Common campaign questions and answers for V6

[bojianh]

How to proceed to the next sector after Ground Zero?

Go to the world map view. Turn around the globe by dragging and find Frozen Forest unlocked.

How to get Water Extractors?
Capture Salt Flats (Ground Zero -> Frozen Forest -> Craters -> Ruinous Shores -> Windswept Islands -> Salt Flats)

How to get Launch Pad?
Capture Extraction Outpost (Ground Zero -> Frozen Forest -> Craters -> Ruinous Shores -> Windswept Islands -> Extraction Outpost)

How to get Overdrive Projector/Dome?
Capture Impact 0078 (Windswept Islands -> Tar Fields -> Impact 0078)

How to defeat enemy base?
Early game: Unlock T1 Nova for healing, T2 Pulsar for shield, T2 Atrax for slag attacks. More specifically, build a T2 Pulsar to add shield to your ground units. Set rally point to either idle or rally. Move T1 Nova and T2 Atrax at the same time or at least close to each other so that Nova can heal Atrax.
Med game: Unlock T3 Zenith, lead them to go around enemy defenses
End game: Unlock T4 Quad, lead them to bomb enemy cores

How to build faster?
Launch with core schema + T2 Polys

How to get T3 units?
Mine thorium from a sector. I recommend Tar Fields.

How to get T4 units?
Capture Overgrowth.

How come I lost a sector?
It probably got attacked by an adjacent sector which has an enemy base. Destroy the enemy base on that sector to stop the attack.

How to use existing buildings in the sector if it is not unlocked yet?
Thanks to cybersol for this tip, you can partially deconstruct and then reconstruct to "capture" it.

What is the recommended sequence of sectors to play?
Sectors without need to worry about enemy base attacks
1. Ground Zero (start with copper/lead)
2. Frozen Forest (unlock graphite) (adjacent to sector 221 which has low threat, titanium and oil)
3. The Craters (unlock silicon/metaglass)
4. Biomass Synthesis Facility (unlock spore, oil, additive reconstructor)
5. Stained Mountains (unlock titanium, beware of strong T4 boss)
6. Ruinous Shores (2 enemy spawn point, have tons of scrap, good to have separator prior to this)
7. Windswept Islands (unlock plastanium, recommend Ripple (silicon ammo for homing) for defense against fast enemy ships)
8. Salt Flats (unlock water extractors, use T2 Nova, T2 Pulsar, T2 Atrax combo)
9. Tar Fields (unlock thorium, surge alloy, phase fabric, get plastanium walls for T4 Vela)
10. Extraction Outpost (unlock launch pad)

From this point, new campaign sectors are vulnerable to attacks.
11. Fungal Pass (Please bring resources for this one or T3 Mega will make your life miserable. Plastanium walls for T4 Vela)
12. Sector 210 (to stop attacks on Fungal Pass)
13. Overgrowth (T4 units)
14. Sector 133 (to stop attacks on Overgrowth)

From this point, the difficulty is DRASTICALLY increased. I recommend unlocking Meltdown/Foreshadow before proceeding.

You can also farm to unlock T4/T5 units, recommend this sequence
1. T4 Quad (terrifying area damage in large numbers, bring plastanium on bombing raids so that you can build cyclones on the spot and fill it to defend against air attacks)
2. T4 Arkyrid (use quad to airlift these to enemy cores, sapping is a good ability in close range)
3. T5 Oct (protect/heal your T4/T5 units)
4. T5 Eclipse (fast to move around and take out enemies when raiding enemy base)
5. T5 Corvus (siege unit, slow, need protection from annoying air units)
Other T4/T5 units are decent but either is too slow or not enough range.

When you are ready, go for the next campaign sector
15. Impact 0078 (Overdrive projector/dome, 2 very powerful enemy sectors, T4 Antumbra)

You can decide whether to attack the adjacent sectors if you want. There are 3 campaign sectors after this. Each one has T5 boss, best to build at least 2~3 Foreshadow before the guardian attacks. Nuclear Production Complex is good for production of resources but have 4 enemy base sectors next to it.

What is an alternative sequence of gameplay?

Thanks to discussion with cybersol, there is an easier pathway if you play with some unnamed sectors, Sector 221 and Sector 162 which unlocks titanium and thorium early in the game without the need to confront bosses in Stained Mountains/Tar Fields respectively.

1. Ground Zero
2. Frozen Forest (unlock graphite) (next to sector 221)
3. The Craters (unlock metaglass)
4. Sector 221 (have titanium/oil)
5. Biomass Synthesis Facility (unlock spore, additive reconstructor, next to sector 162)
6. Sector 162 (have titanium, thorium, oil)
7. Ruinous Shores
8. Windswept Islands (unlock plastanium)
9. Salt Flats (unlock water extractors)
10. Sector 13 (stop attacks on Sector 162)
11. Tar Fields (unlock phase fabric)
12. Stained Mountains (unlock vault)
13. Extraction Outpost (unlock launch pad)
14. Fungal Pass (Should have T3 units by this point)
15. Sector 210 (Stop attack on Fungal Pass)
16. Overgrowth (unlock T4 units)
17. Sector 133 (Stop attacks on Overgrowth)

By this point, you should be able to proceed forward with T4 Quad unlocked and lots of resources to push forward.

