Deus Ex Game Guide

Guide 1: Hacking
Guide 2: Stealth
Guide 3: Combat

The Art of Hacking

Studying the skills of a hacker can provide many unique Deus Ex gameplay opportunities and let you bypass areas that would otherwise require combat or stealth. This section describes the benefits of computer skills and hacking security terminals, computer consoles, and ATMs.

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The Benefits of Hacking

Searching for security-terminal and computer-console passwords can be a laborious process, especially if you're attempting to remain undetected. A hacker, though, can bypass the need for those passwords and simply hack into the computer systems and gain access to the security network, e-mail, and other goal-specific options. Plus, the hacker can disable security cameras, turrets, and even open locked doors that might otherwise require lockpicks and multitools.

If you plan on eschewing heavy combat, placing skill points into the computer skill will help you avoid turrets, detection, and unnecessary searching for logins and passwords. Hackers can also infiltrate ATM systems and withdraw credits, which can be used to purchase information or equipment. A skilled hacker seeks out all ATMs (typically found in subway stations, hotels, near restaurants, etc.) and obtains as much credits as possible to trade for equipment, since it's possible you won't have the lockpicks or multitools skill to enter each restricted area you find.

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The Augmentations of a Hacker

Though a hacker shares many similarities with a stealth player, there are some augmentations that can benefit the hacker's skills. Below are some suggestions when selecting your augmentations.

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Speed Enhancement

Run silent certainly has the potential to help you remain undetected, but speed enhancement increases foot speed, which can get you to security terminals and computer consoles much quicker, decreasing possible damage from turrets and the chance of detection by nearby enemies. Plus, you can use it to make an escape or bypass difficult sections by simply running and jumping.

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Environmental Resistance

Occasionally trips to security terminals and computer consoles can bring you in contact with radiation or other toxic chemicals. Environmental resistance will help protect you from their hazards and is likely a better choice than aqualung for the hard-core hacker.

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Power Recirculator

If you're hacking, it's likely you aren't spending much time exploring locked rooms for bioelectric cells and repair bots. Therefore, it's important to maximize your current energy. Power recirculator allows other systems to run much more efficiently, saving you power and eschewing the need to locate additional cells.

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EMP Shield

Much like power recirculator, EMP shield can help protect your bioelectric energy reserve from EMP attacks (such as those from spider bots), decreasing your need for additional bioelectric cells.

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Combat Strength

If you're choosing to steer away from the high-tech weapons, it's likely you could benefit from the extra melee strength provided by the combat strength augmentation. Sneak up on enemies and club them with the baton or crowbar.

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The Weapons Arsenal

Though a stealth player's weaponry should serve a hacker nicely, it's also likely the hacker will have more skill points available to put toward a particular weapons discipline (since the hacker might save some from lockpicking and electronics). Any discipline could prove effective; base your choice on your particular gameplay style. Should you want the ability to quickly eliminate bots and tough enemies, consider the weapons: heavy skill and its selection of light antitank weapons (LAWs - one-use rocket launchers) and GEP guns (powerful rocket launcher).

Then again, if you're trying to remain undetected, you should consider the pistol skill for its stealth pistol and minicrossbow, or the rifle skill with the sniper rifle and all-purpose assault rifle.

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The Turret Heist

Since a skilled hacker should have little trouble breaching security terminals, it's possible, and extremely advantageous, to allow the defense turrets to work for you. Though you should bypass most turrets, it's possible to set the turrets to attack your enemies (or everything) and then lure your enemies into the turrets' line of sight - eventually to get ripped apart by the turrets' firepower.

Here's a scenario: You use a security terminal to bypass security cameras and the turret in a tight hallway. You continue down the hall only to encounter a squad of guards protecting the entrance into the next section. You have several options. For instance, you could alert the troops to your presence, then run back into the hall and allow the hacked turret to attack your enemies. Or you could hack security as the enemies approach. Hackers should use turrets to help eliminate tough troops, conserving both health and ammo for the skilled hacker.

The Art of Stealth

Attempting to sneak around enemy troops provides quite a challenge but lets you divert skills and augmentations you would otherwise use for weaponry to stealth and hacking. This section describes the benefits of remaining stealthy and how to improve your craft with augmentations, weapons, and equipment.

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The Importance of Keeping Quiet

The enemy troops you'll encounter in Deus Ex are powerful and quite intelligent. Make a racket and an enemy soldier may trigger an alarm, and soon an entire squad of troops will be searching for your position. Try not to rustle crates, disturb loud pigeons, break windows, or enter the view of security cameras for a prolonged period of time. Look for opportunities to remain crouched as enemies pass by; seek out stacks of crates or other obstacles to conceal yourself from cameras and enemies.

