[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] A C E C O M B A T 6 ---======================-- - Fires of Liberation - QUICKSILVER MEDAL FAQ/WALKTHROUGH |:|_ A collaborative guide by Landshark and Vhayste® |:|_ Email : jonnymark71@hotmail.com Vhayste@gmail.com |:|_ Gamertag: JonnyLandshark paul vhayste ||_VERSION HISTORY [V1.0] 1:53 AM 3/27/2008 - Main Guide finished ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ | C O P Y R I G H T | ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ This document is copyrighted to the authors, Landshark and Vhayste®. It is intended for ~PRIVATE~ use only. It cannot be used in ANY form of printed or electronic media involved in a commercial business, in part or in whole, in any way, shape, or form. It cannot be used for profitable or promotional purposes, regardless of the situation. Breaking any of these rules is in direct violation of copyright law. This document is protected by copyright law and international treaties. Unauthorized reproduction and distribution of this document, or any portion of it, may result in severe civil and criminal penalties, and will be prosecuted to the maximum extent possible under the law. Any characters, names, places, or miscellaneous objects are copyright of their respective companies. Unauthorized distribution of any resources found in this document, a part of the document or as a whole is considered violation of the copyright law. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ | A U T H O R S' N O T E | ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Vhayste: ======== Hello and welcome to our short guide on how to obtain the Quicksilver Medal in the Xbox 360 game, Ace Combat 6. The Quicksilver Medal can be unlocked by completing the campaign in less than 2 hours and 15 minutes. It may sound challenging but it is really possible to obtain it easily - with proper planning and strategy. This is also my first collaborative faq with another writer. Since the information for getting this medal in detail is large to insert to my existing walkthrough, I have decided to have a separate guide instead. For any questions, suggestions or comments, you can contact either of us using the email addresses provided above. We hope that this small guide should be able to assist those players struggling to get the Quicksilver Medal in AC6. Landshark: ========= This is the first time I have ever even considered contributing to a FAQ let alone writing one. Initially this FAQ developed with my sending some e-mail comments to “vhaste” about his excellent walkthrough and that he might want to think about adding some notes to his FAQ with suggestions as to which Objectives/Operations in each mission should be accomplished or avoided to avoid wasting time while trying for the Quicksilver medal. I had made some additional observations while playing the game and decided to e-mail him with what I found in hopes that he might find my comments valuable in any updates to his FAQ. This led to “vhaste” suggesting to me that since I was already working through the Quicksilver Medal that it might be better to just create a whole new FAQ about accomplishing the medal and that we coauthor a new FAQ with detailed walkthroughs for each mission. Finally, I'm sure the suggestions I have made aren’t the only, or even the very best way to accomplish the missions in the absolute quickest amount of time. While I/we strove to represent what we thought were the most efficient/quickest way to get through the missions and objectives there might still be other ways to cut out even more time. If you find an even better, quicker or more effiecient way to do this in less time that's great and if you care to share we would certainly appreciate the input and try to incorporate any new ideas/techniques into any future revision of this FAQ. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ | FLIGHT SCHOOL (GETTING STARTED) | ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ NOTE: If you are an Ace Combat pilot before and already familiar with the game basics, you may skip this tutorial. CONTROLS |--------| The button configuration is generally the same as the previous versions of the game. But there are some additions as well, including the all new “Allied” command/orders. This will be discussed in detail later on. The following layout that will be covered in this section is Type A which is the game’s default. You can change the control type from the game options. ++------------++ ||Acceleration|| ++------------++ Press the RIGHT TRIGGER to accelerate. Press the RIGHT BUMPER to yaw right. Hold RT to activate afterburners and gain a speed boost. Note that the turning angle is wide when traveling at high speeds. ++------------++ ||Deceleration|| ++------------++ Press LEFT TRIGGER to accelerate. Press the LEFT BUMPER to yaw to the left. Hold LT to activate air brakes. Air braking for too long may cause your aircraft to stall. Air braking is necessary to make sharp turns in maneuvers. ++--------------++ ||Flight Control|| ++--------------++ Hold the Left Analog button down to point the plane’s nose up and vice versa. Hold it to the left or the right to roll the plane left or right. Press the left analog button to lower the landing gear during mid-battle landings. ++--------------++ ||Camera Control|| ++--------------++ Use the right analog stick to control the camera angle freely. Press it to change into different views. ++-----------------------++ ||Wingman/ Allied Command|| ++-----------------------++ Press the UP D-PAD (directional pad) to order your wingman to attack the target (s) in front of you. Press the DOWN D-PAD to order your wingman to cover you. When the AS (Allied Support Gauge) fills up, press and hold the UP button to request a coordinated attack against the targets in front of you. Request a coordinated allied cover by pressing the DOWN D-Pad Press the LEFT or RIGHT D-pad to highlight enemy forces for each operation. ++-----------------++ ||Pause/Menu/Cancel|| ++-----------------++ Press the start button to pause the game and open the menu during the mission. Here, you can view your main objective and the objectives for each operation. The start button is also used for cancelling landing and take off sequences. ++------------------------++ ||Toggle SP weapon/Missile|| ++------------------------++ Use the select button to toggle between missiles and SP weapons. ++-----------------++ ||Fire Machine Gun || ++-----------------++ Use the A button to fire your plane’s machine gun. ++------------------------++ || Fire missile/ SP weapon|| ++------------------------++ Press the B button to fire missiles or SP weapons, depending on which one is active. Press and hold to track down the missile or SP weapon as it hits the target. ++---------------++ || Change Targets|| ++---------------++ Press the Y Button to change targets. ++----------------++ ||Toggle Map modes|| ++----------------++ Press the X Button to toggle map views. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ | T A C T I C A L T R A I N I N G | ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Now, we will run through the layout of basic combat operations. This includes mission briefing, plane selection, weapons systems, combat maneuvers, allied/ wingman commands, ESM support and battlefield assessment. ++------------------++ || MISSION BRIEFING || ++------------------++ Some players may find this part of the game boring and may just skip to the battle at once, only to discover they don’t know what to do later on. It’s a cardinal sin and a part of stupidity for pilots. These pre-mission orientations are really important. You will know all the separate operations to be conducted simultaneously and the allied detachments that will participate in battle. As you have known, most missions have several operations taking place and you have the choice to provide support to any of them. Since you are only required to meet the quota out of the deployed operations, you can finish the mission even if you were not able to meet the other teams. For example, the mission has three operations and you have a quota of two. That means that you just need to finish two out of the three active operations for that mission. Furthermore, the briefing’s most important use is to provide much needed intel about the enemy forces, the terrain and the background of the mission. You will now the type of enemies you may encounter including your main objective, which will also help you to decide which plane and weapons to bring. ++------------------++ || PLANE SELECTION || ++------------------++ Selecting the proper plane for the mission is self-explanatory. Each plane has their own strengths and weaknesses, including their SP weapon set and payload. You wouldn’t be bringing an A-10A attacker (unless you are seeking challenge) to mission where heavy aerial battle and dogfighting is expected. There are three major groups of planes. Each of them is classified according to their performance, ordinance and the types of missions they are best suited. Choosing what plane to bring for a mission will determine your survival when deployed. ATTACKERS These aircrafts are bombing specialist and ground target killers. They excel in flying at subsonic speeds while “hugging the deck” or flying low. They have heavy armors that make them sturdy enough to withstand enemy fire. Their weakness however, is their stiff maneuverability. It will be hard to avoid enemy missiles just by evading it. Attackers are also capable of engaging enemy ships. Normally referred to as “bombers”, they carry enough ordinances to destroy large groups of ground units. Newer bombers are faster, more agile and more maneuverable. FIGHTERS Aircrafts built for engaging enemy fighters and air targets. They are agile, quick and deadly. They are also deployed to escort transports and bombers, defend bases and even protect the fleet. They are capable of turning sharply at very high speeds as well. The weaknesses of fighters include lesser armor to make the plane lighter but making it more vulnerable against enemy fire and their sensitivity when attacking the ground can make the plane wobbly and crash. MULTIROLE These aircrafts are the hybrid or the cross between fighters and attackers. Their main strength lies in their all-around attributes and capability of being deployed on any mission. They have the strength, speed and agility of fighters and the toughness and stability of attackers. Multiroles are even better the weaknesses of the other two fighter types are covered by the other. Another minor plane type is the Jammers. They carry electronic equipment that interferes with the enemy communications, radar and ETS. They are playable in the game, but some planes have ECMP as a SP weapon instead. ++----------------++ || WEAPONS SYSTEM || ++----------------++ This section will provide you the basics of using/deploying/selecting different weapons you have equipped in your plane. Obviously, each plane has different sets of special weapons and their payload determines the amount of missiles and SP weapons they can carry. You also need to bring the SP weapon appropriate for the mission. You wouldn’t want to bring bombs if you are expecting enemy air units in majority. ++----------------++ || FIRING MISSILES|| ++----------------++ Your missiles are your basic, multi-purpose weapons. They can hit ground, air, and naval targets. They are faster compared to some A-A SP weapons and have average damage. Most of the time, one to two missiles are enough to destroy enemy targets. You will need to lock-on a target first. You should also be within firing range