MECHASSAULT: PHANTOM WAR FAQ By: James “2Dskillz” Roberts Version 1.1 10-16-07 -All Unlockables Version 1.0 10-31-06 - All missions complete - Thanks Yous - Weapon Notes update - Def Mod update Version 0.8 10-25-06 - All missions through planet Tsinan complete Only 2 more planets (6 missions) to go. - Unlockables updated Version 0.7 10-18-06 - All missions through 2.6 Version 0.4 10-10-04 - All missions of Planet Wroclaw Complete - Hacking Section Complete - Def Mods Complete - Basics Complete - Saves Complete What is coming? - More of the Walkthrough - Details on All Weapons - More Combat Strategies - More detail of unlockables 1. Basics 2. Combat 3. Hacking 4. Saves 5. Campaign List 6. Walkthrough 7. Unlockables 1. Basics Controls: L – Jump jets/Detonate Missile (turret only) Control Pad – Move Mech or Vehicle/Speed Control for missile (turret only) R – Fire Weapon/Drop & Detonate Pilot Bombs X – Look Up B – Look Down Y – Look Left A – Look Right Start – Pause Select – Scoreboard (in multiplayer) *(Controls can also be set to left-handed which will flip the control scheme) Mechassault also gives an option for stylus based control similar to that of Metroid Prime Hunters, however in Mechassault the stylus functions more like an analog stick making it feel floating and imprecise. If you choose stylus control the control pad will function the same and L button will fire weapons, in this mode jump jets are activated by double tapping on the touch screen. I recommend against stylus control because unlike Metroid Prime Hunters you do not require fast precision. Most all of the weapons in Mechassault will lock onto an enemy target and seek. Also targets are moving a good deal slower. Touch Screen: Upper Right – Claw, looks like a robotic claw (Battle Armor) First Person Zoom, looks like crosshairs (Tank) Initiate Hack, looks like a square (Pilot) Lower Right – Change Weapons, looks like 2 arrows in a circle Lower Left – DEF MOD, defensive mods, icon will vary, See Combat for details Upper Left – Enter/Exit Mech or Vehicle, looks like an arrow, you must hold the icon for a moment. Also on the touch screen is a Question Mark and a Book. The question mark provides mission objectives as well as general info, the book represents the war book which provides vehicles technical readouts. 2. Combat Targeting: With most weapons you will only need to wait until your reticule turns red and you will hit with your weapons. Missiles will also show red spinning arrows around the enemy letting you know that they have a lock and will track the enemy. Hammer missiles are the exception to this rule. Weaponry Notes: PPCs require you hold down the fire button and charge them. You will see blue lines fill up on the sides of the reticule. The more you charge them the greater the damage they do and the greater heat they create. Plasma PPCs fire the same way that normal PPCs do, but they have a faster charge rate and the shot appears purple instead of blue. Hammer missiles have a small circle beside the reticule which will fill up as you charge the weapon. The amount of charging time will determine the amount of time the missile will fly before detonation. These missiles do very heavy damage. DEF MODS: name of mod (description of icon) - what it does. Active AMS(Anti-Missile System) (Missile) – Destroys incoming missile fire Reactive Defensive Armor (Bullet) – Reduces damage taken from ballistic weapons Reflective Defensive Armor (Lightening Bolt) – Reduces damage taken from energy weapons Target Jamming (Crosshairs) – Enemy weapons cannot lock on Null Sig (Eye) – Invisibility to sight and radar when not firing LosTech (Exclamation Point) – Reduce damage taken from all weapons Energy Defense Shield (Shield) – Prevents damage while in the POV turret Mechs lacking a Def Mod normally have the Alpha Strike ability. This ability will only become active once you have upgrades all your weapons to level 3. The alpha strike is selectable like any other weapon at this point. The Alpha Strike must be charged like PPCs, however it is much slower. When charging an Alpha Strike it will look as though you are going to fire 4 Plasma PPCs. Unlike the PPC an Alpha Strike must be fully charged (reticule glowing) before releasing the fire button. If you release early nothing will happen. Completing Missions: Anytime you think a mission should be over, but it is not ending shoot everything. Look for enemies you may have missed. 3. Hacking Enemy Terminal Hacking: Terminal hacking will involve dragging shapes to the four corners of the touch screen to match the four corners on the top screen. The shapes will pour down the middle of the screen. If you have difficulty with catching the shapes in time, you can rapidly pull shapes (scribble) towards each corner until you see it turn green. This “spamming” of the shapes towards the corners may be quite necessary towards the end of the game. Enemy Mech Hacking: Hacking mechs will involve dragging shapes from an ever changing row at the top of the touch screen to the corresponding shape on the bottom of the touch screen. You can speed up the changing row of shapes by holding down on the control pad. Unlike terminal hacking you will be penalized for trying to match the incorrect shape causing you to lose valuable time. Later in the game when the hacking begins going very fast, try to focus on the shapes as they appear on the top screen. Focusing on the Upper screen should give you sufficient reaction time. HPG Hacking: This hack will only come up twice. You will see two zig-zagging lines on the top screen, the goal is make the two lines on the bottom match. This is not too difficult. The first time you come across this hack it is impossible to complete successfully, this is due to the plot. 4. SAVES: MechAssault does not use in-game saves, instead when you load your campaign you will have the option of choosing any mission up to and including the most recent one attempted or any cinematic you have seen. Most missions also include checkpoints that will help you to avoid restarting a mission from the beginning. 