If you are spotted, either by a camera or a guard, you do have a few moments to mount an escape before you're detected. Guards will stop in their place and look closely in your direction (or in the direction of the noise); cameras will start a pre-alarm sequence; and bots will stand still and scan for your presence. If you can return to a hiding place during any of these sequences, you can remain hidden from enemy detection.

As you learned in the training mission, you can use objects, such as plants, jars, boxes, and basketballs, to distract enemies. Toss the object away from your position (or your desired position), and with the guard or bot distracted, resume your course to your intended destination.

By maintaining stealth, you will not only remain healthy and conserve medical kits, but you'll also be able to save valuable ammunition for other - and perhaps even more dangerous - situations. A player relying on stealth should always look for two things: a route past the current problem and an escape route in case of problems. Most hazardous areas contain alternate means of escape, such as swimming, leaping onto stacked crates, or hiding behind walls and structures.

The Augmentations of a Stealth Artist

It's important to use the augmentation canisters to improve your desired role, though they can also be effective to help offset weaknesses. There are enough augmentations to satisfy both needs. Below are some suggestions on which augmentations to select if you plan to avoid combat rather than fight:

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Microfibral Muscle

This augmentation enhances your arm strength, enabling you to pick up larger crates and items. This can prove effective for the stealth player. You can position crates to look for routes above a dangerous area; you can quickly move crates (without needing to slide them) to an area providing better cover; or you can pick up large crates and stick them in front of doorways, security-bot hatches, or cameras to provide additional cover and protection.

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Run Silent

Run silent's application is obvious. Because crawling to keep quiet can be aggravating, run silent lets you move more quickly while maintaining stealth. Its alternative, speed enhancement, is also incredibly useful for the stealth player - it lets you run faster and jump higher, increasing your chance of escaping and/or discovering alternate routes.

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Radar Transparency

This is a must-have if you want to remain undetected by powerful bots and security cameras. It uses a ton of bioelectric energy, however, so it should be used only in emergencies. Its alternative, cloak, is also effective because it keeps you out of sight of organic enemies. Either can assist the stealth player, though bots and cameras often possess more damage potential than human foes.

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Aqualung

Effective swimming can give you another escape option - just jump into water and stay concealed. There are also several areas in the game where effective swimming can help you bypass difficult areas.

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Regeneration

Arguably the "no-brainer" of the augmentations, regeneration basically converts bioelectric energy into health, giving you a new form of both medical kit (bioelectric cell) and medical bot (repair bot). Regeneration does an excellent job in keeping JC Denton healthy, and it is effective for all types of players.

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Spy Drone

A unique augmentation, spy drone allows JC Denton to create a small, controllable drone to explore ahead. Use the drone to scout upcoming hallways or rooms. It uses bioelectric energy very fast and can even cause EMP damage to spider bots and the like once upgraded.

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Vision Enhancement

Its alternative, targeting, isn't as useful to the stealth player; you gain information on your target, but you should be trying to avoid combat! Vision enhancement, with its ability to see through walls, is more worthwhile and an obvious choice for the stealth player.

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The Weapons Arsenal

If you are concentrating on stealth you will likely eschew most weaponry, but there are moments when combat becomes necessary, and it's important to have the right tool for the job - specifically tools that complement your desire to remain undetected. Below is a list of some weapons and their uses.

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Pepper Spray

The handheld pepper-spray canister can incapacitate NSF terrorists and Majestic 12 guards, letting you finish them off with another weapon, usually a melee weapon like the crowbar or baton. The pepper spray isn't the easiest item to use, however. It's possible that your target can escape before you've used enough pepper spray to have an effect. Sneak up on your enemy and use the spray as close as possible. Keep spraying until your foe stands still. Once your enemy is incapacitated, hide the body to preserve stealth and remain undetected.

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Riot Prod

The prod injects your enemy with jolts of electricity. Tougher enemies can withstand up to three jolts, so be sure you reload the prod before attempting an incapacitation. Attempt to sneak up on your foe before using the prod. If you are detected, it's possible your foe will get off several shots before you can use the prod. The shots may alert other enemies to your presence. The prod is extremely effective at incapacitating your enemies, but you must make every effort to remain quiet before using the device.

