Good morning aviators, this is your captain speaking. Welcome to advanced flight manoeuvres (and the BRC's 100th race!!)
My callsign is Vanguard, although my actual name is Caelum Incola, from the agricultural backwater of Ross 860, planet A 4, and the city of New Quark, just near that really cool diner on the corner of 57th street…it does great pancakes….
But I digress.
You are the Bubble’s best in the Bubble of the best in the Bubble, and I’ve gathered you here today for a critical mission in…. the… Bubble.
We have received intelligence from a shadowy source that won’t be exposed throughout this entire campaign about a military threat from an even more obscure and nameless faction who in no way resembles any current entity causing any potential tensions throughout occupied space.
We will pull out from ‘Penny Benjamin’ a carrier berthed in CT Tucanae, as close as we can safely get to the mission targets.
You have four objectives in this mission, three involve missile strikes and two have reconnaissance (yes that’s correct, one has both). Prior to starting, your ship should have been fitted with either a 1B or a 2B dumbfire missile rack (fixed) and quantum x-ray camera equipment* (or some other barely feasible imaginary plot device) to enable successful completion and documentation of the mission.
(*not an actual in game thing, just pretend)
The mission system you will operate in is Agartha, deep in Empire territory, but in no way insinuating that the Empire has anything to do with the reason for the strikes at all, no siree. Nope.
The targets are;
Fleet carrier construction yard at Enoch Port-
Fly below the left hand side of the carrier from the rear, just below the outermost engine to avoid detection as much as possible. Your run must start with the left hand engine in view as in the image
provided.
As you move forward, skimming the underside of the carrier, you will see a tunnel in the shipyard superstructure.
Enter the tunnel then turn to find yourself in the reactor room. Fire one missile at either the top or bottom reactor structure & record reconnaissance evidence of direct hit. Leave quickly.
Megaship The Lucent Embrace-
Fly through the three habitation rings and below the tanks in the trench of superstructure as indicated to avoid detection.
Skim the containers and find one marked Space Lanes Cargo, we suspect it will be close to a landing pad to the right as you exit the trench. It’s believed to be a stolen consignment of weapons. You must engage silent running and throttle down to zero in front of the container in order for your ship’s instruments to penetrate the walls and verify contents or some other such paper thin reason for me putting that in the script, I mean rules. In the rules. Ensure the serial number on the side of the container is legible in your evidence. DO NOT FIRE upon the megaship as immediate and swift retaliation will be dealt.
Misty Pool Medical Centre-
This is another strategic target and in no way morally dubious. Scan this satellite for info, ensuring you get a confirmation message in your info panel, but be careful, there are three satellites at this installation and only this one will count.
Then enter the tunnel running through Ward B, you will need to fire on the door to open it or you can crash into it, but I’d suggest the former. Blow up the power coupling, then exit the tunnel. You will potentially be attacked by patrolling ships, so feel the need for speed and bug out.
Matarov Analysis Complex, PLANET 2 E-
Target the facility (which we believe is crawling with enemy intelligence agents, although we have scant evidence to back this up, it just sounds like it probably will have) and land at least 15km away so you can remain undetected. Take off and skim the ground as you approach and your target is the PWR building. Deploy your rocket launcher and fire a missile at the target. Record evidence of a successful strike again.
Return safely to the carrier to complete your mission and submit your evidence to verify success.
You may carry out your four objectives in any order you see fit for maximum efficiency.
There are optional secondary objectives which you are free to employ for a potentially more attractive outcome for yourself, including fancier medals, the wearing of sunglasses, much whooping, high fiving and rejoicing at your incredible disregard for rules, regulations, safety or the threat of military prison.
‘Take My Breath Away’- Turn off your life support for as long as you dare. Every 30 seconds flown with it off gives you 5 seconds of bonus. I will need to see the Oxygen remaining at the beginning and just before you turn it back on to qualify your bonus. Manage the full run for an additional 30 seconds. (credit to CMDR Sulu for the suggestion
)‘Highway to the Danger Zone’- Complete the entire run with shields turned off/none installed for a 30 second bonus.
‘Great Balls of Fire’- Overheat your ship above 250% for a 30 second bonus. You’re not going to be happy unless you’re going Mach 2 with your hair on fire.
