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Direct link.
Changed line(s) 26 (click to see context) from:
** The {{Reveal}} that [[spoiler:Morgan Technologies]] is responsible for the [[spoiler:increased pirate activity]] is foreshadowed when pirates specifically target GTVA science ships so the Alliance will have to accept their offer for help researching the derelict.
to:
** The {{Reveal}} TheReveal that [[spoiler:Morgan Technologies]] is responsible for the [[spoiler:increased pirate activity]] is foreshadowed when pirates specifically target GTVA science ships so the Alliance will have to accept their offer for help researching the derelict.
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Has nothing to do with familiarity with in-universe fiction.
Deleted line(s) 27 (click to see context) :
* GenreSavvy: Lieutenant Mackie. When unscheduled escort fighters jump in, he assumes it's ''not'' a clerical oversight. When the Shivans ''avoid'' killing as many people as possible, he knows something is very, very wrong, a revelation that Allied Command not only doesn't pick up on, but outright ''dismisses'' until the last minute.
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Changed line(s) 33 (click to see context) from:
** The ''MTD Auriga'' could be a reference to more than one actual naval vessel, a constellation, a ship from the ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' movies, or even ''Franchise/StarCraft''.
to:
** The ''MTD Auriga'' could be a reference to more than one actual naval vessel, a constellation, a ship from the ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' movies, or even ''Franchise/StarCraft''.''VideoGame/StarCraft''.
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* MassOhCrap: The Arrival of the ''Nyarlathotep'' in Tau Sigma triggers this reaction amongst a protest blockade in one mission. One ship decides to fire his LittleUselessGun on the Shivan destoyer without doing any damage. Some goons hidden in the midst then use this moment to launch an all-out attack against the protest blockade leaders, thus turning the situation into a full blown riot.
to:
* MassOhCrap: The Arrival of the ''Nyarlathotep'' in Tau Sigma triggers this reaction amongst a protest blockade in one mission. One ship decides to fire his LittleUselessGun on the Shivan destoyer destroyer without doing any damage. damage... but demonstrating enough of a threat for the ''Nyarlathotep'''s automatic defense systems to shoot back. Some goons hidden in the midst then use this moment to launch an all-out attack against the protest blockade leaders, thus turning the situation into a full blown panicked riot.
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Changed line(s) 10 (click to see context) from:
* AbortedArc: The [[spoiler:new GTVI insurrection]] starts with a literal bang and then fizzles out shortly thereafter.
to:
* AbortedArc: The [[spoiler:new GTVI insurrection]] starts with a literal bang and then fizzles out shortly thereafter. Supposedly, it exists to set up a plotline in the upcoming "Blackwater Operations", should that ever get released.
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to:
* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: The fate of the Pirate Corvette Ithaca.
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Changed line(s) 44 (click to see context) from:
-->'''GTCv Escher''': What? Oh my god... (just before a beam comes out of the Nyarlathotep, destroying a cruiser attacking it)
to:
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Added DiffLines:
* MassOhCrap: The Arrival of the ''Nyarlathotep'' in Tau Sigma triggers this reaction amongst a protest blockade in one mission. One ship decides to fire his LittleUselessGun on the Shivan destoyer without doing any damage. Some goons hidden in the midst then use this moment to launch an all-out attack against the protest blockade leaders, thus turning the situation into a full blown riot.
Added DiffLines:
* OhCrap:
** During the protest blockade mission:
-->'''Nyarlathotep Scientist''': Escher, we have power spike.
-->'''GTCv Escher''': What? Oh my god... (just before a beam comes out of the Nyarlathotep, destroying a cruiser attacking it)
** During a sensor sweep for the Auriga and a ship similar to the Cypher appears:
-->'''GTA AWACS vessel''': Reading a power spike... oh my God!!! (just before the Cypher lookalike blasts the AWACS away.
** During the protest blockade mission:
-->'''Nyarlathotep Scientist''': Escher, we have power spike.
