Wing Commander: Privateer Unofficial Strategy Guide and FAQ by Kasey Chang (ksc1@aol.com) released January 7, 2002 0 Introduction 0.1 A WORD FROM THE AUTHOR Privateer is one of the most flexible games created that allows you to serve out a variety of "lifestyles" in the Wing Commander universe. It's quite sad to see EA/Origin drop the universe completely. This is a FAQ, NOT a manual. You won't learn how to play the game with this document, and I'm NOT about to add it to ease the life of software pirates. This USG only covers the PC version since that's the only version that I have. Some of you may recognize my name as the editor for the XCOM and XCOM2: TFTD FAQ's, among others. 0.2 TERMS OF DISTRIBUTION This document is copyrighted by Kuo-Sheng “Kasey” Chang (c) 2002, all rights reserved excepted as noted above in the disclaimer section. This document is available FREE of charge subjected to the following conditions: 1) This notice and author's name must accompany all copies of this document: "Wing Commander: Privateer Unofficial Strategy Guide and FAQ" is copyrighted (c) 2002 by Kasey K.S. Chang, all rights reserved except as noted in the disclaimer.” 2) This document must NOT be modified in any form or manner without prior permission of the author with the following exception: if you wish to convert this document to a different file format or archive format, with no change to the content, then no permission is needed. 2a) In case you can’t read, that means TXT only. No banners, no HTML borders, no cutting up into multiple pages to get you more banner hits, and esp. no adding your site name to the site list. (Put it in a frame is fine) 3) No charge other than "reasonable" compensation should charged for its distribution. (Free is preferred) Sale of this information is expressly prohibited. If you see any one selling this guide, drop me a line. 4) If you used material from this, PLEASE ACKNOWLEDGE the source, else it is plagiarism. 5) The author hereby grants all games-related web sites the right to archive and link to this document to share among the game fandom, provided that all above restrictions are followed. Sidenote: The above conditions are known as a statutory contract. If you meet them, then you are entitled to the rights I give you in 5), i.e. archive and display this document on your website. If you don’t follow them, you did not meet the statutory contract conditions, you have no right to display this document. If you still do so, then you are infringing upon my copyright. This section was added for any websites who don’t seem to understand this. For the gamers: You are under NO obligation to send me ANY compensation. However, I do ask for a VOLUNTARY contribution of one (1) US Dollar if you live in the United States, and if you believe this guide helped your game. If you choose to do so, please make your US$1.00 check or $1.00 worth of stamp to "Kuo- Sheng Chang", and send it to "2220 Turk Blvd. #6, San Francisco, CA 94118 USA". If you don't live in the US, please send me some local stamps. I collect stamps too. 0.3 DISTRIBUTION This USG should be available at Gamefaqs (http://www.gamefaqs.com) and other major PC game websites (such as gamesdomain.com, gamespot.com, gamecenter.com, etc.). To webmasters who wish to archive this FAQ on their website, please read the terms of distribution in section 0.2. It is quite clear. In case you can’t understand it, it says “no modifications”. This means you may NOT modify any bits of it! Read that carefully. It says exactly what it says. 0.4 OTHER NOTES There is no warranty for this unofficial strategy guide. After all, it depends on YOU the player. All I can do is offer some advice. PLEASE let me know if there's a confusing or missing remark... If you find a question about this game that is not covered in the USG, e-mail it to me at ksc1@aol.com. I'll try to answer it and include it in the next update. 0.5 THE AUTHOR I am just a game player who decided to write my own FAQs when the ones I find don’t cover what I want to see. Lots of people like what I did, so I kept doing it. Previously, I've written Unofficial Strategy Guides (USGs) for XCOM, XCOM2:TFTD, Wing Commander 3, Wing Commander 4, Fade to Black, Spycraft, 688(I) Hunter/Killer. Mechwarrior 3, MW3 Expansion Pack, Need for Speed: Porsche Unleashed, and many others. Most of them should be on gamefaqs.com, the biggest FAQ site around. You can also find some of them on my KC Game Nexus website at http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Alley/6275. If you need to write me, send e-mail to ksc1@aol.com. (Any spam will be reported to respective authorities). 0.6 DISCLAIMER/ COPYRIGHT INFORMATION Origin, Wing Commander, the distinctive Wing Commander logo, Secret Missions, Special Operations, Vengeance of the Kilrathi, Heart of the Tiger, Privateer, Wing Commander Academy, and Wing Commander: Armada are trademarks of Origin Systems, Inc. Origin Systems is a wholly owned subsidiary of Electronic Arts. This USG is not endorsed or authorized by Origin or Electronic Arts. 0.7 REVISION HISTORY 07-JAN-2002 Initial Release 0.8 THE MOST FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Q: Can you send me Privateer (or portions thereof)? A: No. Q: Can you send me the manual (or portions thereof)? A: No. Q: Can you tell me how to play the game? A: Read the manual. Q: Why is your FAQ shorter than other similar FAQs? A: I don’t repeat the stuff that’s already in the manual. You can read that yourself. Q: What’s the latest version? A: This is before games get patches. Q: Where are the cheat codes? A: There are no cheat codes in this game. Just go into options and turn on the invulnerability or other "cheats". Q: Why did some of my cargo disappeared after landing? A: You cannot accept delivery missions for multiple destinations at once. As soon as you land in the first base, all delivery mission cargo NOT marked for that base will disappear. Q: How many factions are there? A: Seven. See section [2] for details. Q: How do I make more money? A: You either trade (see section [6]) or accept missions (see section [7]) Q: I can't mount tractor beam! A: You need a rear turret to mount tractor beam. Q: I shoot a guided missile but it won't follow the enemy! A: Only level 2 or higher scanner feature target lock for guided missiles. If you still have your level 1 scanner guided missiles won't guide. Q: I have the tractor beam. How do I salvage objects in space? A: To salvage cargo, scan and locate the object. Fly up next to it (don't bump it!), turn ship around so your rear turret is facing the cargo. Switch to tractor beam, aim at the cargo, and hit the trigger. The beam will reach out and drag it in. If you don't get a beam, you're not close enough. Q: I got the best scanners (level 3). Why do I see multiple ITTS cross-hairs of different colors? A: You got more than one type of guns and they're all active. As each type of gun has different shot velocity, you get different amount of target lead, requiring multiple cross-hairs. Q: When I buy a new ship and trade in the old one, what are transferred? A: Your maps, your jump drive, your scanner, and the secret compartment (see 11.4) if you got them. You have to buy everything else. Q: What's the maximum number of missions you can take on at a time? A: I believe it's six, but finding that many you can take in one trip would be difficult. Q: At Oxford, I was escorting Drayman in. I killed all the attackers, but I still failed! A: Make sure the Drayman transmits "thank you" upon reaching the planet BEFORE you land. If you land before it reaches the planet you fail the mission. Q: I can't survive that green thing chasing me around! A: If you're not on a mission, just turn on "invulnerability" and make it to a mining base other than Rygannon to hear some advice. Q: What if I have questions about certain missions? A: See specific mission walkthru. 1 Game Information 1.1 A LITTLE HISTORY LESSON... Privateer is a spiritual descendent of the game called Elite, which is a VERY old game, having first came out for the 8-bit computers using monochrome screens. Elite itself is partially based on Game Designer Workshop's paper-and-pencil sci-fi role- playing game called Travellers. Elite basically starts you in a small ship with very little armament or money, and a rating of harmless. Your objective is to travel the known universe (8 galaxies in the original) each with hundreds of different star systems, each system with different government and different commodity availability and prices. You use jump drive to jump from one system to another, and you dock at the space station to trade. You will encounter a lot of other ships, form friendly to hostile. If you have a "scoop", you can get free fuel from the local star, and salvage cargo. You can even mine asteroids with a mining laser. You can upgrade your ship to better weapons and other equipment, even an auto-docking computer. Your ultimate objective is to reach the Elite rating. Privateer took most of the flexibility, put a Wing Commander spin on the whole thing, reduced it in size somewhat, updated it with an improved WC2 graphics engine and the infamous Origin talking heads, a plot, and came up with one of the modern PC gaming classics. 1.2 ABOUT THIS GAME… You are a private pilot with a small scoutship (Tarsus class) near the front-line with the Kilrathi. You have 4 different quadrants you can fly to, total of SIXTY-NINE total systems you can explore, each can have several planets. There are four different ships you can own, plenty of different equipment to create your own customized ship, over a dozen different commodities you can trade between systems, special missions that will pay you even MORE than standard fees, and more. You will encounter friendlies, neutral, and hostile traffic in your travel, and perhaps you will even have some truly interesting adventure... Like encounter ancient civilizations... You can choose to be a merchant, a bounty hunter, a smuggler, or even a pirate. 1.3 OTHER WING COMMANDER GAMES Don't forget Wing Commander (two special mission packs), Wing Commander 2 (two special operations packs), Wing Commander III, Wing Commander IV, Wing Commander Prophecy (and Secret Ops), Wing Commander: Armada, and Wing Commander Academy. 1.4 AND AFTER THIS… Privateer itself has an expansion pack called "Righteous Fire". There is a semi-sequel called Privateer II: The Darkening. 1.5 OTHER RELATED GAMES If you like this kind of flexibility, check out the following games: X: Beyond the Frontier (Southpeak Interactive) and its expansion pack, called X-Tension. Tachyon: The Fringe (Novalogic) Hardwar (Interplay) 2 Introducing the players... There are SEVEN different major factions in the Gemini Sector. You can choose to align with most of them. 2.1 CONFEDERATION You are in Confed territory, so in general, you should be nice to Confed forces. You can find them just about everywhere, but esp. around Perry Naval Base. Confed hates pirates, Kilrathis, and Retros (see factions) Confed flies Stiletto (fighter), Broadsword (bomber), Paradigm (corvette), and Gladius (fighter) (see crafts) Confed pilots are usually confident pros and aces (see morale and experience) Their initial attitude toward you is neutral. To make Confed like you, you should: * not attack Confed, Militia, Bounty Hunters, or Merchants * not smuggle (carry contraband) * kill Pirates, Retros, and Kilrathis 2.2 MILITIA The Confed forces can't be everywhere, so local systems have their own militias. In general, they act just like the Confed, but with worse equipment. Militia can be found in all four quadrants. Militia hates Pirates, Kilrathis, and Retros (see factions) Militia flies Gladius (fighter) and Talon (fighter) (see crafts) Militia pilots are usually confident pros, with an ace every once in a long while (see morale and experience) Their initial attitude toward you is neutral. To make Militia like you, you should: * not attack Confed, Militia, bounty hunters, or merchants * not smuggle * kill Pirate, Retro, and Kilrathi ships 2.3 BOUNTY HUNTERS Bounty hunters are paid a bounty for each pirate, Kilrathi, or Retro they kill. Bounty hunters can be found all over. Bounty hunters hate Pirates, Kilrathis, and Retros (see factions) Bounty hunters fly Orion (transport/fighter), Centurion (fighter), or Demon (fighter) (see crafts) Bounty hunter pilots are confident rookies, pros or aces (see morale and experience) Their initial attitude toward you is neutral. To make Bounty Hunters like you, you should: * not attack bounty hunters * not attack merchants (and thus have a bounty placed on your head) * not align yourself with Pirates, Retros, or Kilrathi 2.4 MERCHANTS Merchants are the ones moving freight everywhere. You would see them more in the quieter quadrants, like Potter and Humboldt, but they do show up everywhere. Merchants hate any one who shoot them [Pirates, Kilrathis, and Retros] (see factions) Merchants fly Drayman (transport), Galaxy (transport), Tarsus (scout/transport) (see crafts) Merchant pilots are usually timid, maybe confident rookie or pro (see morale and experience) Their initial attitude toward you is neutral. To make Merchants like you, you should: * not attack merchants 2.5 KILRATHI Kilrathi are the sworn enemies of the Confederation... You mainly find Kilrathi in Clarke Quadrant, and mostly around the border area, but they do occasionally raid a bit further in. Kilrathi hate everybody, but especially Confederation (see factions) Kilrathi fly Dralthi (fighter), Gothri (heavy fighter/bomber), Kamekh (corvette) (see crafts) Kilrathi pilots are usually confident or fanatical pros or aces. Gothri are usually piloted by aces. (see morale and experience) Their initial attitude toward you is hostile. To make Kilrathi like you, you should: * attack/destroy Confederation and/or Militia ships 2.6 RETROS Retros is a term given to a fanatical offshoot from Church of Man. While Church of Man advocates a quiet agrarian lifestyle away from technology, Retros are willing to use technology to destroy all technology. Retros can be found all over, though mainly in Clarke and Fariss quadrants. Retros hate everybody (see factions) Retros fly Talon (fighter) (see crafts) Retro pilots are fanatical rookies or pros. They WILL kamikaze if they think they can kill you doing it. (see morale and experience) Their initial attitude toward you is hostile. You cannot align yourself with the Retros. 