Tactical Operations Briefing: TOD 3 Mission 10

Guard Vital Supply Depot

This is one of those missions that can make even the toughest Rebel Pilot cry in absolute frustration. Most of us would rather go up against a Star Destroyer in a broken Y-Wing with no shields and only one working laser than have to fly escort duty for anything. It only gets worse when what we're escorting can't move or defend itself. But in these trying times, we often have no choice. Still in an attempt to prevent an epidemic of bald pilots with fists full of hair, this mission should get you through the most trying mission of your career to date.

In the hanger, be sure and chose all Top Ace wingmen. This is very important because in this mission quick kills are a must. If you don't have any Top Aces to spare, you can always download one from the Liberty Library and copy him under several different names (i.e. wingman1, wingman2, etc.)

Once you've exited from hyperspace, set your ELS to 100\100 and dump all of your laser energy into shields. Hit the "T" key three times to bring up the first CON and fly directly away from the cache. This means all of the green dots should be in your rear radar display. Hit "BACKSPACE" to go to full throttle and continue to pour your lasers to shields. When your shields are full readjust your ELS to 100\50 until you have fully charged your laser banks, then drop your lasers to 75% and keep flying.

At this point timing becomes a real factor to completing the mission goals. At 18:50 left on the clock, do a 180 degree loop and head back towards the cache. You should be about 5.5 to 6.0 kicks away from the CON you targeted back at the beginning. At 18:30 hit "O" to clear your CMD and "Y" to target the last ship in the area. This will be the FRG Resub. Readjust your ELS to 100\75 and go to work.

Now you have three options. You can:

a. send your wingmen after the Resub and take on the T\B that swarm the CONs. b. take on the Resub yourself and leave the T\B for your wingmen c. give up and hyper home (trust me, this is an important option.)

Most of the time, option a will be your best choice. If you take this option, you need to concentrate on flights Beta and Gamma. Alpha will only attack you, Gamma will attack whatever enemy target is closest (A-Wings or CONs), but Beta will focus on the CONs and will only bother you if you attack them first. Needless to say this makes Beta your biggest threat. Switch to your inflight map often to make sure that none of the T\Bs get past you. Use your missiles liberally. You've got twelve, and the faster you kill the better off you'll be. Your wingmen can keep the FRG away from the CONs and off your back long enough for you to blast the T\B's into the great beyond.

There are three possible entry position for the FRG. If it comes in too close to the CONs for comfort you may want to try and take the Resub on yourself. While this is a great way to score points, it can be very risky. You will need to constantly redirect your wingmen to the proper T\Bs to make the mission a success. It's possible but not necessarily recommendable.