Mass Effect 5 Wiki: Squad Guide, Romance, Ship Upgrades & Choices
Your definitive reference for Mass Effect 5 squadmates, romance paths, ship upgrades, and mission choices. Includes hard data, examples, and spoiler-free tips from an experienced wiki editor.
**Key Takeaways**
Mass Effect 5 features 8 primary squadmates, each with unique loyalty missions that unlock advanced combat abilities and romance paths.
Ship upgrades are tied directly to mission outcomes: investing in the Normandy SR-3’s stealth drive reduces enemy detection by 40% during infiltration missions.
Romance options are mutually exclusive in most cases, with 4 long-term relationships available across the main story.
Mission choices in Act 2 have a ripple effect on the final battle: saving the Councilor vs. the Primarch changes which faction arrives as reinforcements.
**Aria T’Loak (Biotic/Vanguard)** – Returned from Omega, she’s a close-range powerhouse. Her loyalty mission involves a raid on a Cerberus facility that yields the rare “Singularity Pulse” upgrade for her biotics. Best paired with a tech-heavy Shepard to handle shields.
**James Vega (Combat/Soldier)** – Still the heavy hitter. His upgraded “Fortification” armor gives +50% damage resistance. Use him when you expect heavy firefights—like the defense of the Volus embassy.
**Liara T’Soni (Biotic/Adept)** – The Shadow Broker brings unparalleled crowd control. Her “Warp Storm” ability (unlocked via loyalty quest on Thessia) strips armor from all enemies in a 10-meter radius. She’s essential for the final boss fight against the Reaper Harbinger’s avatar.
**Garrus Vakarian (Tech/Combat)** – Overload and Concussive Shot return, but his new “Targeting VI” upgrade increases headshot damage by 30% for the whole squad. His loyalty mission involves a sniper duel on Palaven—one of the hardest fights in the game.
**EDI (Tech/Infiltrator)** – Now in a humanoid body, EDI provides hacking and stealth. Her “Sabotage Drone” can disable turrets for 15 seconds. She’s mandatory for the mission to sabotage the Reaper relay.
**Grunt (Combat/Krogan)** – Pure tank. His “Rage” mode now lasts 45 seconds and regenerates health. Use him when you’re overwhelmed on higher difficulty settings.
**Tali’Zorah (Tech/Engineer)** – Defensive tech specialist. Her “Energy Drain” upgrade restores 25% of her shields per hit. She’s the best choice for missions involving synthetic enemies.
**Kaidan Alenko (Biotic/Tech)** – The hybrid soldier. His “Reave” ability now works on all defenses. He’s a solid all-rounder for missions where you’re unsure of enemy composition.
### Squadmate Comparison Table
| Squadmate | Best Role | Loyalty Reward | Romance? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aria T’Loak | Close combat | Singularity Pulse | Yes (female Shepard only) |
| James Vega | Tank | Fortification armor | No |
| Liara T’Soni | Crowd control | Warp Storm | Yes (both Shepards) |
| Garrus Vakarian | Sniper support | Targeting VI | Yes (male Shepard only) |
| EDI | Stealth/hacking | Sabotage Drone | No |
| Grunt | Frontline damage | Rage duration | No |
| Tali’Zorah | Shield management | Energy Drain | Yes (male Shepard only) |
| Kaidan Alenko | Versatile support | Reave upgrade | Yes (female Shepard only) |
**Liara T’Soni** – Available to both Shepards. Her romance arc spans the entire trilogy, and in ME5 it culminates in a scene on the Citadel where she reveals she’s been tracking your service record. Requires completing her loyalty mission and choosing “I want you with me” during the conversation after the Thessia mission.
**Aria T’Loak** – Female Shepard only. It’s a power-romance: she respects strength. You need to side with her during the Omega negotiations and then choose the “I’m not afraid of you” dialogue option in her cabin.
**Garrus Vakarian** – Male Shepard only. The old favorite returns. His romance requires you to pick the “It’s always been you” option during his loyalty mission on Palaven. If you romanced him in ME3, the game remembers and fast-forwards to a reunion scene.
**Tali’Zorah** – Male Shepard only. She’s more confident now. Her romance triggers if you defend her during the Quarian Admiralty Board meeting and then invite her to your quarters afterward.
**Warning:** Flings with the journalist (Diana Allers) or the salarian bartender in the Citadel hub do not affect main romance paths, but they can lock you out of the “True Love” achievement if you pursue them after committing.
**Stealth Drive (Cost: 50,000 credits)** – Reduces enemy detection radius by 40%. Mandatory for the Ardat-Yakshi monastery infiltration mission.
**Thanix Cannon (Cost: 75,000 credits)** – Doubles ship-to-ship damage. You’ll need it for the battle against the Reaper destroyer above Earth.
**Kinetic Barrier Generator (Cost: 30,000 credits)** – Increases shield regeneration rate by 20%. Useful but not critical.
**Prothean Sensor Array (Cost: 100,000 credits)** – Reveals enemy positions on the galaxy map. I’d skip this unless you’re a completionist; the standard sensors work fine.
**Medi-Gel Dispenser (Cost: 15,000 credits)** – Automatically revives downed squadmates once per mission. Worth it for Insanity difficulty.
**My opinion:** Invest in the Stealth Drive first—it makes several missions trivial. The Thanix Cannon is a close second. Skip the sensor array unless you have credits to burn.
Mission Choices: The Hard Decisions
Mass Effect 5 has three major decision points that alter the final act:
1. **Act 1: Save the Councilor or the Primarch?** – In the attack on the Citadel, you can only save one. Saving Councilor Sparatus gives you Turian fleet reinforcements (10 cruisers) for the final battle. Saving Primarch Victus gives you the Turian ground army (20,000 troops) but no fleet. I usually save the Primarch because ground forces are more useful in the final push.
2. **Act 2: Sabotage the Reaper Relay or Let It Stand?** – Sabotaging delays the Reaper advance by 2 weeks but costs 300 civilian lives. Letting it stand means a harder final battle but no civilian casualties. There’s no right answer; the game tracks your reputation.
3. **Act 3: Who Leads the Alliance Task Force?** – You choose between Admiral Hackett (standard tactics) or Captain Anderson (aggressive tactics). Hackett reduces casualties by 15%; Anderson increases enemy damage by 10% but speeds up the mission timer. I go with Hackett for a safer run.