-->'''GTCv Escher''': What? Oh my god... (just before a beam comes out of the Nyarlathotep, destroying a cruiser attacking it)
** During a sensor sweep for the Auriga and a ship similar to the Cypher appears:
-->'''GTA AWACS vessel''': Reading a power spike... oh my God!!! (just before the Cypher lookalike blasts the AWACS away.
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None
Changed line(s) 17 (click to see context) from:
* ContinuityNod: The GVD ''Nekhbet'' is from a popular single mission produced before ''Derelict'' was released. Mackie and Alpha 3 reference the events of that mission while flying escort for it.
to:
* ContinuityNod: The GVD ''Nekhbet'' ''GVD Nekhbet'' is from a popular single mission produced before ''Derelict'' was released. Mackie and Alpha 3 reference the events of that mission while flying escort for it.
Changed line(s) 19,20 (click to see context) from:
** The [=GTFf=] ''Cypher'', built on Admiral Bosch's Iceni design, and still with way more firepower than other ships of comparable size.
** Subverted with the MTD ''Auriga'', which does far more harm than good and doesn't ''look'' any different from a standard Orion-class destroyer.
** Subverted with the MTD ''Auriga'', which does far more harm than good and doesn't ''look'' any different from a standard Orion-class destroyer.
to:
** The [=GTFf=] ''Cypher'', ''[=GTFf=] Cypher'', built on Admiral Bosch's Iceni design, and still with way more firepower than other ships of comparable size.
** Subverted with theMTD ''Auriga'', ''MTD Auriga'', which does far more harm than good and doesn't ''look'' any different from a standard Orion-class destroyer.
** Subverted with the
Changed line(s) 22,23 (click to see context) from:
* EvilTwin: The Enigma to the [[spoiler:[=GTFf=] ''Cypher''.]] Also the MTD ''Auriga'' to the SD ''Nyarlathotep'', the former being noted as likely the only thing that can take on the ''Nyarlathotep'' and win. Unfortunately, being its evil twin doesn't make the ''Auriga'' '''friendly'''.
* FalseFlagOperation: An ''accidental'' case; when the MTD ''Auriga'' passes through an Allied blockade like it isn't there, it also takes out the attacking Shivans. The Shivans are unaware the ''Auriga'' isn't a GTVA warship, and, thinking the Alliance has far more hardware at their disposal than they actually do, retreat.
* FalseFlagOperation: An ''accidental'' case; when the MTD ''Auriga'' passes through an Allied blockade like it isn't there, it also takes out the attacking Shivans. The Shivans are unaware the ''Auriga'' isn't a GTVA warship, and, thinking the Alliance has far more hardware at their disposal than they actually do, retreat.
to:
* EvilTwin: The Enigma to the [[spoiler:[=GTFf=] ''Cypher''.[[spoiler:''[=GTFf=] Cypher''.]] Also the MTD ''Auriga'' ''MTD Auriga'' to the SD ''Nyarlathotep'', ''SD Nyarlathotep'', the former being noted as likely the only thing that can take on the ''Nyarlathotep'' and win. Unfortunately, being its evil twin doesn't make the ''Auriga'' '''friendly'''.
* FalseFlagOperation: An ''accidental'' case; when theMTD ''Auriga'' ''MTD Auriga'' passes through an Allied blockade like it isn't there, it also takes out the attacking Shivans. The Shivans are unaware the ''Auriga'' isn't a GTVA warship, and, thinking the Alliance has far more hardware at their disposal than they actually do, retreat.
* FalseFlagOperation: An ''accidental'' case; when the
Changed line(s) 31,32 (click to see context) from:
** The [=GTFf=] ''Cypher'' is a frigate serving the intelligence division, while the ''Enigma'' is [[spoiler:its EvilTwin.]]
** The MTD ''Auriga'' could be a reference to more than one actual naval vessel, a constellation, a ship from the ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' movies, or even ''Franchise/StarCraft''.
