Mass Effect Citadel Snap Inspection Assignment Guide: Choices & Outcomes
One of the early “snap” style checks in Mass Effect’s Citadel hub is the Snap Inspection Assignment, a short but consequential stop that tests your Persuasion and how you handle a very prickly officer. This guide section breaks down what you need to do to clear it smoothly, what choices matter for Paragon/Renegade progress, and what you should expect during the inspection itself.
NOTICE
This Assignment doesn’t last forever. It becomes unavailable after you’ve completed all four Mission Worlds, including the Virmire Mission, so make sure you do it before you push past that point in the story.
- Assignment Stats
- Travel to Widow
- Meet Mikhailovich
Assignment Stats
Essential Stats
- Persuasion Points: 9 Charm / 9 Intimidate
- Minimum Decryption: N/A
- Minimum Electronics: N/A
Recommended Loadout
- Unique Dialogue:
- Kaidan or Ashley can trigger a distinctive line when you start the Assignment. If both are in your party, Kaidan’s version takes priority over Ashley’s.
- Kaidan or Ashley have unique dialogue when opening the Assignment, and if you bring both, Kaidan will override Ashley.
Travel to Widow
- Pre-requisite: Finish either Therum, Feros, or Noveria
- Location: Serpent Nebula – Widow – The Citadel – Docking Bay 422
As the Assignment’s availability suggests, you can only start it after at least one Mission World is completed—meaning Therum, Feros, or Noveria. However, once you’ve cleared all four Mission Worlds, the window closes, so don’t wait until you’re too far into the main arc.
“Citadel: Snap Inspection” takes place on the Citadel, the galactic hub inside the Serpent Nebula. The setting is the western Milky Way’s lone cluster, and it’s also tied to the mission Citadel: Expose Saren. In this area, the Citadel only covers the single system called Widow, and there are zero Discoveries there to track or collect.
Meet Mikhailovich
Because this Assignment is tied to Docking Bay 422, it’s the first thing you’ll run into when you return to the Citadel after finishing a Mission World and stepping off the Normandy. The moment you exit the docking tunnel from the boarding walkway, you’ll find a Rear Admiral blocking your route. There’s no bypass option here—you must complete this Assignment.
Mikhailovich is unimpressed for a couple of reasons. He’s upset that the Normandy is away chasing Saren, even though the ship was originally expected to fall under his command after the Eden Prime shakedown. More personally, he dislikes the Normandy itself and frames the inspection as a way to satisfy his own ego. Your job is to defend the ship’s design, its cost, and the crew you’ve brought along against his criticism.
If you’re playing Renegade and you don’t care about earning the experience reward from the inspection, you can choose “I don’t think so”, then follow up with either “I’m afraid so” or “Damn right I did.” In that case, Mikhailovich will be denied access to the Normandy. While you won’t gain XP for completing the inspection normally, you will still receive +2 Renegade Points—the same amount you’d get by finishing the Assignment through the Intimidate route using all available intimidation options.
If you allow Mikhailovich onto the Normandy, you’ll receive the baseline XP for reaching the correct ending of the Assignment. After that, your morality progress depends on how you handle his objections during the inspection. He delivers especially sharp criticism about the CIC’s design compared to the bow, the stealth systems associated with the Tantalus Drive Core, and the idea that non-humans represent a security concern.
To earn any Morality Points, you must clear the final Persuasion Check at the end of the inspection sequence. Interestingly, it’s only that fourth check that matters for Morality Points: you can disregard the first three, pass only the last one, and still walk away with the Morality reward.
At the end, the decision is straightforward:
- If you have 9 Charm, you can select “We need to build bridges” to argue that the multi-racial construction and crew help improve the Alliance’s public image, granting +2 Paragon Points.
- If you have 9 Intimidate, you can choose “We need to kick ass” to claim the Normandy proves humanity can outthink other races, granting +2 Renegade Points.
Two last notes to keep in mind for this Assignment: first, if you successfully complete all four Persuasion Checks using Charm, Intimidate, or a blend of both, you’ll receive 1.6x more XP at the end. Second, Mikhailovich’s final remarks after the fourth Persuasion Check reflect how many of those checks you passed. Despite that, there are no story consequences for failing to impress him—he even suggests he doesn’t expect anyone to actually act on his complaints.
Want more help for Mass Effect? The guide section points you toward additional pages covering Legendary Edition changes, general how-to guidance, key choices and outcomes, romance options, walkthrough coverage, and side quests.
- Legendary Edition Changes
- How-To Guides
- Key Choices and Consequences
- Romance Options
- Walkthrough
- Side Quests
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