I'm just a few hours behind Lorien's journal reply for this week. For any wingnuts besides us on this, watch out in Krieger since multiple missions will hand out infinite waves of aliens. You'll likely use a number of those Mosquito missiles on the Devastor on the missions you have to fly with it, especially Kreiger 4. The third mission in Proxima can be tricky since you have limited torpedoes and two carriers to deal with.
Luyten 1
There is a reception committee awaiting us, which requires us to launch in Wasps to intercept the alien attackers. There are Morays, Mantas, and Skate bomber clusters rapidly closing their distance on Cerberus. I engage the booster pack of the Wasp to reach the bugs more rapidly. I target and destroy two of the Mantas with Swarmer missiles, and have to use my afterburners to get in range of the other bug bombers. I have to use the Dust Cannons of the Wasp to waste another Manta that took a small amount of damage from a Swarmer launch. A Moray fighter is close enough to engage without the risk of picking up a shadow. Controlled bursts of fire from my Wasp are the key to dispatching the Moray without using up the entire energy pool. Two more Mantas are shattered by a Swarmer missile hit, and two of the Morays are taken down by the Dust Cannon. One of the Skate bombers must have been separated since I see some of the smaller segments around. Two of those segments are gunned down, and the only close alien fighter is a Moray. Our wing of Wasps handles that alien without my assistance, but I pitch in to hit a Manta with those multiple missiles of a Swarmer. Our wing is able to eliminate the final three alien fighters at this nav point. Zero tells us the news that the aliens are massing in Proxima and not making a move on Sol. Maestro wonders why the aliens would be attracted to Proxima, and both Zero and Spyder point out that it has two suns. Maestro is not convinced that is the reason the aliens are there, and I hope our intel group can determine the plans in Proxima by the bugs.
Luyten 2
Due to the unknown concentration of aliens around here, we are to conduct a search-and-destroy patrol sweep. At the first nav point, there are Mantas, Morays and Skates. I look for the Mantas as my priority targets, and take one down after a few moments of switching targets on the radar. I’m able to assist Zero by destroying a Manta on his tail, and a third Manta is vanquished by my Vampire. I get behind a Moray, and put the pilot into space. I skewer two of the Skates, and give the same greeting to three more of the Morays. I shoot down the last Skate segment, and we proceed onward on our patrol. There are no bugs at the second nav point, and only light resistance from Morays, Skates, and Stingrays at the third nav point. I engage and shoot down both of the Stingrays, and look for the Morays to attack. Two of them are taken down, and my fighter finishes three of the Skates. We go onwards to the fourth nav point, and a heavy presence of alien Devil Ray aces along with some Barracudas and Skates are here to stop us. The first Devil Ray is dusted without me having to use any missiles on it, but that second one takes multiple missile and gun hits before it goes down. The final Devil Ray takes the same treatment before it follows its friends. I see a Skate close to my fighter, and its fragile frame is no match against the full firepower of the Vampire. I attack and destroy two more of the Skates, and have to use a missile on a third to avoid a friendly fire hit to our wing. There are mainly the Barracudas left, but they are quite close to each other to prevent a piecemeal pulverizing. I use one of the Vampire’s MIRV trackers to tag a Barracuda with multiple missiles, and then finish it off with my guns. I do the same procedure on the second Barracuda, and some assistance from Maestro makes short work of that threat. There is still a Skate around trying to take advantage of our attack on those corvettes, but I splatter that bug. Maestro and I combine to kill that final Barracuda and we make our way back to the Cerberus.
Luyten 3
An alien cruiser is closing on the Luyten outpost, and we need the outpost to stay in one piece so that it can supply intelligence on the alien movements and provide additional supplies. At our first patrol point, there are Stingrays along with Morays and a few Mantas. I target one of the Stingrays first to prevent any linkup with two others. The Stingray goes down, and two of the Morays join the extermination club. The turrets of the Cerberus tag a Stingray, and I shoot down another with my guns. Our fighter wing wipes out the remaining alien ships, and we move on to the second nav point. I see four capship missiles heading straight for the outpost, and I use my missiles to take three of them down. Zero accounts for one of the capship missiles, and I turn my attention against the fighters. I see a Manta, and use a missile and gun combination to take it down. There’s a Devil Ray hell bent on having my fighter fried, but simple flying along with a missile up its tailpipe trash that alien. I shoot down a Skate, and a second Devil Ray tries to have better luck against me. His flying is not much better, and the guns of my Vampire take care of it without a missile assist. There is a Moray that I make short work of, and the only target left is the Hydra. I get in range and take out a few of its turrets. The ship jumps out before significant damage can be inflicted, and we head for the next nav point. There are Mantas and Morays here, so I shoot down three of the Mantas to prevent their further threat. The final Moray fighter is a combined kill from our wing. The next nav point has almost the same resistance, but Skate and Moray support for Mantas is not a good solution to stop us. Two of the Mantas are vaporized by my Vampire, and a Skate is shattered after a stupid frontal attack.
