klink]

I just got my friend to start playing Mass Effect yesterday, and when he got to the part where you first encounter enemies on Eden Prime

Spoiler

I noticed that the guy who rushes out and gets killed is named Jenkins

.

 

[Walter]

I just got my friend to start playing Mass Effect yesterday, and when he got to the part where you first encounter enemies on Eden Prime

Spoiler

I noticed that the guy who rushes out and gets killed is named Jenkins

.

L. Jenkins
(2155-2183)
"All right chums, I'm back! Let's do this!"​

 

[Aazealh]

I just got my friend to start playing Mass Effect yesterday, and when he got to the part where you first encounter enemies on Eden Prime

Spoiler

I noticed that the guy who rushes out and gets killed is named Jenkins

.

Richard L. Jenkins to be exact.

Anyway, you guys should post your character classes and stats! Even if they're incomplete or if you aren't quite there yet.

 

[Vampire_Hunter_Bob]

Anyway, you guys should post your character classes and stats! Even if they're incomplete or if you aren't quite there yet.

Sounds good! I was waiting to finish my first run, but I'll do this. Also I'm borrowing your format, Aazealh!

Male: Shepard
Background: Earth Born and Lone Surviver
Alignement: 75% Paragon with 0 gauges of Renegade filled.
Class: Soldier
Class specialization: Shock Trooper
Difficulty: Normal
Level: 34

Romance: I need no one.
Usual team mates: Wrex & Tali

31 sidequests done
I freed the Rachni queen
Got Wrex his armor and Wrex registered with the Space Libertarian Party after hearing what they had to say
Oh and Garrus just shot someone in the face.
I let the Capitan punch that one guy.
I also forgot to rescue that one guy and he died.

Talents:

Pistols:	Rank 00
Shotguns:	Rank 00
Assault Rifle:	Rank 12
Sniper Rifles:	Rank 00
Combat Armor:	Rank 08
First Aid:	Rank 06
Assault Training:	Rank 08
Fitness:	Rank 12
Shock Trooper:	Rank 12
Charm:	Rank 09
Intimidate:	Rank 07
Spectre Training:	Rank 10

By no means is this going to be what I'm taking over to ME2, just what I'm doing now.

 

[fuxberg]

Okay here's my chars:

Playtime: 54h
Male Shepard
Earthborn, Sole Survivor
Soldier, Shock Trooper
Difficulty: Hardcore
Level: 60
Alignment: Max Paragon, 75% Renegade
Romance: Ashley
Usual Teammates: Wrex, Liara
All Sidequests + DLC
Codex Completed

Freed Rachni Queen; Returned to Wrex family armor; Had Saren commit suicide;
Gave Tali info on Geth; Didn't kill Wrex; Left Kaidan to die with nuke;
Didn't give info on Cerberus to Shadow Broker; Charn lived but killed hostages; Anderson sneaks past C-Sec; Saved Council; Recommended Udina;

Talents:
Pistol - 6
Shotgun - Max
Assault Rifle - Max
Sniper Rifle - 3
Armor - Max
First Aid - 6
Assault Training - Max
Fitness - 4
Shock Trooper - Max
Charm/Intimidate - Max
Spectre Training - 8

It was my first Char.

 

[Aazealh]

You recommended Udina? But... Why?

 

[fuxberg]

He was most qualified atm.

 

[Walter]

My main character, and first time through:

Male Shepard
Lv: 45

Background: Colonist, Sole Survivor
Alignment: Paragon
Class: Vanguard
Specialization: Shock Trooper
Difficulty: Veteran
Romance: Liara
Normal team: Liara, Tali
-------------------------
Freed Rachni Queen.
Returned Wrex' family armor.
Happily left Kaidan to be reduced to atoms. Saved Wrex with my staggering charm.
Told Anderson to beat the shit out of Udina.
Sacrificed the Council.
Put Anderson in Council seat.
Convinced Saren to suicide (didn't really MEAN to though).
-------------------------
Time: 24:33

I plan to max this guy throughout the summer as a side project.


And while I'm in a screen-capping mood, I wanted to show off the custom, N7-themed GMail theme I made while wasting time at work today.

 

[Vampire_Hunter_Bob]

Beat Mass Effect. Fun game, it's not as long as Fallout 3 [maybe I just took longer], but I'm more satisfied with this game still. Ending was what I was looking for, I just wishing the last level was longer.

Last things I did.

