Mass Effect Andromeda Party Members / Characters

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This page is for listing the tropes related the Party Members in Mass Effect: Andromeda.

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Liam Kosta

"I believed in a new beginning. Still do. I have to. We're in it."

Voiced by: Gary Carr

The Tempest's Crisis Response specialist. A former police officer who arrives in Andromeda aboard the Hyperion, Liam is part of the Pathfinder team and helps with security. He is a romance option for a female Ryder.

Actually Pretty Funny: A situation-related example — Liam can have a disturbing amount of fun with holding on for dear life after he and the rest of the squad have literally been Thrown Out the Airlock. The others' reactions vary wildly, but usually make it all the funnier.
Anger Born of Worry: His given reason for criticizing Vetra is his concern for any children brought along to Andromeda, taking it out on her. He later admits that he was projecting his own insecurities about the Initiative's situation onto children, figuring that if he feels unsafe, they would too. She's not remotely mollified by the explanation.
Liam: Listen, I'm just going to come out and say it. I was blaming you for how shit I feel. I figured any doubts I have must be worse for kids. Made me dislike the ones who brought them.
Vetra: So I shouldn't feel bad about your judgement because you figured out why you judged me? You understand why you're an asshole? Guess what? Still an asshole.
Black-and-White Insanity: A downplayed example, but one of Liam's biggest flaws is an unfortunate tendency to judge everyone by high moral standards, despite both galaxies being very grey places. He's often judgmental of people whose circumstances he knows nothing about, such as judging Vetra for bringing Sid to Andromeda, or judging Cora for her commando work. Also, because he believes he holds himself to these standards, Liam makes a number of disastrous screw-ups in the name of doing the right thing. This alienates at least half the team, to one extent or another, until he tries to make amends, but a number of teammates still choose to keep him at arms' length.
Blood Knight: A fairly stealthy example, but nevertheless. Liam's a stable, emotionally balanced guy all around who never displays any particular interest in violence during the game. At the same time, his dual omni-blades are listed as his favorite weapons, which means he prefers carving up people in bloody melee over shooting them from afar, so there's gotta be a certain predisposition somewhere inside of him.
Bodyguard Crush: Peebee accuses him of having one on Ryder (regardless of gender) by noting he always sticks close to protect them. Liam shrugs and doesn't deny he does that, although he doesn't acknowledge any said crush. It can actually be true, though, if Ryder is female and has flirted with him.
Book Dumb: By his own admission, he became a cop because he didn't have the patience to follow in his parents' footsteps and become a lawyer; he figured if he couldn't practice law, then he could provide order.
Can't Take Criticism: One of Liam's flaws is that while he'll frequently criticize his teammates for things, the minute anyone criticizes him back, he gets defensive.
Casual Danger Dialogue: Loves it. Ryder can indulge him.
Chronic Hero Syndrome: Liam's a former crisis response and rescue worker, and has a need to save people. He's always looking for a new problem to solve, and tends to take on other people's issues as his own responsibility.
Covert Pervert: If he and Ryder are romanced, Cora reveals that the data log from his Jump Jet recorded everything he and Ryder did, meaning a lot of people watched what they did. Liam is actually thrilled about it.
Contrasting Sequel Main Character:
- In general Liam is more hotheaded than most of the previous male love interests in the franchise but like Garrus, Liam is an ex-cop who left because he felt stifled by regulations who becomes a love interest to the main character. However, Liam was actually a failed cop who got ejected from the force into Crisis Response, while general consensus was that Garrus was actually an excellent policeman, who left to found a vigilante squad because procedures were holding him back. While Garrus became an C-Sec officer after his father blocked his Spectre training, Liam joined the force to honor his father's work because he couldn't follow in his footsteps. Both have Hot-Blooded tendencies that land them in trouble and earn the ire of their crewmates, but the more brooding Garrus balances this out with thoughtful stoicism, while Liam often rushes in without thinking, whether out of anger or enthusiasm. This carries over to their fighting styles, where both are tech-savvy warriors who start out with the Overload power, but while Garrus tends to keep things at a distance with his Sniper Rifle, Liam prefers to get up close with his dual-wielded omniblades.
- As the starting human male squad member he's this to Kaiden Alenko, Jacob Taylor and James Vega, who in the Mass Effect community are usually referred to as boring in comparison to the other characters while Jacob is considered to be the worst. Liam is considered a Base-Breaking Character in comparison to the other squad members and can be considered the "normal boring one" much like Kaiden, Jacob and James, but unlike them Liam was never part of the Alliance and instead spent a large amount of his life going from one career to another such as being a police officer and then joining a crisis response team. He also lacks any Dark and Troubled Past like them and is more optimistic and friendly, to the point most of his anger is from the issues they face in Andromeda.
Didn't Think This Through: One of his main problems is he thinks with his heart... and pretty much ONLY with his heart. He doesn't follow through his ideas and plans with logic, but just by what seems moral and right at the time. This often blows up in his face.
Drives Like Crazy: Ryder's not the only mad driver on the Tempest. Liam has a fondness for swerving, which gets him a talking-to from Gil, who points out they only have so many spare tires for him to destroy. Vetra also calls him on pushing to Nomad's gears so hard, worrying they will wear out. Liam's response? If we don't push them now, we won't live long enough for the gears to wear out.
Dual Wielding: According to his dossier on the game's website, Liam's preferred weapon is dual omniblades, which he puts to use with his Havoc Strike ability.
Fan of the Past: Liam seems to be a fan of 20th/21st century Earth culture and technology, particularly movies. Before leaving for Andromeda he even arranged to have a 20th century automobile he and his family fixed up ("a real gas guzzler") sent to Andromeda.
Fatal Flaw: His self-righteous idealism causes him to be very blunt and confrontational with most of the crew, leading to most of them disliking him and wanting to keep their distance. His loyalty mission begins because of his idealism.
Fee Fi Faux Pas: Liam has a tendency to say the exact wrong thing and annoy his teammates. Like, for example, questioning Vetra about bringing Sid along to Andromeda. Or criticizing Cora for her participation in assassination and sabotage missions. Or asking Jaal to trade his prized resistance badge for a crisis response unit patch.
First Guy Wins: He is the first love interest encountered for female Ryder. Whether he actually wins depends on player choice.
Foil:
- To Cora. Cora is a professional, by the book, military type, who willingly performs morally dubious actions for The Needs of the Many, and has very little agency of her own, preferring to follow the examples and orders of others instead of forging her own path, and tends to be a woman of few words. Liam is much more chaotic, and goes off and does his own thing without even checking with others to see if its a good idea or not, is extremely critical of anything that even falls into a morally grey area, and was never in the military leading to a far more loose and relaxed personality and style, and possessing a nitrous oxide boosted motor mouth. Besides being human and good people, they are as about as opposite as you can get.
- In many ways, to Ryder himself/herself. Both of them start out as junior members of Alec’s team, both of them fall out of the same shuttle on Habitat 7 and both of them start out cut off from the rest of the team and need to find their way to them. Ryder rises to the challenge, navigating the environmental hazard, keeping cool during an initial firefight with the kett and rally over to where Cora is stranded, and optionally can even rescue a captured teammate, find some crucial intel about the kett, find a quirk in the planet’s ecosystem and even discover some initial intel about the Remnant. Liam falls to pieces, only able to follow along with an air of exasperation, then loses control by emptying an entire clip into a corpse in anger. Ryder engages in actual diplomatic efforts with the angara, even working with ambassadors on both sides to resolve diplomatic flare-ups, while Liam clumsily attempts to move diplomatic efforts along, then freaks out when stymied. Ryder carefully works with the angara to establish two outposts, obtain seeds and nutrient paste processing procedures and an Exponential Growth Rate Factor mutation to aid in food cultivation and even scours multiple planets to find edible plants to tangibly help the Nexus’s food situation, while Liam almost commits industrial espionage to fix a food shortage and when that fails, freaks out and engages in a blatantly risky and uneven trade with an improperly vetted angaran contact that balloons into a security problem. Ryder can smoothly execute raids on at least one and three more well fortified enemy outposts, while Liam’s one plan of attack literally goes sideways and needs a lot of external help to salvage. In short, Liam is an examination of someone who attempts the tasks Ryder attempts — and fails.
A Friend in Need: His loyalty mission involves rescuing his new friends and contacts among the angara.
The Friend Nobody Likes: Going by his banter with other squadmates while riding with them on the Nomad, it appears as though the others are at best mildly annoyed by Liam's statements. Besides Vetra, Peebee rips into him for revealing classified information, Jaal, while he still respects Liam, complains about being used as a "cultural test bed", Drack is openly dismissive of him (except for his loyalty mission, which if you bring Drack on, says it was fun), and even Cora gets irked when he talks about "disobeying orders." In contrast, banter amongst all the other squadmates is a lot more friendly. Of the non-combat crew, Gil calls him a tool.
The Gadfly: On H-047C, when Suvi warns Ryder about the low gravity, Liam quips about the car reaching escape velocity, startling her (she doesn't get that Liam's joking). Liam remarks she's easy to mess with.
Gambit Roulette: How most of his plans are. He gets a general idea of what he wants to do, and just takes off full speed for the goal, without thinking of details or flaws in the plan. In the event something goes wrong (which is often) he dives head first into Indy Ploy type tactics. He even lampshades this, saying that he is trained in "crisis response" not "everything going smoothly response".
Hero with an F in Good: States he was a cop back in the Milky Way, but didn't serve for long. He is also one of the nicest and most caring people on the crew, he just has no idea how to properly state his thoughts and emotions without pissing off whoever he is talking to. But most importantly, his attempts to help tend to cause unnecessary complications, as well as place the security of the entire Nexus at risk.
The Heart: If asked, Liam flat out says that your squadmates are all fine people. He also goes out of his way to understand and make friends with the angara and make sure everyone gets along. Since he knows they can't go back to the Milky Way, he does his best to be a peacekeeper, so everyone can have a home in Andromeda. He also becomes the Tempest’s social events organizer and tries to raise morale by bringing the crew together for a movie night, then organizes a soccer outing on Eos to bring that community together. In his emails to you, he is always trying to lift your spirits, keep your morale up, tries to inspire you instead of just sending something only relevant to their role like other squadmates do. And his loyalty mission is kicked off because he performs an act of unasked-for generosity, namely trying to help the angarans get something done. (He does do this in the dumbest way possible, but if intentions count, he's head-and-shoulders above almost everyone else in the game.)
Hot-Blooded: Liam wears his heart on his sleeve and he gets fired up easily.
Hypocrite: Peebee calls him one after his Loyalty Mission. In early banter, he constantly criticizes her for not being a team player and she sarcastically notes how giving out classified intel "helped" the team. He says that "right Peebee" isn't better than "wrong Peebee".
The Idealist: Liam is enthusiastic about exploring and forging new paths and has hope for the future of humanity. According to Cora, it's part of the reason he was picked for the team. In conversation with Liam, he admits to being shaped by his time in Crisis Response: after a disaster, people simply accepted their new status quo, no matter how terrible it was. "The new normal", he calls it. He is determined not to have that happen in Andromeda.
If You Ever Do Anything to Hurt Her...: Downplayed. If Ryder and Peebee are a couple, Liam asks if Peebee is "playing with him/her". Peebee replies "If he/she wants".
Informed Ability: He was previously a policeman, but we never ever see him do anything related to police work. He doesn’t even assist Ryder in the few criminal investigations they get involved in, such as the Nilken accusation, the serial killings on Kadara, the station sabotage, the water filter sabotage on Kadara etc. Justified as he stated that he’d failed as a cop.
I Know Mortal Kombat: Possibly. He claims that a lot of his combat knowledge comes from old action movies he has watched, and it's mentioned that crisis response could never teach him the heavy combat skills which garner praise from his teammates, even from Vetra, who doesn't like him at all. However, when he tries this explanation on Drack, Drack calls "Bullshit." Liam then admits that someone in crisis response mentored him, but refuses to elaborate further.
Incompatible Orientation: Trying to flirt with him as male Ryder results in Liam chuckling nervously before admitting that, while he appreciates the thought of having "universal" appeal, he's simply not into men.
Innocently Insensitive:
- Many of his interactions with Jaal come off as this. Granted, he clearly explains he is being blunt and insensitive on purpose to learn and understand where Jaal's (and by extension the angara) cultural boundries are. Though sometimes he plays this straight, like when he offers to trade his crisis response patch for Jaal's resistance badge, even though military unit insignas are very important and personal to the angara and they would never even consider trading it away. Luckily, Jaal understands Liam's methods and takes no real offense, even making him some traditional angaran clothing due to Liam's interest in them.
- Also often with Vetra. He tells Vetra to watch her claws, as he had gotten a nasty wound when fighting against a turian back in the Milky Way. The way he says it makes it clear he had no idea that Vetra would take offense to it. He also asks if she had any family in the First Contact War, trying to make small talk. This presses a serious button and she immediately calls him out.
  Vetra: Small talk is, "nice weather," not, "did your elder shoot my grampa?"
Interspecies Friendship: His propensity for openly stating this thoughts and emotions, with next to no filter, resonates well with how angaran society socializes, leading to him and Jaal becoming fast friends. They can often be seen hanging out together around the ship, asking each other questions about their respective cultures and species.
Jerkass: When interacting with the other members of the crew, he swings from downright abrasive to genuinely insulting. And whenever his "off the books" actions get the crew/Ryder in trouble (which happens at least three times) he whines that it's not his fault.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite the above, he sincerely wants to help everyone in the galaxy, and expresses distaste for the "one homeworld per Milky Way species" ark model because "We're all on the same team." His only problem is with accepting he isn't right all the time, and in that regard, he mellows out significantly over the course of the game.
Jet Pack: He uses his jump jet to move quickly and get closer to his target. Also plays a part in consumating his relationship with a romanced Ryder.
The Movie Buff: Delights in watching movies, both good and bad, with his friends.
Never My Fault: A consistent character flaw. The closest he gets to accepting actual responsibility for a screw up is at the end of his loyalty mission, where he does admit the situation was in part his fault. However, if Ryder calls him out on all the ways he screwed up, instead of taking responsibility, he just gets defensive. He even has the audacity to say that Ryder is "kind of a dick" in a later conversation if Ryder calls him out.
Nice Guy: Very sweet towards everyone, sometimes prone to messing things up and babbling.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero:
- His loyalty mission is kicked off when he gives vital classified Nexus information to an angaran contact of his, who is then kidnapped by a raider. When Liam goes to rescue his contact, he jumps in with no planning, no preparation and no proper backup — he gets some colonists as backup instead of a Strike Team or Apex team, the raider turns out to be more erratic than he expected, and his plan goes sideways in the most literal way possible.
- Liam thinks nothing about tossing grenades at enemies that Ryder is just mauling in close combat. Since "friendly" ordnance can hurt just as bad as hostile ones and doesn't come with a grenade indicator on the HUD, don't be surprised to suddenly see the critical mission failure screen because Liam blew Ryder to pieces.
Non-Answer:
- If Peebee's in a relationship with Ryder, Liam will ask her if they're "together." She'll state that she, Ryder, and Liam are here together right now. Liam says that's not what he meant, and she fires back that she doesn't care.
- If Liam is in a relationship with Ryder, he gives an equally-dodgy answer. She asks if "you and the boss are a thing." Liam responds by counting and saying "We're two things".
Noodle Incident: Liam states early in the game that he had a dozen suspensions before he left the police for crisis response. No explanation is given for what he did to get those suspensions, though given his actions in Heleus, it's not that hard to guess.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: After Peebee's Loyalty Mission, he sternly tells her that the pod was "a bad idea." Even Peebee jokes about him trying to speak to someone, especially an asari, in a "Dad voice." He says, even more sternly, that he's not joking. Peebee gets the point.
Pop-Cultured Badass: His knowledge of 20th-century Earth cinema would make Quentin Tarantino envious, and even arranges a movie night for the whole crew of the Tempest.
Precision F-Strike: His opinion on the people who created the Scourge? "They're some motherfuckers." Justified, since earlier he likens the Scourge to a minefield.
Properly Paranoid: During any visit to Kadara, Liam is utterly terrified at the thought of anyone there finding out he was a cop, what with the average inhabitant of Kadara Port being a violent criminals who'd likely try to kill a cop in a heartbeat.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: Liam is the blue oni to every team member except Cora and Jaal, being more focused on establishing rules and cooperation compared to Peebee's, Vetra's, and Drack's disregard for rules or teamwork. He considers himself the red oni in comparison to Cora and Ryder, as he's less patient than Ryder and far less by-the-book than Cora.
Ridiculously Average Guy: On a crew with the likes of an asari trained commando, a cybernetic Pathfinders, a millennia old krogan mercenary, among others of similar specialty, Liam was just a former cop and first responder. This probably makes him the most average crew member in a Mass Effect game to date. He even describes himself as one to Peebee, to which she gives a bewildered, "Oh. I'm sorry."
Romance Sidequest: For female Ryder.
Running Gag: Without fail, any mention that he used to be a cop will be met with some variation of "So, you were bad at it."
Shock and Awe: Liam has the Overload ability.
Shout-Out: Due to his skin color, hairstyle and propensity for dual omniblades, he bears a striking resemblance to "Wasabi" from Big Hero 6.
Silly Rabbit, Cynicism Is for Losers!: He thinks that a Pathfinder should be an inspiring beacon of hope for all Heleus species, including the angara. After a rescue mission instigated by him leaking classified information to an unvetted angara contact, Liam still spins it as a win, seeing the rescue as proof that the Pathfinder can even be a savior and hero for the angara. Disagree with that assessment and he yells at you for being a hardass and not willing to trust people.
The Slow Path: Non-time traveler variant. Before being put into cryo for the journey to Andromeda, Liam and his family obtained a cargo ship, loaded a classic 20th century earth automobile into it, and set it on a course to Andromeda. Not being equipped with the same drive that got the ark there in 600 years, the car will take 2 million years to make the trip. Liam knows he'll never live to see it arrive, but knowing it will always be on its way gives him comfort.
The Smart Guy: Studied engineering in university before entering into law enforcement. Claims it didn’t fit him. That said, aside from his Overload power, we don’t see him do anything technical.
So Bad, It's Good: In-universe. When talking about a movie night for the crew of the Tempest, he specifies the movies definitely don't have to be good.
Stupid Good: His major problem is his tendency to perform extremely reckless and ill-thought-out actions in the hopes of fostering cooperation. It's exemplified in the events leading up to his loyalty mission, where he offers his angarn contact classified intel as an olive branch only for said contact to be captured by raiders, putting the entire Nexus in jeopardy.
Sure, Let's Go with That: In conversation with Drack, he's asked if he ever fought a blue whale. Liam decides to just say he did.
Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Just like the Turian Havoc Soldier from the Mass Effect 3 multiplayer, he's a soldier variant of the Vanguard class, with his Havoc Strike behaving like Biotic Charge.
Strange Cop in a Strange Land: Liam was a police officer. Needless to say, he might be a little out of his element in an entirely new galaxy.
Strange Minds Think Alike: Presumably how he and Jaal came to the conclusion that the best way of getting to know each other was trading clothes and trying to offend each other.
Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: With Vetra, on account of his being an ex-cop and her being a smuggler (Vetra accuses him of giving her "cop eyes" and he constantly gives her a hard time for her smuggling), and exacerbated by her decision to bring Sid to Andromeda and his criticism of that choice. Even when they come to an understanding, they never actually like each other.
Throw Down the Bomblet: Liam uses Frag Grenades.
Thrown Out the Airlock: Happens to him and the rest of the squad early in his Loyalty Mission. Depending on what kind of reply you chose for Ryder, they and Liam can find their predicament disturbingly entertaining.
Variant Power Copying: His Havoc Strike ability is essentially a combination of a biotic Charge and Nova, except it's a tech ability that shocks hostiles around him. It's so similar to a biotic ability that you'd be excused for mistaking it for one.
Vitriolic Best Buds: An interesting Invoked Trope, both he and Jaal argue towards each other, but both will admit that this is a way to see how the other race gets offended without causing any lasting resentment or diplomatic nightmares.
Walking Shirtless Scene: There are plenty of conversations you can have with Liam when he's wearing nothing but pants and a smile. Cora eventually calls him out on this habit of his, which he counters by reminding her that the Tempest is a civilian vessel and the Initiative isn't even paying him, so there's not much in terms of leverage on their part.
What the Hell, Hero?: If you choose to confine Liam's contact Verand after his Loyalty Mission until the security breaches have been patched, then take the quick time interrupt to yell at him for his recklessness, he becomes livid! He complains that "we were never safe at all" demands to know "why did we jump to a whole new fucking galaxy, if we don't rely on people?" He remarks that "Pathfinder" should be a symbol of hope and transparency for everyone, not just a high level operative. This ignores, once again, that the entire situation is his fault.
Won't Take "Yes" for an Answer: At the start of his loyalty mission, he fully expects Ryder to refuse to help Verand, and it takes a second for him to catch on if they actually agree to rescue her.

