The Drive Core choice

I had read the "Nexus Uprising" novel, so I trusted Morda immediately. She came to Heleus for a fresh start for her species. She'd not waste such a prize on pettiness. Even had I not read the novel, I suspect I'd have arrived at the same conclusion, after a moment's thought.

It's not like we can't do some study of the drive core after giving it to the krogan. They're going to use it, not destroy it. This was almost a non-choice. Reuniting the entire Initiative-- krogan and exiles with those on the Nexus and Arks-- should be a high priority. It was clear that this served that purpose in an immediate, clear-cut fashion.

My first 2 playthroughs I gave it to the Nexus. My third playthrough, I gave it to the Krogan. For any future playthrough, I will give it to the Krogan. Why? I get to fight the architect and I can put an outpost on the planet. Get more AVP and the Nakmor clan helps Ryder on Meridian. That was cool hearing them over the comms

I like that we are starting to meet krogan who defy the "krogan aren't that smart" stereotype. These guys had a civilization that was at least on par with 20C Earth. You don't split the atom with a bunch of dullards. Sadly, they nuked that culture. (A real fear, for many, throughout the nuclear age of humanity.)

Now, we have met a krogan starship engineer and a geneticist who are at the forefront of their fields. I like this a lot. Finally, the curtains part on the krogan reality, instead of just meeting pissed off krogan mercs at every turn.

Points in Morda's favor:

1. Abrasive as Morda is, she is clearly keeping even nuttier elements in check (Gatatogs).

2. Her abrasiveness is understandable given the krogan were actually screwed over by the Nexus leadership. As an agent of Nexus leadership, she has 0 reason to trust you.

3. She is pro sustainability and and non military science in ways I've not seen from any other krogan leader, including Wrex. This is evidenced by the status of krogan like Vorn and Kesh, and her desire to use the drive core for non military purposes.

4. She does not force you to give her the drive core when she could have just ordered the literally dozens of krogan surrounding you to swarm you and take it.

Yeah, she gets little positive development in-game. She slings some threats, and then reverses her stance when there's the drive core to be gained. I only took the early threats as frustrated bravado and resentment boiling over because I'd read the novel. I'd have been less likely to trust her, otherwise.

Despite Morda's portrayal in-game, I opted to give her the drive core. I believe it's the best option.

My Ryder was very close to Drack, and so trusted his judgement. Giving Morda the drive core also gained an outpost for the initiative, and is the beginning of healing the rift between the Krogan and Nexus. A sovereign Krogan nation is just a second Krogan rebellions waiting to happen, especially with successful birthrates increasing. The Krogan were treated poorly in the Milky Way. If they travelled to a different galaxy for a new start only to encounter the same prejudice and mistreatment, there would be no hope for peace between the Nexus and Krogan.

I chose Krogan because they a) protected the Nexus folks during the uprising, got totally screwed over and thus left on their own, c) created a viable place to live and build their own colony, d) didn't kill me the second I walked in the door.

They did the same thing in the Milky Way (ie, used, thrown away, and left to rebuild on their own). Considering all they have done for all the other species in BOTH galaxies, they deserve a little damned respect. They deserve their chance.

I would feel like a complete underhanded jerk to come to the place they are trying to build and steal their chance for success from under them. They, like the rest of the Initiative, came for a new start. Screwing them over is just repeating the same old crap from the Milky Way.

I think there was no reason to trust the krogan, and the devs knew that. Which is why they gave us more reward than if we gave it to her. 

I'm finishing this mission (and nearly finished the game) and I just wanted to express something I've been sensing for a while.

I think that even though Andromeda is a 'fresh start' for everyone, including the krogan, this doesn't mean that old habits die. If anything, this allows Bioware writers to 'contain' them narratively in a place that can be manipulated easier (than Milky Way's place of history, up to and including Crucible decision).

I think a krogan conflict is inevitable. I think krogan conflict itself is inevitable, it just already played out 'before our time' in the other galaxy.

But in this time, it'll play as part of the larger series plot, and if we pick to give the drive core, something of them will be more powerful but more sympathetic to us, and if we keep the drive core, something of them will be less powerful but less sympathetic to us*. Where MET had Wrex or Wreav, MEA may have great krogan pushed into war, or poor krogan pushing themselves into war. In either case there will be room for something hopeful, but in either case the krogan keep something of themselves going - what, you think we can always just point their aggression at the super bad guys all the time?

However, I do think that the MEA arc may also be about having room to really break out of old cycles, so I don't expect something so, uh, drastic as the Rebellions. Dramatic? Maybe? But not gigantic and centuries long. Enough to remind us how dangerous the krogan are/can be, like every ME game does in their own ways (and especially with certain chosen present decisions or past decisions carrying over). Right now though, like all the other Milky Way Nexus species, the message is that there's more important people trying to make something good of this journey, then people figuring its safe enough to start ruining everything.




*This also makes me imagine a scenario where Ryder (or whoever), not being a Shepard and all, comes to some sort of 'peace' with the krogan regardless, instead of the most sucky barren Tuchanka result. If we give drive core, it may help us on a path of reconciling better (weak 'cure' ending), and if we keep drive core, it may just show them more pitifully after being stopped and we'll be kinda forced by the narrative to not wipe them out (weak 'genophage' ending). In either case, krogan continue to exist, but never get their total empire (again unlike certain MET results) and we get to RP something relatively less about drastic personal decisions and something more about guiding political ones.

Anyway, just lore wondering.

I kept it simply because I wanted the Remnant research data points that came with keeping it so I could craft my complete Remant X armor quicker.