Amanda Valenciano Libre

Amanda Valenciano Libre was a member and commandante of the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) and is the older sister of Chico. She and her Sandinistas fought against the CIA Peace Sentinel alongside Naked Snake and the Militaires Sans Frontières in Costa Rica during the Peace Walker Incident in 1974.

Early life
During the Nicaraguan Revolution, Amanda and most of her father's FSLN troops were ousted from their country by President Somoza's National Guard, and they fled into Costa Rica by crossing the Rio San Juan. The KGB later aided the group by supplying them with a drug refining plant for them to obtain the money they needed for food, "compas" (troops), and weapons. Though feeling ashamed, she was willing to dirty her hands in drug trafficking in order to help rebuild Nicaragua, and did not want Chico to know, feeling that he was too young to understand.

Some time later, Peace Sentinel seized the FSLN's drug refining plant, as well as making them consider giving up on their revolution as they had nowhere left to regroup. Amanda's father, a "cacique" (village chief) and comandante of the FSLN group, was killed and Amanda and Chico were forced to escape. However, despite going into hiding from Peace Sentinel, she suspected that they were present within Costa Rica for reasons besides hunting down the FSLN, as they possessed far too many advanced equipment and bases to simply root them out. Because of her father's death, she was made the new comandante of the FSLN group, although she was unsure of her ability to lead her troops, namely because she worried about Chico too much, and the fact that the rest of her unit called her by first name basis rather than "Comandante."

In 1974, Big Boss (Naked Snake) encountered Amanda at the FSLN boathouse in Costa Rica, after dispatching the Peace Sentinel troops in the area. At some point, she ended up having a fight with Chico, causing him to go away. Unfortunately, her and Snake's meeting was interrupted by the arrival of the Chrysalis AI weapon and its "Kidnapper" drones. The Kidnappers captured Chico, so Amanda and her unit decided to pursue Chrysalis to rescue him. In a rematch near the banana factory, the drones nearly captured her, but she cut herself loose. Unfortunately, she took a wrong step in landing and broke her leg as a result, causing her to be captured the second time around. Snake reluctantly shot down the second Kidnapper with an LAW, knowing that she would most likely be killed by the resulting fall.

Luckily, Amanda managed to survive, although just barely, and was critically injured. After explaining that she and Chico fought again, as well as explaining her past while Snake was rolling up a cigarette for Amanda, she asked if he's going after the cargo. Snake stated that he was, as they are most likely carrying nukes. Amanda then realized what this meant, and stated that they should go to Mount Irazu, as that was apparently where Peace Sentinel were holding Chico as well as most of her "compas." She explained that whenever she and Chico argue, he would wander off, which was also why he knew more than anyone else about the bases in Costa Rica, and realized that Peace Sentinel must have discovered him while "wandering" prior to Chrysalis capturing him.

Big Boss agreed to help, asking only for his possible location even if it was a little out of his way. Amanda explained that he was most likely being held prisoner at a prison up in the mountains. She also told Snake that if he was unable to save Chico before they torture him, he should ease his pain and end his humiliation, and keep his honor. Snake explained that he can't keep his promise, as there was always another reason to keep on living, citing his unit and how they left their countries behind and survived as an example. Snake then offered her to join the Militaires Sans Frontières, at least until she has healed up. She then, after being formally introduced by him, wondered as she passed out if he was "the great cacique who has come to lead the patria libre o morir (free country or die)." Kazuhira Miller then took her back to the Mother Base at Snake's request to receive medical attention. She also remarked that she hoped that she never had to use a helicopter ever again.

Amanda supplied intel to Snake about mercenary units, their military hardware, their bases in Costa Rica, and el Frente. She also supplied intel on the prison facility that Chico was held prisoner: it was a former village that Peace Sentinel took over. Namely, that they installed new doors for security measures (they are colored blue and had eye-slots). She also later told Snake that she's willing to take Hell for participating in the FSLN revolution if the only alternative is to give up on Nicaragua. Later, she wanted to leave Sick Bay, as she felt she was needed on the battlefield. Miller was reluctant to let her out of sickbay, feeling that her injuries would only result in her getting killed. However, he relented after Big Boss pointed out that her presence on Mother Base would actually benefit the MSF in the long run, as well as boost the morale of the FSLN soldiers already at the base. Under Amanda's own suggestion, she was then assigned to Mother Base's Combat Unit as a means to boost the morale of the FSLN soldiers.