5. CAMPAIGN LIST: Below is a list of all missions and cinematics in order. (Numbers added to missions to make searching the walkthrough easier) Planet Arluma Classified (Cinematic) Jump to Wroclaw (Cinematic) Planet Wroclaw 1.1 Training Day 1.2 ACM Support 1.3 Terminal Barrier 1.4 Great Divide 1.5 Last Chance 1.6 Knife in the Back 1.7 Come out Fighting 1.8 Up in Flames 1.9 Juggernaut Jump to Tsinan (Cinematic) Planet Tsinan 2.1 Eating Static 2.2 Rolling Thunder 2.3 Blackout 2.4 Unsinkable 2.5 Burning Bridges 2.6 Secure the Lines 2.7 Divergent Entry 2.8 Vallen’s Gamble HPG Theory (Cinematic) 2.9 The Gauntlet Jump to Qarahta (Cinematic) Planet Qarahta 3.1 Munitions Sweep 3.2 Enemy Revealed 3.3 Bombshell Nighty Night (Cinematic) Jump to Niangol (Cinematic) Planet Niangol 4.1 End Transmission Dust to Dust (Cinematic) 4.2 Subjugator 4.3 Sovereign Prince Retribution (Cinematic) 6. WALKTHROUGH: 1.1 Training Day Modes of Transport: Uller The first mission and already there is someone in need of help. Begin by going forward to the U-turn you will come across your first opposition, infantry. Now firing weapons works fine but you can simply step on them. Once getting to the other side of the mountain you will see your ally tank getting pounded by 3 tanks and some more infantry. Cycling Laser, Missile, Laser will drop each enemy tank. Once you have saved the tank you will continue to the dropzone. As you approach the gate you will be encountered by one tank. Before passing through the gate use your missiles to lock on the turrets which are on the far side of the area ahead on the left and right. Fighting them from this point gives you the ability to use the sides of the gate as cover. Once the turrets are down continue into the landing area. Inside the landing area you are set upon by 3 more tanks. First you should attempt to destroy the garage like structure you see towards the back. You will see these structures throughout the game. They will continually spawn new enemies as you destroy those enemies already present. After you dish out a bit of destruction 2 elementals will jump-jet into the fray. While tiny in stature, elementals can be a pain due to a surprisingly high tolerance for pain. Defeating all of these enemies clears the landing area and the first mission. 1.2 ACM Support Modes of Transport: Battle Armor Uller From the start an angry tank is waiting, stay behind the building and dodge in and out while taking laser shots at the tank. Once the tank has been done in make your way into the open. The only other resistance you will face here are some infantry and a garage that releases more infantry. Your battle armor weaponry will make short work of them. Note: Most buildings can be destroyed, and most buildings contain weapon or armor upgrades. Moving on you come to a wall that you must jump-jet over. You are not told at this point, but you can use the battle claw (icon on the right side of the touch screen) to grab the wall and let you jets recharge partway up. At the top of the wall you will see more buildings and have 1 elemental to battle. Another wall the climb and you are again facing a group of infantry with garage to back them up (why do they even try). Continuing on you will face a total of 4 tanks, this is a good time to start practicing with the battle armor mortar weapon. These mortars are very powerful and getting the aiming of them down early will greatly help. During the tank battling you will be informed of a Uller mech up ahead and will be ordered to hack it and take it. Be sure not to fire on the Uller or any mech that you plan on hacking and taking as your own because no one wants to pilot damaged goods. Hacking the mech will be the same as climbing the wall with the battle claw. You will need to be jumping in order to grab the mech. Once you have a grip a hacking mini-game will begin. (For tips on hacking please see hacking tips) Once the hack is successful you will need to get out of the battle armor and into the mech. You exit the battle armor by pressing the arrow icon on the left side of the touch screen. Run your pilot to where you see the yellow circles around a latter coming down from the mech. You will now again need to press the same icon you used to exit the battle armor to enter the mech. Once aboard the Uller make your way to the huge metal door and blow it to bits. A Kit Fox (another light mech) is waiting on the other side of the door. Your first mech battle is not very difficult, but remember to take advantage of your jump-jets and def mod. This fight concludes the mission. 1.3 Terminal Barrier Modes of Transport: Uller Cougar The mission begins with you piloting an Uller in a tiny valley. You will be order to hack the gate before you to proceed, but first you will need to take out the aerospace fighter firing on you. Missiles are the easiest way to take out air units, so shoot down the annoyance and hack the door. Immediately past the gate you will set upon by 3 missile tanks to your right. Take them out and an armor pickup resides behind them, but watch for another aerospace fighter that will take shots at you from over the eastern mountain. Moving north by north-east you will come upon 2 tanks and a garage. Take out the garage first. Running along you will reach a mech bay and a checkpoint. Exit your Uller and enter the Cougar in the mech bay. Beside the mech bay is a missile upgrade and armor. The Cougar’s long range missiles will allow you superior range in the fighting to come. More enemies approach, but with the openness of the land it is easy to divide and conquer. Start by targeting the Kit Fox and taking it out. Several tanks will be in this area as well. Be sure to always take out the garages before the tanks to avoid respawns. Do not run full on towards the Puma waiting at the top of the hill, there are 2 turrets ready to open fire with a surprisingly long range. Instead fire some shots at the puma to draw it down the hill. After finishing the Puma then take out both turrets with the missile upgrade won from the Puma. Hack the door, mission complete. 