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The Missions of Wing Commander There are a total of seventy-four missions in Wing Commander, grouped together in twenty-nine series and three campaigns. These missions vary from the incredibly simple to the practically impossible. In this essay, I shall describe each mission, including: what you'll encounter, what you must do to win, and what you must do to win a medal. The most important grouping of missions is the series - a group of missions with the same wingmate. The path you take for a campaign will be based on how you do in each series, which is turn depends on how well you do within the missions of each series. Once you progress from one series to another, your successes and failures in individual missions are no longer relevant - your path would only be determined on what you do in the present series. For each mission, I will list the following information: your orders, encounters, victory points you can earn, victory criteria, and medals. I will also include a paragraph that would describe any special features of the mission, as well as any recommendations I have for flying the mission. Take the recommendations with a grain of salt, as a strategy that works fine for one pilot may prove fatal to another. Don't argue the mission designations with me, as I got them from the briefing screen. Some of them do sound rather strange, don't they? I will often refer to victory conditions. In here, victory will refer to reaching a certain number of victory points in a mission or a series. You'll know whether or not you won a mission by the music being played during the debriefing, and whether or not you won a series by the path you are sent on (if there is a midgame update, the music and actions will tell you if you won or lost). Note that any victory points for aces are earned if the ace is dead at the end of the mission, whether the ace died during that mission or during a previous mission. The victory points I list for each mission assume that you don't eject. If you eject, you will automatically earn zero points for the mission. Generally this will guarantee a trip down the losing path, but if you look carefully, there are actually a few missions where you can get a zero and still take the winning path (Gateway 1 is an example). The bottom line is: don't eject unless you really have to. In some missions, I refer to a "Halcyon Victory." Here I am referring to a condition you must meet make the colonel happy. This will sometimes be easier than winning (e.g., McAuliffe 3) and other times be more difficult than winning (e.g., Enyo 1), depending on the colonel's mood. Many missions also include medals. For each mission that I know has an medal, I list the medal and the criteria for earning it. Medals require you to gain a given number of kill points. The number of kill points required for a medal are those earned personally by you for killing Kilrathi ships, and those earned for surviving friendly ships (Kilrathi aces are not a factor in awarding medals). Note that I list the minimum requirements in which I have actually won the medal, so it may be possible that you can win the medal with fewer points than I list. If I have determined that there is no way to win a medal in the mission, then I will specify "No medal" in the decoration section. If I don't say anything at all, it means that I never won a medal there, but that I haven't proven it to be impossible. I will not include the Tiger's Claw in any of the medal kill points counts, even if your primary mission is to protect the Claw. While this might not always be what's happening within the program, losing the Claw makes the medal question a moot point. The value listed for Confederation ships includes those that are captured by the Kilrathi. Kill Point Table Salthi 7 Dralthi/Krant 10 Gratha/Jalthi/Hhriss 15 Dorkir 15 Ralari 25 Fralthi 50 Snakeir 70 Star Post 75 Confederation Ship -1 Friendly ship saved 25 I list each encounter you will find if you take the path as ordered by Halcyon. I use an asterisk (*) to represent enemy ships attacking friendly ships. I use a comma (,) to separate different waves of enemy craft. I use an ampersand (&) to separate different ships that appear together. I use a P to represent the ship you are supposed to protect. Any Kilrathi Ace I list is included in the count of enemy craft (remember that a regular pilot will replace any dead ace). I list a ship that jumps into the encounter as being part of the first group that it is possible for the ship to be part of. Missions also award promotion points. Promotion points are earned for reaching the maximum number of victory points possible in a mission, reaching or passing a number of total kills that is divisible by five, and for killing a Kilrathi Ace or Drakhia. In some missions, you LOSE one promotion point if your wingmate dies during the mission. Promotion points accumulate from mission to mission until they exceed a random number generated at the end of each mission. If you pass this number and are eligible for promotion, you will receive the next rank. Whether or not you are eligible for promotion, the promotion point total will also be set to zero. Note that you cannot become a Lieutenant Colonel in the Vega campaign. The TrainSim The TrainSim is a good place to practice outside the context of a mission. If your main trouble is shooting accurately, this is a good place to improve your skills. It's also a good place to see how you are progressing, if you're willing to keep a record of your highest scores. Anyone reading this has probably figured out that there are ten fighters of each type (Salthi, Dralthi, Krant, and Gratha), divided into four waves (first one fighter, then two, then three, then four). If you complete the fourth wave, you proceed on to the next fighter. If you manage to complete all four sets (has anyone done this in Hornet?), you will get the victory screen, complete with fireworks. You are in a Hornet, so victory is not an easy matter (I'm presently working on four Gratha). For variety, I create different EXE files, each with a different ship in the Hornet slot. While I don't use these for missions, they are good for use in the TrainSim to get practice with other types of ships. If you'd like to try the same, use WCVIEW to copy the fighter you want into the Hornet position. The game is a cakewalk with a Raptor or Rapier, so I base those versions on SM2.EXE and replace the Krant with Hhriss. Points: For each time unit your survive 10 Completing Salthi wave 1 10,000 + 20 * Time Completing Salthi wave 2 20,000 + 20 * Time Completing Salthi wave 3 30,000 + 20 * Time Completing Salthi wave 4 40,000 + 20 * Time Completing Dralthi wave 1 10,500 + 40 * Time Completing Dralthi wave 2 21,000 + 40 * Time Completing Dralthi wave 3 31,500 + 40 * Time Completing Dralthi wave 4 42,000 + 40 * Time Completing Krant wave 1 11,000 + 60 * Time Completing Krant wave 2 22,000 + 60 * Time Completing Krant wave 3 33,000 + 60 * Time Completing Krant wave 4 44,000 + 60 * Time Completing Gratha wave 1 11,500 + 80 * Time Completing Gratha wave 2 23,000 + 80 * Time Completing Gratha wave 3 34,500 + 80 * Time Completing Gratha wave 4 36,000 + 80 * Time You have 2400 time units for the first two waves, 2800 for the third wave, and 3200 for the final wave of each set. This means that the theoretical maximum score is 2,580,000. Of course, such a score is totally impossible. I have reached 2,000,000 in a Raptor (before I did the Hhriss substitution), but I doubt that score is possible in a Hornet. I'd say that if you make it to 1,500,000 in a Hornet, you did extremely well. Vega Series 1: Enyo Fighter: Hornet Wingmate: Spirit Series VP: 10 Win: 2 Lose: 3 This series is a warm up to what follows. You are a rookie pilot entering into the Vega campaign, not knowing how much a difference you'll be making in the war effort. These two missions will teach you all the basics for Wing Commander, so that you'll be ready for the more difficult missions that follow. You are paired with Spirit in a Hornet - an ideal match for a new pilot. Most pilots seem to have an easier time getting into trouble than killing the enemy, but you won't have to worry about that much in this series. This is the only series where I ever have to worry about outscoring my wingmate. The Hornet is a light recon fighter, which explains why you fly it less often than any other Confederation fighter (a total of 13 missions in all three campaigns). The patrol is the usual fare that a Hornet pilot should expect--check out the Nav points and report what you find. The asteroids are there just to give you headaches, and I'd love to hear the astrophysical explanation of how they are able to exist. Anyway, don't bother advancing to the next mission until you can get through this mission without getting into too much trouble. Personally, I think that Hornets and escort missions don't mix. But if there are more sports to be escorted than other fighter wings available, then there is little choice in the matter. Fortunately, you don't meet enough to give you too much trouble, as this mission is mainly here to get you used to protecting friendly vessels. As for the asteroids, you can easily bypass them by returning via Nav 1, though you may decide that you need the practice in navigating through rocks. 