Vanquish - Walkthrough overview
Hello all, and welcome to the walkthrough for Vanquish. Vanquish is a third-person shooter that has incredibly hi-octane, knee-sliding fun and comes with all the action and over-the-top battles you would come to expect from a Platinum game. This Xbox One walkthrough is virtually the same as the original, aside from graphical improvements, so this walkthrough is almost unchanged from its 360 version. However, I've gone through and edited some bits for clarification and added a collectibles page at the end with cropped videos. I've also added my own videos for the Tactical Challenges so the videos don't ever get removed. That's nice, isn't it?
Now to break the game down, you have the Campaign mode, then the Tactical Challenges mode opens up once you complete the campaign on normal or higher difficulty. You'll be doing two playthroughs for 49 of the 50 campaign achievements. But let's break this down for those who haven't played the game yet.
1. Campaign Run (Hard mode)
Yes, you read that right boys and girls, your first attempt through the campaign will be on Hard mode! But never fear, there is a single concession that makes it much easier: you can (and will) die as many times as you have to, but the one thing you MUST remember is to only use 'Continue' and 'Restart Checkpoint'. DO NOT use 'Mission Select' or this will void some of the mission & difficulty-specific achievements. You need to play through all the missions CONSECUTIVELY. So just keep going and you'll eventually finish hard mode. As you don't need to care about dying often, we may as well do the collectibles and stage-specific achievements on the way. If you do miss anything, don't worry, just leave it for the next playthrough and keep going.
If you really want to finish this off in one playthrough, it can be done, though it might take more time in the long run. Head over to the No Death section of the walkthrough and read it before beginning your playthrough. The strategy to avoid death works on Hard mode. It takes time though, so if you expect you'll probably die a lot, two playthroughs are going to be ideal.
2. Campaign Run (Casual/Casual Auto mode)
Because you have already mastered this beast on Hard, this run will be ridiculously easy. Your advanced skills and knowledge of what's to come should make this a cakewalk. The only thing you need to remember is to NOT DIE AND NOT USE MISSION SELECT. Not even once. You are aiming at getting the Living Legend achievement in this playthrough. This may sound difficult, but due to your new-found awesomeness at the game and the fact there is still an escape plan if you do happen to die, this is considerably easier than it sounds.
3. Post Campaign Mop-up
This is the time to finish those last pesky achievements. You are free to use the mission select function now and do this on Casual difficulty to make it easier on yourself. Pick up any missed collectibles, special kill types and mission-specific achievements before moving on to the Challenges. There is a special page just for collectibles with cropped and concise videos just for you... Because TrueAchievements loves you.
4. Tactical Challenges
I will be brutally honest: This. Is. Hard. The skill and time required for this achievement is intense and may overwhelm and discourage some, but for those of you who do persevere, it is more than possible and is a very rewarding achievement (or so I'm told, at the time of writing this, the author has still yet to pop the achievement on both the 360 and XB1 versions). Some have done it in less than two hours, others have spent months or years working towards it. The only limitation is your dedication. The first five Tactical challenges open up once you complete the campaign. Finishing the first five challenges with any time score will open up the final and most difficult challenge: Challenge 6. Challenges are basically arena survival matches, akin to Horde or Firefight modes from the Halo or Gears of War franchises. You need to have mastered Hard mode & minimize overheating of your suit.
Vanquish - General hints and tips
Here are the hints and tips to help get you through the campaign as efficiently as possible:
- Above anything else, when playing through the campaign (regardless of difficulty) DO NOT use mission select. If you do, you will void all the mission-specific achievements. So to keep this very simple: UNTIL YOU HAVE FINISHED THE ENTIRE GAME TWICE, DO NOT USE THE MISSION SELECT FEATURE.
While you are playing on Hard mode, dying consistently and often brutally, you'll also want to be collecting all the Pangloss statues. Again, if you missed a statue, DO NOT USE MISSION SELECT! Wait until you've completed the game twice, then you can go back to pick up miscellaneous achievements and collectibles (which will be infinitely easier on casual difficulty anyway).
If you're going for the Living Legend achievement (for not dying throughout the entire game), you MUST hit pause and return to the main menu whenever you see the animation of Sam doing his slow-motion death. DO NOT restart a checkpoint or the mission, just go back to the main menu and hit 'Continue'. It will return you pretty close to where you died at. This prevents you from losing out on this achievement and from losing any weapon upgrades. At the end of each mission, be sure to look at your total deaths and make sure it always says "0." If you are unsure, play online until you're no longer comfortable, then head offline through the hard bits, then head back online and sync your save file. The only choke point for me was fighting the "Unknown" enemies, because if they grab you it is instant death and the length of the animation exceeds your ability to hit start and go back to the title screen. Keep your distance from these throughout the campaign.
There are 112 Pangloss statues, which I will give descriptions with timestamps for the accompanying videos to locate these. They are listed in a progressive manner, so you are not retracing your steps or inadvertently bypassing them. Collect as many as you can, but you must collect them in the mission they're supposed to be in for it to count. If the mission debriefing screen appears, don't worry.Once you've completed the game, go to the mission select and work your way through to find where you're missing any. There are four per mission (apart from Act 1, Mission 1), so that'll make it easier to check for the ones you've missed. Check the "Collectibles" page for cropped videos to make this faster.
There are 22 mission/act-specific achievements, and they will be listed with a guide as to how to get the achievements. They're doable on the Hard run-through, but if you just want to go back after completing the campaign to mop them up on Casual/Casual Auto difficulty, then go for it. Just make sure it is after the campaign is complete so you don't run the risk of achievements not popping.
For achievements for killing enemies in certain ways or other miscellaneous achievements, we will list the best place to polish them off. There is often no 'the place' to achieve these, so I've listed the most convenient or easiest.
So, all clear? Did I mention the mission select issue? I did? Oh good... Then let's get to it!
Vanquish - Story Walkthrough - Act 1
CAMPAIGN WALKTHROUGH (HARD) - ACT 1
Now, this is the first time you'll be playing the game (unless you were naughty and used mission select the first time), so don't despair if you get completely destroyed at times; this is Hard mode after all. We will be using video walkthroughs produced by yours truly with a summary, along with descriptions and time stamps for the Pangloss statue locations. The videos are unedited from the 360 days before I learned how to use YouTube Studio, so there may be a few deaths here and there... or many.
Before starting, there are a few things to do as often as you can in this playthrough to tally toward achievements.
One of those things is using an EMP emitter (press 
to alternate between EMP & grenades) to disable the enemies, then destroy them before they can recover. It's better to use AR mode to maximize the time available. When you destroy 10 enemy robots that have been disabled with an EMP emitter, you'll unlock: Short CircuitDestroy ten enemy robots that have been disabled with an EMP emitter.
Another thing is doing a melee boost attack. If you have a single remaining enemy or you feel it is safe to overheat your suit, try for a melee/boost melee attack. Boost up to the enemy using 
, then 
for a melee attack. If it's the little red RI enemies, this will be a 1-hit kill, even on Hard mode. Doing this 10 times will get you:
Doing so 100 times will net you:
The above achievements are accumulated over multiple campaign playthroughs and the challenges as well, so you won't have to grind this out if you are consistently working towards it. I think this popped during my no-death run.
Your AI squad mates will undoubtedly be an excellent distraction for the enemies throughout the game, but like all AI, they tend to get themselves in a predicament now and then. When a squad mate needs help, you can revive them when they have a green circle with a cross in the middle above their heads. Boost over to them & revive them with 
. As good deeds are usually worth the effort, you will also be rewarded with a weapon or grenade, and if it's the first time you'll also get:
Keep being the hero that you are another 19 times and you'll get the other medic-related achievement:
When picking up a weapon, try to make sure you have the same weapon already equipped and fully loaded on ammo so that you'll upgrade the weapon stats. I found that by alternating weapons, I could focus on upgrading one weapon at a time, then switch to upgrade the other. This should still happen on your Hard mode run but you can easily get it again on Casual, as the enemies take less damage. Upgrading your weapon helps you survive and inflict more damage, and will also award you this achievement:
I keep the assault rifle, heavy machine gun & usually the shotgun for close encounters with Romanovs, but it's all a personal choice really.
You also need to scan all the different weapons for the following achievement:
After completing the tutorial and the weapons you start with, you only need to scan the following weapons:
- LFE Gun
- Lock-on Laser
- Sniper Rifle
Just pick it up then switch back to your weapon of choice. Easily obtainable before the end of Act 1.
Alright, that covers it for now. Let's boost knees-first into the campaign, shall we?
Tutorial
Start off by doing the training. It really doesn't take that long, but it can give you a good feel for how to control Sam in AR mode, and weapon responses when used. Once it's done and dusted, you'll net yourself your first glorious achievement. The first one is always an easy one, right?
Mission 1 (Landing)
After all of the cutscenes play (or you can skip them by pressing 
), the only actual gameplay in this mission involves running or boosting down a hallway, so we can get the '40 Yard Dash' achievement out the way now. If you go too far, it will skip ahead, but you can do this in the next mission as well. All you need is a clear path to boost on, so you can honestly do this achievement whenever. Once you have triggered all the story cutscenes, retrace your steps back to the start of the corridor, boost using , then hold it until just before the meter turns red and you start overheating. Pop!:
40 Yard DashMaintain a Boost dash to the limit of the ARS reactor without overheating.
If you miss it just do a U-turn and try again. This video should not need posting whatsoever, but... just in case:
Mission 2 (Breach)
You start the mission by being told you need to flank the enemy to get the upper hand, so immediately flank left and burst through the tunnel. Once you are out of the tunnel there are enemies on the right-hand side. Manually engage AR mode with 
and kill at least a single enemy to receive:
Pangloss Statue 1: After flanking the enemies there are two turrets overlooking the area you started in. Standing in front of, or using the turret, look to your right a little to spot the first little golden collectible (2:50).
Pangloss Statue 2: Further away from the first statue in the same location is the second statue. (2:50)
Once those guys are done, turn around for a few more enemies in the opposite direction coming from the building marked Area 03. Shooting the enemy in the walker will allow you to hijack it and utilize its awesome firepower. Once all the enemies are clear, there are 2 more Pangloss statues to shoot before advancing to the next mission.
Pangloss Statues 3: Have your back to the door you need to proceed through, look right towards a big, brown crate, and the next statue is up on a catwalk (4:05).
Pangloss Statue 4: Once you're through the doors, immediately look to the left and the statue is near a large A01 sign (4:45).
Mission 3 (Giant)
Pangloss Statue 5: The second you're out of the corridor, look in between the bottom of the stairs for the next statue (0:05).
After you've gone up the set of stairs, you come across the middle of a firefight. I found boosting to the left and taking cover on the left side of the level wasn't difficult at all. After the first round of enemies go down, you'll eventually get a status update saying there are more incoming troops, and they'll soon appear through the now-opened gate. While there is a group of light enemies charging at you, it's a great opportunity for your next achievement. Just before the enemies come down the stairs, crouch behind cover and equip a normal grenade (toggle between EMP and grenades using ), now throw it into the middle of them. You should be able to get three enemies in one explosion, earning you another achievement:
Head up the stairs and tackle the first boss of the game. It may take a few goes, depending on skill and luck. You want to be conservative with your ammo. The crates around the top don't give you much of a choice as to what you'll get. I personally found the assault rifle was most effective due to the speed of the shots. During the fight, you'll want to use AR mode wisely. It will get you out of a few sticky situations as the Argus robot likes to focus solely on you. If you do die, just shrug it off and select restart checkpoint; it doesn't matter how many times you die on this run.
The Argus robot starts off looking like a spider. Shooting the core on its head will cause it to transform to bi-pedal mode. Take out a limb and when it exposes its core, rain all kinds of hell down on it, remembering to try and save the turrets for the core in order to inflict more damage. While you are fighting the Argus, it'll fire small groups of missiles every so often, and you can pick up the following two achievements as well. Simply put yourself into AR mode & shoot the missiles aimed towards you:
Home RunDestroy an incoming missile or grenade.
Once the boss is dead, we can focus on the three remaining collectibles without the threat of imminent death.
Pangloss Statue 6: If facing the direction the Argus was located, turn around 180 degrees and head to the far-right corner toward the exit. Look left and right for the next two statues respectively (04:20).
Pangloss Statue 7: See above (04:20)
Pangloss Statue 8: Facing the direction of the Argus robot again, go all the way around to the left of the semi-circle and look behind the fence to the left of the crates on the border of the map. There's the final statue for this mission (8:15).
Mission 4 (Rescue)
This mission is relatively easy, so I won't bother you with an incredibly-detailed battle plan. Just follow your AI squad for direction, and refer to the video to learn from my mistakes. Keep cover, using AR mode as much as you can because there is no time limit here. Above all, remember that Romanovs are weak to direct close-up shotgun blasts *wink wink*.
Pangloss Statue 9: Boost through the corridor past the door and directly at the end (where the AIs turn left) will be a vehicle, on top of which is the statue (00:27).
Pangloss Statue 10: When you're in the first area of conflict, destroy the robots and head down the middle "street" on the right side. Behind the two containers will be a pesky little statue (02:40).
Pangloss Statue 11: Save the first soldier named Kennedy. After you've rescued him, look behind where he was held. Just below you, on a crate to the left, will be another one (08:38).
