'Project Detonation'

The preceding story mission was: 'Turret Threat'

The following story mission is: 'Operation Liberation'

Ouch!

This one's a real sod. It took me 15 attempts to beat this blighter. Of course I hated it while I was failing, but now I look back with fondness.

First the story. Isaak is waiting at the landing zone on Technatoria in his battle ship The Vendetta. He's keen to start breaking open the cages and rescue the prisoners within, believing that his beloved Sara is among them. However the Mantis have 12 turrets spread across the shattered remains of Technatoria which need to be destroyed first. You located them in 'Turret Threat', but they're not easy to get rid of. Luckily our favourite scavenger has constructed just enough Anti-Matter bombs to blow them all to kingdom-come. All you've got to do is fly up to a turret, place the bomb, and then scan it to make it detonate.

There are a few difficulties to overcome

1. The turrets have reasonable rocket fire power and defend themselves.
2. Each turret has a group of tough sentry ships, mostly level 33 Marauders.
3. You have to get very close to the turret to place the A.M. bombs.
4. Apart from at the first turret you get no notification that the A.M. Bomb is placed.
5. You've only got 25 minutes to blow them all.
6. All the usual Technatoria hazards still exist, such as Death Squads (DSs).

The first time I tried this I was in a squadron, with players I didn't know. We got 5 of the turrets but ran out of time and got podded a lot along the way. After that I tried it solo, as it isn't a squad mission and Technatoria is probably the most deserted planet in the game Pirate-wise.

I tried my Storm ship Kara III at first, but after a few attempts I realised that I just wasn't strong enough to fight off the sentries with the turrets' providing supporting fire. Even if you can survive the fight it eats up both time and energy. So I switched to Marie II my Engineer and changed tactics.

The way I finally succeeded was to use hit and run. I'd fly towards the turrets (watching out for DSs) and turn on my Protector at the last minute. I'd stop virtually on top of the turret, wait for about three seconds soaking up the fire while the bomb is placed, then turn and Afterburn away. Once I'd got clear of any pursuit and hid myself in an empty area, I'd use the 'End' key to cycle through targets. You have to keep changing heading while you're doing this of course or you'll end up flying into trouble. Eventually the A.M bomb is selected, at which point you scan it. The bomb goes Ka-Blooey and takes the turret with it. One down.

The key things with this tactic are timing and planning. Stay at the turret too long and you're toast, leave too soon and the bomb won't drop. You also have to plan your escape route and hiding place after the bomb drop. It's easy to burn away and end up in the middle of a spawning ground by mistake.

A tank would be the best ship for this one, at least when using my tactics. Don't get podded as you can't afford the time or resurrect energy.