The Definitive Stealth Guide!

[Ydiss]

There are two weapon modifications.
1. Audio Masking - eliminates the simulated noise weapons make in unpressurised environments
2. Noise Suppression - reduces the noise weapons make in pressurised environments

I know that. I don't think it'll be any more confusing that "one works inside one works outside" but there's that line of thought that it's ambiguous due to tenuous atmospheres. I don't think it is, but it's there nonetheless.

 

[Moritz Norman]

Great guide and video. This really helped the whole infiltration/stealth mechanics click with me and I’m having a blast. Kudos - looking forward to future guides!

 

[Navigare Necesse Est]

I finally got my first "Live Odyssey" video guide completed and it's now available to view on Youtube, complete with a brand new intro/outro and improved audio recording. Most of the transcript is available in the description of the video but I'll add the key points here. I'll be adding to this series with a definitive infiltration guide to follow shortly and then deeper-dive guides into various settlement types and missions and even stealth-based combat and additional advance combat guides at a later date. And anything else I think might be useful (requests can be considered).

I hope you like it and find it useful! Here's the video:

Source: https://youtu.be/TmdS6Hwg-1o


This is the content, roughly transcribed with some parts not included:

One of the key skills in Odyssey, and one aspect I absolutely love about the expansion, is its stealth mechanics. This guide explains it all!

This is what you’ll learn:

1. You’ll learn why stealth is important in Odyssey and why you need to use it (this is in the video only)
2. You’ll get an understanding of the concepts and rules around how stealth and detection works
3. You’ll also learn what you can do to avoid detection by NPCs.

The stealth mechanic follows this basic process:

1. Detection (and how you should avoid it)
2. Reaction (what happens when you're detected)
3. Escalation or Resolution (what can happen beyond the reaction)
4. Resetting (how you can evade aggressive NPCs to reset them and try again)

• Always remember: If an NPC cannot see you, they will not react to you. If an NPC cannot see you, they may still be able to hear you. And how far away from an NPC you are matters.
• Aggressive NPCs (for example scavengers) will react to you at the maximum visual range if they have line of sight to you. The range of this is around three circles on the radar in good light and close to two circles if dark and they’re using a flashlight, much less if not.
• When you are not visibly breaking a law, non-aggressive NPCs will react to you at the minimum visual range (which can be gauged roughly by the red circle on the radar).
• When you get within the red circle, guards will attempt to scan you for bounties or stolen/forbidden goods. When you get within the red circle from workers, they will greet you.

These are the things you are not allowed to do in any settlement:

1. Attack someone
2. Carry any weapon (unholstered)
3. Steal any item
4. Trespass into restricted areas
5. Scan anyone or use any of the illegal modes on your tools
6. Use your cutter or activate any panels that will set off an alarm

• If you wish to remain undetected, it's important that you do none of those actions in visible range of any NPC at a settlement.
• If an NPC is aggressive towards you then they will continue to hunt you down until either of you die or you continuously remain out of their visual range for around 30 seconds or so. If you can remain hidden for long enough then they will cancel their search for you and return to their usual patrol route.
• It's not allowed to carry any weapon so you need to holster these when they're not in use. When a non-aggressive NPC sees this then they will warn you and tell you to put it away. So long as you do this quickly enough, they will leave you alone. If you do not do this or if they spot you doing it again, they will immediately turn aggressive.
• When a guard scans you, you must remain close to the guard to allow them to complete their scan otherwise they'll automatically attack you. Watch for the message on your HUD and listen out for the audible cues. If you have a bounty or if you are carrying a traceable stolen item, or if you're carrying a mission item intended to sabotage operations in anyway, they will turn aggressive and attack you.
• If a worker spots you trespassing, they will warn you and if you exit the restricted area, they'll let you off with that warning. If you do not comply or if they see you committing any other visible crime then they'll turn aggressive immediately.
• When a settlement NPC turns aggressive, they will shortly begin to radio for assistance. If they do this and you don’t stop them in time, and the settlement alarms are enabled, the alarms will sound and the settlement will attack you.