2.7 PIRATES Pirates make their living by trade in contraband goods and robbing Merchants. Pirates can be found all over, and have their own systems and bases. They primarily appear in Fariss and Humboldt quadrants. Pirates hate Confed, Militia, and Bounty Hunters (see factions) Pirates fly Talon (fighters) (see crafts) Pirate pilots are usually confident or fanatical pros or aces (see morale and experience) Their initial attitude toward you is hostile. To make pirates like you, you should: * shoot down Confed, Militia, or Bounty Hunters * not kill pirates * be a pirate, shoot down merchants and retrieve/sell their cargo 3 Your Career Choices While by necessity you will not be locked into one career path, it's necessary to understand the different paths available. You can switch among them as you see fit. 3.1 MERCHANT You can make money by moving cargo around, buy low and sell high. To be a good merchant, you need to move significant amount of cargo, and know the good trade routes. A Galaxy is recommended, though Orion and Tarsus are possible. Centurion's cargo hold is too small to be an effective trading ship. See [6] for commodity trading considerations. 3.2 DELIVERY You can make significant amount of money by being a courier, delivering special "marked" commodities from the contract origin to the specified destination, and pocket the contract fee. Speed is essential so you cannot stop at ANY other planet before you arrive at the contract destination (which also means you cannot accept multiple delivery contracts going to different destinations at the same time). Expect to fight through some opposition like Pirates and Retros on the delivery missions. You can find delivery missions from fixers, Merchant's Guild, or mission computer (see mission sources). Delivery amounts are usually quite small (a few tons) and can be handled by any ship. 3.3 MERCENARY You can make money by taking contracts to hunt, patrol, escort, defend, or whatever the employer needs. This is obviously a dangerous job but the rewards are great as well. You can find delivery missions from Mercenary Guild, Merchant's Guild, Mission Computer, or one of the fixers in a bar (see mission sources). The further out the mission, the more the mission pays. Mercenary missions usually require heavy combat and should only be handled by a hefty ship like Centurion or maybe Orion. You may get by with a Tarsus in a really quiet sector. 3.4 PIRATE Being a pirate is simple... Install a tractor beam, then shoot a merchant, take his ejected cargo (tractor it into your hold), and find a place to sell the cargo. After a while, plenty of people come after you... Confeds, Militia, Bounty Hunters... Even those merchants with their popguns. Dangerous life, but some say it's worth it. Just go do it... No mission is needed. Interesting note: If you managed to tractor in someone's escape pod, you can sell it as 1 ton of slaves. Piracy usually require heavy combat and should only be handled by a hefty ship like Centurion or maybe Orion. Remember, you'll need a tractor beam to salvage ejected cargo, and enough cargo space. If you recover contraband, you become a smuggler. To salvage cargo, scan and locate the cargo pods. Fly up next to it (don't bump it!), turn ship around so your rear turret is facing the cargo. Switch to tractor beam, aim at the cargo, and hit the trigger. The beam will reach out and drag it in. If you don't get a beam, you're not close enough. 3.5 SMUGGLER Smuggler smuggles contraband goods from pirate bases to where they can be sold for significant profit... But the Confed and the Militia will come after you as long as you have contraband onboard. If you have a very fast ship or you're willing to anger the militia/Confed you can give this a try. Sometimes a fixer will ask you to smuggle something. You have to accept to go on. Smuggled goods are usually quite small in amount and thus can be handled by any ship. On the other hand, to make REALLY significant money in smuggling you need to move LARGE amounts of contraband. Tip: try not to kill any Confed or Militia while smuggling. If you have a fast ship, just keep your shields up and afterburner past them. Tip: If you can't outrun them... Eject the contraband and stop. They will eventually go away. Then tractor in the ejected cargo and continue. This doesn't work for mission cargo. This is known as the eject/retrieve trick. 4 Your ship There are four player own-able ships in Privateer: Tarsus, Orion, Galaxy, and Centurion TIP: All ships can use all guns, but recommended guns are meson blaster for early work, then when you can afford them, tachyon cannon or ion cannon. TIP: In general, Image Recognition (IR) missiles are the most cost-effective. They are easier to use than heat-seeking (HS) missiles as they are faster to lock-on. They cost less than friend-or-foe (FF) missiles. 4.1 TARSUS Technically a scout, it has a cargo bay big enough to be used as a small freighter, and maneuverable enough to fight (not that well though). With dual missile launchers it may even get quick kills. Max engine: 1 Max shields: 2 A fully upgraded ship would have * level 2 shields * tungsten armor * max ECM available * dual missile launchers with IR missiles * mid/high-level scanner * repair droid * cargo expansion * all quadrant maps * jump drive (of course!) 4.2 ORION Orion is an odd ship... Extremely large shield and engine possible, but not that maneuverable, and only one missile launcher possible makes it not that effective in heavy combat. Max engine: 5 Max shields: 5 A fully upgraded ship would have * level 5 shields and level 5 engines * tungsten armor * max ECM available * 1 missile launcher with IR or FF missiles * high-level scanner * repair droid * cargo expansion * all quadrant maps * rear turret * tractor beam in turret * GOOD energy guns (tachyon cannons would be good) * jump drive (of course!) 