Pangloss Statue 12: After you've rescued all three soldiers, look toward the exit BUT DON'T GO THROUGH YET! Just beyond the doorway to this exit on the right side is the last statue. You must do this before you go too far inside - which is after a couple of steps, otherwise you end the mission (12:54).
Mission 5 (Trust)
This mission also requires little input on my behalf. Your team will travel in only one direction here: forward through a channel.
Pangloss Statue 13: This one is a cheeky statue to get. At the start of the mission, turn around and head in the opposite direction you're supposed to go. On the left side, just above a weapons crate, there's a statue standing in all his majesty. Shoot it (00:07).
Here is a good and the first opportunity to pop another achievement. You need to destroy the 'Chicanes'; the barricade-type bots. You can throw your grenade, activate AR and shoot the grenade mid-air for an easy, wide explosion. Destroying it with just a grenade yields you the following cheevie:
Pangloss Statue 14: After the second conflict has been cleared, you'll end up in front of a gate. Don't go through it just yet. Look up to the right on an off ramp and you'll find your next collectible. If you go through the arch, a cutscene will trigger about saving a lone soldier, but can also do this afterward so don't fret (02:27).
Continue on through the channel into an open area where, once you've reached a certain point, the mini-boss tank will ambush you. Boost or dodge or boost cancelback to safety. Use cover here, as it will be very dangerous to remain out in the open. But be warned that the tank can charge and destroy the cover here. I suggest taking out the little RIs first, then using an EMP grenade to disable the tank to get behind it and shoot the weak spot at its rear with a shotgun in close range for an effective takedown.
Pangloss Statue 15: If I were you, I would save this one until after the tank is toast to save yourself from dying unnecessarily. Before going through the opening the tank made to complete the mission, look to the right of it at the base behind the railing for the next statue (09:35).
Pangloss Statue 16: Directly above the last one, look above the sign on the door for the last statue (09:35).
Mission 6 (Darkness)
Pangloss Statue 17: This statue is found when you meet up with the APC you’re escorting. Head to the far-left side of the room where there’s a car on fire. Looking through the flames will be a statue to shoot (00:34).
In this mission, you’ll have a great chance to be able to get a few achievements out of the way. One thing I will say is that it's much easier to do this after your two campaign playthroughs with mission select on Casual difficulty. DON'T USE MISSION SELECT YET, you know the rules. For now, just see what weapons you get and try for the respective achievement. However, there are many more opportunities on this playthrough so keep them in mind.
This section of the game puts you in the tunnels up against monster jellyfish analog robots, which, when destroyed, release mini-jellyfish, which are much easier to destroy. Firstly, you want to see what weapons are lying around. If there’s a Lock-On Laser, Rocket Launcher, or LFE Gun, you can get one of the following out of the way.
If you get the lock-on laser weapon, engage the ARS to get this one:
With the Rocket Launcher, aim quickly at a group of little jellyfish without locking on and you’ll easily take out three at once with the splash damage to pop another one:
Trick ShotDestroy three enemy robots at once with rocket launcher splash damage.
Do the same with the LFE Gun:
And lastly, trigger AR mode once the larger jellyfish has been destroyed and kill three enemies at the same time under AR mode to pop:
Adrenaline RushManually trigger AR Mode and destroy three enemy robots in a row.
You may inadvertently get this one as well, but it involves getting damaged to automatically kick in the ARS. You need to kill three enemies in this time to pop:
Death WishDestroy three enemy robots while in damage-triggered AR Mode.
If you don’t want to go for any of these, that’s fine. Surviving and progressing is a priority, but try and keep them in mind, as there are many opportunities in the game to get them. If you do miss any by the time you're done with the two campaign runs, just load up this mission on Casual Auto and keep using 'restart checkpoint' until you get the weapon required. It will also be much easier on Casual difficulty to destroy the enemies.
Keep playing until you get to a barricade with enemies, destroy the RI and the Romanov, then climb up to the top of the barricade to find the next statue.
Pangloss Statue 18: Once you've climbed to the top level of the barricade to plant the C4, turn around and look to the right platform on the right-hand side. He's up there, waiting... taunting (06:13).
Pangloss Statue 19: Once the barricade is destroyed, boost forward to the first crate you see on the left-hand side of the tunnel. Behind this crate is the third statue of the mission (10:30).
Pangloss Statue 20: At the very end of the chapter, once you've taken out a number of jellyfish and another Romanov, near the up ramp on the right-hand side of the tunnel will be some burning debris. Look through the gap to find the little golden blighter. Make sure you boost ahead of the group to get this because once the tank reaches a certain point, the mission will end (12:50).
Mission 7 (Seismic)
I really enjoyed this level layout. It's lots of fun and it's a quick mission to boot. First, destroy all the enemies, but hold off on wasting ammunition on the Romanvs, as your comrades have a powerful rail gun that takes two of the three Romanovs out for you, leaving you to finish off just the last one. Next, eliminate all the enemies that come out of the drill transport, which only has one more Romanov to worry about, other than a bunch of RIs. Once the area is clear, then focus on getting the four Pangloss Statues.
Pangloss Statue 21: From the top of the ramp you entered on, head slightly left and look down at the collapsed rubble. You'll see your little statue lying about, waiting to be shot (04:04).
Pangloss Statue 22: Continue around until you get to the farthest-right corner of the area (referenced from the entrance). Sitting next to a grey crate marked '68', you'll find the next one (04:47).
Pangloss Statue 23: After getting the above statue, look to the left side of the crate on your left. You'll find him hiding there between the crates (04:50).
Pangloss Statue 24: Once you head up in the lift, it will stop, forcing you into a quick battle. Facing the elevator console, look up and to your left to see this last statue of this mission, despite it appearing post-mission brief (05:30).
Mission 8 (Hostile)
Once you're out of the elevator, you'll be thrown into another fight. Picking off the RIs and the single Romanov will prompt the first major boss, simply titled 'Bogey'. On Hard mode, he's not much fun to fight. I had some luck and got a Rocket Launcher; if you get one, keep it and it'll be useful on him. Just keep moving around, using AR mode when you can, but try not to let yourself overheat, because that would put you in a VERY vulnerable position. Keep whittling down his health with the Heavy Machine Gun and before you know it, you'll get chucked into a QTE where you just have to keep mashing for a bit. Do that and it'll jump to a cutscene and the mission's end. Well, at least there was only one of him and you had backup support, but it won't always be that way...
Let's pick up some statues before continuing on, shall we?
Pangloss statue 25: Retrace your steps to the elevator you arrived on. As you approach the area, just on the left-hand side of the entrance in a blocked-off elevator is the statue (10:30).
Pangloss statue 26: Now head around the next right corner to some crates and you can find this shy little fella hiding between the cracks (10:38).
Pangloss statue 27: Keep circling around the right side of the arena to the next statue, located in the corner (10:50).
Pangloss statue 28: Lastly, the final statue is above the sign titled 'Platform 5 Above', just above the mission exit. Look above that sign on the left for a catwalk holding up the little collectible (11:30).
Head through the exit and that's Act 1 over! Provided you did not use mission select, you'll be rewarded with the following achievements:
Now on to Act 2! What a great start, guys.
Vanquish - Story Walkthrough - Act 2
CAMPAIGN WALKTHROUGH (HARD) - ACT 2
Mission 1 (River)
This mission starts straight away with an onslaught on a small enemy force. Nothing big.
Pangloss Statue 29: Once all of the first set of enemies are toast, head towards the gate then do a right-hand U-turn at the side of the gate to locate the first statue of the mission, surrounded by burning debris (02:00).
Go through the gate and you'll be traveling along escalator belts. Use cover accordingly, as the angle of attack changes.
Pangloss Statue 30: Defeat all the enemies in the first area, then double back. On the opposite side of the room on your right side, you'll find yourself the second collectible (05:00).
Head back and continue the fight with the enemies now appearing on your left. Try to shoot RIs on the walkers first, as they tend to do some serious damage if hit. Wiping these guys out should put you in front of a staircase. You need to go up here anyway, but as soon as you get to the first landing, turn left and locate an ammo crate.
Pangloss Statue 31: From this crate, look out to the opposing platform. Atop a crate is the third statue of this mission (09:53).
The next conflict is a little painful unless you adopt a clever strategy. From your last collectible, head up the stairs to the final arena of this mission containing a few RIs and two Romanovs. [NOTE: There are a few melee/Romanov-related achievements, but these achievements are on the mop-up page with mission select because Hard mode may cause too many deaths]. Quickly jump behind cover and blast away the RI on the walker, commandeer it and blast the enemies (BUT NOT ALL!). Now that you are safe you need to collect the final statue BEFORE destroying the remaining enemies located around the corner.
Pangloss Statue 32: From the entrance, head straight until you see an RI behind a turret (who may have a friend or two). Perpendicular to where he is shooting is a wire link fence. Boost through the volley of gunfire to the fence and locate the little blighter. As you can see in the YouTube video, I had quite some trouble locating him (12:40).
Now that all statues have been collected, you are free to kill the remaining enemies and move on to the next mission.
Mission 2 (Rapids)
This is another fun little mission. Once you have control of Sam, shoot the enemies out of the sky using the turrets at the back of the air taxi, as they can do a lot of damage if they land. Do the same for the two enemy transports that come up from the rear.
Pangloss Statue 33: When you have time, head to the front of the transport you are riding in and you'll see this little guy just waiting to be shot in the front right corner. Give the man what he wants (02:28).
Once Elena says, "No other possibility, Sam," just after the cutscene, an enemy transport is going to come up on the right-hand side. Try to dispose of the enemies as soon as possible because it becomes a lot harder to hide behind cover when it flips upside down on the roof.
Pangloss Statue 34: This enemy transport has a statue hidden at its back. You need to let it get ahead a little to shoot it (03:22).
Another transport will appear to the left. You need to kill all the enemies within 60 seconds, including the Romanov, otherwise, it will be an instant death. Not to worry though, there is a turret on the port side to do just that. After this, the train will derail and you'll come to a grinding halt next to some buildings.
Pangloss Statue 35: Look to the rear left side of your monorail and you'll see this on the corner of the building, pretty obvious (05:44).
Here you'll get caught in an ambush, so get ready. There is plenty of ammunition and you have a good chance of getting a rocket launcher. Don't forget that shotguns are effective against Romanovs if you are too slow destroying the transport ships. Once done, a cutscene with a QTE will occur and you need to mash .
Pangloss Statue 36: Once you regain control of Sam, a friendly transport named Smith will come up from behind. Located on the back of his ship is the last statue of the mission and possibly one of the hardest collectibles in the game to hit (11:32).
Even on Hard mode, you can easily get another achievement here. When you and the airships will reach an enemy transport, simply shoot every enemy on board (made ridiculously easy with your automatic turrets) to complete the mission and pop the following achievement:
Mission 3 (Nightmare)
Pangloss Statue 37: Upon starting the mission, turn to the right and you'll see the little guy on a crate (00:10).
Head down the stairs and you'll encounter a new enemy type: 'SPHERE'. They are weak to shotgun damage, so slide in close, activate AR and mow 'em down. Around the corner, you'll encounter a few RIs, nothing serious. Hit the control panel and you'll enter a smaller circular room, which looks to be the perfect size for an ambush. Oh wait, it is an ambush. If you have an LFE gun or rocket launcher you can take out the RIs all at once in a cramped area. The Romanov may take more work though. But you know how much they love shotguns, right?
Pangloss Statue 38: After the mini-ambush, head further down the corridor and you can find him under the grating in the floor (03:23).
Now you've reached the area where the mission title comes into play; you'll be going up against two Argus Robots... simultaneously. There are two achievements you can get here, but I would advise against doing so on Hard mode. It is just too much trouble compared to attempting it on casual difficulty later on. You'll find these achievements and the strategy for them later on the Mop-up page of the walkthrough.
As for the strategy right now, I would suggest going for the closest Argus first; the one in spider mode. Shooting his core will activate a QTE. Succeed in this and he'll be destroyed immediately. Once done, the checkpoint will kick in making the second half of the battle that much easier. As you can see in the video, I died a few times on our second Argus, until I decided to play it smart and hide behind the tanks as cover. Keep at it and he'll eventually go down.
Pangloss Statue 39: Once the Arguses are destroyed and mission stats close, head back to the left of where you entered, and on the awning, you'll find the third statue (15:30).
Pangloss Statue 40: From the above collectible, boost to the other side of the arena, looking at the exit. Turn left to see some black scaffolding. On the other side of this is the last statue (15:55).
And that's it for this mission, time to go battle some little dudes instead.
Mission 4 (Struggle)
This mission is only a struggle if you try to go too far, too fast. The enemies aren't big, but they are numerous. Take your time, choose your enemy (all RIs anyway), and you'll be fine. You'll start the level going through a gate facing a small force with two walkers. Destroying all of the enemies here will drop a gate in the far left, but before continuing you'll need to pick something up.
Pangloss Statue 41: After heading out of the entrance gate, turn and go left to the left side of a collapsed ramp. Your statue is right there for the taking (01:42).
Pangloss Statue 42: Head on through the gate, the level will be a short hill, followed by a plateau then a hill to the bunker. If you are taking cover on the plateau facing up the hill, look to your right and you'll see a disused ramp on the right side of the map. On top of this is another statue (05:10).
Once you've breached the gate, try to take out the gun placements in the container on the left of the bunker; they just cause trouble otherwise. Take your time, boost in and out of cover, and use AR whenever possible. Through to the bunker, watch your back as you enter, otherwise, any stray enemies you didn't get on the outside may shoot you in the back. Which is just cowardly in my book.
