"Another Century's Episode 2: FAQ/Walkthrough" ----------------------------------------------------- 1. Legal Notice [^1] ----------------------------------------------------- "Another Century's Episode 2" is originally copyrighted to Banpresto. All series included in "Another Century's Episode 2" are copyrighted to whichever company they respectively belonged to. This FAQ is copyright 2006 Zidanet_129 (Chao Tsan (Alan) Tseng). This Guide may only be allowed to be posted on the following websites: - GameFAQs (www.gamefaqs.com) Copying this guide or hosting it without my permission in anyway will force me to bring you to the law's justice, which is expensive for both sides, so just don't do it. Contact us at our e-mail if anything is needed. ----------------------------------------------------- 2. Contact Me [^2] ----------------------------------------------------- Before I leak ANY of my contact information, I would like to remind you all, that I am a mere second-year university student (or sophomore if you prefer), and I do NOT have too much time in my hands for answering your questions. If you have any suggestions, you're welcomed to e-mail me and tell me, IN DETAIL, what the suggestion/problem is. However, the following contents are STRICTLY PROHIBITED: - Asking questions. This includes EVERY SINGLE TYPE OF QUESTION RELATED TO THE GAME. The Boards would do much better on this. - Flaming me. Flames goes to Bill.Gates@microsoft.com. If you can't tell that this is a joke, I pity you. - Typing in AOL spelling/grammar. This includes use of craps like "lol" or any improper grammar. Don't like it? Too bad. Don't know grammar? Do some reading instead of playing games. - Use of inappropriate title (explained later) - Request for credits after submitting information. If you do this, I shall count the info as anonymously submitted. - Asking for the ISO. I'm not interested in sending 4GB over the net by ANY means. -_- Should you violate ANY of the above terms, we reserve the rights to not reply your e-mail. Now, when you e-mail me, I would appreciate it if you would put "Another Century's Episode 2: " in the title. Titles like "(none)" or "hello" will be ignored and deleted right away. Here it is: zidanet(underscore)129(at)hotmail(dot)com ----------------------------------------------------- 3. Version History [^3] ----------------------------------------------------- - 0.3 (August 24, 2006) Finished the backbone of the FAQ. Added Missions and comments up to Operation 11 ----------------------------------------------------- 4. Table of Contents [^4] ----------------------------------------------------- 1. Legal Notice 2. Contact Us 3. Version History 4. Table of Contents (You're here!) 5. Introduction 6. Mission List 7. FAQs 8. Credits ----------------------------------------------------- 5. Introduction [^5] ----------------------------------------------------- People at Banpresto had outdone themselves yet again with the release of Another Century's Episode 2. With 14 series and "ACE Originals", a grand total of 107 playable units are counted to participate in ACE2. ACE2 features 72 "storyline" Missions, based on events that happened in the series they come from. Every Misison has a "Secret" which, when cleared, will contribute to unlocking of new usable units. There are also 12 "sparring" Missions which pit you against many strong, playable units in the game. Finally, there are three "Extra" Missions which works like Survival Modes. These Missions pit you against very strong enemies, usually bosses, and you must use your unit to destroy them all. By completing Missions, you gain ACE points based on these factors: - Mission Time: The time you spent doing the Mission. - Damage: Damage taken with your unit. - Strike Down: Enemies destroyed/repelled in the Mission. - Chain Time: The highest amount of time you recorded on your Chain Gauge. - Operation Ranking: Only received in Campaign Mode, end of Operation. Every hit you land on your enemy will charge up the Chain Gauge slightly. By destroying many enemies in a chain (hence the name), you will be able to charge up the Chain Gauge to the point where it will not reach the bottom and disappear. Some units or attacks are somehow better in charging up the Chain Gauge than others. Operation Ranking is determined by how well you performed in the Operation. At the beginning of each Operation, a small box appears on the bottomleft corner of the screen, telling you the key to gaining the highest Operation Ranking Points. Then, at the beginning of each Mission, the box appears to tell you specifically what you should do to maximize this Mission's share of contribution towards the Operation Ranking. Here is the format I will put the Mission in: OP# - M# (Operation - Mission): Mission Name Mission Object (There are almost always multiples of them, changing when "Mission Update" shows up on the screen) Secret Object Mission Fail (Some Missions have certain conditions that, when filled, the Mission is automatically failed. Also, all Missions are failed if your unit's Armor Point drops to 0.) Difficulty Mission Key Secret Key Unit Obtained/Lost (By finishing certain Missions, some units may leave while others may join. This part only shows up if there are changes in Units.) Series (The series that units appeared in the Mission are from. I'll go easy on the names and not use the FULL names......) Comment Also, here's a list of how I will refer to the series that shows up in the Missions: ACE -> Ace Original Gundam 0083 -> Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memories Gundam CCA -> Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack G Gundam -> Mobile Fighter G Gundam Endless Waltz -> New Mobile Report Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz Nadesico -> Kidou Senken Nadesico (Martian Successor Nadesico in US) (*1) Macross -> Super Dimensional Fortress Macross + "Do You Remember Love?" Brain Powerd -> Brain Powerd (*2) Dragonar -> Metal Armor Dragonar Dunbine -> Aura Battler Dunbine Layzner -> Blue