The Let's Play Archive

Front Mission 3

by Smasher Dynamo

Part 118: Mission #50: Remember the Wulong,

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Mission #50: Remember the Wulong, Part 2

But first, Dennis gets an email from his girlfriend from Canada.

Sybil posted:


I investigated the
Ravnui Fund.
An anonymous company that
holds strong influence on
the international
money market. No other
information is available.
Like Norman Bates...
Ravnui runs a national
laboratory. The web
address is RNL/
GOVERNMENT/RAVNUI/.

Dennis posted:

TITLE
Ravnui

I'm also gathering
information about Ravnui.
The Orsha Engineering Lab
within the Ravnui National;
Research Center was conducting
an unethical project called
"Imaginary Numbers."

Norman Bates might have
been a subject of that research.
You should stop investigating
any further.
This is beyond FBI's
call of duty.
Leave it to me.



Back to Nanjing



Oh good, more time with the world's least competent evil cabal.
: First they took Wuhan, now Nanjing! General Wei Wen, do you plan to take responsibility for this!?
: I'm sorry, but it's not my sole responsibility...
: Chairman Jie, you must change your approach.
: Lukav! What's Bal's pet doing here!?
: Rats can become a threat if they attack in a large group... You should build up forces around Shanghai and crush them.
: Are you telling me to let them into Shanghai?
: The DHZ military always overpowered their enemies with numbers. Just crush them with everything you have.
I don't think Lukav is an evil genius so much as a one-eyed man in the kingdom of the blind.
: Move the Huangzhou platoon to Shanghai. Also, send the marines in the naval base to defend Shanghai!
: Yes, sir!
: Tell Beijing to send Emergency Deployment Force to Nanjing. Block the enemy's path of retreat! Trap them in Shanghai and crush them! Anything else?
: No. Quite impressive, actually.
: You vile scum. What do you want? You didn't come here to give me some friendly advice. Does Bal want more money?
: Yes, I'm here to talk about Sir Bal.



: We're invading Shanghai.
: Kazuki, it's possible to invade Shanghai now!
: And kill the civilians in Shanghai!? Stop, Kwang! Change the plan!
: If we stop now, we give the military time to reorganize. Then we won't be able to take Shanghai.
: It's better than killing innocent people!
Wait, what? We've spent the last 20 fucking missions gearing up to invade Shanghai so we could get Alisa back, this seems like an completely insane time to rethink that basic premise.
: Looks like we're done. We're moving to Shanghai, as we planned. You do whatever you want. You're all foreigners. You don't understand our ideals.
I guess that'll teach us to sign up with the Chinese equivalent of the Tea Party movement.
: Kwang, make him stop!
: I'm sorry. I can't stop their momentum.
: Kwang...
: It's no use, Kazuki. This is what they decided.
: But...
: We need to move on, Kazuki.
: Yeah, we gotta rescue Alisa!
: You're right. We can't stop here.
: We'll have to get to Shanghai on our own somehow. Let's come up with a plan.
: Okay. Let's get ready!
: Kazuki changes his mind pretty quickly.
: Yeah. He's a simpleton.
: You don't think about anything, on the other hand.
: Yes. Because I'm a... simpleton?
: I'll come up with a plan with Dennis. You guys get ready.
: What's wrong? We made it this far. Let's just go on to Shanghai!
: We'll probably encounter Lukav in Shanghai. Let's be careful.
Nah, that's boring. Let's be more reckless than ever!
: Shanghai is the enemy's headquarters. I'm psyched!
: We're going to Shanghai! I wonder what Kazuki's sister is like. What if she looks exactly like Kazuki? That's not a very pretty picture.
: We're finally approaching Shanghai... Daddy, I've come this far on my business trip!
Linny is such a terrible salesman that he evidently thinks that the most important part of sales is murdering your potential buyer.
: We're finally here. I guess miracles do occur. But luck may not be on our side from now on.
Let the Senor Goodtimes roll! Anyway, let's stop at the local bar.



