Master Hero Mode X

Master Hero Mode X is a Mutation Mode variant that play similarly to Hero Mode X but with 30 players and a bigger emphasis on the heroes versus terminators aspect. This mode, alongside Mutant Escape Mode are part of Mass Mutation Mode umbrella.

Availability[]

Available in all CrossFire versions

Variants[]

Maps[]

Notes:

* - Exclusive to CF China.

Overview[]

Similar to the Parasite Expansion, this map option is mostly based on the classic Hero Mode X. It has unique mechanics found in Hero Mode X but also features some new features from other Mutation Mode variations such as Mutation Knight Mode and Mutant Escape Mode. The match will start with a maximum of 30 players, of which up to 2 players will turn into Berserk Mutants and up to 2 players will turn into the Mutant Boss, Xeno (depends on the number of players during the match).

Unlike Hero Mode X (including its Havoc/Ranger Expansion and Parasite Expansion) which can be played in any Mutation Mode and variants' maps, due to the high number of players and new mechanics, there are new maps available exclusively for this mode option, and most of them are based on the popular Hero Mode X maps.

Changelog[]

Main article: Master Hero Mode X/Changelog

This mode received various addition, tweak and many add-on for balance purpose. The purpose of this page is to document all of these additions/changes as introduced per update, as the other pages will always attempt to reflect the most up-to-date information.

Gameplay[]

Commando is also in the battle to fight against Xeno and mutants, but he got some disadvantages this time. Although his health point has been increased to 11500, his Dual Kukri now deals lower damage against mutants. During the round, he can pick up the freezing Hero Boxes dropped on the map and and choose to transform into one Supreme Hero with higher health point and different skills as shown below.

It should be noted that Commandos will respawn as a mutant after being killed, similar to Hero in Mutant Escape Mode, while Supreme Heroes' death are permanent. Additionally, Commandos and Supreme Heroes can pick it up to gain additional 500 HP as well.

Supreme Hero	Icon	Skill Description
Master Hero		Execute Onmi Slash attack that performs quadruple slashes with high damage which slow down mutants caught in it
Master Hunter		Able to move swiftly in short distance and at the same time become immune to damage
Master Ascetic Hero		Create Blast Shield that absorbs a certain amount of damage and will explode if it exceeds the durability or runs out of protection time
Mystic Hero		Revert mutants back to soldiers by her handgun; able to freeze mutants temporarily with the Freeze Grenade
Mechanic Hero		Set up Sentry Gun that shoots mutant continuously; inflict damage and degrade mutants by throwing Arcane Grenade; able to use his own Gatling Gun to shoot from far range
Knight		Switch to Defense Mode that can blocks attack from mutants and able to preform short dash in the stance; perform the finishing blow on mutants with low health point once targeted
Blaze Hero		Create a fire ring around him which stuns and causes continuous damage toward mutants; execute flaming path that burns and push mutants backward

Xeno still joins the battle to defeat the soldiers, but there will be up to two players turning into Xenos upon the countdown (depends on the number of players). He still can use his Bulletproof Shield and only takes 300 HP to use it instead of 500 HP like before. His default health point also got increased (9000 HP for Level 2, and 12000 HP for Level 3).

For normal mutants, up to two players will be chosen as berserk mutants. Mutants now only require about less than a second to absorb point from other dead mutants. Like Mutant Escape Mode, they also have faster health recovery as well. When defeated, mutants still save both Evolution Level and Evolution Point when respawned.

During the round, Xeno or Level 3 Mutants can pick up the blazing Evil Box dropped on the map and choose to transform into one Supreme Terminator with higher health point and diffrent skills as shown below.

