Coast Raids

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The Coast Raids were a series of raids conducted by the Transhuman and Airwatch arms of the Combine Sector 17 Overwatch against Resistance bases along the coastal regions outside City 17.

Having failed to prevent Freeman from reaching Black Mesa East, or capturing him during a raid on that base, Combine forces lost sight of Freeman after he escaped into Ravenholm. Combine forces subsequently reacquired Freeman after he reappeared along the coast, and launched a series of raids against known major rebel outposts in an attempt to kill or capture him.

Freeman's objective to reach Nova Prospekt and rendezvous with Alyx Vance in order to attempt a rescue of Eli Vance was successful; the Combine's failure to stop Freeman resulted in the destruction of Nova Prospekt, forming a prelude to an armed revolution against Combine rule.

Background[]

While the Combine had a powerful garrison to enforce order within City 17, their control of the city's outer limits and the countryside was much looser. Control of the countryside was strategically unattractive to the Combine, due to heavy infestation by invasive species of Xenian wildlife, notably Headcrabs and Antlions. Frequent attacks by hostile wildlife and rebel forces, as well as difficulties resupplying troops due to severely damaged infrastructure, had eroded Combine control of the area.

Despite the danger Xen fauna posed to humans, a number of refugees escaping City 17 were smuggled through the area, with many concentrated in the settlement of St. Olga. The Resistance held five other major bases along the coast: Shorepoint Base just outside the Ravenholm mines, New Little Odessa, Bridge Point, Lighthouse Point, and the Vortigaunt Camp.

Perhaps the most strategically valuable base was Bridge Point, nestled directly beside the railway. Combine forces made frequent use of the railway, largely by Razor Trains to resupply Nova Prospekt and transport prisoners, providing the rebels an excellent opportunity to disrupt Combine supply lines.

Prelude[]

After Freeman's arrival in City 17, a teleportation accident had resulted in Wallace Breen putting the Citadel on full alert. Freeman had been designated a person of interest to the Overwatch, who had been given orders to capture or kill him by Breen, who was fully aware of Freeman's actions during the Black Mesa Incident. Freeman's mysterious disappearance after the Incident had garnered him a near-mythical reputation among the citizenry, which agitated rebellious sentiment.

An initial attempt to neutralize the threat failed to capture Freeman but destroyed much of the Underground Railroad. A subsequent raid on the rebel outpost of Black Mesa East resulted in the capture of Eli Vance and his teleportation research, but again failed to neutralize Freeman, who escaped through Ravenholm. Following Eli's capture, his daughter Alyx Vance resolved to infiltrate Nova Prospekt on the Razor Train network to attempt a rescue.

The Raids[]

Shorepoint Base to New Little Odessa

With the aid of the sole survivor of Ravenholm's fall, Freeman successfully navigated through the town, emerging along the disused railway that ran parallel to Shorepoint Base. After flushing out several Combine snipers along the railway, Freeman aided the rebel troops at Shorepoint to repel a Combine assault. There, Freeman was briefed by Alyx on Eli's capture and a plan was formulated: Freeman would drive along the disused Highway 17 while Alyx would smuggle herself on the Razor Train network; the two would rendezvous in Nova Prospekt's Depot and attempt a rescue of Eli. Leon, the Resistance leader of Shorepoint, gave Freeman a dune buggy armed with a Tau Cannon to evade the Antlions, who were in the midst of their spawning season. Using this vehicle, Freeman successfully silenced two small Combine outposts along the beach, one of which was being used as a lookout to reconnoitre the resistance outpost New Little Odessa^[9].

New Little Odessa to Bridge Point

Upon arrival at New Little Odessa, the small rebel garrison had been warned^[10] of an attack by Combine Airwatch forces. The base's commander, a self-styled Colonel by the name of Odessa Cubbage, enlisted Freeman's aid and provided him with a laser-guided RPG. Moments later, a single gunship attacked the base, but was only able to inflict minor damage and minimal casualties before it was shot down. Before proceeding further, Cubbage warned Freeman that contact with the strategically important Bridge Point base had been lost a short time before.