Cora Harper

"When your biotics are honed into huntress-grade weapons... people can be weird about it."

Voiced by: Jules de Jongh

The second-in-command of the human Pathfinder team. Cora is a former Alliance officer, a human biotic, and an ally of Ryder. Her biotics are exceptionally strong for a human, so the Alliance arranged for her to receive asari huntress training so she could better control them. She is a romance option for a male Ryder.

Action Girl: Squad member, second-in-command of the human Pathfinder team and in charge of ground operations, and served with asari huntresses prior to coming to Andromeda. She's quite happy to relate (rather violent) stories from her time with the huntresses.
All of the Other Reindeer:
- Cora frequently found herself as an outsider due to her biotics. She joined the Andromeda Initiative in hope of finding a place to belong as more than just "a useful freak".
- Dialogue on Aya suggests some of the local angara are more than a little unnerved by her biotics.
An Ice Person: One of the level 6 upgrades for Cora's offensive passive ability is permanent Cryo Ammo.
The Baby of the Bunch: Her position on her old commando team. The next youngest member of the team was a mere two hundred, and glad there was finally someone else to be "the kid".
Badass Boast: On behalf of the entire team. When Vetra laments the Tempest's lack of a main gun and Jaal asks about the ship's defenses, Kallo says she has kinetic barriers, a stealth drive...
Cora: And us.
Barrier Warrior: She reveals herself as a biotic in the prologue mission when she wards off a lightning strike with a barrier dome. She then pulls a similar stunt during her Loyalty Mission as well. Sadly, both examples fall under Cutscene Power to the Max because she can't do anything of the sort in actual gameplay, although her Shield Boost power boosts her party's shields and therefore does a great job at keeping everyone alive, which might count as an indirect take on the trope.
Beware the Nice Ones: Cora is soft-spoken, comes off as kind-hearted, and wants nothing more than to start a garden on Eos. She's also, by her own admission, a tough killer who is quite capable of engaging in assassination and "wet work" if a mission requires it.
Brain/Computer Interface: In the novel, Cora is given a cybernetic brain implant that connects her to an offshoot of SAM called SAM-E. Alec did this to evaluate if his original SAM would be capable of interfacing with her in the same manner it is so intertwined with him. Unfortunately the interface ultimately fails as SAM-E becomes unstable.
Bring My Brown Pants: If she's present when Ryder finds the Remnant drive core on Elaaden and talks about how it's probably the most powerful and most dangerous thing they've handled so far, she drops this line.
Cora: Can't wait to take a shower. It does not smell nice in this suit right now.
Broken Pedestal: She practically worshipped the legendary asari huntress Sarissa Theris, and is devastated when she discovers that Sarissa left the asari Pathfinder to die. If in the Nomad with Drack afterward, she even says she's considering burning Sarissa's manuals. Drack talks her out of it.
Bruiser with a Soft Center: Most evident if romanced:
Ryder: So there's a heart as soft as rose petals under that uniform.
Cora: I've got plenty under here, pal. Does the big, bad Pathfinder have a soft spot, too?
Ryder: I might, for certain someones.
Catchphrase: She finds a lot of things "huge".
Combat Medic: Cora's Shield Boost power can be upgraded to restore the party's health over time, when she isn't causing large amounts of damage with her biotics. Even without the health regen evolution it's invaluable for keeping her team alive in the heat of battle.
Composite Character: Gameplay-wise, she's a cross between Ashley and Miranda from the previous games, combining combat focus and military training with powerful biotics and support for the whole team.
Contrasting Sequel Main Character
- She's this to both Ashley and Miranda as the starting human female squad member. While those two both had some general anti-alien sentiments (Ashley due to her family history and Miranda working with a decidedly anti-alien organization), Cora has not only worked closely with the asari, but has even fully embraced their culture and customs.
- She is also this to Kaidan and Jack. Kaidan was trained by a sadistic turian mercenary (and ended up accidentally killing him in self-defense) while Jack was kidnapped by Cerberus and while both of them became powerful biotics rivaling an asari, their experiences made them more cautious and amoral respectively. Cora's training with the asari made her more in control of her biotics and had a pretty pleasant experience with her asari commando unit and still thinks fondly of them.
Deadpan Snarker: Rather subdued compared to her more overtly sarcastic companions, but she has a very dry sense of humor. Cora apparently likes having the last word in conversations, and when she does, it's usually a snarky comment.
Dude Magnet: During some minor conversations and dialogues, she says that men often hit on her and during one minor conversation on Kadara Port she tells Ryder that someone was willing to "buy" her and the Nomad. Her response was to aim her gun below his waist.
Elites Are More Glamorous: She's a biotic who worked for four years alongside asari commandos.
Emotionless Girl: Comes across as this occasionally, with some of her cutscene and in-game responses being virtually monotone and non-committal. This is, however, due more to her being The Stoic, and she warms up over time (especially if romance is initiated).
Fashionable Asymmetry: Her lopsided haircut is easily her most striking feature, mostly due to her being the only person in the entire Initiative to sport one. It's so iconic that it's used to identify her status on the HUD — her stylized symbol is designed around it.
First Girl Wins: She is the first love interest for male Ryder to be encountered and, while others (male and female) are made available as the game progresses.
Flash Step: Has Charge as one of her abilities.
Foil: To Peebee. Cora is a human who reveres the asari and probably would rather be one of them instead given half the chance. Peebee on the other hand is an asari but could hardly be more dismissive of her own species, regularly poking fun or even disdain at the established asari mindset. She also doesn't really care about the fate of the Leusinia, the missing asari ark, quite in contrast to Cora who's worried sick about that matter. It's a source of much friction between the two that gets evident when you listen to their banter while exploring in the Nomad. Character-wise, Peebee is a very free-spirited civilian who primarily looks out for herself while Cora is a no-nonsense, by-the-book soldier who feels obligated to always put the needs of others ahead of her own.
Cora: We are in trouble. We need their [the asari on the Leusinia] experience and wisdom.
Peebee: Yay! Let’s get a bunch of old biddies talking about stuff.
Foreshadowing: Random dialogue heard in the Nomad if Cora and Jaal are squadmates has Cora indicate that one of her hobbies is growing plants. It's possible to hear this prior to the side-quest in which she initiates a garden on Eos.
Going Native: Her time serving with asari commandos affected Cora so profoundly that she seems to prefer asari culture and customs over that of humanity. The asari prayer book she brought with her to Andromeda, her intimate knowledge of asari culture, as well as her reverence for her fellow huntresses — especially those of particular note like Sarissa Theris, who is basically a hero to her — all lend weight to this trope.
Cora: Asari think in centuries: Lay a foundation, then step away — let it grow into something you might never expect.
- When Ryder asks Cora about previous romances, Cora mentions that she had fun on shore leave, but nothing serious. This is precisely how most asari look at relationships, but also serves as a subtle indicator that she's straight.
- It's notable that she's far more concerned with finding the asari ark than Peebee is.
- Peebee calls attention to this when they're in the party together, pointing out her obsession with asari culture.
The Greatest Story Never Told: She tells Drack of a time she and the commandos she served with had to rescue forty prisoners from a group of pirates, and did so by killing their leader, leaving the pirates to turn on each other, all without being seen. Drack isn't too impressed by the idea of no-one else knowing what she did. Cora just responds that she knows.
Green-Eyed Monster:
- She will express surprise at the idea of Peebee and the male Ryder getting together if Ryder flirts with Peebee too many times, expressing worry about losing "something." If both are in the Nomad they will argue about Ryder.
- She also has a similar case with Vetra. However when the two discuss it in the Nomad they have a mutual understanding they want the same guy, rather than a argument like Peebee.
- From a non-romantic standpoint, though she hides it well at first, Cora is actually rather bitter that Ryder was chosen by their father to take over the role of Pathfinder after his death, despite the fact that she had been training under him for a while as his second in command while they have basically no experience for the role. She gets over it after her loyalty mission, she realizes that in a pinch, she instinctively looks to and defers to an authority figure, not a useful trait for a leader to have.
Hero of Another Story: Has herself quite the adventure in Mass Effect Initiation.
The Idealist: Subscribes to the asari huntress ideal, as stated in the battle manuals of a Sarissa Theris. Gets extremely disillusioned when Sarissa herself fails to live up to that ideal.
If You Ever Do Anything to Hurt Her...: If Ryder is in a relationship with Reyes, she threatens to punch him through a wall if he lies to them again or breaks their heart.
Incompatible Orientation: Trying to flirt with her as female Ryder causes Cora to say, "A commando friend said something like that once. I explained I wasn't into women, however admirable they might be."
Incredibly Lame Fun: When Jaal asks her what Cora likes to do for fun, she says she likes growing plants, to which Jaal wonders if the angaran word for fun doesn't translate.
Insecure Love Interest: Shows occasional signs of this. For example, chatting with her after flirting with Peebee one too many times results in her expressing disbelief that Ryder is interested in Peebee.
Irony: Her adoration of Asari culture, especially about how Asari "think in centuries lay a foundation, then step away — let it grow into something you might never expect" is considerably ironic given the event in Mass Effect 3. The "foundation" in which the Asari build their society is a great big lie — the hiding of a Prothean beacon nearly led to the Galaxy being destroyed by the Reaper. For a species of supposed strategists and philosophers, the act is revealingly hypocritical and shortsighted.
Lightning Bruiser: With Charge and Nova, and with her passives evolved to focus on power damage and recharge speed, Cora can cause a lot of damage very quickly, without taking too much damage.
Male Gaze: The camera has some focus on her butt every once in a while, which is pretty close to Miranda's in terms of size. Taken to the logical extreme if you take your male Ryder into a relationship with her — her sex scene with him shows it getting groped in a sensual manner.
Magic Knight: She has Biotic Charge as one of her abilities, making her a Vanguard.
Mind over Matter: Cora is a biotic, and unusually powerful for a human. By age ten she was able to warp steel girders and by the time she was with the Alliance she was powerful enough to rip APCs apart. So, as Jack was arguably the most powerful human biotic in the Milky Way, Cora may arguably prove to be the most powerful human biotic in Andromeda.
More Senior Subordinate: Cora was Alec Ryder's second-in-command and was next in line to become Pathfinder if he were to be killed or incapacitated. Instead, Alec passed the role on to one of his children, leaving Cora as the second-in-command despite holding seniority. It is a minor point of tension between Cora and Ryder until Cora's loyalty mission forces her to acknowledge that she is too dependent on the advice of superiors to be a leader herself.
Ms. Fanservice: Her character model has a more pronounced backside in comparison to other female characters and her combat suit is very skin-tight (but not to the same extent as Miranda's or Samara's) which show her shapely curves perfectly and she's one of the three love interests to be seen naked during her romance arc.
My God, What Have I Done?: When Sarissa's deeds are exposed, Cora takes it pretty hard, and can be found in the Tempest's lab wondering if she can do the day over again.
My Master, Right or Wrong: In conversation with Liam, Cora states no matter the orders she was given in the commandoes, she would follow them to the letter. After her loyalty mission, Cora realizes that she would make a poor Pathfinder because of this.
Noodle Incident: When asked about some war stories from her stint with the asari commandos, she recalls that one time her CO killed a krogan with a pack of playing cards. Choking hazard, apparently.
Not So Above It All: Despite being the team's most stoic member, she lets the mask slip on occasion, like when she subtly complains about how no-one but Ryder ever gets to drive the Nomad, or suggesting Peebee could help her "disappear" some paperwork for Tann. She's also just as fond of Lexi's medical examinations as everyone else, by which we mean not at all.
Cora: Don't worry, Lexi. I'll make sure they show up.
Lexi: Thank you, Cora. You're first, by the way.
Cora: Shit.
Number Two: To Ryder — first to Alec, then to Sara/Scott — as their chosen second-in-command.
Odd Friendship: With Vetra, whose profession as a mercenary and shady underworld trader is diametrically opposed to Cora's soldiering. They have a couple of conversations about the topic aboard the Nomad but get along swell regardless.
One-Steve Limit: Averted. There's another character in the Mass Effect IP who shares Cora's surname (Jack Harper, better known as the Illusive Man), but so far there is no canon evidence that she is related to them in any way. (That hasn't stopped Fanon from having a field day with it.)
Only Sane Employee: Cora is generally the most professional of the crew, and background conversations as well as the ship's message board show Cora trying to keep at least some semblance of order. Ryder can even say to Gil regarding Cora that someone needs to keep their Ragtag Bunch of Misfits in check.
Parental Abandonment: Her parents didn't know how to deal with (and couldn't afford to fix the damage caused by) a young, powerful biotic, so she went to the Alliance when her biotics manifested. Not long after she enlisted, Cora's parents' cargo freighter mysteriously disappeared in the Attican Traverse; Cora never found out what happened to them. The Alliance sent her to join an asari commando team, where she excelled and idolized her mentor — until she sent Cora away. After that, Alec became her mentor, with her as the Pathfinder second-in-command — until Alec died and chose Sara/Scott as the next Pathfinder instead. She's got some issues as a result of all that.
Perpetual Smiler: During cutscenes and when encountered in-between missions, is almost always seen with a slight smile on her face.
Pretty Fly for a White Guy: Peebee considers Cora a wannabe asari. And Peebee's got a dim view of asari culture to begin with.
Religious Bruiser: Implied. The sentimental item that Cora chose to bring with her from the Milky Way is an asari prayer book.
The Resenter: Downplayed, she starts her personal plot having some tension with Ryder due to them becoming the Pathfinder when she was originally in line for the job and now has to work under them. After her loyalty mission, Cora realizes that she would have made a poor Pathfinder because she is too dependent on the advice of authority figures when things get difficult.
Romance Sidequest: First confirmed romance option for male Ryder.
Cora: So quiet. Like it's just the two of us. Maybe one day it will be — you and me. A rover, a tent; adventuring across the stars.
Ryder: Living on our wits? Keeping each other warm at night? Sign me up.
Cora: This... us... it might not be easy. Andromeda challenges everything we know. But you're worth the fight.
Shotguns Are Just Better: Shotguns are her weapon of choice. So much in fact that hers is a unique model that can't be found anywhere else in the game.
Skewed Priorities: A light example in her loyalty mission, when she questions Ryder calling out Sarissa for her behavior, despite (as the other party member may point out) the fact Sarissa is over seven hundred years old and has probably heard worse things in that time.
Space People: According to her dossier on the game's website, Cora is 'spaceborn'. In-game, dialogue with her aboard the Tempest reveals that she grew up on a small cargo ship.
Squick: In-Universe when Drack asks her for a used thermal clip and explains he needs it to plug a hole in his armor because the wind's whistling through his nethers. Cora hurriedly gives him one and assures him she never wants it back.
The Stoic: She's by far the most level-headed crew member and rarely lets strong emotions come to the fore. Due to her by-the-book mentality, Cora's also the only squad mate that never gets Ryder and the others into trouble by doing something reckless or pulling them into personal matters.
- That said, she does occasionally become flustered with relation to flirting or romance. For example, she acts rather distressed if you talk to her after having flirted with Peebee one too many times, expressing fear of "losing something". She also becomes a bit tongue tied when Jaal flirts with her (often heard during Nomad road trips if the two are part of the same squad).
Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: If Ryder sides with the Collective on Kadara, any time Cora is near them she makes it clear she doesn't like or trust them (and that's without finding out about their less savoury activities).
Unfit for Greatness: Cora realizes this about herself after her loyalty mission. Pathfinders blaze a trail and come up with solutions when things get tough. When Cora finds herself in a difficult situation, she always looks to authority figures for advice, and doesn't know what to do when that advice is not available. She admits that those are not qualities of a leader.
- The tie in prequel novel Mass Effect Initiation reveals another reason she could never become Pathfinder — Alec Ryder’s special advanced SAM is unable to seamlessly integrate into Cora the same way he can with Alec, Scott and Sara. Therefore, only one of the Ryder twins could ever become Pathfinder.
Unrequited Love: The tie in novel Mass Effect Initiation reveals that Janae the asari huntress Cora mentions as being “the baby of the group” had an unrequited crush on Cora. She couldn’t reciprocate because of Incompatible Orientation (see above).
Vitriolic Best Buds: With Drack. They're constantly ribbing each other, but it's abundantly clear that it's just friendly banter between two people who like and respect one another.
Workaholic: Cora dedicates almost all of her time to work, even her off-duty hours. At one point, you can come across Lexi ordering her to read a book for leisure, as opposed to re-reading huntress manuals again. Advancing either her friendship or romance arc reveals that she does have a personal project, but only one, and she can only work on it when the Tempest is on a specific planet.

Vetra Nyx

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vetra.png

“Making deals to get the things you want, shooting at the things you don’t. That’s me.”

Voiced by: Danielle Rayne

A female turian drifter and mercenary, and a member of the Andromeda Initiative. Vetra was an experienced smuggler and mercenary back in the Milky Way and she uses those skills to aid the Initiative. She is a romance option for a Ryder of either gender.

