Outpost Rescue

Hitching a ride on a dataDyne dropship, Joanna finds herself halfway across the world in Africa. dataDyne's closing in on the Graal, but first Joanna's got more pressing matters to attend to - namely rescuing Jonathan from Mai Hem's clutches.

Mission Eleven
Default gadget: Loctopus (A) Datathief (SA) Demokit (PA)	Other gadgets: None	Available weapons: P9P, DY357, RCP-90, CMP-150, UGL, FAC-16, SuperDragon, M60, Jackal, Shotgun, Combat Shield

Rescue Institute squad (Primary)

The dataDyne dropship's brought you right to the heart of their operations in the African sands, and thankfully Jonathan and his team aren't far off. You'll begin on the roof of a large structure overlooking an immense courtyard below. The entire area is swarming with guards, so you'll be hard pressed to avoid detection eventually. The SuperDragon and RCP-90 should give you a well-rounded arsenal here, as both the nightvision and threat detector views will help under cover of night. Most of your opposition also carry similar weapons so you'll have plenty of ammo to go around.

Now to get started. Look around you on the rooftop (it's pretty isn't it?), there's a number of different ways you can go about your business. Look down below over the balcony, directly ahead inside a large room you'll see Jonathan tied up in a chair with two of his buddies watched over by a few RCP-90-wielding guards. Down on the left you'll find the red-flare-lit helipad where Mai Hem dropped off her cargo earlier. There's a few helmeted guards watching over things down there. Directly below you down in the courtyard you've got a squad of soldiers toting RCP-90s and Magnums, keeping out of their line of sight is the trick here.

There's a zipline over on the right leading down to the helipad, but you don't want to be riding down into the hands of those nasty soldiers waiting there. On your far left in a corner lies a large power generator unit, if you've brought along the Loctopus break it out on the lock pin to shut down power to the lighting in the area - giving yourself some cover of darkness. Shutting off the power also disables the laser tripwires covering the doorway on the helipad leading into the captive's room, giving you an easy path inside.

Use the balcony beside the power generator for cover and pick off the helipad guards from here. The soldiers watching over Jonathan will most likely hear the noise and fire at you from their balcony windows, use the SuperDragon to pick them off easily. With your position clear, if you've got the Datathief handy drop down to the helipad and hack the terminal beside the laser-tripwire door to open it up. But on Perfect Agent you'll have the Demokit so that option's out the window.

See the large gold dome across the balcony directly above Jonathan's position? Head over there to find a nice little crack along the dome, blow it open with the Demokit and drop inside for a quick rescue of your buddies. Keep in mind that you might want to deal with all the soldiers up on your level before your CI buddies draw enemy fire.

With all the guards down, Jonathan and his buddies run to the weapon lockers along the wall to grab some serious firepower (there's FACs, Jackals and Shotguns inside). Make sure the CI soldier wielding the Jackal sticks around, he's a force to be reckoned with. Grab some rifle ammo from the FACs before you leave, or bring one along if you haven't scored one for the Armory yet. From the balcony window, look down and lob as many SuperDragon grenades below as possible, the remaining guards in the courtyard should be standing around in groups (if you haven't made enough noise they won't have been alerted yet). Watch out for any Flashbang gifts the Magnum-wielding fellas serve up.

If there's still opposition to be had down in the courtyard your buddies will take the fight to dataDyne. Completely secure the area before heading down to the courtyard below. Cross the plaza and beyond the pond to the large intricate door on the far side - this is your exit out of here. Either let two of your CI buddies activate both terminals simultaneously or help one of them to open the door.

Disable air defenses (Primary)

With Jonathan safe, before joining up with the main CI attack force you'll need to proceed through the heavily guarded desert town to shut down dataDyne's anti-aircraft defenses. Look straight up as you exit the compound - that large structure above the cliff adorned with the massive satellite dish is your ultimate goal. But for now Carrington will radio in warning you of a pair of dataDyne dropships swooping in to deliver some angry reinforcements.

