Mass Effect/Awesome: Difference between revisions

** And if you take the option in [[Mass Effect 2]], twice. It's even awesomer.

* Captain Kirrahe's epic "We will [[Hold the Line]]!" speech. Quoted here in all its glory:

Our influence will stop Saren; in the battle today, we will hold the line!” }}

** And {{spoiler|Kaidan or Ashley earn themselves a spot in Valhalla with a simple expression of bravery in the face of certain death. "I don't regret a thing, Commander."}} Still sends shivers up anyone's spine.

* {{spoiler|Disabling the Thorian-controlled colonists instead of killing them}} may be difficult (especially if you run out of grenades and have to resort to melee attacks), but seeing the "Paragon+ 32/Renegade+ 0" message at the end makes it all worth it.

* Players who chose the Earthborn background get a visit from a member of their previous gang attempting to blackmail them, which presents the opportunity for a particularly awesome Renegade solution:

'''Shepard:''' No. They won't. '''BLAM.''' }}

* One of the other backgrounds has Shepard try and talk a slave out of suicide, having almost been a slave him/herself, which is a [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming]]. Afterwards Shepard is asked by the officer concerned about the girl what the point is to fighting and we get this exchange.

** Jennifer Hale, who makes Female Shepard's voice waver with anger as she says this, makes this some of the best voice acting she has ever done, and the entry just below makes this scene all the more prophetic.

** If you succeed in that mission, you get an equally crushing line.

'''Shepard:''' [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming|You'll dream of a warm place. And when you wake up, you'll be in it.]] }}

** Renegade Shepard's option to that same question is equally crushing, especially if you've been following all the Renegade responses, telling Talitha to fight, to be strong, and that survival means she's tougher than she thinks she is.

* The climax of the DLC campaign "Bring Down the Sky" as a Renegade - rather than let Balak escape to save the hostages, Shepard attacks his gang and he kills the hostages. After Shepard has defeated Balak's henchmen and has him cornered - unarmed, wounded, and with a gun pointed at his head - they have this exchange;

'''Shepard:''' You. But you're dead. '''BLAM.''' }}

** Also worth mentioning is if you take the same option, but then decide to spare him... [[Cruel Mercy|so that the people on the planet that Balak tried to destroy, and from which the hostages came from, can interrogate him and put him on trial]].

* After Shepard's interview with a TV reporter, a few of Shepard's possible dialogue options about the fallout of said interview is a worthy entry.

'''Shepard:''' The Council can kiss my ass. I'm entitled to my own opinions. }}

* [[Fling a Light Into the Future|The final act of the Prothean people.]] Those folks ''deserve'' a few [[Manly Tears]].

* Sovereign-Saren gets a villainous one as he prepares to attack you.

* Finally, let us not forget the end speeches with [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ac9fLbXDWbw "The End (Reprise)] playing over them. ESPECIALLY the Paragon ending with the player choosing {{spoiler|Anderson}}. It's rare to have someone who wasn't awe inspired by that scene.

** Even [[The Scrappy|Udina]] [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6k94mL5KDbU got his own moment] with this. EVEN UDINA.

*** Though it is oft overlooked, Udina's speech to the council near the beginning may count as well. Shepard can even tag-team with him on calling the Council out on their bullshit with being so distrustful of humans.

* Get enough Paragon points, and Admiral Hackett calls you up to neutralize a hostage situation involving biotic terrorists. Perform the mission the Paragon way, and when he calls you up again, there's this exchange.

'''Hackett:''' I wish every soldier had your definition of "just doing your job." You're a credit to the uniform, Shepard. }}

* After fighting Saren on Virmire, he knocks Shepard down with biotics, picks him/her up by the throat, and dangles him/her over a ledge. Just before he can drop Shepard, Saren gets distracted by an explosion. He glances to one side, and Shepard punches him in the face. To reiterate in its full awesomeness: while being held over a cliff by his/her ''throat'', Shepard punches an elite soldier with far more training than him/her {{spoiler|and who is [[The Dragon]] to a race of [[Eldritch Abomination]] ships that wipe out all life in the galaxy on regular basis}} ''right in the face''.

* [[Did Not Do the Research|The]] [[Know-Nothing Know-It-All|Cooper]] [[Internet Backdraft|Lawrence]] [[What an Idiot!|wannabe]] returns in Mass Effect 2 for another round! If you punch her with the Renegade interrupt, Shepard says "I should have done that the first time we met!"

** On the flip-side of that, you can also go the diplomatic route, and when she starts winding up to pitch the good ol' "aliens let humans die for their own skins" tripe, Shepard gets a particularly moving CMOA by cutting her off with a powerful, spine-chilling lecture:

'''Shepard''': {{spoiler|[["The Reason You Suck" Speech|The Alliance lost eight cruisers: Shen Yang, Emden, Jakarta, Cairo, Seoul, Cape Town, Warsaw, Madrid and yes, I remember them all. Everyone in the Fifth Fleet is a hero. The Alliance owes them all medals, the Council owes them a lot more than that. And so do you]].}} }}

** After that little exchange is over as you walk away you hear the reporter mutter: {{spoiler|"Great, bullrushed on my own show."}}

* In the Afterlife club, Renegade Shepard can talk the Patriarch into one of these by appealing to his nature as a krogan. Instead of hiding from the mercenaries, he chooses to die like a true krogan warrior, and ''charges'' an entire squad of heavily-armed mercenaries, and thus goes out in a blaze of [[Offscreen Moment of Awesome|(sadly offscreen)]] glory.