1 - Patrol: 3 Nav Points N1: 3 Dralthi; N3: 2 Salthi VP: Nav 1 (2), Nav 2 (1), Nav 3 (2), Landing (1) Total VP: 6, Winning VP: 5 No medal Halcyon Victory if you touch all three Nav Points 2 - Escort a Drayman to Nav 2 via Nav 1 TC: Drayman (P); N1: 2 Salthi; N2: 3 Dralthi VP: Nav 1 (2), Nav 2 (2), Save Drayman (5) Total VP: 9, Winning VP: 5 Bronze Star for 52 kill points (Drayman+, 2 Dralthi-, 1 Salthi-) Series 2: McAuliffe Fighter: Scimitar Wingmate: Paladin Series VP: 32 Win: 4 Lose: 5 Now that you've warmed up, it's time to start the real war. The missions here are the first ones I found to be a challenge, and and it took me a long time to solve everything in it (fortunately, you don't need to solve everything to progress on the winning track). You are paired with Paladin in a Scimitar. Opinions on the Scimitar are generally negative, most likely because the ship is obsolete (why else do you think it gets replaced by the Rapier as the war goes on?). Despite that, the Scimitar has the dsitinction of being used in more missions than any other (a total of 21 missions in the first two campaigns). There is no fighter less suitable for a patrol than a Scimitar, but that does not exempt the Scim fron that duty. In this case, the assignment is reasonable, as a Scimitar is more suitable for penetrating a minefield than a Hornet (I presume that the Raptors are otherwise engaged). As for handling the minefield, I suggest an approach and exit via Nav 4 (not Nav 2) at a speed of 250 kps, which makes the minefield the most neglibible of nuisances. The trouble with strike missions is that the Confederation didn't have a really good strike fighter until the Rapier went into service. The Hornet was a bit small for the role, the Scimitar was a bit slow, and the Raptor lacked range. While the Raptor was the best of the lot for the role, the Scimitar often found itself with the honors. Well, here's your change to prove what you can do with a Scim. Ah, an escort mission--finally something where the Scimitar's weapon heavy/slow speed design works to its advantage. The only trouble is Bhurak Starkiller, who eluded me for a long time before I figured out how to do him in. Chase him using the TAB key, as you'll need the buttons for shooting. Oh, when you are about to meet something that's expected to jump in, you can delay its entrance by avoiding the Nav point as nuch as possible. 1 - Patrol: 4 Nav Points N1: 3 Dralthi; N4: 3 Salthi VP: Nav 1 (2), Nav 2 (2), Nav 3 (2), Nav 4 (2), Landing (2) Total VP: 10, Winning VP: 8 Halcyon Victory if you touch all four Nav points No medal 2 - Strike against an unidentified bogie TC-N1: 4 Dralthi; N1: 2 Krant & Ralari VP: Nav 1 (1), Kill Ralari (10), Landing (1) Total VP: 12, Winning VP: 11 Bronze Star for 65 kill points (Ralari-, 4 Fighters) 3 - Rendevous with a Drayman and escort it to the TC N1: 4 Krant * Drayman (P); N1-TC: 3 Salthi (Bhurak) VP: Save Drayman (10), Bhurak (5), Nav 1 (1), Landing (1) Total VP: 17, Winning VP: 16 Halcyon Victory if you save the Drayman Silver Star for 86 kill points (Drayman+, All Fighters-) Series 3: Gateway Fighter: Hornet Wingmate: Paladin Series VP: 35 Win: 5 Lose: 6 It's not really easy getting to this series, but mistakes do happen, especially with new players. This series is essentially the same as the McAuliffe series, except that you are more on the defensive here. You are assigned with Paladin in a Hornet. This is more from the Colonel's decision that you aren't ready for a more powerful fighter than any appropriateness of the Hornet for the missions. The first mission is straightforward: a patrol in a Hornet. You will have your first encounter with Gratha, but if you use your speed to your advantage, you should do well enough. This is the time to learn just how to use the Afterburners to your advantage without wasting fuel. In McAuliffe you strike against an enemy target--here the enemy strike against the Tiger's Claw. This is the primary difference between the winning path missions and the losing path missions: the winning path missions tend to lean towards the offensive, while the losing path missions lean towards the defensive. Well, not much else to say here, since saving the Claw is paramount. This is the same escort mission that's in McAuliffe 3, except now you are in a Hornet. The encounters are a little tougher in this version, but the victory conditions are more lenient. Again, I recommend use of the TAB key to get Bhurak Starkiller. 1 - Patrol: 3 Nav Points N2: 4 Salthi; N3: 2 Gratha VP: Nav 1 (2), Nav 2 (2), Nav 3 (2), Landing (2) Total VP: 8, Winning VP: 6 No medal Halcyon Victory of you touch all three Nav Points 2 - Defend the Tiger's Claw against Dralthi TC: 4 Dralthi * TC, 4 Dralthi VP: Save TC (20) Total VP: 20, Winning VP: 20 Silver Star for 50 kill points (5 Dralthi-) 3 - Rendevous with a Drayman and escort it to the TC N1: 2 Gratha * Drayman (P); N1-TC: 4 Salthi (Bhurak) VP: Save Drayman (15), Bhurak (1) Total VP: 16, Winning VP: 15 Silver Star for 62 kill points (Drayman+, 2 Gratha-, 1 Salthi-) Series 4: Gimle Fighter: Raptor Wingmate: Angel Series VP: 25 Win: 7 Lose: 5 For the first time in the campaign, you are entering enemy territory, which means that things heat up very quickly. Two of the missions in this series give you little time to relax, while the third is a walk through the park. You are paired with Angel in a Raptor. The Raptor is a powerful ship, and is definitely needed for the first mission. The Raptor has the second highest mission total in the game (a total of 19 missions in the three campaigns). The first mission is to defend an Exeter that is being attacked by three Jalthi. You must act quickly here, as those big guns will reduce an Exeter to slag if you give them half a chance. Fortunately, the Jalthi has a weak backside and the Raptor has a powerful punch, so the task is not as difficult as it seems. I tend to have more success if I go after the lone one first, then go for the other pair. The gold star requires that you either get all the Salthi or all the Jalthi - Angel has cost me a lot of medals in this one. The second mission is practically a milkrun, as the main purpose of the mission is to test the Rapier. You don't test a new ship on a tough mission, right? In fact, this mission is practically the same as the one in Gateway 1, which is fought in a HORNET. An easy ten points that may salvage the series in case you lose the Exeter (but it'll be close). Oh, for some reason, the debriefing links getting through the asteroids with touching Nav 2. On player has reported 4 Gratha in the asteroid field, but I've never see any. The final mission is a battle against a mass of Dralthi. While a couple Dralthi are little trouble, nine of them can be troublesome if you are lax. If you lost the Exeter or had to eject from the Rapier, then you must kill ALL the Dralthi to win the series. It's most fortunate that Dakhath is much easier to kill than Bhurak Starkiller. While the -1 for activating the second wave seems strage, I can only figure that they wanted to punish you if you saw the second wave and then simply fled. 1 - Defend an Exeter TC: 2 Salthi * TC, 2 Salthi; N1: 3 Jalthi * Exeter (P) VP: Save Exeter (10), Landing (2) Total VP: 12, Winning VP: 12 Gold Star for 83 kill points (Exeter+, 4 Salthi-, 2 Jalthi-) 2 - Patrol: 3 Nav Points, Test fly a RAPIER N2: 4 Dralthi; N3: 2 Gratha VP: Nav 1 (1), Nav 2 (3), Nav 3 (3), At least one Gratha (3) Total VP: 10, Winning VP: 9 No medal 3 - Patrol: Check out bogies at Nav 1 (Dralthi) N1: 5 Dralthi; 4 Dralthi (Dakhath) VP: 9 Dralthi (1 each), Dakhath (5), Activating wave 2 (-1) Total VP: 13, Winning VP: 9 Bronze Star for 80 kill points (8 Dralthi-) Series 5: Brimstone Fighter: Scimitar Wingmate: Maniac Series VP: 25 Win: 7 Lose: 8 The war is in the balance, and you must lead your fellow pilots to victory. There are three middle path missions (Enyo, Brimstone, and Rostov), and when you play either of these, you must play well or find your way to the losing path. These are the only three series where you can move between the winning and losing paths, so they are important if you ever reach them. You are paired with Maniac in a Scimitar. You will soom find out that that is far from a pleasant experience. The second thing you'll find out is that finishing this with Maniac alive is quite an effort in its own right. The first mission is a routine patrol. Things are rather quiet, except for the ambush attempt at Nav 1. If you aren't up to facing three Gratha in a Scimitar, try your best to rout the Salthi. Unfortunately, Maniac is quite efficient in destroying a lone Salthi, and it's tough to damage a Salthi just enough