: Liang Hua!?
: Hello, mercenaries. I heard you had a fight with Huang. You were fired?
: I only told him that war is wrong.
: There are many things at stake in a war. Especially when you win.
: What do you mean?
: This war started as a fight for democracy, but now the Hua Lian Rebel leaders are fighting for personal gain.
The moral of Front Mission 3: Freedom really isn't worth it.
: They're fighting for their own gains!? That's exactly what the military is doing!
: It's stupid. I'm sure that's why you'd start a war in the first place.
: And we're just another one of those idiots.
: ...
: Anyhow, I'll try my best to protect everyone. You should try pursuing your own goals.
So, in face of our moral disgust over the rebels fighting for personal gain we should....fight for personal gain?
: Liang Hua...
: Goodbye. Be good to your girlfriend!
: I'll never forgive the military for using us as a shield! Nanjing would have been destroyed if it weren't for the rebels. And I thought the rebels were the enemy... I feel so betrayed! The rebels protected this city with their lives. I'm supporting the rebels from now on.
: I hate everyone involved in the war! The rebels saved people on helicopters, you say? How many dead bodies did they land on? How are the people supposed to rebuild now!? I didn't mean to take it out on you. I'm sorry, but I... lost my house and my family.
: So the rebels are moving on to Shanghai. I'm a patriot, so I can't support you. But I'll give you this web address. It's for the DHZ spenders' web site. That's all I can do. The rest is up to your battle skill.
Bah! I grow weary of the locals' complaints. Back to base!



: I'll explain the mission. The rebels headed for Shanghai on the railroad. They'll fight Shanghai's defense force.
: We'll also meet the enemies if we head to Shanghai.
: We need to avoid battles in order to get to the embassy on our own.
: Maybe we should've gone with the Hua Lian Rebels.
: No. Quite the contrary.
: What do you mean?
: While the rebels are fighting, we should work on our way to the embassy. The DHZ will move toward the railway where the rebels are. There are 2 railways connecting the embassy. One is Shanghai Railway, the other is the Airport Railway.
Seems like it would be a bit harder than that to penetrate into the heart of the DHZ capital, but, hell, who am I to say no?
: So, take the airport and use the railroad to the embassy?
: The enemy is busy fighting off the rebels. Security should be light.
: Sounds like a good plan! Let's go!



Shanghai. Finally.



: This is it.
: What's this? There are no enemies, man.
: Wow, thanks to Emma, this'll be a cake walk.



Still got the rifle, eh, Rudolf? A pity, I had such high hopes for our final encounter.
: Well, I didn't see them among the Hua Lian. I just thought they'd be in a different unit.
: Wulong... We don't want an unnecessary fight. Get out of the way!
: I can't, I must avenge my comrades.
: That is the least we can do.
: Regardless of what happens to this country... I have a score to settle with you!
: There's no alternative!?
: As mercs, we have a reputation to keep. We can't quit as losers.



Kazuki, Yun, Linny and Marcus are up. Rudolf and Rebecca are all that's left of the Wulong, but they have a few tanks and a couple of armed trains helping them. You might remember the trains from the tunnel mission, and they haven't gotten any stronger.



For a guy who's allegedly one of the best wanzer pilots in the world, Rudolf is rather underwhelming. He's in a Vinedrai, which is an okay wanzer, but he's also got a rifle, meaning that even Linny is capable of besting him.



Rebecca is in a Whisk, the most robust missile wanzer in the game, but she also starts within charge range for Marcus, and the strongest missile wanzer in the world isn't tough enough for close combat.



More tanks. These are the type armed with cannons, meaning they're vulnerable to close combat. At the same time, Rudolf, in a fit of desperation, tries to run away from the party, leaving his tanks to cover him. They're not going to last long...



Yun kills Rebecca in turn 2. I'll miss hateful, hateful Rebecca.
: I've lost my touch...



And down goes a tank. Seeing as all that's left is Rudolf, a couple of tanks, and the immobile trains, this mission is basically over.



Marcus kills a tank with a single strike.



The rest of the party starts wearing down the trains which are helpless to short range weapons...and can't move. That's not an ideal combination.



Now nothing stands in the way of Marcus' pursuit of Rudolf.



And so Marcus breaks Rudolf's legs. The Wulong are not exactly going out with a bang.



Kazuki kills one train...



...and Linny kills the other one. The only enemy left is Rudolf. Now, I wish I could tell you that ol' Rudolf went out in a heroic blaze of glory. I wish I could tell you that...



...but, well...



...not so much.
: ...Not bad. You're actually pretty good.



Perfection. Kazuki wins MVP, as I start to get concerned that we're getting close to the 35-Platinum threshold.



: Dennis, how are the Hua Lian doing?
: Not too good. We should hurry with the operation.
How is it that we're always on the losing side of these civil wars?
: So dude, how do we get to the embassy from here?
: We'll borrow one of their vehicles. Emma, help me out.
: ?

Next Time: Real Numbers, Real Problems