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Terror Missions [Shipping]  Cruiser & Cargo vessels

Cruisers

PART TWO - BELOW DECKS... [LEVEL ONE]

It's... PARTY TIME !!!

Time is short for me at present, so these suggestions will become shorter,
broken into chunks, dealing with various locations at a time - Sorry, no
overall strategy for a whole level yet, its as it comes for now!

    In our previous episode, the squad had managed to secure the near side
of the level, the length of the ship.  In theory at least.  One covering
team is placed at the 1st intersection [i1], while a scout and advance team
has moved along the corridor to intersection 2 [i2].  Additional operatives
have moved from room to room, checking the closets for hostiles and any
grunts yet to prove themselves has been liberating any equipment found,
administering the medi kits where needed and generally acting like
hyperactive kids.

*** NOTE    It's worth mentioning you should, if you have sufficient nauts,
grab all equipment from the bodies of aliens, and if possible, the aliens
themselves.  Why, when supposedly when the mission is complete, you get all
equipment and bodies listed?  Well, I'm still uncertain if the patch does
actually carry over the corpses and equipment to the second stage of the
mission, so I try to grab as much as possible.  Correct me if I'm wrong,
btw. ***

    So, Scott Hand, Melanie Smillie and Drew Goss, or equivalent, are at i2,
catching their breath, reloading and taking a quick rest, while at the same
time have the lifts and blind side end of i2 covered.  Additional members
have, or are checking the forward storage rooms and the two clusters of
cabins found here.  This should take about 10 -12 turns to search and secure
this area, provided no casualties are incurred during the S&S of this
location.

*** REQUEST!    OK, can someone please tell me the nautical terms for the
front, back, left and right sides of the ship - I'm finding it a bit
difficult trying to describe the ship so far.  It would really help, thanks
***

    The blind side cabins are a repeat exercise of the near side of the
ship, so don't get sloppy.  The additional problem here is the entrance to
the galley is found practically opposite the stairwell you destroyed on the
near side.  From what I can gather, there must be between 4 and 6 aliens
around this area, based on encounters at i1 and the death toll there, as
well as encounters at i2.  I can't confirm this however.
    This represents hostiles encounter in the corridor itself, not including
hostiles in the galley, who sometimes figure the party has gone outside of
the kitchen...  Usually, about 3 hostiles around the galley entrance.  The
entrance itself is recessed from the corridor, with a stairwell leading up
to the next level.  A favourite tactic they employ is to hide in the recess,
jump into the corridor, take pot shots at your squad and then dive for cover
again.  If there are three hostiles this can mean quite a few fatalities in
your squad - they like playing with sonic pulsers as well, btw...

    It depends how you want to go here, either up, or to try to take the
whole level first.  If you want to take the level, you need to be sure the
lifts are covered at all times.  So, lets assume you want to take the level,
and deal with the next level later.  Not a bad choice really, since there
are four lifts on this level, so providing you have not totalled any of them
yet, you have multiple choice.

    There are various ways of getting to the kitchen, most of them though
involve the unnecessary use of grenades [and sonic weapons, if you have
them] and other area effect weapons.  When dealing with hostiles located at
the galley entrance, try an operative with a Gas Cannon loaded with Phosphor
rounds, to supplement the grenades you use to soften the area up.  Anything
not neutralised immediately by the grenades will be BBQ'ed during the coming
turns, hopefully.  [Of course, if you got Lobstermen, Tasoths and Bio-Drones
running around, everything I've said so far is gonna suck, since if you are
encountering them, you need sonics, TSL's & Pulse grenades as standard kit,
plus high MC Skill troopers.  Otherwise its time to scrape your men off the
walls and get the hell out!]  The naut with the GC will need to step to the
far edge of the corridor, since he has to target the stairwell, or if you're
lucky, his accuracy will take the shot into the recess and start to flamb�
anything there - a much better tactic.  Be sure he has enough TU's to run
out, fire and get back to cover though, or he will be a statistic...
    I'm also a little uncertain whether you will actually be able to fire at
the stairwell from i2, as I'm writing this from memory, without any deck
plans or aids to refer to.  I've got a nasty feeling you can't actually fire
that far up the corridor.  If this is the case, obviously forget the
Phosphor idea.

