In the Mass Effect universe, professional mercenaries can always find work across the violent galaxy. Three particular gangs have risen to the top of their field: the Blue Suns, the Krogan-based Blood Pack, and the tech-oriented Eclipse mercenary gang.

Commander Shepard faced all three in battle, and the Eclipse gang was the trickest to fight of them all. These soldiers have more than assault rifles; they also bring advanced tech abilities, combat drones and saboteurs to the job, proving that brawn alone doesn't win a battle.

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The Eclipse Gang: Overview

eclipse mercenaries mass effect

The Eclipse mercenary gang was founded by an Asari commando named Jona Sederis. To this day, this gang is made up primarily of Asari, but it also features many Salarians (who love tech) as well as human soldiers and biotics. These soldiers lack the brute strength and military orientation of the Blue Suns and the Blood Pack, but they have compensated in all kinds of ways. The Eclipse are the "battle mage" type in the Mass Effect universe, augmenting their admittedly limited firepower with formidable biotics, usually at the hands of Asari commandos (the best biotics around). This allows Eclipse troopers to throw their enemies off ledges or against the wall, or lift them into the air and expose them to Eclipse gunners.

In addition, the Eclipse members use advanced tech abilities, such as combat drones (disposable fire-support units) and sabotage abilities to shut down enemy weapons or shields. If that weren't enough, the Eclipse also makes generous use of combat mechs, usually FENRIS, LOKI and YMIR models. On defense,  Eclipse troopers protect themselves with kinetic barriers and shields on top of regular combat armor. They're not easy to take down.

Heavy-duty combat jobs are best left to the Blue Suns and the Blood Pack; meanwhile, Eclipse soldiers are typically hired for more covert operations, such as smuggling illegal drugs, weapons, cargo and even people to and from different planets and spaceports. Eclipse gangsters are expert smugglers, and they alone control 20% of the illicit drug trade on Omega, which is saying a lot. Red Sand is a common good that Eclipse gangsters transport, as Commander Shepard found out during the mission to recruit Samara, the justicar. Tainted element zero, or eezo, is another common item the Eclipse gang smuggles across the stars. Eclipse soldiers may also be hired to infiltrate enemy compounds to assassinate key leaders or sabotage vital equipment or steal vital information, a job too delicate for Blood Pack Krogan troopers.

The Eclipse gang is often seen operating on Ilium, an Asari-dominated world, and the Asari Eclipse commandos there have a unique ritual. They demand that applicants perform a verified murder before receiving a uniform and membership, and a young Asari shot and killed a Volus merchant named Dakni Kur. Dakni's partner, Pitne For, had sold faulty Red Sand to the Eclipse and failed to explain himself, so they were after his blood. Pitne survived, however, because Commander Shepard wiped out the Eclipse soldiers first.

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Noted Eclipse Members & Jobs

eclipse troopers

Commander Shepard ran into the Eclipse gang a few times during notable missions and even met (and fought) some key members of this group. During the Reaper invasion, after the Reapers had taken Earth, Shepard approached Bailey to arrange for the release of Jona Sederis herself, despite that Asari's violent and unhinged ways. Bailey will agree to release her, but he's certain that Shepard is playing with fire. Meanwhile, Shepard clashed with the Eclipse on Ilium while recruiting Samara since the Eclipse had smugged Morinth off the planet, and Shepard needed that intel for Samara's sake.

During that battle, Shepard experienced the power of Red Sand in person and fought Captain Wasea, a  brutal biotic prodigy among the Eclipse. On that same planet, Shepard fought the Eclipse again, since they had been hired by Henry Lawson to find Oriana Lawson and capture her, and Shepard and Miranda made sure that didn't happen. During the mission's climax, Shepard met another high-ranking Asari leader of the Eclipse, named Captain Enyala. She was thickly armored and had a powerful shotgun.

Elsewhere, on Beckenstein, the cruel mob boss Donovan Hock had hired the Eclipse to guard his entire estate during a house party, and Shepard and Kasumi Goto, the master thief, had to fight them to retrieve Keiji Okuda's graybox. During this mission, Shepard may learn the identity of Chief Roe, who was in charge of the Eclipse troops on the planet. It's possible for Shepard and Kasumi to digitally mimic Roe's voice and use it to manipulate the Eclipse soldiers and gain entry to Donovan Hock's bedroom (to find DNA samples).

Finally, Commander Shepard did battle with the Eclipse on Omega during the mission to rescue Archangel/Garrus Vakarian, and Shepard fought and defeated Omega's Eclipse leader, a Salarian named Jaroth. Many of the dangerous drugs going in and out of Omega had been shipped under Jaroth's orders, and for that, Garrus needed him dead. At last, Omega's Eclipse gang was in shambles, as were the local Blue Suns and Blood Pack platoons.

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