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INTRODUCTION
BEGIN YOUR JOURNEY TODAY

JOIN THE ANDROMEDA INITIATIVE

The Andromeda Initiative is currently seeking recruits. Explore the Initiative's resource center now to
receive vital pre-departure information and training. Registered recruits will be among the first
contacted for future briefings and are eligible for reward upon program completion.

EQUIPMENT, VEHICLES, AND WEAPONS: THE FRONTLINE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Serve aboard one of the most advanced starships in the galaxy as you push the boundaries of deep
space exploration and human ingenuity.

Orientation
The following is a breakdown of the Andromeda Initiative orientation briefing videos available:

//01

WELCOME / ORIENTATION

A welcome to the Andromeda Initiative from its founder. Receive details on mission goals, challenges,
and an outline of pre-departure training programs.

//02

ARKS & NEXUS

Introduction to the Ark and Nexus. Understand the roles each will play in our journey to the Andromeda
Galaxy, and mission upon arrival.

//03

TEMPEST & NOMAD

Schematic overviews, capabilities and basic operation of a Pathfinder’s principal space and ground
vehicles, the Tempest and Nomad.
1. THE BASICS
THE ANDROMEDA INITIATIVE
Founded in 2176 and launched in 2185, the Andromeda Initiative is a civilian, multi-species project
created to send scientists, explorers and colonists on a one-way trip to settle in the Andromeda Galaxy.
With powerful benefactors lending their support, the program has grown substantially in scope since its
inception. The Initiative’s ultimate goal is to establish a permanent presence on the seemingly resource-
rich frontier of Andromeda, and eventually create a reliable route between it and the Milky Way Galaxy.

THE HELIUS CLUSTER

Comprised of over thirty observed systems, the Helius Cluster Cluster is a star cluster on the outer
fringes of the Andromeda Galaxy. Helius, as it is commonly known, was chosen as the Andromeda
Initiative's destination after long-range surveys suggested it had an unusually high number of habitable
worlds. The cluster also has a large black hole at its centre, whose formation may have been the cause
of Helius's rich element zero deposits.

Surveying and classification of Helius is an ongoing process. While some planets have official names,
others are still known by their initial survey data: "H" (for "Helius Object") followed by a catalogue
number.

ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS
While the Andromeda Initiative’s long-range scans have identified several potentially-habitable planets
in the Heleus cluster, the possibility of encountering harsh planetary conditions during the search for a
suitable Golden World exists. The Pathfinder and their team will be responsible for assessing and
exploring any environment deemed necessary as the mission unfolds.

THE NEXUS
THE ARKS
THE TEMPEST
THE PATHFINDER
Alec Ryder – Human Pathfinder

A seasoned galactic explorer, Alec Ryder was a member of Jon Grissom’s original task force which
travelled through the Charon mass relay – the first encountered by humanity – in 2149. Ryder would go
on to further prove his mettle by completing N7 training, solidifying himself as one of the Alliance
military’s elite. Eventually recruited into the role of Pathfinder for the Andromeda Initiative, Ryder
represents the tip of the spear in humanity’s efforts to find a new home in this unknown galaxy.
ELEMENT ZERO
Also known as "eezo," the rare material known as element zero generates a field when subjected to an
electrical current, which raises or lowers the mass of all objects within it. This "mass effect" forms the
basis of modern technology, from weapons and manufacturing, to enabling faster-than-light travel.

Element zero is generated when solid matter, such as a planet, is affected by the energy of a star going
supernova. The material is common in the asteroid debris that orbits neutron stars and pulsars, though
mining such regions is extremely hazardous and requires significant investment.

Surveys of the Helius Cluster suggested the region is rich in element zero, which was a deciding factor in
the Andromeda Initiative’s decision to settle there. Without eezo, the Initiative’s technology would
quickly become obsolete.

When subjected to an electrical current, the rare material dubbed element zero, or "eezo", emits a dark
energy field that raises or lowers the mass of all objects within it. This "mass effect" is used in countless
ways, from generating artificial gravity to manufacturing high-strength construction materials. It is most
prominently used to enable faster-than-light space travel.

Eezo is generated when solid matter, such as a planet, is affected by the energy of a star going
supernova. The material is common in the asteroid debris that orbit neutron stars and pulsars. These are
dangerous places to mine, requiring extensive use of robotics, telepresence, and shielding to survive the
incredible radiation from the dead star. Only a few major corporations can afford the set-up costs
required to work these primary sources.

Humanity discovered refined element zero at the Prothean research station on Mars, allowing them to
create mass effect fields and develop FTL travel.

MASS EFFECT FIELDS

The “Mass Effect” represents the scientific principle and basis behind most technology in the known
galaxy. Mass effect fields are created through the use of element zero, which can increase or decrease
the mass of space-time when subjected to an electrical current via dark energy. In space, mass effect
fields have implications in everything from faster-than-light travel, to the creation of shields used to
protect starships, to cryo-stasis pods, allowing a person to survive in a suspended state for extended
voyages.

Element zero can increase or decrease the mass of a volume of space-time when subjected to an
electrical current. 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.

In space, low-mass fields allow FTL travel and inexpensive surface-to-orbit transit. High-mass fields
create artificial gravity and push space debris away from vessels. In manufacturing low-mass fields
permit the creation of evenly-blended alloys, while high mass compaction creates dense, sturdy
construction materials.

The military makes extensive use of mobility enhancing technologies, with mass effect utilizing fighting
vehicles standard front-line issue in most military forces. Mass effect fields are also essential in the
creation of kinetic barriers or shields to protect against enemy fire.
MASS RELAYS
Mass relays are feats of Prothean engineering advanced far beyond the technology of any living species.
They are enormous structures scattered throughout the stars, and can create corridors of virtually mass-
free space allowing instantaneous transit between locations separated by years or even centuries of
travel using conventional FTL drives.

Primary mass relays can propel ships thousands of light years, often from one spiral arm of the galaxy to
another. However, they have fixed one-to-one connections: a primary relay connects to one other
primary relay, and nowhere else. Secondary relays can only propel ships a few hundred light years,
however they are omnidirectional: a secondary relay can send a ship to any other relay within its limited
range.

There are many dormant primary relays whose corresponding twins have not yet been located. These
are left inactive until their partner is charted, as established civilizations are unwilling to blindly open a
passage that might connect them to a hostile species.

FTL DRIVE
Faster-than-light drives use element zero cores to reduce the mass of a ship, allowing higher rates of
acceleration. This effectively raises the speed of light within the mass effect field, allowing high speed
travel with negligible relativistic time dilation1 effects.

Starships still require conventional thrusters (chemical rockets, commercial fusion torch, economy ion
engine, or military antiproton drive) in addition to the FTL drive core. With only a core, a ship has no
motive power.

The amount of element zero and power required for a drive increases exponentially to the mass being
moved and the degree it is being lightened. Very massive ships or very high speeds are prohibitively
expensive.

If the field collapses while the ship is moving at faster-than-light speeds, the effects are catastrophic.
The ship is snapped back to sublight velocity, the enormous excess energy shed in the form of lethal
Cherenkov radiation.

FTL Drive: Appearance

New space travelers ask, "What does it look like outside a ship moving faster-than-light speed?" Part of
the answer can be seen in a simple pane of glass. Light travels slower through glass than it does through
open air; light also moves slower in conventional space than it does in a high-speed mass effect field.
This causes refraction - any light entering at an angle is bent and separated into a spectrum. Objects
outside the ship will appear refracted. The greater the difference between the objective (exterior) and
subjective (interior) speeds of light, the greater the refraction.

As the subjective speed of light is raised within the field, objects outside will appear to red-shift,
eventually becoming visible only to radio telescope antennae. High-energy electromagnetic1 sources
normally hidden to the eye become visible in the high blue spectrum. As the speed of light continues to
be raised, x-ray, gamma ray, and eventually cosmic ray sources become visible. Stars will be replaced by
pulsars1, the accretion discs1 of black holes1, quasars1, and gamma ray bursts1.
To an outside observer, a ship within a mass effect drive envelope appears blue-shifted. If within a field
that allows travel at twice the speed of light, any radiation it emits has twice the energy as normal. If the
ship is in a field of about 200 times light speed, it radiates visible light as x-rays and gamma rays, and the
infrared heat from the hull is blue-shifted up into the visible spectrum or higher.

Ships moving at FTL are visible at great distances, though their signature will only propagate at the
speed of light.

FTL Drive: Drive Charge

As positive or negative electric current is passed through an FTL drive core, it acquires a static electrical
charge. Drives can be operated an average of 50 hours before they reach charge saturation. This
changes proportionally to the magnitude of mass reduction; a heavier or faster ship reaches saturation
more quickly.

If the charge is allowed to build, the core will discharge into the hull of a ship. All ungrounded crew
members are fried to a crisp, all electronic system are burned out, and metal bulkheads may be melted
and fused together.

The safest way to discharge a core is to land on a planet and establish a connection to the ground, like a
lightning rod. Larger vessels like dreadnoughts cannot land and must discharge into a planetary
magnetic field1.

As the hull discharges, sheets of lightning jump away into the field, creating beautiful auroral displays on
the planet. The ship must retract its sensors and weapons while dumping charge to prevent damage,
leaving it blind and helpless. Discharging at a moon with a weak magnetic field can take days.
Discharging into the powerful field of a gas giant may require less than an hour. Deep space facilities
such as the Citadel often have special discharge facilities for visiting ships.

HELIOS THRUSTER MODULE

Intended for next-generation fighter craft, the Heed Industries Helios Thruster Module propulsion
system far outpaces the typical liquid hydrogen/liquid oxygen reactions that power a frigate's
maneuvering thrusters. By using metastable metallic hydrogen, the Helios boasts a fuel that burns at far
greater efficiency than liquid H2/O2. Navigators can execute the numerous small course corrections
inherent to any long-distance travel without fear of exhausting the ship's fuel supplies. This net gain
extends to forward impulse as well: a ship powered by antiprotons can coast temporarily using the
Helios to reach an inferior but highly sustainable speed. Such efficiency lowers antiproton consumption,
a constant concern for any warship.