Let the council die.
Lizard man off'd him self

Anyways I'm off.

 

[Walter]

Beat Mass Effect. Fun game, it's not as long as Fallout 3 [maybe I just took longer], but I'm more satisfied with this game still. Ending was what I was looking for, I just wishing the last level was longer.

Last things I did.

Let the council die.
Lizard man off'd him self

Anyways I'm off.

Wow, you really bumrushed the game! With dedication lke that you could make it to Lv 60. Get back on the horse!

 

[Oburi]

Beat Mass Effect. Fun game, it's not as long as Fallout 3 [maybe I just took longer], but I'm more satisfied with this game still. Ending was what I was looking for, I just wishing the last level was longer.

Last things I did.

Let the council die.
Lizard man off'd him self

Anyways I'm off.

Damn dude that was fast. How many hours did it take you? You must have more free time than i do.

 

[Vampire_Hunter_Bob]

Wow, you really bumrushed the game! With dedication lke that you could make it to Lv 60. Get back on the horse!

Damn dude that was fast. How many hours did it take you? You must have more free time than i do.

My time was 43 Hours and 06 minutes. I was sick for most of the time I was playing this game.

Edit: To be honest, I don't think this game is really that long, maybe 15-20 hours max if you skip the side quests. What took me so long was that I still went to do most of the side quests.

Anyways, some minor achievements that stand out [ignoring the achievements you get for just playing]:
Paragon - 75% of Total Possible Paragon Points
Geth Hunter - log 250 Synthetic Enemy Kills
Dog of War - Log 150 Organic Enemy Kills
Rich - Exceeed 1,000,000 Credits
Tactician - Complete Playthrough with Shield Damage Greater than Health Damage
Assault Rifle Expert - Log 150 Assault Rifle Kills

There's more I want to do, like add the other 150 weapon kills and get all the medals for using certain people more.

 

[seppuku]

Pistol + Marksman = awesome

 

[Oburi]

Pistol + Marksman = awesome

yup.

 

[Aazealh]

Edit: To be honest, I don't think this game is really that long, maybe 15-20 hours max if you skip the side quests. What took me so long was that I still went to do most of the side quests.

I finished the game in 4h59m in Insanity, and I didn't rush as much as I could have. Someone going for a speedrun could do 4 hours or less.

There's more I want to do, like add the other 150 weapon kills and get all the medals for using certain people more.

Good luck with that. Keep us posted.

Pistol + Marksman = awesome

Indeed!

By the way, you guys might want to voice your opinion here: http://meforums.bioware.com/viewtopic.html?forum=144&topic=685605

It's about whether or not to allow for an imported character to change his class in ME2.

And there's another thread asking about difficulty levels here: http://meforums.bioware.com/forums/viewtopic.html?topic=685330

 

[fuxberg]

I just want new DLC.
It's frustrating for I've got the game since it got out.

 

[Vampire_Hunter_Bob]

I'm doing another play through. This time I'm going in as a Space born, Vanguard, War Hero.

 

[Walter]

Finished 'Bringing Down The Sky' last night. I'd been too lazy to download/install it before now. Honestly, I thought that was one of the cooler side missions, and I hope it sets the tone for future DLC releases (or at least 1, damn it!). Seems to me it had more comedy in it, too. Oh yeah, and that final action sequence was one of the absolute best in the game thanks to the awesome level design (glad it wasn't another rehash... whew!).

In the end, I sacrificed the hostages without thinking about it, not even trying to get Renegade points -- it was just my natural reaction, because I couldn't let him escape. Then, Balak criticizes me for making him do it. It was one of the few times in video games where I actually felt regret for my actions. But ... I just couldn't let him escape After apprehending him, I turned him over to Alliance authorities, so he can die a slow death in captivity.

I'm doing another play through. This time I'm going in as a Space born, Vanguard, War Hero.

Good call, Vanguard is definitely my favorite class I've played with so far. You're weak as an eggshell in the beginning, but after some leveling you become a versatile and powerful GOD in battle.

 

[Aazealh]

Oh yeah, and that final action sequence was one of the absolute best in the game thanks to the awesome level design (glad it wasn't another rehash... whew!).

For the trivia, that level was supposed to be on Therum originally (the planet on which you rescue Liara). But due to time constraints (grrr), it was canned and they did the underground site instead. So naturally they reused the level design for the DLC!

