X-Wing Alliance
Death Star Run Guide
By James Dziezynski
Bruplex@aol.com or Bruplex@yahoo.com

This guide is copyright 2001 James Dziezynski and may only be used with
written permission of the author. Currently, the only site hosting this
guide is www.gamefaqs.com, but if you'd like to use it simply send an
email request. As always, Megagames.com need not apply. X-Wing is
copyright 1999 LEC Entertainment and Totally Games/Lawrence Holland.
All rights reserved.

Version 1.0 - I think I got all the typos^_^
Version 1.01 -Cleaned up a few typos (DOH!) and fixed a few grammatical
errors.

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OK, so you've played through the previous 49 missions in X-Wing
Alliance and here you are in the Millennium Falcon ready to blow up the
second Death Star. Phase 4 of the Battle of Endor is quite unlike any
other mission you have flown yet, with the exception of the salvage
yard run in the proving grounds.

Chances are you will have to refly this mission many times. I know I
did. So I guess the first tip to remember is: anger management. There
are several glitches in the level and it's not uncommon to suffer a
super cheap death after flying the mission for 15 minutes (yes, that's
real time not game time.) Keep in mind, throwing your controller may
make you feel good for a minute but then your controller will be broken
and you'll be even more fired up. Also, microwaving your X-Wing
Alliance CD may make cool blue sparks shoot out of it (like Emperor
Palpatine!) but you'll be out a cool game and evil will truly win. If
you must nuke a CD, use an AOL free 500 hours disk.

Anyhow, this guide will give my best opinions on getting through the
level. There may be better ways, but this is what works for me and it
can work for you too if you act now!

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START: SOME THINGS TO KNOW
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Before even starting the level, there are a few things you should be
aware of. There is no time limit on how long it takes you to reach the
core so you won't need to rush to get there. You will have to move it
to escape after you have knocked out the core, but we'll worry about
that later.

It may sound basic, but you can and must use your lasers in the tunnels
of the Death Star. If you are a Return of the Jedi fan you might think
your only way to the core is to dodge the pipes like in the film. This
is not the case in the game.

When you first hit the "O" button, that Christmas Ornament looking
thing that pops up is in fact the core. You won't need to worry about
it until you are about 5 clicks away, but it's not a bad idea to keep
it targeted when you reach tunnels that split so you know you are still
on track.

Occasionally, you will see glowing trenches on the floor (or ceiling).
Unlike the training runs, these are simply dead ends so don't take
them!
Finally, remember there is a caravan of ships behind you. If you stop
or go too slow you'll get destroyed by their momentum. Wedge's X-Wing
is invincible, but you'll most likely lose the Y and A-Wings early on.
The TIE FIGHTERS and INTERCEPTORS are also invincible until you reach
the Turbo Laser room so don't bother engaging them until then. On the
plus side, they can't hurt you until you reach that room.

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SECTION ONE: ENTRANCE TO CONTAINER AREA
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As soon as you get into the tunnel, you'll notice your speed is
dangerously fast. Set your lasers and shields to maximum with full
throttle and you'll be at the perfect pace to cruise through the
tunnels. If you are unsure of yourself, you can always knock your
throttle down to 2/3 power and still make decent time.

Once your levels are set, concentrate on knocking out the blue and red
pipes. Pretty early on, Lando (or Ace?) notices the path is blocked and
you must veer left (assuming you haven't rotated your ship.) The route
is obvious once the characters have spoken, so do not go straight. Go
left and get used to the routine of blasting pipes. Remember not to dip
into the glowing pits. They are not alternative routes! They are dead
ends. There is only one way to go at this point.

At about 3 minutes in, you'll hear some dialogue about containers.

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SECTION 2: CONTAINER AREA TO FORK IN THE ROAD
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The container area will open up before you after the characters have
spoken. This section is somewhat unpredictable, but your goal is to go
in between the containers. What I like to do is dip below the first
ring and let the tractor beam lock me automatically. This tactic works
about 90% of the time.

Sometimes your ship will get jammed in the tractor ring. If this
happens, the ships behind you will smack into you. To get out, point
your ship's nose straight down. Eventually your ship will wrestle free
of whatever is stopping is (it may be a container, but you can't see it
from your vantage point.) Your shields will take a beating, but you can
usually get out before exploding and sometimes it even destroys the
pursuing TIES!