Action Girl: As a female squadmate (and a turian, no less), this is to be expected.
American Accents: Has a bit of a drawl likely meant to give her something to compete with the beloved voice of the last Turian squadmate.
A-Team Firing: Drack occasionally pokes fun at Vetra for having terrible aim. This has some basis in gameplay; Vetra's modified Cyclone can put a lot of bullets downrange, but unless her target is particularly large or fairly close, most of them will be hitting scenery.
Beware the Nice Ones:
- Vetra is normally the nicest member of the crew and always willing to help out, but if she is on the Archon's flagship to see what the kett were doing to their prisoners, Vetra flips her shit and screams at the kett scientists that she will personally hunt them down and kill them for what they've done.
- If brought along on Liam's loyalty mission, shortly after hearing more of Calot's boasting, she declares she's looking forward to shooting him.
Big Sister Instinct: Has a younger sister who made the trip to Andromeda with her and whom Vetra is very protective of. She gets into an argument with Liam when he questions her bringing Sid to Andromeda. Vetra's overprotectiveness comes back to haunt her when Sid decides it's time to join Vetra in her work, only to find out that she was totally unequipped for the reality of Vetra's world because Vetra worked so hard to protect Sid from that.
Contrasting Sequel Main Character: Has plenty of this with Garrus, in regards to their backgrounds. Garrus was raised strictly in the turian ways and holds a bit of resentment for that, Vetra was one of the rare turians who never went to boot camp for reasons beyond her control. Despite butting heads with his father, Garrus also came from a well-off and loving family, while Vetra was left on her own. Garrus was a cop on the Citadel who became a vigilante after believing that following the rules would lead to nowhere, Vetra was an ex-smuggler who used her shady skills to help improve the law by making sure everyone survives. And while Garrus is a sniper, Vetra uses a lot of bullets to make sure an enemy is down.
Cool Big Sis: To Sid (literally) and, by extension, everyone else in the Tempest crew.
Cool Shades: Though not explicitly sunglasses, she always wears a holographic visor that partly obscures her eyes and thus serves the same visual purpose. Contrary to Garrus', hers actually looks like a futuristic set of specs instead of a high-tech monocle (that one's Jaal's prerogative now).
Dance Battler: According to Jaal, in a battle she acts more like she's dancing than fighting.
Deadpan Snarker: Yes, she's another squad mate with dust-dry humor and a seemingly inexhaustible supply of sarcastic comebacks. Noticing a pattern here?
Disappeared Dad; Vetra's father vanished after upsetting some dangerous people. She doesn't know if he was killed or if he just abandoned his children to go into hiding.
Doomed Hometown: Played with. She was born on Palaven, which was under siege by the Reapers while she slept on the journey to Andromeda, but her profile states that she resided in "too many places to count."
The Drifter: Her profile listing her as being from too many places to count implies this. That her class is listed as being "Drifter Mercenary" outright states that she is this.
Drives Like Crazy: Not her personally, but she laughs with unabated joy and glee when Ryder gets serious air time after ramping the Nomad off a hill.
Establishing Character Moment: Vetra showcases her talents and empathy in her first two minutes: A human man tells her that Director Addison won't allow many of the things on the Tempest to be taken from the Nexus. Vetra pulls him aside, and talks about the man's son, still in cryo because he's "non-essential". She tells him that, if he lets a few things slide so they can get on their mission, she'll pull a few strings and get his son thawed out. He agrees to shoulder the Director's wrath.
Facial Markings: Per turian culture, Vetra wears face paint. It's purple too.
Fire-Forged Friends: She and Liam do not have nice things to say to each other initially, with her at one point even calling him an asshole. Their later banter is considerably more amicable, as they realize they need each other and see the value the other brings to the team. But, as people, they still do not get along well and agree that once this is all over, they're likely to live very far away from each other.
First Girl Wins: Vetra is the first same-sex love interest encountered for Sara Ryder.
Friend in the Black Market: How Vetra got her start in the Andromeda Initiative. Kesh needed some expensive equipment to build the Nexus and she hired Vetra to get it for her. The two of them became friends over time and eventually Vetra was able to convince Kesh to tell her about the Initiative and let her sign up.
Gay Option: For female Ryder.
Hidden Depths: She knows how to tango. According to her, she picked it up while pursuing "the angles" one time.
Hired Guns: Her class is listed as "Drifter Mercenary."
Holding Hands: She and Ryder do this during their romance scene on Kadara.
I Can't Believe a Guy Like You Would Notice Me: Her reaction when a Ryder romancing her confirms their feelings.
I Can't Dance: Despite aforementioned tango skills and Jaal's comment about her being a Dance Battler, when asked if she dances Vetra replies "shit, no." She then goes on to mention that during one job, her trying to dance nearly killed a volus and started a two-day bar brawl on Omega.
I Have This Friend: Any stories, statements or requests she makes about doing illegal/shady deals always involves some people she's heard about, somewhere. Not her, of course.
Insecure Love Interest: Not nearly to the same degree as some other romance options, but Vetra is clearly not as self-assured in love as she is in black market dealings. She's caught off guard when Ryder asks if she came to Andromeda with anyone special, stunned silent when she learns how much Ryder cares about her and her sister, and visibly nervous when she and Ryder confirm their relationship and during their final romance scene. Once Ryder assuages her fears, though, she quickly gets her usual confidence back.
Interspecies Romance: Clearly. She also expresses an... appreciation for Suvi's voice, so it's possible she's attracted to humans in general.
Knowledge Broker: She's well-connected and specializes in information gathering.
Lethal Chef: If she's in a relationship with Ryder, she tries cooking the Pathfinder "Cow" (a cryo preserved steak). Being a Turian, she's never cooked human food, nor can she taste test what she's cooking. The results is a disgusting slab of brown and black. Ryder can be honest with how gross it looks (not helped by Vetra calling it "Cow" or "Cow steak" instead of steak) or try to pretend it looks appetizing (she sees through it). Thankfully Ryder can show her the gesture is appreciated, no matter the result.
Lovable Rogue: Vetra was a criminal back in the Milky Way, and even now she has no problem bending or breaking the law to get things done, but she's overall a good person who cares about others.
Mama Bear: If she thinks you pose any threat to Sid, she will end you.
More Dakka: Vetra's weapon of choice is a modified Cyclone assault rifle, the closest thing ME:A has to a Gatling weapon due to its brief spin-up time and multiple barrels (it's not unlikely that it's a precursor to ME 3's game-breaking N7 Typhoon machine gun). On top of that, she has the Turbocharge power, which is essentially Ashley's Marksman power with a new name.
Meaningful Name: Nyx is the Greek goddess (or at least the personification) of the night, and is described in mythology as a shadowy figure. Pretty fitting for a turian with a history with smugglers and mercenaries.
My God, What Have I Done?: She'll confess to Ryder that for the fourteen months she and Sid were stuck on the Nexus, she regretted the decision to come to Andromeda and felt she'd ruined her sister's life in the process. Thankfully for her, Ryder changes all that and turns it into the best decision of her life.
Nice Girl: A well-written example with lots of personality and Hidden Depths who's nevertheless unfailingly polite and helpful to almost anyone, especially to those she considers friends and family. When spoken to aboard the Tempest, her default response is an eager "Need something? Need something done?"
Non-Answer: At one point Liam asks her if any of her family ever fought in the First Contact War, and takes her response of referring to it as the Relay 314 incident as one of these.
Noodle Incident: How exactly her dance moves nearly killed a volus and started a two-day bar brawl.
Not Me This Time: Her loyalty mission involves meeting a bunch of people who claim she helped them escape from a criminal. Vetra does have a lot of adventures to her credit and shady friends who might need to escape the occasional psycho... but she has no idea who these people are. Her sister helped them, while pretending to be Vetra.
Now What?: After the end credits, in her conversations with Ryder she considers between sticking with them or settling down somewhere to look after Sid, as had been her initial plan. She decides to stick with Ryder for the foreseeable future.
One Head Taller: Than either Ryder twin, much to the amusement of her sister if Vetra is in a relationship with the Pathfinder.
Parental Abandonment: Vetra's mother wanted nothing more to do with her children after she and Vetra's father separated. Vetra's father either died or abandoned his children when Vetra was young.
Power Armor: She has the ability "Power Armor", which greatly increases her durability. It's basically the trilogy's Tech Armor power in all but name.
Promotion to Parent: Vetra had to raise her little sister Sid after their father vanished. Vetra's insistence on continuing to treat Sid like a child causes problems later, and Vetra's loyalty mission forces them to reevaluate what it means to be sisters now that they're both adults.
Reverse Arm-Fold: Stands like this a lot.
Shock and Awe: One of the level 6 evolutions on Vetra's offensive passive ability is Disruptor Ammo.
Single Woman Seeks Good Man: Or woman, depending on what gender Ryder has. But, whichever gender Ryder is, Vetra will admit to loving Ryder for their admirable qualities.
Vetra: (to Ryder) You care about my sister. You care about me. For me. Not because you can get something out of me. I love you.
Statuesque Stunner:
- She towers over humans, which is standard for all turians in ME:A. Her official profile lists her at 198cm (6'6), making her the tallest squadmate, taller even than Drack.
- In an email, she explains her sister Sid found it adorable when Vetra told her about her and Ryder's relationship because Ryder is so much shorter than Vetra.
Street Smart: Her time surviving the rough world of smugglers and mercenaries requires her to be this.
Tiny Guy, Huge Girl: If Ryder is romancing her, Vetra can become this with Ryder since turians are taller than humans. Sid thinks their relationship is the cutest thing ever since Ryder is, quote, "sooooo tiny."
Trademark Favorite Food: She has an entire crate of stolen Blast-Ohs in her room. Subverted since Vetra can't eat them; she uses them as trade stock to get things from other members of the initiative.
Undying Loyalty: Vetra's experiences have taught her the importance of having someone to watch your back, and she’ll do anything for the people she considers her friends.
[Verb] This!: A variation that includes her own name. When Vetra learns about an unspecified group of people wanting to name a gun after her, she immediately tries to come up with an appropriately badass one-liner for anyone to use while they point it at an enemy. Her first suggestion ends with "Nyx this!". By her own admission, it still needs some work.

Pelessaria "Peebee" B'Sayle

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/peebee.png

"The Milky Way was so... been-there-done-that. Even if I hadn't done it, someone had."

Voiced by: Christine Lakin

An asari who came to Andromeda aboard the Nexus, Peebee is an adventurer who quickly set off on her own after the Nexus' arrival in order to study alien technologies. Her role is to help Ryder find out more about these technologies. She is a romance option for a Ryder of either gender.

