The Charlatans Charlatan

Follow this Mass Effect: Andromeda walkthrough to track down a Charlatan impersonating Collective operatives on Kadara, identify suspects, and make your choice.

Alright, so you've just wrapped up that "The Collective Base" quest, right? As you're talking to Crux to finish up, she'll mention something fishy: someone's been posing as the Charlatan and causing trouble for other Collective members. It's a classic inside job scenario, but sometimes an outsider can sniff out a guilty party way better, especially with a fancy AI scanner. Crux is going to ask for your help investigating, and you'll get two initial leads: the footprints point to either an Asari or a human, and whoever it is has a lot of sulfur on their clothes from the last crime scene. Honestly, water's so scarce and nasty on Kadara, nobody's really washing their clothes, so that sulfur's gonna stick around.

Now, you've got five targets to scan around the Collective base. First up, there's a Salarian on the main floor – nope, wrong species. Then, check the walkway outside – no sulfur, so they're out too. East of the base, you'll find an Angara growing poisonous mushrooms, but again, wrong footprints. Three down, two to go!

Head below the base, and you'll find Lynx, the Asari who greeted you earlier. She's got the right kind of feet and a good amount of sulfur on her clothes. Your final suspect is a human female named Dorado, hanging out near the Adhi kennels northwest of the base. She's got the right diagnostic traits too, and she's acting super nervous, which is always a red flag.

Time to have a chat with your suspects. Dorado is pretty rude, which, let's be honest, makes her look guilty. When you get to the second dialogue choice, you'll see two options: "You're completely loyal, huh?" and "Like the sulfur springs." Remember, you're supposed to be discreet. Going with "You're completely loyal, huh?" will make Ryder sound like a total goofball, questioning her loyalty and spooking her. The better choice here is to go with "Like the sulfur springs." It's less accusatory and keeps your low profile intact.

After you've talked to Dorado and SAM gives you the rundown, you still need to talk to Lynx. Head back to her, and again, you'll get a crucial second dialogue choice. If you choose "Explain the sulfur," she'll rightly get offended by your nosy questions. But if you pick "Tough break," she'll mention she was working on the water filters, which is a solid alibi for why she smells like sulfur.

So, after chatting with both Dorado and Lynx (and hopefully keeping things low-key with both), it's time to report back to Crux and point the finger at Dorado. If you chose "Like the sulfur springs." with Dorado, she'll be apprehended without any fuss. However, if you went with "You're completely loyal, huh?" you'll have alerted Dorado, and she'll bolt after you leave. To fix that mistake, Ryder will offer to hunt her down. This means you'll have to backtrack into the caverns, where Dorado will ambush you near where you fought that first Rylkor. You'll have to take her down, and after a quick comm chat with Crux, you'll have completed your mission. Either way, once Dorado is dealt with, you'll earn 29 AVP, +2% Kadara viability, and 530 XP.