Laser Laboratory

**XP Reward**: 2500
 **Block Bucks Reward**: 25000
 **Blocks Reward**: 8-10

**Laser Laboratory** is a unique Grade 1 mission from Reticule Research.

## Synopsis

Atom, the scientist encountered during the license Mission, has a problem that he would like to use the player's help. One RR Testing facility's turrets are hacked and went rogue. He wants them destroyed so the construction of the facility can continue.

## Strategy

Try to make a manual save before the mission as it is impossible to deploy techs in the facility and one mistake will prevent the mission from progressing. Thus, it is also quite a challenge in the player's improvising abilities.

Laser turrets are quite formidable due to their high damage, depleting entire stocks of batteries easily. They additionally have a prototype shield surrounding them, protecting them from all sources of damage (including splash). The objective is to find a static charger tower in each room and destroy it, so the turrets become vulnerable.

These lasers, compared to usual techs, have a unique AI. They do not seem to aggressively lock on the player, preferring to sweep in a fixed pattern instead and do extreme amounts of damage per second, quickly burning through any block. A smaller tech (or even just a bare control block) is rather advantageous, as shields and power blocks do not matter at all for this mission, and it can easily reach any corner in each room. The weapons selection only matters in how quickly they destroy the chargers and directionality, since the weapons also will not auto-lock on them. Upon destroying the charger, all turrets in the room will lose their shields, allowing them to be easily destroyed. Mortars and homing missiles are best suited, as most other weapons will force the player to wander into the laser's line of fire. Subsequent rooms have more turrets, but the main objective remains the same. When all turrets are destroyed Atom will meet the player for a debrief.

It is worth noting that the facility does not have a roof. Thus, a hovering anti-gravity tech with weapons able to target grounded enemies can easily tackle the mission. The limited elevation/depression of Talon Lasers effectively prevents them from hitting aerial techs. However, the last charger is guarded by solid walls from multiple directions and they stretch quite high into the air, forcing the player to descend and leaving them at the mercy of the lasers unless the player executes their plan rapidly.

## Trivia

* This mission cannot be cancelled due to it spawning specific, permanent terrain structures.
* As mentioned before, the Lab is roofless, which is usually not the case for any scientific/experimental organization. However, Atom explains that the construction of the lab is incomplete at the time of the mission.
* Atom implies at the end of the mission that the tasks he assigned were deliberately created to test the player's skills.
	+ This may explain why he also claims to have his notebook out at the beginning at the mission. If the turrets were really hacked, Atom would not spare any moment in recording statistics.
		- However, this is retconned in later RR missions, where Atom declares that he will be working to track down the hacker instead, although he continues to monitor the player nevertheless.
* Although the player can trigger the pressure pads and open the gates, Atom does not seem to be able to do so even though at the beginning he was anchored on the entrance pad directly.
* Atom will always claim that the player is in good condition regardless of damage taken during the mission.
* Better Future Sky Anchors do not seem to trigger the pressure pads, despite firing its anchor into the ground,.
* As the prototype shield appears during this mission, RR is another possible owner (or even developer and vendor) of such blocks.
	+ Furthermore, The Almighty Leader mentions in his relevant missions that he got the shields from some "Shady Looking Tech", which hints further towards it's experimental status.