Sinotai has… misplaced a couple of biological containment units (scorpion breeders). So, they want one of your prospectors to drop in and erase any evidence of these exotics-mutated disasters (giant venomous scorpions). In CONCEALMENT: Recovery you will grind up some catalytic materials (for rapid scorpion growth) and load them into each pod to activate and destroy the mutated specimens within (vicious, eviscerating scorpions). Ironically, this mission is more concealment than recovery.
Check out this level guide to get some insider knowledge of what you will have to craft, and what awaits you inside those containment units. WARNING: there may be scorpions.
Harvest and prepare catalytic materials for the 2 containment units
Activate the (east) Desert containment unit and destroy the experiment
Activate the (north) Desert Canyons containment unit and destroy the experiment
Rewards
400
Variant Modifiers
Creature melee damage: -50%
Creature health: -50%
Creature movement speed: -10%
Bear spawn rate: -50%
Lion spawn rate: -10%
Polar bear spawn rate: -50%
Wolf spawn rate: -10%
Aggressive creatures perception: -50%
Neutral creatures perception: -50%
Passive creatures perception: -50%
Experience gain: -25%
Creature melee damage: +20%
Creature health: +30%
Creature movement speed: +10%
Aggressive creatures perception: +30%
Neutral creatures perception: +30%
Passive creatures perception: +30%
Scorpion spawn rate: +30%
Lion spawn rate: +30%
Wolf spawn rate: +30%
Experience gain: +25%
Player respawn count: 3
Map of Key Locations
Remember the transition cave behind the lake in M9 for a shortcut to the northern containment unit
Boss Details
Scorpion (x11 per containment unit aka “pod”)
Health: 200-300 (approximately, medium mode)
Location: Crashed pods in D11 and M6
Critical points: Eye near the top-front of the carapace
Drops: Bone, soft meat, stringy meat (rare), carapace can be chopped for bone
Attacks: One-pincer swipe, two-pincer smash, taunt (raises pincers and shakes), charge-up tail stab (causes damage and strong poison x2)
Behavior: One new scorpion will emerge from the sand near the pod every 10 seconds. It will automatically detect and fully aggro on one prospector.
Notes: Locate each scorpion as it emerges by following the skittering sound it makes. Scorpions will continue to emerge until the pod is empty, regardless of how quickly they are killed. The 11th scorpion emerges after the pod explodes and the objective is completed.
Preparing for CONCEALMENT
This mission requires the prospector to harvest and craft materials used to prepare the containment units (or “pods”). This includes Electronics, so Tier 3 technology will need to be crafted. The pods also require a Cooked Fatty T-bone crafted from meat that drops from bears and polar bears, so avoid Easy Mode (which reduces their spawn rates) if possible.
The spacious cave on the shore of the lake in G14 makes for a suitable base… as long as you can share with the caveworms
Scorpions can move quickly, their carapace is very strong, and their critical point is very small (though not impossible to hit, with practice). If on Hard Mode, consider crafting a strong bow and arrow set (Caveworm/Recurve and Flint, or better) or spear (Iron or better).
The scorpion poison attack is very strong, so a stack of Anti-poison Tonics or Pillsmay come in handy. Include a good stack of cooked meat or Health Restoration Pastes for healing. The regular scorpion attacks are as strong as bear and polar bear swipes. For Hard Mode, it might be a good time to upgrade your desert armor from Cloth to Naneo, if available.
This mission takes you into both Desert Biome regions from the Forest region. An ideal base location is near the lake in G14. There are several nearby caves for ore, and bears spawn frequently in G14 and G15.
Setting up a lakeside base in the bear spawning grounds will provide many opportunities to harvest some Fatty T-bones
Each containment unit requires an eclectic assortment of materials for a catalyst…but to accelerate the growth of what?
You do not need to advance to steel tech since an iron or a workshop pick can mine gold for the electronics. However, you will need the Concrete Furnace to smelt it. You will only need 20 gold ore, so a single node should do.
