[SPOILERS] Stealth stories

[CS554]

Some like shotguns, some like their weapons to come heavier the better, some may feel like they losing a friend every time they need to run out of ammo for their rocket launcher.

Then some of us like stealth. We may kill, we may take non-lethal approach, we may ghost. Sometimes we want to run through entire game like this, sometimes we mix and match. We do this for various reasons, but most importantly when we get to it, we really get to it.

This is a topic for sharing your best, unexpected or even worst stealth experiences in game.

I start with my own experience, about how things may sometimes go a bit awry or how heavy machine guns might be bad for stealth.


There wasn't anything special about that mission. We were at Aldecaldos camp. Something or someone needed to be grabbed from gas station nearby. There were guards in place naturally but I really didn't thought much of it while we drove to destination.

We got close, get on my feet. Bright daylight, we are on badlands, so not much cover. I see gas station and some guards patrolling. There's broken oil tank at right side of gas station. Closest guard patrolling alongside road turns left, I cross road and head behind oil tank for cover.

I take a peek to target area, tagging time. There's one I spotted before, one on roof, there is yet another patrolling at left side of gas station. One camera and oh... heavy machine gun turret. Those you see as precious opportunities to get fit.

I hack the camera and withdraw behind oil tank, waiting game, guard patrolling alongside road comes and turns to leave. I grab him and drag him back behind cover, sweet dreams. Things should be very easy from now on.

Nothing in scanner, guard on roof is looking other way. I head for heavy machine gun for those precious athletics, rip it off. Then I get shot, where that came from? There was another guy patrolling close to right wall of station, other guard from left is alerted and comes around corner shooting, I'm in crossfire with baseball bat and pistol I'm terrible with. Using what I have is only option. I shoot guard who is coming around left corner as he is rushing towards me. Get him at fuel pumps, move towards pumps to get cover from guy on roof and shoot guard at right corner, got him.

That didn't really went stealthy, then I'm caught in explosion. Fuel pumps, my own rounds set them on fire, I'm not in very best shape. There was a car parked nearby, it's on fire. I'm still being shot, what the heck... I'm being gunned from inside gas station. I rush towards door, there are two guys there near back wall, one behind shelf and other behind counter. Not much cover, I opt to shoot them with heavy machine gun, somehow I make it. I feel disoriented, objective is close, I'm shot in the back. Guy on the roof, I forgot him, machine gun gets him. I'm not really at very good shape at all.

Close to objective, there's something outside. What the heck, there are more of coming from road running and gunning. Reinforcement or gang nearby heard all the noise? fuel pumps and a car exploding, where the hell are all these people come from? I get them though through gas station windows, one got very close to door.

I get to objective, can't even remember if it was a person, if I talked to someone, or if it was an item, but it's over.

Panam arrives in her car and stops at side of road. We talk talk a little bit, I almost expect her to comment my stealth performance, but thankfully she doesn't say anything about that. She takes the mission objective with her and drives away.

Time to loot but I stop for a moment. Some shelfs inside gas station have fallen, most windows are gone, place is shot to hell. Fuel pumps are still on fire, there's smoke rising also from car that exploded. There are bodies, a lot of bodies scattered all over the place. What comes to stealth, this is what failure reaching epic proportions looks like.

Mission complete though, but still...

1. Shouldn't take heavy machine gun when you stealth
2. If you wanna impress your girl friend with your superb stealth infiltration skills, really shouldn't take heavy machine gun.
3. Still having doubts, see 1.

 

[Torbaal]

I had to free ostages from Militech in the badlands. Riding on bike to the destination I find a heavily guarding complex. Not surprising for a corpo. On it's right, some rocks offering cover. Leaving my Appolo out of sight, I climb up and start scanning.
Towers, turrets, robots, sniper, cams, they have it all. Yet I smirk 'they won't know what's going to hit them' I remember thinking while uploading the Ping quickack via the sniper.
It always works : all targets are now visible, taggable, hackable. Still, I take my time, tagging them all, using cams to make sure I didn't forget any. I love that feeling, weaving my net around them, using their own devices and network against them. Quiet, silent.
Breaching their defenses now, turning all cams off, but carefully avoiding to turn the turrets against them. I don't want any shot being fired, nor to risk any of the civilian's life.
Show is ready, all is in place. Picking up remote targets first, I start to take them down. One by one, they fall like flies when I overload their cyberware, causing shortcircuits to hit critical functions. For those gathered, I upload Contagion and spread toxins in their organism, coming from what they thought were upgrades making them better fighter and corpo dogs. I laugh while they panic for just a few seconds before droping unconscious on the floor.
I crawl closer, jump over a fence, make sure no one is left standing before freeing the ostages. Once they're gone, I draw my silenced revolver, a gift from my mate River. Not sure he'd like how I use it though, as I popped their head off with a single bullet after looting their limp bodies.
I can't stand corps, even less human trafficants. The Nomad in me screams when I think of cages. It's an execution, done without honor, without letting them make peace with themselves nor put up a fight. And it feels good. Yes, it does.
Last round over the facility, I rip it clean. No turret is left functional, no cam will record anything ever, no data is left on site. If I could blow the place up I would. Without looking back I climb on my bike and dust off, dreaming of bigger complex and Headquaters...