Part 60: Panama

Welcome to Panama comrades! Our continued assault on the UCS has driven them all the way to the bridge between the two Americas. Also I didn't send you some POWs to do...whatever it is you did to them Major Minsk. That's not very nice I don't think I want to work with you anymore. Can I have a transfer?

Oh and this is the last resource extraction mission before the endgame. I hope this doesn't make anyone too sad.





Once again we start with almost nothing. The minimap helpfully has the resource extraction point revealed so instead of bumbling about in the dark I can send the Siberias off to blaze a path to the deposits.



It looks like the resources are on the UCS side of the canal. Still, it shouldn't be a problem for us to sneak by.



Well unless there's a pair of Fortresses guarding the other bank. Already we've seen more ingenuity in defense in this resource mission than we have since the Alaska mission. The Alaska mission had the UCS put a base on the resource field we needed. Now they're actually building defenses and defending their territory instead of letting us take it and launching ineffective attacks on our mining operation.



Of course they're powering these behemoths with an Energy Transmitter instead of a true Power Plant, so the Fortresses are easy to take dow-



Oh you assholes...

The UCS have found quite the counter to our standard plan for dealing with static defenses. Once the Fortresses lost power a series of bombs attached to the bridges detonated. The Fortresses are still largely helpless, but with no reinforcements coming any time soon it's best to write these three scouts off as dead.



And of course the one Fortress that does still have power is upgrading its weapons. These guys are toast.



We'll need a more significant force to take the northern bank and defend our Gruz while he rebuilds the bridge. At bare minimum we'll need to resupply our rockets and bullets.



A bit of scouting from our captured Moons from last mission reveal a small UCS research/mining base to the south. It cannot be permitted to stick around researching... whatever it is the UCS are researching.



The UCS have rebuilt and we're now going to need to stage a frontal assault against three Fortresses with a sturdy power plant behind them. I probably should've waited and just sent the UFO across, but that would be a much more boring mission.

Given the difficulty of storming such a position, let's see if there are any alternative approaches available. Unfortunately the canal is too deep to build a crossing at any point other than the one guarded by the UCS. Our only other option is to dig our way there.



But underground won't work; that's a completely solid rock wall surrounding the northern bank.



Our navy currently won't stand a chance against those Fortresses. I'm going to get the Leviathan fully researched in case we need to use the navy to break the UCS defenses.

The Leviathan is a traditional battleship. Each upgrade for it will not only increase the typical stats like HP and speed but also allow you to mount an additional weapon. The fully upgraded Leviathan is a terrible sight to behold for your enemies near the ocean.





The small research/mining base has no hope of holding out against these Moons. It's lack of defenses are baffling considering the superior tactical positioning of the UCS on the other side of the canal. Why didn't they put this facility over there?

With the base leveled we set up a small mining operation to give us the credits we'll need to finance the assault.



The UCS defenses are fully upgraded and operational. I really, really don't want to charge head-first into that.



Maybe the UFO can find an alternate route?



Yeah, not really. I count two Fortresses guarding the southern approach with another two north of the power plant. Even the UFO isn't that tough. Had the UCS not built the power plant at the bridge I might be able to take out the Energy Transmitters but that's now pointless. Once again my early aggression and carelessness have made this mission tougher than it really needs to be.

But it makes for a much more interesting update!



The next Leviathan chassis is added to the research queue.



I get it Igor. Work is going according to schedule. It's always going according to schedule. And you've yet to realize that you didn't get any money for that last resource collection mission.

Who are you related to that lets you get a job like that when you're so obviously incompetent!?

(Remember, this Axeil is the son of the Khan )





The UCS are no longer content to get whittled away by the UFO and have started focusing their fire on it at first sight. It's only by the barest of margins that I manage to maneuver the spaceship out alive.



Perhaps a distraction operation will allow the Gruz enough time to complete the bridge? It's not a lot of segments and the Gruz can take a beating. The driver will die but he's just a Gruz driver.



The majority of the army heads to the Pacific coast to begin their feint.



Let's hope it works



Our Groznys have engaged the UCS air force. So far so good.



The Leviathan is finished so now let's move on to the Heavy Laser.



