STARSIEGE FAQ AND MISSION GUIDE v1.3
By TheLastBrunnenG
(aka LETHE, I ran the now-dead Mecha Ware giant robot
gaming website)
- INTRODUCTION
- TACTICS AND TIPS
- WEAPONS
- EQUIPMENT
- HUMAN MISSIONS
- CYBRID MISSIONS
- CHEATING
- FAQ HISTORY
- THANKS
INRODUCTION
With the return of the Cybrids, feuds between off-Earth
colonists and Imperial troops are put aside. Originally
titled Earthsiege 3, this game takes place 200 years after
the events of Earthsiege 2, though the timelines are
sketched out quite plausibly. The game's atmospheric
elements set the stage nicely, with posts to futuristic
bulletin boards by government forces, rebels, hackers, and
Cybrids, plus pilot biographies and in-mission chatter that
show the characters' personalities and affect their combat
performance. Technology is relatively reasonable - affected
only by your military access rank and planetary
inventories, not by ongoing research - except for the
presence of a convenient "alien weapons cache". Unit
graphics and the interface are excellent, and every unit is
skinnable; weapons fire doesn't look nearly as sweet. Sound
is decent, including several good techno-industrial CD
audio tracks. Unit customization is excellent, very similar
to MechWarrior 4's limited weapon mounts and chassis
specialization (and very reminiscent of Cyberstorm's too,
understandably). Overall, it's between the MechWarrior 2:
Mercenaries level and the MechWarrior 3 level, quality-
wise. I found no major bugs or hang-ups, though I miss an
in-depth Instant Action mode and a branching mission
structure. At the end of this FAQ I have reprinted Sierra's
own 1999 Technical FAQ, which has become very hard to find
otherwise. Yes, this is the first FAQ I wrote entirely on
my own (the second was Cyberstorm, and I rewrote a few for
the early BattleTech and MechWarrior games), and it's the
first in a series I planned for Mecha / Giant Robot games
that never got their own guides and FAQs.
TACTICS AND TIPS
--Use a mouse and keyboard - even with a hat switch,
joystick control is almost impossible to pull off
successfully. Even then, control is difficult since
joystick movement is incremental, jerking along one "notch"
at a time on any resolution setting. Don't count on silky-
smooth turning or torso rotation.
--Remember that weapons mounted in the right arm can't fire
if you swivel the torso all the way to the left and vice
versa. Also, top-mounted guns can't fire downwards if
you're attacking from on top of a hill, and bottom-mount
weapons can't fire at aircraft overhead. Tanks, of course,
have 360-degree turret rotation and don't have this
problem.
--If you have long-range radar or see an enemy on the map
screen, you can send your squadmates to attack at max range
even if they have pathetic sensors. AI units, though, have
a set activation range no matter what they mount for radar.
Moral of this story: use the map to direct the battle
yourself and mount your squadmates with Ultralight or Basic
sensors - use the weight savings elsewhere.
--Link your weapons wisely; simple chain fire is almost
useless since enemy shields must be dropped before any real
damage is done, and they can regenerate surprisingly
quickly.
--Don't fire partially charged weapons, as they are almost
totally ineffective.
--Always check for new squadmates, equipment, and vehicles,
and save before every mission - just in case.
--Choose the best squadmates available, and try to get a
variety - some are better in tanks than in HERCs (Sax, for
one), and some are more likely to follow orders and not go
off attacking randomly (which Delta Six loves to do).
Others though may be almost too timid to help in a tough
firefight - watch for "cautious tacticians" like your
trainer Otobe. Be especially careful of Cybrids with
"heretic" sympathies.
--When customizing a HERC, especially for a squadmate, a
good rule of thumb is not to exceed the reactor rating by
more than 75% for an alpha-strike setup (all guns meant to
fire at once) or 100% for a staggered setup (some firing
chains are fired only rarely, like Radiation guns).
--Remember to listen to the main briefing but always check
the written Objectives as well, since they'll fill in the
details (like when to carry LTADS or a Cloaking Device).
WEAPONS
Notes on the Laser weapons: Starsiege lasers are
inexplicably bizarre. Instead of firing strips of light
that act like bullets (as in MechWarrior 2) or beams of
light that can be dragged across a target (as in
MechWarrior 3), Starsiege lasers fire their beams at a
single point straight ahead of the unit and then remain
fixed on that point as they finish firing, even if the
attacker turns away. This makes fighting turrets and
installations easy since the attacker can fire, hit, then
turn and run and still be scoring damage with the same beam
- much like the "tracking" lasers in many Japanese arcade
shooters. This is especially important with Twin Lasers
(which fire 2 beams one right after the other) and
Compression Lasers (as Twin Lasers but with 3 beams) since
they fire their beams for a longer period of time.
Unfortunately, it makes fighting other HERCs or Cybrids
more difficult since a miss cannot be recovered from for
several seconds. If using lasers against mobile units, try
to avoid firing on a fast or jinking enemy and attempt a
head-on point-blank shot for best effect. Note that wingmen
and the computer can use lasers with wonderful accuracy
without the same problems.
Notes on the Ballistic weapons: By Ballistic I mean "ammo-
using". These weapons don't seek but they do fire directly
with little "tracking" or delay, meaning that they almost
always hit where your aiming reticule is pointed. This
makes them more difficult to time when used with other
weapons, but because they hit almost immediately they're
great for the non-Aces among us. Thankfully, AI units on
both sides will tend to hold their ballistic fire until the
enemy's shields are out, assuming they have an EMP/AC
combination or something similar.