This is a good time to decide if you will go for exotics veins which (as of the time of publication) lie at the canyon intersection in C13 and atop the northern side of the cliff that rings the canyon on the east side of J14. In this case, bring an Inaris “Neves” Pickaxe, if available, to hasten the mining grind.
Sponges are restricted to just a few lakes and seem to be randomly distributed, so this cluster was a good find
You will need to grab four sponges from the Forest lakes to craft the Oxygen Restoration Pastes. The nearest lake with sufficient supply is the old triangle lake in L12/L13. Along the way, you can harvest the meat and plants you will need for a robust food supply for the trip to each pod and back.
If your luck runs dry hunting nearby bears for a Fatty T-bone, you can try hunting polar bears in the Southern Glacier. Alternatively, you can run through the eastern desert to the Riverlands, where Bears will be more plentiful. If you do not plan to build an icebox, consider frying up a stack of 5 or more Cooked Fatty T-bones to allow for some spoilage due to travel.
Destroying the Containment Units
Once you have the catalytic materials for both pods sorted, the best choice for the first pod is in D11/D12. This takes you through a fairly peaceful and wide-open section of the eastern Desert region. The only desert predators you likely will need to deal with here are the scorpions that emerge from the pod.
The smoke from each crashed containment unit can be seen from far offThat scratching noise…is something clamoring to get out? Interact with the pod to open its inventory and insert the catalytic ingredients.
To generate and release the scorpions, you need only insert the catalytic materials to start up the pod (50 Gunpowder, 5 Electronics, 2 Oxygen Restoration Pastes, and 1 Cooked Fatty T-bone). Only deposit the exact quantity, as the pod will explode as soon as the objective is completed.
Once the containment unit is armed, the scorpions will be released into the sand and emerge one by one every 10 seconds. A total of 10 scorpions will emerge (1 for every 10% of progress) before the pod explodes. Don’t get too distracted, as an 11th scorpion will then emerge from the wreckage. Dispatch them aggressively as the next scorpion will not wait for the previous one to be killed.
Find the scorpion weak point between the plates on the front of its carapace and pin it to the sand like an extraterrestrial entomologist
These likely are not the first scorpions you have had to squish. In case they are, here are the fine points to exterminate a scorpion:
Its regular attacks are fast and savage; watch out for the two-pincer smash.
The poison stab is preceded by a long wind-up during which you can easily dodge.
Its carapace offers tremendous damage resistance.
A bow or a spear (or a firearm) are your best bets here.
Give ground as you attack, and retreat if necessary.
One or two critical hits are usually enough to squash the bugger.
The weak point is a small orifice in the top-front of its carapace where its eyes peer through.
Once you have dealt with the eastern nest, return to base to pick up materials and proceed to the Desert Canyons region to the north. The second pod is at M6/M7, and its game mechanic is exactly the same as the first.Once the pod is destroyed, the objective will be completed and you will be told to return to the dropship.
Scorpions are a guaranteed source of soft meat, so carve up as much as you can before the locals get to it
The only difference is the trip to the pod, which this time takes you through a more predator-infested region of the desert. It should be easier to spot and assault scorpions from afar, and you can shoot them even if they are submerged.
Finishing the Mission
The advantage of taking the north pod on second is that you can use any number of teleportation techniques to return to the dropship and save yourself a trip. If you don’t want to run back the way you came, you can check whether the cave or ladder Unstuck exploit still works. And if you have no workshop equipment and don’t mind the experience hit, see how many scorpions you can aggro and try punching them to death in a desert lake before they kill you. In any case, “you’re done here”, as Sol might say. Get your exotics if that is in the plan, and then take your dropship taxi off the planet.
Thanks for checking out our walkthrough for CONCEALMENT. Now you know how giant scorpions came to be on Icarus. Have a question or a tip? Leave us a comment in the box below, and then hop into another desert mission and practice those scorpion crit shots.
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SurvivalSherpa
SurvivalSherpa is an avid gamer spending most of his time at the nexus of the survival, crafting, building, and role playing genres on any platform, especially to test indie titles in EA. AFK, life is about work and education in STEM fields, reading fantasy, and sipping great coffee in the Pacific Northwest.
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