Abhorrent Admirer: Invoked by her toward Liam. If she flirts with him, it annoys him, though she's only doing it for that express purpose.
Action Girl: As an asari, to be expected, though her dialogue after fights implies she actually doesn't like violence. On the other hand, she freely admits to getting antsy if she doesn't get into a good scrape every now and then, and her default method of dealing with emotional turmoil appears to be shooting lots of stuff. She also drops some of the most enthusiastic lines of praise whenever Ryder kills an enemy.
Peebee: You rock!
Peebee: One in a million!
Action Girlfriend: She believed she was playing this role for Kalinda during their relationship, not knowing she was Living a Double Life as an outlaw. She even said that being shown off as "Kalinda's little rogue" made her feel special.
Admiring the Abomination: If she's in the party when the Architect on Eos makes its Dynamic Entry and everyone else starts freaking out, she just whispers a rapturous "It's... amazing!"
Adventurer Archaeologist: Her class is listed as "Rogue Academic", implying a scholarly background of sorts. She's introduced rummaging around Remnant sites on Eos, and pretty much all her non-romance quests involve studying Remnant tech in some way.
Affectionate Nickname: Subverted. Peebee starts calling Vetra "Vee" at one point, and Vetra only reluctantly answers to it. When Vetra asks Peebee what her name stands for, she says "Peanut Butter" and Vetra uses that later. Eventually, the two agree to just call each other by what they want to be known as.
Alcohol Hic: At one point, Peebee can be found visiting the museum on Aya while utterly intoxicated, complete with a case of drunk hiccups.
Amicable Exes:
- Nope. She used to be close to Kalinda, but now they hate each other's guts over their professional rivalry and Kalinda's backstabbing ways. A large part of Peebee's loyalty mission revolves around this failed relationship. Depending on how you resolve it, they can end up on more amicable terms, although that doesn't stop Peebee from continuing to troll her ex whenever she can.
- Played straight with Ryder, if they had a casual sexual relationship, but Ryder decides they're Better as Friends.
Archenemy: Kalinda, a former abusive lover turned rival and harasser.
Big Damn Kiss: She can pull a romanced Ryder into a passionate one after the final battle to stop them launching into yet another Rousing Speech for the cameras... and to let everyone in the Initiative know they're hers.
Blatant Lies: The first time Ryder inquires about her origins, Peebee will claim she was born in a log cabin to two loving parents.
Bold Explorer: It turns out the reason why she signed on with the Andromeda Initiative is because she was bored with the Milky Way, labelling it as "been-there-done-that."
Boldly Coming: She gives a lot of thought to what would happen if an asari and angaran got together. And, of course, she's willing to romance Ryder, a human, flirting with them even if they don't flirt back.
Broken Bird: Peebee already lacked social skills, but her relationship with Kalinda only gave her further trust issues. If she grows to love Ryder, she states that she's putting all of that behind her because she loves Ryder more than she's ever loved anyone before.
Brutal Honesty: Peebee isn't so keen on formalities or social niceties, which can make her come off as very blunt and forward.
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Despite her childish exterior, Peebee is probably the expert on Remnant tech, even managing to restore two Observers to working order to use as combat drones, and managing to glean a lot of data from any tech Ryder fetches for her.
Cannot Talk to Women: When she tries asking Ryder if they want to go all the way with her, rather than ask to their face, Peebee records a message on Poc, leaves Ryder with her and runs for it.
Can't Hold Her Liquor: Played with on the first revisit to Aya Peebee tries out some angaran liquor. She tells Ryder it didn't do anything to her, even as she's having difficulty simply standing. Turns out she underestimated the absorption rate of angaran liquor. Since it didn't have a strong kick, she drank way too much trying to get drunk only for the inebriation to kick in later.
Character Development: Initially, Peebee isn't big on staying in one place or tying herself to anything. Her loyalty mission allows her to realise she wants to stay on the Tempest. If a romance is attempted, it'll also trigger her admitting she wants a full relationship with Ryder.
Contrasting Sequel Main Character:
- To Liara, who was serious and nervous around people while Peebee has an extremely bubbly personality. Liara was the only squad member in the first game to lack weapons training, while Peebee is a gunslinger. Further, both of them are dedicated to the study of different precursors, but while Liara was interested in Prothean culture and society, Peebee is interested in studying Remnant technology and its practical applications. If Shepard completed every other main mission before recruiting Liara, she will be angry that her life's work was rendered meaningless by somebody who blindly stumbled onto the answers. Faced with a similar situation where Ryder does in seconds what Peebee couldn't do in months, she is thrilled. Gameplay-wise, Liara was a Glass Cannon whereas Peebee is a solid Stone Wall.
- She is also a contrast to Samara. While Samara gave up her life to become a Justicar because she tragically found out all her kids were Ardat-Yakshi, Peebee joined the Initiative on her own terms because she wanted to experience something new. Further, Samara is stoic and composed while Peebee is very emotional with no filter. Both had an asari lover but while Samara still thinks fondly of her bondmate, Peebee can't stand her ex at all. And while Samara admits she has feelings for Shepard but refuses to act on her lust, Peebee flirts with Ryder non-stop, initiates casual sex, and upon being romanced, demands that they do it at every single turn.
- Liara and Samara both had asari fathers and the resulting social discrimination informs their characters. Peebee has a non-asari father, specifically an elcor, and her issues with that are entirely internal.
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Peebee wasn't supposed to be awakened from cryo sleep during this phase of the Initiative, which is reserved for the smartest and brightest of its ranks. Even after she was awakened, it was only at the behest of her then-girlfriend and she remained on the Nexus for most of that time as Kalinda's Trophy Wife. But the second she got out in the field and on her own, she quickly unravelled many of the mysteries of Remnant technology and proves a valuable asset to the Pathfinder team.
Deadpan Snarker: Not as intense as Drack or a sarcastic Ryder, but she certainly has her moments.
Did I Just Say That Out Loud?: One of her flirt dialogue options goes like this.
Ryder: Tackling complete strangers in the Milky Way wasn't doing it for you?
Peebee: I think tackling you anywhere would be fun... did I just say that out loud?
Didn't Think This Through: During her Loyalty Mission, she tricks Ryder and a third squadmate into entering her escape pod, and then ejects it onto the surface of a volcanic planet. Once they crash, they see to their horror that if Peebee hadn't been extremely lucky, she would have dunked them all in hot lava. SAM then tells them that Kallo has no way of safely landing the Tempest and thus the team has no way off the planet. Peebee's only response is "Oops.". You can choose how Ryder reacts — they can enjoy the spontaneity or be angry beyond the words to express it.
Domestic Abuse: Peebee's former relationship with Kalinda is a textbook case of domestic abuse. Kalinda had all of the power in their relationship, living as a social débutante on the Nexus while also living a double life as an Outlaw warlord. Peebee describes their relationship as a never-ending cycle of Kalinda being very sweet and then randomly saying and doing things to hurt Peebee. Afterwards, she'd tearfully apologize and make excuses for herself, only to become abusive again later. Peebee says that she always questioned if it was her fault, and still can't bring herself to truly hate Kalinda even after they've become archenemies.
Doomed Hometown: She doesn't know it, but her homeworld of Hyetiana was conquered by the Reapers while Peebee was traveling to Andromeda.
Dude, Not Funny!: If brought along to Khi Tasira, Peebee will say it's funny when it turns out that it's not Meridian after all, only to backpedal when Ryder stares disapprovingly at her.
Easily Forgiven: Toward Ryder after her Loyalty Mission. Peebee doesn't hesitate for a second to run to Kalinda's rescue at the cost of losing the artifact she moved heaven and earth to acquire, be it due to emotional manipulation or just valuing the life of a sentient being higher than the artifact's worth. If Ryder intervenes via interrupt prompt, Peebee will demand an explanation next time they talk on the Tempest but comes to accept Ryder's reasoning almost instantly despite them being responsible for the death of someone she still cared about to some capacity. If she was romanced before, she's even perfectly willing to enter into a committed relationship with Ryder soon after.
Eating the Eye Candy: Aside from her fondness for ogling Ryder and Jaal, we also have this exchange:
Cora: Eyes over here, Peebee.
Peebee: I like them where they are.
Ethical Slut: She's a shameless flirt and is the only companion who will have casual sex with Ryder (the potential impulse sex with Liam and Sara excepted). She comments that she doesn't get why people have hangups about sex, seeing it as just a natural way of expressing affection, especially with people who live high-adrenaline lives. But she's never mind-melded with any of her partners, until Ryder at the end of their Romance Arc.
Exposed to the Elements: Even the harsh temperatures on Voeld don't stop her from baring her midriff.
Foil: To Cora. Refer to her article for the details.
Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: Peebee is the foolish sibling to her older sister's responsible, though Peebee's statements about her suggest the latter being so serious was what prompted her to be foolish in the first place.
Forgot About Her Powers: The climax of her Loyalty Mission where she must choose between saving her ex-girlfriend or an important artifact could have gone a lot smoother if she had used her biotic abilities on either.
Fridge Brilliance: In-universe regarding her behavior. Drack is utterly shocked by her having an elcor father given her hyperactive behavior, then realizes how well it fits with her rebellious nature.
Friends with Benefits: It's possible to have a no strings attached casual relationship with Peebee. Until after her Loyalty Mission, that is, where you either commit to her or decide that you're Better as Friends.
Fun with Acronyms: Poc — the name of her pet Observer — is actually an acronym derived from "proof of concept". She also mentions that the Observer Ryder can spawn as a tech skill is called Zap, although that's probably just inspired by what it does.
The Gadfly: Peebee is prone to saying outrageous things just because she thinks they're funny. For example, when Vetra asks what her full name is, she claims that it's Peanut Butter. She tells Jaal she's the "goddess" asari swear by, and at one point pretends to be in the mood for a Ryder while she's driving, just to see if Jaal was sleeping.
Gay Option: For female Ryder, though technically she's a monogendered species.
Genki Girl: She's very bubbly, and quite energetic when she gets excited.
Drack: What's with the smudge over your eyes? Trying to be some kind of super hero?
Peebee: Why all the bones? Trying to be some kind of super villain?
Drack: Yes.
Peebee: Cool.
The Glomp: Tackles Ryder (in a Call-Back to their first meeting) if they say they want to romance Peebee permanently.
Good Bad Girl: Peebee treats flirtation and sex as no really big deal, although the latter requires significantly more trust than the former. If questioned about her relationship with Kalinda, Peebee states that, to her, sex is just a natural part of when two people enjoy each other's company. Zigzagged if she's fully romanced, though; she fully commits herself to Ryder...but demands sex from them constantly.
Gravity Screw: Her biotic powers can make enemies float freely in the air, ripe for being filled full of holes or blown to pieces with a combo. She's also the one who invites Ryder to join her for some relaxation with the Tempest's artificial gravity switched off.
Green-Eyed Monster: Despite endorsing a casual, no-strings-attached relationship with Ryder, she drops a biting remark about "not getting enough back home?" when Ryder flirted with Reyes before and expresses concerns about him not being at their meeting point when they arrive.
Green-Skinned Space Babe: Obviously, as an asari.
The Gunslinger: Her main combat role, which she integrates with biotics.
Hates Small Talk: Peebee would rather do than talk. In her very first dialogue with Ryder aboard the Tempest, she avoids most of Ryder's questions and, when an annoyed Ryder questions her attitude, says that Ryder can know her better in the field by watching and judging her deeds. She becomes a little more open as time passes, but even if she becomes Ryder's girlfriend, she pre-emptively ends questions with "Yes. Whatever it is."
Hidden Heart of Gold: Peebee pretends not to care about anything besides her own personal research. However, whenever the team finds innocent people in trouble or danger, Peebee is usually one of the ones who demand Ryder stop and help, regardless of what the current mission is.
Holding Hands: Does this with a romanced Ryder before embarking on the final mission, and again while they walk off after the showdown with the Archon.
The Immodest Orgasm: She eventually gets fed up with Jaal sleeping on the Nomad and loudly pretends that she and Ryder are starting to have sex, complete with a lot of moaning. Jaal breaks his fake sleep to offer them privacy, revealing the ruse to Peebee.
Improbable Aiming Skills: With an escape pod of all things. Calculating launch trajectories is seriously complicated business even under the best of circumstances, but that doesn't stop her from hitting the tiny volcano crater she was aiming at from high orbit, through a thick cloud cover, with a calculated ricochet off a nearby ridge, and without knowing the exact moment she'd be able to launch. Even more impressively, since nobody aboard knew about her plan, it's highly unlikely the Tempest was in an optimal position for this stunt, if her starboard side was even pointing at the target at all. Granted, Peebee herself seems quite uncertain about her chance of success, but it works out and just serves to demonstrate her intelligence and technical skills once again.
Indentured Servitude: She makes an offhand mention of having gone through this while studying on Hyetiana, although the way she says it makes it hard to tell whether she means the actual thing, some good old-fashioned intern exploitation, or an acerbic quip about working off student loan debt.