1.4 Great Divide Modes of Transport: Rommel MKII Uziel Enter the Rommel MKII tank and begin through the ravine. Your first opposition will be 2 tanks, be sure to take full advantage of your def mod to allow you time to line up great shots with the gravity gun. Shortly past the 2 tanks are some infantry and a garage to destroy. Like piloting a mech, you can run over infantry with the tank so enjoy the screams. Next on the right you will have to deal with 2 elementals. As I have said before elementals are a pain. You can try to use your gravity gun for it dishes out a heavy hit when lined up, but the machine guns your tank is equipped with seem better suited for this fight. For you trouble you will be able to pick up an armor and ballistic upgrade. As the ravine opens up head to your right. You will be faced by 2 more tanks before you see your new mech, an Uziel. 3 more tanks patrolling this immediate vicinity should be dealt with before exiting the Rommel MKII and entering the Uziel. 2 tanks and some upgrades are waiting for you, but your PPCs will make short work of any tanks. 2 tanks as well as 2 Cougars are blocking your way to the next hack. Avoid running right up on these Cougars as this door is flanked by 2 turrets that will lash out at you. While the charge time seems to slow you, the PPCs are your heavy hitters so just cycle to your other weapons while they are recharging. Hack the door and continue through. Once passing through the door you will have to battle a Mad Cat. While it is big you are toting almost equal or better firepower, especially considering the upgrades that you have just taken off of the pair of Cougars. If this battle is getting messy armor is available. Once the Mad Cat is destroyed you will take out 3 tanks and finish the mission. 1.5 Last Chance Modes of Transport: Uller Raptor Immediately upon beginning this stage be wary of turrets placed on the left and right wall of the valley you are in, take them out with your missiles. Just over the ridge wait 2 missile tanks and a garage, take out the garage and then the missiles tanks. Some armor and upgrades are waiting for you, pick them up and head south (taking a right out of the valley you started in). As you are heading south you will notice and dip in the mountain ridge, use your jump jets to clear it. On the other side will be 2 missile tanks, some infantry, and 2 garages. Also in this location is an unmanned mech, a Raptor. Before hopping in the Raptor go to the edge of this cubby hole and to the left and take out 2 missile tanks, some infantry, and a garage. This keeps your Raptor fresh and gets a bit more mileage out of your Uller. Now the mission really begins. You should see a yellow diamond on your screen indicating the first hacking point of the HPG, head in the direction. Before arriving at the hacking spot take out the turret beside it. After the hack you will have a Raptor and 2 elementals to deal with, try fighting the Raptor first from long range then you can close in and take out the elementals. Near the next hacking point will be 2 missile tanks and 2 garages to take out, but the bigger problem will be a Mad Cat that is taking shots at you from long range. Use your def mod and fight the Mad Cat at long range before hacking the second station. Upon leaving this station you will have a Raptor in front of you and 2 elementals will come in from behind. Take out the elementals and then deal with the Raptor. Beyond the Raptor are 2 missile tanks and 2 turrets, following that an Uziel waits. Upon taking out all of this resistance you can attempt the final hack. I say attempt because due to the storyline this hack cannot be completed successfully. After the hack attempt the mission is over. 1.6 Knife in the Back Modes of Transport: Raptor Mad Cat From the outset you are treated to the wraith of 2 Pumas. Use your Def-Mod and focus attacks on one Puma and it should be a piece of cake. Moving along you will encounter a Kit Fox backed up by some infantry and a garage. Just after this you will encounter 3 tanks that likewise should be no problem however, keep an eye on the rise behind the tanks because a Mad Cat is waiting to take you down. You can try and take the enemy Mad Cat with your Raptor but you have the option of just sneaking past it and getting into a Mad Cat of your own. I like to deal as much damage as possible with the Raptor, but you must be very careful because the PPCs that the Mad Cat is packing will quickly destroy your armor. After defeating the Mad Cat you will have to make short work of 2 tanks before cresting a ridge over which 2 Belails will be waiting to make your acquaintance. Finish them and you will move on to an area with numerous tanks and several turrets, it is safe to stand in the water in this area so do not fear the terrain. At the long end of the area waits a Loki. Upon finishing off the Loki a Kit Fox will jump in behind you. Defeating the Kit Fox will complete the mission. 1.7 Come out Fighting Modes of Transport: Mad Cat Starting this mission out move to your left and pick up 2 energy upgrades, there will be 2 tanks to take out. Then moving on a Raven will jump in and use its Def Mod requiring you to manually target it. Destroy it and 3 tanks, 2 garages, and 2 turrets on your way into the main battlefield. 2 tanks at the foreground of the battlefield can be quickly dispatched as you move in on the mechs that are threatening your Drop Ship. Start by firing shots at all the mechs but the Timber wolf on the far left. This will pull their attention away from the drop ship, once this is done concentrate all of your fire on one mech at a time. By taking out one mech at a time you will keep getting a steady supply of upgrades that you will need to see this mission through. Once the little mechs are down, close in on the Timber Wolf. The destruction of the Timber Wolf will bring another wave of enemies over the ridge. Destroying each wave will bring another, 3 waves in all will attack. If you continue focusing your attacks on one mech at a time this should not be too difficult, also remember that your enemies can suffer from friendly fire so get them to cross in front of each other when you can. Destroying all enemies will bring a close to the mission. * Sometimes you will not see anymore enemies, but the mission will not end. This is because not all enemies are destroyed. Usually a tank has gotten hung in the hills, often to the right of the Drop Ship. So take a look in the foothills and you should find a tank if this problem arises. 