Comet SPT Layzner L-Gaim -> Heavy Armor L-Gaim (*1: Since "Prince of Darkness" does not contribute to the plot AT ALL, I'll simply skip it) (*2: That IS actually how it's spelt. There's no "e" in "Powerd".) (*3: "Rin's Wings" is omitted for the same reason as "Prince of Darkness".) WARNING: THERE WILL BE SPOILERS. Alright, let's do it! IKIMASU!!! ----------------------------------------------------- 6. Mission List [^6] ----------------------------------------------------- ===================================================== "Operation 01 - Gun Ark: Final Test" [^OP01] ===================================================== ========================================= OP01 - M1: New Unit Field Test ========================================= Mission Object: - Complete the final field test for UCE's newest humanoid weapons, the "Gun Ark", by following the orders of South Burning - Defeat Gun Ark (Marina Unit) Secret Object: - To complete the first part of the field test without taking ANY damage. Difficulty: Very Easy Mission Key: Simply follow the instructions and familiarize with the game's controls. Secret key: While destroying enemies, dodge all enemy shots or destroy the the enemies before they have the chance to deal damage. Unit Obtained: Gun Ark (Tak Unit, Marina Unit) Series: Gundam 0083, ACE Comment: The "Beginning Mission" that is more of a tutorial. First part of the Mission teaches you the basic control of the game, and ends with Kou Uraki screwing up and Burning, who directed you (as Tak) and Marina through the Mission, scolding him. The second part of the Mission pits you against Marina in her Gun Ark. Simply take out a good chunk of her Gun Ark's HP to finish the Mission. ========================================= OP01 - M2: Defend Torinton Base ========================================= Mission Object: - Defend the base by battling GP02 - Drive SalomD away Secret Object: - Destroy all Dynes Difficulty: Easy Mission Key: Ignore GP02 and focus on destroying the ZakuII's and Dynes. After GP02 escapes, focus attacks on SalonD until the cutscene kicks in to end the Mission. Secret Key: Search and destroy ALL Dynes before GP02 kicks GP01's ass and leaves the scene. In other words, let Uraki fend for himself while you fly around and destroy the Dynes until "Secret Clear" shows up. Units Obtained: GP01 Gundam "Zephyranthes" Units Lost: Gun Ark (Marina Unit) Series: Gundam 0083, Dragonar Comment: Something bad starts to happen. This Mission follows the Gundam 0083 plot but ends with a twist when mysterious mechas drop in to attack the base after Gato leaves with the GP02. But isn't it a bit too early to lose an important character? ===================================================== Operation 02 - Pursue GP02 [^OP02] ===================================================== ========================================= OP02 - M1: Invade Giganos Base ========================================= Mission Object: - Support the "Dragonar" Units - Destroy the Metal Armor Base Secret Object: - Destroy all enemy forces within 150 seconds Difficulty: Easy Mission Key: After the Mission begins, fly around and destroy all enemy units such as Tanks and Metal Armors, Launch Gates, and Bases. There are three groups of Bases. Destroy them all and the Mission will end, with the Dragonar Units joining forces with Albion. Secret Key: This Secret is quite complex. First, destroy all enemy Launch Gates and units while leaving the Bases intact. Soon, a transport plane will appear. Destroy it. Units Obtained: Dragonar 1, Dragonar 2, Dragonar 3 Series: Dragonar Comment: Enter the Dragonar units! Completed with "Yume Iro Chaser", this is a rather fast-paced Mission, which could end rather quickly if you are not aiming for completing the Secret. ========================================= OP02 - M2: Pursue Transport Team ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy all Komusai II - Defeat GP02 - Defeat all enemies Secret Object: - Reduce GP02's Armor to below 10% Mission Fail: Komusai II leaves the battlefield Difficulty: Moderately Easy Mission Key: Simply chase after any Komusai II pointed out by the red arrows and destroy them as quickly as possible. When GP02 appears, Amuro Ray will appear in his Re-GZ and provide cover fire, so simply try to chop off GP02's HP. After a while it will leave, so destroy any enemies left over to finish the Mission. Secret Key: You can't seem to do it on the first try. Come back later, with Free Mission Mode, with a hard-hitting unit such as W-Zero or Buster Ark, and blast away quickly. Units Obtained: Re-GZ/BWS Series: Gundam 0083, Dragonar, Gundam CCA Comment: Aaaaaaaand we're back into the 0083 plot. Gato seems to have a few new friends who would bring you quite a bit of trouble, but just do it carefully and they will go down soon enough. You also get a war veteran (and a good Newtype too) joining you after this Mission, as well as starting your Module collections. ===================================================== Operation 3 - Novice Noah [^OP03] ===================================================== ========================================= OP03 - M1: Pursue Transport Team ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy all enemy units - Chase away Quincy Grandcher Secret Object: - Destroy all Grandchers who appeared with Quincy Grandcher Mission Fail: Mission Time over Difficulty: Moderately Easy Mission Key: This is your first encounter against the Reclaimers. The enemy units won't get hurt when they're teleporting, so get them either with strong long-range attacks (which I doubt you'd have at this point) or just melee them all to death. Eventually Quincy shows up in her Grandcher. Chase her away and you'll have completed this Mission. Secret Key: Hopefully you have enough time to do some cleaning up by the time Quincy shows up, because the Grandchers are annoying when you first fight them here. Just destroy everything on the screen and Quincy will make her escape. Also, try not to touch Quincy before you see "Secret Clear" because