Tip#3 - How to Pass Restricted Instance 8 (Ri8)

I'm pretty sure that after 1 to 2 months of play, you have tried to pass all the Instances. But there are certain instances that may elude you. One of these is Restricted Instance 8. It's a highly sought-after instance due to the rewards you get - any of the four commanders who specialized in certain weaponry, and they are:

Lawrence - the Ballistic expert commander;
Evi - the Directional weapons expert commander;
Essidio - the Ship-based (SB) expert commander;
Tyren - the Missile expert commander.

If you're not lucky enough to get any of the above commanders, you might be rewarded with a healing card, a galaxy transfer, a revival card or an SP card. Your commanders are also rewarded with experience points.

Screen capture of an Ri8 instance using Independence fleets with a glass fleet at the center

So how do you pass it? One key point - You need to have Independence ships, and possibly, a lot of them to form fleets of 15 to 21. Another Galaxy 2.0 blog recommends the following:

Ri8 is a lot more easier than 9 or 10 since it does not contain ships which have Reflective Plating. It does however, contain ships with Extreme Counter Attack(ECA). Using Indies with Shield Regeneration modules will counter the ECA damage. Completing Ri8 with just ballistic fleets will be the easiest way to do it. Try not to use less than 14 fleets of 13,500 (1500 stacks) in Ri8, it can be done with 1300 stacks but you risk running out of shields

Each player has their own sets of research levels and because of that, the design cannot be uniform. However, there are common blueprints you need to install in order for your Indie ships to pass the instance. These blueprints are:

1. EOS III (shields) - at least 5 units;
2. Shield regenerator - at least 1 unit;
3. Azrael (ballistic weapon) - at least 2 units;
4. Bloody Mary (ballistic weapon) - at least 3 units

The variety of these blueprints will depend on your experience level and the quality of your commanders. It is highly recommended that you use your best commanders - preferably divine commanders like Rays of Destiny, Death from Above and Impending Doom. The level of their skills will boast your chance to pass the instance in a relatively short period of time.

Bear in mind that at the center of your fleets is a Quick Assault type, with a much higher firepower than the ones used for the Indies.

Since you are only allowed to try Ri8 three times a day, you need to really choose your commanders, and maybe removed them from your regular fleets. The badges you get from passing Ri8 will allow you to buy certain ship blueprints that will take you to the next level. 

A look at the kind of blueprints you can buy using badges 

Among the highly coveted blueprints include:

1. Striking Sword;
2. Aggressive Warlord;
3. Nihelbet;
4. Quick Assault;
5. Daybreak;
6. Last Stand;
7. Shadow Guardian;
8. Alliance Admiral;
9. Presidio of Glory

The above ship types are the ones you can build after you have fully researched the three top tier ships - Hamdar (frigates), Helena (cruisers) and Tiamat (battleships). Because of the special features of these ships, you have the distinct advantage over other players who can only build Hamdars, Cybra, Nicholas, Tiamat or Helena.