The Glory of Memphis
| The following information has not been confirmed by Volition and is therefore not canon for the FreeSpace universe. Also, it may contain spoilers regarding Series Resurrecta campaigns. |
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Campaign Walkthrough | |
Shadows of the Great War - The Spirit of Ptah Mission 6
Player squadron: 26th Yellow Lancers
Description: Before the Alliance deals with the Hikuptah, it has to bring order and logistics back to Altair...
Created: September 17th, 2010
Released: October 16th, 2020
Background
The series of events that led the HLD Hikuptah to influence the strategical and political balance across star systems now culminates in Altair, where the Hammer of Light is involved in operations of uncertain nature. What the Alliance does know, however, is the fact that its loyal colonies have suffered several weeks of significant reductions to supply lines, and need more support or they would become too vulnerable to HoL influence. The enemy flagship is nowhere to be found, and a larger Ancient structure on the surface of Altair V, known as the Temple, hosts a major Hammer of Light headquarters where research on Ancient artifacts may be performed. Considering that anything involving the HoL is by definition bad for the fate of the Terrans and even the Vasudans, reestablishing safe supply lines towards the various settlements across the system would also allow, soon afterwards, to have better tactical tools to stop the HoL, regardless of what it is doing.
Walkthrough
To be filled in later.
Notable ships present
- Alliance
- PVT Lambda 1-3
- PVT Psi 1-3 (disguised HoL units)
- PVT Rho 1-3
- PVT Upsilon 1-4
- PVC Uaiput (may survive)
- PVD Hedetet
- Hammer of Light
- HLFr Injury (destroyed in hangarbay - good ending)
- HLFr Insult (destroyed in hangarbay - good ending)
- HLT Psi 1-3
- HLSC Merdjefar (destroyed)
- HLCv Meskhenet (may survive)
- HLCv Shedet (may survive)
- HLD Hedju Hor (destroyed)
- HLD Hikuptah (destroyed - good ending)
- Pandemonium Research Structure (destroyed)
- Shivans
- SD Beast (bad ending)
- SSD Pandemonium (destroyed - good ending)
Outcome
The mission has two possible endings, one of which is truly apocalyptical for the Alliance, as it unleashes a new Shivan invasion triggered by the Hammer of Light. Their ideology nearly collapsed on itself following the destruction of the Lucifer, but the discovery of the SSD Pandemonium, which also led to the construction of the HLD Hikuptah, helped them regain new momentum. Now, with the Shivan forces storming Terran and Vasudan space, the political instability is not the primary threat, as both species have to face a new onslaught threatening their very survivals they may not have the power to counter.
With respect to the positive ending of the battle, and the ultimate destruction of both superdestroyers, the Alliance may in fact have a brighter future ahead, but hard questions about the Shivans, the Ancients and the Hammer of Light will remain. The Ancient mystery in particular will get even more complicated, as Ancient artifacts were deemed vital tools to understand Shivan technology and counter it, yet they've also proven to be used in favor of the Shivan assaults. This leads to suspect that, as they faced extinction, even the Ancients watched their own ideology fragment, and while some of them worked hard to find a solution to the Destroyers' relentless advance, others developed devices that would have even accelerated it.
Notes
The mission title refers to the ancient Egyptian name for the city of Memphis, which was in fact Hikuptah. The word "Hikuptah", which is considered the root of the modern words for "Egypt" in most languages on Earth, means "the Ka of the God Ptah", where "Ka" indicates the soul. The Ka fighter is the elite Hammer of Light unit serving on the Hikuptah itself, as well as on the most critical HoL assets.
The initial plans for the TSoP campaign involved a seventh mission as the final one, with a transition between the sixth and the seventh similar to that seen in the final stages of Gehenna's Gate, but it was ultimately decided to feature a single, final mission in a progressive crescendo from an apparently calm cargo depot escort to the final battle with the Hikuptah.
