DP Tool Club 21/CD_ASCQ_21_040595.iso/dos/games/c_pasbo/syshock/ssl1tips/l1.txt

Text File | 1995-02-08 | 12KB | 192 lines

                        System Shock - Level 1

        You start the game on Level 1, in the healing area.  This is a good
time to set the game up for your preferences.  In particular, you should
enable Help.  Hold down the Alt key, and press the H key to toggle help on
and off.  When on, Help will point things out to you; things to pick up,
doors to open, and so forth.  If you don't see these, toggle Help on - it
will find hidden doors, cameras (smash those) and other goodies for you.

        In the starting room, there is a hidden door on the left at bottom
of the ramp.  Take everything.  Arm yourself with the pipe. -Certain displays
are most helpful.  Press F1 to show the selected weapon in the left display.
This is where you will reload a weapon.  Press PageUp or PageDown to have the
central screen show weapons, grenades, and patches.  Under this screen are
4 buttons; the leftmost will enable the above screen.  Also press F8 to turn
on the mapping unit you picked up; this will become your second best friend,
after your weapon.  The data reader will read you logs and E-mail.  The
automated greeting log dated November 6 from Shodan explains what each
station level is for.

        Save your game before you leave this room.  I strongly recommend
that you number your saves.  Here is an example:

        1 game start - got stuff, do door
        2 did servebot, healed myself

        Exiting the starting room, you will see another friend; the green
casket is a healer machine.  Double click on it to be completely healed.
Begin by smashing the renegade servebot(s) with your pipe.  If you do badly,
don't worry - just use the healer.  Explore the area and smash the cameras.
Note: any cameras you miss will show up on your map as red dots.  Go back
and get them all.

        Your task on level 1 is to explore the area, kill all the bad guys,
find all the hidden areas, get all the goodies, smash all cameras and
CPU's, and find all communications left for you by others.  Last, you must
find and use the elevator to level 2.

        The bad guys: the servebots are reprogrammed by Shodan to attack
you.  The humanoid mutants roaming the corridors used to be people.  When
Shodan was freed from its moral constraints, one thing it did was to delve
deeply into bioengineering and creat a virus.  This virus had a mutating
result.  The end products are no longer human; they are raving, malicious,
and out to get you.  Use the pipe, needle gun, or (when you find it) the
sparq to get them.

        * Note: around the corner from the healing machine is an energy
station.  Use the full screen mode of the map and note the location of any
energy stations, any locked doors (come back for these later) the healer
machine, and the CPU room when you find them on each level.  The sparq beam
will drain your system energy, as will the "sensesurround" unit if you use
it; the energy stations will recharge you.  Most levels have 2 energy
stations.

        Other bad guys: You will find cyborg assassins and drones around,
and a really bad guy, a hopper, up on a riser along one side of the central
square.  The cyborg and the hopper both can be done with the sparq; set it
to full power for the quickest kill.  Once you get further into the level,
you will find other cyborgs and robots.  You will also find the ML-41 pistol
and some ammo.  See the file SS-TIPS.TXT for info on maximizing the amount
of ammo and other booty taken from bad guys; look under "AMMO".

        Once you get going, watch that map.  It is a good idea to look at
the map in full screen mode occasionally.  Look for doors (yellow) where
you didn't see any; also look for differences in line density along walls.
This will indicate the wall is not full height.  Areas like this can be
places with ducts high on the wall or at floor level.  You should be able
to get into all such places (use the posture control to squat down.)

        Northwest of the healing area is a locked bulkhead door.  Just east
of that is a room with mutants, patches, and a dart pistol.  Along the
wall to the west of the locked bulhead door is, from north to south: a
hidden door to a closet with some stuff; the medical center; a room with
some bodies, patches and personal logs.  The med center is where you will
find the cyberspace terminal.

        Always save before entering cyberspace; you may get surprised. In
this level, I think there is one door to unlock.  There are also some other
things to collect.  See the general hints text about cyberspace.

        The best weapons available on the first level: The magpulse is good
on robots and cyborgs.  Save it for the really nasty ones-ammo is rare for
a while.  The ML-41 pistol can be found on the floor in the CPU node room,
in the northeast corner of the level. It is a lifesaver, especially with the
teflon coated bullets.

    This will be your mainstay for awhile, along with the needle gun.
The magnum is the gem, though.  You will have a hard time finding
ammo for this until you start killing Security-1 robots and execbots.  By
the way, the magnum is in a room behind a locked hidden door.  If you look
at the map, the room is on the east side (I think of the map top as North)
near the south end; it looks like a funnel on its side.  There is other
good stuff in there with it.