Supreme Terminator	Icon	Skill Description
Evil Terminator		Throw slow-running Fireball that can instant-kill any soldiers caught in the explosion
Demon Terminator		Create Fire Bulletproof Shield that boosts up movement speed and only absorb a part of damage from soldiers
Void Terminator		Set up Void Spot to an area that allows him to teleport to that place
Queen Terminator		Boost up a mutant's health point and movement speed by throwing Energy Orb; create an Invisible Circle for her and nearby mutants
Outlaw Terminator		Throw Shattering Mace that deals relatively high damage, stuns and disrupts soldiers' movement caught in the blast
Armored Terminator		Immobilize soldiers and force them to switch to melee weapon by Roaring; create Bulletproof Shield that boosts up movement speed and only absorb a part of the damage from soldiers
Viper Terminator		Summon a fake Supply Box which can divert soldiers' movement control; move around without being caught and perform stealth attack with her special dagger
Dread Terminator*		Boost up movement speed for a short moment; execute the more powerful secondary attack with further range and once charged

Notes:

* - Exclusive to Novice and Event gameplay.

Beside Hero Box, soldiers can pick up the Supply Boxes dropped on the map to collect various items and at the same time, they will have their weapons' ammo count refilled. The items will be displayed in the two items slot which can be used by manually pressing 5 or 6 instead of automatically drawing out or consuming ike before. Additionally, soldiers can discard the weapon simply by pressing G to free up the item slot.

The similar mechanic applies to mutants for any items colored in red, however, and most items will be automatically consumed instead. The mechanic of picking a certain amount of Supply Boxes has been replaced by the Evolution Gauge (see the green items below), which means players need to fulfill the progress by luck rather than fixed requirement.

Soldier Supply		Mutant Supply
Icon	Description	Icon	Description
	Use Stun Grenade to stun mutants		Ignore any damage for 1 second, and HP will drop to 1
	Use Grenade-Bio with high damage upon explosion		Use Decay Trap which poisons and slows down soldiers once activated
	Use FAL Custom Camo-Stray which can launch grenades		Obtain a Bulletproof Shield which absorbs half the damage from soldiers in 3 seconds
	Use AT4 with powerful rocket ammo		Additional 500 HP (200 HP in Ability)
	Use Flamethrower that deals continuous damage in limited range		Recover 2000 HP (1500 HP in Ability)
	Use Recoil Trap which can immobilize and make them fly backward		Obtain EXP randomly for the Evolution Gauge
	Increase weapon firepower and penetration in 5 seconds		Directly evolve into Level 3 mutant
	Equip Mutation Jacket (1 max except Double Armor attribute)		Choose to transform into a Supreme Terminator once Evolutation Gauge is full
	Restore 500 HP (available for Heroes only)	---	---
	---	---	---

Strategies[]

Soldiers have a large advantage at the start of the round thanks to numbers, but the table can easily be turned if everyone's too zealous and try to rush Supply Crates aggressively. It's important to hold fire and attempt to kill off all host mutants (Including Xeno) to force them back into defensive position so players'll have an easier time dealing with them later.

Watch out when the Evil Terminators are around, they can keep throwing fireballs and distracting players from the incoming hordes, especially the dangerous mutants such as Maiden or Enchantress. Try to shoot them down.
Outlaw Terminators are the biggest threats as they aren't stunned when shot at and their throwing Mace can drain players' HP over time. Focus on them first and foremost along with Evil Terminators.
Try not to be stuck in a crowded soldier group, as it can prevent players from dodging Evil Terminator's Fireball skill and Outlaw Terminator's Mace throwing skill.
Try to pick up Supply Boxes if possible as they can provide useful items and also refill the primary weapon's ammo as well. Remember that mutants can try to steal supply boxes to evolve, and they'll pose a huge threat once they're fully evolved and transform into any Supreme Terminators\.
Since the number of mutants in this mode are significantly high, try to reduce the number of mutants by killing them with melee weapons when they're flashing red / low on HP, so the work of other soldiers and/or heroes would be easier.
Since Commando and his weapon isn't strong enough to deal a large horde of mutant in this mode, soldiers are recommended to pick Hero Box to become Supreme Heroes. These Hero Boxes are always spawning at fixed places on the maps, so players can try camping around there so they can easily acquire them when they became Commando. If these boxes are out, try to dodge the mutants, assist the Supreme Heroes or simply stay out of the mutants' sights on high places until the time's up.
It's actually not always necessary to transform to Commando when it's available; if there is no Hero Box around and the current defense point is quite safe from the mutants, try camping on high places with Supply Boxes so that players can assist Heroes and/or kill the incoming mutant hordes with their own weapons or special weapons from Supply Boxes (like the FAL Custom-Camo Stray or AT4).
If the number of mutants are too high, try camping at high places or only one-way access places (like the clocktower in Dawn Village) so players won't have to deal with many mutants at the same time. Still needs to watch out for Maiden / Enchantress, Evil Terminators' Fireballs and Void Terminator's Teleporting skill.
Soldiers need to be aware when Void Terminator is near the defense group. Shoot him to make him as weak as possible to stop him from creating a teleport spot and weaken him for faster finish-off after his successful teleport. Also, watch your and/or your teammates' back, maybe the Terminators are creating teleport spot behind you and/or your team to attack.
If a Void Terminator has successfully created a teleport spot, it's best to stand far away from it as much as possible, and gun him down as fast as possible before other mutants come.