1.8 Up in Flames Modes of Transport: Battle Armor Belial To start go immediately to your left and pick up the energy weapon upgrade, then proceed to the rise. On the far right of the rise is a missile upgrade. Now this is a tough spot, 2 missile tanks, 1 garage, 1 elemental, and a Belial are all vying for your attention. Take the missile tanks and garage quickly with your mortars then hack the Belial. Finish of the Elemental before boarding the Belial. Tanks await you up the next hill. From here you will be heading to the first security building you must destroy. It is guarded by 2 turrets and an elemental. Finish off the minor opposition and park your mech a little way from the building. Exit the mech and run right up to the security building and hold down the fire button to have your pilot place a pilot bomb. Now return to your mech, but before getting in press the fire button to detonate the pilot bomb destroying the building. Come down over the ridge and face an Uller, Kit Fox, 1 aerospace fighter, 2 turrets and 2 elementals. Beating these opponents will lead you to the second security building which is guarded by a Stiletto. Now on to the final security building. Elementals and several tanks will block your way to the final building, but a gift is waiting there too. To the left an unmanned Hellbringer is waiting, and you will have a chance to use it. Pilot bomb the final building a cut scene will introduce one final goal. Hop in the Hellbringer and head toward the metal gate. Ready to attack inside the gate is an enemy Hellbringer along with turrets(which line the left and right all the way to the goal, 6 in all), 2 aerospace fighters, missile tanks, a Belial, and a Uller for good measure. This is not too difficult with the firepower you have, just use range to your advantage and do not move in too deep until the closer opposition is eliminated. Destroy this final target with your weapons and the mission is complete. 1.9 Juggernaut Modes of Transport: Belial Yeah, this is a boss fight. A giant scorpion-like mech with the following attacks. Ranged: Ring of Bombs – Use your jump jets to avoid. Missiles – These are very powerful and will often knock you down, use your Def Mod anytime he is at long range to avoid lock on. Close: Heat Ray – Ray that shoots from tail will cause your heat to spike and will drain the upgrades from your weapons, run away to get out of its range. Tackle – Its rear will go vertical and it will charge you. Tail Strike – It will spin, sweeping you with its tail. Keep your distance since he will mostly use the Ring of Bombs which is easy to dodge. This enemy can burrow underground and come back up anywhere in the arena so be sure to move constantly and watch your radar whenever he disappears. Be sure to keep upgrading your weapons, many upgrades are around the outer edges of the arena. Take full advantage of your jump jets for quick strafing and escaping. This boss has 2 armor bars, so do not get to close after he collapses for the first time. 2.1 Eating Static Modes of Transport: Battle Armor Stiletto You have some back up in the form of Vern in a tank for this mission. He will help damage and destroy enemies, but if he is dies you will have to restart the mission. Also, this area has some yellow water running through the cannon avoid getting in it too much it can cause you damage. You will drop being almost immediately under fire. Switch to your mortars and take out the tanks and turret on the ground on the left before switching to the laser and dropping the turrets on the canyon walls. A bridge overhead with 2 tanks is accessible, so jump jet up and mortar them. Just after this you will meet up with Vern. He will cover you while you ascend the hill to the first point that you must hack. Take out the turret and infantry and hack the first point. Now, proceed back to Vern and follow him to the next hack point. Ignore the tank on the bridge overhead, instead focus on the turrets up ahead, Vern will assist in knocking them out. To the right up ahead are several tanks, easy mortar bait. At the top of this hill is the second hack point. Moving on you will get to an unmanned mech, a Stiletto. From here on you go it alone. Do not run through the metal gate guns blazing, multiple mechs, tanks, and turrets are awaiting you. Take long range shots and use the metal walls for cover until you clear out a fair amount of the opposing tanks. Enter and move to the right quickly taking out the turrets and getting on the far side of the enemy mech, an armor pick up is available. Now just take down the closest mech and work your way to the other side. Be sure to watch for 2 turrets on in the opposite corners beside the objective. Destroy the objective building to complete the mission. 2.2 Rolling Thunder Modes of Transport: Tank Blood Asp You begin in a deep narrow ravine. Turrets and missile tanks will be your primary foes throughout the first part of this mission. The turrets are all placed high on the cliff walls. Using the tanks zoom option will allow you to take them out from a greater distance, but is not necessary. Continue through the ravine slowly taking advantage of your Def Mod and watching carefully for turrets because they can chew your armor up rather quickly. Some Elementals will drop down behind you a way into the ravine. Use your machine guns, only switching to the gravity gun when they are on the ground. Shortly passed this point you will see the ravine open a little and you will see a garage. A Stiletto is waiting to ambush you from the right when you come out in the open. Use you Def Mod and upgrades weapons to out battle the mech. You will then be on the home stretch to a mech of your own, only needing to defeat a puma and a hand full of missile tanks. In the Blood Asp you will immediately be thrown into combat with another mech, but it should not pose much of a threat. The remainder of the mission is small mechs and missile tank with the occasional turret. Finally you will come across an Atlas, you should have an alpha strike ready which will hit for massive damage. Destroying the Atlas will end the mission. 