Notes on the Alien Energy weapons: The only general notes
here are to beware of the Alien items' high energy use and
weight - they can easily overload a smaller reactor
(Apocalypse, anyone?) but work especially well in groups of
2, 3, and 4. The Smart Gun is listed separately with the
Seeking Weapons below, and the Nano Cannon is listed with
the Ballistic weapons.
Notes on the Seeking weapons (energy): Plasma and Smart
Guns fire seeking energy projectiles but are ineffective
beyond 500m; energy use and weight are high, and Plasma
shots are the slower of the two. These two consistently win
the game for me. Note that the Plasma cannon isn't nearly
as effective or deadly as it was in the Earthsiege games.
Notes on Missiles: Missiles, once locked, are deadly -
witness the Knights using a few all-missile configurations.
Unfortunately, like most non-energy weapons, they work best
when the enemy is shieldless. They can be jammed and
occasionally evaded but they're still tough, especially
when turret-mounted. Missiles without a lock can be "dumb
fired", but the chance of hitting any moving target is
slim.
Notes on Mines: The HHG and Arachnitron mines are simple
proximity-activated devices that can be laid in place,
fired into place, or in emergencies, even fired (at very
short ranges) directly at an enemy target. They're of
limited usefulness, but in certain base defense missions
they can be handy.
Laser - Use it as a gap filler in your wingmen's weapon
loadouts. When they have 1 ton left over and 1 weapon mount
left open, instead of upgrading from Enhanced to Advanced
computers or from Longbow to Infiltrator sensors, add a
Laser instead, since wingmen use them very effectively (and
seem to make poorer use of accessories and upgraded
sensors/computers). For your own unit, choose better
accessories first then add a Laser only if everything else
is maxed out.
Heavy Laser - This will be your primary weapon early on,
especially on lighter units; it's a good balance of energy,
damage, range, and fire rate.
Twin Laser - This is functionally identical to a Heavy
Laser except for better power usage; since it fires two
beams it spreads the damage out but gives the user a tiny
chance to recover from a missed initial shot.
Compression Laser - Damage is potentially high for a very
small weapon; since it fires three beams it spreads the
damage out but gives the user a small chance to recover
from a missed initial shot.
EMP Cannon - It's a shield-dropper, nothing more, so use it
for what it is. Always pair it with missiles or ACs or the
like.
Electron Flux Whip - Massive damage done at in-your-face
range. These are not like ELFs of previous Earthsiege
games, since they damage both shields and armor. Put a pair
these on a lightning-fast wingman (they work wonders for
tiny tanks) and they'll be a godsend, but avoid them for
your own unit unless you're a glutton for punishment. Late
in the Campaigns shields have advanced enough that you'll
need the range of a bigger gun more than the damage of an
ELF.
Blaster - The staple of your Alien technology - the
Olympian and Gorgon can mount 4 of these plus goodies
(Adjudicator/Executioner also, and the little Shepherd can
mount 3 and a Laser or Twin Laser), making for a truly
deadly wingman or a spiffy ride for yourself. Long range,
high damage, medium weight. Beware of high energy use -
don't mix them with Heavy Blasters, ELFs, MFACs, QGUNs,
etc. if you're close to 200% of your reactor rating.
Heavy Blaster - Shorter range than the Blaster but
deadlier; a pair of these balances nicely with good backup
weapons like missiles, EMACs, and more; With a large enough
reactor, you might manage to back them up with Lasers or
Twin Lasers. A Gorgon can pack 4, and an Olympian can mount
4 plus 2 ACs or Lasers.
Particle Beam Weapon - The beam-weapon equivalent of an
MFAC or Q-Gun; massive damage at long range. I finished the
Cybrid campaign in an Executioner mounting 3 of these, with
my Adjudicator squadmates packing 2 each. Early in the
Cybrid missions, a wingman can do wonders in a tank with 2
of these.
Plasma - Finally! A Starsiege weapon that makes up for the
game's bizarre controls. If you have better than Basic
computers onboard, make sure to fire your Plasmas
(preferably in pairs) at or near the lead reticule, since
they track but not very far or fast. Try not to do a Circle
of Death using these, especially at close range - they
track poorly out of the barrel. There are no good units
that can mount 3 plasmas, though an Olympian, Executioner,
or Gorgon with a Maxim reactor and Additional Energy
storage can almost pull it off.
Blink Gun - Pesky little devils (but heavy) with long
range, they ignore shields. Armor damage isn't great,
though, and they're not easy to aim. In quantity, however
(3-4 of them, though power and weight are problems), they
can dice an enemy quite nicely.
Q-Gun - An evolution of the Heavy Blaster, it's more of the
same: more damage, shorter range, higher energy use, and
slower fire rate. Check out the great "wave" effect of the
shots - a pair of these makes an "X" on the target, which
looks mega-spiffy. Luckily (and this is why I almost prefer
QGUNs to MFACs) their energy use and weight are just enough
to allow something like a Gorgon to mount a pair of them
along with two smaller guns like EMACs or Nano Infusers (or
Lasers / Twin Lasers with a good reactor). A Myrmidon can
easily pack two of these and load up on accessories, armor,
etc.
