Mass Effect 3 Walkthrough Part 87: Priority: Earth Part 9

The missile didn’t fire correctly the first time, and now you’ve got a small army of Reapers closing in on your position and no Hammer Squad to watch your flanks. This challenging checkpoint is the final battle in the game, as with a few small exceptions, you will not need to raise your gun again after killing these enemies. That is far easier said than done, however. The Reapers know now what you are planning to do, and they will send every Brute, Banshee, Cannibal and Marauder they can muster to your position to stop you from assaulting the Citadel Beam.

The first wave of enemies to emerge will be a group of three Brutes. You will have to be agile to get through this, especially if you are not playing as a Vanguard. Use the wreckage of the cars and buildings littering the streets to keep the Brutes at bay and always be sure to have something between you and them so that they can’t charge you. In the confusion, the Brutes may charge into each other. This won’t damage them, but it will get them all grouped together. When this happens, launch explosive attacks such as Grenade their way to deal damage to all of them at once. Turn on Incendiary or Warp Ammo for your squad if you can, and pepper them with gunfire as you dodge about the debris in the streets. Also, try to give the Brutes more than just three targets. If you can, summon a Decoy or a Combat Drone to take some of the heat off of your squad. If you are playing as an Infiltrator, don’t hesitate to use Tactical Cloak to escape any sticky situations you might end up in. Using up your Biotics is a far superior alternative to being cornered by three Brutes. If you are playing as a Vanguard, this encounter will be significantly easier. Target the Brutes with a Shotgun and use Biotic Charge to dash between the Brutes, dealing damage to and staggering each of them. When they group together, hit them all with a Nova blast, then finish the job with your Shotgun or charged melee attacks. No matter which class you are playing as, be sure to have your entire squad target one Brute at a time. This will make the process of defeating them much faster.

After the three Brutes die, a Harvester will swoop down onto the battlefield and begin to attack you, accompanied by a small wave of lesser enemies. Now would be a good time to use that Hydra Missile Launcher sitting on the shelf in the store to the left. Before you grab it, though, you should think about your other options. Following the defeat of the Harvester, a wave of several Banshees, Marauders, and Cannibals will attack. If you have Incendiary or Warp ammo equipped to your entire squad, it may actually be easier to focus your squad’s fire on the Harvester from the cover of the bombed-out building to the right and save the missile for the Banshees. Note that you will only have one missile and it will kill anything you hit with it, even the Harvester, so make it count.

When the final wave begins, take cover in the safety of one of the buildings (unless you still have the Hydra, in which case the confines of the building would probably catch you in the explosion and kill you) and have your squad spread out to cover the areas around you. You will have to survive until the Missile Battery is ready for a second launch. No matter where you run and where you hide in this section, you will be under attack from all sides at all times. If you didn’t use the Hydra on the Harvester, grab it now and target at least one of the Banshees with it. If you are very lucky, you will be able to wipe out a vast number of the enemies. This will only work if they are somewhat grouped together, though. Try to hit both Banshees at the same time as they teleport around, but don’t wait too long to pull off your shot. You might end up waiting too long, and missing everything.

If you can’t kill the Banshees with the Hydra, this battle will be significantly more difficult. The Reaper by the Citadel Beam will soon join in on the fray as well, frying significant portions of the street with its laser cannon. It is best to stay out of the open at this point. Buildings to the left and right sides of the street make for decent cover, but you will inevitably be surrounded by the time the waves of enemies come to a stop. You can head to the side streets down the left flank, where the previous waves of enemies emerged from, but this comes with its own disadvantages as well. The Reaper’s cannon can barely reach down the side streets, but you will have to sprint all the way back to the Missile Battery to activate it, and the long run can be deadly when Marauders, Banshees, and a Reaper are all attacking you.

If you have any defensive powers, such as Tech Armor or Barrier, use them now. They could save your life. Hit the Marauders with Singularity when they group together, and follow it up with Warp to detonate the powers. When the Banshees get close, hit them with everything you’ve got. Charge up Spike Thrower shots, use Grenades, hit them with Warp or Incinerate; anything to stay away from their deadly grasp. Be sure to avoid their projectiles as well, as these will deplete your entire shield with a direct hit. These projectiles can be really annoying, too, because they have slight homing properties. Don’t be surprised if one of the blasts arcs around cover to hit you when you thought you were safe.

After a few minutes of pure survival, you will receive a radio message saying that the Missile Battery is ready for a second go. Don’t waste a second. Sprint down the road towards the Missile Battery. As soon as you can, examine the console to begin the second wave of firing. With the Reaper much closer than before, these missiles will score a direct hit, bringing the titan to its knees.