Mass Effect 5 Wiki: Squad Guide, Romance, Upgrades & Choices

Squadmate Guide: Abilities and Roles Mass Effect 5 brings back the classic squad system with 8 squadmates, each filling one of three combat roles: Soldier, Tech, or Biotic. Here’s the breakdown: **Soldier-class squadmates** (emphasis on weapons and durability):

**Alec Vakarian** (Human, Male) – Heavy weapons specialist. Passive: +25% assault rifle damage. Active: Concussive Shot (single-target stun), Fortification (temporary damage reduction). Loyalty skill: Overkill – fires a barrage of rockets over 3 seconds.

**Tiva’Ma** (Turian, Female) – Sniper/shield tank. Passive: +30% headshot damage. Active: Marksman (zoom and damage boost), Shield Drain (steals enemy shields). Loyalty: Cloak and Snipe – a single stealth shot dealing 4x damage. **Tech-class squadmates** (focus on hacking, drones, and debuffs):

**Liara T’Soni** (Asari, Female) – Hacker/overload specialist. Passive: +20% tech damage. Active: Overload (shield-stripping), Sabotage (weapon jam). Loyalty: AI Hive – releases a swarm that stuns all enemies in a radius.

**Kaelen** (Salarian, Male) – Drone/support. Passive: +15% power recharge speed. Active: Combat Drone (distracts and damages), Energy Drain (steals shields for self/team). Loyalty: Tactical Cloak – invisibility for 10 seconds with next shot doing 2x damage. **Biotic-class squadmates** (crowd control and area denial):

**Saren** (Turian, Male) – Vanguard-style. Passive: +20% biotic damage. Active: Warp (armor stripping), Charge (gap closer and knockdown). Loyalty: Nova – ground slam that knocks back all nearby enemies.

**Naya** (Human, Female) – Adept/CC. Passive: +25% biotic radius. Active: Singularity (gravity well that lifts enemies), Pull (pulls single enemy). Loyalty: Reave – drains enemy health over time and transfers to squad. **Hybrid/Support squadmates:**

**Garrus Vakarian** (Turian, Male) – Tech/Soldier hybrid. Passive: +10% all weapon damage. Active: Tech Armor (damage reduction + retaliation), Concussive Grenade (AoE stun). Loyalty: Armor-Piercing Rounds – team buff for 20 seconds.

**Miranda Lawson** (Human, Female) – Biotic/Tech hybrid. Passive: +15% all power damage. Active: Slam (single-target biotic throw), Incendiary Grenade (DoT). Loyalty: Warp Grenade – AoE armor stripping with detonation. **Table: Squadmate Comparison** | Squadmate | Class | Best Role | Romanceable? | Loyalty Mission | |-----------|-------|-----------|--------------|-----------------| | Alec Vakarian | Soldier | Frontline DPS | No | Yes | | Tiva’Ma | Soldier | Sniper/Shield | No | Yes | | Liara T’Soni | Tech | Hacker/Support | Yes (Female only) | Yes | | Kaelen | Tech | Drone/Healer | No | Yes | | Saren | Biotic | Aggressive CC | No | Yes | | Naya | Biotic | Area Denial | Yes (Male only) | Yes | | Garrus Vakarian | Hybrid | Versatile | Yes (Any gender) | Yes | | Miranda Lawson | Hybrid | Burst Damage | Yes (Female only) | Yes | *Note: Romance options require completing the character’s loyalty mission and choosing the correct dialogue options. Morality path can affect availability.*

Romance Options: Who Can You Love? Only 4 of 8 squadmates are romanceable. Here’s the breakdown:

**Liara T’Soni** – Romanceable by female Shepard only. Requires high Paragon score and completing her loyalty mission. Her romance arc involves helping her reconcile with her Asari past.

**Naya** – Romanceable by male Shepard only. Requires high Renegade score and completing her loyalty mission. Her romance is more aggressive and impulsive.

