Halo Faq guide About my self: Hi, I'm megacool999, a writer of this Faq guide. I also have some other cool Faq guides and this is my second FAQ. You've might know I've gave up posting by now, and my goal is to reach 10 first most Faq walkthroughs. Table of contents: 1: Introduction 2: Frequently Asked Question 3: Mission guides (all difficulty) 4: Glitches and Tricks 5: Easy defeating Covenents 6: Easy defeating Floods 7: Easy defeating Sentinels 8: Weapon guides 9: Online guides Introduction: Halo is person shooter/action game which is similar to Counter Strike, and it has awesome graphics and great gameplay. This is also the best first-person shooter ever created. There have been many attempts to please the audience, but this is my kind of first-person shooter. Ammo can be wasted pretty easily, and health is not that big of a factor, because you can get hit without having to seek a medical kit or something like that. It can also get REALLY, REALLY hard, especially if you choose legendary difficulty, you will be in for a long hard battle to win. Frequently Asked Question Q: I saw a screenshot of the Master Chief using a Flamethrower. Where do I find it? A: Unfortunately, the Flamethrower is not in the game. The screenshot was made before Halo was released, and the weapon taken out of the game. --- Q: How many different endings are there? One for each difficulty? A: No, there are only two endings. Easy, Normal, and Heroic all have the same ending, while Legendary has a slightly extended ending. --- Q: Are there any cheats for Halo? A: While there are Easter Eggs and such hidden throughout the game, there are no cheats along the lines of "unlimited ammunition" or "invincibility." Of course, this makes completing Legendary difficulty that much more rewarding, right? --- Q: Are there any bots in Halo? A: No, there are not - Bungie is supposedly considering them for the sequel, however. Mission Guides: Easy/Normal/Herodic: _____________________________________________________________________ { } {---------------------a. THE PILLAR OF AUTUMN-------------------------} {_____________________________________________________________________} ***Mission Overview*** Escape intact as Covenant forces board your ship. ___________ / REVEILLE / ??????????? >> Complete Diagnostic Training You start out in the Cryo-Tube and looking around. If this is the first time in the real game you will have to go through a tutorial to set up your suit. If you have to go through this, read the next paragraph. If not, skip the next paragraph. They first ask you to look around, before you can get out. They then give you your health by "bringing your health monitors online." Then you are able to get out, by pressing the X button. You will se a cut-scene of you coming out of the chamber. Go to the red square indent in the ground next for target testing. If you want, you can look and move around to get used to the controls. Once you get into the square on the ground, they tell you to target the 5 yellow things on the wall in front of you. At first your controls are not inverted, but once your target hits all of them for the first time, you get to try it out inverted. You can then decide which setting you like, I prefer the normal settings, but that is just what I am used to. Once you decide which one you want, go to the other side of the structure in the middle of the room to see another indented square in the ground for you to stand in, this time it is a yellow square. Face forward so you are looking at a bar. Once the guy talks to you some more press A to get your shields online. You will get your shield; then they will test its recharging capabilities. Once everything works you will be set to kill all of the monsters on Halo, potentially. You will see an explosion, and in the room up above the guy will get killed by invading Covenant. Captain Keyes then requests for you over the intercom, so you have to make your way over there. >> Find Captain Keyes on the Bridge Head through the towards the door and the guy will say follow me, follow him for a little while, but don't follow him to the door, wait back, and you will see him die in an explosion. Don't fret, look to the left to see some pipes, jump over them into the hallway, and head through the open door. In the next hallway, watch out! Before you get to the door, you will see another explosion, hopefully you avoided it! Keep going down the hall and you will see a door that is halfway closed, push and hold down on the Left Thumbstick to duck underneath it. You will see on the other side some marines and workers from the ship trying (Key word in that is trying) to fight those damn Covenant. WAIT! Don't go through into the line of fire yet. Look to the right and you should see a door closing between the Covenant and the marines. Every time you see a Covenant fighting marines, there will be a door that closes eventually, so just wait so you don't get hit in the crossfire. Once the door closes, go into the open door. To know if you are going the right way, on the ground there are arrows pointed to different places in the ship. Follow the blue arrows, they also say Bridge on them, to get to the Bridge. Look ahead to see more marines fighting more Covenant. Turn left and go down the hall until you see even more marines fighting even more Covenant. Geez, they just don't stop! It will get MUCH worse then this. Again, wait for the door to close, then go to the Marine with an assault rifle in his hand. He will tell you to follow him, and do so. Go through the