Hampton Roads was the third Act I mission in the Nod campaign of Tiberium Wars, which saw the capture of the eponymous Hampton Roads Naval Base.
Background[]
A war needs supply lines and supply lines need transport. Nod's offensive in BZ-2 was limited by the lack of a gateway to bring in large amounts of resources and equipment. To rectify that situation a cunning plan was created, to both cripple GDI logistics by depriving them of the largest naval base in North America and gain a crucial offload point for Nod supplies. Furthermore, GDI's aircraft carrier GDS Pathe was anchored in the port. An attack on the Langley AFB would take place at the same time the Hampton Roads would be attacked, leaving the carrier the sole provider of air support on the eastern seaboard. If all went according to plan, the skies would be clear for Nod within hours.
The plan itself was a masterstroke - a single Commando would be smuggled in via a container and take out the GDS Pathe, creating the perfect opening for a small force to be dropped into the port. Then, this small force would destroy the port authority building, scrambling GDI communications and allowing Nod to land amphibious assaults along the coastline, securing the port.
New Units[]
Walkthrough[]
(This walkthrough assumes Hard difficulty.)
On Hard difficulty, your Commando starts with no veterancy, so it is incredibly easy to die (and lose the mission) in the first phase because of the two Foxholes with Rifleman Squads within. Kill the first patrolling Rifleman Squads you encounter and move next to the two crates. Focus on the largest squads first to minimize damage dealt to the Commando.
One of the crates is a veterancy crate, the other is a healing crate. Grab the veterancy crate first, and kill as many Riflemen as you can without getting into the range of the Foxholes. Pull back your commando and grab the heal crate (which will restore her health to full), then enter the civilian building close to the foxholes. Kill any approaching rifleman squads and the nearby missile squad, then exit the building. Grab the nearby veterancy and healing crates, demolish the Foxholes, then immediately retreat back to the civilian building to deal with any remaining rifleman squads that appear afterward.
Enter the civilian building next to the cargo ship, which will allow you to kill most surrounding infantry safely. Exit the building and grab the nearby healing crate, then take out any remaining infantry and the nearby GDI vehicles by shooting the nearby explosive barrels. The GDS Pathe is guarded by a GDI commando who will jumpjet in from the edge of the dock, but it should not pose too much of a threat to you. By the time you kill him, your commando should have reached heroic rank, granting her auto-healing, which makes the rest of the mission significantly easier.
Destroy the Pathe, which will allow reinforcements to arrive by air. The reinforcements consist of 4 Venoms and 15 squads of fanatics. The GDI base to the south is defended by many garrisoned buildings and hidden sniper teams. Use your Venoms in conjunction with the Commando to clear out any Sniper Teams, but be aware of Missile Squads, many of which are garrisoned inside buildings. Set your Venoms to Hold Ground Stance to prevent them from pursuing enemies and flying right into the Missile Squads.
After clearing the garrisoned buildings and GDI infantry, destroy the GDI barracks to prevent them from producing more infantry. The GDI base to the west is defended by a large number of vehicles. Use your Fanatics to take care of them. After the vehicles are dealt with, destroy any production structures in the base.
At this point, move the Venoms to the bonus objective marker. The missing Saboteur is pinned down by two Predator tanks and a Sniper Team. Destroy them by shooting the conveniently placed explosive barrels nearby to free him. Use him to capture the GDI Command Post to complete the bonus objective.
Finally, destroy any Power Plants nearby to power down the base defenses, and destroy the port authority building using either your Commando or your remaining Fanatics.
Aftermath[]
With the GDS Pathe demolished and the Port Authority Building destroyed, GDI's holdings in the region were severely destabilized. All forces in the area either retreated or were massacred, and Nod adopted the ruins of the naval base as its own forward base to sustain its efforts in the United States.
However, Nod's advances in the area were not fated to last: a prodigal GDI Commander would undo the Nod Commander's efforts not much later. Nevertheless, there was no rebuilding the Pathe that was at the bottom of the harbor, and GDI's temporary loss of their air superiority helped facilitate the desperation that fueled their countercampaign and their haste to demolish Temple Prime - a mistake that allowed Kane to call the Scrin to Earth.
Trivia[]
- This mission is mirrored by the GDI version, in which a GDI Commando destroys a communications relay, gains reinforcements, and presses on with them to demolish the Nod base in the area.
- One of the Predator Tanks pinning down the Saboteur is neutral, which is likely a mistake with the mission's triggers.
- Its destruction is still required to reveal the Saboteur, however.
See Also[]
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