        To get the magnum, you must reduce security on this level to 0%.
That is done by destroying all cameras and CPU's.  The CPU's on this level
are in a room in the Northeast corner.  To get there, you must open the
force door just north of the central "square".  Beyond the force door is
a green flashing pattern on the floor; this is a repulsor lift.  If you
step on it, you will rise to the next floor.  Be aware that there are many
drone cyborgs beyond this point.  Have your sparq out, and be charged up.
Heading in, you will find the rejuvenator room (and more cyborgs.)  When
you've done the borgs, flip the switch and the rejuvenator will restore
you if you die. North of here are many cyborgs and robots in niches along
the walls. Kill and search all.

        Checking out the northern area of the level, you will eventually
come to a spot guarded by a warrior cyborg on a pillor.  Kill it, and look
down; there may well be more cyborgs below.  Snipe at them to clean up
the area.  Once you jump down, you are by the CPU area.  I don't recall if
there is a cyborg standing in the CPU room itself; I believe there is.
One thing in the CPU room is the ML-41 pistol, in the southeast corner.

        Once you have looked into the room and done the borg if present,
make sure you save.  When you shoot or otherwise destroy the CPU's, they
will blow up.  If you are close, you will get hurt.  If you have a nitro
pack, that is ideal.  Make sure the ML-41 is loaded.  Set the nitropack
for a safe time, and head for the corridor.  Shodan will speak up around
then, and before you can leave, the party will start.

        What happens next depends on the difficulty level you've selected
for enemies.  At the highest level (3), cyborgs will swarm like ants from
a kicked anthill.  Shoot, reload, pop a medipatch, shoot...until done.
Make sure you search all.  If you want, use the "save, check, reload, check"
method described in the general hints text to maximize your ammo take.  You
can simply save before starting to check the bodies.  Check the first.  If
you don't like what you find (no ammo?) reload and check again.  Like what
you find? Move into position by the next body and save.  Check (and, if
desired, reload and recheck) each body in turn.

        Go back into the CPU room.  You may not have destroyed all CPU's;
only one must be damaged to anger Shodan and start the above sequence.
Finish off any CPU's left (at a distance) and look for a display screen.
There will be one with a single digit number on it.  Look at my screen shot
L1-CPU.gif to see what I mean; the screen is shown on the left as a black
square with single digit on it.  Until you finish off the CPU's, the number
will continue to change; it will stop on a digit when the last CPU blows.

                     ** Record That Number! **

Record the number and the level it corresponds to.  If you don't, you will
find you need to come back here later.  Some players report the numbers
change into zeros after enough time has elapsed.  That would be bad.  You
must have these numbers and enter them in sequence (levels 1, 2, and 3, then
levels 4,5, and 6) to get the reactor to overload at a later point in the
game.  If you don't or can't do that, you can't progress further in the game!

        Sooner or later, you should be down to 0% security.  If not, look
at the map for those red dots sybolizing cameras.  Go and smash them.  If
you get to a point where you think you've done all, but still have 6%
security, you haven't done the center of the "square" in the center of the
level.  This is entered by a lift.  The lift looks like a lit white square
on the floor.  It is on the south side of the "square", just east of an
energy station.  It is on the north side of the corridor.

        Before you step on it, load your weapon, charge up, and save.  I
believe you should have shield hardware by now; if yes, turn it on.  You
might like to squat down, looking up slightly, so you can start shooting
earlier during your descent. You will probably find 2 cyborgs and 2
mutants down there, waiting.  Facing north, step on.

        Once the smoke clears, take out the four cameras.  Find and use the
switch low on the wall.  Use the lift to go up and use the switch.  Collect
all of the stuff under stands and on bodies.  Trigger the lift to lower,
charge onto it, and leave.

        To get to the elevator to Level 2, you must go into the northern
area.  Go back to that force door to the north area, use the repulsor lift,
go west to the door south, and go to the corridor.  By the way, there is
a low duct at the west end of that corridor; squat down and go down it for
some stuff.

        Back in the corridor, stand on the lift in the corner by the switch
and press the switch.  It will lower you to the area with the elevator.
You can open and close the bulkhead door from this side and it will then
be openable from the other side.  If you want, go back to the healing area.
Heal up and charge up; you will need it.

        Back at the elevator, shut the bulkhead door.  If you need to return
to this level, leaving the door open means humanoid mutants standing around
waiting for you.  Load up your weapon of choice; the ML-41 pistol is good.
Step in the elevator and double click on the door frame to close the door.
You might want to practice opening and closing that elevator door quickly.
-You might find you Need to close it quickly when you arrive on level 2.
Double click on the elevator panel; the floor choices will appear.  The
available floors will be highlighted. Turn to face squarely out the door
(which must be closed before changing floors.)  Save your game.

        Choose level 2.  The pointer will change to an hourglass.  Position
that hourglass over the doorframe; you might want to reclose this door as
soon as it opens.  -Good luck.  See you in the Level 2 text...