Missions (often called heists or jobs) are the turn-based tactical center of Cyber Knights: Flashpoint. Each mission has a series of objectives. Some objectives such as "find the red keycard" might be optional but noteworthy. Others such as "Escape via the north exit" might be required.
Missions are usually "finished" with the escape (or death) of your team, although some exceptions exist where killing all foes is instead the requirement. (If it is a killing all foes mission, it will be made abundantly clear in the dialogue. If you have any doubt, then it is a mission where you need to retreat lest you face an infinite number of foes.)
Legwork
Legwork is a term for activities mercs can do outside of the safehouse. Legwork is a kind of mini-mission. A single mercenary is sent to do a job off-screen for a few days. Examples of Legwork are casing a joint, following a target, or investigation. Legwork is associated with a Storyline but usually does not have a cash reward. Opportunities for Legwork usually come during a Dialog. The Dialog may have been initiated specifically to present the Legwork opportunity. If more than one Legwork is offered in the same Dialog, only one of the Legworks can be chosen. Like other major decisions in a Dialog, this represents a branch point in the Storyline. The other source for Legwork is on the Mission Planning page. Some forms of Leverage require Legwork rather than paying a Contact or using a Favor.
The probability of success in Legwork is determined by the nature of the job and the traits and history of the mercenary assigned. For instance, the Sleuth trait might be particularly useful on a job covering the tracks the team left on the last mission, giving that mercenary a 78% chance of success. When accepting a Legwork, a list of available mercenaries with appropriate traits is displayed to choose from, along with their success probability. Some Legwork allow only one attempt, others allow up to three attempts. If three attempts are allowed, the second attempt will have a higher probability of success (halfway between the first attempt and 100%), and the third attempt will have 100% probability. Each successive attempt is started automatically after failure and adds more time to the duration. Each time, the success of Legwork is evaluated at the end of the duration.
Be aware when selecting a mercenary for Legwork that they will be unavailable for other missions until the Legwork is completely finished. Pay attention to the duration of the Legwork and whether multiple attempts are possible. Don't send a mercenary who will be needed soon for a mission.
The Legwork takes place completely off-screen. The (current) duration of the Legwork appears on the Timeline. The result of the Legwork is rolled at the end of the duration.
The reward for Legwork varies widely. Sometimes the reward is simply improving relations with a mercenary or a Contact. The Contact offering Legwork may offer a fee or Favor. Legwork may provide a new Contact, a new Mission, Leverage for a Mission, or another Legwork opportunity. The mercenary performing the Legwork gains a small amount of Experience Points. The mercenary can also gain Stress, Hype, Traits, and even Injuries. Legwork, especially failed Legwork, can generate Heat. Legwork is always optional but can be important for reaching story content.
Leverage
Missions usually have one or more options to purchase Leverage in advance of deployment. Leverage costs either credits or Favors owed from Contacts or may be available by completing Legwork. Some Leverage can be purchased with tokens in the Field Ops Center or in the Hacking Station. Leverage can disable some security elements, delay reinforcements, buff your team, harm your enemies, reveal additional loot locations, and even allow you to enter an alternative starting location or entire map stage. Leverage represents an opportunity specific to the mission; it cannot be used on a different mission. It may be provided by a Contact with connections to the target site or the target Faction, intelligence gained about the target site, or resources prepared in advance specifically for the mission. If you purchase or obtain Leverage for a mission but do not use it, it cannot be saved for a different mission. Count it as the cost of careful contingency planning.
Here is a list of Mission Leverage Types.
Power Level
Mission Power Level determines the relative difficulty of the Mission. Power Level affects the security devices, enemies, and escalation responses protecting the zone. Hit Points, Loadout, and type of enemies depend on the Power Level of the mission.
The Power Level of the mercenary squad is the primary factor determining the Power Level of the Mission. The Casting Director assigns a mission Power Level within a range, or band, based on the squad Power Level. Some Missions can receive boosts that give them out of band Power Level, making them more dangerous.
