Master Dispatch Episodes 5 and 6 Fast: Pro Strategies for the New Power Nodes

Dispatch stops holding your hand in episodes 5 and 6. The game mixes story, crisis management, and brain-teaser hacking, and now it throws in blackouts, passwords, and a new toy called power nodes. It is clever, sometimes brutal, and very much about thinking fast under pressure.

Power nodes, blackouts, and why the board looks different now

From the midpoint of episode 5, the city goes dark thanks to Red Ring, and Robert has to bring each zone back online one at a time. During these blackout hacks, you will see new node types:

- Power nodes charge your avatar (the little ball). Once juiced, you can light bulb nodes to open routes. That same charge can also knock out an antivirus if it crowds you.

That is basically the loop. Charge up, light bulbs to unlock paths, and swat antiviruses when needed. The trick is reading what the puzzle wants right now instead of trying to brute-force it. Also, a quick note on the board: those diagonal lines between nodes show the direction energy flows, not where your avatar can move. Easy to misread in the heat of it.

Episode 5: Three zones, three headaches

Every time you bring power back to a new area, expect the phone lines to explode the second you hit the switch. Do not panic and light the whole city at once unless you love being buried in SDN subscriber emergencies. Clear a zone, catch up on the calls, then move on.

West Torrance

Right out of the gate there is a power node at the top. Grab the charge, feed it into the first bulb node, and that opens the way forward. Continue along the node path and hit a builder node to throw a bridge across. Double back and reclaim the energy you put into the last bulb so you are not wasting juice.

Next section: there is an empty bulb node up top. Power it to reach the next power node. Snag that, then put its charge into the bulb node just below to open another route. After that path unlocks, backtrack to the top bulb, pull your charge out, and drop it into the lowest bulb node. That finally opens the endpoint.

Central Torrance

This one starts teasing you with a bulb that needs two charges. Ignore it for a second. Go down first and light the nearby bulb to open a route to the right-hand power node. Take that power and sink it into the two-charge bulb you saw earlier.

Keep moving along the bottom to reach the left-side power node that reveals a password. Memorize that combination, then take your energy back out. Drop your last charge into the double bulb to finish opening the path upward. Head to the top and enter the password you found. That brings Central Torrance back online.

East Torrance

Here the antivirus starts actively hunting. The first bit is simple: charge up and walk right at it. Your powered-up avatar pops the antivirus on contact. Build the bridge to the next section.

Once the bridge is up, the antivirus wakes up and starts chasing. Be quick. Dip down to the lower power node to recharge your avatar. You will repeat that rhythm, but on the second pass you want to make it take a longer route while you slip to the top power node.

Final stretch: start with the bottom power node to light the bulb at the top, then move to the next power node and funnel that energy into the bulb directly below it. Do both and the exit opens.

Episode 6: No warm-up, straight into the fire

The game gives you next to no setup time. First thing in the morning you get a hacking job aimed at countering other hackers. Tag the first info node you see, then immediately hit the one at the bottom so you clear two objectives back-to-back.

An antivirus is waiting at the entrance. Pull it to the left to buy some space. Then slide to the right side of the board and grab the top charge so you can blow that antivirus away.

There is a password node at the top. Learn the combination. Keep collecting power and slot both charges into the double bulb node. The lock wants two halves of a code: enter the first half you learned, then the second half, and the lock node opens. If you do it cleanly, the final info node is right there.

Episode 6 finale: Invisigal goes solo, you run the grid

Near the end of the episode, Invisigal launches a one-woman op and you are the person on the switchboard opening doors she cannot. It breaks into five quick phases, and yes, power nodes are kind of overpowered here in the best way.

Phase 1

Unlock the location node and a big map appears. Drift to the far right and match the frequency. Easy opener.

Phase 2

Faster now. Again, head far right, pick up the power node to expose the password, memorize it, then punch it into the top password node.

Phase 3

This one boots up mid-cutscene. As soon as you gain control, move right to grab a power node, use it on the upper bulb, and build the bridge. Once the bridge is done, pull the energy back out of that bulb and drop it into the bulb on the left.

Phase 4

Your first priority is thinning the antiviruses on the right. The move: bait one antivirus at a time, then slide a power node next to it by building a quick bridge. Taking out just one in the hot zone opens your lane. Learn the new password and enter it.

Phase 5

Time to crack a safe holding the Astral Pulse. It turns into a small war with multiple antiviruses. The plan is simple: stockpile power nodes fast and delete the enemies. For the last antivirus, kite it away to buy time, then sprint to the right-most section and enter the final code.

That is the full gauntlet for episodes 5 and 6. Tougher than the early game? Definitely. Smarter too. Once the power-node logic clicks, the whole thing plays like a tense little heist run, and that is where Dispatch is at its best.