Innocently Insensitive: One of the Nomad conversations has her aggravating Vetra by asking if her Promotion to Parent was because she wanted to be someone's mother (Peebee's view being coloured by her own, strained relationship with her older sister). The two do make up soon enough though.
In Vino Veritas: On the second visit to Aya, an extremely sloshed Peebee can be found in the museum, and states without prompting or nudging that she finds Ryder's noble qualities attractive.
I Work Alone: Peebee is a loner. While she's happy to work with people on a case-by-case basis, the simple fact is that she doesn't trust most people and finds nearly everybody stifling. She grows out of it not long after her Loyalty Mission, where she admits that the Pathfinder team feels like her family. Especially if she was romanced.
Jumped at the Call: Peebee didn't even flinch at signing up when she heard about the Initiative, driven by a need to explore the unknown and find things no one else ever has. And despite her brilliance and ambition, the Initiative didn't see her as essential enough to be awakened from cryo in the first wave. It was Kalinda who requested she be thawed out early. And yet, Peebee proves herself yet again by becoming the expert on Remnant technology in the cluster.
Ladykiller in Love: A bisexual, gender-inverted variation. Peebee admits that she's had lots of Friends with Benefits and also casually flirts with several characters in the game. However, her dialogue and emails reveal her increasing affection for Ryder along with concern for how attached she's getting. After her Loyalty Mission, she stops being afraid of putting down roots and, if fully romanced, gives in to her love for Ryder.
Last Girl Wins: For a lesbian Ryder, Peebee is the last love interest to be encountered.
Literal-Minded: Usually, Peebee understands metaphors fine, but when Liam calls her a "deadeye shot", she questions the value of shooting dead eyes because they're easy to hit and already dead. This may just be another example of her sarcasm, though.
Locked Out of the Loop: A Running Gag in party banter is that she thinks she's the only character who's never driven the Nomad.
Lost Technology: As somebody who is interested in alien technology it is a given that she would be interested in the Remnant.
Lovable Sex Maniac: The most sexually-aggressive romance option, being a fan of Ardat-Yakshi stories (the asari equivalent of succubi). Peebee flirts with Ryder right from the beginning and never stops unless their relationship ends. If she and Ryder have sex in the Zero-G Chamber, she's game to go again any time she's approached on the Tempest. If romanced completely, her first act is to have sex with Ryder in their quarters, where she aggressively takes the lead. The next day, she sends Ryder an email that only has two words: "Again, please". And finally, during the epilogue party, as soon as she meets Ryder, she says "I want you".
Love Is a Weakness: At the beginning of her and Ryder's romance, she makes it clear she feels this way and is initially hesitant to enter a committed relationship. After her loyalty mission, she decides that she no longer believes this and asks Ryder if they can be a permanent thing.
Mind over Matter: Like all asari, Peebee is a biotic.
The Modest Orgasm: During her main romance scene. It's what triggers her asari melding.
Motor Mouth: When she starts talking, it can be hard to get a word in, let alone get her to stop. Think Mordin with better grammar.
My Species Doth Protest Too Much: She dislikes the tendency for asari to think passively or stop experiencing new things once they reach Matriarch stage. In a discussion with Drack, they bond over the fact that they each live for the moment rather than thinking long-term. She doesn't hold her father's species, the elcor, in high regard either, for similar reasons.
Naughty Is Good: She's this in spades. The best part is, by asari standards she is a kid.
Never Heard That One Before: When Jaal tries talking about the asari to her, Peebee will remark how annoying it is to hear about how great they are. She is of the opinion that asari could tone down their attitude a lot.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Almost gets Ryder and another crewmember killed during her loyalty mission. Also, one of the Tempest's escape pods is lost on this mission. Ryder can force her to pay it off.
The Nicknamer: As befitting someone who introduces herself by a nickname. Those sometimes scary-sounding but spot-on designations of the various Remnant robot models you keep running into all the time? She coined them.
Nightmare Fetishist: She used to enjoy reading stories about Ardat-Yakshi, her species' equivalent of lesbian vampires. She had to leave them behind when she started travelling.
No Social Skills: Peebee likes being alone and is terrified of opening up to anyone, to the point that she chooses an escape pod as her living quarters on the Tempest.
Non-Answer:
- If she's in a relationship with Ryder, Liam will ask her if they're "together". She'll state that she, Ryder and Liam are here together right now. Liam says that's not what he meant, and she fires back that she doesn't care.
- If Liam is in a relationship with Ryder, he gives an equally-dodgy answer. She asks if "you and the boss are a thing". Liam responds by counting and saying "We're two things".
Non-Human Humanoid Hybrid: Her father was an elcor.
No Such Thing as Wizard Jesus: If Peebee is brought to the Remnant Abyss on Havarl, during the quest to retrieve Zorai's gauntlet, she is unimpressed with the notion of angara having the ability to relive their ancestors' lives. She suspects that it has something to do with genetic memory, which is close to what asari can already do with their basic biology. Given that it's eventually revealed that the angara were genetically engineered by the same species that created the Remnant, she's probably correct.
"Not So Different" Remark. Discussed. She's pretty upset by Jaal pointing out how the asari reproduction method of incorporating traits and behaviors from other species seemingly not too far removed from the kett's. It doesn't help when the Archon himself also calls out the similarities in his ruminations on what he learned from captured asari.
Oblivious to Her Own Description: Peebee finds Sid too much, and when Vetra describes her as "bouncy, chatty, annoying," she agrees, and claims not to know anyone else like that.
Odd Friendship:
- With Drack. He notes with puzzlement that she's far more open with him than she is with anyone else in the party and wonders why that is. She tells him that it's because he's so old and about to croak anyway. She later tells Drack in a worried tone to stay alive.
- Even moreso with Vetra. Despite a very rocky start between them, as well as numerous misunderstanding because of their opposite upbringings and personalities, Vetra and Peebee eventually get along like sisters and, at one point, Peebee even admits that Vetra is her favorite — even over Ryder.
Offhand Backhand: Pulls a textbook example on Kalinda if the latter survived the final confrontation during Peebee's loyalty mission. It's both very cathartic and very entertaining to watch, especially since it happens in the middle of a desperate sprint to safety from an exploding volcano.
Kalinda: [clutching her face]: Ow! Fuck!
Peebee: Finally beat you to the punch.
Old Shame: In-universe, if she's present when Ryder finds some of her old scanning equipment on Eos, Peebee calls it "so literally yesterday".
Only Known by Their Nickname: "Peebee" is apparently a nickname derived from her initials — her actual name is Pelessaria B’Sayle. When first encountered, she says that she finds her full name to be too long, so she just goes by Peebee instead. The only person who calls her Pelessaria in conversation is her abusive ex.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business:
- Peebee's usually astoundingly cheerful and overconfident. On Kadara Port, she's utterly terrified of hanging around and just wants to get out of there immediately. Likewise on H-047c, Peebee yells in complete terror if Ryder drives too close to a cliff, without any jokes or sarcasm.
- An instant that's actually noted by Peebee herself, on seeing Meridian in all its glory, she's rendered speechless.
- As noted in Liam's entry on OOC above, when he does actually tell her off, instead of talking back or dismissing Liam's concerns, she actually acknowledges his point.
- Like most other squad mates, Peebee flies completely off the handle when she witnesses the kett experiments aboard the Archon's flagship, screaming at the scientists in blind rage how she'll murder them all if she ever gets her hands on them.
Operation: Jealousy: If the subject of Jaal comes up when asked how she feels about the rest of the Tempest crew, Peebee may suggest she's just pretending to be attracted to him to make Ryder jealous.
Opportunistic Bastard: Liam's opinion of Peebee is that she's a "user" — someone who comes behind after a disaster and takes or does what she wants. Peebee's attempts to deny it only end up convincing Liam more.
Preemptive "Shut Up": A romantic and positive example, where initiating a conversation with a romanced Peebee has her start with a gentle "Yes. Whatever it is."
Purple Is Powerful: She wears a lot of purple, particularly the jacket.
Rebellious Spirit: As Peebee will explain to Vetra, her mother and older sister tried to make her act "proper", which is why she cares so little for anyone else's rules in the present day.
- When an exasperated Cora allows her only one word to explain why she constantly acts the way she does, Peebee goes for "antiestablishmentarianism".
Rejected Apology:
- Vetra refuses to hear her initial attempt at an apology for an insensitive remark, but she does eventually relent.
- With Cora, after some more arguments. Unlike Vetra, Cora refuses to hear Peebee out, so Peebee decides to be silly at her.
Revolvers Are Just Better: Her weapon is the Sidewinder Outlaw Pistol.
Rhetorical Question Blunder: If romanced, then at the after-credits party, Ryder may ask what they're going to do with Peebee. Her response? "I'm putting together a list."
Romantic Fusion: Like most asari, she uses her Mind Meld on Ryder during sex. But the game shows it much more clearly this time and demonstrates that the meld sends them into a peaceful Mental World, where two of them are alone and their thoughts are merged. Based on their reaction, it's one of the most intense and pleasurable acts either have experienced.
Rubber-Forehead Aliens: As an asari, yes, she is one. But, Peebee also expresses her disappointment about the angara being very similar in physiology (as well as their technology being about the same level as the Initiative's). Thus, she finds Remnant much more interesting.
Sad Clown: Peebee is a Broken Bird with No Social Skills and horrible trust issues. She treats this as no biggie at first, but after her Loyalty Mission, she decides to face her issues head-on and finally trust the Pathfinder team. With a romanced Ryder, she also fully commits to a relationship. She keeps her sense of humor, however.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here:
- When she finally found a shuttle to steal from the Nexus, Peebee took the opportunity to go to Eos and study Remnant. She spent even less time on Nexus during the mutiny, and barely saw what was going on.
- If she's present when the team approaches an Architect battle, she may "jokingly" suggest turning the Nomad around now to look for lighter trouble somewhere far away. Unfortunately for her, she's not the one who's driving, so she'll get roped into it anyway. This reaction of hers is particularly strange when one considers how excited she is when she encounters the Eos Architect.
Serious Business: Everything related to the Remnant, to the point that she knowingly launches herself, Ryder and a third unfortunate person into an active volcano via escape pod, with no plan for getting offworld again to acquire an artifact that's essentially the Holy Grail for her research. It's only thanks to her ex, Kalinda showing up with shuttles that the party makes it off the planet.
She Is Not My Girlfriend: Ryder quickly figures out that the animosity between Kalinda and Peebee runs way deeper than a Friend Turned Rival, but if asked about their previous relationship, Peebee will always insist she and Kalinda were "Just Friends". Once her Loyalty Mission is finished, however, Peebee clarifies: yes, she and Kalinda were sexually intimate, but until now, Peebee has always felt having sex with someone whose company you enjoy was no big deal.
Slap-Slap-Kiss: This is what she muses a relationship between her and Liam would be like.
Squee: Her general reaction whenever she accompanies Ryder to a Remnant location, but she gets really excited during the Meridian quests. She basically behaves a bit like Liara in this regard, only with the Protheans replaced by the Remnant.
Stone Wall: As strange as it may seem for an asari (and quite in contrast to what we got used to in the trilogy), a levelled Peebee's extremely high health and shield strength mean you'll almost never see her go down in a fight on normal difficulties. Her damage output is meagre, but that's not her job anyway — she's a great support character adept at weakening entire enemy squads in one go and setting up primers for combo detonations. Only Drack is more resilient than her, but since she tends to stick to cover instead of charging into the fray, that only means she'll stay battle-ready that much longer.
Technical Virgin: An interesting variation, along with a callback to Liara in Mass Effect 1. Word of God says that Peebee is about Liara's age (110 or so), but while Peebee has had sex before (whereas Liara was a "complete" virgin before her possible romance with Shepard), she has never melded with anyone before^note. In a way, melding with Ryder during their main romance scene is kind of like Peebee's first time.
Their First Time: Peebee has never Mind Melded with a lover before Ryder, but wants to do it once they become committed. It turns into a surreal, but deeply personal, experience for both of them.
The Tease: She tends to flirt with people, Ryder in particular, at the drop of a hat.
Peebee: Am I flirting with you? Don't worry, Ryder, I'm relentless.
Trophy Wife: Peebee says that Kalinda woke her out of cryo just to show her off to her friends. In a variation of the trope, it wasn't Peebee's looks or beauty that Kalinda wanted to show off, but Peebee's brilliant intellect and technical skill.
Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: She hates Hydra mechs with a passion and vocally complains every time the squad runs into one (or more).
Wrench Wench: Peebee has a brilliant mind and the technical aptitude to understand, adapt, reprogram and at least partially reverse-engineer Remnant technology, so while she isn't fixing up starship engines like our favorite quarian Tali, she certainly qualifies in more delicate disciplines.
Zero-G Spot: If she and Ryder make out in the Zero-G chamber, "no strings attached." Apparently, both have a real blast trying to figure out how to actually get it to work under these conditions. We don't get to see anything of it, but it can be repeated indefinitely until her loyalty mission has been completed.

