"Our Pilgrimage proves we are willing to give of ourselves for the greater good. What does it say about me if I turn my back on this?"
Tali'Zorah nar Rayya is a quarian and a member of Commander Shepard's squad. She is the daughter of Rael'Zorah vas Alarei, a member of the Admiralty Board. Though young, Tali is a mechanical genius.
During the events of the first game, she is on her Pilgrimage, a rite of passage to prove her worth and bring something of value back to her people aboard the Migrant Fleet. Early in the second game, having completed her Pilgrimage, Tali has been entrusted with leading an important research mission for the Admiralty Board.
Tali'Zorah is voiced by Ash Sroka (credited as Liz Sroka in Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2).
Tali was born in 2161 aboard the Rayya. She was placed in a tank of Medi-gel for years of her life, until a suit could be produced for her (contamination for a Quarian is lethal). Once out, she grew up alongside her father, Rael'Zorah vas Alarei and her mother, Zato'Zorah vas Moreh. Unfortunetly, her mother died of a spaceborne infection that wiped out the majority of the crew on the Shuttle, Yasmoy.
Her father then brought her up to become a Admiral on the Board and hoped this could be after she reached maturity and left on her Pilgrimage.
Once Tali had embarked on her pilgrimage, she decided to immediately head into the Sparta System, hoping to end her pilgrimage quickly. On her travels, she began hearing reports of Geth, who had never ventured outside the Perseus Veil for 300 years after they exiled her people, and became curious. She entered the Perseus Veil, followed a Geth patrol to a uncharted world, waited for one to become seperated from it's unit, and then disabled it and removed it's memory core. She recovered a audio file from it's databanks that revealed Saren Arterius, Matriarch Benezia and a Super Dreadnought named "Sovereign" was behind the attack on Eden Prime, but possessing the file put her in grave danger. She was found out and pursued by Saren's forces until she went on the Citadel, but one of Saren's assassins managed to shoot her.
She managed to get medical treatment at Dr. Michel's Clinic in which she revealed the evidence she has and what it reveals and that she plans to trade the information to the Shadow Broker in exchange for a safe place to hide. However, she was double-crossed by Fist, who was working for Saren, and lead into a trap set by his assassins. Tali threw a tech proximity mine to defend herself, and soon helped by the timely arrival of Commander Shepard and his squad.
To repay the Commander for saving her life, she presented the proof to Ambassador Udina and Captain Anderson. This lead to Saren's Spectre Status being revoked. Tali's data also revealed the existence of the Reapers, a sentient race of hyper advanced starships that wipe out all organic life in the galaxy every 50,000 years. The Geth apparently worship them as "the pinnacle of synthetic evolution" and they are "synthetic gods." Wanting to fight the Geth herself, she joined Shepard's team.
Tali spends her time in the Engineering Sector of the Normandy, helping Chief Engineer Adams and his team. Adams is very impressed by her knowledge of ship technology, saying he wished half his crew were as smart as Tali. They often work together to disassemble or assemble any objects/items/artefacts found on Recon missions. Shepard can chat with Tali about her fascination with ship technology and the Normandy's unique design, especially the enormous drive core.
Tali talks about her life as a Quarian nomad, her Pilgrimage and the ramshackle three-hundred-year old vessels in the Quarian Flotilla. She says she is sad over her mother's death, she however states that infected deaths are a common thing in the Flotilla. She also reveals that her father is head of the Admiralty Board, meaning everyone has high hopes for her pilgrimage.
Tali also offers some insight into the Geth: why the Quarians created them, how they rebelled, and how their neural network functions. She explains that her people struck first to try to avert a all-out war, but this was failure waiting to happen and they underestimated how far the Geth had developed. Shepard can debate this with her, pointing out that the Quarians basically attempted Genocide against a fellow sentient race.
At first Tali is very excited about being onboard the Alliance's most advanced starship, but she begins having problems. She soon begins having trouble getting to sleep, saying it is too quiet (to a Quarian, a silent ship means a dead engine, or worse, a malfunctioning air filter). She also says that compared to the crowded conditions of the Migrant Fleet, the Normandy feels so empty and that "it's like half the crew is missing." She manages to adjust overtime, and becomes much more cheerful. Tali enjoys visiting the crowded, noisy Wards on the Citadel because it reminds her of home, and she particulary likes the music at Flux, hoping to take a copy back to the Migrant Fleet when her pilgrimage is over.