before achieving a lock-on. Once you get a lock-on, don’t fire immediately. It doesn’t mean that your missile will hit the target immediately. Take note of the angle, speed and turn you and your target are currently doing. The optimum firing range is at least within 5000 ft. At this distance, missiles can hit their target with little chance of evasion. (Unless the target is a really agile plane such as Strigon Team’s SU-33s). For higher probabilities of hitting the target, pay close attention to your hud. Once the word SHOOT appears, release your missiles. The hit rate of firing missiles during this time can be as high as 95% in most but not all cases. ++-------------++ || FIRING GUNS || ++-------------++ Machine guns can be equally destructive as missiles within its effective range or even more at point blank. However, tracking or targeting fast moving targets can be challenging since you also need to control the speed and angle of your aircraft to keep the target in sight (manual targeting). There are some tricks in properly executing a machine gun attack and I will try to discuss it here. The machine gun rounds are lethal up close and are sure to chew the enemy armor away. First, you’ll need to be close enough for the bullets to hit your target. You will know this if your targeting reticule appears. For targeting large, slow enemies such as transports, enemy AWACs, tankers etc, just approach them slowly, get into firing range, align your reticule and fire. Same thing can be applied for large ground targets such as facilities, fortifications and enemy ships. For faster targets like enemy fighters, you will need to anticipate the enemy’s flight path. Refer to the diagram below: The green circle is your reticule, the black line is the projected flight path of the target and the red plane is the target. Note that the reticule is way beyond the target. The truth is, in high speed maneuvers, bullets don’t travel straight right to the target. With a bit of physics and other factors, bullets tend to “swerve” away from the direction it is fired. In this diagram, firing bullets at this position will allow the bullets to “fly” directly to the target. Same thing applies for vertical approaches. ++-------------------++ || FIRING SP WEAPONS || ++-------------------++ SP weapons come in many shapes and sizes. Anti-air SP weapons are normally missiles with multi-lock on capability, farther range, enhanced tracking and greater damage. Anti-ground weapons are composed of “dumb” (normal) bombs, precision bombs and air to ground missiles. There is also an SP weapon that jams the enemy targeting capability, thus reducing the effectiveness of missiles. ANTI-AIR SP WEAPONS XMA4, XMA6 and XLAAs are all multi-targeting SP weapons which can fire four missiles at medium and long range. Though they have enhanced tracking, range and damage, that doesn’t mean that they will always hit the target. Enemies can still evade them by making sharp turns and barrel rolls. QAAMs are a bit more reliable when tracking faster more agile targets because of its maneuverability. For best results, approach the targets either on their 12 or 6, and then fire after getting a lock on. Getting in closer may increase the probability of the missiles hitting the target but may also cause the targets to break formation and engage you instead. ANTI-GROUND SP WEAPONS For precision air to ground weapons such as GPBs, XAGMs, LASM, and SFFS, you just need into range and release the weapons once you get a lock-on. You will always hit the targets unless they are in some kind of cover. For unguided bombs such as the UGBL and FAEB, you will need to carefully aim them before releasing or they’ll land off target. Upon selecting an unguided bomb, a different targeting crosshair will appear. This is where the bomb will hit. You won’t know the blast radius until impact. Usually, UGBs have decent blast radii but compared to the FAEB (which I consider the strongest ground weapon in the game), the destruction and range is not even close. Use UGBs against closely packed targets such as enemy fortifications and bunkers. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ | Q U I C K F A C T S | ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1.) Q: What is this guide for? A: This guide is meant to assist players on how to finish the campaign in less than 135 minutes or 2 hours, 15 minutes. 2.) Q: Do I really need to go through this trouble? A: No, not really. It's your choice whether you would like to do this or not. However, if you are aiming for a full 1000 pts in the game, you'll need to collect all medals to unlock the corresponding achievement. 3.) Q: What mode should I be playing to get this medal easily? A: You should be playing in NORMAL Mode at least. The enemy damage is a bit limited so average players won't worry about getting shot down easily. 4.) Q: What plane and weapon load-out should I use? A: Obviously, the CFA-44 Nosferatu and its ADMM is your best choice for rushing the campaign. The Nosferatu is the best plane in the game, not to mention that the multi-target, homing projectiles of the ADMM can shoot down enemy planes in one hit. Eliminating enemies at the shortest time possible is the key to finish most missions. 5.) Q: Help! I took quite a while to finish a mission but the game saved it automatically! Now I can't go back to redo it again! A: To avoid these kinds of problems, disable the auto-save feature so that you can redo something if it doesn't go well. Also, having at least two save files is recommended. Try saving alternately between the two files. 6.) Q: Is it possible to get this medal in the first run/playthrough? A: Definitely not. For the first three missions alone, you'll be stuck with an average plane and limited funds. It can be possible but hey, why go all through the trouble where you can do it easily later? 7.) Q: What do I really need to do to complete missions faster? A: Concentrate on the REAL targets (red tgts), ignoring the targets unless they are in direct threat to you. Order your allies to attack and cover you whenever possible. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ | W A L K T H R O U G H | ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Mission 01 INVASION OF GRACEMERIA -Through the heart of the nation- Time Limit : 30:00:00 Area: Gracemeria Quota: None OP Leader : None Mission Type: Anti Air Main Objective : Destroy all enemy targets (TGT) Starting Points: Aerial Defense Start mission after take-off, switch to ADMM (special weapon) Afterburn (A/B) to your immediate right (East on the compass) pointing towards the group of targets you can see bombing the capital/castle. There is 1 B-52 just finishing its bombing run, 2 UH-9 Helo’s hovering in place and 2 B-52’s just beginning their bombing runs. A/B until you are in range and the ADMM’s lock on. Shoot ADMM’s, turn North A/B toward a 4th B-52 trailing the ones you just shot down heading towards his bombing run and MG him frrom the side while your ADMM’s are recharging (don’t bother switching to regular missiles as you are coming at him from the side and your missiles will miss trying to make the 90 deg. turn to get behind him so just MG him. That’s 4 B-52’s and 2 UH-9’s (6 total Tgt A/C) of 15 so far and all of the most Eastern Targets, now all our travel will take you directly West and bring you closer and closer to the return line you will need to be near to end the mission at the end (saving you A LOT of time). After the 6 Tgts out East are destroyed, head West in A/B across the bay (use your radar on the 1st Map mode, not the circle/target reticle looking view but the next one after that is best to help orient you and keep you following the red targets). You should point the nose of your plane about halfway between the B-52 Tgts to your right (North) and some more UH-9’s over the Airfield to your left (south), once the ADMM’s target those enemies get out of A/B and let the ADMM’s loose. Keep on your heading (West) but at non-A/B speed as you want to give your ADMM’s time to recharge before you get too close to any of targets that will be coming at you from the West. If you are slowly heading west, just as you ADMM’s recharge, a flight of 4 F/A-18 Tgts should be heading at you from the West and be in range. Shoot the ADMM’s immediately when they are done recharging to make sure they launch before the F/A-18’s get too close you don’t want to have to turn around and get into a turning “knife fight” with a single maneuvering A/C. If you poped the the F/A-18’s while still heading West then maintain that course without A/B while your ADMM’s recharge and let the final group of Tgt A/C head your way also coming from the West. It’s a formation of 4 Rafale fighters and you MUST get them while they are still farther away because they are too maneuverable in close where they can avoid your ADMMs. If your ADMM’s haven’t finished recharging by the time they are in range than target one of the inner/center Rafael’s and tell Shamrock to attack, he will launch his ADMMs instead and should get them, however watch the targets closely to make sure he does get them all Shamrock is not very accurate with his SP weapons as often he lets them fly before they lock on to all the targets, if he doesn’t get them then you back him up with another ADMM barrage of your own and you should get them. No more red target A/C will appear at this point as you have destroyed the required number of targets. And doing it this way should have you with a full Allied support meter, a healthy supply of ADMM’s remaining and most importantly efficiently killing all red Tgt’s while leaving you at a point on the map closest to the point you need to be to end the mission. Once you kill the final targets, just loiter in slow circles in the Western side for the map just shy of the return line and wait there. Do NOT go chasing planes all over, you shouldn’t get too many enemy A/C coming out your way to bother you out West. All you have to watch out for are the cruise missile strikes which you can avoid easily if you watch for the orange circles on your radar that show you where they will be exploding a second or so before they actually explode there so you can avoid being there. You should get a cut-scene and then the cruise missiles start showing up. Just hold out and watch out for the Strigon Tm that comes your way. If you haven’t heard the mission update form AWACS telling everyone to evacuate the combat area then just defend yourself and ADMM/Shamrock Atk/Allied support the Strigon team planes and avoiding the cruise missile strikes while staying close to the western border until you do. As soon as you get that message hit the A/B and jump across the return line to get the mission accomplished update and the timer stops running. +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 02 VITOZE AERIAL DEFENSE -On the brink- Time Limit : 20:00:00 Area: Brillante Heights Quota : None OP Leader : None Mission Type: Anti Air Main Objective: Destroy all enemy targets (TGT) Starting Points: Bomber Intercept From the Start point hit A/B and head North/North-West toward the red target on your radar (the radar view with the entire battle area is very most useful to find the targets throughout this mission). You will first run into 1 B-52, ADMM him then turn and A/B North-East/ East to find the next group. You’ll run into a group of 2 B-52s over here, ADMM them once in range (careful to watch your ADMM’s until they impact as the ADMM’s will target other Non-red, non-tgt A/C in the area leaving less ADMM missiles to go after the 2 B-52’s which might not be enough to kill each one; some might