Mass Effect 3 story outline
1. Tutorial – Earth (Cerberus alignment available)
Recruiting first squad member
Boarding the Normandy
2. Citadel – Meeting the Council
(Spectre status reinstated)
Kumun Shol
3. Klencory – (Cerberus alignment available),
Recruiting Liara T'Soni.
Cerberus's betrayal (end of Cerberus alignment)
EDI getting android avatar
Go to Shadow Base (hub world)
Orderless missions
Palaven: Recruiting Garrus
Eden Prime: The Last Prothean
Assist rachni queen
The first war summit – recruiting the VS.
Wrex/Bakara (Citadel)
4. Sur Kesh – Extracting genophage specialist
Mordin/Wicks temp recruited
Recruiting STG (Kirahee, if alive)
Second war Summit – fate of the genophage
5. Tuchanka (Hub world)
Clan meeting – Wrex/Wreav introduction.
Reaper assault on Tuchunka
Assist rachni scientists = summon Karlos to take out Reaper. Otherwise, fight on foot.
Dealing with Genophage (death of Mordin/Wiks or Maelon)
Third War Summit – Pirates and Mercenaries.
6. Terminus System's conflicts
Overthrowing the Blue Suns – Zaeed Massani recruited (if alive)
Overthrowing the Eclipse – Samara/Morinth, Aleena temp recruited to Citadel (if alive)
Recruit the Biotic cult – Jack (if alive)
Returning to Citadel – recruit Aria temp (+Aleena)
Fourth War Summit - Fate of Omega
7. Omega
Rallying mercenaries/building resistance
Taking districts from Cerberus
Retaking Afterlife – kill/arrest/recruit Cnl. Petrovsky
Emplace/replace Aria as ruler, or Patriach, Lord Darius (Alliance), Helena Blake (Citadel)
Fifth War Summit - The Quarian + Geth fleets
8. Geth-Quarian conflict
Recruiting Tali (temp if loyal in ME2)/Kal Reeger (if alive)
Meeting the Admirals + Legion/Union, discuss plans to retake/negotiate Rannoch
Husks/geth attack Rannoch's new settlement, + Harbinger (re)introduction
Rannoch reclaimed
Birth of the Dyson Sphere
Protecting/controlling the Dyson Sphere, Harbinger boss fight, (Boss fight with Legion if control)
Death of Legion/Union/Kal, Reaper assault on Dyson Sphere
Sixth War Summit - Matriarchal Support
9. Asari space conflicts
Illium – Take out ExoGeni (recruit Shiala, Gianna Parasini)
Stop the Red Sand Factory, recruit Samara/Morinth/Aleena
Thessia (hub world): The Forum of Matriarchs
Seventh - Human and Batarian conflict
10. The Batarian conflicts
Interrogate Balak
Research facility: Leviathan of Dis
Recruit the pirates, recruit Talon (possible much earlier in the story)
11. The Crucible
Prothean AI at Klencory – Vehemence
Prothean AI at Thessia – Vendetta
Prothean AI at Illos - Vigil
Prothean AI in Hidden Wards – Victory
Prothean AI at Kahje – Vocal
12. Citadel Crisis
Leng attempts to assassinate asari diplomat
Leng attacks salarian councilor/Anderson/Udina
Fight Leng (cutscene)
Leng attacks council again, Thane killed/wounded if Kasumi is alive, Kasumi killed. Leng flees.
Secret War Summit (Shadow Base)
13. Shadow War
(orderless missions – can be completed throughout game)
Bio-engineering facility (exCerberus infiltration, Henry Lawson, Miranda/Jacob/Randall possibly killed)
Mercenary training facility (exCerberus infiltration, Miranda/Jacob/Randall possibly killed)
Synthetic-engineering facility (exCerberus infiltration, David Archer. Miranda/Jacob/Randall possibly killed)
Recruit STG (optional)
Jack and Miranda fight (if alive, if both temps)
Capture or kill The Illusive Man. Leng killed. Destroy, redirect, or melt Cerberus. Sole survivor backstory fleshed out.
14. Testing the Crucible – Arcturus station. If results are good (based on how many A.Is retrieved), morale is good. If results are poor, morale is shaky.
15. The trial. If Shepard has an adequate defense (based on war assets), Batarian Hegemony will drop their charges and join as war assets. If Shepard has an inadequate defense (based on war assets), Hegemony will leave the allies (major loss of war assets).
Allying the Alliance parliament and Batarian Hegemony – Kasumi's greybox.
Eighth War Summit - Applying the Crucible
16. The possible finales.
Earth saved. Citadel abandoned and destroyed.
Citadel saved. Earth destroyed. Reapers start to harvest remaining humans.
Collector Base saved. Earth and Citadel saved. Reapers scared off.
18. Epilogue part 1. Past, Present, and Future.
Ceremony on Earth, Citadel, etc. Remembering the fallen.
Party on Normandy. Celebrating the “now”.
Dinner on Normandy with love interest/Liara/Hackett/Recognizing the galaxy's future problems.
“Aftermath” scenes for characters.
19. Epilogue part 2. Harbinger's Tale.
Drive the way to Harbinger
Infiltrate the Reaper's hull
Destroy the core
Final speech
End.