Nice guide, but it's wrong on or leaves out a few points. Here's my annotations.
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First rule, DONT PANIC. There is no need to run straight to the bank. That is a bad idea on many levels. The mission is timed but there are many ways to get more time and lots of ways to get yourself creamed by rushing.
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Note that, down the road, once you've gotten all the side quest badges and just want to get to the bank and get out, the best way to do this is with teleport or a flight power, and second-best is with super jump going along rooftops; it's running through crowds of civilians on the ground that triggers the ambushes. If you bypass the civilians, you bypass the additional ambushes. If you're a superspeeder, well, hopefully you've got a flight pack.
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- destroying objects can get you lots of extra time. Most objects only require 1 or 2 destroyed to get the bonus like bus stops and police cars. Regular cars require quite a few but carry a 3 minute bonus. Larger items only make sense to destroy if they are easy to destroy. At low levels avoid red and purple objects they arent worth the trouble. Also be careful of cars at low levels as they can injure you when they explode. At higher levels they will seldom hit you anymore and do little damage. Go for the exploding objects first if they destroy something else you get credit for that too. You only get the bonus once so dont keep destroying the same things unless you are going for badges.
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However, one thing I discovered is that if you exit the Mayhem mission and reset--that is, select another mission, tell it you want to abandon the current mission, then re-select the Mayhem mission again--you will still have as much time remaining on the clock as you did before, but your bonuses for all the destructible items will have reset. (Any side quest missions you've already completed will stay completed, however.) So if you're running low on time and already destroyed a bunch of stuff, go outside, reset, come back in, and start destroying the same stuff all over again. This is a particularly good tactic to use with objects that only require a single smash to grant the time bonus when soloing, such as police vans, trucks, fire hydrants, newspaper machines, mailboxes, etc.
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- stay on the ground. Bad things happen to villains who try to Fly to the bank and avoid all the mobs on the ground. They Top of the screen is full of Longbow Eagles just waiting for people trying to cheat.
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Never had this happen; I fly and port to the bank all the time. But I stay just at rooftop level, I don't try to go all the way to the top of the map.
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Side missions are controlled by villain groups running loose in the outdoor area the trick is finding them. [...]
BIG SECRET: If you have turned off the mob text, turn it on again! This is the best way to find the side mission mobs.
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Actually, it's not.
The best way to find them is to look in the downloadable Prima I7 Guide, because it has a couple of pages with the maps of all the Mayhem missions in it, including colored markers for the locations of both the key-holding mobs and the doors. With a printout of that in hand, you can find the keyholders you want every time.
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The Pawn Shop: [...] Then in back of building is a door you can break down (which also triggers a ambush) when you enter back area and trigger another ambush, there are 3 more safes and more lights and more ambushes.
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Actually, there are just two safes in the back room I believe, but they're big ones. Note that getting these safes also has a pretty good chance of giving you a DO or SO enhancement, so make sure you have slots clear.
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The Wanted Poster: This is the exception mission. No new area to enter and this mission is best left until after you are done with the bank.
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Conversely, it may actually be best to do it well before you do the bank--because if you die and hospitalize, the jail is right where you end up. Clear it out ahead of time, and you've got your own portable hospital right there inside the mission.
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You get a powerful ally who will follow you (poorly) after that. Unfortunately the AI for you ally stands for Artificial Idiot and you will be lucky if you can drag him anywhere. [...] If you free them before doing bank and do bank mission when you come out they will be gone. I have never been able to get one to follow me all the way to bank that is hopeless.
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There's actually a little trick to this.
Go into a side quest or the bank door and then come out of it right away. This will make the henchie spout off his "I've been captured" dialogue, and then come running right up to you. He'll go into the mission by himself, then come right back out again immediately, and as long as you're not invisible, he'll say "Where were you?" and start following you again. (If you are invisible, toggle your invisibility off for him to notice you, then he'll follow you even after you turn it back on.) As near as I can figure, this is a side-effect of the code that makes pets and henchmen follow their caster through doors or into elevators.
