
If Tali'Zorah is still alive, she is a required squadmate, but if she is not, Admiral Xen will act as outside support over the comms and Shepard can choose both squadmates without restrictions. To launch this mission, players must complete either the side mission "Rannoch: Admiral Koris" or "Rannoch: Geth Fighter Squadrons." It's not necessary to complete both, but the incomplete mission will no longer be available once the mission to take back Rannoch starts. Related: Was Mass Effect 3's Ending REALLY That Bad? Mission: Infiltrate the Reaper Base


It fell to Shepard to save both the Geth and the Quarians - but doing so wasn't easy, and, in some cases, not even possible. Even after disabling the signal on the Geth Dreadnought, the Reaper Base on Rannoch had to be infiltrated so the Normandy could target and destroy it from orbit to break the hold the Reapers had over the Geth. The Geth, regardless of whether Shepard rewrote the Heretics, allied themselves with the Reapers because they feared extinction, and the Reapers gave them major upgrades to ensure their victory against the Quarians. When Shepard met with the Quarian Admirals, the absolute chaos they discovered in the Perseus Veil was more disturbing than expected. When the Reapers arrived in Mass Effect 3, the Quarians were nowhere to be found until they reached out to Admiral Hackett and the Alliance for aid. Regardless of Shepard's recommendation, the Quarians launched a full-scale attack on the Geth in an effort to reclaim Rannoch. In Mass Effect 2, Commander Shepard could either discourage the Quarians from mounting an attack against the Geth or encourage them to fight and take their home back.
