Morinth is a character from Mass Effect 2 (2010), part of BioWare’s sci-fi RPG and third-person shooter series. She is an asari (specifically an Ardat-Yakshi) and is romanceable by both male and female Shepard under specific conditions, which qualifies her as a bisexual option in the series’ romantic schema. Her presence in Mass Effect 3 is more limited and contingent on earlier choices.
Morinth’s backstory is deeply intertwined with her mother, Samara, a Justicar. Born in the 1700s (in Mass Effect lore), she was discovered to be an Ardat-Yakshi, a rare genetic condition in asari that causes her mating partners to die from neurological overload during the merging (or “melding”) process. Faced with exile or execution, Morinth chose to flee rather than submit. Over the centuries she has become increasingly powerful, using her biotic, mental, and seduction abilities to manipulate and survive. Samara spends long years hunting her, driven by a sense of guilt, duty, and maternal responsibility.
Within Mass Effect 2, Morinth appears in Samara’s loyalty mission. Shepard helps Samara track her daughter to the Omega Afterlife club, where Morinth lures Shepard into a trap of seduction. The player must convincingly play into her seduction to draw Morinth out, after which Samara confronts her. Depending on Shepard’s decisions, Morinth can be spared and replace Samara in the squad (disguised as her) or be killed. However, the romance with Morinth is lethal; if pursued, it ends in Shepard’s death. Later in Mass Effect 3, if Morinth survived, she may reappear as a banshee-like indoctrinated creature, though her role is minimal.
The romance and seduction option with Morinth is unique and memorable precisely because of its danger. Unlike most romance arcs, it comes with high stakes: choosing to trust and “mate” with her leads to Shepard’s demise. Many players remember the shock of that scene; it flips the usual romantic fantasy into a trap. Morinth is not a “safe love interest”; she is seductive, destructive, and unpredictable. That narrative gamble gives her a cult status among fans. Even though she is not a long-term squadmate or a fully fleshed-out romance option in later games, she remains one of the most unforgettable and provocative characters in the Mass Effect romance canon.