to force it to flee (except when you want to destroy one, in which case they seem to run more often than you'd like). In your next mission, you have to rendevous with an Exeter and escort it back to the Claw. Actually, it'd be pathetically easy if it weren't for the battle in the asteroids with the Salthi. If there's a ship that shouldn't fight in asteroids, it's the Scimitar, so you're at a bit of a disadvantage. If you don't like that prospect, ignore orders and head for the Exeter via Nav 2, which sets the Salthi encounter in the clear. The final mission is an strike against a missile freighter. My best advice here is to stay near the freighter and attack it if Khajja decides it's time to dance. He's a tough one to kill, but he won't flee and occasionally gives you time to get about your business. Whatever you do, don't allow the Dorkir to get out of sensor range, or you have lost. 1 - Patrol: 3 Nav Points N1: 1 Salthi, 3 Gratha; N2: 2 Krant VP: Nav 1 (3), Nav 2 (3), Nav 3 (1), Landing (1) Total VP: 8, Winning VP: 8 No medal 2 - Rendevous with an Exeter and return to the TC via Nav 2 Ast: 4 Salthi; N1: 4 Dralthi; N2: Surviving Salthi from Ast VP: Save Exeter (10), Landing (2) Total VP: 12, Winning VP: 12 No medal 3 - Strike against an enemy freighter TC-N1: 2 Jalthi; N1: 4 Krant (Khajja) & Dorkir, 2 Krant VP: Kill Dorkir (10) Total VP: 10, Winning VP: 10 Bronze Star for 90 kill points (Dorkir-, 1 Jalthi-, 6 Krant-) Recommend not letting Khajja lead you away from Dorkir Challenge is getting through all this with Maniac alive Series 6: Chengdu Fighter: Hornet Wingmate: Angel Series VP: 35 Win: 5 Lose: 8 Things aren't going too well for the home team. Here's your change to aquit yourself before things get really rough. Unlike Gateway, where the missions were an analog to their opposite (McAuliffe), these missions are very different from those in Gimle. You are paired with Angel in a Hornet. Personally, I don't think the Hornet is her best ship. The Hornet requires a pilot who does well as both flier and gunner. While Angel certainly qualifies as the latter, she is a bit lacking in the former. If the regulation position will force her to crash into something, she'll crash into it, so be careful where you fly when she's flying on your wing. The first mission is one of the gems of the Vega campaign--too bad its on the losing path, and thus played so rarely. On the surface, it appears to be a simple rendevous and escort, but it goes deeper than that. If you can elimiate all four Krant before you reach the Tiger's Claw defense zone (you'll know you reached it if the enemy craft self destruct), then you'll find the Ralari and a pair of escorts. You can only truly win the mission by both saving the Hornet AND taking out the Ralari. Good luck. The second mission requires you to traverse an asteroid field as you protect an Exeter. Apparently the scenario designer decided that was tough enough, so he only required that you reach Nav 1 and the Dralthi in order to win, whether or not the Exeter actually survives (and you really have to try hard to lose it). The final mission requires you to fight off six Gratha that are attacking the Tiger's Claw. Not much else to say about it. 1 - Rendevous with a Hornet (Valkyrie) and escort it to the TC N1: 4 Krant * Hornet (P), 2 Krant & Ralari VP: Save Valkyrie (5), Kill Ralari (5), Landing (1) Total VP: 11, Winning VP: 11 Gold Star for 110 kill points (Valkyrie+, Ralari-, 6 Krant-) 2 - Escort an Exeter to Nav 1 via an asteroid field TC: Exeter (P); N1: 6 Dralthi (Dakhath); N1-TC: 4 Salthi VP: Encounter Dralthi while escorting Exeter (10), Landing (2) Total VP: 12, Winning VP: 12 Bronze Star for 83 kill points (Exeter+, 3 Dralthi-, 4 Salthi-) 3 - Defend the Tiger's Claw against Gratha TC: 2 Gratha * TC, 4 Gratha VP: Save the Tiger's Claw (15), Landing (3) Total VP: 18, Winning VP: 18 Silver Star for 75 kill points (5 Gratha-) Series 7: Dakota Fighter: Raptor Wingmate: Knight Series VP: 50 Win: 9 Lose: 10 The campaign is going pretty well, but Kilrathi is not the only thing you must fight against. If there's anything worse to compound a plague than a war, I don't know what it is. Here on Dakota, you have a plague on your hands, and it's your job to protect the beleaguered citizens and supplies that may save them from their affliction. You are paired with Knight in a Raptor. Frankly, I'm not too impressed with Knight. Some tell me that he runs away too quickly, while I say he dies too often - either way, he's not with you throughout the mission. Your first mission is to escort a hospital ship and a vaccine ship. While it's possible to win the series without them, the moral victory of saving the people of Dakota is too important to allow the ships to perish. Fortunately, the vaccine ship itself isn't all that difficult to defend. As for the debriefing, there's a bit of a bug that says you lose the vaccine ship if you lose the hospital ship. The second mission is a typical sweep patrol. With all the hospital traffic, you have to make sure that there are no Kilrathi is the area, so the patrols are being conducted in the heavy Raptors. Oh, it seems you report that you saw nothing if you fail to touch Nav 1, even if you follow that report with a report on the fate of the Ralari. The final mission is a strike against a Kilrathi tanker and several transports. It appears that the Kilrathi are immune to Watson's Disease and are planning a little invasion, but it's your job to keep the troop transports from arriving at their destination. Note that this is the critical mission, as it is impossible to win the series without taking out at least one troop transport. 1 - Escort hospital ship to Nav 1, Escort vaccine ship to TC TC: Drayman (P); TC-N1: 5 Salthi; N1: 3 Krant; N2: 3 Jalthi * Drayman (P) VP: Save Hospital Ship (5), Save Vaccine Ship (10), Landing (2) Total VP: 17, Winning VP: 17 Silver Star for 150 kill points (2 Draymen+, 5 Salthi-, 2 Krant-, 3 Jalthi-) 2 - Patrol: 3 Nav Points N1: 2 Gratha; N2: 4 Krant, 2 Krant & Ralari VP: Nav 1 (2), Nav 2 (2), Nav 3 (2), Ralari (15), Landing (2) Total VP: 23, Winning VP: 17 Silver Star for 105 kill points (Ralari-, 5 Krant-, 2 Gratha-) 3 - Strike against a tanker and two troop transports N1: 5 Krant & Dorkir; N2: 2 Jalthi (Bakhtosh) & Dorkir, 2 Jalthi & Dorkir VP: Tanker (5), 2 Transports (10 each), Landing (2) Total VP: 27 VP, Winning VP: 17 Gold Star for 135 kill points (3 Dorkir-, 3 Krant-, 4 Jalthi-) Series 8: Port Hedland Fighter: Scimitar Wingmate: Knight Series VP: 50 Win: 10 Lose: 11 Hmmm, this war isn't going too well. It's time to turn things around if you want any hope of winning. You'll also run into a new class of Kilrathi ship here, and killing at least one is imperative to this series. These missions are analogues to those in Dakota, except that these tend to be defensive versions of the Dakota missions. You are paired with Knight in a Scimitar. Well, I can think of worse combinations, but this one's bad enough to give you trouble. The first mission requires you to rendevous with a Drayman for the TCSO show. While I don't know whether or not the Drayman really contains the dancing girls for the show, losing it would be a blow to morale (though you can still salvage the series by scoring perfectly on the last two missions). Since Jalthi and Draymen don't mix, avoid Nav 1 as long as possible during the Jalthi battle to delay the Drayman's arrival. The second mission is a patrol. As there is a minefield here, the Scimitar was chosen over the Hornet for this mission. During this mission, you'll have your first encounter with a Fralthi. Can you take it out? Can you take it out without losing Knight? Just remember that if you don't get this Fralthi, you'll have to get the one in the next mission. Okay, the Claw and and Exeter are under attack. Can you save them? If you manage that, try for the Fralthi. Act quickly against the Fralthi, and perhaps ever try an insult or two, as you must destroy it before it makes the jump out of system. 