********************************************************************** ********************************************************************** ********************************************************************** ********** _______________________________________________ *********** ******** | | ********* ******** | METAL GEAR SOLID BIG BOSS RANK AND BOSS GUIDE | ********* ******** | | ********* ******** | VERSION 1 | ********* ******** | | ********* ******** | By Samuel Riesterer (c) | ********* ******** | | ********* ******** | January 2001 | ********* ******** | | ********* ******** | braveheart4jesus@hotmail.com | ********* ******** |_______________________________________________| ********* ********** *********** ********************************************************************** ********************************************************************** ********************************************************************** ---------------------------------------------------------------------- TABLE OF CONTENTS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- I. DISCLAIMER II. INTRODUCTION III. REQUIREMENTS FOR BIG BOSS RANK IV. HELPFUL THINGS TO KNOW V. HELPFUL STRATEGIES TO KNOW Switching Items And Weapons Fast Equip/Unequip Items And Weapons Quick Ammo Reload Punch-Punch-Kick Combo VI. ACHIEVING THE SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS FOR BIG BOSS RANK Beat The Game In Extreme Mode Finish The Game In 3 Hours Or Less Use No Continues Use One Or No Rations Kill 25 Or Less Found 4 Times Or Less Save 80 Times Or Less (?) VII. WALKTHROUGH FOR SPECIFIC POINTS IN THE GAME The Docks The Heliport The Tank Hangar Guard Fight With Meryl The Armory Revolver Ocelot Fight The Armory The Tank Hangar Vulcan Raven Fight Nuke Building B1 Nuke Building B2 Ninja Fight Nuke Building B1 Psycho Mantis Fight The Caves The Sniper Corridor Snow Passage The Armory Sniper Wolf Fight Medical Room Nuke Building B1 Nuke Building B2 The Caves Communications Tower Ascent Rope Descent Walkway Communications Tower B Hind D Fight Elevator Fight Sniper Wolf Fight II Cargo Fight Vulcan Raven Fight II Finding The PAL card Freezing The PAL Card Heating The PAL Card Metal Gear Rex Fight Liquid Snake Fight Jeep Fight VIII. MY END SCORES ---------------------------------------------------------------------- I. DISCLAIMER ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This guide is copyrighted material. No one may alter, add to, subtract from, edit, change, convert, modify, or abridge this guide in any way. This guide may not be reproduced in any form (written, visual, electronic or audio) for any reason without my expressed written permission. This guide may be used for informational purposes for private use only. The text of this guide may be quoted in any form (written, visual, electronic or audio), up to and inclusive of two hundred (200) words without my express written permission, providing the words quoted do not amount to a complete section nor do the words quoted amount for 25 percent or more of the total text of the work in which they are quoted. You must also give my name (Samuel Riesterer) as clearly the source of the quotation. This guide may be made available on a non-commercial web site only with my expressed written permission and provided the following conditions are met: (1) It appears in its original form without additions, subtractions, or modifications; (2) It is freely accessible; (3) It is available with no cost of monies, materials, goods, services, etc.; (4) It is not used for promotional or profitable purposes; (5) My name is given as the author (Samuel Riesterer). Violators of any of the above stipulations will be prosecuted. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- II. INTRODUCTION ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This guide is a detailed guide specifically designed to help those who wish to achieve the rank of Big Boss, the highest rank in Metal Gear Solid. The strategies and information will also help you with the bosses and fight scenes in any setting. This guide assumes you understand some basics of gameplay. If you do not, you will never easily obtain the rank. Practice on the easier modes until you are familiar with the game before going on. You will have to decide if you plan on doing this without stealth (invisibility) or bandana (unlimited ammo) or both. To get the Big Boss rank without them is very hard and your choice will affect how you need to play the game. This guide is primarily designed around using the stealth and bandana but it does offer alternative strategies when not using them. If you have questions or comments concerning this guide or the game, please email me at braveheart4jesus@hotmail.com. I cannot guarantee I will respond but I will try. Please put "METAL GEAR SOLID" in the subject of your email to ensure it will not be deleted by mistake. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- III. REQUIREMENTS FOR BIG BOSS RANK ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To get the Big Boss rank you must: -Beat the game in Extreme mode -Finish the game in 3 hours or less -Use no continues -Use one or no rations -Kill 25 or less -Found 4 times or less -Save 80 or less times (?) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- IV. HELPFUL THINGS TO KNOW ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The full motion videos (FMV) DO count against your time The CODEC conversations DO count against your time The end credits DO count against your time The pause button (Start) DOES pause your time You can advance the CODEC conversations manually by pressing X repeatedly Killing wolves DOES count against your kills Being found by the wolves DOES NOT count as being found Destroying cameras DOES NOT count against your kills Being found by gun-cameras DOES count as being found You can skip the FMVs by pressing X or start The stealth item gives you invisibility when equipped. You can receive it by submitting to Ocelot's torture, completing the game, and saving the game at the end of the credits. The bandana gives you unlimited ammo when equipped. You can receive it by enduring Ocelot's torture, completing the game, and saving the game at the end of the credits. To get both stealth and bandana you need play the game with one piece already acquired, and then follow the instructions to acquire the other piece. Using stealth and bandana do not affect your rank With stealth you can walk through guards, punch them, or flip them over without being found You can make the elevators open faster by pressing the control panel twice. Meryl's frequency is 140.15 Otacon's frequency is 141.12 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- V. HELPFUL STRATEGIES TO KNOW ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ****************************************** Switching Items And Weapons ****************************************** L2 = Cycle through the item list while holding the L2 button down R2 = Cycle through the weapon list while holding the R2 button down You must lean how to switch items and weapons fast in order to achieve a good time. Practice doing this and learn how to locate a particular item fast. ****************************************** Fast Equip/Unequip Items And Weapons ****************************************** L1 = Equip/unequip the last used item R1 = Equip/unequip the last used weapon The most useful strategy to know is how to use the R1 button to equip or unequip weapons fast. The success of some boss strategies require this ability. Keep your right index finger on the button while your thumb is on the square button ready to shoot. Practice equiping, shooting, and then unequiping again. ****************************************** Quick Ammo Reload ****************************************** Your gun will pause when it comes down to the end of the cartridge. Sometimes, this will cause the enemy to get off a shot. To reload faster and at a time that's convenient for you, simply click R1 two times fast. ****************************************** Punch-Punch-Kick Combo ****************************************** Another useful strategy is the punch-punch-kick combo. This one is simply but absolutely needed. Simply press circle three times fast to perform it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- VI. ACHIEVING THE SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS FOR BIG BOSS RANK ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ****************************************** Beat The Game In Extreme Mode ****************************************** The differences from Extreme mode and most other modes are: -No radar -Guards see further -Guards hear better -No rations are found lying around -Enemies have increased defense -Enemies have increased offense -You get hurt easier -Most ammo does not reappear after getting it -Other altered things No radar -------- The hardest factor about Extreme mode is, at first, no radar. With radar it is extremely easy to navigate but without it, you have to really know the patterns of the guards well. Of course with stealth you don't need to. The game is not set in first-person, which means you have to manually switch into first-person to see in front of you. If you are doing this without stealth, you need to know the patterns of the guards very well and then work out some sort of system. You must know exactly where to move, when to move, what to do, and how to do it. After you do, practice it and reset if you mess up. Also, if you are doing this without the bandana, you will have to factor picking up ammo into your system. Guards see further ------------------ Without radar, you cannot see the cone of vision for you or your enemies, so you don't really have an idea about this factor. Practice looking at the guards in first-person and wait for them to come to you so you can get an idea of how close you can be. Guards hear better ------------------ Guards cannot hear you if you run right behind them on normal terrain. However, they can hear you running over puddles and metal flooring. They also hear the firing of weapons, the falling of other guards, and other various things. No rations are found lying around --------------------------------- This does not matter as you can only use one ration in the game. Since none are lying around, you need to pick the only one you can use from a fallen enemy. It will probably be at the guard fight with Meryl. Be sure to pick it up to save for later. In fact, if you don't get it here, it might be a good idea to reset and start over, since you won't be killing much guards and the next time to get one is much further down the road. Enemies have increased defense ------------------------------ You will find for some enemies that your attacks just don't seem to hurt them the same as in other modes. This makes battles longer and harder. I am not quite sure just who has increased defense, but I am pretty sure Liquid does. Enemies have increased offense ------------------------------ This is a hard factor about Extreme mode. You will have to do things nearer to perfection in order to survive. You get hurt easier ------------------- This goes hand-in-hand with the increased offense factor, but this one goes further in that non-enemy related things hurt more (e.g. land-mines, gun-cameras, hot steam, etc.). Most ammo does not reappear after getting it -------------------------------------------- This will only matter if you are not using bandana. If you are not, then you will need to conserve, especially chaff grenades. Otherwise you might not have enough to make it pass later gun-cameras that are impossible to avoid without chaffs. Also, you should save your stun grenades as much as you can for the communication tower ascent and walkway. You will need 18 to get through those scenes. This shouldn't be a problem as you will not be using stun grenades that much. Other altered things -------------------- Some other differences include: (1) Torture scene is six rounds each session (2) You die if you fall of Metal Gear Rex in the fight with Liquid. The torture thing does not matter much as you will probably submit at the start to save time. The second thing is merely another aggravation. ****************************************** Finish The Game In 3 Hours Or Less ****************************************** The 3 hour time requirement will keep you on your toes. With stealth and bandana it should not be a problem. Without them, there is very little margin for error. I beat the game with stealth and bandana in 2:27 with essentially no places I could greatly improve. Checkpoints ----------- The following are my check points using stealth and bandana. Compare them for a time reference to see how you are doing on time. If you are not using stealth and/or bandana, adjust accordingly. 