When a Helios-propelled ship must refuel, however, it typically relies on a large carrier or nearby
planetary factory to synthesize the metallic hydrogen. This process uses extremely dense mass effect
fields to create the metal under pressures of over a million Earth atmospheres, an activity most safely
done while planetside. While that process may seem like a drawback compared to "skimmer ships" that
can gather hydrogen and oxygen from anywhere in the universe, the combat superiority of the Helios'
maneuvering capabilities is often a worthwhile trade-off. The same efficiency that allows for microburn
course correction can power rapid bursts of motion. Once a pilot becomes used to the ship's new
energetic responses, she can easily put the ship wherever and at whatever angle she desires.
KINETIC BARRIERS ("SHIELDS")
Kinetic barriers, colloquially called "shields", provide protection against most mass accelerator weapons.
Whether on a starship or a soldier's suit of armor, the basic principle remains the same.

Kinetic barriers are repulsive mass effect fields projected from tiny emitters. These shields safely deflect
small objects traveling at rapid velocities. This affords protection from bullets and other dangerous
projectiles, but still allows the user to sit down without knocking away their chair.

The shielding afforded by kinetic barriers does not protect against extremes of temperature, toxins, or
radiation.

MASS ACCELERATORS
A mass accelerator propels a solid metal slug using precisely-controlled electromagnetic attraction and
repulsion. The slug is designed to squash or shatter on impact, increasing the energy it transfers to the
target. If this were not the case, it would simply punch a hole right through, doing minimal damage.

Accelerator design was revolutionized by element zero. A slug lightened by a mass effect field can be
accelerated to greater speeds, permitting projectile velocities that were previously unattainable. If
accelerated to a high enough velocity, a simple paint chip can impact with the same destructive force as
a nuclear weapon. However, mass accelerators produce recoil equal to their impact energy. This is
mitigated somewhat by the mass effect fields that rounds are suspended within, but weapon recoil is
still the prime limiting factor on slug velocity.

COMMUNICATIONS
Real-time communication is possible thanks to networks of expensive mass relay comm buoys that can
daisy-chain a transmission via lasers.

Comm buoys are maintained in patterns built outward from each mass relay. The buoys are little more
than a cluster of primitive, miniature mass relays. Each individual buoy is connected to a partner on
another buoy in the network, forming a corridor of low-mass space. Tightbeam communications lasers
are piped through these "tubes" of FTL space, allowing virtually instantaneous communication to
anywhere on the network. The networks connect across regions by communications lasers through the
mass relays.

With this system, the only delay is the light lag between the source or destination and the closest buoy.
So long as all parties remain within half a light-second (150,000 km) of buoys, seamless real time
communications are possible. Since buoys are maintained in all traveled areas, most enjoy unlimited
instant communications. Ships only suffer communications lag when operating off established deep
space routes, around uninhabited outer system gas giants, and other unsettled areas.

During wartime, comm buoy networks are the first target of an attack. Once the network is severed, it
can take anywhere from weeks to years to get a message out of a contested system. In systems where a
buoy network has not yet been built or has been destroyed, rapid communication means ferrying
information through high-speed courier ships and unmanned data drones.
Communications: Administration

While comm buoys allow rapid transmission, there is a finite amount of bandwidth available. Given that
trillions of people may be trying to pass a message through a given buoy at any one time, access to the
network is parceled out on priority tiers.

The Citadel Council and the Spectres have absolute priority; if they are using all the bandwidth,
everyone else must wait. Individual governments and their militaries enjoy the next-highest tier. During
wartime, civilian communication can suffer hours or even days of lag. Intelligence agencies study ping
time through various systems to predict military buildups.

Below the governments and militaries, bandwidth priority is sold to the highest bidder. Media
conglomerates, particularly headline news networks, purchase higher priority to provide their viewers
with timely information. Corporations that require timely information and response capability (for
example, financial institutions and investment firms) also invest heavily in priority access. The funds
acquired through sales of bandwidth are used to maintain and expand the communications
infrastructure.

While everyone with a computer has guaranteed free and unlimited access to the galactic extranet, they
are last in line for bandwidth and may have to wait for their requests to be processed. Bandwidth resale
corporations use investment capital to purchase blocks of high priority access, made available by paid
subscription.

Communications: Methodology

As the population of the galaxy increases and new worlds are settled, timely access for home users and
frontier settlements with underdeveloped communications infrastructures is a growing problem. To
ameliorate bandwidth issues, a sophisticated array of data caches and virtual intelligence search agent
programs are available.

When a user submits a query, it is first routed to the data cache, the user's search agent VI collates
mountains of locally-stored data to find the desired material. If the information is not available locally,
the query is passed along to neighboring systems, and then outward in an expanding network. VI search
agents in those systems replicate the search. If the desired information is found, it is compressed into a
"burst" file and queued for transmission to the source system. The burst is assigned a priority based on
the number of queries for it; the greater the number of queries, the higher the priority.

When a new solar system is first connected to the net, a selection of the most popular data is installed
locally. Though storage hardware is cheap, the capacity required to hold all the data produced everyday
by trillions of people on hundreds of worlds is not trivial. It's not economical to store local copies of all
the data available on obscure topics just in case.

As colonies mature, older and less-popular chunks of data filter into them as a result of queries and are
placed in the local archive. Searches for obscure topics are increasingly likely to produce instant results
as the archive grows.
Communications: Quantum Entanglement Communicators (QEC)

When a pair of quantum-entangled particles is separated, a change to one particle will affect the other
instantaneously, wherever it lies in the universe. QECs exploit this effect to transmit binary data any
distance. Two pairs of entangled particles are necessary for transmission and reception.

While QEC technology is extremely expensive and difficult to produce, it offers two enormous
advantages. First, it allows instantaneous communication over any distance without reliance on the
network of comm buoys, which is limited due to the sheer volume of space. Further, destruction of
buoys hampers a foe’s military intelligence; comm buoys are the first targets of raiders in wartime.
Second, quantum communications cannot be intercepted between source and destination, allowing no
"wiretaps."

Unfortunately, QECs cannot replace the galactic civil communications infrastructure. First, they have
extremely limited bandwidth. A single entangled particle can only transmit a single qubit (quantum bit)
of data at once. Second, the system’s exclusively point-to-point nature precludes peer-to-peer
networking and data dissemination through the galactic extranet.

The most strategically appropriate military application of QECs is at the headquarters level. Each Alliance
colony would maintain a QEC at its military headquarters and each fleet flagship in its CIC. All the pairs
for these would be located at a central facility within Arcturus Station. During an attack, a facility would
signal Arcturus to transmit its information to every other fleet and colony. However, destruction of the
comm center at Arcturus would collapse the entire network.

MEDI-GEL
Medi-gel is a common medicinal salve used by paramedics, EMTs, and military personnel. It combines
several useful applications: a local anesthetic, disinfectant, and clotting agent all in one. Once applied,
the gel is designed to grip tight to flesh until subjected to a frequency of ultrasound. It is sealable against
liquids--most notably blood--as well as contaminants and gases.

The gel is a genetically engineered bioplasm created by the Sirta Foundation, a medical technology
megacorp based on Earth. Technically, medi-gel violates Council laws against genetic engineering, but so
far, it has proved far too useful to ban.

OMNI-TOOLS
Omni-tools are handheld devices that combine a computer microframe, sensor analysis pack, and
minifacturing fabricator. Versatile and reliable, an omni-tool can be used to analyze and adjust the
functionality of most standard equipment, including weapons and armor, from a distance.

The fabrication module can rapidly assemble small three-dimensional objects from common, reusable
industrial plastics, ceramics, and light alloys. This allows for field repairs and modifications to most
standard items, as well as the reuse of salvaged equipment.

Omni-tools are standard issue for soldiers and first-in colonists.

UPGRADES
The development of practical minifacturing omni-tools allows modern militaries a great deal of flexibility
in equipment load-outs. A vast number of field modification kits, or "upgrades", are available for
common equipment such as weapons, armor, omni-tools, biotic amps, and even grenades.

An upgrade kit typically consists of less than a dozen unique parts and an optical storage disc. When
loaded into an omni-tool, the OSD provides all technical specifications required to manufacture the tool
and additional parts necessary to install the upgrade onto another piece of equipment. Assembly is
typically modular, and installation can be completed in less than a minute.

Since omni-tools are designed to use common battlefield salvage materials such as plastics, ceramics,
and light materials (rendered into semi-molten "omni-gel" for quick use), it is quite possible for a trained
soldier carrying upgrade kits to customize gear on the battlefield to fit the current tactical situation.

BIOTICS
Biotics is the ability of rare individuals to manipulate dark energy and create mass effect fields through
the use of electrical impulses from the brain. Intense training and surgically-implanted amplifiers are
necessary for a biotic to produce mass effect fields powerful enough for practical use. The relative
strength of biotic abilities varies greatly among species and with each individual.

There are three branches of biotics. TELEKINESIS uses mass-lowering fields to levitate or impel objects.
Mass-raising KINETIC FIELDS are used to block or pin objects. DISTORTION uses rapidly shifting mass
fields to shred objects.

Most organic species are capable of developing biotic abilities, though there are risks involved. Biotics
are the result of in-utero exposure to element zero. This usually causes fatal cancers in the victim, but in
rare cases it coalesces into nodules within the fetus's developing nervous system.

Biotics: Biotic Amps

Biotics manipulate mass effect fields using dozens of element zero nodules within their nervous system
that react to electric stimuli from the brain. Amplifiers allow biotics to synchronize the nodules so they
can form fields large and strong enough for practical use. Amplifiers can improve a specific discipline or
talent.

An implant is surgically-embedded interface port into which amps are "plugged in". On humans, the
implant is usually placed at the base of the skull for convenient access, though the user must be careful
to keep it free of contaminants.

Implant ports can fit a variety of amps, and there is a growing market for modifications and add-ons. The
finest quality implants and amps are manufactured by asari artisans, but the Alliance's L3 implants - first
deployed in 2170 - are a significant step forward.

Biotics: Life as a Biotic

Biotics possess extraordinary abilities, but they must live with minor inconveniences. The most obvious
issue is getting adequate nutrition. Creating biotic mass effects takes such a toll on metabolism that
active biotics develop ravenous appetites. The standard Alliance combat ration for a soldier is 3000
calories per day; biotics are given 4500, as well as a canteen of potent energy drink for quick
refreshment after hard combat.

Another issue is electric charge. Electricity accumulated in starship drive cores must be discharged, and
so must the electricity in a biotic user. Biotics are prone to small static discharges when they touch
metal.

Unfortunately, human biotics also face suspicion and persecution, beginning with the popular
misconception that they can read and control minds. Biotics symbolize the dehumanization of mankind
to people philosophically or religiously opposed to gene modification and cybernetics. Militaries are the
only organizations that always welcome biotics, offering them huge recruitment incentives.

