Retrieve NSB Data from Grand Hotel is a mission from the Operation True Heirs set in Taipei.
Summary[]
With a ragtag team of Steven Heck, Scarlet Lake, and Mina Tang, Michael Thorton attempts to steal information on Ronald Sung's assassination from the NSB, who are stationed inside the Grand Hotel in Taipei.
Available intel[]
| Intel Type | Source | Price | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Additional On-Site Acquisition | Heck Enterprises | $4,000 | Heck knows a man at the Grand Hotel that will, for the right price, 'accidentally' leave some valuables out in the open for you. |
| Mission Information | Anonymous | $4,000 | Bonus Objective in the Infiltrate Grand Hotel mission. An anonymous informant will sell you information on a valuable target that will be at the Hotel the same time as you. |
| Security Information | Anonymous | $1,100 | Mission map of the Grand Hotel. For a small fee, a surveillance company will provide you with a detailed map of the famous Grand Hotel, including any security features it might have that aren't common knowledge. |
| Guard Reassignments | Hong Shi | $2,500 | Hong Shi is a man of great influence and can pull the strings of many 'legitimate' businesses. Because it serves his purposes, he's willing to make use of his clout at the Grand Hotel and make sure that the most capable security personnel are off duty when you arrive. |
- Guard Reassignments will only be available if you met Hong Shi and either haven't completed Assault Triad Headquarters in Slums yet, or if you completed it, have at least neutral reputation with him.
- Mission Information enables you to lockpick the safe behind the painting in the security room on the 16th floor ($10,000).
- (BUG): The descriptions of the bought intel will be displayed incorrectly in the pre-mission screen. For example, Mission Information will show the description of Guard Reassignments. However, the intel itself should produce the effect that is listed in the Clearinghouse.
Objectives and Walkthrough[]
This guide is written for stealth-oriented characters, as combat-oriented characters need no special strategies here. Since this mission qualifies for the One with the Shadows perk / achievement (complete 3 missions without getting detected by enemies and less than 5 kills), we will focus on that instead. Note that staying 100% stealthy in this mission requires performing a certain sequence of actions to prevent Steven Heck from alerting enemies at the beginning. It's not very difficult, but will likely require a few attempts to pull off.
Also, if you want Unseen Presence perk (complete 5 missions with no alarms and less than 5 kills), you have to decide between the perk and helping Steven Heck erase his NSB record, since it will sound an alarm. There are more than 5 missions in the game that can contribute to this perk, so this is not your only chance for it, but you also don't get much from helping him — you just gain 3 reputation. Having it low can potentially make him betray you after the last mission in Taipei if it's s at -1 or less, and if you have already completed the Assault Brayko's Mansion without killing your ally. If that's not the case, or if you kept his reputation above 0, Heck will always remain friendly.
Helping Heck would also fail One with the Shadows, as it triggers an alarm and alerts the enemies.
For a stealth approach it is highly recommended to stock up on EMP grenades (with 3 or even 4 slots), as there will be a lot of devices to hack, some of them of very high difficulty. Even with maxed out Sabotage skill it can be tough to perfectly hack all devices without raising an alarm. You may also consider acquiring and equipping Printed Circuitry and Integrated Circuitry armor mods to extend the hacking timers.
Staying undetected only affects the perks, as the characters only care about the civilian deaths here. Each guard killed — including those killed by Steven Heck in the Hotel lobby during the escape (if he wasn't told to avoid casualties) — will hurt your reputation with Mina by -1, and will change an post-mission conversation with Leland. Non-lethal neutralizations are fine, however.
Starting Conversations[]
When you start the mission you will place a call to Scarlet Lake from the safehouse, asking her for assistance.
- Scarlet Lake - 1st dialogue
- Aggressive
- Suave - Scarlet +1
- Professional
- Scarlet Lake - 2nd dialogue
- Aggressive
- Evasive
- Honest
At the Hotel you will engage in a briefing with Steven, Scarlet, and Mina.
If you don't want Heck to kill civilians, be sure to pick the "No Casualties" response in his 1st dialogue. This will make him attack only with melee and not use his pistol and incendiary grenades.
- Michael Thorton
- Ruthless - Heck +1
- Inspiring - Scarlet +1
- Discreet - Heck -1
- Steven Heck - 1st dialogue
- Aggressive - Heck +1
- Subtle
- No Casualties - Heck -1 / Only lose -1 here if you already have a positive reputation with Heck.
