how do you beat syndicate mission 2 on expert?

[snuggleform]

I'm stuck on this bad boy. I feel like rng can really screw you since the last game I played, I had a hostile base to the left of my island, and my original base was connected via teleporter to a hostile kirko base =.=

I had zero time to expand just kept bouncing back and forth between the right and left side of my bases.

Is there something you can with like...using the covert ops to make two factions war with each other does that make it a lot easier??

[Ravenblade]

Would Fabricate Atrocities help? I really spammed it to sow distrust among the allies of my enemies there. In the end every enemy stood alone or was allied with a less potential frenemy. Also draining the most capable enemy of its cash helps massively. The one thing that is important in that mission is: Keep as low profile as you can get through operations and distracting as well as sabotaging your enemy, since all you need to do is taking capitals.

Also few things I have noticed. The RNG is actually very pseudo-RNG meaning (from a technical standpoint anyway): the seed is regenerated each turn. It's similar to XCOM2 in that way that where the seed is generated per unit move depending on past actions in order to make save-scumming less successful (but if you know about that you know it's merely delaying it :p).

[snuggleform]

I'll try fabricate atrocities; there HAS to be a reason why the game just hands you the highest covert ops techs off the bat.

Did you infiltrate everybody's ops center to rate their capabilities? That's gonna drain a lot of energy (6 energy per turn per faction).

[Ravenblade]

Only on one enemy, the only reason you'd want that op is either that the enemy has high op defense or before a war or if you need to know his running ops against you - although in that mission it's a bit reversed. None of them is able to match you in terms of intelligence and covert ops. So you can go all out with crippling and confusion. Even literally hack the planet.

[Climhazzard]

I couldn't even beat it on advanced. After I finished the 50 turn quest, every faction declared war on me at once and 2 turns later had appeared in my cities from all over the map, lol. At the time I didn't really know how to use the compliment diplomacy option though, so perhaps now I could beat it, by being able to choose my enemies.

[snuggleform]

It's a slog, I learned some ways to avoid wars and I'm trying the unification route.

[Climhazzard]

On easy that map took me nearly 120 turns to get a standard victory. I played every other campaign map (except I haven't finished Mora Secundis yet) on advanced and usually beat them in under 70. I suppose for a standard victory you really probably want to focus on a floating or flying unit before you start any wars, which I didn't do, the wraith tank maybe?

[[TwitchTV] TorNis]

I had strongest economy over AIs, every single turn I trying to min max production/growth and research (refocus population manually and share food with a proper colony etc), had to play around teleporters to make sure my bases won't get attacked from a backstab. Also Syndicates auto-win everything with Wraths. Damage builds, Vortex builds or the most brain-dead one - regen/healing one with aim. Befriend Automatons and get their regen mod and you won. Won around turn 70 by killing all and also I launched Doomsday counter as a BM as a payment that I had to suffer on this Archipelago map. Never going to create 75% water map in customs/multiplayer, it's just limits you in many ways and not that fun.

[snuggleform]

Welp I'm trying the diplomatic route; highly not recommended. When you launch the unity protocol most of the remaning factions declare war on you, and the timer is about 30 turns which is much longer than the doomsday's 10 day timer. I'm not even sure I'll survive this assault as I was being well....diplomatic...

[Beldr]

Stop scouting after you've found enough land for 3 colonizers.

Use compliments to set up NAPs.

[Tiasmoon]

Originally posted by wsc150:

I'll try fabricate atrocities; there HAS to be a reason why the game just hands you the highest covert ops techs off the bat.

Did you infiltrate everybody's ops center to rate their capabilities? That's gonna drain a lot of energy (6 energy per turn per faction).

You have access to them because of the Daemon/Avatar you got on your side.

Originally posted by Climhazzard:

On easy that map took me nearly 120 turns to get a standard victory. I played every other campaign map (except I haven't finished Mora Secundis yet) on advanced and usually beat them in under 70. I suppose for a standard victory you really probably want to focus on a floating or flying unit before you start any wars, which I didn't do, the wraith tank maybe?

Wraith Tank is an option but it still feels to slow. To put it in perspective: my commander could oneshot all of their armies (was riding a Wraith Tank as well incidentaly) and I still went for a Doomsday Victory.

That map is a bit too large. Imo it would be better without the water (and instead of having space/void or something you cant cross so you have to actually use the teleporters)

[snuggleform]

Originally posted by Beldr:

Stop scouting after you've found enough land for 3 colonizers.

Use compliments to set up NAPs.

No matter how many compliments you give, the kirko and assembly will never go NAP. Also, if you want to go all cowboy (no to core and no to empress) you have to piss off yuri and lana.

Originally posted by Tiasmoon:

Originally posted by wsc150:

I'll try fabricate atrocities; there HAS to be a reason why the game just hands you the highest covert ops techs off the bat.

Did you infiltrate everybody's ops center to rate their capabilities? That's gonna drain a lot of energy (6 energy per turn per faction).

You have access to them because of the Daemon/Avatar you got on your side.

Originally posted by Climhazzard:

On easy that map took me nearly 120 turns to get a standard victory. I played every other campaign map (except I haven't finished Mora Secundis yet) on advanced and usually beat them in under 70. I suppose for a standard victory you really probably want to focus on a floating or flying unit before you start any wars, which I didn't do, the wraith tank maybe?

Wraith Tank is an option but it still feels to slow. To put it in perspective: my commander could oneshot all of their armies (was riding a Wraith Tank as well incidentaly) and I still went for a Doomsday Victory.

That map is a bit too large. Imo it would be better without the water (and instead of having space/void or something you cant cross so you have to actually use the teleporters)

I'm well aware of why you get the free techs; my comment was more to the actual using of them to turn the tide of battle.

Sadly, I went brute force on this mission after having wasted 150 turns tryig to setup a diplomatic victory. It's just too difficult defending 3 spread apart dwellings for 30 turns against 4 AIs who declare war on you.

[DrSuperEvil]

Conquer them down to one city each which you surround and suppress then go diplomacy.

[snuggleform]

Originally posted by DrSuperEvil:

Conquer them down to one city each which you surround and suppress then go diplomacy.

At that point why not just....finish the cities?

[Sotnik]

Hey, all! As you have finished the first mission, could you please advise how to capture the Synthesis Network? I killed the defenders, the region is mine and my colony's region is next to it, but I can do nothing and the quest is not complete.

[snuggleform]

Walk onto it and double click it then choose capture it, should be one of the options.