How do you avoid detection?
The basic approach you should always take is:

1. Don't get seen (use the environment to hide behind and use the rooftops)
2. Be as quiet as you can. Crouch or walk and try to avoid making too many sounds close to NPCS if you're doing something wrong!
3. If you're carrying something you shouldn't, avoid guards at all costs.
4. Stay behind any NPC if you wish to remain undetected. Stay crouched!
5. Remember to disable alarms!

I'll be adding more related video links to this topic and keeping it updated as things progress!

I endorse this form of video promotion.

 

[Moritz Norman]

In your infiltration video, you reference resetting the base. Do you do that by exiting the game completely? A main menu quit and respawn resulted in empty lockers.

 

[Ydiss]

In your infiltration video, you reference resetting the base. Do you do that by exiting the game completely? A main menu quit and respawn resulted in empty lockers.

That video was recorded in Alpha. Back then you could just log on and off again. Now you need to jump into your ship, supercruise away, turn back and re-enter the instance to reset items. It's a bit annoying; it'll actually load you into the game with no items or data even if you've been away for a day and just happen to have logged out at a settlement. I've landed at a place and logged out to go for lunch and then when I got back to do the settlement I had to launch and reset the whole place just to do it.

If it's intended as a way to stop relogging and resetting it could have been done better.

 

[Ydiss]

The second video in this series is now published and is called The Definitive Guide to Infiltration:

Source: https://youtu.be/dCADkGY9CR0


I've added it here as it follows on nicely to the Stealth guide. I won't add the full transcript here, it's a longer video (there's a ton of content to fit in for this topic and I tried to keep it as concise as I could). This is what is covered in the video:

Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
1:17 Gaining an understanding of the settlement layout
2:35 Gaining access
4:51 How to effectively clone IDs
6:00 How you disable the settlement alarms (and why this is useful)
7:26 Optional: Disable the settlement’s Authorisation Scanners (and what this does)
7:59 How to complete your objective
8:09 General Scavenging
8:28 Assassinations
9:14 Remove the Power Regulator
10:13 Heist/Sabotage mission objectives
11:02 What to do when things go wrong
13:08 Outro

In future, I’ll be going into more detail with some guides focusing more on individual mission objectives and also how to use stealth and infiltration for combat. If you're interested in seeing these, please do subscribe (although I may post about them here too!)

 

[Comandante]

+1 @Ydiss, thanks, great video.

Don't know how but I'd like this to be a sticky thread on stealth so all can benefit.

Keep 'em coming, looking forward to more!

 

[Ydiss]

+1 @Ydiss, thanks, great video.

Don't know how but I'd like this to be a sticky thread on stealth so all can benefit.

Keep 'em coming, looking forward to more!

Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.

I think maybe I should post this in the guides forum anyway. It's probably better suited there.

 

[Khromm]

In future, I’ll be going into more detail with some guides focusing more on individual mission objectives and also how to use stealth and infiltration for combat. If you're interested in seeing these, please do subscribe (although I may post about them here too!)

Won't let me subscribe, for some reason... Probably because I already am (Yeah, having one of those days....)

 

[Zombi3]

You got yourself another sub. Good job!

 

[Ydiss]

You got yourself another sub. Good job!

Thanks

I'm looking forward to making more videos. Tons to cover yet.

 

[Comandante]

Although this is probably a long way off (mainly due to unlock requirements), I got thinking about weapons other than the Manticore Executioner as a stealth kill weapon.

So I was wondering it a Karma AR-50 G3 (or higher) with the following mods:

• Audio Masking;
• Headshot Damage;
• Scope (optional)

... Would be able to take a shieldless scavenger down (without setting off alarms etc.)? Inara doesn't mention the multiplier/bonus for the head damage mod.

 

[devilronin]

Although this is probably a long way off (mainly due to unlock requirements), I got thinking about weapons other than the Manticore Executioner as a stealth kill weapon.

