Mass Effect 2 Reaper IFF Mission

[Sniperexpert]

Hi all,
In Mass Effect 2 when the Illusive Man notifies you of the derelict Reaper where you obtain the Reaper IFF and the next time you access the Normandy SR-2's Galaxy Map do you instantly begin the mission or can you hold off and do as many Loyalty Missions up to that point then go and get the Reaper IFF?

 

[WindKnight]

You don't need to do it immediately, and I'd strongly advise doing any spare loyalty missions or sidequests you have before you do it

 

[Sniperexpert]

You don't need to do it immediately, and I'd strongly advise doing any spare loyalty missions or sidequests you have before you do it

Okay and should Tali's Loyalty Mission be the last one before the Reaper IFF Mission and the only Loyalty Mission you need to do post Reaper IFF is Legion's depending on whether you take and activate him or leave on the Derelict Reaper to be destroyed?

 

[Sniper Team 4]

The Reaper IFF mission is the flag mission. Once you do that, I think you get one more mission before things go to Hell. Or maybe not. The point is, doing that mission sets you up for the end-game mission, and while you can wait, most people would recommend against it, considering what happens if you don't do the mission right away.

As for loyalty missions, taking Tali and Legion on Tali's mission results in some extra dialogue and whatnot, but it's not vital. You can have a few people not loyal to Shep before the final battle, and so long as your team is set up right, they'll still survive. However, if you want max odds of everyone making it, it's recommended that you have everyone loyal before the IFF mission.
Also, if you don't have people loyal to you, don't take them in for the final battle. Their odds of making it out are much lower in the actual fight, where as if you leave them behind to hold back the enemy with everyone else, they should be fine.

 

[Paragon Fury]

Also, the Reaper IFF mission is probably the most painful and frustrating mission in the series, especially on higher difficulties. HAVE FUN!

 

[DeadProxy]

Okay and should Tali's Loyalty Mission be the last one before the Reaper IFF Mission and the only Loyalty Mission you need to do post Reaper IFF is Legion's depending on whether you take and activate him or leave on the Derelict Reaper to be destroyed?

Tali's and Jack's loyalty missions should be the last ones you do, since they need some high Blue/Red stuff to get the best results. Legion's loyalty mission is a little hard to trigger without advance knowledge, but I think if you just fly around, land somewhere and then immediately go back to your ship, you can trigger his loyalty mission without advancing the plot after the IFF mission.

 

[Zhukov]

You don't need to do it immediately, and I'd strongly advise doing any spare loyalty missions or sidequests you have before you do it

Okay and should Tali's Loyalty Mission be the last one before the Reaper IFF Mission and the only Loyalty Mission you need to do post Reaper IFF is Legion's depending on whether you take and activate him or leave on the Derelict Reaper to be destroyed?

Almost.

For optimal results:

Spoiler: No story spoilers in here, but I will say how to get the best outcome, which some would consider a spoiler of sorts.

Once the Reaper IFF mission becomes availble do absolutely everything else you want to do except for Tali's loyalty mission.

Then do the Reaper IFF mission. In which you can recruit Legion.

Then do Tali's loyalty mission. (You can bring Legion for some interesting extra dialogue and an altered scene.)

Then talk to Legion to unlock his loyalty mission and go do it.

Do not land anywhere else apart from those two loyalty missions after doing the Reaper IFF mission.

Then continue which the main story missions which will be the only remaining thing for you to do.

This ensures you don't miss any content while also avoiding some of the negative consequences of doing things otherwise.