The strangest day I've ever spend in Bowa

[PZ]

What a strange day...

I took a mission from the APR to destroy the kilns at the Dogon village, but Nasreen had other plans - take out a teamster at the outpost - the Doctor also gave me instructions to get malaria pills at a chack to the west.  I made my way by boat to the small inlet leading to the malaria shack east of Mosate Selao.  As I beached the boat and crouched down as I made my way to get the pills, the mercs somehow knew I was present, even though I'd not even crested the hill yet.  OK, I thought... I just messed up.

After obtaining the pills, I took the confiscated AT north to Sefapane, and stopped short, stealing a boat just south of town.  I intended to make my way by boat to the safe house where I was to meet Nasreen - all was going as planned - Nasreen gave me the details.  Here's where it became a bit different again - an ATP somehow knew I was in the safe house, even though they were nowhere near the place when I went in.  I had to kill the guys - then made my way down to the main road intending to head toward the outpost by river.  Again a roving ATP far in the distance knew I was there and began firing so far away I could not see them!  OK, again I thought - somehow I'm just being careless. 

I made my way up the river and again the guys at the GP on the river knew exactly where I was even though there was no way they could see me - I had to retreat south while they followed me - eventually I got them all.

Now I was going to be really careful - sneaking up by foot to the outpost - somehow again they knew I was there way before I was even close to the place!  After clearing the place, and going north to the safe house to pick up a ride, I went west along the northern road toward the Dogon village - my intent was to drive the rig through the desert to the river, park the rig, and then sneak in using my usual route - I've done this mission dozens of times, and always sneak in via the stone stairs - just posted a photo series on such a mission.  This time however, I heard the woosh of a mortar as I was walking up the road from the river - I couldn't believe it - there is no way that they could have known I was there, but the mortar guy was lobbing rounds my way, and as I rushed toward the village, the other mercs were already nearing the road leading into the place.

After completing the mission, I went back to the safe house to get some syrettes, and as I was inside, a roving ATP on the main road recognized I was inside the safe house, came roaring down, and crashed into the structure hard enough to break things inside the building.

Then the last of the strangeness was when I went to help Nasreen at the un-named outpost nearby - as I arrived, all the mercs were dead but Nasreen was running around telling me to get ready - they were coming.   I thought: What? They're already all dead! ???  The mission would not end so I loaded a prior save.

What a strange day  ????

[deadman1]

That was the strangest glitch yet in FC 2  ????

[PZ]

Indeed - talk about everyone being clairvoyant!  If I'd encountered this type of hostility when I first played the game, I'd never have survived  :-()

The funny thing is that this was on the PS3, where I've had little to no problems before  ????  Oh well, we'll see how it goes on my next mission - I was able to go back into Mosate without incident.

[mandru]

Whoa!

That was a strange and only slightly better than having your BB wig out at the end of a protection mission and try to kill you which I have had on a couple occasions.   ???

Of course the thought did occur to me to mug it up a bit and say "You mean that's not how all game every game is supposed to play out?"   ^+-+

[PZ]

 ^+-+

One other event I forgot to mention - from the outpost, I went east toward the armory where I typically find much joy stealing the GLAT that comes up the road from the south.  I have a favorite hiding place that is always effective for me - crouched behind a stack of pallets between the two buildings.  Armed with the AR16, I can usually pick off the gunner as the driver slowly comes up the road - every time... except this time - in which the mercs came roaring up the road, firing grenades - they knew I was hiding there.  :-()

[Art Blade]

what a day ^+-+ :-X I liked the part best when they slammed into your safehouse breaking things inside  :D :-X

[PZ]

 ^+-+

It was funny - the whole building shook - kind of like the screen shake you get when a grenade lands close to your position.

Although fun because it was so different, I hope it does not last, and I lost my best buddy Nasreen - reloaded the last save several times trying to save her, but to no avail - it was just her time to go.

[Art Blade]

strange how sometimes you can't prevent them from croaking. I had that on a mission that ends near the scrapyard where that tree has fallen across the road and you come to assist your BB. That one time I reloaded many times and no matter what, he always ended up with a bullet somewhere in his body where it really counted.

Probably self-inflicted damage, that coward.

[mandru]

I lost my best buddy Nasreen - reloaded the last save several times trying to save her, but to no avail - it was just her time to go.

... no matter what, he always ended up with a bullet somewhere in his body where it really counted.

Probably self-inflicted damage, that coward.

:-(

Requiescat in pace Baby.

[PZ]

 ^+-+  good one  :-X

At least I didn't put her down  :-()

[Art Blade]

 :)

The first time when I couldn't save my BB was really annoying me because the git used up all my expensive and hard-to-get morphine just so he could pass away with a silly smile on his ugly face.