1 - Rendevous with a Drayman at Nav 1 and escort it to the TC N1: 4 Jalthi * Drayman (P); N1-TC: 3 Gratha VP: Save Drayman (10), Making contact (3), Landing (2) Total VP: 15 VP, Winning VP: 15 VP Bronze Star for 130 kill points (Drayman+, 4 Jalthi-, 3 Gratha-) 2 - Patrol: 4 Nav Points, Keep an eye out for a Fralthi N1: 3 Dralthi; N3: 4 Gratha & Fralthi VP: 4 Nav Points (2 each), Fralthi (10), Land (2) Total VP: 20, Winning VP: 20 Silver Star for 130 kill points (Fralthi-, 2 Dralthi-, 4 Gratha-) 3 - Defend Tiger's Claw and an Exeter, Attack a Fralthi TC: 4 Jalthi (Baktosh) * TC; N1: 4 Gratha * Exeter; N2: 4 Krant & Fralthi VP: Save Exeter (15), Kill Fralthi (15) Total VP: 30, Winning VP: 30 Gold Star for 165 kill points (Exeter+, 4 Jalthi-, 4 Gratha-, 2 Krant-) or (Fralthi-, 4 Jalthi-, 2 Gratha-, 3 Krant-) Series 9: Kurasawa Fighter: Rapier Wingmate: Bossman Series VP: 40 Win: 12 Lose: 10 With the win in Dakota, you are pressing deep into Kilrathi territory. Can you keep the pressure on and drive the Kilrathi out of the Vega sector? You are paired with Bossman in a Rapier. Yep, those new Rapiers are finally ready for action, and you are one of the first to be assigned to one. The trouble I have with this fighter is that it's just TOO maneuverable. I also have trouble with its rather pathetic missile array (I like HS missiles). The Rapier is a strike fighter (hence the DF's), with 2 FF and an IR for dogfigting. You start with the Rapier's specialty: a strike against freighters. It's not really all that tough a mission, though don't count on taking out all three of the Dorkir personally. The second mission is the toughest one on the winning track--the infamous Ralari defense mission. Some people have stayed here a long time before either giving up or finally ekeing out a victory. I recommend that if you have trouble, go one and continue the campaign through Rostov. There's so much advice given on this one, I better just say that you'd best be served to use the FF against the Salthi (as the FF will treat the Ralari as an enemy target) and to act as quickly as possible when dealing with the Gratha. I've yet to win this one. According to Origin, this one was made especially tough to shake up those who think the Vega campaign is and easy glide to Venice. The final mission is a cinche compared to the previous one. As far as I can tell, the minefield does not exist, so follow the route as ordered. I occasionally have trouble with navigation after fighting the Krant, so make sure where you and the Exeter are going prefore hitting the autopilot. 1 - Strike against several enemy freighters N1A: 6 Dralthi & Dorkir; N2: 3 Krant & Dorkir; N1B: 2 Jalthi & Dorkir VP: Dorkir at 1a (10), Dorkir at 2 (5), Dorkir at 1b (5) Total VP: 20, Winning VP: 15 No medal 2 - Defend a captured Ralari and escort it to the TC Ast: 4 Salthi; N1: 4 Gratha * Ralari (P) VP: Save Ralari (15) Total VP: 15, Winning VP: 15 Silver Star for 98 kill points (Ralari+, 3 Gratha-, 4 Salthi-) 3 - Rendevous with an Exeter and escort it to the TC via Nav 2 N1: 6 Dralthi * Exeter (P); N2: 4 Krant VP: Save Exeter (15) Total VP: 15, Winning VP: 15 No medal Series 10: Rostov Fighter: Raptor Wingmate: Iceman Series VP: 40 Win: 12 Lose: 13 The most common way to get here is to fail to save the Ralari at Kurasawa. No matter, you have a second chance here. There is one problem with this series: asteroids. No matter where you turn, you will find more chucks of rock than and astrophysicist could ever explain. Fortunately, most of the fileds are reasonably navigable. You are paired with Iceman in a Raptor. Yeah, I know that two patrols and a strike cries out for a Rapier, but they are still evaluating those after the Rapier's failure to help us win at Kurasawa. The first mission is a straight patrol with Dakhath and a Dorkir thrown in. Of course, the odds of Dakhath still being alive at this posint are slim, but there is always a change. The second mission is a strike against a Ralari, sort of an analog to the saving of a Ralari at Kurasawa. Except for a battle in the asteroids, this is fairly straightforward. The final mission is to check out a large bogie at Nav 2. I have no idea how they detected the Fralthi before it jumped into the system, but they managed it somehow. Oh, if you want a chance at the medal, follow the course on the Nav Computer, as you must eget some of the Dralthi to get the medal. 1 - Patrol: 4 Nav Points, Asteroids all over the place N2: 2 Dralthi (Dakhath); N3: 2 Gratha, 4 Gratha & Dorkir VP: 4 Nav Points (1 each), Dorkir (10), Landing (1) Total VP: 15, Winning VP: 12 Bronze Star for 135 kill points (All Kilrathi-) 2 - Strike against a Ralari TC-N1: 2 Salthi, 3 Salthi; 4 Jalthi & Ralari VP: Kill Ralari (15) Total VP: 15, Winning VP: 15 Silver Star for 113 kill points (Ralari-, 4 Salthi-, 4 Jalthi-) 3 - Patrol: Check out large bogie at Nav 2 N2: 4 Krant (Khajja) & Fralthi; N2-TC: 4 Dralthi VP: Identify Fralthi (15), Destroy Fralthi (10) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 25 Gold Star for 120 kill points (Fralthi-, 4 Krant, 3 Drathi-) Series 11: Hubble's Star Fighter: Scimitar Wingmate: Bossman Series VP: 65 Win: 10 Lose: 13 Here's your last chance to turn the war about. If you can't do it here, then you can forget about keeping a toe hold in the Vega sector, much less gaining full control. Can you do it? The missions here are analogous to those in Kurasawa, except that these are in a much more desperate vain. You are paired with Bossman in a Scimitar. If you are here, you are probably sick of Scimitars by now. If you want a chance to upgrade, here's your last chance. The patrol is such in name only, as it really is a strike mission against capital ships that you don't know are there. If you look carefully at the series victory conditions, this is the mission where you can't afford to mess up. If Dakhath is still alive, you will have to kill him to have a good chance of winning the series. The second mission is a losing analog of the Ralari save, and it's at least as tough. While you can still win after blowing this mission, it'll be a great moral victory to save at least one of those tankers. I suggest you concentrate on saving one and don't worry about the other, because you can't afford to allow both to take heavy damage. The final mission is basically a Tiger's Claw defense. Can you save your carrier from destruction? The ten points for Baktosh are very important if you lost both tankers in the second mission, so if he's alive, make sure he doesn't escape. Fortunately, if he's already dead, you automatically earn the points. 1 - Patrol: 3 Nav Points N1: 4 Krant & Ralari; N2: 4 Dralthi (Dakhath) & 2 Dorkir VP: Ralari (15), Dakhath (15), 2 Dorkir (10 each) Total VP: 50, Winning VP: 50 Silver Star for 135 kill points (All Kilrathi ships-) 2 - Rendevous with two fuel tankers and escort them to the TC TC-N1: 4 Dralthi (near minefield); N1: 4 Gratha * 2 Draymen (P) VP: Drayman Alpha (10), Drayman Beta (10) Total VP: 20, Winning VP: 20 Bronze Star for 120 kill points (1 Dralthi-, 4 Gratha-, 2 Draymen+) 3 - Patrol: Check out bogies hiding in asteroids N1: 3 Krant; TC: 4 Gratha * TC, 2 Jalthi (Baktosh) VP: Save TC (10), Baktosh (10) Total VP: 20, Winning VP: 20 Silver Star for 110 kill points (2 Krant-, 4 Gratha-, 2 Jalthi-) Series 12: Venice Fighter: Rapier Wingmate: Hunter Series VP: 0 Win: VICTORY Lose: N/A You're at the end of the wire, and heading for victory. You can't lose once you get here, so it's all for glory. You are paired with Hunter in a Rapier. Frankly, I don't like flying with Hunter, but he seems halfway decent in a Rapier. The first mission is a simple patrol to get you warmed up. The second mission is the only joint assault in Wing Commander. Frankly, I'm not impressed by the pilots at Wing Foxtrot. Sheesh, these guys make Maniac and Hunter look good. The real goal here is to get close enough to determine the location of the statbase, though I suppose someone else will manage the task if you fail. The third mission is listed as a patrol, but is more accurately described as a sweep. If you want to be screamed at hard enough to make the paper curl off your walls, then touch only Nav 1 and return to base. The final mission is the big one: the assault on the starbase. While the base will eventually fall no matter what you do, it's best to be the one to do it. That Pewter Planet's a tough medal to get, but it gives you a nice feeling when they pin it on (too bad you can't save the game). 1 - Patrol: 4 Nav Points N2: 2 Jalthi in mines; N4: 4 Krant (Khajja) & Ralari, 4 Gratha VP: Nav 1 (1) Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 Silver Star for 155 kill points (Ralari-, 2 Jalthi-, 4 Krant-, 4 Gratha-) 2 - Strike against a Fralthi in conjunction with wing Foxtrot Rap: 2 Rapiers (F); N1: 2 Gratha, 2 Gratha; N2: 4 Salthi & Fralthi, 4 Krant VP: Get within range of Fralthi (1) Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 No medal 3 - Patrol: 3 Nav Points N2: 2 Jalthi in mines; N3: 2 Dralthi (Dakhath) & Ralari; TC: 4 Gratha * TC VP: Nav 1 (1) Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 Halcyon Victory if you touch all three Nav Points Bronze Star for 125 kill points (Ralari-, 2 Jalthi-, 1 Dralthi-, 4 Gratha-) 4 - Strike against Kilrathi Starpost N1: 4 Krant & Fralthi; N2: 4 Gratha & Starpost, 4 Salthi, 4 Jalthi VP: Nav 1 (1) Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 Medal of Valor for 243 kill points (Starpost-, 2 Krant-, 4 Gratha-, 4 Salthi-, 4 Jalthi-) Series 13: Hell's Kitchen Fighter: Scimitar Wingmate: Hunter Series VP: Impossible Win: N/A Lose: Retreat Boy are things going badly! It's time to cut your losses and bug out of the sector. Perhaps you'll be able to regain the place at a later time, but for now you must save the colonists and the Claw from the clutches of the Kilrathi. You are paired with Hunter in a Scimitar. Well, I suppose that compared to the fate of those fleeing the Vega sector, yours is relatively tame. At least he's not Maniac. The