your partners may do more damage than you thought. Especially when the Grandchers don't show up all at once. -_- Units Obtained: Yuu Brain Series: Brain Powerd Comment: A new series kicks in, with "In My Dreams" playing in the background. I'm SO glad that we don't have to listen to the vocal version of that song, which is completely ear-piercing on the first few runs. This Mission is quite easy and shows you about Yuu and Quincy and how Quincy gives up her original identity as Yuu's sister, in order to serve Orphan completely. ========================================= OP03 - M2: Stop Plate Collection ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy all Mutoria - Destroy/Repel "Mysterious Unit" Secret Object: - Destroy all Grandchers Mission Fail: Mission Time over Difficulty: Easy Mission Key: Another Mission that takes place over the great ocean, which actually makes it quite hard to find all of the enemy units, especially when you only have slow units at this moment. Yuu Brain is actually a good choice here as he can dodge most enemy attacks without a scratch (go Brain!) so use him. Destroy all Mutorias, which are actually pointed out by the red Target arrow, and the Mission is completed...... NOT! An unit that looks like the Gun Ark drops in and starts to attack you...... So you break it. It's STRONG though, so be very, VERY careful. Secret Key: The key here is to realize that, if you destroy a Mutoria, all Grandchers around it will escape. So what do we do? Destroy all Grandchers before touching the Mutoria, of course! Units Obtained: Yuu Brain Series: Brain Powerd, ACE Comment: More Brain Powerd plot. There really isn't too much about this Mission except the fact that you're reducing the Reclaimers' power from the source, as the Plates collected by the Mutorias will evolve into either Grandchers or Brain Powerd. The unit later known as "Buster Ark" first appeared in this Mission. Tak actually figured out who the pilot of that unit is, thanks to the "Riot Shot" attack it pulled. That attack was later dubbed "Marina Special" because of this. ========================================= OP03 - M3: Support Hime Brain ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy all enemy units - Defeat Jonathan Grandcher - Destroy all enemy units (again?) - Defeat Pastol Secret Object: - Destroy Mutoria Difficulty: Moderately Easy Mission Key: Here you actually see Novice Noah. Hime Brain joins you fairly early in the Mission and "Combination Attack" is introduced here. Send out your Yuu Brain as your primary unit, and Hime Brain will join in quickly. Save your Combination Attack ("Chakuura Ekusutension!!!") for Jonathan Grandcher for a quick and painful defeat for him. Secret Key: Wait for the message of "Heat source confirmed at 5 o' clock direction!" then pat attention at your 3D radar. Once you see a yellow dot far away from everything else, CHARGE FOR IT. Destroy it before working on everything else, and you'll get "Secret Clear" easily. Units Obtained: Hime Brain Series: Brain Powerd Comment: Introduction of Combination Attack! Whoo~! And simply because the power (and animation) rocks SO much, I'd heavily recommend using Yuu Brain for this Mission, as he gets a special Combination Attack with Hime Brain. Too bad we don't get to see Yuu kissing Hime for the hell of it. <.< ===================================================== Operation 04 - Attack Kinbareid Base [^OP04] ===================================================== ========================================= OP04 - M1: Search & Destroy Chulips ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy 10+ Chulips Secret Object: - Destroy all Chulips Mission Fail: Mission Time over Difficulty: Moderately Easy Mission Key: Enter Chulip, the transportation system used by Jovian Lizards. There are quite a bunch of them on this map, displayed as yellow dots on the 3D radar screen in the pause menu. You'd want to use a unit who flies fast for this Mission. Use the 3D radar to find the Chulips as yellow dots and destroy 10 and drag out the time until it reaches 0, and it's Mission Complete for you. Remember that, if you want an ACE Rank, you'll most likely need a Chain Motor, which can be found in one of the Chulips in this Mission. Secret Key: Fast and hard-hitting units with quick turning are absolutely needed. Simply search out all the Chulips (easy with the 3D radar) and destroy them all. As soon as you destroy all the Chulips, you get "Mission Completed" as well as "Secret Clear" at the same time. Series: Nadesico Comment: Finally another series (or at least stuff that reference to it) appears. Chulips are used by Jovian Lizards, main antagonist group in Kidou Senken Nadesico/Martian Successor Nadesico, as transportation systems to Boson Jump their vessels over a large distance instantly. Them being here just can't be good, especially when who we're going after is Gato here. ========================================= OP04 - M2: Pursue Gato ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy 20+ enemy units - Defeat GP02 Secret Object: - Reduce GP02's Armor to below 20% Mission Fail: Mission Time over Difficulty: Moderately Easy Mission Key: Aaaaaaaand we're back with Gato. The first part of the Mission is actually terribly easy since the enemy units are pretty much like those who showed up for INTRO stage. However, Gato appears to complicate things quickly. Fortunately, he doesn't have supporting units this time around, so simply blast away. Secret Key: Like before, get a unit whose long-range hurts like hell and blast away on GP02. Personally I prefer Buster Ark's Riot Shot. Series: Gundam 0083 Comment: Gato appears again and is quite annoyed with us who are pursuing him all the time. He tries to fight back, but ends up running away anyway. Of course, that's not how it happened in the anime, but then I'm sure over 80% of you out there aren't using GP01 with Uraki's crappy skills, right? <.