Biotics: Training

Biotic implants and amplifiers only provide the potential to create coherent mass effect fields. Whether
biotics can actually do so is largely determined by their training.

Biotics must develop conscious control over their nervous systems, sending specific electrical impulses
to the element zero nodules embedded in their nerves. They are taught to use their implants and amps
with biofeedback devices and physical mnemonics. Specific gestures or muscle movements fire the
proper sequence of nerves to activate a certain skill.

Conatix Industries pioneered biotic training with the Biotic Acclimation and Temperance Training
program. Although BAaT did not achieve the desired results, many techniques taught are still used
today.

Many human think tanks are trying to develop some form of biotic super soldier. Most are benign efforts
to create more flexible troops. Others, less publicly known, are unapologetic attempts to create
Nietzschean supermen.
2. PERSONNEL
NEXUS LEADERSHIP
Director of Colonial Affairs: Foster Addison

Foster Addison oversees all colonization logistics for the Andromeda Initiative, making sure all
settlements are up and running and colonists have a place to live.

Nexus Superintendent: Nakmor Kesh

Nakmor Kesh, is a female Krogan and part of the core team of station engineers who built the Nexus.
Her contributions during the mission include station upkeep and ensuring all facilities remain in working
order.

Nexus Security: Sloane Kelly

Sloane Kelly is an Alliance-trained soldier, and responsible for all security initiatives aboard the Nexus
upon arrival in Andromeda.

JIEN GARSON
Jien Garson is the founder and leader of the Andromeda Initiative, the mission task force that will
transport thousands of Humans, Asari, Turians and Salarians from the Milky Way to her closest
neighboring galaxy.

ALEC RYDER
A seasoned galactic explorer, Alec Ryder was a member of Jon Grissom's original task force which
traveled through the Charon mass relay – the first encountered by humanity – in 2149. Ryder would go
on to further prove his mettle by completing N7 training, solidifying himself as one of the Alliance
military's elite. Eventually recruited into the role of Pathfinder for the Andromeda Initiative, Ryder
represents the tip of the spear in humanity's efforts to find a new home in this unknown galaxy.

Born on Earth in 2129, Alec Ryder says his love of new frontiers was fostered by a childhood in the Sierra
Nevadas. According to his service record, he joined the Alliance military and was eventually assigned to
Jon Grissom's historic expedition through the Charon Relay. His experience mad him a candidate for
what would later be known as N7 training back on Earth. Alec continued military service, most notably,
on Shanxi in the First Contact War against the turians.

Assigned as a military attache to the Citadel in the late 2160's, Alec became interested in artificial
intelligence as a means of human advancement.

AVINA
Avina is a virtual intelligence program designed to answer questions and provide guidance and insight
on current events. Avina appears as a hologram, always taking the form of an Asari – one of the races
found in the Milky Way Galaxy – and will be accessible at several terminals throughout the Nexus. With
a limited capacity for discourse, Avina is more suited to offering information rather than opinions.
S.A.M.
S.A.M, short for Simulated Adaptive Matrix, is an artificial intelligence designed by Alec Ryder. It resides
on the Hyperion ark and receives a direct feed of the Pathfinder's sensory input via a neural implant. It
sees and feels as Ryder does, providing him situational awareness, problem solving, and tactical
enhancements. All members of the Pathfinder team have implants as well.

The first Pathfinder neural implants were created by Dr. Ellen Ryder, a pioneer in human biotic implant
design. While biotic implants bolster and focus electrical signals along the nervous system, Pathfinder
implants go a step further by connecting to not only the nervous system, but circulation, endocrine
function, and exteroceptive senses.

Synced with an artificial intelligence, the implants reveal their full potential. The implant is a two-way
connection, giving full insight into the host's physical and mental state, while allowing it to generate and
alter electrical signals along my host's neural pathways that the body processes as its own.

CORA HARPER
Lieutenant Cora Harper is a human biotic and formerly an officer in the Systems Alliance military. She
joined the Systems Alliance to train her powerful biotic talents, and eventually was transferred via the
Citadel Council's Valkyrie Program (a subset of their interspecies military integration plan) and placed
with the asari commando unit Talein's Daughters commando unit. More recently, Cora joined the
Andromeda Initiative as Alec Ryder's second-in-command.

Professional and loyal, Cora knows the rules well enough to bend them if necessary, lending huntress
tactics and her biotic strength to the Pathfinder's mission. Cora's huntress training and biotic capacity
made her a candidate as a successor to the position of Pathfinder, if warranted.

SARA RYDER
Born on the Citadel space station in 2163, Sara joined the Systems Alliance military which was
continuing is search for Prothean technology after successful discoveries on Mars. Initially assigned to
peacekeeping duties, Sara was approached to serve a support role for these Prothean researchers. She
often describes the thrill of serving with scientists like Mateus Silva on the brink of the next great
discovery.

Sarah has been recruited to serve with her father and twin brother on the Pathfinder team.

SCOTT RYDER
Born on the Citadel space station in 2163, Scott joined the Systems Alliance military and was assigned to
an outpost near Arcturus Station overseeing Relay 202. A primary route to Arcturus, this mass relay
leads into contested space and has an unsavory reputation. Scott was resolved to protect Arcturus, but
also had "a front row seat to everyone else going off to fortune and glory."

Scott has been recruited to serve with his father and twin sister on the Pathfinder team.
KALLO JATH
Kallo Jath is the salarian pilot of the Tempest. Among other accomplishments, Kallo was one of the
engineers who built the Tempest in its Milky Way construction, and knows the ship inside and out.

DR. SUVI ANWAR

Suvi Anwar is a member of the Nexus’ science team, and holds advanced degrees in astrophysics and
molecular biology. In a screening interview, she stated that she was from a “large, rather boisterous
family” of five children. Her neuroscientist mother and mathematician father exposed her and her
siblings to science from a young age, which sparked a lifelong love of the subject. Suvi declares that
there was no hesitation on her part in signing up for the Andromeda Initiative, once she learned of its
existence, owing to a desire to see and experience more than one small corner of this vast universe.

LIAM KOSTA
Liam Kosta is the crisis response specialist on the human Pathfinder team. Born in London, and later
residing on both Earth and the Citadel, Liam specializes in crisis response and urban operations and
excels as a close range fighter. He favors Omni-blades and Havoc Strike tactics.

Liam entered university for engineering but left to train for law enforcement and later transitioned to
the multi-species effort of Heavy Urban Search and Crisis Response. He learned of the Andromeda
Initiative after meeting former Alliance personnel at a "post-hostility relief action." His multi-disciplinary
skills and civilian tactical training set him apart, and Liam was hand-picked by Alec Ryder to support the
Pathfinder team. He’s an idealist, willing to take risks for the good of the Initiative.

VETRA NYX
Vetra Nyx is the Turian member of the Human Pathfinder Team. Originally hailing from the Turian
homeworld of Palaven, Vetra is a law enforcement veteran specializing in defensive tactics. She favors
assault rifles and is an expert with armor and shields.

Surviving the rough world of smugglers and mercenaries requires street-smarts, adaptability and
cunning, qualities that serve Vetra well in Andromeda. Her experiences have taught her the importance
of having someone to watch your back, and she'll do anything for the people she considers friends and
family.

PELESSARIA B'SAYLE, “PEEBEE”

Peebee is the Asari member of the Human Pathfinder Team. Hailing from Port Lerama on Hyetiana, she
specializes in biotics and firearms. She excels as a Gunslinger and a Biotic Destabilizer and favors Pistols
and Invasion tactics.

Peebee walks to her own daredevil drumbeat and has an unrivaled thirst for adventure. She's
pathologically independent but manages to maintain a loose, even friendly spirit. Bored with the Milky
Way, she would have done anything to join the Initiative – flirt, favors, fudged credentials. But to her,
she was just hitching a ride to the great unknown.
NAKMOR DRACK, “DRACK”
Drack is the Krogan member of the Human Pathfinder Team. He hails from the Krogan homeworld of
Tuchanka and is a Veteran warrior of Clan Nakmor, specializing as a close combatant. He also goes by
the names “Old Man” and “Drack the Nak”.

There's old, and then there's Drack. The elder Krogan spent more than 1,400 years causing a ruckus in
the Milky Way—wearing the title of soldier, mercenary, and at times, pirate. When the loyal, but
stubborn, veteran was given the chance to join his clan on a voyage to Andromeda, he had no choice but
to sign up. Doing so would present him with a whole new galaxy of stuff to shoot.
3. PROTOCOLS, POLICIES, AND OPERATIONS
FIRST CONTACT PROTOCOL
In the event any member of the Pathfinder Team encounters intelligent alien life, it is imperative that
"first contact" protocols be strictly observed. The Andromeda Initiative holds the principles of peace and
cooperation among our highest ideals. Aggressive action against extraterrestrials is only permitted when
hostile intent is clearly demonstrated and Pathfinder team members are at obvious risk of injury or
death.

SETTING UP OUTPOSTS
Automated forward stations are part of the initial wave of exploration or colonist deployment. They
contain valuable resource caches for explorers to resupply, repair stations for vehicles, and ground-
penetrating sensors to identify mineral deposits. Their presence improves the chances of a planet being
considered viable.

When a planet is seriously considered for settlement or a survey is ongoing, forward stations are seeded
into orbit via automated barges. Once summoned to a designated zone, forward stations descend and
anchor themselves on the ground, becoming valuable landmarks. Most scout rovers have forward
station connectivity, allowing them to be summoned to the stations.

Current resource constraints mean that, in theory, only Pathfinders have official sanction to call down
forward stations. In reality, reports show that enterprising colonists or unscrupulous scavengers have
been known to hack the signals to raid the stations for supplies.
4. Vehicles, Weapons, and Systems
COMPUTERS
Computers: Haptic Adaptive Interface

Advances in computing have done away with traditional input devices like keyboards. Instead, modern
input peripherals are usually holographically displayed in front of the user at a height and angle for
ergonomic ease. Machines that use this interface detect a user through a microframe chip in the user's
glove that "keys in" to the computer. Once a user is accepted, motion accelerometers in the user's
gloves match his hands' location with that of a proportionate but smaller "mirror" set of controls inside
the computer itself. As the user presses against the holographic field, force-feedback in the glove kicks
in, giving a slight resistance. A person can feel his way through using a touch-screen that isn't actually
there. A simple toggle switch on the back of the hands allows the glove to be turned off when not in use.

Haptic interfaces have become so common that some individuals undergo cybernetic enhancement
surgery to have the accelerometers implanted in their fingertips. "Going bareskin" is the sign of a
committed computer user who no longer has to fuss with putting on gloves or cleaning them with
alcohol wipes to get rid of the clammy-hand smell.