room with a bunch of dead marines and into a room where, you guessed it, marines are fighting Covenant. You can ignore it this time, and just follow the Marine. He will stop in a doorway, and look for a blue arrow leading right. Follow the hallway to complete your first objective by finding Captain Keyes. He knows that the Covenant are too strong, so he puts the extremely intelligent Cortana in your suit, and tells you to escape from the Pillar of Autumn. Before you go, he gives you an unloaded pistol. ___________________________________ / AI CONSTRUCTS AND CYBORGS FIRST! / ??????????????????????????????????? >> Escape from the Pillar of Autumn Well, now the fun part starts, as now you actually get to find some bad guys with your own guns. Exciting, huh? When you leave, turn left and follow it to a hallway, and keep going until you get pistol ammo and you take out your gun. Reload your gun to make sure you have full ammo, then go behind the door and use its scooping power to scope in on the dark area up ahead. There should be 3 grunts waiting for you to kill them. Beware that they don't throw a grenade on you, as all Covenant tend to do. Aim for their head to kill them each in one hit. Once you have killed three, go through the dark area left and look right into a doorway, where you will pick up your shiny new assault rifle! Now here is your first real battle so be careful and don't be reckless, be smart. Many people here hide back and try to let the Marines do the work. Hmm, maybe on easy and normal mode, but on Legendary? If you don't help the Marines they will die quickly, leaving you all alone to fight about 5 Elites to start out and a couple more Grunts at that. Not good. Go in right away with your pistol to help take out the original blue Elite that shows up. Once he is dead, right away ditch your pistol and take the plasma rifle that the Elite held, this weapon will be the only weapon you need in this level. Make sure you have at least 2 marines alive if you can, so when the additional two or three elites show up the Marines will distract them, making it easy for you to just plant grenades and clean everything up. Once they are all dead, you can move on. Follow the next hallway and if you go the right way, you should see an elite with his back to you. Don't waste a grenade, just melee him in the back to instantly kill him. Keep on following the hallways, killing some puny grunts on the way, until you see two Marines guarding a door. It will explode very soon so throw a plasma grenade right next to the door, so when it explodes it will hit the Covenant coming out of the pod. There will be a couple grunts and an Elite, do what you are trained to do. Inside the pod are two over shields, use the very wisely as they help tremendously, especially on Legendary. Go into the hallways until you get to a fork. Staying to the left will keep you safer and fighting with marines. Going right then left however, gives you a good vantage point to chuck some grenades at the unsuspecting Covenant warriors. There will be many waves of them so be careful. My suggestion is to have your over shield taken away after fighting all of the guys. Yes, it is not a typo, because then you can go get a fresh one without having to trace too far back later on in the level. Remember on or by most doors there are health packs, so use them whenever you need it. Follow the halls until you get to a dark hallway. When you get to a fork, to the left will be the marines fighting and going straight will get you to the place where the Covenant are fighting. Again, you can go either way. Going with the Marines will make it safer, but less effective. Going to the Covenant is a little more dangerous can be potentially much more effective. Continuing on you will get to more Covenant blasting in from their pods. Continue to do what you hopefully do best to eliminate all of the foes. Another pod means...more over shields!! Actually there is only one this time, but it is better than nothing. Kill of the remaining elites, picking up plasma rifles as needed since you can get new ammo for the same gun. Once you get to the next part you will see stairs ahead of you. This is probably the hardest part of the level because you are at a disadvantage and kind of at the mercy of the Covenant, not good. Rush VERY quickly up the stairs and you can hide behind the little "flaps" coming out of the wall. From the top level, you are once again more equal to the Covenant, and you can destroy them. I think there are two elites and maybe four grunts or so. Once they are all dead, go into the opening of the door. Now you will come to a closed door. Just wait, if you are in the right place, you should get a navigation point to go to after some talking by Cortana. Once you get there the door will open to a dark narrow hallway. Continue until you reach a fork, then turn at it and follow it until you reach an opening. You should next reach a bunch of guys who are trying to get rid of your presence, but hey are all in one space, so use your rocket launcher. Oops, did I say rocket launcher? I meant grenades. Once they are all dead move on to a very open hallway with three grunts standing stupidly at the other end. If you happen to have a pistol, use its zooming feature, or just use your plasma rifle as normal, because it has very good range as well. You will then go into the Maintenance Shafts. This is a very complicated place, with many exits. Whichever one you end up on you will find some Covenant. If you are really patient and observant