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After reading Shrouds comments, I thought I'd post up a starter guide for Defiance. I am assuming the controller is laid out the same as the 360, so apologies for any errors.
Press the Select button and you get the map. Press the start button and you get the above. You can use R1 & L1 to shuffle through a few extra screens, but on the map or this screen if you hold L2 it brings up an overlay where you can make a further selection. If you want a quicker way to engage in Competitive, Co-op, or Shadow Wars, you can press right on the D-pad. Press left on the D-pad brings up some chat options.
So after a brief cutscene and a few minor fetch/kill quests at the beginning, you're pretty much left to your own devices. So when you hit the Earth Republic camp, feel free to please yourself.
The choices open to you are :-
Daily contract from Soleptor Enterprises to Collect 20 mineral pouches from Mattocks at mines
Pursuit - Going Commando
Tasks:
So theres a lot to do. Whilst doing some of these quests, you may see other people already pursuing the same quest. Other players are represented by a purple dot. So sometimes when you arrive on an active quest, you may already find that someone has almost nearly completed it already, which is handy. Dont panic, because all quests can be completed ad infinum.
Heres a little more info on the above.....
If you have any questions regarding the different types of mission icons that are on your map, please review the following information.
Main Mission - These missions represent some of the core storyline in Defiance and will always be available for you to pick up. Completing main missions can include various rewards including Scrip, Weapons, items, and Keycodes.
Episode Missions - Episode missions are only available for a short time and commonly involve a special NPC that will show up in town looking for Ark Hunters. Watching the Defiance show can also assist in letting you know when additional Episode Missions will be available. Episode missions are no longer available once the time frame for the event has passed.
Side Mission – Side Missions are typically quicker than Main or Episode Missions and reveal more about the world of Defiance. They offer rewards of experience, Scrip, mods, and can help unlock additional Main or Side missions.
Hotshot Challenges - Hotshot Challenges give your character a specific weapon in order to score the most points possible within certain parameters. The higher the score, the better the rewards and the better the spot on the leaderboards.
Time Trial – Time Trials are races against other Ark Hunter's best time across a set course with differing vehicles per Time Trial. The better your time, the better your rewards and placement on the leaderboards.
Rampage - Defend yourself against waves of enemies for as long as possible. Gain more points by killing more enemies and surviving longer than other Ark Hunters. A higher score can lead to better rewards and can place you on the Rampage's leaderboards.
Arkfall - The Arks were enormous alien ships that transported the Votans to Earth. During the struggles after the Votans' arrival the Arks were destroyed in near-Earth orbit and their debris created what is known as the Arkbelt. Occasionally, some of this debris enters the atmosphere and plummets to Earth, creating an Arkfall. The alien debris from the Arks frequently includes valuable resources and technology, making it a prime target for Ark Hunters, hellbugs, and other deadly scavengers. Arkfalls appear randomly, either as single meteorites or as a cluster. These can lead to very large, hectic battles depending on the number of players and boss encounters that come with them.
Shadow War - While near certain Arktech, you may receive mercenary contracts for the ongoing Shadow War. Those who choose to sign up become what are known as Shadow Operatives, soldiers who work in the "shadows" of Echelon, a private military corporation. Shadow Operatives fill the ranks of two teams who are then directed by Echelon to converge on the fallen arktech, where they must battle to claim the prize. The winners will receive Echelon credits to be used on special gear, weapons, and armor, as well as a ranking on the Echelon mercenary leaderboards.
Anyway, there is no danger in exploring even with just your basic kit. Yes some of the wildlife in Defiance can be tough, and is certainly made easy by better guns, but you can still kill stuff with just your pistol.
For those familiar with Borderlands, you may feel right at home with the weapon colouring system. So in order of importance.....
You may notice that some of your green weapons are actually better than your purple ones, so read the stats on each weapon before binning/selling. And sell you will, as you will not be able to keep everything you find, or store it anywhere.You do get a chance to buy anything you sold, but theres a rolling list of about 15 items, so beware!!