Pangloss Statue 43: Once you reach the first landing, there will be two turrets facing out onto the battlefield you just blitzed through. Look in the corner here for another little golden boy (08:05).
Head up to the top of the bunker, through a container yard (seriously, who arranges crates like this??) and up and through to the second bunker, all the while watching out for surprise RIs flanking you.
Pangloss Statue 44: Before hitting the console in the second bunker, look out from the balcony across at another to see the little guy enjoying the view (15:01).
Once you've got the last statue, hit the console then exit the bunker from where you came and finish off the last few guys for the mission to end.
Mission 5 (Assault)
Now, this mission, I liked a lot. Use cover wisely and you'll be fine. You can boost past most of the enemies to flank them from behind, but I decided to take it slow, as only a few shots can get you killed.
Pangloss Statue 45: Before jumping in the elevator, head to the left and you can find your first statue chilling on a balcony, enjoying the view. He's not allowed to do that! (00:11).
Head back in the elevator and boost-slide around the curved section, all the way around. You'll receive a warning from Elena that enemies are approaching; however, this is not a compulsory conflict, so just keep on sliding.
Pangloss Statue 46: Just before sliding into cover, shoot the statue on the right side near the entrance (00:46).
Head up another elevator to the start of a long climb up a very dangerous hill. Immediately get under cover, as buildings & debris will be rolling down at you. Poke your head out, shoot the enemies, and slowly advance.
Pangloss Statue 47: When Burns says, "Here comes another one," get behind cover. At this point, you should be just below an RI manning a turret. Shoot him, then look to the right side for another statue (02:46).
Continue heading up the hill. The Argus robot never fires on you, so that is never a concern, just avoid getting flanked by advancing too fast. Once you reach the top of the hill, head left towards a bunker, but don't go in just yet.
Pangloss Statue 48: Looking at the bunker entrance, turn around and head to the right, you'll find the last little golden boy of the mission. (06:57).
Now that all the collectibles have been nabbed, head into the bunker up the ramp and finish the mission with a nice cinematic.
Mission 6 (Stronghold)
Okay, guys, I found this one to be a little tricky and, as the video shows, I'm no pro. Apologies again for having no video editing software. After the entry cutscene, you'll be in an open area with the jamming system ahead on the upper level. Thankfully, the laser cannon won't be firing at you just yet, so you can focus on all the RIs shooting at you for now. Get behind any cover, then systematically take them down, you'll find that they won't focus solely on you, so focus your gunfire on the nearest, then move to the right and behind you, back to the gate you initially came through for...
Pangloss Statue 49: Head back through the arch and look in the right-hand corner (facing the massive laser). There you'll find the first statue of the mission (04:05).
Once the RIs are done away with, followed by a Romanov at each side of the arena, a rather painful enemy will drop down: a 'BIA'. It's pretty nasty and likes to target you specifically, but I found the best way to defeat it is to save the rocket launcher ammo for him. Get in close enough, then boost melee, then back rolling and firing the rocket launcher to escape until my ARS suit is back to full charge. Your AI will prove a distraction, so if he's coming up too close, simply boost to the other side of the map and shoot him from long range, whilst planning your next attack. You can also use the large shipping containers to continually stay behind cover as well.
Once he's killed, hunt around for any ammunition you want, then head over to your comrades waiting on the lifting platform, which will take you to the 'boss'. On arrival, you'll have a bunch of Romanovs spawn, but boost out of the way and take down the two large machine guns on either side of the laser. Doing this will make everything much easier later on. Once those are down, focus on the Romanovs, getting behind them if you can, and shooting them in the back with your shotgun. Targeting their tanks, they'll go down fast, so keep up the fire. Once destroyed, the laser will start aiming at you (why only you??). Just remember, as soon as you hear the laser charging up, GET BEHIND A PILLAR! The tall pillars are the only thing that can protect you unless you activate AR, then dodge the laser as it is coming towards you, or boost out of the way. Get behind the pillar, but don't hug it because there is still a chance it can clip you.
Once the first laser has been knocked out, a trio of SPHEREs will make an appearance from the right side of the map. I found an EMP emitter followed by shotgun blasts does the trick. Once killed, a container just to its left will open up and a bunch of RIs will swarm the battlefield, so if you have an EMP emitter, throw that followed by a grenade to limit the numbers, otherwise, retreat behind cover at the rear and take them out as you please. But if you hear that laser, you'll need to move fast!
You have to destroy the laser system three times, but before the third turn, you want to destroy all other laser systems and enemies so that you can get the last three collectibles.
Pangloss Statue 50: Easier to find with the sniper rifle, but in the center of the area beneath the laser system, you'll see a back and yellow ledge, and between two columns, you'll find another little guy (07:53)
Pangloss Statue 51: Look just to the right of the previous statue at the same level for the next one (08:12)
This leaves the second laser to be taken down, after which two Romanovs appear from the right side again. If you brought or were lucky enough to pick up a rocket launcher, use it to take them down and head to that right corner quickly for...
Pangloss Statue 52: Near the right side of the bottom of the ramp will be the last collectible golden boy (14:32).
Once the laser has been destroyed three times, Act 2 is done! Well, how about that? Did you use mission select? No? Excellent. Then these are for you:
Ain't Life Grand?Complete Act 2 on Hard difficulty or above without using mission select.
Vanquish - Story Walkthrough - Act 3
CAMPAIGN WALKTHROUGH (HARD) - ACT 3
Mission 1 (Forward)
Pangloss Statue 53: Immediately look to your right after starting the mission. Next to one of the dropships, you'll find your first collectible of the mission (00:46).
There are five Romanovs on hard mode, but if you take your time and stay behind cover, the difficulty should be reasonable. After the opening sequence, and you've picked up the first collectible, head around and join the conflict below you. You come out at the top of a massive staircase with the enemies below you. This should give an advantage with the cover here, but there will be two Romanovs who will blast through the cover and destroy you. As you can see from the video, the secret here is to shoot THROUGH the cover from afar, right into their metallic faces. Once the Romanovs have been dispatched, it should be safe to jump down and take out the smaller RIs. You'll encounter a Romanov further down the stairs, but this guy has a tank on his back, so use that critical weakness to send him off. The last encounter before the break is a bunch of fast-moving 'Ninja Gorgies'. These guys are fast but they don't take much to defeat, just use a shotgun at close range and save your AR time for when they are close.
Before heading into the next encounter, you can pick up your next two collectibles.
Pangloss Statue 54: After you take out the little Gorgies, but before going through the barricade, turn around and you'll find the next lil' guy sitting on the top of the right staircase banister (08:30).
Pangloss Statue 55: Pass through the barricade and straight ahead of you will be some boxes. Melee attack one to find the little blighter (09:00).
I would suggest swapping out a weapon for the sniper rifle temporarily for the next battle. Once you approach the pillar around the corner, two transport ships will swoop by, laying down fire as well as snipers on the roof of the building on your left. Take cover behind the pillars. If you can take out the drivers of the ships, it will cause them to crash. But after that, focus on the snipers, they all seem to focus more on your AI squadmates, so it's not particularly hard.
Pangloss Statue 56: With a sniper rifle, look between the top and middle ad boards below where the snipers were stationed to find the final collectible of the mission (10:10).
Okay, only one more battle to go, and this one isn't as hard as it sounds. Before continuing, head back and try to make sure you have a shotgun, as you'll be taking out two Romanovs. Continue along and two drill-type Romanovs will pop out. They have no guns, only drill hands, so if they can't reach you, they can't melee you. If you have any EMPs, throw them, along with grenades, or try to lure one away towards you. If you retreat back in the level too far, they lose interest and go back to attacking your squad. They have a few attack types, but they are all easy to dodge. You'll definitely see them coming. Take them out (melee finish if possible to boost your melee kill count) and that's it for this mission!
Mission 2 (Attack)
This is a quick mission, but it can be tricky depending on how you are with the tank.
Pangloss Statue 57: After the final battle of the last mission, there will be a lot of walking through rubble on the way to the next area. In clear view on the right side (00:33). WARNING: If you miss this, when choosing mission select, you need to go through and complete Mission 3-1 again. If not, you'll start at Mission 3-2, but won't be able to backtrack.
Walking past the statue leads you to the plaza, with you on the other side. A bunch of enemies will pop up, including two Romanovs. To make short work of these guys, wait until they fire their big bleeping homing missile, then activate AR and shoot them immediately on release, destroying the Romanovs instantly. Shoot down the RIs before the transport has been destroyed (which has never happened to me because the enemies are so focused on you) and continue on over the bridge once it has lowered.
Pangloss Statue 58: As you go over the bridge, look immediately to your right (02:19).
Once over the bridge, three drill transports will come up. I advise heading left and taking cover behind the garbage bin, then continue flanking them from behind. Once all the enemies are destroyed and the tank appears, keep circling left and hide behind the burnt-out wreckage. There is an achievement here that I will cover, but on Hard mode, it just causes too many headaches and I could never make it in time for the video. In the middle of the plaza is a statue (a giant version of your collectibles), you must protect this from being destroyed; however, the tank is the only thing that can do this, making this somewhat simpler. Circle behind the tank and use an EMP to stun it, then shoot out the critical port at its rear. If you manage to do this before it rams into the statue, you'll pick up the following achievement. If you miss it, you'll have another chance on your No Death run, and again later in mission select.
Here is a video showing you how ridiculously easy this is on Casual:
Post mission credits and there are still two statues missing? Don't worry you haven't missed any.
Pangloss Statue 59: Once the tank and enemies are destroyed, head over to the right-hand side (opposite your entry point) and you can find him wedged between two boxes (05:33).
Pangloss Statue 60: Continue on with the story and Elena will mention an elevator once the big gate has been opened. Head along, and on the right side you'll see this guy in front of the Cuban Café (06:58).
Mission 3 (Vertigo)
This mission is another short one, but a pain if you miss the statues which is quite easy to do. The mission starts off with an ambush by RIs amongst a bunch of vehicles. Simple enough, just dispatch all of these to get a checkpoint, then the real fun will begin.
Pangloss Statue 61: On your way out to the bridge, look immediately to your left and you'll see a bus, the little guy is right there (01:35).
Pangloss Statue 62: Keep boosting along and when you see the next ammo crate, keep going a little more and you'll see a large chunk of the bridge starting to break away on your right. Activate AR time and shoot the statue located on the left corner (01:50).
Boost down to an ammo crate and hold position until the rubble clears. Once you hear, "It's coming down," that means it's time to move! Boost along the collapsing remains of the bridge, staying to the right side.
Pangloss Statue 63: The bridge will come to a left curve after what appears to be a massive bus slides off, but stay on the right side and quickly activate AR mode at the edge, looking down, you'll have to shoot this guy pretty quickly and then continue on (03:23).
After shooting the last statue, leg it up the left side then take cover on the right side, just in front of two Romanovs standing guard. Wait here until air support takes them out, then boost to the end and there may only be one RI to take care of before boosting well beyond safety.
Pangloss Statue 64: Just after crossing the bridge, look to the left side and you'll see him up against the wall of what appears to be a toll booth (04:00).
There is an achievement in this mission, but because we are focusing on the statues, which can be a pain to get in time, I'm just going to put it into the Chapter Select page later on.
Mission 4 (Dragon)
You'll start on a monorail with a bunch of sniper rifles on board. If you don't have one already, grab one, because that's the only weapon you can use. Don't collect them all at once to upgrade the rifle, only collect it for ammo as required. There are two chapter-specific achievements in this mission, just remember you want to shoot out every spotlight without raising the alarm, which you will probably be able to do even without zooming in. There is another achievement, but let's go through the mission first.
Collect a rifle and shoot out the first set of spotlights. Even with an un-upgraded rifle, this isn't too hard to do.
Pangloss Statue 65: Once the first round of spotlights has been shot out, look straight ahead and locate the horizontal walkway. Look to the right side next to a vertical pillar. You'll find your statue there (00:36).
Pangloss Statue 66: Once you have shot down the transport ship (either in front of you if you are fast enough, or watch your back as it reappears over a bridge), again, look to the front right side on top of a platform (01:41).
Continue on until an ally AI says, "Enemies ahead!" Zoom in on the monorail exit and you'll see two turrets flying toward the left. See them? Okay. You need to destroy both of those in order to pop this mission-specific achievement. To be blunt, this is what we mean:
Easy, right? Okay, you try now! Look at that, dead simple, and now you've earned yourself another achievement:
FlyswatterDestroy all the floating turrets in Act 3-4.
Pangloss Statue 67: After the turrets have been destroyed, quickly look just above the tunnel exit on the left side, you'll need the rifle zoom and need to be quick. As you can see in the video, I've gotten him before, but missed this time (04:28).
Continue to shoot out the remaining spotlights before the mission ends to get another achievement:
Fisher is the Other SamProceed on the monorail in Act 3-4 without being spotted by the enemy troops or searchlights.
Pangloss Statue 68: Upon disembarking the monorail and dispatching all the enemies, before affixing the bombs and blowing the debris, head around the back via the right side and look to the back left of the station for the last statue of the mission (07:25).
After the cutscene, you'll be attacked by a Buzzard. As you are not safe behind cover, I found the easiest way was to simply stand behind the ammo canisters, which will shield you from most of the attacks. Save a shotgun or rocket launcher for the end when he grips onto the monorail, and he shouldn't be too much of a problem. If you were being super sneaky in the beginning, the monorail should be at high health.