[cybersol]

For my next play through I think I will try skipping Biomass & Stained Mountains and heading straight for Windswept first. Then I will go Tar Fields as my 6th map because its always one of my most productive sectors. Then back to Biomass & Stained Mountains to unlock Extraction outpost because launchpads are game changing. Then to salt flats before heading to attack map row starting with Fungal Pass.

[bojianh]

Originally posted by cybersol:

For my next play through I think I will try skipping Biomass & Stained Mountains and heading straight for Windswept first. Then I will go Tar Fields as my 6th map because its always one of my most productive sectors. Then back to Biomass & Stained Mountains to unlock Extraction outpost because launchpads are game changing. Then to salt flats before heading to attack map row starting with Fungal Pass.

Well, that can work as well. Although Ruinous Shores becomes kind of useless at the start because titanium is not unlocked, therefore no separator before Windswept. There also needs to be good core defense against ships if you cannot unlock Ripple in time.

[Shazbot!]

Good post, just gonna add one more thing: If in doubt, build more turrets.

[bojianh]

I am restarting my progress to try some unorthodox strategies, for example, attacking unnamed sectors early to find titanium. E.g. 171 from Ground Zero.

[cybersol]

175 next to ground zero was very good to me right off the bat in my first play through, but I have not taken the others yet.

[cybersol]

Originally posted by bojianh:

Well, that can work as well. Although Ruinous Shores becomes kind of useless at the start because titanium is not unlocked, therefore no separator before Windswept. There also needs to be good core defense against ships if you cannot unlock Ripple in time.

For early windswept, I will probably just block off the top west to divert them east and kill them with lancers at the east water choke. But I guess that is why I will have to see. I think getting a jump on plastanium and thorium at tar fields will be worth it though to boost progression.

[bojianh]

Originally posted by cybersol:

175 next to ground zero was very good to me right off the bat in my first play through, but I have not taken the others yet.

I am in my new game. Sector 175 next to ground zero looks good. Sector 221 next to Frozen Forest looks awesome (because it has both oil and titanium).

[cybersol]

Good to know about 221, I do love some oil. Does it have a decent amount of room to build out? For a little later with thorium I have heard people mention 162 (near biomass and vulnerable) and 223 (near tar fields), but that's where I decided just heading straight for tar fields early might be even better. After attack row between overgrowth and especially 133 thorium has not been a problem.

[bojianh]

Both 175 and 221 are good sectors, both have a lot of room to build. 221 also has hot locations for thermal generators and a patch of oil bigger than Tar Field's one.
In fact, it is possible to attack 175, 221 and The Craters at around the same time so as to farm titanium and silicon, and metaglass once The Craters is down.

[bojianh]

Originally posted by cybersol:

Originally posted by bojianh:

Well, that can work as well. Although Ruinous Shores becomes kind of useless at the start because titanium is not unlocked, therefore no separator before Windswept. There also needs to be good core defense against ships if you cannot unlock Ripple in time.

For early windswept, I will probably just block off the top west to divert them east and kill them with lancers at the east water choke. But I guess that is why I will have to see. I think getting a jump on plastanium and thorium at tar fields will be worth it though to boost progression.

If you capture 175 and 221, yes you will definitely be able to get Ripple before windswept.

[Yumemirareru]

> 7. Windswept Islands (recommend Ripple for defense against fast enemy ships, plastanium)

There doesn't seem to be a way to get plastanium here, unless I'm missing something?

[cybersol]

You unlock plastanium after Windswept is captured. IIRC there is one plast compressor on the map you can partially deconstruct and then reconstruct to "capture" it. Assuming you have spores from biomass you could produce a tiny amount of plastanium with that one machine. Might be enough to feed ripples, maybe.

[Shazbot!]

Originally posted by bojianh:

recommend Ripple for defense against fast enemy ships, plastanium

But why?
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2344609440

[bojianh]

Originally posted by cybersol:

You unlock plastanium after Windswept is captured. IIRC there is one plast compressor on the map you can partially deconstruct and then reconstruct to "capture" it. Assuming you have spores from biomass you could produce a tiny amount of plastanium with that one machine. Might be enough to feed ripples, maybe.

The good thing about Windswept is that there is water everywhere, which allow mass production of spores and hence oil with low electric cost. I can get at least 240/min worth of plastanium with 28 cultivator.

With knowledge about sector 221, that is definitely the place to farm plastanium once Windswept is captured.

[bojianh]

Originally posted by Shazbot!:

Originally posted by bojianh:

7. Windswept Islands (recommend Ripple for defense against fast enemy ships, plastanium)

But why?
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2344609440

Well, I guess your defense does work. I had silicon loaded up to Ripple so that the attack has great range and is homing. I did not set up walls to block the ships so once the ship start speeding through, it became a nightmare to even hit the ship.

I put plastanium here to mean that you unlock plastanium after this map, not to use plastanium for ammo here during the mission.