you could go to all of the exits to kill almost all of the Covenant unnoticed, but either way you will succeed. Now keep heading forward and if you are going the right way, you should pass where you were before with the cry-tube and such, but you are looking at it from above. Keep on heading forward, and you will see a Red Elite waiting for you at the end of the hall. Keep blasting him and moving forward, and soon there will be an explosion there, which will leave him every weak and easy to finish off. Turn right into the open space to see some Grunts, don't worry too much about them, and explosion will eventually kill them too. Now we get to go back into the maintenance shafts. Yay! You will now if you are going the right way when you see a Grunt at the end of a hall. Now wait! Right to the right at a dead end will be another Grunt waiting for you to kill him. Now head forward in the only places you can go, you will get to three exits. Take the last one after launching a couple grenades through each one along the way. After securing this area, head to the open door. It is the right door, if you see a few grunts in there waiting for them to die. Then follow the hallway right to get into another good position to fight. Once you kill everyone jump over all of the junk in the floor to get to the last part of the level. You should see a barrier, with about 5 grenades on the right side of it. Keep crouched this whole time, and just launch all of your grenades over to the other side. You can take a peek every once in while to see where they are, but once they are all dead Cortana will tell you to leave. Get to the escape pod on the left to trigger a cut scene of you finishing the first level!! Great job, be we are just getting started. _____________________________________________________________________ { } {-----------------------------b. HALO---------------------------------} {_____________________________________________________________________} ***Mission Overview*** Seek out surviving Marines and help them take out the Covenant. __________________ / FLAWLESS COWBOY / ?????????????????? >> Evade the Covenant patrols looking for you >> Head for higher ground >> Search for other lifeboats You start out in a lifeboat that has crashed. Get out and get all of the items that are right in front of your pod. You should have full armor for both your assault rifle and the pistol that is in your inventory. From there, cross over the long bridge that is to your left. Right as you exit the bridge on the other side, you should see a large shadow over you, that is the covenant dropship. It will give out 2 Banshees, which will please you immensely. I would just ignore them, and after a while they will start heading off into the distance. If you are daring and risky, and you think you can do this without losing any health, you can kill one or both of the Banshees. If you do this now, they won't show up later in this same level, so it is your choice. I would suggest on Legendary to wait until you have some guys to help you. Once those Banshees leave or blow up, courtesy of you, follow the left rock wall until you reach a more open area. In this area are several grunts and a couple of Elites. Take care of business. The thing I like to do is use the zoom feature on the pistol to snipe out the grunts at least, and then go on against the elites. When fighting against the elites, there are many rocks in this area that you or they can use for cover. If they use it for cover, stick a plasma grenade on the rock, not on the elite, so it will hopefully be unnoticed by the Elite, leading to his doom. Once you kill everyone in the area, you will get a checkpoint signaling this, and head through the narrow passage way. If you do all of this fast enough, the enemies from the dropship coming from behind you will not catch up to you. If they do, I would suggest reading this next excerpt. ======================================================================= (Here is another way to do the first and second fights thanks to halo.bungie.org) When you begin the level, run out, fill up on goodies, and walk over near the bridge to trigger the dropship. Your escape pod cut a swath in the ground as it crashed. Follow the line of this smoking furrow back to the river. Soon two elites and six grunts will disgorge from their dropship. You should be out of their range, but still close enough to snipe the grunts with your pistol. Some of the grunts will head straight across the bridge, so plug them before they get safely to the other side. There's plenty of ammo at the crash site, so go through as many rounds as you want. Once absolutely all the grunts are dead, we're ready to take out the elites. Two against one isn't really fair odds, so we aren't going to play fair either. We're going to get our feet a little wet and sneak around behind them. Hop into the river and head back to the waterfall. Once you're far from the keen eyes of the elites, turn right and hug the wall heading back west towards the escape pod. Keep yourself pressed against the wall until you reach the edge of the abyss, then follow the edge north out into the open in front of the escape pod. If all goes well, you should be staring at the backs of two elites who have no idea you're there. Now of course you should beat them to death. Quickly fill up your pistol, grab the secondary weapon of your choosing (I like the plasma rifle), scavenge for grenades, but don't get the health pack yet. Cross the bridge and look out for any grunts that might