Dante's Inferno

Shane (or any expert): How did you get through Act 2, Mission 25 (Dante's Inferno)? This is becoming a "game breaker" for me. I'm able to perform the three basic attacks against the Marauders, but then I get blown out of space in the final showdown with Maas. What was your strategy for this battle? This mission is the type which is seriously beginning to turn me against this game (games are supposed to be FUN and challenging, not TEDIOUS and ANGER INTENSIVE). This mission comes out of nowhere, is degrees harder than anything before and, most importantly, one's success depends as much upon luck and the performance of wingmen as it does on one's own piloting skills. Also, there is no way to save the game after completing all the time consuming aspects leading up to the final battle. If I don't complete this mission soon, this will be the game ender for me -- Maas will defeat the League fleet and I will be "dead". Fini -- and then it will be time to move onto something else better realized. (I'm getting so mad, I'm beginning to shoot at anything that gets in my way en route to the meeting point. Like in L-Point queues. Good pirate practice, but it does nothing to move the game along).

Same thing happened to me. Must have played Dante's Inferno a dozen times (or more). It gets irritating.

The cruiser kept killing me again and again, no matter what loadout I'd try. Finally, I found a strategy which seems to work; Hoffer will yell "Cal, I'm depending on you. Take out that cruiser!". Screw him. Fire one shot (or seeking missile) at the cruiser, tell all your wingmen to attack it, and then keep backing off, staying just out of range of it's guns, leading it on. It will focus only on getting to you, allowing the wingmen to carve it up.

When it's dead, start focusing all wingmen forces on single ships near Hoffer, until none are left.

Good luck. To use an old phrase: (best whiny Clinton parody-voice) "I feel your pain."

No confusion; just wrong or right ... Only Solutions

Ah, hah. Thanks. This is not the first time where listening to the advice of others has led to disaster. I remember, "Take care of the mines, Cal, we'll keep the ships off your back!" during the freighter escort mission. S-u-r-e they will! Thanks again.

BB

How about this one: "All ships; Please fall into formation with the freighter group."

No confusion; just wrong or right ... Only Solutions

If it gets really bad, but you still want to continue the game, the whole mission is wrapped in a cutscene function. Just press the space bar during the cutscene and Suprise, Suprise: "mission completed"

Have Gun, Will Travel

You know, for me the cruiser was the easy part. A pretty simple matter of accelerate by it's side, hit the override, turn and let the cutting beams sweep across it's hull. 2 or 3 passes, and it was over. 2 t-fighters with decent pbcs, attached on fire at will, and 3 cutting beams on the patcom worked very well for me. The fighters will act as turrets and blast anything too small for your beams to catch, and anything patcom sized or bigger gets slashed to ribbons by the cutters.

Mostly, I'll just continue pimping the glories of dual/trike/quad cutting beams in salvo mode, whatever your heatsink can handle. On big ships, fly by the side, override, and slice. Smaller patcoms/vettes aren't as easy to get in range, but once they are, they're goners. Little fighters are the only problem, and t-fighters or some backup pbcs handle those nicely.