Side Missions

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Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas - Side Missions

 

Vigilante

So you've grown tired of being a sociopath and want to try your hand at fighting crime? Well you can… sort of. Jack any police vehicle (cruiser, Enforcer, FBI Truck, Rhino, etc) and press the button indicated in the pop-up box that appears in the top-left corner of the screen to begin the vigilante missions. These missions pit you against one or more delinquents on the lam; it's up to you to take them down using any means necessary. Each criminal is denoted on your radar with a red marker, so you won't have difficulty tracking them down. There is a time limit to beat though, but it increases with each successive level. The real police officers will not recognize you as a sworn defender of all things good and righteous, so you will have them to contend to as well, making the vigilante missions decidedly difficult.

The standard police cruiser is probably not your best bet here unless you want to stock up on piles of SMG ammo beforehand. If you could somehow manage to get your hands on the coveted Rhino—which only makes an appearance during six-star crime sprees—the vigilante missions would be a breeze. Obtaining a Rhino, however, is understandably difficult, making this an unlikely scenario. If you wish to try, however, a good way to do so is to attain a six-star wanted level, make your way to an empty garage, jack an unoccupied Rhino (killing the soldiers around it first), store it in your garage and then either save your game or die. With the Rhino all you'll need to do is nudge the criminal vehicles to take them out, or blast them with the tank's cannon. Pursuing police officers won't be a problem either, as their squad cars can't even make a dent.



To contribute towards the 100% completion stat, you must reach and complete level 12 in one go. The vigilante missions will come to an end if you remain out of a law enforcement vehicle for more than a minute, or if the timer reaches zero. Successfully reaching level 12 will boost CJ's maximum armor limit.

Taxi Missions

You can earn some extra cash by acting as a taxi driver in any of the three cities in San Andreas. Find a taxi, hop in and toggle the taxi missions by pressing the button indicated in the pop-up box that appears in the top-left corner of the screen. The basic idea of this side mission is simple really; first locate a fare—denoted on the radar by a blue icon—stop by the hailing pedestrian, and then speed towards the location marked on your radar with a yellow icon. The “Tip” meter decreases as time goes by, and also as the car takes damage, so therefore a smooth, quick ride will yield the best cash output. Once you have delivered a fare, there will usually be another near the drop off spot. It would be best to knock off the taxi missions early on in the game, as Los Santos is the ideal place to run through due to its simple layout. San Fierro is another option, as you won't have to worry about infringing on anyone's “turf” while moving pedestrians.

To contribute towards the 100% completion stat, you must deliver 50 fares in a row. Yes, in a row; it is not cumulative. This can take quite awhile, made worse by the fact that you are also bound by a time limit. The time limit, however, is not too much of an issue, as each successful delivery adds more time to the counter. Essentially the only real danger is having the taxi flip over or be destroyed due to excessive damage. Stop by a spray shop if your cab is severely damage if you have enough time between fares. Deliver 50 fares in a row and from then on all taxi will be equipped with nitrous.

Paramedic Missions

CJ has surely taken countless lives, but what about saving them? Well, he can do that too; first find and steal an ambulance then press the button indicated in the pop-up box that appears in the top-left corner of the screen to trigger the paramedic missions. It's your job to deliver sick and injured pedestrians to the nearest hospital in a timely manner. The blue markers on the radar are the injured pedestrians and the hospital that they must be delivered to is the yellow marker. When you spot one of the pedestrians (they'll be standing on the sidewalk with a blue marker over their head, and a pool of blood at their feet), stop the ambulance and let them get in. Once you're carrying a pedestrian you must drive carefully, as each bump or collision will further injure your passengers. You're under a time limit, too, so you can't afford to be overly cautious. Time is added when you pick up a pedestrian and when you drop them off at the hospital.

With each successive level, an additional person in need will appear on the radar. You can only carry three passengers at one time, meaning as you climb to the higher levels you will be forced to make drop offs at the hospital and then immediately set out to pick up the remaining pedestrians. Quite possibly the biggest danger here is the ambulance flipping over; if this happens, you will be forced to abandon the vehicle, resulting in an automatic failure. If you fail, you'll go right back to the first level upon reattempt. Go easy on those turns to avoid having the ambulance tip over. You can't take the ambulance to a spray shop either, so try your best to avoid collisions because it has to last.