miss/near miss so you want to make sure you kill ALL of them on this pass without having to twist and turn and slow down. After they are shot down you will see a red target A/C arrow has shown up back where you killed the 1st B-52 but don’t head over there yet as very quickly another group of red tgt’s will appear between where you are and the targets farther out to the East. These new targets will be to the North (your right if you are heading West). A/B and head North and intercept the 5 B-52’s, ADMM them (again watching closely to ensure you destroyed them all, have Shamrock to ADMM them too if you have too to make sure you get them all without having to twist and turn or adjust your heading too much). Once these are dead you should now A/B and head South/South West and be coming up behind the last group of B-52s. Get in ADMM range of the last 2 B-52’s, ADMM them and mission accomplished. +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 03 SIPLI FIELD -Fortunes of War- Time Limit : 30:00:00 Area: Sipli Fields Quota : 2/3 OP Leader : A: Warlock B: Quox C: Steel Gunners Mission Type : Anti-Ground Anti-Ground Anti-Ground Main Objective: Eliminate all Estovakian ground forces. Single out individual missions on the HUD using the Dynamic Operation System by pressing left and right on the directional pad Starting Points: 1. Central Assault Unit Support (Air-to-Ground) 2. Eastern Separate Unit Support (Air-to-Ground) 3. Long Range Artillery Unit Support (Air-to-Ground) Order of Attack: A-B or A-C. Choose any Start Point (SP) as they are all essentially co-located and equidistant from the action. I chose the Center/Middle. You can accomplish any of these missions in any order and have them be about the same amount of time. However it is most efficient to choose to do the Center mission and either the East or West simultaneously and accomplish 2 of the three at about the same time. You don’t save much time using A/B once you are over the Obj’s as you need the time to recharge your ADMM’s A/B from the start point and head toward middle Obj with Warlock, ADMM the A/C targets you will see over the Obj A battlefield first to get them out of the way (you probably won’t get them all on the first pass but you need to knock several of them out initially or Warlock will get pounded by the A-10’s assaulting them). Then turn to the right/East heading toward the Obj B while your ADMM recharges. It should be full by the time you get to Obj B area and ADMM whatever ground targets you lock on to. You can essentially turn on a lazy circle that encompasses both Obj A and B alternating shooting at ground targets between each. When you shoot Ground Tgts on Obj B, by the time you make your circle and are over Obj A your ADMM’s are recharged and you can take a chunk out of Obj A targets, continue your circle back towards Obj B while you recharge and hit Obj B again). Keep turning in a circle between the two Objectives and checking your radar for the red targets until all Tgts are destroyed in both Objs. You can also save time by after you shoot a ADMM barrage by quickly switching to Missiles and targeting/destroying targets that you are heading towards that didn’t get targeted by your ADMM barrage to save time later from having to make another pass and wasting a ADMM barrage on just one or two Tgts. You can use Shamrock in Atk mode and Allied support when it becomes available if you want but I rather save them for Part 2 of the mission after you have cleared Obj’s A and B or A and C as they are of more use as far as saving time on the second part of the objective when there are more targets to kill. Once you have cleared both A and B Obj’s there is a lag time before the Misison Update comes to kill the retreating forces. Since you are likely low on ADMM’s at this point use this time to A/B to the return line to rearm with more ADMMs. Once you get back from rearming, A/B towards the objective and abuse Allied Support and Shamrock once in range to destroy the red targets as quickly as you can. Just keep it up until you destroy all the Targets (keep checking your radar to find red tgts so you are heading in the right direction for your next barrage). Once all red Tgt’s are down, time stops, mission accomplished. ** Note: ****** Whenever rearming, skip the landing and takeoff sequence using the Start button as you waste time lining up for, landing, and taking off again. *** +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 04 [WLK004] BARTOLOMEO FORTRESS -Echoes of Battle- Time Limit : 40:00:00 Area: Mt. Marcello Quota : 2/3 OP Leader : A: Warlock B: Quox C: Snake Pit Mission Type : Anti-Ground Anti-Ground Anti-Air Main Objective: Capture Bartolomeo Fortress and sweep Khesed Island of all Estovakian forces. Starting Points: 1. Logistics Route Assault Support (Air-to-Ground) 2. Gun Site Capture Support (Air-to-Ground) 3. Electronic Support Aircraft Defense (Air-to-air) Order of Atack: C-A or C-B. ** Note: Use your radar and choose the filter by clicking left/right on the D-Pad so only targets for Obj C or A or B (depending on which mission you are currently trying to clear) are illuminated in your radar to help you from getting confused and wasting time. ** Start with Obj C (A-A saving Snake Pit) as it is very quick to accomplish and saves Snake Pit who will then follow you around from there on out with ECM support through the rest of the mission to help with targeting and avoiding enemy missiles. This also quickly fills your Allied Support bar once you have cleared the Obj which you will need later to more quickly kill all the ground targets on either Obj’s A or B. . Essentially you A/B past Snake Pit, slow down once you get the first batch of red A/C targets in range, ADMM them and wait (no A/B or short bursts to get within range, keeping your Northerly heading) for the following waves of red Tgts heading towards Snake Pit. You will essentially stay on the same heading (North from the Start Point) watching your radar for the next group of red targets without having to turn. When you launch an ADMM barrage at the on-coming A/C targets, if you aren’t in A/B you will have your ADMM’s recharged by the time the next group of red A/C Tgt’s are in range for the ADMM shot. Use Shamrock to kill them with ADMM if you have to, to avoid having to turn around for a target that gets past you and throwing off your timing in hitting the next group from the North. Once Obj C is cleared you are about equidistant from Obj’s A (Warlock) and B (Quox) so you can choose to go either way but I usually chose to Obj A next as the targets are in a linear path that when complete set you up for continuing to attack the actual fortress in Part 2 of the mission. A/B is again not very useful in completing the Obj once you are over a target area as you move to fast to accurately target the ADMM barrages for max effect and you travel to far away for your next barrage to be targeted and have to turn around more often while waiting for your ADMM’s to recharge. Use A/B to quickly escape ground fire or sprint to get in range of the next batch of targets you are going to destroy once the ADMM’s are recharged. Once Obj A or B is cleared, there is a break in the action before Part 2 of the mission becomes active. You will likely be low or out of ADMM’s at this point so use the time between clearing the 2nd Obj (A or B) and the start of the 2nd half of the mission to A/B to the return line and rearm. A/B back toward the fortress and once the 2nd half of the mission is updated you begin the assault on the fortress itself. Once the new Targets turn red I suggest using Shamrock and allied support to take out the A/C targets which includes 2 to 4 Strigon Tm planes which will harass you while you are going after the ground targets around the fortress. Don’t waste time initially twisting and turning trying to kill the Strigon Tm Tgts as they are good at avoiding your ADMM’s and will try to lead you to a point where you are high enough that you are getting peppered by the Flack coming from the fortress and get shot down. Try to stay low below the flak (black puffs of smoke that will kill you quickly even on normal level) and worry about the ground targets while Shamrock and Allied support take care of the Strigon Tm for you. Stay low and circle the base of the mountain lining up ADMM barrages as you come across groups of red ground targets. You can keep your speed up but you don’t need A/B as it is counter productive, you aren’t saving time by going faster if you aren’t getting the max use of your ADMM barrages by going too fast. You also need to stay lower to stay under the flack that is especially thick on the Eastern/South Eastern side of the mountain. Don’t be too low, however, where the ADMM’s that launch from the bottom of your plane head right into the ground below you (you can tell because immediately after launching the ADMMs you hear explosions near you’re A/C and get a “MISS” message in your HUD). It’s best to roll on your side or at least at an angle so your entire barrage releases from your plane (both from the top and bottom launchers) without hitting the ground or mountain so you are getting the max use out of your ADMMs. Try to avoid heading over the top of the mountain as it doesn’t allow you much time to target ground tgts on the other side without risking a crash and also make you vulnerable to SAM batteries that are on the top of the mountain protecting the radar station that is on top. Just keep flying in a low circle around the mountain until all the targets that are on the side of the hill or just at the bottom of the mountain are gone, then you can pop up high (the Flak guns will be taken out by you by this time) and you can take out the radar/ECM target on top of the mountain. Then you can deal with any remaining red target A/C that Shamrock or your Allies haven’t gotten yet…mission complete. ***Note: When flying low level be mindful of ridges and small hills when getting ready to fire your next ADMM barrage on a group of targets as if there is a small hill between you and the targets you want to hit, most of your missiles will impact on the hill and not reach the targets. If you are lined up with a hill between you and the targets you want to hit, take the second or two it will take to A/B past the targets you are lining up, make a quick High G 180 turn and re-attack from a better angle that allows you to see all the targets you want to kill, taking the ground out of play. This is quicker than launching an ineffective or only partially effective ADMM barrage then having to wait even longer for it to recharge where you have to re-attack some of the same Tgts all over again.