Magneto-Fusion Assault Cannon - More damage and energy use
than the QGUN and slower firing, the MFAC thankfully keeps
a long range to boot. Mounting a pair of MFACs isn't easy,
but it's very doable (especially on a Knight's Myrmidon).
Try to avoid mounting the one you get early in the Human
campaign, since it's big and easily destroyed early on
(when your armor and shields suck) and isn't replaced until
many missions later, when having 3 or 4 would be really
nice.
Nano Infuser - If you're a good shot and really have to
have a Blast Cannon or Heavy AC, take this instead, but
remember to pack shield-droppers like EMPs.
Nanite Cannon - Same as the Nano Infuser but bigger: if
you're a good shot and really have to have a Blast Cannon
or Heavy AC, take this instead, but remember to pack
shield-droppers like EMPs. With the Nano weapons, think
about packing a pair of these and a pair of EMPs together
with a Universal Ammo attachment.
Autocannon - The basic Autocannon is useful only as an
afterthought on machines with a hugely overloaded reactor,
maxed out accessories and components, one slot free and a
little free weight. Ammo isn't a concern, but take anything
else instead. I am, however, told that an Apocalypse or
Olympian can mount 2 EMPs and 4 ACs effectively as an early
"heavy" HERC - max out the accessories and other components
using the weight saved from the 6 light weapons (and drop
the reactor to a Small or Micro).
Heavy Autocannon - Slightly more useful than a standard
Autocannon, the Heavy comes into its own on units with 4
weapon slots. Mount 2 EMPs and 2 Heavy ACs on separate
firing chains then alternate chains when appropriate (1.
EMP/EMP, 2. HAC/HAC, 3. EMP/EMP/HAC/HAC). Ammo really isn't
an issue when used this way. Later on you're better off
mounting more multirole items like Blasters or PBWs or the
like, but it's an early favorite.
Electro-Magnetic Autocannon - An excellent compromise
between energy and ammunition weapons, EMAC shots don't
travel quite as fast as other ACs but the shots are
accurate and recognizable. If you want good armor damage
capability with low weight and energy use, this is a
beauty. In quantity (3-4), it's even better, though still
only slightly better than a Heavy AC.
Blast Cannon - For the high weight, low ammo, mediocre
range and fire rate, you should avoid the Blast Cannon and
mount almost any other items - there is always a better use
for extra weight than this. The blast radius is nice, but
unless enemies are bunched closely and all have their
shields down, then it's less useful than it looks - in
practice, your wingmen will gang-attack a single enemy
rather than split their fire and will often close to point-
blank range anyway.
Heavy Blast Cannon - Same as the blast cannon, just bigger.
If you really want an armor killer and don't have Nanite
weapons or EMACs, take a Heavy AC instead - the fire rate
equals the HBC's damage per second at a third of the weight
and space. Again, the area effect blast is nice but it'll
cause more friendly-fire kills than enemy kills almost
every time.
Railgun - Big brother to the Nano weapons; use it the same
way, with the same warnings.
Pit Viper - Basic thermal-guidance missiles; beware of
friendly fire.
Sparrow - Radar guidance means they need a solid lock for a
sure hit but the payload is worth it.
Swarm - Radar guidance means they need a solid lock for a
sure hit but the payload is worth it. The Minion is more
powerful, of course.
Minion - Radar guidance means they need a solid lock for a
sure hit but the payload is worth it.
Shrike - Advanced thermal-guidance missiles; beware of
friendly fire.
Aphid - A good missile, but since the longest-ranged radar
in the game is 1500m, what good is a 3000m range missile?
Arachnitron - Similar to the HHG, except that instead of
exploding when an enemy passes nearby, it actually gets up,
walks over to the enemy, latches on, then detonates. Cute.
There are times (e.g., when fighting Harabec or Caanon)
that you may be able to lay down a field of these then lure
the enemy into it.
HHG Proximity Charge - Just what it says it is, a
stationary proximity-fused land mine. Theory: Would it help
in Human Mission 13 to mine the mountain pass before the 3
Executioners start their approach?
Radiation Gun - A specialized pilot-killer; for the weight
and energy use (not to mention the tiny range), take
anything else instead, unless you really need to capture
some enemy salvage.
Smart Gun - My favorite weapon, by far. The shots seek the
target in a fairly wide cone, at least 90 degrees in front
of the firing unit. For neat special effects, target a unit
behind you and fire up and forward - watch the shots try to
curve totally around then explode like fireworks. I first
beat Prometheus using a Gorgon with 4 Smart Guns, circling
him to stay behind as much as possible. The high rate of
fire means a rack of Smart Guns can put out enormous damage
with almost guaranteed hits every time - not one-shot
knockouts, but sure, reliable destruction every time.
EQUIPMENT
ECM (all types) - ECM is somewhat more useful than a
Thermal jammer, since it not only helps with evading
incoming missiles (radar-guided missiles seem more common)
but also helps mask a unit from detection. A unit with
Doppelganger or Beta ECM and a Cuttlefish Cloak running
with Enhanced Passive (or Infiltrator) sensors is deadly.
Yes, I know, calling it "ECM Jammer" is redundant.
Thermal Jammer - Though heavier and less useful than ECM, a
Thermal jammer still serves its purpose on certain
missions. Personally, I'd rather mount a Shield Modulator
or Shield Amp to keep missiles from being as effective in
the first place.
