Mass-effect – Can the Paragon choice at the end of Thane’s prayer differ based on certain factors

mass-effect-3

Note: Here be spoilers. I couldn't really figure out a way to ask this without them.

My Shepard is a female who plays (mostly) Renegade and also romanced Thane in Mass Effect 2. I have no idea if this plays out differently depending on whether or not you gained Thane's loyalty in 2, but for the record, I did.

After the attack on the Citadel and Thane becomes hospitalized, you can go see him. Depending on the option when Kolyat asks if you want to join him in prayer or not, the lines of the prayer Kolyat says change.

Renegade choice (declining):

Kolyat: Kalahira, this one's heart is pure, but beset by wickedness and contention. Guide him to where all hunters return, where all storms become still, where all stars show the path. Guide him, Kalahira, and he will be a companion to you as he was a father to me.

This version is obviously from Kolyat's point of view.

Paragon choice (joining):

Kolyat: Kalahira, this one's heart is pure, but beset by wickedness and contention.

Shepard: Guide this one to where the traveler never tires, the lover never leaves, the hungry never starve.

Kolyat:Guide this one, Kalahira, and she will be a companion to you as she was to me.

After this version, Shepard asks Kolyat why the end of the prayer used "she," and he responded:

The prayer was not for him, Commander. He has already asked forgiveness for the lives he has taken. His wish was for you.

How does the Paragon version of the prayer differ? I suspect that the line "Kalahira, this one's heart is pure, but beset by wickedness and contention" may differ based on whether or not your Shepard is Paragon or Renegade. In addition, how does the ending of this prayer change if you were either a female who did not romance him or were male?

_{Having to replay this scene over and over to screencap the dialogue for transcription may or may not have resulted in teary-eyed sniffles.}

Best Answer

The non-romantic paragon version of the prayer is (differences in bold)

Kolyat: Kalahira, this one's heart is pure, but beset by wickedness and contention.

Shepard: Guide this one to where the traveler never tires, the lover never leaves, the hungry never starve.

Shepard:Guide this one, Kalahira, and he will be a companion to you as she was to me.

The dialogue at the ending of the prayer is the same as you noted;

The prayer was not for him, Commander. He has already asked forgiveness for the lives he has taken. His wish was for you.

As indicated in comments the final line of the scene is different, with Shepard saying Good bye Thane, you won't be alone long. instead of Goodbye, Thane. Meet you across the sea.

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You can view it at this link

Related Solutions

Mass-effect – Who are the numerous that died

The following is the memorial plaque wall when you start with a new character and select the "numerous" option. As you'll note, most of the squad members from Mass Effect 2 are still alive:

the numerous that died

Those names underlined in blue are the original crew members of the Normandy SR-1 who died in the beginning of Mass Effect 2, along with the two squad members Ashley Williams and Urdnot Wrex (marked by blue squares). Kaidan was chosen to be alive because I was playing a female Shepard; when playing a male Shepard, Ashley will be the Vermire survivour.

Those names underlined in orange are all crew and squad members from the Normandy SR-2. Those marked with an orange circle, Gabriella Daniels, Kenneth Donnelly, and Kelly Chambers, would have all made notable appearances in Mass Effect 3 had they not died. More specifically, the former two can be brought back aboard the Normandy in their usual positions as engineers, and Kelly Chambers is a potential romance/fish keeper* depending on your interactions with her in the previous game.

Thane Krios and Jacqueline Nought (Jack) appear to be the only squad member from Mass Effect 2 that's listed as having died, and are highlighted on the wall by the orange square.

Everyone else not on this list is presumed to be alive, and not one of the "numerous who died." In particular, Garrus, Tali, Miranda, and Jacob are all listed as alive. However, the game will act as though you never met Samara/Mordinth, Grunt, Katsumi, and Zaeed, effectively killing them. It will also act as though the original Council died during the attack on the Citadel in Mass Effect 1.

^{*that is, she returns your fish from Mass Effect 2 to you; you need the aquarium VI or extreme patience to keep them alive}

The problem of course is that this is the same list of people who would have died if you had simply chosen the Ashley/Kaidan option. In comparing the two save files, one from a "numerous" selection, and one from a "Kaidan" selection (using male Shepard to keep a consistent Vermire casualty), there's actually very few differences between the two scenarios.

The tables below illustrate the difference in game variables before you perform any action:

PlotID  | Numerous | Kaidan dies
--------+----------+------------
17807   | true     | false
18005   | false    | true
18122   | false    | true
21569   | false    | true

PlotInt | Numerous | Kaidan dies
--------+----------+------------
10393   | (unset)  | 3

At the moment it's unfortunately unclear what these changes represent, because they don't directly map to any of the significant and/or labeled plot events that the game has. Presumably they have some noticeable impact, however, so I'm going to keep digging until I get to the bottom of this.

Mass-effect – How to get the last paragon/renegade dialogue option towards the end of the game

To end the standoff with the Illusive man via Charm / Intimidate, you need to have previously used Charm / Intimidate in every conversation with him.

There are 6 in total: Once on Mars, once on Thessia^[1], once on the Cerberus Base, and three times in the final conversation on the Citadel.

The first three are hidden within left-side (investigate) branches of the dialog tree, and you can only use the final Charm / Intimidate if you have succeeded at all the previous 6.

The last paragon option will convince The Illusive Man to commit suicide, and the renegade interrupt will result in you shooting The Illusive Man before he shoots Anderson.

1: The Paragon/Renegade rewards for the Charm/Intimidate dialogue options on Thessia are switched around, so if you wish to maximize your Paragon points, you must choose Intimidate and vice versa. Doing so will not prevent you from convincing the Illusive Man at the end of the game.