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THE BANK:
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Only one thing to add to your comments about the bank job itself: Some heroes are tougher than others, especially at higher levels. As soon as you grab the money, you'll hear dialogue from the hero indicating which one it is. If it's one of the tougher ones (the hardest one, I've found, is Holo Man, an Illusions/FF controller who has a nasty habit of terrorizing you), you may want to be ready to load up on Inspirations, pull out a Shivan, or pop your panic-button power if you have one.
Best of luck with it!
Thanks for some of the ideas but I tried to keep the guide away from exploits/cheats. Resets and outside maps are not a designed part of the game and not only do I not encourage them I don't want my guide deleted. lol Resetting to add to the time is definitely an exploit, whether you realize it or not, and could get the whole thread deleted.
Also they really aren't necessary except maybe your first time or two in a new map and I think it gives the mission more flavor to have the time crunch while you look for the villians.
The rest is good info. I was tailoring this more for lower level villains as I ran into SO many people who really don't have any idea how to do anything more than barely finish the bank mission before time runs out. And I can't walk everyone through the mission.
Also one note that if you really have trouble with an ambush(es) you can use some of the Consignment Shipment mission to help kill them for you if you didn't clear it. Just lead the ambush there and run to the back. The ambush will trigger the mobs in the warehouse as they run in and if they shoot back they will end up fighting every mob in the warehouse before reaching you.
With Hero if can get him to attack the mobs they will aggro him and ignore you till he is dead (theoretically I haven't tried this one lol) you can join in the fight after they have aggroed him and use them as allies. Of course he may just make short work of them.
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You can't please everyone, so lets concentrate on me.
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outside maps are not a designed part of the game
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These ones are, as the Prima Guide was written by Statesman himself.
Another thing: If you're feeling a bit of a time crunch and don't have time to destroy anything, aggro one of the ambush mobs that you don't intend to defeat and then run outside of aggro range. (The jailbreak mob works fine for this, since you don't need to fight them to get into the jail.) Once they've been "activated," they'll start destroying anything near them, much like the jailed villain will.
Maybe not enough to buy you very much time, but it will help.
Bah, I've never bothered with the Prima guides, they will be outdated faster than my guide will be. lol My experience has been that they tend to confuse new players more than they help because of this. But I am a crabby old person heh.
The side quest villains will do the same if you give them the chance also. They will destroy items and kill any police in the area. But everyone stops fighting if you aren't reasonably nearby. Sometimes based on the setup this does work out though and you can fight one group of police while the side mission group fights another or blows up cars or something.
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You can't please everyone, so lets concentrate on me.
Just want to add on the subject of the Jailbreak Villains. At higher levels IF you can baby sit them past their cardboard box fixations, they can be real assets when solo. They will however slow you down a LOT. So if pressed for time just forget them.
If you aren't press for time, lead them along destroying all objects in your path, because you will lose them otherwise. They can make difficult boss fights incredibly easy. Also can be a big help against the end Hero. The tough part is getting them to the fight.
The other down side is that stealth is out once you have them. You can't sneak past the red lights in the pawn shop anymore with 'ol clumsy following you and you can't bypass mobs anymore either as they attack everyone. So weigh that in your decision whether to keep them around.
There is a bug that if you lose them then enter a mission they will just show up but usually get stuck in the door (they keep going out and if you go out you will see them and they will go in so something like that). If you play with it enough you may be able to get them following you again but remember it is timed. 
ALSO NOTE ON PAWN SHOP MISSION:
It is possible to get though this without triggering any ambushes, especially if you have a small character. I forgot to include this in the original post. Avoid the red lights, each time you enter one you trigger an ambush. If you do, deal with it before moving on. Trying to run through the mission opening safes and triggering more ambushes can be very hazardous to your health.
