System Shock - Level 2 Well, that was fun, wasn't it. The elevator door opened and a welcome party was there for you. If you are reading this and you didn't survive the opening, a tip or two: Save the game before starting the elevator (choosing a floor). As soon as it begins to move, the pointer changes to an hourglass. Position the hourglass over the doorframe. As soon as the door starts to open, close it. Save your game here, too, if you like. Have the dartgun or pistol ready. Open the door, do one mutant, and close the door. Assuming you are still alive, save. Now open the door and do another, and so on. Some players have trouble in situations like this because they try to do it all in one step. If you break it down, it will be easier. Ok, you're past all that. Search around. Sneak a look out in the corridor. Yup, more mutants. You might find it a good idea to use the needle gun on individual mutants, and save the pistol for the bigger problems. I would save the sparq until I located an energy station or some batteries, unless you are packing some already. Your goals on this level: you must find the x-22 isotope. You must find the CPU room. You must destroy all cameras and CPU's. There is a circuit breaker in the northeast part of the level you should throw. There are two separate cyberspace ports leading to separate areas in cyberspace; do both. The library, on the east and a bit north of the CPU room, has not only a cyberspace port and some targeting hardware, but also a code you need. Do the access panel, and the screen on the back wall will show the laser safety override code = 199. (I know, why bother if you already have the code? To make sure the game knows you know.) The X22 is in a radioactive room. Going from the central square area (inside of which is the laser firing control) south through the bulkhead door, head west. You will find a diamond shaped room. The shielded door on the north wall is what you want. This is a "rad" room, with high radioactivity. If you have a detox patch, save it for your exit from the room. If you don't, have healing patches ready; you will continue to take damage as the rad level drops slowly. The isotope is inside a force/shield box. On the north wall of that rad room, opposite the door, is a button. Press it to shut off the shield. Add the X22 to your inventory. The CPU room is in the southeast corner. There will be a couple of maintainance bots in the doorway; do them. Go past the CPU room to the end of the hall. On the right is the robot maintainance room. You will find a hopper, maintainance bot, some assorted stuff on the floor, and a piece of paper. It will have 3 numbers on it: 623. Go into the side room and enter these in the keypad to do the access. Now go back to the CPU room. Note the two locked doors on the other side of the hallway. Behind those are nine drone cyborgs and a sec1bot. As soon as you damage one CPU tower, they will awaken and come for you. This is a good place to use those land mines. I'd place one at each door (save before doing each; they slide around like hockey pucks on ice. You might need to try this a couple of times.) Go back and shoot a CPU. Get into the low area and lean around a CPU to shoot the bots as they flood in. Once they are done, blow the remaining CPU's (a nitropack will let you get well clear; set it and run out.) The screen by the door will stabilize on a single digit. Write it down; this is the second digit of the 6 digit code needed to set the reactor to overload. If you want to finish the game (and don't have the plot at 0 difficulty) you need this digit from CPU rooms on floors 1 thru 6. Note: you do not want to activate the laser at this time. If you do, you may kill an entire Earth city. That would be bad. The idea is to get the X22, take it back to the reactor level, put it in the right spot, and turn on the shield. You must also enable the laser safety override while on level R (reactor level.) Then you come back up to level 2. If you want, you can go thru the central area of level 2 on your first visit to the level, just to map it and familiarize yourself with it (nobody will be there.) Note in particular: as you enter, you can go to your right on the upper level and open a hidden door (the Help will not point this door out.) This room is symmetrical; you will find the layout generally identical whether you enter from the east or west (2 hidden rooms, one on each side.) Those yellow/gold blobs on the floor are energy drain mines; try to avoid them. You should also look around for goodies, and blast all bad guys. You will find a room closed by a force door up in the northeast. Leave it. There is nothing in it but humanoid mutants. Later in the game, when you are again heading down to the reactor, the door will have opened and those mutants will be clustered around the elevator. As you explore, you should find a log from Shodan to a cyborg detailing the situation up on level 6; Shodan is cooking up a mutagen virus in a "grove" up there. Lastly, head back to the elevator to go back down to the Reactor level. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Your Second Visit to Level 2 * You enter the center area to fire the laser into the shield. The concept is to blow the laser, thus disarming Shodan and keeping it from toasting any cities. Just so you know, Shodan will be anticipating your visit and all hell will break loose in that central area as soon as you enter it after the shield has been activated. This is a very good spot for you to be charged up, your weapon loaded, your shield turned on, and your game saved. It is one of the few times in the game where a reflex patch is really helpful. As you enter, Shodan will make a little speech as cyborgs drop out of the ceiling and the air fills with bullets. Note in particular: as you enter, you can go to your right on the upper level as a hidden door opens. A cyborg assassin may pop out of here to join the party. Do him quick and you can use the area as a shelter to avoid being overwhelmed. If you can kill the bad guys in sight, you can then take a breath, lean out and do the others. On the floor are yellow blobs. These are a type of mine; I call them energy suckers. They will deplete your system energy. Try to inch past them. In the small room, thru the grate/door, is the laser firing control. Assuming you have taken the X22 down to the reactor level, activated the shield, and enabled the laser safety override (all done on level R) you can push the button. You have new E-mail. Shodan gives you a call, bragging about its mutagen virus. The virus is being perfected in a "Grove" (park - like recreation area) on level 6. Shodan plans to release it in the near future on Earth, disrupting all higher life there. Sounds like it's time to head up to level 6... __________________________________________________________________________ * Spoiler Alert: Suggestions on What to do Now * *** Don't read on unless you are stumped or too curious to stop. I include this because many people got stumped on which level to focus on in what order. *** ----------------------------------- 1) As you get into the south elevator to head up to level 3 and beyond, you get e-mail from Sara Parovski. She and others are holding out on level 5, and want you to join/save them. Dash through level 3 (when the door of the elevator from level 2 opens, you can see the elevator to level 6 ) and go up to level 6. On level 6, head west, north past the cyberspace terminal, and east for the elevator to level 5. 2) Go to level 5. Do the level. Get the CPU code digit for this level. Find those people in their hiding place. Find the escape pods (they don't work; there is no emergency - yet.) 3) Go to level 6 again. Begin the process needed to jettison the infected Beta Grove before Shodan can find a way to send the virus to Earth. Do the CPU's and get that level 6 digit for the reactor code. 4) Go to level 3. Do what you came for. Get the CPU code digit and the level 2 biosuit as well. 5) Go back to level 6 and finally jettison the Beta Grove. 6) It's time to foil Shodan's plan to download itself into the Earth's computer net. Find out about the antenna relays on level 7, the engineering level. (Prior logs mention it.) 7) Go to level 4 to get 4 packs of plastique. Get the CPU code digit as well. Go back to level 7 and blow the four relays... --------------------------------------------------------------------------