I kicked his dead body.

From that point onwards I used to use a bullet from a brand new Desert Eagle they happily give to you (which you can keep) before you make them pass away. >:D

[PZ]

 :-X ;)

My strange adventure continues - I went into Mosate with gun drawn, not held up as usual.  The prompt to escape was displayed, but all was quiet.  As I went into town, the mercs looked at me, and some were smoking.  Then a few down the street started shooting at me, but the mercs right next to me did nothing!  In fact, I hid behind them so they could take the bullets - they died, poor buggers  >:D

As to the regular areas, they still all knew exactly where to find me, but the ominous thing is that they said nothing - they just started shooting - completely without dialog of any kind.  ????

[Art Blade]

I don't mind mercs shooting at and trying to kill you but I think that it is a little too impolite of them having stopped talking to you.

[ninzza]

:-X ;)

As to the regular areas, they still all knew exactly where to find me, but the ominous thing is that they said nothing - they just started shooting - completely without dialog of any kind.  ????

Because their new policy is "Shoot first, talk later" ;D

[Art Blade]

skip the "talk later" bit.. with PZ, they won't.  ^+-+

[PZ]

 ^+-+

I can't believe how violently aggressive they are, which is compounded by their silence. One of the times I was at the outpost, there were so many, and had completely surrounded me so effectively, that I had nowhere to go - at times there were up to 6 or so simultaneous red hit indicators.

[fragger]

I've had that experience once too, of suddenly no longer being able to be stealthy. I don't know what causes it - there was a discussion about it a while ago here.

One theory is that occasionally if the mortar guy on the lake island manages to smoke-mark you, for some reason you basically stay smoke-marked for the rest of the game. I've also wondered if it has something to do with acquiring a GLAT, as though the game decides that you're now too well-armed and so gives the mercs a compensating advantage. If so, that's over-compensating IMO.

Whatever it is, it's annoying and it doesn't go away >:((

[PZ]

I remember that discussion now - never thought I would be victim of it  :-()

My problem is that it happened on the PS3, and I have few saved games.  I was at 69% and had to go all the way back to a 53% game to get rid of the problem.  Whatever the cause, it makes for some very lively fights  :-()

[Art Blade]

 :) The only way for me to get some very lively (or deadly) fights is to run around and across a packed compound without firing, such as Weelegol or Dogon Village and stirr up everyone and everything that is not nailed to a lamp post. Then engage.  :-D

[PZ]

I recall the complaints from early players of FC2 that they were so disappointed in the clairvoyance of the mercs - at the time I did not have any difficulties, and could stealthily move about quite easily.  In my corrupted play, it seems that I am experiencing what those users had experienced.  The only difference between the play that I am now using and all prior ones is that I'd declined a main mission.  Instead of accepting the mission, I turned and left the room.  When I later returned, Greaves was there to hand me the envelope - no one else present.  I took it, and this it seemed that my problems began.

So, I wonder if you decline a mission, you will not experience the normal merc behavior, but might experience a hostile Africa.  On a related note, I'd loaded an in between game and experienced strange behavior:

   
• Going up the eastern road in Bowa toward Sepoko - more merc ATPs assaulted me than ever before.  I had to dispatch 3 ATPs near Sepoko
• The same experience at Polytechnic - the ATPs descended on me like never before, but the RPG guy at the nearby GP did not notice me.
• Coming out of the APR headquarters, I pressed triangle to open the door, and the door man told me to put my hands up.

[fragger]

? That last one is an odd quirk!

[Art Blade]

 ???? crazy. You should check your buddies, who knows what the ladies are up to now that everyone else is already out of their minds  :-()

[PZ]

I don't know if this normal behavior, but I just lost my best buddy while doing the nitrous mission in Sefapane.  I then went to the APR headquarters in Mosate Selao to get another mission, which turned out to be to destroy the generator in Weelegol, which I accomplished without difficulty.  Then I went to the western armory for a weapons dealer mission, which was to destroy the convoy near the Outpost, so I traveled toward the southwest bus stop intending to go to the northeast stop to begin my attack.  On the way, I picked up the Jackal tape at the wrecked bus near the southwest bus stop, but it did not automatically play like it normally does.  A quick check of the menu revealed that both the Jackal and Predecessor tape menu items are greyed out  ????

Another strange thing - I don't have a main buddy any longer, only a rescue-ready buddy.  ????

[fragger]

How weird... I've never struck any of those oddities. Is this the same 'thru where you lost your stealth ability? Possibly they're related in some way, but I can't imagine how.

[mandru]

Another strange thing - I don't have a main buddy any longer, only a rescue-ready buddy.  ????

Have you visited a safehouse to get your rescue buddy to step up to BB?  Sometimes you've got to run through that protocol to bump them along.