< ========================================= OP04 - M3: Attack on Kinbareid Base ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy all enemies - Defeat Falgen Secret Object: - Destroy over 15 enemies within 60 seconds, then destroy all enemy reinforcements. Mission Fail: Albion destroyed Difficulty: Moderately Easy Mission Key: Gato is escaping to the space! This Mission is actually quite simple as all you need to do is search and destroy. Actually you know what? Just destroy. There are so many enemies on this map that you honestly don't need to "search". Malliot will show up later and provide support for Gato, so repel his team once they show up. Secret Key: Again you may want to bring something that hits hard and fast, as you will be swarmed by many enemies on a rather messy map and it's rather annoying to kill 15 enemies within 60 seconds in this condition. Units Obtained: GP-01Fb Gundam "Zephyranthes" Full Vernian Unit Lost: Yuu Brain, Hime Brain Series: Gundam 0083, Dragonar, ACE Comment: Seriously, how the hell did that HMV fly? Into the space too!? Oh well. At the end of this Mission you see the power of "Guardian", a satellite cannon. If my memory serves me right, you also see an orange Ark unit that will show up a LOT in the future at the end of this Mission. You also gain the GP-01Fb Gundam "Zephyranthes" Full Vernian at the end of this Mission, which gives you a fairly good idea of what's going to happen next. Yup, to space we go! ===================================================== Operation 05 - Military Satellite "Guardian" [^OP05] ===================================================== ========================================= OP05 - M1: Checking Military Satellite ========================================= Mission Object: - Approach the Military Satellite - Eliminate the Military Satellites - Destroy all enemy vessels Secret Object: - Destroy all enemies aboard the enemy vessels Difficulty: Very Easy Mission Key: This will be your first Mission in space, which will also serve as a tutorial that gives you more infomation about manuvering in space. Once you have destroyed all the Guardians, a Musai shows up and releases a bunch of Gelgoog Marines and Dra-C's in your face. Once you destroy this Musai, two more shows up. Destroying them will grant you victory. Secret Key: Remember that, once all Musais are destroyed, it's Mission Complete. So simply go after the enemy Mobile Suits, break them all, until the first Musai has nothing to send out. Break that, and repeat the process for the next two Musais. The Mission will be complete as soon as you destroy all the enemy Mobile Suits, even if the Musais are not destroyed at the end. Series: Gundam 0083, ACE Comment: Here's just an intro Mission for all those Space Missions you will encounter soon enough. Space battles, IMO, are still quite simple, except for the fact that your 2D radar (topright of screen) is semi- useless since you kinda just lose your directions after a few quick- turns. Oh well. Personally I prefer using GP01Fb in space as it apparently has the highest manuverability in space, among all the units you would have at this point. For me anyway. >_> ========================================= OP05 - M2: Escorting Albion ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy all enemy vessels - Defeat Gelgoog Marine (Cima Custom) Secret Object: - Destroy Funbolt and Albion take ZERO damage Mission Fail: Albion destroyed Difficulty: Easy Mission Key: Yet another easy Mission. All you have to do is to destroy all the "Targets" before breaking everything else, and you're pretty much set. Secret Key: Seriously. If you followed the Mission Key well enough and didn't give the enemy vessels chances to open fire, I'm pretty sure you can get "Secret Clear" before you know it...... Well, "Secret Clear" shows up at the absolute end, so be patient. >.> Series: Nadesico, Gundam 0083 Comment: This Mission is honestly a bit too easy to waste words on. Maybe due to the fact that it's your first "real" Mission in space? Or maybe it's just that Delaz is having his little speech and you're not fighting the enemys' main fleet...... ===================================================== Operation 06 - Konpeitoe Naval Review [^OP06] ===================================================== ========================================= OP06 - M1: Protect Defense Line ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy all enemy units - Defeat Falgen Secret Object: - Destroy Funbolt and Albion take ZERO damage (remains at 75% Armor) Mission Fail: Albion destroyed Difficulty: Normal Mission Key: Yet another easy Mission. All you have to do is to stop the Gelgoog Marines from reaching the south edge and you're good. Easier way to end this Mission, however, is to kill the Musais as quickly as possible so they would not launch too many Gelgoog Marines. Falgen will show up once the Gelgoog Marines are gone, and for some reason this part of the Mission HURTS. Be careful when you fight them off. Secret Key: This is quite easy. If you destroyed all the Musais before the Gelgoog Marines could reach the bottom line (by killing the Gelgoog Marines as soon as they are deployed), you should get this Secret Clear quite easily. Series: Gundam 0083 Comment: Musais go ka-boom. Musais go ka-boom. OHNOES SOLOMON GOES KA-BOOM!! So now you see the completion of the first part of "Operation Stardust". While 2/3 of the Federation Fleet is disabled, YOU are not. Let's go after Gato and make him pay for this! ========================================= OP06 - M2: Pursue GP02 ========================================= Mission Object: - Defeat GP02 Secret Object: - Destroy all ZakuII's Difficulty: Normal Mission Key: Now we're having our final showdown with GP02. Since Gato fired off the Nuke on the Federation Fleet, he's left with Vulcans and Beam Sabres. What do you do then? Why, stay the hell away and fire away with long-range attacks, of course! This Mission begins with a chase, then Gato will suddenly stop and turn to fight you. Therefore, try not to bite on his tail too hard, as it may end up hurting you. Defeat GP02 and the Mission will end. Secret Key: ZakuII's show up in 3 batches in this Mission, so defeat them all before going after GP02 (which COULD chip off quite a bit of your Armor, so be careful) and Secret Clear goes to you. Units Lost: GP01/Fb Gundam "Zephyrenthes"/Full Vernian Series: Gundam 0083 Comment: FINALLY GP02 is gone. It's not really a fair fight though, since, in the original plot, GP02's left arm is disabled at this point. Oh well. This is the end of GP02, but most absolutely not the end of Gato, nor is it the end of Operation Stardust. GP01 disappears because it's destroyed in battle against GP02. Man, I'll bet Nina is angry at Kou for this...... ===================================================== Operation 07 - La Vie en Rose [^OP07] ===================================================== ========================================= OP07 - M1: Remove Incoming Forces ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy all enemy units Secret Object: - Destroy all enemy units within 240 seconds Mission Fail: Mission time over Difficulty: Easy Mission Key: Cue "White Reflection" and start blasting many, MANY enemies off. Seriously. This Mission is as simple as blasting anything your unit locked on. That's all. Secret Key: If you have a Limiter Released Buster Ark, Gundam Heavyarms Custom or Valkyries, this Secret will be a breeze for you. The only problem for this Secret Clear is that, without a Limiter Released or Multi-lock unit, you'll be running out of ammos VERY often. And reloading usually takes VERY long. Units Obtained: Gundam Deathscythe Hell, Gundam Heavyarms Custom, Gundam Sandrock, GP01/Fb Gundam "Zephyrenthes"/Full Vernian, GP03 Gundam "Dendrobium Orchis/Stamen" Series: Gundam 0083, Endless Waltz, Nadesico, Dragonar Comment: Cue "White Reflection" and--- Wait, I said that already. Seriously, the song's just so motivating. You get three out of the five Gundams from Endless Waltz joining you after this Mission, and you should find them extremely useful. I know I do, especially Sandrock. Also GP01 returns with a new friend, the super powerful Mobile Armor, GP03 Gundam "Dendrobium", in parts of the MA Mode "Orchis" and MS escape mode "Stamen". Let's try it out on the next Mission! ========================================= OP07 - M2: Cover the Launching Albion ========================================= Mission Object: - Albion leaves battlefield - Eliminate all enemies Secret Object: - Albion leaves battlefield within 180 seconds Mission Fail: Mission time over Difficulty: Moderately Easy Mission Key: Albion is leaving La Vie en Rose and there are a bunch of enemies in the way. Your Mission is to eliminate them so Albion can proceed safely. Principality of Zion and Jovian Lizards are in your way, but the units they sent out are...... Meh. Simply eliminate all enemies who show up, battleships first, and Albion will be able to move. Once Albion is gone, about six Devil Aestivalis' will show up, so dispose of them quickly. Secret Key: Again, fast and hard-hitting units are almost a must. What you want to do is to eliminate the enemy ships first, then units. Do it as quickly as you can (Buster Ark with Limiter Release works nicely) and you'll get your Secret Clear easily. Series: Gundam 0083, Nadesico Comment: Did you try out your new Gundam toys? Personally I find Sandrock and GP03 most useful here, but to each his own. Well, now that we've acquired (read: stolen/jacked) the GP03 and seemed to have violated the military rules, should we go and take a look at what's going on with Gato and others? ===================================================== Operation 08 - Attacking Point of No Return [^OP08] ===================================================== ========================================= OP08 - M1: Eliminate Mobile Armor ========================================= Mission Object: - Eliminate all enemies - Defeat Nuel Ziel Secret Object: - Reduce Nuel Ziel's Armor to below 50% Difficulty: Normal Mission Key: First part of the Mission is easy as you'll be facing a bunch of ZakuII's and Dra-C's. However, once they are eliminated, you'll be facing the Mobile Armor that, according to Gato, is "the soul of Zeon materialized." Which means, it's big, it's fast, and it hurts like HELL. Now THIS is what I would call a "final boss" for the Gundam 0083 plot. Right now, you MAY want to use GP03, who SHOULD have enough fire power to take Nuel Ziel down. However, if you're replaying this Mission, Secret Key: Don't even try it on the first time. Come back (with Free Mission) later when you have Buster Ark. Get close, Riot Shot, done. Series: Gundam 0083 Comment: Here we finally see Gato's new toy. Seems like it's quite a match against our own GP03, as shown in the anime. Note that, while GP03 itself is "LL", Nuel Ziel appears as "LL" (VERY large) too, in the unit selection screen. Which means it's really, REALLY big. If GP03 is a mobile tactical unit, Nuel Ziel would kinda be like a mobile fortress. Fortunately it doesn't have I-Field (or at least, not up all the time) like it did in the anime...... But NUU! What's this!? The colony...... Fell!? ========================================= OP08 - M2: Defend "Solar System" ========================================= Mission Object: - Eliminate enemy forces - Defeat Nuel Ziel Secret Object: - Reduce Nuel Ziel's Armor to below 25% Mission Fail: Mission time over Difficulty: Moderately Easy Mission Key: We're clashing blades (guns?) against Gato yet again. Maybe it's just me, but he seems to be going full-open now. If you have Buster Ark, just get close and Riot Shot away. If not, though, you may wanna fix up your GP03 and try to blast away and hope that you can break Nuel Ziel. Secret Key: I'd write more, but you honestly can just follow the previous Mission's keys. Series: Gundam 0083 Comment: Cima's plans for her fleet finally surfaced...... And Gato's pissed. See how he broke the bridge of Delaz Fleet's flagship? 