Boy, oh boy, was this mission long! Part of Operation Locust Purge, Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve’s mission 28 also known as A Thousand Points of Light is a very long air battle that takes place on April 1, 2030, over Cima Island.
The strategy I used for this mission was actually pretty straightforward. Gun down the more important aircraft, the bombers, to reach 60,000 points quickly. Remember that despite the point quota you need to meet, your main objective is to also defend the base, so don’t let the bombers get too close. If you’re looking for those sweet Assault Record targets like I was, you should know you will face five Shadow fighters of the Lux Lunae unit (Su-57 Felons), but you should have already taken down Shadow 24 in Mission 18. As for Harmonius (F-35C Lightning II), the requirement to make this named ace spawn is to blow up five bombers within the first five minutes.
There are some tips further down to keep in mind if you’re going for an S-rank or if you want to farm MRP.
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Ace Combat 8 Mission 28 Walkthrough
Since the mission can drag on, I divided the mission into stages. The most chaotic part is in the middle when reinforcements arrive, but the most important parts are the beginning and ending stages.
Reach 60,000 Points by Prioritizing Bombers
So first of all, we need to reach 60,000 points. Now this is actually easier than it looks because of just how many bomber units spawn one after another. The waves simply don’t end. So you won’t have trouble hunting down enemies. The thing you should be focusing on is using your missiles precisely so you take down hostiles in one shot. Efficiency is the name of the game here (not literally).
One thing I especially avoided during this mission was dogfights with fighters. It’s just not worth it when bombers provide 1. a higher score when destroyed and 2. actual danger to the base.
This is also the section you need to focus on to spawn Harmonious.
Make Harmonius Spawn
Like many other named ace fighters, Harmonious also requires you to play the game on veteran or higher difficulty. The other requirement is taking down five bomber units before five minutes pass. SASM is my recommended choice for this encounter.
After that, you should see one F-35C Lightning II approach from the edge of the map and be accompanied by a reinforcement group of TU-160s. Don’t prioritize Harmonious immediately since bombers might get the upper hand and damage the base too much, failing the mission.
When it comes to the Tu-160s, I learned that destroying the leader will cause the ones behind it to collide with the wreckage. This saved me plenty of ammo and trouble (and time too!)
Resupply at Cima Island
At some point AWACS warned me about ammunition consumption. That was my cue to return to the base to resupply. I highly urge you to please take advantage of it too, as it is not optional, but rather necessary if you want to survive the rest of the mission.
You can land at the Cima Island airstrip repeatedly, so do it as often as time and threats allow. Whenever there was an immediate bomber threat, I dealt with that first and then returned to base to restock ammunition.
Deal With the Reinforcement Waves
I wasn’t joking when I told you this mission is long. Hopefully you’d already strapped in.
More TUs and Mirage-2000s will arrive. Keep checking your mini map and keep going after those bombers. Forget the pesky fighters unless they get in the way. Don’t waste your entire Special Weapon supply simply trying to clear every aircraft from the sky. Save enough firepower for the powerful Shadows that will appear later.
Prepare for the Final Shadow Encounter
The final part of Mission 28 is where things get particularly icky.
The unit consists of five Su-57 Felons: Doctus – Salatrix – Acrobates – Anteros – Ares
The game keeps track of what you did in earlier missions. I really liked that if you’d killed Shadow 24 (Ilhan), then you’ll notice that it’s replaced by Shadow 28 (Serdar Qusa) in the lineup. Ares is Shadow 22 and the final boss fight of this mission.
The Shadow 22 Boss Fight
This was the hardest section of this lengthy mission. Your fighter’s machine gun is your best friend here because the opponent is very dodgy. I should warn you, Shadow 22 has some crazy moves, especially its post-stall maneuvering. If you think those moves are groovy, then you need to learn how to pull a PSM yourself.
Beating Ares can prove to be quite complex and difficult, that’s why you need to follow a thorough Shadow 22 walkthrough.
Best Aircraft and Weapons for Mission 28
We know that this mission is all over the sky (literally), so obviously the meta loadout here is one that covers air-to-air combat. This is what I brought to this hectic battle:
Best Aircraft
For this mission, I specifically chose my aircraft first and foremost by the weapons I could mount on it. And then second, by its traits. The FA-36 is your best choice by far. It has a full five-bar speed rating and seven-bar maneuverability rating. More importantly, there are some specific weapons you need which you can equip on the FA-36. But note that FA-36 is an aircraft that is only unlockable late game.
Best Weapons
Absolutely, definitely, for-the-love-of-god-ly, pick the SASM. SASM doesn’t need a perfect direct hit to deal damage. Why? Because it functions as a wicked area-of-effect attack. So this is the weapon you should pick for dealing with the Shadows. They’re constantly maneuvering and can evade conventional missile shots. SASM can damage targets even without a direct hit. But wait for it: upgraded SASMs can even destroy most bomber types with one missile.
Though if you aim to target individual planes, equipping an HPAA is also a great choice. I took down several bombers with one HPAA missile alone. Overall, that’s what you want out of your weapon: taking down hostiles in the shortest time possible.
S-Rank Guide
For an S-rank on this mission, you should do what you’ve been doing so far anyway. Taking down aircraft as fast as possible, without sacrificing your main goals. Just do more of that. Just keep in mind that even my almost-flawless S-rank run took up to 40 minutes to complete.
These are the nuanced tips I learned in my runs:
- Don’t slow down. Hit bombers as much as you can without slowing down.
- Avoid ordinary fighters because they award you with insignificant scores.
- Use multi-lock weapons like the 4AAM/6AAM against groups.
- Resupply at the base. Seriously, use this privilege.
- Kill Harmonius and Shadow 25 to maximize your score.
- Don’t waste too much ammunition before the final Shadow 22 encounter.
- Find the most straight paths, don’t stray off, and be oversensitive about wasting time.
Is Mission 28 Good for MRP Farming?
Because this mission has a plethora of hostile aircraft and easy access to the Cima base for resupplying, it makes it one of the best missions to farm MRP.
If you want to know the exact details on how to grind not only on mission 28, but throughout the entire game, you should study an MRP farming guide.
The Possible Rewards
Besides receiving the bronze trophy, Wings Upon Wings upon completion of this mission, you can also pursue these possible rewards as well:
- Harmonious’ Assault Record
- Shadow 25’s Assault Record
- Aircraft destruction requirements
- Machine-gun kill requirements
- MRP farming