** The MTD ''Auriga'' could be a reference to more than one actual naval vessel, a constellation, a ship from the ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' movies, or even ''Franchise/StarCraft''.
to:
** The [=GTFf=] ''Cypher'' ''[=GTFf=] Cypher'' is a frigate serving the intelligence division, while the ''Enigma'' is [[spoiler:its EvilTwin.]]
** TheMTD ''Auriga'' ''MTD Auriga'' could be a reference to more than one actual naval vessel, a constellation, a ship from the ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' movies, or even ''Franchise/StarCraft''.
** The
Changed line(s) 36 (click to see context) from:
* MoreDakka: The [=GTFf=] ''Cypher'', MTD ''Auriga'' and SD ''Nyarlathotep'' can deliver ''several'' times the firepower of similar-sized ships.
to:
* MoreDakka: The [=GTFf=] ''Cypher'', MTD ''Auriga'' ''[=GTFf=] Cypher'', ''MTD Auriga'' and SD ''Nyarlathotep'' ''SD Nyarlathotep'' can deliver ''several'' times the firepower of similar-sized ships.
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'''GTC ''Lonewolf'':''' We heard that, Alpha 2!\\
to:
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** The MTD ''Auriga''. Doubly aggravating because your de-briefing specifically says [[spoiler:the hunt has been called off because Allied Command is unwilling to take more losses chasing the thing.]] Some fans are hoping it shows up in "Blackwater Operations".
to:
** The MTD ''Auriga''.''MTD Auriga''. Doubly aggravating because your de-briefing specifically says [[spoiler:the hunt has been called off because Allied Command is unwilling to take more losses chasing the thing.]] Some fans are hoping it shows up in "Blackwater Operations".
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None
Changed line(s) 1,2 (click to see context) from:
A fan-made campaign for ''[[VideoGame/FreeSpace FreeSpace 2]]'', '''''Derelict''''' boasts full voice-acting, compatibility with the ''[=FreeSpace=]'' source-code project, and forty-six missions, eleven more than the retail campaign. Part of the "Cold Element" series of campaigns, to eventually be followed by "Blackwater Operations".
to:
A fan-made campaign for ''[[VideoGame/FreeSpace FreeSpace 2]]'', ''VideoGame/FreeSpace2'', '''''Derelict''''' boasts full voice-acting, compatibility with the ''[=FreeSpace=]'' source-code project, and forty-six missions, eleven more than the retail campaign. Part of the "Cold Element" series of campaigns, to eventually be followed by "Blackwater Operations".
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Moving to proper Namespace.
Added DiffLines:
A fan-made campaign for ''[[VideoGame/FreeSpace FreeSpace 2]]'', '''''Derelict''''' boasts full voice-acting, compatibility with the ''[=FreeSpace=]'' source-code project, and forty-six missions, eleven more than the retail campaign. Part of the "Cold Element" series of campaigns, to eventually be followed by "Blackwater Operations".
Five years after the Shivans caused Capella to supernova, hundreds of thousands of refugees have been adrift among GTVA space looking for a new home. The player assumes the role of a pilot newly assigned to the 212 Silver Scythes squadron in the remote, backwater Tau Sigma system, described by one wingman as "the armpit of the universe." It seems like the excitment will pick up when it's announced that, sponsored by [[MegaCorp Morgan Technologies,]] the Capellan refugees are on their way to permanently resettle in Tau Sigma.
[[FromBadToWorse This is the least of everyone's problems.]]
----
!!''Derelict'' provides examples of the following tropes:
* AbortedArc: The [[spoiler:new GTVI insurrection]] starts with a literal bang and then fizzles out shortly thereafter.
* AllJustADream: Not the entire campaign, fortunately, just one mission. It ends with a JumpScare by a [[spoiler:Sathanas Juggernaut,]] of all things.
* ApocalypseHow: Class 4-5 through all of Alliance space [[spoiler:''if'' the ''Nyarlathotep'' makes it to Capella.]]
