Mass Effect Achievement Guide
by Logan
Mass Effect has achievements just like any other game nowadays. There are 45 achievements worth 1000 GS on the disc with an additional 4 worth 200 GS available through DLC. Most achievements in Mass Effect 1 have a gameplay bonus tied to them, some of which will be greatly beneficial in subsequent playthroughs. I'll detail both the superficial info and list details on how to accomplish the trickier achievements below.
The following achievements can be completed by merely playing through the game. It may take multiple playthroughs to accomplish some of these, but other than playing on a certain difficulty, simply following the instructions should net you most of these achievements in no more than a couple of runs.
Gamerscore: 25 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: This will be the first achievement you get. Simply complete the first mission on Eden Prime to receive it.
Gamerscore: 25G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: This is actually one of the easiest achievements in game, yet it's also the easiest to overlook due to the fact that there are few parts of it that you can only access at the very beginning of the game. All that is required to unlock it is to earn a Codex entry about every Galactic species, both extinct and otherwise.
Most of this will be done through basic exploring, other parts will need to make use of the dialogue wheel. There are 13 entries to get and it's easiest to go over chronologically.
The Normandy:
At the very beginning of the game after you finish talking to Joker and Kaidan and make your way though the ship, you'll eventually have a discussion with both Nihilus and Captain Anderson. Make sure you use the "Investigate" option with Nihilus and discuss the Protheans to earn their Codex entry.
Eden Prime:
After you land you'll eventually meet up with Ashley Williams. She'll then talk about the Geth siege and you'll gain that Codex entry. This one is impossible to miss.
The Citadel:
Most of your entries will come from this part of the game, so don't be too quick to rush through it. After you talk with Anderson and Udina, take a right to enter the Elcor embassy. If you speak to both the Volus Din Korlack and the Elcor Ambassador Calyn and make sure to ask each of them about their peoples, then you'll gain their Codex entries. If you make your way out of the Embassies and across the bridge to the Emporium, you can talk to Delan the Hanar shopkeeper to get the Hanar's codex entry. If you keep making your way to the Citadel Tower, make sure you stop and ask the VI Avina about the Krogan statue to receive an entry for the Rachni.
Right outside the Citadel Tower is a Keeper standing right next to another Avina terminal. Speak to her yet again and you'll get the Keeper entry. After doing so, make your way inside and attend the Council hearing to gain the Salarian, Turian, and Asari entries.
From now on, simply play through the game and you'll receive the Quarian codex entry when you recruit Tali and the Krogan entry when you recruit Wrex. The final codex entry is the easiest to overlook and it's only attainable at the Normandy's docking bay when Captain Anderson and Ambassador Udina give you command of the ship. If you investigate the matter of his past with Saren, you'll learn about a mission involving Batarians and gain both the final Codex entry and your achievement.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: This will be obtained early in the game after you recruit Tali and receive your Spectre status.
Gamerscore: 10 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: You receive this after you find and recruit Dr. Liara T'Soni. Liara can be found on the planet Therum, which is located in the Knossos system of the Artemis Tau cluster.
Gamerscore: 25 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: You get this when you complete the main story mission on Feros.
Gamerscore: 25 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: You get this when you complete the main story mission on Noveria.
Gamerscore: 25 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: You get this when you complete the main story mission on Virmire.
Gamerscore: 100 G
Bonus: Unlocks the "Hardcore" difficulty mode; Allows for your character to level past 50 to the maximum of 60.
How To Get: This is unlocked when you beat Mass Effect 1 on any difficulty.
Gamerscore: 25 G
Bonus: All weapons gain an additional 5% damage.
How To Get: Simply beat Mass Effect 1 twice.
Gamerscore: 25 G
Bonus: You gain an additional 5% bonus to any experience points that are awarded.
How To Get: This achievement requires that you complete 75% or "a majority" of the game. This really means that you have to complete 15 main missions and 35 assignments (Side quests) in order to receive the achievement.
Gamerscore: 25 G
Bonus: Your shields will gain an additional 10% of resistance in your subsequent playthroughs.
How To Get: Simply finish the game with more damage done to your shields than your health. This is extremely difficult NOT to get. Just keep your head down!
Gamerscore: 25 G
Bonus: Xbox 360 owners receive a Saren gamer picture and unlock the "Insanity" difficulty setting.