Computers: Synthetics

"Synthetic" is the politically correct term for an artificially intelligent computer. An artificial intelligence
(AI) is capable of learning and independent decision making--capabilities beyond the simple virtual
intelligence (VI) software used as computer operating systems.

An AI requires both quantum computing hardware (brain) and adaptive software (consciousness). When
first brought online, an AI runs at a very low processing speed, with a handful of input sources, and the
intellectual capability as a newborn human. AIs experience life at the speed their hardware runs, and
can absorb information from millions of sources at once. If "switched on" at full capacity, they cope
badly with the deluge of input. At best, such an AI is severely autistic; at worst, it is insane.

As operators teach AI to reason and filter incoming data, they increase the AI's processing speed. At a
year's age, an AI can observe, consider, and react hundreds of times faster than its organic creators.
Mature AIs may be frustrated by the comparative "slowness" of the organics they must interact with.

Galactic culture mistrusts synthetic life. While physically immobile, an AI can assert its will by taking
control of networked computing systems. AI laboratories are physically isolated from the galactic
extranet and placed in remote, uninhabited locales.

Some futurists believe the ascendancy of synthetics is inevitable. The theory of technological singularity
asserts that as the rate of technological advancement increases, there will come a point at which AIs can
modify themselves faster than organics can. Eventually, synthetic life will be able to self-evolve so
rapidly, organics will lose the ability to comprehend the process.

Not all believe such an evolution to be negative. Transcendency cults believe organic minds will one day
be uploaded and emulated as software data, providing synthetic immortality.

Computers: Artificial Intelligence (AI)

An artificial intelligence is a self-aware computing system capable of learning and independent decision
making. Creation of conscious AI requires adaptive code, a slow, expensive education, and a specialized
quantum computer called a "blue box".

An AI cannot be transmitted across a communication channel or computer network. Without its blue
box, an AI is no more than data files. Loading these files into a new blue box will create a new
personality, as variations in the quantum hardware and runtime results create unpredictable variations.

The geth serve as a cautionary tale against the dangers of rogue AI, and in Citadel Space they are
technically illegal. Advocacy groups argue, however, that an AI is a living, conscious entity deserving the
same rights as organics. They argue that continued use of the term "artificial" is institutionalized racism
on the part of organic life, the term "synthetic" is considered the politically correct alternative.

Computers: Virtual Intelligence (VI)

A virtual intelligence is an advanced form of user interface software. VIs use a variety of methods to
simulate natural conversation, including an audio interface and an avatar personality to interact with.
Although a VI can provide a convincing emulation of sentience, they are not self-aware, nor can they
learn or take independent action.

VIs are used as operating systems on commercial and home computers. Menial VI "agents" are also
available. Agents are compact and specialized. Some serve as personal secretaries, filtering calls and
scheduling meetings based on user-defined priorities. Others are advanced search engines, propagating
themselves across the extranet to collate user-requested data.

Commercial VIs in a variety of stock personalities are available at any software retailer. Boutique firms
and hobbyists also build unique VIs to personal specification. Although software emulation of living
personalities is illegal, reconstructions of famous historical figures are common.

ODSY DRIVE SYSTEM

With the Arks unable to refuel by traditional means in dark space, the journey to Andromeda is only
made possible by the ODSY Drive System. The ODSY is a massive experimental drive core specifically
designed for this trans-galactic voyage. It is capable of recycling static energy that would typically cause
a starship to explode, instead storing it to power the Ark’s primary systems. Meanwhile, an
electromagnetic ram-scoop will gather hydrogen from the Ark’s surroundings, converting it into fuel as
needed.

ARGUS PLANET SCAN TECHNOLOGY

The Argus provides a qualitative leap in planetary surface imaging. A proprietary technology of the
Ayndroid Group, an RRD laboratory reportedly owned by Cerberus, this upgrade for Normandy's sensory
array delivers superior long-range topographical scanning resolution and rendering speed.

By deploying an orbital multistatic grid of 100 radar-emitting micro-satellites, the Argus quickly delivers
a global Digital Elevation Model (DEM) at 15 meters per pixel (mpp) resolution, vastly outclassing the
Normandy's previous scanner peak performance of 27 mpp. Such imaging quality provides superior
defense intelligence, and at a speed warranted by the dangers of combat.
At slower scanning and rendering speed, the Argus can resolve down to an astonishing 0.001 -
millimeter per pixel - ideal for geological and biological prospecting, archaeological research, and long-
term security surveillance. By employing such a massive multistatic grid of nearly-untraceable micro-
emitters, the resilient Argus is virtually invulnerable to electronic countermeasures. The spherical
geometry of the Argus grid also allows superior cross-sectioning of targets.

ABLATIVE ARMOR
A warship's kinetic barriers reduce the damage from solid objects, but can do nothing to block GARDIAN
lasers, particle beams, and other forms of Directed Energy Weapon (DEW). The inner layer of warship
protection consists of ablative armor plate designed to "boil away" when heated. The vaporized armor
material scatters a DEW beam, rendering it ineffectual.

A scaffold was built around the interior pressure hull, with sheets of ablative armor hung from the
structure. Ships typically have multiple layers of armor separated by empty baffles, spaces often used for
cargo storage. Cruisers, which lack the internal space to fit dedicated fighter hangars, store the
shipboard fighter complement in the baffles. It is not unknown for enlisted crew to build illicit alcohol
distilleries in some obscure corner of the baffles, safe from prying eyes.

SILARIS ARMOR
Asari-made Silaris armor can resist even the tremendous heat and kinetic energy of starship weapons.
The armor is nearly unsurpassed in strength because its central material, carbon nanotube sheets woven
with diamond Chemical Vapor Deposition, are crushed by mass effect fields into super-dense layers able
to withstand extreme temperatures. That process also compensates for diamond's brittleness.

Diamond armor itself has two limiting disadvantages. First, while nanotubes and CVD-diamond
construction have become cheaper in recent years, it remains prohibitively expensive to coat starships
or aircraft larger than fighters in Silaris material. Second, the armor must be attached to the ship's
superstructure, so shock waves from massive firepower can still destroy the metals beneath the armor
itself.

A popular misconception holds that the diamond composition of Silaris armor gives it a sparkle. In fact,
atmospheric nitrogen impurities during the super-hot forging process give the armor a metallic gray or
yellow sheen.

CYCLONIC BARRIER TECHNOLOGY (CBT)

Cyclonic Barrier Technology (CBT) attempts to solve the higher-end limitations of traditional kinetic
barriers. Traditional barriers cannot block high-level kinetic energy attacks such as disruptor torpedoes
because torpedo mass effect fields add mass. The CBT violently slaps aside rather than halting incoming
linear force. By rotationally firing their mass effect field projectors, ships create rapidly oscillating kinetic
barriers instead of static ones. Shooting through the CBT is like trying to shoot at a target inside a
spinning ball.

Significant drawbacks to current CBT configuration prevent its use on anything other than frigates and
fighters. Its many high-frequency sensors and emitters require frequent maintenance and replacement.
A partially damaged CBT can endanger its operator, who is surrounded by rotating mass effect fields
skewing in unpredictable directions. Fortunately, if an emitter is damaged, the CBT corrects to become a
traditional shield array, a safety feature that makes it most effective during opening volleys.

DISRUPTOR TORPEDOES
Disruptor torpedoes are powered projectiles with warheads that create random and unstable mass
effect fields when triggered. These fields warp space-time in a localized area. The rapid asymmetrical
mass changes cause the target to rip itself apart.

In flight, torpedoes use a mass-increasing field, making them too massive for enemy kinetic barriers to
repulse. The extra mass gives the torpedoes a very sluggish acceleration, making them easy prey for
defensive GARDIAN weapons. As a result, torpedoes have to be launched at very close range.

To prevent damage to the parent craft, torpedoes must be "cold-launched," meaning they are released
before their thrusters ignite. Aligning with its target's trajectory, a fighter releases a torpedo and
immediately thrusts away, while the torpedo continues to coast towards its target. After the fighter is
clear (no more than a second after launch), the torpedo activates its mass field and thrusters away from
the fighter and towards it target.

Torpedoes are the main anti-ship weapon used by fighters. They are launched from point-blank range in
"ripple-fire" waves reminiscent of the ancient Calliope rocket artillery launchers (thus their popular
nickname "Callies"). By saturating defensive GARDIAN systems with multiple targets, at least a few will
get through.

MASS ACCELERATORS
Mass accelerators propel solid metal slugs via electromagnetic attraction and repulsion. A slug lightened
by a mass effect field can be accelerated to extremely high speeds, permitting previously unattainable
projectile velocities.

The primary determinant of a mass accelerator's destructive power is length. The longer the barrel, the
longer the slug can be accelerated, the higher the slug's final velocity, and therefore the greater its
kinetic impact. Slugs are designed to squash or shatter on impact, increasing the energy they transfer to
its target. Without collapsibility, slugs would punch through their targets while inflicting only minimal
damage.

Rather than being mounted on the exterior, starship guns are housed inside hulls and visible only as gun
portholes from outside.

A ship's main gun is a large spinal-mount weapon running 90% of the hull's length. While possessing
destructive power equal to that of tactical nuclear weapons, main guns are difficult to aim. Because
ships must be able to point their bows almost directly at their targets, main guns are best used for long-
range "bombardment" fire.

Approximately 40% of the hull's width, broadside guns inflict less damage and can be mounted with
greater numbers and more flexibility. The modern human Kilimanjaro-class dreadnoughts mount three
decks with 26 broadside accelerators apiece for a total salvo weight of 78 slugs per side, firing once
every two seconds.
However, mass accelerators produce recoil equal to their impact energy. While the mass effect fields
suspending the rounds mitigate the recoil, recoil shock can still rattle crews and damage systems.

GARDIAN
A ships' General ARea Defense Integration Anti-spacecraft Network (GARDIAN) consists of
anti-missile/anti-fighter laser turrets on the exterior hull. Because these are under computer control, the
gunnery control officer needs to do little beyond turn the system on and designate targets as hostile.

Since lasers move at light speed, they cannot be dodged by anything moving at non-relativistic speeds.
Unless the beam is aimed poorly, it will always hit its target. In the early stages of a battle, the GARDIAN
fire is 100% accurate. It is not 100% lethal, but it doesn't have to be. Damaged fighters must break off
for repairs.

