Mass Effect - What Happens If You Save The Council???

In this video I’m going to show you what happens if you save The Council at the end of Mass Effect, including the consequences for Mass Effect 2 and 3.

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0:00 Introduction
0:57 Choosing to Save The Council
2:38 Meeting with The Council After Saving Them
4:40 Mass Effect 2 Consequences
6:22 Mass Effect 3 Consequences
8:18 Conclusion

During Sovereign’s attack on The Citadel, The Council is evacuated aboard the Destiny Ascension. Unfortunately their escape attempt is thwarted as they are pursued and fired upon by Geth ships. Without additional support to counterattack the Geth, it looks certain that the Council will die.

Joker contacts Shepard and lets him know that the Normandy and the Alliance Arcturus Fleet can respond to the distress call and save the Destiny Ascension… if Shepard orders him to do so.

The Arcturus Fleet manages to save the Destiny Ascension and The Council. After the battle with Saren and Sovereign is complete, The Council meets with Shepard, Udina and Anderson.

Mass Effect 2 takes place two years after the events of the first game. While The Council does not play a major role in the story it does come up in several conversations. Early in the game, Anderson will invite Shepard to The Citadel to meet with The Council. By now, the Turian Councilor’s response to the Reaper threat is legendary amongst Mass Effect fans: "AH YES, 'REAPERS' "

The Council does not take the Reaper or Collector threat seriously and won’t commit any resources to help Shepard’s mission. However, they will offer to reinstate Shepard’s spectre status, which you can either accept or refuse.

By the time Mass Effect 3 begins, The Council is still made up of four members - Human, Asari, Turian and Salarian. Udina will be the human Councilor, even if Anderson served in that post in Mass Effect 2.

The Council plays a much bigger role in the story of Mass Effect 3, with Shepard receiving missions from the Turian, Salarian and Asari councilors at multiple points throughout the game… and saving the Salarian councilor’s life if Thane or Major Kirrahe are still alive.

Shepard’s rescue of The Council in Mass Effect 1 can also positively influence Kaidan or Ashey’s opinion of Shepard during the armed standoff near the conclusion of Priority: The Citadel II.

The decision Shepard made regarding The Council in Mass Effect 1 comes up in conversation from time to time, but otherwise the core story is relatively unchanged.

The only other real gameplay impact comes in the form of war assets, but the differences are negligible. If you saved The Council, you gain The Destiny Ascension, but the Alliance Fleets (First, Third and Fifth) are all weaker and Admiral Mikhailovich died as well. So saving The Council nets you 30 less war assets overall… again, not a huge difference either way.

However, it's pretty cool to see The Destiny Ascension fly in as part of the Victory Fleet at the end of the game.