Proceeding up the highway, Freeman arrived at Dock 137, a disused warehouse district occupied by a patrol of Overwatch troops. The base's thumper had been deactivated, leading to an Antlion attack, which had destroyed the patrol's APC. The patrol was easily dispatched, and a second gunship sent to reinforce them was shot down in short order. Further up the road, a Combine platoon attempted to ambush Freeman, detonating explosives along the cliff face to block the road with rubble, however the ambush was repulsed. A Combine checkpoint at a nearby gas station was subsequently destroyed, including the loss of an APC powering a forcefield blocking the road.

Bridge Point to Lighthouse Point

Sometime prior to Freeman's arrival at Bridge Point, Combine forces had attacked and taken over the base, and neutralized the rebel presence in the maintenance houses beneath the bridge itself. With the railway bridge blocked by a forcefield, the Combine troops occupying the outpost forced an engagement with Freeman. Successfully defeating the unit, Freeman made his way across the maintenance walkways beneath the bridge to reach the far side, disabling the forcefield and shot down a third gunship.

Further up, Freeman came upon the town of St. Olga, where a large company of Combine troops, reinforced by special forces personnel, had occupied the clifftop monastery.^[11] The troops had fitted a headcrab canister launcher into the monastery, which they used to bombard the nearby town. Freeman successfully cleared the monastery of Combine troops, disabled the launcher, and shot down a Hunter-Chopper which arrived to reinforce their embattled comrades.

Moving on, Freeman passed through a subterranean tunnel blocked with the wreckage of a destroyed rebel convoy, with all occupants either killed or mutated by parasites. Beyond the tunnel, Freeman encountered a large house which had been captured by a pair of Combine troops, who had surprised and overwhelmed the rebel occupiers there, burning their corpses on a bonfire. Two additional Combine checkpoints^[12] were cleared by Freeman before he reached Lighthouse Point, the end of the coast road.

Lighthouse Point to the Vortigaunt Camp

Shortly after his arrival at Lighthouse Point, and with no more road to use to evade their patrols, the Combine launched a determined assault to capture the settlement, consisting of five dropships supported by a gunship. Well-entrenched, the rebel fighters put up fierce resistance, repulsing the first four assaults and shooting the gunship down. However, a fifth squad succeeded in capturing the base and Freeman's Scout Car. Freeman successfully escaped the attack and navigated the Antlion-infested beaches to reach the Vortigaunt Camp, the last major rebel outpost before Nova Prospekt.

Aftermath[]

Despite mixed tactical results, the Resistance had achieved a major strategic victory. The large rebel settlement of St. Olga had been liberated, and the attacks on Shorepoint Base and New Little Odessa had been repulsed. The Combine's presence in the strategically important Bridge Point base as well as many smaller checkpoints along the highway had been cleared, allowing for their reoccupation by rebel fighters. The rebels had lost one major outpost: Lighthouse Point, separating the Vortigaunt Camp from the rest of the highway.

The rebel's primary objective, to facilitate Freeman's safe conduct to the Vortigaunt Camp, had succeeded. This allowed Freeman to penetrate Nova Prospekt's beach defences and rendezvous with Alyx Vance to mount a rescue attempt for Eli. The Combine's failure to stop Freeman led to the destruction of the prison; the dramatic loss of such a hated and feared symbol of Combine oppression was taken as a signal to begin an armed revolution against the Combine in City 17.

References[]

Combine Occupation of Earth
Seven Hour War • The Combine Vault Heist • Fall of Ravenholm • The Uprising (Canal Raids • Raid on Black Mesa East • Coast Raids • Attack on Nova Prospekt • Battle of City 17 • Battle of the Outlands • Attack on White Forest)

Military conflicts
Black Mesa Incident • Seven Hour War • The Combine Vault Heist • The Uprising (Canal Raids • Raid on Black Mesa East • Coast Raids • Attack on Nova Prospekt • Battle of City 17 • Attack on White Forest)