If Shepard treats Tali with respect, she is very grateful, explaining that her people are usually treated like second-class citizens. On Virmire, at the salarian camp, Tali is nervous about the upcoming assault on the base, but promises she will "fight with fire" for Shepard's sake. After the mutiny, when Shepard steals the Normandy and heads to Ilos, Tali enjoys the adventure of it all, but wonders what will happen if the Citadel Fleet catches up with them. Shepard is sure Tali's father would pull strings to keep his little girl out of jail, but Tali isn't convinced: stealing ships is a captial offense in the Flotilla saying "he'd probably want to execute us himself."
If Tali goes with Shepard to Ilos, she finds the planet eerie and feels as if they are trespassing. She claims the Quarians once tried to find Ilos as a possible new homeworld, but didn't think the planet would be so unwelcome. After speaking to Vigil, Tali is saddened to learn of the Protheans true fate, like her people, the Protheans tried to destroy the machines but eventually lost everything.
Personal Assignment[]
When Commander Shepard is completing UNC: Geth Incursions, to clear the Geth from the Armstrong Nebula, a cache of data is found in a terminal, detailing the early days of the Geth.
Once back on the Normandy, Tali asks Shepard to give her a copy of the data. Though it is heavily encrypted and might take years to decipher, it is a perfect gift for her pilgrimage. Shepard can refuse - this is classified Alliance data, after all - or agree to her request, hoping the Alliance doesn't find out. Obviously, if Tali receives a copy of the data, she will be very happy (it will enable her to return to her people once the mission is over). If Shepard refuses, Tali says she will help stop Saren, but leave the crew afterward - in order to find something of equal value and complete her pilgrimage on her own.
Note: If the aforementioned mission is completed before Tali tells Shepard about her father and Quarian politics, she won't tell Shepard about those, missing a few secondary codex entries.
Note: Tali does not automatically ask Shepard to give her a copy of the data, even if brought on the mission in which the data can be retrieved. Shepard must go down to the engine room immediately upon returning with the data to have the option to allow her to make a copy of it. If Shepard reports to Admiral Hackett immediately upon returning from the mission, the data will be sent to the Alliance and Shepard will lose the option to present Tali with a chance to copy it for the Migrant Fleet.
Mass Effect 2[]
"Shepard. Is that...You're alive?"
Weapon Proficiencies[]
Heavy Pistols
Shotguns
Powers[]
Class: Quarian Machinist
Combat Drone
AI Hacking
Unlocked at Combat Drone 2
Quarian Machinist
Energy Drain
Unlocked when Tali is loyal.
Dossier[]
After the attack on the SSV Normandy, and having completed her pilgrimage, Tali joined the crew of the Quarian Cruiser, Neema and became a respected member of the Migrant Fleet, her new suit being a sign of how high her respect goes. She then earns the title, Tali'Zorah vas Neema. In 2185, the Neema lost contact with the human colony of Freedom's Progress, which a Quarian named Veetor'Nara was on in his pilgrimage. The Neema was dispatched to retrieve Veetor, Tali has head of the team.
Everything went downhill from there. Veetor thought they were the Collectors returning to abduct him, so he reprogrammed the security mechs to attack him on sight. However, Shepard's timely arrival allowed them to get to Veetor, in which you can decide to hand over Veetor to Cerberus or let Tali take him back to the Migrant Fleet. Her response is based on your decision. Shepard can ask her to rejoin his team, in which she will reject, since she still has a classified mission to carry out, and leaves without futher notice.
Later, Tali leading a Quarian Marine Team lead by Sergeant Kal'Reegar goes to Haestrom to discover why the sun there is dying and what dark matter has to do with it. However the team is later flanked by a Geth Dropship, which deploys Geth troops, which easily overwhelm the surprised Quarians leaving Tali trapped in her lab and Kal'Reegar desperately holding the Geth off. Shepard, once again, begins his timely arrival and destroys the Geth forces, allowing him/her to reach Tali. Tali will give Reegar the data and rejoins Shepard's team, but hopes the data is put to good use, as she lost so many troops under her command.
Aboard the Normandy SR-2, she is warmly welcomed by Jacob, who she ignores saying she still distrusts Cerberus and is only there for Shepard. She is even more disturbed by the fact that the new Normandy holds a AI.