Mission 5 (Despair)
This mission is a pain unless you realize that it's all about getting to the checkpoints alive without trying to defeat all the enemies. We are going to charge through this one and really only stop for the statues.
Begin by slide boosting forward and right, and keep going until you are on the right side of the forward tank. Shoot the RI on the bridge, then boost up it to the turret which was pointed toward you and start raining down the pain. Once the tank and enemies are done, you'll be told you need to clear the way for the rail guns to progress. Turn around and you'll have to use two turrets to protect your allies. This is where you can earn another achievement. Tanks will appear to the left, right, right, left, and the last one will bust through the middle. Destroy all of these without casualties and you'll earn the following achievement:
GuardianDo not allow any friendly armor to be destroyed during Act 3-5.
As always, if you miss this, you'll probably get it on your No Death Run or Mission Select on Casual, as they are much easier to destroy on Casual compared to Hard difficulty.
Pangloss Statue 69: After protecting the tanks you'll have a cutscene of Sam jumping off the bridge. Look immediately to your left on top of a bus for the first statue of the mission (02:55).
Pangloss Statue 70: From the last statue, boost forward and right all the way until you reach an ammo crate. Look to your right on some rubble for the second statue (03:15).
You'll come up to the Kreon's leg, just whip out the shotgun or rocket launcher and damage it enough for a cutscene, but don't get too close, as you can take damage when the leg comes down.
Pangloss Statue 71: After the cutscene boost up to the first blockade and look out to the left, you'll see this guy watching the battle at his leisure on a stack of rubble (04:23).
Boost to the center of this area and stay to the right side of cover. Light up a cigarette using and toss it out to the left. While they are distracted, boost right towards the ramp, at which point you'll either get lucky or very unlucky. Two Romanovs will be heading towards you, but your suit will overheat, so I suggest an EMP Emitter followed by grenades, then take them out with shotgun hits and, if your suit kicks back on, a boost melee to clean them up quick. Stay under cover and destroy the enemies on the bridge as well as a few turrets on the Kreon to give you some breathing room up top.
Pangloss Statue 72: Looking down the ramp on the right side, look to the left on top of a platform and you'll see this guy here. You can probably hit him from behind cover without dying, but DO NOT go to the bottom on the ramp because you'll activate the cutscene and miss this collectible (08:15).
Make sure you have the last statue, then simply boost down to the bottom to the last remaining enemies, throw an EMP emitter, then wait for the cutscene to commence. End mission!
Mission 6 (Infiltrate)
A great level with a kick-ass boss to fight. You'll start in a corridor, so boost down to the end, gear up with whichever weapons, and jump onto the transport. Hide behind cover and shoot the RIs as they appear. An enemy will pop up now and then, just stay behind cover and ignore him, you can't damage him.
Pangloss Statue 73: This will pass overhead when riding the transport, on the second overhead pipe on the right side (00:36).
At the end of your little amusement park ride, stock up on weapons and head through the door to face the boss. Well, more like 'distinguished enemy', as the level doesn't stop after you destroy him. This guy isn't too hard, you just need to make sure he doesn't lunge forward and grab you, as that's an instant death. An easy method to take him down quickly is to fire on his body, alternating between the HMG and Assault rifle. When his core pops open, throw an EMP, then fire three shotgun blasts and rinse and repeat two more times, ending with a melee hit. If he's still not dead, it won't take much more.
Restock your weapons after he is gone and head through the recently opened door. This next section has the ninja Gorgies, but a well-timed grenade can take them out in one attempt. However, because I could never accomplish this, I would just whip out the shotgun or HMG and be conservative with your AR time.
Pangloss Statue 74: Once you've dealt with the ninjas, from the entrance of this area, look to your left between the second and third containers (02:30).
Progress through the rings and take care of the two drones, then you'll come out to clash with a few Gorgies and a drone. Make sure you kill the drone immediately, as any delay will awaken a Romanov, and although they aren't difficult on their own, one less Romanov is always appreciated.
Pangloss Statue 75: On your way up the ramp to the next area after the RIs, look to your right and slightly below you for the next statue (09:20).
Head through the next ring, take out a few more RIs, then go up the elevator, crossing over to the next elevator, BUT DON'T ACTIVATE IT YET!
Pangloss Statue 76: Facing the elevator console, look out beyond to the rings and below you will be the last collectible (10:50).
Now you can activate the console. Head over to the next panel which will lower a platform to you filled with a Romanov, Gorgie and a couple of RIs. Don't forget that missile Romanovs release two missiles then a homing missile. If you can destroy that massive beeping missile just as it's released, it will take out the Romanov in one hit. Once destroyed, you'll get another Romanov and a few RIs. No problem, right?
Mission 7 (Phantoms)
Pangloss Statue 77: Immediately turn to your left when starting the mission (00:10).
Head forward and throw a grenade or two into the pit. If you are able to, shoot any transport ship drivers that come out; the whole thing comes crashing down in flames, saving you bullets and time. Head over to the lift and up you go to the next level. Enemies are waiting, so don't go too far forward. Pick them off one by one, then the Romanov at the end. If you reach the elevator (currently unavailable), a panel will open revealing four Romanovs! But don't worry, just stay under cover and rogue debris will blow them all up for you. Once the enemies have been taken care of, its time to find two more statues.
Pangloss Statue 78: Head back to the lift you came up on (near the first turret) and look down on the lower level for a statue (02:34).
Pangloss Statue 79: Now head over to the next turret further along to the edge and make sure to tap that statue as well (02:43).
Restock your weapons and head up the lift. Around the corner, two transports will pop up. Simply shoot the drivers for their immediate demise. Continue around and a bunch of RIs will attempt to stop you. You can always retreat back around the bend if things get too hairy. Once the area has been cleared, jump on the personnel lift.
Pangloss Statue 80: Up on the next level to your left is the final statue of Act 3 (05:38).
Head up the next lift and down the other side, watching for an ambush from two RIs. Hit the console panel to make the elevator appear, then head up to what will be the funniest scene of the game... Funny, right? Destroy the enemies for another encounter with another 'Unknown' enemy. You know the strategy now, so keep at it until he's gone.
When you get to the top of the Kreon, DON'T PULL THE CABLE JUST YET! There will be enemy transports you can blow up here, which you will need to do for an additional achievement. I wouldn't even bother with a rocket launcher. When the transport is in range, activate AR time and shoot the driver, causing everything to blow up immediately. Do this at least five times and you have another achievement:
NOW you can pull the plug, activating a pretty intense cut scene, ending the mission. As you are so good at following instructions and NOT using mission select, you'll have yourself another two achievements, along with the knowledge that you are now over halfway through the campaign!
Cry on, Kreon!Complete Act 3 on Hard difficulty or above without using mission select.
Vanquish - Story Walkthrough - Act 4
CAMPAIGN WALKTHROUGH (HARD) - ACT 4
Mission 1 (Silence)
This mission is actually very easy in Hard mode. Boost through to the first conflict and take the little guys out. Once done, head back to the river for the first collectible.
Pangloss Statue 81: Behind the 'Crown Point Park' sign on a raised section behind a little fence next to the river is the first statue (01:44).
Pangloss Statue 82: After you go through the Dam Control Center arch, look to the left and just above the water level at the river, you can find our second collectible (03:15).
Continue on and you'll fight against a few RIs and snipers located on the ridges above you. Watch for flanking and take out the drivers of the walkers to keep the walkers intact, because you're about to use them on the two Romanovs that pop out of the exit doorway. Next, you'll come to a grassy area overlooked by a semi-circular raised platform (which you can't get onto yet). I jumped up onto a mini tower platform opposite and took out as many enemies as I could before having to retreat back down to ground level. Stay behind cover and take them out. Two Romanovs will also make an appearance, but don't always drop down, so can often be shot from afar.
Pangloss Statue 83: Once you've cleared this area, head up and around onto the circular platform. Look out into the forest from this platform and locate the statue in the fork of the middle tree (09:00).
Pangloss Statue 84: As you come up to the final elevator, there will be three ammo canisters on your right side. Look behind the middle one, sitting on a rock (09:46).
After you fight off the main waves of enemies, there is a chance of another achievement here. Elena will notify you that the elevator is ready, which you can use for cover if need be, but DON'T use the elevator console yet. You need to hold out and destroy all the enemies first to get the achievement. Here is a video on Casual difficulty (because I am a complete baby and kept running out of ammo on Hard mode).
Civil DisobedienceIgnore the elevator start order in Act 4-1. Instead, hold position and destroy all reinforcements.
Mission 2 (Brink)
This. Will. Hurt. In this level, you'll face off against a Buzzard, an Argus with additional RIs, Spheres and two BIAs. Thankfully not simultaneously, but it's a lot and we definitely will not blame you if you die a couple of times. Looking at my video, I certainly got lucky with a few maneuvers! But let's get started.
You'll start off fighting a few flying enemies, just take these out in the air when they are weaker and we're on easy street. After the cutscene, you'll be on a bridge with Ninja Gorgies who WILL charge you, and a Buzzard in the background. Throw an EMP at the Gorgies, then take them out as fast as you can, because the Buzzard is heading your way. Is it just me or is it much cooler fighting a Buzzard on the ground this time? Watch out for his pounce attack, stay behind cover, or drop some EMPs and send a rocket up his rear. Whichever method you choose to get rid of him, keep wailing on him and watch his health drop to zero. For some unknown reason, you can melee the Buzzard as much as you like without overheating; the only time in the game this will happen.
Once the Buzzard is scrap metal, we have three statues to find in this area. So, let's go get them all before progressing further.
Pangloss Statue 85: From the entrance, if you look to your right on a balcony, you can find the first one (03:15).
Pangloss Statue 86: Head down the other end of the bridge and on the right side in front of some shipping containers is the second statue (03:39).
Pangloss Statue 87: From statue #86, head left around the debris and containers, then look down into the pit. Below eye level on the left side is the statue. (03:54).
Head to the exit, through the command center, and out to the stairs. You'll encounter two turrets here. Just whale on the first one, then for the second, which comes up from below, whilst equipping the HMG, hit to do a melee flip, then use AR time to destroy the RI controlling the turret for a quick kill. This maneuver is very handy when you need to get some height to clear an obstacle and destroy an enemy. Even without any ammo, as long as you have the HMG equipped, you can flip and then change to the desired weapon.
Now head down all the stairs and cross the other side. As soon as you see the game saving a checkpoint, it means an Argus is headed up right behind you! Boost up the stairs, then to the right because there are a bunch of RIs to kill and you need to get rid of them before taking on the Argus. Try to get as many of the RIs as possible before the Argus busts down the wall you're using as cover and hide in the back right corner. This will give you a little breathing space to take out the RIs, then the Argus core. Once it transforms into Bi-pedal mode, boost to the other end of the area and take cover once again. Once you are safe, just take care of the Argus like you have done multiple times with one exception: Once defeated, the Argus will release a massive death ray, which is an instant death if it touches you. To avoid this final attack, boost around him in a tight circle until you run out of AR time or the Argus is destroyed. *breathes sigh of relief*
Pangloss Statue 88: After destroying the Argus robot, head out onto the stairs and do a 180-degree turn. On the opposite side of the stairs, you'll find the last little statue of the mission (11:54).
Now, continue up the stairs to be greeted by some snipers and the Spheres. Your priority here is the Spheres, just stay behind cover and only pop out to destroy whatever is closest and/or your biggest threat. Once all of these are taken care of, the gates will open and two BIAs will emerge. You can see in the video that I was quite lucky to have a rocket launcher because you want to take out one BIA ASAP. If they are approaching too close for comfort, boost to the other side of the map and continue firing. It gets a lot easier when you only have one left. Eliminate the last BIA with severe prejudice for a well-earned breather.
Don't worry, I found the rest of Act 4 to be a lot easier. Well, most of the time...
Mission 3 (Maneuver)
This level is short, but the end may require a few deaths to make it through the final conflict. At the start of the mission, you'll use a console to open up the next area. The initial conflict will have lots of cover, so take your time and stay behind your allies for safety. Wipe out the first few, then slowly venture forward. A turret will pop up, so take care of him quickly or he will fly overhead and can catch you unaware. Make your way until you destroy an RI manning a turret. Then, before proceeding further, there are two statues to get.
Pangloss Statue 89: When you get to the arch after taking out the turret, turn around and look to the ledge on your right for the first statue of the mission (02:00).
Pangloss Statue 90: Head back to the turret the RI was using and beyond the turret is our second collectible (02:10).
As you pass through the arch, you want to take cover, as there are a few snipers here. If you have a sniper rifle, you'll make short work of these guys. But make sure you stay behind cover until the shot. Once Sam shouts 'All Clear', this does not necessarily mean there are no more enemies, carefully make your way down to the ramp to avoid being blindsided. There are two more statues here to collect before going all the way down.
Pangloss Statue 91: As you start heading down the ramp, look to your right to see the third collectible (03:08).
Pangloss Statue 92: From the statue above, turn around, facing the bottom of the ramp, then look out to the opposite ledge for the final collectible (03:14).
