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I finally made it through an FTL game to sector 8 (on easy mode, of course), whereupon I found that everything changed.

Now I start at the right side, and there's a flagship on the left, and nodes are getting picked off one-by-one. I also was given some repair nodes, but apparently with no time to get to them before the flagship reached my base. (Later I discovered that the flagship doesn't move one node per turn, but only one node per two or three(?) turns.) Furthermore, I lost the game when the rebels reached my base even though the flagship was still a couple of nodes away.

How does sector 8 work? How fast does the flagship move? What conditions cause me to lose the game without getting blown up? (I realize this is more than one question, but I'm looking for an overall understanding of how sector 8 is supposed to work.)

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    this question may help you out: gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/86112/…
    – l I
    Jun 24, 2013 at 16:29
  • For what its worth this exact instance is what happened to me during my first time achieving sector 8 (however I played on normal, I've never touched Easy, I am proud to say). It was very fustrating
    – Ender
    Jun 24, 2013 at 21:44
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    I've been playing on Easy because on Normal I get killed too quickly to get the hang of the game mechanics. I think of Easy as "training mode".
    – Kyralessa
    Jun 25, 2013 at 9:28

1 Answer 1

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Update for advance mode:

  1. You start out on the left side of the screen, the rebel flagship is somewhere on the right.
  2. There are repair points (and possibly a shop) scattered through the sector, as well as random battles with rebels.
  3. The base is somewhere in between you and the rebel flagship. The flagship's goal is to jump to the base.
  4. The flag ship makes one jump for every 2 of your jumps. The map will show the next node the flagship will jump to.
  5. If the flagship reaches the base, it will take 3 consecutive turns to destroy the base before you get game over(thanks to BlackVegetable).

Old normal mode stuff:

Here is a rough breakdown of sector 8:

  1. You start out at the federation base, somewhere on the right side of the map.
  2. The rebel flagship is on the left side, and the fleet advances through the sector as usual per jump.
  3. There are some repair points (and a shop) in the sector, and all random battles will be between you and a strong rebel ship.
  4. There is a countdown timer at the bottom of the screen telling you how many jumps the rebel flagship has to make before its game over. As stated in that answer, the flagship jumps once for every two jumps you make.

  5. The giant arrow leading out of the rebel flag ship points to the next sector it will be jumping to. It does not have to reach your base for the game to be over.

    6. The flagship has three stages, you have to defeat all three before the timer reaches 0 or you lose.

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    Worth noting that as you defeat each stage of the flagship, The number of jumps it requires to 'be in range' increases by 1, giving you slightly more time to go repair or press your attack
    – Robotnik ♦
    Jun 25, 2013 at 0:59
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    Well, having faced the rebel flagship for the first time today, in Easy mode, it would appear that the game designers completely forgot to implement Easy mode for the flagship. :(
    – Kyralessa
    Jun 26, 2013 at 16:44
  • @Kyralessa yea, if you aren't prepared to face the flag ship it can easily end your game, but with a little know how there are actually multiple ways to beat it.
    – l I
    Jun 26, 2013 at 17:24
  • Since I wrote that, I've finally beaten the flagship a few times (though on Easy mode). It can be done, but it definitely takes experience.
    – Kyralessa
    Jul 8, 2013 at 7:56
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    The game isn't over if the flagship reaches your base anymore. It must spend 3 consecutive turns on your base to destroy it. Also, it is worth mentioning that repair stations now give scrap in addition to missiles, drone parts, and repairs.
    – BlackVegetable
    Apr 8, 2014 at 14:45

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