Mass Effect Andromeda guide – Arrival at the Nexus – sidequests galore

By Alex Donaldson

The Citadel is 600 years away, but its spirit lives on.

Arriving at the Nexus

After the dramatic events down on Habitat 7, Ryder finds him or herself waking up aboard the Ark Hyperion once again. This time there’s some bad news and a whole lot of story – and we’re not going to describe all that here. Press on with the story, making decisions as you see fit.

Find more tips, tricks and explanations in our Mass Effect Andromeda guide and walkthrough.

You’ll board the Nexus and on there discover the truth of the situation in Andromeda. There’s some hefty exposition drops and character introductions – and while the game only really pushes you to speak to Director Tann, the Salarian boss of the Nexus, it’s highly recommended you complete the optional objectives of talking to Krogan Kesh, Human Addison and Turian Kandros as well. They’re all in this same area – go chat to them. It’ll complete an optional objective and give you some important extra story information.

Before going to speak to Tann you should consider exploring this section of the Nexus as much as possible. Aside from the other Nexus leaders mentioned above there are a lot of other characters to meet. Here are some things you should definitely do since they lead to quests:

• First Murder: In the Militia Office you’ll find a Turian woman, Mariette, dressed in white, red and grey. Her husband has been accused of a crime she swears he didn’t commit: the first murder in Andromeda. Chatting to her triggers the First Murder quest. You can pursue the first phase of this quest on the other side of this hall right now if you want, and the next steps will take place at your next story destination.
• First Strike: Chat to Kandros again in the Militia Office to start the First Strike sidequest. You can complete this sidequest right here and now by interacting with the strike mission interface.
• At the far end of the long hallway you’ll find a Salarian Scientist called Professor Herik. Chatting to him and his other scientist buddies will tick off the ‘Getting to know the Scientists’ Task and then lead into a number of other tasks.
• Missing Scientists: After chatting to Professor Herik, in the same area chat to Asari Doctor Aridana. This starts the Missing Scientists task/sidequest.
• Hitting Rocks for Science: In the same area as Herik and Aridana chat to Chief Lucan, the Turian scientist. This starts the Hitting Rocks for Science task/sidequest.
• Comparatively Alien: Chat to Herik one more time to trigger one last task: Comparatively Alien. These tasks will span a lot of the game.

Getting the Tempest

Once this is done, go speak to Director Tann in his office. This will push you further along the story, giving you your next main objective on the planet Eos while also giving you the side objective of tracking down the other missing arks from the Salarian, Turian and Asari races.

Your next step in your quest will be to go speak to SAM node aboard the Hyperion – there’ll be an obvious waypoint to take you there. You’ll have to take the tram over there. Do so, and be sure to listen to the optional conversations and explore your father’s quarters to find a figurine of the Normandy SR-2, some voice logs that’ll delight Mass Effect fans and the first details about the murky past of Alec Ryder.

Next: Part 4: The Tempest and the strange signal on Eos

Once that’s done, head to the docking bay to claim your ship, The Tempest. Your next story destination is the Planet Eos, but be aware that by unlocking the Tempest a few more quests have unlocked throughout the Nexus. You should check back to the Nexus regularly, especially after completing main story missions or major milestones in Andromeda. There’s often new stuff to discover.

The extra quests unlocked right away once you have the Tempest are:

• Station Sabotage: Between Tann’s Office and the tram you’ll find a colonist called Raj Patel working on a panel that’ll explode. Go to chat to him to kick off this quest line, which involves scanning the station to track down a saboteur.
• The Model of the Spheres: Head to the Nexus Operations area where you found the scientists earlier. This time speak to Doctor Aridana, the Asari, again. You can also interact with the terminal near the scientists to confirm your participation in this quest.
• Lost Brother: Head to the Hyperion Med Bay, where you woke up. Find a chap called Nigel McCoy here and chat to him – it’ll kick off this quest, which you can then complete down on the surface of Eos, your next story destination.