Cosmical Rabbit and the USS Sunspot
I have not played very many roguelike games, firstly because I am a weak gamer at my best, and secondly because I don't have much of a stomach for constant restarting. I discovered Faster Than Light on the recommendation of a friend from work. Although I'm no glutton for punishment, I do appreciate playing FTL because I'm a sci-fi fan and because every run definitely feels unique. I have not, however, ever played it on Hard before this playthru.
In keeping with the theme of this on-going experiment in my gaming life, I decided this would be the first time I play on hard. It's also one of the first handful of campaigns I've played with the Kestrel-B deck plan. Knowing that there was no chance I would beat the Boss (because I haven't even done that on Easy) I figured my stated goal should be to get six unique aliens. That should be doable, right?
I started my flight from the evil Rebel Fleet by taking a bribe from a pirate ship. Being my first foray into Hard FTL, I didn't think it prudent to start a fight with a pirate so early on. So I let whatever poor merchant ship get pirated and took my bribe with me on my way out. At my next beacon I found a Rebel attacking a defenseless outpost and decided I should finally start to be someone respectable.
I finish off the rebel and zoom off to my next beacon. In true roguelike fashion, the map changes with each game and making your way through the sectors can be chaotic on the best of runs. Almost immediately regretting the path I chose, I found myself in one of the worst kinds of beacons: a star pumping out a near-constant flow of solar flares. Add to that a pirate ship getting fresh with you and that spells a pretty bad day at the office.
Each time a solar flare passes through it sets fire to a handful of rooms aboard your ship. Luckily I was able to force the pirate ship to surrender. When one of the rooms so set aflame was my cockpit, I quickly ordered Knoidia (my pilot) to get the hell out of dodge. You'll notice the pink regions onboard the Sunspot have no oxygen, but that's actually on purpose this time. Venting the rooms atmosphere quickly kills the inferno. Then it was just a rush to repair and jump out before another solar flare started it all over again.
At the next beacon we were greeted with a Rockship that needed fuel. I gave some fuel to them (hoping in no small way for a free Rock alien, even knowing that wasn't one of the rewards). They gave us a system map as payment (which is one of my least favorite rewards). On the way out of the sector we ignored a slaver at the exit beacon, thinking it better to cut our losses in the sector rather than lick more wounds on the other side.
Fighting pirates is a full-time job in FTL
At every other sector (sometimes more frequently) the game gives you a choice between two different types of sectors to enter. My choice for sector 2 was between a Mantis-controlled sector and a pirate-controlled sector. What I know about Mantis ships is simple: they like to board, and they slash your guts out when they do. I had no interest in gut slashing, so decided to roll the dice against the pirates.
Almost immediately, I meet with a slaver that demands one of my crew members for passage. First, I'm trying to get six alien species here, not lose one of my four (a random one at that) to a worthless asteroid-stain like a slaver. So I happily decline their demand and fight the good fight.
Once passed the slaver, we find a pirate ship stuck on an asteroid. Once again, I figure I might have some (small) chance of getting another crew member from the ship, so I order the ship to aid them. I'm proven wrong (FTL isn't a game that encourages wanton Picard-level selflessness)when the ship takes immediate hull damage. I finally upgrade the shields to level two and the Sunspot finds itself in an asteroid belt facing off with a pirate scout.
I just away from the asteroid belt (you'll note that I didn't take any screenshots because I was trying desperately to get out of dodge) and find myself and my crew facing a pirate bomber on the other side. With my hull already severely damaged all I want is to find a port to repair in.
Getting him to surrender felt great, but it was a Pyrrhic victory indeed.
The map didn't give me any places of refuge and so I plowed ahead into the void, as one inevitably does in FTL. At this point, I knew that unless I got extremely lucky on my next encounter, I wasn't going to make it far. This game isn't forgiving even on easy, and I knew that hard wasn't going to hold my hand to sector three.
But then I ran into another well-armed Rebel ship. And when I heard the unmistakable sound of a transporter in operation, I knew that I was a cooked turkey. My doors had not been upgraded, and the intruder immediately stepped foot into the cockpit without a single obstacle. This isn't exactly what I'd call a good hand. But sometimes that's the only hand you get in FTL.
I enjoyed my return to FTL after a long hiatus, especially for Feat or Fail, but I can't say I'm particularly proud of this run. One good missile ended it, and I had never even seen Sector Three. I will eventually come back to this game, though, and hopefully I can put on a better show next time. The Sunspot was a good ship, but I think choosing the Kestrel-B was part of the reason for my quick demise. Lasers are all good fun, but I missed having a missile in my repertoire.
Verdict: Fail
Score: 607
Ships defeated: 5
Beacons explored: 19
Scrap collected: 115
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