Lasers are limited by diffraction. The beams "spread out", decreasing the energy density (watts per m2)
the weapon can place on a target. Any high-powered laser is a short-ranged weapon.

GARDIAN networks have another limitation: heat. Weapons-grade lasers require "cool-down" time,
during which heat is transferred to sinks or radiators. As lasers fire, heat builds within them, reducing
damage, range, and accuracy.

Fighters attack in swarms. The first few WILL be hit by GARDIAN, but as the battle continues, the effects
of laser overheat allow the attacks to press ever closer to the ship. Constant use will burn out the laser.

GARDIAN lasers typically operate in infrared frequencies. Shorter frequencies would offer superior
stopping power and range, but degradation of focal arrays and mirrors would make them expensive to
maintain, and most prefer mechanical reliability over leading-edge performance where lives are
concerned. Salarians, however, use near-ultraviolet frequency lasers with six times the range, believing
that having additional time to shoot down incoming missiles is more important.

Lasers are not blocked by the kinetic barriers of capital ships. However, the range of lasers limits their
use to rare "knife fight"-range ship-to-ship combat.

JAVELIN
The Javelin is an experimental close-assault weapon fitted on a handful of newer Alliance warships. It
consists of a "rack" of two or more disposable disruptor torpedo tubes bolted or magnetically "slung" on
to a ship’s exterior armored hull. The torpedoes are fired on converging trajectories, and detonate in a
precisely timed sequence that allows the dark energy emitted by their warheads to resonate. This
magnifies the resulting space-time warp effects.

Like fighter launched torpedoes, Javelins are "cold-launched" for safety reasons, though they use a
different approach. Resembling old-fashioned submarine torpedo tubes, Javelin torpedoes come packed
in individual sealed tubes filled with compressed, inert gas. Opening the front of the tube causes
escaping gases to push the torpedo into the vacuum, releasing a puff of crystals around the mouth of
the tube. After completely clearing the tube, the torpedo ignites its thrusters.

Javelin mounts are most often fitted on swift frigates, which expect to enter "knife fight" torpedo ranges
as a matter of course. Javelins may also be fitted on heavier ships during short range engagements, such
as trans-relay assaults. They are particularly useful in this role for dreadnoughts, which are unable to lay
their main guns on targets at close range.

As missile weapons, Javelins are subject to highly accurate defensive GARDIAN fire. They must be
launched in large numbers and at short range to have any chance of hitting their target at all.

BODY ARMOR
Combat hard-suits use a dual-layer system to protect the wearer. The inner layer consists of fabric
armor with kinetic padding. Areas that don't need to be flexible, such as the chest or shins, are
reinforced with sheets of lightweight ablative ceramic.

The outer layer consists of automatically-generated kinetic barriers. Objects traveling above a certain
speed will trigger the barrier's reflex system and be deflected, provided there is enough energy left in
the shield's power cell.

Armored hard-suits are sealable to protect the wearer from extremes of temperature and atmosphere.
Standard equipment includes an onboard mini-frame and a communications, navigation, and sensing
suite. The mini-frame is designed to accept and display data from a weapon's smart targeting system to
make it easier to locate and eliminate enemies.

+ Modern combat hard-suits have a "triple canopy" of protection: shields, armor, and self-repair. The
outermost layer is created through kinetic barrier emitters, which detect objects incoming at a high rate
of speed and generate deflecting "shields" provided they have enough energy in their power cells.

+ If a bullet or other incoming object gets past the barrier, it contends with the more traditional body
armor. A sealed suit of non-porous ballistic cloth provides kinetic and environmental protection,
reinforced by lightweight composite ceramic plates in areas that either don't need to flex or require
additional coverage, such as the chest and head. When the armor is hit by directed energy weapons, the
plates boil away or ablate rather than burning the wearer.

+ The last level of protection is provided by the suit's microframe computers, whose input detectors are
woven throughout the fabric. These manage the self-healing system, which finds rents in the fabric and,
assuming any such tear would wound the flesh underneath, seals the area off with sterile, non-
conductive medi-gel. This stanches minor wounds and plugs holes in the suit that could prove fatal in
vacuum or toxic environments. Soldiers are not always fond of the "squish skin" that oozes gel on them
at a moment's notice, but fatalities have dropped sharply since the system was implemented.

TECH ARMOR AND FORTIFICATION

Although body armor and kinetic barriers provide significant protection for relatively low cost,
technically savvy soldiers sometimes go further.

"Tech Armor" is the common term for a complex series of field generators that disrupt incoming force
using a stationary warp effect. The theory is that bullets that would normally shatter on impact instead
break apart when they strike the field. The field then bleeds away the shrapnel's kinetic energy. The
standard design for tech armor traps the warp field between two low-yield kinetic barriers to protect
the user from the field itself. When the outer barrier fails, the warp effect is discharged, potentially
harming anyone nearby. For this reason, many soldiers modify the armor with a haptic-style light effect
to warn allies not to get too close. On missions where stealth is paramount, this effect is disabled.
Cynical soldiers joke that the design is called "tech armor" because if it were simply called "warp armor,"
no one would use it.

The "fortification" approach uses high-energy batteries and superconductive devices within the armor to
create a Foucault-current effect, essentially a magnetic field that can immobilize metals, even
nonferrous ones. The field is triggered by sensors similar to those in a kinetic barrier. It is powerful
enough to protect against most modern weapons, but there are drawbacks. The currents cause metallic
objects to hold their position relative to one another, and although the field only lasts for a split second,
it creates resistance that can slow or fatigue the wearer. Without specialized training, a soldier can
quickly become exhausted or stumble at the wrong time.

SMALL ARMS
All modern infantry weapons from pistols to assault rifles use micro-scaled mass accelerator technology.
Projectiles consist of tiny metal slugs suspended within a mass-reducing field, accelerated by magnetic
force to speeds that inflict kinetic damage.

The ammo magazine is a simple block of metal. The gun's internal computer calculates the mass needed
to reach the target based on distance, gravity, and atmospheric pressure, then shears off an
appropriately sized slug from the block. A single block can supply thousands of rounds, making ammo a
non-issue during any engagement.

Top-line weapons also feature smart targeting that allows them to correct for weather and
environment. Firing on a target in a howling gale feels the same as it does on a calm day on a practice
range. Smart targeting does not mean a bullet will automatically find the mark every time the trigger is
pulled; it only makes it easier for the marksman to aim.

CARNIFEX HEAVY PISTOL

A heavy semi-automatic pistol, the powerful Carnifex was the preferred choice of Milky Way
mercenaries. An expensive weapon, its marketing materials featured a charging krogan alongside the
tagline "Don't you wish Carnifex was at your side?"

M-23 KATANA SHOTGUN

The M-23 Katana was a popular shotgun among Milky Way soldiers, criminals, and civilians. It was
manufactured by Ariake Technologies, an Earth-based company eager to do business with the
Andromeda Initiative.

M-8 AVENGER ASSAULT RIFLE

A common and versatile assault rifle, The M-8 Avenger's modular design and inexpensive components
made it a favorite of military groups and mercenaries in the Milky Way. Many Avengers were acquired
for Andromeda Initiative security forces. The sturdy rifle has a reputation for being reliable and easy to
use.

BLACK WIDOW SNIPER RIFLE

A Smaller, higher-capacity variation of the Widow sniper rifle, the Black Widow fires three powerful
shots per thermal clip. Andromeda Initiative Engineers have adjusted the scope for improved optical
enhancement in a variety of atmospheres.

OMNI-TOOL WEAPONS
Although melee-combat applications for the omni-tool are almost as old as the device itself, the feature
was largely unused prior to the Reaper invasion. The need to take on multiple husks in close quarters
forced the Alliance to develop ways to enhance the tool's offensive capability.

The most common melee design is the "omni-blade," a disposable silicon-carbide weapon flash-forged
by the tool's mini-fabricator. The transparent, nearly diamond-hard blade is created and suspended in a
mass effect field safely away from the user's skin. Warning lights illuminate the field so the searing-hot
blade only burns what it is intended to: the opponent.

More technically adept soldiers frequently modify their omni-tools to maximize stopping power through
electrical, kinetic, or thermal energy. Some troops integrate their weapon with their kinetic barriers,
transforming the omni-tool into a wrist-mounted bludgeon; others fabricate flammable gases, held in
place by a mass effect field and ignited upon impact. All prove deadly surprises for opponents who
expect a disarmed Alliance warrior.

HEAVY WEAPONS
ML-77 MISSILE LAUNCHER

Based on existing technology, the ML-77 is a rapid-fire missile launcher using seeking projectiles. Each
projectile features a friend-or-foe recognition system, ensuring it will find a hostile target even if the
user's aim is not completely accurate.

The weapon excels at taking out snipers and other entrenched enemies in dense urban environments.
This makes it popular with mercenary groups, particularly the Blue Suns. Missile launchers have been
appearing with increasing frequency in the Terminus Systems, but their point of manufacture is
unknown. Legal duplication of missile launchers is difficult due to Fabrication Rights Management (FRM)
technology.

ARC PROJECTOR

"Laser-guided lightning" is how Cerberus operatives sum up this unusual weapon developed for use
against synthetic enemies. It was created for field operatives who required an anti-geth weapon but
found omni-tools too complex to master or too hard to fire in the throes of an adrenaline rush.

To make it as simple as possible to shoot, the arc projector has a single trigger that takes the weapon
through three operations. Depressing the first stage of the trigger causes the weapon to irradiate a
target with a neutron-driven gamma-ray laser, which projects a beam invisible to the naked eye. This
beam ionizes a thin corridor of air and any medium it passes through, including most solid targets. When
the second stage of the trigger is pulled, the projector generates a massive electrical impulse. This arcs
down the ionized corridor, causing trauma to living targets through tissue burns and mechanical force
(convulsions). Synthetic targets' circuits typically melt and fuse. By 22nd-century standards, the
weapon's power needs are not large -- it kills less through absolute amperage and more through
sustaining the current for more microseconds than, say, an actual bolt of lightning.

It is during the third stage of the trigger pull that the projector's autotargeting system works to its full
capacity. While it is still being projected during the electrical attack, the laser is reflected by movable
optical fibers in the weapon's business end to "paint" additional targets designated by the gun's
targeting computer. Given a new path of least resistance and surrounded by targets of differing
potential, the electrical jolt then arcs from its first target to hit additional enemies. The effect on massed
mechs is predictably devastating, as are the psychological effects on living foes, who suddenly discover
that neither shields nor cover can keep them safe.