4.3 GALAXY Galaxy is the multi-function ship that has the largest cargo bay (esp. with expansion). Max engine: 3 Max shields: 3 A fully upgraded ship would have * level 3 shields and level 3 engines * tungsten armor * max ECM available * 2 missile launchers with IR/FF missiles * high-level scanner * repair droid * cargo expansion * all quadrant maps * top and bottom turrets * tractor beam in turret * GOOD energy guns (tachyon cannons would be good) * jump drive (of course!) 4.4 CENTURION Centurion is technically a heavy fighter that was relegated to civilian duty and fitted with a small cargo bay. Max engine: 3 Max shields: 3 A fully upgraded ship would have * level 3 shields and level 3 engines * tungsten armor * max ECM available * 2 missile launchers with IR/FF missiles * high-level (3) scanner * repair droid * cargo expansion * all quadrant maps * rear turret * tractor beam in turret * afterburner * GOOD energy guns (tachyon cannons and/or ion cannons would be good) * jump drive (of course!) 5 Other Crafts and Pilots 5.1 MORALE AND EXPERIENCE The AI pilots in Privateer are rated in two areas: experience and morale. Experience can range from rookie, pro, to ace. Pilots with more experience evade more attacks, and have better accuracy. Morale can range from timid, confident, to fanatical. Pilots with higher morale are less likely to retreat, and attack more. Fanatical pilots may even contemplate kamikaze in addition to head-on attacks. 5.2 FIGHTERS 5.2.1 Talon Talon is a very wimpy fighter but extremely maneuverable. It is lightly armed and lightly shielded. It has a recognizable compact design. Talons are mainly used by Retros and Pirates, though occasionally used by the Militia. 5.2.2 Gladius Gladius has a very "wide" design, and is somewhat better armed than the Talon. Gladius is only flown by the Militia. 5.2.3 Stiletto Stiletto is an extremely fast fighter and very good at catching smugglers. It is lightly armed though and not that dangerous. Stiletto is only flown by Confed. 5.2.4 Demon Demon is a fighter that is nicely armed and decent shielding. It is usually equipped with torpedo launchers, making them quite dangerous. Only Bounty Hunters fly Demon. 5.3 HEAVY FIGHTERS AND BOMBERS 5.3.1 Broadsword Broadsword is a very slow "bomber" but heavily armed. Only Confed fly Broadsword 5.3.2 Gothri Gothri is a fast and quite maneuverable heavy fighter. Only Kilrathi fly Gothri. 5.4 MULTIPURPOSE 5.4.1 Tarsus Tarsus is usually classified as a scout, but it has some amount of cargo room that allows it to act as a small transport in low- threat areas. 5.4.2 Orion Orion's claim to fame is its heavy shields (up to level 5) and large engines (up to level 5). 5.4.3 Galaxy Galaxy is the largest "transport" the player has access to, and can move significant amount of cargo, but at a sedate pace. It has two turrets, but don't expect them to keep you safe. 5.4.4 Centurion Centurion is primarily a fighter, but it can fit SMALL amount of cargo. If you want firepower, this is the ship you want. Great for smuggling. 5.5 CAPITAL SHIPS 5.5.1 Paradigm Paradigm is a Confed corvette that can dish out quite a bit of firepower. Usually you see them around Perry Naval Base. 5.5.2 Kamekh Kamekh is Kilrathi corvette, equivalent of Confed Paradigm, and has very good armor and shields. If you shoot one down, Confeds will love you. 5.5.3 Drayman Drayman is the standard capital-ship transport, larger than even Galaxy, but very lightly armed. 6 Commodity trading One of the most often asked questions in Privateer is "how do I make money"? Two ways... "Buy low, sell high", and "take on missions". Let us analyze the markets, and see what kind of stuff is available to buy low and sell high. There are FIVE kinds of bases: agricultural, mining, pleasure, pirate, and refinery. There are also four "special" bases: New Constantinople, New Detroit, Oxford, and Perry Naval Base, for a total of NINE different bases. Look at the list below and figure out what makes money... And create your own "trade route". See section [7] on the other way to make money: take on missions. 6.1 AGRICULTURAL BASE Produces wood, generic food, luxury food, grain, and so on. Buys contraband, plastics, home appliances, and so on. 6.2 MINING BASE Produces iron, uranium, and other metals Buys contraband, plastics, mining equipment, food dispenser, home appliance, and so on. If you can find a good route between mining and refinery, you can make a bit of money, but usually these routes go by pirate systems and such. 6.3 PIRATE BASE Produces contraband (Brilliance, slaves, Ultimate, tobacco, and so on) Buys just about everything, but likes food dispensers and holographic equipment If you want to be a smuggler, find a pirate base you can get to is a must, as it's your only access to contraband stuff. 6.4 PLEASURE BASE Don't produce anything Buys anything that makes life easier, including home appliances, robot servants, food, and esp. contraband. 6.5 REFINERY BASE Takes all those ores and such, makes them into finished products, like plastics, home appliances, construction equipment, and so on. Buys ores, wood, (whatever raw material) and of course, contraband. If you can find a good route between mining and refinery, you can make a bit of money, but usually these routes go by pirate systems and such. 6.6 NEW CONSTANTINOPLE The only thing NC produces that sells well is art (and only on pleasure planets) NC is one of the few places that will NOT buy contraband, though you may get special fixer missions that need you to deliver contraband here. 6.7 NEW DETROIT New Detroit is essentially a huge refinery. They make finished products. They buy contraband and lots of food, ores, and other raw materials. If you can find a good route between mining and ND/refinery, you can make a bit of money, but usually these routes go by pirate systems and such. 6.8 OXFORD Oxford is mainly an agricultural planet but also export books. They buy the same agriculture related stuff, like Plastics, Food dispensers, and so on. Oxford does NOT buy contraband. 6.9 PERRY NAVAL BASE PNB makes weapons, and only weapons. PNB buys wood, food, grain, plastics, food dispenser, and so on. PNB does NOT buy contraband. 7 Mission Sources The other way to make money besides trading in commodities is by taking on missions. TIP: If you don't like ANY of the missions being offered from Mercenaries' Guild, Merchants' Guild, OR the Mission Computer, take off, then land again. You'll get a new set of each. You can get missions from several sources: mission computer, Mercenaries' Guild, Merchants' Guild, or the fixers in the bars. 7.1 MISSION COMPUTER You can get missions from the mission computer. In general, these are pretty easy missions, because they don't pay much. Sometimes, you may get NOTHING. Think of this as the classified ads... You may get something, or perhaps nothing at all. Check other mission sources first. Offered: attack, bounty hunt, defense, patrol, scout (see 8 for mission types) Typical mission pays a few hundred. 