*** +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 05 ANEA LANDING - Music of the Tides - Time Limit : 40:00:00 Area: Kijera Oil Fields Quota : 2/3 OP Leader : A: Warlock B: Quox C: Marigold Mission Type : Anti-Ground Multi Anti-Ground Main Objective: Eliminate all threats to the allied ground force and oversee the success of the landing operations. Starting Points: 1. Landing Unit Support (Air-to-Ground) 2. City/Airfield Recapture (Air-to-Air/Ground) 3. Anti-Ship Assault (Air-to-Ground) Order of Attack: OP B then OP A Starting Point : OP B City/Airfield Capture Pretty Simple and Straight forward. Start with Obj B to recapture the City/Airport. You shouldn’t need Shamrock’s help or Allied Support very much for the first part of the mission. Abuse the hell out of it for the 2nd part after the mission update. From the SP, A/B to get within ADMM range of the Tgt’s on the beach then slow down over the objective. Use the radar to try to focus only on red targets. You will destroy three or four clumps of red ground Tgts then another batch will “spawn” once you take them out. Just keep turning and using A/B to sprint to the next group of Tgts and ADMM barrage the hell out of them all the way in to the airfield area until the Objective is complete. Then A/B to the East toward Obj A area (Warlock Battalion) and do the same as you did with Obj B and you will quickly take out the red targets. Ignore going all the way over to help Marigold as there are too many targets spread out too far apart for efficient use of the ADMMs and you are too far away from the 2nd part of the mission. Obj C is probably the most fun, it isn’t a Obj that lends itself to speed. I say take out Obj B first because shortly after you are done with it and you are working on Obj A you will get word that the airfield is now open for rearming which will drastically cut down your travel time to rearm is you need to later on. Once Obj A is cleared you can A/B towards the airfield to rearm quickly before the mission update trips and you have to take out enemy reinforcements in two different areas. Once the mission update trips for the 2nd part of the mission the targets will turn red and you can carve your way through them. There are both ground and A/C red targets to deal with so as always pay attention to your radar to plan which group you will take out next. There are some AC-130 gunships near the airfield and they are heavily armored, if they were alone you could take them out with a single ADMM barrage but since the ADMMs will target as many possible enemies in range usually only two ADMM missiles will atk the AC-130’s and are not enough to kill them. So pay attention that you may have to reattack them a couple times with ADMMs and/or regular missiles & guns to dispatch them quickly. They can be saved for last or use Shamrock and Allied Attack to quickly deal with them and the nearby ground Tgts as well. Once all red Tgt reinforcements are gone its mission complete. +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 06 SIEGE ON SILVAT - Angels Above - Time Limit : 40:00:00 Area: Rawllino Quota : 3/6 OP Leader : A: Grizzly B: Barracuda C: Dragon Busters Mission Type : Anti-Ground Anti-Ground Anti-Ground D: Stingray E: Gavial F: Sherpa Multi Anti-Ground Anti-Air Main Objective: Rescue allied forces trapped within the city. Starting Points: 1. Isolated Unit Support (Air-to-Ground) Tank Battalion Assault (Air-to-Ground) 2. Long Range Artillery Unit Assault (Air-to-Ground) Airfield Defense (Air-to-Air/Ground) 3. Armored Train Assault (Air-to-Ground) Substation Defense (Air-to-Air) Order of Atk: OP D - OP E - OP C OP A - OP B - OP C/D Start Point 3 appears to be the closest to the Obj’s so start there, but all of them are a little far away. Start with Obj D to clear the airfield in order to get a rearming station close to the battle. You will need it! If you let the airfield fall (and it falls rather quickly) you will loose this and have to travel a LONG way to the return line to rearm. Hit A/B from the start point, switch to ADMMs and adjust your radar to show you the red Tgt’s for Obj D only to help you focus your attacks. As you approach Obj D you can catch most of the planes and helo’s close to the ground over the airfield so with 1 pass using both your and Shamrock’s ADMM barrage’s you can catch most all of them right away and not have to worry about them shooting you as you take out ground Tgts. Slow down and make tight circles over the airfield while ADMM’ing the piss out of ‘em until all red Targets are gone. Once Obj D is complete, quickly head East for Obj E (very close to the eastern edge of the airfield) to get the Gun Trains. I say take out the Gun trains because there are only a few Targets you need to kill to accomplish this mission and it can be done with 2 ADMM barrage’s and maybe a couple regular missile strikes as you pass over the gun trains. Head over slowly, ADMM the nearest gun train and associated Tgts near by, you won’t kill the gun train completely as it is heavily armored but you can quickly switch to missiles and missile/MG’s him as you pass to finish him off. Keep heading East to the second gun train and accosociated SAM/tank/AAgun targets and ADMM them as well. Pass over the target (us A/B to sprint past a ways) allowing your ADMM’s recharge, turn around and you can either ADMM or missile/MG to finish it off, Obj E accomplished. Now as you pass back over the airport you can rearm if you need to head out to Obj C which is on the other side (western side) of the runway. Use your remaining ADMMs and/or Shamrock/Allied Support to hit the many ground and air targets over Obj C. This way the airport is very close by to rearm and you can travel between it and the Objective very quickly. Destroy the remaining Obj C Tgts dashing back and forth across the Obj area until Obj C accomplished. If you haven’t rearmed or you did but used a bunch of ADMM’s in finishing Obj C then do it quickly NOW while you wait for the mission update to begin Part 2. For Part 2 you essentially need to take out some remaining Tgt’s in the north (ground and air) as well as some new ones to the South. I suggest taking out the north ones first, usually just a few tanks or mobile SAM/AA type vehicles heading south and some remaining A-10’s /F-16/ Tornado types as well as some Strigon Tm members (use Shamrock and Allied Support for the Strigon Tm so you don’t have to waste time chasing them around). Then head South to the Ground Tgts there which are mostly containers and tents surrounded by tanks, APC, SAM, AA guns. Pound away with ADMM, finish off any remaining red Tgt A/C and you are home free. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Alternatively, you can start with OP A since it has the least number of targets. With ADMM, you can quickly dispose of them in a couple of minutes. Proceed with B then finally, you can either clean up C or get past it and clear the airfield in OP D to enable frontline resupply later on. +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 07 [WLK007] SELUMNA PEAK - Shimmering Death - Time Limit : 45:00:00 Area: Peak of Selumna Quota : 3/4 OP Leader : A: Warlock B: Avalanche C: Snake Pit Mission Type : Anti-Air Anti-Air Anti-Air D: Quox Anti-Air Main Objective: Secure air superiority over the area and assist the allied advance. Starting Points: 1. Fighter Intercept (Air-to-Air) 2. Supersonic Bomber Intercept (Air-to-Air) Jammer Aircraft Intercept (Air-to-Air) 3. Electronic Support Aircraft Defense (Air-to-Air) Order of Atk: OP C, OP B, OP A Start Point 3 (Snake Pit, Electronic Support Defense) Like Mission 4 Bartelemeo Fortress, I suggest you save Snake Pit first so he will follow you around and provide ECM support throughout the rest of the mission. Accomplishing this is also similar to Msn 4 where you essentially just head North and ADMM oncoming waves of Tgt A/C quickly accomplishing the mission as there aren’t that many waves. Objective complete. After Obj is complete head to Obj B (West/Southwest and blast 6 enemy jammer A/C (4 Tornadoes and 2 EA-200’s) which can be done very quickly with ADMM’s by flying in a circle A/B-ing between Targets. Objective complete. Head South/Southwest towards Obj A dive down closer to the mountains as the A/C attacking Warlock are actually A-10’s and some F-15E’s mostly at lower levels. Blast ‘em with ADMM’s until done. ADMM’s should be close to being expended when you complete the third Obj. IMMEDIATELY head as MAX speed to the West to the return line to rearm for Part 2 of the mission. There is a delay here as enemy A/C are heading north retreating and your allies are giving chase. Don’t chase or waste time with the retreating planes, just go re-arm as soon the Drones will show up and Aigion Cruise Missile Atks will start falling. Even if the drones show up before you reach the re-arm line, go rearm and DON'T bother firing on ANY drones until you get the mission update and the Drones become red Targets. You will be wasting time and ammo and Shamrock/Allied support if you do attack them as even if you hit them they won’t be destroyed (you will take off some health but they won’t die). Just rearm, reenter the battle area and abuse Shamrock and Allied Support to take out Drones. Your ADMM’s work better if the drones are farther away as they are too maneuverable and fast close in where they will dodge the missiles, find a clump that are further away while your allies and Shamrock take out the ones near you and get a bunch of them in your sights further away and ADMM them as you are approaching their area….BEWARE, the Drones will stick to certain areas at the start with some chasing you and others handing out further away, they will stay there until you get near them they those will start chasing you as well once you are in their area doubling the number of Aigion strikes you are dodging and making your ADMM’s less and less effective the closer they are to you. The only way to kill one with regular missiles is when they slow down to provide targeting data for a oncoming Nimbus strike and then you have to hurry up and get within range heading straight into a exploding cloud. Keep twisting and turning and abusing Shamrock and Allied support trying to use the ADMMs when you get several in your sights. Once all 12 UAVs are destroyed, mission accomplished. +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 08 SAN LOMA ASSAULT - Under a Sky of Fire - Time Limit : 40:00:00 Area: San Loma Quota : 2/3 OP Leader : A: Warlock B: Hammerhead C: Marigold Mission Type : Anti-Ground Multi Anti-Ground Main Objective: Recapture San Loma Starting Points: 1. Ground Unit Support (Air-to-Ground) 2. Bomber Defense (Air-to-Air/Ground) 3. Anti-Ship Assault (Air-to-Ground) Order of Atk: OP B then OP C Start Point : Hammerhead (Western – Left most, to accomplish Obj B first) OP B is fairly easy to accomplish quickly as there are small clusters of Gnd Tgts that, once destroyed, will spawn more Gnd Tgts further ahead but along your same heading so you won’t have to waste too much time turning around. Plus completing Obj B puts you in line to roll right into Obj C and accomplishing Obj C allows puts you in place to roll right into part 2 of the mission after the mission update. From the Start Point select ADMMs and A/B directly East (straight ahead as you start) and target ground targets ahead. (You will have to move slightly to your left or North to get all the initial Tgts with your first Volley). Once in range take off A/B to make sure you get all the red Tgts in your first ADMM volley. Short A/B to head out ahead to the 2nd group of Ground Tgts. Once the 2nd group of Ground Tgts start being targeted by the ADMMs slow down to let the ADMMs more time to recharge. Fire at the 2nd group of Gnd Tgts and look to the left/North and Target the incoming A/C Tgts, when they are in range have Sahmrock unleash a ADMM volley to get them while your ADMM’s recharge. You will have to do a little bit of turning here as at this point there are more red Gnd Tgts and they are more spread out so 1 ADMM volley won’t get them all. Best to switch to regular missiles and MG any remaining Tgts while your ADMM’s recharge. Once the 2nd group of Gnd Tgts are destroyed a 3rd group will spawn even further ahead near the beach. You may have to delay going for these and take out any red A/C tgts that Shamrock might have missed. Take care of them now then head back East toward the 3rd Group of Gnd Tgts. As you are destroying these some additional red Gnd Tgts will spawn. It is a Hovercraft unit but can be taken out with 1 ADMM barrage fairly quickly. This will