The mission has 2 areas. The first area is very easy to avoid the red lights. Then you have to open a security door to reach the second area. There are 2 red lights protecting the door. In some configurations large characters will not be able to get through door without triggering lights, large melee characters will often be unable to open doors without triggering the alarm. Sometimes you can get around them on sides, small characters can run straight down middle. If you can't just trigger the alarm, and deal with the ambush don't waste a lot of time trying to avoid it.
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You can't please everyone, so lets concentrate on me.
All you have to do is go in, then come back out again. They'll come running up to you, go into the mission door, then a moment later come right back out, and as long as you're not stealthed they should see you after a moment and start following you again. It's worked for me almost every single time.
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All you have to do is go in, then come back out again. They'll come running up to you, go into the mission door, then a moment later come right back out, and as long as you're not stealthed they should see you after a moment and start following you again. It's worked for me almost every single time.
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I have not had this experience what I have had however is when I "lose" my connection to my ally when I go in a mission they appear in the mission then immediately exit. If I exist I see them come out then immediately go back in the mission.
You can use this however as I describe at the end of the next update.
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You can't please everyone, so lets concentrate on me.
NOTE ON PAWN SHOP MISSION:
If you free ally from jail first sneaking through this mission becomes hopeless as they are about as subtle as as an Elephant in tap shoes. Assume you are going to set off every alarm and set them off one at a time instead of all at once so you don't get buried.
If you don't have an ally to "help" you it is entirely possible to get through this mission without triggering any of the alarms and it great fun to try. You can manipulate the safes from quite a distance away check out the area the red lights cover then stand back out of the way and open the safe.
Breaking down the back door with melee attacks can be more challenging but IS possible if you can run around the light or possibly straight down middle and stand directly next to door.
It is quite the thrill the first time you get through this mission without setting off any alarms!
ANOTHER NOTE ON JAILBREAK:
I have found a great way to save time (especially in later levels when there is almost always a jailbreak side mission) is don't attack objects until you have done the jailbreak or verified that there isn't a jailbreak mission. Since you freed "ally" will destroy everything in sight anyway destroying things before you get him is a waste of time.
Here is a more in depth explaination of how to deal with the Wanted Poster Side Mission:
Break In: Note that this is the only side mission that you dont need to defeat the villain group to do. If there is a villain group saying with this key then if you go to the PD Jail you will find this mission already set up and ready to go even if you dont have the key. Enter the Jail. Run to the elevator ignoring the police, be sure to turn off all AoE damage and put pets in passive mode so you dont pull them. Better to deal with police on way out. When you go up the elevator you will come to cells. There will be a boss + mobs AND you will trigger a longbow ambush which will take a few seconds to arrive. If you are very strong just take on boss, otherwise get right back in elevator, go back downstairs and wait for the longbow ambush deal with them first. Then go up deal with boss and mobs to get a time bonus. Note you cant use rest if you are too close to doors but you can in center of room. Once mobs are down break down door to free your ally.
Leader of the Pack: Once ally is free the real challenge starts. Keeping him under control. He will follow you, mostly, unless he sees anything else, then he will run off after it. The villains tend to be very powerful though so they are a big help. Lead him out and on way out clean out the PD Jail for some additional time. Once outside he will attack every destuctable object he gets near so accept this fact and help him make a path of destruction towards where you are going.
Tricks of the Trade: Allys priorities are Attack mobs, Attack objects, follow you. Sometimes he will get stuck on an object due to a bug, if you destroy it he will go to the next closest object. You can use these 2 things to control them if you are smart.
1) So when your ally gets stuck (and he will) the lesson is destroy everything anywhere even vaguely close first then destroy the object he is stuck on and he will have no choice but to follow you.
2) When ambushed by Longbow attack them, draw them past your ally (to get his attention), then run towards bank (or where ever you are going). This way he will chase the Longbow mobs. Often you can get him to chase them quite a long way before he kills them or they turn and start attacking him. Either way it is a means to get him to move through a whole area without destroying every object in it.
3) As you get to higher level missions expect to get this mission and dont start destroying objects at the start of your mission. Once you get Ally you will be destroying plenty of objects anyway so you may as well use them for the bonus. I hate to use the word synergy but it actually applies here. Lead insanely destructive ally toward objects that will give bonuses and use ally to get badges for things like destroying cars and vandalism.