have gotten through your hail of bullets. Two banshees will start making your life difficult right about now, but if you keep an eye on them and only run between cover when you're clear, they will turn around and just leave once you get far enough along. If you want to be extra thorough, use up all that assault rifle ammo on them. It will just go to waste otherwise. As you're making your way up the hill, stay relatively close to the right edge. When you're all the way up as far as the edge goes, turn left and look for a big rock against the wall to hide behind. There are four grunts and an elite frolicking in the rocks here. Peek out and snipe until all the grunts are dead, then ruthlessly slaughter the single remaining elite however you choose. A charged shot from a plasma pistol will drop his shields nicely and force him to run for cover. Don't forget the goodies back at the escape pod if you need anything at all before going on to the next area. Now you can get the health pack. After you're full, head out to save the marines. You should get a checkpoint just before you start the next fight. Save and quit when you hit it. Checkpoints have a nasty way of creeping up in this area just after you've shot your last bullet and have no health left. If this happens, just turn the machine off and restart your game. This area is the hardest part of the level. There are six dropships that will land in rapid succession at three different landing sites. You'll get a checkpoint after you've taken out each dropship's complement of Covenant, but only save it if you've killed all the elites, most of the jackals and grunts, left the rest behind for the marines, and are already in range of the next dropship's landing site. By the way if at any time the dropships get ahead of you and you begin to get absolutely overwhelmed, skip down past this section and read my strategy for when things get all screwed up. You can always run down the hill as well and wait around far from the action for about fifteen minutes. Foe Hammer will show up and all of the Covenant will mysteriously vanish. But that's no fun. The first complement of troops has already engaged the marines by the time you arrive. There are two elites and two grunts on the right and four grunts on the left. Throw a frag grenade at the elites then take out the grunts on the left. They're easier to kill and they throw grenades. Throw another frag then follow up with the pistol. Hopefully, the elites on the right side will be busy with other things by now, so throw another grenade or two then clean up as necessary. Scavenge as you run. Head immediately up the ramp over the structure, stopping to pick up the health pack and goodies at the top if you need them. Run a few feet down the ramp on the other side and drop down. Keep going and you should see the next dropship in front of you. There is some randomness to the number and type of Covenant on these dropships, but there are two elites, two jackals, and two grunts on board this one. Run to the right and approach the port (left if you're on the ship facing forward) side of the ship. As soon as the doors open, stick a plasma grenade to the elite furthest back in the ship nearest the gun. By the way plasma grenades stuck to the ship don't seem to do much, so make sure it's on the elite. If you're fast and accurate, you can stick a second to the other elite before they jump out of the ship. If not, throw another one where he'll land. Hopefully, they'll both be dead now. Toss another grenade at the jackals and move on. Don't worry about a few leftover grunts or jackals. The marines will take care of them. But grab any plasma grenades lying around. The next landing site is past the escape pod on its right, past the pipe structure, and on a slight hill. There's a health pack on the way, but only get it if you really need it. This ship usually contains two elites and five grunts. Again the elites will come out on the port side near you, so stick plasma grenades to them or have some waiting for them when they land. Now run back to the first landing site. This is where dropship number four is touching down. Your path will take you through a pile of grunts from the other side of the dropship. Take a moment to kill any that are easy pickings and take their grenades if you're not full. Again leave the leftovers for the marines. The important thing is to keep moving. Dropship #4 once again offers two elites and five grunts for your killing pleasure. And once again the elites will be coming out of the port side so run around the ship to the far side and stick it to them as usual. There are probably a few grenades lying around here from the first fight, so be generous with them. Hopefully there will still be some marines around to clean up after you, but even if there aren't, scavenge and move on. Paste a few grunts to the hillside on the way if they regain enough courage to attack you. The fifth dropship lands back on the hill where number three landed. This one has three elites and four grunts. As before the elites are on the port side. Take them out as usual, but since there are three be extra generous with the grenades. If you've got a spare frag, chuck one towards the grunts. Scavenge at least one plasma grenade from the bodies then head on around to where the second dropship landed. This is the last one. Usually it has a slightly smaller complement of nasties. Only one elite, one jackal, and four grunts. Stick a grenade to the elite then throw all you have left to kill off this group as