first mission is a simple escort. The simple part is that you don't have to worry about saving the ship, as it is literally impossible. This mission includes a couple strange features, such as the multiply appearing Drayman and a reference to Khajja, whether or not he's alive. The second mission is a strike against a Fralthi. If you're good enough to win this one, what are you doing in this series? For some extra fun, how about fighting Bhurak Starkiller in a minefield? The third mission is to defend an Exeter. Fortunately, the Gratha arrive after you do, so its not a 'watch it blow' mission, like Kurasawa 2. Actually, I find this one rather easy, assuming you don't do something silly like fighting the Salthi in the minefield. We conclude with the only suicide mission in the game. While you do have some hope of living, you may very well find yourself stranded in Kilrathi territory for the rest of your probably short life. Here's your last chance to kill all those aces you missed earlier in the game. 1 - Rendevous with a passenger ship and escort it to the TC TC-N1: 4 Salthi; N1: 3 Krant * Drayman (P), 2 Krant (Khajja); N1-TC: 3 Gratha VP: Nav 1 (1) Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 No medal 2 - Strike against unidentified bogies at Nav 1 Mines: 3 Salthi (Bhurak); N1: 4 Gratha & Fralthi, 2 Gratha VP: Identify Fralthi (1) Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 Gold Star for 161 kill points (All Kilrathi-) 3 - Defend an Exeter at Nav 1 Mines: 5 Salthi; N1: 4 Dralthi (Dakhath) * Exeter, 4 Gratha VP: Nav 1 (1) Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 No medal 4 - Patrol: Detain a Ralari as the TC heads for the jump point N1: 2 Gratha & Ralari; Ast: 4 Salthi (Bhurak); Mines: 5 Dralthi (Dakhath); Mines 2: 3 Jalthi (Bakhtosh); TC: 4 Krant (Khajja) * TC VP: Nav 1 (1) Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 No medal Secret Missions Series 1: Goddard Fighter: Hornet Wingmate: Hunter Series VP: Impossible Win: N/A Lose: 2 The purpose of this series is to set the stage for the campaign proper. As you are not called to the site until Goddard is under attack, and you have no way of arriving at Goddard until it is destroyed, the series itself is impossible to win (if you won, there'd be no campaign). Therefore, just fly your missions and do the best you can, but don't worry if anything goes wrong. You are paired with Hunter in a Hornet. Despite the alliteration, the combination is far from harmonious. Then again, I don't get along too well with Hunter no matter what ship I'm assigned to. As for Hornets: here we are in a very dangerous situation in what everyone believes is a Code Red situation, and Halcyon links his best pilots with Hornets. What a way to conduct a war when so many lives are at stake! The first mission is very busy: Patrol the area, defend a ship about to jump out, and escort another ship that's jumping in. All you really have to do is touch the Nav Points, but I don't feel right unless I wipe out the Lumbari, and save both Confederation ships. BTW, if you want to take out the Lumbari, I suggest you act quickly, as it has a nasty habit of jumping away if you spend too much time with the Salthi. Your ship assignment, the Hornet, tells you that the most important part of the mission is the patrol aspect, no matter what the official designation is. During the debriefing, the survival of the Terran ships is based on touching the associated Nav points, not with their actual fates. The second mission holds the record for the mission where I've lost my wingmate most often. I almost always go after the transports on my own, as Hunter just can't handle the confrontation with the Gratha (assuming he gets that far). How I'm supposed to defend both Hunter and the Claw is beyond my ken. At least once you've taken care of the Gratha, the rest is easy (four Salthi alone, easy?). Oh, head for Nav 2 via the Claw if you don't like asteroids. Now what I want to know is why Halcyon is using Hornets to defend his carrier? 1 - Escort: Patrol 3 Nav Points and protect two ships N1: 4 Salthi & Lumbari; Ast: 2 Salthi; N2: 3 Krant * Diligent (P); N3: 3 Krant * Venture (P); N3-TC: 3 Salthi VP: Nav 2 (5), Nav 3 (5) Total VP: 10, Winning VP: 10 No medal 2 - Strike against a freighter and troop transport TC: 3 Krant, 2 Gratha; N1: 4 Salthi & Lumbari; N2: 2 Krant & Dorkir VP: Lumbari (5), Dorkir (5) Total VP: 10, Winning VP: 10 Silver Star for 117 kill points (Lumbari-, Dorkir-, 5 Krant-, 2 Gratha-, 1 Salthi-) Series 2: Border Zone Fighter: Raptor Wingmate: Angel Series VP: 25 Win: 3 Lose: 8 You are now heading into Kilrathi space, and the Kilrathi don't like the idea that you're going there. First you must get across the border. I suppose that this is really a star system in which the Confederation holds one jump point and the Kilrathi hold the other jump point. I have no idea how the Kilrathi have managed to mine so much of this region (I don't want to see the mine allocation in their annual budget), but perhaps they only seeded the most convenient routes. You are paired with Angel in a Raptor. Since she tends to be a better gunner than pilot, I prefer to stay out of her way and let her take care of herself. Since Angel is more likely to die from a collision than enemy fire, such an approach works well. Your first mission in Kilrathi space is to take out a Fralthi. Let's forget about this warm-up stuff and get right down to business, shall we? You may question my listing of five Dralthi on your return to the Claw. Believe me, there are really five, as long as you approach along the left side of the map and Angel is alive. Even then those two generally flee, making them very difficult to take out (I've done it, but it's not one of life's great achievements). As for the minefield, its one of the tougher ones in Wing Commander, so I won't blame anyone that simply bypasses it. The second mission demonstrates how much the power of the Jalthi is exaggerated. Here you are, arriving to see three Jalthi attacking a pair of Draymen, and you wipe out all three Jalthi before they can do significant damage to the transports. The next strange thing about this mission is that the Draymen often choose a rather strange path to Nav 2 after you get out of the Auto Pilot mode. As for victory conditions: I thought I once saved one Drayman and lost the series, but my more recent findings make that an unlikely event. I think all victory conditions in this series are designed to give people like me and Angel headaches. Speaking of Angel, I suggest you pull a little ahead of the Draymen as you approach Nav 2, so that Angel won't feel obliged to run into the transports. Who else would stay at the regulation position even if it kills her? 1 - Strike against a Fralthi TC: 4 Krant * TC; N1: 4 Gratha & Fralthi, 3 Krant; TC: 5 Dralthi * TC VP: Fralthi (5), 5 Dralthi (1 each), 4 Gratha (2 each) Total VP: 18, Winning VP: 16 No medal 2 - Escort two transports from Nav 1 to Nav 2 Mines: 2 Krant; N1: 3 Jalthi * 2 Draymen; N2-TC: 3 Gratha, 2 Krant VP: Save one Drayman (25) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 25 No medal Series 3: Midgard Fighter: Scimitar Wingmate: Bossman Series VP: 35 Win: 4 Lose: 8 This series has the word 'turnabout' written all over it. In one mission you attack a Drayman, and the next you defend a Dralthi. Wierd things happen when you penetrate Kilrathi space, don't they? You are paired with Bossman in a Scimitar. The result is generally a dead wingmate, resulting in this series having the largest number of wingmate deaths in the winning path (Goddard is before the winning path is started, and Retreat is on the losing path). Just when you thought you'd never have to see another Scimitar in your career, they pull out a few to use during a fighter shortage. This is the unfortunate result of going on a dangerous mission without a supply line home. All you can do is fight your best and live to see a better fighter. The first mission has several peculiarities. First off, it's the first mission where you can earn a negative kill point (you receive -1 kill points for destroying the Drayman). Despite that, you must destroy the Drayman to win (it's worth 20 VP), and do so quickly, as it will jump out of the system if you spend too much time playing with the Krant. The Dralthi is a fast and maneuverable fighter, but reminds me of a flying bullseye. The bad news is that you have to keep the Kilrathi from destroying one of these; the good news is that they are seding Dralthi to intercept it. This is one of those scenarios where you have to be quickly knock out the enemy fighters if you expect to win. As for victory points, there are several ways to get those ten points, the most satisfying being to save the Dralthi. The Jalthi and Fralthi are a bit tough, and I've never managed to knock them out, but they are required if you plan to listen to victory music. There's probably also a medal for knocking out everything and saving the Dralthi, but I don't expect to prove