Counterstrike - C3

Counterstrike

Chapter 3

Mission 1

Objective: Break Through the Enemy Lines!
Enemy Lines Crossed: No Casualties -- Complete the level without any deaths on your team to earn this GJ award. AI partner deaths do count, so this is best attempted with human allies.

Objective: Activate Data Posts to Acquire Intel on Enemy Forces
At the start of the level, anchor onto the hill in front of you and gun down the soldier in the bunker. Head northeast to the bunker entrance. Use Hand Grenades to destroy the enemy Bleed VS through the doorway before entering the bunker. Activate the Data Post in the bunker and collect the Rocket Launcher and Machine Gun ammo nearby.

Back outside, get on top of the bunker and face north. There are two enemy turrets, a Cakti VS and a Granseed VS in the area below. Destroy the enemy VSs with your Rocket Launcher. When you run out of rockets, get the VS Rocket Launcher attached to the broken-down VS in front of the sandbags on the hill.

Move down from the hill once the area below is clear. There are two Rocket Launchers to collect before moving on. Look for one inside the bunker south of Data Post 2, and the other in one of the T-ENG chests at the bottom of the hill. As well, there's a VS Rocket Launcher attached to one of the broken-down VSs on the beach at the south end of the area.

Fire rockets at the enemy VSs below.

Objective: Destroy the Bleed VSs!
All Bleed VSs Destroyed -- Destroy the three Bleed VSs that appear to earn this award.

Start toward Data Post 2 after collecting the Rocket Launcher ammo and three Bleed VSs will come out from the doorway up ahead. Blast them with rockets from afar, prioritizing the two VSs equipped with Laser Lances before they get too close.

Move up and activate Data Post 2 once the Bleed VSs have been dealt with. There is a vacant Bleed VS parked through the doorway the enemy Bleed VSs came through. Hop in if you'd like, but it's isn't necessary.

Up the ramp, head west to find a parked Granseed VS in the base. Keep this VS in tip-top shape, as it will come in handy in the next level. You won't need the Granseed VS for the upcoming fight, so leave it parked where it is for now.

Activate Data Posts 3 and 4 to complete the current objective.

Objective: Shoot Down the Ospreys!
All Ospreys Destroyed -- Destroy all of the enemy Ospreys to earn this award.

You must deplete the enemy's Battle Gauge -- visible at the bottom of the screen -- to complete the level. Remember to get in the Granseed VS once the enemy's Battle Gauge is low so the VS will move with you to the next level.

Shoot down the enemy Ospreys!

Look for Rocket Launcher ammo by Data Posts 3 and 4. Anchor up to Data Post 4 on the top level of the base and use your Rocket Launcher to shoot down the incoming Ospreys.

Enemy soldiers dropped by carrier Ospreys will attempt to anchor up to your position. Keep an eye on your Radar, as each red blip on your Radar denotes an enemy soldier. When you see a group of red blips around Data Post 3 below, stand at the ledge, jump up and fire a rocket down at them to blow them away.

A couple of the Ospreys will drop a Granseed VS. There is plenty of Rocket Launcher ammo to go around, so you can destroy these VSs easy enough. Just remain on the same level as Data Post 4 to give yourself a height advantage, jumping down only to grab the Rocket Launcher ammo by Data Post 3.

Mission 2

Objective: Activate All the Data Posts!
All Data Posts Online -- Activate all five Data Posts in the level to earn this award.

Objective: Defeat the Guardian Akrid
Akrid Defeated -- Destroy the Tencale 8.

The Tencale 8 is a large, mechanized akrid being controlled by enemy soldiers. Mounted on the Tencale 8's back are three seats, each with two Homing Lasers attached. Destroy these three seats first to remove this weaponry.

Target the weapons strapped to the Tencale 8's back first.

If you completed the previous level while seated in the Granseed VS, you can destroy the Tencale 8 very quickly. If you aren't in a Granseed, the Homing Lasers strapped to the Tencale 8's back will likely make getting close to it a difficult task. If you at least have a Rocket Launcher from the previous level, you can destroy the seats mounted on the akrid from afar before moving in to hit the weak spots on its legs and back.