After some time aboard Mother Base, Amanda also got used to it, viewing it as heaven compared to hiding in the jungle from both the Nicaraguan National Guard and Peace Sentinel. In addition, she also briefly interacted with several MSF members who had formerly worked with Peace Sentinel, and saw them as not any different than herself and the other FSLN members. In addition, she also decided not to continue with the drug trade that her father worked under as part of the KGB backing their revolution, nor allow the KGB to back their revolution any longer.

After it was revealed that the Mother Base was going to be the ground zero target for Peace Walker's retaliation strike, Amanda got into contact with acquaintances of her FSLN unit: the Guerra Prolaga Propagada faction, to find out the direction Peace Walker moved to, as well as hiring a ferryman to help Snake cross the Rio San Juan. Shortly afterwards, Amanda and Chico left the base to continue their battle. She and her group then arrived at Nicaragua and, in an almost ironic twist of fate, turned against the KGB (their former supporters which included Vladimir Zadornov) and saved Big Boss and at last earning the title of Comandante from her troops.

Amanda also briefly worked in Mother Base's mess hall to cook some Gallo Pinto, along with Paz Ortega Andrade and Cécile Cosima Caminades. When Paz was revealed to be a spy for Cipher, and she hijacked ZEKE with the intention of launching a nuclear strike against the East Coast of the USA if Big Boss refused to rejoin Cipher, Amanda was shocked and angry, as she liked her. Although she nonetheless admitted that Paz seemed suspicious when she met her, her being a spy never crossed her mind.

Camp Omega
By February 1975 Amanda was stationed at Havana, Cuba. She was initially intended to return to Mother Base after her assignment, although she was later forced to stay a bit longer due to Mother Base being forced to hold a UN-backed inspection (which was strongly suspected to have been dispatched by Cipher), as well as having her FSLN troops come to her due to their presence at Mother Base drawing unwanted attention for the upcoming inspection. She eventually relayed to them information about Paz's survival, which corroborated with leaked Cipher reports about Paz being detained as a compromised double agent, as well as her location. She was also supposed to reconvene with Chico in Havana, Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes, Kojima Productions (2014). Info > Pre-mission Brief: Mission Background & Intel > Brief 4: Word of Paz's Survival Kazuhira Miller: Ten days ago, we got reports that Paz was still alive. // Big Boss: She survived… // Miller: She was rescued by Belizean fishermen who found her drifting in the Caribbean. Big Boss: So what’s the plan? Silence her before we’re compromised? // Miller: No, I’ve got something else in mind. Our “friends” at Cipher suspect Paz could be a double agent. She’s being held for interrogation at a camp on the southern tip of Cuba. // Big Boss: Black site. Nice. A slice of American pie on Communist soil. And out of U.S. legal jurisdiction. // Miller: The upcoming inspection of Mother Base has to be connected somehow. The timing’s too perfect. // Big Boss: The UN’s nuclear inspection… // Miller: My guess is they’re trying to corroborate Paz’s leak. // Big Boss: We’re an army without a nation. // Miller: Word of our capabilities gets out, and we’ll have the whole world out to shut us down. Having an American private intelligence agency involved is bad news. Cipher’s the ones who sent Paz to us in the first place. // Big Boss: She knows their true nature. // Miller: Right. Paz is our only link to Cipher. If she’s still alive, we need her on our side. If not us, who else is going to rescue that bitch?! // Big Boss: When do we do it? // Miller: The inspection comes first. We’ll deal with this afterwards. // Big Boss: Do the men know? // Miller: Word has started to spread. The information came from Cuba through Amanda. One of the base personnel used to belong to el Frente. I’ll tell everyone we don’t concern ourselves with the survival of enemy spies. We need them focused on the inspection. And if we get her back here and she isn’t… cooperative, there’s still plenty of room for her in the ocean. // Big Boss: Works for me. What about Chico. He had a chance to stop Paz from hijacking ZEKE and he blew it. He’s carried that guilt ever since. Kid really did care about her. // Miller: Chico… It’s hard to say how he’ll react. // Big Boss: Have Amanda call him out to Cuba. He shouldn’t be here right now. // Miller: Good idea. They haven’t seen each other in a while. A little time with big sis, and he’ll forget all about you-know-who. although he didn't come off of the supply ship he was supposed to be on. Miller initially thought he may have gotten lost exploring Havana and told her as much, but then realized when conversing with Big Boss that Chico actually snuck off the ship while it was refueling at Santiago de Cuba, meaning he was heading for the prison camp.