that in the near future. If you have trouble saving the Dralthi, approach Nav 2 via Nav 3 to clear the return path (1-TC-3-2-3-TC hits everything except the Jalthi group and makes the mission much easier to win). If you want to take out all the Fralthi without endangering the Dralthi, try 1-TC-3-TC-1-2-3-TC. Good luck. 1 - Strike against a captured Drayman and a Ralari TC-N1: 2 Jalthi; N1: 4 Krant & Drayman; N2: 2 Salthi & Ralari VP: Drayman (20), Ralari (5) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 20 No medal 2 - Defend a captured Dralthi and return it to the TC N1: 2 Gratha & Ralari; N2: 3 Dralthi * Dralthi (P); N3: 4 Dralthi & Fralthi; N3-TC: 5 Dralthi N4: 4 Jalthi & 2 Fralthi (Nav 1 again after touching another Nav) VP: Save Dralthi (10), Ralari (5), Nav 3 (5), Both Nav 4 Fralthi (5) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 25 Series 4: Jotunhein Fighter: Raptor Wingmate: Spirit Series VP: 25 Win: 5 Lose: 8 All right, you've had enough time playing, now it's time to make things a little tougher. You are paired with Spirit in a Raptor. If Spirit is missing somehow, then you are a victim of the Series List Overflow bug. I recommend that you run WCSAV on your save game file before flying these missions again. The first mission starts with a battle against a Fralthi. I'm always suspicious about missions that start that way, as you have to wonder what they do for an encore. In this case, you must protect a Drayman from several Krant. Actually not that tough a mission, assuming that you have Spirit along with you. The strike against the ambush pits you against another Fralthi. In this case, you have to stick close to the Fralthi, as it tends to slip away if you allow the Gratha to lead you astray. If you saved the Drayman in the previous mission, you don't have to get the Fralthi, but you'll be skimming by the edge of your teeth. The final mission is a curious one, to say the least. First of all, the mission is worth zero points, which means that you get the same amount of points whether you destroy the Gwenhyvar or not. Second, this is the only mission where you can earn a medal for making no kills. The only way NOT to get a medal is to destroy only the captured ships, which are worth -1 kill point each. Finally, the mission briefing has nothing to do with what actually happens, as the entire emergency situation is a hoax prepared by the Kilrathi. Anyway, don't kill yourself trying to kill the Gwenhyvar if you're playing through the campaign, as it won't help you in the slightest (but the glory of doing it is quite nice). Some players have reported seeing the Rapiers being misidentified in their screens. No matter what the screen says, they are Rapiers. 1 - Escort a Drayman to TC after a 3 point patrol N1: 6 Salthi & Fralthi; N2: 4 Gratha; N3: 4 Krant * Drayman (P), 3 Krant VP: Fralthi (5), N2 (2), Save Drayman (5) Total VP: 12, Winning VP: 12 2 - Strike against an ambush at Nav 3 N1: 4 Salthi & Dorkir; N2: 3 Krant; N3: 5 Gratha & Fralthi VP: Dorkir(5), Fralthi(5), 3 Krant (1 each), 5 Gratha (2 each) Total VP: 23, Winning VP: 23 3 - Patrol: Search for damaged Exeter and protect it TC-N1: 4 Gratha; N1: 4 Jalthi; N2: 4 Rapiers & Exeter (captured); N2-TC: 4 Krant, 3 Gratha Total VP: 0, Winning VP: 0 Bronze Star for 0 kill points Series 5: Bifrost Fighter: Raptor Wingmate: Paladin Series VP: 25 Win: 6 Lose: 8 Oh, you thought the last series was easy? Well, you'll lose all illusions of simplicity when you hit Bifrost. It's time to find an enemy fuel depot, and you can be sure it's well defended. You are paired with Paladin in a Raptor. Well, officially, at least. Unfortunately, the second mission is in a Scimitar. The first mission is a strike against an unknown enemy ship. Well, there is a Ralari you can take out, but the Sivar will jump before you even get near it. I am not sure what criteria is used for identifying the thing, but getting close to it before it jumps does improve your chances. As for victory, I don't know what makes that possible. The Jalthi at Nav 3 aren't worth any points, and taking out the Sivar is impossible, so either there is a hidden victory point somewhere, or victory is impossible. As for a challenge, try to take out all those Jalthi at Nav 3. No medal or victory music for it, but it's still quite an achievement. The second mission is the most ill assigned mission in all Wing Commander. A strike against a priority target requires either a Raptor or a Rapier, but here you are in a Scimitar. Surely not all the better ships are damaged in the previous mission. Okay, the designers are using a Scimitar to make it a challenge, but at least make the circumstances realistic. My best advice here is to be conservative on your AB fuel during the first two encoutners, as you cannot face those Jalthi and Gratha on low fuel. Second, if you leave anything alive or routed at the first two Nav Points, then return via the minefield if you expect to be too weak to face any opposition. Third, if you can rout the last Jalthi, by all means do it (but I get the impression that the Jalthi prefer to fight to the death). As I final note, I should add that this is the only mission I know of where the VP total exceeds the VP total of its series, as the Star Post alone decides the issue of the series. One more thing, I cannot believe that such an important mission that's in such difficult circumstances has no medal associated with it. I think a Gold Star for 225 kill points would have been quite fair. 1 - Strike against an unknown capital ship N1: 3 Jalthi; N2: 4 Krant & Ralari; N3: 6 Jalthi & Sivar VP: 3 Nav 1 Jalthi (2 each), Nav 2 (2), Nav 3 (2), Nav Sivar (2) Total VP: 10, Winning VP: 11 No medal 2 - Strike against a Fuel Depot in a SCIMITAR N1: 3 Salthi; N2: 4 Krant and Lumbari; N3: 4 Jalthi & Depot, 5 Gratha VP: Ralari (5), Star Post (25) Total VP: 30, Winning VP: 25 No medal Series 6: Valgard Fighter: Rapier Wingmate: Iceman Series VP: 35 Win: 7 Lose: 8 With the fuel depot destroyed, the Kilrathi will be finding a rude surprise when they arrive to refuel. As such, you sit and wait, as the Kilrathi come and find that sonething's not quite right. You are paired with Iceman in a Rapier. It's one of the better combinations you can get, so smile while it lasts. The first two missions are variations of the same theme: search and destroy. This is the ideal mission type for the Rapier, so don't blame your ship if you blow this one. The first is the easier of the two, as the second has stiffer opposition and a Lumbari that likes to jump out. Unless you are really badly off, hit all the Nav points as destroy all the capital ships you can. Actually, you need only bag seven of the nine, but since the pair of Fralthi at Nav 2 make up your entire margin of error, you must either bag both or make no other errors. The final mission requires you to defend your mother ship. Since you can't continue if you lose, it's quite logical that this mission counts for no victory points. As for the medal, I think you can win it with a minimal number of kills, but I haven't gotten around to proving this yet. 1 - Strike against all Kilrath you can find N1: 3 Krant & 2 Lumbari; N2: 3 Gratha & Ralari; N3: 4 Jalthi & Fralthi; N3-TC: 3 Krant VP: 4 capital ships (5 each) Total VP: 20, Winning VP: 15 2 - Strike against all Kilrathi at the Nav Points N1A: 4 Krant & Lumbari; N2: 3 Jalthi & Dorkir; N3: 4 Krant & 2 Fralthi, 4 Gratha, 2 Jalthi; N1B 3 Gratha & Ralari VP: 5 capital ships (5 each) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 25 Debrief error says that there were Dralthi at Nav 1 Recommend following orders and returning via Nav 1 3 - Defend the Tiger's Claw against desperate enemy fighters TC: 4 Krant * TC, 3 Jalthi, 3 Gratha, 3 Krant Total VP: 0, Winning VP: 0 Victory if the Tiger's Claw remains intact Bronze Star for 170 kill points (probably for even much less) Recommend routing last enemy if not up to another wave of fighters Series 7: Vigrid Fighter: Rapier Wingmate: Knight Series VP: 10 Win: VICTORY Lose: Retreat Time to close in for the kill. There's a Sivar out there, and it's your duty to wipe it from the face of the galaxy. You are paired with Knight in a Rapier. There are two versions as to what generally happens with Knight: he always runs, or he always gets killed (I'm one of those who often watches his funeral). In either case, it means that he's little help in these missions. If he's still alive after the Sivar is taken out, then you've accomplished more than I ever did. The first mission is basically a "let's prevent the enemy from attacking the Claw but they manage to get to it anyway" scenario. No victory points for this one, but the importance of saving the TC makes VP redundant anyway. Here I often find an intersting anomaly--the Ralari often fails to show up on my target screen (it's shields do, though). The final mission is the big one: can you take out the Sivar? The Sivar means everthing here, and you'll win or lose the campaign based on whether or not you can take it out. My best advice is to attempt to rout the last ship in any wave whenever possible, since reinforcements will not come after the last ship was routed. As for the medal, 220 is the minimum in which I counted the total and won, a count I made when I didn't nail the Sivar. I presume that the Sivar is itself worth at least 75 points, so nailing it pretty much guarantees you'll get the medal. The Sivar is quite tough to take out, but it can be done. It's weakest in the front, but easiest to hit in the rear--it's your choice. 