Haze/IGN Blogs/Mantel Wants You

Attention all you Playas and Pimps,

Did you know that the Whitechapel Police photographed the eyes of Jack the Ripper’s victims? At the time, they believed that the last image someone sees before they die was burned onto their retina. So, if they could get a picture of the girl’s eyes, then they’d be able to see her killer. Anyway, that’s a long lead-in to saying that if someone took a picture of Derek ‘Sizzlewood’s eyes right now, all they’d see would be Mantel troopers. The man is face-deep in this thing. I’m growing progressively more concerned that so many hours in front of his radioactive PC might render him infertile. Still, it’s not like any of us have time for that sort of thing anyway.

So – to the blog.

Today I’m tasked with telling you peeps about Mantel; who they are and what they do. Here we go.

Mantel Global Industries is a huge multi-national corporation, who are involved in the design and/or production of just about every aspect of modern life. They’ve even branched out into the military, providing a cost-effective replacement for the UN and NATO. So, bottom line: Mantel’s private military army is in charge of peace-keeping the world over.

Right now, in the year 2048, there is a war going on in a region of South America where a vicious group of rebels, called ‘The Promise Hand’, are trying to overthrow the government. If you’ve been following the game, I’m sure you probably know that already.

So, here’s something you might not know – the Promise Hand is run by a man named Gabriel Merino. The media is calling him ‘Skin Coat’ on account of the fact that he is rumored to flay the skins off his POWs, and fashion the strips into crude leather, from which he makes his ‘coat’. He’s one sick son of a gun. Thank God you’re going in to kick his ass, eh?

Now don’t sweat it. Mantel isn’t about to send its troops after Skin Coat unless it’s sure they’ll win. So, thanks to its pharmaceutical department, they’ve developed a ‘nutritional supplement’ called NECTAR that is injected directly into each trooper’s bloodstream via his back-mounted Nectar Administrator.

What Nectar does is improve their strength, their aim, their wits, their speed. Basically it ensures that Mantel troopers are all they can be.

[Left / no Nectar – Right / Nectar Administered]
But there’s a flip-side, people. You can inject Nectar directly into your bloodstream, but if you take too much, you’ll overdose. God forbid, because an overdosed Mantel trooper will go freakin’ crazy – he’ll shoot blindly at anything that moves, including his buddies; he might decide to pull the pin on a grenade and hold onto it until it blows up in his face; or if he has a rocket launcher, he might decide to see what it would feel like to blow off his own feet.

[Nectar Overdose sequence]
And that stuff doesn’t just happen to A.I characters – it can happen to you, in single and multiplayer. Think on that, my man.

On to the HUD. it’s simple enough for even the dumbest trooper to understand: Armor Integrity on the left, Nectar Level on the right. The Mantel in-helmet system also includes a digital compass feature and an objective waypointer. But those are for pussies.

As for guns, Mantel provides the very best:

*The ‘BlackSaw’ - BSW-72 Assault Rifle*

The ‘BlackSaw’ is the standard-issue rifle, but there ain’t nothing standard about it. This baby fires rounds made from depleted uranium, meaning that not only do you kill your opponent, you give them radiation poisoning too. Hurrah!

*The ‘Diplomat’- Wilson D6 Pistol*

The ‘Diplomat’ is the side-arm of choice for the smart Mantel trooper. It’s got the kind of stopping power that makes the bad guys feel like they were hit by Mike Tyson driving a steam train. It’s especially good at close range “when negotiations fail” – hence it’s nickname.

*The ‘Donkey Puncher’ - DP-118 Combat Shotgun*

As painful as it sounds, this high-end shotgun is more than enough to kick any ass presented to you. It’s a one shot kill affair.

*‘Spring Cleaner’ SK3 Fragmentation Grenades*

Despite their sweety-pie nickname, these grenades are as tough as they come. Based on the classic dead man’s switch design, these time-operated babies are perfect for crowd clearance.

*The ‘Pinpointer’ - BSW-72 ESR Enhanced Sniper*

This classic sniper rifle couples the ultimate in armor-piercing rounds with a projectile velocity powerful enough to rip right through the sternum of any Promise Hand soldier. Tasty.

**IMAGE CLASSIFIED**

*The ‘Hard Candy’ HK-387L Rocket Launcher*

The Hard Candy is a state of the art rocket launcher, capable of blowing the living shit out of any armored target. Of course, it’s even more fun to try on an unarmored target. I hope you like Sloppy Joes!

**IMAGE CLASSIFIED**

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You might like to learn about the boys who’ll be backing you up on your mission of peace. Allow me to introduce you to them.

[You play as Shane Carpenter]

**ASSAULT TROOPERS**

These heavily armored guys travel in packs, and are rather partial to using the Donkey Puncher. What’s more, with all that body armor to protect them, they like to get in close for some serious Nectar-powered face mashing with the butt of their shotguns. Nice.

**FIRE SUPPORT TROOPERS**

They say some guys have all the fun - and these guys might just be them. Sporting a combination of heavy armor and a Hard Candy, these folks like to keep their distance and pepper the bad guys with rockets until they look like cheap pâté. If they’re in the mood to get closer, they’re also packing a Diplomat, and they ain’t afraid to use it.

 **SCOUT TROOPERS**

Armed with the Pinpointer rifle, the Scouts like to keep their distance and use plenty of Nectar to ensure the perfect headshot on any stragglers. Their standard armor is more than enough to keep them snug as a bug in a rug.

**REGULARS**

Regulars carry the world famous BlackSaw, and boy do they know how to use it. Their highly aggressive tactics are enough to get any local tough guy rocking on his heels. In short: Don’t mess.

**SPECIAL OPS**

These guys? I have no idea. It must be classified, or something.

Well, that about does it for this week. There is a lot of work to be done, so this will have to be a short goodbye.

So long.