The Plunder
| The following information has not been confirmed by Volition and is therefore not canon for the FreeSpace universe. |
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MISSION 09
ACT 2, MISSION 02
Fighter squadron: Not given.
Description: Laporte finds herself part of a new task force for offensive operations. Their first task: capture one of the GTVA's logistics ships.
Background
With Simms back in the saddle again, morale amongst Simms' squadron returns to normal. As this is happening, Admiral Steele has changed the pace of operations; while resupplying his fleet in Jupiter in preparation for a big push, his smaller ships stage several raids in Earth and Mars sectors, destroying fleet assets and keeping the pressure on. Admiral Netreba is convinced that without offensive action, the UEF Navy will lose momentum and be destroyed.
Enter the much rumoured Big Op. Admiral Netreba and Admiral Calder have finalized their plans for a series of offensive operations, and have selected four frigates to be the core of a new task force to carry them out -- the Katana, the Altan Orde, the Yangtze -- and the Indus. The task force has no official name, but many have taken to calling it Task Force Wargods after a certain captain's heroic battle cry.
The first mission for TF Wargods is a risky, but very lucrative venture -- capturing the GTL Agincourt, one of the two logistics vessels the GTVA has in the system. These ships act as mobile repair stations, allowing warships to be repaired, refueled, and rearmed without jumping all the way back to a rear-area base. In addition, the mobile nature of the logistics ships allows them to be used as a staging area for operations without giving the enemy a fixed location to target for a counterattack. Capturing the Agincourt will not only hamper Admiral Steele's operations in Sol, it will also allow 2nd and 3rd Fleets to conduct further offensives.
Obviously, Admiral Steele is no fool, and knows the value of his logistics ships; if one of them cries for help, he will send his fleet to get it back. This makes securing it quietly a priority. When the Wargods jump in, the Indus and the Yangtze will flood the area with comms jamming and engage the warship escort while the Kents and Uriels splash the fighter escort and disable the engines on the Agincourt before it can jump out. Once that's done, a transport will jump in to secure the Agincourt, and, if possible, jump it straight to Earth.
If the Indus or the Yangtze are lost, the jamming will be compromised and the mission will be over.
Walkthrough
You can fly a Kent or an Uhlan for this mission, but the Kent is highly recommended for its greater speed and the ability to launch Paveways. Swapping the Maul bank with a Scalpel may help with disabling the engines on the Agincourt if you run out of Paveways.
In any case, you'll start about 8 km or so from the Agincourt. From this point, you will have five minutes of game time to disable her before she jumps out. After a bit of dialogue, Ng'Mei will take Beta wing to engage the fighters while Simms will take Cider and Warbird to take out the beam cannons on the warships, ordering you to help them out or cover them. Taking out the beams is pretty easy; usually one or two Paveways is enough to take out the beams. Defang the Siren first, as the corvette will rip a frigate apart. Remember that the warships have formidable anti-fighter defences, so don't get too close; approach from the front, Paveway a beam from maximum range, break, repeat.
The best way to deal with the fighters is to not try and fight them near the warships; draw them back to the Indus and Yangtze instead, who will make short work of the fighters. If you need assistance, you can press 1 on the keyboard to get help.
After all this, disabling the Agincourt should be a piece of cake. The biggest problem you may face is time; by the time you've dealt with the escort, you may not have long before she jumps. Get behind her, target the engines, and hammer away with primaries until she's disabled. Be careful not to destroy her or you'll fail the mission; this is why you may want to pack a Scalpel. Depending on time, getting your wingmen to help may not be a bad thing.
After being disabled, the Agincourt reluctantly surrenders, and the Wargods will call in the UET Gloire to secure her. There will be some more dialogue here, and then the Agincourt will launch 3 Atalantas for you to deal with. This, however, is a distraction; the Agincourt is also launching 6 escape pods to jump home and send for help. Destroy the pods first, then the fighters before they jump. If one of them makes it out, the mission is over.
After the pods and fighters have been destroyed, the Gloire docks with the Agincourt and, after a bit more dialogue, you may fly into the fighter bay of the Indus to end the mission. The fighter bay entrance is at the top of the ship. There is also some more dialogue here, which you may choose to listen to before flying into the fighter bay.
Notes
- This forum post strongly hints that the source for the jump schedules of the Agincourt was Rear Admiral Thea Carey, formerly of the GTD Temeraire.
- Due to the locked loadouts, Beta wing will be carrying eight Slammer missiles (despite the fact that the UEF Kentauroi can only carry four in its first bank), and Gamma wing will be carrying a bank of Warhammer bombs (while the only bomb the Uriel can carry is the Jackhammer).
Total number of forces
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(*) Captured by enemy forces post-mission