2.3 Blackout Modes of Transport: Tank Timber Wolf Starting in your tank you are presented this as a stealth mission, really it is not. You can however use your Def Mod to avoid most of the enemy fire (tanks) and make a bee line for the trees that are straight ahead from your starting point. Once behind the trees let your Def Mod recharge and then continue on. A mech and several tanks await your trek to the first generator, but the recharged Def Mod should allow you to slip through with minimal damage (remember do not fire your weapons or you will show up allowing the enemy to get a firing solution). At the first generator (which must be pilot bombed) a Timber Wolf is available for your piloting pleasure. Destroy the nearby opposition and head up the hill. At the top are several turrets, elementals, and a Star Adder. The Star Adder is a higher weight class than the Timber Wolf you are in but you should be able to take it, just be sure to cycle frequently to your gauss rifle as it is your most damaging weapon. After defeating the Star Adder just destroy the second generator (you can use your mech’s weapons for this one) and the mission is successful. 2.4 Unsinkable Modes of Transport: Kit Fox Atlas From the beginning you will be taking fire from elementals on the right and some tanks. Clear out all of this resistance using buildings for cover, and your Def Mod for additional defense. Take full advantage of the Hammer missiles that the Kit Fox is carrying. Hammer missiles are slow to fire and do not lock on, but the damage is incredible especially for a light mech. Once defeating your enemies you will come to a decline. Head down and hang an immediate right, hopefully you have your Def Mod on. An Atlas is sitting unmanned in a hangar just for you. You will need it to take on the Prometheus which is patrolling the buildings next to the mech hangar. Now on your way to the ships that must be sunk several tanks, infantry, turrets, a Belial, and an elemental or 2 will be attempting to stop you. Just show them your big guns and bring them down. The 2 ships are each topped with a turret, but are not difficult to destroy. Once these ships are destroyed take out the 2 buildings that resemble generators, and the mission should be complete. 2.5 Burning Bridges Modes of Transport: Star Adder Turret This is a short but fierce mission, speed is important because if Vern dies you lose the mission. You begin being assaulted by tanks, light mechs, and turrets. Take out all of this immediate trouble be for moving too far away from your drop ship. Vern will be guarding the ship while you make your way to the turret. Along the walk there you will come across numerous turrets, be sure to drop them before they chew you up too much. Also, Pumas will steadily be coming your way, they will not stop coming so do not worry about destroying them all. Come around the bend to your left and you begin ascending a hill that is coated with turrets, tanks, elementals, and topped with an assault mech with which you must dance. Try to take out the turrets on the way up, they are the first priority, second are the tanks. However, if you are nearing the enemy mech and have an alpha strike ready focus on that mech. After clearing the hill it is time to mount the turret. Once in the turret really easy to see red diamonds will appear on your display these are your targets. Switch to the POV missiles and fire first back down the hill the way you came and continue until you see the bridge. Now spin the turret to the right and fire to take out the second bridge. Remember that you can hold up on the d-pad to speed the missile up a bit. Once both bridges are destroyed exit the turret and return to your mech. You do not need to go back down the hill, instead just walk off of the side and rush back to the drop ship. Now destroy any remaining enemy mechs and the mission is complete. 2.6 Secure the Lines Modes of Transport: Battle Armor Timber Wolf You might have thought the last mission was throwing a lot at you, but this time you are against similar odds starting out. You will be facing tanks, missile tanks, elementals, and 2 light mechs. You can either rush through this battle field to the Timber Wolf awaiting you at the far end, or you can attempt to take out the enemies with the battle armor. Both ways are possible, but it is probably best to focus on getting to that mech. Once in the Timber Wolf you want to hurry to Vern’s position before he bites it. Some resistance is between you and him mostly consisting of tanks and 2 Hellbringers. Upon arriving at Vern’s location you will see that he is piloting a Mad Cat, try not to fire on him. He is surrounded by enemies including a Hellbringer, and a Kit Fox. After dishing out a bit of damage 2 cougars will jump into the fray. Focus on the lighter mechs first in order to gather upgrades. Defeating the enemy forces here will bring about the close of the mission. 2.7 Divergent Entry Modes of Transport: Battle Armor Ragnarok From the outset you are being fired upon by numerous tanks. You will need to keep on the jump jets and lobbing mortars. Be sure also to take out the garages to avoid additional tanks. Continuing towards the wall you will have to deal with 2 turrets and 2 elementals (there is also some infantry but they do not really count as a threat). Armor and weapon upgrades are waiting on the far left and right near the wall. Once you scale the wall immediately turn to your right, you will see a gap in the mountain that you can go through. Below this gap is a closed mech bay. Take out the tanks and opposition around this mech bay and then hop out of your battle armor and hack the console on the left of the bay. This will give you access to a Ragnarok (this will also unlock the Ragnarok in multiplayer mode). Now go have fun with a Loki, 2 Raptors, and the turrets that will attempt to destroy you. Now you will blow down the metal door halting your progress. Be prepared to deal with 2 madcats backed by tanks, aerospace fighters and some turrets. Launch missiles at the fighters and then focus on the Mad Cats. Afterwards clean up what is left and blow down the next door. Behind this door is a Blood Asp, do not be cocky because that Asp can deal damage quite fast. Some upgrades are to the left of the entrance that may help you if needed. Once you clear