Mass Effect Tourist Guide

Privateers

This is a mission you can pick up from Garoth in the Citadel Tower should you pop back there during the whole Feros/Therum/Noveria phase of the story. His brother's trading ship has gone missing, and he wants you to look into it. You'll find the ship, the MSV Majesty, near the planet Xawin with clues suggesting you investigate the planet surface. There's a mercenary base here, with heavy fortification outside. Once you've taken down the snipers and gun batteries, head inside and polish off the rest of the mercs using your now-honed combat expertise. The body of Captain Willem is upstairs, so find him, take his datapad and return to his brother to complete the assignment.

Worth doing? Not really. The only major benefit is the combat XP you'll clock up defeating the mercenaries.

BONUS: There's a Turian insignia on Xawin, along with three mineral deposits. Feel free to ignore the debris (it's just a crashed probe protected by a Thresher Maw) and the anomaly in the north (it's a Geth trap).

• Planet: Veles

There's a Matriarch's Writing here.

• Planet: Yunthorl

There's a League of One medallion here.

Smuggling

Speak to Opold, the merchant, when you first exit the elevator on Noveria. He'll ask you to fetch a package from outside the Normandy and bring it past the security desk. What you do with that package after you pick it up...well, that's for you to decide.

Worth doing? Might as well. The rewards aren't great, but it's a quick and easy assignment and one that can be done as soon as you land. Opold specialises in alien armour, so he can be a useful contact.

Espionage

Head up the elevator to the hotel, and an Asari will try to get your attention. She needs you to distract a salesman at the bar by posing as a potential customer while her hacking device uploads viruses to his databanks. If you agree, all you have to do is keep him talking until the device beeps. He's a tough businessman, so general chit chat is out - but if you've been building up your Charm skill, this assignment is a doddle.

Worth doing? Yep. You get at least 500 credits (more, if you're charming enough) and it's all done in one location.

Doctor at Risk

Hack the computer terminal upstairs in the hotel and you'll find a transmission about a doctor in the Newton system who may be in danger. Head to Kepler Verge to begin this assignment.

Argos Rho

• System: Hydra
• Planet: Metgos

Unusual Readings/Distress Call

This is the assignment you activated at the computer console in the very first room on the Citadel, and it's pretty basic stuff. Investigate the source of the readings and you'll walk into a Geth trap. Kill them. Kill them all.

Worth doing? Only if you want the chance to practice Mako combat, and earn some XP in the process.

BONUS: This planet also holds a Turian insignia.

Wrex: Family Armor

This crew assignment is unlocked after getting Wrex to open up about his past. With the right prompting, he'll explain how his family's ancestral armour was taken after the war between Krogans and Turians. It's now in the hands of a Turian who deals in stolen Krogan artefacts. Head to Tuntau and make for the Hidden Structure on the map. Defences are light outside, but the inside is swarming with enemies. Take Wrex with you and, when all enemies are defeated, crack the safe upstairs to find his armour.

Worth doing? Not really. The armour has no practical purpose - Wrex can't equip it - and there's no other reward. The pirate base yields some cool loot, but that's about it.

BONUS: You can also find a Matriarch's Writing here, along with a groovy Prothean pyramid.

• Planet: N/A

There's also an asteroid in this system with a Prothean data disc.

Missing Survey Team

You'll pick up this mission from listening to news reports on the Citadel. Just investigate anything suspicious on the planet surface, and you'll soon find the clues lead you into an old mine. Inside you'll find the missing surveyors, who've all gone a bit husky. Put them out of their misery to complete the assignment.

Worth doing? Only if you're chasing more combat experience. There's no other reward.

BONUS: This planet also hides a Turian insignia.

• System: Farinata
• Planet: N/A

Hostage

This one can be tough, so tackle it when you've got a nice strong team with plenty of biotic defence. A group of fanatical biotics has kidnapped a politician and is holding him on a derelict freighter. Take down the biotics, and save the Chairman if you can.

Worth doing? If you've got the combat skills, yes. There are decent amounts of Renegade and Paragon points to be had, depending on how you resolve things.

Strange Transmission/Major Kyle

A former Alliance soldier has gone all David Koresh and set up a biotic cult commune. Investigators have been murdered while looking into the group, and it's up to you to bring them to justice. If your Charm skill is high enough, it's quite possible to talk Kyle into surrendering, in which case you simply walk out of there with some saintly Paragon points. Or you can go in like the FBI and clock up some combat XP and Renegade points.

Worth doing? Yes, it's one of the few assignments where you can earn different rewards depending on your approach.

BONUS: There's a Turian insignia here as well.

Rogue VI

It's off to Luna, or "the moon" as we like to call it, for this assignment. Yes, it's homeward bound as Lance Henriksen makes another booty call, asking you to help deal with a Virtual Intelligence in charge of military training. It's gone nuts, you see, and is gunning down recruits. Head for the training facility on the lunar surface. There are three structures, each defended by two heavy turrets. Take these down, then head inside each structure and deal with the robotic drones before destroying the VI conduits. With each set of conduits you destroy, the VI will unleash something new to make your life trickier - nerve gas, kinetic barriers, additional drones. When all rogue synthetics are destroyed, the mission is done.

Worth doing? Absolutely. Not only does this mission earn you a massive amount of XP and valuable items, it also unlocks a Specialization Class based on the class you've been playing as. This will give you an additional boost in lots of key areas and abilities.