Yes. Part 2 of 14 went much more smoothly the third (or fourth, or fifth...) time around. I managed to get myself into better position next to the freighters, so I was able to dart in and out from the side before Cancer wing picked up on me. As for part 3, it's easily the most oppressive, ominous feeling I've ever seen pulled off in this game, and the big reveal is all sorts of crazy. Unfortunately, I'm still tweaking this one; I managed to get smacked down by the Agni the first time through by blundering too close to its fighters, and the second time through, as Goober mentioned a long time ago, all of the Ancient fighters were taken out before I had a chance to get close to them. I'll have to get in there faster next time through.
Edit: There we go. I didn't find it quite as hard as some people touted it to be, but it was definitely a challenge...and more importantly, it was
long. It took me another two tries to get through, and the first one was a real ballbreaker. I had scanned all three types of Ancient ships, and I was heading back to the Agni to scan the unknown artifact it was carrying. The
instant I finished scanning it and got the bonus point...I get utterly vaporized by a stray LRed. I was not what you would call happy.
But I decided to fire it up for one last shot tonight, and I made it all the way through (though I managed to scan that artifact before the battle and stayed well clear of the Agni during it, just in case). My wingmen were about as useless as everyone reported during the initial battle, but that was no major issue, since the six enemy fighters were essentially sitting ducks; the only damage I ever took from them was from those damned Serapises colliding with me. After Goober's experience, I was incredibly tense during the final firefight against those two Shivan wings, but it wound up being a complete non-issue, as Alpha 1 and I were easily able to pick them off one by one. As for the final segment, I got burned my first time through when a Morningstar borked my jump-out sequence, but the second attempt worked just fine.
Above all else, that nebula mission had
atmosphere, and I'm not just talking about the nebular gas. There have been few moments in these games that have made me feel genuinely afraid, but 14c was one of them. After the Agni's actions were completed, when I was trying to rendezvous with Alpha 1, he mentioned something about getting lost forever if I didn't catch up...and it felt like an utterly terrifying possibility. Very well done.
(Now part of me is almost looking forward to 15, as insane as it's touted to be. At least it'll be a much more straightforward task than having to lurk around a nebula, peering over my shoulder in fear every 30 seconds.
)