7.2 MERCENARIES' GUILD Mercenaries' Guild costs 5000 credits to join, but they guarantee payment, so you'll never be gibbed. They offer higher-paying (read: tougher) missions. Offered: attack, bounty hunt, defend, patrol, scout (see [8] for mission types) Typical mission pays about two to five thousand. 7.3 MERCHANTS' GUILD Merchants' Guild costs 1000 credits to join, but they guarantee payment as well. Almost all Merchants' Guild missions require jumping to another system. They pay less than the Merc Guild, but they are also easier. Offered: bounty hunt, delivery (see [8] for mission types) Typical mission pays one to three thousand 7.4 FIXERS In some bars, there are fixers ready to give you missions. They need someone to help them but they can't advertise... They offer the really challenging missions, and they pay quite well. Fixer missions are always plot missions. (see [11] for the plot mission walkthru) Offered: everything (see [8] for mission types) Fixers can pay from nothing (yes, a rip-off) to 30000 per mission. If you fail a fixer mission, head back to the bar and meet the fixer again. You'll get another chance. 8 Missions TIP: It should be obvious that you should NOT accept mission that you cannot get to... for example, if you don't have a jump drive, you should NOT accept missions outside your own system! 8.1 DELIVERY MISSION Transport cargo from one base to another... Simple enough. The tricky part is you cannot stop at ANY OTHER base, or the cargo's forfeit. Look at the map, pick the route, then just go do it. You can get delivery missions from Merchant's Guild, Mission Computer, and fixers. (See [7] for mission sources) 8.2 ESCORT MISSION Meet a ship jumping in from one nav point, escort it to another nav point (probably base) Some of these ships can be quite fragile... Be careful! You can only get escort missions from fixers. (See [7] for mission sources) 8.3 ATTACK MISSION Destroy certain number of targets at a certain nav point. Simple enough, right? You can get attack missions through Mercenaries' Guild and Mission Computer. (See [7] for mission sources) 8.4 BOUNTY HUNTING MISSION Hunt down pirate, Retro, or even a Kilrathi... pays better than Attack. You can get bounty hunting missions through Mercenaries' Guild, Merchants' Guild, and Mission Computer. (See [7] for mission sources) 8.5 DEFEND BASE Take out the attackers, simple enough, right? You can get base defense missions through Mercenaries' Guild and Mission Computer. (See [7] for mission sources) 8.6 SCOUT Go to a nav point, destroy enemies if found. Enemies may not show up, but you'll get paid nonetheless. (See [7] for mission sources) You can get scout missions through Mercenaries' Guild and Mission Computer. 8.7 PATROL Patrol is basically Scout mission that involves multiple nav points. This one pays a lot better due to multiple nav points. You can get patrol missions through Mercenaries' Guild and Mission Computer. (See [7] for mission sources) 8.8 MISSION TIPS * [Repeat] If you can't leave the system (no jump drive), don't accept missions that occur outside the system! * [Repeat] You cannot stop at ANY other base while a delivery mission is in progress! This means you can accept only ONE delivery destination at once! (You can accept multiple delivery missions IF they are all going to the SAME BASE) * In general, the further away the mission calls for you to go, the better the payment * Try to locate multiple missions that you can fly in one trip * If you need to go somewhere, locate missions that are going your way * Try to communicate with the hostile contact. If you're looking for a specific contact and you don't see him, but you found something else hostile instead, consider turn and run. For example, if you are on a mission to locate a Retro, but conversation shows you found a Pirate, you can run away. * [Repeat] Don't like the missions being offered? Take off and land again to get a new set * In general, Fixers pay the best, then Mercenaries' Guild, then Merchants' Guild, then the Mission Computer. * If the fixer asks you to come back for the payment after a delivery mission, you can take your time coming back and do some side jobs on the way * If you cannot make your way back for the payment, turn on invulnerability then fly back. Once the mission is complete there's no reason not to turn on the cheat. 9 Gemini Sector Gemini sector is made up of sixty-nine different star systems, each of them has from one to nine nav points. There is really no point for me to write which jump point links to which system when you can buy the quadrant maps for your navcomp. In each system, you can have several nav points that ships can align to. There can also be several "hidden" points between the nav points. For example, in ND-57 (Potter Quadrant, SE), the system has 3 nav points: jump point, a nav point to go around the hidden point, and the planet new Reno. It also has a "hidden" point between the jump point and the planet. When you arrive at a nav point or a hidden point, an encounter happens. If the point is related to a mission, that mission's enemy is used. If not, a "random" encounter is generated. The "random" enemies are randomly chosen based on a series of probability tables. The tables are populated based on where the system is, what systems are connected, and so on. For example, let's say you are at Troy. You got a contract to deliver some stuff to New Iberia, in Pyrenees system in a mission from Merchants' Guild. You also found a contract to patrol Pyrenees system, all nav points from Mercenaries' Guild. You also found a contract that had you hunt down a pirate at nav 5 of Pyrenees system from the Mission Computer. So you jump in from Troy and arrive at nav 2 of Pyrenees. Pyrenees is in Humboldt Quadrant, which is Retro and Pirate territory. So nav 2 you would expect Militia, Retro, or Pirates, with maybe some merchants. You move on to nav 1, more random. Keep moving to nav 6, and there is the patrol enemy (yes, that's randomly generated also). At nav 5, you found your target, take him out. You move on to nav 4, more random, then finally you reach nav 3, New Iberia and another random encounter. You land and finish the contract. You got three missions (and three payments) in one trip. 10 Learning the field 10.1 GETTING STARTED You start in the wimpy Tarsus, so your first objective is to improve your survivability. You need to upgrade your armor, shields, and scanners ASAP. You start with a missile launcher, but you don't really