Cloaking Device (both) - The Chameleon and Cuttlefish both
do a good job of obscuring a unit visually, and even the
computer reacts accordingly. You'll learn to hate the AI's
cloaked Disruptors. They work much better on a stationary
unit than a moving one (they do leave a slight blur), and
work better in cover than in the open.
Shield Amplifier - The Modulator excels against single
attackers or fixed installations; if you know (or suspect)
you'll be going into a free-for-all melee, the Amp is a
hair better, since it increases overall strength by 25%.
Shield Modulator - Given the choice between this and a
Shield Amp, I'll take this. Against single threats, it's
worlds better, since it lets you focus your shields toward
a certain direction, and it also automatically swivels the
coverage to face whatever you have targeted.
Shield Capacitor - For the weight, take a Modulator or Amp
instead - the Capacitor works, but the risk of damaging
your shield generator is too great.
Laser Target Designator (LTADS) - Useful only if the
mission briefing says artillery is available. Use
squadmates to shield your attack (or go ECM/Cloak/Passive);
you have to keep the target in view and target-locked while
the shells are inbound. Range is 1500m, but you can spot
while on the move. See Human Mission 7 below.
Auxiliary Energy Storage - The Battery is a great item for
vehicles with overloaded reactors; any lull in combat gives
a great energy reserve.
Energy Capacitor - Use the weight to mount a bigger reactor
instead, or get a Battery, or better yet, just balance your
weapon loadouts more evenly.
Field Stabilizer - Disruptors aren't common enough to
really be a threat, but if you know you'll be facing
several, use this. Disruptor tanks are fortunately light
enough that you can reliably kill them at range, and the
effects of the Disruptor itself wear off fairly quickly.
Turbine Booster - A nice little item that can really help
on certain missions like Cybrid mission 6; it only lasts a
few seconds per charge but it does work.
Rocket Booster - Like the Turbine Booster but each charge
lasts much longer.
Nano Repair - Effective, but too heavy for general use;
take a Shield Modulator or Shield Amp and avoid getting hit
instead.
Angel Life Support - Rad guns aren't common enough to
really be a threat, but if you know you'll be facing
several, use the Angel. When I have a unit with 1 slot left
open and .5 tons free, I'll try maxing out the sensors and
computer, and if they're the best available, I'll stick on
an Angel just to have it.
Alien Antigravity Device - Makes your unit 5 tons lighter
with no side effects.
Universal Ammo Pack - The doubled ammo capacity is nice if
you're really into Nano Infusers and Nanite Cannons, or if
you're looking to make a Heavy Blast Cannon or Railgun more
useful. With ACs it's less of an issue, of course.
MISSION WALKTHROUGHS
The Human Campaign: Mars Resistance, Imperial Knights, and
Cybrids
The division into 3 segments here is arbitrary but it makes
description easy. Note that even though the Cybrid campaign
is supposedly "advanced", the human missions are overall
much tougher.
Mars Resistance
Mission #1: Vulture Duty
An easy intro mission - follow the nav beacons, take out
the Basilisk and cargo ship, and be ready for a roaming
Talon. Sprint back to the access tunnel. If you're
adventurous (and greedy for salvage), hang out at the last
nav point a minute or two longer and wait for 3 Minotaurs
to show up - lure them back toward the tunnel, but don't
approach the mission endpoint. When your allies power up to
engage, turn back and help out, then proceed to the
endpoint when you're done.
Mission #2: Flashburn
Follow Storm and Mary to the convoy, then help out by
concentrating fire along with them. You're outnumbered, so
kill the HERCs before bothering with the helpless vehicles.
Be ready for 3 Talons and 2 Minotaurs when you head out to
nav Bravo.
Mission #3: Stealing Thunder
Pack a cloaking device! Follow Storm through the canyon
until he stops to let an Imperial patrol go by, and
remember to activate the cloak. After powering back up,
follow him to Nav Alpha but help with the fighting only in
passing. Keep moving and you'll find the dropship.
Carefully destroy 2 of the 4 large boxes on the ship's
corners - these are the thrusters. This'll disable the
ship, so you can go back to help the General if need be, as
the original patrol will soon be returning. Call the
recovery team to finish the mission.
Mission #4: Diamond in the Rough
Pick your first squadmate before starting the mission, and
remember to assign him/her a well-customized HERC. The
Olympian is near Nav Alpha but won't respond unless you
come within about 200 meters of it. Search around a bit and
kill wandering / patrolling / not-yet-activated enemies
before contacting Dimarco; you'll want to kill the enemies
far from her, since she takes 38 years to get to nav Bravo.
Enemies can be thick here, but her Olympian can take more
punishment than it looks like.
Mission #5: Operation Jailbreak
Grab another squadmate and park yourself in a shiny new
Olympian, with LTADS intact, since you'll have artillery
support. Stop on the edge of the ridgeline (or when you can
see the turrets within 1500m), target an enemy, then (S)pot
until you get the "ok" message from the artillery
batteries. Remember to keep the target targeted until it
blows up. When the turrets are gone, lose the Communication
tower too - you may want to strike it early to save
yourself some trouble with enemy reinforcements. If you can
spot stationary or powered-down enemies, you may want to
arty-strike them too, since you'll be overwhelmed if they
all come at you at once. Expect 2 Minotaurs from the rear -
a gang-attack by your squadmates should handle them. By the
time they go down, all base turrets and the Comm tower
should be toast, so charge in to attack any remaining
enemies before they decide to nuke the hangar themselves.
