Flashpoint (mission)

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	StarCraft II: Flashpoint, the novel The Flashpoint Conflict

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

History

Recollection

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

- Emperor Valerian Mengsk, Nova Terra, and Reigel^(src)

Nova reported her in to Emperor Valerian Mengsk, and he told her that he looked over the findings from Tarsonis and 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 protests were becoming more intense, and that he 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 Terran 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.^[1]

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 and Reigel^(src)

Nova arrived at New Andasar on Antiga Prime, and 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 feral zerg, and attuning them to ward specific kinds of zerg strains. However, she gradually began to notice the devices giving a faint psionic signature. Upon overriding the security codes on the device, Nova realized that it was a psi emitter, like the ones the Confederacy used years ago. 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 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 structures 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 remaining terrazine to recover her memories one last time.^[2]

Liars

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

- Valerian^(src)

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, revealing her as the leader of the Defenders of Man. Nova implanted a message "YOU ARE IN DANGER" in her visor, updating it 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 Davis was the one leading the Defenders of Man. Valerian was shocked, as Davis was loyal to the Mengsk family. Nova pointed out that loyalty to the Mengsk family did not imply Valerian personally, and 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 the Bucephalus, Valerian contacted Davis, and stated that he was 'stepping down' as emperor of the Dominion.^[3]

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 overseers and brood lords. Permanent stealth will also be an asset to her here. Deploy spider mines near the approaches to your base to pick off the zerg quickly.

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, banelings, 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 with a force of marines, siege tanks, liberators and goliaths. If done with Nova alone, multiple ghost academies should be constructed, as Nuclear missiles 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. Siege tanks, liberators, missile turrets and bunkers with supply depots on the front will be ideal to barricade zerg numbers.

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 with microed cloaked banshees or Liberators in order to create a reliable way to ferry troops across the battlefield. Banshees should also be strongly considered to clear off nydus worms outside the range of your siege tanks. As attack waves can be overwhelming, ensure a strong defensive line in the main bases. Alternatively, if the attack waves are taking the longest route, Nova can time and nuke the spot where the wave is passing by, effectively clearing most of it.

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.

Achievements

The Nuclear Optiom
Points	10
Criteria	Destroy 75 enemy zerg units and structures with nuclear strikes in the "Flashpoint" mission.
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No Half Measures
Points	10
Criteria	Destroy all zerg structures in the "Flashpoint" mission on Normal difficulty or higher.
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Glutton For Punishment
Points	10
Criteria	Complete the "Flashpoint" mission without eliminating any of the zerg unit types on Hard difficulty or higher.
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