Now, assuming you didn't get stuck the tractor beam will line you up
facing the tunnel. Suddenly, you will accelerate to 900 + speed! A good
idea at this point is to gently scrape your ship against the bottom of
the tunnel. This will slow you down and it usually causes minimal
damage to your shields (2%-10%). The best reason to do this is to avoid
smashing into the second set of rings at breakneck speed. A secondary
reason to do this (especially if you got jammed earlier) is to
replenish your shields. Shift and apostrophe will dump all your laser
power into your shields; use it well! A fully charged laser will boost
your shields about 4 %. To orient yourself, have the supply line of
containers float above you. They can cause damage if you fly in the
middle of the tunnel.

When you reach the second set of rings, stay below the containers
shooting by, but don't get to close to the rings. The hit detection is
really close here, perhaps a bit too sensitive. As long as you fly
smoothly and make a conscious effort to dodge the cargo shooting in,
you'll be fine.

After all that madness, you'll be back in the tunnels. There is still
only one way to go, so stay the course. If you've taken a lot of
damage, knock your throttle to 2/3 to give your shields time to
recover. You'll need them soon.

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SECTION 3: FORK IN THE ROAD AND TIGHT TUNNELS
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A few minutes after passing the cargo area, Emon (where did he come
from?) will mention he's locked onto a secondary power source. Maybe
it's Wedge or Ace, it doesn't matter really! This is the cue that the
fork in the road is coming up. You will probably be flying upright so
that a wall of lights will appear on the left side of the tunnel, but
the mayhem of the container area may have flipped your ship. Hit the
"O" button and notice where the spot is on your upper left display. If
it's right of center the Core is to the right. If it's left...you get the
idea.

In general, the core will be the turn to the right. We'll assume it is
for this part of the guide. Before getting to the Core, let's explore
the path to the left. Keep in mind, this left passage is purely
optional and you'll probably want to skip it the first time you are
trying to blow up the Death Star.

To the left are the giant lenses that generate the green beams that
shoot from the Death Star. This is an optional mission, but will bag
you 1000 bonus points if you can pull it off. You'll know you are
heading towards it by the dashes of white light on the ground. You can
also target the laser power source if you like. At the end of the
tunnel is a dead-end with two giant green glass circles. It only takes
one laser shot to knock them out, but beware! If the Death Star decides
to fire while you are in the chamber, you are toast! Even once the
lenses are cracked, the beam may still fire. Break 'em and quickly get
out back the way you came!

Now, back to the right fork. This is the correct way to go if you want
to complete the mission. Get ready for some tight flying! The tubes in
this section are extremely tight and your Falcon barely fits in. Add to
that the annoying sounds of the TIE lasers and this section becomes a
tricky area. Keep in mind the lasers cannot hurt you; the only damage
you'll take will be from scraping the sides of the tunnel. Also note
the cockpit of the Falcon is on the right side of the ship. Keep your
craft tight to the right and try to get the width of the Falcon lined
up with the grooves of the tunnel. The damage dealt here is really odd.
You can slam hard into the walls and only lose 1 % of your shields.
Other times, you'll just nick a wall and your shields will drop 20 % to
30 %. There is no rhyme or reason to this. Just fly as cleanly as
possible!

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SECTION 4:TURBO LASER ROOM
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As you exit the tunnel, keep your flying tight. I've taken the most
damage entering and exiting these tunnels. As soon as you are in the
square passageway hit "R" to target the TIE on your mudflaps and "F" to
set your cannon to AUTOFIRE at him. Please note THIS IS NOT THE CORE!!
Despite a very Core-ish looking thing in the center of the room, this
is simply another Turbo Laser. When you enter the room drift up and to
the right. Even if your shields are almost out, you can make it through
this room! The Falcon has a tough hull. As soon as the TIES enter the
room, both you and they will be susceptible to laser blasts. Your
AUTOFIRE should make short work of them, just make sure you are fast
hitting R and F in succession as soon as the targeted TIE disappears
from your queue. There should be 2 FIGHTERS and 2 INTECEPTORS (eyeballs
and squints, respectively.) Fly a circle around the room while your
AUTOFIRE knocks out the TIES. After the TIES are gone, keep pressing R
and F to target the waves of Zero-G Troopers. Don't underestimate them!
I've had one trooper knock out 15% of my shields with ease.