4) In lowest level mayhem missions allies are probably more trouble than they are worth unless you are VERY good at controlling them. This is because they are easily killed by an exploding Car/PD van and there are lots of them right in front of the police station. So unless you can lead him away from the whole area (or get very lucky) before he starts beating on cars you will lose ally almost immediately. Having Force Fields/healing helps but may not be enough against purple Vans.
5) Parking meters are the worst. Once they see one they wont stop until they have destroyed them all even if they are going in the wrong direction, which may lead to tons of other objects leading to even more objects. This is a good time to employ the run ahead of them and destroy all the stuff they are going towards tactic. Think of it as putting up a fire break to stop a forest fire.
6) Note that if you lose your pet there is a bug so that when you enter a building they will show up eventually but will get stuck in the door. You CAN use this somewhat. When you open the bank vault grab the cash and run for the front door. Your ally will be fighting the hero at the front door or just outside the bank (or will possibly be dead and the hero hurt by the time you get there). Basically they will enter the door then go right back out again. If you go out they will come out and go right back in.
ALTERNATE BANK ATTACK FOR WEAKER VILLAINS:
A second way of dealing with bank if you arent as strong and have plenty of time is to clear everything on the way to vault then trigger the bank ambush as soon as possibly by walking up to the vault. Run to the front door to and kill the ambush. There will be 2 more ambushes of police/security but there will be a short delay before each spawns. Go to the vault and attack it while you wait. If the vault falls before you have kill both of the other 2 ambushes dont grab the cash yet, run to the front door. Wait until you have killed all 3 of the ambushes THEN grab the cash. Otherwise you have to fight the hero + longbow + a police ambush at the same time. Now you will just get a hero + longbow which is much easier.
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You can't please everyone, so lets concentrate on me.
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Mayhem Missions
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Nice guide. However, you omitted the badge information and the importance of them getting two Accolades: Invader (+5% HP) & Force of Nature (800% Recovery, 200% ToHit, +100% RechargeTime)!
Invader
Requires the exploration badge from each Mayhem. See vidiotmaps for locations.
Force of Nature
Impounder: Destroy 200 vehicles in Mayhem Missions
Outlaw: Defeat 1000 Longbow
Vandal: Destroy 25 Fire Hydrants, Newspaper Vendors, Phones, Mailboxes
Safecracker: Destroy 10 Vault doors in Mayhem Missions
Firebug: Complete 10 Arsons. Only the person who completes the Arson gets credit.
Hero Slayer: Defeat 100 of any "signature" hero. Freedom Phalanx, Vindicators, WISDOM, or Paragon Heroes.
Poison Pill
Note that Safecraker is not for safes in Mayhem missions but safes in general. It increments for safes from newspaper missions but won't start until you open one in a Mayhem mission near as I can tell. Of course this is such an easy badge to get it hardly matters.
Badge info there are much better sources than me 
and it isn't static the way strategy is. Since I can't edit my guide, easily anyway, I just avoided the whole subject. I'm just surprised it is the only guide on the subject.
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You can't please everyone, so lets concentrate on me.
On other note on Safes is that temp powers seem unusually accurate on them. Lower damage types will appreciate the extra damage.
And 20+ leading the villain you released from jail to the bank/other side missions can be huge. They are VERY powerful and will take out the hero and any bosses by themselves even on Relentless. Some are absolutely ugly. You just have to clear the way for them.
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You can't please everyone, so lets concentrate on me.
Mayhem Missions
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I have come to the realization through group mayhem missions that many people do not understand how to complete a Mayhem mission in the best manner possible and some are actually actively spreading bad information. Ive actually had people ask me what happens in side missions because theyve never been able to do one. None of this is malicious Mayhem missions are a bit tricky at first and the timer can make people nervous but there is actually PLENTY of time to do everything, provided you havent selected a difficulty that is way over your head anyway
I can complete a Mayhem mission and both side missions with 15-20 minutes left on the clock. I consider it a failure if you dont do both side missions, never mind the bank mission. I think you should have enough time to clear the mission of all cars and trucks so you can work on your badges. You deserve it.
