Resident Evil 5: The Mercenaries - Ship Deck DUO strategy

This is a post for archive information for strategies of Ship Deck DUO in Resident Evil 5 - The Mercenaries.

Chainsaw Majini spawn times:

Chainsaw Majini 1 (blue) - spawns at beginning
Chainsaw Majini 2 & 3 (blue and red) - 20 combo
Chainsaw Majini 4 (red) - 30 combo
Chainsaw Majini 5 (red) - 40 combo
Chainsaw Majini 6 & 7 (blue and red) - 50 combo

North (Chicken) Spawn strategy



Player: Kirin

This is the most popular strategy for the North (Chicken) spawn on Ship Deck DUO.

First of all, keep this in mind: Tower = North, Flash grenade area = Southeast, Crane area = Southwest.

Your character will start on the middle platform of the north tower. Turn around and drop from the ladder. Sometimes players (like me) shoot the chicken from the tower, but a Wesker player can dash kill it, so it's best to save it for a melee kill with Wesker. Climb the ladder in the far north below the tower then run over and grab the combo bonus from the combo chest. Run over to the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS and hit it then start to melee kill the Majini that followed your character up the ladder.

Keep in mind that some of the Majini will fall from the ladder ledge if they are shot while they stand near it (fall = 350 damage), so prepare to fall along with them and melee kill them if they do so. Kill the CHICKEN while it is above the ladder or kill it below. The chicken can get away from your character easily if you don't kill it soon - it can move up the stairs and run to the south while below the ladder.

0:57
The player notices that the Majini at the top of the ladder has a red wrench. This red wrench scripted Cephalo spawns from the west crate beside the 90 second timer while a player stands in the tower area. The player shoots it in the head then melee kills the expected Cephalo.

Climb to the top of the tower after killing a few enemies then break the 30 SECOND TIME BONUS at the top of the tower. Grab the ROCKET LAUNCHER weapon from near the zipline. Grab onto the zipline and ride it to the southwest area. Most players leave the north area before 20 combo.

Fall down the ladder on the crate to the right then move over to the ladder that leads up to the stacked crates further ahead to the right. Hop over the crates and break the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS on the last crate. Take the grenade launcher or leave it then fall from the north ladder across from the gate that leads to the crane tower path.

NOTE: It's really up to you whether you take the grenade launcher or not. Some players leave it behind and some players take it. The main reason for picking it up is to get a possible flash or nitrogen round drop. Nitrogen rounds work great on Ship Deck mainly for allowing a player to freeze scripted Cephalo Majini and melee kill them to cancel the Cephalo easily. Some players choose to leave the grenade launcher to have a better chance at other ammo drops however.

NOTE: There are tons of scripted Cephalos on the crane side. Just about every red wrench Majini is a scripted Cephalo. You might get about one or two green bottle Majini scripted Cephalos also. One Majini with a bow gun scripted Cephalo will spawn from the south crate below the crane tower as well. At around 60 combo, three spiked club Majini scripted Cephalos will hop out of the north crate in the area below the crane tower (area with explosive barrel) - the spiked club Majini always come later though.

A Wesker player should fight whatever Majini are in front of the gate then enter the area below the crane tower. The Chainsaw Majini bosses will randomly go to either player if the tower spawn player remains below the crane tower. Be on lookout for scripted Cephalo red wrench Majini and be sure to prepare for their Cephalo by setting it off (shot to the head) and quickly melee killing it with Wesker (or instant kill meleeing the Majini with a non-Wesker).

NOTE: The 60 SECOND TIME BONUS below the crane tower can be broken at any time when no enemies around. BE SURE to break it before leaving!

2:49
The player isn't afraid to shoot the spiked club Majini in fear of a potential Cephalo since he knows that the scripted Cephalo spiked club Majini arrive sometimes around 60 combo.