* Remember Conrad Verner? In the second game, he shows up as an "extreme" mercenary. You can try to talk some sense into him, or, if you're a Renegade....

** He gets his own actual moment of awesome if Paragon!Shep talks him down from his little crusade. He starts a charity to help the victims and orphans of Sovereign and the geth attacks called..."Shepards". Well done man.

* Everyone who took a certain Renegade interrupt action in the Urdnot camp said these exact words: "Did...Did I just ''headbutt'' a ''krogan?'' Not to mention, the shocked look on said krogan's face eloquently says "Did... Did a ''Human'' just ''headbutt'' me?"

* Far too much to say about {{spoiler|Tali's trial on the flotilla. You could get her off the hook by a Paragon action (if you talked to the Admirals and found out their ''real'' motivations for dragging her in on a treason charge), or you could "Rally the crowd," prompting both Kal'Reeger ''and'' the still-traumatized Veetor'Nara (if you saved them both after meeting them) to come up and brag to the Admiralty Board about how much Tali has done for the entire fleet.}} There's a reason [[This Troper]] kept a save file just before that portion of the game.

** The Renegade solution to {{spoiler|Tali's trial}} manages to be just as awesome, {{spoiler|wherein Shepard probably shows more honest anger (especially if you're playing as female Shepard due to Jennifer Hale's excellent voice acting) than s/he ever has up until that point in the series. Shepard gets '''pissed''', tells the Admiralty Board the entire trial is nothing more than "political bullshit" (yes, those are his/her exact words) to their face, tears them down for dragging a member of his/her crew into something like this for their own agenda, angrily exposes their real motives behind the trial, gets the whole crowd on his side, renders the whole board speechless and shames them into find Tali not guilty. Made even more awesome by the capper to Shepard's whole rant against the Admirals:}}

** And Tali's reaction afterward.

* The final boss of Mass Effect 2 deserves a mention. Four words: {{spoiler|Human Mecha-Cthulhu Fetus.}}

* During Mordin's mission, while on the krogan homeworld, a krogan gangster with delusions of grandeur starts ranting and raving about how his clan will destroy the forces of the galaxy when they get enough numbers. A Renegade quick time shows up and you give him a ''very'' satisfying version of [[Shut UP, Hannibal]] using a fortuitously-placed gas main and two pistol shots.

* When you get to the Citadel, if you nominated Anderson for Councilor, he puts Udina, the [[Obstructive Bureaucrat]] from the first game, in his place.

* So Shepard, how does it feel to {{spoiler|piss of an ENTIRE FLEET of Space Cthulhu to the point where EVERY SINGLE ONE of them knows your name?}} The answer, of course, is that it feels '''awesome.'''

* If Shepard opts to play [[Good Cop, Bad Cop|"bad cop"]] during Thane's loyalty quest, s/he'll try to intimidate the thug they're interrogating by threatening to [[Depopulation Bomb|cut off his balls and sell them to a krogan]].

* At the end of the game, if you decide to {{spoiler|blow up the Collector base}}, Shepard will say a completely character-defining line for Paragons:

** If Miranda is with you, this is where you {{spoiler|FINALLY get to give Cerberus the big middle finger: ''she'' will tell him that she has officially ''resigned'', in a tone of voice essentially telling him to fuck off.}}

{{spoiler|'''Miranda''': I noticed. Consider this my resignation.}} }}

** This moment is made even better if you've been playing the whole game as a Renegade, due to how it makes Shepard look like s/he was playing the Illusive Man all along, coming off as a true [[Magnificent Bastard]] when s/he finally gets the upper hand and uses that moment to seize control of Cerberus.

* Joker's return in ''[[Mass Effect|Mass Effect 2]]'', and the reveal of {{spoiler|1=the ''Normandy'' SR2}}.

'''Joker:''' "I don't trust anyone who makes more than I do. But they aren't all bad. Saved your life. Let me fly - and there's '''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v{{=}}Vy1E4eX484o this]'''. They only told me last night." }}

* During Miranda's loyalty mission, a group of mercs will attempt to get her and Shepard to back off. As the merc talks, Shepard notices a crane moving an explosive cargo container. There is a Renegade interrupt. If taken, Shepard will reach forward and break the one merc's neck with his/her bare hands. Miranda will then shoot another at point blank range as Shepard pulls out his/her handcannon and blasts the container to kill two more mercs. One merc remains, who can only look from the burning fire and back to Shepard in shock.