This guide is primarily for the solo player as in groups you really cant control everyone else. Having a strategy and getting people to follow it are two different things. Telling people to say not engage mobs in bank and run to vault will inevitably lead to a Mastermind who doesnt put his pets on Follow/Dont Attack or someone who leaves an AoE damage aura on as they run through the bank and aggros the entire bank on you. So in groups it tends to be better to not do anything complicated i.e. anything more complicated than kill everything unless you know the people you are with.
First rule, DONT PANIC. There is no need to run straight to the bank. That is a bad idea on many levels. The mission is timed but there are many ways to get more time and lots of ways to get yourself creamed by rushing. It is important to understand some of the concepts of Mayhem missions:
- each group of police you kill gets you 30 seconds. If you are at the proper difficulty you should be able to take them in something less than 30 seconds so fighting them is not a bad thing, you get experience and a few extra seconds. If you get in a fight with a cop always wipe out the whole group and get the bonus.
- when running at various places on the map you will trigger longbow ambushes. These also give you 30 seconds and tend to be much smaller groups than the police. These are a very good thing because you should be able to take them out very fast and gain time. Do NOT stand around waiting for them however. Kill cops, destroy items but dont just hang out, you are being timed. Long Bow ambushes will follow you into missions and if you trigger multiple they will all show up at once when you enter a mission which is a very bad thing. So deal with ambushes as they happen.
- destroying objects can get you lots of extra time. Most objects only require 1 or 2 destroyed to get the bonus like bus stops and police cars. Regular cars require quite a few but carry a 3 minute bonus. Larger items only make sense to destroy if they are easy to destroy. At low levels avoid red and purple objects they arent worth the trouble. Also be careful of cars at low levels as they can injure you when they explode. At higher levels they will seldom hit you anymore and do little damage. Go for the exploding objects first if they destroy something else you get credit for that too. You only get the bonus once so dont keep destroying the same things unless you are going for badges.
- stay on the ground. Bad things happen to villains who try to Fly to the bank and avoid all the mobs on the ground. They Top of the screen is full of Longbow Eagles just waiting for people trying to cheat.
By destroying items, longbow and police as you go it is easy to get your time up to 20-25 minutes. That is without doing any side missions while gaining experience and exploring the map.
SIDE MISSIONS:
It is best to do most side missions BEFORE the bank mission. This is because side missions give a large time bonus on completion but the bank mission doesnt. When you complete the Bank mission ends but times just continues to run down. Keep your eye on the clock and work your way toward the bank along side streets making sure not to let the clock run down.
Side missions are controlled by villain groups running loose in the outdoor area the trick is finding them. The good news is they only have like 4 spawn points on each map. So once you find one there is a good chance they will be there again next time you do that map. There will always be a boss in the group and when you kill the whole group you get the key to a side mission. When you get a key you will usually get a new location on your map you can enter to do a new mission. Check your clues for information. Exception is the Wanted Poster.
BIG SECRET: If you have turned off the mob text, turn it on again! This is the best way to find the side mission mobs. When you get close you will hear them talking. Also they will start attacking anything nearby including cops and Longbow. Watch your messages you can more often find them through messages before you see them.
Dont just run around the map wily nily looking for the side mission mobs as you will trigger half a dozen Longbow ambushes who will all end up hitting you at once. This is especially true if you have SS. You dont have to fight every cop group but you shouldnt avoid it either and you need to clear ambushes as you cause them so killing cops while you wait for them is always a good idea.