How To Get: Beat the game on the Hardcore difficulty mode. Change the setting at BEFORE you start the playthrough and DO NOT change it at all otherwise the achievement won't unlock.
Gamerscore: 50 G
Bonus: Xbox 360 owners receive an N7 gamer picture.
How To Get: Beat the game on the Insanity difficulty mode. Change the setting at BEFORE you start the playthrough and DO NOT change it at all otherwise the achievement won't unlock.
Gamerscore: 20 G
Bonus: You gain an additional 10% bonus to any experience points that are awarded.
How To Get: Reach Lvl. 50 with your Shepard. This requires about 240,000 experience points and can be accomplished in one playthrough if you do about everything.
Gamerscore: 50 G
Bonus: You gain an additional 5% bonus to any experience points that are awarded.
How To Get: Reach Lvl. 60 with your Shepard. This requires about 860,000 (!!) experience points and will undoubtedly take multiple playthroughs to accomplish.
Gamerscore: 50 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: This requires you to land on an "uncharted world" and it's an extremely easy 50 gamerscore. Just do any side mission or simply scan random planets until you get the "Land" option and you'll receive it.
Gamerscore: 25 G
Bonus: You receive access to the HMW line of weapons better known as "Spectre Master Gear" they're the best weapons in the game and can be purchased from the C-Sec Requisitions officer or the Normandy's Requisitions Officer.
How To Get: This achievement requires you to exceed 1,000,000 credits. This is easily accomplished by fighting as many people as you can and keeping a close eye on your inventory. Instead of letting your inventory get bloated and being forced to reduce your equipment to omni-gel, make sure you sell all of your unwanted items for a profit to get to one million credits in no time.
Gamerscore: 10 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: This achievement requires you to use Charm or Intimidate to resolve "an impossible situation" You can unlock this while talking to Wrex on Virmire or Saren at the end of the game. Both of these options need Charm or Intimidate to maxed out in order to succeed. However, if you completed Wrex's Family Armor quest, you can talk Wrex down without using Charm or Intimidate and still unlock the achievement.
Gamerscore: 10 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: Simply complete any Romance sequence by talking to your desired squadmate after each major mission. Male Shepards can choose between Ashley and Liara and Female Shepards can choose between Kaidan and Liara. The achievement will unlock during the romance scene that occurs before passing through the Mu Relay.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: You need to accumulate 75% of the possible Renegade points in the game. To do so, you need to make mostly Renegade choices on the main missions of the game.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: You need to accumulate 75% of the possible Paragon points in the game. To do so, you need to make mostly Paragon choices on the main missions of the game.
All of these medals revolve around combat. It is extremely important to note that all of these Weapon, Biotic, and Tech achievements are directly tied to Shepard. Having a squad mate use the power DOES NOT count towards the achievement. Seeing this, you'll be looking at least a few separate playthroughs trying out different classes in order to get all of these achievements.
Gamerscore: 25 G
Bonus:Shepard gains an additional 10% to health.
How To Get: You receive this when you kill 150 organic enemies. Most side missions have organic enemies, so this will unlock quickly once you start doing more assignments.
Gamerscore: 25 G
Bonus: Shepard gains an additional 10% to shields.
How To Get: You receive this when you kill 250 Synthetic enemies. Synthetic can mean Geth, Turrets, Rocket Drones, or any other sort of robot. This will unlock fairly quickly just by progressing through the story.
Gamerscore: 10 G
Bonus: The "Marksman" ability lasts 25% longer when used.
How To Get: Simply get 150 kills on any sort of enemy with any Pistol.
Gamerscore: 10 G
Bonus: Allows Assault Rifle Training to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply get 150 kills on any sort of enemy with any Assault Rifle.
Gamerscore: 10 G
Bonus: Allows Shotgun Training to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply get 150 kills on any sort of enemy with any Shotgun.
Gamerscore: 10 G
Bonus: Allows Sniper Rifle Training to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply get 150 kills on any sort of enemy with any Sniper Rifle.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: Allows Lift to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply use the biotic talent "Lift" 75 times.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: Allows Barrier to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply use the biotic talent "Barrier" 75 times.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: Allows Throw to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply use the biotic talent "Throw" 75 times.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: Allows Warp to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply use the biotic talent "Warp" 75 times.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: Allows Singularity to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply use the biotic talent "Singularity" 75 times.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: Allows Stasis to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply use the biotic talent "Stasis" 75 times.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: Allows Neural Shock to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn’t normally have it.