** Its also worth noting that in the Paragon ending of that mission, {{spoiler|Zaeed manages to headshot the [[Mook]] sitting right next to Vido, causing Vido to [[Oh Crap|crap his pants]].}}

* Both Paragon ''and'' Renegade solutions to Legion and Tali's argument over her Omni-tool. Renegade Shepard will squash both of them flat while backlit by the hall light.

** Paragon Shepard will actually get Tali to say a few friendly words to Legion; probably the only ones ever uttered between the two species in 300 years.

* If you bring a nonhuman party member into the plague zone on Omega, they get sick. When you reach Mordin's clinic, he looks up, notes they're sick, and casually makes the infection go away with a press of a button. Beforehand, you knew Mordin was a hell of a doctor, but the fact that he developed a cure ''specifically for each species'' that works ''that'' fast immediately proves his awesome scientist cred.

** The mission itself. Samara gives Shepard bucketloads of motivation to help hunt down and kill a space vampire [[Complete Monster]]. Finding her latest victim however leaves both of them fighting to not just storm where she is.

* If you saw that scene, you know:

* Paragon Shepard at the end of the game. {{spoiler|With the Illusive Man nearly frothing at the mouth about the destruction of the Collector base and accusing Shepard of biting the hand that fed him/her, Shepard will, in a very calm voice, "pleasantly" inform him that s/he's doing things his/her way now, and the Illusive Man, one of the most powerful humans in the galaxy, better suck it up and fall in line. Then s/he'll tell Joker to cut the connection in a manner reminiscent of the Council from the first game, or alternatively...}}

'''Shepard''': {{spoiler|And I'm going to do what you brought me back to do. I'll fight and win this war without compromising the soul of our species.}} }}

::It's pretty awesome to hear Shepard rub his/her moral superiority in his face, showing that s/he knows ''damn'' well who the good guy is.

** If {{spoiler|Wrex}} is still alive, this is more meaningful, given Shepard's role in the rise of Clan Urdnot. Given that {{spoiler|Wrex is a krogan battlemaster himself, who was the last to destroy a Maw and served under Shepard}}...

* Renegade Shepard staying calm and completely dominating Grunt after opening his tank, even while he has him/her pinned to the wall.

** This is even more awesome when you realize that Grunt is actually shocked that a human would speak that way to him.

** Arguably the Paragon route is just as badass in that scene. Shepard calmly and pleasantly convinces Grunt to accept him as his leader while the latter holds him in a death grip to the wall. Than the camera pans out and shows that while this was happening, Shepard armed himself and had a gun pointing staight at Grunt's chest the whole time. And Grunt didn't even notice until Shepard mentioned it!

* Tali gets two crowning moments if she's in the party for the "Crime In Progress" assignment. After the volus accusing another quarian of pickpocketing him refers to them as "[[Fantastic Racism|clanless]]" one too many times, she'll say;

** Then, if Shepard says he's not worth it;

** If Garrus is the third party member, he'll speak for us all;

** Really, bring Tali along and the whole thing becomes one long, glorious [[Take That]] against some people's issues with immigrants, right down to the volus dragging out the tired old [[You Fail Economics Forever|"And to think my taxes pay to support you!"]] argument.

** Shepard isn't exactly a slouch in this scene either. The Paragon interrupt was absolutely perfect. To paraphrase:

'''Cop:''' Son of a .... }}

*** Able to be seen in all its glory [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awLZQMnH5nY starting at 3:00] and resuming to the end of it at 8:00. If you prefer Femshep, see [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4-NWOL6H6Y here.]

* Shepard's speeches (s)he is able to give during the suicide mission are suitably epic, including some powerful music and dramatic finger pointing. Additionally the speech can focus on giving the Collectors some serious payback or focusing on saving lives, depending on if the player is going for Renegade or Paragon.

** I gotta give it to the Paragon here:

** Renegade is equally awesome:

** There are two or three segments to each speech, and you can independantly choose Paragon or Renegade segments of each speech. Starting with Paragon (i.e. Why We're Here) and crescendoing with Renegade (i.e. 'Now let's go ''kick some ass''!') is immensely satisfying.

* If you're a Renegade who saved the Council in the first game, during their little chat with you in Anderson's office (because, come on, [[Even Evil Has Standards|who picked Udina for Councilor]]?) they dismiss everything you stirred up in the first game and then condescendingly offer to reinstate you as a Spectre, clearly meant to placate Shepard and remove her as an annoyance by sending her back into the Terminus Systems. You can say that you'd be honoured, or tell them to go fuck themselves. Political ramfications be damned, that was easily one of the most satisfying moments of the game, especially when you seem them sputter in outrage.

** [[This Troper]] did. He looked at the horrific mess that galactic politics ought to be and thought, "I can't do that do good ol' Anderson!" That was before he learned of the sequel.

** If you picked Anderson, he complains in the second game that he never wanted to be a politician. It would've been nice if we had more choices than "[[Retired Badass|tired old soldier]]" and "[[Ass in Ambassador|jackass]]."

