Star Wars Missions 004 - Destroy the Liquidator

by Ryder Windham

  May the Force be with you.

  “I’ll fly the starfighter,” you volunteer. There isn’t time for any arguments. Running to the vehicle, you clamber up to the cockpit canopy. You pull your helmet over your head and are about to lower the canopy when Q-7N shoots in beside you.

  “The others agree I should go with you!” the small flying droid declares.

  “Then welcome aboard,” you reply as the canopy seals shut. The Rebel technician gives you a thumbs-up signal and you push the throttle. The starfighter lifts off the ground and fires into the sky.

  The Carrack cruiser is no longer in sight. “I’ll need more speed to catch up with Skeezer,” you tell Q-7N.

  To increase engine power: Choose your vehicle. (This will be your vehicle for the entire Mission.) Add your skill# to your vehicle’s speed# for your confront#. Roll the 6-dice to divert power from your weapons to your engine.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference to your MP total. You have caught up with the Carrack and you may proceed.

  If your confront# is less than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total and repeat this confront until you have caught up with the Carrack.

  The Carrack cruiser comes into view. You relay power back to your deflector shields and push the throttle forward.

  “The Carrack is heavily armored,” you point out. “Unless I can get a clear shot at the power generators, it won’t be easy to stop Skeezer.”

  “Are you certain Captain Skeezer knows about the Liquidator’s location?” Q-7N asks.

  You check your nav computer. “Well, he’s not heading for any standard hyperspace jump point. According to Grand Moff Tarkin’s second holotape, Captain Skeezer seemed to know more than Admiral Termo. If Skeezer knew about the bacta plan, he might also know that Termo would bring the Liquidator to Yavin.”

  “Could Captain Skeezer have already contacted the Liquidator?” the droid wonders aloud.

  “Not yet,” you reply. “Piloting the Carrack is a tough job for one person, even for an experienced pilot like Skeezer. He’d have to take his hands off the controls to transmit a signal.”

  Q-7N adjusts one photoreceptor to a telescopic setting, focusing on the round radio dish atop the fleeing cruiser. “It looks like the Rebel technicians repaired the Carrack’s sensor arrays. Unless you can hit the cruiser’s power generators, I suggest you try shooting out the sensor dish. That way, Captain Skeezer won’t be able to send any signal.”

  “It’s almost a shame that we have to destroy our technicians’ repair job!” you comment as you push the starfighter to its fastest sublight speed. In seconds, the Carrack is within firing range. Your fingers tense back on the triggers for the starfighter’s laser cannons.

  You must destroy the Carrack cruiser’s sensor dish.

  To shoot the sensor dish: Your vehicle’s weaponry# + your weaponry#, is your confront#. Roil the 12-dice to blow the sensor dish into space dust.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference +3 to your MP total and proceed.

  If your confront# is lower than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. Now double your confront# for your new confront#. Roll the 12-dice again to destroy the sensor dish.

  If your new confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference to your MP total and proceed.

  If your new confront# is less than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. Repeat this confront with your new confront# until you have destroyed the sensor dish. Once you have destroyed the sensor dish, you may proceed.

  Sparks fly from the top of the Carrack, illuminating the wreckage of the mangled sensor dish. As if in response, the Carrack turns sharply off course, plunging away into space.

  “If Skeezer didn’t know we were after him, he knows it now!” you declare. “He’s switched to an evasive flight path.”

  Laser fire blasts from the rear of the Carrack and nearly hits your starfighter.

  “Skeezer’s shooting at us!” Q-7N yelps.

  “The Carrack must have an automatic defense system,” you realize as you dodge another burst of fire. “I’ve got to knock out that cannon!”

  To destroy the Carrack’s aft cannon: Your vehicle’s weaponry# +3 is your confront#. Roll the 12-dice to fire at the Carrack’s cannon.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, you’re right on target. Add the difference +4 to your MP total and proceed.

  If your confront# is lower than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. Now add +3 to your confront# for your new confront#. Roll the 12-dice again to shoot the Carrack’s cannon.

  If your new confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference to your MP total and proceed.

  If your new confront# is less than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. Repeat this confront with the same confront# until you have destroyed the Carrack’s cannon. Then you may proceed.

  Despite the Carrack cruiser’s length and bulk, it steers into a tight arc, then loops back. The oncoming Carrack appears to grow larger as it races toward you.

  “That doesn’t look very evasive to me,” Q-7N whispers.

  “He’s going to ram us!” you shout as you pull back on the controls.

  You must avoid the cruiser. You can do this by either increasing your speed or changing your direction.

  To increase your speed: Your skill# + your vehicle’s speed# is the confront#. Roll the 6-dice to speed your way out of this one.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference to your MP total. You speed out of the Carrack cruiser’s way. Now you must loop around for an attack.

  If your confront# is less than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. You are still in the cruiser’s path. You must choose again whether to increase your speed or change direction (below).

