Rockstar Games is back with another content-filled update introducing new characters, story missions, security missions, and the much-awaited jets in its new San Andreas Mercenaries DLC. There is also a new Mercenary Corp led by Charlie Reed, with Reed's Mercenary Corp going head to head against Merryweather Security.
It is straightforward to start the DLC quest online, akin to all the DLCs released by Rockstar Games. However, it can get confusing for some players, as navigating the online space after each update can get overwhelming.
In this article, we will guide you on how to start the new DLC missions and complete each mission with valuable tips and tricks. All our written guides have in-game screenshots and they are accompanied by a clear video guide for your visual reference.
Starting the San Andreas Mercenaries DLC
For starters, when you log into the game after the update, you will receive a call from Charlie Reed. After the call, players can see the 'C' icon on the map, an abbreviation for Charlie Reed.
If you do not get a call from Charlie Reed, you can always head to the 'C' location and enter the white highlighted marker. This marker will be there, regardless of whether you get a call from Charlie Reed or not. If he calls you first, the market turns yellow.
After the call, you will be asked to make a hefty purchase before you can begin your San Andreas Mercenaries DLC missions. Not only do you need to purchase the Mammoth Avenger from the Warstock Cache & Carry online store, but you also need to get a new Operations Terminal upgrade to start the missions.
The base model of the Avenger costs $3,450,000, and the fully upgraded version costs $4,787,500. There is a reason that many players haven't been able to purchase this behemoth since its release with the Doomsday Heist. The Operations Terminal will set you back by $1,450,000.
You can purchase the Operations Terminal by visiting the Warstock Cache & Carry website and renovating the Avenger. You can also do the same by visiting a Hangar, if you own one.
Operations Terminal
You can access the Operations Terminal by entering the hold of your Avenger. You do not need to go to your Hangar or any other building to access it. You can always call in your Avenger via your interaction menu and enter the hold to access the Operations Terminal. That is where you can start your San Andreas Mercenaries missions as well.
The Operations Terminal offers two types of missions - Project Overthrow and LSA Operations. Let's discuss what each of these offer and what to expect.
Project Overthrow
Project Overthrow is a series of main storyline missions of the San Andreas Mercenaries DLC. It consists of six story missions around taking down Merryweather Security and solidifying Charlie Reed's mercenary presence in Los Santos. You can perform these missions in both public and invite-only sessions.
LSA Operations
LSA Operations are freemode missions like security contracts. These missions come in different varieties with additional rewards for completing bonus challenges. You can also start these missions by contacting Charlie Reed from your phone. You can perform these missions in both public and invite-only sessions.
Three random missions appear on the Operations Terminal with a random base reward and a bonus objective. These bonus objectives are also random and pay $15,000 per mission. While the bonus payout is fixed, the base payout is always random.
Once you complete a single mission, you get a 20-minute cooldown timer before you can attempt another LSA Operations mission. There are two difficulty levels: Professional and Specialist. The Professional level rewards players anywhere between $45,000 and $55,000, while the Specialist pays between $60,000 and $70,000.
If you have associates in your organization, they will always receive a fixed amount of $30,000, regardless of the difficulty level. The bonus payment for the completion of bonus objective remains the same for everyone.
The following is a list of all the missions with bonus objectives:
- Direct Action
- Bonus: Plant tracking devices on crates.
- Bonus: Eliminate the armored gunner.
- Bonus: Steal the F-160 Raiju and deliver it.
- Surgical Strike
- Bonus: Photograph the blueprints.
- Bonus: Steal Merryweather outfit.
- Bonus: Steal mysterious artifact.
- Whistleblower
- Bonus: Recover the case file.
- Bonus: Destroy the backup generator.
- Bonus: Upload a virus to the mainframe.
Completing each mission for the first time will also reward you with an outfit. The following are the outfits you unlock for each mission:
- The Infiltrator (Direct Action)
- Merryweather Outfit (Surgical Strike)
- The Shade Outfit (Whistleblower)
@SilentSniperAU,
I did some as well. They aren't all bad but don't really feel like they do anything for the story or character building at all. It feels lazy.
I did end up doing a few missions but I ended up going back to old stuff. It just was not fun or interesting for me.
I was going over this the day you guys published it. Helped a lot. I knew what to enjoy and what to not even bother with. Helps having a community like this too.
@RetroRanger,
There isn't all that much but some things are easy to overlook. Mostly the improvements they did. A lot of the good things are being overshadowed by the crap they messed up in the game.
I was wondering when a decent guide would come out. Much appreciated Boom!
I am still working my way through all the changes.
This is very helpful. I was trying to follow another guide but whoever wrote it made a mess of things. This is way easier to follow and to get an idea of everything new from the DLC.