0:00 Start 0:04 Heliport 0:07 Before guard fight with Meryl 0:10 After guard fight with Meryl 0:12 Before Revolver Ocelot battle 0:13 After Revolver Ocelot battle 0:17 Before Vulcan Raven battle 0:20 After Vulcan Raven battle 0:24 Before Ninja battle 0:31 After Ninja battle 0:34 Before Psycho Mantis battle 0:42 After Psycho Mantis battle 0:53 Before Sniper Wolf battle 0:54 After Sniper Wolf battle 1:07 Before communication tower ascent 1:09 After communication tower ascent 1:11 Before rope descent 1:12 After rope descent 1:16 Before Hind D fight 1:24 After Hind D fight 1:26 Before elevator fight 1:29 After elevator fight 1:29 Before Sniper Wolf fight 1:32 After Sniper Wolf fight 1:34 Before cargo fight 1:35 After cargo fight 1:36 Before Vulcan Raven fight 1:34 After Vulcan Raven fight 1:40 Before seeing Revolver Ocelot and Liquid in the command room 1:43 After attempting to find the PAL card 2:02 Before Metal Gear Rex fight 2:12 Before Liquid Snake fight 2:15 Before Jeep fight 2:27 END Things to know and do to trim your time --------------------------------------- Skip the videos and advance all conversations Do not press select when it appears on the screen Submit to the torture right at the start. Trying to endure it adds about 6-7 minutes to your time because you have to go through two sessions of 6 rounds of torture. Remember, if you are using the bandana you do not need that much ammo. Do not go completely out of your way for it. Use the pause button when you need a breather or to plan a course of action. You should know exactly what to do before proceeding. When you save, do it right after you enter an area. If you save after picking up items and going through conversations, and have to revert back to that save, you will have to go through all that stuff over again, thereby adding more time to your score. Keep multiple saves so that you can revert back to one if needed. Perhaps ones right before or after a boss. Remember though, saving takes time. Reset and start over if you felt you took to much time on any given mission When you save, note your time so you can see how you are doing ****************************************** Use No Continues ****************************************** This one is easier than it sounds-- simply reset and start from a save. You will be doing this a lot by the way. **WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*WARNING** * * * One thing you should absolutely pay attention to is that you * * always start from a save. It is very easy to accidentally press * * continue when you have to do something over and over again * * because you messed up. The crazy thing about it is that you * * will sometimes not remember if you started from the continue or * * the save. If you have ANY doubts, reset. Do not proceed because * * you do not want to play through the whole freckin game and find * * you have one or two continues on your score. This I did the * * first time and it is aggravating. * * * **WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*WARNING*WARNING** The places you should save are essentially the same as the checkpoints in the previous section. Refer to there. ****************************************** Use One Or No Rations ****************************************** This factor sounds extremely hard but it is not all that. Your life gets replenished at 5 specific times and there are strategies to use for most missions. I ended up going through the whole game without using a single ration. The flowing times are when your life is replenished: -After the torture scene -Before the rope descent -Before fighting Metal Gear Rex -Before fighting Liquid Snake -Before the Jeep fight The best time to use the ration is sometime after the rope descent and before the Metal Gear Rex fight. You can use the ration after the rope descent at any time provided it will be used to maximum effect. Since you cannot be found at all, you really will not take any damage except for the boss and battle scenes. To judge how much damage is acceptable, the following chart gives an idea of what you can expect and afford. The estimates are based on the assumption that you are not using the bandana and does not factor in the ration that you can use. Therefore, you can allow more damage depending on when you use the ration. Your life bar is represented by the Xs and give you an indication of what it would look like after the fight. Line up the end to the letters in "LIFE" to correspond to your real life bar on screen. Fight Scene # Hit | LL I FF EE ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Guard fight with Meryl 0 |XXXXXXXXXXXXXX Revolver Ocelot battle 0 |XXXXXXXXXXXXXX Vulcan Raven battle 1 |XXXXXXXXXX Ninja battle 0 |XXXXXXXXXX Psycho Mantis battle 0 |XXXXXXXXXX Sniper Wolf battle 1 | REPLENISHED AFTERWARDS Communication tower ascent 1-2 | REPLENISHED AFTERWARDS Rope descent 2 |XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Hind D fight 2 |XXXXXXXXXX Elevator fight 0 |XXXXXXXXXX Sniper Wolf fight 0 |XXXXXXXXXX Cargo fight 2 |XXX Vulcan Raven fight 0 |XXX Metal Gear Rex fight 1-3 | REPLENISHED AFTERWARDS Liquid Snake 4-7 | REPLENISHED AFTERWARDS Jeep fight 5-8 | THE END ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Fight Scene # Hit | LL I FF EE Follow the chart above in order to have an idea of how you are doing. This will tell you when you need to reset and start again and when you are safe to proceed. You do not want to go through the game and find out you simply do not have enough life to go on. ****************************************** Kill 25 Or Less ****************************************** The 25 kill limit includes all kills of guards and wolves. There are places where you absolutely have to kill in order to advance: -The first three guards in the guard fight with Meryl -The first two guards in the tank in the first Vulcan Raven fight -The four guards in the elevator fight -The three guards in the cargo fight -Seven guards in the jeep fight All told, you only have about 5 or 6 voluntary kills you can afford. With stealth, there really is no need to kill anyone. Without stealth, it is hard but plan your spare kills at the best times (i.e. the times that will shave the most time off your time score). You should absolutely save two spare kills for the end. You will have to kill the guard by the Command Room twice on your way to freeze and heat the PAL card. ****************************************** Found 4 Times Or Less ****************************************** The only 4 times you can be found happen automatically beyond your control. There are many such places but only 4 are registered: -Guard fight with Meryl -After Sniper Wolf battle for the first time -In the prison cell -Before the communication tower ascent -Elevator fight -The three snipers on the communication tower bridge -Cargo fight -The command room right after seeing Ocelot and Liquid -The command room right after entering the last PAL card -Before the jeep fight If you are using stealth, practice switching to the level card to open doors real fast, and then back to stealth real fast. If you are fast enough, you can switch to the card and back to stealth before the door even opens. Not only is this good to be unfound, it is good for time. ****************************************** Save 80 Times Or Less (?) ****************************************** I am not quit sure if this is a requirement, but hey, you don't need to be saving the game that much anyways. I saved 34 times on my score and received the Big Boss Rank so I know that much is allowable. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- VII. WALKTHROUGH FOR SPECIFIC POINTS IN THE GAME ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This is not a complete walkthrough. It only has key information and strategies for certain parts in the game. It assumes you pretty much know where things are, where to go, etc. ****************************************** The Docks ****************************************** The elevator will arrive as soon as the credits are done, which is right after the credit for Assistant Director. ****************************************** The Heliport ****************************************** Pick up the socom in the truck. There are two places you can go to get to the next area: the lower air duct to the left or the upper air duct on the second floor. Both have pros and cons so you can take your pick. If you do not have stealth, you will probably want to go to the second floor air duct. ****************************************** The Tank Hangar ****************************************** Be sure to pick up the thermo goggles on the second floor before they lock the door to level 4 security. ****************************************** Guard Fight With Meryl ****************************************** Phase 1 ------- Equip the socom before heading out of the cell. The battle will start with you facing 3 guards. You will have to kill these as Meryl does not shoot. With the bandana, simply load the socom and blast away as fast as you can. They will get a shot off if you are not fast enough. If they hit you with it, reset and start again. Use the same strategy without the bandana: load the socom and blast away. Do not worry about wasting bullets. You must do a quick reload when you get down to the end of the cartridge, or else they will hit you. After they die, unequip the socom. Phase 2 ------- After you kill the first three guards, Meryl will kill the next batch. Phase 3 ------- Three more guards come out but now Meryl will help you. Thus you do not have to kill these guards. What you should do is immediately go and stand