How To Get: Simply use the tech skill "Neural Shock" 75 times.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: Allows AI Hacking to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply use the tech skill "AI Hacking" 75 times.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: Allows Overload to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply use the tech skill "Overload" 75 times.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: Allows Damping to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply use the tech skill "Damping" 75 times.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: Allows Sabotage to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply use the tech skill "Sabotage" 75 times.
Gamerscore: 15 G
Bonus: Allows First Aid to be unlocked as a talent to use for any class that doesn't normally have it.
How To Get: Simply use the medi-gel 150 times.
These ally achievements revolve around completing a majority of the game with a certain squadmate by your side. It's important that once you decide who you're going to stick with, you take them with you on every mission. Due to the fact that you can only have two squad mates with you at a time, it'll take at least 3 playthroughs to get all of these achievements. It's also important to note that any DLC content you have also contributes to these achievements.
Gamerscore: 20 G
Bonus: You gain an extra 10% to your damage reduction stat.
How To Get: To accomplish this, you must complete a total of 45 missions (both main and side quests count) with Ashley Williams. You encounter her on Eden Prime, so as long as you keep her with you for the rest of the game, this one shouldn't be hard to get.
Gamerscore: 20 G
Bonus: Recharge times for the biotic powers Lift and Throw are cut down by 10%.
How To Get: To accomplish this, you must complete a total of 45 missions (both main and side quests count) with Kaidan Alenko. Kaidan is with you from the very beginning, so as long as you keep him with you for the rest of the game, this one also shouldn't be hard to get.
Gamerscore: 20 G
Bonus: Recharge times for the tech powers Damping and Overload are cut down by 10%.
How To Get: To accomplish this, you must complete a total of 50 missions (both main and side quests count) with Garrus Vakarian. You meet up with Garrus rather early, but to ensure this achievement, make sure you don't do ANY sidequests until you have him recruited and in your party.
Gamerscore: 20 G
Bonus: Recharge times for the tech powers AI Hacking and Sabotage are cut down by 10%.
How To Get: To accomplish this, you must complete a total of 45 missions (both main and side quests count) with Tali'Zorah nar Rayya. You meet Tali right after you meet Garrus, so as I stated above, make sure you don't do any side quests until after she's in your party.
Gamerscore: 20 G
Bonus: Shepard regenerates 1 health point per second.
How To Get: To accomplish this, you must complete a total of 40 missions (both main and sidequests count) with Urdnot Wrex. You meet Wrex after you run into both Tali and Garrus, but since he has the lowest amount of missions required to unlock the achievement, this shouldn't be a problem.
Gamerscore: 20 G
Bonus: Recharge times for the biotic powers Barrier and Stasis are cut down by 10%.
How To Get: Liara's companion achievement is by far the easiest to miss out on as she is the last squad mate you can recruit and she needs a total of 50 missions completed to have this achievement unlocked. To ensure you get it, it's imperative that you do no side quests AT ALL and stick to the main mission until you're given free rein to go about the galaxy. Once you have access to the Galaxy Map, immediately go to Therum and recruit Liara. After you have her, keep her with you at all times and go back and do any side quests you might have missed.
The following achievements are only attainable through downloadable content. There are two packs for Mass Effect 1. Bring Down the Sky which costs 80 Microsoft Points (1$) and Pinnacle Station that costs 400 Microsoft Points (5$).
Gamerscore: 50 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: This is awarded to you for beating the Bring Down the Sky DLC. It doesn't matter how you end it as long as it is completed.
Gamerscore: 50 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: This is tied to the Pinnacle Station DLC. Simply finish first place of any of the twelve combat scenarios.
Gamerscore: 50 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: This is tied to the Pinnacle Station DLC. You need to finish in first place in all of the combat scenarios.
Gamerscore: 50 G
Bonus: N/A
How To Get: This is tied to the Pinnacle Station DLC. This requires that you complete Admiral Ahern's personal survival mission.