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The Alesso Heist
Heist Info
Contractor Bain
Contract Days 1
Loud / Stealth ✔ / ✔
Stealth bonus 10%
Loot Money
Base experience (XP) Both:
+2,000 (per 3 C4 charges placed below vaults (up to 3 vaults))
+3,000 (per finishing pyrotechnics set (3 total))
Stealth:
+2,000 (per picked up C4 (up to 5))
+1,500 (per secured bag (up to 12 required))
Loud:
+10,000 (hack finished)
+1,000 (per picked up C4 (up to 5))
+1,200 (per secured bag (up to 12))
Other
Internal name arena
Achievement(s) Complete The Alesso Heist on the Death Wish difficulty or above. Complete The Alesso Heist without killing anyone. Unlocks the "Boombox" mask, "Enlightenment" material and "Alesso Logo" pattern. In The Alesso Heist job, get your seven bucks back. Unlocks the "Cantus" mask, "Bionic" material and "Circle Raster" pattern. In The Alesso Heist job, complete the heist in loud without using the zip-line or bag chutes on the OVERKILL difficulty or above. Unlocks the "Female Concert Goer" mask, "Stained Glass" material and "Soundwave" pattern. In The Alesso Heist job, complete the pyro sequences without failing even once. Unlocks the "Male Concert Goer" mask, "Dim Blue" material and "Smoke" pattern. Complete the Alesso Heist on the Mayhem difficulty or above. Complete the Alesso Heist on the Death Sentence difficulty with the One Down mechanic activated.
v·d·e
"Alesso is playing at the GenSec Arena. We're going to teach them that nothing can stop the Payday Gang."
—Bain offering the heist

The Alesso Heist is a heist in PAYDAY 2, offered by Bain. It was released on the 21st of May 2015 in a DLC of the same name.

The heist requires the crew to steal the cash inside a high security vault, called an "investment safe", beneath the GenSec Arena where Alesso is performing. Stealth and Loud are options this time around.

Overview[]

"The arena has a huge security floor run by Gensec. Part Exhibition for corporate VIP's, but still a working vault. Tonight, we hit it. We got an inside man on this one. He stashed some C4 around the Arena. Gather it, blow the vault from beneath and get that sweet dirty money out. There's a big star playing here. No-one less than Alesso. Tonight's the last night of his sold-out East Coast tour, and he's promised to tear the roof up. Oh, and Wolf - stay off the dance floor."
—Heist Briefing

The heist involves the crew assaulting the GenSec Arena, an enormous building that holds large events and doubles as a high security storage facility. Aiming to rob the vaults located under the main arena, the crew enters the building during the conclusion of an Alesso concert.

With Alesso claiming to blow the roof off the venue for his final night, the crew must use this as a cover to tactfully damage the infrastructure during the closing pyrotechnics display. Uniquely for a heist, the loud and stealth variations are very similar: since the concert acts as a cover for the detonations, the only significant differences lie in opposition (patrolling guards vs FBI assaults) and method of escape.

Assets[]

Purchasable[]

Asset-ammo-bag
Ammo Bag
Price: $4,000 (Normal)
$6,000 (Hard)
$8,000 (Very Hard)
$12,000 (Overkill)
$20,000 (Mayhem)
$28,000 (Death Wish)
$36,000 (Death Sentence)


Asset-medic-bag
Doctor Bag
Price: $6,000 (Normal)
$9,000 (Hard)
$12,000 (Very Hard)
$18,000 (Overkill)
$30,000 (Mayhem)
$42,000 (Death Wish)
$54,000 (Death Sentence)


Asset cutting tool
Extra Circular Cutter
Price: $18,000 (Normal)
$27,000 (Hard)
$36,000 (Very Hard)
$54,000 (Overkill)
$90,000 (Mayhem)
$126,000 (Death Wish)
$162,000 (Death Sentence)


Asset-bodybags bag
Body Bags
Price: $7,000 (Normal)
$10,500 (Hard)
$14,000 (Very Hard)
$21,000 (Overkill)
$35,000 (Mayhem)
$49,000 (Death Wish)
$63,000 (Death Sentence)
Requires the Aced Sixth Sense skill to unlock
Nade asset full
Grenade Case
Price: $3,000 (Normal)
$4,500 (Hard)
$6,000 (Very Hard)
$9,000 (Overkill)
$15,000 (Mayhem)
$21,000 (Death Wish)
$27,000 (Death Sentence)
Requires Gage Weapon Pack #01 DLC to unlock