complete Obj B. A/B straight ahead and slightly right/Southeast to head towards the ships out near Marigold. Once you start heading out towards Marigold to begin Obj C you will begin having some drones spawn and start Aigion Cruise Msl strikes but they are easily avoided and are somewhat random contained in a general area rather than drones following and specifically targeting you. You will be coming up on the backside of some enemy ships but 2-3 ships can be sunk all at once with a single ADMM barrage so let loose. Have Shamrock and Allied Support target the red Tgt A/C that are attacking Marigold and the other ships (F-2’s with Anit-Ship missiles mostly, maybe a few Rafael’s). You can A/B out to sea past and over Marigold and do a quick 180 to come in perpendicular to the beach and the remaining Ships you need to kill, taking advantage of the ECM support you will be getting from Marigold. Target and ADMM the remaining Ships with a couple of 180 turns over Marigold to remain in the ECM range of the ships while your ADMM’s recharge. When the red Tgt ships and other red Tgt ground units are destroyed you should have accomplished Obj B unless the Allied support and Shamrock are still working on some of the red A/C tgts, take care of them and Obj B will be accomplished. At this point you should have a few ADMM barrages left, but if not use this time between accomplishing Obj B (and therefore both of the required Obj’s - 2 of 3) and the mission update to head back West to rearm. The return line will move closer to you once Part 2 of the mission begins so you won’t have to travel as far. Now you will find more Ships and Gnd tgts on the shore as well as some A/C and more drones spawn in front of Marigold. Once you are rearmed head back to the battle area and abuse Shamrock and Allied Support as you chip in with ADMM barrages and you will quickly take out everything to end the mission. +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 09 HEAVY COMMAND CRUISER - The Dead Sea - Time Limit : 50:00:00 Area: Glava Island Quota : NONE OP Leader : NONE Mission Type : Anti-Air Main Objectives: Destroy the Aigaion (TGT) Destroy the Gyges (TGT) Destroy the Kottos (TGT) Destroy all Strigon Team aircraft Starting Points: Heavy Command Cruiser Assault (Air-to-Air) From the Start point immediately hit A/B and head straight as quickly as possible. Eventually you will see the Aigion and her sister ships rising out of the clouds, keep on the A/B, select ADMMs if you haven’t already and ignore the KC-10 tankers. Once you are getting ready to pass the tankers you will hear enemy radio traffic about unknown incoming planes and the mission will update. Point your plane slightly to the left (Northwest) at a point where the ECM Kotos plane is directly off your nose, when the ADMM target boxes are fixed on part of the Aigion and mostly on the Kotos let loose a barrage and pull slightly up to avoid crashing into the Aigion’s wing, take off after burner as you are coming up on the Aigion’s wing. As you pass directly over the Kotos ECM plane, hit Y to target the rear ECM array to help guide you when you turn around. When you are beyond the Kotos you just passed over (give it a little ways to make sure you can turn and still come up behind it without having to adjust too much). You pull straight up and over the top so you have reversed direction and are directly behind the Kotos. You need to be slightly above and behind the Kotos and almost matching its slow speed so you aren’t over taking it. Your ADMMs should be recharged and all the engines of the Kotos are targeted. If they are then let loose the ADMM barrage and watch to make you get all the engines. To kill the Kotos’s you only have to knock out all the engines to destroy them. If your ADMM’s didn’t get all the engines, target the ones that are left and use either missiles and/or MGs to knock out the rest but staying behind the Kotos. Once this 1st Kotos is destroyed turn 90 degress left (East) till you see the other Kotos. You should be passing by the rear end of the Aigion and will probably be slightly below the 2nd Kotos. You should also hear radio traffic about the Strigon Tm getting ready to launch, Ignore it and target the rear Kotos ECM array. You don’t need A/B for any of this, just a slight feathering of the throttles to speed things up a little bit but A/B will get you going to fast and too far away from your intended targets and require too much correction in course to get lined up. In this mission SMOOTH is FAST and Really Fast is SLOPPY and will cost you more time. Once you are about even with the rear ECM array of the 2nd Kotos, make a 90 degree left turn so you are heading directly away from the rear of the Kotos. Do another over the top 180 degree turn (Immelman Turn ~1) to once again line yourself up behind and slightly above the 2nd Kotos, let loose an ADMM barrage once you have all the engines targeted. You might not get them all but you can hang back there and wait for the recharge while still following the 2nd Kotos. Unleash another ADMM barrage which will have the benefit of targeting some of the Strigon Tm planes that are taking off from the Aigion (which is in your sight to your right). You can also have Shamrock ADMM some of the Aigion planes that are emerging from the Aigion as the Strigon Tm planes are slow and not as maneuverable until they finish their take off and pick up speed. Whatever you do IGNORE the Strigon Tm planes unless its convenient to hit a bunch of them with a ADMM barrage while attacking another Tgt. Once the 2nd Kotos plane is down turn 90 degress to the right/West, again passing parallel behind the Aigion and start looking for the right/Western most Gyges which should be maneuvering ahead. Maneuver behind and slightly above the Gyges and take it out similar to how you took out the Kotos. Be careful though as you might have to get closer to, and even higher above or in front of it to take out some AA gun targets that are difficult to hit on the top and leading edge of the wing before the Engines will become active targets. Also you will start collecting some attention from the Strigon Tm members but quick Allied Support – Cover calls will quickly wipe them all out. When the engines of the Gyges become available as Targets its smooth sailing as they go down easy as long as you stay behind and slightly above them, 1 ADMM barrage will take it down just like the Kotos so long as you are directly behind and slightly above the craft, which is slightly more difficult than the Kotos’ since the Gyges maneuver around some. Also once you do destroy one get out of the way, do NOT fly through the debris as the wings will sometime maintain their “solidness” of a little while after they are destroyed and if the wing pitches up following what would have been the A/C’s next maneuver, it can hit and destroy you. With 1 Gyges down, there is one more to go…you will find it maneuvering on the opposite side of the Aigion from where you are. Hit A/B and take the quickest route which will out you on an intercept course with the rear of the craft. Again, line it up when you get behind and above it (try to be on the same heading so you are diferctly at its 6 o’clock position and watch out as the Gyges will speed up and slow down at different times). Same as with the others destroy all the Targets on it and get the Engines to become active targets, then ADMM them and you should be left with just the Aigion left. The Aigion will take a little doing, but not too much. You first have to find whatever Targets are left on it before the Engines will show up as Targets and sometimes these remaining targets can be masked by other parts of the ship so make sure you line up on the Targets you need to destroy where you can see them to make sure your missiles will track and hit the Tgts. Once the missiles become tartgets, use ADMM’s from behind/above, Shamrock ADMMs and abuse allied support. They will quickly get taken out with 2 ADMM barrages, 2 Allied support calls and a Shamrock barrage. You may need to pull up and pump some missiles and MG fire into some but make sure you stay behind the ship which is tough since it flies pretty slow. Once the engines are destroyed make sure you are back and above the Aigion and wait for the hidden compartment missile launchers to emerge (they are green non-mission essential targets but they are a pain in the ass so best to destroy them before you head over the top and front of the Aigion to take out the Bridge/ cockpit). Use an ADMM barrage and Allied support on these Targets as you hit A/B to zoom over the top of the Aigion hitting Y to target the Cockpit as you pass over the front of the craft. You have to head out away from the Aigion a good ways (but straight along the same heading the Aigion was taking to it is directly behind you at your 6 o’clock but you should be above it as well) since it will be heading at you and you need enough time to turn around, target, and launch the final ADMM barrage before its right on top of you, your missiles miss and you have to try again. Once you are far enough away, High G turn so you are flying straight back at the Aigion (you need to be at least even with the cockpit or slightly above or slightly below to make sure your missiles track and hit the cockpit. If done right it is a one shot kill and the mission is over. While all this sounds like it might take a long time actually accomplishing all this is very quick and the whole mission is over before you know it. ~1: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immelmann_turn +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 10 RAGNO FORTRESS - Into the Pass - Time Limit : 40:00:00 Area: Grageo Canyon Quota : 2/3 OP Leader : A: Warlock B: Windhover C: Yellow Jacket Mission Type : Multi Multi Anti-Ground Main Objective: Capture Ragno Fortress Starting Points: 1. Central Assault Unit Support (Air-to-Air/Ground) 2. Tunnel Assault (Air-to-Ground) 3. Substation Assault (Air-to-Air/Ground) Order of Atk: OP A then OP B Start point 1 to support OP A. From the Start Point, A/B straight ahead (North), ignoring all Green Tgts along the plateau until you get deeper and closer to the Fortress. When the first batch of Red Tgts are in range take off A/B and ADMM the red Gnd Tgts you see on one half of the plateau and then Tgt the other half and have Shamrock attack with ADMM barrage. Put him back into cover mode, feather the speed to close the gap to the next set of red Gnd Tgts just outside the fortress walls and once the ADMM’s are recharged try to get as many of the red Gnd Targets into the ADMM’s range and let loose watching out for the ground fire. By this time Warlock should be warning you that they are being jumped by a group of AV-8 Harriers which are red A/C targets for Obj A. Turn around and head back toward Warlock, Hit A/B to close that gap until you get some Harriers to be locked on by the ADMM’s and take of A/B. Try to get as many of the Harriers into the ADMM lock on as you can while they are still close together and you are still farther away and let loose the ADMM barrage (ADMMs are most effective from longer ranges and when the A/C are closely bunched together). Then target and have Shamrock atk the other group of AV-8’s that came from the other side of the canyon while your ADMM’s recharge. You should be able to get most all of the Harriers with 2 ADMM shots and Shamrock Atking on his own. You may have to turn and dogfight with a few of them yourself. Harriers are not fast but pretty maneuverable and hard to see at low level near the ground. Its easiest to target them with Missiles at slow speed when closer