The Nuke General has many strengths, but offensive air power is not one of them, and even if he did, the EMP Patriots will instantly destroy any aircraft on hit. Helixes work great for defense as Alexander won't send Raptors, but they are too slow. The MiGs are not much better either, as it takes up to four just to destroy one, and all four will most likely be lost. Nevertheless, best answer to her challenge is to play by Tao's strengths and use his nuclear arsernal to utterly obliterate her base.
Walkthrough[edit]
The usual build routine needs to shaken up a bit for this mission as Alexander's relentless onslaughts will destroy many structures again and again.
Build a Reactor, extra bulldozer, Barracks, then two Gattling Cannons before building a Supply Center.
Immediately research Capture Building and then produce a pair of Red Guards. Set the Rally Point near the two Oil Derricks and capture them, then take the supply crate lying between them.
Wait for the A-10s to destroy one of your Gattling Cannons, rebuild it, and then build your Supply Center as well as an extra Supply Truck.
Build up to four or five Gattling Cannons and then build straight through to your Nuclear Missile – War Factory, Propaganda Center, then Nuclear Missile, hopefully before her Particle Cannon starts firing.
If your Supply Center, War Factory or Propaganda Center are destroyed, don’t rebuild them until after your Nuclear Missile starts building. Unless something goes awry, their destruction shouldn't slow things much.
It will be two steps forward, one step back as Construction Dozers, reactors, Barracks and Gattling Cannons are constantly replaced. With the Oil Derricks providing additional income, it's possible to outlast her repeated assaults.
Build a few extra Gattling Cannons to the back, near the Oil Derricks, to counter her Chinook ambushes. Overlords will be popular targets for the A-10 Strikes, but they aren't all that useful in this particular scenario.
The first Particle Cannon should be destroyed with a combination of one Nuclear Missile and a level 3 Artillery Barrage. If somehow the Artillery Barrage is ready while the first Nuclear Missile is under construction, destroy her Supply Center with it. This prevents her from constructing more Chinooks or rebuilding her War Factory/Air Field. By the time it recharges, the Nuclear Missile should be ready. Fire it at the Particle Cannon close to the Air Field, then follow up with an Artillery Barrage to seal the deal. Don't worry if the Air Field isn't destroyed - It can be dealt with later.
If the Nuclear Missile comes under fire, be sure to repair it in time. Unlike Townes, she doesn't prioritize targeting them with Particle Cannons, but the A-10s might catch it.
Continue to construct more Nuclear Missiles. Wait until two are ready, then fire them both to destroy the Command Center.
At this point the base should be reasonably secure as long as enough Gattling Cannons are guarding the perimeter. Keep her Particle Cannons distracted while building more Nuclear Missiles. Target the Air Field first to stop her from producing more Comanches/Aurora Alphas, then focus on the remaining two Particle Cannons. If Nuke Bombers and artillery are utilized to deal with the EMP Patriots and the Fire Base, it is possible to capture the closest Particle Cannon with Black Lotus and use it against her.
To finish the mission, the following buildings/units must be destroyed:
- Cold Fusion Reactors
- Construction Dozer
- Command Center
- Strategy Center
- Supply Center
- Air Field
- War Factory
Mission accomplished!
Alternate Strategy[edit]
As mentioned before it's easy to leave a dozer parked next to a Gattling Cannon or whatever structure when an Aurora Alpha comes and destroy both. Gattling Tanks however remain viable for counterplay.
Start by building a Reactor and an extra dozer. When the extra dozer comes out, build a Barracks. Space all buildings and build them south of your Command Center. When the first dozer finishes building the Reactor, build a scaffold of a Supply Center next to the supply dock, then build another scaffold of a Supply Center right next to it, but away from the Command Center. Move this dozer away and build a gatling cannon south of the Command Center. When the "Hold the Line" strategy is deployed, wait for ten seconds and cancel both Supply Depots.
Meanwhile, your other dozer should be done with the Barracks. Build a scaffold of a Barracks on the shore and directly east of the Command Center. Build a pair of Red Guard and get the Capture Building upgrade. Set the rally point next to the oil derricks.
Build the Supply Center after the A-10 Strike comes by, and then go straight to a War Factory. When the War Factory gets done, crank out gatling Tanks and line them up along the northern shore. Space them out to minimize losses.
This should deal with the annoying Comanches and the deadly Alpha Auroras. Now build a pair of gatling tanks to guard the southern part of your base from the Chinook drops. If you get time, build another pair for the very southwest part of the island.
As you are building up your line of gatling tanks, the first Particle Cannon will activate. It will target the scaffold of the Barracks. Cancel it and build a scaffold of a Reactor in the very southern part of the island, in line with the Command Center. Rebuild the scaffold of the Barracks in the same place after the flames die down.
Once you attain the three-star general level, unlock the Nuke Bomber power and start whittling down the Patriots guarding the closest Particle Cannon so the summoned Bomber can actually get there. When combined with a level 3 Artillery Barrage, it is possible to destroy this Particle Cannon without Nuclear Missiles.
Get the Chain Guns upgrade to increase the Gattling Tanks' damage.
Once all of the gatling tanks are set up, defensive measures are just a matter of canceling the scaffolds when the particle beams strike and rebuilding them and replacing any lost gatling tanks. For offensive operations, build a Propaganda Center on the west side of the island and build Reactors and Nukes. It may be wise to use the first nuke and an Artillery Barrage to take out the Command Center, then target the Supply Center. This will stop her from rebuilding her Air Field, making the rest of the mission much easier.
With the Airfield gone and the Particle Cannons diverted, construct more Nuclear Missiles to steamroll her.