need it yet. Sell it for 7500 credits, and replace it with a torpedo launcher and full reloads instead. Next, dump the lasers and replace with meson blasters. Now you're respectably armed, but still weak. Use any remaining credits to join Merchants' Guild so you get higher-paying missions. Remember NOT to accept missions that require you to go outside the Troy system (and that would be MOST of them, esp. the Merchants' Guild missions)! Don't accept any combat mission (yet). Your low-level scanner can't even tell friend from foe yet. You need color-coded scanner before you take on combat missions. Now just go through Merchant's Guild computer and the Mission Computer for missions. Fly delivery missions to make enough money so you can get level 2 shields, ECM, and Hunter AW 6i scanner (it's the most value for your money in the scanner category). You need ECM to counter enemy missiles. You can probably run away from any early enemies that you encounter, or you can test your combat prowess with your meson blasters and torpedoes. Retros and Pirates in the Troy system usually come at you head-on, making perfect targets for your torpedoes. When you get those upgrades, you can think about accepting scout and patrol missions (in general, those missions are easy and pay decent money). Remember, NOTHING OUTSIDE THE SYSTEM! Look for multiple missions you can do in one trip once you can do scout or patrol missions. Keep upgrading your ship. You need a FULLY upgraded Tarsus to even think about leaving the Troy system. (See [4] for recommended loadout for your ship.) If you talk to the bartenders, they'll tell you to head for New Detroit when you're ready. However, that's for the fixer missions, and those are generally tougher. So remember, no fixer missions until you're completely ready, and that means a fully- equipped Centurion. 10.2 OUT OF HOME, INTO THE WORLD When you're ready to leave Troy, you should head for Potter Quadrant, as that's a relatively quiet sector, esp. in the heart of the Potter quadrant, around New Constantinople, New Detroit, and Oxford (NC/ND/OX). Try to get missions that need you to deliver to NC or ND. The enemies outside Troy are significantly smarter and deadlier. You should NOT perform a patrol or scout mission in a Tarsus outside the Troy system until you reach NC/ND/OX. Once you made it to NC/ND/OX area, accept delivery missions until you can upgrade to an Orion. When you have the Orion nicely equipped (think level 5 shields), you can start accepting just about any mission. Join Mercenaries Guild to get more assignments. Remember to look for missions that you can do within a single trip, hopefully within the same system. When you have Orion fully decked out, it's time to move into Clarke Quadrant and start taking on some tougher missions, like hunting down Kilrathi. Remember though, no fixer missions until you're completely ready. 10.3 NOW IT GETS INTERESTING Eventually you'll want to switch to a Centurion. You can upgrade to Centurion from a fully decked out Orion without adding much money. One of the most lucrative trade routes is between New Caledonia and Prasepe, but there are a few pirate bases in the way. With a Centurion, you can beat back any pirates that gets in your way, and make a ton of money on this route. When you're ready, head for New Detroit, go into the bar, and locate Ernesto Sandoval in the bar to start the plot. 10.4 SOME NOTES ON SPACE COMBAT Check back to section [4] the ships for more advice on outfitting. Some of these hints are obvious, but worth repeating * Shoot other ships in the rear, where armor/shields are the weakest * Concentrate on the strongest ship, kill it before continuing to the next one. * Keep moving. You need to move to dodge the enemy shots. * If you have enough engine power, your afterburner fuel is virtually infinite, so use those afterburners! * If you have level 3 shields or higher, consider ramming light fighters like Talon. * Approach wide/flat ships (like Dralthi, Gothri, etc.) from the top or bottom rear to get more area to shoot at * If you want to kill corvettes (like Kamekh), bring torpedo launchers. Approach it from the rear, slow down, pump HALF the torpedoes into it (you can shoot fast enough if you slow down), then full guns. Afterburner away, do a loop, repeat. * Watch out for rear turrets on a lot of crafts. AI Orion and Gothri both have nicely armed rear turrets, and Kamekh have multiple turrets. * Never approach a Demon head-on. Demons are often equipped with torpedo launchers and shields cannot stand multiple torpedo hits. * Retros like to ram. Make sure you destroy them when they come head-on, unless you have level 3 shields or higher * Double missile launchers are better than single missile launcher. If you shoot TWO missiles at the same target, and both hit, the target is toast. Double-tap also halves their ECM's effectiveness against your missiles. Of course, you use up your missiles twice as fast. * [Repeat] If you have problems surviving your way to another base (except the plot missions), consider turning on invulnerability. However, don't do this on plot missions. If you turn on the cheats during the plot missions you will fail. 11 Plot Missions The plot missions are always offered by fixers, and they pay VERY WELL compared to the other mission sources. TIP: For every mission that involves delivery, try to locate additional delivery missions going to the same base. Failing that, locate commodities that you can sell for a profit at that base. TIP: You will probably need a fully-decked Centurion to do the plot missions. 11.1 SANDOVAL 1 Objective: Take iron from ND to Liverpool (Refinery system, Newcastle system), 15000 credits promised. Return to ND for payment. Sandoval say he doesn't have the money upfront, and he gives you an alien artifact as collateral. He promised you the money when you come back. You should get some commodity that Liverpool would want and sell them there. Enemies are randomly generated based on local distribution. When you return, you found Sandoval is nowhere to be found... Tayla was in the bar instead. Tayla informed you that Sandoval is dead... Probably due to that artifact now in your possession. She'll get you some info on it if you do some jobs for her... 11.2 TAYLA 1 Objective: Take plastics to Oakham (Pirate base, Pentonville system). Tayla will give you 10000 credits when you get there. Oakham is a pirate base with an asteroid field. On the other hand, Pentonville's pirates will be neutral to you as long as you work for Tayla, so it's not that bad. Don't fly too fast in an asteroid field or you can't dodge the asteroids. Enemies are randomly generated based on local distribution. 