* ArtifactTitle: After [[spoiler:"The Stars Are Right".]]
* BeamSpam: Beams fly around here even more than in the main ''[=FreeSpace=] 2'' campaign.
* BolivianArmyEnding: The NonstandardGameOver in the final mission does this.
* ChekhovsGun: The ''Nyarlathotep'''s [[spoiler:portable Knossos device.]]
* ContinuityNod: The GVD ''Nekhbet'' is from a popular single mission produced before ''Derelict'' was released. Mackie and Alpha 3 reference the events of that mission while flying escort for it.
* CoolShip:
** The [=GTFf=] ''Cypher'', built on Admiral Bosch's Iceni design, and still with way more firepower than other ships of comparable size.
** Subverted with the MTD ''Auriga'', which does far more harm than good and doesn't ''look'' any different from a standard Orion-class destroyer.
* DeadpanSnarker: Lieutenant Mackie
* EvilTwin: The Enigma to the [[spoiler:[=GTFf=] ''Cypher''.]] Also the MTD ''Auriga'' to the SD ''Nyarlathotep'', the former being noted as likely the only thing that can take on the ''Nyarlathotep'' and win. Unfortunately, being its evil twin doesn't make the ''Auriga'' '''friendly'''.
* FalseFlagOperation: An ''accidental'' case; when the MTD ''Auriga'' passes through an Allied blockade like it isn't there, it also takes out the attacking Shivans. The Shivans are unaware the ''Auriga'' isn't a GTVA warship, and, thinking the Alliance has far more hardware at their disposal than they actually do, retreat.
* {{Foreshadowing}}:
** One of the researchers on the ''Nyarlathotep'' writes in his journal, "Home... I want to go home..."
** The {{Reveal}} that [[spoiler:Morgan Technologies]] is responsible for the [[spoiler:increased pirate activity]] is foreshadowed when pirates specifically target GTVA science ships so the Alliance will have to accept their offer for help researching the derelict.
* GenreSavvy: Lieutenant Mackie. When unscheduled escort fighters jump in, he assumes it's ''not'' a clerical oversight. When the Shivans ''avoid'' killing as many people as possible, he knows something is very, very wrong, a revelation that Allied Command not only doesn't pick up on, but outright ''dismisses'' until the last minute.
* GlassCannon: The ''Gorgon'' is an [[MoreDakka uber-]][[BeamSpam beam platform]] built into a gutted gas miner with a [[EarthShatteringKaboom Meson Bomb]] hooked into it from outside as a reactor. Both are extremely fragile pieces of equipment, although the ''Gorgon'' ultimately survives enemy attack [[spoiler:only to be destroyed by an overload after the crew pushes it too hard in order to survive said attack.]]
* KnightInSourArmor: Mackie is too stable to be a ShellShockedVeteran, but it's hinted that he's a veteran of Capella and since his cynicism doesn't go away when he gets out of the humdrum of being stationed in the boonies, it probably comes from seeing just how much the Shivans outclass the GTVA firsthand, and thus how little he and everything he cares about matters.
* MeaningfulName:
** The [=GTFf=] ''Cypher'' is a frigate serving the intelligence division, while the ''Enigma'' is [[spoiler:its EvilTwin.]]
** The MTD ''Auriga'' could be a reference to more than one actual naval vessel, a constellation, a ship from the ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' movies, or even ''Franchise/StarCraft''.
** The ''Nyarlathotep'', and the Shivans in general, are a fine parallel to the entity from which the name derives.
** Mackie's friend, Kyle [[spoiler:S]]Athanas.
** [[spoiler:The Shivan juggernaut in the bad ending is called ''[[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Yog-Sothoth]]'']].
* MoreDakka: The [=GTFf=] ''Cypher'', MTD ''Auriga'' and SD ''Nyarlathotep'' can deliver ''several'' times the firepower of similar-sized ships.
* NeverTellMeTheOdds: Mackie dismisses the odds in "Hail Mary" and tells everyone to do their jobs.