To contribute to the 100% completion stat, you must complete level 12. The paramedic missions will end if the timer reaches zero, if a patient dies before reaching the hospital, or if the vehicle must be abandoned. After reaching level 12, CJ's health meter will be increased.

Firefighter Missions

The Fire Truck isn't exactly a mainstay vehicle unless a fire is involved, so if you're packing Molotov's or a flamethrower, get a fire going to lure one to you. When you enter the fire truck, press the button indicated in the pop-up box that appears in the top-left corner of the screen to trigger the firefighter missions. The firefighter missions are quite possibly the toughest vehicle missions due to the rather tight time limit and the accuracy that is required to extinguish the flames. To move on to the next level, you must locate the fire at hand—marked on the radar with a blue icon—and use the water cannon that's mounted on top of the truck to douse the flames. To use spray water, aim with the Right Analog Stick/Thumbstick and use the Fire button.

Once the vehicle fire is out, most of the time the passenger will step out, on fire, and flail around until you put them out. This is where things can get difficult, because occasionally the passenger may run to a spot that is very difficult or impossible to spray. To avoid this, once the initial fire is out, continue spraying around the car doors and hopefully you'll douse the passengers before they can get too far. Things will get exceedingly difficult as you progress, because with each successive level the number of fires increases, as does the number of passengers in each vehicle. Time is added each time a vehicle fire is put out, and at the end of each level, but not very much, so you must keep moving.



To contribute to the 100% stat you must complete level 12. The firefighter missions will end if the time reaches zero or if the vehicle is abandoned. If you fail, you'll have to start over at the first level upon reattempt, which isn't much fun. After reaching level 12, CJ will be fireproof from then on.

Pimping Missions

To start these missions you first need to get a Broadway. Not the most common vehicle, but one can always be found at the car wash near Big Smoke's place in Los Santos (see image below). When you enter the Broadway, press the button indicated in the pop-up box that appears in the top-left corner of the screen to trigger the pimping missions. Completing these missions is simple; you have two girls whom you must drive around the city to customers—denoted on the radar by a yellow icon—before the time runs out. When you pick up one girl and drop her off, the other will have finished their last job, so you will then have to pick her up again, drive her to the next customer, and so on. You're giving three minutes to make it to the customer's location, which is plenty of time.

The girl and the customer tend to be quite far from each other, which makes for a long trek most of the time. Occasionally the customer will refuse to pay or will become aggressive; in either case you will have to make it to the location before it's too late and kill the offender. You can leave the Broadway to pursue the customer if necessary, but be sure to not stray too far from it, as you must make it back to the vehicle within twenty seconds.


You must complete 10 levels of the pimping missions to contribute to the 100% completion stats. That means picking up and dropping off each girl a total of five times. There is no indication of the current level you are on, so you'll have to keep count for yourself. The mission is failed if one of your girls dies, if you remain outside of the Broadway for more than twenty, or if time runs out. In return for chauffeuring the girls around town and protecting them, you will receive a cut of the cash the make after each job.

Freight Missions

The freight missions are able once Las Venturas has been unlocked. Wait for a train to pull up at a station (such as the Cranberry Station across from your garage in Doherty), get in, and then press the press the button indicated in the pop-up box that appears in the top-left corner of the screen to get started. You must make shipments to all five stations within the time limit. Making a stop requires first getting the train to the station and then making a complete halt within the red marker there. The “Distance” meter on the right side of the screen indicates how much further the drop station is, and the “Speed” meter details how fast the train is traveling. You don't want to be going any faster than 45, as with great speed comes the risk of derailment.  When you're coming up to a corner, however, you will want to slow down even more; use your radar to indicate when you are nearing a corner and start braking to avoid derailment.

As you are closing in on the station, you will want to start to slow down well ahead of time. If you are traveling at 40, start braking at least 300 units away from the station; if 30 or below, at least 250. When you are within 100 units from the station you should be traveling at no more than 15. If you overshoot the red marker, you can always back the train up, but this can be a real timewaster. Once you have successfully delivered to all five stations within the time limit, you can then attempt the second level of freight missions, which consists of making deliveries to the same five stations.



You need to complete two levels of freight missions to have this count towards the 100% completion stat. The freight missions are failed if the train derails or if you fail to make a delivery on time. You'll earn $50,000 after making all ten deliveries.