This page of IGN's Mass Effect wiki guide is all about the UNC: Missing Marines Assignment, including where to find all the items, how to survive all the combat encounters, and how to make the right choices for your playthrough.

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• Assignment Stats
• Doctor Michel
• Meet Admiral Kahoku
• Travel to Sparta
• Find Recon Team
• Speak to Kahoku
• Back on the Normandy

Assignment Stats

Video Guide

Essential Stats

• Persuasion Points: N/A
• Minimum Decryption: N/A
• Minimum Electronics: N/A

Doctor Michel

Before we begin this Assignment proper, we need to bring up the "Citadel: Doctor Michel" Assignment. During this Assignment, you'll have the opportunity to ask three characters about a man named Armistan Banes: Morlan, Michel herself, and Captain Anderson.

Meet Admiral Kahoku

• Prerequisite: Complete "Citadel: Expose Saren"
• Location: Serpent Nebula - Widow - Citadel - Presidium - Citadel Tower

Head to the location on the map above, which is located in the Citadel Tower. Here, you'll meet an Alliance Admiral named Kahoku. Speak with him to learn about a missing unit of marines out on a planet far away. The council refuses to help him locate his missing soldiers, and naturally, he asks for your help.

Whether or not you "accept" his request, it will still be added to your journal, so after speaking with him, you can be on your way.

Travel to Sparta

• Location: Artemis Tau - Sparta - Edolus

Head to your ship, the Normandy, and go to your galactic map. Search for Artemis Tau (after scaling your map all the way back to the galactic level), and go to the Sparta System. Make sure to scout the system for these goodies:

Recommended Loadout

• Squad Tactics:
  • If you're playing the Legendary Edition or prefer fighting in the Mako, your squad won't matter here as you'll be using the Mako for combat.
  • If you're playing the original release of the game and want to avoid the 50% XP penalty for Mako kills in that version, bring Garrus and Ashley for their long-range capabilities.
• Shepard's Loadout:
  • If you're playing the original release and want to avoid the 50% XP penalty for Mako kills, you'll be facing one very touch organic enemy. So, you should use Anti-Personnel / Shredder Rounds for this level.

Find Recon Team

There's a planet revolving around the star called Edolus. Land on this planet. It's an extremely hostile place, as you will soon find out, but we must land here in order to find what happened to Admiral Kahoku's missing Marine detachment.

Once you land, you'll need to head due north to run into the missing Marine detachment. And before long, as you approach the source of the stray signal and see some signs of the Marines, the enemy in the area reveals himself. A Thresher Maw (a worm-like space creature) emerges, revealing the fate of the marines.

This fight might seem daunting, but remember that you can fire your Mako's machine gun with the right trigger, but using the right bumper will allow you to shoot the Mako's powerful heavy artillery. This gun can only be used about once every five seconds, but it's the key to success in beating an enemy with as much health as a Thresher Maw.

Don't leave your vehicle, never stop driving around (so as to avoid being underneath the Thresher Maw when it comes through the ground) and get as many shots off on him as you can. Supplement your high-powered shots with incessant machine gun fire, as that will fell this creature before long, but if you keep dying, don't give up. This fight is about practice, and the Mako can admittedly be difficult to control when you're shooting simultaneously.

When the Thresher Maw is felled, drive towards the Marine's vehicle (called a Grizzly), where you'll see some corpses lying about. Get out of your Mako and investigate one of the Alliance Marines to progress the Assignment. Before returning to the Citadel, make sure to pick up these items at the site:

• Medical Kit - Next to the nose of the Alliance Marines' vehicle.
• Upgrade Kit - Near the rear wheels of the Alliance Marines' vehicle.

Speak to Kahoku

Head back to the Normandy and fly back to the Citadel. Admiral Kahoku will still be in the same place you found him in before, in the Citadel Tower.

When you're ready to conclude this Assignment, you can tell Kahoku how his men died however you'd like, as there are no Morality Points to be awarded here.

Back on the Normandy

Now return to the Normandy and go to any system you'd like (we suggest the Voyager Cluster, as that's where your next Assignment will be, wink wink). If you asked Kahoku about Banes, you'll get a frantic message from him about the ones responsible, and he uploads some new co-ordinates for you.