* NonStandardGameOver: If the suicide attack in "Hail Mary" fails, [[spoiler:the ''Nyarlathotep'' will succeed in stabilizing the jump node to Capella and go through. A NewMeat pilot, in the brief calm, asks what they do now. Mackie, who knows exactly what's on the other side, calmly tells him to kiss his ass goodbye just before it ''comes through.'']]
* OmnicidalManiac: Played with; several characters notice that the Shivans ''aren't'' being as omnicidally maniacal as they usually are, skipping by several targets of opportunity, including a heavily populated planet. It turns out to be an important plot-point.
* RammingAlwaysWorks: The ''Argentus'' rams the [[spoiler:''Nyarlathotep'', and it works fine because it is packed full of Meson Bombs.]]
* RedHerring: When there are "accidents" apparently happening on board the [[spoiler:''Nyarlahotep'']], it looks like the [[spoiler:Morgan Technologies operatives who went black]] is responsible for it. Turns out this is only half-true; it is because [[spoiler:they apparently found something in the ship and [[WhatDoesThisButtonDo triggered something]] that causes the ship (and probably sleeping Shivans too) to wake up]].
* RunningGag: Mackie's snark, be it commenting on the duct tape holding his instrument panel together, displeasure at how capital ships get all the credit for winning engagements where they would explicitly not survive without their fighter cover, and everything in between.
-->'''Mackie:''' These fighters are held together with glue and duct tape [...] The ''Lonewolf''[='=]s a flying wreck. You want to hear another story about duct tape?\\
'''GTC ''Lonewolf'':''' We heard that, Alpha 2!\\
'''Mackie:''' Sorry...
* SpacePirates: Mostly harmless, and it's insinuated that the GTVA even drafts some into service at one point. [[spoiler:The mercenaries masquerading as pirates do a lot of damage, though.]]
* ThisIsGonnaSuck: "Looks like the [[ExpospeakGag defecation is about to hit the ventilation...]]"
* TitleDrop: The [[spoiler:''Nyarlathotep'']] is the campaign's eponymous derelict, and it's referred to as such several times.
* TranslatorMicrobes: Played with; when the Altair <-> Tau Ceti jump node is closed, Lieutenant Mackie and the player are temporarily assigned to a Vasudan squadron while stranded on the Altair side. While patrolling the area as the refugees from Capella begin to arrive, a wing of Terran fighters jumps in, unscheduled. The Vasudan commander assumes it to be a clerical oversight. Mackie and the player, the only other humans in the escort, realize that the newly arrived fighters are bogus because their comm chatter lacks the intonation most disciplined military pilots speak with, something lost to the translator.
* WhamEpisode: Several, but most notably "The Stars Are Right". Those who have picked up on the Lovecraft theme will call an [[TheUntwist Untwist]] on it, though.
* WhamLine: When someone ''finally'' figures out what the Shivans are trying to accomplish.
-->'''Lieutenant Mackie:''' [[spoiler:[[OhCrap Oh my god!]] I know where she's going! Home! The ''Nyarlathotep'' is going ''[[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt home!]]'']]
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse:
** The MTD ''Auriga''. Doubly aggravating because your de-briefing specifically says [[spoiler:the hunt has been called off because Allied Command is unwilling to take more losses chasing the thing.]] Some fans are hoping it shows up in "Blackwater Operations".
** Also the ''Enigma'', which never shows up again after its initial appearance.
----
Five years after the Shivans caused Capella to supernova, hundreds of thousands of refugees have been adrift among GTVA space looking for a new home. The player assumes the role of a pilot newly assigned to the 212 Silver Scythes squadron in the remote, backwater Tau Sigma system, described by one wingman as "the armpit of the universe." It seems like the excitment will pick up when it's announced that, sponsored by [[MegaCorp Morgan Technologies,]] the Capellan refugees are on their way to permanently resettle in Tau Sigma.
[[FromBadToWorse This is the least of everyone's problems.]]
