The Citadel, Grounded – Mass Effect

This guide will help you explore the Citadel Station when you get grounded there in the later stages of Mass Effect.

The Citadel, Grounded Map

Legend

1. Arrival
2. Terra Firma Party Protest
3. Elias Keeler
4. Captain Anderson

The Citadel, Grounded Overview

Your primary task during this visit to the Citadel is to meet with the Council and then, later, with Captain Anderson. However, there are also two new assignments that you can take on while you’re here, in addition to any you didn’t yet finish during your first return to Citadel.

1 – Arrival

You’re immediately brought before the Council for what you think is a meeting to get the support you need to follow Saren to Ilos and thwart his plans. Instead, you’re told that patrols have been stationed at every mass relay linking Citadel space to the Terminus Systems. Sending a fleet in will cause war and both Udina and the Council think Saren is no longer a threat now that he’s been exposed. Because there are serious politicial implications at stake here, these “superiors” have locked out all of the Normandy’s primary systems. Effective immediately, you’ve been grounded to the Citadel.

Now that you’ve been sold out by Udina, your only option is to make a quick stop back at the Normandy to determine your next move. If you’ve been pursuing a romantic interest, then things heat up slightly just before Joker cuts in to let you know that Captain Anderson left a message for you. You’re to meet him at in the Wards at the Flux nightclub. Any romance you’re pursuing can wait – you’d best be on your way.

2 – Terra Firma Party Protest

A group of Terra Firma protestors have gathered here and are shouting ridiculous things like “Aliens off Earth!” and “No blood for aliens!” Speak with their leader, Charles Saracino, to learn that an election is coming up for one of the spacer seats in Parliament and he wants you to support him as a candidate. This triggers the “Citadel: Our Own Worst Enemy” assignment.

If you’re looking for Paragon points, then you should turn him down as his cause will obviously hinder non-human races. If you’re looking for Renegade points, then you should pledge support for his anti-alien movement. Either way, you can unlock the Terra Firma Party codex entry when you investigate all of the available dialogue options.

3 – Elias Keeler

Elias desperately needs help from somebody with “humanity’s interests at heart”, or at least that’s what he claims. He’s an Alliance negotiator with a big session coming up with the Salarians and he wants you to help him purchase a legal-but-restricted mental stimulant so that he can be at his best (or so he thinks) during the session. This triggers the “Citadel: Negotiator’s Request” assignment.

If you want to end the assignment quickly and painlessly, you can use Charm (“Then the game is wrong.” followed by “You need help.”) or Intimidate (“Don’t be an idiot.” followed by “No. You’ll go now.”) to get him to end his narcotic-inducing ways. This earns you several Paragon or Renegade points. However, if you actually want to be a gopher for the guy, then you can agree to help him and head over to Dr. Chloe Michel in the Med Clinic. She now sells two new items – a Mental Stimulant and a Depressant. It would be easy to mistake one for the other, wouldn’t it?

Buy whichever of the two narcotics you wish and return to Elias. If you hand him the stimulant, you’ll receive a large amount of credits for your trouble but no Paragon points. If you hand him the depressant, you’ll still receive a large amount of credits but earn Renegade points for ruining his upcoming negotiations and ensuring that his assistant will be taking his place. You’ll also be called “Alien… loving… scum…”, but that’s just part of the job.

4 – Captain Anderson

Captain Anderson sits at a table by himself within Flux’s bar area. He knows as well as you do that you need to get to Ilos and stop Saren before it’s too late. Therefore, he proposes two plans to get the Normandy back online – unlock it from a console in the Citadel control center or break into Udina’s office and hack his computer. Either one of these will work just as well as the other, though each choice is accompanied by a different cutscene. We recommend choosing the latter method, as it will give you the satisfaction of seeing Ambassador Udina punched in the face.

When you’ve made your decision, leave Anderson to do the dirty work and head back to the Normandy. Once inside, one of two cutscenes will occur and the Normandy will be put back online so you can make the jump to Ilos.