in as the ADMMs tend to miss in close quarters. Finish them off, get Shamrock back into cover mode and head back towards the fortress. Watch out for the non-red A/C Tgt AH-64’s that are also there, they will MG and/or missile you while you are trying to dogfight the AV-8s. Don’t waste time chasing them but it may be worth and ADMM barrage to get rid the annoyance. Once the AV-8s are delt with turn back North and A/B till you are back in range of any remaining red Gnd Tgts near the fortress which include some heavy howitzers outside the fortress and come bunkers that are part of the initial fortress wall. ADMMs are less effective on the Heavy Howitzers. But use a barrage to knock down their “health” and finish them off with slow and low speed passes with Missiles and MGs (MG’s are especially effective on the bunkers if you don’t get them all with the ADMMs and will save you time twisting and turning and waiting for your ADMMs to recharge). This should take care of all Obj A targets, operation accomplished. Now you are set up to pass over the fortress (watch out for SAMs/AA fire) and head North to attack Obj B, the power station and supply route along the river that runs roughly North to South on the East side of the fortress. You will be attacking Obj B in “reverse order”. That is to say from the North to the South, heading away from the fortress. From the front (South side) of the fortress A/B North and past the Power Station targets then turn and slow down again. Start with the Power Station targets on the plateau behind Ragno Fortress attacking them from the most Northern Tgts and heading South. There are a lot of green targets in the area (SAM, AA guns, etc) that will provide a distraction for your ADMM targeting as far as being able to focus on just the red Gnd Tgts, so you may need 2 ADMM barrages and possibly a pass or two with Missiles and MG’s to take out all the power station Targets. Watch out for the AA fire coming from the East on the Opposite plateau from the power station as there is an enemy ECM radar and some XSAMs, as well as gunboats and AA guns on the lake and damn. Once the power station is taken out look to target the red A/C Tgts which are a few flights of F-15E’s that support Obj B. They pretty much just run a track back and forth over the river from the Damn to the South where the Obj B targets are laid out and they stay at low level and don’t really dogfight or fly very fast while flying through the canyon by the river. Excellent Targets of the ADMM’s, EXCEPT as the river twists and turns they will end up being masked by the canyon walls if you don’t get them on a straightaway which will waste a ADMM barrage if you aren’t paying attention. Hit whichever ones present themselves to you as they come and use Shamrock and Allied Support but don’t waste too much time chasing them (you shouldn’t need to if you use the ADMM’s correctly). Meanwhile you head down the river and from the North to the South and Target the containers that are on the along the river. The first batch of containers/cranes/container ships/etc are a short ways down the river form the damn on the left hand side as you head south; its hard to get them all in a ADMM barrage if you are at low level and following the river. It’s easier if you are at altitude (above the canyon walls slightly) and coming at them from the central plateau (West to East from where Warlock is/was). Blast the first batch with ADMMs and if you don’t get them all getting low and hitting them with missiles to finish them off. A/B towards the South, following the river. Watch out for the ECM radar and XSAM emplacement that is on a ridge in the middle of the river about half way between the 1st batch of containers you just whacked and the next batch further down river. It’s worth taking them out with an ADMM barrage or Shamrock or Allied Support as they are troublesome. You should likely run into some more red A/C Tgt F-15’s that support Obj B as you are heading south so take them out as you run into them. The whole run over the river is a delicate balance of using speed bursts (A/B) to quicken your pace, and flying slow to get the most accurate targeting from your ADMM barrages and giving them time to recharge. As you keep heading south you will run into the final batch of red Gnd Tgts which is another cluster of container ships, containers, and cranes, all protected with AA and SAMs. Eliminate them and you should be close to the return line as well as close to being out of ADMMs. If you did a good job of catching the F-15s while you were making your run from North to South, you should have eliminated all of these as well so that once you finish the last batch of containers in the South you should have completed Obj B. If you didn’t check you map/radar while filtering just the Obj B targets to see where they are and quickly chase them down and eliminate them. If you killed them all and you completed the Obj, then you can continue heading South and be close to the return line to rearm with ADMMs. A/B to the return line and rearm. Once you have rearmed, A/B back north towards the fortress. At some point when you get to the fortress you should get the mission update where the attack on the fortress proper begins in earnest. If you are over the fortress and still waiting for the mission update it is probably because, while you accomplished 2 of the 3 missions, there is also a minimum number of enemies you need to kill to trip the mission update and you haven’t killed enough enemies (green or red it doesn’t matter) so kill some more stuff near the fortress and you should quickly get the mission update. Once the Targets turn red it’s a simple matter of using ADMM’s, Shamrock on Atk and Allied support to knock them out. The 2nd part of this mission is itself a two part mission. First there will emerge a bunch of AA/SAM, Tanks and howitzers placed both outside the fortress walls and inside the fortress; as well as concrete bunkers circling all sides of the fortress contained in the fortress walls themselves. Try not to hang out over the top/middle of the fortress and you will be getting A LOT of AA fire. Stand off a bit from the fortress make a run at the fortress from different angles; you can use A/B to “buzz” back and forth across the fortress but you have to do a lot us turning around, better to use A/B to speed burst away form AA fire after you unleash an ADMM burst to get some distance away form the fortress, slow down, turn around and let the ADMM’s recharge for another run. Remember to abuse Allied support and Shamrock on the red Gnd Tgts to eliminate them quickly. Once the first batch of red Targets are destroyed a new batch will emerge. These will be in the form of some more AV-8 Harriers (which can be killed VERY quickly if you catch them while they are trying to lift off with ADMM’s and Allied Atk) some more Tanks and SAM/AA guns and the HQ and Control Tower that are the tall “skyscraper” buildings in the center of the fortress on the northern side. All these new red Tgts will emerge and remain in the center of the fortress grounds (except the Harriers if you let them take off and start flying around). Take them all out and…mission accomplished. The reason I recommend Obj A then B is that this route “flows”. Essentially, you head up the center, turn around and head back down South on the Eastern side and this rolls right into leaving you at the Southern end of the battle area right at the point where you need to rearm and closer to the return line so you aren’t wasting as much time in transit. You could possibly do it in the opposite order, heading up the East side along the river taking out Obj B targets and heading South along the central route and taking out Obj A targets as well; but I don’t recommend this as while you are working along the river, Warlock is getting pounded by the Harriers and other ground targets and run the risk of being eliminated. It harder to take out the Harriers later on as they spread out and fly back and forth bombing and strafing Warlock, so if you do Obj A first you can catch them when they first emerge and are bunched close together; ripe to be taken out en masse with ADMMs without wasting time dog fighting them and chasing them all over the place. Whatever you do, DON”T BOTHER with Obj C, the tunnel assault, its very nature makes is slow to accomplish as you waste a lot of time taking out the Shields and then trying to line up to fly into the entrance and forced to fly slow through the tunnels. Its fun to do, but not an Obj that lends itself to being done quickly. While Obj C has the least amount of Tgts that need to be taken out to accomplish the Obj I say IGNORE Obj C when going for the Quicksilver medal. +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 11 THE MOLOCH DESERT - Hollow Victory - Time Limit : 30:00:00 Area: Moloch Desert Quota : 2/4 OP Leader : A: Warlock B: Quox C: Hammerhead Mission Type : Anti-Ground Multi Multi D: Snake Pit Anti-Air Main Objective: Eliminate the enemy ground force Starting Points: 1. Tank Battalion Support (Air-to-Ground) 2. Airfield Recapture (Air-to-Air/Ground) 3. Bomber Defense/ Command Assault (Air-to-Air/Ground) Electronic Support Aircraft Defense (Air-to-Air) Order of Attack: OP D then OP B Straightforward and fairly easy to accomplish. Start with Obj D protecting Snake Pit once again. This one will be a little tougher as the red Tgt A/C that Atk Snake Pit come from different directions and are more spread out so you are looking at only being able to Target 2 A/C with 1 ADMM barrage at a time and you have to spend some time trying to maneuver to get behind them as you will miss with the ADMM’s if you try to hit them from the side (enemy A/C fly right by). Also this a little tougher than before because the last group of Targets that come are 6 F-22’s which are fast and maneuverable enough to avoid ADMM barrages if not fired from near perfect position. Still once you have destroyed all the previous targets (2 Typhoons 1st, then 2 pairs of Rafael’s – that 4 total Rafaels) you should have at least 1 Allied Support call saved up and you can use it to distract and help shoot down the F-22’s while you and Shamrock take them down quickly. Once you save Snake Pit you he will follow you throughout the rest of the battle to help you in the fight against the Strigon Tm during the 2nd half of the mission. Head over to Obj B area and rescue the airport. Use allied support and Shamrock ADMMs to kill the flying targets which involve some AC-130’s which need multiple hits to bring down. While they are busy with the airborne threat you take out the ground Tgts. Watch out though as the place is lousy with SAMs and AA guns and non-Tgt, green enemy A/C which are annoying. Soon enough though, after a few passes with ADMMs you will have it captured as long as you focus on the red targets as much as possible. As soon as you accomplish Obj B you should already be lined up to land since you are likely flying circles over it as you were taking out enemy tgts. You should land and rearm IMMEDIATELY after its captured and before the Stirgon Tm shows up. You need to land now because once the mission update comes along the airfield and any rearming is off-limits as everyone was ordered to retreat INCLUDING your Allied Support. You also want to land and rearm right away because you want to be back in the air before the Strigon Tm arrives. Watch your Radar for them, all other Tgts will disappear. Aim for one of the end Strigon Tm planes that is part of the Semi Circle they make in front of you and launch ADMMs then the box is red you can usually get the outer most Strigon Tm