  To change direction: Add your skill# to your vehicle’s stealth# for your confront#. Roll the 6-dice to dodge the oncoming cruiser.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference to your MP total. You have steered into a tight loop and can proceed.

  If your confront# is less than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. You are still in the Carrack’s path. You must choose again whether to change direction or increase your speed (above.)

  The engines whine as you strain your ship out of the maneuvered loop. You end up behind the Carrack.

  “Don’t let him out of your sight!” Q-7N shouts.

  “I’m on him,” you counter, increasing the throttle.

  “Can’t we go any faster?” Q-7N inquires.

  “The way Skeezer’s flying that thing, it’s all I can do to keep up with him,” you insist.

  The Carrack swerves, heading for a blurry, nebulous mass. From a great distance, it resembles a giant cloud in outer space.

  “What is he flying toward?” Q-7N asks. “It almost looks like some kind of enormous fog bank.”

  As you speed closer, distant particles come into view, and appear to grow larger as you approach. “That’s not a fog bank,” you inform the droid. “That’s a meteor field!”

  “A meteor field?” the droid exclaims with genuine fear in his electronic voice. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this. Should we continue this pursuit?”

  “We only knocked out the Carrack’s sensor array, Q-7N,” you assert, adjusting power to your forward deflector shields. “We can’t risk Skeezer reaching the Liquidator!” You follow the Carrack into the meteor field.

  Your concentration shifts from the pursuit of the Carrack to avoiding the countless meteors. There’s no choice but to activate your targeting computer.

  “The meteors are throwing off the targeting system!” you shout “I can’t draw a bead on the Carrack! Skeezer’s moving too fast!”

  Skeezer pilots the Carrack with nerve-racking skill between the meteors. The chase becomes increas
ingly difficult. Some of the meteors are gigantic, while others are smaller than your vehicle.

  Suddenly, a long, heavy meteor spins up in front of you. You can either dodge or destroy the meteor.

  To dodge the meteor: Add your skill# to your vehicle’s stealth +3 for your confront#. Roll the 12-dice to swoop clear of the meteor.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference +3 to your MP total. It was a close call, but you managed to avoid a head-on collision. You may now proceed.

  If your confront# is less than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. You’ve missed your chance to dodge the meteor, and now you must attempt to destroy it (below).

  To destroy the meteor: Your vehicle’s weaponry# + your weaponry# +1 is your confront#. Roll the 12-dice to fire a proton torpedo at the meteor.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference +4 to your MP total. The meteor explodes into a million fragments. You may now proceed.

  If your confront# is lower than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. Now add +3 to your confront# for your new confront#. You will now be using laser cannon. Roll the 12-dice again to destroy the meteor.

  If your new confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference to your MP total and proceed.

  If your new confront# is less than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. Repeat this confront with your new confront# until you have destroyed the meteor. After it is vaporized, you may proceed.

  A larger meteor passes between you and the Carrack. Quickly calculating your options, you realize you could lose the Carrack if you try dodging this meteor. You must destroy it.

  To destroy the meteor: Add your skill# to your vehicle’s weaponry# +1 for your confront#. Roll the 12-dice to fire a proton torpedo straight into the massive galactic rock.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference to your MP total and proceed.

  If your confront# is less than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total and repeat this confront until you have destroyed the large meteor. Once you have blown it away, you may proceed.

  Nice work! Add 35 MP to your MP total (55 MP for Advanced Level players).

  You blink as your starfighter soars through the debris of the exploded meteor.

  “I’ve lost sight of the Carrack!” you shout in frustration as you neatly avoid another collision.

  “There it is!” Q-7N calls out. “Thirty degrees port, just beyond that egg-shaped meteor.”

  “I see it,” you confirm, following the droid’s directions.

  You adjust your controls, accelerating after the Carrack. The cruiser turns hard, speeding out between a cluster of small meteors and into clear space.

  “The Carrack’s starboard power generator is in my sights,” you shout, reaching for the triggers of your laser cannons.

  To shoot the Carrack cruiser’s starboard power generator: Add your weaponry# to your vehicle’s weaponry# +2 for your confront#. Roll the 12-dice to fire your laser cannons at the Carrack’s power generator.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference +4 to your MP total. The starboard power generator erupts in a great flash, and you may proceed.

  If your confront# is lower than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. Now add +5 to your confront# for your new confront#. Roll the 12-dice again to shoot the generator.

  If your new confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, you may proceed.

  If your new confront# is less than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. Repeat this confront with your new confront# until you have destroyed the generator. After the generator explodes, you may proceed.

  The Imperial cruiser shudders against the blast, and an electrical surge sweeps over the Carrack’s hull.

  “I think we just knocked out the power to its hyperdrive system,” you yell. “Skeezer won’t be able to escape to hyperspace now!”

  The Carrack swings into a tight loop, coming up fast and nearly clipping the nose of your ship. You turn hard in pursuit of the Carrack.