- Scarlet Lake - 1st dialogue
- Impatient
- Flirtatious - Mina -1, Scarlet -1
- Professional - Scarlet +1
- Mina Tang - 1st dialogue
- Tactics
- Flirtatious - Scarlet -1 / Only lose -1 here if you already have a positive reputation with Scarlet.
- Coordinate
After the briefing you will start the mission in your Hotel room.
Rendezvous with Heck[]
Meet Steven Heck in the security offices.
Pick up the ammo in your bathroom. Advance along the hallway and use use the elevator to meet up with Heck. As soon as you reach the lower floor Steven Heck will subdue a police guard in the office (which is scripted and can't be avoided), then start attacking the two others patrolling the halls (which you can prevent), and will leave once they are neutralized. This is what usually voids the One with the Shadows in this mission: even if these two guards never saw you, when Heck alerts them to a "red" level, it is considered a "detection" for the player. Even if you told Heck "No Casualties", he won't fire his pistol and only use melee, but that's still enough to put the guards in combat mode.
Note that getting detected by the guards here does not change the conversations or reputation with other characters, and only affects the perk/achievement. If you don't care about that or staying perfectly stealthy, you can just ignore the below comments and take down guards with any non-lethal method without rushing.
If you want to prevent Heck from engaging the guards you'd have to intercept them both very quickly. For that you need a pistol with high enough damage (24+) to one-shot a guard, as he would become alerted otherwise; and you need a few abilities: Evasion, Silent Running and Chain Shot, of at least Basic level. The sequence of actions is as follows: Use the elevator — Activate Silent Running — Once the elevator doors start opening, begin sprinting forward — Use Chain Shot on the guard to the left — Sprint towards the second guard and subdue him with a melee takedown (Evasion should hide you if he spots you) — Heck should leave the area after this.
You can also use Fury to slow down time after using Chain Shot, which would allow you to reach the second guard while he is still unaware (blue). If you have Fury Master or Fury Advanced + Brilliance, you'd also be able to subdue both guards with melee, with both staying unaware.
As long as the guards stayed at blue or yellow awareness level, you would be considered undetected, which is enough for One with the Shadows. If their indicators turned red, then that counts as detection, and you'd no longer qualify.
Obtain Map[]
Find a map of the NSB conference floor.
After you deal with the guards, start exploring the security offices. There are three computers to hack in this area: one turns of the cameras, one is your objective, while the last one is NSB dossier. There are also numerous locked gates containing ammo and weapon mods behind them.
- Money: $5,000 - Briefcase near the computer with Hotel map.
- Weapon Mod - In a room across from central security office. (Only with Additional On-Site Acquisition intel.)
- Weapon Mod - In a room across from central security office behind the fence.
- Weapon Mod - In the central security office.
- Money: $5,000 - Briefcase behind a locked gate.
- Dossier: NSB - Hack the computer in a room near the exit from the security offices.
- XP: +100
Rendezvous with Scarlet[]
Meet Scarlet by the restrooms on the penthouse level.
Now exit the security offices through the door on the opposite side of where you entered, and go up the stairs. Scarlet will contact you:
- Scarlet Lake - 1st dialogue
- Impatient - Scarlet -1
- Joking
- Grateful
- Scarlet Lake - 2nd dialogue
- Mission
- Blind Date
- Access - Scarlet +1
If Scarlet likes you (reputation of +2 or more), she will also offer you a photo of the rep with an idea on how to frame him. After the conversation you will automatically complete the Acquire Photo optional objective.
- XP: +75 - For Acquire Photo optional objective.
Meet with Scarlet on the 14th floor to get Halbech's rep room key.
- XP: +100
Obtain Badge[]
Obtain a badge to gain access to the VIP elevator to the conference room floor.
Completing the optional objective Frame Halbech Rep will get rid of the Halbech rep and two guards in the lobby, making this section much easier. To do so, turn around and go to 16th floor, bypass the keypad on the right, enter the room and hack the computer to gain access to the criminal database. There is also a safe hidden behind the painting, that's only accessible with Mission Information intel.
- Money: $10,000 - In the safe behind the painting.
- XP: +75 - For Frame Halbech Rep bonus objective; depends on Acquire Photo optional objective.
