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Version Log 2. Introduction 3. Ships 3a. Terran Fighters and Bombers 3b. Other Terran Ships 3c. Vasudan Ships 3d. Shivan Ships 4. Weapons 4a. Lasers 4b. Missiles 5. The Eon Awards 6. FAQ 7. Mission by Mission Walk-through 8. Stats of Weapons 9. Alternate Missions 10. Cheats and Secrets 11. Thanks to... and legal junk *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Version Log 1.0- Created FAQ/Walkthrough, included Version Log, Introduction, Ships, Weapons, My Favorites, and Mission by Mission Walk-through to Pandora's Box 1.1- Updated Ships, My Favorites. Made Cheats and Secrets and Thanks to. Mission by Mission Walk-through up to The Hammer and the Anvil. 1.2- Mission by Mission Walk-through up to First Strike 1.3- Mission by Mission Walk-through up to La Ruota Della Fortuna 1.4- Mission by Mission Walk-through up to Shell Game 1.5- Mission by Mission Walk-through up to Playing Judas 1.6- Elaborated on My Favorites section, Mission by Mission Walk- through up to Exodus 1.7- Mission by Mission Walk-through up to Good Luck. That means I'm done with the walkthrough part 1.8- Added FAQ. Changed My Favorites to Eon Awards and remade entire section. Revised strategy for some missions and added mission debriefings to missions. Re-did introduction and added legal junk. 1.9- Began remaking Ships section to be more detailed. Began remaking weapons section also. Began adding all ships to the Ships section. Discovered alternate missions and created Alternates section. 2.0- Fixed error in location of Alternate missions section. Finished adding ships to the Ships section. 2.1- Finished Weapons section finally. Now I am done with just about every main and important part of the walkthrough. 2.2- Yessss! I made my ASCII art about 100x better than it was before!!!! I know that the old one was probably the worst one ASCII art on the web but it isn't now!!! Yessss!!! Final- Just added another Eon award, added stats for lasers, and moved the document into Word from Wordpad, added a cheap strategy for A Failure to Communicate, spell checked this gargantuan, fixed my email, fixed the ASCII Art, and added Neptune strategies submitted by Heretic. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** 2. Introduction Descent Freespace is a space simulation game. In this game you combat against various ship types and species. The game has great graphics and has a great storyline with many unsuspected twists. I have thoroughly mastered the game and have purchased the sequel, and enjoyed it greatly too. You will find this game has a great deal of replay value, since I have been playing this game for nearly three months, and most of my games last 1 month in my top slot if they are very good. This guide gives the command briefing if any, briefing, ship and weapon selection, mission objectives, in-mission directives, debriefing if any, and most importantly, strategy on what happens in the missions and how to complete them. Feel free to e-mail me with suggestions or information that I might have missed in this guide. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** 3. Ships ***************************** 3a. *Terran Fighters and Bombers* ***************************** *Apollo- Original space superiority fighter of the GTA fleet. Highly versatile. Often doubles as Assault type. Low weapon compatibility. Type: Space Superiority Length: 16 m Max Velocity: 70 m/s Maneuverability: Fair Armor: Good Gun Mounts: 4 Missile Banks: 2 Manufacturer: Han-Ronald Corp. Compatible with: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Prometheus, Mx-50, Disruptor Missile, Fury, Hornet, and Interceptor *Valkyrie- High speed recon and bomber-intercept of the GTA fleet. Offers high weapon compatibility and payload. Type: Interceptor Length: 16 m Max Velocity: 85 m/s Maneuverability: Good Armor: Light Gun Mounts: 4 Missile Banks: 1 Manufacturer: Han-Ronald Corp. Compatible with: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail, Prometheus, Banshee, Mx-50, Disruptor Missile, Fury, Hornet, Interceptor, and Phoenix V *Athena- Excellent for hit-and-run bombing. Good speed for its size, with a high capacity afterburner reserve. Type: Light Bomber Length: 20 m Max Velocity: 60 m/s Maneuverability: Average Armor: Meduim Gun Mounts: 2 Missile Banks: 3 Manufacturer: Dynamic Metameter Compatible with: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail, Disruptor Missile, Fury, Interceptor, Phoenix V, Synaptic, and Stiletto *Medusa- Suitable for any size target. Carries most missile types, but few cannons. Armed with defensive turret, but still requires escort. Type: Heavy Bomber Length: 36 m Max Velocity: 50 m/s Maneuverability: Poor Armor: Heavy Gun Mounts: 2 Missile Banks: 3 Manufacturer: Han-Ronald Corp. Compatible with: Ml-16, Avenger, Prometheus, Mx-50, Hornet, Phoenix V, Synaptic, Stiletto, and Tsunami *Hercules- Low max velocity offset by its tremendous offensive capability. Type: Heavy Assault Length: 20 m Max Velocity: 50 m/s Maneuverability: Average Armor: Meduim Gun Mounts: 6 Missile Banks: 2 Manufacturer: Han-Ronald Corp. Compatible with: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail, Prometheus, Banshee, Mx-50, Disruptor Missile, Fury, Hornet, Interceptor, and Phoenix V *Ulysses- Developed in a joint operation by the Vasudan and Terran governments, the GTF Ulysses is an excellent all-around fighter. It offers superior maneuverability with a high top speed. Smaller missile payload than other GTA fighters. Type: Space Superiority Length: 16 m Max Velocity: 70 m/s Maneuverability: Excellent Armor: Light Gun Mounts: 4 Missile Banks: 1 Manufacturer: Triton Dynamics Compatible with: Ml-16, Disruptor, D-Advanced, Avenger, Flail, Prometheus, Mx-50, Disruptor Missile, Fury, Hornet, and Interceptor *Ursa- Designed to annihilate capital ships and cruisers. Slow, but offers unparalleled assault bombing capability. Type: Heavy Bomber Length: 36 m Max Velocity: 45 m/s Maneuverability: Very Poor Armor: Heavy Gun Mounts: 5 Missile Banks: 3 Manufacturer: Han-Ronald Corp. Compatible with: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail, Prometheus, Mx-50, Disruptor Missile, Fury, Hornet, Interceptor, Phoenix V, Synaptic, Stiletto, Tsunami, Harbinger ******************** 3b. *Other Terran Ships* ******************** *GTDR Amazon- The Amazon is a simple drone used for basic combat training. They are unmanned, and carry only the weakest of weaponry. Overall Value: .5 *GTDR Amazon Advanced- The Amazon Advanced is a larger drone, used by the GTA for subsystem and large target training. They are unmanned and inexpensive. Overall Value: .75 *GTS Centaur- The Centaur Support ship is designed to get in and out of battle as quick as possible. It is fast and quite maneuverable, allowing it to dock with fighters in a minimum amount of time. Most notable about the Centaur, however, is its extremely large explosion radius. The amount of warheads carried on a support ship makes it very dangerous to be close to an exploding Centaur. Overall Value: 3 *GTFR Poseidon- The Poseidon is the standard military freighter in the GTA. It is designed to protect its cargo from any kind of attack, and has four turrets with which to do so. Overall Value: 5 *TC 2- The TC 2 is the standard issue cargo container in the GTA for deep space cargo transport. It has all the electronics and systems needed to preserve any cargo within it at whatever conditions are necessary. TC 2s are cheap to manufacture, and are heavily used throughout the Alliance. Overall Value: 4 *GTFR Chronos- The Chronos is a freighter of civilian design. As the Terran Vasudan war dragged on, more and more of these vessels were commissioned by the GTA for use in military operations. These vessels are slow but strong. Overall Value: 6 *TAC 1- The TAC 1 (called the TacOne by most pilots) is a heavily armored container, usually for carrying volatile or dangerous substances. It is also the preferred supply container for use in front line operations. Overall Value: 4.5 *TTC 1- The TTC 1 is another example of civilian equipment used by the GTA League of Defense. It is primarily a Tech Container, used for research purposes, especially Zero-G development operations. It is not very strong, however, and is often a target of enemy attacks. Overall Value: 2 *GTC Fenris- The mainstay of the Terran Fleet, these vessels have served in both strike and defensive purposes. From nose to tail is measures 260 meters. With a full array of weapon systems and a strong enough hull to withstand the strongest enemy warheads, a Fenris cruiser can be found in almost any system that the GTA is operating in. The Fenris cruiser was originally designed as a strike weapon, hence its fast speed and decent turning rate. It was later decided that a second line of cruisers would be produced, for defensive purposes, once it became apparent that the V-T war wouldn't be over in a few months. Overall Value: 8 *GTC Leviathan- After the Vasudans began making incursions into Terran Space, Command decided that it needed a new defensive cruiser. Changes to the Fenris led to the GTC Leviathan line of cruisers, produced as mobile defense battleships. Their speed and maneuverability were greatly reduced in tradeoff for more powerful weapons and a stronger hull. Production was discontinued when the GTA thought they would win the Vasudan war after the battle of Gulnara, and then production was started again after the defeat at the Talania system. Because of this on-again off-again nature of this vessel's production, almost all the the Leviathan cruisers have different armaments, but all have consistent hulls and speeds. Overall Value: 8 *GTSC Faustus- The Faustus Science vessel was, and still is, a civilian craft. However, in the 14 years since the Terran-Vasudan war began, more and more of these were commissioned by the GTA to pursue military research. However, its obvious value, poor fighting capabilities, and lack of speed make it a prime target for enemy ships. Overall Value: 7 *GTD Orion- The Orion is the capital ship to the GTA. Measuring a frightening 2.1 kilometers in length, the cost to build one of these far outweighs the cost of paying the crew of this ship for 3 years. There is no more important symbol of Terran Pride than a ship like the Galatea or the Intrepid cruising past a colonized planet, patrolling the system and ensuring safety. In the course of the 14 year war, very few have been lost, making the destruction of an Orion a truly horrible defeat. Overall Value: 10 *GTI Arcadia- Early Terran space stations were constructed much smaller, and were mostly used for Zero-G research purposes. Later on, with advancements in space construction technologies, stations grew bigger and bigger. When the first Arcadia-class station was commissioned, the GTA decided to rename it to an Installation rather than a Space Station. Used for a variety of purposes, almost all major systems are home to at least on Installation, which is often used as the center of trade and communications. Home to scores of small ships, including repair vessels, fighters, and transports, an Arcadia class Installation is always a safe haven for a convoy of attack ships, returning from battle. While the Orion is the symbol of Terran power, the Arcadia is the shining beacon of stability. Overall Value: 10 *GTT Elysium- Since the start of space colonization, this standard transport has been used by everyone, both civilian and military. While it has undergone minor changes time and again, it remains a simple design: A vehicle meant to transport personnel from one place to another. Overall Value: 4 *GTSG Watchdog- The Watchdog is the standard unmanned defensive sentry turret for the GTA. It fires two standard plasma bursts at any nearby hostile targets. Overall Value: 1 *GTSG Cerberus- The Cerberus is an advanced version of the Watchdog, with stronger weaponry and the ability to withstand more damage. Overall Value: 1.5 *GTEP Hermes- The Hermes Escape pod has been used since the destruction of the GTD Goliath over 12 years ago. They are used by the crews of destroyers and installations to escape destruction. It is always best to be prepared. Overall Value: 2.5 *************** *Vasudan Ships* *************** *PVF Anubis- The Anubis is the weakest fighter in the Vasudan Navy. However, they are extremely cheap to manufacture, and are often used in swarm situations to try and overwhelm the opponent with numbers. A few radical Vasudans have been known to load the ship with explosives and attempt to steer themselves into GTA capital ships. The first occurrence of this was the battle of Rexias 4, where the GTD Goliath was destroyed by a squadron of kamikaze pilots. Due to its lack of afterburners and low weapon capacity, the GTA has classified the Anubis as a class D threat. Overall Value: 3 *PVF Seth- As the slowest fighter in the PVN, the Seth has earned itself a reputation as the turtle of the Vasudan fleet. Even though it is quite compact in size, the Seth can carry a massive payload, and has a lot of shielding. Its standard impulse engines aren't very powerful, but the Seth gains an incredible speed boost when using its afterburners. The Seth is primarily used for convoy attacks and capital ship escort duties. The GTA considers the PVF Seth to be a class C threat. Overall Value: 4 *PVF Horus- the Horus Interceptor can outrun any ship in the PVN or the GTA. This makes it extremely dangerous. Its above average weapons capacity, combined with good maneuverability and shielding make it one of the most well designed ships in the galaxy. This ship is responsible for the destruction of more GTA bombers than any other. As a class C threat, Horus Interceptors should be dealt with as quickly as possible. Overall Value: 4.5 *PVF Thoth- The Thoth is the most dangerous ship to be created by the PVN. Manufactured solely at the Altarian Ship Yards, the Thoth has only been produced in small numbers as of yet. When the Altarian Yards defected to the Hammer of Light rebels, the production of Thoths by the PVN dropped to nil. The Thoth is now completely in the hands of the Hammer of Light. What makes the Thoth so versatile is its small size, extremely high maneuverability, and advanced weapons systems. It is extremely diffucult to hit, in the hands of a skilled pilot. The design for the Thoth was simultaneous with the design for the Ulysses, and these two ships were designed by some of the same technicians. Thus they are quite a match for our Ulysses class fighters. This is why they are considered a class B threat. Any non registered Thoths should be destroyed immediately, and their presence reported upon completion of the mission. Overall Value: 5 *PVB Osiris- the Osiris has now become the standard bomber class ship. It carries a massive payload and has become the standard bomber for use in PVN operations. It has replaced the Amun, correcting man of the faults of its predecessor. It is not quite as sturdy, but it has nearly the same weapons capacity, and is faster and more maneuverable. The Osiris should be considered a C class threat to Fenris class cruisers, and a D class threat otherwise. Overall Value: 3.5 *PVB Amun- The Amun is the Vasudans heaviest bomber class ship. It carries a massive payload and has been responsible for the destruction of at least 3 Orion class destroyers in the past 2 years. Fortunately, it is slow and has low maneuverability, making it an easy target for our fighters. Fighter pilots should be wary of the two turrets on this ship: they are not to be ignored. The Amun is considered a B class threat to all cruisers and capital ships. They should be given top priority in target selection during escort operations. Overall Value: 5.5 *PVS Scarab- The Scarab is very similar to our Centaur: We believe the Vasudans stole the design of this ship from us. It is used for in flight rearming of fighters and bombers. In longer engagements, these ships can mean the difference between victory and defeat. The major difference between this ship and the Centaur is that the Scarab is unmanned. *PVT Isis- The Isis transport is quite fast and maneuverable for a ship of its size. Most often it is used for personnel transfer, although occasionally they have been known to act as repair ships and tugboats. It is well protected with its turrets, and it is not unheard of for the PVN to use a wing of Isises to conduct an assault on a fortified position. Overall Value: 4.5 *PVFR Bast- The Bast freighter is unarmed, and considered a non threat. We believe that it is mainly used by Vasudan civilians, but we have seen some in front line operations. It has very low target value, but should be destroyed, as any king of resupply ship is a danger to the GTA. Overall Value: 1.5 *VC 3- The standard Vasudan cargo container is only slightly different from our own. The primary difference is that the Vasudan cargo containers are atmospheric as well as deep-space. Vasudans used cargo containers well before we did, as they needed to transport raw materials from other systems to their own barren world. Our cargo container was modeled after theirs, although ours is slightly superior in durability. Overall Value: 0.5 PVFR Ma'at- With three turrets, the Ma'at is a hairy target for GTA pilots to attack. However, it's slow enough that it can be destroyed with enough patience. As always, supply ships for the PVN are considered to be valid targets. Overall Value: 4.5 *VAC 4- The VAC 4 series of cargo is much like its normal counterpart, only it has much more plating. However, this container is no more dangerous than the standard version, and is nothing more than ML-16 bait without protection of some kind. Overall Value: 1.5 *PVFR Satis- The dreaded Satis freighter was though to be a warship when it was first encountered in the Aldebaran Encounter. It has five turrets and a strong hull, making it quite dangerous to the inexperienced pilot. However, most experienced pilots in the GTA know enough to attack the Satis' main weakness: its weak plating around the turrets. Disarming a Satis is most often the best way to destroy it. While capturing supply ships is often an intelligent plan, the Satis has been considered dangerous enough to rank as a class C threat. Treat it as one. Overall Value: 6 *PVC Aten- The Aten class cruiser, while far stronger than most of the Vasudans warships, falls short as an attack cruiser. It does not have the armor or the firepower to stand up to GTA weaponry. With a cruiser speed of 25 m/s and only six weapon turrets, the Aten just cannot muster the kind of firepower needed to do real damage to targets of size. Most GTA pilots have learned to exploit the primary weakness of the Aten: its extremely weak weapons subsystem. The Aten class cruiser is considered by the GTA to be a Class B threat. Overall Value: 7 *PVD Typhon- Where the Aten cruiser failed, the Typhon succeeded well past expectations. The Typhon is an incredible work of engineering and the model of Vasudan technology. When the first one was sighted at the Vega Engagement, it was laughed at by our technicians as a foolish display of non utilitarian design. The subsequent destruction of the GTD Eisenhower and the total decimation of the 4th fleet changed their minds very quickly. The Typhon should never be underestimated. It wields massive weaponry, and has more armor plating than any Terran Destroyer. Its only known weakness is its turret armor, which is significant, but lower than expected. In the two years since this ship first appeared, we have only managed to destroy two of them. The Typhon is a Class A threat to any ships within the same system. Do not engage without backup. Overall Value: 10 *PVSG Ankh- The Ankh is the standard Vasudan sentry gun. Its most common usage is guarding supply depots. However, since the development of the Anubis, its usage has dropped off significantly. Overall Value: 2 *PVEP Ra- The Ra has been used by Vasudans since our first encounter with them. Every Vasudan capital ship has a few of these lifeboats. Overall Value: 8 ************** *Shivan Ships* ************** *SF Dragon- The Shivan Dragon is easily the most impressive fightercraft we have yet seen. Its maneuverability is unmatched, and it has quite a few other advantages, including a good top speed, powerful afterburners, and strong shields. It is the only Shivan fighter we have been able to study up close, and we have learned a great deal about Shivan engineering from it. It seems that the Shivan shield systems are extremely strong, but their hulls are far weaker than our own. They also rely on primary weapons far more than secondaries, as evidenced by the Dragon's small capacity. The GTA considers the Dragon as a Class A threat. Overall Value: 7 *SF Basilisk- The Basilisk seems to be a Shivan heavy attack fighter. It is not as maneuverable as other Shivan fighters, but packs quite a punch, and it is very resistant to our weaponry. Most often they have been used in attacking our supply convoys and transports. Treat the Basilisk as a class C threat. Overall Value: 3.5 *SF Scorpion- We originally thought the Scorpion was the Shivan's best fighter. However, we now believe that the Scorpion is nothing more than a Shivan scout ship. Their vast numbers and seeming