'Cause Cima killed Delaz and Gato's damned mad at her. In the original anime, died soon after she escaped that ship in her Gerbera Tetra, but in this game she ran away. Oh well. We'll meet her again soon enough. ========================================= OP08 - M3: Eliminate Mobile Armor II ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy Nuel Ziel Secret Object: - Player unit ends with 80% Armor left Difficulty: Moderately Hard Mission Key: Gato's going totally crazy on you this time, releasing ALL weapon systems on Nuel Ziel. Be very, VERY careful as you challenge him, as his attacks seems ENDLESS. If you can, try using something that hits hard and fast from long-range. If you can't get that, GP03 will have to work again. If Gato pulled out his I-Field (you can tell if your energy-based attack, such as beams and lasers, hit and a pink barrier pops up), try to get some missile or explosive shots in. Secret Key: Painfully hard if you're doing this in ACE difficulty as Nuel Ziel's attacks HURT. Period. Try using fast units for hit-and-run, or if you can, stick to Buster Ark's Riot Shot. You'll definitely need Limiter Release for that tactics though. Series: Gundam 0083 Comment: Jesus cripes, FINALLY Gato goes down, with one helluva fight too. Well, now that Buster Ark's Guardian shot successfully moved the colony away and Gato's gone, we could FINALLY move on to other series involved in this game...... Hey wait, do I see "Relena" in the report in the past-Mission report? ===================================================== Operation 09 - Giganos Moonface Empire [^OP09] ===================================================== ========================================= OP09 - M1: Destroy Mass Driver ========================================= Mission Object: - Protect Falgen within Mission time Secret Object: - Destroy all Giganos Bases Mission Fail: Falgen destroyed Difficulty: Normal Mission Key: Giganos aimed a Mass Driver at the Earth and is gonna fire meteors for some mass-destruction (Final Fantasy, anyone?). On top of that, Relena is captured (think Endless Waltz). We have people infiltrated for rescuing her, but what do WE do? Why, cause mass destruction on Giganos Base and Mass Driver, of course! Falgen shows up and it's up to you to protect him. On Rookie and Pilot difficulty, he's totally capable of fending for himself, but on ACE difficulty he's pretty much sitting ducks. Bring a mobbing machine (Yuu Brain comes to mind, if you have upgraded him well enough and have gotten his last Combo) and blast away. Hey, what's this!? They're firing the Mass Driver earlier than expected! *Fwoom* "Taageto, lokku-on" *BOOM* Aaaaaaaaaaand here comes Heero, saving the day with his Wing Gundam Zero Custom. Let's get outta here! Secret Key: As I said, in Rookie and Pilot difficulty, you can totally just wander off to destroy those Bases (and claim a Bullet Armor). However, in ACE difficulty, you better do it right at the beginning, or bring partners who are capable of taking enemies far away from you ("Long-Range Support" or "Solo Fighter" are good) and hope they will babysit Falgen a bit while you shoot the bases down. There are two batches, one in southeast and one in southwest. Go for the closer one first, blast them all, come back for some babysitting, then go off to break the other set. Just make sure you keep your eyes on Falgen's Armor, which unfortunately begins at 30%. -_- Unit Obtained: Wing Gundam Zero Custom Series: Dragonar, Endless Waltz Comment: Yeef, we meet Falgen again and now he sucks. Well, it may be that he's holding back, but he still sucks. Gotta love how Heero comes in from nowhere, breaks the meteor, and just flies away after. ========================================= OP09 - M2: Atmosphere Re-entry ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy enemy forces - Destroy all enemy vessels - Repel Gundam Nataku Secret Object: - Destroy all enemies and vessels within 120 seconds Difficulty: Normal Mission Key: We're having an atmosphere re-entry and Giganos is still on our tails. Let's break them all! But there's a catch. Once the atmosphere re-entry begins (you see a orange/red plate around your unit) your unit will start to gradually lose Armor due to the high heat. Therefore, you'd want to destroy the enemy forces VERY quickly. Once you destroy the enemy vessels, Giganos will retreat...... But oh hey, there's the fifth Gundam. And it doesn't seem too happy to see us...... AHH IT'S ATTACKING!!! Wufei and his Gundam Nataku (aka. Altron) is VERY good at close- range battles, so see if you can bring out some quick, long-range units to bring it down. Remember, your Armor is STILL going down at this point! Secret Key: Since you'll be fighting Wufei later, it's probably not too wise to bring out some kinda multi-locking unit. Stick to a fast unit with good long-range attacks (but dear GOD, not Wing Zero. It's slow as hell and only gets three shots, four if you count Rolling TBR, before you're sitting ducks and must resolve to Vulcans and melees) and break everything FAST. Series: Dragonar, Endless Waltz Comment: It's a shame how you got WZC (Wing Gundam Zero Custom) in the last Mission but you shouldn't use it in this Mission. Oh well. This Mission gives you a feeling of what atmosphere re-entry is like, and it actually features special dialogues based on the units you use here. If you use Heero in his WZC, you'll see the dialogue taken straight out of Endless Waltz ep.3 here. All other Gundam pilots have their share of arguments with Wufei too, but it's funny how AMURO has something to say to Wufei too. ===================================================== Operation 10 - Stop Nadesico's Launching [^OP10] ===================================================== ========================================= OP10 - M1: Repel Jovian Lizards ========================================= Mission Object: - Eliminate all enemies Secret Object: - Destroy 7+ Chulips within 80 seconds Difficulty: Moderately Easy Mission Key: This will be your first Mission that involves underwater battles. Most units will suffer a slow-down while fighting underwater, but one series has a MASSIVE advantage over the