out the Asp and turrets just hack the terminal and the mission is over. 2.8 Vallen’s Gamble Modes of Transport: Pilot Puma This mission you begin with only your pilot. The first area is patrolled by tanks. Keep an eye on your radar and try to keep the buildings between you and the tanks. You can take out the tanks with pilot bombs but it can be frustrating and is a waste of time. Get to the first terminal and hack it. Note that the hacking tends to step up in difficulty on this mission and may take several attempts before you are successful. Going through the door you just hacked will have you standing on hill overlooking a city that is being patrolled by a mech. You will need to watch the mech and wait till it is moving towards the buildings away from the tower you must destroy to make your move. Bomb the tower and run over to the terminal, conduct your hack and head through the next door. Immediately to your left will be an unmanned Puma, climb aboard. You will first have to deal with 2 Cougars backed by some light tank support. Continuing forward you will face 2 Raptors. Just remember to focus on one mach at a time and you should have no problems. After the Raptors you will be at the base of an incline with a wall right down the middle, at the top of this incline is your goal the HPG. Take the right side of the wall on your way up, it is full of tanks, but the left is full of turrets and they can deal quite a bit more damage. Once you reach the top of the hill you will battle a Loki, be sure to stay behind the wall because once you cross completely into where the HPG is located the turrets from the other side of the wall will have a chance to fire at you. Destroy the Loki and drop the turrets closest to the top of the hill so that they will not bother you. The HPG has 3 points that must be hacked, it does not matter the order in which you do them you will be given the correct hack regardless of the terminal. After hacking the first terminal enemy Cougars will begin attacking. These enemies will continue to respawn, so just take out the ones in your way and focus on getting the terminals hacked. The third terminal that you hack will look like the third hack the last time you attempted hacking an HPG. All you need to do is drag the points on the line so that they match the lines on the top screen. This hack will finish the mission. 2.9 The Gauntlet Modes of Transport: Puma Atlas This mission is a lot of fairly intense combat. You begin in a Puma and you should use its def mod to make it hard for the Mad Cat to hit you. Do not try to fight the Mad Cat in the Puma. Instead make a dash to the right side of the canyon (avoiding upgrades) where an unmanned Atlas is waiting for you. After acquiring the Atlas begin working on the Mad Cat while gathering the upgrades that are present in the canyon. If the elementals begin to get under your skin too much 1 well placed shot of autocannon is usually enough to drop them (wait till they are on the ground). Moving on past the Mad Cat, you will be set upon by missile tanks a Puma and 2 Belials, more elementals also await you. As always focus on one mech at a time. Just behind the Belials another Mad Cat will be waiting. Beyond this Mad Cat is a range of small mountains, you can go to the left, right or down the center of them. All you will face is turrets or missile tanks. Once you are through the mountains you will come across your drop ship which is under attack again. This time the drop ship is only being assaulted by a Puma, an Uziel, and a Belial. Simply get the enemies attention and then take them one mech at a time. Removing the attackers will complete this mission and this planet. 3.1 Munitions Sweep Modes of Transport: Loki Mad Cat This is really a fun mission, a variety of enemies and nice open ground. Starting out drop the missile tank and run down the crevice picking up all of the wonderful upgrades. At the end of the crevice you will meet a cougar which should be no problem for you. Another missile tank and a Hellbringer now await your approach. I would like to note that the Loki can heat up fast and will take a little time to cool so do not go too pulse laser crazy. Passing the Hellbringer’s location will bring you out into the open. Be sure and avoid the lakes of liquid like the one on your left, you will be quickly destroyed by them. Many tanks will make their presence known to you but are short work with the fire power of the Loki. Elementals will appear as you near the first target which is the warehouse on top of the hill in the distance. 2 Raptors and a Stiletto will open fire on you as you attack the warehouse. You can hide behind the warehouse if necessary. After taking out the warehouse destroy the 2 Raptors and make your way due north. Avoid fighting the Stiletto at this time. As you continue north you will see the next 2 warehouse targets along with 2 more Raptors and missile tanks defending. Once you have cleared out the enemy and the warehouses notice a thin crevice behind the where the right warehouse was, a Mad Cat is waiting there for you. Once aboard the Mad Cat go say hi to that Stiletto from earlier. The Stiletto and his twin are guarding the next warehouse. In the Mad Cat you should have no problem that LRMs and dual PPCs cannot solve. After this warehouse is destroyed make your way to the bridge. The remainder of this mission is a complete cake walk. You will have 2 turret equipped boats to take out and 2 elementals. The last warehouse is on an island, but do not try to cross the water to it. Simply destroy the warehouse at long range and the mission is complete. 