* Kasumi gets one at the end of her loyalty mission. {{spoiler|She and Shepard are fighting Donovan Hock, who is using a gunship that regenerates shields too fast for the two of them to destoy it. Once Shepard clears a path through Hock's Eclipse [[Mooks]], Kasumi jumps onto the gunship, disables its shields, smiles at Hock and jumps off to resume to fight.}}

** In the same mission, Shepard [[Shut UP, Hannibal|shutting Hock up]] by {{spoiler|destroying one of his priceless sculptures.}}

'''Shepard:''' Do I have your attention now? }}

** Hell, anytime Kasumi uses Shadow Strike is awesome. Watching this little Japanese girl punch a [[Humongous Mecha]] in the back never gets old.

** What makes it better is that Jacob is one of the right choices. He ''succeeds'' in his first command job in a battle to save all sentient life in the galaxy!

* I'm surprised nobody else has mentioned this one. At one point during the game before the suicide mission, if you ask Garrus his opinion on the success of the mission, his response really drives home the fact that you are literally ''too important to be allowed to {{spoiler|die.}}''

* The end of Zaeed's loyalty mission. If {{spoiler|Vido gets away and you still ask Zaeed to join you}}, you get this:

'''Shepard''': You know that's not gonna happen. You're a badass, Zaeed. But remember who you're talking to. }}

** Shepard knows and lampshades that s/he's the biggest [[badass]] of them all.

* Okay not strictly from the game itself but... [http://kotaku.com/5560453/this-could-be-the-beginning-of-a-beautiful-mass-effect-2-cosplay this] [http://sorceryandglue.blogspot.com/ and this] are pretty CM for Mass Effect cosplay. Though it'd probably be better called special effect artists play dress up.

* Shepard is asked to hand over whatever weapons s\he has when visiting Purgatory prison.

* Observing Wrex's political savvy on Tuchanka. If you compare his actions to Urdnot Wreav's there's no question who the greater warlord is.

** After Mordin's mission, Shepard had decimated Clan Weyrloc; Wreav used that to just wipe out the rest of the clan. Wrex took in the women and children and made them part of HIS tribe.

** Special mention goes to the [[Good Is Not Nice|Paragon interrupt]] at the very end... {{spoiler|when ''[[Pistol-Whipping]]'' the [[Complete Monster|prick]] who did that to his own brother is considered "Paragon."}}

** The entire Paragon ending of Overlord is equal parts this and [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming]], both due to the above, and because its one of the only instances in the series where Paragon Shepard is clearly ''enraged''.

** [[Badass]] and [[Good Is Not Nice]] indeed.

*** Not many would have seen the renegade ending where Shepard gives up David, but it is no less awesome.

** At the end of the first mission, Shepard and his/her team destroy the satellite dish to prevent the VI from uploading itself off-world by destroying its supports from the ''inside''. This unbalances the entire dish and causes it to slowly start tipping over. To get out, Shepard and his/her squad ''run up the inside of the dish and leap from the edge onto a narrow walkway''. Did I mention all this is taking place on a cliffside, very high above the ground?

* Ahh, where to begin with '[[So Cool Its Awesome|Lair of the Shadow Broker.]]'

** Liara T'Soni, formerly a meek, quiet asari scientist, [[Took a Level In Badass|taking about seven levels in badass.]] When you first meet her, she's threatening a recalcitrant client by channeling Matriarch Benezia. It only gets better from there on out, culminating in her [[Shut UP, Hannibal]] to the Shadow Broker himself, transitioning seamlessly into a [[Hannibal Lecture]] of her very own.

'''Broker:''' *[[Beat]]* *[[Villainous Breakdown]]* }}

** It becomes even more awesome when, after the fight {{spoiler|Liara reveals she actually didn't know most of that, only knowing the basics of yahg history and psychology and using it against him.}}

*** Not to mention how Shepard handles that hostage situation that comes up.

*** Especially the Paragon [[Badass Boast]]

"So for your sake, hope your escape plan doesn't hinge on me hesitating to shoot a damn hostage!" }}

*** The Intimidate option is just as cool: Shepard annoys said Spectre with ''faux'' [[Fantastic Racism]] {{spoiler|while signaling to Liara to [[Combat Pragmatist|telekinetically bean her with a table]]. Tela never saw it coming.}}

** Admiral Hackett gets one in his dossier. Some Alliance officer sent him a proposal to take Shepard into custody and interrogate him/her about Cerberus. The proposal is a page long. Hackett's response? Two words: "Request denied."

*** He also gets one of these off camera {{spoiler|as Liara reveals that he's the one who gave her Shepard's dogtags to return to the Commander, after the mission's over.}}

** {{spoiler|Morinth}} gets one if you bring her along. The Shadow Broker will comment that he finds it odd that Liara brought "the Justicar" along, given her "{{spoiler|changed agenda}}". This implies that even ''he'' doesn't know that {{spoiler|Morinth killed Samara and took her place}}. That's right - {{spoiler|Morinth}} is so goddamn convincing ''she even fooled the goddamn Shadow Broker''.

** You also learn how Mordin [[Noodle Implements|killed with farming equipment]]: ''He stabbed a krogan through the eye with a pitchfork.''

