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HIDDEN AGENDA A
mission I just had to play when it beat Calendra’s
Legacy in the first 2002 poll. Although I don’t agree with those votes
whatsoever, it is a nice and very cleanly built mechanist map. It includes an
intricate, aboveground seminary, and some old hammerite
cave systems. It’s a bit of a keyhunt in places,
but not enough to take away from an enjoyable introduction to AsyluM’s work. I’ll
keep this write-up a bit more condensed, as three written reports and one
let’s play have already been done. Sneak himself even wrote a thorough
Supreme report on it. I was tasked with obtaining information on the
mechanist activities in their seminary, along with some blueprints of their
creations. I also had to steal 2,600 worth of valuable, including breaking
into their vault. I was to end by a gate to the east. Seminary Access
to keys substantially directed my movements in this mission. I needed a metal
gear key in order to get underground, where more keys were found that would
access most of the mandatory objectives aboveground. In order to obtain this
metal gear, I first needed a copy of the acolytes key, three of which were
found in the seminary. Two copies were located on patrolling mechanists belts
and one in a pickable footlocker above the
cathedral. Wanting to avoid unnecessary lockpicks,
I went for one of the pickpockets. Although this was all that was needed
topside, I cleaned what I could of the seminary while I was there. The
gallery wasn’t tough, just tedious. The guard switched between north, west
and southwest angles, which meant the green artifact north of the fireplace
was most difficult (left image below). Just had to wait for him to stay
southwest long enough. A purse on a nobleman north of here was also tricky.
The woman faced the direction I was coming from, and I had to inch my way
forward ever so slowly until the purse lit up (right image below). Leaning
spawned a comment, so that wasn’t an option.
The
cathedral was not possible to rob without shutting off the lights. I could
enter by dropping down in the northwest corner. I could even grab the cups on
the altar and the ring in the cloak room, but I couldn’t find a way to get
back out without a Supreme bust. I tried all sorts of maneuvers, even using a
rope arrow that I would obtain later, but to no avail. That was a further 150
skipped for that mode already, giving me only 535 more before I dipped down
below the loot goal. Hopefully it wouldn’t come to that. I knew the mission
couldn’t be Supreme ghosted, but I didn’t want to take more busts than
necessary. Since
I couldn’t enter the cathedral for Supreme, I also couldn’t enter the eastern
hallway leading to the factory and chapel. I thus had to go back into the
main courtyard and get to that wing from the kitchen. I reached the factory
via the double doors in the chapel. I emerged in an underpass right by a
stationary mechanist. Oddly, this mechanist only first alerted to the
southern door being operated, but not the northern one (left image below). I
guess he was positioned close enough to hear one door, but not the other. The
first time I have experienced that, I think. After this, I used the metal
gear and headed underground.
Underground Since
I couldn’t turn off the watcher nor the lights in the temple, I couldn’t
reach the locker rooms the way I anticipated. The problem was the large combat
bot in the southeast corner. It gave a first alert the instant I snuck around
the drilling machine to the northeast. I also tried dropping from above and
crawl along the ledge above the doorway leading to the catacombs. I got
closer this way, but it still alerted right before I reached the shade along
the southern wall (right image above). I knew I would get a rope arrow later
on, so I planned on returning then. There were two pieces of loot in the
locker room that I wasn’t going to give up that easily. Cleaned the catacombs
without issues. The artifact hammer was a light source, but due to clarified
rules, that is now allowed to remove since it was a mandatory objective. Yes,
I know the objective is optional, but for Supreme that is the same as mandatory,
plus you can’t finish the mission without triggering it. I
was not able to cross the hammerite building
courtyard heading east without turning off the watchers (left image below).
Even creeping along the northern wall made them do first alert clicks. This
cave led to the magnetic seal switch for the vault, a necessary location to
visit, so I’d have to find a different way in. The loot item in the
courtyard’s west end I was able to reach by timing both watchers.
In
order to get the silver gear for the vault, I had to visit the plans room in
the living area. However, this wasn’t possible without getting spotted by the
hallway watcher (right image above). That is, I was able to get in unseen,
but leaving was impossible, at least to my knowledge. Turning off the lights
was thus required. My first mandatory Supreme bust, unfortunately. North
of this, I could use the elevator shaft to descend to the bottom level (left
image below). I couldn’t lower the elevator itself, so I had to drop onto the
ledges to avoid taking damage. The switch for the magnetic seal was necessary
to turn off, otherwise I couldn’t make it into the vault. Unfortunately,
flipping the switch turned off the lights emitted by the machine, thus a
second Supreme bust. This one was by design though, so a bit easier to
handle.
The
prison area was virtually inaccessible for Supreme (left image below). Two
mechanists started a conversation upon entering, and I could rush past and
into the back room while they were talking. However, opening the back door
spawned a first alert from the closest guard. The only thing of interest in
there was the sewerman’s key, but skipping it would
force me to miss more loot later. Returning it would also yield more busts, so
I left it be. The hidden objective of bringing the hammerite
along was also skipped for Supreme. Cleaned the vault without issues
afterwards. Turned on the magnetic seal again after that. I
had picked up the mission’s only rope arrow in the storage room and that gave
me hope of reaching the loot items in the locker room back in the temple. I
found a pretty good spot to observe my surroundings from a ledge in the
southeast corner on the middle floor (right image below). I tried dropping
down quietly and without taking damage, but the latter was unpredictable.