While mutants are weak at the start of the round if they aren't lucky enough to infect enough soldiers, Evil Boxes can turn the table around and give them a serious buff given optimal play. Therefore, it's important to know when to rush and share supply boxes to other mutants.

Try to pick Supply Boxes to level up faster and can acquire the Evil Box when evolved to Level 3. These Supreme Terminators are very dangerous against both soldiers and Heroes.
Try to rush soldiers. Mutants can still save both Evolution Level and Evolution Point when respawned, so try again after being killed. Still watch out from being killed by a melee attack, though.
Don't always rely on Terminators, try to help them by attacking along with them, or distracting the soldiers by using Maiden's Invisibility skill or Assassin's Grenade to disrupt soldiers.
Try to aim for the head or attack at the back of Supreme Heroes since they're very dangerous when it comes to face to face. Also, don't attack the Heroes alone, better cooperate with other mutants instead. But beware when attacking at small or narrow places, since mutants can be stuck each other and Heroes will have an easier time finishing the mutants off.
Always coordinate with other Terminators when attacking, especially when there are lots of soldiers with heavy firepower in a crowded area. Balance the number of Terminators if possible, so that one group can spam fireballs and maces to disrupt soldiers' position while the others can rush them with aid of their skills.
Soldiers who are infected by a high level mutant attacks will spawn with higher maximum HP. If players know they will die to an onslaught of mutants soon, try to be mutated by any Demon Terminator, if possible. It will give an extra 5000 max HP to mutant.

Unique to the classic Hero Mode X, mutants heavily outnumbered the Heroes, so it's important to cooperate to increase the chance of survival. A "lone wolf" hero won't last for long by themselves (unless they're skilled enough to dodge and kill the mutants). Beware of Xeno and Demon Terminator's Bulletproof Shield skill, as it will take less damage from players' attack while capable of instant killing. Try to back up until the shield expired, then quickly killing it. The other Terminators doesn't have the shield skill, so they're pretty much vulnerable to all attack.

As Master Hero, try to use primary attack on weaker (Slug / Berserker or low HP) mutants, with 1-2 slashes are enough to kill them, while for the stronger (Titan or high HP) mutants and the Terminators, try to use secondary attack along with the Rage attack which can deal high HP on mutants. The Rage attack should also be used when being surrounded by many mutants.
As Master Hunter, while the Dash ability is mostly for escaping purposes, players can use it to teleport right next to the mutants surprisingly and slashing them, as they may not react fast enough. Master Hunter also immune to any damage while using the Dash. The Dash ability can allow players to skip some objects that requires jumping or climbing as well (i.e the one-way ladder or multi-boxes in Dawn Village).
As Master Hero or Master Hunter, pretend to run away when being chased by a group of mutants, then suddenly turn around and quickly activate the specific skill (Rage for Master Hero, Dash for Master Hunter) and slash the mutants, then repeat. Most of the time the mutants won't react fast enough and will be killed. Be careful though as the Terminators may deal lots of damage. Should do this trick if players have high HP and skilled enough.
As Master Ascetic Hero, use the Shield to reduce high level mutants and Terminators' health point to easily defeat them. The shield also act as a bulletproof and players be immune to any damage for a few seconds before the shield explodes. It also help to clear any weak mutants nearby if surrounded by them. Unfortunately, the Shield may help the high level mutants be killed by it instead, so they will respawn back with full health, thus players have to be very careful.
As Mystic Hero, try to cure any mutant if possible, especially any player who has strong weapon like Steyr TMP-Death Eye or Gatling Gun-Infernal Dragon. Try to cure high level mutant (Titan level) as well, so if they gets infected again, they'll be at Level 1 (Slug level) for an easy kill. Don't waste the cure on the Terminators, as they will simply get killed and then respawn with high health. Make sure to aim for the head to avoid wasting ammo and waiting for the skill cooldown.
As Mystic Hero, use Freezing Grenade on a crowded mutant group, especially ones with many Terminators and high level mutants so that players or your teammates can easily take them down or runaway from them.
As Mechanic Hero, find a high place and this place should be allowed a mutant pass and deploy the turret. If only a mutant is trying to approach, it's the chance to kill them. If possible, try to use Arcane Grenade on crowded mutants.
As Knight, players can perform a Killing Blow when other teammates reduce the Terminator's health point to the lowest level to cut down the numbers of mutants for teammates. If players are chased by a group of mutants, use the Dash skill to escape. If players encounter many Terminators, try to use Block skill in front of any Terminator's attack.
As Blaze Hero, use the Combustion Attack skill to improve the attacking power and slow down any mutants or Terminator once hit by the flame, which is convenient for quick killing. If players encounter many mutants and terminators, try to repel them with the Blaze Wave to push them back.