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Sniper Rifle

The sniper rifle is the stealth fan's dream. A head shot is nearly always fatal, but it's tough to maintain accuracy if you don't apply skill points to the rifle weapons skill or use weapons-modification chips to increase the sniper's accuracy.Still, the sniper rifle lets you stay far away from the enemy targets during the attack. Even if you don't get off a kill shot, it's likely you can remain undetected so you can take a follow-up shot or plan a different route.

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Minicrossbow

Load the minicrossbow with tranquilizer darts for an extremely effective handheld weapon (you can enhance the crossbow with a scope modification as well). Tranquilizer darts don't have an immediate impact, though; it takes a few moments for them to take effect. It's also important to make the first shot count. In all likelihood, a dart that buzzes by an enemy's head will alert the guard to your presence. An alarm might be set off and other troops might be called from their posts. If you hit with the first shot, the enemy might come looking for you but will succumb to the tranquilizer's effects. Watch closely and notice the enemy will start to retreat when the tranquilizer has taken effect - meaning the enemy is about to pass out. Move the body to maintain your stealth.

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Stealth Pistol

Though it doesn't do as much damage as the 10mm pistol, the stealth pistol is extremely quiet and effective in finishing off enemies affected by the pepper spray or prod. The stealth pistol also fires at a more rapid rate than the regular 10mm and has a higher clip capacity.

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Lockpicks and Multitools

Staying undetected usually means entering locked doors and bypassing security systems without searching for the appropriate key or security code. The stealth player should focus on the electronics and lockpicking skills to gain the most from lockpicks and multitools found within the game environment. Each time you improve your electronics and lockpicking skills, your lockpicks and multitools become more effective and efficient. For instance, a door that once required four lockpicks might only require two with enhanced lockpicking skills.

Opening locked and security-protected doors can get you into new sections of the game much quicker and can even award you with ammunition and equipment otherwise unavailable. Searching for the appropriate key or code may steer you near enemy presence, making life much more difficult for the stealth player. Hoard lockpicks and multitools and pump most of your skill points into improving these skills. Other points can be put into the weapons area of your choice, likely weapons: pistol (pistol, stealth pistol, minicrossbow), weapons: low-tech (melee weapons), or weapons: rifle (sniper rifle).

The Art of Combat

If you're skilled in most first-person shooters, you may choose to send JC Denton on a combat-oriented career path by choosing weapon-based skills and gathering as much weaponry and ammunition as you can find. Inventory space is limited, however. Thus, it's important to make careful skill selections and use weaponry to exploit those skills.

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Choosing a Weapons Skill

Some players may choose to be trained in all weapon disciplines, while others may select to become highly proficient in one or two disciplines. Though the choice is up to you, it's usually more advantageous to concentrate on one or two; your inventory is very limited and it's difficult to carry many weapons, especially the larger weapons such as the plasma rifle, GEP gun, sniper rifle, and assault weapons.

The weapons: rifle skill offers a very inviting choice, as there are many effective weapons associated with the skill. Improving the weapons: rifle skill improves your accuracy, damage, and reload time on the sniper rifle, assault rifle, sawed-off shotgun, and assault shotgun. Ammunition for the assault rifle and shotgun is relatively common (much more so than for the heavy weapons). Use modification chips to further enhance your favorite rifle to improve accuracy, recoil, and reload time.

The weapons: pistol skill makes a nice secondary choice, primarily because the pistol weapons don't occupy much space in your inventory slots (only one slot per weapon). The minicrossbow, while not powerful enough to take down a tough enemy, can be used as a tranquilizer and even as an alternate light source (conserving bioelectric energy since you won't need to use your light).

The heavy weapons are certainly the most exciting and a must if you wish to play Deus Ex with an intense combat flair. The GEP gun's rockets can waste security and military bots, turrets, MJ12 commandos, and troops. If you plan to use the heavy weapons with any effectiveness, it's imperative to improve the weapons: heavy skill. Improving this skill allows you to move faster with the weapon equipped; otherwise, you'll move like a turtle and open yourself up for an easy counterattack.

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The Augmentations of a Soldier

If you plan to assume the role of a combat soldier, be sure to enhance your ability with augmentation canisters. Below are some suggestions on which augmentations to select.

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Combat Strength

Combat strength improves melee weapon power, which is extremely useful for a soldier who's trying to conserve important ammunition for more difficult battles.

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Speed Enhancement

Should you need to escape dangerous firefights, speed enhancement provides the means. Not only is your speed increased, but so is your jumping ability and your resistance to falling damage.