1 - Patrol: Check out Nav 1 and take out whatever is there N1: 3 Jalthi & Ralari, 5 Krant; TC: 4 Gratha * TC, 3 Gratha, 3 Gratha Total VP: 0, Winning VP: 0 2 - Strike against a Sivar N1: 2 Krant & Fralthi, 2 Krant; N2: 6 Krant & Sivar, 6 Jalthi, 6 Gratha; TC: 4 Krant * TC VP: Sivar (10) Total VP: 10, Winning VP: 10 Gold Star for 220 kill points (11 Krant-, Fralthi-, 4 Jalthi-) Series 8: Retreat Fighter: Scimitar Wingmate: Maniac Series VP: N/A Win: Impossible Lose: Retreat If you reach this series, youv'e lost. Well, you can try again later, but meanwhile you should try these two missions, if not for any better reason to prove that your dislike for Maniac is well founded. You are paired with Maniac in a Scimitar. Need I say more? First you are assigned to a search and destroy mission. Unfortunately, this time you are in a Scimitar, not a Rapier, so it's quite a task. The real challenge in this one is getting through it with Maniac still alive. As for the Dralthi, once Maniac dies, you'll encounter three in each wave instead of five. The final mission is to protect the Claw as it prepares to cross the border. Of course, why bother? Saving the Claw only delays the inevitable as the Kilrathi enslave all of humanity. The cult of Sivar has gained another slave race to its list. But if you are an optimist and hope that humanity would have some chance if the Claw does escape, then fight on and make sure you rout the last Dralthi if you really don't feel like facing five Gratha. 1 - Strike against any Kilrathi in the area N1: 4 Krant & Fralthi; N2: 5 Drathi, 5 Dralthi, 5 Dralthi; N3: 3 Gratha & 2 Ralari VP: 3 Capital ships (5 each) Total VP: 15, Winning VP: 15 2 - Defend the Tiger's Claw against a Kilrathi attack TC: 5 Dralthi, 5 Gratha Total VP: 0, Winning VP: 0 Crusade Series 1: Firekka Fighter: Hornet Wingmate: Iceman Series VP: N/A Win: 2 Lose: N/A As with Secret Missions, we start with a warm-up series that has only one path, but this time the path leads to high hopes, not to despair. Ah, but alas this would be short lived, as a mighty Kilrathi fleet arrives to ruin the party. You are paired with Iceman in a Hornet. The assignment of the Hornet is quite logical here, as there is no way a significant Kilrathi presence could be found so far from their turf. Right? As for the Scimitar, I'm sure that Iceman isn't the only one cheering when they announce its retirement at the start of the second mission. The first mission is a simple escort, with orders to check out a possible Kilrathi presence. What you get is the first taste of what's to follow: deadlier Dralthi and the Imperial Guard. Apparently the designer decided that the original version of this mission was too difficult, as the debriefing keeps calling the diplomatic ships 'Venture' class, while they are clearly Exeters. The challenge in this mission is that Ralari. If you are able to wipe out the Gratha (a tough assignment as it is), then you better act quickly before the Ralari jumps out. The second mission is a typical patrol looking for a Kilrathi convoy. I have a feeling that tactical is getting suspicious at this point, as three Fralthi never have made up a convoy in any meaning of the term (a task force, yes; but a convoy, no). 1 - Escort Exeter from TC to Nav 2 via Nav 1 TC: Exeter (P); N1: 4 Dralthi; N2: 4 Salthi; N2-TC: 3 Gratha (Drakhai) & Ralari VP: Save Eceter (1) Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 Bronze Star for 120 kill points (Exeter+, 4 Dralthi-, 2 Salthi-, 3 Gratha-) 2 - Patrol: 2 Nav Points, don't engage the convoy TC-N1: 3 Dralthi (Drakhai); N1: 4 Krant; N2: 5 Jalthi (Drakhai) & 3 Fralthi Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 Victory if you touch both Nav Points Recommend not engaging fleet at Nav 2 Series 2: Firekka Fighter: Rapier Wingmate: Knight Series VP: 50 Win: 3 Lose: 8 All right, now that we know that there is something more here than a stray convoy, it's time to find out what's really going on. Just how strong is the Kilrathi presence and what can we do about it? You are paired with Knight in a Rapier. Not very promising, if you recall my previous comment on Knight and Rapiers. Fortunately, he seems to be a little better in SM2, at least from the point of view of constantly getting killed. In the first mission, you encoutner a new class of fighter: the Hhriss. These things are highly maneuverable, which make them tough to take out (especially for someone like me, who gets outmaneuvered by Fralthi). If you think that's bad, you should see their charge--a rather impressive looking carrier that must have sent the rest of its fighters elsewhere (probably figured a CAP of three Hhriss was more than adequate). The second mission is the start of the evacuation effort, since the diplomats cannot be left here if there's real trouble brewing. As in the first mission with Hunter, your charge is misidentified as a Venture. The victory point bonus for getting both seems rather strange to me, but its the only explanation I can see for what happens. In any case, you must completely win both missions to advance to the next series. As for the medal, you might be able to win it if one or two of the fighters get by, but that would be at most 3 Salthi, 2 Dralthi/Krant, or 1 Jalthi. 1 - Patrol: 3 Nav Points N1: 3 Krant (Drakhai); N2: 3 Hhriss & Snakeir; N3: 3 Gratha, 3 Krant (Drakhai) VP: Nav 1 (5), Nav 2 (5), Nav 3 (5), Fralthi (10) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 25 2 - Defend two Exeters preparing to jump N1: 3 Jalthi; N2: 4 Krant * Exeter; N3: 4 Dralthi * Exeter, 4 Salthi VP: Nav 2 Exeter (12), Nav 3 Exeter (13) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 25 Bronze Star for 200 kill points (kill all Kilrathi, save all Terran) Series 3: Firekka Fighter: Raptor Wingmate: Spirit Series VP: 50 Win: 4 Lose: 8 Things are getting curiouser and curiouser. A defecting Kilrathi? This brings up a point that I always wondered about, as we know so little about the Kilrathi in general. Perhaps it's possible that the main part of the population are decent people who we could get along with if we had a chance. Our defecting Kilrathi captain has decided that the ways of the Kilrathi military are wrong, and that someone should stand up for decent Kilrathi kind. Okay, so why this war if Kilrahti are really decent folk? Well, I'll discuss that in the next series. You are paired with Spirit in a Raptor. The only thing that scares me about flying with Spirit is that the missions I get with her seem always to be tough ones (excepting those introductory missions in Enyo). Ah, it is nice that she knows you well enough to speak with you as a friend, instead of as some mythical god. The first mission is to save a defecting Fralthi. Just to make sure that you are paying attention, they also throw in a Frathi you are supposed to destroy at the same Nav point. In this mission, ignore the first Krant you encoutner and go for the ones attacking the Fralthi. Also, after you save the Fralthi, you'll probably be set for Nav 1. Remember to reset the Nav computer to the Tiger's Claw before activating the autopilot, or else you'll lose the Fralthi as it heads for the Claw and you head in the opposite direction. The second mission requires you to help a couple ships get out of the system safely. You don't have to worry much about the Exeter, as hitting the Nav point practically guarantees that it'll get away safely. The Drayman is another matter. As in the previous mission, ignore the first Krant you encoutner and take out the ones nearest the Drayman. Also, act quickly against the Dralthi (better yet, rout the last Krant to avoid the Dralthi). Oh, if you lose the Drayman early, you only encounter 2 Salthi. 