Now you've got the collectibles out of the way. As soon as you step down to regroup with your allies, the final conflict will kick off to a hectic start. On top of the roofs, there are two snipers and on the ground, you have have drill Romanovs to dispatch. Immediately boost behind the wall and take out both snipers as fast as possible, then focus on one of the Romanovs. If you are lucky, you'll only have to deal with one at a time, then take the other one down. If you live to tell the tale without getting shot in the back, you'll receive a checkpoint. From the back area, a tank will spawn with some Ninja Gorgies. What I found worked best is to boost to the front right side behind a barricade and take out the Gorgies as fast as you can using AR mode and your HMG. If they get close, use your shotgun, but try to stay behind cover because the tank can kill you very quickly. Since the snipers have been destroyed, there is really nothing except the tank that can damage you in this corner. Provoke the tank to charge, then lay down an EMP Emitter and fire your shotgun three times at the rear, then rinse and repeat. Now, it is ideal that you NOT die here because, if you do, the snipers will return, so that's another two enemies who will lower your chances of success.
Once you've destroyed the tank, there should only be two enemies left on the level above the exit. A well-placed grenade or rocket will sort them out, or boost past them and you may be able to hit them from behind. Then just head over to the console for the mission's end. Phew!
Mission 4 (Slave)
I loved this mission. It's short, to the point, and if you die on the boss, you don't have to go through killing everyone all over again (unlike the last few missions). From the last mission, you'll be making your way through a tunnel and stop at the console because...
Pangloss Statue 93: Facing the console, do a 180 and in the right corner you will find the first statue collectible of the mission (00:08).
Pangloss Statue 94: Boost down the ramp and squeeze in between two crates located behind the ammo canisters. You'll find the second statue here (00:20).
As you go along the catwalk, you'll come across a few enemies, but your AI squad will probably mow them down for you.
Pangloss Statue 95: When you get to the stairs, look to your right and on top of a beam (01:16).
Continue until you reach an area that requires you to jump down, but DON'T. There is no need to go down, it's safe up here with a better vantage point of view for taking out all the RIs and Gorgies. Keep going until there are no more, and before jumping down...
Pangloss Statue 96: Before jumping down, look to the right and down near the handrail on the level below for the last collectible (04:04).
OK, time to jump down now and face off against a 'Crystal Viper'. These guys aren't that hard and you have a few AI squadies to act as decoys if you need to run and hide. I simply use the following strategy:
- Shoot from a distance with HMG or Assault Rifle
- Boost melee attack
- Activate AR mode and lay into him
- EMP, then shotgun blasts (or rockets if you have those)
- Hide, rinse and repeat
If he is cloaking he may charge. If you hear his running footsteps, start mashing to end a huge chunk of his health via a QTE. If he gets too close, retreat, rinse and repeat.
Mission 5 (Emancipation)
https://youtu.be/k0Cp5K7Zk2I
This level is both very short and very easy, except for the end boss which is another Unknown, but in a tight space. Boost through, collect the weapons and hit the console. You'll open up what I'm going to call the first 'chamber'. Just a few RIs here to kill. Once done, a Romanov will spawn, but it's dead easy to defeat.
Pangloss Statue 97: In the first 'chamber', look above and to the right of the gate to the next chamber for your first statue (01:48)
Pangloss Statue 98: Between chambers 1 and 2, you'll see a sign saying 'Zero Gravity Area Alpha'. On top of this is the second statue (02:35).
Entering the second chamber, you'll have a few RIs and Gorgies to take care of, which shouldn't be a problem. If it does get too hot, just retreat and let them come to you. Defeating these guys will bring on another wave of the same.
Pangloss Statue 99: Just above the entrance to the third chamber. Because of the angle, you'll need to do this from far away. I have no idea why I couldn't hit this in the video... That's pretty embarrassing, I'll admit it (04:22).
Pangloss Statue 100: When entering the third chamber, you have two ammo crates on your left. Look opposite to see the last collectible of the Act sitting above on a wall (04:45).
This will be the last Unknown battle we have in the Campaign, so make it a fun one. Your AI squadmates will often draw the Unknown's attention away from you, but the battle plan is still the same as before; just watch out for its insta-kill grab attack and you'll be fine. A rocket launcher here instead of a shotgun works wonders. Once he's done, it's mission done as well.
Your skills are approaching awesome young Vanquisher and for making it this far, you earn yourself another two story / difficulty-related achievements.
My WayComplete Act 4 without using mission select.
The High WayComplete Act 4 on Hard difficulty or above without using mission select.
Vanquish - Story Walkthrough - Act 5
CAMPAIGN WALKTHROUGH (HARD) - ACT 5
Act 5 has only three missions, so not much longer to finishing Hard mode!
Mission 1 (Denouement)
As the mission name suggests, this is the finale and things are now starting to wrap up. First of all, my apologies for the video. I managed to make it all the way to the end, only to die twice on the Crystal Viper. But at least it's proof that if a gamer of lackluster skill like myself can do it, so can you.
Pangloss Statue 101: Before going anywhere, boost around the bend and past the gate to an ammo crate and the first collectible (00:13).
Head back and open the door. You'll be up against two Romanovs, RIs and a Buzzard overhead. The Buzzard won't come down until he loses half his health, so we are going to focus on everything else first. What I found worked for me was to head directly to the Gatling Gun to the left. Destroy all the RIs inside the room on the left containing your Gatling Guns. Try to destroy as many RIs before entering the room, but take your time because the Romanovs won't come this way (or never in my experience) and the Buzzard has sporadic fire at best. Once the RIs are gone, I found it easier to use the left Gatling to work on the Buzzard.
ACHIEVEMENT CHANCE: You need to kill this Buzzard before he comes down off his perch. As this is not a time-related activity, we can take our time and destroy all the enemies first, before concentrating on the big guy. Before using the left turret in the control room (facing Buzzard), shoot the barrels out of the way first, then use the Gatling Gun to rob him of around 30-40% or so of his health, then throw an EMP his way. He'll stagger, so jump back on the turret and take off another 30%, then repeat once more for the final blow. This way he'll never be able to stand long enough to jump down. If he does come down, the game will auto-save and you'll need to attempt this again on your second playthrough or, if failing that, Mission Select. I found this to be reasonably easy to do on Hard mode, but you can do this later on Casual if you like. No pressure. Here's a video:
Buzzard BeaterDestroy the Buzzard without allowing it to reach ground level in Act 5-1.
Once the Buzzard has been destroyed, knock off the final Romanov for a new enemy spawn containing a drill Romanov and a few more RIs. Take these down for a checkpoint and a quick breather for a rather hectic battle.
Pangloss Statue 102: Before moving on, from the entrance of this area, head to the rear right corner. Behind a crate is your next statue, melee it, as it's a tricky shot (05:55).
Now, this next bit is a lot of work, but you can miss a lot of the nasty bits if you hurry. IMMEDIATELY boost straight over the bridge to the control center. You will probably get caught up in a spawn point, but once that's finished opening, boost/dodge/roll (no doubt at critical damage here) all the way to the back and left to go up the stairs.
NOTE: If this doesn't work, of course, you can take your time and destroy the enemies one by one, then boost over the bridge between laser bursts.
Once you open the console at the top of the stairs, plant the first bomb, then boost to the second as a BIA comes around the corner. There is another shortcut here whereby you either distract him with a cigarette or just boost past him, and as soon as you get into the room with an RI at a Gatling Gun, press 
+ 
to detonate your bombs, blowing up the lasers, the BIA and all the enemies downstairs. Quickly shoot the RI in front of you and head back to where the BIA was destroyed for a Rocket Launcher. Phew!
Use the three rockets to save Gatling Gun ammo, then unload a ton of pain onto the enemies on the bridge with said Gatling Gun to save the day, save your team, and earn you a brief respite before the next conflict. But before you go through to the next area, there is another statue to abuse.
Pangloss Statue 103: Head back down to the lower level and make your way to the other end opposite the stairs for another statue (09:27).
Now head back upstairs and follow the squad down a long corridor, but DON'T go through the door just yet!
Pangloss Statue 104: When the corridor turns 90 degrees to the left, look overhead on top of the arch for the fourth collectible (10:32).
Entering the final room will cause a Crystal Viper to spawn. You've done this before, but as my video shows, don't be too hasty because it is easy to die here. If you do, a checkpoint was activated just as you entered the room earlier, meaning you can just keep trying until you succeed. Once he's toast, there's nothing more to see here, move along people!
Mission 5-2 (Soldier)
This mission is short, but can be lengthy on Hard mode, depending on how well you do against the boss.
Pangloss Statue 105: From the beginning when facing the console panel, turn around and look up on the light for the first statue (00:06).
Now open up the door via the console for... PLOT TWIST! The secret to success I found is to take this level slow and shoot all the soldier grunts first, then focus on Burns. First, shoot a few grunts and Burns a few times to get him to retreat to the next room. This will give you some space for picking up two more collectibles.
Pangloss Statue 106: Facing Professor Candide, head down the right or left side of the command panel to find an ammo crate and two very obvious statues (01:52).
Pangloss Statue 107: See above. I don't think you needed my help for this one, did you? (01:52).
Keep fighting your way to the boss, very slowly chipping away at his health. When he gets on the rail car, you'll chase him and have to avoid his attacks while trying to get his health down. He has three marine grunts in the car with him. Use the HMG somersault melee ( whilst holding the HMG, then activate AR mode with ) to get some extra height and get rid of these guys. The rail car chase will end shortly after a QTE (rotate anti-clockwise).
Once off the rail car, shoot him a few times along with the two marines to get him to retreat to the final room. Near the newly-opened gate, another two marines will pop out. Send off the poor grunts, then do a U-turn for the mission's final collectible.
Pangloss Statue 108: Backtrack to the rail car the boss was riding in, beneath this is the last collectible of the mission (07:21).
Go through the gate and four marines will jump out from behind the pillars, dispatch them in the usual fashion, but DO NOT GO FURTHER JUST YET. Before proceeding, MAKE SURE you have the Rocket Launcher and, if at all possible, a lock-on laser as well before entering the boss room. You will want these before the mission ends so we can use them for an upgrade exploit in our last mission, making the final boss a LOT easier. If you don't have one, just restart the checkpoint and keep going until you get these.
Ready your weapons and get going. Shoot the two marines you can before entering the room, then stay behind cover at the first barricade on your left. Use AR mode and EMPs to kill the other marines, then focus on the boss, he shouldn't be too hard. Three Rocket Launcher hits and he'll be mostly dead.
Mission 5-3 (Deception)
First of all, guys, this mission is broken up into two videos. The first video is simply the collectibles, the second is the boss fight, as they are so hard I didn't want 1hr long videos of multiple deaths where an expert can do it in several minutes. After killing the first of two Bogeys, you can see I only died once more before a success. Anyways, let's start with the collectibles, shall we? Referring to Video Part 1 above:
Pangloss Statue 109: Turn around and look on top of the archway above you, left side (00:17).
Pangloss Statue 110: Turn around and look on top of the archway above you, right side (00:18).
Pangloss Statue 111: Turn back around and proceed no more than the archways, you can see there are the final two statues right in front of you (00:29).
Pangloss Statue 112: See above for the final collectible of the game (00:29).
Finally! That's all the statues for you, which means no more of me trying to create and capture no-death collectible videos on Hard mode... Woop woop! If you've missed any statues in the campaign, that's not a problem. Just remember which ones you've missed for your No Death Run or after that using Mission Select.
Proceed along for the cutscene and let the final battle begin! Now, there is a weapon upgrade exploit you can use to fight these guys with maxed-out weapons. This is the reason I asked you to bring a Rocket Launcher or Lock-On Laser before the end of the previous mission.
Below is a list of suitable weapon locations around the map to collect. Do not waste ammunition, as you will not fight these guys just yet:
- Assault rifle - Behind you
- Shotgun - Directly ahead behind cover
- Rocket Launcher - Forward and left
- EMP Emitter - Directly ahead of this rocket barricade cover
- Forward from EMP is a grenade
- Far left corner is an HMG & Lock-On Laser
- Center forward of the map is another EMP Emitter
Grab your weapons without firing them for the upgrades to stack, then let yourself be killed. Select Checkpoint to start again with your weapons stats unchanged and rinse and repeat until all your weapons are maxed out. There is no easy way to kill the bosses, even with the upgraded weapons; however, here are some useful tips most discover in beating the duo:
- Make sure you boost roll to avoid damage (you'll need this for the sixth challenge anyways, so practice here); you boost roll by dodging and then immediately going into a slide, then immediately rolling. Doing this makes it incredibly hard for enemies to hit you - even Bogeys.
- Use AR mode wisely. I found popping out, engaging AR and letting rip the Rocket Launcher or Lock-on Laser, then boosting back behind cover worked well. Overheating without cover is an immediate death sentence.
- Your cover will periodically disappear, so boost roll to the next area.
- Turn the music off in settings and listen to the enemies and what they say. They're pretty talkative and the dialogues are precursors to their next attack.
- Once you destroy one Bogey, you'll activate a QTE where you need to mash , thereby giving you a checkpoint. This means if you die, it will refresh all your ammo and still only have to fight one Bogey. One Bogey with six deadly rockets and Lock-On Lasers is a cakewalk.
Here's a video:
Once the second bogey is dead you'll need to complete a QTE, then a space game after a cutscene where you shoot the developers' faces in the form of asteroids. Once the adrenaline hangover has worn off and the credits complete, you'll now realize you've finished the game on Hard mode and have earned the following achievements:
Because you are a good little gamer and finished all missions from start to finish using only continue and NOT using mission select, you'll pick up the last two campaign mission achievements as well:
SurvivorComplete all Acts without using mission select.