M-622 AVALANCHE HEAVY WEAPON

Still in its experimental stages, the M-622 Avalanche generates a Bose-Einstein condensate within a
mass effect bubble which dissipates on impact, violently spraying the condensate outward and coating
the target in a near-absolute-zero superfluid.

The Avalanche is unreliable, at times merely coating its target with ice, defacing exposed skin and
freezing armor joints. Such low temperatures cause great damage to electronics like kinetic barrier
emitters, which sometimes leads to total systems failure. At the other extreme, the Avalanche freezes
flesh and bone, causing massive trauma as blood vessels constrict and frozen blood expands.
Occasionally such iced tissue shatters.

M-490 BLACKSTORM GRAVITY WEAPON

The Blackstorm Gravitational Singularity Projector is the brainchild of weapon designer Eli Wegner, one
of the few humans who earned the privilege of serving with asari commando units. Overawed with how
the asari could create biotic singularities to pull opponents out from behind cover, he was determined to
duplicate the feat technologically.

Wegner's team created a weapon that could elevate target particles of matter to near-infinite mass,
creating a gravitational singularity and drawing nearby objects inward for a short time. The rapidly-
increasing gravity rips the target apart as it pulls the enemy closer to the singularity's center. When the
mass effect field destabilizes and suddenly returns to normal mass, the result is explosive, and inflicts
additional trauma on the enemy.

The weapon almost didn't happen. Early designs were dangerously unstable: the science for creating a
hyper-dense mass effect field was well established, but projecting it at an adjustable range proved
elusive. It was only after six years of development that the weapon finally qualified for Systems Alliance
AIHW (Advanced Individual Heavy Weapon) trials. By that time, the singularity projector was rugged,
reliable, and easy to use and repair. It immediately went to field tests in a small-scale desert war on
Earth where the weapon terrified opponents who had never seen its effects before. The swirling sand
and dust sucking soldiers into its center served as the centerpiece of many propaganda videos. In the
resulting media coverage, the Wegner Arms M-490 GSP became known by its simpler nickname, the
"black hole gun." His dream finally a reality, Wegner personally altered its name to the more marketable
"Blackstorm."
M-920 CAIN HEAVY WEAPON

The M-920 Cain is a portable particle accelerator surrounding an array of dust-form element zero
chambers. This weapon prototype subjects its eezo to extreme positive and negative currents to project
mass effect fields. By increasing and decreasing mass, the fields shear the target's mass the way
disruptor torpedoes do. The shearing fields collide ambient materials at such high speeds, they create
mushroom clouds, an effect otherwise impossible on the small scale. The weapon induces neither fission
nor fusion in non-nuclear targets, and its own nuclear reactions are shielded by lead alloys. The M-920
Cain uses graphite rods as neutron moderators, which require frequent replacement to sustain power.
Fortunately, most heavy weapon ammunition can be re-fabricated via omni-tool into graphite rods.

The amount of charge-up time is understandable as the weapon is a juggernaut capable of unstoppable
destructive power.

STARSHIPS
Starships: Crew Considerations

Cabins give each individual ten cubic meters of space. On larger vessels private rooms are common. As
ships get smaller, the number of crew packed into a single wardroom increases. Asari prefer shared
spaces even on large vessels while krogan territorial instincts make it impossible for them to cohabitate
even on the largest ships.

On smaller vessels, "hot bunking" is the norm. Crew members are assigned different watches share the
same bunk. When one gets off-duty, he wakes up the person in the bunk. While that crewman is on
duty, the first gets his rack time.

Spacecraft compartments can be isolated by air-tight doors in case of decompression. The cinematic
version of explosive decompression is fiction; holed compartments either take enough damage that the
occupants are killed instantly, or leak slowly enough that they are able to reach protective gear.

Compartments are equipped with Emergency Life Supports Apparatus: fireproof plastic bubbles with air
bottles. Small when stowed, ELSA comfortably accommodate one individual inflated. Damage control
procedure cuts off ventilation to burning compartments. Without oxygen to consume, fires die in
seconds. The compartment is re-pressurized afterward for crew recovery.

Starships: Heat Management

Dispersal of heat generated by onboard systems is a critical issue for a ship. If it cannot deal with heat,
the crew may be cooked within the hull.

Radiation is the only way to shed heat in a vacuum. Civilian vessels utilize large, fragile radiator panels
that are impossible to armor. Warships use Diffuse Radiator Arrays (DRA), ceramic strips along the
exterior of the armored hull. These make the ship appear striped to thermographic sensors. Since the
arrangement of the strips depends on the internal configuration of the ship, the patterns for each vessel
are unique and striking. On older ships, the DRA strips could become red- or white-hot. Dubbed "tiger
stripes" or "war paint" by humans, the glowing DRA had a psychological impact on pirates and irregular
forces.
Strip radiators are not as efficient as panels, but if damaged by enemy fire, the ship only loses a small
portion of its total radiation capacity. In most cases, a vessel's DRA alone allows it to cruise with no
difficulties. Operations deep within solar systems can cause problems.

A ship engaged in combat can produce titanic amounts of heat from maneuvering burns and weapons
fire. When fighting in a high heat environment, warships employ high-efficiency "droplet" heat sinks.

In a droplet system, tanks of liquid sodium or lithium absorb heat within the ship. The liquid is vented
from spray nozzles near the bow as a thin sheet of millions of micrometer-scale droplets. The droplets
are caught at the stern and recycled into the system. A droplet system can sink 10-100 times as much
heat as DRA strips.

Droplet sheets resemble a surface ship's wake through water. The wake peels out in sharp turns,
spreading a fan of droplets as the ship changes vectors and leaves the coolant behind.

Starships: Sensors

"Light lag" prevents sensing in real time at great distances. A ship firing its thrusters at the Charon Relay
can be easily detected from Earth, 5.75 light-hours (six billion kilometers) away, but Earth will only see
the event five hours and 45 minutes after it occurs. Due to the light-speed limit, defenders can't see
enemies coming until they have already arrived. Because there is FTL travel and communications but no
FTL sensors, frigates are crucial for scouting and picket duties.

Passive sensors are used for long-range detection, while active sensors obtain short-range, high quality
targeting data.

Passive sensors include visual, thermographic, and radio detectors that watch and listen for objects in
space. A powered ship emits a great deal of energy; the heat of the life support systems; the radiation
given off by power plants and electrical equipment; the exhaust of the thrusters. Starships stand out
plainly against the near-absolute zero background of space. Passive sensors can be used during FTL
travel, but incoming data is significantly distorted by the effect of the mass effect envelope and Doppler
shift.

Active sensors are radars and high resolution ladars (LAser Detection And Ranging) that emit a "ping" of
energy and "listen" for return signals. Ladars have a narrower field of view than radar, but ladar
resolution allows images of detected objects to be assembled. Active sensors are useless when a ship is
moving at FTL speeds.

Starships: Thrusters

A mass effect drive core decreases the mass of a bubble of space-time around a ship. This gives the ship
the potential to move quickly, but does not apply any motive power. Ships use their sublight thrusters
for motive power in FTL. There are several varieties of thruster, varying in performance versus economy.
All ships are equipped with arrays of hydrogen-oxygen reaction control thrusters for maneuvering.

Ion drives electrically accelerate charged particles as a reaction mass. They are extremely efficient, but
produce negligible thrust. They are mainly used for automated cargo barges.

The primary commercial engine is a "fusion torch", which vents the plasma of a ship's power plant.
Fusion torches offer powerful acceleration at the cost of difficult heat management. Torch fuel is fairly
cheap: helium-3 skimmed from gas giants and deuterium extracted from seawater or cometary bodies.
Propellant is hydrogen, likewise skimmed from gas giants.

In combat, military vessels require accelerations beyond the capability of fusion torches. Warship
thrusters inject antiprotons into a reaction chamber filled with hydrogen. The matter-antimatter
annihilation provides unmatched motive power. The drawback is fuel production; antiprotons must be
manufactured one particle at a time. Most antimatter production is done at massive solar arrays orbiting
energetic stars, making them high-value targets in wartime.

The exhaust of fusion and antiproton drives is measured in millions of degrees Celsius. Any vessel caught
behind them will melt like wax in a blowtorch.

Any long-duration interstellar flight consists of two phases: acceleration and deceleration. Starships
accelerate to the half-way point of their journey, then flip 180 degrees and apply thrust on the opposite
vector, decelerating as they finish the trip. The engines are always operating, and peak speed is attained
at the middle of the flight.

MILITARY SHIP CLASSIFICATIONS

Larger warships are generally classified in one of four weights:

FRIGATES are small, fast ships used for scouting and screening larger vessels. Frigates often operate in
wolf-pack flotillas.

CRUISERS are middle-weight combatants, faster than dreadnoughts, and more heavily-armed then
frigates. Cruisers are the standard patrol unit, and often lead frigate flotillas.

DREADNOUGHTS are kilometer-long capital ships mounting heavy, long-range firepower. They are only
deployed for the most vital missions.

CARRIERS are dreadnought-sized vessels that also carry a large amount of fighters.

Smaller vessels are exclusively used in a support role to the warships during combat:

FIGHTERS are one-man craft used to perform close-range attacks on enemy ships.

INTERCEPTORS are one-man craft optimized for destroying opposing fighters.

STARSHIPS: FRIGATES

Frigates are light escort and scouting vessels. They often have extensive GARDIAN systems to provide
anti-fighter screening for capital ships, and carry a squad of marines for security and groundside duty.
Unlike larger vessels, frigates are able to land on planets.

Frigate drive systems allow them to achieve high FTL cruise speeds. They also have proportionally larger
thrusters and lighter design mass, allowing them to maneuver more handily. In combat, speed and
maneuverability make a frigate immune to the long-range fire of larger vessels; in the time it take
projectiles to reach them, frigates are no longer where they were predicted to be.

In fleet combat, frigates are organized into "wolf pack" flotillas of four to six. Wolf packs speed through
enemy formations, hunting enemy vessels whose kinetic barriers have been taken down by fighter-
launched disruptor torpedoes. The wolfspack circle-strafes vulnerable targets, using their superior speed
and maneuverability to evade return fire.

Alliance frigates are named for great battles in human history.

STARSHIPS: CRUISERS

Cruiser-weight starships are the standard combat unit encountered away from large naval bases, the
"poor bloody infantry" of most fleets. Nimble scouting frigates have neither the punch nor the stamina
to stand up to serious combat, and the mighty dreadnoughts are a strategic resource, carefully hoarded
and committed to the most critical battles.