The final pair of chainsaw bosses spawn at 50 combo from the overhead crane tower. They will drop and most likely attack the tower spawn player if that player is in the area below the crane. Allow them to drop then shoot them both the rocket launcher to instantly kill the red chainsaw boss and knock out the blue chainsaw boss. Always prepare to shoot the blue chainsaw Majini once it gets up. It can be fully killed the moment it starts to rise - take advantage of this and kill it then.

NOTE: The chainsaw Majini bosses in this stage can be delayed through the players not killing one of them shortly after they spawn. This happens often at times since you really have to clear the area and make sure that no Majini interfere when you go to fight the chainsaw bosses. Basically, if only one falls after 50 combo, either the other player delayed in killing the first pair or second red chainsaw Majini, or the final pair split up and went to each player (you only got one from the pair).

3:33
The player shoots the final chainsaw boss pair with the rocket launcher launcher. He actually saved the scripted bowgun Majini Cephalo to kill it with the rocket launcher as well. Notice how the blue chainsaw Majini does not immediately die - sometimes if the rocket hits during a certain frame of animation, it will take full damage from the boss, but the chainsaw Majini will not immediately fall over. ANY type of hit - flash round, flash grenade, dash, gunshot - should make it drop at that point. In the video, it is knocked out by the red chainsaw Majini's boss explosion! Such irony.

3:50
Nitrogen Rounds! Dear god, the holy (hand) grenade (ammo) of Antoc has now been found! Nitrogen Rounds = instant scripted Cephalo cancels.

At around 70 combo, there is sometimes a dry period in enemy spawning on the crane side. The player knows that a bunch of scripted Cephalos are about to appear. Scripted Cephalo red wrench Majini will start to spawn more often and scripted Cephalo spiked club Majini will start to spawn from the north crate. Choose your enemies carefully based on weapon type (avoid red wrench and spiked club that spawn form the north crate) while trying to keep the combo. There is nothing quite like ground meleeing a Majini and setting off a Cephalo as the combo fades. The player in the video seeks out other enemies besides red wrench and spiked club Majini for the most part. Spiked club Majini that do not spawn from the north crate are not scripted Cephalos.

The flash side player will start to leave his area at around 80-90 combo. It's VERY important that you keep the combo by killing Majini at this point. The flash side player will be heading toward the crane tower and he will not get there until sometimes shortly after 100 combo. He will fall and break the 60 second timer in the middle along his way - try to watch for this. He might also break the 90 second timer and the 30 second timer on the way also - this can be broken later though.

5:36
Watch the time go up by 60 seconds - the other player just hit the 60 second timer in the middle of the stage. He cannot keep the combo that well at this time, so the tower spawn player is basically in charge of keeping the combo at this point.

6:01
The flash spawn player breaks the 90 seconds on the other side of the small tunnel - aka. he is very near!

6:09
Kirin use nitro rounds to freeze two scripted Cephalo Majini - a red wrench and a spiked club - then dashes through both of them to cancel the Cephalo and gain a melee kill. This is one example of how useful nitro rounds can be on the crane side.

6:19
The flash spawn player breaks the 30 second timer behind the gate that leads to the crane tower. He is very close to the area where he must keep the combo and signal to the other player to move!

The flash spawn player will often get to the gate near the tower at around 100 combo. He will climb the two ladders shortly after that. Once he almost finishes climbing, that player should request an item from your character to let you know to run to the north tower. Once he requests that item, drop everything and run to the north tower! The flash spawn player will keep the combo by killing the four bowgun Majini campers that should be on top of the tower.

6:36
Kirin prepares for the movement to the north very well in this video. He freezes a Majini with a nitro round then dashes through it to melee kill it and then dashes to the north. His partner requests an item shortly afterwards. Kirin is prepared to shoot a Majini with his magnum but quickly stops and runs to the north after seeing his partner kill an enemy to keep the combo chain.

