How to save everyone in Mass Effect 2’s Suicide Mission
Prepare loyalty and ship upgrades, choose safe specialists and protect the team holding the line.
Original Mass Effect 2 (2010), with original PC publisher images; not the Legendary Edition remaster. Core recruitment and finale advice applies to the original campaign. Zaeed and Kasumi require their original downloadable content and are optional alternatives where named.
Finish preparation before the late-game countdown
Major spoilers follow. Recruit the full available team, complete their loyalty missions successfully and resolve disputes without leaving either participant disloyal. Do as much of this as possible before Reaper IFF. After recruiting Legion, activate and talk to it promptly to obtain its loyalty mission; avoid treating the post-IFF period as unlimited cleanup time.
Research the Normandy’s three survival upgrades
Install Heavy Ship Armor from Jacob’s suggestion, Multicore Shielding from Tali and the Thanix Cannon from Garrus. The armor and shields each cost 15,000 palladium; the cannon costs 15,000 platinum. These are separate research projects. Merely talking about an upgrade or owning enough minerals does not install it.
Go immediately after the crew is abducted
Once the Normandy’s crew has been taken, use the Omega-4 Relay without completing another mission if your goal is to rescue the entire abducted crew. This crew-rescue timing is separate from squadmate loyalty. A fully loyal combat team does not undo casualties caused by leaving the captured crew waiting.
Choose loyal specialists for the assigned roles
For the vents, choose loyal Tali or Legion; loyal Kasumi is another option with her DLC. Use loyal Garrus, Jacob or Miranda as fire-team leader at both selections. For the biotic barrier, use loyal Jack or Samara, with Morinth as an alternative if recruited. Send loyal Mordin back as the rescued crew’s escort.
Keep strong defenders with the rear team
For a straightforward survival setup, take loyal Tali and Jack into the final fight and leave Garrus and Grunt to defend, plus Zaeed if his DLC is installed. This assumes the full available squad is alive and loyal and Mordin has escorted the crew. The rear team’s defensive strength is checked separately, so loyalty alone is not a guarantee with arbitrary final-team choices.
More Mass Effect 2 quick answers
Mass Effect 2 classes and powers: which Shepard suits your playstyle?Mass Effect 2 planet scanning and research: where your minerals goKeep a manual save before Reaper IFF and audit actual loyalty and completed research, not just completed journal entries.
Picture details
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References
- Prima official Mass Effect 2 guide: Endgame
- Prima official Mass Effect 2 guide: Normandy Upgrades
- Prima official Mass Effect 2 guide: Reaper IFF
- Prima official Mass Effect 2 guide: Collector Station
- GameSpot: Mass Effect 2 walkthrough
- GameFAQs: original Mass Effect 2 squadmate guide and Hold the Line values