Intel[]

Asset-Risk-Level
Risk Level


Asset gage assignment
Gage Courier Packages



Objectives[]

  • Locate the C4 (Find the storage closets marked with "X" symbol)
  • (Loud) Override the security(200s)
  • Plant the C4
  • Hack into the pyro console
  • Put on a good show
  • Cut open the vaults
  • Secure the loot at the drop off (3 on Normal, 6 on Hard & Very Hard, 9 on Overkill and 12 on Mayhem and above)
    • There are three chutes available for moving bags: Capitol Hill Candy, Red Squares and Lobby. Red Squares and Capitol Hill Candy both exit into shops opposite each other on the first floor near the lobby stairs, while Lobby exits into the candy booth on the main lobby floor.
  • (Optional) Secure more loot
  • (Stealth) It's time to unmask
  • Escape

Walkthrough[]

Despite coming in both stealth and loud, both versions of the heist are fundamentally the same, requiring players to perform the same objectives and gather the same items. The arena is best described as two different categories: public or backstage, and upper and lower levels.

  • Public areas contain high civilian and guard traffic, and also contain several locked doors which can spawn the security room. Backstage areas are sparsely populated by comparison, though guards will patrol throughout the areas; the teal storage doors only spawn in these areas.
  • Upper levels are primarily public, contain store-fronts that lead into the backstage areas, and lead to the pyrotechnics booth in the highest area. The lower level is entirely backstage, and leads down to the employee parking garage. Marked storage doors CAN spawn down here, which increases the area you need to search and requires for you to take out at least the guard at the underground entrance.

Regardless of approach, players must locate the C4, hidden in teal storage closets marked with a red 'X' (require lockpicking or sawing). After gathering enough C4, players must place it in the basement.

Door

A marked storage door.

It should be noted that if an alarm goes off prior to all C4 being recovered, the computer in the security room must be hacked (300 seconds) as the storage room doors lock down. The hack can be delayed by power boxes being disabled by the cops (similar to Framing Frame and Big Oil), though only one box will spawn. After the computer has been hacked, the rest of the C4 can be recovered from the closets.

The C4 needs to be placed on the ceiling of the garage on the bottom floor, which can only be reached by moving the forklift and jumping onto the forks. Be aware that on Overkill and Death Wish a civilian may spawn next to the forklift, and a camera may overlook the area. In stealth runs, it is strongly recommended to save two pagers for the two guards who patrol the basement. The large number of objectives in the basement makes it a strategically valuable location. The wide, open central area and tight blind corners around the perimeter of the basement make it difficult to avoid detection if the guards are not eliminated.

Difficulty Number of C4 Ceiling Sections Maximum Lootbags
Normal 4 1 6
Hard / Very Hard 6 2 12
Overkill+ 10 3 18

After all of the C4 has been placed, the next objective is in the pyrotechnics booth. Heisters will need to place a laptop which will hack into the pyrotechnics console, this takes 30 seconds and begins the next objective: putting on a good show. 

This "objective" needs to be completed three times, once for each section of the garage ceiling that is detonated by the C4. Receiving directions from the intercom, players must hit the correct button (left, middle, or right as prompted by Bain) when told to do so. On Overkill and Death Wish, two buttons must be pressed although the order is not important and they do not have to be pressed simultaneously. Additionally, if the heist has already gone loud players must repair faulty equipment near the booth, by either resetting sparking equipment or using a fire extinguisher on burning equipment.

The next step is to place circular cutters on each bombed out section of the ceiling (30 seconds). Three spots will be exposed for each section destroyed, and a maximum of two cutters can be placed at once, if the extra cutter asset has been purchased. After each cutter is finished, it can be removed, causing two plastic-wrapped blocks of cash to fall from the hole.

Assuming the crew doesn't want to achieve Fuck It, We're Walking, the best way to move bags is by throwing them into the chutes and (assuming the heist is loud) by assembling the bag zip-line in the main lobby. After bagging the first cash bundle, the escape sequence begins.

Escape[]

Stealth[]

The bagged loot must be moved to a designated closet, with the bags thrown into the overhead vent in order to secure it. Once the minimum amount of bags have been secured, players can take a call from the panel outside the door, signalling the inside man that you're leaving. After activating it, all players must step inside the closet area in order to unmask.