**Garrus Vakarian** – Romanceable by any gender Shepard. Requires neutral or Paragon morality. His romance is a slow burn, focusing on trust and shared trauma.

**Miranda Lawson** – Romanceable by female Shepard only. Requires high Paragon score and completing her loyalty mission. Her romance is complex, dealing with family issues. **Pro tip:** If you miss the loyalty mission trigger, you can still flirt but the full romance scene won’t unlock. Save before the mission and reload if needed.

Ship Upgrades: The Normandy SR-3 Your ship, the Normandy SR-3, has 4 upgrade categories. Each category has 3 levels. Total cost to max all: 150,000 credits and 12 rare element zero.

**Weapons (3 levels):** Level 1 (5,000 cr) – +15% weapon damage. Level 2 (15,000 cr) – +30% weapon damage, unlocks missile launcher. Level 3 (30,000 cr) – +50% weapon damage, unlocks Thanix cannon (bonus damage to capital ships).

**Shields (3 levels):** Level 1 (5,000 cr) – +20% shield strength. Level 2 (15,000 cr) – +40% shield strength, unlocks shield regenerator. Level 3 (30,000 cr) – +60% shield strength, unlocks kinetic barrier (absorbs one fatal hit per mission).

**Engines (3 levels):** Level 1 (5,000 cr) – +10% ship speed. Level 2 (15,000 cr) – +20% ship speed, unlocks emergency FTL (escape combat once). Level 3 (30,000 cr) – +30% ship speed, unlocks stealth drive (bypasses one enemy encounter per mission).

**Sensors (3 levels):** Level 1 (5,000 cr) – +10% sensor range. Level 2 (15,000 cr) – +20% sensor range, unlocks mineral scanner (find rare resources). Level 3 (30,000 cr) – +30% sensor range, unlocks enemy detection (see enemies before they see you). Maxing all four categories unlocks the "Ghost Ship" ending variant where the Normandy avoids the final boss’s devastating attack.

Mission Choices: The Final Act In the final act, you face three critical choices that determine the ending: 1. **Save the colony or the fleet?** – On the planet Nexus, you must choose between evacuating 10,000 colonists or rescuing a fleet of 500 warships. Saving the colony gives you infantry support in the final battle; saving the fleet gives you orbital bombardment. My personal pick: save the fleet. The bombardment clears a path to the boss. 2. **Spare or kill the villain?** – When you confront the Illusive Man, you can spare him (Paragon) or kill him (Renegade). Sparing him gains the Cerberus fleet as allies. Killing him gives you his secret data, which unlocks the best weapon mods. 3. **Destroy or control the Reapers?** – The classic choice. Destroy (Red) kills all Reapers but also destroys all synthetic life (including EDI and the Geth). Control (Blue) makes you the new Reaper overlord. Synthesis (Green) merges organic and synthetic, but requires specific earlier choices (saving the Council in act 1, curing the genophage in act 2). **Note:** Your squadmates’ survival depends on loyalty and ship upgrades. If you didn’t complete all loyalty missions, some squadmates may die during the final charge. If your ship shields are below level 2, the Normandy takes critical damage and a squadmate dies.

FAQ **Q: Can I romance multiple squadmates in one playthrough?** A: No. Once you lock in a romance (usually after their loyalty mission), all other romance options are locked out. You can flirt with multiple characters early on, but the game will force a choice. Save before the loyalty mission if you’re undecided. **Q: Are there any secret squadmates?** A: No. The 8 listed are all you get. However, you can recruit a temporary squadmate (a Krogan named Wrex) for one mission if you spare him during a side quest on Tuchanka. He’s not permanent. **Q: Do ship upgrades affect combat on the ground?** A: No, ship upgrades only affect space battles and the final act. Ground combat upgrades come from the Armory terminal (weapon mods, armor upgrades) which are separate. Don’t confuse the two.