Instead, I used my rope arrow into the wooden beams above. It needed to hang
down just a few feet behind the combat bot. From my location, I had to time
the watcher perfectly. When it swung north, I hopped onto the rope and
quickly descended behind the bot. This was a perfect shadow and didn’t yield
any watcher chirps when it swung back. I could sneak in behind the bot and
monitor the watcher from here. On the next cycle, I crouch-ran west and into the
locker room. Used the same method going back, but getting back up the rope
had to be timed even better. In fact, I had to leap onto the rope and then
turn to watch the camera while still being dark. In order to do this I had to
stay far down on the rope. Anywhere higher and I would hit the lights from
the lamp atop the drilling machine. Timing the watcher yet again, I hurried
up the rope and mantled the ledge. If my rope was placed properly, the mantle
would take me in behind the closest pillar, with hardcover between me and the
watcher. From here, the next few section westward were easy. I could grab the
rope from the top floor ramp ledge. I could now also get the nugget from the
secret cave above.
Topside Again I
couldn’t reach the plans room in the seminary without getting caught by the hallway
watcher (left image below). No chance even. I felt turning off the camera to
be a better and stealthier solution than dousing the lamps. There were two
copies of the security key on expert. One was in a locked chest in the south
gatehouse. Not only did this leave it unlocked, but the lockpicks
triggered a first alert from the nearby guard. The other one was on a guard’s
belt in the east guard house (right image below). This also triggered a first
alert from the door opening, but at least it didn’t require picking a lock
unnecessarily. Whichever key I took, I wouldn’t be able to return it to its
original location either. I figured I’d leave it outside the door instead. To
flip the camera switch I had to wait in the priest’s bedroom doorway for both
guards to be away and the security room camera to swing west. I needed two
runs; one to unlock the switch and one to flip it. I reset it on my way out.
Headed
back down to the hammerite temple and returned the
priest’s and the rusty key. Then visited the west tower to get the
blueprints. Finally I returned the acolyte and the security key before
looking for a way out. Using the intended sewer exit would leave the manhole
open, as there was no way to close it from street level. In order to avoid
this Supreme bust, I found a method in the east courtyard to climb over the
wall and skip the sewers altogether. I suspect this method not to be possible
in OldDark though. I mantled the archway leading to
the underpass south of the factory, then furthermore up onto the metal ledge
circumnavigating the whole yard (left image below). I timed the robot so it
was heading back south when I reached the top ledge. I then had to rush
around and reach the dark corner above the kitchen door before it came back
(right image below). Above the gatehouse I could mantle the fenced wall and
get across to the other side. Great!
I
really enjoyed this mission and can clearly see why it remains beloved by
fans, but compared to the behemoth that is Calendra’s
Legacy, I don’t think it stands a chance. The sheer scope and ambition of the
Calendra missions elevate it beyond even most
successful NewDark missions, in my opinion. Hidden
Agenda has solid design and gameplay, but very few wow-moments. It has made
me want to play AsyluM’s other mission though:
Heist Society. Statistics: Time: 1:49:34 Loot: 3490 out of 3490 (Supreme: 3090) Pickpockets: 5 out of 7 Secrets: 4 out of 4 Locks Picked: 12 Damage Dealt: 0 Damage Taken: 0 Consumables: None Ghost: Success! Perfect Thief: Success! Supreme Thief: Failed! Perfect Supreme Thief: Failed! Notes: -
Skipped a purse worth 45 on the stationary mechanist
outside the gallery entrance for Supreme. He alerted to closing the doors and
there was no way to approach him from the front unseen. -
Skipped a ring worth 60 in a bedroom northwest on floor
2. Picking open the footlocker woke the nearby nobleman. -
Skipped two more pieces of loot worth 100 in a bedroom
on the upper floor of the library for Supreme. Opening the door woke the
priestess. -
Skipped four pieces of loot worth 150 in the cathedral
for Supreme. I couldn’t find a way to leave without alerts, and turning off
the lights is also a bust to that mode. -
Skipped a statue worth 15 in office upstairs in hammerite building for Supreme. A stationary mechanist
first alerted to the door opening. -
Had to turn off the lights in the underground living
area dining hall, and it’s a Supreme bust to remove light sources. The
watcher in the hallway caught me heading back unless the lights were out. -
Shutting off the magnetic lock for the vault removed a
light source. This is against Supreme rules and since it wasn’t an explicit
objective, it was a bust. -
Couldn’t obtain the sewerman’s
key for Supreme, so I had to skip 30 worth of loot in the sewerman’s
bedroom. -
Received a first alert when obtaining the security key
from the east guard house. The guard hear the door opening. Also couldn’t
return the key to his feet, so I left it on the ground outside the door
instead. Supreme busts. -
Turned off the watcher outside the plans room. There
was no way to traverse the hallway without getting caught. Supreme bust. |
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