An plane race in progress.
Plane races are optional minigames in The Lost Frontier. They are hosted by the pirate pilot Dirk Hardpeck, who can be found flying close to the Phantom Blade. The minigame is first available at Brink Island after the mission "Board the pirate galleon", and an additional series of races could also be found at Sector Zero later on. Completing races can earn you several Precursor orbs, ten thousands of scrap, two Gunstaff upgrades, as well as a laser plane weapon, plus an extra repairs mod for your plane.
Gameplay[]
Plane races are not races in the traditional sense, as speed is not the end goal (though it still may be used to your advantage). Instead, the main goal of each race is to destroy as many targets as possible that are released by a leading drone, which flies at a steady pace on a set path unique to the race at hand. You will have to compete with other racers, each of which pilot unique, oversized, multi-textured Sky Raiders. They will also steadily follow the drone, shooting down targets as they make progress, though their rate of fire is slow enough that eventually the majority of them will end up with a rather even score.
The target drone and its targets (top); and all six variations of the Sky Raider racers.
Each time the lead plane deploys new targets, which it does at a considerably fast rate, it does so in groups of three each, which are released in either a horizontal, diagonal or vertical line. It is not required that you follow the drone's direct flight path, and cutting corners is recommended if needed to gain an edge on your competitors. Since getting the most targets out of all the contestants is the main goal, automatic homing and rapid-fire weapons are recommended.
The best choice out of all weapons is the chain lightning gun, as the bolts of electricity explode when near a target and the resulting electricity arcs from target to target as well, ensuring that even if you do not score a direct hit you will still effortlessly destroy them all. If not available, the machine gun, laser, Vulcan Cannon, lock-on missile (with targeting computer mod), swarmer missile, and armageddon are all excellent choices as well. Aside from these, do not forget to use reload time mods to improve your chances, as well as the air speed mod.
Plane races[]
| Location | Title | Bronze reward | Silver reward | Gold reward |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brink Island | Round the Mountain | 1 Precursor orb | 3 Precursor orbs | Laser 2 |
| High Flying | 1 Precursor orb | 1500 scrap | 5 Precursor orbs | |
| Through the Eye | 2 Precursor orbs | 4 Precursor orbs | 5500 scrap | |
| To The Enemy | 1500 scrap | 4 Precursor orbs | 6 Precursor orbs | |
| The Long Haul | 3 Precursor orbs | 2500 scrap | Scatter Gun upgraded damage 1 | |
| Sector Zero | Around the Bend | 1 Precursor orb | 1500 scrap | 4500 scrap |
| To the Vortex | 1 Precursor orb | 2000 scrap | 4 Precursor orbs | |
| By the by | 2 Precursor orbs | 3500 scrap | 6500 scrap | |
| The Slalom | 3 Precursor orbs | 5 Precursor orbs | Extra repairs mod 2 | |
| The Long Haul | 4 Precursor orbs | 4500 scrap | Lobber upgraded damage 1 |
Notes[]
- Lee Sideswipe is a character mentioned in The Lost Frontier's official strategy guide, who appears to have fulfilled the role of Dirk Hardpeck at Sector Zero. However, later in the book, Dirk Hardpeck's name is mentioned at Sector Zero instead, as he is at Brink Island. It is unknown where this name originates, since it appears the version of the game the strategy guide authors wrote from was late enough in development to include Hardpeck as opposed to Sideswipe, though it is still possible Sideswipe was an early beta character later replaced by Hardpeck.