The Predator tank you gain is a sweet ride, and Sax will
rock in it until the Myrmidons become available.
Mission #6: Under the Gun
Fill out your squad before launching. The building you need
can be any one of the city structures, but as soon as you
ID the correct one, a trap springs - enemy vehicles attack
and artillery rains on the city. Before IDing anything,
send your pals to the opposite edge of the city from your
starting point, and let the convoy stop where it wants.
Head to where you parked the squad then ID buildings until
you find "Rebel Safehouse" - immediately order the convoy
to retreat to Bravo and set your squad to Fire at Will.
Three enemies appear from within the city, and your squad
should take them on 1-on-1 (for once, don't let them
combine fire). You must help them make quick and decisive
kills, since you'll soon need all the help you can get.
Just over the hill that borders the city-to-Bravo path, 3
Paladins will appear, the last one packing twin missiles
that'll eat you (or the convoy) alive. Have all squaddies
target it (it's the last tank in line) and kill it quickly.
While they do that, target the 2 other tanks yourself to
draw their fire. Watch for friendly fire, since the convoy
(you only need 1 truck to make it) will be in the middle of
the firefight right about now. Kill the Paladins and you're
in the clear.
Mission #7: Beheading the Snake
Same as Mission 5 - bring an LTADS. Beware, there's a
minefield between the ridge forward of the starting point
and nav Alpha. Navarre is in the squat building in the WNW
of the city, though you may want to inspect the other
buildings first just for giggles. Here's the strategy: have
patience and don't enter the city at all. First, inch into
range (1500m) of the 2 closest turrets, peek over the ridge
to target them, then back out to 1499m and Crouch while
setting radar to Passive; Spot the turrets, then keep them
targeted until they die. If two enemy patrols approach from
the rear, use the Map to guide your wingmen to them. Then
head directly East and go far, far around the city, then
head North, then back West, making a big loop around the
town. Crest the large hill North of town and repeat the
peek-target-backoff-crouch-passive-spot process you used on
the first two turrets. Keep an eye on the Map to see if the
city's defenders have come after you - if you stay far away
and keep your wingmen in check, they won't come hunting
even if you hear the "intruders on the perimeter" message.
The city itself is defended by 3 pairs of enemies and a
single - a Gorgon/Gorgon combo closest to the start point,
a Minotaur/tank pair in the middle, a Suppressor/tank duo
in the North, and an Apocalypse alone. The pairs patrol
East-West, and the Apocalypse patrols North-South on the
Western edge of town. Each pair, though, patrols its area
without helping the others, making combined-fire kills very
easy. Once the turrets die, see if you can time another
artillery strike to take out some city defenders; if not,
attack one tank in the North while your squad takes the
other; then move to the Minotaur/tank pair in the middle,
but stay NE of them. The Apocalypse will soon round a
corner, just concentrate on it, but order the squad to hold
fire until it is well clear of the Police HQ building -
stray fire can destroy it easily. The Gorgons are beastly
opponents, so make sure to divert one's fire yourself and
send the squad after the other, then gang up on the
survivor. ID the Police HQ to finish the mission (no you
can't save it, the briefing always says it was destroyed,
likely by the artillery).
Imperial Knights
Mission #8: Imperial Retaliation
This is a fairly standard "defend the base" setup - send
the squadmates against approaching Knights in groups,
especially versus the Gorgons, though you may want to delay
an attacker or two by firing on a separate enemy yourself.
Mission #9: Hunting the Icehawk
Decide now if you want to complete the secondary objective.
It's not necessary, but it's a sense of accomplishment. If
so, roll full-speed through the gulley, killing everything
in your path - try not to stop if possible, and engage
enemies as they appear at max range. In the canyon you'll
face Talons, Basilisks, then Disrupters. If an airborne
dropship passes within 1000m, order all wingmen to attack
it and fight the enemy ground units yourself for a few.
When you hit the plains, head slightly left (don't approach
the base yet) and take out 2 or 3 enemy dropships that are
still on the ground to complete the secondary.
If you don't care about the secondary objective, you can
crawl through slowly and deliberately. In the canyon you'll
face Talons, Basilisks, then Disrupters. If an airborne
dropship passes overhead, ignore it and continue to fight
the enemy ground units.
Once you clear the plains, artillery will drop, but
sporadically and inaccurately. Next order all wingmen to
attack the Gorgon at the base while you toast the missile
turret; when they both go down, gang up on the Apocalypse.
Cybrids
Mission #10: Dust to Dust
Start Thumping as soon as the mission starts. Blast
anything that moves as you head for the mountain pass
(Seekers and Goads will attack first), but try to keep
moving and keep the squad together. Cybrids will keep
appearing (Recluse tanks from behind), but keep heading to
the pass no matter what. When the convoy approaches the
valley, turn off the Thumpers and haul butt to the other
side, taking the squad with you at max speed. Soon as the
convoy clears the canyon, turn the Thumpers back on. Nav
Bravo is infested, so head immediately over the nearest
hill, directly North, halfway to what will become nav
Charlie. Problem: you'll have Cybrids coming from both
Bravo and Charlie. The convoy will be okay on its own for a
while; stay just SE of Charlie. Kill the two approaching
Adjudicators then head to Charlie (make sure to fire on
both to distract them) - the mission will end before the
Bravo Cybrids will get close enough.