Exit through the door and move along the walkway where the lone guard is, follow him then sneak behind his back as he reaches the end of the walkway, then enter the Halbech rep's room. Hack the laptop at the mini-bar for incriminating Halbech intel, crack the safe in the bathroom, and finally grab the badge on the bedside table.
- XP: +75 - Complete Halbech Intel by hacking rep's laptop.
- Dossier: Halbech Corporation
- Halbech Data - In a safe near the bathroom sink in rep's room.
- XP: +100 - For Obtain Badge objective.
Reach Conference[]
Use the VIP elevator to reach the conference floor.
Go down a floor to the bar area, collect the money roll on the counter, and exit through the elevator.
- Money: $5,000 - On the bar counter.
- XP: +125
Acquire NSB Intel[]
Hack into the NSB security database to download intelligence on potential threats to President Sung.
Advance along the hallway and pick the locked door on the left, make two rights and enter the conference hall. Grab the briefcase by the projector screen, then start working on neutralizing the NSB agents. Avoiding them is not an option, because the laptop will not be accessible until all of them are dealt with. You can try and take them down one-by-one by using your Sound Generator to lure them away from the main room into the hallway, or wait for the first two agents to go on their patrol, take them down once they're out of sight, and then subdue the last two stationary agents near the computer while Shadow Operative is active. Once all 4 agents are defeated, hack the laptop and complete the main objective.
- Money: $5,000 - In the room with the projector.
- XP: +250
- Dossier: Omen Deng - After accessing the NSB database.
- Dossier: Ronald Sung - After accessing the NSB database.
Erase Heck's Record[]
Repay Heck by clearing his record from the NSB database.
You can help Steven Heck for a huge reputation boost, but it will not affect his decision to betray or not betray you at the end of Taipei operation, as long as his reputation stays above 0. Doing so will fail both One with the Shadows and Unseen Presence, as it will trigger an alarm and make all guards hostile.
Activate the NSB laptop a second time after hacking it to complete the objective. It will trigger a permanent alarm, spawn two security guards outside the conference hall, and instantly gain you +1 reputation with Steven but will get you -1 reputation with Mina later. Bear in mind that using a Radio Mimic will not deactivate the alarm, as it will automatically reactivate immediately afterwards, even after you complete Disable Lockdown.
Once you escape, your reputation with Heck will get a +/-2 adjustment, depending on whether you erased his record or not.
- Dossier Secret Fact: Steven Heck - After erasing Heck's record.
- XP: +50
- Steven Heck +1
- Mina Tang -1 (Only if you already have a positive reputation with Mina.)
Escape[]
Escape the Grand Hotel via the service elevator.
If you didn't erase Heck's record, then the Hotel lobby will be quiet and you'll only have to to reach the exit through the offices on the right. There is no loot to collect anywhere in the lobby or the offices, except for an armor mod behind the fenced area in the security office on the second floor, and ammo near the exit.
Disable Lockdown[]
If you did erase Heck's record, then the Hotel will be on lockdown and you'll have to disable it first.
You can avoid losing further reputation with Mina if you have specifically told Steven not to kill civilians ("No Casualties") during the briefing, in which case he'll throw a flashbang grenade at the guards and will not be capable of killing them with his pistol. If you were OK with violent methods, he'll throw an incendiary grenade instead, setting them on fire. It can be averted by quickly shooting all 3 guards at the bottom of the stairs with Chain Shot and tranquilizers.
Enter the security office on the second floor to the left an hack the computer to disable the lockdown.
- XP: +100
Grab an armor mod behind the fenced area, then head to the service elevator through the offices.
- XP: +150 - For Escape objective.
- Reputation: Steven Heck +2 / If you erased his record in the NSB database.
- -OR-
- Reputation: Steven Heck -2 / If you did not erase his record in the NSB database.
Back at the safehouse Heck will contact you.
- Steven Heck - 1st dialogue
- Cocky - Heck +1
- Evasive
- Straightforward
Choices and Consequences[]
Consequences of Previous Missions[]
- If you blackmailed or have negative reputation with Hong Shi, you will lose access to Guard Reassignments intel for this mission.
Consequences in Following Missions[]
- Henry Leland will offer different comments after the Intercept Assassination Plans mission based on whether or not any of the civilians were killed at the Hotel.