Zhu's Hope is not a minor sub-plot in Mass Effect: Legendary Edition. What happens to the colony in the first entry into the series has lasting ramifications in the next two sequels. They'll help provide vital resources against the reapers and will provide an extra mission or two further down the road. Of course, that's only if Zhu's Hope is made viable during the initial encounter.
It's easy to see why most players miss this; the entire colony was a sham to begin with. ExoGeni only pretended to make the area sustainable so that civilians would move in and become a living experiment for the Thorian. But Shepard can make good on the promise that was never intended to be fulfilled. In fact, while saving the lives of the people who live in Zhu' Hope is also important, it's the infrastructure itself that does the most good in the long run.
Pick Up All Of The Missions
- Speak to Fai Dan
- Kill The Geth
- Speak To Fai Dan
- Speak To Macha Doyle
- Speak To May O'Connell
- Speak To Davin Reynolds
All four of these side quests can easily be missed. During the first interaction with Fai Dan, the conversation will be interrupted by geth. Fai Dan and the other quest givers are unavailable for interaction until they are dealt with.
Kill the geth and return to Fai Dan. Do not get on the elevator until after finishing these four missions! This is the single most common reason players miss out on saving the colony. The elevator furthers the objective and should only be used after fixing the four problems.
Return back to Fai Dan and ask him about "Geth in tunnels," "Water shortage," "Power," and "Food shortage." He'll direct Shepard to three other colonists. Speak with all of them, then head past the elevator.
Knocking Out The Four Tasks In One Sweep
- Destroy the geth transmitter
- Kill the alpha varren
- Get the fuel cells
- Restore the water flow
Don't bother returning back after each step is accomplished, this just makes for a ton of back-and-forth. Plus, the side quest objectives are so close together that they can all be seen on the same Feros: Tunnels map.
The pipes for the water can be seen on the right side when heading down the tunnel. After activating two in one tunnel, Shepard will briefly exit the tunnel, then the third in on the right side in the very next tunnel.
The alpha varren and the fuel cells are both in a room on the left side represented by a "transition" symbol on the map, though it's actually just an attached room with a short ramp. The alpha varren stands no chance against Shepard's crew and the fuel cells are in a badly damaged vehicle. Interacting with it will put them in the inventory.
Directly opposite this room on the east side is the geth transmitter. There's no mini-game here, shoot the transmitter until it breaks.
Return to Fai Dan, Macha Doyle, May O'Connell, and Davin Reynolds to let them know the good news. Congratulations on saving the future of Zhu's Hope!