In the end, I sacrificed the hostages without thinking about it, not even trying to get Renegade points -- it was just my natural reaction, because I couldn't let him escape. Then, Balak criticizes me for making him do it. It was one of the few times in video games where I actually felt regret for my actions. But ... I just couldn't let him escape After apprehending him, I turned him over to Alliance authorities, so he can die a slow death in captivity.

Hahaha, the first time through I went after him and killed him. On my final run though I let him escape and saved the hostages. I didn't mind letting him get away for one simple reason: I'll chase his ass back to wherever he sprang from and then he'll know why they call me THE BUTCHER OF TORFAN.

Funnily enough my character promised him as much, if only in mildler terms. =)

Good call, Vanguard is definitely my favorite class I've played with so far.

Same here, when I first saw it I knew it was meant for me (it's always like that when I have to chose character classes for some reason, I always know what I want to be right away). The class that surprised me the most was Engineer. I thought it would be weak and boring but I ended up liking it a lot. Sabotage and Neural Shock in particular are totally awesome. The only two things my Vanguard misses!

On a completely different note, I finished Mass Effect Galaxy today (iPhone game). I had to go through a lot of hoops to do it as I don't possess an iPhone and as the game isn't even out in Europe (and no release date planned as far as I know). I had to harass a coworker of mine that used to live in Canada and I got him to create a North American account with a Canadian credit card so he could buy the game for me, then I borrowed his iPhone and played the game on my work time. If that isn't dedication, I don't know what is.

Anyway, the game isn't as bad as some reviews say. I'm specifically thinking of the IGN review here (the only one I read). Sure, the game has extremely little interest if you haven't played ME1. Sure, the action sequences are little more than a mini-game. Sure, the dialogue sequences aren't as deep as they are in ME1. But it's still totally decent for a cellphone game that's admittedly just a side-story and that only costs $3. I would recommend it to those who have access to a compatible Apple device. Doesn't take too long to get through (2-3 hours) and once finished you can registered your EA account to get a couple of ME2 bonuses!! Mine are "already waiting for me in Mass Effect 2". Oh yeah!

I'll post a summary of ME Galaxy's plot if anyone is interested.

 

[Vampire_Hunter_Bob]

I'll post a summary of ME Galaxy's plot if anyone is interested.

I'm interested.

 

[seppuku]

Whether playing as an Adept, Vanguard, or Soldier most of the damage I did came from the guns I was firing, not unique class abilities. Also, I had the Barrier skill and available cover, so a lack of hit points isn't as much of a problem in this game. How have you all fared with the engineering class? I wasn't as interested in it because it seemed like a utility class and it had a lot of abilities only applicable to synthetic enemies, but maybe one of you has a better experience that you would like to share.

 

[Aazealh]

I'm interested.

Alright, I'll get something together by tomorrow. And on a whim I just bought the two ME novels (not expecting award-winning writing, but whatever), so I'll comment on them once I've read them as well.

How have you all fared with the engineering class? I wasn't as interested in it because it seemed like a utility class and it had a lot of abilities only applicable to synthetic enemies, but maybe one of you has a better experience that you would like to share.

Neural Shock is a skill you get from building up the Medicine talent. It's extremely powerful against organic foes. Basically damages them, poisons them and knocks them down for a certain about of time. It's the ultimate talent against strong Krogan, Asari and Rachni enemies. I'm totally in love with it. And putting points in Medicine reduces the reuse time for medi-gel, so it's quite useful all around. Other Engineer skills include Sabotage, Overload and Damping. Among them, Sabotage is the best to me. It does a lot of instant damage and prevents enemies from using their weapons (a skill Geth Hoppers regularly use against you in the game). Overload and Damping are used to respectively weaken shields and prevent the use of biotic and tech talents. Both are equally useful against synthetic and organic enemies so long as they're weapon/talents based and not just pure beasts like the Rachni.

AI Hacking is a purely synthetic ability: it allows you to turn a Geth or a turret into a friend for a while, as long as there are enemies around (if you hack a lone Geth he'll still attack you). It's a useful talent and raising it will ameliorate Sabotage, Overloard an Damping, but I myself didn't put too many points in it, for the simple reason that it was synthetics-only and only provided support in the best of cases. Cool stuff can be done with it when it's maxed though (e.g. hacking a strong enemy in the midst of a group and watching him mangle the others).

Anyway, to do damage as an Engineer, Pistol + Marksman does the job.