Cruisers perform routine independent "show the flag" patrols in settled systems and lead flotillas of
frigates in small engagements, such as pirate suppression campaigns. In major fleet engagements,
cruiser squadrons support the dreadnought battle line by screening their flanks against enemies
attempting to maneuver for a main gun "bow shot" from their vulnerable broadsides.

Alliance cruisers are named after cities of Earth.

STARSHIPS: DREADNOUGHT

The dreadnought is the ultimate arbiter of space warfare; millions of tons of metal, ceramic, and
polymer dedicated to the projection of firepower against an enemy vessel of like ability. No sane
commander would face a dreadnought with anything less than another dreadnought.

A dreadnought's power lies in the length of its main gun. Dreadnoughts range from 800 meters to one
kilometer long, with a main gun of commensurate length. An 800-meter mass accelerator is capable of
accelerating one 20 kg. slug to a velocity of 4025 km/s every two seconds. Each slug has the kinetic
energy of 38 kilotons1 of TNT, three times the energy released by the fission weapon that destroyed
Hiroshima.

When used to bombard planets, some of this kinetic energy is lost due to atmospheric re-entry friction.
As a rule of thumb, each Earth-atmosphere of air pressure saps approximately 20% of a projectile's
impact energy.

The Turian fleet presently has 37 dreadnoughts; the asari, 21; and the Salarians, 16. Humanity has six
with an additional hull under construction at Arcturus Station. Alliance battleships are named for the
mountains of Earth.

Everest-class: Everest, Fuji, Elbrus.

Kilimanjaro-class: Kilimanjaro, Tai Shan, Shasta, Aconcagua (under construction).

STARSHIPS: CARRIERS

All races provide their fleets with organic fighter support. Cruisers fit a handful in the space between the
interior pressure hulls and exterior armor. Dreadnoughts have a hangar deck within the hull. Humans –
who had only recently "graduated" from surface to space combat – were the first to build ships wielding
fighters as the main armament.
In fleet combat, carriers stay clear of battle, launching fighters bearing disruptor torpedoes. Fighters are
the primary striking power of the ship; if a carrier enters mass accelerator range of the enemy, things
have gone very wrong.

It is possible to recover and rearm fighters during combat, though most carriers seal the flight deck and
try to stay out of the way. The flight deck is essentially a corridor through the armor and into the heart
of the vessel. A single well-placed torpedo is enough to gut a carrier.

Alliance carriers are named after great leaders, artists, and intellectuals from human history.\

Starships: Fighters

Fighters are single-pilot combat small craft. They are lightweight enough that they can be economically
fitted with powerful element zero cores, making them capable of greater acceleration and sharper
maneuvers than starships.

Kinetic barrier shields changed starship battles from short, vicious bloodbaths to extended, indecisive
slugging matches. Only the main gun of a dreadnought could punch a mass accelerator slug through the
barriers of an opposing dreadnought. This changed with the development of the fighter-launched mass
disruptor torpedo, a short-ranged weapon that can penetrate kinetic barriers to destroy their projector
assemblies.

Starship GARDIAN defenses must be overwhelmed through swarm tactics. Fighter groups can take heavy
casualties pressing their torpedo attacks home. Once fighter-launched torpedoes have crippled an
enemy's barriers, the mass accelerators on frigates and cruisers can make short work of them.

Interceptors are a type of fighter optimized to attack other fighters, with no ability to damage starships.
Interceptors are used to screen friendly units from incoming fighter attack.

Starships: Quarian Liveships

There are few wide-open spaces in quarian spacecrafts; liveships are the exception. Each ship is a
massive hydroponics facility, growing thousands of tons of genetically modified staple crops under
artificial light and in highly enriched soil.

The surface of a liveship is studded with docking bays so as many shuttles as possible can distribute the
foods throughout the flotilla on a daily basis. When received, the crops are sterilized with radiation,
ground up into nutritious paste, and pumped into quarian suits through feeding tubes. In return, waste
products are that could be used as fertilizer or compost are returned to the liveships through an efficient
(if odorous) recycling program.

Liveships do not hold animals. The quarians consume a vegan diet, driven not by ethics but by
practicality. Captive animals require living space, and consume large amounts of water and plant matter.
The quarians cannot afford such an inefficient resource-to-calorie ratio, to say nothing of a live animal's
disease or allergen potential. As a result, when the flotilla arrives in a star system where life is based on
the same dextro-amino acids that the quarians consume, pastes based on animal proteins fetch highly
inflated prices, and the vendors are typically mobbed by quarians wanting a new taste sensation. The
sickness that often follows these binges is treated much the same way as hangovers are in human
culture; painful, but part of the overall experience of excess.
ARK HYPERION
Hyperion represents one of several Arks specifically designed for the Andromeda Initiative’s mission.
While its support staff is comprised of a variety of Milky Way races, Hyperion is primarily responsible for
the transport of human colonists to Andromeda. At more than one-and-a-half kilometers long and
weighing 17 million metric-tons, Hyperion – and its sister Arks – rank among the largest starships in the
galaxy. Hyperion is currently in the final stages of construction within the moon’s orbit.

UT-47 Kodiak "Drop-Shuttle"

The Systems Alliance UT-47 drop-shuttle landing craft holds 12 soldiers in a cramped, uncomfortable
cargo bay and two more in the cockpit. Officially named the Kodiak, the drop-shuttle is better known to
Alliance marines as the "combat cockroach" due to its appearance and durability.

The vehicle's robust environmental sealant technology exposes few vulnerable parts to the elements.
First tested in the sulfuric acid clouds and extreme temperatures of Venus, the Kodiak can land in hard
vacuum, high pressure, and temperatures from near-absolute zero to over 900 degrees Celsius.

A true contragravitic vehicle, the Kodiak's substantial element zero core allows flight by entirely
countering the vehicle's mass. Its small thrusters are for directional control only, so if the mass effect
field fails, the vehicle becomes a proverbial "three-million-credit coffin." The unarmed shuttle forgoes
weaponry-space for active masking, electronic countermeasures, and a robust kinetic barrier system. It
is ideal for dropping troops undetected.

Originally created to covertly insert Alliance marines into hostile environments, the UT-47 shuttle has
since been sold to allies, recovered by enemies, and had its specifications stolen by spies. In one form or
another, this durable transport is now used in all corners of the galaxy.

A-model Kodiaks feature a front-mounted mass-accelerator cannon that can be used in an antivehicular
role. Since the shuttle lacks proper gun ports, soldiers often open the side hatch to fire on enemies. This
is discouraged in Alliance manuals, since it exposes the interior to return fire.

Flying the 47A during atmospheric combat requires considerable skill. The pilot must reduce the
vehicle's mass for speed and handling, while maintaining enough mass to resist recoil, incoming fire, and
inclement weather. More than one pilot had overstressed the Kodiak's field generator and ended up on
the battlefield instead of above it.

A-61 MANTIS GUNSHIP

The workhorse of mercenary bands throughout the galaxy, the Mantis is a two-man, vectored-thrust
aircraft that excels in close air support roles. Highly modular in construction, the Mantis can be
reconfigured as a low-altitude gunship, a fighter, a high-altitude bomber, or even a single-stage-to-orbit
spaceplane that can engage enemy craft around a planet or space station. The only role that the Mantis
cannot perform is that of a true deep-space fighter, as it has no FTL drive.

First rolled off the assembly lines in 2170, the Mantis remains in service in dozens of armies across the
galaxy. It is most commonly used as air support in pitched ground battles, in a configuration that sports
two pods for Inferno PKRs (Precision Kill Rockets) and a chin-mounted M350 mass accelerator cannon.
Its kinetic barriers, thermal decoy system, and electronic countermeasures suite make the Mantis far
less vulnerable to surface-to-air attacks than previous generations of aircraft. Like most modern planes,
the Mantis uses an element zero core to ease the load of the engines with a mass effect field, allowing it
to take off vertically or hover in place using minimum fuel. This also gives it far greater range and speed
than the helicopters and jump-jet aircraft that once filled its niche -- a Mantis can take off from Baton
Rouge, reach Moscow in a few hours, fly a ground attack mission, and return home before having to
refuel.

COMBAT DRONES
Drones are small robots used to support and supplement organic soldiers on the battlefield. They have
no artificial intelligence of any kind, but follow fixed, minimally adaptive programs. Most varieties
employ mass effect levitation to improve mobility.

All modern armies rely on veritable fleets of drones for routine soldiering (static garrisons, patrols, etc.).
The use of drones in non-critical duties keeps manpower need down and reduces casualties in low
intensity conflicts. Less advanced races and cultures with less sensitivity to casualties have
correspondingly fewer drones in their inventory. Drones are of little use in conventional open field
battles, as they are poorly armed and armored.

In addition to combat drones, support drones are used to assist organic units in the field.
Reconnaissance drones are small, stealthy craft that screen combat units in the field and warn
commanders when enemies are spotted. Electronic Warfare drones supplement battlefield technicians,
serving as mobile jammers and ELINT (ELectronic INTelligence) gathering platforms. Military and civilian
police utilize "dazzler drones" equipped with powerful strobe lights to disorient and subdue intruders
using nonlethal force.

Drone formations are officially referred to in wings (i.e., "Deploy the 4th Assault Drone Wing on the left
flank!"). Common soldiers often refer to friendly formations as flocks and enemy formations as swarms.

SECURITY MECHS
The death of thousands of security and military personnel in the Battle of the Citadel was a loss felt
throughout the galaxy. As large numbers of qualified personnel transferred to the Citadel to replace
those that died, short-handed security companies filled out their numbers with large-scale use of
unmanned security robots. Commonly referred to as "mechs", the security robots are typically grouped
into light and heavy varieties. Light mechs come in a variety of sizes but are easily distinguished by
opposable digits that help them in their versatile security roles. Heavy mechs lack digits and are simply
weapons platforms intended to keep the peace in high-threat areas. The quadrupedal dog mech has a
"face" composed of contraband-detection sensors, and it too is armed in case a perpetrator resists
arrest.

A typical security mech has an extremely limited virtual intelligence. Its duty is straightforward and
narrow, usually to guard an area, run a friend-or-foe program to halt unauthorized access, and fire a set
of prerecorded voice commands to warn troublemakers away from the area. Light security mechs are
equipped with irritant sprays and electroshockers to force compliance, and heavy mechs may be
outfitted with flash-bang stunners for similar purposes. When facing an opponent armed with a firearm,
any mech will immediately resort to lethal antipersonnel weapons to neutralize the threat. If the
situation turns violent rapidly enough, it may not even use its warnings.