3.2 Enemy Revealed Modes of Transport: Battle Armor Ymir Beginning in a plateau filled area you will have to deal with turrets, missile tanks, elementals and some infantry. First you will want to take out the pocket of opposition on your left. Focus on clearing out the ground troops before taking out all of the turrets atop the plateaus. You are in no rush during this part of the mission. The mech you are tailing will wait on you. Once you have destroyed all of the enemies approach the Ymir, it will begin to move once you get close. You will need to hack the Ymir twice, once for pilot data, and once for control. Now that you are piloting the Ymir make way for the huge metal gate. You will see MANY enemy units on the other side. Simply do not fire your weapons and they will not attack. Walk your way to the building at the far end of the area, park right in front of it and get out of your mech. A terminal is located underneath the building that you will need to hack to set the self destruct. Once you have completed the hack is complete hurry back to the Ymir and rush toward the metal gate that has just opened up on the left. At this point all of the enemies stationed around this building will begin attacking. Do not let them slow you down, just run for the gate. If you do not make it through the gate in time the building explosion will kill you. After clearing the gate and witnessing the destruction you will have to handle 2 light mechs and some tanks. Just past these enemies lies an array of 6 turrets, they can chew you up quick so keep your distance as you take them out. One turret is waiting on the right as you enter the narrow valley beyond the 6 turrets. The final objective and enemy in this mission is a Ragnarok that you must destroy. Focus on using your autocannon and lava gun to handle the Ragnarok because it has weapons that can knock you down and out of charging your PPCs. 3.3 Bombshell Modes of Transport: Ymir Battle Armor POV Turret 2 Belials will be the first thing you must deal with in this mission. They and a Raptor lie between you and the POV turret which is being guarded by Vern in a Blood Asp. Once you take out the Belials and Raptor make your way to the woods on the left side of the map where a Battle Armor is waiting on you. You will need the battle armor in order to get up to the POV turret. Once you are at the turret, hop in and aim east and fire a POV missile. You will fly the missile east and slowly turn south. A large bridge with trucks running on it is the target. Once the bridge is destroyed return to your battle armor and head toward your next objective, which is an enemy drop ship. Coming over the metal wall you will be faced first by 2 tanks, stay to the left of the large hill. The right has several turrets along the ground, and they are better taken out from the longest range possible. Beyond them you will continue on to flatter more open ground. Take out 2 tanks on your right and head on toward the Ymir. Hacking this mech is the final goal in the stage. Be sure to keep on the move and get in close to the mech quickly, if it can get a lock with its PPCs you are history. 4.1 End Transmission Modes of Transport: Mad Cat This narrow valley is filled with missile tanks. At the first fork in the road go left and take out the garage that is making them. Aerospace fighters will be harassing you at this point, get a missile lock and fire one volley it will be enough to destroy them once it catches them. The first open area you come to has an assortment of enemies including an Uller, Kit Fox, and several Elementals. Try to clean out some of these enemies before heading east where the first objective waits. This Transponder is guarded by a Timber Wolf. Once you defeat the enemy and destroy the transponder you can continue north. If you head west you will have another Timber Wolf and Tank to deal with, also many upgrades and armor pick ups. Heading north you will be set upon first by 2 machine gun turrets guarding the pass as well as a Kit Fox and several tanks. To the east again lies the second transponder. This transponder is defended by 2 Raptors and 2 turrets. Try to take the turrets with a quick missile volley or keep a Raptor between you and them. Take one Raptor at a time and be sure to keep your def mod active. The final transponder is to the west and it is defended by a Loki and several missile tanks. More aerospace fighters will make their annoyance know. Destroying this final transponder will have you continuing north toward Dante’s base. The narrow road to the base is run with missile tanks and additional aerospace fighters that it may be difficult to lock onto. If you are having trouble with these aerospace fighters try switching over to your machine guns. The final obstacle in this mission is a Star Adder. It is quite a bit tougher than you, but keep to your upgraded weapons and use the 2 armor picks available to the left and right corner of where you fight the Star Adder and you should be able to make it. Once the Star Adder is destroyed exit your mech and head toward the base and the end of the mission. 4.2 Subjugator Modes of Transport: Tank Battle Armor Ragnarok Starting out you will have a tank that you can hop in, so do so. You will follow a line of enemy tanks. Do not fire your weapons. Eventually you will have the opportunity to nul sig passed a Ragnarok that is guarding your battle armor. Do not fire on the mech as you sneak past get to the battle armor and get in. Once in the battle armor rush the Ragnarok and hack it. Using the Ragnarok is the best way to clear all enemy opposition in the mission. Once aboard the Ragnarok head south and around the bend. You will face tanks and 2 Belials. Destroy them and then head on up the hill north and you will take out 2 Stilettos and another Belial, several turrets will also be hiding throughout the hills. After you are satisfied with the destruction of everything head west. You can drop off the cliff in the Ragnarok back to where you left the battle armor. Return to the battle armor and climb the metal wall back up to where you just came from. Once back on high head north to the huge metal wall. Climb it to complete the mission. 