Mass Effect 3 planet scanning builds up your war assets and increases your Total Military Strength for the final confrontation against the Reapers. Finding war assets, artifacts, intel, credits, fuel locations and the rest, ultimately affects which Mass Effect 3 endings you can get. So it's worth taking the time track down these essential items in Mass Effect Legendary Edition. However, because you're constantly being watched by the Reapers as you perform Mass Effect 3 planet scans, knowing where to look will help keep Reaper alertness down while you gather the resources you need to take them on.
If you scan planets too wildly, the Reapers eventually reach full alertness and chase you down, meaning you'll have to leave the system immediately. The Reapers might look slow at first but they pick up speed fast and will catch you if you don't high tail it out of there. Plus, once the Reapers are alert in a system, you’ll have to go somewhere and complete another mission before it will be safe to return. So use our Mass Effect 3 planet scanning guide to know where to look and you you can get in and out with (probably) no trouble.
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As you’ll likely realize, not all clusters can be accessed in Mass Effect 3 planet scanning as soon as the game begins. New clusters open up as the story progresses or side missions are completed, while others are not available until a specific quest, such as an N7 assignment, is given to you by Traynor. If a listed cluster isn't available to you, then make some more progress through the campaign then take another look.
Assets in this guide are listed as they appear in the images from left to right. Locations with no planet at the center signify ship wreckages, which grant varying amounts of fuel upon investigation. Clusters are listed in alphabetical order, with the number of resources they contain in brackets. If a cluster isn't featured in the list, then there are no useful items to be found there.
- Page 1:
- Aethon Cluster (9)
- Apien Crest (5)
- Arcturus Stream (3)
- Argos Rho (6)
- Athena Nebula (9)
- Attican Beta (4)
- Page 2:
- Caleston Rift (3)
- Crescent Nebula (4)
- Exodus Cluster (7)
- Gemini Sigma (4)
- Hades Gamma (9)
- Hades Nexus (7)
- Page 3:
- Hourglass Nebula (7)
- Ismar Frontier (1)
- Kite's Nest (9)
- Krogan DMZ (3)
- Minos Wasteland (2)
- Nimbus Cluster (6)
- Nubian Expanse (6)
- Page 4:
- Pylos Nebula (5)
- The Shrike Abyssal (8)
- Sigurd's Cradle (6)
- Silean Nebula (11)
- Valhallan Threshold (6)
Aethon Cluster
Aru: Book of Plenix artifact on Irune, 200 fuel, Volus Fabrication Units war asset on Cherk Sab
Nura: Volus Intelligence Archives intel on Oma Ker, 250 fuel
Esori: Volus Dreadnought Kwunu war asset on Solu Paolis, 300 fuel
Satu Arrd: Volus Engineering Team war asset on Nalisin, 200 fuel
Apien Crest
Castellus: Banner of the 1st Regiment artifact on Digeris, 350 fuel
Gemmae: 750 fuel, Turian 79th Flotilla war asset on Pheiros, 800 fuel
Arcturus Stream
Arcturus: 350 fuel, Intel from Battle of Arcturus on Arcturus Station
Euler: 100 fuel
Argos Rho
Hydra: Haptic Optics Array war asset on Canrum, 270 fuel
Phoenix: Fossilized Kakliosaur on Intai’sei, 450 fuel, Turian Spec Ops Team war asset on Pinnacle Station
Gorgon: Advanced Power Relays war asset on Camaron
Athena Nebula
Parnitha: Asari Cruiser Cybaen war asset on Tevura
Vernio: Hesperia Period Statue artifact on Polissa, 400 fuel
Tomaros: 200 fuel, Asari Cruiser Nefrane war asset on Pronoia
Orisoni: Asari Research Ships war asset on Egalic, 350 fuel
Ialessa: Asari Engineers war asset on Trikalon, 500 fuel
Attican Beta
Hercules: Interferometric Array war asset on Eletania, 370 fuel
Theseus: ExoGeni Scientists war asset on Feros, 240 fuel
Jump to Section:
- Page 1:
- Aethon Cluster (9)
- Apien Crest (5)
- Arcturus Stream (3)
- Argos Rho (6)
- Athena Nebula (9)
- Attican Beta (4)
- Page 2:
- Caleston Rift (3)
- Crescent Nebula (4)
- Exodus Cluster (7)
- Gemini Sigma (4)
- Hades Gamma (9)
- Hades Nexus (7)
- Page 3:
- Hourglass Nebula (7)
- Ismar Frontier (1)
- Kite's Nest (9)
- Krogan DMZ (3)
- Minos Wasteland (2)
- Nimbus Cluster (6)
- Nubian Expanse (6)
- Page 4:
- Pylos Nebula (5)
- The Shrike Abyssal (8)
- Sigurd's Cradle (6)
- Silean Nebula (11)
- Valhallan Threshold (6)