Mission #11: Guardian Angel
A relatively straightforward defense mission; Go with a
friend to take out the Cybrid artillery that sits beyond
the rim early on; use the others to help fend off other
approaching Cybrids, and don't stand in front of the
artillery! Watch the friendly fire; you're protecting those
ships, not fragging them, remember? You'd better have the
squad together by the time the two Adjudicators show up,
otherwise you're in trouble.
Mission #12: Glitch Hunt
This is a total hack-n-slash: just follow the points to the
city, blasting everything in the way (and coming from
behind). The truck driver is right, the Nexus is to the
southeast. The civilian secondary targets are in two of the
remaining city structures, just target and ID them. Let
shields and energy recharge a tad before heading that way,
as the Glitches are thick and angry there. Don't blow up
the Nexus - just call in the recovery team when the
Adjudicators die.
Mission #13: Ill Wind Blowing
Make sure to save your game before this one. Yet another
"defend the base" job, except that this one's deadly, and
it took me many tries to finish it with all my wingmen
left. Immediately upon starting the mission, order the
truck to fix the Southern turret - it takes 30 seconds, and
as soon as it finishes, send it (in order) East, North,
then West. If you try to send it to the turret that covers
the direction of any upcoming attack, it'll get blown away
and you'll lose not only the secondary objectives but
several very valuable MFAC turrets too. While it starts,
send your squad to the NNW corner of the base and wait for
some Seekers. When they die, head to the SSW corner for the
next attack, then immediately head due West of the base and
intercept the third wave before it powers up. The final
attack comes from the ESE (one Adjudicator) and ENE (three,
yes three Executioners). Now you can stop wondering why the
first group never returned. To help fight the Executioners,
you may want to retreat to the center of the base to let
the Eastern MFAC turret get a few shots in before engaging
- remember to concentrate fire, all wingmen on one Brid,
you on another, then combine on the third. If they come far
enough in, the Northern turret will also engage them if the
Generator still stands.
Two things I've never tried: First, order one wingman each
to the NNW of the base just outside the turrets, one to the
W, and one to the SSW. Give them Fire At Will orders, and
fix the turrets in the normal order. Equip your own HERC
with a Turbine or Rocket booster and follow the patrol
group out. Doing this, would it be possible to kill at
least 1-2 of the Executioners before they roll down the
corridor? If so, you could Rocket back to the base to help
with the Adjudicator and the tactical coordination. Second
thing to try: could you mine the Eastern approach with HHG
Proximity charges to heavily damage the Executioners as
they head toward the base?
Mission #14: Animal Tenacity
A slaughterhouse featuring everything the Cybrids own -
head to nav Alpha and defend, defend, defend. Don't bother
following the other groups, just hang out at your assigned
nav point, and remember that both the ship and the beam
must survive.
Mission #15: Ticket to Ride
My suggestion: park the Olympians and other big HERCs,
since you'll need speed aplenty, say 90+. Send the squad
to nav Bravo while you swing slightly right to come within
200m of nav Alpha, but keep moving to catch up with the
squad. Have the group attack one Bolo while you take the
other, then head past the listening posts - don't bother
attacking them. Three shepherds appear next just past the
listening devices on the right; concentrate fire and take
them out as quickly as possible. Immediately upon victory,
or close to it, kill the Bravo turret and have the squad
target the Executioner at Bravo - it'll sit still and get
pounded until you get close. When it dies, gang up on the
Adjudicator then kill the Comm tower. Now haul booty toward
Charlie, and don't stop for anything - have 2 squadmates
attack the 2 Shepherds in front of Charlie, but head beyond
it with a third squaddie and activate your override as you
pass it. As soon as you send the code to take over the
ship, 2 more Shepherds appear who'll blow it away in one
salvo - it's crucial that you attack one and your wingman
attacks the other to draw their fire, quickly. If the
first two are finished, call them in to help, but watch the
friendly fire. By the way, the 30-second counter starts
when you close on the dropship, so if you for any freakish
reason take a slow vehicle or HERC, you must be certain to
include a rocket booster or you'll never get to the ship in
the 30 seconds it allots you (from your final approach to
Charlie) or get past it to intercept the Shepherds.
[Question: is there a time limit on the mission *before*
approaching Charlie? If not, you could swing far around the
nav points and kill the powered-down Cybrids before they
get close enough to the dropship.]
Mission #16: A Spear in the Dark
Save the game now! Missions 16, 17, and 18 are all fought
back-to-back with no new pilots or HERC choices allowed,
though you can switch with a wingman or swap equipment
between your own units. Take your best units, but remember
that you need 95+ speed minimum - otherwise you'll never
keep Icehawk alive here or Caanon through mission 17. As
for 16... Kill the 2 Goads you first see then call the
squad together, and head for the nav point. Kill anything
that moves. If there are too many Cybrids to coordinate the
attack personally, target Icehawk's pod and order the squad
to Defend it while you hunt individual Glitches down
yourself.
Mission #17: Bowels of the Night
Killing the Nexus is easy - keeping Caanon alive isn't.
