So I just finished ME1 & ME2 on PC so that I can have a PC save to bring into ME3. With ME1 & ME2 I knew what to expect in terms of content because I played both games on the 360. With ME3 though I'm jumping into it without any knowledge of the story.

What I want to know is the order in which I should play the DLC. I'm guessing like in ME2 you can play the DLC as soon as it becomes available in the Galaxy Map, but I want to know the order I should play in regards to the main storyline that makes the most cannonical sense.

From what I've seen on this and other forums, the general consensus is this (I'm using IGN's ME3 ToC guide as a non-spoiler story layout):

• Prologue
• Priority: Mars
• Priority: The Citadel 1
• Priority: Palaven
• From Ashes DLC
• EDI is Offline
• Priority: Sur'Kesh
• Priority: Tuchanka
• Priority: The Citadel 2
• Omega DLC
• Priority: Geth Dreadnought
• Priority: Rannoch
• Priority: Thessia
• Leviathan DLC
• Priority: Horizon
• Priority: Cerberus Headquarters
• Citadel DLC
• Priority: Earth 1
• Priority: Earth 2

I read a lot of people saying to play From Ashes after Paleven and Leviathan after Thessia. I also read to do Omega after "the Citadel coup," which I'm guessing is Priority: Citadel 2. I'm also guessing that Priority Earth 1 & 2 is the "point of no return," which is when I should do Citadel.

Is this a good order to approach the story & the DLC?

Also, would you recommend any of the single player weapon DLC? I know there just shameless cash grabs, but I enjoyed the DLC weapons in ME2.

Hmm, I thought Cerberus HQ was the point of no return.

The weapons in the vanilla game are fine, though I haven't tried any DLC weapons so I dunno if they're fancy enough to be worth picking up. Although, apparently there's a pistol in the Citadel DLC that's stronger than everything else? I dunno. Besides all that, everything looks solid.

Enjoy your annoyingly superior ME3 experience!

Cerberus is the point of no return. Besides that, that seems like a good way to do it. Make sure you bring a certain character on the Thessia mission with you. It adds some good dialog.

I can see the logic in all of these choices. If I were forced to make a recommendation, though, I'd probably do Omega very early so that it doesn't rob you of any momentum (I really didn't like that DLC), maybe right after I've finished getting Aria's mercs, if story continuity is what you're interested in. I'm also not sure that the Citadel DLC makes the most sense during a legit playthrough. It feels very out of place in the main story and is basically a massive chunk of fan-service. It might be less jarring to play after you've finished the game, as I'm sure most people did, but having only tried it one way, I can't say for sure.

Re: weapon DLC, I'd say you can probably skip it. With all the story DLC, you'll be swimming in more overpowered weapons than you know what to do with, and the stock set provides plenty of variety on its own.

Citadel is best after Horizon if you want all the interactions. Cerberus HQ is point of no return.

Also, I'd put Leviathan and Omega right before Thessia, personally. Thessia is when the pace of the game kicks up a notch, and makes the main quest line feel even more urgent. Outside of Citadel, it's best to have everything cleared up before you start that.

Your placement of From Ashes is totally fine.

Citadel is a weird one. It is odd to take in during the main story and in my opinion works better as a post-game coda. Then again it unlocks new areas on the Citadel, so saving it for the very end means you won't get to spend much extra time there once the mission is over and more pressing issues come up. Personally I'd do it sooner rather than later once it appears on the map, and only after completing the side quests for any old squad members that pop up along the way.

How does one get all of the DLC for the PC version of the Mass Effect games? Does each title come with all of it's DLC automatically because whenever there's a sale for the series from Steam or Green Man, I can't tell how or where I can get all of the it.

That's a great point. Like @quarters pointed out, Thessia sort of gets you in gear for serious business. Playing Citadel just before the ending would probably throw that all off with its goofiness and fan service.

I'd skip it and do it after you beat the main game. From everything I've heard it's a nice way to send off the series (or at least the trilogy).

@bonorbitz: The DLCs for the ME games are weirdly placed. Before Valve put up their new rule about selling games on Steam, you would buy the base game on steam, but the DLCs were all on EAs site. Now with Origin its easier, but you still have to go through Origin for the DLCs. You can also go to bioware social where your EA account works as the unifying component and it will have all the DLCs listed for direct download. To buy them though you still need Origin right now.

I would say you have a pretty good list of sequence for the DLCs in terms of story. I would put Citadel above Cerberus HQ, cuz that the point of no return, I think. Omega after Citadel 2 makes sense cuz you would be wanting to hit back. Leviathan after Thessia also makes kinda sense, considering how Thessia ends.

I have heard some people mention splitting the Citadel DLC into two different parts. Do the beginning after Rannoch. You have all the crew necessary for that from then on. Then once youre done with Thessia and Leviathan do the second half of Citadel. Or just do all of Citadel after Rannoch. You, potentially, come out of Rannoch on a high note, which can lead into Citadel and its balls out crazyness.

As for the SP Weapons DLC, theres only 2 this time around, and as someone who has bought every single piece of DLC for the game (what...I really fucking like Mass effect), I would say just getting the FireFight pack would be enough, the Cerberus Harrier that comes with that pack is probably the best weapon in the game, ever. You also get the Lancer just from playing the Citadel DLC, which is also a pretty good gun.

Also, play the Multiplayer. If you need any help go to the subreddit for the multiplayer, its pretty helpful.

In terms of gameplay gains (weapons and such), you'd want to Citadel fairly early, but from a story standpoint, it is best served as a post game, stand alone experience. The tone is so weird and inconsistent with the rest of the game that it will feel like out of place in the middle of your first playthrough.

If your primary goal is to experience the story in the best way possible, I would definitely recommend holding off on Citadel until after the end of the game (by loading an older save once you finish) , but your placement of the other DLC seems ideal.

@roughneck117 said:

Thanks for the info! I didn't know this Bioware Social existed and that you can buy all of the DLCs there. Next time there's a fire sale on the trilogy, I'll be picking it up. I already have it for 360, but it'll be a good reason to go back and experience the saga as a whole.

@bonorbitz: But like he said, it's pretty pointless to get it from Bioware Social as you have to go through Origin either way. You can find the DLC in Origin by right-clicking the game in your "MY GAMES" tab, and then click "Show Game Details" and all of the DLC should be on the bottom of the page that is shown. Prices are shown in Bioware Points - which is as dumb as Microsoft Points - but you can buy those in the Origin checkout process.

And no, I would not pick up the Singleplayer guns, unless you've found a gun in multiplayer you really like and want to use (Cerberus Harrier comes to mind). But no.

Man, that citadel dlc was fucking awesome!