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| “ | Two years have passed since the Leninsk Cosmodrome incident. As the second Soviet Victory Parade approaches to commemorate the event of their victory in the Third Great War, Yuri reemerges from the shadows and takes the city of Moscow hostage. | ” |
| —Mission description |
Operation: The Conqueror is the first Epsilon Act Two campaign mission.
Briefing[]
Yuri's Message: "Proselyte, the time has come. Two years after your glorious victory at Leninsk, we are finally ready. We shall emerge from the shadows, and what better way to do it than by toppling a false dominion, wouldn't you agree? Today is the day when the Soviets will be holding their second annual Victory Parade, right in the heart of Moscow. They will have several new Topol-M units on display throughout this parade, and while they are not armed, obviously, they will still be useful in our possession. This is but a show - the Soviets couldn't possibly have found the time or resources to prepare more MIDAS bombs in these two years; the first batch took decades to make! But, this bluff is used as a means to keep the world in check; a truly wonderful scheme! Since the destruction of Chicago, people live in fear of the devastating MIDAS, and that is what the Soviets are banking on. Since they don't really have any, their entire power structure is built on a web of lies. Now what do you think would happen if those lies were exposed? Chaos - an environment perfectly suited for us.
Yes, I know that Moscow is now a veritable fortress, capable of withstanding all sorts of attacks from the outside, but believe in me Proselyte, believe in our new powers. With a dispatch of our new Shadow Tanks, you will find a path to Moscow and shut down their Nuclear Reactors. They all have to be destroyed at once, so the Soviets don't have the time to react and take Romanov away from the capital. When that's done, the stage will be set for our return."
Objective 1: Destroy all 5 Nuclear Reactors simultaneously.
Objective 2: Capture and escort all Topol-M platforms to the outpost.
Objective 3: Kill Premier Romanov before he leaves the area.
Events[]
Lights out[]
Over the last two years, Epsilon weapons R&D had progressed considerably resulting in the creation of the Shadow Tank, a cloaked attack vehicle armed with twin Dissolver beams. A company of Shadow Tanks was dispatched to cut the power.
The Shadow Tank company proceeded undetected while the parade was happening. On each Nuclear Reactor, a Shadow Tank would await for the firing order.
Once the Shadow Tanks were in place, the Nuclear Reactors were destroyed simultaneously, plunging Moscow into darkness and interrupting the parade, signaling the arrival of the Epsilon's main attack force in the Red Square using Drillers, who proceeded to wreak havoc on the Soviet forces. In the ensuing chaos, Premier Romanov retreated to the Kremlin under the cover of his Black Guards.
Securing the Topol-Ms[]
After the attack on the Red Square, PsiCorps were to secure the eight Topol-Ms before they could flee the city using Adepts to persuade the platforms' drivers to take them to where they were needed to be, rather than the predetermined Soviet extraction points. Meanwhile, the Scorpion Cell allies in the engagement would serve to distract the Soviets to clear the way.
Kill Romanov[]
Yuri and the Proselyte enters the Kremlin after the Psychic Beacon built
As soon as all eight platforms were in Epsilon's possession, PsiCorps were assigned to assassinate Premier Romanov and secure the perimeter around the Kremlin. Romanov's personal Black Guard would prove no match for the Epsilon assassination squad (who had used Drillers to bypass the heavily defended perimeter) and Romanov was killed by Malver’s kinetic blade.
Yuri followed up this display of power by deploying a Psychic Beacon in the grounds of the Kremlin, bringing the remaining Soviet forces in the city under Epsilon's control. Yuri himself arrived on the scene and invited the Proselyte into his new office in the Kremlin to celebrate their victory.
Aftermath[]
| “ | The bizarre Russian show has ended. The world will now see they hold no more MIDAS warheads, while we have acquired some valuable technology in form of these newer Topol-M platforms. The construction of Death's Hand will soon begin. | ” |
| —Yuri's message |
With Alexander Romanov now dead and Moscow captured by Epsilon, the Soviet chain of command was thrown into chaos as their celebration turned into mourning. The world is now aware that the Russians had been lying about their MIDAS warheads for the last two years, while the Epsilon managed to obtain the upgraded Topol-M platforms, which were used in the development of Yuri's Spatha Defense System. Lastly, the construction of what appears to be a "doomsday device" also began.
