Senior Member
So tonight, I played the Chemical Trail mission where you search Jensen’s house in Libertad and then go to the Chemical Institute to apprehend his assistant to setup a meet.
I decide, my plan is to go into the Chemical Institute compound as Unidad. Since there are a lot of civilians on the property, I don’t want them all to witness a foreign group of operators at work, I want them to believe the Unidad swarmed in, killed a bunch of Cartel thugs and apprehended Jensen’s assistant.
I get an Unidad vehicle, and I outfit me and my team in Unidad outfits (as best we can).
I figure, if this was really Unidad, they would go straight in, not sneak around. Now I know the Cartel guys are going to instantly open up on us, but I’m thinking, we go in guns (including vehicle mounted mini gun) blazing... take out as many thugs outside as possible, then dismount and start using grenades and small arms fire. I even have a Rebel mortar team on standby.
I realize this is going in loud and proud and arguably a bit reckless especially on Extreme Difficulty with no HUD.
But I was not prepared to get my *** handed to me repeatedly. Me and my team got wiped out on numerous attempts using variations on this strategy, it’s humbling.
I haven’t counted, but this is my estimate of the enemy forces on site at the Chemical institute...
- 8 snipers
- 10 guys on the drive way
- 6-8 guys in the parking lot
- 6-8 guys in the back garden area
- 10-15 guys inside the main building (who come outside if there’s noise)
- 10? Guys at the adjacent outpost (who come over if there’s noise)
- 10 guys if reinforcements are called (which isn’t all the time)
That’s around 50-60 bad guys!!!
It is absolutely bonkers, how many guys come out of the woodwork if you go in guns blazing.
I’m able to drive in, do one circle around the building while my team lights em up, and then my vehicle is so damaged, I need to retreat back down the main road, then it’s just swarm after swarm of guys bearing down on us. My team invariably gets overwhelmed and goes down and then it’s game over.
If we beat it Into the woods they continue to pursue... one time I did that, it finally went quiet after we killed about a dozen of them, but as soon as we started to approach the edge of the property we were surprised by another group that overwhelmed us.
I’m not sure this mission is possible to complete with the strategy I’ve chosen. I’m not aware of any other mission that has so many enemies.
I’d love to try to start a Unidad faction warfare with the Cartel and then just mop up after, but I’m not sure how to do that. Shooting at a passing Unidad bird just put more heat on us and it’s a ways from any major road so there are no passing patrols.
Any suggestions on how to do this in the spirit I’m intending?
Member
I prefer to use Rebal spotting and then take out the 4 snipers using sync shot to start with. Then do a section at a time with me shooting and doing sync shots. That way with me being alone that is 4 shots vs 1 shot ever time. If you get in a bind then you can either hide or use cover. If you choose to hide they will calm down shortly afterward and you can continue. If you use cover and get behind an object. You can quickly stand up and fire and dunk back down. You will see the Arrows above your crosshair that you can stand quickly and take a snapshot. It works on the edges of buildings as well as objects. You can take out a good many that way.
The best way to get Unidad to fire on the Cartel is to pepper the Helicopter or the armored vehicle when they get close to them. The key is for you to be hidden and they can't see you shoot. Once you do that they will start firing on the Cartel then. You can even get up on the higher ground and one-shot vehicles to make the drivers get out. Creating a roadblock to stop the Unidad from passing the location. then pepper the vehicle and they will start firing at whoever is around.
But being sneaky pays off a great deal better than being Rambo and rushing in. Just take your time and learn as you go. The more you do the mission the easier it will become. You will find easier shortcuts and easier planning to finish it quickly.
If things do go south don't be scared to call in some Guns for Hire and a Diversion. The Diversion is great when you get spotted. Place them along the edge and then all the focus will be turned to them and off of you. If you use both in a fight that is 7 Guns for Hire and 7 Diversion, so 14 more people fighting on your side. Spotting along with Rebel diversion and Rebel support is helpful when things get nasty.
The only downside with Sync Shot is it takes 30 seconds to recover. It doesn't matter if you only take 1 or 3 shots. You will be penalized the full 30 seconds if you take just 1 shot.
Senior Member
Thanks. I should have mentioned that I’ve completed this mission numerous times, using stealth, without much issue.
