Written after watching someone buy a freedom implant during warops.
So you’re minding your own business starting the round when you notice that you didn’t get a “you are the X” message in chat, when suddenly:
Operatives on standby, your objectives are simple. Get in, deliver the payload and get out before the payload detonates. Begin Mission.
Now what?
Basically, you are now part of an “”""“Elite”""""" Syndicate nuclear strike team, or a tactical clown strike team. You’ll be assaulting the station and trying to steal the Nuclear Authentication Disk, before using it to arm a nuclear bomb you have in your possession to destroy the station.
You have been given the following basic gear:
Stetchkin Pistol - A rather poor handgun with an eight round magazine. Don’t use unless it’s a last resort.
Survival Knife - A tiny 20 damage melee weapon. You can use it to conserve ammo if you didn’t take a better melee weapon.
Disk Pinpointer - Click on it in hand to activate. Leads you directly to the disk.
Agent Card - Can copy other ID cards’ access by using it on them. Stops the AI tracking you and Syndicate Turrets from shooting you.
Uplink - Basically a weapons vendor in your pocket. Contains 30 telecrystals + Some more depending on player population. See items section for more detail.
Various Syndicate Clothes
The shuttle you use and your base both contain a variety of items to assist you:
- C4, Minibombs, bomb beacons, spare 10mm magazines - covered in items section…
- Various tools and medkits
- Ion Rifle - don’t bring this. It does no damage except against borgs and mechs, and is probably going to be stolen and used against your Borgs and mechs.
- Chest Rig - Holds ANY seven small items. Goes in packs or on your belt. Take one for C4 etc.
- Blood Red Hardsuit - A fancy armoured spacesuit. When you enable the helmet you can change between EVA mode (works like a spacesuit) or combat mode (No movement slowdown). Also has a build in jetpack, fuelled by oxygen tanks placed in the suit slot.
Items:
Now I won’t go over every item (because there are a lot), but I will go over every primary weapon as well as some very good and very bad utility items.
Guns
First off ignore the toy guns as they are worthless. All weapons except the flamethrower and Stetchkin do not fire for non-operatives.
C20r SMG
Cost: 10TC or 14TC for a bundle with two spare mags and a suppressor
Ammo Capacity: 24
Damage: 2x 30 Brute
Ammo Cost: 3TC per magazine, or 22TC for a bundle of nine mags
If you have no idea what weapon to buy, pick this. Solid all round performance, does decent damage and is reasonably cheap. Has no special ammo.
Bulldog Shotgun
Cost: 8TC or 13TC with two spare buckshot drums and a pair of thermals
Ammo Capacity: 8
Damage: 75 Total spread equally between 8 pellets (Buckshot), 1x 60 (slugs) 1x 20 + Stun, Knockback and Knockdown (Meteor Slugs), 20 + Ignite spread over 4 pellets (Dragon’s Breath)
Ammo Cost: 2TC per drum, or 14TC for a bundle of 6x Buckshot, 2 Slugs and 1 Dragon’s Breath Drum
A cheap and powerful close range weapon, capable of killing very quickly. However, it only accepts its special drums and not regular 12g shotgun ammo, and it burns through its ammo supply very fast. Generally avoid the special ammo as it isn’t really worth the loss in damage.
L6 Saw
Cost: 18TC
Ammo Capacity: 50
Damage: 3x 45 (standard), 3x 60 + Damage Penalty vs armour (Hollowpoints), 3x 40 + Ignores armour (AP), 3x 20 + Ignite (incend)
Ammo Cost: 9TC per box for the AP, 6 for everything else
Does not fit in backpacks
Very big, very powerful. Crits in one burst, with a high ammo capacity and rate of fire. Use it if your job on the team is to create a distraction or rack up large numbers of kills. DO NOT USE DURING STEALTH PLANS. And don’t take incendiary ever.
Surplus Rifle
Cost: No
Ammo Capacity: No
Damage: No
Ammo Cost: No
Don’t buy this, ever.
Flamethrower
Cost: 4TC
Ammo Capacity: 1013kpa
Damage: Starts a plasma fire
Ammo Cost: Not available, steal station plasma tanks
Starts plasma fires. Pretty flashy distraction, but otherwise kinda crap. CE and Atmos hardsuits are COMPLETELY immune to this weapon, so take care.
M-90gl Carbine
Cost: 18TC
Ammo Capacity: 30/1
Damage: 3x 35/Crit + Delimb
Ammo Cost: 4/2 TC
A weapon I admit I’ve never used. Less powerful than the L6 but more flexible and less unwieldly. Will probably struggle against well armoured targets compared to the L6.
.50 Sniper
Cost: 16TC
Ammo Capacity: 6
Damage: 1x 70 + Stun + Delimb (regular), 40s KO (Soporific), 60 + Pierces walls//people etc. (Penetrator)
Ammo Cost: 4 (Standard), 5 (Penetrator), 6 (Soporific)
Must be racked after each shot.
I don’t like this weapon. It’s unwieldy and unsuited to fighting large numbers of people. It excels at long range against a single or small number of targets, whereas you’re likely to be mobbed by large numbers of crew trying to rush you down. Some people can make it work, and penetrator rounds go very well with thermals, but probably not a beginner’s weapon.
84mm RPG
Cost: 8TC
Ammo Capacity: 1
Damage: Instacrit (HE), Instakill (HEDP)
Ammo Cost: 4 (HE), 6 (HEDP)
Not worth it. While it is very hard hitting, you’re going to be spending so much TC on ammo it isn’t going to be worth it. You’re simply not going to get enough kills per shot to make it worth the ammo cost.
Double Bladed Energy Sword
Cost: 18TC
Ammo Capacity: Infinite
Damage: 34
This is one powerful weapon. In the right hands dozens will die to it. It deflects all energy weapon shots and crits in 3 hits, and ammo isn’t an issue. Careful you don’t get disarmed though, and BRING NOSLIPS IF YOU’RE GOING TO GO MELEE.
Now, for some good item picks:
Cryptographic Sequencer
forces open doors, allows you to sabotage cyborgs, ruins random stuff it’s used on, for a mere 6TC it’s too good to miss. Everyone on the team should have one.
Noslips
Noslip Chameleon shoes look like regular shoes but provide complete immunity to slipping. This is far better than it sounds, as it completely locks down a key method of disarming you. Get them from the equipment room lockers.
C4
Blows up doors and walls, for when the AI has trapped you somewhere. Always take at least a couple. Thankfully they only cost 1TC each and there is a bunch of free C4 on the shuttle.
Adrenals
An implant that allows you to instantly recover from stuns up to three times. As stuns are another easy way to kill you, it’s worth the 7TC.
CQC
A manual that makes you FAR superior to a crewmember in unarmed combat, for 12TC. Always a solid pick as a fallback weapon.
Energy Shield
While expensive at 16TC, it’s complete immunity to energy shots and resistance to ballistics makes it a staple of nukeops. Don’t use with a large, unwieldy weapon like the L6.
Thermals
At 4TC, they allow you to see humans through walls, making them an excellent choice.
Soap
Yes, really. For only 1TC you can drag it behind you with noslips and slip people for easy kills. Most people stay on help intent so just run into them on help for a free slip.
This is of course just the surface of nukeops, so feel free to experiment and use mentorhelp for questions.
