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Mass Effect 1 Legendary Edition

Tips and Tricks

By
Nathan Garvin

A collection of helpful hits and useful tips to help players get off to the best start in Mass Effect: Legendary Edition!

Assign unlocked Bonus Talents to new characters.

How to Unlock Bonus Talents?

For repeatedly using talents and their related abilities you’ll unlock Bonus Talents, one of which can be assigned to Shepard during character creation… assuming you have unlocked any Bonus Talents. Because of the utility such Bonus Talents provide, this all but ensures your first playthrough will not allow you to create the most powerful possible Shepard. You can get around this by grinding out the requirements for the Bonus Talents, then restarting with a new character (recommended).

It should be noted that the Legendary Edition made most of these Bonus Talents easier to farm, as commanding your companions to use their abilities now counts towards unlocking Bonus Talents (if your companion uses an ability without you commanding them, it will not count towards the total). This does not include weapon talents, unfortunately, which are now unlocked by completing the game once. Fortunately, they’re also less necessary, as every character is now generally more competent with weapons at the beginning of the Legendary Edition than they were in the original game.

How to Earn Credits - Fast!

The best way to earn money is… not worry about earning money. I know, it’s a let down, but credits - like most things - scale with your level. The higher your level, the better the drops and the better the quest rewards, and since everything scales with your level, any gear you buy is bound to become obsolete quickly. That being the case, we encourage you to save your credits, spend as little as possible and sell gear as opposed to breaking it down (not including the early I-tier and II-tier items, which aren’t really worth much anyways). You really want to bank a few hundred thousand credits ASAP so you can pick up your Spectre weapon of choice. The more frugal you are, the sooner you’ll have some of the best weapons in the game. You should find more than enough gear in the meantime - it’s worth the wait.

Which Licences to Buy?

While you should generally save your money, there is one exception: licenses. Purchasing licenses allows you to buy new stock from various merchants, including new types of weapons, armor, biotic amps and omni-tools. The catch? Some licenses are junk, and it’s hard to see why anybody would ever buy anything unlocked by them. Since the stocks of shops are random, having junk licenses means you’ll often find junk items for sale. Be sure to only buy the following licenses to ensure your shopping experience is as free from frustration as possible:

License Location Unlock Requirements Cost
Aldrin Labs C-Sec Requisitions Officer (Citadel) 100
Ariake Technologies C-Sec Requisitions Officer (Citadel) Shepard Level 18+ 6,250
Devlon Industries Delan (Citadel) Shepard Level 11+ 6,250
Kassa Fabrication C-Sec Requisitions Officer (Citadel), Petozi (Noveria) Shepard Level 36+ 30,000
Serrice Council Delan (Citadel), Commander Rentola (Virmire) Shepard Level 36+ 30,000
Sirta Foundation Delan (Citadel), Petozi (Noveria), Commander Rentola (Virmire) Shepard Level 1+ 100
Show SpoilerShow Spoiler

To buy licenses from Commander Rentola, you must rescue Captain Kirrahe on Virmire.

How to Unlock Spectre Weapons?

After you become a Spectre (near the end of your first trip to the Citadel you’ll be able to purchase Spectre weapons from the C-Sec Requisitions Officer in the C-Sec Academy (Citadel) or from the Normandy Requisitions Officer on the Normandy. At first you’ll only have access to VII-tier weapons, but as you progress through the main story you’ll eventually unlock the coveted X-tier weapons. Spectre weapons are significantly more powerful than just about anything you could find. So powerful, in fact, that you might as well save up your credits until you can buy the guns you need.

Getting Merchants to Sell You the Gear You Want

Chances are, you’ll end up buying (rather than finding) the best gear in this game, and arguably the easiest source of this equipment is the Normandy Requisitions Officer (assuming you have the proper licenses, of course). After getting the licenses you want, simply go near the Normandy Requisitions Officer, save your game, and check his stock. If he doesn’t have what you want, reload and try again.

Remember to save before talking to him, as if you save afterwards he’ll have the same stock. He rotates his stock when you talk to him after docking, so if he’s not selling you something you want and save/loading isn’t working you’ll need to exit out onto the Citadel, then board the Normandy and fly to and land on another planet, then return to the Citadel, disembark, then board the Normandy again and talk to the Normandy Requisitions Officer again (being sure to save beforehand this time to avoid having to travel). Simply save/load until you get what you want.

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Guide Information
  • Publisher
    Electronic Arts
  • Platforms,
    PC, PS4, XB One
  • Genre
    Action RPG, Third-person shooter
  • Guide Release
    14 May 2021
  • Last Updated
    17 August 2021
    Version History
  • Guide Author

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The guide for Mass Effect 1 Legendary Edition features all there is to see and do including a walkthrough containing coverage of all Assignments, detailed breakdown of all the important choices, class builds and much more!

  • Full coverage of all the Main Missions.
  • Every Assignment covered.
  • In-depth look at the major choices and consequences of each.
  • Full details on how to romance Ashley, Kaiden or Liara
  • Class builds to get the most out of your chosen class.
  • Details on every Talent.
  • How to spec your squad.
  • Breakdown of all Paragon and Renegade opportunities.
  • Trophy/Achievement guide.

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