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Contest 4 - Casino Boat

Fair warning: This is not your run of the mill Monaco map! It is specifically made to allow you to showcase and practice certain advanced Monaco techniques:

***Pillar Strafing***

Weave through pillars to break line of sight and interrupt gunfire. Two consecutive corners or closed doors equals freedom. It's very hard to avoid getting seen on this map, but you will always have a way to rapidly escape.

***NPC Shadowing***

Follow patrolling or investigating NPCs through doors, especially scan doors, to reach secure areas. Observe NPC patrol paths to see what options are open.

***Tranq Gun Door Opening***

Tranq gun is an underrated tool; I know I used to think it sucked! Truth is, on a lot of levels it is pretty bad--but this isn't one of them. Tranq an NPC into a door to not only open it, but also leave it propped open for an extended period. Tranqs knock an NPC back about one square, so hit them when they are in front of a door you want open. And of course, this is silent.

***Camera Snapping***

Dash through a rotating camera laser at the end of its rotation to move by undetected. If you do it perfectly, you won't even hear a beep. You can also do it while sneaking if you are precise.

***Timed Camera Disabling***

Disable a rotating camera disables it for ~4 total seconds. Time your action so the camera's disabled period will cover the part of it's path you need removed to open a safe. You generally want to start turning a camera off when the laser is ~180-150 degrees away from the location.

***Corner Hugging***

Escape NPCs by juking into a corner quickly and holding against the wall; this is especially effective if it through a door. Pay attention to the "!" mark.

***Triangle Passing***

Walk around an NPC, particularly one flush against a wall, by sneaking in a tight triangle around them. Get as close as you can without touching, and the NPC will just barely avoid alert status.

***Door Bumping***

If alerting an NPC is inevitable, control the situation by bumping the NPC through an open door. If the door closes and breaks vision, the NPC will partially reset and buy you a moment of freedom. Super important for The Blonde!

***Alert-less Pickpocketing***

Take coins from NPCs without alerting them by touching them as lightly as possible. The most reliable way to do this is brush them diagonally.

***Darkness Exploitation***

Pay attention to how well lit areas are, since this has a huge influence on NPC alert rate. Watch for flickering lights, and take advantage of them.

You will also need the usual set of intermediate skills: using pillars to block lasers, dropping aggro via disguise pick-up, hiding in bathrooms, being frugal with items, watching camera laser position through closed doors, using windows to safely analyze upcoming challenges, noticing bush and ladder positions, moving carefully between NPCs, ect.

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This map may seem extremely difficult if you are not familiar with these techniques. If you have trouble, try focusing on mastering one at a time--the first floor has lots of opportunities for all of the things listed above, so feel free to practice.

Each floor has a different emphasis:
Floor 1 - Finesse
Floor 2 - Kiting
Floor 3 - Precision

Lots of areas, including the van on the dock (with the tools) are optional. Tranq guns can be found in a secure area on every floor, and getting one should be your first priority. Whether you use it to get a different tool from there is up to you.

I tried to design this map with all 9 characters in mind; every character has a way to address every obstacle or objective, even though their strategies are often very different. I've solo'd this map with all 9 characters to make sure everything is possible and balance is reasonable. (It should be possible with no items on all of them as well.) If you are having trouble with a particular character, here's some advice:

Locksmith - The ability to blitz through locked doors opens up a lot of escape paths on the first two floors. On the third floor, he is the only character who can brute force the vault safe.

Lookout - On floor 1, learn the patrols and remember that you can safely charge any ladder. On floor 2, use your vision to keep track of the pistol guards. On floor 3, enjoy your movespeed.

Pickpocket - Faster bush speed lets those bushes next to pillars become guaranteed safety if you play it right. As nice as Hector is, this advantage is even more valuable. Learn where all the bushes are.

Cleaner - Manipulate civilians to call guards for help, then loop on the guards for easy KOs. On floor 1, fortify the right side of the map and sneak attack patrols. On floor 2, preemptively clean the pistol guards before starting your run. On floor 3, find the secret passage.

Mole - There are lots of good places to dig on every floor. Be creative, but be careful! You want to create new options, not give the NPCs more vision.

Gentleman - The abundance of corners provide many safe places to recharge. Don't be afraid to trip alarms intentionally if you are 100% sure you won't be immediately seen--you will disable the trap, safely recharge, and have manipulated the closest guard..

Hacker - Every floor is well-wired and most the level's light is killable with viruses, but that's only helpful if you meet it halfway with stealthy movement. Don't forget that Hacker can manually disable cameras *really* fast, and sometimes that is more useful than viruses...

Redhead - Redhead can do everything. On floor 2, try to charm a pistol guard before starting a rampage--it'll matter more. Definitely take tranq as your tool, and don't be afraid to tranq your mark if you need to deal with another threat. (Tranq them in a door for bonus points!)

Blonde - Always have a plan for your kiting. Make a deliberate effort to open the locked doors at the top of floor 1 for kiting freedom. Floor 2 should be easy mode. On all floors, focus on avoiding alarms and just ignore civilians. Be cautious, and use a bush to reset any unnecessary charm.

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I hope you enjoy the level even if you find it difficult. Some of it can be rough, especially the floor 3 vault, but ideally you won't find any of it unfair. Keep at it, and I think you will find that you become a lot more capable at other maps by practicing these skills.

Happy heisting!

UPDATE - Trouble with the vault? Before the job, the crew built a replica vault to practice safely in: https://steamhost.cn/steamcommunity_com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=179571653