unimportance to the Shivan war effort leads us to this belief. Regardless of its purpose, the Scorpion is highly maneuverable, fast, and difficult to destroy. It can also do damage equivalent to our space superiority fighters. In the event that you encounter Scorpions, regard them as a Class C threat. Overall Value: 5 *SF Manticore- The Manticore is not listed in the Tech Room so I will make up my own description. The Manticore has a strange design and would be probably the second most alien of Shivan ships. However, they are very maneuverable and are extremely difficult and annoying to kill. They are usually used as an escort ship. Treat the Manticore as a class C threat. Overall Value: 5 *SB Shaitan- The Shaitan bomber is only slightly superior to our own bombers - its shielding is far better but its capacity seems to be far worse. Perhaps the Shivans were so assured that they would need only one payload to destroy a target. We consider the Shaitan to be a Class C threat. Overall Value: 4.5 *SB Nephilim- The Nephilim class bomber is the most alien of the Shivan ships. We are still unsure as to why the Shivans chose this odd shape for arguable their most powerful attack craft. However, with four primary cannons and two turrets, as well as a massive payload, the Nephilim is undoubtedly a serious threat to the GTA. We have already lost two Orion class Destroyers to a wing of Nephilims. Unless we learn a weakness soon we will most likely lose two more. The Nephilim has been designated a Class A threat to GTA Destroyers and Cruisers. In unpopulated systems, it is considered to be a Class B threat. Overall Value: 6.5 *ST Azarel- The Azarel is most likely a Shivan transport. While we are not completely sure of its uses, we do know they can house many Shivans. It is not very heavily armored, and its weaponry is not too strong. This makes the Azarel the most common target for capture attempts. Overall Value: 5 *SFR Mephisto- The Mephisto freighter behaves much like one of our own. Only it is far more powerful and dangerous. Very little data is available on this ship class. Overall Value: 5.5 *SC 5- We believe that the Shivans use cargo containers such as these as storage depots. We have yet to see a Shivan land on a planet. This leads us to believe that the Shivans plan on keeping all of their materials in space. Overall Value: 1 *SFR Asmodeus- Almost no data available on the Asmodeus freighter. We are aware that it has a strong hull and four turrets. Any further data on this ship should be immediately delivered to Terran Intelligence. Overall Value: 4.5 *SAC 2- What we have dubbed the Sac-2 is simply more heavily armored form of the standard Shivan cargo container. We believe that this is where the Shivans keep their more precious supplies. Sac-2s are to be captured or destroyed at every opportunity. Overall Value: 2 *SC Lilith- While more rare than its counterpart, the Cain-class cruiser, the Lilith is one of the most ferocious cruisers we have had the misfortune of combating. It has extremely strong weapon systems, as well as a very thick armor which our cannons can barely penetrate. One for one the Lilith can destroy any of our cruisers. It is for this reason that they should be considered a primary target for all bomber squadrons in the GTA. The Lilith should be considered a Class A threat to any ships that encounter it. Overall Value: 8 *SC Cain- The Cain is by far the most common cruiser in the Shivan fleet. It is also the weakest. However, the Cain should not be underestimated. It has many turrets, as well as a cluster bomb defensive mechanism. As a strike cruiser, the Cain mostly appears in attacks against GTA or PVN capital ships and cruisers. In these cases, it should be destroyed immediately. The primary weakness of the Cain appears to be its unshielded turrets. Most of the turrets on the Cain can be destroyed with minimal damage. The Cain is a Class B threat. Overall Value: 7 *SD Demon- While the Demon-class Destroyer is easily one of the most massive ships we have yet seen, it is not the biggest or most powerful in the Shivan armada. However, it is still quite dangerous with a plethora of missile turrets and two full squadrons of fighters. It is suggested that these capital ships be destroyed by bombers, since all cruisers that have attempted to engage a Demon have been destroyed. The Demon is a Class A threat in any allied system. Overall Value: 9 *SD Lucifer- The Lucifer is the greatest threat to the survival of the GTA, the PVN, and both the Terran and Vasudan species. It wields three massive Flux Cannons which can destroy one of our capital ships in a few hits. These same cannons have been seen bombarding colonized worlds. With four full fighter squadrons and a massive array of defensive turrets, the Lucifer would be extremely difficult to destroy. The fact that it is protected by a stealth shielding system, which makes it impervious to any kind of kinetic or plasma damage makes it impossible. We have yet to find a way to breach this shielding technology. It is hoped that a solution will be found soon. Assuming that a solution is found, we have managed to gather enough data on the Lucifer to destroy it. In a recon mission, we were able to determine that the Lucifer is powered by five primary reactors. If these reactors are destroyed in a short amount of time, the Lucifer will be stopped. If we cannot stop the Lucifer, we do not expect to defeat the Shivans. We have no way of knowing if there are more than one Lucifer-class destroyer. However, any that exist should be considered more dangerous than a Class A threat. Overall Value: 10+ *SSG Trident- We believe that the sole purpose of the Trident is to guard Shivan repair and supply depots. It is not too strong, but in mass quantities, can be dangerous. Overall Value: 3 *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** 4. Weapons ******** 4a. *Lasers* ******** GTW Ml-16 Tech Room Description Argon laser weapon - uses transport ceramic technology in order to create an optical system that is extremely durable and stable under battle conditions - provides adequate destructive damage to the hull of enemy ships by vaporizing molecular bonds at the target area and destabilizing molecular bonds across the grain of the hull material My Opinion Its not that great. It does fine against hulls but won't touch shields. Once you have the Avenger cannon, never use it again. GTW-41 Disruptor Tech Room Description A gas-focused krypton laser - when the ship is in flight, the chamber of the GTW-41 rotates at a constant speed - a small amount of NO2 is injected into the container .05 ms prior to the emission of the laser light - the rotation of the NO2 in the chamber focuses the laser pulse to a state that is only very slightly (1%) diffused - after the laser pulse is emitted from the chamber into space, the chamber expels the NO2 into space (thus expelling ionized molecules and moisture) - the process repeats itself for each subsequent burst of laser energy - as this laser is very slightly diffused, it is not as effective a destructive weapon, but as a tactical weapon - the Disruptor cannon is best suited and is used for the permanent disabling of enemy ships My Opinion It is good at the beginning but is never needed again after the Stiletto. Does practically nothing to hulls but does a moderate amount of damage to subsystems. GTW-15 Avenger Tech Room Description A rapid-fire, computer-controlled radar and gun system-capable of firing at a rate of more than 4500 rounds per minute - used primarily for close-defense situations - uses closed-loop radar technology to locate, identify, and direct a stream of highly destructive 45 mm projectiles to the target With the advent of shield technology, the GTW-15 is preferred over the Ml-16 in any ship that can carry it. It's extra damage against hulls make it one of the best anti cruiser weapons. It also has proven very effective against Vasudan fighters. However, it's substandard anti- shield capabilities make it a poor choice for dogfighting Shivans, although far better than the Ml-16. My Opinion It will impress you the first time you use it but once you get used to it, you'll wish you had a better laser. It's good against hulls but it is just okay against shields. GTW-32 Flail Tech Room Description A rapid-fire, low energy, ceramic optic focused, krypton laser - used in tactical situations to distract or lead an enemy to their destruction at the hands of other allied fighters - this weapon, if used over an extended period of in-flight battle, can destroy an enemy fighter, but, as a destructive weapon, should only be used as a last resort The fast firing rate and high mass of the Flail make it great for changing the velocity vector of an enemy fighter or bomber. It is slightly more effective than the Avenger against shields, rated at damage/second. Its low energy consumption makes it useful for prolonged engagements. Note, however, that once you have taken out the enemy's shields, switching to another weapon is advised. My Opinion I rarely use it because it is really a piece of shiny trash. Just don't use it, period. It's worthless. **** NOTE: This weapon is a GEM in multiplayer dogfight missions against other humans. D-Advanced No Tech Room Description My Opinion It is only available to you in two missions. You are forced to use it in Enter the Dragon and you have a choice to use it in The Great Hunt. The Ulysses is the only fighter that can equip the D-Advanced. Obviously, it is an improvement on the Disruptor. It is okay, but is has an incredibly slow firing rate. GTW-7 Prometheus Tech Room Description Named after the Titan who gave fire to humanity, the Prometheus is a laser-based weapon - an advanced radar and X-ray tracking system lock on the target and determine the target's structure - argon laser focused via transparent ceramic optics - the laser generated at the destructive frequency (full out-of-phase) for the target's material structure - emitted no more than .02 ms after targeting and activation by the pilot, the Prometheus stands out as one of the GTA's most effective deterrents to enemy attack, an effective form of defense for GTA pilots, and as a durable, portable, and highly destructive offensive tool The Prometheus works best against target hulls. Against shields, it only achieves mediocre performance. Its slow speed and high energy consumption work against it as well. However, the primary advantage of the Prometheus is that it can be equipped on almost any fighter in the GTA. My Opinion It is a great overall weapon, and I use it every mission I can. The description understates this weapon's power. It works good against shields and has a slow refire rate but that is not too bad. It works incredibly well when combined with a Banshee. GTW-7 Banshee Tech Room Description An electromagnetic weapon - sends rapid pulses of exceptionally strong electromagnetic energy resulting in a 1.63 x 105 J blast that forces its way through any known shield technology and produces a dramatic shearing effect which quickly destroys the target ship's materials - named for the fact that in an atmosphere, the pulse creates an atmospheric disturbance similar to a quasi-human scream at 180 dB - uses up a tremendous amount of available ship energy - already it has been used by many GTA fighter aces and test pilots as a coup de grace, although such a use for this massively powerful weapon is officially viewed as poor sportsmanship by the GTA The GTW-7's impressive anti-shielding capabilities makes it the weapon of choice against the Shivans. The main limitation of this weapon is low weapons compatibility. It can only be fitted on a GTF Valkyrie or a GTF Hercules. My Opinion This is a great weapon. Will take out the enemy's shields almost instantly. It uses up tons of gun energy and has a really slow refire rate but the damage is worth it. Great results when paired with a Prometheus. ********** 4b. *Missiles* ********** GTM Mx-50 Tech Room Description Available for all space battles, defensive and offensive; medium payload (16.5 Kt); infrared tracking and semi-intelligent targeting; pilot chooses desired target, and the MX-50 tracks the chosen target based off the emission of heat from the engine, the weapon bays, and the cockpit of the target ship; the MX-50 will always attack a target that is determined to be hostile by the onboard computer of any GTA combat vessel, thus ensuring a higher kill rate, should the pilot find himself in a heated battle situation where precise aiming might be difficult. My Opinion This is a missile that you will use until you get the Interceptor. It is quick and easy to fire. Just point and shoot. If you have the unlimited weapons cheat on, you can string out about 20 Mx-50s on your target's tail. It works pretty well. Does moderate damage to hulls, little damage to shields. GTM-2 Fury Tech Room Description Small, fast dumbfire missiles; fired in swarms; GTA fighters can carry more Fury missiles than conventional missiles, due to their small size; used for distraction and other tactical measures; very small payload (3 Kt). My Opinion It is pretty useless. You can hold a lot of them but they are useless. They are faster than your lasers which means that you won't be able to hit your target with both the Fury and your lasers unless you are very close to it or it is very big. It is dumbfire (appropriately named) and does not home in on your target. It does good damage to hulls and little damage to shields. GTM-9 Interceptor Tech Room Description All-aspect seeking; laser tracking senses energy reflected off a target from the primary weapon systems of the target, increasing single-pass kill probability; medium payload (18.5 Kt); missile is designed to pierce reinforced hull, thus securing itself to the target, prior to detonating (15 ms delay). My Opinion This is one of the best missiles in the game. You should use this in every mission you can when it is available to you until you gain access to the Hornet. It takes about two seconds to lock on and then whisks away toward your target. It is the fastest missile in the game. Does high damage to hulls and extreme damage to shields, often taking out an entire quarter of the target's shield. GTM-43 Stiletto Tech Room Description All-aspect seeking; laser tracking similar to the Interceptor; missile is protected by a small shield system, allowing for greater success in payload delivery during busy melee situations and intense firefights; fast, but low in-flight maneuverability compared to other missiles of comparable size; low maneuverability due to the size of the missile's payload (60 Kt) and on-board shield system. My Opinion This is a great missile. It can destroy most subsystems in one hit and it will home in on its target to some extent. Use it whenever the word "freighter" is mentioned to disable it to prevent its escape. The best missile against subsystems. The best anything against subsystems. Does nearly nothing to hulls with ultra extreme damage to subsystems. GTM Phoenix V Tech Room Description All-aspect seeking; same tracking system as the Interceptor; large payload (50 Kt), but somewhat slower than the Interceptor; one of the best fire-and-forget missiles ever developed; many fighter pilots within the GTA regard the Phoenix V as the weapon of choice against high value, heavily defended targets. My Opinion It really sounds good, but it's worthless also. It only works against idiot bombers who don't care to avoid it. It is slow, and rarely hits any moving targets. Does extreme damage against hulls and extreme damage against shields. GTM-3 Tsunami Tech Room Description Intelligent tracking similar to GTA targeting system; prior to launch, communicates with ship computer, gathering data about enemy target types and whereabouts; slow, low maneuverability; antimatter warhead (500 ton mass-to-energy conversion); due to instability of antimatter, no more than 6 may be carried on board a GTA bomber at any given time, unless pilot is granted a special permit by an appropriate governing body or pilot is to participate in a glory mission. My Opinion I don't like it that much because it needs a lock to be fired. The lock on is too slow and tends to target turrets which just happen to shoot it down. Does heavy damage to cruisers and moderate damage to capital ships. GTM-1 Synaptic Tech Room Description Missile propulsion unit carrying several small intelligent "bomblets"; when distance to target is less than 100 m or when time to impact is less than 2 sec., bomblets direct missile to the most vulnerable part of the ship of those parts of the ship facing the missile; bomblets then separate from missile propulsion unit and form a sphere; inertia continues to carry bomblets in the direction of the target; the missile propulsion unit continues to advance toward the target; when the missile hits the target or 1.5 sec. after the missile should have hit the target, the bomblets explode; the spherical shape of the formation of the bomblets helps to ensure a fairly even level of damage across a sensitive area on the target; the spherical shape also ensures that the target will not be able to effectively maneuver away from the blast, thus "pinning" the target to a specific area in space; can also act as dumbfire; medium payload per bomblet (15 Kt); very small payload for a missile (2 Kt). My Opinion This may be the single reason that you return to base after a bombing mission. The Synaptic is very good for bombers because it allows it to damage the target cruiser or carrier and still attack or distract enemy fighters at the same time. Does moderate damage to hulls and moderate damage to shields. GTM-4 Hornet Tech Room Description Infrared and ultraviolet tracking; designed to fire in small groups of 4 missiles per burst; light medium payload per missile (12 Kt); semi- intelligent on-board tracking; single-pass kill probability will not exceed 60% on average; designed as an offensive version of the Fury. My Opinion This is only the best missile in the game in my opinion. Because you shoot four missiles at a time, two are almost guaranteed to hit, which will almost guarantee that the shield section will be hurting. They are very hard to escape from, and do very well in almost any mission. Does high damage to hulls and high damage to shields. GTM-31 Disruptor Missile Tech Room Description Advanced signal processing; high precision interception capability; small payload (9 Kt), combining both conventional explosives and a localized blast of energy caused by the effect of impact upon the laser-propulsion system of the missile; designed to temporarily disable subsystems on hostile targets. My Opinion I really hate this missile. You get it way too late in the game to make a difference. It will shut down a cruiser for about five seconds but it doesn't have any real purpose. Don't use it. GTM-N1 Harbinger Tech Room Description Fusion bomb surrounded by 3 salted fission bombs; propulsion unit is a half-size version of a regulation GTA fighter thruster (Class II); given the weight of the payloads, the missile is slow despite the power of the thruster; as the Harbinger is exceptionally large, GTA fighters and bombers are limited to carrying 2 of these weapons at any given time; the resultant shock wave from this weapon is potentially deadly, due to the size of the payloads (5000 Mt in total); use near allied installations or allied ship groupings is strongly discouraged by the GTA; most effective when used in preemptive defensive strike against non-military installations. My Opinion I really like this missile. It doesn't need a lock to be fired (thank God!) which makes it easy to just get really close to the target, shoot and run. The targets are so big, why would you need a lock anyway? Does ultra extreme damage to hulls. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** 5. The Eon Awards Welcome to the Eon Awards!!! And the nominees for best overall ship: Athena, Hercules, Ulysses, Valkyrie, and Ursa And the Eon goes to (drumroll please)... the Valkyrie Interceptor (yay!) In second place... the Hercules Heavy Assault Fighter In third place... the Ursa Bomber And an honorable mention... the Ulysses Advanced Space Superiority Fighter The Valkyrie wins because of its control and speed. It can also carry the Banshee which is very useful. Hercules comes next because of superior dogfighting ability. The Ursa is a great bomber that can just about kill anything it wants to with little effort. Equip it with Hornets, Synaptics, and Harbingers and you can destroy anything. And the nominees for best overall primary weapon: Banshee, Avenger, Flail, Prometheus, D-Advanced And the Eon goes to... the Prometheus Cannon In second place... Banshee Cannon In third place... Avenger Prototype Cannon And a honorable mention... Flail Cannon Prometheus wins an easy victory here because of its low energy consumption and its all around damage. The Banshee doesn't do jack to hulls and will wipe out your energy very quickly but it can take shields the best. Avenger is okay because I said so. And the nominees for best overall secondary weapon: Interceptor, Stiletto, Phoenix V, Hornet, Harbinger And the Eon goes to... the Hornet Swarm Missile In second place... the Harbinger Bomb In third place... the Interceptor Missile And a honorable mention... Phoenix V Anti-Bomber Warhead Hornet is fast and four missiles in one makes for a powerful punch. The Harbinger is slow and has an annoying lock time (to say the least!) but it packs a powerful punch (to say the least!). And the nominees for best against subsystems: Disrupt. Missile, Stiletto, Harbinger, Tsunami, D-Advanced And the Eon goes to... the Harbinger Bomb In second place... the Tsunami Bomb In third place... the Stiletto Space Bomb And a honorable mention... the D-Advanced Cannon The Harbinger is the best for taking out subsystems. If you think the Stiletto is better, try attacking the subsystems on a Typhon with one Stiletto, then try it with a Harbinger. Observe the difference. And the nominees for best ship for dogfighting: Ulysses, Valkyrie, Athena, Hercules, Apollo And the Eon goes to... the Valkyrie In second place... the Hercules In third place... the Ulysses And a honorable mention... the Athena The Valkyrie is so quick that it can fly circles around most fighters. The Herc has more plating but does not have the vital speed that the Valkyrie has. The Ulysses has great maneuverability so it is a champ in the dogfighting category also. And the nominees for best bomber: Medusa, Ursa, Athena And the Eon goes to... the Ursa second place... the Medusa third place... the Athena This is common sense. Ursa can carry Harbingers. Medusa can carry Tsunamis. Athena can carry Stilettos. Easy, right? And the nominees for best bomb: Synaptic, Harbinger, Tsunami, Stiletto And the Eon goes to... the Harbinger In second place... the Synaptic In third place... the Tsunami The Harbinger is the best obviously the best for its incredible damage. The Synaptic tops the Tsunami because it doesn't need a lock and will keep the fighters off your tail. Tsunami is the obvious choice for third. And the nominees for best cannon against shields: Prometheus, Avenger, Banshee, D-Advanced, Flail And the Eon goes to... the Banshee In second place... the Prometheus In third place... the D-Advanced And a honorable mention... the Flail This is so simple. The Banshee runs away with this one. The next slot is hard to decide. The D-Advanced is very good against shields, but with a slow refire rate, it is not something to carry onboard at any time. The Prometheus is an obvious choice for second. And the nominees for best cannon against hulls: Prometheus, Banshee, Flail, Avenger, Ml-16 And the Eon goes to... the Prometheus In second place... the Avenger In third place... the Banshee And a honorable mention... the Flail This category wasn't hard either. The Prometheus is the best against hulls and nobody comes close. The Avenger is twice as good against naked hulls than against shields. The Banshee doesn't do jack to hulls but still is good enough to make third. And the nominees for best missile against shields: Interceptor, Synaptic's Missiles, Hornet, Pho. V And the Eon goes to... the Phoenix V (No Contest!) In second place... the Hornet In third place... the Interceptor And a honorable mention... the Synaptic Mini Missiles This is not a hard award to dish out. The Phoenix V can knock out a Dragon with one missile. The Hornet is runner up here because four missiles in one shot is unstoppable. The Interceptor is next because it is the next logical choice for this award. And the nominees for best missile against hulls: Pho. V, Hornet, Interceptor, Synaptic's Missiles And the Eon goes to... the Phoenix V (No Contest!) In second place... the Interceptor In third place... the Hornet And a honorable mention... the Synaptic Mini Missiles This again is given to the Phoenix V. It may seem like a great missile from these two awards but it really is not that good. It is worthless against any fighter because it is so slow. And the nominees for the most annoying weapon to get hit by: Flail, Interceptor, Synaptic, Tsunami, Disruptor Missile And the Eon goes to... the Flail In second place... the Disruptor missile In third place, Synaptic Grrr........... the Flail knocks your ship around like a ping-pong ball... dang it. Disrupter makes you unable to move (not fun) and is extremely annoying, and Synaptic sends 500,000 mini missiles through your exhaust pipe. And the nominees for best weapon compatibility: Hercules, Ursa, Ulysses, Valkyrie And the Eon goes to... the Ursa In second place... the Hercules In third place... the Valkyrie Duh! The Ursa can carry every weapon except the Banshee and D- Advanced. Hercules can carry 12 weapons, the Valkyrie can carry 11. And the nominees for worst weapon compatibility: Medusa, Athena, Valkyrie, Apollo And the Eon goes to... the Medusa In second place... the Athena In third place... the Apollo The Medusa can only carry 9 weapons. The Athena and the Apollo can both carry 10 but the Apollo can carry better weapons. Thanks to Tahna Los, from the message boards for these Eon Awards... Easiest Vasudan Fighter to engage in a dogfight: Nominees: Anubis, Seth, Amun, Osiris, Horus, Thoth First Place: Anubis Second Place: Horus Third Place: Seth Explanation: The Anubis is perhaps the weakest fighter in the entire game. Two to three good blasts from a Prometheus/Banshee combination is guaranteed to take it down. The Horus does not do any better in the Shields/Armor department despite the fact that it is faster than the Anubis. The Seth may have good armor and afterburners, but it is slow and does not pose much of a threat. Easiest Shivan Fighter to engage in a dogfight: Nominees: Scorpion, Basilisk, Shaitan, Manticore, Nephilim, Dragon. First Place: Basilisk Second Place: Scorpion Third Place: Shaitan Explanation: All you have to do is attack the Basilisk from the rear and open fire full blast. The Basilisk is S...L...O...W... and has very poor maneuverability, making it a moving bullseye. The Scorpion may be maneuverable, but it is weak and can be easily destroyed. The Shaitan is perhaps the weakest bomber in the game, evidenced by its poor capacity and lack of defensive turreting. Easiest Terran Fighter to engage in a dogfight: Nominees: Apollo, Valkyrie, Athena, Medusa, Hercules, Ursa, Ulysses First Place: Apollo Second Place: Medusa Third Place: Ulysses Explanation: Bleah. Apollo may be good, but it's not great in dogfighting period. Neither is the Medusa, it's poor weapon compatibility makes it an easy target. And for some reason, I find it easier to engage Ulysses class fighters than the Valkyrie. And Finally...... Most Annoying Fighter in the game: Nominees: Shivan Dragon, Terran Valkyrie, Vasudan Thoth, Terran Hercules, Vasudan Thoth, Vasudan Seth, Shivan Manticore. First place: Shivan Dragon Second place: Terran Hercules Third place: Terran Valkyrie Honorable Mention: Shivan Manticore Explanation: How do you hit a extremely fast moving target that has a lot of shielding? I find the Dragon the most annoying to kill of all fighters. Though it may be slow, the Terran Hercules packs a BIG punch and will do a lot of damage before you figure out what's really going on. Finally, the Valkyrie may not be the fastest, but it is fast, and is difficult to keep a bead on, though not as annoying as the Dragon. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** 6. FAQ Q: My ship spins around uncontrollably. How do I stop this? A: I have this problem too. Play around with some of the sliders on the joystick to see if that helps or recalibrate your joystick. Q: Why can't I get some of the medals? A: You might be playing on Very Easy or Easy. To get some medals you need to be on Medium difficulty. Q: What are the system requirements for Descent Freespace? A: For required, *Pentium 133 with 3d accelerator (Glide or D3D only) or Pentium 166 without 3d accelerator. *Windows 95 with DirectX 5.0 or Windows NT 4.0 with DirectX 3.0 *32 MB RAM *8X or faster CD-ROM drive *210 MB available hard drive space *100% Microsoft-compatible mouse *Direct Sound compliant sound card Q: What are the recommended system requirements for Descent Freespace? A: *Pentium 200 with 3D accelerator (Glide or D3D only) *48MB RAM *PCI or AGP video card with 2MB of RAM *Joystick supported Q: Do I get anything special for playing on the harder difficulty levels? A: Not that I know of Q: There is an empty space in the weapons section of the Tech Room. Is there a weapon I'm missing? A: Again, not that I know of. Q: Are there any secret ships or weapons? A: Not that I know of. Q: Which missions can I use cheats on? A: All of them but the only ones that you can accept with cheats are: Tenderizer, Evangelist, Reaching the Zenith, The Great Hunt, and Good Luck Q: Some of the cheats don't work. Is there a problem with my game? A: Probably not. Some don't work on my game either like Destroy Subsystem, Descent style physics, request rearm for target, and send messages to enemies. Q: How do I use multiplayer mode? A: You must go online to www.pxo.com and get a callsign and a password, then you must create a multiplayer pilot, then you must go to options and enter your password and callsign, then you can play multiplayer. You must be connected to the internet to play on multiplayer. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** ************************************ *Bewar'!!! Thar' Be Spoila's Ahead* ************************************ 7. Mission by Mission Walk-through Training Mission 1 Difficulty Rating: 0 of 10 Mission Briefing Welcome to phase one your basic training. Your instructor will walk you through multiple flight controls and HUD gauges. In the first section, you will learn the basic HUD gauges. Your effectiveness at clearing multiple targets (cargo containers) will then be evaluated. Good luck, pilot. Preferred Ship: Apollo Preferred Laser: Ml-16 Preferred Missile: None Available Ships: Apollo Available Lasers: Ml-16 Available Missiles: None Directives Target instructor Face instructor Face instructor Match speed Fly within 75 units Drop back 200 units Use afterburner Go full speed Come to a full stop Target drone 01 Approach drone 01 Target C-01a Inspect C-01a Shoot C-01a Destroy C-01a Destroy C-02b and C-03a Destroy all cargo Warp out Strategy Just do whatever the instructor tells you to do. You'll pass it with no trouble. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Training Mission 2 Difficulty Rating: 1 of 10 Mission Briefing Welcome to phase two of your basic training. A cargo container will be delivered to the training area. You will be expected to demonstrate the targeting and firing skills that you acquired in phase one of your training. After reviewing phase one of your training, you will learn advanced targeting and firing techniques. Preferred Ship: Apollo Preferred Laser: Ml-16, Disruptor Preferred Missile: Mx-50 Available Ships: Apollo Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor Available Missiles: Mx-50 Directives Target the cargo Destroy the cargo Switch primary weapons Target drone A Target drill instructor Target drone A Target drone A sensors Destroy drone A sensors Target drone B sensors Destroy drone B Destroy drone A weapons Jump back to base Strategy Just do what the instructor says. If you do this you will pass. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Training Mission 3 Difficulty Rating: 1 1/2 of 10 Mission Briefing Welcome to the final phase of basic training. In this phase, your dogfight ability will be put to the test. You will be required to engage multiple waves of fighter drones. Some will be armed. You are expected to destroy as many as possible. Good luck. Preferred Ship: Apollo Preferred Laser: Ml-16 Preferred Missile: Mx-50 Available Ships: Apollo Available Lasers: Ml-16 Available Missile: Mx-50 Directives Target instructor Target drone Match speed Destroy drone Destroy 2 and 3 Destroy drone 4 Destroy 8 and 9 Destroy 10 and 11 Destroy 12 and 13 Destroy 14 and 15 Destroy 16 and 17 Jump back to base Strategy Just do what the instructor says. Use Mx-50s on the drones. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Eve of Destruction Difficulty Rating: 1 of 10 Command Briefing Operation Thresher Operation Thresher in the Antares system did not proceed as planned. Terran Command estimates Terran losses at 504 pilots dead, fourteen missing and presumed dead. The Vasudan foothold on Vasuda Prime and the subspace node remains solid. However, their supply lines have been cut off, which means they are most likely lacking reinforcements and supplies. Expect more on that in tomorrow's briefing. Rumors There have been many rumors about the appearance of another sentient species. These are rumors, nothing more. Investigation of the Ross 128 attack has determined nothing. Concern yourself with the known enemy, the Vasudans. There is to be no more talk of phantom ships. New Pilots Let this serve as a "welcome aboard" to all newly-arrived pilots aboard the GTD Galatea. Since you're here, your flight records must speak highly of you already. Serve the Galatea well, she's a fine ship. Report to your flight stations at 0830 for your squadron briefings. Technologies Familiarize yourself with the specifications of the GTD Orion-class destroyer, the Apollo space superiority fighter, and the Ml-16 laser. Information on all of these can be found in the Tech Room. Mission Briefing Pilot attend: Welcome to the GTD Galatea. Your first assignment as a part of the Galatea's crew is to stand the third watch. You will patrol the area surrounding the GTC Orff. The GTC Orff suffered an engine breakdown in the Betelgeuse system, and is awaiting repairs. You will be on watch with one other ship, Alpha 2. Since this is your first watch, Alpha 2 will be piloted by Lt. Harbison, a seasoned veteran and top-notch pilot. You will begin your watch by jumping to Betelgeuse near the GTC Orff. We have reports of Vasudan fighters in the system, so stay alert. Engage and destroy any hostiles that threaten the Orff. At the end of your watch, you will be relieved by Delta wing. Upon Delta's arrival, you are to return to base. Your primary objective is to protect the Orff until the end of your watch. We expect you to carry out your orders to the letter. You may confirm your ship hardware and weapons loadout for this mission. If found satisfactory, commit to the mission. Galatea quarterdeck signing off. Preferred Ship: Apollo Preferred Laser: 2 Ml-16 Preferred Missile: 2 Mx-50 Available Ships: Apollo Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor Available Missiles: Mx-50, Fury Objectives Primary Objectives *Protect the GTC Orff *Ensure no hostiles escape Directives Destroy Virgo Destroy Cancer Destroy Aries Destroy Leo Destroy Pisces Jump back to base Strategy You'd almost have to try to fail this mission to actually fail it. At first all is quiet. Then suddenly 2 damaged Anubis fighters (Virgo wing) jumps in. After you destroy those, 2 more damaged Anubis fighters (Cancer wing) will attack the Orff. Next will be 3 more damaged Anubis fighters (Aries wing). 3 more damaged Anubis fighters (Leo wing). Lastly, 3 damaged Anubis fighters (Pisces wing) will challenge you. Delta wing will then relieve you of your post. Debriefing You did a fine job on your first watch, Pilot. Your strong sense of duty will serve the Alliance well. The presence of Vasudans in this system gives us little reason to worry. The ships that attacked you and the Orff were probably remnants of the Vasudan convoy that we hit last week. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** The Field of Battle Difficulty Rating: 2 of 10 Briefing There have been a number of recent attacks by the Vasudans in the Betelgeuse system. They have been making strikes on Terran convoys en route to the Betelgeuse-Antares jump point. The Vasudan attacks have been stages from a nearby asteroid field. Terran intelligence is certain that there are four small attack wings responsible for the attacks on our convoys. There have also been reports of a Vasudan ace piloting one of the Seth class fighters in the area. You are to sweep the asteroid field and take out the four Vasudan attack wings. Be aware that the asteroids will be causing interference with your sensors. You won't be able to target the Vasudans until they are near, but they won't see you either. If you encounter the Vasudan ace, you may use your discretion whether or not to engage him. Keep in mind that your primary objective is to take out the four attack wings. Check your loadouts and commit when ready. Preferred ship: Apollo Preferred laser: 2 Ml-16 Preferred missile: 2 Mx-50 Available ships: Apollo Available lasers: Ml -16, disruptor Available missiles: Mx-50, Fury Objectives Primary Objectives *Destroy all Vasudan wings Bonus Objective *Destroy Vasudan ace Directives Find Hostiles Destroy Pisces* Destroy Cancer* Destroy Aries* Destroy Virgo* Return to base *These directives will appear in the order in which you encounter the Vasudan attack wings Strategy If you fly straight at the beginning of the mission, you will see a formation of red dots flashing on your radar. The group that is the farthest to the left is Pisces wing. The top-most is Cancer, the top- right one is Virgo, and the bottom-right one is Aries wing. Keep one group of red dots in the center of your radar and fly straight. You will eventually encounter a wing of 3 Anubis fighters. Destroy them and fly toward another wing. Repeat this process again. After you destroy the third wing of fighters, the Vasudan Ace 1 will jump in. He flies a Seth class fighter. He will shoot missiles at you when you encounter him, so make sharp turns or just keep flying in circles until you have dodged the missiles. Once you have neutralized the attack wings and the Ace, jump out. Debriefing Nicely done, pilot. By destroying the Vasudan attack wings you have helped to ensure that our convoys will make it through that subspace node. Dispatching the Vasudan Ace showed outstanding skill, pilot. You and your squad are to be commended. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Basic Training Stage 4 Difficulty Rating: 1 of 10 Briefing Welcome to advanced training. In today's course you will learn the basics of messaging, countermeasures, and the support ship. Preferred Ship: Apollo Preferred Laser: 2 Ml-16 Preferred Missile: 2 Mx-50 Available Ships: Apollo Available Lasers: Ml-16 Available Missiles: Mx-50 Directives Target freighter 01 Call reinforcements Order disarm Order disable Order destroy Order destroy Launch countermeasures Call support Strategy Just do what the instructor says. You can't be killed in this mission because you are invincible. If you don't believe me, just fly into the explosion of the freighters when they are destroyed. You won't take any damage. I challenge anyone to try and destroy the Neptune. If you can, e-mail me and tell me how you did. Heretic has, however, and here was the strategy that Heretic submitted: "First set both ML-16 to the "on" position and set your missiles to dual fire mode. I had the unlimited missile code on during the time. As soon as the Neptune jumps in, target her main turret. Start firing at it with a combo of your ML-16 and MX-50 before missiles come after you. Since you are invincible, don't worry about dodging them when you are taking the turret out. The reason I'm saying this is because the turret is the missile launcher, taking it out will make the second part easier. Now for the second part. Disable the Neptune after the turret is gone. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT call on the support ship until you have disabled the Neptune. Once she is disabled, she will not be able to jump out, thus giving you all the time in the world to dispose of her. If you want you can call on the support ship after the engines are taken out. Keep in mind that if done fast enough, you'll have time to fart around before the mission is over." This document Copyright 2001 Chris Dodge *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Small Deadly Space Difficulty Rating: 2 of 10 Briefing Terran intelligence has detected unusual activity in the Vasudan cargo depot at Antares. You are to destroy all hostiles in the area. When the area is clear, our salvage crews will pick up the cargo for analysis. Do not destroy any cargo. The contents of the cargo containers is not known. Due to the unusual activity, GTA intelligence suspects they have military value. You will be flying this mission with Epsilon wing from the 3rd squadron. Delta wing will be available for reinforcements if necessary. If you get into trouble, don't hesitate to call them in. Reconnaissance missions have determined that there are typically two wings of Vasudan fighters guarding the depot. The fighters are your primary concern. Recon has also determined that this depot is heavily used. Taking control of it will seriously impede Vasudan attacks from this system in the future. It is likely that there will be freighters in the area transporting cargo. All Vasudan vessels must be destroyed! None must escape as they will surely bring reinforcements. Once you have secured the area, the GTC Orff will arrive and maintain watch over the outpost. Good luck, pilot. GTA command out. Preferred ship: Apollo Preferred laser: 1 Ml-16, 1 disruptor Preferred missile: 2 Mx-50 Available ships: Apollo Available lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor Available missiles: Mx-50, Fury Objectives Primary Objectives *Secure area until Orff arrives Secondary Objectives *Protect cargo containers *Eliminate all Vasudan freighters Bonus Objective *Find weapon prototype Directives Destroy fighters Destroy Aires Destroy Cancer Wait for Orff Destroy Virgo Destroy Scorpio Strategy As soon as you begin the mission, target freighter 1 (Bast) and then target its engine subsystem. Switch primary weapons using {.