The main obstacle in this room is the Tri-Pod gun. The easiest way to
target it is to hit "O" then "T". When you attack it, use AUTOFIRE and
your lasers set forward and blast it! Don't bother using your missiles;
they'll just get shot out of the air! Once the gun is gone continue to
blast the Zero-G Troopers until they are all gone. AUTOFIRE is a must
here. Once the room is clear you have a few options.

I like to recharge my shields to 110 % before heading into the tunnel
to the core. There is no time limit, so recharge if you need to (just
remember to keep your throttle above 30 or Wedge might ram into you.)
Granted the recharge time on the Falcon is painfully slow, but you may
need the protection in the last tunnel.

As a side note, don't bother trying to find the tunnel where you came
in. You will be leaving a different way so don't waste your time. If
you are having a hard time finding the tunnel to the next section, hit
the "O" key to target the Core and try to line up the square on your
display to the upper left. The tunnel has some red arrows pointing to
it. (It's where the Tri-Pod gun was located and where the Zero-G
Troopers came from!)

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SECTION 5: RUN TO THE CORE!
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When you leave the Turbo Laser room, rotate your ship so the red arrows
denoting the entrance are to your left or right. Hurray! More tight
tunnels! Just relax and use the same strategy as in the earlier tunnel
that got you here. Watch your shields! If you are getting bumped around
slow down!

You'll exit the tight tunnels and enter another area of Red and Blue
Pipes. Gradually, you will merge onto a main path. It's not a bad idea
to go 2/3 speed here and knock out as many pipes as you can. This is
going to be your escape route so you might as well clean it up while
you can.

You are nearing the core when you see the familiar cross-section beams!
At this point, switch to your Adv. Concussion Missiles and set them to
duel fire, "X". Remember again, the cockpit of the Falcon on the right
so line yourself up a bit off center to the right.

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SECTION 6: BLOW UP THE CORE AND GET OUT!
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This section can be bloody confusing if you are unsure of what's going
on. I'll make it nice and simple! When you are near the Core, hit "O"
to target the main core and hit the "," key to target the reactor
itself. Keep your speed around 50. Wedge will say some stuff like in
the movie and knock out the North Tower. Please note the percentage of
damage to the core is NOT IMPORTANT!! Unlike Starships, the damage is
shared so don't concern yourself with it. Flying right into the room,
stay level. You should see Wedge's missiles heading towards the
regulator. You can either fire your missiles right after his or wait
for the damage to be listed at 75%. Make sure you have the reactor
targeted! As soon as you launch your missiles, get the heck out!! The
easiest way to do this is to only steer using left and right on your
joystick. The tunnel you came in will be directly behind you. Don't
worry if the reactor says 12 %; it's blowing up! As a side note, if you
don't have any missiles when you get here you are screwed. Your lasers
won't phase the core and you'll have to start over. This is the main
reason why you don't use them in the Turbo Laser room.

Enter the crosshatch at normal speed, 50 or so, to line yourself up.
You'll begin to hear the Death Star reaction starting behind you! Wait
until you clear the cross beams and boost your speed up over 85! If you
don't you are as good as dead.

Grey Group will have cleared the new path out so STAY STRAIGHT!! DO NOT
VEER RIGHT OR LEFT!!! The way out is dead ahead. At the increased
speed, you'll need to be on the ball with your maneuvers. Blast the
pipes you can but don't be afraid to dodge a few as well. It goes
without saying your lasers should be linked forward!

There will be one last tight passage to the exit. Relax and keep your
ship steady! There's a good chance your heart will be pounding but keep
that speed over 80! It's not particularly hard, but given the
circumstances it may be easy to become rattled. After the tight tunnel
you have one final section of pipes to clear. If you really need to,
boost your shields or lasers for a moment but if you go too slowly
you'll get caught in the explosion.

Finally, you'll hear Ackbar acknowledge the destruction of the death
star and you'll see the moon of Endor at the end of your passage. Fly
out, enjoy the cut scene and congratulations!! You've done it, you've
really done it ^_^

As for the game ending...well, it doesn't really have one. The Azzameen
story goes somewhat unresolved. But this is the final mission so after
you've cleared it you've defeated the Empire! In the words of Lando's
co-pilot, "ghbbbrgrebrgb!"