Some of the stuff wont be open to you until your EGO is a certain level, or that you have progressed so far through the main campaign. EGO is essentially Rank. Dont worry if you feel you might have made the wrong choice for your main Perk, as you can respec as much and often as you like, by paying out very little. But trust me, Im level 565 and Ive unlocked every main Perk (Cloak, Overpower etc), and Ive set up my loadouts accordingly.
So, hope this has been of some help. Get out there and join in with as many Ark falls as you can, not just for the trophy/achievement, but because you can pick up loads of EXP and goodies, and you'll get to fight along side with the rest of the players too. Have an explore so you can discover some fo the fast travel points, which make life so much easier. My final bit of advice is find what weapon combo works best for you. Ive got an LMG with a Sticky Grenade launcher, but Ive experimented with so many weapons. Some weapons have experience bars, which helps you level up in that class (ie LMG, Assault Rifle, RPG etc). Once these bars are full, look to swapping out this weapon with another one with exp bars. Some of the weapons dont have experience bars, so dont contribute to your Weapon level at all. But they make up for it by being super powerful.
Press the Select button and you get the map. Press the start button and you get the above. You can use R1 & L1 to shuffle through a few extra screens, but on the map or this screen if you hold L2 it brings up an overlay where you can make a further selection. If you want a quicker way to engage in Competitive, Co-op, or Shadow Wars, you can press right on the D-pad. Press left on the D-pad brings up some chat options.
So after a brief cutscene and a few minor fetch/kill quests at the beginning, you're pretty much left to your own devices. So when you hit the Earth Republic camp, feel free to please yourself.
The choices open to you are :-
- Main quest (on the map as a large exclamation mark) - cleared once completed
- Side quests (small exclamation marks) - these clear once completed
- Hotshot, Time Trial & Rampage (side missions with a theme) - these never disappear
- Arkfall (red sword like object) - random event
- Random encounters (hostage situation, hellbug infestation etc)
Daily contract from Soleptor Enterprises to Collect 20 mineral pouches from Mattocks at mines
Pursuit - Going Commando
Tasks:
- Use assault rifles to kill 50 enemies
- Reach skill level 2 in Assault Rifles
- Kill 10 enemies while Overcharge is active
- Equip an assault rifle
- Kill 10 enemies with grenades
- 5 EGO Rating
So theres a lot to do. Whilst doing some of these quests, you may see other people already pursuing the same quest. Other players are represented by a purple dot. So sometimes when you arrive on an active quest, you may already find that someone has almost nearly completed it already, which is handy. Dont panic, because all quests can be completed ad infinum.
Heres a little more info on the above.....
If you have any questions regarding the different types of mission icons that are on your map, please review the following information.
Anyway, there is no danger in exploring even with just your basic kit. Yes some of the wildlife in Defiance can be tough, and is certainly made easy by better guns, but you can still kill stuff with just your pistol.
For those familiar with Borderlands, you may feel right at home with the weapon colouring system. So in order of importance.....
Item color chart
White — Green – Blue – Purple – OrangeYou may notice that some of your green weapons are actually better than your purple ones, so read the stats on each weapon before binning/selling. And sell you will, as you will not be able to keep everything you find, or store it anywhere.You do get a chance to buy anything you sold, but theres a rolling list of about 15 items, so beware!!
Some of the stuff wont be open to you until your EGO is a certain level, or that you have progressed so far through the main campaign. EGO is essentially Rank. Dont worry if you feel you might have made the wrong choice for your main Perk, as you can respec as much and often as you like, by paying out very little. But trust me, Im level 565 and Ive unlocked every main Perk (Cloak, Overpower etc), and Ive set up my loadouts accordingly.
So, hope this has been of some help. Get out there and join in with as many Ark falls as you can, not just for the trophy/achievement, but because you can pick up loads of EXP and goodies, and you'll get to fight along side with the rest of the players too. Have an explore so you can discover some fo the fast travel points, which make life so much easier. My final bit of advice is find what weapon combo works best for you. Ive got an LMG with a Sticky Grenade launcher, but Ive experimented with so many weapons. Some weapons have experience bars, which helps you level up in that class (ie LMG, Assault Rifle, RPG etc). Once these bars are full, look to swapping out this weapon with another one with exp bars. Some of the weapons dont have experience bars, so dont contribute to your Weapon level at all. But they make up for it by being super powerful.