    Right then, we are finally heading into the blind side of the ship.
You've had a couple of troopers throw grenades up the corridor - timers set
for turn 0 and 1 respectively, to catch anything which wanders out to join
the fun from the galley.  Hopefully, you have cleared the corridor of
hostiles and have an advance team covering the passage incase of additional
hostiles emerging from the galley.  A repeat of the near side S&S is carried
out in the cabins and another covering team has the lifts at i2 monitored.
All fine and dandy, IF you have no losses so far, which brings me to ;

Squad composition

    Lets take a quick break to look at this for a second.  So far, you have
2 men at i1, i2 and the advance team.  You have at least one scout running
forward to get a view ahead and using the PD Sensor - that's seven nauts in
total.  If you packed 10 nauts, those last three will probably be 2 gunners,
doing the room to room search and maybe a grunt who's giving 1st aid etc.
If you start taking casualties, you have no one to replace dead or injured
nauts, which is not very useful, to say the least.  So alternatives are
required for the 10 men squad.

i1 - get the 2 nauts here to booby trap the whole intersection, and then
form a rear guard as the squad advances down the corridor.  Hostiles trying
to follow will meet with little surprises all down the intersection, if you
placed the PDG's in a left, right pattern about three squares a part down
the length of the passageway.
    Another suggestion is to try to get a scout into one of the 'phone
booths' found halfway along i1.  Hopefully if not spotted, he can use a PD
Sensor to check for movement in the kitchen from his vantage point, although
its range will not extend the whole length of the galley, it does offer
additional intelligence.  [The same applies to your advance scout, who can
cover the area from the other end, at i2.  Don't forget though, if you've
booby trapped any area, you limit your choices and movement.  Make adequate
preparations and contingencies...]

i2 - similar to i1, but booby trap the lifts and one square out into the
intersection.  Don't forget to allow yourself to withdraw from this area
without trapping yourself.... ;-)  Don't forget what I said above about
scouts with PD Sensors as well !!!

If you can, pack an SWS, since it's expensive, but expendable.  Rather that
get totalled than one of your key nauts, eh?

12 men squads are preferable, although if you can, pack as many in as
possible, since you probably need as many Medi kits and ammo clips as
possible, as well as at least a couple of PD Sensors.  You will have troops
without weapons - make sure they act as mules and medics during the turns
and try to create secure areas where they can pump up the other nauts with
required drugs and items.  Inside a cabin, behind the door is a good place,
since it shields them from any fire fights, bar sonic pulser attacks.

Getting the Galley

    So, we're finally outside the party.  Through the entrance is the first
room, complete with barrels which go boom.  You could prime and throw a
grenade here, after you withdraw your troops to a safe distance, or bite the
bullet and head in, hoping to take any which wanders into your field of
fire.

    The galley itself is full of various items which are explosive, so
another grenade fest is a possible solution to soften up the opposition.
It's not sure fire, however, since the room is divided centrally by a small
bulkhead and recessed room which runs along i1.  Hostiles hide behind the
central bulkhead and pop out to take pot shots, btw.

    The two lifts are located at either edge of i1 and the long corridors.

    The freezer entrance is located opposite the lift at i1 and nearside
corridor.  In the freezer are twists and turns where hostiles like to hide -
in the cubby hole which runs along the nearside corridor, for one.  Oh, and
most things explode in here as well.  I've seen explosions take out the
bulkhead to the corridor here, as well as the backs of the lifts, so caution
is advised.

Thermal Tazers, grenades and PD Sensors are probably going to be the order
of the day here.  PDS to check for movement and zero in on potential
targets.  Grenades to set of the fireworks and soften the hostiles and
Tazers to finish off in the freezer.  It's never this cut and dried though,
and due to the layout of the galley and various rooms thereabouts, you will
probably take some casualties, some fatal.

    The rest of this level should be a mopping up exercise.  If the nauts at
i1 did encounter hostiles, the PDG's would have triggered, before they got
into the corridor/intersection junction.  If so, the rest of the blind side
corridor should be clear to advance to the rear of this side, where you will
find another double stairwell and room at the rear of the ship - possibly
showers or something?  There is also a single cabin on the far end of i1,
this sometimes has a hostile hiding there.  It's all too easy to consider
the level clear and then use the last TU's of a trooper to step into this
room and find something nasty with no way of getting out - DONT GET
SLOPPY!!!

Well, to me it seems like an anticlimax to be honest, but thats one way I've
progressed throughout this deck.  It's by no means sure fire, and the
locations are meant to be indicators of where to find potential hostiles,
though the hot spots are fairly constant.

Hope this has been of use so far, stay tuned for further developments later.

Detonate