If you are without a suitable weapon, there's a Rocket Launcher by one of the pieces of cover up ahead. Getting to this weapon can be difficult due to the Homing Lasers attached to the Tencale 8's back. Your character is invulnerable during the first part of the roll animation, so time a roll just as a laser is about to hit you to avoid taking damage. A quick sprint and a couple of rolls should get you to the Rocket Launcher, but not without some damage. Fallback when you have the Rocket Launcher and blast the seats on the akrid's back to destroy them.

If you have the Granseed VS, your task is much simpler. Jump up and hover (press the A/X button once to jump and again to hover), moving to the side in an attempt to dodge incoming lasers as you approach, and fire rockets at the seats on the Tencale 8's back to quickly destroy them..

After destroying all three seats on the akrid's back, fire at the weak spots on its legs and back until it falls.

Defeating the first Tencale 8

When the Tencale 8 is dead, proceed north and activate the first Data Post. With that, move up to the first Lightning Field. Get onto the tower in the water east of the steps and activate the lock to disable the field.

Objective: Defeat the Akrid Sentries!
All Akrid Sentries Defeated -- Destroy the four Dongo Gears (akrid VSs) in the level to earn this GJ award.

Once the Lightning Field is down, hop back in the Granseed and head up the stairs. You will encounter two Dongo Gear VSs here. These are mechanized Dongos with dual Gatling Guns. Just like the normal Dongo, the Dongo Gear's weak spot is on its tail. However, the Dongo Gear's tail is covered by a metal plate, which must be destroyed before you can get at its weak spot.

The Granseed's weaponry can tear through these enemies. There is a VS Shotgun with 40 ammo at the top of the stairs west of Data Post 2. Swap your VS Rocket Launcher for the Shotgun and use it to quickly kill the sentries. Circle around a sentry to get at its tail or blast it while it's occupied with one of your allies.

Once you've defeated the first two Dongo Gear VSs, activate Data Post 2 and then continue north to encounter a third Dongo Gear. Destroy the Dongo Gear and then activate Data Post 3 at the east end of the second Lightning Field.

Achievement/Trophy Tip -- Let's Go VS Force: There are a couple of enemy soldiers and a parked Cakti VS in the cave west of the second Lightning Field. If have at least one other human on your team and you have the Granseed VS from the previous level, you can merge the Cakti and Granseed VSs to form the powerful Brocakti VS, earning the 'Let's Go VS Force!!' Xbox 360 achievement or PlayStation 3 trophy in the process.

Merge the Cakti and Granseed to form the Brocakti.

To merge the Granseed and Cakti VS, have one player piloting the Granseed and the other in the Cakti. Then, each player must click and hold both the Left Stick and the Right Stick to enter their VS's merge form. With both VSs in merge form, move them close to each other and press the buttons indicated when the prompt appears on screen to form the Brocakti.

After disabling the second Lightning Field, if you have at least one other human on your team and the Granseed from the previous level, form the Brocakti and use it to take down the Tencale 8 on the other side.

If you're playing with AI teammates, don't fret, because there's a vacant Drion VS near the lock. This three-seat VS has a Shotgun attached to both of its seats, as well as two Auxiliary Weapons attached to its body. After disabling the second Lightning Field, hop in the Drion and wait until two of your AI teammates are in the seats before activating it. There are five seats on this Tencale 8 -- some armed with Homing Lasers and others Grenade Launchers. Fly toward the enemy (press the A/X button to jump and then again to hover) and try to dodge incoming lasers by moving to the side as you approach. Once you're close to the akrid, jump and hover around it so you're allies can blast the seats on its back. Fire at the seats with your Auxiliary Weapons as well.

Defeating the second Tencale 8

Once the second Tencale 8 has been dealt with, head east from the third Lightning Field to Data Post 4 and a parked Hardballer VS. Activate Data Post 4 and then hop in the Hardballer.

The switch to disable the third Lightning Field is on the platform in front of it. After disabling the field, activate Data Post 5 across the bridge, then get back in the Hardballer and fly west toward the fort. This fort if occupied by Bug Ranchers, including one wielding an Energy Gun. A fully-charged shot from an Energy Gun will eject you from the seat of your VS, so track down this soldier once you've destroyed the enemy Evax VS.

Shred all of the enemies in the area with your Gatling Guns and then activate the switch on the platform behind the fort to open the gate. With that, drop off the south side of the platform to reach the area end marker. The last Dongo Gear is by the exit, so make sure you destroy it before crossing the red line to end the chapter.