Nakmor Drack

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/drak.png

"Do you have any idea how many humans I've watched die? You're meat. You spoil."

Voiced by: Stanley Townsend

A krogan ally of Ryder who joined his clan, Clan Nakmor, on the voyage to Andromeda. Drack is a krogan who has spent over 1,400 years fighting as a soldier, a mercenary, and a pirate. He joined with the Andromeda Initiative in order to remain with his clan and because the Andromeda galaxy presented to him an opportunity to find new things to shoot. He's also the grandfather of Nakmor Kesh, the Nexus Superintendent for the Andromeda Initiative.

Action Dad: Action granddad. Drack has an adult granddaughter and is still an active combatant. In the epilogue, Kesh successfully produces a clutch of eggs with no losses to the genophage, making Drack an action great-granddad.
Actually Pretty Funny: As part of his (generally) laid-back attitude, Drack's default reaction to needling comments or slams is to laugh and say the other person has a point.
- When Cora responds to his jab about the group needing to set its sights higher for what qualified as a success (namely, Liam repeatedly appending "we didn't die" to "we did <insert awesome thing>") with her own jab about the way the krogan destroyed their homeworld, he just laughs and admits she's got a point.
- When Peebee bluntly tells him she's confiding in him because he'll likely die of old age soon, Drack just laughs.
Affectionate Nickname: He often calls Ryder and the other crew members "kid", and although it comes across as as slightly condescending in the beginning, it quickly takes on a much more affectionate context once he and the team warm up to each other. The others refer to him as "old man" or "big guy" in return, something he seems to be completely fine with.
All Girls Want Bad Boys: Is a pirate, a mercenary and, well, a krogan. Is also the target of a crush harbored by one Dr. Lexi T'Perro.
Ambiguously Bi: After the bar fight on Kadara, Ryder can talk with Drack using a flirt option to ask if that was considered a date. Drack will say no, only because if it were a date, there "would be less of an audience and a lot more property damage." His tone gets a bit flirtatious when he says that and his answer is the same regardless of which Ryder twin he's talking to.
Badass Boast: If brought along to the Archon's ship, when the other teammate asks how the three team members are supposed to get through the ship, Drack will declare "four of us. I count double."
The Big Guy: He's a krogan, which in the Mass Effect universe basically translates to "small walking tank". His profile states that he is 196cm (6'5") and 340kg (750lbs), and their Super-Toughness is a Running Gag.
Blood Knight: Well, there's his being a krogan, naturally, but the reason why Drack signed up with the Andromeda Initiative (beyond joining the rest of his clan on the journey) was to find a galaxy full of new things to see. And then shoot.
Boisterous Bruiser: He loves a good fight, and makes sure everyone knows it.
Bothering by the Book: In the aftergame, Drack tells Ryder he's told his scouts to send their reports to Tann, if he's so big on double checking everyone's actions, with instructions to make them "extra wordy" just for him.
Boyfriend-Blocking Dad: When Vorn confesses he's in love with Kesh, Drack threatens to rescue him, then kill him.
Bruiser with a Soft Center: Despite being one of the toughest creatures walking (even for a krogan) Drack is surprisingly sensitive to others' feelings.
- After hearing about the death of Ryder's father, he gives his condolences via email and tries to cheer them up the way he cheers himself up — with pictures of weapons.
- He deeply respects the angara for the way they've survived and fought against the kett, comparing their tactics and determination to the krogan.
- At one point, Vetra seems to be going through a bout of severe depression and asks Drack what are the odds they'll survive in Andromeda. Drack just says, "It'll be okay," which seems to make her feel better.
- Cora becomes depressed after learning the truth about her hero, Sarissa and says she ought to throw out all of her battle manuals. Drack tells her that she better not — it'd be criminal to do that if those manuals made her so good a fighter. This seems to cheer Cora up.
- He dotes over Kesh, his granddaughter, and can be found nattering to her when you're docked at the Nexus.
- Drack considers Vorn to be more vital to the survival of the krogan to himself, or any warrior, for that matter. He reluctantly accepts Vorn and Kesh's plea that he's equally vital, despite thinking of himself as an outdated relic. After Kesh has eggs, Drack can give Vorn some advice on how to raise their kids, telling him to use love.
- When Jaal learns about the angara's origin, if Drack is present, he'll offer emotional support without any prompting.
Bullfight Boss: He comments that back on Tuchanka, he used to love tricking Thresher Maws into ramming themselves into hoodoos.
But for Me, It Was Tuesday: Drack is so old and been in so many battles that he can't remember which wars were which. When Liam asks about his feelings on the First Contact War, Drack apologizes and says he knows it was probably important to him, but he just can't remember it.
Contrasting Sequel Main Character:
- He and Wrex are both old soldiers and veterans and, at the end of the day, have a lot in common in regards of how they think the krogan need to grow and change as a society. The difference is how they go about it; Wrex eventually decided that a very hands-on approach was necessary, and took over krogan society in the Milky Way to "drag them to glory". Drack is more hands-off, acting as support for Kesh and Morda, and is actually self-conscious about the fact that he's a remnant from a bygone age that might be holding the krogan in Andromeda back. Also, Wrex was very grim and dour at first, only opening up and becoming more boisterous as his friendship with Shepard grew. In contrast, Drack is very boisterous and fun-loving from the start, and lets Ryder see more of his doubts and concerns as their friendship grows.
- He also contrasts with Grunt; Grunt was a pure, genetically perfect krogan straight from the tank, whereas Drack is an ancient, grizzled veteran who's held together with cybernetic parts. Grunt was socially ignorant and had knowledge of krogan history only through Okeer's implants, while Drack lived it. Drack also claims descent from one of the same warlords that Grunt was apparently distilled from, specifically Shiagur. He also apparently knew another of those warlords (Gretok) and doesn't have a high opinion of him.
Cool Old Guy: Once he's gotten over his initial contempt for humans in general, Drack quickly turns into the coolest, most laid-back member of Ryder's team. He virtually never loses his cool, always has a dust-dry one-liner ready, is completely fine with jokes about himself or his species, freely shares the wisdom of fourteen centuries with his friends, champions progressive thoughts among his infamously reactionary race despite of his incredible age, and is generally one of the most pleasant and entertaining characters in the game, provided he likes you. He also cares deeply for his granddaughter Kesh in a way rarely seen in krogan before, a trait that serves as a heartwarming contrast to his war-torn outward impression.
Creepy Souvenir:
- The bones Drack decorated his armor with.
- In his first meeting, he cuts off the tusk of a wraith to keep as a trophy.
Cyborg: His right arm is cybernetic, as is a large part of the same side, hip, and leg, plus strain balancing threading across his spine.
Deadpan Snarker: Oh, so very much. The vast majority of his party banter consist of dryly growled one-liners.
Dented Iron: Drack has seen and done a lot of things during his life, which has left him down a few limbs and organs (all the more impressive given krogan have multiple hearts, and he's down to just one). He does admit he's starting to feel it a little.
Despair Event Horizon: After the incident that left him so wounded he required extensive cybernetics, as well as numerous and repetitive failures with those cybernetics, he fell into depression. The only thing that brought him out of it was being given charge of Kesh, at the time a sickly infant, and the drive to take care of her drove him to climb back out.
Destructo-Nookie: Implied by his "property damage" comment if Ryder flirts with him after the bar fight on Kadara.
Due to the Dead: After beating the Archon, Drack tries holding a toast "to the vanquished". Peebee and Vetra, who do not subscribe to the same philosophy, do their best to ruin it for him.
Dynamic Entry: He gets to make two. One during his initial introductions in which he heaves a kett wraith through a window, and another in his loyalty mission where he smashes through a wall.
Earn Your Happy Ending: Potentially, depending on the player's choices. After having lost much of his organic body in combat, seen his people and culture slowly die over the course of millennia, and having travelled to another galaxy only to see his people being treated just the same as before, Drack has become beyond jaded to the point that the only thing that keeps him going is fighting kett. The player can patch up relations between the krogan and Nexus leadership, improve the atmosphere of the krogan's new homeworld, rescue Drack's scouts from being turned into mutated monsters, rescue the krogan botanist Vorn and the krogan's planet seed vault (ensuring the krogans can grow food, plus allowing Vorn and Drack's granddaughter to eventually have children to prove that their species are overcoming the genophage), and even appoint Morda (leader of the krogan) as the Nexus's ambassador to the Andromeda galaxy ensuring that the krogan a voice in the Nexus leadership and more equal treatment.
Embarrassing Tattoo: Or "Embarrassing Clan Brand", as the case may be. Drack insists he's got one proving his connection to Shiagur on his person, but wherever they are it's implied to be somewhere unspeakable. Cora demands he not show her.
Establishing Character Moment: Drack establishes himself as a badass as he makes his introduction by throwing a dead Wraith straight through a glass-pane window, then cutting its tooth out for a trophy after some trash talk with Ryder's team (or alternatively, if Vetra is present, backs off when she declares Ryder is with her).
Euphemism Buster: If at the meeting with Saelen Varn, he responds to the guy's comment that he deal with "inconveniences" by telling him to just say he assassinated folk.
Everyone Has Standards:
- Drack hates salarians for justifiable reasons, but even he's disgusted by what's done to the inhabitants of Ark Paarchero if present on the Archon's ship.
- While he disapproves of SAM, and AI in general, Drack frowns upon what Knight tries to do to Ryder.
Every Scar Has a Story: He's got one on his wrist, from an escape in his pirate days involving frying a ship's sensors and spacewalking along the hull. Lexi dryly informs him she thought he'd just got it falling off a barstool.
Exact Words: When asked to join Ryder's team right after his Establishing Character Moment, he quips to think about it when the clouds part and the kett keel over. About an hour later, they meet again after Ryder has just activated Eos' Vault (removing the perpetual cloud cover around the planet in the process) and helped Drack curbstomp a large squad of kett. Ryder being Ryder, they immediately remind him of his words. Drack just laughs at the irony and signs up right then and there.
Famed In-Story: In the original trilogy, Wrex mentions that Clan Nakmor's leader, Drack, was one of the greatest warriors in Tuchanka history. He's now your squadmate.
A Father to His Men: Drack cares about the welfare of his scouts. So he's naturally horrified to learn one's already been exalted by the kett, and tries ordering it to stand down when it attacks, to no avail.
Family of Choice: Drack didn't start his life as part of Clan Nakmor. It took meeting one that impressed him (and seeing the Kraddack Wastes where they lived) to convince him to join them, and he's stayed there ever since. On a smaller but heartwarming note, Ryder can outright tell him that they and the rest of the Tempest crew consider him part of their little family, which he'll reciprocate by saying that Kesh had been his only family for a very long time, and that he's grateful to have found more people he can rely on without a second thought.
Fantastic Racism:
- Initially doesn't seem to have that high of an opinion of humans, comparing them to rotting meat. But subverted, as it appears that the comparison was a comment on human lifespans. It's revealed that he was actually quite interested in humans when they originally made contact, seeing them as an admirable species (probably due to how well they fought against the turians during the First Contact War).
- Like most krogan, he's got a very low opinion of salarians, particularly Tann. This is because of hundreds of years of the borderline sterility imposed by the salarian-designed genophage (even if Shepard chose to cure it in Mass Effect 3, Clan Nakmor wasn't affected, having left the previous year). Though his beef with Tann is more personal: the Nexus admins brought Clan Nakmor out of stasis to put down the mutiny, and then went back on Tann's deal to grant the krogan a larger role in the project. He doesn't seem to have any problem with Kallo, though, even praising him for his piloting skills. He also wonders about the salarian Pathfinder Raeka being part krogan when he witnesses her in action, which is the second-highest compliment a krogan can bestow on any non-krogan.
- He also isn't very fond of A.I due to being in conflicts where they Turned Against Their Masters and somewhat agrees with Knight's group, as well as telling Ryder having one in their head is a very bad idea. Related to that, he's not sympathetic toward the geth.
  Drack: (after Valeria explains about her sisters) And some people feel sorry for the geth...
- Also toward elcor. He makes a very speciest knock-knock joke about them while in the Nomad.
Fashionable Asymmetry: His left arm is bare while his right arm is armored. This is to hide the fact that it's artificial.
Fire-Forged Friends:
- He's initially dismissive of Ryder, but changes his tune after they fight some kett together.
- He's even more dismissive of Liam, predicting that he'll die fairly soon. His opinion takes a complete 180-degree turn after Liam's Loyalty Mission, though, which Drack found incredibly fun and wants Liam to plan more of.
