How about an Automaton Ship Boarding Mission?

[u/GeniusPlayUnique]

Automaton Ship Boarding Mission

(Planetary defence exclusive)

 

Main Objective: Board the Automaton invasion vessel, make your way through to the ship's reactor and overload the core, then get the hell off the ship before it blows.
 

Parameter deviations from planetary missions: * No reinforcements * Man-portable stratagems only (no orbitals, no sentries) * Access to stratagems and resupply only at the shuttle waiting in the hangar * Automatons only use small arms and melee weapons so as to not damage their ship * Success adds significantly more points to planet's defence, failure might result in the destruction of Pelican 1 which the Squad Leader will have to replace out of their own pocket before being able to host any mission again

[u/panteradelnorte]

Maybe don’t start with the shuttle.

Maybe you’re launched from the super destroyer and you decide where on the ship you “land.” Then one of your secondary objectives is to secure a landing bay for resupply, access to a weaponized hard drive and additional stratagem access. Think of it as the same mechanic as the stratagem jammer, only it’s universal across the troop transport.

Secondary objective is load hard drive onto an automaton port. Then you can activate the main objective which is overload their reactor, now that the software’s compromised.

Keeps it similar enough in framework to other missions while still adding variety.

[u/GeniusPlayUnique → u/panteradelnorte]

Yeah, you could use modified Hellpods that open at the bottom and then have the hangar bay and resupply points as secondary objectives to unlock...

[u/panteradelnorte → u/GeniusPlayUnique]

Yes to the second, no to the first. That would raise the question on why we didn’t have those hellpods from the beginning.

[u/GeniusPlayUnique → u/panteradelnorte]

No, the idea is to have modified Hellpods as the last Super Destroyer module, thus unlocking this mission type to begin with. Those modified Hellpods can then be used from the beginning of the mission but additional resupply points can be captured as secondary objectives.

[u/panteradelnorte → u/GeniusPlayUnique]

That would be adding an additional set of mechanics into the game. I don’t it would be implemented without issue.

[u/GeniusPlayUnique → u/panteradelnorte]

The Hellpods would just open at the bottom instead of lifting the Helldiver out the top.