A few days later, Amanda learned from MSF that her brother, Chico, was likely held prisoner at the naval facility at the southern tip of Cuba, also showing her Chico's SOS transmission. She told Miller that she'd know if he was lying to him, as Chico was her brother, and with that said, she was "ready for the worst." Her tone disturbed Miller due to it being oddly elated, with Miller relaying this to Big Boss as the latter was nearing Chico's cell.

Personality and traits
Amanda was a cigarette smoker, mostly as a result of a fear of mosquitos, once surviving a potentially bad case of malaria after being bitten by one.

A mission briefing relating to the Rio San Juan implied that Amanda held religious beliefs, as she told Snake that San Juan (the Spanish name for John the Baptist, the man who baptized Jesus Christ) would protect him always. On a related note, when Big Boss (at that time posing as a Colombian photographer) inquired about the group being a security force, Amanda replied sarcastically that "[Amanda] [was] Papa Noel", which is the Central American name for Saint Nicholas or Santa Claus.

Amanda and Chico called their father "mi viejo" which is Spanish for "my old man." Amanda's battle cry was "Venceremos!" which translates to "we will win."

Amanda worried for her little brother, naturally, though she was furious when he got himself captured in Cuba and seemed to be "cheerful" at the thought of him being killed. Though she expressed desire to be seen as Comandante, she thought she never could due to her worrying. She thought that she could never surpass her father. Nonetheless, she was more than capable of handling a weapon and was very tough physically, surviving two falls from great heights.

She was a friend to Big Boss, trusting him and called him a hero. She even referred to him as "the greatest comandante [she has] ever known" and spoke very openly in every conversation with him. Unlike Snake's other close adult friends during the 1970s, Amanda was light on the teasing, in addition, she was the only one of Snake's female allies who referred to him as "Boss."

Amanda had also been inspired by the efforts of her father, General Sandino and the legendary el Che. Although she did respect her father, she ultimately chose a different path from him, as she eventually admitted to Big Boss.

Behind the scenes
The artwork for Amanda had some sketches depicting her wearing her full FSLN uniform. In addition, concept character artwork had various different designs, including her possessing a uniform resembling that of a Delta Force officer, as well as an extremely different design of her where she wore a scarf resembling the FSLN logo save for two black diagonal bars, black hair, and a camouflage-uniform, while armed with an assault rifle.

After Big Boss is rescued by Amanda, he refers to her as "Joan of Arc", a French Christian teenage freedom fighter who, despite being instrumental in driving off invaders, was arrested and sentenced to be burned at the stake in 1431 at the age of 19.

A live-action version of Amanda also appeared on the cover of Super Magazine, which was created after the English version of Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker changed several items due to their being real life products (in the Super Magazine 's case, it was Weekly Shonen Jump).

Although Chico was confirmed to appear in Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes, Amanda does not make a physical appearance in the game, although she was mentioned. Although the GDC 2013 trailer unveiling Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain showed a scene detailing a devastating attack on Mother Base by XOF, Ground Zeroes confirmed that Amanda maintained contact with MSF during the events of the game. In addition, one of the cassette tapes that was available at the start of the game revealed that Amanda had been assigned earlier to Cuba, and had her stay extended due to the impending UN inspection, as well as the FSLN members reconvening with her at Havana for the same reasons. This alongside the ending timeline mentioning the FSLN victory from the Peace Walker timeline confirms that Amanda was not present at Mother Base during XOF's attack. If the player approached Camp Omega (Chico's holding area) from the back, Miller will call in to relay Amanda's message to Big Boss upon her listening to Chico's distress tape. Besides the main game, Amanda is also unlockable in the Mother Base development game on the Ground Zeroes app for iPhone and Android systems, upon reaching a Mother Base level of 5.