Loyalty[]
After some time aboard the Normandy, Tali receives a disturbing message from the Fleet. She has been accused of Treason against the Flotilla and ordered to return for Trial. Shepard can offer to take her to Migrant Fleet and act as her "lawyer" to which Tali is thrilled. Once there, Tali finds out that she has been accused of sending active geth components into the Flotilla, a serious breach of security.
Later her father, along with the rest of the Alarei crew is revealed to be dead, in which Tali requests they board the Alarei and investigate. The crew is indeed dead, along with her father, which you can choose to comfort her or let her cry. After you find out that her father was deliberately reactivating the Geth components for a project designed to develop countermeasures for Geth tactics. You can choose to present this to the Admiralty Board, which Tali objects to, saying her father's name will be disgraced and angerily asks Shepard if they can leave, losing her loyalty. If you choose to present no evidence, Tali is exiled but you gain her loyalty. If you provide no evidence, but convince the Admiralty that Tali's loyalty is unquestionable, she is not exiled and you gain her loyalty. If you provide no evidence, but talked to all the Quarians, you can rally the crowd so that Veetor and Reegar step up and defend Tali, convincing the Admiralty Board otherwise, ending up with her not getting exiled and gaining her loyalty.
After her loyalty mission and after you've obtained Legion and gained his loyalty, Tali has a confrontation with Legion when she finds out that Legion is sending classifed information concerning the Migrant Fleet back to the Geth. You can choose to side with Tali, but you lose Legion's loyalty. You can side with Legion, but you lose Tali's loyalty. You can choose to side with noone, which keeps both of their loyalty, and Tali gives non-classifed data of the Flotilla for Legion to send.
Romance[]
"What could I possibly be suggesting? I mean, a young woman gets rescued by a dashing commander who lets her join his crew and goes off to save the galaxy? How could she possibly develop any kind of interest in him?"
Tali is a potential romance option for a male Shepard. When Tali first joins the crew, Yeoman Kelly Chambers informs Shepard that Tali may want to be more than "just be good friends" and describes the noticable signs in her body language. Kasumi Goto also notices the signs, telling Shepard that he's "all she talks about" and that he'd better be good to her. After completing her loyalty mission, Tali takes on a small fever and tells Shepard what life inside her suit is like. She says that Quarians are in their suits their whole lives and that the most intimate thing they can do with another Quarian is link suit environments. It can be dangerous and considered the most sacred form of trust. Tali accidentally lets slip that she trusts only Shepard that much. She initially acts nervous, stumbling over her words, and can even be accused of blushing, though she blames it on her fever. Eventually she confirms the Yeoman's thoughts revealing that ever since the start of their adventures together, she had developed feelings for Shepard. Until this point, however, Tali had been afraid to act on her feelings because she doubted he can could truly see who she was under her mask. She is happily surprised when Shepard proves her wrong by telling her how he feels the same way about her. Tali later apologizes for putting him on the spot, saying she was "unprofessional and selfish". She tells Shepard that he "deserves to happy with someone" and doubts she can do that for him. But Shepard says that he doesn't want to be with anyone else, and that he wants to be with Tali, and he'll do everything he can to make it work.
Overjoyed to hear this, Tali tells Shepard that she wants this relationship to be real, that she must feel "(her) skin against (his)." Unfortunetly, Quarians weak immune system and dextro-amino acid chirality makes physical acts of affection dangerous, if not deadly. She thus asks that Shepard give her some time until she can adequately make herself ready. Shepard can also get intimate advice from Mordin Solus, who will suggest Shepard "self-sterilize", citing oral contact as dangerous, and forwards information packets regarding Quarian physiology and positions comfortable for both species to Shepard's room.
Shortly before the Normandy's entry into the Omega 4 Relay, Tali nervously goes to Shepard's room saying that she has taken several antibiotics and "herbal supplements" to bolster her immune system. Speaking nonstop ("a defensive mechanism"), she becomes visibly nervous about removing her bio-suit and having her first intimate experience. Shepard eases her worries and proceeds to remove her mask, viewing her face unobstructed for the first time (but out of view of the camera). Her fears gone, Tali pounces on Shepard and passionately kisses him as the scene fades to black.
Furthermore, if Tali survived the Suicide Mission, she informs Shepard that although she is "running a fever," has a "nasty cough" and her sinuses "are filled with something she can't even describe," "it was totally worth it."
