'Mass Effect: Andromeda' Ark Locations: Asari, Turian and Salarian Ark guides

Mass Effect: Andromeda features several different races of aliens previously seen in the series. There were several "arks" launched to reach Andromeda, carrying the Asari, Turian and Salarian races, and they seem to have gone missing, nowhere to be found. A large part of Mass Effect: Andromeda in general is comprised of looking for the Arks themselves and finding a suitable home for them. From personal experience — and according to the Prima Games guide — here's where you can find each ark. 

Mass Effect: Andromeda Asari Ark location guide

Your first major hunt for the Asari Ark will involve your shipmate Cora. You'll hear from her via email after finishing the mission on Eos called "A Better Beginning," so make sure to check your terminals regularly. In Cora's email, she requests to speak with you, so go find her on the Tempest for a quick chat. You'll get the mission "Cora Harper: Asari Ark." After starting the mission, go back to Eos and find an Asari named Hydartia to open yet another mission. She's hanging out at Prodromos, the outpost you helped raise up on Eos. 

Hydartia has the details on the Asari Ark, the Periphona, which she'll refer to as a ship. It's landed somewhere on Voeld, which you'll be headed to after you leave Eos if you choose to go there first. Go to Voeld and track the Periphona's signal, which you should now be able to track using your journal and waypoints on the map. 

When you reach the origin of the signal, your AI assistant SAM will note that you'll need to head to the northernmost part of the map to further track it. Go to this area, scan what you see there and then go back to the story mission called "A Trail of Hope," as your original mission will have been put on hold. Check for another email from Cora, which will launch "Cora Harper: At Duty's Edge." This is considered Cora's loyalty mission, so you'll definitely want to complete it. 

When you swap to "At Duty's Edge," you'll need to head to the waypoint for this mission, which will take you to the Ark. It's been overrun by kett, so you need to make short work of them. Once you take out all the kett, chat with the rest of the Asari there and you'll be briefed on what happened to the Periphona. This will eventually complete the mission. 

Mass Effect: Andromeda Turian Ark location guide

There won't be whispers about the Turian Ark until you get to the planet Havarl. You'll need to access that after finishing the story mission "A Better Beginning." When you reach Havarl, you can seek out a group of Turians on the planet, which will give you a waypoint to follow. This is the mission "Turian Ark: Not Dead Yet." Head over to where the Turians are and assist them by fighting off the Angara around them. 

Once you've fought off the enemies, you'll be able to speak to the Turian here named Avitus Rix. He's looking for the Turian Ark, so you can agree to help him on his search. Agree to do so and then the mission will be put on hold. You'll have access to the planet Elaaden, but make sure you keep checking your emails, much like with the previous mission with the Asari Ark. 

You'll have to continue playing the game and checking your terminal email periodically, watching for an email from Rix. He'll have additional information and will want to meet with you on Havarl again. When you get there, follow the waypoint to find some Cryo Pods that have been ransacked. This is a dead end. Go back to the Tempest and get back in touch with Rix via email, who will instead suggest another place to look. 

Rix will send you some coordinates to check out, and they'll take you to the Ark itself, which has since been abandoned. Follow the directions on your navpoint until you reach a SAM node, where all is revealed regarding the Turian Ark. We won't spoil the surprise here, but your curiosity should be sated.

Mass Effect: Andromeda Salarian Ark location guide

The Salarian Ark mission is a little different than the previous two; it won't require you to go out and find it or have email exchanges. Instead it's a part of the main story campaign. 

You'll need to be working on the mission "Hunting the Archon," which will be available to you a lot later in the game. When you travel to the Tafeno system and find a kett ship, you'll eventually encounter the Salarian Ark instead. Get onboard the Ark to begin your mission to save the Salarians from the kett, who have kidnapped them for their own nefarious purposes. Once you've completed the quest-line after this revelation, you'll be tasked with freeing the Salarians from the kett ship.

The end of the mission will offer you a choice. You can either save the Salarian pathfinder Raeka or save the Krogans that have been held captured by the Archon. No matter your choice, the Ark will still be saved. You may just run into certain consequences of your choice later, but we'll get to that another time. 

The important thing here is that you've recovered all three arks. Way to go.

More Mass Effect: Andromeda news, updates, tips and tricks

For more on everyone's favorite space opera, check out the rest of what Mic has to offer. Here's an essay on the troubling history of colonialism in Mass Effect, a story about the horrifying harassment campaign carried out against a former BioWare employee, a guide to removing Ryder's helmet, a guide on romancing Keri, a guide to romancing Reyes and a quick explainer on the different types of health in Andromeda.