ARS OperatorComplete all Acts on Hard difficulty or above without using mission select.
The second hardest part is done. Congratulations! Next, you'll do a no-death run on casual difficulty, then the Tactical challenges where the difficulty ramps up to 11.
Vanquish - No Death Run
Well, you completed the game on Hard mode and now have to do it again on Casual. It's really not that bad though, so no whining! Due to your newfound awesomeness, this run-through will be a breeze. There isn't much to this achievement, except to remember the following:
- Start a completely New Game on Casual/Casual Auto difficulty
- Play from start to finish using only the continue option - no checkpoint or mission select
- Don't die, but if you by chance do die, before Sam's death animation is complete, hit
,then return to the title screen and continue from there. The only exception is if you get grabbed by the Unknown boss type, which doesn't let you exit out. There are three in the game, just keep your distance and have a nice shotgun and HMG ready - Unlike in the 360 version, you won't be able to back up to a USB, so I would play online until I got to the Unknown enemy, then switch to play offline, then sync to progress my save
- After each mission, check your stats to ensure that your death count is still at 0
- Being on casual mode, pick up any Pangloss statues or mission-specific achievements you don't have yet. You'll find them a lot easier this time around
- Melee kill as many enemies as possible for the Heartbreaker achievement while you're at it
- Lastly, try to keep the same weapons for upgrades to help out with bosses and choke points. I would keep the heavy machine gun, lock-on laser and rocket launcher
Once you complete the game for the second and last time, including the credits, the following achievement will pop:
Living LegendComplete the game without dying, regardless of difficulty level.
Vanquish - Mop-Up, Chapter-specific & Random Achievements
Alright, you've crushed both playthroughs, so there is a good chance you already have the majority of these achievements done and dusted. But if not you'll find them here. Just head into Mission Select (isn't it exciting? You can finally use this option now!) staying on Casual difficulty to make short work of these achievements.
ACT 1
Location: Mission 1-6
Trick ShotDestroy three enemy robots at once with rocket launcher splash damage.
Adrenaline RushManually trigger AR Mode and destroy three enemy robots in a row.
In this mission, you’ll have a great chance to be able to get a few achievements out of the way. These were already outlined in the Hard mode walkthrough, but thought I included them here as well. As soon as you are escorting the APC, hunt for new weapons and hit "restart checkpoint." Since the weapon spawns here are random, you can keep trying for all the achievements. Simply destroy the large jellyfish, which will leave four very easy-to-kill jellyfish. Don't forget NOT to aim with the rocket launcher for 'splash damage' only.
ACT 2:
Location: Mission 2-1
Once you've passed through the conveyor belt system and up the stairs, you'll reach a small conflict that has two Romanovs in it. First, boost melee the Romanovs, then return to safety behind cover, rinse and repeat. Do this on both Romanovs with each taking two hits to kill on Casual difficulty. You cannot shoot them in any way, so if you accidentally do, reload the checkpoint.
Once done, reload the checkpoint and get yourself a Disc Launcher. It doesn't need to be upgraded. Get in close and cut off both of its arms, then shoot out its legs with an assault rifle, followed by a melee strike for the kill. Now, I found this one to be challenging to get, with a mix of results. Using an assault rifle, systematically destroying each body part in turn, as per the achievement description never seemed to work, but I had more success using the Disc Launcher as you can see in the video below.
Location: Mission 2-2
You've probably already popped this one, haven't you? After you gain control of the transport you will be in a tunnel with flying friendlies passing you. The only enemies in this area are on a single train, and all you need to do is shoot all of them, which is made ridiculously easy with the auto turrets on your ride. If you miss it, just reload the checkpoint and try again.
Location: Mission 2-3
Piece by PieceDestroy the arms, legs, head, and back of a KNRB-0 Argus robot.
These two achievements can be done in one hit and I've uploaded one YouTube video for both to group them together. When you encounter these two Argus robots, one will be in spider mode while the other is in bipedal mode. Focus on the nearest spider Argus and blow up his core, prompting a QTE cutscene. FAIL THIS QTE and the robot will go into bipedal mode as well. Take them down one at a time in the usual fashion of destroying a critical point, then focusing on the core; use rocket launchers if available. Use the tanks as cover, there is plenty of space to boost around and plenty of ammo crates to take them down.
Once the first is down, you can focus solely on the second Argus. This will need a lot more work because you need to destroy all its critical points, I.E. all four limbs, its back and head. Looking back at the video, I would destroy a limb, then the back, then limbs, then the head (which is a QTE). Just watch out for his behemoth laser attack because even on Casual, this can kill you.
ACT 3
Location: Mission 3-2
Based on the description, this achievement is obviously found in Mission 3-2. The only thing that can destroy the statue is the tank, so stay close behind it, stun it with EMP grenades and blast it with the shotgun or rocket launcher if you have one. Once all the enemies have been destroyed, the achievement will pop. This is ridiculously easy to do on Casual after playing through Hard mode, see video below:
Location: Mission 3-3
For this one, you may have not got it on Hard Mode because not only do you need to destroy two cannons located at the end of the level, but you MUST ALSO survive and complete the level. On Hard, you were probably just focusing on surviving and picking up those statues, or a least I hope you were.
On your way out to the collapsing bridge, there are two ammo crates. Make sure one of them is a rocket launcher, if not, just restart the checkpoint until you get one. At the end of the bridge are a ton of enemies and six cannons, but you only need to destroy two cannons. On Casual difficulty, you can easily destroy two cannons with two direct shots. Just activate AR, aim, and fire at the same turret twice. It should hit nearby ones as well. After that, just finish the level, easy!
Location: Mission 3-4
You'll find yourself on the monorail with four sniper rifles. Don't grab them all at once because you need all the ammo you can get. The first achievement here is simple. Shoot out all the spotlights throughout the level. The second is a little more challenging. As soon as you hear the AI say, "Enemies ahead," zoom in with the sniper rifle. Straight ahead are two floating enemy turrets. You need to shoot these both for the achievement to pop. See below for the two video achievement walkthroughs.
FlyswatterDestroy all the floating turrets in Act 3-4.
Fisher is the Other SamProceed on the monorail in Act 3-4 without being spotted by the enemy troops or searchlights.
Location: Mission 3-5
Auld Lang SyneDestroy two enemy robots who have been distracted by a cigarette.
Adrenaline RushManually trigger AR Mode and destroy three enemy robots in a row.
Start the mission from the very beginning and make sure you have a rocket launcher before you blow a hole in the Kreon's leg. If you don't, just hit restart. This way, even if you don't get the achievement in the next section, you can just hit restart checkpoint and try again. After the cutscene, immediately boost to the middle of the level and hide behind cover. A platform with over 10 RIs and a Romanov will extend towards you, raining down some pretty heavy fire. Staying behind cover, press and Sam will light up a cigarette and throw it away. As soon as the enemy fire is drawn away, activate AR mode and use a rocket launcher on the enemies, hopefully targeting the center one. In the video below, I found it helps to get rid of the Romanov first, then blow the rest away. As you can see I managed to get it with just one cigarette and one rocket. I'm such a boss, right? You need to destroy 10 enemies distracted by cigarettes, so you have two more cigarettes and rocket launchers for this section. An identical situation will present itself whilst on top of the bridge, further on in the mission.
Once you've popped these two achievements, simply hit restart checkpoint. With your rocket launcher equipped, stand up from cover and wait until you go into damage-induced AR mode. Fire your rocket launcher and hit at least three RIs to pop an easy achievement, if you haven't already got it.
ACT 4
Location: Mission 4-1
Civil DisobedienceIgnore the elevator start order in Act 4-1. Instead, hold position and destroy all reinforcements.
For this one, simply hang back at the end of the elevator and kill all those RIs. They'll keep coming for a while but once they've run out, the achievement will pop; video below.
ACT 5
Location: Mission 5-1
Buzzard BeaterDestroy the Buzzard without allowing it to reach ground level in Act 5-1.
At the beginning of the mission, you'll open a door and Sam will point out a Buzzard ahead with a health bar across the screen. You need to kill this Buzzard before he comes down off his perch. As this is not a time-related activity, we can take our time and destroy all the enemies first before concentrating on the big guy. Boost to the left side of the area to find a control room with a few enemies. On Casual difficulty, you can just bust down the door and wipe them all out, then use the turret to your right to take care of two Romanovs. That only leaves the Buzzard. First, shoot down the barrels in the way of the left turret (facing the Buzzard) then jump on and get rid of 30% or so of his health, then throw an EMP his way. Jump back on the turret and take off another 30% before repeating this one final time. This way he'll never be able to stand up long enough to jump down.
If you delay and he does come down, the game will auto-save and you'll need to hit restart and try again. It is on Casual difficulty, so it shouldn't be hard to charge through from the beginning. Here's the how-to video:
Vanquish - Collectibles
COLLECTIBLES
As you've probably noticed, there are 112 Pangloss Statues throughout the campaign and if you missed any in the campaign, don't worry because you can now choose Chapter Select and it will tell you which onoes you are missing. I've upgraded the Xbox One walkthrough by creating additional chapter YouTube videos, compressed for just the collectibles. DO NOT do this on your first or no death run. Only do this on your mop-up run.
Maka91 has also been kind enough to allow us permission to post his full-length video here in the walkthrough and is a great reference if you have missed a lot or am doing a new run. Please make sure to head over to YouTube and like the video as well and give him a sub if you haven't already. The guy contributes a lot to the gaming community.
Once you've gotten the last collectible in Mission 5-3 your achievement will pop:
Mission 1-1 Landing:
No collectibles. Boost along!
Mission 1-2 Breach:
Pangloss Statue 1: After flanking the enemies there are two turrets overlooking the area you started in. Standing in front of or using the turret, look to your right a little to spot the first little golden guy.
Pangloss Statue 2: Further away from the first statue in the same location is the second statue.
Pangloss Statues 3: After the little warehouse skirmish with the walker, with your back to the door you need to proceed through, look right towards a big, brown crate, and the next statue is up on a catwalk.
Pangloss Statue 4: Once you're through the doors, immediately look to the left and the statue is near a large A01 sign.
Mission 1-3 Giant:
Pangloss Statue 5: The second you're out of the corridor, look in between the bottom of the stairs for the next statue.
Pangloss Statue 6 & 7: If facing the direction the Argus was located, turn around 180 and head to the far right corner toward the the exit. Look left and right for the next two statues respectively.
Pangloss Statue 8: Facing the direction of the Argus robot again, go all the way round to the left of the semi circle, look behind the fence to the left of the crates on the border of the map. There's the final statue for this mission.
Mission 1-4 Rescue:
Pangloss Statue 9: Boost through the corridor past the door and directly at the end (where the AI turn left) will be a vehicle, on top of which is the statue.
Pangloss Statue 10: When you're in the first area of conflict, destroy the robots, head down the middle "street" on the right side. Behind the two containers will be a pesky little statue.
Pangloss Statue 11: Save the first soldier named Kennedy. After you've rescued him, look behind where he was held. Just below you, on a crate to the left, will be another one.
Pangloss Statue 12: After you've rescued all three soldiers, look toward the exit, BUT DON'T GO THROUGH YET! Just beyond the doorway to this exit on the right side is the last statue. You must do this before you go too far inside - which is after a couple of steps, otherwise you end the mission.
Mission 1-5 Trust:
Pangloss Statue 13: This one is a cheeky statue to get. At the start of the mission, turn around and head in the opposite direction you're supposed to go. On the left side, just above a weapons crate, there's a statue standing in all his majesty.
Pangloss Statue 14: You'll be told about saving a lone soldier, so once you've fought enemies and rescued him, head through the gate and you'll hear about how Burns is pinned down by sniper AI. Standing where you just came through (i.e. looking in the direction you're supposed to go), look to the right and up on the ramp for one.
Pangloss Statue 15: If I were you I would save this one until after the tank is toast, to save yourself from dying unnecessarily. Before going through the opening the tank made to complete the mission, look to the right of it at the base, behind the railing for the next statue.
Pangloss Statue 16: Directly above the last one, look above the sign on the door for the last statue.
Mission 1-6 Darkness:
Pangloss Statue 17: This statue is found when you meet up with the APC you’re escorting. Head to the far left side of the room, where there’s a car on fire. Looking through the flames will be a statue to shoot.
Pangloss Statue 18: Once you've climbed to the top level of the barricade to plant the C4, turn around and look to the right platform on the right-hand side. He's up there, waiting... taunting.
Pangloss Statue 19: Once the barricade is destroyed, boost forward to the first crate you see on the left hand side of the tunnel, hes hiding behind this crate.
Pangloss Statue 20: At the very end of the chapter once you've taken out a number of jellyfish and another Romanov, near the up ramp on the right hand side of the tunnel will be some burning debris. Look through the gap to find the little golden blighter. Make sure you boost ahead of the group to get this, because once the tank reaches a certain point the mission will end.
Mission 1-7 Seismic:
Pangloss Statue 21: From the top of the ramp you entered on, head slightly left and look down at the collapsed rubble.
Pangloss Statue 22: Continue around until you get to the farthest-right corner of the area (referenced from the entrance). Sitting next to a grey crate marked '68' you'll find the next one.
Pangloss Statue 23: After getting the above statue look to the left side of the crate on your left. You'll find him hiding there between the crates.