The Missions:
The Pawn Shop: This is the toughest one. Ambushes galore in here. Be ready for heavy fighting. 3 safes will spawn in front area with some random guards plus there will be red security lights on floor, enter a light and you trigger an ambush. Each safe also trigger an ambush. You need to open all 3 safes to get a time bonus. Then in back of building is a door you can break down (which also triggers a ambush) when you enter back area and trigger another ambush, there are 3 more safes and more lights and more ambushes. Open those 3 safes for another time bonus. Just go slow and clear up the ambushes as they happen so you dont get overwhelmed. And dont Go into the light.
The Wanted Poster: This is the exception mission. No new area to enter and this mission is best left until after you are done with the bank. What you do is go to the Jail and go up stairs to the cell with all the guards in front. Just run past everyone downstairs dont fight them. Deal with the guards and break down the door. You get a powerful ally who will follow you (poorly) after that. Unfortunately the AI for you ally stands for Artificial Idiot and you will be lucky if you can drag him anywhere. This is mainly because he is forced to destroy everything in his path, whether you really need every box and trash can destroyed or not. They can be quite useful for destroying cars however if you can get them into a row of cars and of course they will help you slaughter the police downstairs. If you free them before doing bank and do bank mission when you come out they will be gone. I have never been able to get one to follow me all the way to bank that is hopeless.
Arson: When you enter you will trigger an ambush so just stay at door and kill them. Then run to bombs and set them. They trigger ambushes but they appear based on a random amount of time it seems so sometimes you can set all the bombs without seeing another ambush sometimes you will get 3 more. Just be alert. You get a time bonus when the fire starts and you get hurt if you run through it.
Consignment Shipment: Jackpot. This is the best mission for most and potentially the easiest. A warehouse with a glowie box in it somewhere which may or may not be guarded. No point in fighting anyone here just run past them. When you enter you will trigger an ambush but who cares? Since you are by passing the mobs and they are all villains they will all attack the Longbow chasing you lol. Run around and find the glowie, kill someone if you have to. Click it and you get a new Temp Power and a time bonus. Then run out.
Identity Docket (Kidnapping): This is the least obvious of all the missions. You have to figure it out for yourself. Look at the clues then act. It is a fairly small map and target will be as far from door as possible so you should be able to guess where they will be from the layout without much exploring. Depending upon your AT and play style you can just run straight through to the target clear the mobs around him and lead him out of the mission while people shoot at you or you can clear a path or you can do a little of both (clear half of the groups so they cant do too much damage to you). Remember if you dont attack them they wont follow you. You need to lead the target to door out, then you have to lead him to mission exit. You get a huge mission time bonus though, like 8 minutes.
THE BANK:
This is the one thing that people mostly get right if at the wrong time. After having dealt with the side missions (or if you are running low on time and cant find the little devils, it happens), it is time to deal with the bank. Outside the front door you will trigger an ambush. It usually takes a while to arrive so I trigger it and go attack some police, kill the ambush then return to the bank. Again dont drag you ambushes around with you if you can help it, deal with them on your terms where you control everything not inside the bank where you dont know what the situation will be.
The fastest way to deal with the bank is to by-pass the guards and run straight to the vault. Guards are not police so they dont give a time bonus so bugger them. Normally there are no more than 2 groups in the vault area but very occasionally it will surprise you by putting 2 groups and the boss guard there making it a much harder fight. Be ready for this or to turn and run if you dont think you can handle that fight (remember you have nowhere to retreat to). Once you have cleared the area in front of the vault start banging on the door. Watch you END though. When you first hit the Vault an ambush will trigger and when you grab the money 2 ambushes will trigger. Your best bet is when the vault is just ready to do down, use Rest if you need to. That way you are at full power when the hero shows. When the 2 ambushes show up after you get the money, remember that you only need to defeat the 2nd one (the longbow and hero) to win the mission. The first ambush is just fluff.
After defeating the hero and Longbow you can exit the mission or if you are a badge hunter the real fun starts. Finish the 1st ambush run outside and start your reign of destruction with the time remaining. Lots of cars phones etc to destroy for Vandal and Impounder badges and if you have done it right hopefully you have lots of time to do it in.
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You can't please everyone, so lets concentrate on me.