Starting a Mission
Missions are initiated by a Dialog, usually triggered by an Event on the Timeline or by completing a Legwork or another Mission. In the Dialog, either a Contact or a member of the team suggests a mission opportunity. Storyline Missions will often have a Dialog option to decline. Proc-Gen Missions do not have an option to decline. If the Mission is not declined, a Mission Event will appear on the Timeline. The player may choose to ignore any Mission Event on the Timeline and let it expire. Declining or allowing a Mission to expire may have consequences such as Discontent in a mercenary, loss of Trust in a Contact, or other changes in relationships.
At any time before the Mission expires, the player may click the Mission Event to open the Command HQ Screen. Alternatively, clicking the Command HQ in the Safehouse will also open the Command HQ Screen. This will allow the purchase of Leverage, selection of alternative paths, and a mission team before starting the Mission.
The mission begins with a Dialog between the Face and the team, giving additional details on the conditions, environment, and goals at the site. After the Dialog, the rest of the mission is controlled by the HUD interface.
Gold Key Loot Area
Some mission maps have an optional stage on the side, locked behind a Gold Key. This Gold Key Loot Area is a special loot zone with lockboxes containing higher quality loot.
The Gold Key required for the door to the zone cannot be found in a lockbox. The key must instead be purchased as Leverage before starting the mission. A golden flag in Mission Planning warns that a Gold Key Loot Area is available for a Mission.
Victory
At the end of the mission, a Victory screen (or possibly a Failure screen) displays. The screen will display all the rewards earned, loot gathered, Experience Points gained, and Heat accumulated.
Rewards
Rewards are specified in the Mission Planning page. The Victory screen will list all rewards earned or failed, including bonus rewards for meeting special conditions.
Each mercenary in the team receives a portion of any cash fee earned from the contractor, whether or not the mercenary was deployed on the Mission. The percentage varies from 2% to 4%, depending on the mercenary. Certain conditions such as Discontent may change the percentage that a mercenary demands. The remaining cash fee after distributing pay to the mercenaries goes into the communal account in the Safehouse.
Experience Points
Experience Points, or XP, are earned on every Mission. The XP rewarded is determined the Power Level of the mission. Some Missions reward bonus XP for Secondary Objectives such as completing the Mission in a short time frame or with low Security Level. Experience Points are NOT affected by mercenary actions during the mission, such as enemy kills, hacking successes, etc. The XP listed is rewarded to each mercenary that survives the mission; it is not split among them. XP is not affected by the number of mercenaries on the mission; taking fewer mercenaries will not increase the amount that each one gets at the end. The XP that each mercenary gains is modified by the personal XP bonus they may have. For instance, a Hype Limit Break may grant a bonus to all XP gained for a month.
Power Level
The Power Level of the squad will increase by a flat value based on the Power Level of the Mission.
Heat
All missions generate some Heat, determined by the final Security Level when the team exited the Mission. Heat is calculated by Security Level x 2, with a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 14. Pure combat Missions generate a fixed 8 Heat.
Storylines
Storylines, or Stories, are the various plots and subplots that take place during the game. Storylines advance through Dialog, Legwork, and Missions. Storylines can be big or small, affecting individual characters or changing the environment of the entire New Boston Zone. Some Storylines are brief, encompassing Dialog and a single Legwork. Others can take years and define the career of the Cyber Knight and their team. Players can usually choose to ignore Storylines, but there may be consequences.
Large Storylines can be quite complex. The stories can branch, dead-end, remerge, and spin off independent stories. Decisions made during Dialog and Missions will lead the player through these branches. A player cannot experience all of the branches in a single playthrough. This is an important feature for replayability.
Origin Stories
Origin Stories center around the circumstances which gave the Cyber Knight their Quantum Rider implant. The rarity of the implant means that obtaining one always involves high-stakes negotiations, politics, and gambles. A new Cyber Knight attracts the attention of powerful forces looking to use, destroy, or ally with the team. Where did the implant come from? How did you pay for it? Who installed it? Who do you owe? The Origin Story explores these questions and the consequences.
