Polish Surprise is a mission requiring the destruction of ammunition stored at a castle, as they are expected to be used in a planned demolition of a series of cultural landmarks.
Disguises[edit]
Of note, the following disguises may be used:
- A soldier uniform, the easiest to obtain, lets you remain undetected in the castle. The most vulnerable soldier is found just near where you enter, on a simple patrol between the barracks and the stew in front of the kitchen.
- The radio operator uniform, which allows you through most of the base, excluding the warehouses and basement. If you want to obtain his uniform, you can do so as he heads to the officers to give his message.
- The chef's uniform, which allows you into the open warehouse where you need to plant dynamite. The chef is sometimes alone in the kitchen where you can sneak up on him, or you can also spike the stew using poison found in the infirmary.
If playing on saboteur difficulty, you can't use any of these disguises.
Castle plans[edit]
In order to learn the location of the objectives, you need to obtain the castle plans. These plans are found in a cache outside, in a barrel within the shelter in the south east. The fastest route is taking the doorway to the left of the stew that leads to a spiral staircase, and exiting to the courtyard. Obtaining the cache is safe.
This secondary objective is not required to complete the mission, but it reveals the locations of other tasks.
Intercept the Cipher[edit]
The first task is to intercept the cipher. You must keep the radio operator alive before the cipher is received, meaning you will need to keep low until you learn that the message is received. The radio operator will only receive a message after a period of time (between 10-15 minutes), before making his trip to the second floor.
- Aggressive interception
The easiest preparation is to approach the second floor from the spiral staircase. You can eliminate the two guards in the hallway, leaving the bodies in the spiral staircase.
You can intercept the radio operator just before he reaches the officers. You can use a silenced weapon, or chloroform. Retrieve the cipher text from him, to complete the objective. You may also use his clothes as a slightly better disguise, although it won't help you complete the other objectives.
- Eavesdropping
There is a room next to the officer's meeting, where you can listen in on the conversation. When the radio operator delivers the message, they will gather around the map and discuss the contents of the cipher. Listening into the conversation counts as completing the objective.
- Post-delivery theft
While daring agents could attempt to sneak into the officer's room and take the cipher text, it's easier to wait for the meeting to finish first. One of the officer will enter the bedroom across from the officer's meeting room, and place it in the safe.
Place the explosive charges[edit]
The dynamite is found in the east warehouse. There is a single guard, who will wander away from his post from time to time, but he will generally keep a close watch on the door. If you decide to kill him, you will need to also silently kill three other soldiers in the courtyard. A safer approach is entering the barracks that is across from the starting room. When the sole awake solder leaves the room for a snack from the nearby stew, you can slip into the barracks, move the plywood blocking access to the warehouse and sneak in from behind.
The warehouse contains a backpack and the sticks of dynamite, one of which needs to be planted in the same room.
The dynamite needs to be planted in the western warehouse. There are two entrances, either the main entrance at ground level, or the basement access found in the radio operator area. If you want to go through the main entrance, you can overhear one of the guards asking for the cook - the cook's uniform can be taken by spiking the stew with poison from the infirmary (found on the first floor in the main castle hall).
There are two places to plant the explosives. The first is in the basement of the west warehouse, which may be placed when the guard isn't looking. The second place is on the second floor, behind a locked door with a nearby guard on patrol. The guard may be silently killed without worry.
Leave the castle[edit]
When all primary objectives are complete, you may return to the starting area. There is no special obstacle when heading to the extraction point.
Saboteur difficulty[edit]
If playing saboteur difficulty, you will likely want to switch your standard bolt-action weapon with something more suitable for close-to-medium range combat, and take a few smoke bombs. You also have one safest route:
- You need to enter the first warehouse by going through the barracks (when the soldier leaves the room to snack on the stew).
- From the warehouse, you will want to sneak around the outside of the castle to reach the open window on the other side. Enemies will have difficulty seeing through plants, which you can use to slowly advance as you keep close to the inner keep's wall. Sneak behind the two guards at the main door, distracting them with smoke if necessary. The patrolling guards should give you a moment where you can reach the open window near the alternate entrance, where there are only two guards in the two rooms.