Now unmasked, players must then leave in amongst the exiting crowd. Lines will haves formed around merchandise stands and guards will form walls, preventing players from passing them. Players will have to navigate around the lines and patrolling guards, making way to the entrance for escape. The heist will end when all players gather at the entrance spawn location.

If stealth is broken at this point, the escape becomes unavailable until a van arrives at the entrance to collect the players.

Loud[]

Once the first cash bundle is bagged, a helicopter will drop a winched metal crate through the skylight outside the pyrotechnics booth. Throwing the bags into the crate, the pilot will announce that the streets are too dangerous once the minimum has been loaded, and will tell the players to climb inside to escape. Also note it will become an endless assault similar to The Bomb and Hoxton Breakout, so be careful.

Variations[]

  • The locations of the marked closets and security room vary.
  • A number of the catering units on both floors may be inaccessible due to shutters covering the doors and countertop areas.

Tips & Strategy[]

  • Be aware that using ECM jammers will immediately cause the C4 closet doors to lock, rendering them impossible to lockpick open during stealth.
  • Players may wish to avoid using the Lobby chute to move bags during stealth, as the candy booth it exits into is in the main entrance lobby. Retrieval of bags may be problematic due to the high foot traffic in the lobby. Rather, it would be safer to use Capitol Hill Candy or Red Squares, as both of these exit into the backs of the aforementioned shops where there is usually only a single guard and civilian in each area to deal with.
  • In stealth, after cutting open the first vault, Bain should tell the crew which chute to use, indicating which catering unit contains the bag drop. Players are not obliged to use the chute and it is preferable to locate the bag drop before deciding to do so as certain bag-drop locations are easier to access by simply carrying the bags up the stairs.
    • Note that the conveyor chutes can be loaded with as many bags as desired, but when the exit is opened all bags will spill out on to the floor. If the guard patrolling the area has not been eliminated, this provides a high risk of detection.
    • Once the exit has been opened, bags thrown in at the bottom will immediately spill out at the exit. Again, if the patrolling guard has not been eliminated, this can easily fail a stealth run.
  • To save time, a crew downstairs can be using the cutters while a crew upstairs can be performing the pyrotechnics. This strategy can be used in both stealth and loud.
  • Guards will not be alerted by unbagged bricks of cash. Law enforcers will also ignore unbagged bricks, so players should avoid bagging them to prevent the police reclaiming them.
  • In stealth attempts, pressing the wrong pyrotechnics button three times will anger the Pyrotechnics DJ, sending guards up to the booth via elevator to investigate.
  • The security room located in the lobby can be picked and entered in stealth, but due to the location of nearby civilians and patrolling guards, being spotted before the door is picked is highly likely, let alone the camera operator's body which will most likely be spotted, if not killed away from the door.
  • Players can turn on a TV in the basement to distract guards for around 60 seconds at a time.
  • Guard patterns in the basement change to exclusively the upstairs portion of the basement, allowing players to use the saws without risk of detection.

Mayhem+ changes[]

  • All cameras are replaced with Titan versions.
  • The minimum number of loot bags required is increased to 12, forcing the players to cut open 6 out of 9 vaults.
  • None of the shops will be shut off to the players.
  • Instead of remaining stationary, civilian workers inside every shop will be patrolling the area.

The FBI Files[]

The GenSec Arena was supposed to be GenSec’s flagship - it’s where they were showing off their new Investment Safe. The incident occurred on the same night that Swedish DJ, Alesso, was giving a concert.

My Notes: This shows that the clowns like to be cocky. While they earned a huge fortune, GenSec was losing theirs. Looks like they had help from an inside source too. We can’t have GenSec getting suckered like that - recommend that they do a full sweep of all personnel with backstage access that night.

Achievements[]

We Built This City on Electric Progressive House Music We Built This City on Electric Progressive House Music
Complete the Alesso Heist on the Death Wish difficulty or above.
Sound of Silence Sound of Silence
Complete the Alesso Heist without your crew killing anyone. Unlocks the "Boombox" mask, "Enlightenment" material and "Alesso Logo" pattern.
Even Steven Even Steven
In the Alesso Heist job, get your seven bucks back. Unlocks the "Cantus" mask, "Bionic" material and "Circle Raster" pattern.
Note: This achievement refers to the parking meter in the basement.
Fuck It, We're Walking Fuck It, We're Walking
In the Alesso Heist job, complete the heist in loud without using the zip-line or bag chutes on the OVERKILL difficulty or above. Unlocks the "Female Concert Goer" mask, "Stained Glass" material and "Soundwave" pattern.
M.F. Stev M.F. Stev
In the Alesso Heist job, complete the pyro sequences without failing even once. Unlocks the "Male Concert Goer" mask, "Dim Blue" material and "Smoke" pattern.