in front of the door on the left side and facing right. Keep pressing the square button until you choke one of them and be sure to hold the square button down when you do. Immediately drag him back as the other guards shoot him. Make sure he is directly in-between you and the other guards. When he starts to squirm, choke him once but don't kill him. If he falls down or dies from bullets then immediately run around to dodge the gunfire until Meryl shoots the guards. Watch their gun as it is aiming at you. They fire at an even pace, two seconds apart. Just make sure you are out of their line of fire when they shoot. After Meryl kills the first three, one guard will stream in at a time. Meryl will pick them off one by one. Sometimes Meryl will get shot and thus more guards will come in, so it might get sticky for a little bit. After 9 guards die, they will stop coming in. Phase 4 ------- Three grenades will be tossed into the room. The only safe place to stand is on the upper side, next to the door. Phase 5 ------- The last phase is just like the beginning of phase 3. Three more guards will come in at once. Meryl will shoot sooner here so you can either employ the same strategy as phase 3 or continue to dodge bullets by running around in the bottom section. ****************************************** The Armory ****************************************** If you are not using the bandana, use your C-4 to blow up all the walls that you can at this point. It is near impossible to do so later when there are guards in this area. ****************************************** Revolver Ocelot Fight ****************************************** Map of Ocelot Fight ___________________________________________________________ | | | | | | | 1 | | _______ _______ | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |_______| |_______| | | | | | | _______ | | | | | | | | | | |_______| | | | | 2 | | _______ _______ | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |_______| |_______| | | | | | | | | | |___________________________________________________________| Equip the socom and run up to the top right corner (1). Aim your gun to about the middle of the left wall of the room (2). If you stand at just the right spot, you can shoot Ocelot continuously without him hurting you. With the bandana, simply plug away. Without it, hold down the square button for about two seconds and then let go. Repeat until he is dead. Ocelot will shoot but it will pass in front of you and ricochet behind you. ****************************************** The Armory ****************************************** Immediately call Meryl at 140.15 as she takes some time to open the door. Pick up the FA-MAS weapon. Crawl on your belly to get it if you are not using stealth. ****************************************** The Tank Hangar ****************************************** As soon as you the elevator door opens, Meryl will call you telling you she is opening up the door. Pick up the socom suppresser. You really do not need the cardboard box A. You should get one box before the wolf caves but the cardboard box B is easier to get. You do not need the mine detector on the second floor room as you do not have a radar. ****************************************** Vulcan Raven Fight ****************************************** Be sure to pick up the five claymores at the start if you are not using bandana. After proceeding north, the battle will start. This is a moderately tough battle. If you do not have the bandana, it will be tougher still. However, the following strategy should be used with or without the bandana. To start off, throw a chaff grenade anywhere in order that you may approach the tank without getting blasted by the cannon. When it explodes, start running right up to it in the middle of the field. About two seconds after running, throw a stun grenade and continuing running to the tank. The stun grenade will knock out he machine gun shooter in the tank. Now you will only have to dodge the swerving tank. You cannot do any damage to the tank while the shooter is inside of the tank. This is OK. The first priority of business is to slow the tank down so you can get some good shots at it later. To slow the tank down you can use either claymores or C-4s. Claymores are better as they slow the tank down more. Four of them will slow the tank down to minimum speed. Place them down close to the tank in a place you expect the tank to go. Don't stray too far from the tank or else it will blast you with a cannon. If it moves to the other end, follow it. If you use claymores, make sure you don't step on them yourself. Use the thermo goggles from time to time to see if there are any mines on the field. You will also have to use stun grenades from time to time, as the shooter will reappear. If you are quick enough though, you can sometimes get the four mines down in the first batch before you have to throw another stun grenade. After the tank takes four shots, it will move slow. The only time it will go fast is when it is moving to the other side. Stay close to the tank with grenade in hand ready for the guard to come out. The best place to be is at the middle of the side of the tank. Just put a little bit of distance in-between you two and move with the tank. At this spot the guard will not fire and you are in the perfect place to throw a good placed grenade. After throwing the grenade, you will have to back away from the tank in order to dodge the explosion. It is sometimes tricky throwing the grenade in the spot you want to. You cannot be moving in a different direction while throwing it. Otherwise the grenade will be thrown in that direction. Also, you if you are too close to the tank, the grenade will bounce of the tank and come back. Also be sure to see where the grenade lands. Sometimes the tank spins and knocks it to the ground. You do not want it to go off around you. Note the pattern of the guards in the tank. After one guard shoots a series of bullets, he will go down in the hole and then the next one will pop back up about two seconds later. When the guard goes down in the hole is the perfect time to throw a grenade. The first guard takes two grenade hits to die or one directly in the hole. After him another will come out. Kill him the same way as the other one. ****************************************** Nuke Building B1 ****************************************** Pick up the Nikita missile launcher. ****************************************** Nuke Building B2 ****************************************** To take out the electrical panel, use the Nikita. After shooting the missile, switch to first-person in order to guide it better. Try not to move it so much as it picks up speed if you leave it alone. If you go too slow, the gun-cameras might shoot it down. Also be aware of your 02 level. Pick up the gas mask. ****************************************** Ninja Fight ****************************************** Map of the Lab ___________________________________________________________ | | | | |_________|1 |___________ _____________________ | | | | | | |___ * | | * | | | | |________| |___| | | | _2________________4 3 | | | | | NORTH WALL | _| | | | |_______________ | | | | | | ___ A | | |_| | | | | | * | | _| |___| | | | DESK AREA |___| | | | | | | | | |________| | | C | | |________| | |_____________ | | | | SOUTH WALL | | | | |_________________| |_| | 5 | | SOUTH SECTION B | |___________________________________________________________| This guy is super easy with the bandana and moderate without it. You basically have to take him out with your fists. If you have a weapon equipped and he sees you, he will run off and come back later really fast, slashing you with his powerful sword. Besides, no weapon can hurt him anyway. Phase 1 ------- Start off by immediately running up to him and do a punch-punch-kick combo. He will jump to another location. Immediately run up to him again and do another combo. As soon as you do, run as much as you can into the middle desk area in anticipation of the next phase. The Ninja will jump out of the scene. Phase 2 ------- In this phase, the Ninja pretty much runs at you constantly, kicking and punching. With the bandana, you will be using chaff grenades for victory. If you are not using bandana, you will be using combos and the strategy is entirely different. You might want to familiarize yourself with both strategies. Using chaff grenades: The Ninja is a cinch with chaffs. Just make sure he doesn't see you with them. As soon as you can, throw a chaff grenade start running away from the Ninja until the chaff goes off. When it does, he freezes. Run up to him and do a combo. Then he will kneel down and wait until the chaff ends. When the chaff ends, he will run off and come back later to fight. You do not want him to run off, at least not far. This is because he will come at you fast and you might not have enough time to flee, let alone in the right direction. So what you want to do is familiarize yourself with how long the chaff lasts. If you throw another chaff at exactly 7 seconds after the previous one explodes, the Ninja will only run away for a half-second, only to freeze again. This way he will not get away from you and it will also make the battle quicker. You also do not want him to see you with the grenade in your hand. However, if he doesn't have enough time to get away it will not matter. After your first combo on the Ninja, use this pattern: -Throw another chaff (after 7 seconds) -Unequip the chaff -Follow the Ninja -Wait for the explosion (count from 1 to 8) -Do a combo -Equip the chaff -Throw another chaff (on count 8) -Unequip the chaff -Follow the Ninja -Wait for the explosion (count from 1 to 8) -Do a combo -Equip the chaff Continue looping this pattern. It may be confusion with all the counting and action but it will become natural as you practice. If the new chaff goes off while the old one is still going on, it is fine. You just have to wait another 7 seconds. If you let him get away and run to far, run the opposite way so he doesn't rush at you and attack. Then wait for the chaff to explode and continue with the pattern. The best thing about this strategy is that you get to skip all the other phases. That's right. He takes about 21-22 combos in this phase and then moves to the last phase (see phase 5). Just be sure to move completely out of the way after the last combo, as the Ninja will explode. Using combos: If you are not using the bandana, you will have to use your fists. Continue running into the desk area. If the north wall is clearly blocking you from the Ninja he will have to jump over it. This is what you want. Wait for him by (A). When he lands, do a combo and run like crazy. The Ninja is faster in Extreme mode and his attacks will land from further away. You have to be on your toes. What you want to do is utilize the south wall of the desk area to your advantage. If the wall blocks you from the Ninja he will have to jump over it. When he lands is the best time to attack. You basically have to run around the wall until he gets trapped. When he is, he will punch and kick like a madman. Then when he is ready, he will stop and run to a certain spot and then jump over. Note the place that he