plane and sometimes another right off the bat (hard to hit and kill more than one at a time with ADMMs any other way since they are so maneuverable and you are closing on them fast where they break off). If Able have Shamrock Tgt and Atk the other end of the semi-circle to try to get a quick kill on the other side too. Leave Shamrock on Atk as he seems much more able to kill Strigon Tm planes than you can, probably since they are all chasing you and mostly ignore him. Plus when he’s attacking one at least its one less that’s chasing you. Your ADMM’s are marginally effective since the Strigon Tm is much better at getting and staying behind you but you can usually catch one napping taking 1 out per ADMM barrage. Just break out your best maneuvers and you will get through quick enough. +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 12 WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION - Boiling Point - Time Limit : 20:00:00 Area: Fort Norton Quota : None OP Leader : None Mission Type : Multi Main Objective: Destroy the enemy before being reported. Starting Points: WMD Suppression (Air-to-Air/Ground) This is a short one, the only thing to really say here is to maneuver through the canyon at the highest speed you can manage without crashing or flying above the canyon walls where you get detected and fail the mission. Right before you get to an area with watchtowers/Gnd Tgts, hit the breaks and make the most of your ADMM barrage (by making sure both top and bottom launchers are clear of obstacles like the ground or canyon walls to avoid missing any of the Tgts. If done right you can immediately hit A/B and zoom on past once you launched your ADMM barrage. Also you don’t need to slow down or use an ADMM barrage on the gunboat, switch to missiles keep on A/B and as soon as it locks on, launch two missiles to ensure destruction then switch back to ADMMs. It also helps to be in the radar view that shows a closer in map of the area (the view right after the standard radar cross-hair looking view) to help you judge how far away you are from the next group of Tgts so you can plan when to hit the breaks to be the most accurate with your ADMM barrage. You 1st come to a group of watchtowers and AA guns, 4 Tgts total. The next group is larger maybe 6 or 8 targets but can still be hit with 1 ADMM barrage. Next is the lone gunboat (use missiles) followed closely by the 3rd group of Gnd Tgts which are about 10 or 12 tgts but again can be taken out with 1 ADMM barrage. From there A/B till you get to the Targets where the catalyst transport trucks are. The Transports are the only actual red Targets you have to kill in this group but to get to them you have to fly over/through a bunch of SAM and AA guns so use the ADMM’s right at the beginning and usually it will leave 1 of the transports still alive but they are the furthest away from you so you can easily switch to missiles and take it out to complete this pat of the mission. As soon as you kill the transports there is no need to stay in the canyon so hit A/B and make a turn back to where you came and you can climb out of the canyon to get some room to maneuver. Your heading should follow the transparent arrows that flash in your radar. Stay on this heading in max A/B. Feel free to take ADMM shots at groups of enemy planes that are in front of you as they are available but don’t waste time dogfighting with them you need to get close to the return line to trip the mission update and start the clock on waiting for your allies. Killing A/C on your way back is recommended even though they are green Tgts right now because they ALL become red, mission essential, Targets at the mission update so for now you are just thinning out the herd. Once you get back near the return line following the glowing arrows on the radar, you will get the update from Snake Pit and all the A/C on the map will turn to red targets, climb and fly through the on coming planes (F-15’s mostly) and immediately target the 2 E-767 ECM planes that are supporting the bad guys. Kill them with a ADMM barrage quick and things will be easier for you. After the E-767 ECM planes are down, put Shamrock on attack and fly in A/B. Try running away/outrunning from the pack behind you then pull a high G 180 to head back at that huge concentration of planes back there, hit Y to target with the ADMMs and let loose, you should get a few each time, then Dive and hit A/B and start a run out of the fur ball until the ADMM’s recharge then do it again. Keep this up avoiding the planes and trying to thin them out as much as possible while letting Shamrock do whatever he can to help. You can’t make this part of the game go any faster as you have to wait for your allies to show up. As soon as they do use and abuse Allied Support – Cover while maintaining your tactic of running away and quickly turning into the soup to launch ADMMs. Periodically hitting Allied Cover again which will very quickly kill all the enemy A/C. Mission accomplished! +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 13 THE LIBERATION OF GRACEMERIA - Wings Triumphant - Time Limit : 60:00:00 Area: Gracemeria Quota : None OP Leader : A: Steel Gunners B: Dragon Busters C: Warlock Mission Type : Multi Anti-Ground Anti-Ground D: Marigold E: Windhover F: Avalanche Anti-Ground Air-to-Air Air-to-Air Main Objective: Recapture the capital city of Gracemeria Starting Points: 1. Airfield Recapture (Air-to-Air/Ground) Jammer Aircraft Intercept (Air-to-Air) 2. Capitol Recapture (Air-to-Ground) Radio Station Recapture(Air-to-Ground) 3. Anti-Ship Assault (Air-to-Ground) Electronic Support Aircraft Intercept (Air-to-Air) Order of Attack: OP A - D - E & F (E & F can be accomplished simultaneously since they are in the same area just at different altitudes) Start with the airfield recapture as you will need the runway to rearm a few times during the mission and the runway is very close to the other Objectives you will be accomplishing (D, E, F) afterwards. Assaulting the airfield is pretty straightforward and doesn’t take long, A/B to where you are in range of the Target and you and Shamrock ADMM them to kingdom-come. The targets are pretty linear as far as you destroy the ones you run into first and the next batch spawn a little further along until you get to the airport. There are some enemy A/C that are red Tgts in this so watch out for them and use Shamrock and Allied support (once you get enough kills to get the meter up a little) on them while you concentrate on the Gnd Tgts. Once it is captured land and rearm and head out to sea to help Marigold. Destroy the ships and any red Tgt A/C out at sea in front of Marigold till you hear the transmission ordering Marigold to head into the bay. You can take moment here to head up (as in altitude) that are roughly over the king’s bridge and take some shots with ADMM at some of the Jammer A/C. This is a good place to use allied support while you are pointing up into the sky, Target the F-22’s and Allied support them as they are the most troublesome and possibly have Shamrock help as you dive back down and work on the ship and ground targets in and around the bay area that are part of Obj D. Concentrate on Obj D as you need Marigold to survive to help you with ECM support in your later fight against Pasternak and his UAVs. Rearm as needed and finish off Obj D, and E and F. Know that Obj F is actually at VERY high altitude so you need to be in a straight up A/B climb and launch ADMM’s at him before you reach your ceiling and stall. You might need to reattack but he falls down toward your level once you attack him. When he is gone you can dive back down to take out whatever Obj D or E (Jammer A/C) remain. As soon as you clear your 4th Objective IMMEDIATELY head to the airport while Sgt McKnight is and Co. are talking about getting to the bank. You want to try to land before they finish their conversation and before the cutscene where Pasternak comes-a-callin. If you can rearm before the cut scene then you don’t have to worry about turning around and landing after its over. When you rearm, change your SP weapon to the EML’s (electromagnetic launchers). With EML’s armed, head straight over to Marigold and the other ECM ships in the bay, you can get up to LV 3 support by loitering at low level turning slow circles over the ships. If you are down low near the ships, the UAV’s don’t bother you too much down there. Watch your radar for Pasternak, when he shows up, point in his direction (try to actually target him specifically with the Y button so his A/C is in the picture box in the top left of the screen. Then Allied support Atk and send Shamrock on ATk, then line him up and blast him with the EML. You should be able to blast him within maybe 10 seconds or so of his arrival…mission complete! +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 14 GRACEMERIA PATROL - City Lights - Time Limit : 60:00:00 Area: Gracemeria Quota : None OP Leader : None Mission Type : Anti-Air Main Objective: Protect the city from enemy cruise missiles. Starting Points: Capitol Patrol (Air-to-Air) This mission is also straight forward in that the only thing you need to worry about killing is the missiles and ignoring everything else. A lot of this mission is on a preset timer so to speak in that you cannot hurry it up very much by any action you take, all you can do is slow it down by being lazy about it. What I will tell you here is a few places where you can hurry things along. You start off having to take off from the airfield. Hit A/B, take off and A/B towards the waypoint that come up once you gain some altitude. Head towards it and pass through/by it as quickly as you can as the game will not let Shamrock take off until you do. Once you clear it they will give permission to Shamrock to take off, who lazily and unenthusiastically does so. The mission won’t update with a new way point until Shamrock has taken off and reached the same waypoint you just flew through. Take off A/B and swing around behind the airfield and swing around again so you are coming up on Shamrock as he is reaching the waypoint. Get back into A/B and go back through the waypoint and you should get an updated waypoint from Snake Pit. From here on out go to all the waypoints in A/B. It won’t speed up the game so much as there is a string of radio chatter that must happen in order and you can’t skip any of it. However, hitting each new waypoint as soon as its up will trigger the next conversation immediately. If you are flying around and taking your time getting to new waypoints then the next string of conversations won’t happen until you get there. You will find that you have to go through more waypoints than normal; when you do it on A/B, as you reach one, for example “Get to the Kings Bridge” you go through the initial waypoint to start the next batch of chatter but once you do pass through it the game gives you intermediate waypoints in the same vicinity as the main one until the conversation plays out and you get you next new way point from Snake Pit. Once you are done with all the way points, and Snake Pit has told you to loiter over the Castle and await clearance for landing, head and loiter around the Northeast corner of the bay on your map/radar facing Northeast. Don’t’ wander to far from there and no need to be at A/B. You want to catch the first batch of missiles head on instead of having to chase them. If you have played this several times you should have an idea of where the “Unknown” blows up and turns into the missiles on the map so you can be right in front of them when they do and immediately have them all targeted with your ADMMs. Get