The following appeared on May 20th, 2015. They were replaced on May 21st, 2015 after the release of The Alesso Heist.

Achievement locked Staging
Achievement locked Lighting
Achievement locked Video
Achievement locked Sound
Achievement locked Scenery

Sound of Silence Sound of Silence
Complete The Alesso Heist without killing anyone. Unlocks the "Boombox" mask, "Enlightenment" material and "Alesso Logo" pattern.

When attempting this achievement no enemy or civilian may be allowed to die by any means, however dominating an enemy is allowed. It is suggested to disable the AI team-mates, because their kills also count. If players are detected during the casing escape, it may be possible to survive long enough for the van escape to arrive without killing anyone.

Even Steven Even Steven
In The Alesso Heist job, get your seven bucks back. Unlocks the "Cantus" mask, "Bionic" material and "Circle Raster" pattern.
Note: This achievement refers to the parking meter in the basement.

In order to complete this achievement, players must use a single C4 charge (not shaped charge) to detonate the parking meter in the garage. Contrary to the description, it is actually a ticket dispenser rather than a ticket machine, which is bright orange and located next to the garage door underneath the vaults; the model is identical to the orange ticket machines found in Hoxton Breakout. The C4 charge can only be placed on the ticket dispenser after the alarm is raised, and only on Normal or Overkill difficulties, as those are the only difficulties which leave players with an extra C4 to use.

Fuck It, We're Walking Fuck It, We're Walking
In The Alesso Heist job, complete the heist in loud without using the zip-line or bag chutes on the OVERKILL difficulty or above. Unlocks the "Female Concert Goer" mask, "Stained Glass" material and "Soundwave" pattern.

There are a number of viable strategies for this achievement:

  • Run most of the heist in stealth, bringing the bags as far upstairs as possible, then raise the alarm by killing a fifth guard and load the bags and escape as quickly as possible.
  • If going loud, either :
    • bag the loot and then retreat from the basement - the cops will tend to move lootbags to the middle of the main stairs;
    • throw the bags from the central tables and catch them from the balcony above;
    • or, have a player jump down on to the pink awning over the t-shirt kiosk, then throw bags up to them then up on to the balcony.
M.F. Stev M.F. Stev
In The Alesso Heist job, complete the pyro sequences without failing even once. Unlocks the "Male Concert Goer" mask, "Dim Blue" material and "Smoke" pattern.

Unlike most achievements, the difficulty in mastering the pyrotechnics show lies in the lack of explanation. Despite being instructed by the intercom to hit the buttons as soon as you're told, players must wait for around a second after the order for Bain to confirm which specific button(s) must be pressed but players cannot wait too long.

On higher difficulties Bain will tell players to press two buttons, although the order is not important.

Note that on loud, when parts of the pyro rig can break and need repairing, be sure to complete those actions before pressing the pyro buttons.

All Your Bass Are Belong to Us All Your Bass Are Belong to Us
Complete the Alesso Heist on the Normal difficulty or above.
The Show Must Go On The Show Must Go On
Complete the Alesso Heist on the Hard difficulty or above.
Eat, Sleep, Heist, Repeat Eat, Sleep, Heist, Repeat
Complete the Alesso Heist on the Very Hard difficulty or above.
Forte to Fortissimo Forte to Fortissimo
Complete the Alesso Heist on the Overkill difficulty or above.
I Put It on Repeat I Put It on Repeat
Complete the Alesso Heist on the Mayhem difficulty or above.
F Sharp F Sharp
Complete the Alesso Heist on the Death Sentence difficulty.
Dance Dance GenSec Dance Dance GenSec
Complete the Alesso Heist on the Death Sentence difficulty with the One Down mechanic activated.

Bugs[]

  • Prior to Update 68.3, players with their masks off at the end of a stealth run could still be detected as if they were outside of casing mode. The fix has been noted to behave inconsistently, however, as several players who are slightly out of sync with the host can still be detected as if their masks were off. 