lands (B). It will be the same place every time. Make sure the wall is completely blocking you two. If it is not, the Ninja will curve around and come after you. If you should trap him in the south section then it is fine. Wait for him to jump. He will land at (C). Do a combo and then run again. Always keep your eye on him and try and get a feel of where he is and what direction he is moving in. It is easy to lose sight of him and have him run at you really fast and hurt you. You can also try peeping in first-person to find him. Be aware though, you will only have about a half-second to look as he will probably be running at you. Another time you can get an easy combo in is as soon as he lands from his stomp. Simply wait a little ways away, and then start to come in a split second before he lands. Continue the hit and run pattern. When his life is half, he will jump off and then into the next phase. Phase 3 ------- The Ninja will turn on his stealth and hide in this phase. The first time it will show you where he is at. Turn on your thermo goggles in order to see him better. Run up to him and do a combo. He will jump up and appear somewhere else. There are 5 spots he will hide (marked 1-5 on map). Also note he will not appear on the same screen in which you see. So if you can see (3) and (4) he will show up either at (1), (2), or (5). You have to run up to him fast in order to attack. If you take too long he will begin to run at you and attack. However, all is not lost if he does this. Simply start your combo before he gets to you so that he will run into it. If you start too soon, he will hurt you afterwards. If you start too late, he will hurt you. Three combos will send this fight into the next stage. Phase 4 ------- This phase is easy. The ninja will walk at you. If you two touch he will disappear and reappear real quick in stealth gear, usually behind you. He will punch as soon as he reappears. The easiest place for this phase is the south section. Go there and wait for him. When he is walking straight for you, run right through him and run far enough so that his punch does not hit you. As soon as he is done with his punch, run up to him and do a combo. Then run a little bit away, face him, and repeat. Be careful, if you do not make a clean run through the Ninja, he will disappear twice and then attack. This will probably mess you up because you will think the second appearance is the real Ninja. You should actually see the Ninja punch to know it is really him (note the thermo goggles might help). Keep an eye on his health. When it is down to zero, he will explode and you do not want to be near him when he does. So just anticipate when the last combo will be and then run. After the Ninja explodes he will jump out of the scene. Phase 5 ------- The Ninja will reappear at the left star on the map and will explode a surrounding energy ball, which goes on and off. You need to get close to him and then run in at just the right time and do a punch (you don't need a combo). He will jump up and reappear at the star in the desk area. Do the same thing but be aware that the timing has to be more perfect now. He will then jump up and reappear for the last time at the north right star. His energy ball goes really fast and you have to time is just right. Run in and punch him and then the fight will be over. ****************************************** Nuke Building B1 ****************************************** You have to find Meryl here. What you should do is this: Equip the level 4 card and as soon as the elevator door opens, run into the big computer room, turn to the left, and then go down until Meryl sees you (she will be on the top so you will not have to run far). When Meryl sees you she will run to the ladies bathroom. Follow her to the last stall in the bathroom to proceed. After meeting with Meryl, pick up the night vision goggles, diazepam, and cardboard box B before going to the commander's room. ****************************************** Psycho Mantis Fight ****************************************** Map of the Commander's Room __________________________________________________ |______________| |______________| ___| _____ _ |___ | _____|_____|_____/ \ | | 6 | / 2 __| | __ |__________________/ |__| | |__| B A ___| | 1 | | | _______ | | | | | |___| | | | ________ ___| | | | | | | | | 5 | | |________| |___| | | | | | | | | | | | | |___| | |_______| _|____|_ | | | 4 3 | | |___| | |________| | |___ ___| | | |__________________________________________________| This fight is easy if you use the second controller. Pause the game after it begins and then switch the controller and then unpause. You can only use your fists, socom, or FA-MAS weapon for him. Use your fists if you are not using bandana but use the FA-MAS if you are. This fight is long and you need to be patience to come out unscathed. Phase 1 ------- This battle starts with Meryl pointing a gun at you. You need to knock her out. A stun grenade works best, or you can continue throwing her until she dizzies. Watch out, she shoots. After she is knocked out, Mantis will proceed to attack. Phase 2 ------- Mantis starts by blacking out the screen. The he proceeds with 6 types of attacks in the following order: Shields: Mantis begins by using stealth and throwing what appear to be energy shields. He will start at (2) the first time. Equip the thermo goggles to find him better. He will move from spot to spot (1-6 on the map). If you do not attack him fast enough, he will throw a shield at you, which is rather easy to dodge if you are far away enough. You can damage him at any point, even while he moves to the next spot, just as long as he is not flashing. After 3 attempts (or successes) to throw a shield, he will advance to the next attack. Chairs: Mantis will appear at (1). If you run up to there fast enough you can get off another attack. Mantis will spin three chairs around him while moving south and then back to (1). Simply lay on your stomach and wait. The chairs will start out making small circles and then get wider, then smaller, then wider, then back to small again. Then they will scoot out of the picture. This is when you need to hop up and attack. If you are fast enough you can get two attacks off but make sure you are on your belly again for his next attack. Sculptures: Mantis will cause two sculptures to fly fast at you. If you are on your stomach, these fly right over you. You cannot dodge them too well on your feet as they are fast. When they fly out of the scene, hop up and attack. Vases: Mantis will stop and summon two vases that will fly at you. These two vases move in turn. One will move a short distance, then the other vase will do the same. Each vase will move four times. Then they will fly out of the scene. You can hop up and attack Mantis at any time you feel safe. When you hit him, he goes to his next attack. Horned heads: Mantis will summon three animal heads with horns next to him and will shoot them at you. Stay on your stomach and hop up and attack when they are gone. Pictures and book sets: Mantis will move from (A) to (B) in front of the desk. As he is doing this he will cause 3 pictures and 2 book sets off the north wall to shoot out to the south wall and then back again. The inner 3 pictures will take longer to make the trip back and you can duck underneath them on your stomach. The outer 2 book sets will make a half trip and then back. These you cannot dodge on your stomach. Simply lay on your stomach again in the middle area and wait until you can hop up and attack. After this attack, Mantis blacks out the screen and then goes back to throwing shields again. When he has about half of his life left, he will go to phase 3. Phase 3 ------- This phase is just like phase 1. Meryl will try to shoot you. Knock her out. Then she will try to shoot herself. Knock her out. If she shoots herself it is game over. Phase 4 ------- In this phase, Mantis starts out in stealth again and throws shields. When he has a little bit of life left he will stand at (1). Phase 5 ------- Mantis will use combinations of his attacks in phase 2. The first set of attacks is: sculptures, vases, and horned heads together. The next set of attacks is: chairs and pictures and book sets together. You can attack him when he is done with one set and waiting to begin the next set. You can safely get one attack off and two if you are fast enough. ****************************************** The Caves ****************************************** Being found by the wolves does not count against you. They do, however, bite and you do not want to waste your life on them. You can use stun grenades or try to run up to the wolves and knock them out with a punch. When you meet up with Meryl, do the following: knock her down with a combo or a throw. Then immediately equip a cardboard box. She will whistle for a wolf to pee on you. This scented cardboard box will be your means of making it through the caves unscathed in future times. Simply equip that same box and run through-- the wolves will love you. ****************************************** The Sniper Corridor ****************************************** Equip the thermo goggles to avoid the mines. Crawl on your stomach and pick them up if you want. ****************************************** Canyon ****************************************** Be careful, lots of mines are down the middle. If you run along the extreme left side, you will not run over any mines. ****************************************** The Armory ****************************************** Map of the Armory NORTH COL A COL B COL C COL D \/ \/ \/ \/ ___________________________________________________________ | | | | | 2 1 | < ROW 1 | ___________ ___________ ___________ | | | | 7| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ROOM A | | ROOM B | | ROOM C | | | | | | | | | | | | 3 | | | | | | | |___________| |___________| |___________| | | | | 6 | < ROW 2 | ___________ ___________ ___________ | | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ROOM D | | ROOM B | | ROOM F | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |___________| |___________| |___________| | | | | | < ROW 3 |__5________________________________________________________| SOUTH Pick up the PSG. With stealth, getting the PSG is a cinch. Without it, it takes a little longer. For success, follow these steps after the elevator door opens: -Equip the level 5 card -Go south out of the doorway to (1) -Watch the guard on the left of the screen -When he turns down column B, then run to (2) then (6) and then into room A -Get the PSG (see notes below) -Stand at (3) and open the door -Look in first-person at spot (4) -Wait until you see a guard walking south down column A -Go to (4) and look south in first-person -When the guard turns east on Row 3, run through the wall at (5)
-Save your game
-Go back into the Armory
-Look in first-person to see a guard at (6)
-Wait for him to walk east on Row 2
-Go to spot (5) and look east in first-person
-That guard will turn north and another guard will walk south on
 column B
-Go to spot (7) through column B
-Wait for the guard on the left to turn west on row 1
-Wait about 2-3 seconds
-Go and signal the elevator door and get out of there