This time I’m trying to do it as if we are an Unidad squad going in without hesitation and attempting to assert authority, but I’m not sure it’s possible to do this way (at least on Extreme). The Cartel out-number is at least 10 to 1 and going in loud just brings all of them to bear at once. It’s insane. So I need to try to get the actual Unidad to help me.
I’m going to try to get a faction war going next time I log in. I think that’s the only way.
Member
What variant of Chemical Institute building are we talking about here, "Chemical trail" or second part of "Operation Archangel"? If it's Archangel part 2, then yeah, tons of enemies there. Also, one of the buildings is a bit buggy and respawns enemies in certain conditions.
You can always try sewer shortcut (which is commonly used for stealth), set a bunch of flares along the way and near the tunnel exit. This should trigger faction warfare in no time. If snipers are a problem, use high tech (explosive drones) or low tech (M203/GP25) approach. Once snipers are taken care of, use APC turret and/or vehicle miniguns to eliminate everyone else.
Senior Member
Yes, I guess my wall of text in the first post means no one is reading it. I guess I can't blame you. But yes... Chemical Institute... and I'm pretending to be Unidad coming in to arrest someone, so moving through the sewer pipes is not an option. I'm going loud and proud as only Unidad would, but finding it insanely difficult given the volume of Cartel members on site.Originally Posted by venomgun1 Go to original post
I think sync-shooting the snipers is a must before moving in... but even then, I'm going to need the real Unidad to help me out here. Maybe flares would help in that regard.
Senior Member
Want to have a lot of fun with the Chemical institute? Invite another player into your lobby, start the normal mission Chemical Trail, set up your partner in a safe OP no more than 500m from the main building. Once your partner is in place, start the Spec Op mission and run it through to the end. (It's important that your team mate stays at the OP until you link back up.)
Enjoy the literal 100+ enemies and multiple HVTs.
(FYI this causes all sorts of glitching which can result in zero enemies also)
Member
Just did a test run (no HUD, extreme, tier one off, team AI wearing unidad outfits) with unidad AMV while also using unidad weapons (MSR and R5 RGP). Worked fine, killed all SB units at the institute and nearby base before reinforcements even arrived. SB snipers still require a sync shot, otherwise once player or any team AI gets detected, they shoot through everything. Vehicle finally broke prior to entering the building to capture Jensen's assistant.Originally Posted by VirtualRain. Go to original post
Armored SUV would be limited in what it can do, mainly because it trades speed and handling for extra armor, plus only minigun is usable and other AI teammates don't even attempt to break windows on SUV. APC could work too, but only if team AI can manage to prioritize targets, which almost never happens.
edit: Number of enemies is reasonable, but nothing out of the ordinary. It's up to RNG if additional patrols spawn, as always.
Senior Member
A bit late, but none-the-less: as many times as I've done the mission via stealth, I soon discovered that there are random spawns that can take place. So if you go in guns a'blazing it might well compound that situation and you'll end up with a much greater number of bad guys.
As mentioned by venomgun1 - I've also yet to encounter a great number of NPC upon arriving (certainly not to the level as described in the OP). That was a real eye-opener of an experience.
As an aside; game-story wise I'd say that Unidad should be able to roll into the complex without issue, and only when one of them attempts to grab the assistant should the s**t hit the fan.
Member
I just redid it in Tier 1 extreme. I landed on the parachute rock to start with. And then moved down to the back sniper nest on that rock.
Armor guys = 8
Captain = 1
Casual enemies = 22
Snipers = 6
My rebel guys= 16
(rebel diversion and guns for hire)
4 cages of rebels
4 x 3 rebels each cage = 12
That alone is 28 rebels fighting on your side when both are released and called in. I did mine 100% stealth with no alerts or dead bodies found. Then redid it again and got the two Unidad helicopters involved and say back and watch Unidad destroy all of them for the sky. Good times indeed.
Senior Member
I just loaded up the game, turned on the HUD and used Rebel spotting to get an accurate count...
30 guys on the grounds
9 snipers in towers or on roofs
10 guys in the adjacent outpost
28 guys inside the main building
That’s 77 enemies. I never realized there were so many. I’ve always done this mission systematically using stealth so you don’t realize the numbers.
I’m impressed. In fact, when I come in with the vehicle, so many guys come pouring out of the building my frame rate drops through the floor (PS4 Pro). It’s an insane number of NPCs.