Some players run directly to the north and some players stay on the walkway above the stairs and fight enemies for a while - this can help to clear them out and make enemies spawn in the other player's area. The only problem with doing this is that it will give the camping bowgun Majini time to spawn in the north and climb to the top of the tower (one of them does so in this video). So long as a player stays in the area directly in the north area - past the 90 second timer area - enemies will continue to spawn from the north spawning region. Many of the enemies spawn back in the south, BUT you have to stand in the north to make them spawn! Spawning regions, ftw!

NOTE: Notice that the player is constantly trying to tilt his camera up to look at the top of the north tower. He is trying to see if any of the the bowgun Majini campers are up on the tower. Three bowgun Majini and one dynamite Majini will climb to the top of the tower and they will stand there. You'll have to climb the tower and kill them.

7:37
The player notices a bowgun Majini climb the ladder. These bowgun Majini will climb the north tower and camp there, so Kirin immediately turns and melee kills this Majini. It's best to block them from climbing.

The tower spawn player stays in the north area and fights off the remaining enemies in the north. When the enemies stop spawning, run down the walkway to the left and break the 30 SECOND TIMER then return and search for more enemies. If it gets down to about 145 kills and no enemies spawn at that time, climb the north tower and make sure none of the camping Majini are waiting at the top. It's very important that you make sure they are killed. In this run, a bit of time is lost because of the bowgun camper at the top.

South (Flash) Spawn strategy



Player: Skylark/ZyZARD

This is the most popular strategy for the North (Chicken) spawn on Ship Deck DUO.

The south player starts on the platform with the two flash grenades. From the start, turn around and pick up both of the flash grenades. When you run down the stairs to the side, you'll immediately have to start melee killing Majini. In the video, the player chooses to shoot the camping cocktail Majini in the distance. This is really optional. Read the information below for more details.

0:03
Notice that the STARS Chris player partner in the video discards Chris' magnum ammo from the beginning. Why does the player do this - it is done to give the STARS Wesker partner a better chance at magnum ammo pickups from the beginning! STARS Wesker NEEDS magnum ammo in order to properly melee kill most Cephalos.

0:06
The STARS Wesker player shoots the camping cocktail Majini on the high platform below the crane tower. This is done to make the cocktail Majini come to the STARS Wesker player. If he did not shoot the cocktail Majini, it would remain there. A good majority of the time, players will not shoot the cocktail Majini and just leave it so the other player can keep the combo off the cocktail Majini (in an emergency) while breaking the 60 seconds on the other side. Shooting it really helps to increase enemy spawn from the beginning, but you will be swamped with Majini even more! Shooting it to make it move from the beginning is basically optional.

Shooting the cocktail Majini was actually started early on in the Mercs community then players started to not shoot it so the other player might have a chance at keeping the combo off the Majini while on the other side. Shooting it to make it move is completely optional. It WILL increase enemy spawn from the beginning though.

Move down the stairs then break the 30 SECOND TIME BONUS and start fighting the Majini below. A cocktail Majini will always be below the stairs - he can be a problem at times. It's a good idea to shoot him if he ever starts to throw his cocktail while you're getting close to the timer. You can also use the time bonus hit to make your character invincible from the cocktail bottle toss.

The FIRST BLUE CHAINSAW MAJINI SPAWNS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE RUN and he will drop from the crane tower shortly. He is still moving down the crane tower at the beginning of each of run. It's best to clear the area of the first few enemies then get ready for him to drop. Blast him and knock him out with constant powered weapon pressure when he drops. He will only be knocked out once he has suffered enough damage to fall. He will revive in about 5 seconds and go into his raging move. It's VERY IMPORTANT that you keep an eye on him and shoot him the moment that he starts to get up.

NOTE: A blue chainsaw Majini will always enter a berserk mode once it has fallen for the first time - the berserk mode will trigger as the blue chainsaw Majini rises about 5 seconds after falling the first time. He can be killed from the moment he starts to move once again. A player can completely "kill" him before he gets up - this is the best option too. When he starts to rage, he can only be hit in the head, body and arms. His legs are invincible at that point. If you find yourself trapped with him coming toward your character, quickly toss a flash grenade to stun him. Flame rounds work well for the player on the other side also!