To get the PSG you need to equip the thermo goggles to see the lasers.
You must crawl your way through the bigger two openings to get the
weapon. If you have an analog controller it will be easy; without it,
it will be a little harder. The trick is to hold down the directional
button and not let go until you are done. If you do this, your body
can move at an angle. If you don't, your body will swerve up and down
and left and right and you will surely set a beam off.

So stand to the left of the barrel and lay on your stomach. When you
are ready, hold down the directional button and guide Snake through
the two big openings. Get the PSG and the ammo. Then stand directly
north of the top opening, next to the wall and looking south. Next,
squat down and then hold the directional button down guiding Snake
out.

******************************************
Sniper Wolf Fight
******************************************
Map of the Sniper Corridor (where Sniper Wolf is)
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Start off by going to either the left or right sides for shelter.
Press yourself against the wall in order to see Sniper Wolf. When you
see her run and hide behind the column, then it is the best time to
move. You need to come out, face Sniper as directly as you can, equip
the PSG, aim for the middle of the column, use a diazepam pill, and
shoot her when she comes out. This may sound like a lot but it is not.
You have to move fast though and you should be skillful in equipping
and unequipping weapons with R1. Careful, if any of your body goes
past the line, you will get hit.

Sniper has 9 spots she stops at (1-9 on map). She can and will shoot
at every spot except (1). She basically does not have a pattern but
she does have some rules concerning her movement:

-She favors (5) over (6) slightly
-She only goes to (7) from (8) or (9)
-She will almost never run through the center column
-She will rarely stop at (3) or (4)
-From the center column, she will likely go left to (2) or right to
 (8) or (9)

At any rate, after you hit her, she will move to a different spot.
Follow her with your sight and shoot her as soon as she stops. If you
have the bandana, simply shoot like crazy, following her with the
sight. You will take her out in no time. If not, you will have to use
diazepam every now and then to steady your nerves. If you wait too
long to hit her, she will shot you for sure. Your life will be
replenished afterwards so don't reset if you get hit. When you are out
of bullets, you need to get the extra ammo and start the process
again. Shoot her 6 times and then the battle will end.

Be sure to save before proceeding.

******************************************
Medical Room
******************************************
As soon as you can call Otacon at 141.12. If you submitted to the
torture, he will come for you after the guard leaves for the bathroom.
As soon as you can, lie on your stomach, equip the ketchup, and press
the circle button. When the guard sees you he will come in to examine.
Wait until he is in the cell. Then hop up and knock him down with a
combo or a throw. Then run away to the north door.

Get your stuff and throw out the bomb if it is in your inventory.

Be careful, you might have caught a cold. If so you will sneeze every
now and then and guards will hear if they are close to you. This isn't
a bother if you have stealth but if not, you will have to watch for it.

******************************************
Nuke Building B2
******************************************
Pick up the body armor.

******************************************
Nuke Building B1
******************************************
Pick up the medicine and use it.

******************************************
The Caves
******************************************
Use the handkerchief to make it through here.

******************************************
Communications Tower Ascent
******************************************
You need to make it up 29 flights of stairs with guards at some points
and guards chasing you. Don't worry. With the bandana it is easy.
Without the bandana it is easy too because you can equip the body
armor and your life is replenished afterwards. The best way to do this
scene is with stun grenades. There are slightly different strategies
depending on the use of bandana or not:

With bandana:
Before you enter the room in which the camera finds you, equip the
level 6 card and the stun grenades. Creep up to the door until it
opens but do not go in yet. Equip the bandana, throw a stun grenade
into the room, equip the level 6 card, and count about 2 seconds. Then
go in. The camera will see you and guards will start to run for you.
The grenade will go off right before they can enter the room. Now be
sure to pick up the rope and run through the next door. As soon as you
do, equip the bandana. You want to throw stun grenades every now and
then so that all the guards you encounter will be knocked out. Be
liberal in your use of them as you have an unlimited supply. However,
if you throw them too fast the screen will be white all the time. This
is fine if you know your way up but it helps to space them out just
right.

Without bandana:
Before you enter the room in which the camera finds you, equip the
level 6 card and the stun grenades. Creep up to the door until it
opens but do not go in yet. Throw a stun grenade into the room and
count about 2 seconds. Then go in. The camera will see you and guards
will start to run for you. The grenade will go off right before they
can enter the room. Now be sure to pick up the rope and run through
the next door. As soon as you do, equip the body armor and proceed up
the stairs. There is a lot of ammo on the first floor but do not worry
about it. It is only socum and FA-MAS ammo and if you come back later,
there will be no guards.

If you hold down the direction button just right, you will ascend the
flights of stairs without having to turn. This is what you want. As
you ascend, watch the flight numbers on the ground. It tells you what
level you are on. The numbers will start out in the following order:
02, 01, 01, 02, 03, 04, etc.

What you should do is this: soon after passing level 04 (i.e. a little
less than half-way up the stairs), throw one. Then, throw one right at
07. When that one explodes, throw another one. Continue throwing them
right when the previous one explodes. This should take you to the top.
You might have one guard or two butt you with his gun but this is
fine. Get up and keep running and continue with the pattern. You
should have 18 stun grenades and you will use them all if you continue
this pattern. However, it is better to take a few hits at the end and
save 2 or 3 grenades in order to get past the guards on the walkway.