----
!!''Derelict'' provides examples of the following tropes:
* AbortedArc: The [[spoiler:new GTVI insurrection]] starts with a literal bang and then fizzles out shortly thereafter.
* AllJustADream: Not the entire campaign, fortunately, just one mission. It ends with a JumpScare by a [[spoiler:Sathanas Juggernaut,]] of all things.
* ApocalypseHow: Class 4-5 through all of Alliance space [[spoiler:''if'' the ''Nyarlathotep'' makes it to Capella.]]
* ArtifactTitle: After [[spoiler:"The Stars Are Right".]]
* BeamSpam: Beams fly around here even more than in the main ''[=FreeSpace=] 2'' campaign.
* BolivianArmyEnding: The NonstandardGameOver in the final mission does this.
* ChekhovsGun: The ''Nyarlathotep'''s [[spoiler:portable Knossos device.]]
* ContinuityNod: The GVD ''Nekhbet'' is from a popular single mission produced before ''Derelict'' was released. Mackie and Alpha 3 reference the events of that mission while flying escort for it.
* CoolShip:
** The [=GTFf=] ''Cypher'', built on Admiral Bosch's Iceni design, and still with way more firepower than other ships of comparable size.
** Subverted with the MTD ''Auriga'', which does far more harm than good and doesn't ''look'' any different from a standard Orion-class destroyer.
* DeadpanSnarker: Lieutenant Mackie
* EvilTwin: The Enigma to the [[spoiler:[=GTFf=] ''Cypher''.]] Also the MTD ''Auriga'' to the SD ''Nyarlathotep'', the former being noted as likely the only thing that can take on the ''Nyarlathotep'' and win. Unfortunately, being its evil twin doesn't make the ''Auriga'' '''friendly'''.
* FalseFlagOperation: An ''accidental'' case; when the MTD ''Auriga'' passes through an Allied blockade like it isn't there, it also takes out the attacking Shivans. The Shivans are unaware the ''Auriga'' isn't a GTVA warship, and, thinking the Alliance has far more hardware at their disposal than they actually do, retreat.
* {{Foreshadowing}}:
** One of the researchers on the ''Nyarlathotep'' writes in his journal, "Home... I want to go home..."
** The {{Reveal}} that [[spoiler:Morgan Technologies]] is responsible for the [[spoiler:increased pirate activity]] is foreshadowed when pirates specifically target GTVA science ships so the Alliance will have to accept their offer for help researching the derelict.
* GenreSavvy: Lieutenant Mackie. When unscheduled escort fighters jump in, he assumes it's ''not'' a clerical oversight. When the Shivans ''avoid'' killing as many people as possible, he knows something is very, very wrong, a revelation that Allied Command not only doesn't pick up on, but outright ''dismisses'' until the last minute.
* GlassCannon: The ''Gorgon'' is an [[MoreDakka uber-]][[BeamSpam beam platform]] built into a gutted gas miner with a [[EarthShatteringKaboom Meson Bomb]] hooked into it from outside as a reactor. Both are extremely fragile pieces of equipment, although the ''Gorgon'' ultimately survives enemy attack [[spoiler:only to be destroyed by an overload after the crew pushes it too hard in order to survive said attack.]]
* KnightInSourArmor: Mackie is too stable to be a ShellShockedVeteran, but it's hinted that he's a veteran of Capella and since his cynicism doesn't go away when he gets out of the humdrum of being stationed in the boonies, it probably comes from seeing just how much the Shivans outclass the GTVA firsthand, and thus how little he and everything he cares about matters.
* MeaningfulName:
** The [=GTFf=] ''Cypher'' is a frigate serving the intelligence division, while the ''Enigma'' is [[spoiler:its EvilTwin.]]
** The MTD ''Auriga'' could be a reference to more than one actual naval vessel, a constellation, a ship from the ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' movies, or even ''Franchise/StarCraft''.
