This walkthrough is designed to help you through the plot missions in Origin's Privateer. If you'd rather discover the plot yourself, don't read any further: it may spoil some of the fun for you. If you're stuck on a plot mission, this document will probably help you out of that situation.
NOTE: This walkthrough only covers the plot missions found in the original Privateer. It does not cover any of the plot missions found in the Righteous Fire scenario disk!
Ship Choices [>]
¥ Before you undertake any of the plot missions in
Privateer, you should upgrade your ship as much as possible. Some ships are definitely better than others for plot missions: the Orion and the Centurion are the best, the Galaxy and the Tarsus are the worst. Regardless of the ship type you choose, you should have it outfitted with afterburners, at least a level 3 shield and engine upgrades, cargo expansion, level 3 ECM, a repair droid, Hunter 6I or B&S EYE scanner, plenty of IR missiles, and tungsten armor. You can attempt the plot missions with less, but expect to be frustrated if you do. Finally, you should have a good grasp of how to operate your ship most effectively.
New Detroit Blues [>]
¥ SANDOVAL/NEW DETROIT/MISSION 1: The plot missions begin
in New Detroit: you'll meet a man by the name of Sandoval in the bar there. Sandoval wants you to deliver iron to Liverpool (Newcastle system), and promises you 15,000 credits. He doesn't pay you a dime now, but will give you an alien artifact as collateral. Complete Sandoval's mission and return to New Detroit.
TAYLA/NEW DETROIT/MISSION 1: Back at New Detroit, a woman named Tayla will meet you in the bar. Sandoval has been killed, and Tayla promises you info on the artifact if you do some missions for her. Tayla wants you to ship a load of plastics to Oakham (Pentonville system), a pirate base.
The Pirate's Life for Me [>]
¥ TAYLA/OAKHAM/MISSION 2: Tayla will meet you at Oakham and
pay you the 10,000 credits she promised you. Now Tayla wants you to break the law by delivering a load of drugs to Hector (Troy System). She'll pay you 15,000 credits, so take the load of Brilliance to Hector -- {fleeing} from any militia you encounter -- then return to Oakham and meet with Tayla.
TAYLA/OAKHAM/MISSION 3: Tayla gives you more information about the artifact, then offers you 20,000 credits to take a load of drugs to New Constantinople. During your mission, flee from any ConFed or militia forces that you encounter. Deliver the drugs, then return to Oakham for your last mission with Tayla.
Tayla's Exit [>]
¥ TAYLA/OAKHAM/MISSION 4: In this mission, Tayla will give
you a secret compartment for your ship and 10,000 credits if you take a load of Brilliance to New Constantinople. As you leave the pirate base to do so, a bounty hunter will pester you. Destroy him immediately, then finish off his 3 cohorts as quickly as possible. Again, try to flee from ConFed and militia forces. After you've delivered the drugs to New Constantinople and return to Oakham, Tayla will tell you to meet a man by the name of Roman Lynch in New Constantinople. Tayla also admits that she knows next to nothing about the artifact, and that Roman Lynch will have more information about the artifact than she does.
Lynch and Miggs [>]
¥ ROMAN LYNCH/NEW CONSTANTINOPLE/MISSION 1: You'll meet
Lynch and his bodyguard at the bar in New Constantinople. Lynch will offer you 10,000 credits to deliver a message to a bounty hunter in Pentonville. After you've given the bounty hunter the message, defend yourself and destroy him. Return to New Constantinople to collect your payment.
ROMAN LYNCH/NEW CONSTANTINOPLE/MISSION 2: Roman's next job involves running guns to Siva (Rikel System). He offers you 15,000 credits, and warns you that a fellow mobster may try to stop you. While on the mission, you'll run into Salmon Kroiz. Destroy Salmon and his henchmen, deliver the guns to Siva, then return to New Constantinople.
Treachery in Gamedom [>]
¥ ROMAN LYNCH/NEW CONSTANTINOPLE/MISSION 3: Your next
mission for Roman involves ferrying his cousin to Romulus (Castor system) for a payment of 30,000 credits. Since his cousin is wanted by the Confederacy, they'll try to stop you. Again, run if you can: hit the afterburners to escape. After you've delivered his cousin to Romulus, head back to New Constantinople for your payment.
ROMAN LYNCH/NEW CONSTANTINOPLE/MISSION 4: In this mission, Roman wants you to pick up a researcher from Liverpool (Newcastle). Once you're in the Liverpool system, Miggs will jump you with 3 other Talons. Destroy them all, then head to Oxford.