11.3 TAYLA 2 Objective: Take Brilliance (contraband!) to Hector (Mining base, Troy system). Tayla will pay you 15000 credits upon delivery. Then make it back to Oakham (Pirate base, Pentonville system). Expect to see many Militia Talons in the Troy system and random Confed/Militia patrols that will want your head for smuggling. The eject/retrieve trick won't work here. You should afterburner past them, ignoring their fire. You should have enough shields to ignore their fire. They usually can't keep up. This one is a tough mission. Try not to kill any Militia or Confed ships while you're at it. You'll get a surprise later. 11.4 TAYLA 3 Objective: Take more Brilliance to New Constantinople (yes, that one). Tayla will pay you 20000 Credits upon delivery. Then make it back to Oakham (yes, again). Expect to see Confed patrols all over the place, no matter which route you take. Stilettos and Broadswords try to block you at critical points, despite Tayla's promise that she bribed the Confed patrols. Again, you should afterburner past them, ignoring their fire. You'll get a bonus later and don't worry about them any more. When you return, you complain to Tayla about how hot her missions have become. Tayla will give you a secret compartment, which cannot be scanned. This compartment can fit 20 cargo units and is only good for smuggling contraband. Nothing else will go in there. 11.5 TAYLA 4 Objective: Take more Brilliance to New Constantinople (yep, again), 10000 credits as compensation, and the secret compartment. When you leave Oakham, William Riodian (ace?, flying Centurion) shows up. Apparently, he's a bit jealous of the attention you're getting from Tayla, and he wants you out of the way. He'll ramble on for a while. Feel free to shoot him while he talks. Three Pirate Talons (pros?) will join him in attack. Take them out (preferred) or run away. If you make it to the jump point without taking out Riodian, he'll be there again with 5 Pirate Talons (pros?). Then just make it over to NC. When you return to Oakham, Tayla said she had no information herself, but she had found someone who does. Head for NC and look up Roman Lynch, who's a "made man" in the mob. 11.6 LYNCH 1 You arrive in NC, and Roman Lynch, with his bodyguard Miggs, need some work done. He'll investigate the artifact's hologram while you do the jobs for him. Objective: Deliver a message to Seelig, who will be at Nav 2 in Pentonville (Pirate) System. When the message is delivered, return to NC. You will be paid 10000 credits. When you get there, Seelig (pro? ace?) is flying a Talon. When he gets the message, he gets mad and wants to shoot you. If you feel like it, take him out, else run for it. 11.7 LYNCH 2 You're not happy at Lynch who tried to use you as a freebie bounty hunter, and he's not happy at investigating your artifact, as he's running into... problems investigating the artifact. Objective: Deliver weapons from NC to Siva (agricultural base, Rikel system). You'll be paid 15000 credits. Expect to see a rival gang, Salman Kroiz. When you reach Rikel's jump point, you'll encounter Kroiz (? ace) flying a Demon, and 2 more Demons (? pro?). If you don't kill Kroiz in the first encounter, he'll show up again with FIVE Demons as escort. 11.8 LYNCH 3 Lynch confirmed that the artifact is alien... But he needs another mission done. His cousin needs to "get out of town", "away from the heat"... Objective: Land at Romulus (mining base, Castor system). You'll be paid 30000 credits. As you can imagine, Confeds want Lynch's cousin bad... Expect Stillettos and Broadswords to come after you, esp. inside the Castor system. Stilettos are FAST and you may have problems dodging them. Run really, really fast... 11.9 LYNCH 4 When you come back to NC, Miggs is not there... Lynch wants you to pickup Mr. Smythe from Liverpool (Refinery base, Newcastle system). Apparently Smythe found some info in the Oxford library. Objective: fly to Liverpool (Newcastle system) to pick up Smythe, 30000 credits were promised. As you can guess, Miggs is out there, ready to do you harm. He's in a Talon (ace?) escorted by 3 other Talons in the Newcastle system waiting for you. After you take care of them, you can ehad for Oxford. You can actually go directly to Oxford and ignore Miggs altogether. 11.10 MASTERSON 1 You arrive on Oxford, but Masterson refuses you entry. On the other hand, the university does need some work done... And you need to access the library. It's a deal. Objective: Escort Hunter Toth (Drayman) to Oxford. This guy wrote some nasty things about the Retros, so Retros are out to kill him. You'll be paid 10000 credits, and if you do all four missions you'll be allowed access to the library. Toth will be at Nav 3 at Oxford. You'll find 2 Retro Talons attacking him immediately, followed by 3 more Retro Talons. Make sure the Drayman reaches the planet and radios you "thanks" before you land, or you'll fail the mission. Stay BEHIND the Drayman! This is the third-hardest mission in the whole game. Don't be surprised if you failed this a few times. 11.11 MASTERSON 2 Here's the second mission for Masterson. Objective: Some data pirates are hacking Oxford's mainframe. Take out their base ship, the Black Rhombus. You'll be paid 10000 credits and soon access to the library. Patrol the nav points and you'll find the Black Rhombus (Pirate Galaxy) escorted by 3+4 Pirate Talons. Once you've killed the Black Rhombus, you can go home. 11.12 MASTERSON 3 Masterson need some books shipped in, but someone else want the books, and they contracted bounty hunters to divert the shipment. Objective: Escort Vulcan's Forge (Drayman) to Oxford. Again, 10000 credits and soon access to library. You'll find the Drayman at nav 3, with 4+2 Demons. The Demons are after you, not the Drayman, so you can be thankful. 11.13 MASTERSON 4 Now comes the series finale... And in my opinion, this is the second hardest mission in the game. Masterson needs this Drayman through the pirates really bad. Objective: Escort this final Drayman back to Oxford. Again, 10000 credits and access to library (really, after this mission). You'll find the Drayman at nav 1, along with 5 Pirate Talons (pros?). The Drayman is REALLY weak, so you have to let the missiles fly as soon as you get in range. The Pirates want the cargo bad and Drayman won't last very long under their attack. When you've won and returned to Oxford, you can access the library. Inside, you'll locate a scanner, and then you'll get a link to Dr. Monkhouse. The artifact is apparently Steltek, who haven't been seen for millenia. He was last seen on Palan. So to Palan you go... 11.14 LYNN MURPHY 1 When you get there, you find Palan is currently under a blockade by bounty hunters. You land on Basra instead, and found Lynn Murphy in the bar. She organizes the resistance, trying to break the blockade. Objective: Prevent reinforcements from reaching the blockade. You'll be paid 15000 credits. When you get to Palan's nav 1, you'll find 4+3+3 Demons (aces?). Kill them all. 11.15 LYNN MURPHY 2 Destroy more enemy patrols. Objective: Kill all hostiles. You'll be paid 10000 credits. Go to Palan's nav 1 and you'll find 3 Demons followed by 4 Centurions (all aces?). Take them all out. Centurions will be your biggest threat, so you may want to keep your missiles until they show up. 11.16 LYNN MURPHY 3 Bust the blockade and land on Palan. Objective: kill all opposition and land on Palan. You will get 2 friendly Talons as wingmen. Get 15000 credits also. When you get near Palan, you'll encounter 3+2+2+2 Demons (all aces?). Take them all out and land. As you've killed a lot of Bounty Hunters, don't be surprised if Militia, Confed, or Bounty Hunters are after your hide. Upon landing, you found Dr. Monkhouse in the bar. He has a proposal for you... 11.17 MONKHOUSE 1 Dr. Monkhouse want to get over to Basra. He'll take a look at your artifact, and pay a little money too. Objective: land on Basra, get 5000 credits. When you get near Basra, the Kilrathi shows up! They want Monkhouse somehow... You'll see a Gothri, 2 Dralthi, then 2 Gothris at nav 4. You can bypass the Kilrathi if you do NOT take the direct route to Basra. As you've killed a lot of Bounty Hunters, don't be surprised if Militia, Confed, or Bounty Hunters are after your hide. Monkhouse shows you the artifact fits together with the other piece he has. The result is both a map and a translation aid... The map seems to point to the frontiers out beyond Rygannon. To get more information, you'll have to join the Exploratory Services at Rygannon. If you join ES, and let Monkhouse publish anything you find, Monkhouse will give you his piece and the translated map. 11.18 CROSS 1 You got to Rygannon, and you found Taryn Cross of Exploratory Services. She wants you to explore those systems on the Steltek map... How lucky for you, huh? Objective: Explore Delta (4 nav points), get 10000 credits. You'll see some Pirate Talons in Delta system, and they don't like trespassers... As you've killed a lot of Bounty Hunters recently, don't be surprised if Militia, Confed, or Bounty Hunters are after your hide. Run really fast. The random pirates will probably consider you to be friendly, and that's good for you. Only the scripted pirates (nav 2 and nav 3) will be hostile. Expect 4 Talons at nav 2 and 4+4 Talons at nav 3. 11.19 CROSS 2 More exploration for Cross... Objective: explore the nav points of Beta, and find Captain Garrovick while you're at it. You'll get 10000 credits. When you get to Beta's nav 3, you'll find Captain Garrovick in a Centurion, and he's completely wacko. He then attacks you and you'll probably have to destroy him. Everybody else you encounter will be random. 11.20 CROSS 3 Taryn Cross want to know what drove Garrovick mad... Objective: explore the nav points of Gamma, return to Rygannon When you get there, you found a LOT of Kilrathi. You find 3 Dralthi at nav 1. At nav 2, you'll find 3 Dralthis, 2 Gothris, and 3 Dralthis. Nav 3 is clear. Nav 4 has 3 Gothris, then Kamekh and Gothri. Gothris are all aces, and Dralthis are all pros. You'll also see a lot of random Pirates and maybe Kilrathis on the way to Gamma. Try to avoid a fight if it's possible. Don't waste any missiles as you will need them against the enemies in Gamma. Take out the Gothris first. 11.21 CROSS 4 One last mission for the Exploratory Services... But this one is a deucy. Objective: explore nav points at Delta Prime, another 10000 credits. There are a lot of random Kilrathi in Gamma... When you make it into Delta, you'll find a Steltek derelict... Inside is a derelict fighter, which seem to have a weapon you can remove... So you grab it! When you leave, you'll encounter random enemies... A green thing is following you around... And kill you if it can. You can't hurt it though, even with that Steltek gun. Keep running... You'll have to get back to Rygannon. In the meanwhile, you're chased everywhere by that green thing... When you get to Rygannon to claim the final 10000, Taryn Cross will thank you for your services. 11.22 GOODIN 1 If you go to ANY mining base other than Rygannon, you'll find Sandra Goodin, attache to Admiral Terrell, in the bar. [If you can't make it to any mining base, turn on invulnerability. Remember to turn it off when you get there.] Admiral Terrell is in charge of the whole sector from his HQ at Perry Naval Base. Confed have noticed the green thing. You should make your way to Perry Naval Base... Maybe the admiral knows what's going on... Objective: get to Perry Naval Base safely (no, you don't get paid for this) Doesn't matter which way you go, you'll run into a lot of Retros (figure 5+3+3 Talons). Everybody else is random. Keep running away from that green blob and everybody else. 11.23 TERRELL 1 You made it to Perry Naval Base and found Admiral Terrell's office. The admiral believe that green blob is a Kilrathi secret weapon that somehow thought you're its guide. Commodore Reissman has assembled a fleet at "Blockade Point Tango". You'll lead the drone there and let the Confeds kill it. Objective: Make it over to Blockade Point Tango. You'll get 30000 credits if you succeed. On your way... You encounter some random travelers... And Steltek showed up! The drone is actually Steltek and the last remaining Steltek weapon. It's following that gun you found. While the Steltek want to take the gun back, you made a deal. You will destroy the drone for them if you can keep the gun. They reluctantly agreed. The Steltek boosted your Steltek gun so you can take out that drone, and they took the derelict ship. When you got to Blockade Point Tango, you found the Confed fleet, with 2 Paradigms and 2 Broadswords. Reissman informed you of his plans before the drone showed up. Confeds quickly found to their dismay that they can't destroy the drone either. The only thing that can hurt the drone is your Steltek gun... And it's all up to you. Here are some combat tips against the drone: -- Don't get between the Confed fleet and the drone! While the Confeds can't hurt the drone, the Confeds can hurt you! -- Dodge the drone's shots. Think of the drone as a huge Demon with tremendous frontal firepower. When it turns toward you, turn away. -- The drone will accelerate away from you, then turn back at you to shoot you, go PAST you, then turn back to repeat. --To beat it, you have to hit it while it's heading away, then dodge its shots as it heads back past you, and hit it again while it's heading away. Repeat until you kill it. Return to Terrell's office at Perry Naval Base for the thanks of the Confederation... Stay in his office to watch some funny dialog. --THE END--