4.3 Sovereign Prince Modes of Transport: Battle Armor First Form: At the start of this battle Dante is in a huge unknown mech. Get in close as quick as you can. Ideally you want him doing the jumping quake attack, if you are too close he will do a tackle charge that will knock you down and deal pretty decent damage. Just jump jet over the shock wave and keep pegging him with mortars. This is the easiest part of the battle. As Dante’s mech begins to smoke and slow down it is about to drop. Try to be near an armor pick up when you defeat his mech. Second Form: Here is where the real battle begins. Dante emerges from his mech in Battle Armor that totes a mortar that splits into 3 (dodge with jump jets), a sword (when he is swinging the sword he is the easiest to hit), and the plasma gun of total death (this gun stuns you, maxes out your heat, and hits your weak spot for massive damage). He will teleport frequently, so keeping your eyes on your radar is a must. Mortars again are your weapon of choice, they are not as easy to hit him with but they deal much more damage and the quicker you can end this fight the better (lasers are acceptable as long as you have picked up some upgrades. Never move in a straight line during this battle and never leave your back open to Dante (moving in a straight line pretty much guarantees that the plasma gun is going to get you). Always circle strafe while trying to target him. *NOTE: At any point during the Second or Third form of Dante, you can stand atop buildings and be safe for the most part. Dante will attempt to attack you but end up destroying the building (which will contain and armor pick up). You are not invincible while on the building, so be careful. Third Form: A brief cut scene about his armor regenerating will play and then he will begin fighting again. This time around is very similar to the second from except that Dante will move much faster and teleport quicker. Also he will be much quicker to pull out that Plasma Gun. Fourth Form: Getting frustrated? It is almost over. Now Dante will begin calling down strikes from the orbital laser. A red reticule will appear on the ground and track you while Dante crouches under a personal shield. All you must do is have the orbital laser tracking you and jump over Dante. At this point the laser will lock onto him, and all the regeneration in the world will not save him. Congrats, you have beaten the game. *NOTE: If you do not jump over Dante completely and you both get hit with the laser you will have to try again, but if you check the campaign it will say 100% complete and you will be able to watch the ending movie however the cheats, mechs, etc will not be unlocked. Simply go back into the campaign and beat Dante correctly to get everything unlocked. Majere666’s method: I finally beat Dante after numerous tries. I pretty much followed 2dskillz's advice. More specifically, I destroyed those 4 exploding gas tanks at the very beginning to drop 4 health packs and get rid of the possibility of a cheap death from Dante or myself blowing up the tank too close to me. Part 1 - Dante (Mech) Just run around him, use jump jets to get out of his quake attack and nail him with mortars. Destroy the tanks now, picking up a health pack as you need. You should nab a pack to get to full right before you defeat this form (his mech will start moving slowly). Also, try and get level 2 or level 3 mortars now. Part 2 - Dante (Battlearmor 1) Here's the real boss fight. His tri mortar attack is laughable. It's his fast and super powerful plasma gun that hurts. As 2dskillz says, jump around like an idiot when he starts launching it, picking up health packs or hiding atop buildings as needed. MAJOR HINT!!! It seems to me in this form Dante is much more likely to start swinging that stupid sword of his if you jump jet right into his face instead of using the plasma gun. The second he starts swinging the sword UNLOAD mortars and keep in his face. You can bring him all the way down to his 3 form with one of these attack patterns. Part 3 - Dante (Battlearmor 2) Pretty much the same as Part 2 only harder. He seems to resort to his plasma gun more than his sword at medium and short range. My strategy at this point was to play the attrition game. Assuming you haven't used too many health packs by this time, you can get a few laser shots and a mortar shot at him before he slams you with his plasma shot. If you have to take a plasma shot to get a good hit on him, do it. Just stay close to health packs from the destroyed buildings, working your way across the arena. If you can pop him once or twice for every health pack, you only need 3 or maybe 4 packs. At this point I would even use level 3 laser. They don't do much damage but you want to kill him as quickly as possible. Part 4 - Dante (Battlearmor 3 and Orbitial Cannon) I found this part to be easy once you understand his pattern. i.e. kill him in the second orbital attack. His first orbital attack will place him too far away for you to get to, so just dodge the reticule on the ground. If you can get him to be at medium range from you on his next teleport (which he seems to always appear at), just jet straight towards him. Move above him and the reticule will catch on him, and the game will end. The only bit of advice I have for this is make sure you don't run out of jump jets and fall down on top of him =) 7. Unlockables: Official From Backbone: "Here's how you unlock each of the Mechs: * Stiletto: finish Terminal Barrier map * Ragnarok: find him in Divergent Entry map * Star Adder: finish the Single Player Campaign and defeat Dante * Puma: host at least 1 Multiplayer game * Prometheus: host at least 5 Multiplayer games * Hellbringer: host at least 10 Multiplayer games * Timber Wolf: host at least 15 Multiplayer games I found your FAQ and I see you have 2 unlockable multiplayer maps listed (Scrap Metal map earned by beating Juggernaut and Rusted Grave by beating the game). However, there are actually a couple more you can unlock! Beating The Gauntlet will unlock the Vista map and beating Bombshell will unlock the Area 1103 map. When you host at least 15 Multiplayer games, you also get to unlock cheats for multiplayer use. If memory serves me correctly, I think you have to unlock Cheats in general from single player before they can be unlocked for multiplayer. Cruel fun awaits with that unlock!" Any Questions, Concerns, Otherwise? Email me at randomlost@gmail.com Thanks to Majere666 for his input. Thanks to Majesco and Microsoft for a very enjoyable game. Thanks to Adriel for driving me to the game shop (I was tired). Thanks to my Parents for buying an Atari 2600 many years ago. This may not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. All trademarks and copyrights contained in this document are owned by their respective trademark and copyright holders. Copyright 2006 James Roberts