Rules and regulations (do not disregard pilot, or your run will be invalid)
As always there are 2 classes you can compete in.
Regulation utilises the standard Cobra MkIII (build here https://s.orbis.zone/m1g- ), with the addition of one missile rack detailed below.
Unlimited can use any ship and engineering, apart from the restrictions mentioned below too. It's likely that most choices will favour one of the small ships though. Saying that, I'd love to see a Beluga try to squeeze through the tunnels...
- All missile strikes must be observed and recorded hitting the target.
- A speed of zero must be achieved and recorded during silent running, at the same time the container must be in view with the serial number legible when investigating the ‘stolen weapons’ at The Lucent Embrace.
- A message must appear in your info panel when scanning the (correct) satellite at Misty Pool Medical Centre.
- A distance of at least 15km from the Matarov Analysis Complex when landed must be observed prior to your attack run starting.
- No synthesis of any kind is allowed.
- Precharging FSD is not allowed (or probably necessary)
- No repairs are allowed during your run. War is dangerous, pilot!
- No changing modules once started.
- The SCO FSD is most definitely allowed, but only in Unlimited Class.
- Use of the Python MkII is not allowed as this may constitute an advantage as it is only available for Arx at the time of the race.
- Regulation class uses the standard Cobra MkIII, with the addition of one 1B or 2B Dumbfire Missile Rack (fixed) with NO ENGINEERING TO THIS MODULE
- Unlimited class ships must also use one 1B or 2B Dumbfire Missile Rack (fixed) that can also be engineered
- All other hardpoints in both classes are banned
Your entry would be preferred as a video, to allow me to accurately ascertain if your mission has been a success, but if photos are your only means of recording your daring skills and freedom winning run, I’ll need the following;
- Start on Carrier showing loadout (probably 2 pics)
- Start time
- Start time with O2 remaining for ‘Take my Breath Away’
- End time with O2 remaining
- All photos during your run should allow me to see your shields off in Regulation, and in Unlimited, your loadout should qualify you’re running shieldless for ‘Highway to the Danger Zone’.
- A shot of your ships heat over 250% for ‘Great Balls of Fire’
Fleet carrier shipyard close to Enoch Port-
- One of you beginning your attack run behind and below the carrier as the example above
- One of your successful missile strike in one of the areas indicated on the reconnaissance pic. (it may be worth recording your entire run and screen grabbing this at the moment of missile explosion)
The Lucent Embrace-
- A shot of you going through the habitation rings.
- One of you going through the trench under the cylinders.
- One of you in silent running, at zero velocity and with the cargo container and its serial number in view.
Misty Pool Medical Centre-
- One of the successful satellite scan with the targetted satellite visible on the left of your HUD and a confirmation message in your INFO panel, upper right.
- One of your successful (and quite explodey) strike on the power coupling in the tunnel through Ward B.
Matarov Analysis Complex-
- One of you landed at least 15km away from the base
- One of your successful strike on the PWR centre in the above reconnaissance picture (again a screen grab from a video recording may work better for this)
- One just before landing back on Penny Benjamin if you’ve ran the entire mission with Life Support turned off.
- End time of you landed on the carrier.
Please note, I MUST see each successful missile strike otherwise your mission will fail. If you miss the Matarov PWR centre or Carrier Construction Yard target (Misty Pool will be obvious) you must make another attempt and record your success.
Other Info
The race will run from Friday 21st June at 12:00 UTC until Monday 1st July at 12:00 UTC to allow global participation and equal opportunity to race.
You will accumulate fines during this race, so in order to clear your name prior to another attempt, I’d suggest paying a visit to the Interstellar Factors representative in the Arantilae station nearby the carrier.
The race is also Odyssey only, due to one of the originally intended non-Odyssey strike targets becoming rather aggressively defensive during testing and making it nigh on impossible to get the Cobra out of range quickly enough. Sorry.
I'd also suggest running in PG or Solo, just in case your run is spoilt by another racer having already exploded the power coupling at Misty Pool.
ENTRY FORM HERE--> https://forms.gle/QAeTw3Migdv9fBVE9
Saddle up pilots, it’s time to turn and burn!
Last edited:
Jeenyus!