quickly as possible. Clean up by sniping at any surviving grunts from afar with your pistol or a needler. Use the buildings to sneak up close to (and preferably behind) any jackals that are still around and let 'em have it. Whew! If you've managed to save any marines, you rule. Ok, now my strategy for when things get all screwed up. I can usually get to the fourth ship, but the fifth and sixth almost always require this plan. First locate a small walled-in area directly in the path of the escape pod. If it had kept sliding it would have run straight into one of its walls. There are two entrances to this place. One is very near the escape pod; the other is going to be our back door. Grab a needler if you can and head in. Once you're there, peek out the entrance towards the escape pod and snipe at grunts and jackals. Wait around for all the dropships to unload and go away while you're picking them off. You should be able to duck back in here and only very rarely will any Covenant follow or throw grenades close enough to hurt you. Once everybody is gathered, let them have it. Throw two or three grenades out at a time into their midst. Use up all your grenades and most of your pistol ammo. Keep sniping until elites are the only Covenant left. If you have a needler, use it now to hopefully reduce the number of elites. This next part requires a bit of luck. Sneak out the other entrance and run far, far away. If nobody sees you, you can now roam around freely on the other side of the main structure gathering supplies. Once you have a full needler and as many grenades as you can find, sneak back in the back way. They'll never know you left. If they do figure it out, it'll be too late. A full needler and a few grenades should do the trick, but you can always sneak out for more. Once you have cleansed the area, scavenge thoroughly then hop in the warthog for the next section. Keep your pistol and needler. ======================================================================= >> Stay with the survivors >> Protect the human survivors >> Wait for an evac dropship to arrive I would recommend saving and quitting at a lot of the next checkpoints in this part of the level. This is one of the hardest battles in the whole entire game; so don't get discouraged if you can't do it at first. There is a really wussy way to do this, if you find it too frustrating and you are patient, go towards the other end of where you come in to find a sloping hill that leads to an entrance into a Covenant structure, which is a tunnel. Go towards the entrance of the tunnel and wait about 15 minutes, or until you hear Foe Hammer calling for you. There will be no enemies left. Of course, if you really want to earn your living, read on. There are several dropships that will come in, and they will make your life miserable. Each one usually has an elite or two with some grunts and jackals to compliment them. The best way is to kill these guys before they get out of the ship. If you can do this, it will make it ten times easier. Obviously, stick to going for the Elites only, then scavenge the rest of the guys off. If you can, leave the grunts and jackals for the marines. Again, if you get overwhelmed, just go and chill in the hill area until all of the guys are gone. This is a tough section so be patient. I would suggest that using the health pack is a very big lasI think the strategy above is also really helpful if you get too overwhelmed. Once you beat all of the dropships, you will find Cortana talking to Echo-419 about the survivors on this planet. The Pelican will disengage its Warthog for your use, and if you have trouble finding it, they will give you a navigation point. If you have any Marines left (which is very hard to do), they will hope into the gunner seat to help you. You will also get some new objectives. >> Search for three additional groups of human survivors >> Protect the human survivors >> Wait for an evac dropship Continue straight past the Pelican, and go opposite the direction you came from. You will find that hill, that famed hill, to go down to find a Covenant made tunnel for you to go through. Maneuver your way through the tunnel until you get to an open area. There will be guys on both sides of the raised "roadway" if that's what you want to call it. Where you need to go is on the right side of where you came in. Most of the time, I repeat, most of the time the people on the left don't come and attack you, but every once in a while if you get too close they will pounce from both sides, rendering yourself helpless. It is up to you, but I would stick to the right side for ammo saving purposes. BTW, I suggest you have a pistol and either a plasma rifle or Needler. Once all of the guys are taken care of, look for an uphill incline, which is a very narrow type of hallway leading to a sharp left turn. DON'T GO UP IT YET! Now, since this is Legendary difficulty, you will find not one, not two, but three elites just around the bend waiting to kill you. This part can get a little bit tricky. If you go too far up the ramp they will jump all over you and you will be dead pretty fast. This will test your fragmentation grenade throwing, and if you can get them to die or at least back up you will win fairly easily. Once you beat them head across to the place where you will find a switch to turn on the light bridge. Do so, and watch the cut scene and then hop back in your Warthog and head across. Keep going straight, there aren't any more guys here. Follow the path around into the open to get a new