******************************************
Rope Descent
******************************************
There is no strategy for this part that will get you through without
getting hit. You have to make it to the bottom dodging gunfire and
steam. The best way to do this is to continuously press X while
projecting yourself to avoid the steam. You should avoid the gunfire
this way as you are descending too fast for the Hind. If you can make
it down getting hit only twice, then you did great. Save it at the
bottom. You can also afford to get hit 3 times. Save it at the bottom
and if you'd like, try it again for a better result. If you get hit 4
times, I would reset and try again. You might have to play this
mission over and over until you get lucky.

******************************************
Walkway
******************************************
Blow the iced door with a C-4.

You can avoid the snipers at the end of the walkway with stun
grenades. All you need is two (but 3-4 to be safe). This is how to do
it: walk up to the end of the third square. You can occupy the first
three squares but at the fourth one they will shoot. Stand at the line
and throw a stun grenade. As soon as it explodes, start running up and
throw another stun grenade just as you past the fourth square (which
is real soon). Run up the middle and break right soon after passing
the stun grenade on the ground. Note they will shoot but if you break
to the edge they should miss. Zip around the corner and head for the
door. They will probably shoot again but will miss if you are swerving
to the edge. Go inside the door quickly.

If you are out of stun grenades you will have to take them out with
the PSG or Nikita.

******************************************
Communications Tower B
******************************************
Pick up the Stinger.

Once past the first door, go to the right and descend the stairs.
After you find the stairs damaged at the end, call Otacon. Then
continue back up the stairs. By the time you get up to the elevator,
Otacon will meet you.

******************************************
Hind D Fight
******************************************
Map of the Communication Tower Rooftop

                      2
                             6
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                   5 7

This is a moderate battle and you will probably get hit once or twice
(if you get hit without the body armor on then reset). You need to be
quick at the equip/unequip skill. Before heading out, open the door,
and then equip the body armor (yes it reduces the Hind D's gunfire).
The bandana doesn't really help much in this fight. I use it, however,
for the first phase and then switch to the body armor afterwards.
Also, ready the stinger (i.e. equip it and then unequip it). Then head
out.

Phase 1
-------
This is the easiest phase. As soon as the battle starts, the Hind will
be at (1) and you will be directly facing it. Equip the stinger, lock
the target, shoot, unequip the stinger, and then run into the shelter
area. You will have to be comfortable about doing this to succeed in
this fight (and an upcoming one as well). After you nail the Hind, it
will fire back for a little bit and then move to a different spot. The
shelter area will shield you from most of his attacks, unless he is at
spot (2/6) or (5/7). If he is, simply put that big steel structure
in-between you two to block the fire.

The numbers (1-7) on the map indicate the Hind's sequential locations
and where you should shoot hit him. If you fail to hit him at the
numbered spots or take too long or shoot him too soon, it will mess up
the order somewhat. You should nail him at each spot, run and hide
from the fire, run to an open spot where you can hit him at the next
spot, equip the stinger, then fire on him when you can. Do not shoot
if there is an obstacle in the way. It will waste a shot and if the
obstacle is too close, it will damage you severely.

The difficulty in this battle lies essential in one factor: knowing
where the Hind is. There are 5 ways to find the Hind: (1) Simply look
in first-person and look around. Watch out though, if you can see him,
he can hit you. (2) Pay attention to the direction the gunfire is
coming from and anticipate what direction the Hind is going. (3) Press
your body up against one of the inner walls of the shelter area. Doing
this will give you a view behind you. (4) Equip the stinger and look
for him. If he is not in plain sight, he will be down below. Look for
a green square box. That is him and see what way it is moving and try
to predict where he will surface. (5) Listen to the sound of the
choppers. They get louder when you are nearer.

Note that after the 6th attack the Hind will fire for a longer period
of time and will hide underneath afterwards. After 7 shots, he will
say "Nice shot." When he does, it is the best time to run to (A) and
get the ammo. Be fast though. Then run back to the shelter area,
completely away from the south side of the roof.

Phase 2
-------
The Hind starts off at (1) and shoots the south side of the rooftop.
After it does it will immediately start its gunfire. In this phase the
Hind will drop down low, out of your range, and then pop back up to
fire. The hard part is knowing where he is. You can see him around the
perimeter of the roof sometimes, hovering just below the top. If you
can see him, be bold and run to an open spot and equip the stinger.
The Hind will immediately come up if you are out in an open spot. This
is the best time to nail him. Then run to a safe area.

Note that the sound is a low hum when he is low and higher when he is
up. The Hind does not stay down for very long in this phase so you
will have to be quick. He will surface when he sees you though. The
easiest way to do this phase is to nail him everytime he comes up. If
you do this, he will only shoot for a little bit and then go in
hiding. Thus you can simply hide for a second or two, then come out
and watch him descend. If you know where he descends and in what
direction, you know where you can go to make him pop back up. Thus you
can pretty much keep an eye on him most of the time and continuously
hit him, hide, watch him, hit him, etc. After his health is about a
fourth, he will go to phase 3.

Phase 3
-------
This phase is much like phase 2 except that the Hind will stay down
for a longer period of time and will not surface if you are out in the
open and cannot be seen until he is up high. This is the hardest phase
because you sometimes don't know where he is. You will have to either
find him and anticipate where he is going or go out to a fairly open
spot and hope he comes up there. A few more shots and the battle ends.

******************************************
Elevator Fight
******************************************
What you should do before going to the elevator is go through the
level 6 door around the corner, then come right back in, then save.
This way you can start right close to the elevator if you have to try
this scene again rather than descending all those stairs.

It's FA-MAS all the way for this fight. You can equip the body armor
if you'd like but you really do not have to get hit for this fight. If
you are using bandana, it works well because the gun will not hitch
for a reload. Alternatively, you can use the thermo goggles to see
them better.

The hardest part of this fight is the beginning. Once you get into a
corner and start blasted away, the guards will not have a chance to
shoot. This is what I do: right at the start I lay a claymore facing
south, then equip the FA-MAS, then go to the southeast corner, and
start sweeping the gun from corner to corner. With the bandana I do
not let up but continuously sweep. With the thermo googles you will
have to do a quick reload when you come down to the end of the
magazine. You do have a short space of time right at the start because
the 4 guards shift locations first instead of firing. Keep sweeping
and firing. Don't be worried about wasting ammo. Keep at it and they
will go down shortly. After the last one falls, if you want the
leftover ammo on the ground (if there is any) you have to get it fast.

******************************************
Sniper Wolf Fight II
******************************************
This battle is super easy. Before proceeding north into the snowfield,
move to the extreme right. There the ground is inclined, giving you
shelter. When you are ready, edge yourself out northwest and into
view. Sniper shoots you (it does not take any health away).
Afterwards, the battle begins.

Retreat back to the shelter and face southwest. Equip the Nikita and
fire away. Switch to the first-person and guide the missile to her.
You will see a green square box indicating her position. Note that the
missile cannot go past the ground inclines in the middle of the snow
field. They will blow up if you try. They can, however, ascend a
smooth white hill. The best path is along the left side and then turn
right once you are at the trees. When the missile is close to her,
press R1 to detonate it. Hit her with 10 missiles and then the battle
ends.

Alternatively, if you are using the bandana, you can try your luck
with the PSG and go for a batter time.

After the battle, there are a lot of rooms around the perimeter with a
lot of ammo. Get them if you'd like but be aware, many of them have
gun-cameras and/or mines.

You do not really need the cardboard box C in the left lower room.

******************************************
Cargo Fight
******************************************
As you start to descend on the cargo elevator for the first time,
three guards jump you. There is a way to do this fight only getting
hit once. However, you will probably get hit twice or even three
times. Before you press the circle button on the panel to take you
down, equip the body armor and the FA-MAS weapon. Note that when the
battle starts, it will unequip your weapon.

