Part 124: North of Mexico

Briefing Video: video link





We start the mission with a line of Panthers in place to stop the first of the LC scouts.





Before we even get the briefing we're in an incredibly pitched battle. One that we absolutely must win, given our precarious starting position.



Marcus explains what we already know: the LC are coming and we're in deep shit unless we stop them. Of course the first LC attack is still going strong...



Our base is absolutely pathetic. Thus the importance of getting a win right out from the start. More importantly: we need to hold our position for 87 hours. Yikes.



We're starting to run low on ammo, but we've managed to kill off most of the Craters.



Reload must go quickly. The next wave will be here in short order.



On the plus side, we do have a giant mineral patch to work with. So Marcus made a good call in picking this to be where we make our stand.



Just as I predicted, the LC are back. And this time they're packing energy weapons. And we have no shields.



The Craters are knifing right through us. We've already managed to lose a bunch of units and the engagement has barely begun.



Right. All you survivors are getting shields. It's our only chance.



Shockingly when you shield your units it works a lot better! Who would've thought...



That and my decision to turn this into a tower defense game looks to be working in our favor. The LC aren't able to get any kind of push going.



Zero casualties this time! Great work guys!



And now we have a Fortress right in the middle of the path :getin:



I think it makes a little more sense to keep the Panthers back behind the defenses, that way we don't have to spend as much time rebuilding whatever poor robot the LC decides to target.



It does lead to more enemy penetration though.



Hey wait a second, you guys aren't supposed to keep going! You're supposed to attack the defenses! Shit.



The Craters drive all the way to the back of my base and proceed to sit there. I have no idea why they would do this, but okay then!



Great...obviously the LC learned something from their assault on GOLAN. Namely, earthquake generators can work wonders. We've gotta get units down in the tunnels...fast!



It's all I could spare. Hope they can get the job done





Meanwhile up top the LC are attempting an aerial assault.

It doesn't go well.



Oh clever! The LC Earthquak Generators arrive at the same time as the last Thunderer is snuffed from the sky. If our anti-air defenses had been a bit more pedestrian we may have had to manage two fronts at once. As it is, our walkers should be able to beat out these Craters. Especially since the Earthquake Generator can't hurt units, only buildings.



Yep. Easy. Well that ended up being less horrible than I was anticipating...



Okay, you guys hang out here. If we need to go back under you'll be right there, but I'm worried we may get another blitz attempt. This time they might actually shoot at us!





Look, sending in more Thunderers isn't going to change that we've got better anti-air.



...Sending in ground units after we're distracted might work though. Or it would if we hadn't built up our defenses and forced you to take a long, winding path through.



The few remaining Thunderers are helpless against my Gargoyles.



Let's continue building our tower defense game out. I didn't like how some of the Craters actually got in near where the units are.



Oh shit. If Mammoths actually had drivers he'd be shitting his pants right now.

Fortunately they don't so he'll just sit there and get stomped by the incoming wave. Sorry Mammoth



The Mammoth didn't die in vain though. Look at how long it's taking these Craters to make it through. It's a complete turkey shoot now.



Although some of the turkeys do manage to shoot back and do some damage...

With the mines cleared out I have a new idea for improving our defenses, but I don't think the pro-robot folks out there will like it.



Hello bait! Yes, just sit there Harvesters. By the time you're all dead the Thunderers will be gone and we can focus fire on the Craters.



See, they didn't even kill any of you!

...I know they're robots but I do feel a little bad about ordering them to sit there and die.



17 hours to go and our defenses look tough.

That's really the trick to this mission. So long as the first wave doesn't break through and you've got a good mix of weapons on your line you should breeze right through it.





The rest of the Harvesters die. I'm sorry!

...Wait. Are those...CRIONS!?

HOW THE HELL DID THEY GET CRIONS OUT HERE!



Gogogogogogogo! Mobilize everything! We have to take out those Crions or we're in deep shit!



The Crions don't get any shots off but I'm deeply concerned. If the LC is throwing this kind of hardware at us, surely their general command has gotten a sense of where we're at.



I become increasingly paranoid. I'm terrified of a sneak LC attack through the mountains. We have to ensure the only passage through is via our blockade. Furthermore, when we continue north we need any reinforcements to get bogged down here.



Only 8 hours left. This might be the last wave. And it's got even more Crions...



Holy shit! A Crion just fired at one of our buildings and took out half our air force! I didn't even know artillery could damage air units.

Thankfully the rest of the Crions didn't figure it out and we were able to push them back again.



5 hours to go and I'm furiously building walls up north.



2 hours left and our blockade is still intact. I begin gathering together what few robots I can spare for the trek north.



Almost done...just a few more barricades and any pursuers will be forced into our teeth.



That's it! No final wave is coming! Begin to march men er, robots!



And our Mammoth has finished construction of the barricades. Any pursuing LC forces will be funneled into our defenses. Even if they manage to break through we'll be long gone by then.



Sounds like a good idea to me. I'm tired of being on the run, and the lack of a Main Base is making this campaign much more difficult than the first two.





Our kill sheet looks incredible, as usual.





Yes! The base is still operational! Hallelujah. And making matters even better, the LC have no clue we're here. Once we get everything powered back up we should have no problem making this our HQ. Most importantly, we can finally do research!

Research: Upgraded Grenade Launcher, Heavy Grenade Launcher, Upgraded Heavy Grenade Launcher, Grenade Ammox3



We're going to mine out all the resources before we head out. We've been cash-strapped for a while now and I want to have a good reserve in case we need more units or research.



After a little more than a week, we're up and operational. The LC have no clue where we've gone and I haven't seen any sign of them. It's time to be a little devious. A little sneaky. It's time to figure out just what exactly is going on with GOLAN.