checkpoint. _______________ / REUNION TOUR / ??????????????? During this part there are a couple of options actually. Since you are recovering three dropship inhabitants, you can go to which ever one you want whenever you want. I will give I walkthrough for the way that I do it, but you can do it in any order. As you come out of the tunnel, head across the river at whatever point you can and continue in that direction. You will come upon a crashed life pod, so pick up the well-deserved ammo and health. Also in this area is a sniper rifle, which I highly recommend you pick up, it will prove much easier to use this and fight like a coward then to fight like a real soldier. ------------ DROPSHIP #1 ------------ Looking behind you, where you came from, you will see a slope, and a path leading up to the right. You will also see that there are a couple of Jackals that can really make your life miserable. Use your newfound sniper rifle to blast them all out of the water. Once they are dead, head in that direction and go up the slope and to the right to find the first drop ship landing site. Proceed with caution, there could be guys from anywhere, especially those tricky Elites, usually Red ones at this point. Straight ahead of where you came in is a structure, go around it, bad guys permitting, and enter it through the other side. You will have to leave your current marines in the Warthog to die, don't worry; you will get more very shortly. You can use that as a distraction if you can't take care of the entire Covenant by yourself. Head down into the structure, killing a few Jackals and Grunts along the way, to find a whole new group of marines. Lead them out through the other side, killing guys on the way up, but don't totally go out the door. There is usually an Elite and a Jackal around here that could tear you to shreds. Again, use the marines as bait, and while the Covenant fire at them, you unload on them, killing them much faster. Once you are sure the area around you is secure, head back to your Warthog, and scavenge around for any remaining Covenant. Once they are all gone, you will get a message from Echo 419 that they are coming to pick any remaining marines. It would be very good if there were maybe 2 or even 3 marines left, but that is a stretch. Most of the time you won't have any left. After Echo 419 leaves, with or without marines, head to the next dropship. >> Search for the two remaining groups of human survivors >> Protect the human survivors >> Wait for an evac dropship ------------ DROPSHIP #2 ------------ From where you came in to this first dropship, take a right and go along this wall, until you get to another opening off to your right. Take that opening, and to your right again will be the dropship, so stock up on ammo and health. Beware, however, the Banshees are back, and if you have a Marine, it will be very easy to take care of the Banshees. If you don't, I would suggest unloading on them with the Assault Rifle that is lying around by the drop ship. You shouldn't carry that gun normally anyway, so you can waste some bullets with this gun. Beware again, do not, I repeat, NOT stand in one place while shooting, because the Banshees will not hesitate to run your ass over. Once the two Banshees are taken care of look across the river and look until you see some Grunts running around. That is your next target. Snipe them all away and head in. You should find a similar set up to the last drop ship, except there is more of a cliff. As soon as you get to the area with the structures, head right and you will need to go up the hill to find some Marines waiting for you, have them hop in and unleash hell on the Covenant forces. Again, you have to kill EVERY last guy, so stay around this place until you hear Cortana or Echo 419 say so. The marines at the top of the hill will stay there, so if your marine happens to die in combat, just get to the top of the hill to restock and get some more. Once that is done, head out of the place the same way you came in and you will see the final area that you need to go for the final drop ship. >> Search for the last group of human survivors >> Protect the human survivors >> Wait for an evac dropship ------------ DROPSHIP #3 ------------ This last dropship, is more towards the end of the river, and it is more of a steep incline to get to it. Remember it is marked by blue glowing...markers, to help you go the right way. If you can't find it, e-mail me and I will try to clarify any confusing things in this guide. Anyway, if you are in the right place, you will see a bunch of large rocks with a few overhanging cliffs. You should come to a broken down dropship, so stock up on sniper ammo and health. If you really want your Warthog in the rock structure, which I recommend, take it all the way around to the right to find a place to bring it up to the top. My suggestion is to find the top cliff and snipe everyone as much as possible, and try to avoid going down to finish the last guys, unless no Marines are going towards it. After you kill the guys that were already here, a drop ship will come in giving you more guys to have fun with. A tip on the sniping, snipe the hardest guys first, namely the Elites, then the Jackals, and then finally the Grunts. Also, be aware of your motion tracker. If you see red dots behind you that means that they are on to you and are about to attack you, or your Marines, from behind. After the first dropship leaves, another will come in by the broken dropship. This makes it much easier to snipe, so fire