  A moon comes into view. “That’s Yavin Eight,” you tell the droid. “Skeezer is heading right for it! Looks like he’s going to try an emergency landing!”

  “Is there any sign of the Liquidator?” Q-7N asks.

  “There’s nothing on my sensor screens,” you relay. “Maybe the Star Destroyer moved on to another moon.” A warning light flashes on your controls. “Hang on! My sensors are picking up something up ahead.”

  “Could it be more Imperials?” asks the droid.

  “Whatever it was, it’s gone. I’m only receiving static.”

  The Carrack descends to the mountains of Yavin Eight. Following closely, you pursue the battered cruiser into a narrow ravine. For an instant you lose sight of the Carrack as it steers around an immense stone column. As you tear around the column, a huge explosion erupts against the side of the ravine. You pull back hard, rising above the explosion.

  “What happened?” Q-7N yelps. “Did the Carrack crash?”

  “I think so, but I didn’t see it actually —”

  Without warning, you are interrupted by several bursts of laser fire, tearing the air around you. Channeling reserve power to the starfighter’s shields, you try skirting out of the ravine.

  “The shots came from above!” you shout. Pulling back on the throttle, you rise up from the ravine. At the upper edge of the mountain, you spot a drop ship. “It’s an Imperial assault team!”

  “Where did they come from?” Q-7N asks.

  “From the Liquidator, of course,” you answer. “Termo must have deployed a temporary garrison. Captain Skeezer used the Carrack’s sensors to locate the garrison, then transmitted a frequency jammer. That explains the static I picked up.”

  Gazing out the cockpit window, Q-7N warns, “We’re about to pick up more than static.”

  From over the mountain, two TIE fighters come shooting toward you. Pushing on the throttle, you dive back into the ravine. The ravine is lined by high towers of solid magma, creating a treacherous obstacle course.

  You can evade or combat the two TIE fighters. If you choose to evade, you can do so with or without Power. If you choose to combat, you can fight them all at once or one at a time. Choose now.

  To evade the two TIE fighters (using Power)*: Choose your Vehicle Evasion Power. Add your Jedi# to your Power’s low-resist# and your vehicle’s stealth# for your confront#. Roll the 6-dice to evade the two TIE fighters.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference +2 to your MP total. You have outmaneuvered the TIE fighters and can proceed.

  If your confront# is lower than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. You were not able to dodge the TIE fighters. Now you must combat both TIE fighters at once (below).

  *Note: This counts as one of two Power uses you are allowed in this Mission.

  To evade the two TIE fighters (without Power): Your vehicle’s stealth# + your skill# is your confront#. Roll the 6-dice to fly into a cave.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference +3 to your MP total. As you exit the other end of the cave, you hear twin explosions from behind. The TIE fighters are destroyed and you can proceed.

  If your confront# is lower than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. The TIE fighters stay on your tail as you exit the cave. You must now combat both of them at once (below).

  To combat both TIE fighters at once: Your vehicle’s weaponry# +2 is your confront#. Roll the 6-dice to fire a proton torpedo into one TIE fighter, causing it to collide with the other TIE fighter.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference +1 to your MP total. The TIE fighters collide and you can proceed.

  If your confront# is lower than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total. Your proton
torpedo has missed and now you must combat one TIE fighter at a time (below).

  To combat one TIE fighter at a time: Add your weaponry# to your vehicle’s weaponry# +2 for your confront#. Roll the 12-dice to fire your laser cannons at the first TIE fighter.

  If your confront# is equal to or more than your roll#, add the difference to your MP total. You may proceed to combat the second TIE fighter, using the same confront equation.

  If your confront# is less than your roll#, subtract the difference from your MP total and repeat this confront, adding +2 to your confront# for your new confront#. Once you have defeated the first TIE fighter, repeat this confront to combat the second TIE fighter, using your old confront#. Once you have defeated both ships, you may proceed.

  Rising out of the ravine, you scan the mountains, trying to get your bearings.

  “Should we look for the Carrack?” Q-7N asks.

  “I’m pretty sure Skeezer crashed,” you reply. “I’m more worried about those TIE fighters. As soon as the assault team realizes two TIE fighters are missing, the leader will probably launch a beacon and summon the Liquidator.”

  “Maybe you can locate the Imperial base before any beacon can be launched,” Q-7N suggests.

  “It’s worth trying,” you agree, bringing your vehicle around in a wide turn.

  Minutes later, the small droid bounces with excitement off of your right shoulder. “Look down off your starboard side!” Q-7N directs. “Is that an Imperial camp?”

  “It sure is,” you acknowledge. An Imperial drop ship sits at the edge of the ravine. Beside the drop ship, two more TIE fighters rest on an immense stone ledge.

  “I’m going for the drop ship!” you announce. “I may not be able to destroy it, but I can at least do some heavy damage.” You swoop upward, then loop back toward the drop ship.