Unlike the elevator fight, the guards start out shooting. The trick to
do this fight well is to start moving even while the screen is dark.
As soon as you press X to skip the FMV, press down a little bit and
start a punch-punch-kick combo. If you time everything right, you will
kick the guard below you off of the rail. Either during the combo or
right after you will get hit by the other guards.

Now you need to equip your gun, shoot the guard on the lower left
side, dodge the fire from the upper guard, and then shoot the upper
guard after he shoots. Then, while the lower guard is still down on
the ground, stand to the right of him facing west. As soon as he gets
up, do a combo on him that will send him off the rail. The upper guard
will get up and you can either continuously shoot him or kick him off
the rail. You may use your ration here if you just can't make it past
this stage.

******************************************
Vulcan Raven Fight II
******************************************
Map of the Warehouse

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|X|     |XXXXXXXXX| | | |XXXXXXXXX| | | | |XXXXXXXXX|  |  |X|
|                   | |             | |_|______>8______|    |
|                   | |             |   |__>10________      |
|                   | |             |                 |    _|
|X|  R  |XXXXXXXXX| | | |XXXXXXXXX| |     |XXXXXXXXX| |   |X|
|X|  |  |XXXXXXXXX| | | |XXXXXXXXX| |     |XXXXXXXXX| |   |X|
|X|  |  |XXXXXXXXX| | | |XXXXXXXXX| |     |XXXXXXXXX| |   |X|
|X|  |  |XXXXXXXXX| | | |XXXXXXXXX| |     |XXXXXXXXX| |   |X|
|X|  |  |XXXXXXXXX| | | |XXXXXXXXX| |     |XXXXXXXXX| |   |X|
|    |___________>1_| |_______4<____|                 |     |
|                     _________________________11<____|     |
|____________________________S______________________________|


This battle is easy if you know Raven's pattern. You can damage Raven
with claymores, C-4s, Stingers, or Nikitas. Claymores are the easiest.
Note the body armor does not protect you in this fight. The thermo
goggles are good to equip in this battle if you lay claymores.

Study the map above. Raven starts at (R) and continues to follow the
pathway outlined. You start at (S). Note the pathway is only spaced
apart to eliminate confusion. Wherever Raven goes, it is always in the
middle of the walkway (he does round the corners though).

The numbers represent the best places to set a claymore. Make sure you
place them in the direction that Raven will walk in (note the cone
shapes by the number, which represent the detonation field of the
mine). You will have to be fast but it should be easy as you practice.
Be aware that if Raven sees you he will stop and fire at you. He will
continue his path when he cannot see you. If you mess up, keep to the
pathway or improvise or reset. Listen to the explosions as he steps on
them and count each time. Not only will this let you know if there are
any mines that still remain, it will also reveal to you Raven's
location. After he steps on 10 mines, the battle will end.

******************************************
Finding The PAL card
******************************************
Map of the Underground Base 1
 ___________________________________________________________
|....|   | A       |                                        |
|....|___|         |                                        |
|....|            /                                         |
|....|           /                                          |
|....|-|        /                                           |
|....|-|       /                                            |
|....|-|      /                                             |
|....| |     |                                  ____________|
|....| |     |                                 |       |....|
|.... _|     |                                 |       |....|
|....|       |                                 |       |....|
|....|       |                                 |       |....|
|....|        \_                               |       |....|
|....|          \_                            /        |....|
|....|            \_                        _/         |....|
|....|              \_                     /           |....|
|....|                \___________________/            |....|
|....|                                                 |....|
|....|____                                         ____|....|
|....|    |____________         __________________|    |....|
|....|    |............|     ___||||||___________B|    |....|
|....|____|............|    |.....................|____|....|
|......................|    |...............................|
|......................|    |...............................|
|______________________|    |_______________________________|
                       |    |

This scene starts after you climb the stairs to the control room for
the first time. Afterwards, you will start back at the foot of the
stairs with a guard to the bottom left, which you cannot see. Quickly
throw a stun grenade as you run to the right. Keep running to the
right and then up the walkway until the grenade goes off. Then throw
another stun grenade and start running back to the head of Metal Gear
where you can get to the lower levels. You should only need two stun
grenades if you are fast enough but you can throw more if you'd like.
After climbing the ladder to the top of Metal Gear, the guards will
not get to you. Continue down the levels and save when you get to the
bottom level.

Now you have to find the PAL card. It will be in one of two places:
(1) in the drainage ditch, or (2) in a mouse. My theory is the more
times you have played it on your save, the more of a chance it will be
in the mouse. At any rate, your first priority of business is to find
out where it is. Then you can reset it and start with that knowledge.
(Note, I am not sure if it is in the drainage ditch that it will be so
when you start again from the save. But, it was in the mouse for me
and everytime I reset the game, it was still in the mouse.)

Hop into the drainage ditch and start running around in a systematic
way. You will not see the PAL card even with the thermo goggles. You
will just have to find it at random. If you pick up a bomb, quickly
throw it out. Note, the polluted water slowly drains your life and
also, watch out for the camera in the northwest. If it is not in the
ditch, or if you see the mouse, or if Master Miller calls you saying
it is in a mouse, then you know it is in the mouse.

The mouse has two spots he comes out to. The two spots (A) and (B) are
connected by a small tunnel, which the mouse uses to go back and forth
from each spot. After resetting the game, the mouse will appear at a
random spot. You can, if you are pressed for time, keep starting over
until the mouse is out in the open. At any rate, you can kill him with
practically anything but claymores are the best and fastest. Simply
lay one down by (B) in front of his hole and then run to (A) and lay
one there. Then wait for the explosion.

******************************************
Freezing The PAL Card
******************************************
Go to the Warehouse where you fought Vulcan Raven last time. Count the
puffs of your warm breath for about 63 times and then check the PAL
card. It should now be changed.

******************************************
Heating The PAL Card
******************************************
Careful, there are now three guards in the Warehouse. If you
immediately run down the middle left passageway right after entering
the room, no guards will see you (take the middle right passageway
coming back).

Make your way to the Steam Room in the Blast Furnace and count the
number of steams that come out of the first pipe. After about 15-20
steams, the card should be changed.

******************************************
Metal Gear Rex Fight
******************************************
Your life will be replenished before this fight. This fight is real
easy with the strategy that follows.

Phase 1
-------
At the start you will be facing Rex and waiting for it to rise. Equip
the body armor and ready the stinger (i.e. equip it and then unequip
it). Now run back a little ways and stop and face Rex.

Rex has four attacks and your distance to him will determine what
attack he uses. You must get a feel of the distance perimeters of this
fight in order to know what attack is coming and thus how you are
going to dodge and counter.

Missiles:
If you are far away, Rex will shoot three missiles at you one after
another. Their explosion is big so these are hard to dodge. When the
screen shifts down a little and the view comes more behind you than
above you, that is the cue that Rex is firing missiles. You can dodge
these by starting to run straight up to him as soon as you see the
screen adjust. If you delay or run a crooked course you will usually
get hit.

Gunfire:
As you get closer to Rex, he will shoot his machine gun, which is
similar to the Hind's. This is the weakest of Rex's attack, even
without the body armor. To dodge this you need to run left or right.
You will get hit if you run up or down.

Laser:
Closer still to Rex and he will sweep a laser beam from left to right.
This is the second strongest of Rex's attack and you do not want to
get hit with it. To dodge it, you need to be running away from Rex in
a straight line from the moment Rex starts his laser.

Stomp:
If you are real close or underneath him Rex will stomp you. This is a
very strong attack that will kill you with two stomps. Sometimes he
doesn't actually stomp you but you do fall down because of the shake.

