Flashpoint (mission)

Flashpoint is the sixth mission of the Nova Covert Ops campaign, and the third and final mission of the second mission pack.

Recollection
"Nova, report back soon... and be careful." "Seems like he could take his own advice" "Oh, he won't"

- Valerian Mengsk, Nova Terra, and Reigel

Nova reported her in to Emperor Valerian Mengsk, and he told her that he looked over the findings from Tyrador IX. While compelling, he stated he could not act until they had solid evidence as to who was leading the Defenders of Man. Nova said they had a way of finding out, and showed him a canister of terrazine. Valerian was shocked, and stressed caution, but Nova stated it was the only way. Admiral Matt Horner then told Valerian that the riots were becoming more intense, and that the Emperor needed to evacuate. He did so, telling Nova to be careful.

Nova administered a microdose of terrazine, and she gained memories of interacting with Maxwell. He stated that he was happy to have the admiral's best men, and she said she was happy to help after all the Defenders of Man had done for the Dominion. She did complain about a problem with her visor, which Maxwell said he would fix when she got back. Nova then lowered her visor, which had a mission file on an operation on Antiga Prime. Nova stated that she had to go there to find out what had happened.

Mission
"I see now... We weren't defending this world from the zerg. We used them to destroy it." "The truth... can be difficult." "Not as difficult as the Defenders' lives will be when I'm done here!"

- Nova Terra and Reigel

Nova arrived at New Andasar on Antiga Prime, and Nova nuked a infestation pit. Reigel noted that destroying the zerg structures in the area will limit the number of specialized zerg creatures in the area. Nova asked Reigel to track for the structures, and her Covert Ops Crew set up a base on the destroyed zerg structures.

Nova wandered through the city, clearing out areas of feral zerg and locating areas she felt were familiar. When she spotted these areas, she injected herself with a dose of terrazine. These areas brought back memories of a mission she undertook to Antiga Prime with Stone, where the two of them were tasked with placing devices that would ward away the zerg, and attuning them to ward specific kinds of zerg. However, she gradually began to notice the devices giving a faint psionic signature similar to that of a psi-emitter. This concerned the two of them. Stone noted that he didn't clear the operations center of mission backup files, and that they could use those to show the Terran Dominion what the Defenders of Man were doing. However, Maxwell contacted them saying they disappointed him just as the zerg attacked the planet.

After breaking from her flashbacks, Nova noticed that the zerg she attuned the emitters to ward away were actually specifically attracted to those emitters. Reigel noted if the structres near them were destroyed those breeds of zerg would not attack Nova's forces. Reigel also noted a plasma signature from the nearby docks.

Nova eventually found her way to the operations center, and found the mission backup files Stone left behind. She then injected herself with terrazine to recover her memories one last time.

Liars
"General Carolina Davis... this is Valerian Mengsk. I wish to step down as emperor of the Dominion"

- Valerian Mengsk

Upon injecting the terrazine, Nova recovered a memory of being hauled off by two Defenders of Man marines. She attempted to fight her way out of their custody, but was unsuccessful. She awoke to find herself bound in a room with Maxwell and the technician from their Tarsonis base, who stated that what they did was necessary. Also in the room was General Carolina Davis, famed Terran Dominion general, was leading the Defenders of Man. Nova implanted a message "YOU ARE IN DANGER" in her visor as it was being updated to warn herself should she be mind wiped. Davis ordered that Nova be mind wiped and reeducated.

On the bridge of the Griffin, Nova contacted Valerian, and informed him that General Davis was leading the Defenders of Man. Valerian was shocked, as Davis was loyal to the Mengsk family. Nova stated she would kill Davis, but Valerian insisted that they do it the correct way. Valerian affirmed he had a plan, and that Nova would do her part in it. Nova begrudgingly agreed.

On the bridge of his ship, Valerian contacted Davis, and stated that he was stepping down as Emperor of the Terran Dominion.

Walkthrough
This mission is largely defensive, as the zerg will come at the players base with heavy numbers. Nova should be equipped with pulse grenades, and her sniper rifle in order to pick off overlords. Permanent stealth will also be an asset to her here.

Every time Nova triggers a memory, she will have the option to pick between different breeds of zerg. These zerg will be the ones that have their structures appear near that location. If the structures are destroyed, the zerg attack waves will cease using those units. The order that these can be triggered is up to the preference of the player and the defenses they have at the base, but removing nydus worms, brood lords and ultralisks should be a high priority, as they can easily break heavy defensive lines. This mission can be done with Nova alone, microing her, or will a force of marines, siege tanks, liberators and goliaths. If done with Nova alone, multiple ghost academies should be constructed, as nukes will clear out the clustered zerg defenses quickly and clear the way to attack structures. Overseers spawn infinitely from the corners of the map, so have snipe ready. Two snipes can kill an overseer, and if done quickly they can be removed with minimal damage to Nova.

Taking the expansion near the starting location is helpful, but zerg attack waves will redirect to it once it is taken. Prepare the heaviest defensive lines there on the high ground to ensure the base does not get destroyed. Clear the subway tunnels in order to create a reliable way to ferry troops across the battlefield. As attack waves can be overwhelming, ensure a strong defensive line in the main bases.

The bonus objective is simply to claim an item in the middle of the map, defended by two zerg clusters. These can be easily cleaned out using nukes or a moderate attack force.

Trivia

 * The song the plays on Valerian Mengsk's record player is Dearest Helena from the ending cinematic of StarCraft: Brood War''.