Security mechs are frowned upon for actual military duty. Though tough enough to survive most
firefights, their VI simply does not have the programming to plan an ambush, rescue a hostage, treat a
wound, or any of countless other objectives that a soldier must be able to perform on the fly.

SPACE COMBAT
Ship mobility dominates space combat; the primary objective is to align the mass accelerator along the
bow with the opposing vessel's broadside. Battles typically play out as artillery duels fought at ranges
measured in thousands of kilometers, though assault through defended mass relays often occur at
"knife fight" ranges as close as a few dozen kilometers.

Most ship-to-ship engagements are skirmishes between patrol vessels of cruiser weight and below, with
dreadnoughts and carriers only deployed in full-scale fleet actions. Battles in open space are short and
often inconclusive, as the weaker opponent generally disengages.

Once a ship enters FTL flight the combat is effectively over; there are no sensors capable of tracking
them, or weapons capable of damaging them. The only way to guarantee an enemy will stand and fight
is to attack a location they have a vested interest in, such as a settled world or a strategically-important
mass relay.

Space Combat: Combat Endurance

Heat limits the length and intensity of ship-to-ship combat. Starships generate enormous heat when
they fire high-energy weapons, perform maneuvering burns, and run on-board combat electronics.

In combat, warships produce heat more quickly than they can disperse it. As heat builds within a vessel,
the crewed spaces become increasingly uncomfortable. Before the heat reaches lethal levels, a ship
must win or retreat by entering FTL. After an FTL run, the ships halts, shuts down non-essential systems,
and activates the heat radiation gear.

Combat endurance varies by ship design and by the battle's location. Battles in the deep cold of
interstellar space can go on for some time. Engagements close to a star are brief. Since habitable worlds
are usually close to a star, battles over them are usually more frantic.

Space Combat: General Tactics

Shells lofted by surface navies crash back to earth when their acceleration is overwhelmed by gravity
and air resistance. In space, a projectile has unlimited range; it will keep moving until it hits something.

Practical gunnery range is determined by the velocity of the attacker's ordnance and the
maneuverability of the target. Beyond a certain range, a small ship's ability to dodge trumps a larger
attacker's projectile speed. The longest-ranged combat occurs between dreadnoughts, whose projectiles
have the highest velocity but are the least maneuverable. The shortest-range combat is between
frigates, which have the slowest projectile velocities and highest maneuverability.
Opposing dreadnoughts open with a main gun artillery duel at EXTREME ranges of tens of thousands of
kilometers. The fleets close, maintaining evasive lateral motion while keeping their bow guns facing the
enemy. Fighters are launched and attempt to close to disruptor torpedo range. Cautious admirals
weaken the enemy with ranged fire and fighter strikes before committing to close action. Aggressive
commanders advance so cruisers and frigates can engage.

At LONG range, the main guns of cruisers become useful. Friendly interceptors engage enemy fighters
until the attackers enter the range of ship-based GARDIAN fire. Dreadnoughts fire from the rear,
screened by smaller ships. Commanders must decide whether to commit to a general melee or retreat
into FTL.

At MEDIUM range, ships can use broadside guns. Fleets intermingle, and it becomes difficult to retreat
in order. Ships with damaged kinetic barriers are vulnerable to wolf pack frigate flotillas that speed
through the battle space.

Only fighters and frigates enter CLOSE 'knife fight' ranges of 10 or fewer kilometers. Fighters loose their
disruptor torpedoes, bringing down a ship's kinetic barriers and allowing it to be swarmed by frigates.
GARDIAN lasers become viable weapons, swatting down fighters and boiling away warship armor.

Neither dreadnoughts nor cruisers can use their main guns at close range; laying the bow on a moving
target becomes impossible. Superheated thruster exhaust becomes a hazard.

Space Combat: Pursuit Tactics

Dependent on light, sensors cannot detect objects moving at a faster-than-light speeds. No ship can be
detected at interstellar ranges. Detection at interplanetary ranges suffers from light speed lag: observers
see ships not where they appear to be but where they were when the light bearing their image left
them, minutes, hours, or days before. To counteract light speed lag, battle fleets surround themselves
with spheres of screen and scouting frigates.

Pursuers cannot detect ships and directly intercept them. Instead, pursuers track where objects were,
where they were heading, and at what speed they were moving. Such data reliably predicts an object's
future location and for pursuit along its light-lagged "wake". Ships trying to evade pursuit follow erratic
zigzag courses, requiring pursuers to make stops to update their projections.

Space Combat: Planetary Assaults

Planetary assaults are complicated if the target is a habitable garden world; the attackers cannot
approach the defenders straight on.

The Citadel Conventions prohibit the use of large kinetic impactors against habitable worlds. In a
straight-on attack, any misses plough into the planet behind the defending fleet. If the defenders
position themselves between the attackers and the planet, they can fire at will while the attacker risks
hitting the planet.

Successful assaults on garden worlds hinge upon up-to-date intelligence. Attackers need to determine
where the enemy's defenses are, so they may approach from an angle that allows them to fire with no
collateral damage. Note this is not necessary for hostile worlds.
Once control of orbit has been lost, defensive garrisons disperse into the wilderness. An enemy with
orbital superiority can bombard surface forces with impunity. The best option for defenders is to hide
and collect reconnaissance in anticipation of relief forces.

Given the size of a planet, it is impractical to garrison entire conquered worlds. Fortunately, colonization
efforts tend to focus on building up a dozen or fewer areas. Ground forces occupy the spaceports,
industrial facilities, and major population centers. The wilderness is patrolled by unmanned aerial
vehicles1 and satellite reconnaissance. If a defender unit is spotted, airmobile rapid deployment units
and satellite artillery are used to pin down and destroy them.

Space Combat: Trans-Relay Assaults

The crucial choice for any attack through mass relays is how to divide the fleet for transit. The accuracy
of a relay's mass-projection depends on the mass being moved and how far it’s going. Any long distance
and/or high mass jump will see "drift". That is, a ship may be hundreds or millions of kilometers from its
intended drop point, in any direction from the relay.

Distance can't be chosen by admirals, but a relay is told how much mass to transit. For example, if told
to move a million metric tons of mass, the relay will scan the approach corridor, find four 250,000-ton
freighters, and transit them together, maintaining their relative positions.

A commander has the option of moving his fleet as one large, coherent formation that may be wildly off-
position, or breaking it up into many smaller formations that will be individually closer to the intended
attack point, but could be widely dispersed.

Conservative assault doctrine holds that fleets should be moved en masse, maintaining concentration of
force and reducing the chances of collision. The only time it is reasonable to split up a formation is
during blockade running.

M35 MAKO
The "Mako" infantry fighting vehicle was designed for the System Alliance's frigates. Though the interior
is cramped, an M35 is small enough to be carried in the cargo bay and easily deployed on virtually any
world.

With its turreted mass accelerator and coaxially-mounted machine gun, the Mako can provide a fire
team with weapon support as well as mobility. Since Alliance marines may be required to fight on any
world, the Mako is environmentally-sealed and equipped with microthrusters for use on low-gravity
planetoids.

The Mako is powered by a sealed hydrogen-oxygen fuel cell, and includes a small element zero core.
While not large enough to nullify the vehicle's mass, the core can reduce it enough to be safely air-
dropped. When used in conjunction with the thrusters, it also allows the Mako to extricate itself from
difficult terrain.
5. SCIENCE AND BIOLOGY
THE GENOPHAGE
The genophage bioweapon was created to end the Krogan Rebellions. The turians fought the krogan to a
standstill, but the sheer weight of krogan numbers indicated they could not be stopped through
conventional means. The turians collaborated with the salarians to engineer a genetic counter to the
krogan's rapid breeding.

The genophage virus replicated by 'eating' key genetic sequences, altering every cell of krogan
physiology so the krogan could not use gene therapy to fix the affected tissues. Once a genophage strain
could replicate no more, it would starve and die, limiting mutation and contamination. In addition, the
'created' genetic flaw is hereditary. The resulting mutation made only one in a thousand krogan
pregnancies carry to term, reducing offspring viability rather than fertility. Krogan warlords fought
battles over the females able to carry children to term.

The release of the genophage is still controversial and bitterly debated in many circles.

THE SHROUD
What the krogan call the Shroud is a technological remnant of the Salarian Uplift. After Tuchanka's
nuclear war released tons of smoke and dust into the atmosphere, the planet temporarily cooled from
global dimming--except at the poles, where the albedo was lowered by soot. As clouds trapped the
resulting heat, enormous swaths of permafrost melted, releasing methane captured in clathrates from
previous millennia. This potent greenhouse gas created a runaway heat cycle that was called "the
nuclear summer."

Without intervention, Tuchanka would have sunk into a slow but certain mass extinction. The salarian
solution was to assemble the Shroud, a permanent sun shield of trillions of tiny diffractory lenses placed
at the L1 Lagrange point, the point in space where the lenses' naturally stable orbit would shade the
planet.

The salarians settled on a delivery method that became known as the Shroud Towers. The towers were
essentially enormous coilguns that could fire a payload of lenses into space along with the equipment
necessary to monitor the payload's trajectories. Many krogan warlords enthusiastically approved of the
plan, some because they believed in saving their homeworld, but most because they saw future military
applications for the Shroud Towers. The Shroud was completed on schedule over the next few decades,
by which time the rachni held the warlords' full attention.
The Krogan Rebellions were not kind to the Shroud Towers. All but one was destroyed during the push
for krogan demilitarization. The remaining tower, often referred to as "the Shroud" even though that is
technically incorrect, was repurposed for cloud seeding and atmospheric repair. It remains on the
landscape as an anachronism, a symbol of a time when krogan and salarians helped themselves by
aiding one another.

6. GOVERNMENT, ECONOMICS, AND SOCIETY

CREDITS ("CREDS")
The standard credit was established by the Citadel's Unified Banking Act as the currency of interstellar
trade. The credit has a managed floating exchange rate, calculated in real time by the central bank to
maintain the average value of all participating currencies. Some regional currencies are worth more than
a credit and some less.

Hard currency can be stolen or counterfeited, so electronic fund transfers are the norm. More
importantly physical transactions cannot easily be tracked, making them ideal for tax evasion or the
purchase of illegal goods.

When the Alliance joined the Citadel, its various national treasuries were linked into the credit network.
A human with a bank account of Mexican pesos, Japanese yen, or Indian rupees can purchase any item
priced in credits at fair market value. All economies participate in the credit network are required to
price items in both local currency and credits.