Bring Down the Sky
From Mass Effect Wiki
- For tactics and walkthrough, see Downloadable Content Guides .
Bring Down the Sky was the first downloadable content released for Mass Effect, and was announced to be bundled for free with the PC version, which was later changed to "downloadable for free". The mission takes place in the Asgard system, where an asteroid has been hijacked and sent on a collision course with the human colony of Terra Nova.
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[edit] Plot
[edit] Kate's Message
Shepard leaves the station - and gets shot by a man hiding near the door. Luckily Shepard's shields take the shot and the man apologises, introducing himself as Simon Atwell, an engineer on X57. He tells Shepard that the asteroid is going to crash into Terra Nova and cause catastrophic damage. Not only will it destroy the colony and kill everyone on the surface, but the devastation will effectively kill the planet.
Shepard asks why the batarians are doing this. They're pirates, slavers, not planet killers. Simon doesn't know, but he has a warning. One of the fusion torches is surrounded by blasting caps. The Mako will set them off, so Shepard will have to approach on foot. Simon also asks the commander to look out for three members of his engineering team who haven't reported back. When Shepard asks if he knows Kate Bowman, Simon says she's one of his best engineers; both she and her brother Aaron signed up together. He hopes she won't do anything stupid.
[edit] Problems and Solutions
Shepard finds the next fusion torch, guarded by more batarians. Once the commander has disabled the torch there is another call from Kate, whispering that the batarians are really pissed off. Her message is cut short as her hideout is discovered - Shepard can only listen as the batarians find her.
Kate's brother is held at gunpoint while Balak, the leader of the batarians, demands to know who's shutting off the fusion torches. Kate refuses to answer and turns away. Behind her back, Balak shoots her brother in the head. He then orders his second-in-command, Charn, to "find this problem and deal with it".
Elsewhere, having negotiated the blasting caps, Shepard leads the assault on the last fusion torch. Once it is shut down, Shepard is confronted by Charn, who suggests they try a peaceful resolution. He claims this was just meant to be a simple slave grab, but the situation's got out of hand. Balak is on a mission to destroy Terra Nova, and the commander is in the way. Charn is under orders to kill Shepard... but he's getting tired of following Balak's little crusade.
Shepard can use Charm or Intimidate, convincing him to get out while he has the chance (8 Paragon points), or just attack him (9 Renegade points). Either way, Charn yields a pass to the main facility.
[edit] Balak
Shepard enters the facility, which is guarded by turrets outside, and batarians and combat drones inside. Finally Shepard is confronted by Balak, who is furious that the torches have been shut down. He sees this as an act of reprisal for humanity's actions in the Skyllian Verge, stealing territories and resources that should have belonged to the batarians, all because the Council saw a military advantage in befriending the Alliance.
Balak isn't going down without a fight. The remaining hostages are in one of the facility offices with a detonator, and Balak is holding the switch. Shepard then has to choose - let Balak go to save the hostages, or sacrifice them to take Balak out for good.
Either way, the entire facility becomes a battleground; either Balak's forces attack, or the building has been rigged with explosives overseen by hostile drones. Once Balak is gone and the area secured, Simon Atwell appears. Shepard can justify the decision to either save or sacrifice the hostages, and Atwell confirms that the commander's efforts worked. X57 was on a direct course for Terra Nova's capital. Now the torches have been disabled, X57 will miss the planet safely. Simon's family has been saved along with the entire colony. He offers supplies as a thank-you: Shepard can choose between human light, medium or heavy armor (the type depends on Shepard's current level), or a rare set of quarian armor. Shepard can also Charm or Intimidate Simon for a choice omni-tool.
If Shepard chose to save the hostages, the commander can then free them from one of the offices and finally meet Kate Bowman. She is glad to be alive but devastated at the death of her colleagues and her brother. Kate realises she never even asked the commander's name, and claims Shepard isn't what she expected, but she's very grateful for the help.
[edit] Other Assignments
[edit] Trivia
A small shack on a hill (near the fusion torch in the center of the map) is home to X57 Radio, a small pirate radio station run by the X57 engineers. The computers mention a disagreement with the project director who wanted to shut the station down, because the music caused young engineers to "riot and sleep with aliens". When the director was asked if he'd actually heard the music, he said that he'd heard about it from someone else who'd heard something about what the station played. (PC version only; in the Xbox360 version, the console only displays the station's slogans.)
This is probably a response to the inaccurate reporting about Mass Effect's romance subplot that circulated after the initial Xbox360 release.
[edit] Achievement
Completing Bring Down the Sky gives the Colonial Savior achievement.
| Mass Effect Series | |
| Games | Mass Effect (CE) • Mass Effect Galaxy • Mass Effect 2 (CE) • Mass Effect 3 |
| Downloadable Content | Bring Down the Sky • Pinnacle Station |
| Novels and Comics | Revelation • Ascension • Redemption |