Grumpy Old Man: Drack is aware and proud of the fact he's old and grumpy.
Drack: (being teased by the squad) I hate you all. Shut up and let me be old and cranky in peace.
Gun Porn: Drack emails Ryder 37 images of guns to cheer Ryder up after Drack learned that Ryder's father died recently. Apparently it's how Drack usually cheers himself up.
Handicapped Badass: Between age and a lucky punk with a pack of frag grenades, he's not the young krogan he once was. Most of his redundant organs are shot, including a heart and three lungs, his Healing Factor isn't as effective as it once was, and a good chunk of him is artificial just to hold what's left of him together. Despite this, he's one of the toughest characters in the game.
Healing Factor: When under the effects of Blood Rage.
Heartbroken Badass: Hinted to be a non-romantic version. If the subject of what happened that resulted in him looking after Kesh rather than her parents, he clams up and refuses to say anything.
- Also hinted to have a romantic heartbreak. When Vetra asked what happened to Kesh's grandmother, Drack only says that it's an old wound he doesn't want to re-open. When Jaal mentions having had his heart broken as a young man, Drack says he understands completely.
Heroic BSoD: He mentions he had one after he was crippled. The Shaman of his clan snapped him out of it by giving him the newly born Kesh, who as a baby was also faring poorly. The Shaman told him "this thing is useless" (referring to both Drack and the baby), and Drack realized he had to live for both his sake, and Kesh's.
Hidden Depths: He actually wants to make sure his race has a purpose beyond killing each other. After learning he is going to be a great-grandfather, he becomes hopeful for the future. He is also a pretty good cook, Peebee has been known to sneak in and take a bite out of whatever he cooks.
If You Ever Do Anything to Hurt Her...:
- In a rare example of this trope, he gives one to both Ryder and Vetra if the two are in a romance, offering support if either of them needs a shoulder to cry on.
- During his loyalty mission, he makes a similar threat to his granddaughter's suitor Vorn. It's actually a sign he's beginning to like the guy.
I'm Standing Right Here: Should Drack be in the party when the player talks to Vorn at New Tuchanka, Vorn will still ask whether Drack likes him even when, as Drack himself will point out, the guy's standing right there.
Incendiary Exponent: At one point Drack recounts a story of when he fought against a group of mercs several centuries before the Andromeda Initiative left the Milky Way. He had unknowingly been soaked in turian brandy before and his flamethrower malfunctioned. When he charged the mercs, they panicked and fled. He soon figured out the reason: due to the previous events Drack had been on fire throughout the entire fight and didn't even know it! Drack being Drack, he thought it was hilarious and made for a good story. Incidentally, Drack's genetic relative Grunt also had an incident of being set on fire and not being bothered by it, suggesting that Shiagur's relatives are just more fire-resistant than the average krogan.
Incoming Ham: This glorious scene during his loyalty mission. He even quotes the trope to some extent.
Drack: Incoming!
[smashes straight through a steel wall, laughs and levels his shotgun at the two shocked scavengers on the other side]
Drack: Hi!
In-Series Nickname: His nicknames are Old Man (used by Ryder and Vetra), Big Guy (used by Cora) and Drack the Nak (used by his friend, Urdnot Grot).
It's the Best Whatever, Ever!: After his meeting with Ryder at Vortex he can be overheard talking with Dutch who refuses to believe the story that Drack once surfed a burning shuttle while it was crash-landing on an asteroid. Drack responds with a short laugh and a satisfied "best landing ever".
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Drack acts like a stereotypical brutish krogan merc most of the time, but he loves his granddaughter and is good to people who have his back.
Kill It with Fire: Has the Incinerate power and can upgrade his shotgun with Incendiary Ammo as one of his passive abilities' final evolution.
Lineage Comes from the Father: Averted. His mother is the legendary krogan warlord Shiagur. His father, whoever he was, doesn't even get a mention.
Mayfly–December Romance: Of the platonic sort: Drack is dismissive of Liam simply because he figures that Liam'll be another pile of bones in a decade or two.
Meaningful Echo: In one conversation in the medbay, Drack can tell Ryder that parents aren't a finish line — they're the starting line. Ryder can later repeat this back to him in the epilogue on the Hyperion. This gets a laugh out of Drack, and he's pleased that Ryder was actually listening to what he said.
Murder Is the Best Solution: If he's in the party when Ryder confronts Dr. Aden and chooses to let him go in exchange for the kett data, Drack comments that they could always just murder him later.
My Little Panzer: Mentioned in dialogue with Ryder. He invites the Pathfinder to play a kid's game with him, Kesh, and Vorn. It involves mini-flamethrowers.
No Place for a Warrior: He believes that the future of the krogan doesn't need a warrior like him; that scientists like Vorn are the real way krogan will make a better future. That doesn't mean he's willing to keel over and die, just that if he had to choose between himself and Vorn, he'd definitely choose Vorn.
No Place for Me There: Doesn't quite believe he has any place in krogan society in Heleus, since the krogan are trying to get away from their stereotype of being nothing but warriors. He sees himself as a relic of a time that made the krogan pariahs. Ryder, Kesh, and Vorn can all tell him he's wrong.
Now What?: Discussed after the end of the game. Drack is unsure whether to go back to New Tuchanka, or stay with Ryder in the knowledge they'll inevitably run into something for him to shoot.
Obnoxious In-Laws: Even after he eases up on Vorn, he still gives him grief (as he admits to Ryder, he does actually like Vorn, he just doesn't want him to ever know).
Odd Friendship: With Vetra. She even asks why he likes her so much even though he dislikes most turians; he responds that he respects her for overcoming the challenges of her upbringing, and that unlike most turians, she knows what it's like to have a hard life. The pair also bond over being surrogate parent to a family member.
Old Soldier: And an old mercenary. And an old pirate. Drack is a grizzled veteran, even by krogan standards. According to his profile Drack has spent over 1400 years causing a ruckus across the Milky Way. There's a quirk of krogan biology that makes this both less surprising and more terrifying — they don't age conventionally, simply getting tougher and stronger with every passing year. Drack would be one of the most lethal beings in the two galaxies even without his centuries of experience. This has left him wondering if he has any value to the krogan now that their race needs to go in a different direction.
One-Man Army: According to Ryder when they and Drack get into a bar fight:
Ryder: I don't need an army. I've got a krogan.
Parental Substitute:
- He raised his granddaughter in place of her parents.
- He also occasionally plays a paternal role for Vetra. She even says during one of their crew dialogues that she wishes he had raised her. His response is a continuance of his Running Gag of making fun of her bad aim by saying that if he had, she'd be a better shot.
Playing with Fire: Supplements his hefty combat abilities with Incinerate. He can also get Incendiary rounds from his offensive passive ability.
The Power of Trust: Will only let Ryder know Kesh has children on the way if Ryder saves his scouts.
Proud Warrior Race Guy: The guy is a krogan. Naturally.
Really 700 Years Old: At over 1,400 years old (not even counting the six centuries spent in cryo-stasis), he's the oldest krogan seen in the franchise with the possible exception of Wrex, and is thus far the oldest non-Reaper or Leviathan or Prothean character in the series. Heck, the guy is older than the oldest asari (who have a lifespan of 1,000 years).
Real Men Cook: Once onboard the ship, he pretty much moves into the kitchen and takes over as the ship's cook. Apparently, he's very good at it.
Retired Monster: Drack fought in the Krogan Rebellions, where he and his krannt managed to kill at least two hundred confirmed people, along with three Spectres, and has, by his own admission, wiped out more than one culture in his lifetime, though those days are long behind him.
Seen It All: If there's a crazy idea, Drack has probably done it at least once. During movie night, Ryder chimes in with a suggestion of how they might take a ship. Drack just notes he'd done it, and it wasn't as fun as it sounds.
Shotguns Are Just Better:
- Drack's weapon of choice is the Ruzad shotgun, keeping with the theme of shotgun-wielding krogan squadmates.
- Fun fact: Ruzad is the krogan word for "judgement."
Skeletons in the Coat Closet: The armor we see him in is decorated with the bones of some creature. Peebee comments about it.
Peebee: Never met someone who wore so much... dead stuff.
- Apparently, the bones that adorn his armor belonged to a kett.
- In conversation with Jaal, Drack states he wears them for a reason: To scare anyone stupid enough to try picking a fight with him into reconsidering.
  Drack: Mess with me, I wear your spine as a hat.
Sleeves Are for Wimps: Half example. His right arm is armored, but his left arm is completely bare save for an artificial hand and a shoulder pad.
Snark-to-Snark Combat: Engages in it with Cora on a regular basis, mostly on how the other fights. Both usually give as good as they get. Unless Drack has an "old man moment".
Space Pirate: According to his profile, this is what Drack has been at some point in his past, along with a soldier and a mercenary.
Spotting the Thread: Drack notes that Liam is a more competent fighter than he gave him credit for and asks where he got training. Liam says he learned it as a cop, and Drack says "bullshit" and demands to know who was the veteran who taught him to fight. Liam admits to having a mentor in HUST1, but ends the conversation there.
Super-Strength: A trademark of all krogan, at least in comparison to most other organic species. Drack proves it by casually dangling a struggling, armored, well-built human man over a Bottomless Pit — with one fully extended arm, for several minutes. He doesn't even break a sweat.
Super-Toughness: Another trademark of his species, and they only get tougher with age. Drack is one of the oldest krogan in existence. You do the math.
Team Mom: In an utterly shocking turn of events the resident krogan is the most empathetic towards the problems of others out of all the crew members. Having 1400 years of experience probably helps him empathize with a large variety of situations.
Tempting Fate:
- Drack is so savvy and jaded that he curbs most forms of optimism from the rest of the team. In particular, one conversation has Liam brag that he's still alive (thus beating Drack's prediction) and Drack tells him "Careful, that's up there with, 'It can't get any worse'".
- If brought along to the kett scientific outpost on Voeld, Drack will declare he'd like to see the kett try to exalt the krogan. On the Archon's ship, it turns out they're definitely giving it their best effort. Using Drack's own scouts, to boot.
Trash Talk: Unleashes some during Jaal's loyalty mission, aimed at the Roekaar.
Unstoppable Rage: While Blood Rage is active, he can fall to zero hitpoints but will keep going until the duration of Blood Rage ends. Since this power can be evolved to have a negligible cooldown, he can and will keep it active without noticeable interruption, making him functionally immortal and thus truly unstoppable in combat.
Use Your Head: Drack once headbutted an armored utility vehicle; it had looked at him funny. He's also the subject of at least two headbutting challenges issued by humans. One of them is Liam (whom he talks out of it), but that guy in the bar on Kadara, well...
Vitriolic Best Buds: With Cora. The two snark and snipe at each other pretty much all the time, but do actually respect one another.
We Are as Mayflies: Drack immediately dismisses Ryder, and later Liam, because human lifespans are so short that he feels it's hardly worth getting to know them. Any human in combat has, at best, a few decades' worth of combat experience compared to his his centuries' worth and, sooner or later, he's going to watch that human die. That being said, once he does get to know them, he will do everything he can to keep them alive.
Weird Beard: Sports a goatee made of spikes. He is the first krogan in the franchise to possess this feature, though a few minor NPCs in Andromeda also have one, and the small plate-like structures on Grunt's chin might be as a sort of peach-fuzz equivalent.
What the Hell, Hero?: During the mission aboard the Archon's ship, he'll be pissed with Ryder if they free the salarians instead of the krogan.
Worth It: When asked by Cora who he'd like to meet most, Drack says he'd like to meet the person who invented the genophage... so he can break their neck, noting that even if it meant not meeting Ryder and the others, it'd be worth it.
Worth Living For: When Drack was at his lowest point after being near-fatally injured by a frag grenade, he picked himself up and kept going because his granddaughter, who was weak and almost as close to death as he was, had no one else to take care of her.
Worthy Opponent: Drack is very impressed with the angara as a race, saying that their determination and ingenuity in war makes them very similar to krogan. He tells Ryder that he was afraid that they'd find nothing but pacifists in Andromeda, but is happy to have found such savvy warriors. One of his emails even has him talking about how much he admires the lethality of their weapon designs, no small compliment from someone who's shot as many guns as he has.
Your Days Are Numbered: According to Peebee, Drack is actually getting pretty close to the maximum age limit for a krogan; at best he has about as much time left as the human squadmates. Which, granted, means he'll likely live for another hundred and twenty years, give or take, but relatively speaking, he's in his twilight years. This doesn't bother him too much as he plans to pack as much living as he can into the time he has left.