* The golden ending of Mass Effect 2. Basically Shepard does what is said to be a total suicide mission and completes it without losing ''ANY'' of his/her people. S/he effectively wiped out an entire slave race in an utter [[Curb Stomp Battle]] and [[Did You Just Flip Off Cthulhu?|gave a giant middle finger to the most powerful beings in the galaxy. Again.]] [[Badass]]!!

* Paragon Shepard's Renegade response to The Illusive Man's angry, "You're making a habit of costing me more than time and money" after destroying the Collector Base.

** Better yet, that ending's final Renegade remark:

'''Shepard''': I know what you are, and the price of working with you! Harbinger is coming, humanity needs a leader who's looking out for them! You can either fall in line or step aside, but '''don't''' get in my way! }}

** Even the initial Paragon response is subtly awesome;

* There's one in the background information of a planet you go near while heading towards the derelict Reaper. The people that fired that mass accelerator weapon managed to KILL A REAPER. Sure, they were probably wiped out either when the weapon fired or after the Reapers figured out what had happened, but still. Hell of a way to go.

* This is a game play moment rather than a cut scene. But when you manage to beat down a krogan with your. Bare. Hands! Double points if you do it on Insanity.

* Jacob's loyalty mission has a particularly awesome and powerful moment if you choose to go with the Renegade approach to bringing {{spoiler|Ronald Taylor}} to justice. After spending several minutes chewing him out for his crimes, Jacob hands him a pistol, at half-charge. At his incredulous response, Jacob simply says " {{spoiler|My father owned his mistakes.}}" Nothing else needs to be said.

** Given what Ronald Taylor did (as pointed out straight out of a Richard Laymon novel) the neutral option; leaving him to be torn apart by the people he'd had poisoned and hunted down, works a treat as well. As do the replies from the third squadmate at his protests.

'''[[Ax Crazy|Jack:]]''' We can guess.<br />

'''[[Deadly Doctor|Mordin:]]''' Untrue. Just do not care.<br />

* "Arrival." Good job, {{spoiler|Harbinger}}, you're [[Dangerously Genre Savvy]], what with {{spoiler|finally capturing Shepard}}.

** What's that? You've {{spoiler|heavily sedated Shepard}}? Good idea, except {{spoiler|Shepard doesn't stay sedated for long, thanks to those nasty Cerberus cybernetics}}. Best summed up with the doctor's statement:

** Well, at least you've got several heavily armed and armored guards in the room to deal with - oh, wait, {{spoiler|Shepard just punched your guards out with his/her bare hands!}}

** Thankfully, you've got a small army of [[Mooks|soldiers]] ready to...[[One-Man Army|defend]]...[[Curb Stomp Battle|the Project]]....Nevermind.

** Finally, Shepard's [[Shut UP, Hannibal|awesome conversation with]] {{spoiler|[[Shut UP, Hannibal|Harbinger]]}} where s/he admits that the galaxy probably can't beat them, but that they will fight and make them work to wipe them out.

*** Another part of that conversation this troper liked is that {{spoiler|Harbinger}} who has refused to acknowledge to Shepard that s/he's made any kind of difference says this.

** Taking out all five waves in the battle by Object Rho. This nets an achievement/trophy, and is a testament to how fucking '''''BADASS''''' Shepard is if the player pulls it off. The Indoctrinated Project members realize that they aren't capable of taking Shepard down and call in a Heavy Mech...which Shepard, despite bad cover and dwindling ammo supplies, promptly destroys. The only reason Shepard loses is that Object Rho knocks him/her out.

* The entirety of Jack's escape from Purgatory. You see this little, tattooed girl come out of the cryo pod, then she rips off her metal restraints, kills three [[Humongous Mecha]] robots by ripping them to shreds, and smashes through the nearest wall. Yes, Shepard started it, but Jack was the real star of that show.

** Grunt, being [[Proud Warrior Race Guy|Grunt]], simply grabs the nearest pod and rips it out of its socket by main strength. But it gets better -- if Grunt is dead or otherwise missing, ''[[Badass Normal|Jacob]]'' gets this move instead.

* During Miranda's loyalty mission, if you interrupt and spare Niket, he will immediately get killed by Captain Enyala, then Miranda picks her up with biotics and throws away. Awesome. Much more awesome when you realise it's a HUMAN biotically slamming one of famous ASARI COMMANDOS.

 

 

** Adding to that {{spoiler|the requirement for him surviving is that next to saving the Rachni Queen in 1 you had finish his loyalty mission in 2. Which was to help him gain maturity and a clan, essentialy giving him a "family" and to learn how to control his rage. This means he survives because he learned how to use his rage when necessary and have something to come back for. He must have had a major determination moment down there.}}

** From the same mission, you can see Grunt's squad pinned down by a group of Husk's. Grunt proceeds to grab a Ravenger, lift it completely over his head, and fling it into a chasm. What does he saw while doing this?

* A little early (at the time of this Troper's entry), but if you weren't overcome by the sheer awesome of how {{spoiler|Earth is facing annihilation by a massive Reaper Fleet}} in ME 3's [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=geTD0gWh8w0 debut trailer], you need to rethink your place in life.

