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Mail Slot achievement in Mass Effect 3

Mail Slot

Kill 10 guardians with headshots from the front while their shields are raised.

Mail Slot0
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How to unlock the Mail Slot achievement

  • HelmarocHelmaroc
    06 Mar 2012 06 Mar 2012 07 Mar 2012
    On the second mission, the one that takes place on Mars, you'll eventually run into guys holding big shields, called Guardians. If you look closely, you'll see a small slot in their shields that they use to look through. You must kill 10 Guardians by shooting through this slot. It is quite easy to farm this achievement. When you first run into them, there will be two of them. If you are a class that can use a sniper rifle, I advise using this as it usually kills them in one shot. Otherwise, use the most accurate weapon your class can wield to shoot through this slot. Once you've killed both of them and made sure the little progress bar shows up saying you did indeed kill them through the slot, either move forward a little and die and choose to resume, or reload the autosave manually. Either way, the autosave takes place right before where you killed the two Guardians. Keep repeating this until you've killed them 10 times and you will get the achievement.

    Guide not helping? View 6 more guides for this achievement.

    Showing all 3 comments. Leave a comment.
    DJ 0311You should add that this is possible in multiplayer as well that is where I got it.
    Posted by DJ 0311 On 07 Mar 12 at 04:36
    Hirsute DaveAny weapon with a scope upgrade can pull this off pretty easily too - got 7 of my 10 using a Liberator assault rifle. If you haven't got it by the end of Mars (like I hadn't) any N7 mission will usually feature a handful of these guys.
    Posted by Hirsute Dave On 09 Mar 12 at 15:50
    JLunenThere are also several shield guys in the Omega DLC. At least six I think.
    Posted by JLunen On 28 Jan 22 at 04:17
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  • Scheme in RhymeScheme in Rhyme
    26 Sep 2012 07 Mar 2012 16 Mar 2012
    Guardians are enemies that Cerberus will throw at you in both single- and multiplayer. They are identified by the large shields they will hold in front of them to guard themselves from damage... in theory.

    You will need to land ten fatal headshots on Guardians through the 'mail slot' (the little slit toward the top of their shields that they use to see through), while the Guardians have their shields lowered and are (most likely) advancing toward you. It is possible to knock them off-balance, so if you see them stagger a bit and wave their shield wildly your headshot will not count. These can be accomplished in singleplayer, multiplayer, or any combination of the two.

    Only Sniper Rifles are really effective at this. Even powerful single-shot weapons the Mattock aren't going to cut it unless they're heavily upgraded and modified, but at that point in the game you'll probably have the achievement already anyway. I recommend using the Valiant since its three-shot clips allow you to get more than one shot in if you're using an ability like Adrenaline Burst. Additionally, for anyone who can lower the difficulty (aka, not an Insanity run) to Casual will find a ridiculous aim assist will allow you to perform headshots with methodical frequency. Feel free to make use of it.

    It is also of note that a frontal headshot through the slit isn't always necessary. Not that it's a difficult achievement to get anyway, but at least two of my kills were headshots achieved through the side, when the Guardians were pursuing my squadmates. Xaero Hour has also confirmed that this is possible to gain progress for with a side-shot headshot. This may help you if you're playing on a higher difficulty and don't want to face them head-on yourself, although the exact angle or specifications that make it no longer count toward this are still unknown.
    Showing both comments.
    Xaero HourI can verify that you can get credit for this by getting a side/back shot in. I was in a multiplayer match and one of them faced away from me; when I killed him with a headshot, the progress indicator popped.
    Posted by Xaero Hour On 16 Mar 12 at 02:58
    Scheme in RhymeI appreciate that; edited the solution and credited you accordingly.
    Posted by Scheme in Rhyme On 16 Mar 12 at 03:03
  • originalhksoriginalhks
    09 Mar 2012 08 Mar 2012
    This achievement can be obtained by playing multiplayer.

    Either start up a match or do a quick match with Cerberus as the enemies and it will spawn guardians after a few rounds. Choose an infiltrator class and equip a sniper rifle.

    When a guardian is walking towards you, cloak and aim around the corner. In most cases the guardian will still be walking towards you and you can take your time lining up your shot.
    Showing both comments.
    originalhksMantis works best for this achievement but Carnifax hand gun is also an acceptable choice (although it will take a couple shots as opposed to 1).
    Posted by originalhks On 27 Mar 12 at 15:32
    realCreenciaM-99 Saber is excellent.
    Posted by realCreencia On 20 Jul 12 at 14:35
  • swaggersswaggers
    07 Mar 2012 08 Mar 2012
    In the second mission, MARS: PROTHEAN ARCHIVES you will get into a battle with 2 Guardians down a long hall. This is immediately after the small room with the Weapons Bench. Just sniper these 2 through the small slot in the shield and then reload and do it again. Repeat until 10 are killed.
  • roxanaversteegroxanaversteeg
    22 Mar 2014 22 Mar 2014
    you can also get it in the dlc Citadel in the combat simulator

    Lift 100 enemies off the ground with powers.
    Overload the shields of 100 enemies.
    Kill 100 enemies with melee attacks.
    Perform any combination of 50 biotic combos or tech bursts
    Kill 10 guardians with headshots from the front while their shields are raised
    Set 100 enemies on fire with powers

    i did 3 already using the combat simulator and they counted.

    so if yo are missing some of like me dident got the 10 headshort in the rest of the game you can get them there also.

    yust put it on easy only you so your teammates dont get the kill and keep playing the level till you get the achievements you want
  • Big Dibs theDogBig Dibs theDog
    18 Mar 2012 09 Oct 2012 11 Oct 2012
    "Mail-slotting" is killing the Guardians (the chaps with the shields) by
    shooting them through the viewing slot in the shield....hence; Mail Slot.

    A straight forward way of doing this would be :
    If you haven't already - Download the From Ashes DLC

    Go to the Priority:Eden Prime Mission

    ***no spoilers here***

    just after you find the 2nd video/cut-scene info
    (unmissable)

    A
    STAY in that room
    B
    Position your squad members so that they don't interfere,
    (remaining in the room with you is fine).
    C
    two Guardians will very slowly creep towards you as part of the first wave...
    D
    mail slot them and then allow your self to be killed
    E
    save puts you right at A above
    F
    repeat until the Achievement pops
  • Darth BarthusDarth Barthus
    28 Jun 2014 27 Jun 2014
    The particle rifle you get in the from ashes dlc works well for this. Focus on the slot and hold it till he dies. It counts most of the time.
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