When starting a new game, the player selects their Origin Story. Origin Stories are the most complex Storylines in the game. The player may have the opportunity to take a shortcut to close the Storyline before it develops very far, but following the branches of the Origin Story will give the player allies and enemies, opportunities, and a deeper interaction with the New Boston Zone.
Eras
An Era is caused by a major event with New Boston and will affect the player's network of underworld contacts, jobs offered, and markets, and will open up new stories and opportunities. Eras usually last a while, at least a few months.
Eras have considerable influence over missions offered. Certain Storylines only occur during specific Eras. The types of Proc-Gen Missions, target Factions, and offering Factions may change in a new Era.
Types of Missions
Storyline Missions
Storyline Missions are hand-crafted by the game's developers and cover interesting plot points. A Storyline Mission is part of a Storyline, a series or web of missions and/or Legwork driven by character backstories, Contact schemes, and the changing environment of the New Boston Zone. Many Storylines have only Dialog and a single Mission or Legwork. Other Storylines may have alternate branches depending on the player's choices.
Story Missions will sometimes have multiple stages. Some stages may be optional or only available under certain circumstances. Each stage is a map that you must traverse to achieve some Objectives. An example is sneaking through the sewers to avoid detection and then using a service elevator to show up in the second map where the heist is to be performed. Another example is a side-area with extra loot which was unlocked by pre-mission Legwork.
Storyline Missions will have some procedurally generated elements. The contact offering a Mission or the target Faction may be determined randomly from eligible choices. The contents of Lockboxes, Matrix IC, and Matrix storage Nodes are determined when the Mission is generated and placed in the Timeline. If a specific loot item or target enemy is part of the Mission Objectives, the location of the item or enemy may be randomized. The locations of guards may be randomized. This helps each playthrough feel different.
Procedurally Generated Missions
"Proc-gen" Missions use a map from a set of reserved maps combined with a goal type. The base maps are not procedurally generated; they are handcrafted like all the other maps. But some features may be procedurally generated: start-points, exits, security devices, patrols, lockboxes, etc. Mixing and matching an Objective with a map layout produces a huge number of possible Missions, with further variety provided by alternative start- and end-points. Mission names are generated randomly from two lists of name parts, producing names like Maltese Strike and Chinatown Crash.
Proc-gen missions are offered by Contacts, usually for a cash fee. In addition, loot will be available from hacking or lockboxes. Some missions such as Raids are purely for the loot. Completing missions for Contacts will raise their Power Level, Influence, and Trust. All missions will also provide Experience Points.
Some types of proc-gen missions are available only in certain Eras.
At this time, the number of maps and types of proc-gen missions is quite limited. More mission goal types and maps are expected in the near future for proc-gen combinations.
Types of Proc-Gen Missions
| TYPE | DESCRIPTION | POTENTIAL REWARD | PREREQISITES |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assassination | Kill a guarded VIP on their way to an exit | Cash fee | Power Level 2 |
| Battle Strike | Kill waves of reinforcements; pure combat | Cash fee | Treaty of '31 Era; Power Level 1, or Power Level 2 to target Brave Star |
| Bodyguard | Escort a courier across a dangerous area | Cash fee | |
| CPU Spike | Spike a CPU; this is a solo mission for a Hacker with a time limit | Cash fee | |
| Kill 3 Captains | Kill three designated high-level targets | Cash fee | |
| Q-Gap Spike | Pass through a dangerous gang zone to spike a CPU | Cash fee | |