1:43
Notice how the player is hesitant in shooting the red wrench Majini that falls. Why? Well, that is because this Majini has a chance to be a scripted Cephalo. The player in the video was expecting a Cephalo and missed out on the Majini melee kill with his hesitation. Two red wrench Majini will spawn from the crate above the hopping crates below the 60 second timer further to the north and one of them will be a scripted Cephalo. Picking them apart is all about luck.

NOTE: As shown in the video, one very good fighting spot on the flash side is the area in between the crates where the breakable objects lie. Shoot the breakable crates then fight in that area. All characters have a better chance for multiple melee kills in that area. Be sure to watch out for cocktail Majini while fighting there though.

The player on the flash side is the main combo keeper for up until about 20-25 combo for the most part. You'll literally be the only player keeping the combo, so a lot of times the combo will depend solely upon your actions! The flash side player can get swamped very easily. Bullet kill if necessary in order to keep the combo.

The FIRST CHAINSAW MAJINI PAIR (BLUE AND RED) WILL SPAWN AT 20 COMBO and they will fall into your area sometimes after 20 combo. They will always fall right below the stairs. It's VERY IMPORTANT that you try to clear out as many enemies as possible before they drop and kill them FAST! Kill the red chainsaw Majini first since it is the weakest then focus on the blue chainsaw Majini. You might have to literally leave the blue one alive and kill around it at times in order to keep the combo. It will revive and go into berserk mode just like the first also.

NOTE: The flash side has three types of scripted Cephalos. Two red wrench Majini, two green bottle Majini and two dynamite Majini. One red wrench, both green bottle and both dynamite Majini will spawn from the crate in the north beside the 60 seconds (above the hopping crates). The dynamite will not appear until sometimes after 60 combo. Just know that any dynamite that come from the north at that time are likely scripted Cephalos. The red wrench and green bottle will spawn sometimes near the beginning - they might go to the other player. The second red wrench falls from the overhead crane! He will be the second red wrench that will fall from the crane.

2:15
Notice how the player basically stops everything he is doing and focuses his attention on shooting the reviving blue chainsaw Majini. This is how dangerous they can be. If they are allowed to rage, they sometimes have very random movements and are very hard to hit. They can easily kill a player off if you're not careful - Wesker or not.

Sometimes after 20 combo, the other player will finally settle into their fighting area on the west side below the crane tower. This will give both players a much more balanced spawn instead of all pressure being on the flash side player. The SECOND RED CHAINSAW MAJINI WILL SPAWN AT 30 COMBO from the crane tower then drop sometimes after that. The THIRD RED CHAINSAW MAJINI WILL SPAWN AT 40 COMBO then drop from the crane tower. Both of the red chainsaw Majinis can come to the crane side player depending on how close that player is to the tunnel on that side. The SECOND CHAINSAW MAJINI PAIR (BLUE AND RED) WILL SPAWN AT 50 COMBO then drop and attack.

In the video, the STARS Chris player kills the second chainsaw Majini pair with the rocket launcher. The other player has to move into the area below the crane tower at around (or very shortly after) 50 combo in order to make the pair of chainsaw Majini fall on that side. Sometimes, the delay in killing the chainsaw Majinis will delay their arrival times. When playing with a non-Wesker, this can cause tremendous pressure when the non-Wesker has to fight a normal chainsaw Majini along with the pair afterwards. If the rocket launcher is used early, this can REALLY lead to a bad run depending on the non-Wesker on the other side - BSAA Jill, for the lose, in that case.

3:24
The player notices the scripted red wrench Majini Cephalo fall from the crane and blasts it in the head to activate the Cephalo then he melee kills the Cephalo. This red wrench will drop after the first red wrench Majini. Two of them drop from the crane and the second will be a scripted Cephalo.

3:40
When Wesker falls on the falling dynamite Majini as it dies from hitting the ground, this counts as a melee kill - notice how he gets a +5 second bonus after landing on it. He lands on the dying Majini as it hits the ground. You have to fall as the Majini falls in order to get the melee kill bonus credit.