Neutralize dropships (Support)

Look skyward as you exit the compound and right, you'll see the first dropship fly overhead. Whip out your P90, zoom in and unload a full clip into the underside of the ship as it flies by. The ship's armour strength increases with difficulty, so on Perfect Agent run back inside the compound and look up - by now the ship will be lowering down to the same location on the roof where you started. Quickly unload a second clip into it to finish the job.

The second dropship will eventually appear and attempt to drop off soldiers over on the helipad up on the right, stay on the ground floor and open up on it with your P90. Try to knock it out of the sky now otherwise you'll need to deal with it later. Watch out if either ship had a chance to drop a pair of soldiers off, they'll run downstairs and attack you from behind.

Ambush convoy (Support - SA, PA)

With your back clear leave the compound and and head right. You'll find a large bridge ahead crossing over a long stretching dirt road below, you should also spot an unmanned M60 turret up ahead atop a balcony overlooking the bridge. Secret and Perfect Agent has a nasty trick up their sleeve, as you cross the bridge Jonathan will warn of a massive platoon of dataDyne soldiers moving up the desert road below to ambush you in the main town ahead (does he really have to shout so loud?). They'll all run up from the road down on the right side of the bridge, but for now let your CI buddies open up on them. Zoom in and keep your sights on the M60 turret; in a few seconds a soldier jumps on the turret to ruin your day. Knock him over before he gets a chance to.

With the turret clear join your CI buddies in picking off the convoy down on the road. Don't worry about them firing at you, just concentrate on taking every single one down - you'll need all them down to complete this objective. Unload SuperDragon grenades to help, and quickly run to the other side of the bridge if any make it past. Your buddies will do their part, they'll actually take down their fair share - especially the guy with the Jackal. Clear every last one to secure your position and the objective. Watch out for two soldiers sneaking up behind you on the bridge from the compound's direction, it seems random if they appear or not.

If you missed the second dropship earlier, up ahead you'll find it deploying soldiers into the streets of the town - the faster you take it out the fewer dataDyne goons you'll have paying a visit. Pass under the M60 turret's arch and head up the stairs on the right side of the tunnel. Drop the lone UGL-wielding soldier waiting on the stairs, then very slowly climb up the stairs with your SuperDragon ready.

Beyond on this rooftop you'll have a large expansive view of a number of other rooftops over the town. Almost every rooftop surrounding you is covered with soldiers armed with SuperDragons and the odd Magnum. They can easily see you from here, so you'll need to stay low and take them one-by-one. Let your CI buddies run up to the roof, you've got to stay smart and use cover.

First deal with the sniper way up in the tall tower before engaging the other soldiers. With the sniper down, you should by now notice the second dropship hovering about (if it's still around). If it loses altitude and disappears from view you'll have soldiers work their way through the streets to your position, so periodically turn around and watch the base of the stairs for trouble.

Whip out your P90 and finish off the dropship quick as possible. With the ship down, break out your SuperDragon and switch nightvision on. Pick off the soldiers talking shots at you from the rooftops, watch out for reinforcements appearing along the highest balcony. Try to help Jonathan deal with a few soldiers down on the ground ahead as well. When the noise stops quickly run inside the room near the stairs on the balcony and ascend the staircase inside. Deal with the lone soldier standing by the small satellite dish on the roof (if your Jackal buddy hasn't already) and grab the Armor vest waiting there if you need it. Stay up on the roof and clear off any remaining soldiers in view.

With both dropships out you're clear to make your move through the town. Return to the street below and move on. At this end of the town you'll find two separate paths leading into the labyrinth. Inside the town itself you'll find a myriad of soldiers positioned all over the environment from inside buildings to atop balconies along with multiple street patrols. Directing you through the town itself would be nothing short of a nightmare, so it's best to look around and explore a bit.