Salman Rushdie, er ... Hunter Toth [>]
¥ MASTERSON/OXFORD/MISSION 1: Once you arrive at Oxford, an
official wants you to earn admission into the library by performing a few tasks or him. First, you'll need to escort a Drayman carrying an author to Oxford. Meet the Drayman, then quickly destroy each of the retros that try to destroy the Drayman. This is one of the most difficult missions in the game: kill the retros quickly and stay close to the Drayman. Ram the ships if you can: that tactic works well. Be sure to stock up on IR missiles before the battle, and use them extensively. Note that you have to destroy all the retros -- 5 in all -- to complete the mission successfully. It won't be easy.
Readin', Writin' and ... Pirates? [>]
¥ MASTERSON/OXFORD/MISSION 2: After you return to Oxford,
Masterson wants you to destroy some pirates that have been stealing data from the university. Once on the mission, destroy the Galaxy-class ship immediately, then return to Oxford. You don't have to destroy all the pirates to complete the mission -- just the Galaxy-class ship.
MASTERSON/OXFORD/MISSION 3: This mission is similar to the one in which you escorted Hunter Toth: you'll have to escort a Drayman transport to Oxford. This one is a bit tougher, as you'll be going against Demons instead of Talons. Concentrate on each ship until it is destroyed. After doing so, return to Oxford for your payment.
The Library [>]
¥ MASTERSON/OXFORD/MISSION 4: This is the last mission
you'll have to do for the University at Oxford: another Drayman escort mission. I found this one a bit easier than the others. Again, concentrate your fire on individual ships until destroyed, use plenty of missiles, and ram as many ships as your shields will allow.
When completed, youll be given access to the Oxford Library. After searching through the cubicles in the Library and using the research tool, you'll receive a report on Dr. Monkhouse, who is working on Palan. You'll need to get more info about the artifact from him, so you should head to Palan (Palan system) to get that information.
Palan Blockade! [>]
¥ LYNN MURPHY/BASRA/MISSION 1: By now you'll have realized
that Palan is blockaded, so head towards Basra. You'll meet Lynn Murphy on Basra: shes in charge of the blockade removal efforts. Your first mission -- for 15,000 credits -- is to destroy about a dozen Demons moving towards the blockade. Use your afterburner often, and concentrate your fire to emerge victorious.
LYNN MURPHY/BASRA/MISSION 2: Your job in this mission is to destroy the patrol that is being sent to investigate what happened to those Demons you destroyed. Consisting of Demons and Centurions, all the hostiles must be destroyed to complete the mission.
Dr. Monkhouse, I Presume [>]
¥ LYNN MURPHY/BASRA/MISSION 3: In mission #3, you'll have
to mop up the rest of the blockade. If you don't want to stick around for the battle, you can head straight for Palan and on to the next mission, letting your wingmen take care of the bogies for you!
DR. MONKHOUSE/PALAN/MISSION 1: Once you contact Dr. Monkhouse on Palan, you'll have to lug him across the system to Basra. Once you've done that, hell give you the lowdown on the alien artifact and why it's so important. Monkhouse will allow you to keep the artifact if you agree to join the Exploratory Services. Monkhouse intends to publish his findings on the artifact; you should head to Rygannon.
at Rygannon; she'll send you off to the sectors displayed on the artifact map -- now known to be a relic of the ancient Steltek civilization. You'll run across a handful of militia, but they'll be easy pickings. Blast them out of space and return to Rygannon.
TARYN CROSS/RYGANNON/MISSION 2: Your task in this mission is to jump into the Beta system and search for a missing Captain Garrovick. Once you run across the good Captain, he'll start attacking you -- something he's seen has driven him batty. Put the poor Captain out of his misery by blasting him into bits, then head back to Rygannon.
Party-Crashing Kilrathi [>]
¥ TARYN CROSS/RYGANNON/MISSION 3: Taryn is curious why
Captain Garrovick lost his marbles, so she'll send you out to investigate. You'll run into a bunch of Kilrathi on this mission: It'll be a tough fight, but you can destroy most of them by concentrating your fire and using afterburners to your tactical advantage.
TARYN CROSS/RYGANNON/MISSION 4: This time you're sent out to the Delta Prime system to map the region and look for anything out of the ordinary. When you're out searching, you'll come across a Steltek crash site. Land near the ship and take a look around the wreckage. You'll want to examine the ship and remove the Steltek weaponry.
