The Guns of Anchorage is a main quest in the Fallout 3 add-on Operation: Anchorage.
After finishing the quest Aiding the Outcasts, the player finds themselves in the Anchorage Reclamation simulation. All items are temporarily removed, instead replaced with a silenced 10mm pistol, a trench knife, a Stealth Boy and winterized combat armor.
Inside the simulation, all usable items glow red and emit a ringing sound when approached. Armor and weapon condition does not degrade. Health and ammunition can be replenished using health and ammo dispensers. All enemies vanish in a blue flash of light when killed.
Quick walkthrough[]
Main Quest: The Guns of Anchorage | |||||
Fight your way to the Cave Outpost. | |||||
Rendezvous and talk to Montgomery. | |||||
Fight your way to the outpost exit to the Artillery Overlook. | |||||
Place the explosives on the three artillery guns. | |||||
Talk to Montgomery. | |||||
Reward: 100 XP | |||||
Leads to: Paving the Way | |||||
Detailed walkthrough[]
The main objective of the quest is to destroy a set of three artillery guns.
There are a total of 10 intel suitcases to be found in the 3 quests inside the simulator and all ten need to be found to gain the Covert Ops perk. These suitcases are usually slightly off the path or behind (very easy or easy) locked doors.
Infiltrate the Chinese artillery site[]
The player starts off at the Anchorage Cliffs with Sergeant Benjamin Montgomery waking them up. They are part of a U.S. paratrooper infiltration team, and the objective is to take out the artillery guns located here. To do this, the player must first infiltrate the Chinese artillery outpost. Montgomery then proceeds to climb up the cliffs.
Due to lack of climbing abilities, the player must take the long way. Follow the path to the right, and one will encounter a Chinese soldier. These communists are equipped with hard-hitting Chinese assault rifles, but their winterized Chinese jumpsuits have very low DR. Follow a winding catwalk around the exterior of a building, and, once at the top, take a right to find a health dispenser, a frag mine and a sniper rifle. Head through a small building, and one will have the option to replenish their ammunition, and pick up some more explosives and a Chinese assault rifle. Fighting more Chinese soldiers along the way, keep following the path. If the player character walks up the broken bridge they will find a Stealth Boy sitting on top of some boxes. Now head over the pipes to reach the Cave Outpost.
Meet Sergeant Montgomery[]
Inside the cavern, two Chinese soldiers are seen firing on an American paratrooper entangled in his parachute. The player will be unable to reach him in time, and after he is killed he will drop his Gauss rifle. It will prove a useful tool for long-ranges, so long as one possesses microfusion cells. A small alcove in the southeastern part of the cavern has some, alongside an ammo dispenser, health dispenser, another simulation Chinese assault rifle, and other supplies. In a room upstairs, Montgomery drops from the ceiling and rejoins the player. During the conversation, asking him for ammunition will result in him handing over 50 5.56mm rounds, 60 10mm rounds (if one's ammunition is already maximized before asking, they will get the rounds and have more than the "max") and 10 more microfusion cells. He serves as a companion from this point on.
Destroy all 3 artillery guns[]
Upon leaving the cavern, one will notice a small bunker on the cliff on the other side of the ravine, the only way to it is across the large pipe; inside one will find a health dispenser, and a door to field storage area. Pick the lock (Very Easy) and enter the room, inside there is a computer terminal, the first of ten pieces of intel (1/10) underneath the desk and a holotape titled 'Bombardment.' Leave the building and carry on up the path and across a bridge and one will be facing the locked door to field storage (Very Easy), in this room another intel suitcase (2/10) can be found at the back and a holotape titled 'Goodbye.' Afterward, head towards the Chinese Artillery Outpost, which has two bunkers and one big Chinese flag. Two Chinese soldiers will fire on the player character from above and two Mark III turrets open up from the left. Approaching the left bunker will spawn a Chinese inferno unit, a trooper with a flamer, with nearly double the health of the regular Chinese soldiers. Alternatively, if the player looks to the right just before the opening that leads to the suspension bridge to the Artillery Outpost, there is a red door leading into the Cave Passage. On the other side of the door is a single Chinese soldier, and a staircase that winds up the side of the cave. This staircase leads to another red door that deposits the player on a cliff landing on the right side of the Artillery Outpost, above the bunker with the turret and in line of sight of the bunker above the door to the Artillery Outpost. From this vantage point, the turret cannot sight the player and the Chinese soldiers are much more easily dispatched.