Alternate cutscene progression
During one of Peace Walker 's interactive cutscenes, in which Amanda is captured by a Kidnapper drone, the player is given the option to save her by firing on the drone. If the player decides to fire at Chrysalis instead, or takes too long to fire, Amanda will look up at the Kidnapper, claiming that she'd rather die than sell out her compas under torture, before shooting at it herself with her pistol. Likewise, if the player zooms the camera in while Amanda explains to Snake about the true nature of the banana plantation while he is fixing her up a cigarette, the player can see an x-ray of her legs showing the fractures.

Mother Base staff
"You need a special talent to become cacique. It takes someone great to unite all of las compas."

- Amanda's character quote on Mother Base's staff menu.

Amanda is a unique staff member at Mother Base, available after rescuing her at Bananal Fruta de Oro. She is initially injured from her fall and placed in the Sickbay. Her injuries will not heal past 20% until after Chapter 4 is completed though, and she asks Snake to let her help out as she doesn't want to lay about, despite being in crutches. In addition, if the player takes her out of Sickbay early and is placed in a unit until after Chapter 4, she still will be in an injured state until after she is placed back into Sickbay, where she will be healed shortly thereafter. Her skill (FSLN Commandante) increases the Guerrillas' morale when she is assigned to the Combat Unit. However, she cannot be used in missions. Her job is FSLN Commander.


 * Life: 6000
 * Psyche: 6000
 * GMP: 6778

"The daughter of the comandante of the Frente Sandinista de Liberacion Nacional (FSLN) and a guerilla fighter who aims to spark a revolution in Nicaragua. She fled to Costa Rica to escape persecution, but her father was killed by a mysterious armed group, and the task of leading the Frente fell to her."
 * Combat Unit: B
 * Shoot: B
 * Reload: B
 * Throw: B
 * Place: B
 * Walk Speed: B+
 * Run Speed: A
 * Fight: B
 * Defense: C
 * R&D Team: C
 * Mess Hall Team: B
 * Medical Team: C
 * Intel Team: A

- Amanda's bio on Mother Base's model viewer, in Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker.

Amanda Uniform and Date Paz mission
After the player S-ranks the Date Paz extra ops mission, Amanda's uniform will be unlocked as a usable uniform for missions. Various radio calls to her while wearing her uniform imply that she loaned it to the player (who is always a female MSF soldier). She also states that its flexibility and easiness to move around in is what helped her survive the battlefield. Sometimes, Chico will also mistake the player for Amanda.

Similarly, if the player gets an S-rank in the Date Paz extra ops mission and/or gets the bikini top during the Date Kaz mission, viewing Amanda in the model viewer will have her pose in a bikini. In addition, in her bikini mode on the model viewer, her right heel will have a bandage on it, referring to the events of Chapter 1 when she broke her right leg from landing incorrectly during her fight with Chrysalis.

Versus Battle
She also appeared in Vs. Battle on the series official site, where she fought against Naomi Hunter.

"STRENGTHS: Fierce Fighter and Friend of Big Boss WEAKNESSES: LAWs, Cigarettes, and Mosquitos FEATURED FACT: Amanda came from a fighting family and led units of the FSLN alongside Big Boss & his MSF against the guns of the CIA Peace Sentinels FEATURED GAME: METAL GEAR SOLID: THE LEGACY COLLECTION"

- Amanda Valenciano Libre bio in Vs. Battle

Appearances

 * Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker
 * Metal Gear Solid: Social Ops (trading card)
 * Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes (off-screen, mentioned and unlockable in the Mother Base development game on the Ground Zeroes iPhone/Android app)