Head to Omega full speed, only stopping to take out
stragglers that the rest have damaged for you; order the
squad to Defend Caanon. He will not wait for you or anyone
else, and he always moves at about speed 97, so try to stay
one step ahead of him. If he gets to the Nexus first, he's
toast.
Mission #18: Fear No Evil
Prometheus inhabits a super-mega-ultra-hyper-Executioner
(with a tail) at the bottom of a crater; once you enter it,
there's no getting out. Outside it, Caanon and your allies
will battle endless waves of Cybrids (9999, to be exact -
that's 9999 waves). Three strategies can work here: 1.
Slugfest. Speed into the crater, duck behind a hill or a
spire, and smack him when he gives you an opening. Careful,
he's faster then he looks. I beat him using a Gorgon with 4
Smart Guns, constantly backing up around a spire or over
the hill as I lobbed Smart Gun shots over and around the
obstacles - the seeking shots will curve enough to
eventually kill him. Took forever. 2. Sniper. He activates
only when you approach him, so stop at activation distance
just past the crater rim and lob missiles (brought plenty?)
and 1000m guns his way. Work fast and relentlessly. I
couldn't make this work, but I'm told it's playable. 3.
Gang-attack. When you enter the crater, your wingmen
automatically turn back to help Caanon. They do the same if
you order them to help you out or approach Prometheus.
Trick: there are 2-4 seconds between ordering them (using
the map, not the hotkeys) and having them turn back. If you
can get just one friend to get closer to Prometheus than to
Caanon, then they'll attack him instead. I had Sax in a
Knight's Myrmidon mounting a pair of MFACs, and the two of
us nailed Prometheus in seconds. Oh, and in case you didn't
know, Caanon is invincible in this mission. It can be fun
to sit back and listen to him insult the Cybrids 20 or 30
times in a row. Speaking of invincible, for Mission 18's
strategy # 4, see the editing guide later in this FAQ.
The Cybrid Campaign: Mercury, Luna, and Earth
Cybrid machines are smaller and faster with lighter
shielding and fewer weapon mounts (no Apocalypse or
Olympian equivalent), and so the game's description of it
as an "advanced" campaign is quite correct. Again, the
split into 3 sections here is an arbitrary but common sense
one. Note that the Cybrids have tons of "kill everything"
missions.
Mercury
Mission #1: Secure//Initiate
Nothing special - follow the nav sequence, kill everything.
Beware of the 2-on-1 fight against Talons at the end,
especially if you brought a Shield Modulator.
Mission #2: Sear//Strip//Eliminate
This one's a sneak-and-snipe operation. Yes, that really is
a Gorgon halfway to the nav point - get behind it, it
maneuvers like a pig. Make sure to blow the entire facility
it guards; the generator powers some nearby turrets. Enter
the tunnel, blasting the doors and turrets as you go. When
you get to the end, creep slowly out until you see the tips
of 2 nearby turrets. Zoom in and snipe them from long range
- if you can just barely see the tops of the turrets, they
can't fire back. Do this carefully with every turret you
face here - there are several. When they die, head into the
inner tunnels and frag the supplies and boxes. For extra
points, keep an eye out for the two cargo ships that drop
in.
Mission #3: Silence//Death
Load up on Hubmates before leaving, and remember to
customize their machines. While you can simply head nav-to-
nav and kill everything, you can also opt to take a speedy
HERC and take out just the installations "on the run",
ignoring defenders.
Mission #4: Inefficiency >> Death//Harm
Ignore the mission description; your Nexus is about to be
attacked, so head there fast. When you arrive, it's a
standard defensive mission.
Mission #5: Destroy//Deny
Mount an LTADS; use it to take out the Generators and
Communication structures quickly, then charge into the base
and raze everything (faster in person with squaddies than
using artillery). Use your squad for defense while you're
spotting. Watch out for the Apocalypse as you enter the
base.
Luna
Mission #6: Disarm//Neutralize
You're given 3 options for a dropsite here: the easiest, by
far, is to pack your Shepherd with max speed (I mounted a
Turbine Booster and 4 Heavy ACs for this mission) and land
at the far Listening Post. If you do, 2 of the 4 generators
can be taken out at max range before even seeing an enemy
(let the squad kill them, since they maneuver poorly in the
base). Kill the farther 2 generators yourself; don't worry
about the turrets or the other structures, including the
Listening post. By this time reinforcements will be
swarming; run flat-out for the extraction point back by the
listening post, using a Booster if you have it. Order your
squad to Fire at Will; if you try to call them to you,
they'll get shot in the back, and you're the only one who
needs to make it back to win the mission. On Fire at Will,
they'll live just long enough for you to escape. If you
choose the other 2 landing points (not recommended), let
your wingmen tie up the enemy while you charge the base and
hit the generators. Remember, just hit the generators -
ignore the turrets and the big cannons.
Mission #7: Starve//Demoralize
The convoys you need to find are on the way to the nav
point, so take a long-ranged radar if possible. Worry about
the depot later; however, a new convoy soon leaves from the
rear of it, and it'll get away if you let it. You may want
to send the squad in to kill the depot's defenders while
you wax the new convoy yourself. Then head back to the base
and clean up whatever's left.
Mission #8: Ground//Disrupt
Pure hack-n-slash. Kill everything (including the guarded
convoy to your right as the mission starts) but try to
intercept as many outlying patrols as possible before
entering the spaceport, and when there, try to take out as
much as possible from max range. A starport furball too
early can be very bad.