| Raid | Steal as much loot as you can | Loot only |
List of Story Missions
| MISSION | STORYLINE | DESCRIPTION | POTENTIAL REWARDS | PREREQUISITES |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plan B | Syndicate Debts | Escape the Aug-Clinic after the Cyber Knight's surgery | ||
| Clinic Snitch | Syndicate Debts | LEGWORK: track the origin of the UltraTek hit squad at the Aug-Clinic | Plan B | |
| Thumb on Snitch | Syndicate Debts | LEGWORK: put the Biotech Researcher snitch under our thumb | Biotech Researcher Contact | Clinic Snitch |
| Forward Op | Syndicate Debts | steal as much as you can | loot only | Plan B |
| Haven Smokeout | Syndicate Debts | recover Q-Endpoint; optionally kill the Wireghost | cash fee; Trust; +2 Favor | Plan B |
| Competition Matrix | Syndicate Debts | LEGWORK: investigate Octane's precarious position within D-Cartel | new story branch (currently locked) | accept Haven Smokeout; cannot accept Zombie Origins |
| Zombie Origins | Syndicate Debts | LEGWORK: seek the Quantum Rider's origins | new story branch (currently locked) | accept Haven Smokeout; cannot accept Competition Matrix |
| Loophole Heist | Syndicate Debts | install Q-Endpoint in target system | pay off $2000K debt | Haven Smokeout |
| Smokescreen | Syndicate Debts | LEGWORK: run interferrence to throw the Head Hunters off-track | reduce Head Hunters by 1 | Loophole Heist |
| Cube Run | Brother Dearest | steal as much as you can; collect research secrets | loot only | |
| Carnivore Search | Carnivore | LEGWORK: hunt for a corrupt cop to get on the payroll | Brave Star Contact | Power Level 2 |
| Carnivore | Carnivore | hack the heavily guarded containment core to steal the Sigma 6 trainer | 1 Favor; Wireghost Contact | Carnivore Search |
| Chem-Fac Depths | Carnivore | LEGWORK: sneak through the waste tunnels under the old chemical-factory | alternative entrance to Carnivore mission | accept Carnivore |
| Sigma Sploits | Carnivore | LEGWORK: create sploitkits from Sigma 6 trainer | Sigma 6 sploiitkits | Carnivore |
| Sibling Breakout | Sibling Breakout | break a teammate's sibling out of jail | Hacker recruit | Power Level 1 |
| Dead Drop Hit | Dead Drop Hit | pick up a package, defend against waves of gangers | E-rifle | Power Level 2+; Gun Runner Contact with a registered Faction enemy |
| Biochip Fry | Dead Drop Hit | LEGWORK: unlock e-rifle | E-rifle | Dead Drop Hit; refuse to turn over e-rifle |
| Ride Along | Ride Along | LEGWORK: spelunk with and protect weapon smugglerrs | 1 Favor | |
| Clinic Expansion | Clinic Expansion | NO MISSION; invest in a dedicated clinic | access to a dedicated clinic | Treaty of '31 Era |
| Dock Connections | Clinic Expansion | LEGWORK: work the docks to find some cheap Warner-Braun biomedical imports | 20% off price of Clinic Expansion | Clinic Expansion offered |
| New in Town | New in Town | LEGWORK: make a contact in Warner-Braun Global | Warner-Braun Contact | Treaty of '31 Era |
| Runner Shakedown | Runner Shakedown | LEGWORK: bodyguard a gun runner during a stressful organization shakedown | Treaty of '31 Era; Power Level 2+ | |
| Slagga Smash | Runner Shakedown | take out the slagga gang attacking the Gun Runner's teams | cash fee; level 3 weapons and mods | Runner Shakedown |
| Southie Slagga | Runner Shakedown | LEGWORK: connect with the Free Streets Compact to arrange a meet | accept Slagga Smash; merc raised on the streets or involved with Free Streets Compact | |
| Southie Strut | Runner Shakedown | Live-Wire Negotiation with Free Street Compact | cash fee; level 3 weapons and mods | Southie Slagga |
| Truck Job | Truck Job | Load a virus payload to a server aboard a truck | cash fee | Power Level 3+ |
| 404-X Spike | Truck Job | CPU Spike job | unlock Leverage for Truck Job | accept Truck Job |
| Snitch Snuff Out | Snitch Snuff Out | Obligation Call, assassinate target | resolve 1 Obligation | Power Level 2+; owe Obligation to a Contact |
| Child of the Belly | Child of the Belly | LEGWORK: Locate someone in the Belly | Favors, drug dealer Contact |