1 - Escort a defecting Fralthi to the TC TC-N1: 2 Hhriss; N1: 5 Krant (Drakhai) & Fralthi * Fralthi (P); N1-TC: 5 Dralthi (Drakhai) VP: Save defector (15), Kill enemy Frathi (10) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 25 Gold Star for 200 kill points (Fralthi+, Fralthi-, All Fighters-) 2 - Escort an evacuation transport from Nav 2 to Nav 3 N1: 2 Jalthi (Drakhai); N2: 3 Krant * Drayman, 4 Dralthi; N3: 4 Salthi; N4: 4 Gratha * Exeter VP: Save Drayman (15), Save Exeter (10) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 25 Series 4: Corsair Fighter: Dralthi Wingmate: Jazz Series VP: 50 Win: 5 Lose: 8 Well, we're still trying to figure out what's going on, so it's time to go undercover and see if the Kilrathi would tell us themselves. You are paired with Jazz in a Dralthi--the flying bullseye you've been laughing at since your third mission. With a little luck, you can accomplish your mission without being detected and not worry about the low visibility and large target size of the Dralthi. What do you mean nothing's ever as simple as it seems? One more thing--don't start these missions unless you intend to complete them, as you cannot eject. The first mission is a recon to check out a pair of Snakeir. Your best bet is to touch Nav 1 and return home, especially if you are in no need for a promotion (there are more promotion points in this mission than any other, due to its superabundance of Drakhai). If you are really up to fighting off all those Drakhai, be my guest, but bug out when you're in trouble. The second mission is another undercover patrol. The most intesting feature of this mission is the mixed battle at Nav 1. This is the only battle in Wing Commander that has the enemy flying more than one fighter at a single encounter, which they manage to do only because some of those fighters are the same type you are flying. In other words, make sure you only fire at a targeted Dralthi, as you don't want to kill Jazz. Okay, why are we fighting this war if I think the Kilrathi may be decent folk? Simple, the real enemy is the Sivar cult. Since they presently conttol the military and the Imperial family, it is no wonder that we are figthing this bloody war. Of course, WC II will most likely throw this theory down the drain, but it's worth a shot. 1 - Patrol: Get information from Kilrathi ships at Nav 1 TC-N1: 5 Hhriss (4 Drakhai); N1: 4 Jalthi (4 Drakhai) & 2 Snakeir, 4 Krant (4 Drakhai); N1-TC: 4 Jalthi (Drakhai) VP: Nav 1 (30), 2 Snakeir (5 each) Total VP: 40, Winning VP: 40 2 - Patrol: Pick up communications data at Nav 1 TC-N1: 3 Jalthi (3 Drakhai); N1: 3 Dralthi & 2 Rapiers; N2: 2 Jalthi VP: Nav 1 (10), Nav 2 (10) Total VP: 20, Winning VP: 20 Series 5: Firekka Fighter: Hornet Wingmate: Doomsday Series VP: 50 Win: 6 Lose: 8 We just can't sit here while the Kilrathi forcibly convert our new friends, can we? It's time to send in some troops and disrupt this ceremony. Are you up to a little blasphemy? You are paired with Doomsday in a Hornet. Don't even ask who's idea that is. Doomsday is such a pessimist that he'd call Candide's adventures happy events. Your first mission is to escort a pair of transports. The first one is easy and the second one is a bit of a challenge. My main suggestion is that if one of the Gratha tries to run away--let it. While the Salthi are not all that dangerous when they are the only opponent, they have a habit of turning the balance against you whenever they show up. Stay close and defend the transport, especially during the Dralthi battle. Note that if you lose Doomsday at Nav 1, there'll only be two Dralthi at Nav 2. The second mission is in a Dralthi. Here you should keep quiet until you are nearing the second Nav point. At that time, position yourself just behind the Jalthi as they start firing, then blast away. How well you do here usually makes the difference is winning and losing the mission. Note that there is only one Drayman in this mission, and that it mini-jumps from Nav 1 to Nav 2 during the mission. 1 - Escort any marine transports that you find on your route TC-N1: 4 Salthi (Drakhai); N1: 2 Gratha * 2 Draymen, 4 Salthi; N2: 5 Dralthi VP: Save Drayman 1 (13), Save Drayman 2 (12) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 25 2 - Escort a lost Drayman to the Tiger's Claw in a DRALTHI TC-N1: 4 Gratha (4 Drakhai); N1: 5 Hhriss (Drakhai) * Drayman; N2: 3 Jalthi * Drayman; N2-TC: 3 Krant VP: Nav 1 (5), Nav 2 (5), Save Drayman (15) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 25 Series 6: Corsair Fighter: Raptor Wingmate: Hunter As the marines prepare their attack, you must wreak havoc on Kilrathi ships to reduce the Kilrathi strength. You are paired with Hunter in a Raptor. With me, that usually means a dead wingmate before this is over, as Hunter is one of three pilots that has a high death rate with me. The first mission is to defend the Claw and then seek out any enemy ships in the area. First I should note that Nav 1 is worth nothing in this mission, so you can skip the silly asteroid navigation if you want to. Second, the Tiger's Claw is the first Nav Point, and I suggest you get close enough to get an Objective Reached message if you don't want to have to reset your Nav computer after touching each Nav Point (in which case you'll have to brave the asteroids to keep from resetting the Nav computer anyway). Third, you can often get away with fighting only a pair of the Jalthi at a time - don't head for the idle pair until you have finished off the active pair. The second mission is to take out troop transports that are heading to Firekka. These are important, as these are the troops that will be fighting the marines you escorted to the planet earlier. As these transports are prone to jumping away if you dally too long, try to take them out as quickly as possible. Also, you don't really need to touch Nav 2 and fight the Hhriss, so if you're in trouble after taking out the transports, your best bet is to return to base. 1 - Defend the Tiger's Claw and attack enemy ships at Nav Points TC: 5 Dralthi (Drakhai), 5 Salthi; N2: 3 Gratha & Ralari, 4 Dralthi (Drakhai); N3: 4 Jalthi (2 Drakhai) & Snakeir VP: Ralari (10), Snakeir (15) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 25 Gold Star for 270 kill points (Ralari-, Fralthi-, 4 Jalthi-, 3 Gratha-, 7 Dralthi-) 2 - Strike against enemy troop transports N1: 5 Salthi (Drakhai), 5 Salthi; N1-N2: 5 Dralthi (2 Drakhai) & 2 Dorkir; N2: 2 Hhriss VP: Dorkir 1 (13), Dorkir 2 (12) Total VP: 25, Winning VP: 25 Series 7: Corsair Fighter: Dralthi Wingmate: Angel Series VP: 0 Win: 9 Lose: N/A With the ceremony disrupted, it is time to leave the system as quickly as possible. Yet we cannot abandon our new friends, can we? The only thing we can do it try to inflict so much damage on the Kilrathi before they leave that they'd be unable to hold Firekka. You are paired with Angel in a Dralthi. I have no idea why this mission is in a Dralthi, as there is no attempt at secrecy. The first mission is to find any of the escaping marine transports and escort it back to the Claw. Actually, the transport means nothing from the point of view of victory, but it is a good morale boost to bring the transports home safely. The second mission is an attempt to get rid of as much enemy hardware as possible. At least this time you are in a Rapier, which is quite suitable for the task. In this mission, you will meet each type of enemy fighter in the game, assuming you invoke all subsequent waves. This is essentially a final opportunutiy to boost up your kill total. Since you cannot lose this mission, it's up to you whether you want to go down fighting or survive to see Vega once again. Note that the SM2CHA file posted by Orion incorrectly lists Maniac as your wingmate - gee, don't scare us that way! 1 - Escort a Drayman to the Tiger's Claw TC-N1: 4 Gratha & Ralari; N1: 4 Krant (Drakhai) * Drayman; N1-TC: 4 Salthi (Drakhai) VP: Ralari (1) Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 Victory if you destroy the Ralari Halcyon Victory if Ralari destroyed and Drayman survives 2 - Defend Firekka by attacking Kilrathi in area in RAPIER N1: 1 Salthi (Drakhai), 3 Hhriss; N1-N2: 4 Gratha; N2: 2 Krant (Drakhai), 2 Jalthi; N2-N3: 4 Salthi (Drakhai) & Dorkir; N3: 3 Jalthi (Drakhai) & Fralthi; TC: 4 Dralthi (Drakhai) * TC, 4 Krant Total VP: 0, Winning VP: 0 Series 8/9: Charon Fighter: Raptor Wingmate: Maniac Series 8 VP: N/A Win: N/A Lose: Retreat Series 9 VP: 1 Win: VICTORY Lose: Retreat Well, the party's over and it's time to leave. Please let the cat outside before you jump out of the system. This series is numbered both 8 and 9, with 8 being the number for the losing path and 9 being the number for the winning path. The principal difference between the two is that it is possible to win the campaign from series 9. You are paired with Manaic in a Raptor, and then a Rapier. Doesn't matter, of course, since Maniac is mostly trouble no matter what fighter you're in. The first mission is a strike against any enemy ships you find. I've never managed to get the Snakeir, so I must consider that to be the great challenge of this mission. Since winning is absurdly simple, I suggest you go for the Medal of Valor. The second mission is a simple Tiger's Claw defense. Just fly well and knock out or rout whatever enemy you can. 1 - Strike against enemy ships at 3 Nav Points N1: 2 Jalthi; N2: 4 Gratha & 2 Ralari; N3: 5 Krant (Drakhai) & Snakeir VP: Nav 1 (1) Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 Medal of Valor for 165 kill points 2 - Defend the Tiger's Claw with a RAPIER TC: 6 Dralthi * TC, 5 Salthi (2 Drakhai), 2 Hhriss VP: Save TC (1) Total VP: 1, Winning VP: 1 - David S. "Center" Raley 53 Sorties, 500 kills 7 BS, 4 SS, 3 GS, 1 PP [+44 kills/+1 GS from terminal missions]