So I was wondering it a Karma AR-50 G3 (or higher) with the following mods:

• Audio Masking;
• Headshot Damage;
• Scope (optional)

... Would be able to take a shieldless scavenger down (without setting off alarms etc.)? Inara doesn't mention the multiplier/bonus for the head damage mod.

ammo cap on suit, and both suppressors is all you need on an exec, clip and reload would also reduce headaches if derping it too much

 

[Comandante]

ammo cap on suit, and both suppressors is all you need on an exec, clip and reload would also reduce headaches if derping it too much

Completely agree about the Executioner as the go-to sniper weapon (save the fact that you shoot a glowing purple ball of energy); I was just wondering it it would even be possible to 1-shot unshielded scavengers with the specifications I mentioned. I'll be giving it a try, once I get past the unlock grind... However I am not the most savvy gamer around so was hoping on some observations from other players if they thought it were possible...

 

[Ydiss]

Completely agree about the Executioner as the go-to sniper weapon (save the fact that you shoot a glowing purple ball of energy); I was just wondering it it would even be possible to 1-shot unshielded scavengers with the specifications I mentioned. I'll be giving it a try, once I get past the unlock grind... However I am not the most savvy gamer around so was hoping on some observations from other players if they thought it were possible...

It's worth testing. But I think someone else would get to testing that before I would because I love the Executioner too much to start grinding out the AR-50 (which was a favourite of mine in the Alpha).

If you got it to G5 and headshot damage then I think it might just work. Though, that's more of an ask of the player (getting a headshot every time). Given it's silenced though, I am pretty sure you could just about drop a shieldless target with a fully upgraded AR-50 if you aimed for upper chest and up? Scavs aren't as well geared as high intensity targets. At least, not the harmless/mostly harmless ones aren't (which is all of them right now).

 

[Comandante]

It's worth testing. But I think someone else would get to testing that before I would because I love the Executioner too much to start grinding out the AR-50 (which was a favourite of mine in the Alpha).

If you got it to G5 and headshot damage then I think it might just work. Though, that's more of an ask of the player (getting a headshot every time). Given it's silenced though, I am pretty sure you could just about drop a shieldless target with a fully upgraded AR-50 if you aimed for upper chest and up? Scavs aren't as well geared as high intensity targets. At least, not the harmless/mostly harmless ones aren't (which is all of them right now).

I think that will be a long-term goal of mine to try - although I'll be wanting Audio Masking on the Executioner first, hands down. I wonder if the fact that the Executioner gives a blast of light energy that all can see will alert scavengers or not. That's where my reasoning for getting Head shot on the AR-50 came from - because if you can't hear it OR see it, surely that must be 'better'...

Only found out today about Irregular Markers (Threat 3), looks like these are good places to get 'stuff' from, hopefully can get some of that Push to unlock the extra engineer... Although ATM that's the only engineer I'll be unlocking! (Still waiting for Power Restore missions - among other things - to be fixed to get the other engineer...)

 

[LoneTech]

Scan anyone or use any of the illegal modes on your tools

This is mistaken. Clean civilians will allow you to scan them, and say something like "You've got the wrong man" during and "Happy now?" when finished, while wanted NPCs will attack you for revealing them. I'm not entirely sure about guards; they may order you to stow your tool.

 

[Ydiss]

This is mistaken. Clean civilians will allow you to scan them, and say something like "Happy now?", while wanted NPCs will attack you for revealing them. I'm not entirely sure about guards; they may order you to stow your tool.

Thanks. It might actually just be guards that get aggressive (happened before I could even finish the scan, but this was early on in alpha). I guess I'm just too careful to have found out since then But the few times I got caught scanning, I got attacked and so just stopped getting caught.

It's a bit late for me to revise the video but I'll test this out and then make sure to add it to a future video.

 

[LoneTech]

I'm still actually unclear as to what disabling authority scans is

It makes doors allow anyone through. Otherwise doors will only open (from the outside) for someone with sufficient access level. I believe it does not unlock control panels, however.

 

[Ydiss]

It makes doors allow anyone through. Otherwise doors will only open (from the outside) for someone with sufficient access level.

Yeh that's been pointed out and I've since tested it myself and it got included in my infiltration video

It's sort of useful in specific circumstances.