The engagement has moved to the North American side of the battlefield. Unfortunately, the UCS airforce greatly outnumbers our Groznys here. Choppers are getting lit up and dropping out of the sky at an unsustainable rate. I order a retreat, hopefully this moved the UCS's attention away from the Gruz moving across the canal.



Guess not.



To make matters worse, the Gruz driver didn't measure the height properly so the bridge he built is too low and can't connect to the other half. Well done!



I take out my frustration the best way I know how: harassing UCS Repairers. They're all dead now. But the airforce doesn't like this and they've gotten a bit cross with me.



Which plays right into my trap. The Groznys pick off the Gargoyles one by one as the UFO draws them into the skies over the forest.



Thanks to this the ED now has aerial superiority.



The lack of harassment from the UCS Gargoyles allows the UFO to sneak past the Fortresses, taking only minimal damage. He leaves a trail of destroyed Energy Transmitters in his wake. Not that killing them does any good other than killing the backup power supply to the bridge though.



The third Fortress is out of range from this approach angle. The UFO can take on two Fortresses at once and after a brief volley there are only two Fortresses defending the bridge.



And with the Fortress on the right flank destroyed the UFO can run in and hide back where the power plants are, well out of the range of the guns of the defenses.





Goodbye Fortresses. You were the best challenge we've seen in any resource collection mission



With the defenses down, another Gruz is able to begin constructing a bridge. Once the bridge is built the army can move in to take the resource fields.



There is a small UCS base here but it's not going to stand a chance against the UFO.



Panthers are a slightly more concerning problem, but the air cover over the canal can take them out before they cause any mischief.



The Heavy Laser is finished. And now we have this...laser-y monstrosity.



Hooray we're across! Pop the champagne! Alright time to head hom-

Oh right. We still need to mine all the resources.



Come on guys, let's set up shop.



There we go. That's looking pretty good. Now to wait for the 50,000 CR to get to base.



It's very boring so I hunt some Minelayers in the northwest of the map.



Ugh. This is taking forever. Isn't there anything more exciting to do?



Blowing up power plants counts as excitement right? With the UCS airforce neutered, destroying the UCS base is just a matter of positioning and effective use of other units to draw fire away from the UFO.



And once the UFO has cut the power its all over. Happy turkey shoot everyone! You've earned it.





I research the Heavy Ion Cannon while waiting for the credits to move. It's like the regular Ion Cannon but hits harder and mounts on a heavy weapon slot.



Thank god. I'm sick of these resource collection missions. We're moving to take overall command of our newest front: Africa. There's still a bit of cleanup to do here though.



Like making our laser monstrosity more monstrous withe the first Heavy Laser upgrade.

And ED News has a report on our success. Not all the credits were embezzled this time so we've got our first evacuation ship finished. Good. This is the one that I'll be riding on now. As far as I'm concerned this thing is over, thus why I'm going off to attack protect Africa from the greedy imperialistic blood-lust of the UCS.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNeHoE3_lUM





The Heavy Laser Cannon and Heavy Ion Cannon are fully upgraded. We'll see them in action soon.



300,000 credits to go. I think Major Minsk can handle getting all that on his own, don't you? I mean, assuming the mining at home is going well I don't see any reason for us to worry anymore.

(Except the mining at home isn't going well at all. Recall all the LC missions that took place in ED territory, stealing resources out from under the Dynasty's nose. Thus, the pivot to Africa.)





Another mission, another impressive score sheet.



And this is the bit of the campaign that almost no one sees that I was alluding to earlier in this thread. Mozambique begins the Ashanti missions for the ED. We'll be trying to secure an alliance with this tribe against the UCS. Africa is one of the few unclaimed places on the map, mostly due to the Ashanti's defense against ED and UCS raids. But with the Americas in ruins the UCS are being forced to push into Africa and other marginal territories with all their might. Constant LC raiding in Asia have also made the resource situation for the Eurasian Dynasty perilous. Both factions need the resources here. And we're not even counting the possibility that the LC intervenes and plays spoiler. We could have a 4-way conflict on our hands in the waning days of Earth's life. The Battle for Africa may just determine who wins and who loses the Last War on Earth.