** The ''Nyarlathotep'', and the Shivans in general, are a fine parallel to the entity from which the name derives.
** Mackie's friend, Kyle [[spoiler:S]]Athanas.
** [[spoiler:The Shivan juggernaut in the bad ending is called ''[[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Yog-Sothoth]]'']].
* MoreDakka: The [=GTFf=] ''Cypher'', MTD ''Auriga'' and SD ''Nyarlathotep'' can deliver ''several'' times the firepower of similar-sized ships.
* NeverTellMeTheOdds: Mackie dismisses the odds in "Hail Mary" and tells everyone to do their jobs.
* NonStandardGameOver: If the suicide attack in "Hail Mary" fails, [[spoiler:the ''Nyarlathotep'' will succeed in stabilizing the jump node to Capella and go through. A NewMeat pilot, in the brief calm, asks what they do now. Mackie, who knows exactly what's on the other side, calmly tells him to kiss his ass goodbye just before it ''comes through.'']]
* OmnicidalManiac: Played with; several characters notice that the Shivans ''aren't'' being as omnicidally maniacal as they usually are, skipping by several targets of opportunity, including a heavily populated planet. It turns out to be an important plot-point.
* RammingAlwaysWorks: The ''Argentus'' rams the [[spoiler:''Nyarlathotep'', and it works fine because it is packed full of Meson Bombs.]]
* RedHerring: When there are "accidents" apparently happening on board the [[spoiler:''Nyarlahotep'']], it looks like the [[spoiler:Morgan Technologies operatives who went black]] is responsible for it. Turns out this is only half-true; it is because [[spoiler:they apparently found something in the ship and [[WhatDoesThisButtonDo triggered something]] that causes the ship (and probably sleeping Shivans too) to wake up]].
* RunningGag: Mackie's snark, be it commenting on the duct tape holding his instrument panel together, displeasure at how capital ships get all the credit for winning engagements where they would explicitly not survive without their fighter cover, and everything in between.
-->'''Mackie:''' These fighters are held together with glue and duct tape [...] The ''Lonewolf''[='=]s a flying wreck. You want to hear another story about duct tape?\\
'''GTC ''Lonewolf'':''' We heard that, Alpha 2!\\
'''Mackie:''' Sorry...
* SpacePirates: Mostly harmless, and it's insinuated that the GTVA even drafts some into service at one point. [[spoiler:The mercenaries masquerading as pirates do a lot of damage, though.]]
* ThisIsGonnaSuck: "Looks like the [[ExpospeakGag defecation is about to hit the ventilation...]]"
* TitleDrop: The [[spoiler:''Nyarlathotep'']] is the campaign's eponymous derelict, and it's referred to as such several times.
* TranslatorMicrobes: Played with; when the Altair <-> Tau Ceti jump node is closed, Lieutenant Mackie and the player are temporarily assigned to a Vasudan squadron while stranded on the Altair side. While patrolling the area as the refugees from Capella begin to arrive, a wing of Terran fighters jumps in, unscheduled. The Vasudan commander assumes it to be a clerical oversight. Mackie and the player, the only other humans in the escort, realize that the newly arrived fighters are bogus because their comm chatter lacks the intonation most disciplined military pilots speak with, something lost to the translator.
* WhamEpisode: Several, but most notably "The Stars Are Right". Those who have picked up on the Lovecraft theme will call an [[TheUntwist Untwist]] on it, though.
* WhamLine: When someone ''finally'' figures out what the Shivans are trying to accomplish.
-->'''Lieutenant Mackie:''' [[spoiler:[[OhCrap Oh my god!]] I know where she's going! Home! The ''Nyarlathotep'' is going ''[[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt home!]]'']]
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse:
** The MTD ''Auriga''. Doubly aggravating because your de-briefing specifically says [[spoiler:the hunt has been called off because Allied Command is unwilling to take more losses chasing the thing.]] Some fans are hoping it shows up in "Blackwater Operations".
** Also the ''Enigma'', which never shows up again after its initial appearance.
----