Pangloss Statue 24: Once you head up in the lift, it will stop, forcing you into a quick battle. Facing the elevator console, look up and to your left to see this last statue of this mission despite it appearing post-mission brief.
Mission 1-8 Hostile:
Pangloss statue 25: Retrace your steps to the elevator you arrived on. As you approach the area, just on the left-hand side of the entrance in a blocked-off elevator is the statue.
Pangloss statue 26: Now head around the next right corner to some crates and you can find this shy little fella hiding between the cracks.
Pangloss statue 27: Keep circling around the right side of the arena to the next statue, located in the corner.
Pangloss statue 28: Lastly, the final statue is above the sign titled 'Platform 5 Above' just above the mission exit. Look above that sign on the left for a catwalk with our lil' man.
Mission 2-1 River:
Pangloss Statue 29: Once all the enemies are toast, head towards the gate then do a right hand u-turn at the side of the gate to locate the first statue of the mission, surrounded by burning debris.
Pangloss Statue 30: Defeat all the enemies in the first area then double-back. On the opposite side of the room and on your right side you'll find yourself the second collectible.
Pangloss Statue 31: From this crate look out to the opposing platform, atop a crate is the third statue of this mission.
Pangloss Statue 32: From the entrance, head straight until you see an RI behind a turret (who may have a friend or two). Perpendicular to where he is shooting is a wire link fence. Boost through the volley of gunfire to the fence and locate the little blighter.
Mission 2-2 Rapids:
Pangloss Statue 33: When you have time, head to the front of the transport you are riding in and you'll see this little guy just waiting to be shot in the front-right corner.
Pangloss Statue 34: This enemy transport has a statue hidden at its rear back compartment; you need to let it get ahead a little to shoot it .
Pangloss Statue 35: Look to the rear left side of your monorail post-breakdown and you'll see this on the corner of the building, pretty obvious.
Pangloss Statue 36: Once you regain control of Sam, a friendly transport named Smith will come up from behind. Located on the back of his ship is the last statue.
Mission 2-3 Nightmare:
Pangloss Statue 37: Upon starting the mission, turn to the right and you'll see the little guy on a crate.
Pangloss Statue 38: After the mini-ambush with the Romanov, head further down the corridor and you can find him under the grating in the floor.
Pangloss Statue 39: Once the Argus' are destroyed and mission stats close, head back to the left of where you entered and on the awning you'll find the third statue.
Pangloss Statue 40: From the above collectible, boost to the other side of the arena, looking at the exit. Turn left to see some black scaffolding, on the other side of this is the last statue.
Mission 2-4 Struggle:
Pangloss Statue 41: After heading out of the entrance gate, turn and go left to the left side of a collapsed ramp.
Pangloss Statue 42: Head on through the gate, the level will be a short hill, followed by a plateau then a hill to the bunker. If you are taking cover on the plateau facing up the hill, look to your right and you'll see a disused ramp on the right side of the map. On top of this is another statue.
Pangloss Statue 43: Once you reach the first landing, there will be two turrets facing out onto the battlefield you just blitzed through. Look in the corner here for another little golden boy.
Pangloss Statue 44: Before hitting the console in the second bunker, look out from the balcony across at another to see the little guy enjoying the view.
Mission 2-5 Assault:
Pangloss Statue 45: Before jumping in the elevator, head to the left and you can find your first statue chilling on a balcony enjoying the view.
Pangloss Statue 46: Just before sliding into cover, shoot the statue on the right side near the entrance.
Pangloss Statue 47: When Burns says 'Here comes anther one' Get behind cover. At this point you should be just below an RI manning a turret. Shoot him then look to the right side for another statue.
Pangloss Statue 48: Looking at the bunker entrance, turn around and head to the right, you'll find the last little golden boy of the mission.
Mission 2-6 Stronghold:
Pangloss Statue 49: Head back through the arch you came through and look in the right hand corner (facing the massive laser). There you'll find the first statue of the mission.
You have to destroy the laser system three times, but before the third turn you want to destroy all other laser systems and enemies so that you can get the last three collectibles.
Pangloss Statue 50: Before destroying the laser for the third time, in the center of the area beneath the laser system you'll see a back and yellow ledge and between two columns you'll find another little guy (easier with sniper rifle).
Pangloss Statue 51: Look just to the right of the previous statue at the same level for the next one.
Pangloss Statue 52: Near the right side of the bottom of the ramp in a bunker you'll find the last collectible golden boy.
Mission 3-1 Forward:
Pangloss Statue 53: Immediately look to your right after starting the mission, next to one of the dropships you'll find your first collectible of the mission.
Pangloss Statue 54: After you take out the little Gorgies but before going through the barricade, turn around and you'll find the next lil' guy sitting on the top of the right staircase banister.
Pangloss Statue 55: Pass through the barricade and straight ahead of you will be some boxes, melee attack one to find the little blighter.
Pangloss Statue 56: With a sniper rifle look between the top and middle ad boards below where the snipers were stationed.
Pangloss Statue 57: After the final battle of this mission there will be a lot of walking through rubble on the way to the next mission. In clear view on the right side next to some burning kiosks is a statue. WARNING: If you miss this, when choosing mission select you need to go through and complete Mission 3-1 again, if not you'll start at Mission 3-2 but are unable to retrace your steps.
Mission 3-2 Attack:
Pangloss Statue 57: After the final battle of the last mission there will be a lot of walking through rubble on the way to the next area. In clear view on the right next to two burning kiosks. WARNING: If you miss this, when choosing mission select you need to go through and complete Mission 3-1 again, if not you'll start at Mission 3-2 but are unable to retrace your steps.
Pangloss Statue 58: As you go over the bridge look immediately to your right.
Pangloss Statue 59: Once the tank and enemies are destroyed, head over to the right hand side (opposite your entry point) and you can find him wedged between two boxes.
Pangloss Statue 60: Continue on with the story and Elena will mention an elevator once the big gate has been opened. Head along and on the right side you'll see this guy in front of the Cuban Cafe.
Mission 3-3 Vertigo:
Pangloss Statue 61: On your way out to the bridge, look immediately to your left and you'll see a bus, the little guy is right there.
Pangloss Statue 62: Keep boosting along and when you see the next ammo crate, keep going a little more and you'll see a large chunk of the bridge starting to break away on your right. Activate AR time and shoot the statue located on the left corner.
Pangloss Statue 63: The bridge will come to a left curve after what appears to be a massive bus slides off, but stay on the right side and quickly activate AR mode at the edge looking down, you'll have to shoot this guy pretty quickly and then continue on.
Pangloss Statue 64: Just after crossing the bridge look to the left side and you'll see him up against the wall of what appears to be a tollbooth.
Mission 3-4 Dragon:
Pangloss Statue 65: Once the first round of spotlights have been shot out look straight ahead and locate the horizontal walkway, look to the right side next to a vertical pillar for your statue.
Pangloss Statue 66: Once you have shot down the transport ship (either in front of you if you are fast enough or watch your back as it reappears over a bridge). Again look to the front right side on top of a platform.
Pangloss Statue 67: After the turrets have been destroyed quickly look just above the tunnel exit on the left side, you'll need the rifle zoom and need to be quick. As you can see in the video I've gotten him before but missed this time.
Pangloss Statue 68: Upon disembarking the monorail and dispatching all the enemies, before affixing the bombs and blowing the debris, head around the back via the right side and look to the back left of the station for the last statue of the mission.
Mission 3-5 Despair:
Pangloss Statue 69: After protecting the tanks you'll have a cutscene of Sam jumping off the bridge. Look immediately to your left on top of a bus for the first statue of the mission.
Pangloss Statue 70: From the last statue, boost forward and right all the way until you reach an ammo crate. Look to your right on some rubble for the second statue.
Pangloss Statue 71: After the cutscene boost up to the first blockade and look out to the left, you'll see this guy watching the battle at his leisure on a stack of rubble.
Pangloss Statue 72: Looking down the ramp on the right side, look to the left on top of a platform and you'll see this guy here. You can probably hit him from behind cover without dying but DO NOT go to the bottom on the ramp because you'll activate the cutscene and miss this collectible.
Mission 3-6 Infiltrate:
Pangloss Statue 73: This will pass overhead when riding the transport, on the second overhead pipe on the right side.
Pangloss Statue 74: Once you've dealt with the ninjas, from the entrance of this area look to your left between the second and third containers.
Pangloss Statue 75: On your way up the ramp to the next area after the RIs, look to your right and slightly below you for the next statue.
Pangloss Statue 76: Facing the elevator console, look out beyond to the rings and below you will be the last collectible.
Mission 3-7 Phantoms:
Pangloss Statue 77: Immediately turn to your left when starting the mission.
Pangloss Statue 78: Head back to the lift you came up on (near the first turret) and look down on the lower level for a statue.
Pangloss Statue 79: Now head over to the next turret further along to the edge and make sure to tap that statue as well.
Pangloss Statue 80: Up on the next level to your left is the final statue of Act 3.
Mission 4-1 Silence:
Pangloss Statue 81: Behind the 'Crown Point Park' sign on a raised section behind a little fence next to the river is the first statue.
Pangloss Statue 82: After you go through the Dam Control Center arch, look to the left and just above the water level at the river you can find our second collectible.
Pangloss Statue 83: Once you've cleared the next area, head up and around onto the circular platform. Looking out into the forest from this platform, locate the statue in the fork of the middle tree.
Pangloss Statue 84: As you come up to the final elevator there will be three ammo cannisters on your right side, look behind the middle one, sitting on a rock.
Mission 4-2 Brink:
Pangloss Statue 85: From the entrance. if you look to your right on a balcony there is the first one.
Pangloss Statue 86: Head down the other end of the bridge and on the right side in front of some shipping containers is the second statue.
Pangloss Statue 87: From statue #86, head left around the debris and containers then look down into the pit, below eye level on the left side is the statue.
Pangloss Statue 88: After destroying the Argus robot, head out onto the stairs and do a 180. On the opposite side of the stairs you'll find the last little statue.
Mission 4-3 Maneuver:
Pangloss Statue 89: When you get to the arch after taking out the turret, turn around and look to the ledge on your right for the first statue of the mission.
Pangloss Statue 90: Head back to the turret the RI was using and beyond the turret is our second collectible.
Pangloss Statue 91: As you start heading down the ramp, look to your right to see the third collectible.
Pangloss Statue 92: From the statue above, turn around facing the bottom of the ramp and look out to the opposite ledge for the final collectible.
Mission 4-4 Slave:
Pangloss Statue 93: Facing the console do a 180 and in the right corner you will find the first statue collectible of the mission.
Pangloss Statue 94: Boost down the ramp and squeezed in between two crates located behind the ammo canisters you'll find the second statue.
Pangloss Statue 95: When you get to the stairs, look to your right and on top of a beam.
Pangloss Statue 96: Before jumping down, look to the right and down near the handrail on the level below for the last collectible.
Mission 4-5 Emancipation:
Pangloss Statue 97: In the first 'chamber' look above and to the right of the gate to the next chamber for your first statue.
Pangloss Statue 98: Between chambers 1 and 2 you'll see a sign saying 'Zero Gravity Area Alpha'. On top of this is the second statue.
Pangloss Statue 99: Just above the entrance to the third chamber, because of the angle you'll need to do this from far away. I have no idea why I couldn't hit this in the video... That's pretty embarrassing, I'll admit it.
Pangloss Statue 100: When entering the third chamber you have two ammo crates on your left. Look opposite to see them last sitting above on a wall.
Mission 5-1 Denouement:
Pangloss Statue 101: Before going anywhere, boost around the bend and past the gate to an ammo crate and the first collectible.
Pangloss Statue 102: Before moving on, from the entrance of this area head to the rear right corner. Behind a crate is your next statue, melee it as its a tricky shot.
Pangloss Statue 103: Head back down to the lower level and make your way to the other end opposite the stairs for another statue.
Pangloss Statue 104: When the corridor turns 90 degrees to the left, look overhead on top of the arch for the fourth collectible.
Mission 5-2 Soldier:
Pangloss Statue 105: From the beginning when facing the console panel, turn around and look up on the light for the first statue.
Pangloss Statue 106 & 107: Facing Professor Candide, head down the right or left side of the command panel to find an ammo crate and two very obvious statues.
Pangloss Statue 108: Once off the rail car chase and shot a few baddies, backtrack to the rail car the boss was riding in, beneath this is the last collectible of the mission.
Mission 5-3 Deception:
Pangloss Statue 109: Turn around and look on top of the archway above you, left side.
Pangloss Statue 110: Turn around and look on top of the archway above you, right side.
Pangloss Statue 111 & 112: Turn back around and proceed no more than the archways, you can see there are the final 2 statues right in front of you.
And thats it!! Lastly, onto the challenges. I know you've been putting these off but lets go.
Vanquish - Tactical Challenges
TACTICAL CHALLENEGES
OK folks this is it, this is the big one. The final achievement ratio is completely justified and you'll need all your determination, skills and perseverance to get this one. But it is possible, and hopefully this guide will cut the time required.
CHALLENGES OVERVIEW
- Each arena is essentially a Horde mode battle. Keep killing all the enemies in each wave until they are all gone. If you leave one enemy you can delay the next wave in order to prepare;
- The challenges are set on normal difficulty so after playing Hard mode you'll be ready. They get really difficult because of the enemy onslaught; if you are surrounded you will not last long;
- You need to be able to use the AR mode, boost cancel (aka boost roll) and grenades efficiently. Being able to switch weapons on the fly is a must;
- The challenges open up once you finish the campaign on Normal difficulty or harder and the final Challenge 6 opens up when you finish the first five challenges with any time score.