away. When you are sure you killed all guys from the second dropship go down to check again, and have your gun ready. They are only all dead when the evac dropship comes in. Once they are all dead, head to the evac dropship, which is marked with a Navigation Point. Cortana found Captain Keyes! So now you will go find him, as he is being held by the Covenant in a ship called the Truth and Reconciliation. Press X to enter the Pelican's side seat and you will complete the mission!! Yay! _____________________________________________________________________ { } {--------------------c. TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION----------------------} {_____________________________________________________________________} ***Mission Overview*** Board a Covenant ship in an attempt to rescue Captain Keyes. ___________________________ / TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION / ??????????????????????????? >> Board the Covenant Battle Cruiser Oh boy. If you though that last level was hard, think again. This will test your Halo skills to the maximum, and will test you beyond belief. Don't worry, it's only the third level so it gets easier. Right...? Actually, this is considered by many, including me, to be the hardest mission in the entire game! Think about that as we begin. We start off getting off of a ship and you should know realize it is very dark, and you have a sniper rifle in your hands. As you follow your men, you realize that you must stop. You are now a sniper. Look at your ammo, and it is 64 extra rounds! Normally it is 24, if you didn't know. Now there are many important things about being a sniper. Here are some hints and very important tips to look at when becoming a sniper. ======================================================================= (Thanks to halo.bungie.org) Since we'll be relying on our sniper rifle throughout much of the level, I'll take a moment to impart some sniping tips. Things to do with your sniper rifle: 1. Be patient. You're not being timed. 2. Stay on the 2X zoom mode when you're looking for something to shoot. Zoom in further when you know exactly where a target's going to be. 3. Wait for enemies to wander into your sights. Resist the urge to chase them down with your crosshairs. 4. Keep your rifle fully loaded. Even grunts can take multiple hits to finish them off if you fail to hit them in the head. You don't want to have to reload when you've got a Covie on the ropes. 5. Always aim for the head. Well, unless you're shooting at hunters. Then aim for the orange meaty bits. 6. Hands and feet are fair game. Some enemies die if you shoot them in the toe. Alien physiology is strange indeed. 7. Run away. Getting hit knocks you out of zoom mode for a reason. Once you're discovered, go find another spot to shoot from. The Covenant will soon settle back down and start wandering if they don't see you. 8. If an enemy in a Shade is turned towards you, shoot below and to the side of the gunner's shield. You can hit them in the arm. 9. Red elites will always take at least two shots to kill. One for the shields, one through their head. If they're turned away from you, they're less likely to dodge the second shot. ======================================================================= Now that we have figured out how to become a sniper in this dark, perfect weather, let's begin sniping. There is a perfect rock for this, probably made this way for your sniping ease. The only problem with this is that it can get to be too far away and the view will get limited. First things first, make sure you snipe the gunner. No questions asked. Then get the Grunts first. This is simple logic, because shooting the Grunts first eliminates all possibilities for the Grunts replacing one another in those nasty guns. Once you are sure that all the Grunts are killed and you can't find anyone else from that rock, move ahead. Still stay back, but get close enough so you can see a portion of the left side that just includes the gunner on the left as well as everything else on the right. Remember, if you are seen once and fired at, the rest of the cavalry comes in and makes a fool of them selves, so be cautious. There are a total of two elites, two jackals, and seven grunts in the beginning group of guys. So either keep tally in your head or keep tally by how many shots you fire or whatever. Once there is maybe a Grunt or two left, head in with your guns and start a-blazin'. This should cause the cavalry to come in and clean up anyone that was left. Now, beware of the guys coming from the left by the gun. There will be an Elite and two Grunts coming in, and the Grunts will definitely not hesitate to man the guns and start blasting you away. Try to stop this in anyway possible and guard the guns. Actually, this should help you, if you catch them before they reach the gun, they will not shoot at you, and you will just need to fire at a moving target, which I hope you can do. Then, once they are dead, four more Grunts along with two more Jackals show up. Easy as pie, clean them up, with the gun if you like. Once nobody else shows up, continue on very cautiously and get out your sniper rifle. On the ledge above you will see some guys hanging out, a couple of Grunts and probably an Elite, so take care of them with care. Once they are taken care of more guys will show up on the level you are on, so watch out and let your men help you. They can help you by being distractions anyway. :) Once they are killed, slowly move around to the left and you should