VIPs are rarely seen in the game- the game will notify you through a Push Notification on your device that there is a pilot needing rescue. The game map will show a "VIP" label on the specific stage where you can find them. In that stage will have a greenish glow around them, and their dialogue box will be black and gold. Rescuing them is like rescuing the other pilots (the people in red that have a white dialogue box with a black exclamation point). To rescue your friends, you will have to find their icon within a stage where they have died. Hover over it like you would to rescue a pilot or VIP and you will "rescue" them as well. Rescuing friends and VIPs rewards you with stars. To enter the tournament you have to have at least 5 friends through Game Center. It takes place every Friday through Sunday and features different stages that are unique to the tournament and change every weekend.

Achievement	How t ounlock
A Really Nice Pat On Your Back	Destroy 10,000 enemies.
A Token Of Gratitude	Rescue 100 people.
Against The Odds	Destroy all enemy towers on Stage 5.
Badge Of Military Merit	Earn 50 medals.
Gazing At The Stars	Save up 20,000 stars without spending them.
Getting Good At Breaking Things	Destroy 2500 enemies.
Handsomely Rewarded	Collect 100,000 stars (cumulative).
Heat Ray	Burn through 10 enemies with one Laser power-up.
I Kind Of Liked It Back There	Rescue a lot of people.
I'm Still Alive	Finish a stage with less than 10% health.
I've Got The Power	Use a lot of power-ups.
It Wasn't Me!	Destroy the lighthouse without touching it on Stage 1.
Little Bit Of This, Little Bit Of That	Use all 3 power-up types in one stage.
Lord Of Destruction	Destroy 15 enemies with one Mega-Bomb power-up.
Medal Of Honor	Earn 10 medals.
Party Animal	Rescue your friends 20 times.
Rescue Ranger	Rescue 500 people.
Stellar Superstar	Collect all the stars from Stage 3.
The Command Is In Your Debt	Rescue 5 VIPs.
They're No Good In Your Pocket	Finish a stage with 5 unused power-ups.
To Win The Tournament	Take part in a tournament.
Unstoppable Grog	Ram through a wave of enemies with one Shield power-up.
Yeah, I'll Have A Bag Of Those	Collect 500,000 stars (cumulative).
You'll Need More Than That, Mantis!	Destroy 1000 enemies.