** Awesome? Try ''horror''. But, from a gamer's perspective, yes. BioWare is certainly going to conclude the trilogy with a [[Grand Finale|bang]]. Or [[Stuff Blowing Up|several]]. [[Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?|How many Reapers are there, anyway?]]

*** The last few seconds of the trailer are pure win. Shepard looks out over Earth under siege, he turns towards the screen and as he walks towards it and the N7 logo lights up, his theme kicks in, and you know that asses are about to be kicked. Pure, Epic, Win.

* '''[[Cool Versus Awesome|Reaper vs. Thresher Maw.]]''' They are riding out to complete another mission but have to contend with a Reaper tank, all hope seems lost. Shepard is forced to go on foot when the Krogan convoy is taken out, travelling through an ancient Krogan city talking about the Thresher Maw to end all THRESHER MAW's on Tuchanka. When conversing with Wrex about it, they realize that Tuchanka is its' home too and won't like a Reaper stomping around. So, as shown during Grunt's rite of passage, they decide to summon the Thresher Maw and point it at the Reaper. [http://www.gametrailers.com/video/vga-2011-mass-effect/724830We The end result is insane.] Shepard is literally running underfoor of the giant sentient spaceship trying to hit him with a beam of molten metal fired approaching the speed of light. He dodges and weaves through the incoming fire, avoids things that pop out of the ground too fast for you to even get a good look at them, and then narrowly avoids being stepped on by the Reaper. Then the drums are sounded, and you know the Maw is angry. The Maw ''lunges'' out of the ground and tackles the Reaper, wrestling for a minute before the Reaper gets an angle to shoot at it, only to miss because it went under ground again. Then it resurfaces and wraps itself around the Reaper, crushing it and dragging the thing underground. James Vega gets it right pretty early in the video: "Holy shit!"

** ...''[[Dune|Shai-Hulud]]''.

'''Wrex:''' "Shepard, we have mawsign the likes of which even Reapers have never seen!" }}

** An extra layer of awesome is added if Shepherd has the Sole Survivor origin. This scene is basically his/her two biggest enemies fighting each other.

** As one comment on Youtube put it:

** This moment is even better in the game, as the Thresher Maw is identified as [[Awesome McCoolname|Kalros, Mother of all]] [[Sand Worm|Thresher Maws]]. Garrus puts it best:

*** [[It Gets Better]], {{spoiler|Kalros '''won'''.}}

* The brief dialogue at the end of the E3 trailer, between Shepard and the Defense Committee:

'''Shepard:''' The only thing we can do: We '''fight''' or we ''die''! }}

** Shepard is basically saying, "I went through ''all nine levels of hell'' to give you '''three years''' to come up with a plan! You wasted it debating whether or not there was even a threat! All we have time for now is [[Do Not Go Gentle|not go down without a fight!]] '''''Now get off your useless asses and fight, [[Obstructive Bureaucrat|Obstructive Bureaucrats]]!'''''" {{spoiler|Then they all die like the useless sumbitches they are when Harbinger potshots the building. [[The Simpsons|HAW-HA!]]}}

** In the actual game, the orbital strike hits the firing chamber and does put it down, but the jamming signal means the fleet can't target precisely enough to hit the weak spot on purpose. Shepard's solution? Sync the target painter to the ''entire flotilla'' and face the Reaper ''on foot.'' Repeat: you aim a laser at it for the quarian fleet to fire at from orbit. You need to do this four times. The last time, the thing is right on top of you.

*** Take the Renegade option when Shepard talks to the dying Reaper afterward and take the Renegade Interrupt. Shepard pulls out the laser ''again'' and aims at the Reaper's eye.

* The Special Forces trailer. Its like Commander Shepard has an army of the most well trained soldiers in the galaxy, second only to his elite team, ready to clean up the remnants of the Reaper forces after he's done.

* During the second demo mission, you help Mordin {{spoiler|and Wrex}} get an important Krogan female off the Salarian homeworld. After you've held off the {{spoiler|Cerberus}} forces attacking you, {{spoiler|Wrex helps the Krogan queen/princess out of the containment pod she was in the entire mission. Two more Cerberus mercenaries show up out of nowhere to attack, and the Krogan queen grabs Wrex's shotgun and blows them both away. ''With one hand''. Krogan women kick ass.}}

* During the mission on Sur'Kesh, Shepard can run into Captain (now Major) Kirrahe, who, when {{spoiler|Cerberus}} forces deploy heavy armor forces and drone guns, he blows them up with a sticky grenade launcher. By himself. [[The Lancer|Garrus]] wants to know [[Where Does He Get All Those Wonderful Toys?|where he can get a cool toy like that]].

** You can get one a little bit later in the mission. It is just as awesome as it looks in that cutscene.

* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bG2mdZ23eP8 Mass Effect 3's launch trailer] sells it for us just like Mass Effect 2 yet again, with an incredible soundtrack, amazing visuals and fantastic directing all around. It all '''feels''' like the ending of a saga, but makes you prepared to make the final march to save the galaxy. Be careful, Shepards.