Trivia[]

  • This is the second heist in the PAYDAY series where it is possible to unmask once masks are put on, although it can only be done at a specific point during stealth. The first was No Mercy in PAYDAY: The Heist.
    • Unlike No Mercy, however, this is the first time unmasking is used as part of an escape.
  • This heist is unique in that the music plays differently based on objectives and the player's location in the heist. As the player gets closer to the stage, the music becomes more intense. In the garage sublevel, the music becomes noticeably muffled.
  • The song that plays in stealth is "Profondo" and the song that plays in loud and during the pyrotechnic sequence in stealth is "Payday", both composed by Alesso.
    • Bain also references another song by Alesso in the heist briefing, "Tear The Roof Up".
  • On the pyro booth upstairs, there is a binary code on the laptop which translates to: "Overkill was here".
  • On Normal and Overkill difficulties, the one remaining C4 may be placed on a ticket booth in the basement any time after the pyrotechnic sequence if the heist has gone loud. This will unlock the Even Steven achievement and Bain will reference a previous "robbery" from the Hoxton Breakout mission. This has no other effect.
    Screenshot 2015-05-31 at 07.22

    Lucy was here.

  • The Male Concert Goer and Female Concert Goer masks (which are granted as achievement rewards from M.F. Stev and Fuck It, We're Walking respectively) can be seen being sold as merchandise in the lobby area.
  • One of the shops on the upper floor has the name "Miso Prawny", a pun on the Japanese miso soup.
  • One of the conveyor chutes is mislabeled as "Capital Hill Candy".
  • Clipping through the gate in the basement allows one to find a wall with the message "Lucy was here, and Fraz :3".
  • The Alesso Heist draws inspiration from the Elverhøj heist scene from the Danish film Olsen-banden ser rødt ("The Olsen Gang Sees Red") where the Olsen gang uses the symphony to stealthily steal a Chinese vase from a client by masking their explosions and suspicious actions with their music. The Sound of Silence achievement takes a nod at the lack of bloodshed in the films as they prefer trickery over force.
  • A hockey jersey for Sokol can be seen in the Hall of Fame.
  • There is a TV that can be turned on near the "Capital Hill Candy" elevator in the basement. It is the only TV that can be turned on in PAYDAY 2.
  • All clocks throughout the heist are stuck at 8:25.
  • Several aspects of this heist appear to make little sense from a realistic and practical standpoint.
    • It is unexplained why all of the C4 are in separate closets, since it would be much easier, for both the courier and the crew, for all of the explosive charges to be in a single closet. In fact, having the explosives scattered around this manner would also increase the chance of someone discovering them and thereby, exposing the crew's plans. 
    • It is unexplained why the crew must hack into the pyro booth and obtain the pyrotechnics schedule to time the C4 explosions with the concert's pyrotechnics, as Bain could simply watch the concert through a camera feed to see when the pyrotechnics go off and blow up the C4 accordingly. This would also be less risky than the method used to sync the C4 explosions with the pyrotechnics as with the pyro booth operator left alone, the crew would not have to worry about timing the pyrotechnics themselves.
    • There is no explicable reason the crew must sync the C4 explosions with the pyrotechnics in loud, as with the alarm already raised, the crew would be unconcerned if the concert-goers heard anything, along with the fact that some of their weapons would realistically be far louder than the music playing at the concert, even with Bain and Alesso's comments on how deafening it is. Also, even if the sounds of the explosion were to be covered by the pyrotechnics, the crowd would surely have felt the vibrations from said explosions. 
    • The concert's audience is not evacuated in loud (and the concert continues to perform despite the presence of law enforcement engaging heavily armed criminals). This is extremely unrealistic even with the fact that the players have no way to access the inner stadium, especially considering that the crew is known to have anti-materiel weapons that would, in reality, easily punch through the stadium's walls and kill the people attending. 
  • Alesso, his full name being Alessando Lindblad, shares a first name with Alessandro Cagliostro, the author of the Guide of Cagliostro. Whether or not this is intentional or merely coincidental is never brought up. Alessandro Cagliostro also happens to be the name of an Italian explorer from the mid-1700s, which is, once again, never brought up in-game as to if they are one and the same.
  • In the "Bad for Business" tape, it is mentioned that Alesso is one of the clients who terminated their contracts with GenSec, in the aftermath of this heist. He is stated to have "tweeted some nasty memes" about the vault in the arena.

Gallery[]

Video[]


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