Template:Infobox mission
"Salting the Earth...Again" is the penultimate mission in Saints Row 2.
- Ultor execs enjoy surprise retirement party
- — Stilwater Gazette newspaper headline
Description
At the Saints Hideout, The Protagonist receives a package from an unknown sender addressed to them. Inside is a newspaper clipping revealing Ultor's current fundraising gala aboard a yacht. Spotting an opportunity for revenge against Ultor's recent hostilities, The Protagonist heads out to crash their party despite Pierce's best efforts to dissuade them, who advises on how it could be a trap and reminds The Protagonist of their history aboard yachts (as the explosion aboard Richard Hughes' yacht is what placed The Protagonist into a years-long coma).Broken {{ref}} (blank parameter)
After reaching the yacht, The Protagonist slays all of the executives partying aboard. Dane Vogel watches the carnage unfold from his office at the top of the Phillips Building. It becomes apparent that the executives aboard the yacht belonged to the Ultor board of directors, and Vogel sent The Protagonist the package, manipulating them into killing the executives to further his own goals, and in retaliation for the threats made against him in the boardroom at the end of the previous mission. Knowing that he now fully controls Ultor, Vogel asks his secretary Jaime to set up a press conference for him, initiating the events of the final mission.Broken {{ref}} (blank parameter)
Story
Upon completion of the Mission, this description is available at Newspaper Clipboards.
Gameplay
Gameplay from the mission.
In perhaps the most difficult mission in the game, players must kill six executives aboard a yacht to the northeast of the Saint's Row District. If the player is playing a patched version of the game, the two Tornados have the ability to kill the player very quickly (in one hit when aboard the Shark) and there are absolutely no checkpoints throughout the entire mission. However, if the player is playing the game offline and hasn't updated their game at all, the Tornados will lack the ability to fire their missiles and the mission is generally quite easy.
Begin by heading to the Saints Row Mega Condo and jumping aboard the Shark on the dock. If the game isn't patched, drive to the yacht and a Tornado will arrive and follow the player, but will do nothing. If the game is patched, immediately disembark from the Shark after boarding it and wait for the message informing the player that an Ultor attack helicopter will soon arrive. Use the small roof overhead as cover and engage the Tornado on foot; heavy firepower should down it fairly quickly, allowing the player to get back on the Shark and drive to the yacht peacefully (the Tornado will not be replaced).
Another strategy, although more riskier, is to drive to the yacht and exit from the Shark every time the Tornado fires its missiles. The Protagonist will smash awkwardly into the water, but the lock-on of the missile will be broken and it should crash into the water, allowing the player to swim back to the Shark and drive off again. Players will need to repeat this risky strategy multiple times before they reach the yacht.
Once the player reaches the yacht, the five executives are all located inside the center of the yacht at various levels. The yacht's defenses consist of little more than a few Ultor security guards, but the game's framerate may drop notably during this section of the mission. The sixth and final executive will attempt to flee on another boat; head to the marker to board a Python speedboat and give chase. Another Tornado will now arrive and give chase to the player; ignore it and quickly focus all firepower on the enemy boat. Ideally, it should fall very quickly. Remember that, unfortunately, failure will result in the entire mission restarting from the beginning.
Rewards
Newscast
- Main article: Newscasts
Newscasts
Transcript
"2nd Times A Charm" cutscene
- The Protagonist: "What's this?"
Pierce: "Don't know. I found it here and it was addressed to you."
Pierce: "Lookin' to crash a party?"
The Protagonist: "Thinkin' about it."
Pierce: "Well, your history with boats is pretty solid, so, uh, this seems like a good idea..."
Pierce: "I think I'm gonna go find Shaundi..."
The Protagonist: "Good idea."
Pierce: "Don't you care who send it?"
The Protagonist: "Nope."
Pierce: "But it's probably a trap."
The Protagonist: "Yep."
"Dane's Triumph" cutscene
- Jaime: "Mr. Vogel, will you be needing a car to take you to the party?"
Jaime: "Sir?"
Dane Vogel: "That's alright, Jaime. I think I'm going to skip it this year. Oh, and Jaime?"
Jaime: "Yes, sir?"
Dane Vogel: "Please move my things to my new office. And set up a press conference."
Jaime: "You were promoted, Mr. Vogel?"
Dane Vogel: "I'm about to be."
Trivia
The Stilwater Gazette newspaper clipping shown upon completion of the mission.
- It should be noted that, while 6 Ultor Directors are murdered in this mission, there appear to be 8 in the ending cutscene of the previous mission, "Pyramid Scheme". The fates of the 2 Directors not attending the gala aren't revealed, but it can be inferred that Vogel either had them eliminated offscreen, or else forced them to make him the de facto leader of Ultor.
- There are several references and allusions in this mission to the first Saints Row and its final mission, "Saints and Martyrs":
- The title, "Salting the Earth...Again", is a reference to the cutscene that plays in the final mission of Saints Row (and what the final mission is erroneously known as), "Salting the Earth".
- The yacht in this mission belongs to the game's antagonists, Ultor, and is being used as a fundraising gala according to the newspaper clipping seen in the opening of the mission; the yacht in "Saints and Martyrs" belongs to that game's antagonist, Alderman Richard Hughes, who planned to host a fundraising gala aboard his yacht later that night (according to Jane Valderamma in the newscast that plays during the credits).
- In the opening cutscene, Pierce sarcastically quips, "Well, your history with boats is pretty solid, so, uh, this seems like a good idea...", referring to The Protagonist being placed into a coma after Hughes' yacht exploded at the end of the first game.
- There are no checkpoints in this mission, similar to all of the missions in the first Saints Row.
Gallery
References
Template:Saints Row 2 Missions and Strongholds