}. You now should see a green arrow pointing to the disruptor. Destroy freighter 1's engines and then do the same to freighter 2 (Ma'at). Then hit {T} until you have targeted cargo 2. Get within 150 units of cargo 2 and scan it. That will complete your bonus objective. Next clear out any remaining fighters (Anubis) that your wingmen haven't destroyed, and then clear out the freighters. Then an Omega transport will jump in. Just scan the all the cargo containers so you won't go crazy waiting for Omega to take the prototypes away. Soon some fighters (Anubis) will jump in. After you have delt with them, some more will come. Destroy those also. Soon the Orff will jump in. Then jump out to base. Debriefing The destruction of the Vasudan fighters was very important. Not only have we gained control of that depot but we've shown the Vasudans in that are not to be trifled with. Elimination of the Vasudan freighters will hinder the transport of necessary supplies to their forces in that sector. All Vasudan cargo was captured and brought to our base. Intelligence will analyze it. It appears that among the cargo were some stolen weapon prototypes. We had feared that the Vasudans had already found and moved them from the area. Recapturing the weapons would have been a great victory. Unfortunately, the contents of the cargo were stolen by a traitor, flying the Omega transport. These will need to be recovered. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Avenging Angels Difficulty Rating: 3 of 10 Command Briefing Lt. Alex McCarthy Terran command has informed us that Lt. Alex McCarthy, formerly stationed onboard the GTD Intrepid, has defected to the Vasudans, along with an unknown number of fighters and several personnel. He has also managed to steal the plans for the Avenge prototype cannon. Those need to be recovered immediately. Vasudan agents under Terran control have leaked information regarding McCarthy's plans to the Antares system. Since the Galatea is already in Antares, we have been assigned to lead an attack on McCarthy's forces. This operation is to be carried out by the numbers. Traitors to the Terran cause will not be tolerated. McCarthy will serve as an example when he is brought in. New Technology: Valkyrie Interceptor The Galatea has received a full complement of the new Valkyrie interceptors. Some of you may remember the Angel Scout Fighter. It has been completely modified and fitted with two additional engines, making it the fastest fighter in the fleet. It has been re-designated the Valkyrie. It should enable you to make short work of enemy fighters. Report to mission briefings in twenty minutes. Briefing Plans for the Avenger weapon prototype have been stolen by Lt. McCarthy. His transport has been located here in Antares. It has been designated Omega. One of McCarthy's accomplices has been captured, and revealed his intentions for the stolen plans. Not suprisingly, McCarthy intends to sell the Avenger to the Vasudans. His Vasudan contact has been designated Rasputin. Your squadron will arrive before the exchange takes place. You are to destroy all hostile fighters, including any renegade Terrans. However, we want McCarthy alive. Your ships have been equipped with Disrupters suitable for disabling the Omega. Alpha wing and Beta wing, each consisting of four fighters, will be sent in to carry out the mission. You will jump in approximately six kilometers away from the exchange. Get to the Omega as soon as possible. Expect to encounter significant resistance. Beta wing will focus on attacking the Vasudan forces. Alpha wing will be expected to disable the Omega. Request Beta wing's assistance if necessary. After McCarthy's transport is disabled, the GTT Comet will jump into the area and dock with it. You are to ensure the safety of the Comet, especially during the docking operation with Omega. After the Comet and the Omega have left the area, it is your responsibility to eliminate hostiles. Once the area is clear, you are to jump back to the GTD Galatea. Note that you will be required to engage Terran pilots. These pilots are traitors to the Alliance, and no quarter should be given. Thousands of lives are at stake. Do not hesitate to use deadly force on the traitors. If you encounter significant resistance or experience severe losses, Delta wing will be sent by Terran command to assist. If further assistance is needed, call in Epsilon wing. Good luck, pilot. Preferred ship: Valkyrie Preferred laser: Ml-16, Disruptor Preferred missile: 2 Mx-50 Available ships: Apollo, Valkyrie Available lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor Available missiles: Mx-50, Fury Objectives Primary Objectives *Disable and capture the Omega Secondary Objectives *Destroy all enemy fighters Bonus Objectives *Disable and capture the Rasputin Directives Destroy Aires Destroy Cancer Destroy Traitors Disable Omega Destroy Virgo Strategy When you arrive there will be one wing of Horus Interceptors (Aries wing), one wing of Anubis fighters (Cancer wing), and two wings of Apollo fighters (Alpha and Beta wings). Target Omega and order all fighters to ignore it. Then target the Rasputin's engines. Take them out using your Disruptor cannon. GT Intelligence 1 (Elsylum) and GT Intelligence 2 (Valkyrie) will jump in to capture it. Next target Omega's engines. Disable it using the Disruptor cannon. The GTT Comet will jump in to capture it. By this time your wingmen should have taken out all the fighters but if they haven't proceed to do so yourself. Soon after you disable the Omega, one wing of Anubis fighters (Virgo wing) will jump in to attack the Omega. Destroy them quickly so they don't hurt Omega too much. Then the Comet will dock with and jump out with Omega. Return to base at this point. Debriefing We were able to recover the Avenger prototype. Good job. McCarthy has been apprehended and will go to trial soon. Intelligence has told us that you were cautious and managed to disable the Rasputin. Key Vasudan personnel were onboard, and their capture will assist our cause. This was an intelligent decision on your part, and you are to be commended for your attention to detail. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Out of the Dark, Into the Night Difficulty Rating: 4 1/2 of 10 Briefing With the Antares system nearly secure, Command has decided that the GTSC Plato will carry the prototype for the Avenger Attack Cannon through the Antares system. It will proceed to the Ribos system, where production of the Avenger will begin. Intelligence has determined that only one Vasudan cruiser remains in this system, the Taurus. If the Vasudans decide to attack the Plato on its way to Ribos, they will certainly use the Taurus. The number of Vasudan attack craft in this system is minimal. Intelligence estimates at most two strike squads. If something should go wrong, the Plato is equipped with an escape pod. The escape pod will attempt to make the subspace jump to Ribos. Alpha wing will provide cover for the Plato, and, if necessary, the Plato's escape pod. The safety of the prototype is vital, and all Vasudan threats must be eliminated. Pay special attention to any Vasudan bombers that may arrive. Bombers will be the greatest threat to the Plato during this operation. When you've cleared the area of hostile bombers, eliminate other threats and continue escorting the Plato to the intersystem subspace node. Preferred Ship: Valkyrie Preferred Laser: 2 Ml-16 Preferred Missile: Fury Available Ships: Apollo, Valkyrie Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor Available Missiles: Mx-50, Fury Objectives Primary Objectives *Escort the crew of the Plato to the node Secondary Objectives *Visually identify the unknown ships Bonus Objectives *Kill the unknown fighter Directives Escort Plato Destroy Aires Destroy Virgo Get visual on unknowns Destroy Taurus Strategy Everything is quiet for a while until 3 Anubis fighters and 1 Osiris bomber (Aries wing) jump in. Take out the Osiris bomber. Don't hesitate to use a lot of your Fury missiles on it. Then help your wingmen take out the rest of the fighters. Then all is quiet for quite some time until the Taurus jumps in and with it four Anubis fighters and one Osiris bomber (Virgo wing). They will be about 9,000 units away so stay with the Plato. Then four unknowns ship class fighters (2 Scorpion and 2 Shaitan) will attack the Taurus. Notice that when the Vasudan fighters attack the Shiv, uh, I mean unknowns, the attacks hit this invisible shield that shows up when you hit it. Command will order you to visually identify the ships. Ignore them, just stay with the Plato. When you receive the message, "What the hell, they took out the Taurus already," get ready for some action. The four unknowns will jump out and four more will attack the Plato. The Shaitan class ships are the bombers and look kind of flat. The Scorpions are the fighters and will be flying around in all directions. Go after a Scorpion. Hit it with the Furys. The Ml-16 laser will be useless. Just keep hitting the Scorpion. The Plato will be destroyed and the escape pod should make it without difficulty. The bombers will jump out and one Scorpion will remain in the area. Keep hitting it. Eventually it will die and you will complete your bonus objective. Jump out now. Debriefing From your ship's sensor's records, it appears there was little you could have done to protect the Plato. Its loss will be mourned, but at least her crew is safe. Intelligence has analyzed the data you provided from the attempted visual identification. There is no record of such ships. They do not appear to be Vasudan. The conclusion is that they belong to a new species. These ships are not detectable by our sensors. Worse, they appear to have some type of energy shielding system, making them nearly immune to our attacks. But the greatest concern is their weapons. They are more powerful than anything in the GTA or VPE arsenals. We believe the data you gathered will prove valuable in discovering a weakness in this new adversary. In all of their recent attacks in Terran Space, not one of the unknown fighters had been destroyed. Your destruction of one of these new enemies has already boosted morale. Well done, pilot. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Paving the Way Difficulty Rating: 2 of 10 Command Briefing The Shivans Terran Command has confirmed the existence of a new species. Until further contact is established, Command has designated them "Shivans". The Shivans have inflicted heavy casualties to both Terran and Vasudan forces in the Beta Cygni and Vega systems, and appear to be making a rapid push into other key systems along the Terran-Vasudan front. All contact has been lost with our forces in the Ikeya and Ross 128 systems. The Vasudans The Vasudan government has contacted the GTA and proposed a cease fire. Considering the reports regarding the Vasudan and Terran losses to the Shivans, this should not come as a surprise. Terran Command has not yet responded. Expect to hear more from Terran Command on this later today. Hostile Contacts All Shivan forces should be considered a serious threat. You are authorized to engage any Shivan ship that stands in the way of your mission objectives. Attempts to establish communication with the Shivans have failed. Intelligence will continue its attempts to learn about this new adversary. Shivan Technology What little information has been learned about Shivan technology concerns their fighter shielding system. This shield system makes them nearly impervious to our Ml-16 laser. R & D is currently modifying the Avenger Prototype Cannon to make it more useful against the shields. Additionally, our fighters cannot target their ships due to our lack of data regarding the Shivan electronics systems. Plans are currently underway to remedy this situation. Orders Terran Intelligence is working around the clock to give us more information. Until then, we have been ordered to move into the Beta Cygni system to monitor any activity. Briefing Due to increased encounters with Shivan forces, Terran Command has ordered the Galatea to the Beta Cygni system to monitor Shivan activity. The Galatea has taken a beating since her last repair, and there isn't time to follow the safest route. The Antares-Beta Cygni Jump Node lies in the center of a dense asteroid field, making it one the least used jump nodes in the galaxy. Standard procedure would have us circumvent this node completely, requiring two jumps. Now we have no choice. Weapons systems have taken damage from enemy bombers. The Galatea should be able to make it through the asteroid field, but Alpha wing will be deployed to destroy approaching asteroids. Alpha wing will fly point for the Galatea and destroy any asteroids that cross its flight path. Asteroids that are considered a threat to the Galatea will be marked with white targeting brackets. Destroy these asteroids first. Once the Galatea has jumped out, you are to report to the GTD Bastion, stationed at Antares. The Bastion will take you to Ikeya for your next mission. Your wing will rendezvous with the Galatea in Beta Cygni upon completion of that mission. In the event of enemy attack, you are to cover the Galatea's escape from the system at any cost. Preferred ship: Valkyrie Preferred laser: 2 Ml-16 Preferred missile: Fury Available ships: Apollo, Valkyrie Available lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor Available missiles: Mx-50, Fury Objectives Primary Objectives *Escort Galatea to the Jump Node Secondary Objectives *Ensure Galatea hull remains above 50 Directives Destroy asteroids Protect Galatea from Shivans Strategy This is a very easy mission. Fly around destroying the asteroids with white targeting brackets around them. Your Mx-50s are useless in this mission because the missiles don't home in on the asteroids. That is why you should have Fury as your secondary weapon. Near the end of the mission, two Shivan bombers (Shaitan) will attack. Alpha two will engage them so keep destroying asteroids. Once the Galatea has reached the jump node, it will jump out. Make sure that you are not in front of the Galatea when she jumps out, though, or you will be killed in the collision. If you think that your job of destroying asteroids is not important, order Alpha 2 to depart and don't do anything. Watch the Galatea's hull integrity meter rapidly flow down towards zero. Debriefing Welcome to the GTD Bastion. We just received a transmission from the Galatea. She's doing fine and the bridge thanks you for the skillful escort through the field. You will rendezvous with her in the Beta Cygni system soon. We are currently under way to the Ikeya system for your next mission. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Pandora's Box Difficulty Rating: 3 of 10 Briefing Welcome to the GTD Bastion. The Bastion is on a special ops mission to investigate and acquire Shivan technology. This includes weaponry, shielding, and stealth technology. Intelligence has determined that at least one point of entry into our space lies in the Ikeya system. At least five cargo depots of unknown origin have been located in Ikeya. These cargo formations are different than any Vasudan or Terran formation, and are believed to belong to the Shivans. Reconnaissance indicates that the depot is protected by six sentry guns on the outer edges. This depot provides a prime opportunity to gather more information about the Shivans. Their offensive activity in this system is at a minimum and we do not believe they will make a serious attempt to defend this depot. Long range scanners indicate that some of these cargo containers contain unusual electronics. They appear similar to those used to give the Shivans their shielding technology. A short range scan of these containers is the primary objective in this operation. Further reconnaissance indicates another container group may contain parts for a Shivan sensor array. A short range scan of this group should provide crucial data needed to adjust ship sensors to attain radar lock on Shivan fighters. Scanning these containers is your secondary objective. You will jump in approximately six kilometers from the cargo depot. Proceed to the cargo depot quickly, and eliminate all sentry guns. This will enable our freighters to collect the cargo after you have scanned it. Preferred ship: Valkyrie Preferred laser: 2 Ml-16 Preferred missile: Mx-50 Available ships: Apollo, Valkyrie Available laser: Ml-16, Disruptor Available missile: Mx-50, Fury Objectives Primary Objectives *Destroy All Sentry Guns *Investigate Any Remaining Cargo Secondary Objectives *Use Your Sensors to Scan the Shivan Cargo Containers Directives Inspect all cargo Destroy Sentries Investigate remaining cargo Jump back to base Strategy When you enter the mission, your wingmen and Command will chat. Head toward the cargo depot. A Dragon-class fighter will jump in and quickly jump out. Continue toward the depot. Another Dragon will enter and exit quickly. When you get reasonably close to the cargo, some of the cargo containers will begin to explode. When they are all done, there will only be six left when there was 36 to begin with. This will trigger the arrival of three wings of Shivans (2 Manticore and 1 Scorpion) and the Taranis cruiser. The Taranis is invulnerable. You can't kill it. I have hit it with twenty Shivan Super Lasers and it didn't die. You waste your time attacking it and it has one wing of Manticores guarding it. Command will order you to scan the remaining cargo. Scan the remaining cargo. 2 will have nothing and 4 will have Sensor Arrays. Then you may proceed to jump out. I have noticed that after doing this mission correctly, I didn't get the normal recommendation. If anybody can get the normal recommendation, please e-mail me and tell me how. See the top for my address. Debriefing It is fortunate that you were able to escape the Shivan trap. Your persistence in obtaining the data we needed is commendable. While you were unable to gather the shield data, another of our Ikeya task forces was successful in acquiring it. The data you did gather about Shivan sensor technology will be vital in combating the Shivan forces. Our technicians now believe they will be able to implement a targeting solution for Shivan ships. Good work, pilot. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** The Hammer and the Anvil Difficulty Rating: 5 of 10 Command Briefing Cease Fire The GTA has signed a cease-fire and non-aggression pact with the Vasudans. Command has already expressed great relief, largely due to the huge drain on military and economic resources the war has caused in the past few years. The end of a 14-year war should bring peace. Unfortunately there is no time to breathe easy. After the 3rd fleet lost the GTD Amadeus in the Vega system, the GTA and the Parliament of Vasuda have both declared open states of war against the Shivan forces. Vasudan Dissent Unfortunately, not all Vasudan forces have agreed to the cease-fire. Reports of attacks by a rogue group of Vasudans calling themselves the "Hammer of Light" Hammer of Light (HOL) appears to be willfully aiding the Shivan cause, citing some Vasudan legend of an all-powerful race. If you encounter any HOL forces, you are to treat them as hostile and are to use any force necessary to neutralize them. New Technology: Shivan Tracking With the vital data gathered by the Galatea at the Ikeya depot, our technicians now know enough about Shivan technology to successfully target their ships. You should also be able to track them on radar. New Technology: Avenger Cannon The Avenger Cannon is now being loaded on every Terran and Vasudan ship in the galaxy. You will find these cannons far more effective against the Shivan shields. New Technology: Shield System A strike squad sent from the 5th fleet into the Ikeya system was able to recover some Shivan prototypes. Fully functioning versions of this technology are being developed for use on GTA fighters. The shields themselves are being transferred through the Beta Cygni system to the Ribos system. This shipment must arrive in Ribos. Report to mission briefing in 30 minutes. Briefing At roughly 1400 hours a large convoy carrying one of our newly developed shield prototypes was deployed. It was expected that the Shivans would attack the convoy. The Shivans destroyed the convoy. What the Shivans do not know is that the convoy was a decoy. There were a total of 4 working prototypes, only one of which was destroyed. You are to take two wings of fighters to escort the three remaining shield prototypes. The Shivans should just think you are just another shipment headed for Beta Cygni. This is not the direct route to Earth, which should divert the Shivans from our true intent. You are to accompany the freighters until the Vasudans arrive to escort them on the second leg. Do not leave the freighters until they have jumped to the Beta Cygni system. The Shivans have hit everything sent from this installation. Expect resistance. Many pilots lost their lives today that the chances for success on this mission would be greater. You will succeed. Dismissed. Preferred Ship: Valkyrie Preferred Laser: 2 Avenger Preferred Missile: Mx-50 Available Ships: Apollo, Valkyrie Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger Available Missiles: Mx-50, Fury Objectives Primary Objectives *Escort shield prototypes Bonus Objectives *Escort all prototypes to jump node Directives Destroy Arjuna Destroy Krishna Destroy Rama Destroy Durga Return to Base Strategy Let me tell you now, this is a hard mission. First all will be quiet. Then two wings of two Basilisks (Arjuna wing) will jump in. After that the Andromeda, Omega 1-3, and Rho will jump in. The Andromeda will call for assistance as Hammer of Light forces have already damaged it down to the mid thirties. Order Rho to protect Cargo Gamma and ignore the Andromeda's pleas. If you save it you do not receive anything, and it is extremely tough to do anyway. Just let the two wings of Hammer of Light ships toy around with it and then they won't hurt you. Quite soon after the Andromeda is attacked, Krishna wing will arrive. It will attack the cargo. Destroy them quickly. Next will be Rama wing. Destroy them quickly also. Lastly will be in succession two wings of Basilisks. After you dispatch them your Vasudan reinforcements will arrive. They will chat but don't waste time. Target one of the Seth fighters and shoot it. Trust me. Target the other Seth and shoot it too. Ignore Command yelling at you. Shoot the Anubis's if you have time. Omicron 1 will jump in and tell you that the reinforcements are really the Hammer of Light. That is why you should have shot the reinforcements. They will be easy to kill now. After you destroy the Hammer of Light ships stay by the cargo and wait until they reach the jump node and jump out. Then proceed to do the same. Debriefing You did a superb job defending the shield prototypes. You were able to save all three, which not only gives us the technology, but will help expedite its mass production. Your performance will go down in the books as a standard for future pilots to follow. Simply outstanding, pilot! *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Advanced Training #2 Difficulty Rating: 1 of 10 Briefing Welcome to advanced training As you know, research has been completed on the new shielding technology. Shields are being added to all fighters and bombers. In this training mission, you will be instructed on the use of your shield system. In addition to the shield technology, the new Interceptor Aspect Seeking Missile is now available. They are more powerful than the Mx- 50s but they require a lock before they may be fired. You will learn how to properly use the Interceptor in this mission. The shield is an important addition to your ship. And the Interceptors are a formidable addition to your arsenal. You must learn how to use them well. Preferred Ship: Apollo Preferred Laser: 2 Ml-16 Preferred Missile: 2 Interceptors Available Ships: Apollo Available Lasers: Ml-16 Available Missiles: Interceptor Directives Target freighter 1 Fire Interceptor Fire Interceptor Target Weapons subsystem Destroy Weapons Destroy Freighter 1 Destroy Drones Destroy DroneB Fighters Balance Shields Maximize front quadrant Maximize rear quadrant Strategy Just do what the instructor tells you. You will pass it with no trouble. Don't you love those Interceptors? *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** The Darkness and the Light Difficulty Rating: 4 of 10 Briefing The radical splinter group known as the Hammer of Light has been conducting many suprise attacks on convoys throughout Beta Cygni. These attacks must be stopped. The Hammer of Light presence is to be eliminated from this system once and for all. A Hammer of Light cargo depot which is believed to be the primary supply center for all Hammer of Light activities in this system has been located. This depot is guarded by a wing of Seth class fighters as well as an Aten class cruiser, the Ramses. The Hammer of Light does not have shielding technology, so this operation should be simple. Your primary objective is to capture the Aten cruiser Ramses. You are to disable and disarm it with Disruptor cannons, then protect the Omega transports while they capture it. Do not destroy the Ramses. The crew will be interrogated to learn more about the Hammer of Light. Once the Ramses has been disabled and disarmed, destroy all cargo in the area. The Hammer of Light can not be permitted to resupply. The containers store Vasudan supplies useless to the GTA. You are to lead Alpha wing on this operation. Your ships are equipped with our new shielding system. In case of any unforeseen problems, await further orders from Command. Preferred Ship: Valkyrie Preferred Laser: 2 Avenger Preferred Missiles: Mx-50 Available Ships: Apollo, Valkyrie Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger Available Missiles: Mx-50, Interceptor Objectives Primary Objectives *Capture the Ramses Secondary Objectives *Destroy Cargo Depot Bonus Objectives *Destroy any freighters Directives Capture Ramses Destroy Cargo Destroy Aires Destroy Virgo Strategy Once you arrive, order your wingmen to ignore the Ramses. Go destroy one of the Satis freighters to complete your bonus objective. Then destroy all the cargo, one by one. Forget about the Ramses. Soon you will see why. By the time you destroy the cargo, unless you are a speed demon, the Taranis should have jumped in. Order your wingmen to depart. You now have a choice to make, you can either jump out now, or choose to destroy the Shivan fighters and bombers. The Shivan fighters and bombers are no real threat so if your hull integrity isn't very low engage the fighters. If you see that the Ramses is down to about 4% hull or around there, proceed to kill it yourself. Your resume looks better with a kill of an Aten on it. Debriefing Unfortunately, the Taranis has been interfering with all operations in the Beta Cygni system. The destruction of the Ramses, while unfortunate, was not your fault. It is good that you destroyed the cargo before the Shivans could capture it. The destruction of the escaping freighters is important. The Hammer of Light will have a difficult time starting up their Beta Cygni operations again without supplies. It is disturbing that the Hammer of Light fighters have shield technology after all. It seems this rebellion is far greater in scope than we had initially hoped. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** First Strike Difficulty Rating: 6 of 10 Command Briefing The Taranis Initial attacks have gone off without a hitch, and the Taranis is on her last leg. Delta and Epsilon wings have destroyed most of the Taranis' fighter escort. It is time to finish the job. To this end, Terran Command has sent a full wing of Athena bombers, equipped with the newly developed Stiletto Bomb. New Technology: Athena Bomber The Athena is our most maneuverable bomber. It carries a massive payload, yet, in dogfights, is nearly as effective as a fighter. New Technology: Stiletto Space Bomb The Stiletto bomb has now been thoroughly tested back in Sol and is ready for use. It can be used to destroy subsystems on any ship and should prove more effective than the Disruptor cannon. The electronics seeking device should make it simple to use. Just point and shoot. Stiletto homing capabilities are limited, so make sure you get a clean shot before you launch. The Stiletto should be especially useful in destroying the Taranis' engines and weapons subsystems. All Athena bombers will be equipped with Stilettos and will be piloted by Alpha wing. Briefing The Cain-class cruiser Taranis has been chased from the Beta Cygni system back to the Ikeya system. It is low on supplies, and, due to recent engagements, is lightly guarded. Long range sensors indicated that only two fighters and three bombers remain to protect the Taranis. The Taranis is heading to the Beta Cygni subspace node, where it will probably resupply. This will allow for a small window of opportunity in which to conduct a strike. Your primary objective is to disable and disarm the Taranis in order to enable its capture. This will be our first attempt to capture a major Shivan vessel. Three wings will be assigned to this task. Alpha wing will be flying Athena bombers. These bombers just arrived on the Galatea and are equipped with the new Stiletto bomb. The Stiletto is capable of destroying subsystems in one hit. Alpha's primary responsibility will be to disarm and disable the Taranis. Beta wing is assigned to escort Alpha and protect it from fighter attacks. Beta will fly Apollo-class fighters. Gamma will fly Valkyries and should engage any hostile fighters and bombers in the area. If needed elsewhere, they can be assigned to any task that you see fit. Once the Taranis has been disarmed and disabled, Omega transports will arrive and capture it. When the Taranis has been captured, you are to return to the Galatea for debriefing. Do not allow the Taranis to escape or be destroyed. Good luck. Preferred Ship: Athena Preferred Laser: 2 Avenger Preferred Missile: Stiletto, Fury Available Ships: Apollo, Valkyrie, Athena Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger Available Missiles: Mx-50, Fury, Stiletto Objectives Primary Objectives *Capture the Taranis Secondary Objectives *Disable the Taranis *Disarm the Taranis Directives Disable the Taranis Destroy Indra Disarm the Taranis Destroy Arjuna Destroy Krishna Oversee Capture of Taranis Destroy Rama Destroy Vishnu Return to Base Strategy Order your wingmen to ignore the Taranis. They will engage all the fighters and bombers button your way to the Taranis you might want to throw a missile or two at one of them. Switch your secondary weapon to Stiletto with /. Target the Taranis's engines and take them out with the Stilettos. Then take out the turrets using your Stilettos. You target turrets and missile launchers using {k}. Then Omega 1 and 2 will jump in. Omega 1 will dock with the Taranis but say the attachment was unsuccessful. Then Omega 2 will dock and try to penetrate the hull. After a short time Omega 2 will give up. After that the Halkins will jump in and dock with the Taranis. The Halkins will ask for time to brace the attachment and then head to the jump node. All this while you are fighting 4 Rama Basilisks and 2 Vishnu Scorpions throughout the mission. After the Halkins has departed with the Taranis, return to base. Debriefing Congratulations, Alpha 1. You were instrumental in the first capture of a major Shivan vessel! The Halkins is taking her to the Tombaugh station, where engineers will be able to study their technology and learn more about their methods and motives. Meanwhile, feel free to relax for a few days. You deserve it. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** And so begins the Lucifer saga... (dum, dum, dum) Aftermath Difficulty Rating: 3 of 10 Command Briefing Tombaugh Station Attack We've just received some discouraging news from Terran Command, pilots. At 0300 today, after the captured Taranis was towed to Tombaugh installation in the Ribos system, the Shivans staged a major ambush. There isn't a lot of confirmation from the footage yet, but its clear that a Shivan destroyer of massive proportions jumped in and destroyed Tombaugh Station, along with all its defenses. We have designated this new class of Destroyer "Lucifer". (Dum, dum, dum) Debris from the station is still falling from orbit on Ribos 4. The Lucifer Terran and Vasudan cruisers engaged the Lucifer but were wiped out quickly. Footage suggests that the Lucifer was using a new type of shield impervious to any of our attacks. Needless to say, this is grim news. If the Shivan have managed to shield a vessel of that magnitude, it's merely a matter of time before they wipe out all front line installations and march through to our home systems. System Status At this point, the Shivans have control of Beta Cygni, Betelgeuse, Ross 128, Ikeya, and Regulus. Most of the Vasudan forces are gathering in Vega for a counterstrike, while we are gathering our fleet in Antares for an effort to retake Ribos and Beta Cygni. Oddly enough, the Shivans don't seem to be interested in taking control of any planets in the systems, or collecting natural resources. Instead, they seem to be focused on controlling individual jump nodes. New Technology: Flail Cannon Research and development teams at Sol have recently completed development on a few new weapons. A group of Terran scientists has returned from a previously unexplored system known as Laramis, and bring with them a new weapon called the Flail. The Flail is quite different from our typical energy cannons. Please consult the weapons database in the Tech Room for more details. New Technology: Interceptor Missile Our communications with Vasudan technicians have yielded the Interceptor missile. By combining the Vasudan-designed engine with a Terran warhead, we were able to produce the most powerful anti-fighter weapon yet. It's an aspect-seeking missile, and requires a few seconds to lock on to the enemy's engine signature, but its speed and accuracy make it lethal. Use it well. Briefing The survivors of the Tombaugh attack must be evacuated from the Ribos system immediately. We do not have sufficient firepower to retake Ribos at this time. Your wing's objective will be to escort the Iota transports. Other wings will be accompanying this convoy. Alpha wing will be in charge of this operation and will have command authority. The convoy must reach the designated check point. Escort from this point onward will be provided by allied Vasudan forces, led by the PVD Pinnacle. Hostile forces have been spotted all over this system, and there is a good chance that our convoy will be attacked by Shivan forces. All hostile forces should be eliminated. The PVD Pinnacle will be arriving at the designated check point. This Typhon class Destroyer has one of the most skilled crews in the PVE. It will escort the refugees for the remainder of the journey. Help the Pinnacle until it has dismissed you, then return to base. Many lives depend on this mission. Good luck. Preferred Ship: Valkyrie Preferred Laser: 2 Avenger Preferred Missile: Interceptor (Yeah!) Available Ships: Apollo, Valkyrie, Athena Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail Available Missiles: Mx-50, Fury, Stiletto, Interceptor Objectives Primary Objectives *Escort Iota to Meet with the Pinnacle Secondary Objectives *Destroy All Remaining Fighters Directives Escort Iota Destroy Vishnu Destroy Indra Destroy Krishna Destroy Arjuna Destroy Rama Destroy Bheema Destroy Asura Strategy You will like the Interceptor a lot, I guarantee it. At first your wingmen will chat. Around 1:30 into the mission the GTFR Nelson will startle you and jump in. Quickly press {c} then {1} then {Page Down} then {5} then {3}. This will order the Nelson to depart, in turn allowing you to destroy Vishnu wing who would have jumped out after quickly destroying the Nelson. After that many wings of Shivan fighters and bombers will jump in and attack. There will be lots of them so just pick them off, one by one, going after the bombers first. Before you know it, you'll be done or the Pinnacle will jump in. If there are any leftover Shivans when the Pinnacle jumps in, they will jump out and make you fail some directives. Once the Pinnacle has arrived, two wings of Basilisks will attack. They are easy, just kill them and jump out. Debriefing Great job, Alpha 1. You managed to save all three of the Iota transports from the Shivan attacks. We were told by the crew of the Pinnacle to congratulate you on a job well done. The civilians on those transports owe you their lives as well. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** The Big Bang Difficulty Rating: 5 of 10 Briefing Red alert! The GTS Asimov and the GTC Ravage are under attack in the Antares system. The GTS Asimov was working on project Tsunami, which involves hyperactive substances. These substances are extremely volatile. If the Asimov is destroyed, the reagents are likely to reach critical mass. Analysis predicts a shockwave of up to five kilometers in radius. The station is in bad shape. We need to clear the area, then transport the scientist out of there. When the area is secure, the GTT Spomer will jump in and retrieve the scientists. After they have been safely evacuated, return to base. We have five ships in the hangar. We have no time to get them fully loaded out. Suit up! You're launching in two minutes. Preferred Ship: Apollo Preferred Laser: Avenger, Ml-16 Preferred Missile: Mx-50 Available Ships: Apollo Available Lasers: Avenger, Ml-16 Available Missiles: Mx-50 Objectives Primary Objectives *Protect GTS Asimov Secondary Objectives *Protect GTC Ravage Directives Destroy Rama Destroy Indra Destroy Vishnu Destroy Krishna Destroy Bheema Strategy There will be a lot of Shivans in the area when you arrive. Kill Indra wing first and then any Scorpions that are still left. Pay special attention to any bombers that arrive. Destroy them first. When the area is clear of Rama, Indra, and Vishnu wings, the GTT Spomer will jump in and dock with the Asimov. Then it will depart. Then you should kill any leftover fighters and leave. Debriefing Great job, pilot. You managed to protect the Asimov. All the data for project Tsunami has been secured, and it should be completed within days. The crew of the GTC Ravage thanks you for saving their lives. The Shivans will find their assault on Antares far more difficult with the Ravage on board. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** La Ruota Della Fortuna Difficulty Rating: 4 of 10 Command Briefing Our Mission The Hammer of Light has decimated the Vasudan fleet at Vega. Most of the surviving Vasudan forces have retreated to Deneb and Antares. Because our fleet is also holding Antares, relations between the VPE and the GTA have been strained. In order to quell the tension, we have been ordered to eliminate all Hammer of Light outposts in the vicinity. Fortunately, we have some new tools to assist us. New Technology: Phoenix V Missile Our first new weapon is the Phoenix V anti-bomber warhead. This missile can puncture the thickest of shields, and can also be used against larger targets, like freighters. More details are available in the Tech Room. New Technology: Medusa Bomber We have also acquired a wing of the new Medusa bombers. Though they are slower and less maneuverable than the Athena, they are far more powerful. Once again, details can be found in the Tech Room. New Technology: Tsunami Space Bomb The new Tsunami bomb is the ultimate anti-cruiser weapon, and can be carried by the Medusas. Just a few of these will take out any cruiser, and the Hammer of Light Aten-class cruisers are no exception. You'll be using this bomb quite often against major Hammer of Light outposts. Briefing Here in the Antares system we have detected a small HOL base of operations. Your squadron is being sent to eliminate it. You will destroy all Hammer of Light ships, then jump back to the Galatea. The Galatea will be monitoring you in case the situation gets out of hand. Good luck. Preferred Ship: Valkyrie Preferred Laser: 2 Avenger Preferred Missile: Interceptor Available Ships: Apollo, Valkyrie, Athena, Medusa Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail Available Missiles: Mx-50, Fury, Stiletto, Interceptor, Phoenix V, Tsunami Objectives Primary Objectives *Eliminate Hammer of Light presence in Beta Aquilae (Where did Beta Aquilae come from?) *Destroy All Shivans in Area Secondary Objectives *Ensure Galatea Hull Greater Than 50 Directives Destroy Durga Destroy Indra Destroy Asura Destroy Vishnu Destroy Krishna Destroy the Hellions Destroy Arjuna Destroy Rama Strategy When you arrive, the Hammer outpost will be gone and some damaged Shivans will be around. Destroy them quickly and wait for the Galatea's assistance. Once the Galatea arrives, Hellions 1 and 2 will arrive. Order all fighters to attack Hellions 1 while you destroy any fighters or bombers. Once Hellions 1 is down, order your wingmen to destroy Hellions 2. You should still be attacking all fighters that threaten the Galatea. Once the area is clear and the Galatea has left, jump out. Debriefing We are pleased that you were able to suppress the Shivan influence in the Beta Aquilae system. Their arrival was unexpected, and battling the Shivans always takes a heavy toll on our forces. Fortunately, we can take some bitter comfort in the fact that they "helped" us eliminate the Hammer of Light presence in Beta Aquilae. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Where Eagles Dare Difficulty Rating: 2 of 10 Briefing In this mission we will be assaulting a secondary supply and rearming facility under Hammer of Light control. It is located in an asteroid belt in the Antares system. Intelligence indicates the main defenses will be two sentry guns and one wing of Vasudan fighters. Recently, the transfer of cargo in this area has increased dramatically. It appears to be coming from the Ribos system. This jump node to the Ribos system is approximately ten kilometers away. It will be the only means of escape. All of the Gemini transports must be destroyed before they reach the subspace node. A wing to GTA freighters will jump in to recover remaining cargo. Keep the area secure until they are finished. Good luck. Preferred Ship: Athena Preferred Laser: 2 Avenger Preferred Missile: Interceptor, Stiletto Available Ships: Apollo, Valkyrie, Athena, Medusa Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail Available Missiles: Mx-50, Fury, Stiletto, Interceptor, Tsunami Objectives Primary Objectives *Clear the Area of all Hostile Ships Secondary Objectives *Destroy Gemini Transports Directives Destroy Gemini Destroy Virgo Destroy Cancer Destroy Aires Strategy When you arrive, there will be two wings of three Seth fighters. Destroy them. Then take out the Gemini transports. After you have done that go to the jump node and destroy the sentry gun and the six Anubis fighters that should have arrived by now. Once the sentry is down, your freighters will arrive to take the cargo. Taurus wing will have arrived by now so just destroy them. Once the area is secured, return to base. Debriefing Excellent work. The area has been secured and no Hammer of Light ships escaped. Your persistence in accomplishing your objectives is to be commended. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Tenderizer With Cheats: 0 of 10 Without Cheats: 7 of 10 In this mission it is okay to use cheats. I suggest you look at the cheats section before you play this mission. It will help you in the next mission. Command Briefing The Tombaugh Attack Terran Intelligence has spent the last two weeks analyzing flight data from the Tombaugh station attack. The data on the Shivan Lucifer has been given special attention. Intelligence believes the Shivans were tracking the captured Taranis cruiser through subspace to the station. The Lucifer Intelligence doesn't know how the Shivans tracked the Taranis escort, but they've got a team of engineers trying to figure it out. They are also analyzing the shield system on the Lucifer. Unlike the shields on Shivan fighters and bombers, this shield appears impervious, not merely resistant, to all of our weapons. The Shivan Attack Plan With the loss of Tombaugh station, the Shivans have gained control of the Ribos subspace node. That leaves now only two subspace jumps between the Lucifer and the Vasudan homeworld. We must defend Vasuda Prime. Not only is it the humane thing to do, but it's in our own interests as well. If the Shivans gain control of that system, it will be a short walk to Earth, itself. The Location of Sol While their proximity to Earth is cause for concern, we have no reason to believe that the Shivans know the location of our homeworld. There are dozens of star systems of the Ribos subspace node and the Shivans will likely have to examine them all. It is obvious, however, that they are narrowing it down, and we can't afford to give up one more inch. Our Orders The Lucifer-class Destroyer was last sighted in the Ribos system, leading us to believe that Antares is the focal point for the next Shivan offensive. We're going to move the Galatea and its fleet to the Beta Aquilae system, in case the Shivans decide to attack Vasuda Prime through there. Command is sending another Orion-class destroyer the GTD Bastion, to the Antares system to help us with the blockade. But for now we're the only defense. New Technologies: Hercules Fighter and Synaptic Cluster Bomb I am pleased to announce that we have two new weapons to use against the Shivans, the Hercules Heavy Assault Fighter, and the Synaptic Cluster Bomb. You may study these in the Tech Room. They will prove very useful. Report in twenty minutes for your mission briefings. Briefing In order to protect Vasuda Prime, the GTD Galatea will be moving from Antares to Beta Aquilae. Alpha and Beta will provide support. The sentry guns surrounding the jump node were severely damaged in the recent Hammer of Light attack. Alpha wing will inspect sentry guns to determine if they are salvageable. Beta wing will provide cover. The Galatea will jump into Antares, reset its coordinates, then jump to Beta Aquilae. Lately, the Hammer of Light has been attacking all ships passing through the jump node. It is your responsibility to destroy all enemy ships that you encounter. After the Galatea jumps to Beta Aquilae, you will be contacted by the Detiula Installation in the Antares system. There you will receive your briefing and move on to your next mission. Intelligence has specifically requested you and your wing for these missions. Good luck, pilot. Preferred Ship: Valkyrie Preferred Laser: 2 Ml-16 for cheats, 2 Avenger for no cheats Preferred Missile: Mx-50 for cheats, Interceptor for no cheats Available Ships: Apollo, Valkyrie, Athena, Medusa, Hercules Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail Available Missiles: Mx-50, Fury, Stiletto, Interceptor, Tsunami, Synaptic Objectives Primary Objectives *Protect the Galatea until it jumps Secondary Objectives *Inspect the sentry guns Directives Inspect the sentry guns Destroy Aires Destroy Leo Destroy Libra Destroy Gemini Guard the Galatea Destroy Scorpio Destroy Virgo Destroy Cancer Destroy Taurus Destroy Mauler Strategy for Cheaters (Winners) As soon as you jump in, type "www.volition-inc.com". Then use ~ + I. If you haven't already done so, use ~ + w. Next target Alpha 2 and hit ~ + {Shift} + I. Do this with Alpha 3 and Beta wing. Next hit ~ + Shift + 0. Your primary weapon slot 1 should now be Shivan Super Laser. If not, then you forgot Shift or you didn't start with Ml-16. Repeat this with your other Ml-16 selected. Now, if not already accomplished by your wingmen, scan the sentries. Use ~ + k while they are targeted to kill them. Quickly use ~ + 9 repeatedly until your secondary weapon is Hornet. Use ~ + I + Shift to make the Galatea invincible. Now kill all the fighters. When you start the next mission, you will have the weapons you switched to in this mission. Cool! Strategy for No Cheats (Losers) Scan sentry gun. Kill sentry guns. Kill all fighters. Continue to kill all fighters when the HOL attack wing jumps in. Once the Rammer jumps in, order your wingmen to kill it while you watch. Conserve your weapons. Don't lose wingmen. Your wingmen's hull, your hull, and your secondary weapon stock will transfer to the next mission. Uncool. No debriefing *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Shell Game Difficulty Rating if you used cheats in the last mission: 3 of 10 Difficulty Rating if you didn't use cheats in the last mission: 8 of 10 Briefing We have reason to believe that the Shivan Destroyer Eva is in the Antares system near the Antares-Vega jump node. You will jump to this subspace node and investigate. Destroy any hostiles. Further orders will be given to you in mission. Delta wing will be flying Medusa bombers and will assist you. If you need further assistance, call in Epsilon. Galactic Terran Intelligence out. Note: The ship, number of weapons, and hull integrity that you had when you exited the last mission will be the same in the beginning of this mission. Objectives Primary Objectives *Destroy Shivan Transports *Protect the Shivan Cargo Secondary Objectives *Destroy the Shivan freighters Directives Destroy Freighters Destroy Transports Destroy Rama Destroy Krishna Destroy Arjuna Destroy Bheema Identify Cargo 4 Strategy for cheats in last mission (recommended) Use the Shivan Super Laser to kill the Transports. Then wait for the freighters to release their cargo and then destroy them. Kill all fighters and later watch the Dobbs and Stern blow up. Strategy if you didn't use cheats in the last mission (not recommended) Call in Epsilon wing fast. Order each wing to destroy one of the freighters, then pick one of the freighters and blow it up. Ignore any fighters until all freighters and transports are dead. Continue to kill freighters until they are all dead and then quickly take out the transports. Then proceed to kill all fighters. You will most likely have to try this one over many times before successfully completing the mission. When you do, stay tense, the hardest and most annoying mission of the game is only one mission away (yay)! Debriefing We have recovered two of the abandoned cargo containers. Intelligence believes analysis will prove useful so the Stern and Dobbs won't have been lost in vain. It took great skill to destroy the freighters while preserving the cargo. Well done, pilot. That you were also able to destroy all Shivan transports is impressive. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Enter the Dragon Difficulty Rating: 7 of 10 Command Briefing Our Orders We are under general quarters because a fighter patrol detected ships from the Lucifer fleet approaching Vasuda Prime. Somehow, the Shivans have circumvented our blockade at Antares, and now have control of the Deneb system. We are en-route to Deneb as we spead. ETA is thirty-five minutes, so when you leave here, report to your wing station for immediate mission briefings. The Lucifer itself is behind the vanguard force, so we can expect it to make an appearance at any time. New Technology: Ulysses Advanced Fighter The Terran-Vasudan Ulysses project has been completed, and the Galatea has received a full compliment of these fighters. It is the most maneuverable craft ever developed by the PVN or the GTA, and it should be extremely useful in the next series of sorties. It can also be equipped with the Prometheus cannon, the most powerful cannon weapon we've ever developed. Use them both well. Capturing a Shivan Fighter Intelligence has concocted a daring plan to enable us to learn more about the Shivans. We are going to attempt to capture a Shivan fighter. Suit up and report to mission stations immediately. Briefing The Shivans have established quite a base of operations in the Deneb system. They have multiple supply depots scattered across the system, as well as several repair centers for their damaged fighters. Each of their repair stations consists of a Cain-class cruiser and extra supplies. The Shakti is one such cruiser in the area. All fighters in the area around the Shakti badly damaged and in need of repair. This makes them easy targets. One of our objectives is to put this repair station out of commission. This will greatly reduce Shivan capacity in the Deneb system. One of the fighters being repaired by the Shakti is a Dragon-class fighter, designated "Arjuna 1." The Dragon is the Shivans' most maneuverable craft, and the most dangerous. Intelligence has requested tat we capture the Dragon for research purposes. Since the Arjuna 1 Dragon is very low on power, it is in a weakened state, and is the best candidate for this operation. You must disable Arjuna 1 by destroying its engine subsystem. Once Arjuna 1 has been disabled, the Charon will dock with it and jump back to the Galatea. We must capture Arjuna 1. We cannot allow it to be destroyed. To this end, we've equipped it with our advanced disruptor cannon. Use it to take out its engines. Since this station is so poorly defended, we are only sending Alpha and Beta to attack. Alpha will cover Beta until the Shakti has been destroyed. Then Alpha will attempt to disable Arjuna 1. If Alpha fails to disable Arjuna 1, Delta wing will be available. As Delta is currently guarding the Bastion, we will only send them if it is imperative. However, we believe you can do it without their help. Because we are custom outfitting your ship, you will not be able to customize your loadout. You have your orders. Dismissed. Available Ships: Ulysses Available Lasers: Prometheus, Advanced Disruptor Available Missiles: Interceptor Objectives Primary Objectives *Destroy the Cain cruiser Shakti *Disable and capture the Arjuna 1 fighter Bonus Objectives *Disable Arjuna without Delta's help Directives Destroy Shakti Disable Arjuna 1 Destroy Morkali Destroy Lorkonius Capture Arjuna Strategy Here goes. Attack the fighters but order your wingmen to ignore Arjuna 1 otherwise they will destroy it (smart wingmen). Destroy Morkali which is docked with Shakti, then kill sentries, cargo for fun, and join in against the Shakti. When the Lorkonius jumps in, order all wingmen to kill it. If you don't, you won't have time to kill it. It only stays for about 45 seconds. Then order everyone to ignore Arjuna 1 again and party on with the Shakti. Once the Shakti is dead, switch to Advanced Disruptor and disable Arjuna 1. It can't recharge its shields so once you hit the shields, the damage is permanently done. Be patient!!! Once it is disabled, wait until the Charon has departed. Then jump out. For fun, use the Advanced Disruptor on the fighter that is disabled at the beginning. Debriefing Great work, Alpha 1. We've destroyed a Shivan repair depot, and managed to get a hold of an intact Shivan fighter. Our technicians are currently working on reverse engineering it. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Playing Judas Difficulty Rating: 5 of 10 (an understatement) Let me tell you now, you will not enjoy this mission. You will be relieved to get it over with. Trust me. Do not get frustrated if you fail this mission ten times before completing it. It happened to me. Frustration is your worst enemy in this mission. Command Briefing Our Orders We have now entered the Deneb system. After your investigation of the Lucifer at Antares, Terran Command has deduced that the Shivans will be attempting a multiple pronged attack on Vasuda Prime coming from Deneb and Antares. The Intrepid and the Minnow will be in charge of protecting the Antares-Vasuda Prime node, while the Galatea and the Bastion will be guarding Deneb. The Shivan Attack We expect the main force of the Shivan attack will come through Antares, led by the Lucifer. A smaller force, led by the Demon-class Destroyer Eva, will come through Deneb. The Shivans already control the Vega-Deneb jump node, so our defense will have to be at the Deneb- Vasuda Prime Jump Node. Finding and destroying the Eva destroyer is our top priority. The Captured Shivan Dragon As you know, we captured a Shivan Dragon class fighter in Beta Aquilae. Our technicians have retro-fitted this alien fighter with Terran instrumentation and gotten it into working condition. However, there are a few flaws with our redesign. We could not get the Shivan weaponry to operate, so this fighter has been equipped with Terran weaponry. We also could properly operate the lateral thrusters or afterburners, so the ship's maneuverability is limited. We also have had some difficulty with the Shivan engine systems. In test runs, the Dragon broke down for short periods of time. We are looking into this problem as we speak. The capture of this Shivan fighter will bring great strides in fighter technology to the Alliance. Briefing In this mission we will be using the captured Shivan Dragon-class fighter on a scouting mission in the Deneb system. The Shivans seem to be bringing in a large number of vessels into the Deneb system through the Vega Jump Node. We believe this is in preparation for a preliminary assault on Vasuda Prime. Because the Shivans have tight control over the Vega-Deneb jump node, we cannot send in a Terran scout. By flying the Shivan Dragon, we believe you will be able to slip in undetected. There are four Shivan fighters in the area, maintaining tight patrol. If you come into close contact with these fighters, they will certainly scan your ship, detect your presence, and open fire. Avoid contact with any of the Arjuna fighters. Arjuna seems to be maintaining consistent patterns in their patrol. On arrival, observe their flight pattern and plan your course to avoid contact. In the event that you are engaged by Arjuna wing, return to base immediately. Your primary objective is to conduct a close scan of all ships that pass through the Vega-Deneb Jump Node. This includes warships, freighters, and transports. Try to determine the contents of any cargo in the area, as well. We have reason to believe that a Shivan Demon-class Destroyer, the Eva, will be passing through the area. If it does, it is imperative that you scan it. Remember that your fighter is only partially functional, (hint, hint) and it's flight systems will behave unpredictably. Be careful. Command out. Available Ship: Shivan Dragon Available Lasers: Avenger, Prometheus Available Missiles: Interceptor Objectives Primary Objectives *Scan all Destroyers and Cruisers Secondary Objectives *Scan all Freighters and Transports Bonus Objectives *Scan all Cargo Directives Inspect Cargo Scan Kali Scan Durga Scan Ratri Scan Genma Scan Eva Scan Lucifer Enter Docking Bay Return to Base Strategy O geez! Whatever you do, don't shoot anything. You may want to play this mission with cheats a few times to get the hang of it. Fly toward cargo 1 and 2. Scan them. Scan the Kali freighters that have by now warped in. Next quickly scan cargo 3 and 4. Bang! Bonus objective. More freighters. Scan them. A brief pause. Monitor Arjuna 1-3 to make sure you are far away. Last group of freighters. Scan them. More pause. Repeat monitoring Arjuna. Warp drives die. Eva jumps in. Scan it. Pause. Repeat monitoring Arjuna. Lucifer (hello!) jumps in. Scan it. Put your shield level up by pressing {Home} two times (hint, hint). Scroll through the Lucifer's subsystems until you see Fighterbay 1. Fly by it. Don't go in it. Rama will detect you. Fly around in random directions or attack the fighters until your jump drives have come back online. Jump out fast. If you ever want to play this mission again, when you scan Ratri wing, look at their engine subsystems. One of the engines should have 2100% integrity. Debriefing Pilot, you bring us terrible news. If both the Eva and the Lucifer are here in Deneb, it will be extremely difficult to stop the Shivan attack. Still, you did an excellent job scanning the Shivan warships. Well done. The fact that you were also able to scan the Shivan supply ships is truly outstanding. Your courage and piloting skills are to be commended. However, the news is bad. The Shivans have enough supplies in these ships to sustain a lengthy assault on Vasuda Prime. We believe their attack force will consist of at least eight full squadrons of fighters, both Genma cruisers, the Eva, and the Lucifer. Things do not look good. The cargo you identified contains parts for Shivan fighters. This leads us to believe that the Shivans will set up a base in the Deneb sector, near Vasuda Prime. This information will be invaluable in planning our counterstrike. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Evangelist Difficulty Rating with Cheats: 0 of 10 (it takes about 5 seconds, too) Difficulty Rating without Cheats: 6 of 10 Briefing The Eva has entered the Deneb system. She is fully armed and poised to attack the Deneb-Vasuda Prime Jump Node. She is protected by Arjuna and Krishna wings. Alpha wing will lead an attack squadron to destroy the Eva. Alpha wing will fly bombers. Gamma and Beta will cover them. We suggest you damage the weapons system on the Eva before you launch your Tsunami bombs. This will prevent the Eva from shooting them down. You may need to call in a support ship to rearm yourself. It is estimated that at least twenty Tsunami bombs will be needed to take the Eva down. Destroying the Eva is imperative. With the Lucifer in the system as well, we cannot tolerate the presence of another Shivan capital ship. Good luck. Preferred ship: Hercules Preferred laser: 2 Prometheus Preferred missile: 2 Interceptor Note: Make Gamma wing bombers equipped with Tsunami bombs. You'll understand why next mission. Available ships: Ulysses, Apollo, Valkyrie, Hercules, Athena, Medusa Available lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail, Prometheus Available missiles: Mx-50, Fury, Interceptor, Phoenix V, Synaptic, Stiletto, Tsunami Objectives Primary Objectives *Destroy the Eva Directives Destroy Eva Destroy Arjuna Destroy Krishna Standby Strategy for cheats This is easy. Enable cheats. Make all friendly targets invincible one by one (including yourself). Kill all fighters. Change your weapons to whatever you want them to be. Kill the Eva in whatever way pleases you (Shivan Super Laser, anyone???). Wasn't that fun. Yell at your Alpha wingmates for jumping out. Strategy for no cheats Destroy Arjuna first. Then take out Krishna. Then order everyone to disarm the Eva. They will inflict a great deal of damage while doing it. Kill the fighters that jump in and between breaks unload on the Eva. When the Eva gets below 20% hull integrity, call in a support ship. By that time you will probably gotten the hurry up call from the Galatea. Ignore it, you'll do fine. Once the Eva is dead, you will go the next mission. That is why I said to rearm yourself. No debriefing *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Doomsday Difficulty: 5 of 10 Briefing The Galatea is under fire from Shivan forces and looks sure to be lost. Long range sensors indicate at least four wings of bombers and interceptors. The Lucifer is also somewhere in the area. The Galatea must be protected until we can evacuate the personnel. The ship type, weapon type, hull integrity, and number of remaining weapons will be the same at the start of this mission as when you jumped out from last mission. Objectives Primary Objectives *Protect the GTD Galatea Secondary Objectives *Protect the escaping escape pods Directives Destroy Arjuna Destroy Indra Destroy Bheema Destroy Rama Destroy Asura Protect Escape Pods Evacuate Strategy This mission is pretty straight-forward. First destroy all the bombers and then the fighters. Keep doing so. Repeat. Before you know it the escape pods will be gone and the Lucifer will jump in. At this time, move to about 2,000 units away from the Galatea, and then wait. For all you pyromaniacs, enjoy the giant explosion of the Galatea (sigh). Debriefing The Galatea has been destroyed. Many lives, many friends are gone. Everyone in the Terran Alliance feels this loss deeply. Yet, greater is the tragedy of the Vasudans. There is nothing between the Shivan fleet and Vasuda Prime. Soon their homeworld will be gone. Our fighters fought bravely to preserve the Galatea, but there was nothing to be done. The Lucifer was too powerful. Many lives were saved by the Hermes escape pods. For that we are thankful. But we mourn the loss of Admiral Wolf. He was a great commander and he died with the ship he loved. All surviving pilots are reassigned to the GTD Bastion. Though we all lost friends on the Galatea, there is no time to mourn the dead. The fate of the Alliance is grim. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Exodus Difficulty Rating: 7 of 10 Command Briefing New Assignments This is Admiral Shima. I'll be delivering your command briefs while you are onboard the GTD Bastion. I extend a welcome to all pilots formerly stationed on the Galatea. I wish your reassignments could have come under better circumstances. The loss of the Galatea is a great blow to all of us. We've lost many friends and loved ones. We also lost many great pilots. We will need to double our efforts if we plan on stopping the Shivan fleet. Destruction of Vasuda Prime This brings me to the reason for this briefing. As some of you may have already heard, shortly after the destruction of the Galatea at nineteen-hundred last night, we received word that the Shivan Lucifer made the jump to Vasuda Prime. The Lucifer fleet bombarded Vasuda Prime from orbit for thirteen hours straight. Aftermath of Vasuda Attack Most escaping transport ships were destroyed. All major Vasudan cities were leveled, and most of the landmass was rendered uninhabitable. All of our attacks launched from the nearby installations were defeated. We have lost contact with all Terran ships in the area, but it appears that the Shivan fleet has now moved on. It's estimated that at least four billion innocent Vasudans lost their lives in the attack. Terran Command is preparing to help evacuate all survivors to other habitable worlds in the area. Our Orders What we need to concentrate on now is keeping the Lucifer fleet from making further moves toward Earth. We've been put on standby status and ordered to assist in all evacuation operations in Vasuda Prime and the surrounding systems. We've lost Deneb. Antares is virtually undefended. Vasuda is a contested system. New Technology: Banshee Laser The Banshee laser is now ready for deployment. We just received a partial shipment of them. The Banshee is specifically designed to take down Shivan shields. New Technology: Hornet Swarm Missile We have also received a full supply of Hornet Swarm Missiles. These are the best anti-fighter missiles in our arsenal, and we expect they will receive heavy use on the Bastion. Full details are available in the Tech Room. Briefing Pilot Attend: As you know, Vasuda Prime has been devastated. Our focus must now turn to the evacuation of the survivors. You are to take your wing to the subspace node cluster in the Alpha Centauri system. There are 3 subspace nodes in this sector. They lead to Vasuda, Aldebaran, and Sirius. Civilians will be transported from Vasuda to Aldebaran. Vasudan warships will travel to and from both the Sirius and Vasuda Jump points. Because of the strategic importance of this system, we expect the Shivans to try and secure it quickly. You will ensure the safe passage of all Allied vessels in the area. Additional orders will be sent to you as they arise. Preferred ship: Hercules Preferred laser: Prometheus, Banshee Preferred missile: Hornet, Interceptor Available ships: Ulysses, Apollo, Valkyrie, Hercules Available lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail, Prometheus, Banshee Available Missiles: Mx-50, Fury, Hornet, Interceptor, Phoenix V, Stiletto Objectives Primary Objectives *Protect Allied Ships *Secure Area until Relief Arrives Secondary Objectives *Protect the Mecross Bonus Objectives *Safely escort all ships Directives Escort Mu Escort Kappa Escort Theta Destroy Cruisers Protect Mecross Strategy Again, this is a very simple strategy. Stay with the ships you are supposed to escort, and then kill the Shivans when they jump in. First you will escort Kappa wing. Then you will escort another Kappa wing. Then Mu wing will jump in. The third Kappa wing will pass through the sector. Then you will escort Theta wing. Finally a break in routine. The Cain and the Abel will jump in (Cain and Lilith classes, in that order). Destroy them. Then the Mecross will jump in. When the Shivans attack, go for the Nephilim bombers first. I cannot emphasize this enough. If you kill the Basilisks first, then the Mecross will be toast and you will have wasted 15 minutes of your life. KILL THE NEPHILM BOMBERS FIRST. Get the point? Finally you will be done after about 20 minutes. That was the longest mission in the game. Debriefing You did an outstanding job in protecting the Vasudan transports. Through your actions we were able to save countless lives. You should feel proud of this accomplishment. You were also able to keep the area secured until we established a stronger foothold in the system. Well done. What we are most impressed with, however, is your protection of each and every ship. We did not lose a single freighter or transport, and the Mecross is safe from Shivan bombers. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Last Hope Difficulty Rating: 8 of 10 Briefing The PVD Hope is leaving the Antares system after an intense battle. It has sustained moderate damage and will be jumping to the Beta Aquilae system. We are sending two wings to help cover the Hope while it is being repaired. The Vasudans are sending their own fighters to stand guard over the Hope, but it will be some time before they arrive. The Hope should be in the system when you arrive. We do not believe the Shivans have enough forces in the system to mount a serious attack, but their strategies are difficult to predict. Preferred Ship: Hercules Preferred Laser: Prometheus, Banshee Preferred Missile: Interceptor, Phoenix V Available Ships: Ulysses, Apollo, Valkyrie, Hercules, Athena, Medusa Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail, Prometheus, Banshee Available Missiles: Mx-50, Fury, Hornet, Interceptor, Phoenix V, Synaptic, Tsunami Objectives Primary Objectives *Protect the Hope Directives Return to Base Strategy Don't be fooled by the number of directives in this mission, this is really tough. The strategy is very simple though. GO AFTER THE NEPHILM BOMBERS. OR GO AFTER THE SHAITANS IF THERE ARE NO NEPHILMS IN THE AREA. Got it? Okay. The Hope will jump in pretty soon after you jump in. It will be at 36% hull integrity. 3 Nephilm bombers will jump in at nearly the same time as the Hope. Then 5 Nephilm bombers will jump in to entertain you. 2 more will attack once the rest are down. Time for a change in pace. The Isis Repair should be here by now. 1 Dragon will jump in. Then 2 Shaitans accompanied by 2 Manticores will attack the Hope. Then the Lightning (Cain) will jump in. You will be suprised how quickly it goes down if you order everyone to attack it. Then the Thunder (Cain) will jump in with 2 Manticores as an escort. The Mecross will jump in to help you. 3 more Dragon class fighters will attack you now. 2 rounds of 4 Nephilm and 2 Scorpions will finally test you. Now the Vasudan reinforcements should arrive and you should be done. That was a little intense, wasn't it? Debriefing Well done, Pilot. This mission was quite a bit more intense than we had expected, thanks to the Shivans. Fortunately you were able to hang on until the Vasudan reinforcements arrived. Very impressive. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** A Failure to Communicate ********** Difficulty Rating: *10 of 10* (GEEZ!) ********** Difficulty Rating with cheap trick: 1 of 10 (GEEZ!) Briefing Red Alert! The Beta Aquilae installation is under attack. The Lucifer has been sighted in the area. Protect it at all costs. Additional orders will be given to you on site. Available Ship: Valkyrie Available Lasers: Prometheus, Avenger Available Missile: Phoenix V Objectives Primary Objectives *Protect Aquilae Installation *Defend Communications Station Bonus Objectives *Protect all four escape pods Directives Destroy Deva Destroy Karna Destroy Krishna Destroy Asura Destroy Rama Destroy Bheema Destroy Arjuna Strategy This mission is nearly impossible to complete unless you know exactly what to do. This strategy will be very detailed. As soon as you arrive, put drop your shields and weapons and put up your engine power to the max. Target the Lucifer and go toward it. Order your wingmen to attack it. Two Dragons, Deva wing will arrive from the Lucifer's fighter bay. Order all fighters to attack one of the Dragons, take out the other yourself. Use your Phoenix V missiles to do the job. When you have destroyed one of the Dragons, attack the other Dragon if it is not already dead. If any of the Escape Pods are destroyed, restart the mission. Head toward Escape 4 and order your wingmen to protect it. Pretty soon Karna wing will jump in. Order your wingmen to engage enemy while you help out. Once Karna is no more, head back to Escape 4. Krishna will be your next foe. Destroy them quickly. That was the hard part. Now quickly head toward the Communications Terminal. Order your wingmen to guard it. Asura and Rama will jump in and attack the Terminal. Destroy them quickly. Once they are down, order your wingmen to cover you. Keep attacking the waves as they come. Before you know it, the Hope will be in position to guard the Terminal. Mission complete! If you don't save all the escape pods, don't worry. I can't save them all on the medium difficulty. You don't get anything special for saving them all except a bonus objective. ************* *CHEAP TRICK* ************* Let one member of Krishna wing survive. Tell your wingmen to ignore it. The other wings will not arrive until all of Krishna is toast. Wait until the Hope reaches its waypoints and then kill it. Mission complete! Debriefing There was nothing you could do to preserve the Aquilae. There was too little time and the Lucifer is too powerful. Protecting all the escape pods is most impressive. The survivors thank you and hope we can avenge the destruction of the Aquilae. By protecting the Beta Aquilae Communications Terminal we are able to keep in contact with out forces in the outer systems. Losing the communications terminal would have been a severe blow. Well done pilot. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Reaching the Zenith Difficulty Rating with cheats: 0 of 10 Difficulty Rating without cheats: 7 1/2 of 10 Command Briefing State of the Alliance We have now lost vital ground to the Shivans in the Antares system and Sirius. The number of systems between the Shivans and Earth are dwindling fast. Fortunately, we were able to save the Beta Aquilae Communications Terminal. Aside from that single post, we have lost communications with every outer colony. Transmission from Altair The following transmission was picked up by the Terran Listening Outpost in the Beta Aquilae system. "We are a group of Vasudan refugees seeking the assistance of any Terran ships. We were onboard a Vasudan science outpost when it was destroyed by the Shivans. We managed to land on this uncharted planet when our escape pod lost power. It's uninhabited, but we uncovered the remains of an ancient civilization. They were neither Terran nor Vasudan nor Shivan. Our scanning equipment was able to locate a storage device of some sort. It was heavily protected, which suggests it stores something quite valuable, possibly information or technology. We are attempting to decipher the language of the device, but are fearful of Shivan attacks. I say this because it is immediately apparent that this planet was also destroyed by Shivan weapons. This is difficult to believe, considering the age of the remains, but the evidence is conclusive. What we ask is for rescue and escort away from this planet. Our scientists are not normally a superstitious group, but having one's homeworld destroyed tends to shake your beliefs. Please send an armed rescue as soon as possible to these coordinates." Our Orders Your next series of missions will require both massive firepower and intelligence. For this reason, I am assigning Alpha 1 to lead these missions. We will be attempting to rescue the Vasudan refugees from Altair. New Technology: Jump Drives This mission will be facilitated by the new subspace drive we have received. For years the GTA has tried to give a fighter the ability to do intersystem jumps. After monitoring the Beta Aquilae engagements, the GTA Science Colony at Sol has finally been able to solve the puzzle. All GTA fighters are currently being equipped with intersystem subspace drives. New Technology: Project Ursa Research and development have nearly completed Project Ursa, which should be our best bet at defeating the Shivan Lucifer Destroyer. For those of you who haven't been keeping up, Project Ursa is an attempt to make a new type of Heavy Bomber capable of carrying the Harbinger Bomb. We expect a wing of Ursas will be available to you on your return trip from Altair. New Technology: Harbinger Bomb The Harbinger will assist us greatly in any attacks against capital ships. Until recently, Harbingers were reserved for planetary attacks only. With this project nearing completion, we may be able to finally defeat the Lucifer. New Technology: Disruptor Missile You may or may not want to use the new Disruptor missile to assist you in the next few missions. It is the only missile in our arsenal which allows us to completely shut down a cruiser for a short amount of time. It's definitely worth a look, details are in the Tech Room. Briefing As you already know, the Shivans have begun a massive offensive. They have completely cut us off from all of the outer colonies, and have our forces confined to nine systems that form the heart of Terran space. However, in what used to be Vasudan space in Altair, a group of Vasudan refugees has apparently unearthed records from a long dead civilization. Terran Command believes the information in these records to be of great importance. We have located on potential weak point in the Shivan barrier encircling us. The Deneb jump node to the Altair system is being guarded by only one cruiser, the Zenith. The Zenith is currently on patrol with just two wings of Shivan fighters, the Arjuna interceptors, and the Rama superiority fighters. However, we believe they are able to call in reinforcements. Your primary objective will be to destroy the Zenith. Take out the Zenith's communications system first to prevent it from calling in reinforcements. If you're unable to do that, go after all weapons systems, including turrets and missile launchers. Alpha wing will provide cover for the bombers. Gamma wing will assist Alpha and attempt to take out the communications system on Zenith. Beta will be equipped with Tsunami bombs, and will be targeting suspected weak points on the Zenith's hull. After you have completed these tasks, stand by for further orders. Good luck, Alpha 1. Preferred Ship: Valkyrie Preferred Laser: Prometheus, Banshee Preferred Missile: Interceptor Available Ships: Ulysses, Apollo, Valkyrie, Hercules, Athena, Medusa Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail, Prometheus, Banshee Available Missiles: Mx-50, Fury, Disruptor, Hornet, Interceptor, Phoenix V, Synaptic, Stiletto, Tsunami Objectives Primary Objectives *Disarm the Cruiser Zenith Secondary Objectives *Destroy the Cruiser Zenith Bonus Objectives *Destroy the Benedict Directives Destroy Zenith Disarm Zenith Destroy Benedict Strategy for cheats Enable cheats. Make all friendly targets invincible. Give all ships unlimited weapons, kill Zenith, kill fighters, wait, kill Benedict. Strategy for no cheats Order all fighters to take out Zenith's communications system. You should engage any fighters around the Zenith. Once the Zenith's communications system is down, order your wingmen to disarm it. If they complete this task before they actually kill the Zenith then order them to kill the Zenith. All the time you should engage all Shivan fighters. There are about 3 or 4 waves of each wing of fighters. After that, the Benedict should have arrived. Order everyone to kill it. You should take out the fighters. See a pattern? The reason for this is that your wingmen can't dogfight to save their lives but hopefully you can by now. After the Benedict is down, you will download new orders. No debriefing for this mission. This document Copyright 2001 Chris Dodge. All rights reserved. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Running the Gauntlet Difficulty Rating: 8 1/2 of 10 Briefing As you already know, we are sending scientist to the Altair system to investigate records found on Altair 4. Command hopes they will aid us in our war with the Shivans. The Rosetta is currently carrying the scientists. It will rendezvous with the two transports, Omega 1 and Omega 2. All three ships should be arriving within a few minutes. Omega wing will dock with the Rosetta as soon as they arrive. Oversee this personnel transfer, then escort Omega 1 and Omega 2 to the Jump Node. The ship class, weapon type, hull integrity, and remaining weapons will be the same at the beginning of this mission as the end of last mission. Objectives Primary Objectives *Get at least one Omega to the Jump Node Secondary Objectives *Get both Omegas to the Jump Node Bonus Objectives *Protect the Rosetta until it departs Directives Oversee Omega 1 Docking Oversee Omega 2 Docking Escort Omega 1 to the Jump Node Escort Omega 2 to the Jump Node Strategy Let me tell you now, this mission is pretty tough. The Rosetta and Omega wing will jump in soon after you arrive. Then 4 Shaitans will jump in and attack the Rosetta and Omega wing. There are 5 waves of Shaitans so once you have destroyed the fifth head toward the jump node. Soon after the Omega 2 docking is done the Lucifer will jump in behind the Jump Node (suprise, suprise!). It will launch fighters at Omega wing. Easy. Take out the Basilisks first then take out any others. ALWAYS TAKE OUT THE BASILISKS FIRST! IF YOU DON'T YOU MAY BE PRONE TO LARGE AMOUNTS OF UNHEALTHY FRUSTRATION. SO KILL THE BASILISKS FIRST! If you lose one Omega during this stage restart the mission until you succeed. You can gain a lot of kills in this mission because the Lucifer will stay in the area and will continue to launch fighters at you after both Omegas have departed. Once you hull integrity is low, just jump out. This was the mission I earned my Triple Ace in. Debriefing You managed to get both transports to the Altair system. If the information on Altair 4 proves as valuable as the Vasudan refugees suspect, then the Terran and Vasudan people will owe you a great debt. The crew of the Rosetta sends their thanks. When the Lucifer jumped in, they all but gave up hope for survival. Your squadron was able to hold off the enemy and that is most impressive. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Black Omega Difficulty Rating: 6 of 10 Briefing We have successfully extracted the records from Altair 4. They have been partially deciphered and are being moved back to Terran Space. Omega transports will once again be handling the movement of the scientists and the records. Unfortunately, the Altair system is still controlled by Hammer of Light. One of their flagships, the Anvil, is stationed here, and has gotten word of our presence in this system. It is currently blocking the vector to the subspace node. The Anvil carries with it a powerful contingent of Vasudan fighters. Intelligence reports two squadrons: one of advanced Thoth space superiority fighters, and one of Horus Interceptors. These fighters have defended the Anvil well. Intelligence has also detected the presence of a third wing of Vasudan bombers in this system. They will undoubtedly attack our fleeing transports. Your strike force will once again consist of Alpha, Beta, and Gamma wings. Gamma will provide escort for Alpha while Alpha attacks the Anvil. Beta will ensure the safety of the transports and maintain our fighter superiority. The Anvil must be destroyed. We are equipping Alpha with Harbinger bombs. These bombs require exact placement and careful maneuvering, but will do massive damage to the Anvil. Beta and Gamma must ensure that the Harbingers reach their target. Our primary goal, however, is to ensure that Omega 1 and Omega 2 reach the jump node. Destroying the Anvil is the best way to ensure that this goal is accomplished. This mission is of grave importance. Do not fail, pilot. Good luck. Preferred Ship: Ursa Preferred Laser: 2 Prometheus Preferred Missile: Hornet, 2 Harbinger Available Ships: Ulysses, Apollo, Valkyrie, Hercules, Athena, Medusa, Ursa Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail, Prometheus, Banshee Available Missiles: Mx-50, Disrupt., Fury, Hornet, Inter., Pho. V, Synaptic, Stiletto, Tsu., Harbing. Objectives Primary Objectives *Escort Omega to Jump Node Secondary Objectives *Escort both Omegas to the Jump Node *Destroy the Anvil Directives Escort Omega 1 to Jump Node Escort Omega 2 to Jump Node Destroy the Anvil Strategy The first thing you should do is enable cheats by typing www.volition- inc.com and then give yourself unlimited weapons by typing {~} + {w}. Then hit {Esc} and restart the mission. You will have unlimited weapons without using cheats. Once the mission has restarted, hit {Shift} + {/}. This should put in dual fire mode for your secondary weapon. Now head toward the jump node. While you head to there, order your wingmen to engage enemy. By this time the Leo bombers should have arrived. Destroy them. Now you are free to attack the Anvil. Use Harbingers and be suprised at how much damage two of them will do. Switch to your other slot of Harbingers and shoot them at the Anvil. If fighters start attacking Omega 2, tell Gamma wing to protect Omega 2. Once the Anvil is down, destroy any remaining fighters and then stay with the transports until they depart. Debriefing Mission accomplished, Pilot. We haven't been briefed on the full importance of the ancient records, but Terran Command is extremely pleased. Further orders are expected soon. It is impressive that you managed to destroy a primary flagship of the Hammer of Light. Perhaps this will put an end to their resistance. Fighting the Hammer of Light has been a great strain on the Terran- Vasudan alliance. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Clash of the Titans Difficulty Rating: 9 of 10 Command Briefing The Lucifer The Shivans have finally determined the location of the Sol system. The Lucifer has moved into position here in Sirius for the subspace jump to Delta Serpentis. From Delta Serpentis, she will certainly make the jump to Sol to destroy our homeworld. New Information From the records you retrieved in Altair, we have discovered the means to destroy the Lucifer. As you know, our shields do not work in subspace. The same holds true for the Lucifer. More importantly, the records contain the information to enable us to track a capital ship into and inside subspace. If we can track the Lucifer into subspace, we believe a small strike force may be sufficient to destroy it. Our Orders We have been assigned the task of destroying the Lucifer before she reaches Sol. The Bastion is currently en route to intercept the Lucifer at the Sirius-Delta Serpentis subspace node. The Bastion will attempt to provide close cover, while Ursa bombers deliver a payload of Harbingers. We believe that without the shielding system it's relied on so heavily, the Lucifer will be vulnerable. Keep in mind that this is a time critical operation. If we do not enter subspace soon after the Lucifer, we cannot launch our attack. Destroying the Lucifer From your earlier scans of the Lucifer in the Deneb system, we have determined that it is powered by five primary reactors. These reactors are spread out across the Lucifer. If all five reactors are destroyed in a short period of time, the Lucifer won't have a chance of surviving. We don't have much time. Report to mission briefings immediately. Briefing We have few chances to stop the Lucifer. It is heading to the Sol system but we have an opportunity to head them off at Sirius. If you encounter the Lucifer in Sirius hold it off until the rest of the fleet can catch up to you. Preferred Ship: Ursa Preferred Laser: 2 Prometheus Preferred Missile: Interceptor, 2 Harbinger Available Ships: Ulysses, Apollo, Valkyrie, Hercules, Athena, Medusa, Ursa Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, Avenger, Flail, Prometheus, Banshee Available Missiles: Mx-50, Dis., Fury, Horn., Int., Pho. V, Synaptic, Stiletto, Tsunami, Harbinger Objectives Primary Objectives *Escort the GTD Bastion to the Lucifer Secondary Objectives *Keep the GTD Bastion's hull above 35 Bonus Objectives *Destroy the SD Tantalus Directives Destroy Krishna Destroy Arjuna Destroy Indra Destroy Bheema Destroy Vishnu Destroy Asura Strategy Immediately put your engines on max power and go as fast as possible toward the Jump Node. Since you are an Ursa, this may take a while. After your wingmen chat, the Bastion will jump in. Soon after, the Demon-class Tantalus will jump in with two fighters. Now head for the Tantalus. Ignore the fighters, they will not attack you. Make sure you have unlimited weapons and are in dual fire mode for your secondary weapon. When you reach the Tantalus, head towards its rear, where the "arms" point down. Fly around these arms and keep hitting it with everything. Shoot off your Harbingers every chance you get. There are no turrets in this area and it is an easy and vulnerable area. Once the Tantalus is down, get your rear out of there and put your shields on max quickly. They will absorb the explosion. Then go to the Bastion and kill the fighters with your Interceptors. If the Bastion's hull is at 60% right now, you are doing excellent. Once the fighters are down, wait until Vishnu and Asura wing jump in. KILL THE SHAITANS FIRST! THERE IS NO REASON TO WANT TO PLAY THIS MISSION OVER AGAIN. IF YOU LET THEM, THEY WILL QUICKLY BRING THE BASTION'S HULL BELOW 35. DON'T LET IT HAPPEN. Once they are down, relax and wait for about two minutes until the Bastion jumps out. Now that wasn't too hard (whatever). Here is a strategy by redalert19243 on the DF message boards: "The following is a fairly successful strategy I used to beat the level..... I couldn't beat it without letting the Bastion's hull drop below 35..... When I used this strategy the Bastion's hull remained somewhere around 70 (which is excellent) and I really had no trouble at all. First, make all of Alpha wing Valkyries (including yourself) since they have a high top speed and acceleration, which is ideal for intercepting bombers, and equip them with Banshee and Prometheus cannons since Ulysses can't use them. Give them Hornet missiles, but give yourself interceptors (you'll see later). Assign Alpha wing to protect the Bastion. Make all of Beta wing Ursa bombers and equip them with Harbingers, Synaptics (for defense) and Stillettos. Have them attack the Tantalus while you provide cover for the Bastion (sounds like suicide). Your job is to target all of the bombers first (VERY IMPORTANT) before they can reach the Bastion. The ones to look out for are the Nephilims (initially) and Shaitans (later). A helpful way of protecting the Bastion is to target all of the megabombs being delivered if you can't intercept all of the bombers in time. Target them with T since hostile (H) targeting won't pick them up. Use the intercepts that you equipped to target the bombs since they have a faster lock and velocity. Once you cleaned them up, go for rest of the packs, especially Basilisks since they have nasty swarm bombs. When your done with them, the Tantalus should be very low on health and feel free to destroy it with whatever remaining fighters you have. In a moment the Bastion will jump out and the mission will be complete." Debriefing The GTD Bastion is in prime condition to assault the Lucifer. We are proceeding to Delta Serpentis now. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** The Great Hunt Difficulty Rating with cheats: 1/2 of 10 Difficulty Rating without cheats: 7 of 10 Briefing In a few minutes we will be entering the Delta Serpentis sector. We will then begin the most important engagement in our history. We will fight for the very survival of Earth. Our plan is to rapidly close the distance with the Lucifer so that the Bastion is able to enter subspace just behind her. Once in subspace, we will attack and destroy the Lucifer. Your task will be to provide cover for the Bastion so that it can quickly converge on the Lucifer. That Destroyer must be stopped at all costs. Failure is absolutely not an option here, pilots. Preferred Ship: Ursa Preferred Laser: 2 Prometheus Preferred Missiles: Interceptor, 2 Harbinger Available Ships: Ulysses, Apollo, Valkyrie, Hercules, Athena, Medusa, Ursa Available Lasers: Ml-16, Disruptor, D-Advanced, Avenger, Flail, Prometheus, Banshee Available Missiles: Mx-50, Dis., Fury, Hor., Int., Pho. V, Synaptic, Stiletto, Tsunami, Harbinger Objectives Primary Objectives *Escort the Bastion to the Jump Node ************ *changes to* ************ *Reach the subspace node Directives Escort Delta to Node You really don't need a strategy for cheats. You can destroy the Lucifer twice for fun. If you use cheats and do the {~} + {k} cheat about seven times on the Lucifer it will blow up. Then you can kill it again in the next mission. Cool, huh? Strategy for no cheats First, a word about the directive. This directive is correct. It will not appear when you play most of the time unless you are slower than a tortoise with three legs and a stomach cramp. You must be within 2000 units of the node and wait for Delta wing to go to the node and depart before the directive will appear. This will occur with about three minutes left. Okay. Get ready for a lot of action. Attack the six Basilisks (Deva and Arjuna) in front of the Bastion first. Then head toward the node. Command will order you to go to the node quickly. Expect resistance, a lot of resistance. 6 Manticores (Krishna and Rama) will be the first to challenge you. Then 4 Basilisks (Bheema) will attack. 3 Hammer of Light Thoths (Virgo) will be next in the gauntlet. 3 more Basilisks (Asura) will keep you on your toes. 4 Scorpions (Indra) will next be stepping in your way. By 3:55 Epsilon wing will be ready. 4 more Thoths (Aries) will challenge you. Durga wing with 4 Basilisks will be your next foe. Genma wing will be a mirror image of Durga. The Prophecy (Typhon) is exactly what you need at this point. You'll never destroy it (unless you use cheats) so keep going. Lastly (finally), 3 waves of 3 Dragons (oh, great) will be your last enemy. If you kill every single of these ships without using cheats (including the Prophecy) and still make it to the jump node in time, I will put your screen name in a special section. If you manage to destroy all the fighters, then I will put your screen name in a special but lesser section. If you have accomplished this feat, then please include the mission time that you finished in along with your accomplishment. Now that was a lot of fighting. No debriefing *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** Good Luck Difficulty Rating with Cheats: 0 of 10 Difficulty Rating without Cheats: 4 of 10 Briefing Your objective is to destroy the Lucifer. The Lucifer has five reactors located on its main hull. In order to eliminate the Lucifer, these reactors must be destroyed. All your stats from the last mission will be the same going into this mission. Objectives Primary Objectives *Destroy the Lucifer Directives Destroy Reactor 1 Destroy Reactor 2 Destroy Reactor 3 Destroy Reactor 4 Destroy Reactor 5 Strategy This is extremely easy if you know a secret. Order Gamma wing to disable the Lucifer. Simple. Now you have no time limit. Tell all other wings to engage enemy. That was easy. As long as the Lucifer is disabled, it can't depart after 10 minutes. You now have no time limit. After Delta is done, tell them to attack the reactors one by one. If you have the hull integrity, use a Harbinger to take out one by yourself. Once you are done the mission goes into a cutscene. Enjoy the ending! You have now beaten Descent Freespace: The Great War. Try it on a harder difficulty and see how many times you die! No debriefing *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** 8. Stats of Weapons Thanks to the Tech Freespace website for these stats at http://freespace.volitionwatch.com/techfs/fs1/wv.shtml PRIMARY WEAPONS GTW Ml-16 Hull Damage: 5 per shot Shield Damage: 1.4 per shot Subsystem Damage: 1.5 per shot Range: 900 m Energy use: .2 per shot GTW Disruptor Hull Damage: 7.5 per shot Shield Damage: 1.5 per shot Subsystem Damage: 15 per shot Range: 641 m Energy use: .25 per shot GTW D-Advanced Hull Damage: 0 per shot Shield Damage: 25 per shot Subsystem Damage: 25 per shot Range: 862.5 m Energy Use: .75 per shot GTW Avenger Hull Damage: 20 per shot Shield Damage: 13.6 per shot Subsystem Damage: 5.6 per shot Range: 997 m Energy Use: .3 per shot GTW Flail Hull Damage: 1.5 per shot Shield Damage: 12 per shot Subsystem Damage: .6 per shot Range: 1200 m Energy Use: .1 per shot GTW Prometheus Hull Damage: 26 per shot Shield Damage: 14 per shot Subsystem Damage: 7 per shot Range: 900 m Energy Use: .4 per shot GTW Banshee Hull Damage: 18.2 per shot Shield Damage: 31.2 per shot Subsystem Damage: 9.1 per shot Range: 975 m Energy Use: 1.6 per shot !ouch! SECONDARY WEAPONS GTM Mx-50 Hull Damage: 25 per missile Shield Damage: 10 per missile Subsystem Damage: 25 per missile Range: 1500 m Cargo Size: 4 per missile GTM D-Missile Hull Damage: 0 per missile Shield Damage: 0 per missile Subsystem Damage: 1 per missile Range: 1200 m Cargo Size: 8 per missile GTM Fury Hull Damage: 30 per missile Shield Damage: 15 per missile Subsystem Damage: 18 per missile Range: 900 m Cargo Size: .5 per missile GTM Hornet Hull Damage: 50 per missile Shield Damage: 25 per missile Subsystem Damage: 7.5 per missile Range: 1300 m Cargo Size: 1 per missile GTM Interceptor Hull Damage: 150 per missile Shield Damage: 120 per missile Subsystem Damage: 75 per missile Range: 1250 m Cargo Size: 4 per missile GTM Phoenix V Hull Damage: 350 per missile Shield Damage: 170 per missile Subsystem Damage: 280 per missile Range: 1750 m Cargo Size: 8 per missile GTM Synaptic Hull Damage: 60 per missile Shield Damage: 45 per missile Subsystem Damage: 60 per missile Range: 225 m Cargo Size: 15 per missile GTM Stiletto Hull Damage: 7.75 per missile Shield Damage: 0 per missile Subsystem Damage: 775 per missile Range: 2250 m Cargo Size: 8 per missile GTB Tsunami Hull Damage: 1,500 per bomb Shield Damage: 30 per bomb Subsystem Damage: 3,000 per bomb Range: 1500 m Cargo Size: 15 per bomb GTB Harbinger Hull Damage: 3,200 per bomb Shield Damage: 32 per bomb Subsystem Damage: 51,200 per bomb (WOW!) Range: 1,500 Cargo Size: 40 per bomb *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** 9. Alternate Missions Thanks to azstraph@yahoo.com, I now know about alterations in some missions. These can be achieved by failing some primary, secondary, and bonus objectives. These are the ones that I have found so far. 1. If the Orff gets damaged (below 80% I believe) in the first mission, then the Vasudan Ace will not be mentioned in the next briefing nor will he appear in the mission. 2. If you do not kill the Vasudan Ace, the freighters in the next mission will jump out about 4:00 into the mission. This is a change from about 5:00 for freighter 1 and 8:00 for freighter 2. When these freighters jump out, an extra wing of fighters will jump in and attack you. This has been verified and does work. 3. If you don't kill the freighters in the third mission, then the freighters will appear in the fourth mission with more fighters escorting them. This has been verified and does work. 4. If you don't kill the freighters in the third mission, and you leave before the Orff has arrived, then the Rasputin will not appear in the fourth mission. This has been verified and does work. 5. I don't know the trigger for sure yet, but I know that the Galatea will start with 83% integrity in the sixth mission if you fail (I believe) the visual identification objective of the fifth mission. This has been verified and does work. 6. If you jump out after the Shivans ambush you in Pandora's Box without scanning the cargo, then in the Hammer and the Anvil, the Vasudan reinforcements will never arrive, and the Hammer of Light will jump in as hostiles, and say, "We are the Hammer of Light, the prophecy is your doom." 7. If in the Darkness and the Light, you don't destroy the cargo containers or the freighters, then in First Strike, the Taranis will be at 98% hull with all of its subsystems damaged moderately. 8. If Sigma wing is destroyed in Aftermath, then Indra wing will severely damage the Asimov before you reach it in The Big Bang. 9. If the Lorkonius escapes in Enter the Dragon, then there will be four Arjuna fighters as guards in Playing Judas. 10. If the Mecross is destroyed somehow after Zeta wing arrives in Exodus, then it will not appear in Last Hope to help attack the Thunder (not that the Thunder is hard, anyway). 11. If Omega 1 is destroyed in Running the Gauntlet, then only Omega 2 will be in Black Omega or vice versa. 12. If the Bastion is at or below 35% hull integrity when it departs in The Clash of the Titans, then the Bastion will have 35% hull in the Great Hunt. If you know of any more alternations in the missions, please e-mail me and tell me. *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** 10. Cheats and Secrets Cheats & Secrets Cheat Mode- Type www.volition-inc.com If you did this correctly the text "cheats enabled" will appear in the top-left corner of the screen. The cheat mode must be entered again every mission. In most missions, enabling cheats will make you unable to accept the mission. Send message to enemies: ~ + C Toggle countermeasures for all ships: ~ + {Shift} + C Kill selected target: ~ + K Destroy targeted subsystem: ~ + {Shift} + K 10% damage to your ship: ~ + {Alt} + K 10% damage to your target: ~ + {Alt} + {Shift} + K Invincibility: ~ + I Toggle invincibility for your target: ~ + {Shift} + I Toggle Descent-style physics: ~ + 0 ???(does it work)??? Unlimited weapons for all ships: ~ + {Shift} + W Unlimited weapons for only your ship: ~ + W Note that this cheat, once enabled, will work for the rest of the game until you exit. Use cheat mode, then enable this cheat, then hit {ESC} and restart the mission. You will have unlimited weapons for the whole game. All primary goals complete: ~ + G All secondary goals complete: ~ {Shift} + G All bonus goals complete: ~ + {Alt} + G Scroll forward through secondary weapons: ~ + 9 Scroll backward through secondary weapons: ~ + {Shift} + 9 Scroll forward through primary weapons: ~ + 0 Scroll backward through primary weapons: ~ + {Shift} + 0 Rearm request for target: ~ + R Enter "freespacestandsalone" in the Tech Room to gain access to all the FMV videos. Any mission that directly links into another mission by "downloading new orders" can be majorly cheated on. In those missions, you can use cheats and still accept the mission. You can also use ~ + Shift + 0 until you get Shivan Super Laser and use it in the next mission. It is kinda cheap, isn't it! *********************************************************************** *********************************************************************** 11. Thanks to... and legal junk If you want to see your name here, e-mail me and give me information about something that I have missed or challenged you to do. If you have any questions that are not covered in this walkthrough please feel free to e-mail me. If I add something because of you, your name will go here. I want to give credit to Volition, Parallax, and Interplay for making Descent Freespace. I also want to thank myself for writing this FAQ/Walkthrough. It was rigorous. I would also want to thank anyone who sent me information that I added to the FAQ. I mostly want to thank the fool who sold this game used to a store so that I could buy it for $6.00. Thank you to Tech Freespace for allowing me to use their weapon stats tables. Thanks to shortstuff_ta@yahoo.com for telling me how easy Playing Judas is for them. Thanks to azstraph@yahoo.com being the first to tell me about the alternate missions. Thanks to Heretic for the detailed strategy for destroying the Neptune. Thanks to redalert19243 for the great strategy for Clash of the Titans. Thanks to Game FAQs for posting my guide and keeping my updates intact! Thanks to anyone who asks me if they can put this guide on their site. LEGAL JUNK This guide is Copyright 2001 Chris Dodge. All rights reserved. If you want to use any of this document, you must ask me first. If I give you permission to use it on your site, make sure the document is kept in its original text. If you post this on your site without my permission or alter this document in any way, I have the power to sue you. So don't. DESCENT: FREESPACE THE GREAT WAR COPYRIGHT 1998 VOLITION INC ALL RIGHTS RESERVED DESCENT: FREESPACE THE GREAT WAR AND INTERPLAY ARE TRADEMARKS OF INTERPLAY PRODUCTIONS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED PARALLAX IS A TRADEMARK OF PARALLAX SOFTWARE CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This document Copyright 2001 Chris Dodge. All rights reserved.