Looks like the covies are getting more aggressive with their Shade placement now!

(6:29) Level 5 ('Assault on the Control Room') on Normal. For some new cavern megabattling I've created a save featuring four enemy Shades on the bridge, plus two enemy Ghosts in novel perched positions beyond. Here are three bridge assaults using rocket launcher combos (the paired weapons being an AR, pistol and needler). I have 12 Marines in support against the 38 covies. Coming shortly, more megabattling using this save - because it's a lot of fun!

Released January 28th 2017, gameplay recorded January 25th-26th 2017.

00:02 (Play 1 - Rocket launcher and AR) There are a couple of Hunters hanging around at the start of the bridge - they've been slow to retreat across it - and I tag the first one then hop over him as he swipes. I leave him to the Marines to have fun with while I deal with the second. Both are finished in fairly short order.

00:32 I take out the first Shade with a tag, then advance with the rocket launcher and blast the ground ahead of the next Shade. The gunner survives the blast and you can see him sailing through the air. I suspect he goes off the side of the bridge but I can't be sure. Meanwhile I've noticed a Marine frag bouncing ahead of me, so I back off and blast an Elite with a rocket.

00:46 I throw a plasma grenade to help out the Marines who are taking Shade fire, then I advance. Things get pretty hectic soon after, as I principally use grenades and rockets to work through some Elites.

01:12 Stepping out from behind a stanchion on the left, I throw a plasma then advance with the launcher. Just as I do that, a blue Elite takes a Hunter blast from behind, allowing me to easily finish him with a whack. Continuing on, I rocket the first Ghost then use my other tube on a Hunter, having spotted him just in time before I head off to the left. A couple of Jackals take me by surprise while I'm reloading the launcher and swapping to the AR, but it doesn't matter too much, and I've soon made the left safe.

01:35 The final part of the battle goes quite nicely, comprising a frag then four satisfying rockets, culminating with the destruction of the second Ghost.

02:00 (Play 2 - Rocket launcher and pistol) My pistol makes short work of the two Hunters at the start of the bridge, then I rocket the first two Shades. Amusingly, the second one settles on a bridge stanchion opposite my point of cover.

02:17 Johnson is leading the Marine charge, but one of his guys fumbles a frag just behind, with fatal consequences. The blast doesn't quite kill sarge, but then he gets hit by plasma which does. Nooooo! After I advance a bit and fire off a rocket which takes out two Elites and a Grunt, a Hunter shot sails in and knocks the Shade off its perch. After another rocket I hop up to use that perch myself.

02:37 From up high I use grenades, pistol fire and rockets to wreak assorted havoc. In particular I spot the two remaining Hunters close together, off to the right on the far platform, and I blast them, killing one. Actually, maybe I should've let that Hunter keep firing, because he was usefully off-target, hurting a red Elite with his second shot.

03:03 Hopping down, I start to advance but a Grunt throws a plasma so I back off for a while. A Marine isn't so alert and goes flying, but at least I gun down the grunty assassin. Just after that I get hit by a plasma ball which I spotted too late. My immediate impression is that it came from behind the stanchion near the Grunt, so I throw a plasma to get any lurking Jackal. However, I soon realize that it actually came from the far platform.

03:18 After a few pistol shots I fire a rocket to hit the block on which the first Ghost is perched. That destroys the Ghost and also hurts ground troops. As I advance, I blast the second Ghost which has somehow got free of its block; I'm guessing that a Hunter shot hit the block, since I've never seen a Ghost drive off a block. My final rocket does good damage to troops beyond, and I find very little resistance left to the right. Only two Jackals, easily killed.

03:48 That just leaves a Jackal and two Grunts to finish off on the left. The final Grunt escapes two frags (my throws were pretty clumsy, and gratuitous of course), but then I get him with a headshot. There's a good Marine line at the end: "I wanna go home!"

04:11 (Play 3 - Rocket launcher and needler) My plan for the first Hunter was to tag him, but he turns around a bit early and it bounces off his shield. Still hurts him though, and I soon finish him with needles. The second guy just gets a rocket. I throw a plasma to blast the first Shade, but before the blast there's something amusing you may've picked up. When the gunner (Herbie) gets hit by fire from the next gunner, the latter says "Move!"

04:30 The blast sends Herbie back, so he lives to fight another few seconds. I then fire a second rocket to send the Shade skittling into the covies, and it causes an Elite to dive off the bridge. A plasma sends the next Shade skittling too, then I add a few rockets, causing havoc.

04:50 For a while I do some needling from a perch, attacking three Elites. It's not very effective but at least the body of the final Elite gets launched quite spectacularly, thanks to a needle bang setting off loose plasmas. I also fire two long-range rockets, blasting an Elite on the right, and killing unseen covies closer to the bridge (I saw a Hunter moving past to the right, and was hoping the blast would get him).

05:24 Ok, time to advance now. Things get pretty hectic, and after I've left the bridge I realize I'm down to one health bar and taking fire from behind. I move clear of a blue Elite's swipe just in time, and rocket him. Close call! There are a few Grunts to deal with on the left after that, while recharging.

06:00 Not much opposition remains on the right. After whacking the nearest Jackal I rocket the Ghost, causing the final two Jackals to flee - and I share a clip of needles between them. "Class dismissed!", as a Marine says.

Closing remarks I've been meaning to create a set-up like this for ages, i.e. with Shades on the bridge. Definitely makes for extra fun I think. The Ghosts on the blocks are fun too.

Unlike most of the earlier cavern megabattle saves used in my movie series, I didn't include a Ghost blockade to hold back the Marines. That makes it less convenient for doing solo play, but I decided to focus on play with Marines, and this saves me having to blow a blockade to release them.

One other difference with the set-up is that I got the checkpoint after triggering the Marines to advance over the hump where my spare weapons are. The idea was to have them a bit closer to final hump, so they'd follow me into battle quicker. At the start, they're retreating back over the hump because I retreated back across the relevant trigger line (which actually I didn't need to do; so really I could've done a better job if I'd thought about things a bit more).

I've been working on a movie doing Banshee attacks with this save, but it's not finished yet. I may also do another bridge assault movie, except with other weapon combos. So whether it's one movie or two, expect more cavern megabattling very shortly!

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