Commanders, a new opportunity has come to your game.

Combines now have access to Combine Black Ops!

Coordinate with your fellow Combine Members during this Event and defuse Threats to the Syndicate. Strategize, communicate, and strike with precision in order to accomplish your objectives.

Overview

The Syndicate will occasionally authorize Combine Black Ops, mobilizing all Combines against Cells of a massive Network of spies and rogue agents. Combine Members can send Special Operatives to engage Threats from the Network to eliminate individual Cells.

In addition to the Operative XP you gain by defusing Threats, the Syndicate pays premium Rewards for taking down Cells. Each Cell in the Network is isolated from the rest. Once every Threat in a Cell has been defused, the Syndicate will share the intel needed to locate the next Cell.

Only fully-fledged Combine Members with access to Special Operatives can participate in the Black Ops.

You must move in tandem with your Combine Members to eliminate as many Cells as you can before time runs out!

Threats

Threats have Levels, and sometimes the forces protecting them have training from a particular Branch. If your Special Operative's Branch counters the Branch of a Threat's forces, your Special Operative will receive a 25% Attack Boost. If your attack results in a Critical Strike, the Branch Bonus will be applied to the total power of the Critical Strike.

Forces protecting Threats cannot receive Branch Bonuses. So, you can sometimes choose to send a weaker Special Operative to defuse a powerful Threat. Just make sure you've thought through your strategy and ensured that your Special Operative is from the right Branch!

Mechanics

Each Combine Member can use only 1 Special Operative of each Specialization during the Combine Black Ops.

For example, if you use a Heavy Gunner (Specialization: Location Defense), any other Heavy Gunner Operatives you have will be Exposed and unable to engage the Network until the next Event. This means that, to succeed, each Combine Member should have Special Operatives with different Specializations.

In addition, some Cells can only be eliminated by certain Special Operatives. For example, Operatives of all Tiers are able to eliminate the first 20 Cells, but only Tier 1 Special Operatives can defuse Threats in the final 5 Cells.

Note: It's vital to defuse Threats in single engagements. While a Special Operative's attack reduces a Threat’s Forces for your other Operatives, you can only send so many Operatives to each Combine Black Ops Assignment. As a result, the more Special Operatives it takes to defuse a Threat, the less likely it is that you’ll be able to reach the higher Cells.

Once you’ve eliminated the first Cell, you can use Special Operative Aliases to Reintegrate Operatives with Exposed Specializations. After they engage a Threat once more, though, it's too risky, and Operatives with that Specialization cannot Reintegrate again.

Rewards

Rewards you receive for eliminating Cells are divided into 3 types:

Personal Rewards. You receive these Rewards for defusing Threats in Cells. This Reward is the same as the one you would receive from defusing Flashpoints in the Special Operatives window.

Major Cell Rewards. This Reward is given to the Combine upon successfully eliminating a Major Cell. To receive this Reward, you must have defused at least one Threat within a given number of Cells.

Special Combine Rewards. These Rewards are given to Combines that successfully eliminate Cells 30, 50, and 100. To receive them, you must have defused at least one Threat during the current Combine Black Ops Assignment.

Most Rewards gained during the Combine Black Ops Assignment can be claimed once it ends. The Special Operative XP and Energy gained by defusing Threats are, of course, added as soon as you earn them.

Defectors

Defectors are a special sort of Special Operative. These individuals escaped - or have been extracted - from the Network during Combine Black Ops. Defectors don't fight, but when discharged they share valuable intel with your Special Operatives, granting Operative XP.

You will receive Defectors as part of your Combine's Major Cell Rewards. Like all Special Operatives, a Defector has a Level, Rank, and Tier. You can increase the Level of your Defectors by discharging other Operatives or Defectors for XP. Once a Defector reaches the maximum Level for their Rank, you can increase their Rank.

Defectors gained as Rewards will wait in the "Goods" tab of the Inbox window. You'll be able to send Defectors to empty slots in the Special Operatives window for a limited time. If you fail to do this before time runs out, the Network will catch up to them and they will disappear forever.

Ranking

There are two ways in which you and your Combine are Ranked in the Combine Black Ops:

1) Your Combine’s position in the Rankings will be calculated according to the highest Cell you are able to eliminate in Combine Black Ops. The higher the Cell, the higher your position in the Rankings!

2) Your position in the Combine Rankings will be calculated according to how much damage you inflicted on Threats compared to other associates in your Combine.

Tips

Here are some tips to help you achieve success in Combine Black Ops:

Save your strongest Special Operatives for later. More dangerous Threats appear the further into the Network you go, so you’d be wise to use your less capable Special Operatives in the earlier Cells.

Communicate with your fellow Combine Members to find out which Special Operatives they have. This way you can develop an effective strategy and send the most suitable Special Operative to defuse each Threat. To help your Combine, a chat has been added that contains information about the current Black Ops Assignment.

Increase your Combine’s numbers. The more active Members you have in your Combine, the better your chances of reaching Cell 100.

Upgrade your Special Operatives and hire additional Operatives with new Specializations.

That intel should get you all you need. Now deploy your men, and take down that Network.