19: Asajj Ventress and the Blue Shadow Virus

Part 19: Asajj Ventress and the Blue Shadow Virus

ASAJJ VENTRESS
Chapter 3
THE BLIE SHADOW VIRUS

Senator Amidala and Representative Jar Jar Binks have returned to Naboo, investigating reports of Separatist activity on their home planet.

Amidala's faithful head of security, Captain Typho, hopes to extract crucial information from a captured TX-20 droid. . .  

-- Opening Act --

If you happen to be a fan of the movies and animated series -- and you have played the Star Wars Galaxies MMO, the planet Naboo very likely holds a special place in your heart.  It is not just that Jar Jar's people come from there and are good for comic relief -- it is the fact that Naboo is a rich, green, and attractive world in a section of the galaxy that is not known for rich, green, and attractive worlds.  When I first played SWG it was Naboo that I settled on, Naboo where I build my house, and it was Naboo's Security Force that I joined to earn my pilot's wings.

While the Naboo in this game is rich, green, and attractive, you should see the one in SWG.  Seriously.

Any-who, the CS that starts the mission shows us the captured droid being examined with the hopes of obtaining the secrets it holds -- but no success until Jar Jar somehow gets it to dish!  Based upon the data an investigation is launched that quickly goes sideways with the team being captured.  Fortunately they manage to send a distress signal, and Anakin and Company respond in force.

When you regain control over your characters you are somewhere deep in the Naboo woods, and mind the water now because you cannot swim!  There are enemy droids nearby and you almost instantly go into combat -- the same alarms that got the first team caught will sound when they detect you -- but you do not intend to be caught, right?

When the alarm mast pops up kill it as it is the collection item for this level -- and you need to get five of them!  There are a lot of destroyable veggies here with lots of Studs -- you cannot do anything about the Dark Force items or the Gold head for now -- those are for Free Play -- so follow the path, taking out the remaining alarm masts (they are close together) and scoring a Kitpart!  Good on ya!

Use your Clone Trooper to attach a bomb to the access panel and then once it is destroyed jump down the hole that opens behind where it was, and you find yourself in combat!

-- Down Below --

Use The Force on the panel to the right and then destroy the grate there, before using The Force to close the gates and block the droid spawns on either side ahead.  You will need to fight all of the droids in the process, and work your way forward all the while.

The next set of grates are closed by your Trooper using grapple, and as you move ahead you get to experience the multi-screen feature of the game now!  That's right, by holding down 'Y' you can switch to the other team in the picture-in-picture display, which allows you to have them help you and work in dual strategies.  Pretty cool, eh?

Now as soon as you switch, get on the door gun and take out the shield generators and then blow open that section so you can drop in, then fight your way forward to where that big heavy object is hanging from the ceiling and pull the pins on it to drop it through the floor and on top of the pair of Droidika that have your mates pinned down.  Excellent!

Now drop down the hole to meet up with them, and build the console so your Trooper can use it to open the door.  Head inside and grapple the lift plate loose, have one Jedi stand on it while the other raises it, then switch to the Jedi above and use the Jedi Spot to the right to cut open the wall and smash the objects inside with your saber.

This triggers a CS, and then you are back in combat again, where you use The Force to close the two gates on the spawn points.  Another Droidika appears ahead -- it has the red shield so a direct attack will not work.   Instead Force Throw one of the barrels on the left at it to drop its shield then slice and dice it with your saber once the shield is down.

Another pair of Driodika appear ahead -- but you know how to deal with them now, so smash their shields and kill them with your saber, then look around down the other points of this junction...  You cannot go straight as you need a Protocol Droid to open that door, you do not want to retreat, so the right branch is the way! 

Use your saber on the Jedi Spot to cut open the door, and gain access to the Mad Doctor's Lab!

An Apple Today Keeps the Doctor...

-- Dr. Nuvo Vindi --

The Doc has your mates and is doing unspeakable things to them!  Head in and defeat his droids and then throw objects at him with Force Throw until he is defeated!  On his way to having an escape he shoots your Clone Trooper in a dastardly attack -- but it turns out not to have actually been a shot shot if you see what I mean?   Obi-Wan is pissed off and orders the Trooper to blow, and he sadly does.

Now you are joined by Jar Jar, and as he has high-jump ability he can jump up and throw the switch and thus open the hatch for you!  Zone out and catch up with the Doc -- but then he runs again -- and shuts the door behind him...

Using Jar Jar jump on to the ledge ahead and stand on the switch there -- he is joined by one of your mates and thus the doors are opened, but only for as long as they stand on the switches.  Use 'Y' to switch to Obi and battle your way along the hall through the other door, and then you are prompted to switch back to Jar Jar.

Running forward into the room with the plants, you should shoot them until you scare out the Doc's droid -- the one that helped him escape a few minutes ago -- and start beating on it until you basically destroy most of the plants and it opens the door ahead.  Now follow it in to that room where it spawns a bunch of Battle Droids, which you should avoid/ignore while you keep trying to kill him -- until you DO kill him, thus gaining the parts you need to build the object that will let you use the switch to leave!

You are then forced to switch back to Obi's team, and you cut through the door and  jump onto the huge lift, where you dodge droids and throw objects back at the Doc until you take out his hearts, at which point you knock him cold and capture him, which should end the level but no, he tosses the virus into the air and you all rush to catch it, but the distraction does not all him an escape!

This does end the level, and you unlock the Achievement "Oops, what happened?" (10 GP) as well as your two Gold Bricks, a bunch of Studs and a Kitpart.