The Group 15 research unit of the UDA has a theory that exotics are getting into Icarus wildlife and causing mutations which make them larger and more aggressive than normal. To test their theory, they need a sample from a Mammoth, a species extinct on Earth and reborn on terraformed Icarus. Why do these samples always have to be from the most dangerous specimens?
This walkthrough will take you through the prep and battle strategy to face an exotics-enhanced Mammoth. Get ready to take down the largest mammal on Icarus!
Behavior: The Mammoth will charge at a prospector if they are nearby, or if the prospector attacks it. It gives chase until killed or if the prospector creates enough distance. The Mammoth has a tight turning radius and will track the prospector closely with every change in direction.
Notes: Mammoths can only be skinned with a Caveworm or Iron Knife, or better. It will begin to heal if it disengages from the fight to return to its starting location. The Mammoth also seems to resist weapon talent debuffs like Slow, Bleed, and Immobilize.
“Right between the eyes” is not a euphemism when taking aim at this souped-up Mammoth.
Preparing for CLEAN UP
The target for this extermination mission is deep within the Arctic region, about 7-8 kilometers from the Forest area located near the Dropship. Plan to spend 2-3 days in the cold and bring adequate armor, food, shelter, heat, and sleeping provisions. All this may require more carrying capacity, so it is worth it to craft or bring a backpack. Check out the Arctic Biome guide for more survival tips.
The Mammoth has strong attacks which cause significant damage and slow. The fight will cover a wide area and attract other wolves and snow leopards.Consider upgrading from Fur to Naneo Armor, or an envirosuit with extra physical resistance, like Xigo ‘Hark’ S5. Health- and stamina-buffing foods will help you both take a hit and outrun the Mammoth when necessary.
The AoE damage from the Mammoth’s ground pound can reach far enough into a cave to shatter both workstations and any plans for a cave-based assault.
For armaments, ranged weapons (bows and arrows, firearms) are the obvious choice. If you have sufficiently high movement speed buffs to match pace with the Mammoth while backpedaling, a melee weapon might be an option. In order to end the fight before the weather turns or your supplies run out, a certain amount of DPS is required. The Mammoth can absorb a lot of damage with 20K+ health, so bring backup weapons and lots of ammo.
After the fight, a Caveworm, Iron, or a workshop knife (any of them will work) or better is required to skin the mammoth and harvest one of its tusks.
In CLEAN UP, the Dropship will land in the Forest biome just south of an entrance to the Arctic in 13. It is much easier to build and prepare in the Forest, so it may be a good idea to set up a base nearby. However, for an extra challenge you can plan your workshop loadout carefully and run into the Arctic without taking any Forest resources.
As long as dismantling rope produces fiber, it is possible to build and supply a base with only the Arctic resources.
If you plan to use firearms, the lake in J14 has several convenient caves surrounding it to provide most — if not all — of the ore you will need. There is also an exotics vein right next to the Mammoth location in 5/ 6, so you may want to plan for an extraction run at the same time. Once you have your equipment, shelter, food, armor, repair stations, and weaponry sorted, set off for the snow.
Reach the Target Location
The path to the Mammoth through the Arctic is long, and you are likely to encounter weather along the way. There are numerous caves along the way that you can use for shelter and resources, like Caveworm Scales and Poison Sacks for Caveworm Arrows, and Iron Ore for Flint Arrows.
It is often possible to avoid entire packs of wolves and the occasional snow leopards that tend to move together in the same direction. If you find a few strays, consider skinning them and using the resources to make a stack of Bone Arrows for backup, in case you run out of them during the battle.
With a crafting bench, campfire, and bedroll, any of a dozen caves on the route to the Mammoth can be a suitable storm shelter.
Once you get within sight of the Mammoth, set up your portable shelter out of the way of where you plan to fight, or take over a nearby cave. The cave near the cliffs on the west side of 5/ 6 is a convenient choice.
Deploy your workstations, set your respawn point (if not in hardcore mode), repair your equipment, and store your extra resources. The big game hunt is about to begin.
Defeating the Mammoth
There are two main strategies for taking on the Mammoth with a ranged weapon: trap it or keep pace with it. The weak point is right between the eyes in the front of its head, so you want to aggro the animal so it will constantly face you. Depending on your weaponry and talents, the Mammoth may take 50-200 arrows or 20-60 bullets to fell. If you draw aggro from any wolves or snow leopards, gain some distance from the Mammoth before you dispatch them.
Strategy 1: Cliff Trap
Taunt the Mammoth as it crosses below a ridge to pull it towards the cliff-face.
To trap the Mammoth, first aggro the creature and get it to follow as you circle one of the steep cliffs (like the one on the west side in 5/ 6).
Then, when you are on top of the cliff and the Mammoth is below and close, use a ranged attack to taunt the beast. If it runs directly at you to try and scale the cliff-face instead of circling around the cliff, you succeeded.
From this vantage point above the pinned Mammoth, critical hits on its weak spot are almost effortless.
Ideally, it will continuously run into the cliff-face thinking it can climb up and attack you. This gives you a clear and stable sightline to get off a streak of critical hits until the Mammoth is killed. If it gets stuck behind an ore node, it will try to smash its way through. So, time your shots to hit its weak point each time its forelegs land.
Strategy 2: Backpedal Uphill
Alternatively, you can engage the Mammoth completely in the open. Having drawn its aggro, position yourself uphill from the beast so that, as you backpedal away, you will be closer to the height of the weak point between its eyes.
A good way to do this is to run northeast of the animal, turn around, and kite it up the path in 5/J5 as you backpedal and shoot. If the Mammoth gets too close, run further uphill and resume shooting at its weak point.
Talents which significantly boost your movement speed will keep you from having to reposition yourself.
Finishing the Mission
Once you knock down the last of the Mammoth’s massive health bar, Sol will encourage you to skin the animal. If you forgot to bring a Rank 2 knife, quickly go back to your shelter and craft a Caveworm knife, which will do the job.Take a selfie with the impressive creature as a trophy, and then skin it and remove the tusk.
After all that work, do not forget to pick up the tusk!
All that is left is to return the way you came and bring the tusk to the Dropship. Once you do this, Sol will congratulate you, and you can return to orbit. Don’t forget to pick up any workshop gear you left in your Forest or Arctic bases before taking off.
Thanks for checking out this walkthrough for CLEAN UP. This is not the only time you will confront an exotics-enhanced mammoth — check out the CRYOGENIC mission walkthrough for another fun mammoth encounter. And, while you get ready for that mission, leave a comment below about your experiences, tips, or questions about the mission.
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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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