them targeted and destroy them. Then wait for the second batch who pretty much follow the same heading into Gracemeria. This time once the missiles explode and become targets, miraculously you will have a bunch of SU-47’s magically appear behind you and chasing you. As long as you are at A/B heading towards the missiles for and ADMM shoot they shouldn’t be able to interfere with you yet. Blast the next batch of missiles with ADMMs and wait for the next batch. Basically the way to save time here is to A/B to the missiles location get them lines up for a ADMM shot. Other than the first two missile intercepts which you can take head on and get them all quickly, you will need to maneuver behind them and slow down to their speed to get the best ADMM shots at them as if you take shots at them from the side, they will fly by the ADMM barrage and you will have to do it all over. Concentrate on getting the missiles and use Shamrock and Allied support to deal with the chasing A/C trying to blast you. At one point there will be a break in the oncoming cruise missiles. Use this time to ADMM/Allied Support/Shamrock the fighters messing with you to thin them out. But don’t get into a turning dogfight with them. You need to use this time to reposition yourself to get as close to one of the 3 or 4 locations where the final batch of missiles will be heading to. I usually go to the Eastern/Southeastern side of the map and attack the last batch of missiles in a counter clockwise fashion. Get in place and when you can target these last batches of missiles you will notice that there are more missiles than you have ADMMs to target in a single barrage. This is why it is important to maneuver in behind them then slow down to their speed. ADMM them then quickly switch to regular missiles and take out the rest to avoid having to twist and turn chasing them around. You need to take them out quickly and use Allied support to deal with the fighters so you can A/B to intercept then next closest batch of missiles. Get behind them, ADMM then finish off with reg missiles….repeat until all missiles are gone. You shouldn’t need to rearm at and in fact you can’t if you hear the radio message that the airfield is useless due to the F-117 Atks, which usually happen if you ignore them…which to get this done in minimum time you need to. +===================================================================+ +===================================================================+ Mission 15 CHANDELIER - To all things - Time Limit : 50:00:00 Area: Sonne Island Quota : None OP Leader : None Mission Type : Anti-Air Main Objective: Destroy the Chandelier Starting Points: Doomsday Weapon Assault (Air-to-Air/Ground) Similar to Msn 14 there is only so much you can do to “speed’ this mission up as it is tied to conversations/radio transmissions and cut scenes. However, you can speed up some aspects as obviously the cut scene for Shamrock is tied to you destroying all the Shielding and cooling units, so how quickly you do that determines how soon you get the cut scene. The other reason time isn’t as much of an issue on this last mission is that by now, if you followed this guide you should only be around the 1 hr 50 minute mark. As my average time using all the methods I’ve described to this point is 2 hrs and 2 mins. Since you need 2 hrs and 15 minutes or less to get the Quicksilver medal you should be ok at this point. Again like most missions, smooth is fast. Being accurate and economical in taking out the targets you want/need to take out will result in speed i.e.- shorter time it takes to meet the accomplishment criteria and complete the mission. Don’t take this as a suggestion that you can lollygag through this mission however. Since there is no real way to track exactly how much total time you have taken so far (unless you remember to write down the time from each mission during the debriefing after watching or fast forwarding through the track of your plane) don’t assume you are good to go here as there are few things as frustrating in this game as having to play the entire thing all over again because you were just over 2 hrs and 15 minutes. (My first few attempts I kept coming up short at like 2 hrs and 20 minutes…I was ready to smash my controller into the TV after the third time). From the start hit A/B and hold it down, do it in a slight climb where you are gaining altitude and still gaining speed. Keep up this A/B climb until you are around 35,000+ feet and go into a steeper dive, this will give you a boost of speed as you will come close to 1800 knots and slowly pull out of it around 15,000 feet as it will take some time for the speed to bleed off you are still going forward at a speed beyond your normal A/B max speed in level flight and then start to climb slightly again. You want to be around 20,000 to 25,000 feet and max A/B speed when the cut scene comes. You also want to be at a point where when you look down and ahead you can see the AA fire rising up from the Chandelier. Once the cut scene ends you will have Strigon Tm planes and some other enemy fighters at your altitude heading your way and you will get targeted immediately. If you are at 20 – 25 k then you can immediately dive to the deck and avoid their missiles while at the same time coming out of the clouds and heading to the left aiming towards the ships that are on the west side of the rail gun. Arm the ADMM’s if you haven’t already and try to line it up where you take out the three ships that are just to the left of the front of the rail gun. With your first ADMM barrage and heading toward the ships on the back side of the gun for another strike. The plan here is to remove as many threats out side of the rail gun platform as you can before Shamrock and Snake Pit get the data feed from the girl and her mom. You cannot yet attack the rail gun or the targets on top of it but you can remove most of these ships that will limit your ability to freely target the shielding and cooling units once the mission update comes. Essentially you are making a high speed, low altitude pass clockwise around the rail gun and targeting and destroying as many of the SAM missile ships and gunboats as you can take out before the next cut scene. This also helps to build up your Allied Support meter before the real battle even starts so you can use it to fend off the fighters and destroy annoying clumps of AA fire from the rail gun as you are targeting shielding and cooling units. Once the cut scene comes you are automatically placed at mid-level altitude and need to dive toward the deck immediately to prevent from getting hit by the planes or AA fire. Target and ADMM the first shielding you see which should also target some of the AA guns and fighters. You ADMMs won’t destroy the shielding but will knock it down, immediately switch to missiles shoot them at the shielding and finish it off with a slow speed pass of MGs to finish the two levels of shielding and finally the cooling unit on this “arm” of the rail gun. You can head out to sea in a 90 deg left turn to swing back around for and ADMM shot on the exposed (non-shielded) cooling units (three of them in a row on the Western side of the rail gun) but it take a little time. Or you can just pull off a little to the left at low level and MG the three cooling units as you pass over them. This is more dangerous though as you expose you right flank to a lot of AA fire as you are passing over and MG’s the cooling units so prepare to get hit. This way is quicker and more certain of destroying the units since the MG kills these things almost instantly, but exposes you to a bunch of fire. Either way, try to take these out on your first pass then head to the back/rear/northern part of the rail gun to work on these targets next. From here on out you need to work your way back and forth across the rail gun ADMM-ing, missile-ing , and MG-ing the shielding and cooling units. It doesn’t matter so much what order you do them, just as long as you make sure to take at least one out on each pass you make near/ towards the rail gun. Use Allied support in cover mode and Shamrock in atk mode to deal with the fighters and soon you will not have many fighters to worry about and you can maneuver more freely in altitude. Initially you need to stay low to avoid the fighters bothering you on you attack runs (where is Han Solo and Chewie in the Falcon when you need them!!) since the planes don’t come down low (as in most cases with the game). Whatever you do don’t waste all your ADMMs or drain your allied support meter. Once you finish off the last cooling unit head towards the front part of the rail gun but climb to a higher altitude and far enough away from the AA towers that you will have to deal with next. Soon after finishing off the cooling units you will get Shamrock’s Medal Of Honor charge cut scene. Once the cut scene ends loiter at high altitude toward the front of the rail gun, but far enough away that the AA towers can’t/don’t hit you. Wait for the backup cooling unit and the AA towers to become targetable targets. Turn toward the AA Towers and hit it with and Allied Assault and ADMM barrage, turning away from, but lined up with the entrance to the back-up cooling unit at the front of the rail gun. Again wait just out of range of the AA towers until all of them are destroyed by either you ADMM shot or your Allies. Once you see they are destroyed you can make your run toward the entrance to the cooling unit below the barrel. *** NOTE: DO NOT be anywhere near the front of the barrel if it is getting ready to fire it will kill you automatically. You are safe if you are already down in the trench below the barrel but if you haven’t entered the trench yet, abort, and line it up again after the thing has fired.*** Now that the AA towers are cleared out, switch to missiles and head into the trench. No need to rush, fly as slow as you need to in order not to crash. If you are going to miss the 2 hr 15 minute time limit it because you weren’t fast enough before. Anyway, head into the trench, kill the AA guns and the cooling unit with missiles (two each makes sure its done). You don’t have to follow the trench all the way through the rail gun, you can pull out through one of the openings like Shamrock did if you wish, but it is tricky at anything but slow speed and only saves a few seconds. However you exit the gun, as you should know by now, you need to head back towards the end of the barrel and make another run down the barrel. No AA to worry about here so A/B to a point out in front of the barrel where you can turn around and get lined up with the barrel entrance, fly down and take it out. Again no need to go crashing here by trying to push it in A/B, chances of the few seconds you saving making the difference here are VERY SLIM, so don’t sweat it, just fly down take it out and for the last time…mission accomplished. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ | CREDITS | ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ - CRD000 - This is as complete as it gets. If you guys have questions, send them via email and we will try to answer them the best as we can. Suggestions, additional tips and info are always welcome. Don't forget to put "Ace Combat 6 - " as your subject; otherwise, it might be ignored as spam mail. Thanks primarily to Jon M. for providing some really detailed tips that made this guide possible. To all the sites hosting Vhayste's guides; mainly but not limited to: Chaptercheats IGN Gamefaqs Gamerhelp Neoseeker Honestgamers Cheathappens Supercheats Cheatcodes And to you, for getting this guide and reading this up to this point.