others: Brain Powerd. Hell, they have MORE moving speed underwater! Pull out your Yuu Brain and blast away! After the first 5 Chulips are destroyed, some little enemies will show up to try to stop you. Destroy them and the second batch of Chulips will pop up. Destroy those, then the leftover enemies, and the Mission will end. Secret Key: As I mentioned above, Brain Powerd units apparently has HIGHER moving speed underwater than in the air. Therefore, a decently upgraded Yuu Brain (or hell, Nelly Brain) would totally do the job here. Seek out the first 5 Chulips and destroy them all, break some enemies and the second batch of Chulips will appear. Break them quick (Chakra Flash used alone or from Combo works nicely) and you'll get "Secret Clear" later. Series: Dragonar, Nadesico Comment: Whew, sure is nice to take a dip in the nice, cool water after the re-entry, which heats you up to no end. Here we first see the cutie known as Yurika Misumaru, daughter of Misumaru, our new commander. It doesn't seem like she's as obdient as she looks though...... ========================================= OP10 - M2: Confront Enemy Fleet ========================================= Mission Object: - Reduce enemy power down to 10% Secret Object: - Reduce enemy power down to 50% within 180 seconds, then destroy all Namuones that comes in for support Mission Fail: Mission time over Difficulty: Moderately Easy Mission Key: Yet another underwater Mission. Jovian Lizards retreated, but in comes Drakes, the antagonist group of Aura Battler Dunbine. Which also means Dunbine and Bilbine appear in this Mission. The mission itself is simple. Destroy enemies and their power will go down. Reduce it to 10%, and you win. Just watch out though: Doto (however you spell his name) will show up quickly, and he'll be much more troublesome than the others. Secret Key: Break the enemies FAST as you only have three minutes to work with. Once you see "new incoming enemy vessels!" STOP ATTACKING and ONLY go for the vessels while praying that your partners won't be too aggressive that they finish the enemies off before you can get those three Namuones. One will show up from the southwest, one west, and the third one, being the ass it is, shows up DUE EAST. Break them all and, if you can, break more enemies before they retreat. Units Obtained: Bilbine, Dunbine Series: Nadesico, Dunbine Comment: This Mission's Secret Clear is pain in the ass to get, mainly because you either can't get the enemy power down fast enough, or you do it too fast that they kinda just...... Flee before you break their vessels. You get Shou and Marbel joining with their respective units, Bilbine and Dunbine, which are actually quite fun to play with. But we shouldn't get distracted. Nadesico, here we come! ========================================= OP10 - M3: Stop Nadesico's Escape ========================================= Mission Object: - Sit around for a while - Destroy Nadesico - Defeat Aestivalis - Repel Buster Ark Secret Object: - Force Akito and Gai to retreat within 45 seconds after they appear Mission Fail: Nadesico escapes battlefield Difficulty: Normal Mission Key: Nadesico is escaping! And Jovian Lizards are on pursue, but I'm sure they're attacking it for a different reason...... Well, no matter. Jovian Lizards are enemies to us as of right now, so let's break them all! And I TOLD you Yurika isn't obdient as she looks. See? She hung up on her daddy! Let's knock Nadesico down and make her listen just for once, shall we? Nadesico's Distortion Field is annoying in that you really can't do much damage with it around. That and Jovian Lizards are STILL attacking us. Make sure you destroy those JL vessels farther away from Nadesico while pelting down the little enemies, while working on knocking down Nadesico's Distortion Field. Ruri-chan will report that the D.Field's power decreased once you knocked down about 75% of its Armor, then shoot it more and the engine won't be working too well either. By this time, Gai and Akito Launch their Aestivalis units. They're small, so try and shoot them with fast units that hit HARD. Wing Zero is NOT a good choice here, mind you. Once you repelled them, Buster Ark shows up and gets in your way AGAIN. Nadesico escapes while Gai covers them, so defeat Gai (who starts with around 50% Armor) again, fend off the Jovian Lizards, and face Buster Ark yet again. Buster Ark seemed to have become more aggresive now, but just dodge its attacks and you'll be fine. It escapes after a while. Secret Key: Aestivalis units are TINY so you'd want to use something that hits a mob for BIG damage. What do we use here? Well, first time I played this Mission I used WZC and it worked quite nicely with its Rolling Twin Buster Rifle, but after that it was painful. You could just try to beat them normally now and return with Buster Ark, or maybe you could just blast them away as quickly as possible with Gun Ark here. Oh, by the way, if they pulled out their own Distortion Field, use melee on them. Long-range weapons basically BOUNCE OFF of Aestivalis' Distortion Fields. Units Obtained: Aestivalis (Gai Unit) Series: Nadesico, ACE Comment: Cue "You Get to Burning!" and "Go! Aestivalis" here. God I LOVE those songs. This Mission is bloody long if you look at the Objectives, and Nadesico has some friggin' strong Armor, PLUS you fight two Aestivalis units AND Buster Ark here. ===================================================== Operation 11 - Attack Giganos Secret Factory [^OP11] ===================================================== ========================================= OP11 - M1: Destroy Generator Systems ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy 12+ Solar Stations Secret Object: - Destroy all Solar Stations and all Gun-Jim team Mission Fail: Mission time over Difficulty: Normal Mission Key: This Mission seems completely easy until you realize that there's a big-ass cannon taking shots at you from time to time. But then there are all these lower areas in the landscape. What do you do? Figured it out