How did I never notice this before....

The initiative has many people with shady backgrounds. SAM says Sloane has a "nearly spotless record" but then follows it with saying she had multiple incidents with superior officers. Thats not 'nearly spotless'.

The way I explain it is that they did not want to have vetted people for the initiative since they were not creating a new world in Andromeda, but a semi-new one. You arrive 14 months after the Nexus so they can set up the cluster for you, and hence you only end up with 3 angara only worlds, only one of which has a complete map (Voeld). To create the same range of characters (the noble, the scoundrel, the dreamer, the by the book...etc) they draw it from the initiative. So you get people like Liam, Sloane, Spender, Reyes and so on who would have never made the cut if there was any kind of real screening going on. They all seem like bad apples as opposed to apples that went bad in Andromeda - because its less effort to write it that way.

1 dimensional maybe. Cora just whines about what Sarissa would do and why she feels abandoned while Liam is a fucking dumbass who just doesn't seem anything remotely close to being an ex cop or responder. I really had hopes that he'd be the world weary type but nope. Total fuckhead cunt. I wish Gil or that STG guy were part of the party instead. Just someone who isn't an annoying happy go lucky bitch.

It's important to remember that throughout history, actual pathfinders in any given field have broken and stretched rules to achieve noble goals.  From a game standpoint, Alec himself was kicked out of N7 for not following the rules.

Killing Sidonis is a very dark moment for Garrus. As are your conversations with him about it. Especially if you try to talk to Sidonis long enough for Garrus to hear his side and regret--and he doesn't even waver in his intent. In the first playthrough I convinced him to spare him, but in my second I let him talk and then just said "I can't help you." I looked at Garrus a little differently after that...

Alec is like any typical PC in an RPG. We always have ragtag companions that no one would logically hire, but they bring more to the mission than a bunch of people following rules, and are usually the ones who save the world with the chosen one.

I was upset there was no option to get rid of Liam by way of Virmire (The Moshae op was perfect opportunity). But then I realized the game does not even let you kill vermin raiding the cereal store in the galley.

Standards must have been lowered for Liam to become a cop. He's more like a keystone cop. I would be curious what Alec would have done when finding out the cop gave Nexus data and nav-points to an angaran

Probably the same thing Ryder can do but more forceful and experienced about it. 

And Alec is the guy dishonorably discharged. Basic rules huh.

He may have qualified for N7 and had an adventure, but he prioritizes ideals.

He's willing to take an otherwise capable idealist.

Clearly wanted to form both Cora (who is more the capable cynic) and Liam (who is more the incapable idealist) (both are at least somewhat capable and somewhat idealist), into future roles. Cora more overtly as qualified Pathfinder, but Liam for anything he finds himself finally fitting into.

Remember that Initiative wasn't really expecting this level of disaster.

In terms of writing, notice the rest of the Pathfinder team? Oh right, they died or QUIT.

Liam, as we see, doesn't quit what he believes in if he thinks that's the right path. (Of course this means he can have his view shattered and he jumps for elsewhere, but its really hard to shake him until that point.)

This is necessary in a project like this.

I hate defending Liam but I can understand him happening at the start. I just wish this game was more structured so I could kick him off at some point. Because for as much as I think he fits concepts in the game, he's like Sera in DAI where I'd still at least like the option to give him the deserved boot.

The concept of the Ai is that it *doesn't* follow basic rules, in the name of a greater, and many may say impractical vision. You think Bioware didn't realize the easy critique that going to Andromeda 'makes no sense'? Its to prove that it does, at least a little, and in that little, it can mean a lot.

The theme goes for many things that happen in MEA. Including the choice to put Liam on the team.

To be fair, he's only *part* of a team. A team that he isn't leader of, a team that is wrecked, and a team he is primarily 'crisis response' of - and he largely does that well in Habitat 7 and perhaps would have done almost as good as Scott/Sara if Scott/Sara was not there. (No, shooting a kett corpse didn't endanger the mission.) His only big freakout is on his Loyalty because everything is compandingly wrong, and his big fault is that he's too brash to properly plan and lead. Well he's not supposed to set up grand plans and lead. He's supposed to be the one taking personal initiative to make short-term crisis work out. He does that in many cases.

He's part mascot (one can laugh but Ai is more about making a home than saving an existing one) and part initiative part of Initiative. Yeah he's no superhero. He's no leader (ATM). He's no perfectly composed stronghuman (which all or nearly all other human squadmates in ME might be considered in some sense). But he's actually the one most doing what the Initiative is meant for. Cora is doing more what keeps it running and growing, yes. Liam is the one that keeps proving to me that he's trying to make the vision of the Ai persist.

So I'm really not confused about Alec wanting him. The dream of the Ai isn't what Alec dreamed either, but he is one of the biggest that bought into it, as crazy fantasy of an elite it was, and he'd want others to as well.

(This is the game that tries to offer some defense of idealism like DAI tried to offer some defense of theology and spirituality.)

The Ai was planning to do this thing over years, decades with the same people. The setup was likely more that Alec leads the team, trains successor(s), older members age out, newer members operate under the now-experienced non-Alec members, etc.

This is not, say, Suicide Mission of 'best of the best' (to strike one place hard), or Reaper War of 'the best soldiers'. I think we should keep this is in mind. Its closer to a mix of the previous two games (aka really good people at least), ME1 (aka a less urgent journey than what may come later), and something more new (the longer term colonization effort).

Liam's to help out people in a badly urgent situation and to otherwise keep himself busy working to prevent badly urgent situations. Nothing elite required there, just provable skillset, which he has, and a belief to stick to the Ai, which he does (and I think most recruits for the Ai are tested for this, which is why there had to be some silly reasons added for why so many violent exiles).

Bingo.

That's the whole thing in a nutshell.

They're good enough to do this thing, but not great enough to instantly fix all problems. They're insider enough to make the project happen, but outsider enough to dare to go on the project itself.

Without such prospect of imminent extinction as the MET group had more of. They had to take *initiative* for something, even if not be some grand masterminds or manipulators or whatever themselves.

I'm also going to add to this "outsider" idea based on an inscription in game that appears on Mithrava (right next to a point where a memory trigger is found - and I'm certain that's not a coincidence)