The Mass Effect Logo

 

Background Information

 

Mass Effect is a science-fiction third-person shooter/RPG (you don't see that combination often) trilogy developed by Bioware for the XBox 360 and PC. All three games have been released, directed by Casey Hudson and mainly written by Drew Karpyshyn, who has worked on other fantasy and science-fiction videogames such as Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and the authored the Star Wars novel Darth Bane: Path of Destruction and its sequel Darth Bane: Rule of Two. Karpyshyn also wrote three novels for Mass Effect: Mass Effect: Revelation, Mass Effect: Ascension, and Mass Effect: Retribution. 

Other media include various comic book miniseries, the other novel, Mass Effect: Deception, the animated film Mass Effect: Paragon Lost, and Mass Effect: Galaxy.

The plot of the first game centers on Commander [your first name here] Shepard, an officer in the Human Systems Alliance military. Only in the past few decades have humans entered galactic affairs, but have made large advances. After a human colony is attacked by Saren, a rogue Spectre- an elite agent of the Council (Basically the galaxy's UN)- you are appointed as the first human Spectre and ordered to go after him and his Geth allies, an AI army. After a while, it becomes clear that Saren intends to bring in a mysterious force, called the Reapers, that wiped out an advanced race called the Protheans 50,000 years ago. You understand this threat, but the Council, perhaps the most obstinate government in fictional history, never gives you the backup you would prefer, thinking Saren's playing you. It's up to you alone to stop Saren.

The second game takes place two years after you managed to stop the Reaper's initial invasion. After being killed when his ship is attacked and destroyed, Shepard is revived and recruited by the radical pro-human organization Cerberus in order to investigate the increasingly frequent disappearances of human colonies in remote areas of space. It is soon revealed that the guilty party is a mysterious race of aliens known as the Collectors. You must embark on an incredibly dangerous mission to stop the Collectors at their source, and find out what connects them to the Reapers.

The third and final installment takes place as the Reapers attack in force. They quickly begin to overwhelm the council races, and the last hope for survival lies in a mysterious ancient superweapon known as the Crucible. 

It is your job to discover the truth behind this weapon, and to unite the disparate forces of the galaxy against the Reaper threat.

Standing in the Battledome

 

The Mass Effect universe has notable abilities on both the personal combatant and the warship level. Technology centers around Mass Effect fields (hence the game title). Mass Effect Fields are created through the use of Element Zero. Element Zero can increase or decrease the mass content of space-time when subjected to an electrical current via dark energy. With a positive current, mass is increased. 

With a negative current, mass is decreased. The stronger the current, the greater the magnitude of the dark energy mass effect.

This allows for FTL spaceship travel and guns that operate by mass accelerators. Personal firearms fire small pieces of metal, designed to crumple on impact for maximum impact. These pieces are shaved off blocks of metal placed in the firearm; a single block can provide thousands of rounds of ammunition.

On the starship level, a mass accelerator of sufficient size could use a paint chip to level a city. An 800-meter mass accelerator, the primary weapon of a capital ship, is capable of accelerating one 20 kg. slug to a velocity of 4025 km/s (1.3% of light speed) every two seconds. Each slug has the kinetic energy of 38 kilotons of TNT, three times the energy released by the fission weapon that destroyed Hiroshima. Dreadnoughts are capable of engaging with such weapons at tens of thousands of kilometers, while smaller ships engage at closer ranges. Other features for starships are compliments of fighters and bombers on dreadnoughts and cruisers. 

Automated GARDIAN point-defense laser grids are on all ships. The grids' 100% accuracy renders missiles useless.

Mass Effect fields are also used to generate kinetic barriers. These shields can be used effectively on both starships and in personal armor suits. They only block high-velocity projectiles, so a person can still interact with his environment while his shield is up. The shielding afforded by kinetic barriers does not protect against extremes of temperature, toxins, or radiation.

Along with weapons and power generators, Mass Effect fields can be generated by individual people. Such people are called Biotics.

Using implants to channel their abilities, Biotics can use telekinetic and gravity manipulating powers.

 

Supporters of the Series

• ChaosTheory123
• Ultimate Deathsaurer

Character Profiles

- Aria T'Loak
- Ashley Williams
- Brute
- Commander Shepard
- Destroyer
- EDI
- Essex
- Garrus Vakarian
- Gillian Grayson
- Grunt
- Harbinger
- Human-Reaper
- Jack
- Jacob Taylor
- James Vega
- Javik
- Kai Leng
- Kaidan Alenko
- Kasumi Goto
- Legion
- Leviathan
- Liara T'Soni
- Matriarch Benezia
- Miranda Lawson
- Mordin Solus
- Morinth
- Praetorian
- Samara
- Saren Arterius
- Shadow Broker
- Sovereign
- Tali'Zorah
- Thane Krios
- Thorian
- Urdnot Wrex
- Zaeed Massani

Vehicles Profiles

- Collector Cruiser
- Destiny Ascension
- Normandy SR-2

 

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