While the amount of Evil Boxes are limited, it's important to know that Titan mutants can pick these up and transform. Therefore, skilled Xeno players can afford to skip them and let others to become Supreme Terminators instead, as Xeno is already buffed with high health point and G-Skill. Also, Titan mutants (including Xeno) can pick up certain number of Supply Boxes to become Supreme Terminators, so don't steal their loot, focus on attacking instead.

As any Terminators, try to prevent the Commandos from picking up Hero Box by camping or guarding them as these boxes are always spawned at fixed places. These mutants are highly dangerous against Commando so don't give them a chance, a couple of secondary attack is enough to take them down and join the mutant armies.
The Fireball of Evil Terminators can deals up to more than 2000 HP on Heroes, so try to use it if Heroes are surrounded or camping on high places.
If there are several heavily defended outpost by soldiers, it may be wise to pick Void Terminator as he can teleport into defensive spot and surprise soldiers, or at least confuse them. High camping spot like the top of the ruins in Void Island can be easily breached with Void Terminator's teleportation.
As Queen Terminator, use the Invisible Circle skill when a mutant army about to attack the soldier group. This will make soldiers have a hard time to kill invisible mutants.
As Queen Terminator, use the Healing Orb to heal any strong mutant that are about to die or when rushing soldiers. It will not only give them HP but also give them a speed boost as well.
Outlaw Terminator is one of the strongest mutants, getting no stunt from soldier's gunfire and the Throwing Mace can wind down their forces over time. Make sure to have at least 1 Outlaw Terminator in the mutant side.
When there are several Supreme Heroes around, Outlaw Terminator should use their G-Skill to immobilize them when the chance arises, allowing other mutants to swoop in and surround their prey.
Armored Terminators have the strongest controling effect which can forcefully stop the firepower of soldiers and cooperate with other Terminators to break through the defense line of soldiers. If there are any soldiers who run away very fast, use Roar to stop them from running away and let other mutants do the rest instead.
As Viper Terminator, it's important to constantly spam F-Skill to give teammate mutants a constant supply to evolve over time, plus there's a rare chance that an Evil Box can appear instead. Use G-Skill in coordinate with Void Terminator and Outlaw Terminator to sneak into heavily defended position to confuse soldiers and distract them so other Terminators can finish them off.
As a Dread Terminator, trying to use a sweeping attack with a full charging bar as it is the biggest threat to the Supreme Heroes.

Glitches[]

Like Hero Mode X, Mutants don't have proper killsound (when killing heroes) in this mode, thus they will adapt killsound of whichever human character the players are using, leading to a funny consequence as male/female mutants can use female/male killsounds. These problems were later fixed.
In CF China and CF West, Master Hero's killsound are shared with normal female characters while his death sound are shared with Master Hunter, despite being male commando. This problem has been fixed.