If Majini ever start to stop spawning at around 60 combo, go ahead and start climbing over the crates. The player in the video does so. Keep in mind that the dynamite Majini that spawn from the north at this point can be scripted Cephalos. Drop to the other side of the crates to the north.

4:22
Notice how the Wesker player shoots the dynamite Majini in the head always. He is preparing for a scripted Cephalo spawn in the dynamite Majini. A headshot will immediately set off the scripted Cephalo. A non-Wesker will have to guess with instant kill melees mainly - basically instant kill melee all of them or take chances with normal melees.

4:43
One of the green bottle scripted Cephalo Majini arrived late on the flash side. They have the potential to spawn at any time on the flash side.

The flash side player needs to leave the flash side at 90 combo. He needs to break the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS above the ladder to the north before leaving. Climb into the middle area after hitting the 60 second time bonus then break the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS in the middle area. The player needs to run to the crane tower at that time.

Keep the combo on straggling Majini as much as possible, but focus on moving at that time. Move down the middle corridor of crates. It's really up to you if you break the 90 SECOND TIME BONUS while moving toward the other player or not - it can be broken later since the flash player will return to the 90 second spot later. Rush over to the gate leading to the stairs that lead up to the walkway that goes to the crane tower. Kick open the gate and break the 30 SECOND TIMER below the stairs - this timer can be left for when the player returns to this area. It's up to you really.

Rush down the crane tower walkway then climb both ladders. While climbing the second ladder REQUEST AN ITEM FROM YOUR PARTNER to let that player know that you are climbing. You will be the combo keeper at this point. You must keep the combo going while killing the four bow gun Majini campers on top of the tower. It's very important that you kill them SLOWLY when your partner is not Wesker. Non-Weskers are underbalanced- I mean, they have no dash, so they cannot move as fast as a Wesker partner, so you must kill slowly until that player runs all the way to the north tower!

While up on top of the crane tower, break the 60 SECOND TIME BONUS at the top - you can break it while giving your partner extra time to run to the north. Just be sure to kill when the combo starts to blink!

6:20
When the player reaches the top, there are only three bow gun Majini! The other has not spawned yet. This can be bad. Thankfully, for this player, the fourth bow gun Majini appears to the side. You MUST kill four of them. If you don't kill four, one of them has not spawned yet. He will camp on the tower if you leave him behind. Try to wait for him. If you have to leave, be prepared to shoot him from long range toward the end of the run. He will be there... taking up valuable time while camping.

NOTE: If the combo is broken while you're up on the tower, take the combo bonus from the combo chest to add a few more points to the overall score. A broken combo will give an overall lower score no matter what though. The combo bonus period will award points as if the combo has not been broken for a 30 second period.

Fall off the crane tower once the time bonus is broken and once ALL FOUR bow gun Majini have been killed. Take out a powered weapon and be prepared to bullet kill to save the combo if needed. You might have to. Run back to the stairs behind the gate. If the 30 seconds has not been hit, hit the timer now!

The flash player needs to spend all remaining time around the area with the 90 second timer. It's best to fight your way to the 90 second timer area and fight there! You will be the main player that will be fighting and keeping the combo. This part can be very dangerous with dynamite Majini, so heal quickly when in low health!

NOTE: When the flash side player returns from the crane tower, a long pipe scripted Cephalo and two dynamite Majini scripted Cephalos will eventually spawn from the crate in the alcove to the left of the 90 second timer (west side of the 90 seconds). All red wrench Majini scripted Cephalos will still be in the area as well. One of them might spawn from the crate in the alcove next to the 90 seconds - he sometimes appears at the beginning of a run and goes to the tower spawn player though.


South (Flash) Spawn strategy [Alternate Kirin Strategy]



Player: Kirin


North (Chicken) Spawn strategy [Alternate Kirin Strategy]



Player: Kirin


I'll get to describing all of these strategies later. -BK