X1CA_005 Forged Alliance official campaign map
Size:	20x20 km
Because of the events on Hades, QAI must be destroyed once and for all. Using intelligence acquired from the Seven Hand Node, the Coalition has learned that QAI's mainframe is on the planet Pearl II. Your mission is to establish a foothold on Pearl II, thus clearing the way for Dr. Brackman, who will arrive and personally shut down QAI.
Previous map: X1CA_004	Next map: X1CA_006

X1CA_005 is an official campaign map from Forged Alliance. It is the fifth map.

Strategy/Walkthrough Edit

OPERATION:MINDGAMES

PRIMARY MISSIONS:

• Clear the Landing Zone
• Defeat Hex5
• Protect Dr. Brackman
• Escort Dr. Brackman to QAI Mainframe

SECONDARY MISSIONS:

• Destroy Hex5's Firebases
• Rescue Loyalist Commander
• Protect Commander Fletcher
• Capture Order Science Facility(Aeon Only)

UNLOCKED TECH

• UEF Novax Defense Satellite (After Hex5)

On this mission, you can capture a Cybran POW facility that allows you to use an Aeon support commander. If you are a UEF or Cybran, this is an opportunity you can't miss. When you are playing be careful to fortify the area north of your base since that's where QAI's base is and when the map expands and he attacks you might find yourself in a bad situation.

You start with nothing but your ACU, so a standard Build_Orders beginning is necessary to get a base up and running. Small waves of harrassing units are coming from Hex5's 3 firebases, so you will want to crush them when you can. Capture any rushing engineers to gain access to Cybran units. As usual, get upgraded to a Tech 3 economy before completing this mission.

Once those 3 small bases are gone, the map expands to your east. The landing zone is covered by T3 Cybran factories, so bring T3 and Experimental units to the party. Once the landing zone is completely clear, UEF Commander Fletcher will join you in an assault on Hex5's base to the southeast. Fletcher will need some ground and air cover while he builds up a base. You need him alive to make this mission much easier, so don't let him be attacked to the point where he would die, or else he will gate out and you will be on your own. Build T3 Anti-air throughout his base, and your best defenses near the northern edge. T2/T3 torpedo defenses in the channel are very helpful.

When Hex5 bites the big one in a mushroom cloud, the fun really begins. The QAI Mainframe is to your northeast and QAI is very unhappy about Hex5. Expect waves of T3 units and Experimentals to counter-attack you and Commander Fletcher. If you can maintain air superiority with T3 fighters, you can use T3 bombers/gunships to cut down the waves. Send your own mixed force squads, northward killing off the factories and economy of QAI. If you are playing as Aeon and Amalia is still alive, she will inform you about an Order Research Facility near QAI's Naval position. It has a Galactic Colossus under its control and if you capture the Facility, It will become yours to command. If you take too long though, the order forces will manually use the Colossus to attack your position, so use a support commander with Teleportation equipped to capture the Facility Quickly. It is important to note that QAI may send Experimentals periodically to Fletcher's base, so help him out. Once attack waves slow to a trickle, you can move Dr. Brackman's Megalith forward from your base (you did park him by your base,right?).

When Dr. Brackman's Megalith reaches the designated point, he will "shutdown" the QAI Mainframe and the mission will be complete.

Strategy/Walkthrough (Hard Mode)Edit

Welcome to the Hard Mode section. Many of the tactics used here are unnecessary in normal mode, but crucial in hard mode. The order and timing of your actions are crucial in the beginning of each mission (and each stage) in order to survive the early assaults, and in most cases you'll need to capture enemy factions in order to make things easier. A general rule to remember in hard mode is that you must allow yourself to build up as much as possible before ending each stage in order to prepare for what's coming, thus you must be familiar with the flow of the mission.

This mission is one of the toughest in the game, especially in the beginning. It is the only mission where you're given neither an initial base nor reclaimable wheckages. You start off in a competely empty area and has to build up your base the conventional way, while under attack by T2 gunships constantly. The final stage also begins with a very large strike consists of strategic bombers as well as multiple experimental assaults at once, thus you need a very well fortified defense line to survive the attack.

Stage 1Edit

You start off with nothing whatsoever, so you need a proper build sequence. Build a land factory, 2 power plants, 2 T1 extractors, then another 2 power plants, and finally another 2 T1 extractors. Watch out for early T1 assaults and incoming engineers trying to capture your buildings. Build 2 T1 engineers and build a radar to spot those units. Quickly start upgrading your factory to T2. Try to capture the Cybran engineers if you're UEF/Aeon to gain access to Soul Rippers, which will help distract some of the ASFs from your CZARs later on and, of course, help combat experimentals later on since they're very tough even though they have 33% less HP than in skirmish. You have only precious moments before the gunship assault arrives so try to assist the factory to reach T2 faster.