Earth
Mission #9: Arrive//Freeze//Burn
Kill, kill, kill - the drop point you choose doesn't
matter. Enjoy your Adjudicator.
Mission #10: Gather//Retrieve
Watch the friendly fire here. Kill HERCs at nav 1, then
scan the buildings; kill HERCs at nav 2, then scan the
buildings. Be prepared to meet HERC reinforcements after
puttering around nav 2 for a while. Remember that you only
need to find 28 humans, so killing all military targets
isn't necessary.
Mission #11: Escort//Insert
Guard the Nexus well; it'll eventually end up at a soon-
visible nav 3. Beware of committing your forces, especially
approaching nav 3 - the Minotaurs are a diversion, so split
the squad 2 and 2, then gang up on the surprise final
Gorgon.
Mission #12: Desecrate//Destroy//Demoralize
Unless you're in a very fast unit, the escape ships are
almost impossible to destroy. Stay together and take on the
scattered enemies individually - isolate them. Make sure to
raze several temples before firing on the statue in the
center. The drop point you pick really doesn't matter.
Watch out for the artillery pieces - kill them as soon as
you're free to.
Mission #13: Escort//Establish
Take the squad far in front of the Nexus to nav 1 and kill
everything on the way, but not the turrets - leave them
all, and order your squad to Hold Fire if there are no
HERCs to target. When the Nexus arrives, it will take over
the turrets, and you'll need them soon. Don't depend
entirely on the turrets, of course - when the humans
arrive, slay them personally, and order the squad to Fire
at Will when you can't take time to direct them
individually.
Mission #14: Hunt//Find//Kill
Caanon's squad is extremely deadly - have all units target
him at nav 1, kill him immediately, then take out his
personal guards. You can then escape (not a bad idea) or
hunt down his tough reinforcements.
Mission #15: Heresy//Corruption
Head directly between nav Metagen and nav Convoy at full
speed - send the squad after the Metagens while you wax the
convoy, and quickly. You'll soon be swarmed with enemies of
every description from all sides. And if any of your
squad's profiles says "susceptible to
metagen//heresy//blasphemy", then prepare to have fun - it
didn't happen with me, but I'm told those pilots can
convert to the Metagen side in the heat of battle.
Mission #16: Isolate//Inoculate//Annihilate
Tons of killing - follow the lead group of Cybrid machines
in to nav 1, letting them take the brunt of the damage.
While they die, take out the turrets from long range, then
concentrate fire on the large enemy HERCs that are
everywhere. Wipe the base out after cleaning up any enemy
reinforcements.
Mission #17: Hurt//Maim//Kill
Kill Harabec Weathers. Nuff said. He's in his Predator tank
and his squad is ultra-elite, but if you concentrate fire
and kill him quickly, they're toast.
CHEATING
There are no cheat codes in the game, but luckily most
mission settings, including the universal Campaign
settings, are stored as text that can easily be edited with
Notepad. In your main Starsiege directory, look in the
campaign folders for human and cybrid - each has a file
called CAMPAIGN that has two very useful settings. The "use
PlanetInv = true" line tells the computer to limit the
available equipment to what's scripted for that planet.
Change it to "use PlanetInv = bool" (yes, that's BOOL, like
Pool with a B), and this will give you unlimited numbers of
every item and vehicle in the game, limited only by Tech
level. Change the line that says "techLevel = 3" to
"techLevel = 10" to have no limits on available technology.
With both lines changed, you'll have everything available
at the start. For a challenge, start the Human game at Tech
level 1 or 2 and fight just with minimal HERCs, lasers, and
ACs. If the game's too hard, change just one of them -
setting tech level to 10 lets you have any item available
but not if the planet doesn't have any. Variant game: Set
the first to "bool" and the Tech level to 1 - you'll have
unlimited items to use and unlimited choice of vehicles,
but you'll start very low-tech - quantity over quality.
Note that these only affect the human player, of course,
and they only take effect when starting a new Campaign -
they won't affect games in progress. Other files can also
be edited, notable the .MIS files in those same
directories. Want help against Prometheus? Open up the last
.MIS file; you'll see your squadmates are set not to
approach within 1800m of Prometheus without turning back to
Caanon, and Prometheus has a 1000m activation range. Set
his to 100m and your squadmates' to 1 (you'll need to do
this twice for them), and they'll follow you in while he
won't activate until you're right in his face ready to
unleash your quad Q-guns or whatever. Every mission can be
edited similarly.
FAQ HISTORY
V1.4 - 27 April 2005 - Removed Sierra's Technical FAQ.
V1.3 - 22 March 2005 – Minor editing after I rescued this
from my original website's Fortunecity graveyard. I don't
update much, do I?
V1.2 - 7 March 2002 - Added some weapon entries and ordered
weapons / equipment to match the order they're listed in
the game.
V1.1 - 2 March 2002 - Some typos corrected, weapon
explanations corrected, and after replaying the game,
several missions now have longer and more detailed
walkthroughs.
V1.0 - 27 February 2002 - The first version.
THANKS
-Electronics Boutique for selling Starsiege to me at $2.99
even though it wasn't priced, boxed, or labeled, and didn't
come up in their system.
-I was helped by the mission walkthroughs originally
written by Alan Dunkin and Ethan O'Brien at
http://www.gamespot.com/features/starsiege_gg/index.html