** The incredible soundtrack? Titled ''[[The Dev Team Thinks of Everything|Protectors of]] [[Fridge Brilliance|the Earth]]''

* [[Tear Jerker|Heartbreaking as the ending is,]] these tweets from Emily Wong as she comes to the end of her livetweeting the Reaper invasion:

You want to see how a human dies? At ramming speed. }}

** Another, more subtle one for Emily. Her live reporting provided a treasure trove of intel on how the Reapers operate. There's no telling how many lives she might save.

* Wrex's quote to oncoming {{spoiler|Ravagers}} as Shepard and his squadmates get ready to hurry to cure the {{spoiler|Genophage.}} {{spoiler|"I am Urdnot Wrex. And THIS IS MY PLANET!"}}

* Mordin {{spoiler|sacrificing himself}} to get the {{spoiler|genophage cure}} into Tuchanka's {{spoiler|atmosphere}}. His responsibility {{spoiler|to the end}}.

'''Mordin:''' {{spoiler|I'm not. Had to be me. Someone else might have gotten it wrong.}} }}

** {{spoiler|Gets even better if you try to stop him. Shouting "I MADE A MISTAKE!", and then if you shoot him, he dies literally trying to ''crawl'' to the control panel. It was supposed to be his moment of redemption.}}

* Conrad saving the life of Shepard, could wind up as a [[Heroic Sacrifice]] or a subtle [[Big Damn Heroes]] moment when the Cerberus contact tries to kill Shepard (who no longer travels across the citadel in armor but rather casual outfits).

* Lieutenant Victus, son of the Turian Primarch, gives his life to disable the Cerberus bomb {{spoiler|that they stole from the Turians}} threatening to destroy a high population center in Tuchanka. His sacrifice gives Shepard valuable time to solidify an alliance between the Turian and Krogan states.

* A seemingly random minor sidequest on the Citadel to track down someone using batarian diplomatic codes can end with Balak, villain of ''Bring Down The Sky'' having a gun pointed at the back of Shepard's head, blaming Shepard for the destruction of the batarian civilization. Shepard can then convince Balak to not only put the gun away but to add his fleet to Shepard's cause. Let me repeat that: Shepard entered a situation with a gun to the back of his/her head by an enemy s/he personally defeated and who blames Shepard for the death of his society, and Shepard ''turns him to his/her side.''

** Or, if you don't have the Reputation chops (or just hate the [[Complete Monster|murdering SOB]] ''that much),'' you can casually knock the gun out of his hand and blow him away. [[Pay Evil Unto Evil]], indeed.

*** Someone actually did this and edited out the dialogue. It makes a fantastic scene even better. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3Ss_nSe_mw Check it out.]

** Particularly that the way the Reapers literally double-take, almost seems to suggest that the following is crossing their mind;

* The final run to the teleportation tower leading to {{spoiler|the Citadel}}. Hammer forces have to cross a large space of open ground, hoping that at least some will make it through and enable the fleet to make the final strike against the Reapers, and so spread out to make a massed charge of vehicles and soldiers on foot. Knowing the vulnerability of the tower, Harbinger himself lands next to it and starts shooting everything with his [[There Is No Kill Like Overkill|giant lasers meant to destroy dreadnoughts in a single hit]]. With the assault force disintegrating around him/her, Shepard keeps running for the tower, eventually getting hit by the laser. Satisfied, Harbinger flies away... [[Determinator|but Shepard gets back up with serious injuries, his/her power armor effectively reduced to slag, and keeps limping for the final 20 meters, retrieving a pistol on the way. Shepard even manages to kill a few husks and a Marauder, despite being shot without any shielding or armor, before collapsing on the teleportation pad.]]

* Hackett's [[Rousing Speech]] at the beginning of the final battle.

* Samara's daughters at the {{spoiler|Ardat-Yakshi monastery. The older one, Rila, resists indoctrination and transformation into a Banshee long enough that she can set off a bomb, blowing the place, and the biggest stockpile of banshees, to hell.}} Morinth, you are no longer Samara's strongest and greatest daughter.

* A renegade Shepard can deliver a [[Shut UP, Hannibal]] to a Reaper [http://youtu.be/PmWh586WB9E#t=1m27s by ordering the entire Quarian fleet to fire right on it's face.]

* During the mission to save the Cerberus Scientist defectors, Shepard gets taken down by mech while trying to get to the escape shuttle. Cue Jacob jumping out the shuttle to save Shepard, taking out several Cerberus Soldiers and the same mech with just an Assault Rifle, [[Handicapped Badass|all the while suffering from a bullet in the gut.]]

** {{spoiler|Even better is the fact that it is the biggest middle finger you can give to the Reapers' philosophy}}.

* Shepard taking down the Reaper on Rannoch and their subsequent conversation firmly cements Shepard's status as [[The Dreaded]].

'''Dying Reaper''': Harbinger speaks of you. }}

** Depending on your choices in the conversation, Shepard can take a Paragon or Renegade interrupt. Paragon involves giving a [["The Reason You Suck" Speech]], during which Shepard shoots down the Reaper's claim that the Reapers are preserving the long since harvested races by pointing out that those races supposedly preserved are still dead. Renegade has Shepard pull out the targetting laser once again.