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Ballistic Protection

Most guards use ballistic weapons, such as assault rifles and shotguns. Switching on ballistic protection provides extra protection against attacks, particularly useful when you're running low on medical kits but have bioelectric energy to spare.

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Regeneration

Because maintaining health will consistently be a concern for you, regeneration provides an alternate means of mending wounds and regaining health by converting bioelectric energy into health.

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Aggressive Defense System

The aggressive defense system provides extra defense against powerful weapons (including rocket weapons). Just remember that to maintain all of these active augmentations, you'll need plenty of bioelectric energy and replacement cells.

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Targeting

Targeting provides extra information about your target's status, including locational damage. Its application to combat is obvious, and it's likely a better choice for the soldier than vision enhancement.

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The Weapons Arsenal

A soldier has a wide selection of weapons available, including an assortment of demolition devices such as the grenade/proximity bomb LAM, EMP grenades, gas grenades, and scramble grenades. As previously mentioned in this section, it's wise for you to choose a particular class of firearm and begin improving your skills. Also, use weapon modifications, typically purchased or found in locked cabinets and crates, to improve your favorite weapons. Don't use modifications on weapons you think you may give up on - you'll just waste their benefits!

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Weapons Low Tech

A soldier probably won't have much time for low-tech melee weapons; however, don't overlook their usefulness. If you're having trouble maintaining your health status or gathering ammunition, it would be to your benefit to incapacitate enemies with low-tech weapons, which, for the most part, don't require ammunition. The prod is probably one of the most effective low-tech weapons, but it requires prod charges. Hand weapons, such as the sword, crowbar, and baton, can be effective, but they require combat strength augmentation to reach their potential.

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Weapons Pistol

The pistol class of weapons is nice because they don't take up much room in your inventory slots. But the trade-off is that they simply aren't that powerful. Pistol ammo is plentiful, but it takes many shots to finish off an enemy troop. During that time you're likely to take damage, or worse, because the enemy has time to switch on an alarm or alert other troops to your presence. The minicrossbows are good for stealth attacks, and the tranquilizer dart is extremely effective if you have an escape route where you retreat from the irritated, and quite drugged, guard.

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Weapons Rifle

The midrange rifle weapons could be considered the most diverse. Rifles take up far less room than the heavy weapons (but considerably more than pistols) and can inflict enough damage to incapacitate an enemy relatively quickly. Assault rifles can be a soldier's bread and butter with their ballistic and grenade ammunition. Use the ballistics against organic guards and the grenades against tougher commandos, men in black, and bots. Shotguns are extremely powerful at close range (the sawed-off version being the most effective) and also include ammunition (sabot rounds) that's effective against mechanized bots. The sniper rifle can be deadly in the right hands but requires improvement (either rifle skill or a weapon modification) to reach its potential. Without improvements, the sniper rifle's jittery nature can be trouble.

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Heavy Weapons

The most powerful weapons also take up the most room in your inventory slots. Placing even one heavy weapon - such as the flamethrower, light antitank weapon, GEP rocket launcher, and plasma rifle - can consume enough inventory slots to force you to sacrifice useful items, such as grenades, armor, or hazmat suits. It's a tough decision, because the heavy weapons are extremely powerful, and most are able to take down organic enemies in a single burst.

Let's start with the light antitank weapon, or the LAW. Whenever you uncover a LAW, which possesses a single shot, you should immediately empty enough inventory slots to snag it. Scout the area to find a good place to use the LAW, typically against a security or military bot, a tough enemy like a commando or man in black, or even a pesky turret. Use the LAW, then return to your dropped items and recover them into your now-open inventory slots.

The flamethrower and plasma rifle are excellent against organic targets, but their ammunition (napalm canisters and plasma clips) is quite rare. It's possible you'll spend most of the game lugging the weapon around with little or no ammunition. The flamethrower can be very effective when being surrounded by troops. One quick and wide spread should make short work of any group of enemies.

The GEP gun is perhaps the all-purpose heavy weapon that can assist in nearly every Deus Ex situation. Its homing rockets can knock out guards and commandos in a single shot. If you shoot into a crowd, you can take down multiple guards in a single burst - one shot will take down a camera, turret, or spider bot, and two shots can take down the heaviest of military bots. Should you have the inventory slots available, grabbing a GEP gun early (as early as the first mission) can make tough situations very easy. Plus, if you can't find a way through that locked door, often it's possible to blow it apart with the GEP gun.

I've just started playing this, I'm probably going to re-read this guide many times and it's already proved very useful