Jaal Ama Darav

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jaal.png

“Stay strong and clear!”

Voiced by: Nyasha Hatendi

A lieutenant in the Angara Resistance, Jaal comes from a famous family and joins Ryder to find a place for himself in the world. He is a romance option for a Ryder of either gender.

Anger Born of Worry: In his loyalty mission, on finding his siblings alive and well, he punches his brother Baranjj, (and gets punched in return,) before they wrap each other in a bear hug.
The Apprentice: Used to be one for the Moshae. And by his own admission, was absolutely awful at it, until she either kicked him out or he left (Jaal declines to say which). That said, they're still fond of each other.
Badass Cape: He wears a rofjinn, which is a poncho-type garment. In a conversation with Liam, Jaal explains that a rofjinn may only be worn by angara, for cultural and personal reasons. He does offer to make one for Liam later, though.
Backstab: Jaal's Avenger Strike power has him cloak himself so he can attack his target from behind. It is essentially Kasumi's Shadow Strike with a different name.
Bad Mood as an Excuse: One of his Nomad conversations with Liam has him much terser than usual. He apologises, admitting it's because he's still recovering from a voluntary physical from Lexi.
Beware the Nice Ones: Normally, Jaal is one of the sweetest people imaginable, and near incapable of holding a grudge (even if you kill Akksul, he pretty quickly starts talking to Ryder again, and never brings it up afterward). However, if he's onboard the Archon's ship, he loses his composure seeing the atrocities the kett inflict on their prisoners, screaming how he's going to kill them.
Big, Screwed-Up Family: Inverted; Jaal has a very large family due to angaran custom, as many of their "families" consist not only of parents and children, but also the parents' siblings and their children, and even particularly close friends.
Blue Blood: He belongs to what was once an influential angaran family before the kett arrived. Funnily, his actual blood is indeed bright-blue.
Blunt Metaphors Trauma: Falls victim to this sometimes when dealing with the Milky Way races.
Boldly Coming: Jaal will flirt with Ryder (and even take them home to meet his true mother). Whether anything comes of it is up to the player.
Brutal Honesty:
- After one comment from Liam, Jaal (pre-defrosting) tells him that the angara do not "make do" when the kett have been attacking them relentlessly for the past eight decades, and that if the Initiative fails, TS for them. If they're going to help the angara, great, if not, they'll do without. He's not here to make them feel better about their chances.
- In another instance, after Liam complains about how difficult the planets are to settle, Jaal points out there are a lot of angara who'd rather they'd try and settle somewhere else entirely.
The Charmer: He hands out compliments like candy to the female(ish) squad members for a wide choice of their attributes. Cora in particular seems completely dumbfounded by it at first, and even Peebee reacts somewhat surprised. Of course, once they've gotten over the inital shock, they don't mind at all. It's Jaal who's talking after all.
Clueless Chick-Magnet: Background chatter on Aya implies that Jaal has quite a few female admirers among the angara, but he doesn't seem to notice, even when they flirt with him, which is saying something considering how blunt the angara are about their emotions.
Cultured Badass: If talked to on the Nexus, Jaal states he watched the elcor production of Hamlet. All fourteen hours of it. And he liked it.
Death Glare: Gives Akksul the Kubrick Stare version after the latter scored a narrow graze on Jaal's cheek with a pistol shot at close range.
Defrosting Ice Queen: Male version. On initially signing up with the Tempest crew, despite his curiosity, he's withdrawn and distant from everyone. After Ryder saves Havarl and the Moshae, he loosens up completely. It's possible he was staying aloof because he knew he might need to take out the Pathfinder team, should they prove to be like the kett.
Desperately Looking for a Purpose in Life: It's why he signs up with Ryder in the first place. Eventually, he decides being on the Tempest with Ryder is his purpose, even going so far as to turn down his own command in the Resistance.
Disappeared Dad: His father was a technician who one day went to work in a mine and he never came back. Jaal sadly acknowledges that this happened a lot for angara children during the kett occupation.
Emotional Bruiser: Jaal is a powerful combatant, and like most angara he is not afraid of expressing his emotions.
Eyepatch of Power: Has an eyepatch/monocle-like visor over his right eye, much like Garrus from the first trilogy.
Famed In-Story: Despite Jaal not making a very huge deal about it, and suffering from doubts about his station in life, he is a pretty big name among the Resistance, known to pretty much every named character on Voeld.
Friendly Sniper: His weapon is a modified kett sniper rifle.
Foreign Culture Fetish:
- Jaal throws himself into studying all the Nexus cultures, taking a great fondness for humans specifically, throwing himself into learning everything about them and their culture — though he does have some problems with idioms.
- He also has a culture fetish for asari, as he admits to on the Nexus and reveals in conversation with Peebee.
The Gadfly: He fakes at least some of his Nomad nap attacks to annoy Peebee.
Gay Option: For male Ryder as of update 1.08.
Good Scars, Evil Scars: He has a nasty scar on the left side of his hood. He can potentially end up with another scar on his right cheek if Ryder doesn't kill Akksul during Jaal's loyalty mission.
Heroic BSoD:
- Jaal is devastated to learn that the kett were mutated angara, meaning he had been unknowingly fighting and killing his own kind.
- He has another one discovering that angara were created by the creators of the Remnant, as this throws everything he knows about his people into question, even more so if the player brings him to Khi Tasira and he learns the truth directly. He recovers rapidly, considering that it changes nothing about who his people are, and even thrills him, since it means there's some grand plan or purpose for them out there.
Hoist by Their Own Petard: His weapon is a custom-modified kett rifle he uses to kill kett. A lot of them.
Holding Hands: With a romanced Ryder during the visit to his family. Apparently he likes to hold their hands, as he does it in a few other romantic scenes as well.
Humans Through Alien Eyes: Is a native of the Andromeda galaxy, so arguably all the races that are a part of the Andromeda Initiative apply.
Humble Hero: Along with the example from Famed In-Story, Jaal is from a family of top-flight badasses (his grandmother, mother and at least one sister are big names in the Resistance), he was a former student of the Moshae, and when introduced is answering directly to the head of the Resistance itself. And Jaal still has a surprisingly low opinion of himself and his abilities, despite it being made clear he didn't just get the job because of his family's name.
I Call It "Vera": He calls his modified kett sniper rifle a "Darav", his family name.
I Choose to Stay: After a while with the Tempest, he's offered a promotion in the Resistance and his own command. He turns it down, preferring to stay with the Pathfinder team.
Innocently Insensitive: Most angara broadcast what they are feeling, Jaal will make an observation about their actions, culture or history, and they'll become offended. Jaal will apologize to them but also add that showing what they feel, or admitting that they feel at all, is not a bad thing or a weakness. An example of this is when he compares asari reproduction to that of kett, taking the genetics of other species to improve their own. When Peebee is understandably insulted at this, Jaal figuratively trips over himself trying to apologize.
La Résistance: His class is listed as "Resistance Fighter," given that he and his people are resisting the kett. That he, a rebel, joins up with a group that already consists of a rogue asari academic, a turian mercenary and a krogan pirate makes the Ragtag Bunch of Misfits all the more ragtag.
Massive Numbered Siblings: Jaal is one of seventeen children: nine boys and eight girls, which is apparently on the small side of average for an angara family. Learning that Cora is an only child leaves Jaal utterly baffled.
Middle Child Syndrome: Jaal is roughly in the middle of his many siblings. While not neglected by his parents, Jaal is stuck between being in the shadow of his older siblings who have become famous for their efforts in the resistance, and helping to look after his younger siblings who are not yet ready to start fighting.
Mr. Fanservice: He gets a chance to show off his body pretty early in the game thanks to one of Liam's side quests, and is also a romance option (with a fairly explicit sex scene to boot). Background chatter on early visits to Aya suggest Jaal's one in-universe as well. Two angaran in the tavetaan suggest the Resistance should try putting him on all their posters (followed by some complaining about how he didn't notice their flirting with him).
Nerves of Steel: At the end of his loyalty mission, Jaal has a gun pointed at his face by Akksul. He doesn't flinch then, or if Akksul fires, or when the bullet scratches his cheek. It's not until about a minute after that he even shows any sign of having felt pain at all.
Nice Guy: Is quite affable, particularly once he warms up to the rest of the crew. At one point, he even goes out of his way to make handcrafted gifts for the rest of the squad and will ask Ryder for advice on what he thinks they would like.
No Man Left Behind: He will argue against destroying the kett facility where the Moshae is held because he wants to save the angara there, and will be upset if Ryder listens to the Moshae and destroys the facility.
"Not Making This Up" Disclaimer: The email he sends Ryder after the final mission mentions how Evfra said the angara and the humans are lucky to have each other, followed by "No, he really said that".
One Head Taller: He is a romance option and noticeably taller than both Ryders.
Race Fetish: Over time, Jaal increasingly finds both humans and asari attractive. He admits to Peebee that he's curious if asari and angara can mate, and at one point tells Cora that he admires her perfect physical condition.
Real Men Wear Pink: He writes poetry and sews. Also wears perfume and uses lotions, which he makes himself, judging by the list of things he brings with him to the Tempest. In conversation with Peebee, he'll admit he uses perfume because he likes to smell nice.
Required Party Member: Aside from his loyalty mission, he's a mandatory party member for rescuing the Moshae. Touched on by the fact that if the player goes to the angaran home world of Havarl without Jaal as a party member, he'll call the player up on it and can be found basically skulking around one of the angaran bases, at one point reminding the player he's available to join at any time.
Rhetorical Question Blunder: When asked how his species' electromagnetism works, he counters by asking how human eyes work. Sara Ryder (but not Scott) can respond by describing exactly how they work.
Scars Are Forever: During the climax with Akksul, if Ryder doesn't interfere, Jaal will allow Akksul to fire his gun at him, which will graze his cheek and ear. The scar remains for the rest of the game.
Shameless Fanservice Guy: You catch him walking around naked as the day he was born and without a care in the world during a cutscene with Liam (who is topless, by the way) while they discuss Jaal's armor and angaran customs.
Female Ryder: (on seeing a naked Jaal and a nearly naked Liam) Is this show for my benefit? Because I'm benefiting.
- Funnily enough, before the game's release there have been some fans who have made comments that Jaal seemed like the kind of guy who'd walk around the ship completely nude.
Shock and Awe: Jaal has the Energy Drain power.
Sixth Ranger: Jaal joins several hours into the game, after the rest of the squad has already settled into a dynamic (sort of; it's actually the very next mission on the critical path, but a lot of sidequests open up after the others join).
Sleepyhead: If in the Nomad with Peebee, Jaal will find Ryder's driving so relaxing he'll nod off. And snore. And snore. And snore. It drives Peebee mad. Eventually, it turns out he's partially faking it.
Sophisticated as Hell: Jaal usually speaks in a smooth and sophisticated fashion, but on occasion slips into more casual language, and on even rarer occasions cusses.
Ryder: Don't push your luck.
Jaal: But luck can't be pushed. It comes to us, and... ah, I see. Idiom.
Ryder: Yup.
Jaal: Shit.
Spider-Sense: Angara are ever-so slightly sensitive to biotic fields, as evidenced during Cora's Loyalty Mission — where she and Ryder will comment that a jerry-rigged biotic field is making their teeth hurt, Jaal just comments that it's making his skin itchy.
That Came Out Wrong:
- In conversation with Vetra, he replies to a question of hers (why the angara don't just leave the Heleus Cluster if it sucks so bad) by asking if she'd abandon her home. He then realises that wasn't the best choice of words.
- There's a conversation where he asks if Vetra is scared of what will happen to Sid. Sid being Vetra's Berserk Button, she responds poorly. Jaal is left to explain that, amongst the angara, being worried over the fate of your loved ones is considered a virtue, and then compliments Vetra on having the courage to jump into the great unknown despite that fear. Vetra is audibly touched.
Throw Down the Bomblet: Jaal uses Sticky Grenades.
Trrrilling Rrrs: A very pronounced part of his smooth accent, which helps accentuate his cat-like qualities.
Troll: He taught Liam an angaran song, but "failed" to specify it was a marriage song (as in a binding writ of marriage, according to him).
Twice Shy: Background chatter on Aya reveals that Jaal and Avela were mutually interested in each other at some point, but they were both too nervous to make a move.
Vague Age: Sort of. He states he's twenty-seven, but notes that this is "arbitrary" in the same breath (and doesn't specify who's years he's measuring by.) So twenty-sevenish it is.
Vitriolic Best Buds:
- An interesting Invoked Trope. Both he and Liam argue with each other a lot, but when pressed, they explain that they are actively trying to figure out how each race gets offended, and don't hold any actual resentment towards each other.
- He's a lighthearted version of this with Peebee. The two bicker at one another while on the Nomad, thanks to Peebee's irritation at Jaal's snoozing, but the two get along well enough the rest of the time (inasmuch as Peebee gets on with anyone).
Warrior Poet: Quite literally — he's a seasoned fighter who happens to be fond of writing poetry.
What the Hell, Hero?:
- If Ryder chooses to destroy the kett exaltation facility on Voeld over rescuing the hundreds of angara inside, Jaal will be pissed despite this actually being the Moshae's plan. He gets over it soon enough, but until then, many of Ryder's interactions with him will make you feel like the cluster's biggest asshole.
- Again if the player shoots Akksul. Jaal takes it personally, not because of killing Akksul, but because he feels Ryder didn't trust him to solve the problem himself, and says he can't talk to Ryder for a while because of it. He does soon forgive them.
You Make Me Sick: If brought along to the Deal with the Devil with the Primus, he'll say her treachery disgusts him.

Characters / Mass Effect Andromeda Party Members

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