There's a few paths running through the buildings, streets and marketplaces with a destructible wall or two (if you've brought the Demokit). Keep your eyes open for enemies at every turn, especially up above if you take it to the streets. Don't worry about your CI buddies too much, Jonathan should take care of himself (and they even use cover this time). Just be wary of them running into your line of fire.

While exploring the town you'll eventually discover a dirt road winding around the corner up ahead (keep an eye out for visual cues - a ruined stone ceiling above and an abandoned jeep parked at the corner, you'll also see a waypoint marker there as well if you've got them turned on). Follow the road around and watch out for two Shotgun-wielding soldiers hiding up on the road beyond. Clear them out and the P90-wielding soldier before emerging onto this final dirt road.

Look skyward and you'll see a bridge above - up there is the outdoor compound just outside the radio comms centre. Ahead beyond the bridge you'll spot a staircase giving you access above, but don't go up there yet as you've got a party of troops waiting for you on the landing above.

With the P90's threat detector you should be able to spot a few of them from down here, pick off as many as you can but watch for Shotgun fire. The palm trees further along will block most of your view, so carefully start climbing the stairs and pick off visible targets one-by-one.

Jonathan in his haste for action will probably storm the landing, be a pal and help him out. Bomb your foes with SuperDragon grenades, especially the Combat Shield-wielding soldier. Clear off any remaining soldiers and grab any dropped ammo (although most here carry Shotguns). Make sure you've got plenty of ammo for both your weapons before moving on. Cross the bridge up ahead to find the radio comms centre, there's just one more tricky issue to deal with here.

Defeat Mai Hem (Boss fight)

Guess who's back? After Joanna gave her that warm feeling back at dataDyne's mountain facility, Mai Hem's back to settle the score. This round's for real, no respawning or clone Mai Hem's to deal with. But her Hovercraft might prove a challenge. After a quick exchange of friendly words you'll regain control. Around you in this open compound you'll see a number of tall stone pillars. Naturally they'll be you're only chance for cover, so quickly get behind one. Mai Hem's Hovercraft will drive back and forth around the compound as she peppers you with M60 fire. You might also spot Jonathan and his buddies engaging dataDyne troops up on the balconies surrounding the area, don't worry about him too much.

Despite your proximity to the climax of the game this battle should be easier to deal with than your Deathmatch romp earlier. Keep behind a pillar and don't worry if Mai Hem blasts chunks of it off, she can't destroy the lowest stump which is tall enough for you to stay behind. Taking out the driver of the vehicle will make your job far less easier, so try to pick off shots at him while avoiding Mai Hem's fire. You can lob SuperDragon grenades at the craft from here, but take care as a direct hit will cause the grenade to bounce off the hull.

With the driver down Mai Hem's a sitting duck. If you've got the Demokit you can always sneak up to one of the engine pods and lay a charge to blow the thing sky-high, or stay where you are and use the SuperDragon's superior accuracy and zoom to aim for headshots on your target. Either way, finish her off to avenge Joanna's father and clear the mission... only if you're not playing on Perfect Agent.

Secure air defenses (Primary - PA)

With the Hovercraft blown Jonathan will run inside the radio comms centre bunker over in the corner of the compound. Follow him inside, grabbing any dropped weaponry up on the balconies if you need some. Inside the radio bunker you'll find Jonathan working at a console in the corner. Promptly a dataDyne dropship will pay you a visit outside the large window, that's your cue to take cover. To finish the mission you'll need to simply take out the dropship, so make sure you've got enough spare ammo from your last battle with Mai Hem, as you can't leave the compound to backtrack for ammo thanks to them shelling the entrance shut.

Take cover either behind the small control consoles in front of the window or along the right wall. Wait for the dropship's chain gun to close down before emerging. Rip into the craft and don't waste any shots (you shouldn't as the thing's as big as an elephant). Finish it off to allow Jonathan time to shut down dataDyne air defenses and complete the mission.

Next Mission: Bridge Assault