yet? That's right, you dive into those lower areas to evade the shots, which they're nice enough to warn you of. When there are shots coming at you, there will be an arrow pointing at you where the shot will come from, so hide and hug a wall to the direction of the shot. Once you've proceeded into map, Giganos' Four Lords will pop into the scene. First you run into Stark Gan Dora and Stark Gebaye. Stark Gan Dora will then break into two parts, with the Gan Dora running off. Destroying them is optional, so still prioritize on removing the Solar Stations. Secret Key: Basically you'd want a mobbing unit that can hit HARD. Nelly Brain and Buster Ark immediately comes to mind. First, destroy the Stark Gan Dora and Stark Gebaye. Now, look on your 3d radar and you should see a yellow dot to the west. IMMEDIATELY go for it before it leaves the battle area. Destroy it, and you should hear Gun-Jim getting angry and yelling at his men. Now, focus on working on the Solar Stations. Once you destroy them all, you'll get Mission Completed as well as Secret Clear. Series: Dragonar Comment: More Dragonar stuff. We're deep into China and looking for destroying Ginganos Empire's new weapon, whose power you could actually taste right in this Mission. The BGM will follow the series of your unit, until Stark Gan Dora and Stark Gebaye show up. ========================================= OP11 - M2: Destroy Infinite Orbit Cannon ========================================= Mission Object: - Destroy Infinite Orbit Cannon Secret Object: - Destroy all Launch Gates and all Gun-Jim team Mission Fail: Mission time over Difficulty: Normal Mission Key: Now that we've destroyed all those Solar Stations, the cannon's power is greatly reduced. However, it still has the power to deal some BIG damage to you. At this point, your Mission is to approach it and destroy it. However, Gun-Jim and his men are still in your way. Make your way to the cannon carefully, dodging the cannon fire (same method as before) when necessary. Once you are close enough, Gun-Jim will boast about the Infinite Orbit Cannon and...... It blew up? Turned out Domon broke it while looking for his brother, who ran away with Devil Gundam or something. One of Gun-Jim's men charged, but ended up eating God Gundam's Sekiha Tenkyoken. Ouch. So now there's one unit besides Gilgazamune that you have to take care of. Gilgazamune HURTS to fight though. If possible, go into this Mission with a unit that can take some beating while dishing out good damage. Secret Key: Destroying all Launch Gates shouldn't be too hard right? I mean, you search for them, either with 2D rader or 3D radar...... And break them all. It's the Gun-Jim team that may pose some problem. Remember that, once you defeat Gilgazamune, it's Mission Complete. Therefore, destroy everything else before even TOUCHING Gilgazamune. I'm SO glad there aren't any partners to get in my way in this Mission. >_> Series: Dragonar, G Gundam Comment: There goes Giganos Empire's stronghold in China. Gun-Jim is dead, but Dragonar's plot is hardly over. Now that we've erased Giganos from the Earth's surface, let's wipe them out in space! (More to come in the future updates) ----------------------------------------------------- 7. FAQs [^7] ----------------------------------------------------- Q: How many series are there in this game? A: I count 14. 15 if you count Macross OVA as a seperate series. Q: Are the plotlines of all these series covered? A: Personally I haven't watched most of the series involved, but I'm sure some series get absolutely no coverage in terms of plots (Rin's Wings, Nadesico: Prince of Darkness, for example) while others get a tiny mention and then got left off. Q: So how often do you update? A: Whenever I feel like? I have about a week or two before school begins (that is, when I wrote down this answer......) so I'll see if I can get at least the Missions covered within these days. Q: What will be in the future updates? A: I don't know, to tell the truth. If possible, I'd like to include a section for all units, including their beginning and highest stats, attacks (and how they work), and stuff like those. But I don't know if I'll have the time for that. Q: I can't get ACE rank/Secret Clear on <Insert Mission here>. A: Check back on my Secret Keys for Secret Clear. For ACE rank, look at your final score in that Mission out of 10000 and try to find out what you're missing. Usual case is that you destroyed enemies too fast that you managed to complete the Mission before more enemies show up. Q: Whoaly crap, that's a LOT of typing. Got a life? A: Last time I checked, yes. Q: There are errors in the FAQ and I want to correct you. A: *points at "Contact Me" section* Q: I got extra info for you. How will I submit it? A: Again, read Section 2 on how to contact me. If your submission actually do not violate ANY of the rules I stated wayyyyyy up there, go ahead and e-mail me. Q: i wana flaem u so bad!! loLOl!111!1!1 A: All flames may be submitted to Bill.Gates@microsoft.com. If you can't tell that sarcasm, may God bless you. But why do I have the weird feeling that I've said this before? ----------------------------------------------------- 8. Credits [^8] ----------------------------------------------------- I would like to show our appreciation to the following for the completion of this FAQ: - Banpresto, for producing such a great game. - Daimou43, for introducing me to the ACE series and being a nice friend. And taking care of my PS2 while my parents were here. - All producers of the series included in this game, for obvious reasons. - "Another Century's Episode 2 WIKI" for providing memory aids when my PS2 was sent to Daimou43's place when my parents came over. - GameFAQs.com ACE2 Board for providing help when I needed them. - Zidanet_129, for producing this Guide. *ducks from flying objects* - And finally, YOU, for reading this Guide. Hopefully you enjoyed it and hopefully it helped you out. *Insert picture of Gun Ark and Buster Ark floating in space* THANK YOU FOR READING