Meanwhile, another Epsilon proselyte managed to take over the city of Stalington in the S.S.A. and activated another Psychic Beacon to bring the American rebels and Russian defenders under Epsilon control.
However, not everything was good news. The Latin Confederation could take control of the situation to stabilize the Soviet chain of command. Not wanting to be caught off-guard and to show them how pitiful they are without Yuri's knowledge and technology, the Proselyte was sent to cause mass havoc and chaos via the "Terranova" virus.
Difficulty changes[]
Casual[]
- Starting credits: 20000
- 8 Shadow Tanks are dispatched for the mission.
- The number of enemy patrols, stationary units and defenses are less than in other difficulties.
- A patrol of Shock Troopers near the central Nuclear Reactor will be removed.
- Removed all Wolfhounds except those among the parade.
- During the first objective, alert will be only triggered when the elite Black Guards in Kremlin area are attacked.
- Soviets' AI counterattack intensity is the lowest in later period.
- A heal crate is stationed near the High Command Heart Building.
- Power recovery of the Soviet base and outpost will be the slowest, about the time when the first Topol-M under PsiCorps control arrives at the lower left evacuation point.
- Countdown until X-MiG evacuates Romanov: 2:30
Normal[]
- Starting credits: 15000
- 6 Shadow Tanks are dispatched for the mission.
- Fewer patrols, stationary units and defenses than on Casual are removed.
- During the first objective, alert will be triggered if any Soviet unit is killed.
- Soviets' AI counterattack intensity is medium in later period.
- In the second stage, the enemy will send troops more frequently and will use Tank Drop.
- A heal crate is stationed near the High Command Heart Building.
- Power recovery of the Soviet base and outpost will be ahead of time than on Casual, about when the player receives a warning that Topol-M is about to flee.
- Countdown until X-MiG evacuates Romanov: 2:00
Mental[]
- Starting credits: 10000
- 4 Shadow Tanks are dispatched for the mission.
- A large number of stationary units, patrols and defenses are present on the map.
- Some additional Tesla Coils are on the map, such as at the first Gates.
- During the first objective, alert will be triggered if Shadow Tank is exposed.
- Soviets' AI counterattack intensity is the highest in later period.
- Fewer buildings are available for garrisoning, especially in the upper right corner of the base.
- Scorpion Cell's attack intensity is lower than the other two difficulties.
- Power recovery of the Soviet base and outpost will be the fastest, approximately as soon as the player regains combat control.
- Countdown until X-MiG evacuates Romanov: 1:30
Easter egg[]
| “ | Something is coming out from there! For time's sake take it down, Proselyte! The Wolfhound was not carrying anything important. Was it just a distraction? | ” |
There is an easter egg with the Kremlin's Heart; once the player destroys it, a Wolfhound escapes, and a veterancy crate and a money crate will appear.
- This Wolfhound event is a reference to Crumble Kremlin Crumble, the eighth mission of the Empire of the Rising Sun campaign in Red Alert 3. The Kremlin's Heart appears in that mission, where it must be destroyed by the player-controlled Empire forces, at which point a Twinblade helicopter will fly out, carrying Russian Premier Cherdenko and his prized Time Machine, before being shot down by Empire forces as well.
Behind the scenes[]
- Prior to version 3.3.5, the mission uses an older layout which is created by Speeder.
Trivia[]
- This mission is a remake of No Dilemma, the 1st Epsilon mission in version 2.0. In addition, this mission's name during development was also "No Dilemma".
- The music used in the mission's loading screen and the first part of the mission is the instrumental version of Soviet March from Red Alert 3, remixed by Darth Weather and James Hannigan.
- The music played at the start of the second part of the mission is Premeditated Treachery (Alternative link) by PrototypeRaptor.
- A statue of Boris makes an appearance in this mission which serves as a memorial to the original Soviet commando that was killed in Bleed Red.