Now for the strategy. You will be basically moving at all times and
rarely ever staying still (except to launch a stinger). The strategy
will be the following pattern, which will continuously repeat itself:

-Rex launches missiles
-You move in
-You move out
-Rex shoots laser beam behind you
-You stop moving out and turn around and shoot him
-Rex shoots gun fire
-You move to the left or right
-You move out

All of this sounds harder than it really is. If you stepped back at
the start, Rex will start off shooting missiles. As soon as you know
he is, run in and do not stop until just before the third missile
explodes. Then start running back out. Rex will shoot a laser but it
will swipe right behind you. As soon as it sweeps behind you, stop,
turn around, equip the stinger, lock the target on the right tracking
device, fire, unequip the stinger, and start to move left or right.
(Note this pattern is similar as the fight with the Hind.) You have
to be fast at finding the target or else Rex will shoot you with
gunfire. If you can't lock the target fast, you need to either shoot
or stop and then continue on with the pattern. If you are fast enough
and if you start to move left or right after your shot, you will avoid
the gunfire. As soon as the gunfire is over, start running out but
immediately loop around and start running to Metal Gear. Rex should
start launching the missiles again, which you will avoid.

Continue using this pattern until the end. You can practically win
without getting hit.

Phase 2
-------
This phase is exactly the same as the previous one except that the
target is now the cockpit in the middle.

******************************************
Liquid Snake Fight
******************************************
Map of the top of Metal Gear Rex

 ______________________________________________
|                                              |
| 5                                          8 |
|                                              |
|         1                          4         |
|                                              |
|                                              |
|                                              |
|                                              |
|         2                          3         |
| 6                                          7 |
|_                                            _|
  \__                                      __/
     \__                                __/
        \__                          __/
           \__                    __/
              \_                _/
                |              |
                |              |
                |              |
                |              |
                |              |
                |              |
                |______________|

This is a frustrating fight until you play it so many times. It is the
hardest fight in the game. The frustrating part is that while there is
a systematic strategy, you sometimes end up dying anyway because of
Liquid's extreme offensive power. Also, you will always only have
two-and-a-half minutes to beat him because you cannot continue. This
means you have to be moving fast and excelling at those punch-punch-
kick combos. You also cannot fall off in extreme mode or else you will
die.

Phase 1
-------
In the first phase, Liquid will move around to one of 8 places on the
top of Metal Gear (1-8 on map). The inner 4 spots he will simply stand
there until you get close to him. He will then move to another spot.
The outer 4 spots he will do the same but he will spin kick you when
you get close.

He will start at (1) and his pattern is usually going to 3 or 4 inner
spots and then to a corner spot. When he is at an inner spot, simply
run up to him and do a combo fast. If you take too much time he will
move on, which either results in you not hitting him or you hitting
him only once or twice. Keep doing this until he moves to a corner
spot. Now run up to him and immediately run back to dodge his spin
kick. You cannot simply run up to him at a corner spot and hit him as
he will dodge your attack and nail you. As soon as you see him kick,
circle back and nail him with a combo. Like the inner spots, you have
to be fast. After about 6 or 7 combos, he will say "nice shot," and
then move to phase 2.

Phase 2
-------
This is the frustrating phase. Liquid puts up his dukes now and moves
in closer. He will attack you if you are too close and ram you with a
powerful head-bunt if you are too far. The head-bunt is easy to dodge
as he will grunt before he does it. Simply run a medium-sized circle
and you will end up right at his back where you can easily do a combo.

What you need to do in this phase is simply run up to him and do a
combo. Then immediately run away to dodge his attack. In order for
this to work, you have to be perfectly lined up with your combos in
order to get the full combo in. If you do not do a kick, you will get
attacked. Thus you also have to press the circle button super fast to
get that kick off. Once you kick him, run away, first straight back
and then around in a circle pattern that will take you back to him.
The analog controller works much better for this. When Liquid's health
is about one-fourth, he will fall down on your attack or fall over the
side of Rex.

Phase 3
-------
Liquid gets up at the start. His pattern is basically this: inch
toward you and spin kick you and then relocate and head-bunt you. (Be
aware that sometimes Liquid goes straight for the head-bunt.) When
Liquid is down for the first time, simply wait for him to get up. When
he is inching his way to you, run at him and then circle back to dodge
his kick. Then circle to him and do a combo. Be aware that it is
harder to line your combos up at this time. You may want to wait to
attack him until after you dodge his head-bunt.

Successful combos will knock Liquid down in this phase. He will get up
and continue inching toward you. The hard part about this phase is
that your final attack has to launch him over the edge. When his
health is almost nothing, dodge his kick and then stand next to the
edge at some spot that is medium distance from him. Then wait for his
head-bunt. When he does, circle around and do a combo on him. This
should send him over.

******************************************
Jeep Fight
******************************************
This scene is easy but you will definitely get hit.

Phase 1
-------
After Otacon (or Meryl) sets off the camera, you want to stay close to
him. Follow him around the jeep and wait. A guard will come around the
jeep. As soon as he is at the head of the jeep, run at him and either
knock him down with a combo or throw, or chock him. You do not want to
kill him. The best way is to chock him once, then wait for him to
squirm, then chock him again. When Otacon says "I got it! Snake, jump
in." Then run to the other jeep and get in.

As soon as you are hopping in, hold down the left button. Hurry and
switch to first-person and hold down the square button to fire away.
You need to blow up those barrels blocking the gate. Do not worry
about the guards shooting you, just go straight for the barrels. When
they blow, the jeep will go through the tunnel.

Phase 2
-------
Before reaching the checkpoint, switch to first-person and hold the
fire button down. Turn your aim about 20 degrees right from the front
of the jeep (about 1 o'clock) and continuing firing. When the jeep
spins at the checkpoint, your fire should be right on the left barrel.
It will explode with one shot so start sweeping the gun to the right
real quick to the second barrel and blow that one up too. As soon as
you do you will proceed, but before you do, do this: sweep the gun to
the left while firing and stop when the gun is shooting the middle of
the column to the left of the yellow door. This is just the place
where the first guard will be at the next checkpoint.

Phase 3
-------
At the second checkpoint, there will be three guards to kill before
moving on. The first will be to the left next to the door, the middle
one in the back by the left of the center column, and one on the right
side.

If you pointed your gun at the right spot at the end of the last
phase, you will be shooting at the first guard at the start here. Keep
shooting him until he dies. Yes you will get shot by the other guards.
When the first guard is dead, sweep the gun from left to right
starting with the middle guard. Keep going back and forth until you
kill the last two guards.

Phase 4
-------
Liquid comes back in a jeep like yours. You may think the phases that
follow have a set time but they don't. You have to hit Liquid a number
of times for him to advance to the next phase.

Switch to first-person and hold the fire button down. Liquid is
driving right behind you. He will swerve from side to side as you try
to aim your gun at him. He will not shoot unless the gun is pointing
away from him. When he goes up for a shot is the only time you can
shoot him. The best way is to keep firing straight up the middle of
the road. Liquid will go to one side. When he comes up, sweep the gun
to him and back again and you should hit him. Hit him 6 times to
advance.

Phase 5
-------
Liquid will be driving right behind you. He will ram you with his jeep
and then pop up for a shot. You can only shoot him when he is up for a
shot. The hard part is that when you rams you, your gun will probably
move to the left or right. Keep an eye on your gun and as soon as you
can tell where your aim is, sweep the gun to Liquid and shot him
before he shoots you. Keep the fire directly on him. Hit him 7 times
to advance.

Phase 6
-------
This phase is just like phase 4 except that it only takes 5 hits for
him to advance.

Phase 7
-------
Liquid will be riding in the left lane and will soon drive up to your
side, being separated by blue pillars. This phase is the easiest but
only if you can get your fire directly on him fast. If you don't, he
will continue to nail you. When you nail him, keep your fire in the
exact same spot. Liquid will drop back when shot and slowly creep up
again, only to get shot again. Hit him 8 times for him to advance.

Phase 8
-------
Liquid stays right at your side but now the blue pillars are gone.
This is the hardest phase and you will probably get hit a few times.
Keep your fire on his head and stick with him as close as possible.
Hit him 5 times and the game is over.

After the light at the end of the tunnel, the jeeps will crash. The
end. Enjoy the credits and wait for your rank Big Boss.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
VIII. MY END SCORES
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Game Level: Extreme
Play Time: 2:27:30
Save: 34
Continue: 0
Being Found: 4
Enemies Killed: 19
Rations: 0
Used Items: Stealth, Bandana
Code Name: Big Boss