Luyten 4
The jump detection software on the Cerberus has located an alien supply convoy. I’m put into a Shrike to assist in stopping those shipments, and the first nav point is clear. The second nav point has Skates and Morays to harass our bombers. I shoot down a Skate and take down a Moray, but get a missile hit in return. Another Skate and two more of the Morays are shot down by my Shrike, and I check the damage report before going on. There is only light ship core damage, but I definitely need to keep an eye on my six to stop more serious damage. At the next nav point, there is a significant bug presence. Multiple transports with Devil Rays, Mantas, Morays and Skates are around. I know that those Devil Rays are the most significant threat to my bomber. One Devil Ray is distracted in its attack on our fighters, and I get rid of it with multiple missile and gun hits. That other Devil Ray does not like what I did to its friend, but fortunately its aim is errant. I get the other Devil Ray with more firepower along with a missile. A Manta gets a few hits on my bomber, but I make him a hunted target and take it down. There are just the five transports left, and I systematically take down the rear turrets on three of them. Our other bombers take advantage of my shooting, and two of the transports are taken out by torpedoes. I see another transport with a rear turret still active, so I take care of that troublesome turret. I then use two of my torpedoes to take out the transport. I use two more torpedoes to take out another Triton, and our other bombers account for the last one. On our way back to the Cerberus, we are intercepted by a handful of alien fighters. I decide that it’s more important to keep my Shrike from taking more damage, so I use up three Friend or Foe missile along with gun support to take out three Morays. I switch to the Mosquito missiles and use up one missile each on two of the Skates. I take them both down, and our fighter wing mops up the final fighter.
Luyten 5
Due to our successful defense of the Luyten outpost, we’ll attack that alien cruiser that jumped away. This is the first of three big bugs believed to be in this system, and the defenses of the cruiser are expected to be light. Additional fighters and bombers from the outpost will be part of our coordinated attack. At the first nav point, there are Mantas, Morays and Stingrays. Those Mantas are the highest priority to prevent any bomber losses. I get rid of two of the Mantas, and a Stingray has clustered together to try to take me down from behind. I split the cluster apart, and splash a Stingray with a missile. I make another Manta permanently missing in action, and shoot down two of the Morays. Our wing easily takes care of the final fighter here, and we proceed onward to defend the outpost since the Cerberus warned us that the alien cruiser is heading for it. I stick close to the cruiser since I’m expecting some capship missiles to be launched against the station. I’m behind the Hydra when it launches the first missile, and have to engage afterburners in pursuit. There is no way I could catch up to that missile in time, so I use my own missile. My missile just barely intercepts the capship missile in time, and I resolve to not have any more close encounters. I’m able to spot and shoot down a second capship missile with my guns, and send a third to the scrap heap with another missile. I then close the distance on the Hydra since its previous attack on the outpost had four capship missiles deployed. Just after the engines of the Hydra are destroyed by our bombers, I spot that next capship missile. I try a single gun pass, but then decide that a missile is the surest way to take care of it. I dish out deadly damage to four of the Morays, and then see that there may be enough Stingrays left to cluster together. Our wing accounts for two of the Stingrays, and I shoot down one as well. There are no threats left to the Luyten outpost, and I can breath a sigh of relief.
Luyten 6
With continued help from the Luyten outpost, we will try to put an end to all other capship bugs blockading this system. We’ll then move onwards to begin the bug hunt in Kreiger. Right after launching, Spyder tells us the latest news about the alien debris being sold on the black market. A rash begins on the hands and arms of anyone touching alien starship debris. A necrotic effect occurs with the skin, causing a collapse of the flesh beneath the rash in a few hours. Zero regrets being right about the alien bacteria being a threat since that is the same effect he saw on the survivors of the Albergetti. Spyder says that it’s an organism that feeds on skin and muscle tissue. The treatment of this disease is a simultaneous injection of hundreds of needles over the whole area of the infection since the disease can shift thru the skin. We proceed on our mission, and the first nav point has a cruiser, transport, two corvettes and some Mantas as support. I have to handle four of the Mantas with my bomber, but it’s taken some damage in return. I take down a Moray fighter with my bomber, and see that there is only the transport left to deal with. I quickly take care of its rear turret, and Maestro makes good on that opening to trash the transport with a torpedo. We head for the next nav point, and there is a heavier presence here. A carrier, transport, three corvettes, Mantas, and Morays are all assembled here. I’m able to handle three of the Morays without troubles, and set my sights on one of the Mantas. It goes down with just the guns on my bomber, but the second Manta needs a combination of guns with a missile to kill it. I use my guns on another Moray, and get to see a rare occasion of the plasma gun on the Cerberus shooting down an alien fighter. I deal with five more of the Moray fighters before our bombers can take down the carrier. Another Moray is put out of action by my bomber, and I see only the Triton transport left. I take out the transport with two torpedoes, and we then move onwards. There are a few Mantas along with several Morays here. I’m able to take down one of the Mantas, but take a missile hit with some more damage to my bomber. I shoot down two of the Morays, and our wing takes care of the rest of the alien attack group.