In addition to logging the enemies and strategies I found helpful, I'll be posting my own videos with general hints and tips myself and others have found out the hard way. Re-watching the videos is a bit cringe-worthy for me with all the small (and colossal) mistakes I make, but it gets the job done and ANYBODY can do better than me.
As for my own advice, practice. Learn when and where to throw grenades, where and what the next spawn point will be, the best place to take cover, etc. Each challenge isn't too lengthy and you should always try to learn from your last attempt, and conserve as much ammo as you can.
Just a mental health PSA: If you get stressed and angry (which will happen), go for some exercise or even grab a drink and come back to it later. This final achievement is also a mental challenge, particularly Challenge 6. Find your own strategy and stick with it. One more tip is to pause the game between rounds in each challenge and stay calm. Getting the jitters will only get you killed.
CHALLENGE 1
Round 1: Bunch of RIs. There are lots of RIs in the far right corner, boost over the first hurdle and lob a grenade, continue around to face the spawn points and lob a few more. If you can time it well you can use your grenades to wipe them all out otherwise try to pick them off one by one. You can replenish your grenades at the top of the ramp.
Round 2: 3 x Romanovs. If you turn around from the last conflict in the corner a Romanov should spawn in front of you, use a shotgun to the back to dispose of him quickly then take cover. Taunt the Romanovs on the other side of the map to release their big homing missile then shoot it for an instant kill.
Round 3: 4 x Flame Romanovs, few smaller RIs and a couple of tougher yellow RIs. The secret to this round is to target the fuel tanks of the Romanovs, when the tanks explode they may take out a a few other enemies if you're lucky. Retreat if they get too close, the flame Romanovs have a limited range.
Round 4: 3 x Walkers, 3 x Romanovs and RIs. Stick to the rear right corner and take out the RIs on the walker closest to you. This will leave the walker without threat but controllable. Use it to take out as many Romanovs as possible as these are your greatest threat. Use AR to do the same to the other walkers so you can use them in the next round.
Round 5: 2 x Romanovs & 1 Bogey. With your walkers take out the Romanovs first, leaving you with just the bogey. Now this is just 1 bogey on normal difficulty, so it shouldn't be anything you can't manage.
Now as you can see in my video below, everything went pear-shaped quite often but as long as you keep a cool head and don't run out of ammo its not too bad. Remember to keep your shotgun for the Romanovs and the walker units to cut down the bogey.
CHALLENGE 2
Possibly the easiest of all challenges, this one has minimal big guys and no bogeys! And upgrades, lots of delicious upgrades (for rockets!)
Round 1: RIs throughout the map. If you can use grenades to take out the spawn points, it will only leave the snipers dotted above you throughout the map. Pretty easy stuff, just activate AR mode and take them down one at a time.
Round 2: 2 x Walkers, a Romanov, Yellow and Red RIs. Quickly take out the walkers for the firepower and focus on the Romanov. Take the rest out with AR mode and careful headshots. Grab the rocket launcher and upgrade before the end of this round, you'll definitely want it for the next few rounds.
Round 3: Spheres and Flying RIs. Don't let the flying RIs land! Using an EMP will destroy them immediately, then use either rockets or shotguns at close range for the spheres. Assault rifle will work too, its just Spheres.
Round 4: 2 x Romanovs, RIs & a transport ship. Like atop the Kreon, shooting the transport ships driver causes the entire craft to explode, then just use the usual approach for Romanovs and the RIs. Try to save a few rockets for the final round.
Round 5: BIA and RIs. At this point you should have at least three rockets and an upgrade or two laying around. Use the rockets on the BIA then usual cover and AR time to dispose of 'the remains'.
CHALLENGE 3
Another 'easy-ish' one. This map is quite large and the enemies rarely seem to stray too far. There are again a few upgrades that drop, I found it best to use those on your rocket launcher, it makes life much easier when dealing with large size 'small enemy' groups. Your shotgun doesn't need upgrading, there are only three Romanovs to deal with in this challenge.
Round 1: Spheres, Ninjas, flying turret & a ground turret. Boost straight ahead and pick up the rocket launcher and use it on the Ninjas first, followed by the Spheres. Double back for the flying turret and RI manning the turret around the corner.
Round 2: Ninjas, walkers & RIs. Boost back to where you started for the Ninjas to spawn, use a rocket launcher if you have any on each group, or AR time and shotgun. You can make it easier for the next round if you only kill the RIs manning the walkers, leaving the walker immobile yet functional to destroy the Romanovs coming up. Its up to you, as you can see in the video Dragenyo didn't want to waste time preserving the walkers.
Round 3: 3 x Drill Romanovs, Ninjas & RIs. In the video he is quite boss in his approach and manages to destroy all the ninjas with an EMP Emitter followed immediately by a grenade. I could never do it so just took them out one by one - both enemy types suck at long range so use that to your advantage.
Round 4: Spheres and an Unknown. The Unknown will spawn first then the Spheres so unlike the video I suggest not getting caught between these. I simply waited on the other side of the map and lured the Spheres over first, then took on the Unknown by his lonesome. There are plenty of rocket launcher upgrades by now.
Round 5: Buzzard and a few flying RIs. Cakewalk.
CHALLENGE 4
Regarded as the second toughest of the challenges, this one is playing hard and fast in a confined space with little room for error. I did not enjoy this one very much.
Round 1: Ninjas charge while two Fire Romanovs spawn in the background. Try to knock a few out and boost dodge around until the Romanovs are closer. Boost around them then turn around and quickly destroy the tank on its back with HMG. Hopefully it blows up a few Ninjas as well and possibly the other Romanov as well. Wait until you are at the back of the map before dispatching the last enemy and grab the LFE gun and hide next to the gate against the rock wall.
Round 2: Little jellyfish, 3 x Romanovs and Yellow RIs. Grab the LFE gun and hit all the jellyfish at once closest to you then manage the spawn point, throw a grenade to your left and try to eliminate all those yellow RIs ahead. If you can live long enough without getting killed, then it's just the three Romanovs on the right side of your rock wall. I found it easiest to eliminate the missile Romanov, then the one around your right corner then the one on the far side (which may eventually come looking for you). Beware of the laser as it can go through some cover and one-shot you.
Round 3: Unknown, a turret and a few RIs. Destroy the turret as soon as it appears then pick off the RIs. By that time the Unknown will have spawned. I found keeping my distance and using AR mode on its core the most successful. Boost to the farthest area (opposite entry) for EMPs which you want for the next wave.
Round 4: RIs, Flying RIs and a Tank. Hide behind the (temporary) cover and throw an EMP to the right bubble spawn to get the flying RIs to fall out of the sky, leaving you with only two EMPs for the tank. If you messed up against the Flying RIs, use HMG or Assault rifle but get rid of them quick, you don't want them landing. Jump out behind cover with AR mode to hit the four RIs in front of the tank then hide behind the ammo canisters until the tank is close. Thrown an EMP and boost behind it with two or three shots to its weak spot and a melee to finish (but watch out for its rear guns, after the EMP wears off you don't want those operational). Pick up the rocket launcher and grenades before moving on.
Round 5: Crystal Viper, Ninjas, Romanovs. On the downside you have almost no space to move around without getting destroyed by fast moving deadly overpowering enemies, but on the upside you do have a rocket launcher. So yeah, that's nice. Go forward a little to spawn the Ninjas at the back and throw grenades so you won't have to deal with them. Jump back into AR mode and up to your left is a Romanov, two rockets and he's gone. Hide behind cover as a flame Romanov will be right in front of you but be wary of the Crystal Viper. Hopefully, you can engage AR mode and destroy the Romanovs tank then take on the CV by mashing 
. This means you now only have two enemies left: Crystal Viper at your feet and a missile Romanov on the ridge above and right. Boost dodge and use the last two rockets on the Romanov, leaving you with just a Crystal Viper to deal with. Listen for his footsteps and he is pretty easy on his own.
CHALLENGE 5
I found this to be rather easy as far as the challenges go, all battles are compartmentalized making it less intense and easier to manage.
Round 1: Bunches of RIs and transports. Throw a grenade then shoot it to detonate, eliminating all the RIs in front of you, if you miss any the safest cover is to the right from the starting position. There are two gunships outside, pop into AR shoot the pilots. Grab the rocket launcher afterwards.
Round 2: Yellow and Red RIs. Head down the stairs and use a rocket on the enemies in front, then watch your right flank for a turret. Take these out one at a time, be wary of your cover. There is an upgrade in the corner.
Round 3: Heading towards the bridge spawns a few Ninja Gorgies and a Buzzard. Use a rocket or grenade to defeat the Ninjas in front and the HMG or shotgun to clean up any remaining Gorgies while you backtrack back to the control room. Staying behind a pillar means the Buzzard can't get you. Save any rockets you have by whittling down its health using shotgun or other regular weapons. There are a few weapon options before going down through the gate into the next area; I would swap the shotgun for the LFE gun.
Round 4: 3 x Drill Romanovs. Use avoidance tactics and the LFE to get them all in a corner then a grenade or rocket to finish them all off. Shotguns if you don't have the ammunition. I had none of these so had to take them out Romanov by Romanov.
Round 5: Quickly open the control room using the console then pick off the snipers whilst avoiding the Argus' attacks. As its set on normal difficulty you can take a few hits before critical damage, but keep boost cancelling around. Use the Gatling Gun in the room to destroy its core when exposed for serious damage. The Romanovs drop a few upgrades and rockets in the previous wave so use them wisely.
CHALLENGE 6
Once all five Challenges are completed this opens up the most devious and highly dreaded challenge yet. At the time of publishing, this walkthrough author is yet to succeed on both the 360 and One versions of the game, which does make it hard to give advice. So we are going to do something different.
I've found a Challenge 6 tutorial video by YouTube author Kevinnummer1, who has built a carefully-instructed walkthrough video for this challenge alone. Before each round, he lists the enemies and the approach he takes for an obtainable win. His time isn't anything fancy or outlandishly impressive, but neither will yours. Make sure to head over to his page to like the video or subscribe on YouTube, he certainly deserves it!
Round 1: RIs and a Crystal Viper. Easiest of all the rounds, pick the RIs off one at a time avoiding the Crystal Viper attacks. Listen for the CVs running footsteps and start mashing for the QTE. If you shoot him while he is down he tends to get more excited and chase after you. I personally used the assault rifle here (saving the HMG for the Bogey next stage) on the little RIs and a shotgun on the CV when close. I'd then retreat, knock off a few more RIs and let the CV come to me. After a while I can usually do this round without any issues. DON'T PICK UP ANY UPGRADE CUBES UNTIL ROUND 5.
Round 2: Bogey in the middle, and two batches of RIs and flying turrets on both sides. Standing on the far side of the monument throw grenades at the first and second spawn points to get rid of the Yellow and Red RIs then switch to EMPs and throw one in front of you (i.e. towards the Bogey) to dispatch the flying RIs. After a little pause, evade the Bogey, throw another EMP behind you for the other Flying RIs, then its just you and the Bogey.
Round 3: RIs and a bunch of Romanovs. Throw grenades at the RIs spawns to deal with them before they attack, then you need to exploit the Romanovs individual weaknesses so you can maximize damage. Regardless of where you are, they will try to overrun you so need to work fast. Every Vanquish master on Youtube seems to use the LFE first to bunch them together, then blow up the tank on the flamethrower to cause the most damage. Shooting off their heads renders them blind and over time they will self-destruct. Don't forget your shotgun as well.
Round 4: Ninja RIs, Balls, 2 x flying turrets & 2 x BIAs (Scorpions). Possibly one of the hardest waves in all challenges (so I've heard, I only ever make it to Round 3) because you are pretty much attacked on all fronts. LFE for the Spheres and Ninjas, use AR on the turrets then two BIAs isn't too much of a problem (compared to the beginning of the round).
Round 5: Spheres & 2 x Bogeys. Many will use the LFE gun on the spheres to only leave 2 Bogeys, but you need to get rid of the spheres quickly. With the Bogeys utilize your lock on laser, rockets and shotgun on the Blue Bogey first. Once dead he'll drop more rocket ammo and you also have an upgrade cube (hopefully) not yet picked up, I found lock on laser is the safest to use on a bogey whilst in the campaign and it doesn't change here.
(Eurydace's note from the X360 walkthrough: Hi! I'm the overseer for this walkthrough. I just wanted to point out that using only one EMP to blow up the Flying RI's in Round 2 is ideal. The EMP grenades will bring both Bogey's to the ground in round 5. I used plenty of them to make the Bogeys very easy to deal with - toss one out if you get flanked by a Bogey. Always throw them during a slide and the EMP will instantly go off right on top of you. This will save your life. If you can, I'd also recommend taking down the Bogey's evenly instead of one at a time. When one dies, the other berserks. It's actually harder to dodge the shots and it will dodge more of your shots while berserked, so you want to minimize the amount of time you spend with only one alive).
Congratulations! Your hands won't stop shaking for some time, but don't worry, this is medically normal. Get some sugar in you to stop the shakes, force a TA scan and slam this achievement right into your trophy case; it is well worth the ratio and you have certainly earned it!
That's it folks, we hope this TA walkthrough helped you 100% complete an amazing game. Happy gaming to all!