After your factory reach T2, immediately start build mobile flaks until you have 6 of them. Those T2 gunships will arrive very soon so its vital that you have them when they do. Remember to scatter the mobile flaks around the base because the gunships and bombers can come from northwest, northeast, southwest and southeast, and their splash attack can damage the buildings if you stick too close. Build more T1 power plants and get a T2 shield ASAP, using those destroyed gunships to fuel your mass level. Watch out for ground attacks as well, you have to use your ACU to counter them for now. For Cybran upgrade the shields to ED2 at least since ED1 only has 4000HP which is broken easily by a few of their Renegades, but get to ED3 whenever possible. With the shield in place you can get T2 defenses as well as a T2 power plant under it. If you need to build while under heavy attack, try to use your ACU to attract those gunships and units, it is tough enough to take a few Renegades since their splash rocket attacks isn't 100% accurate. If possible, try to build the shields under the extractors so they're protected as well. Remember to build shield and defenses on the southwest facing the shore because there'll be sneak attacks from T2 Wagners soon.

You'll be constantly attacked by gunships for a while so make sure the shields are in good condition. The enemy will also start using T2 ground units to attack you so make sure you have those T2 point defenses. Get some tactical missile defenses as well to counter those missile launchers. Continue using the destroyed gunships to refuel your mass; they worth 300 mass each and with the amount of them dying each time the enemy attacks you do not have to worry about lack of mass at all. Get all extractors to T3 and start upgrading your factory to T3.

With your factory reaching T3, get T3 engineers to build SAMs everywhere to stop those gunships putting immense pressure on you. Get a quantom gate and get sACUs to build a defense line at the northeast entrance as well as building a long defense line between the two mass deposits at the south entrance. Let the SAMs destroy one gunship wave, then quickly move the sACU to the spot and build SAMs before the next wave arrives to secure the area, then only build shields. With the two defense lines in place you'll have the whole area ready to build your T3 resource farms. Start building experimentals and use one to wipe the nearest forward base to oblivion to slow down those gunship attacks, then build a group of them and seek out the other two forward bases. With the three bases destroyed you can now go rescue Amalia, which for Aeon is a free sACU and for others is access to Aeon tech. Build an Aeon quantom qate and get some more sACUs to help build the Salvation, which is a super T3 heavy artillery with experimental-level DPS and experimental-level cost to build. Be sure to surround it with power plants to double its fire rate. If you're UEF get a Mavor up as well. Also build some Collosuses and CZARs and position them at the south entrance, with the collosuses standing outside the shield.

When you're ready, destroy the main base, but leave some alive so you have time to move your army back, because the next stage starts with strategic bombers seeking out your experimentals. Use the Salvation to kill the rest.

Stage 2Edit

Get a CZAR over to Flecher's position in case there're units around. Flecher has always been unhelpful with him sending Fatboys into Hex5's base only to have them destroyed for no reason. Unfortunately, it gets worse in hard mode, since he now builds his base at an absurdly slow rate thanks to him not building engineers at the start. Still, you do not have to worry about him since rarely will Hex5 send any units to his base, because he'll send all of them to you. Make sure you have those Collosuses to take those strategic bombs rather than your shields. Be aware of T3 mobile artilleries shelling your Collosuses; use the CZAR to fry them. Hex5 may send Monkeylords to your base; your Collosuses will make short work of them.

Now, get your Aeon sACUs to build a long defense line at the north; that's where QAI will attack from later. Build some more Collosuses and have them stand in front of the shields, backed by point defenses and SAMs. Get some Soul Rippers and CZARs as well. Use the Salvation and Mavor to siege Hex5's base, or you can use CZARs because he has weak AA defenses, just dont use ground assaults because of the number of Monkeylords and Soul Rippers he has. Try not to accidentally kill Hex5 until you're ready for the final stage.

If you're Aeon, make sure you have one sACU with the teleportation upgrade.

Stage 3Edit

Get ready for a huge assault involving strategic bombers, ASFs, T3 Loyalists and Bricks, as well as a CZAR. Quickly bring down the CZAR first, using your Collosus as bait to prevent it entering your base and drop onto your defense line. Don't worry, QAI has only one CZAR available. After the first wave, it'll send 3 Fatboys in quick succession, use CZAR and Soul Rippers to destroy them before they do too much damage. A Soul Ripper quickly follows, again use CZARs and Soul Rippers to distract it while your SAMs do the work. At the same time, QAI will use his Scathis (it only has it in hard mode) to begin sieging Flecher's base, so use the Salvation to kill it quickly. Build more Collosuses to replace those that may have been destroyed to prevent further experimental assaults should there're any (in my game QAI also sends a Collosus later). QAI will continuously send T3 units to your base; those are easily held back by your Collosuses. Move your CZAR that're protecting Flether to the river to protect against QAI's Fatboys and Monkeylords that it sends to his base. Use the Salvation to destroy its structures. If you're Aeon, you'll get the chance to have a free Collosus if you capture the building in time, just teleport your sACU over and capture it, but QAI has Monkeylords, Fatboys, Soul Rippers as well as a Collosus guarding the base, thus you need a full-scale Soul Ripper and CZAR assault. 

Keep at it until everything's destroyed, then send Dr Brackman's Megalith to the destination.