Entering the outpost will leave the player in the sights of several more soldiers. Climb the stairs immediately to one's front and follow the path to reach a Very Easy locked door on the left. Inside is another intel suitcase (3/10), another holotape, titled 'Invasion,' and a Stealth Boy. Take a right, and follow the linear path, dispatching enemies along the way. One will reach a hallway where the right side drops away, which provides a distant view of the Chinese Chimera tanks. To the left just past this area is a locked terminal (Very Easy). Inside are a pair of grenades, a terminal with more back story details and the last intel case for this level (4/10). Along the way one will begin to come across stacked shells, followed by a room with two staircases and several Chinese soldiers. There is a health dispenser in a small room beneath the right staircase. After ascending either staircase and passing through the door to the west, before continuing left be sure to look right for a very easy locked door, behind the door is a holotape titled 'Overrun.'
More foes will bar the Wanderer's progress, until they reach an open room with several stairwells and many stacked shells. At first glance, the room is empty (Benji will even say something to that effect.) but within moments, three Crimson Dragoons, China's advanced stealth units, wielding Chinese officer's swords will attack.
Upon exiting the outpost, one will be at the Artillery Overlook, right next to where the guns are firing. Reaching the guns is no easy task, as each is guarded by a platoon of regular troops, inferno units and Chinese snipers, Crimson Dragoons armed with sniper rifles. The player must proceed to the base of each artillery gun, one at a time, and plant an explosive in the proper location. Before one can enjoy the explosion, they have 20 seconds to get a fair distance away from the rigged gun. Repeat the process on the other two.
Once all of them are destroyed with explosive charges, the Wanderer is told to report to General Chase in the U.S. Army field headquarters. One will teleport there, thus beginning the quest Paving the Way.
Report to General Chase[]
The Lone Wanderer is teleported away from the mountain top to find themselves right in front of the general. This automatically concludes the Guns of Anchorage.
Rewards[]
- 100 XP
Quest stages[]
Intel suitcases[]
4 of the 10 intel suitcases required for gaining the Covert Ops perk can be found during this mission. Please refer to the main article for their locations.
Notes[]
- Stealthed Chinese units can be targeted in V.A.T.S., but with a 0% chance of hitting. However, manual firing can be used to remove their stealth field, enabling V.A.T.S.
- While unable to target the Stealthed Chinese units in V.A.T.S. using most weapons, the player is still able to target them using grenades.
- At the end of this mission, just before the fade-out and debriefing, the player's inventory is emptied.
- Staying in the bunker next to the big guns while the explosive detonates will not protect the player from damage.
- The player can be at safe distance and a large piece of shrapnel may still hit the player square on, but causes no damage at all.
Behind the scenes[]
- Markings on the shells give their size as 914 mm, the same as those fired by the giant Little David heavy mortar in real-life. Their shapes are also about the same.
- The quest name and execution are a reference to the war novel and film The Guns of Navarone where allied commandos are sent out to infiltrate an enemy stronghold and destroy its cannons.
Bugs[]
- If one fires on the two Chimera tanks with a sniper rifle, they can cause a team of Chinese soldiers to appear and run alongside the tanks, the first Chimera may even return with one of the teams. [verified]
- Benjamin Montgomery will not appear after the Chinese soldier falls from the ceiling at the rendezvous point. Be sure to make a manual save before beginning Operation: Anchorage add-on as loading from a manual save or restarting the system may fix this. [verified] Sometimes
- Rarely when looking out to the mountains in the direction one begins (south-southeast) one can see what appears to be floating buildings above the mountain. These buildings have the same appearance as the buildings south of Rivet City in the Out of Bounds area (reloading fixes it). [verified]
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