Race Against Time: Ilos

Head south and up a ramp into the Plaza. You'll be swarmed by Geth Troopers and Shock Troopers right away. Your first priority is to take them out from a distance if you can, because two Geth Armatures are lurking here and they'll activate when you get close. Clear out all the regular troopers first before you worry about the big guys.

Once the Troopers are dealt with, it's time to face the Armatures. Cover can be a bit tricky since the permanent blocks are too close or at bad angles. You might find it easier to just strafe around them. Abilities like Overload, Sabotage, and Lift can really help here. Seriously, do whatever you can to avoid their main cannon blasts – one hit can be fatal on higher difficulties.

After all the geth are down, check near a tunnel (it's an exit, not an entrance) for a Hardened Crate. From here, you can head west down some ramps to reach the Trench, which mostly has loot and more enemies. If you go south, the path splits. Continuing south leads to another ramp into the far end of the Trench. Going west then south will take you towards the Courtyard.

The Trench is technically optional, but hey, more loot and XP, right? You'll probably have to fight a stray Geth Trooper or two on the ramp down from the Plaza. At the northwestern part of the Trench (if you came from the west exit of the Plaza), you'll find some Geth Sappers in a big chamber. Snipe them from afar, then look for a Locked Crate in a corner (it's an Easy lock).

Head east into the area actually marked 'Trench' on the map. Here you'll find an Armature Control terminal (Hard hack). It's not super useful if you already took out the Armatures above, but it's good XP anyway. Keep going southeast to find another ramp that takes you back up to the southern end of the Plaza. From there, head north and west to reach the fork that leads to the Courtyard.

After the Trench, take the western path towards the Courtyard. Grab a Crate you'll find along the way. Keep going south, then east until the path forks again. If you go south, you can take a ramp up to a ledge overlooking the Courtyard. Up here, you'll find lots of Geth Troopers and some Geth Destroyers. This is a great spot because the enemies can't easily reach you, which really neutralizes the Destroyers. You can always duck back down the ramp if you need to heal, making it perfect for sniping.

Alternatively, you can go west to reach the Courtyard directly, but you'll miss out on that nice vantage point. Once you've dealt with the geth, head into the Courtyard and take out two more Geth Shock Troopers on a balcony to the east. Then, loot a Secure Crate (Average lock).

You'll notice your radar is acting up, which usually means snipers or Sappers. In this case, it's Sappers. Head down the trench on the eastern side of the Courtyard (under the balcony where you just fought those Shock Troopers). When you surface, position yourself so the Geth Stalkers in the clearing beyond can only attack from a few angles, and even then, they'll expose themselves to your fire. Take out the Sappers.

Now, look for an elevator to the west – ignore it for now. Backtrack to the trench under the balcony and find a door to the east. Go through it, ride the elevator up to the balcony, loot another Secure Crate (Average lock). Head back down, and this time take the elevator behind the Sappers.

When the elevator stops, head north down a tunnel. Get ready for a fight when you reach the Armature Bay – it's a wide-open area crawling with geth. You'll face some tough enemies here, but surprisingly, no Geth Armatures. Instead, you're up against a Geth Prime, a Geth Destroyer, and Geth Shock Troopers. They're trouble enough!

The deactivated Geth Armatures in this area are actually opportunities. You can reactivate them using the Geth Repair Stations (Hard hack). The easiest one to access is just to the east as you enter the bay; there's a crate nearby that provides good cover, letting you get to it fairly easily. Activating even one Armature makes this fight much simpler, and activating more helps even further. Using your Immunity ability can also make reaching the consoles safer.

Deal with the remaining geth however you see fit. Then, head to the northern end of the Armature Bay where you'll find ramps leading up to the Security Station.