''[The Normandy & Quarian Fleet fire another artillary strike & kill the Reaper]''<br />

'''Shepard''': [[Post Mortem One Liner|Never mind, I'll tell them myself]]. }}

** To make it even better, if you've talked things out with Ashley/Kaidan, she/he will make the decision to trust you and {{spoiler|turn on Udina.}} Hear that? That was the sound of all the leftover trust issues from Horizon shattering.

*** Even if you have not spoken to them, you can still pull out the charm, provided [[Relationship Values|you still have some clout with them.]] A Renegade choice will have you tell them you would regret shooting them for the rest of your life, but you would do it if you had to, and that the ball is in their court. Paragon, however, will have Shepard tell Ashley/Kaidan that they know in their heart Shepard is right, that they always do the right thing, no matter what, and they need to trust their own instincts. And either way, they put the gun down.

** Not just that, but the memetic jerkass Councilor Sparatus (Ah, yes. "Reapers") personally thanking Shepard. His tone just sounds so sincere.

* The Illusive Man gets one in an archived video at Cerberus Headquarters. {{spoiler|Right before he's about to undergo the most likely excruciating surgery that would let him control Reapers he asks for no anasthetic}}. He often looks like a callous bastard and he's extreme even for a [[Well-Intentioned Extremist]], but you get the sense he wants to feel every sacrifice done in Humanity's name.

* Renegade Shepherd's speech convincing {{spoiler|the Quarians not to open fire on the Geth was particularly amazing. "A few years ago, I saved you from the geth at the Citadel. Just recently I helped you take out that dreadnought. But I'm through saving you. If you keep attacking, I will ''stand and watch'' as the geth lay you to ''waste''." They listen.}}

* Paragon Shepard's interrupt when [[Mad Scientist|Admiral Xen]] starts talking about how she wants to run tests on Legion:

'''Xen''': [[Jerkass|So did your pistol.]] [[Fantastic Racism|Should we show concern for it's feelings as well?]]<br />

'''Shepard''': (interrupting) ''I don't think you want to continue this line of thought, Admiral.'' Legion is my friend, and more importantly, he's our best source of information on the Geth.<br />

* Eve, full stop. All we've seen among the Krogan are bloodthirsty idiots. Wrex is Gandhi by comparison, but Eve - it seems that ''she'' is the ''real'' leader of the Krogan. To wit, she made the most subtle power grab in the galaxy and almost no one saw it. She accepted Wrex's plan to consolidate all the females - and in doing so, she turned the genophage into a biological [[Lysistrata Gambit]]. She's clearly intelligent, has no use for bullshit, and is willing to let the male Krogans play their games. She ''also'' knows why the Salarians and Council created the genophage, and won't repeat that mistake again. She may allow the Krogans to regenerate ''en masse'' to fight the Reapers, but she broadly hints that she's going to make sure the Krogan limit their reproduction (and generally, mothers don't want to deal with a dozen kids anyway.)

** To say nothing of Eve snatching away Wrex's shotgun during the rescue, uses it to mow down two Cerberus shock troopers, and then tosses the shotgun back at Wrex and mocking his overly polite chivalry at the same time. Also doubles as a [[Crowning Moment of Funny]].

'''Wrex:''' Women. }}

** With just one word she stopped a bloodbath between the male Urdnots. Then she united them against the Reapers.

* Say what you will about the endings, but [[The Stinger]], where the trilogy is implied to have been a story an old man identified as "Stargazer" is telling his grandson, blew my mind when I realized the old man is voiced by '''''Buzz Aldrin!'''''

'''Stargazer''': ''It's getting late but, okay… one more story.'' }}

* Speak to Kirrahe before going into the STG labs. He promises Shepard that, regardless of the decisions of the politicians, the salarian STG will help when called. Particularly if you later {{spoiler|cure the genophage,}} pissing off Dalatrass Linron and causing her to revoke the official salarian support for the fleet to retake Earth, seeing an entire branch of the salarian military essentially telling their leaders [[Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right]] is pretty damn awesome.

* Cerberus are revealed to be semi-huskified and heavily indoctrinated. Check out their reaction to Shepard showing up on Mars;

** Now realise that Shepard is actually scaring the hell out of people who ''[[Beyond the Impossible|can no longer think or feel anything for themselves.]]''

*** There's another, even more badass possibility. There is a theory that indoctrination sometimes causes the victims to express the Reaper's feelings as their own (many fans think that Saren's uncharacteristic fury on finding out that Shepard had found the beacon on Eden Prime was actually Sovereign's rage rather than his own,) which makes you wonder whether HOLY SHIT! IT'S SHEPARD is actually the ''Reapers''' reaction to seeing him/her! The dying Reaper Shepard talks to on Rannoch explicitly states that "Harbinger speaks of you", which is probably the closest thing to an open admission that they're scared of Shepard we'll ever get from the Reapers, so maybe the reaction of the indoctrinated victims is what the Reapers really feel.