Mass Effect 3 Walkthrough Part 48: Lesuss: Ardat-Yakshi Monastery

Around the time of the main story mission Priority: Perseus Veil, you will receive a distress signal from the asari in the Nimbus Cluster. Their commandos are in trouble, but when pressed, they will refuse to yield any information on why they were there in the first place. As you will soon discover, the planet you have been called to is a sort of haven for the Ardat-Yakshi, a mutation of the asari who are sort of like succubae, hunting down, seducing, and murdering men and women of all races.

When you first arrive, however, none of this danger will be apparent. The station will be quiet, although filled with an unspoken menace. The monastery will be dark. If Samara lived through Mass Effect 2, you can search a shuttle next to where yours landed for some unique dialogue. Also, be sure to grab the Assault Rifle Stability Damper from the crates by the entranceway. Head inside of the monastery to find it cloaked in darkness. Shepard will turn the flashlight on as you head forward. Climb the ladders to proceed further into the building, as the elevators will be out of order. As you proceed forward into the cafeteria, a scream will reverberate through the empty halls. It may be creepy, but you should stay and search the cafeteria for items. Search to the left near the entrance to the room to find the Pistol Melee Stunner Mod, along with Gallae’s Electronic Signature. Near the elevator shaft, search to the right to find another room containing the Sniper Rifle Spare Ammo Mod. You will also find a safe on the wall holding 7,500 credits.

After you have collected the items, search the asari’s corpse by the exit to find a PDA. You will learn that the squad was planning the destruction of the monastery. Their plan was to plant a bomb in the great hall, spreading maximum damage across the facility. You can speak with your party about the bomb, and then you’ll be off to destroy the monastery in the asari’s stead. The scream will continue to echo around you, but no enemies will emerge just yet.

Run down the next corridor, which will have the lights on for a change, and bypass the door at the end. Upon entering the next area, search to the right to find another corpse. This one will be carrying a message. Return this message to the asari on the Citadel to complete the Asari Widow side quest. You will also encounter Samara here, provided that she lived through Mass Effect 2, and you will have a brief conversation with her. Head through the exit when you are ready, and prepare to finally take on some enemies.

As you will soon find upon entering the next room, the Reapers had gotten here before the asari commandos did. The newest of their twisted soldiers, the Banshee, is a deformed Ardat-Yakshi. These ultra-powerful Biotics will teleport around the battlefield, ensuring that you can never get a consistent bead on them. Their Biotic powers will reduce your shield to nothing in no time flat, and they will prevent you from regenerating your shield on top of that. Finally, if you see them warping quickly towards you, turn around and run away as fast as you can. If you let a Banshee get a hold on you, you will quickly find that these warped asari are as dangerous up close as they are from afar. A single melee attack will be enough to kill you if they can get a handhold.

With this in mind, a good weapon to wield against the Banshee is actually the basic Assault Rifle. It’s good at mid to long range combat, and if you are zoomed in, you won’t lose the Banshee when it teleports like you would with a Sniper Rifle or an SMG. Remind the Banshee that two can play at the Biotics game by hitting it with everything you’ve got; Warp, Incendiary Ammo, and Nova if it gets too close. Pop a Tactical Cloak if things get too hot and you’re playing as an Infiltrator. Otherwise, use the Shotgun to ensure that the Banshee can not get that one-hit melee kill in on you.

After you kill the Banshee, a wave of Cannibals will pour into the arena. Send your squad-mates to cover one side of the arena while you move to cover the other, as it can be pretty easy to find yourself flanked by the waves of enemies as they come from either side if you do not have backup covering you. Overall, however, this battle should be much easier than the last one against the Banshee. Kill the Cannibals and move on into the next room. Here, you will find an asari named Falere. She will be fleeing from the Reapers when you find her. She will tell you straight up that she is one of the infamous Ardat-Yakshi. In telling you this, she hopes to gain your trust, and possibly your help. Her sister Rila is stranded somewhere behind Reaper lines, and she asks you to rescue her. Tell her that there is a bomb in the center of the monastery. This will cause her to run off to find the bomb and save her sister on her own. Chase after her.

Examine the computer to the left of the door, then head through to find more Reapers. This time, instead of a Banshee, their leader will be a Marauder. Take out the Marauder first using a Sniper Rifle for a quick kill, then mop up the remaining Cannibals by sending your squad forward in a zig-zag pattern between the cover points to cover you as you move up for the kill. A room to your right will contain more Cannibals, as well as a Barrier Engine. Shoot the Engine and finish off the Cannibals inside using area of effect powers, as they will likely be grouped fairly close together. Search in this room to find the Disciple Shotgun and the Serrice Council Shoulder Guards armor. Fill up your Medi-Gel and examine the safe opposite the Medi-Gel to find 5,000 credits.

Head down the stairs. Another Banshee and a small wave of other enemies will appear. Backpedal up the stairs firing at the Banshee until it falls, then move through the area taking out the Cannibals. Bypass the locked door and search for the Assault Rifle Precision Scope to the left of the entranceway. Search the corpse in the middle of the room to find another PDA before going into the elevator to the great hall.

Here, you will find Medi-Gels on the pillars. Grab them and walk into the room. Rila will be attacking her sister as you enter. Two Banshees will emerge and charge you, accompanied by a group of Husks. If at all possible, you should ensure that you have a Shotgun equipped for this encounter. If you have Garrus in your party, have him set Proximity Mines around the level. With luck, the Banshees might warp right onto one of them. Backpedal in circles to lure the Husks to you first. Shoot them down with the Shotgun and, when necessary, roll away from the Banshees when they near you. Because of their one-hit melee kill, avoiding them should be your top priority. When you have killed all of the Husks, command your squad to focus their fire on one of the Banshees. Incendiary, Cryo, or Warp Ammo will help you greatly. Roll around nimbly, and hide behind pillars when they begin firing Biotics your way, but don’t bother actually taking cover because the enemies can simply teleport around it. When the first falls, repeat a similar strategy with the second.

After the battle, you will have several options to gain Paragon or Renegade points. You will pull Falere away from the Banshees that will be running into the room. You can calm her Ardat-Yakshi down by speaking with her when she enters a rage at her sister’s death. After this, you will either be able to execute her to spare her future victims, thus finishing the job that the asari commandos were sent to do, or let her live. However, if Samara is alive, this whole situation will play out differently. Samara will attempt to kill herself after the battle, which you may either allow or stop with a Paragon interrupt. If you stop her, you will not have the option of killing Falere after calming her down.