see an Elite hanging out in this relatively small area, so take care of him easily. Now carefully move forward and look to your left, in the small alcove will be a gunner, usually distracted but be careful nonetheless. Once you kill him you will fin a health pack along with some sniper ammo. DON'T GET THE AMMO! There are 16 rounds in each box, so unless you're 16 or more rounds from a full load, you'll end up losing some if you pick up a box. Even if you're just one round shy of a full load, you can still pick up a box of ammo. You'll just pick up 1 bullet while the other 15 disappear into thin air. So throughout this walkthrough, unless it's an emergency only pick up one box of ammo at a time, and only if you have 8 or less extra rounds for your rifle. You might have to do a lot of backtracking, but it's worth it. Now that I don't have to talk about this anymore, let's continue with the walkthrough. Your cavalry should be either dead, or dying very fast right now so go help them with the drop ship that just landed with some guys for your enjoyment. Wait, before you do that use your sniper rifle to look on the ledge and see a gunner in the distance shooting. Snipe him up, then go help. If things get really nasty, on the way to the enemies is a camouflage, so you can really create some havoc. Once everything in the area is quiet, go on. You will see a path by where you fought the enemies from the drop ship, a small narrow dark path with that. Going into the path will lead you to the next part of this level. This is the final stage of the first half of the level. Yay, we are almost half way. This isn't so bad is it? I hope not, because it gets much worse soon. In this next part in the small narrow path, a couple of elites and even more grunts come to meet you. Take care of them however you need to, I suggest picking up a plasma gun to make it a little easier to defeat them. Once they are defeated, continue on, until you get to the next area. This is a little tricky, but you will survive under my guidance. There are a total of five gunners here, and they are all facing you in a sense. There is a rock right before you get to the opening, use that as a fallback point if things get to hairy. Start killing off enemies one by one, and soon all of the gunners should be depleted and you should be looking at a weird platform type thing in the middle. Watch that carefully, because a lot is going to happen there. Soon if all the guys are dead, wave after wave after wave, after wave...you get the idea...of Covenant troops ill show up to try to destroy you. The best way is to take guerilla tactics. Get their attention, usually shooting them works well, and then have them follow you back to the rock in the corridor. It will be much easier to handle and manage with grenades and sniping. Once the last group of grunts, jackals, and elites are killed, there will be a change in the music, signaling the arrival of two Hunters that you need to kill before you can get into the ship. Use anyway you want to kill them, there is sniper ammo, so don't worry. Either use the charge/sidestep/shoot method, or whatever tickles your fancy. Anyway, once they are dead, a HUMAN drop ship comes in to give you some more guys for when you travel inside the big ship. Once they are all in a circle on the launch pad, step on it as well, and you will see a cut-scene, launching you into the beast. ______________________________ / INTO THE BELLY OF THE BEAST / ?????????????????????????????? >> Find the ship's brig and rescue Captain Keyes Now I don't want to alarm you, just prepare you, for the hardest fight (arguably) in the entire game. It is for me, and it took several tries the first time I did this level on Legendary. You are about to fight wave after wave after wave after wave...you get the idea, of Covenant. There will be almost 12, yes 12, different waves of Covenant that show up during this hurt-fest. Don't worry though, it should be easy enough. Before they all start to show up, there is a brief moment of silence before they get see you and start coming. Make sure you realize where the Active Camouflage is in this room, yes there is one, but do not get it yet. Save it for when you actually need it. A quick note, do not try to save your marines. I repeat, don't do it. It is a big, big waste of time and you will regret doing it once you die quickly. The best way to use the Marines is do exactly that, use them. Use them as bait for some of the elites that show up so you can kill them easier. There are three types of "waves" of opponents. The first kind will reveal just an invisible elite with a plasma sword, of course. Make sure he gets killed, and pour on the plasma. Remember, shooting him a little bit makes his invisibility stop working, making it easier for your marines to help you. The next type of wave is one with a group of jackals and grunts. There are probably around six or seven in this wave. Strategies for killing this and the next wave are coming later on. The third wave is exactly the same as the second, except that there will be a Gold Commander Elite along with them. This could be trouble. Now there are several ways to tackle this battle but the easiest way is to have a system, and a system you will have. The only waves that will come out after that first Invisible Elite are the second and third waves, so this won't be that difficult. The best way to kill the Elites is to use the sniper rifle. Now it is pretty unrealistic to say that you should get a head shot EVERY time, but try for them as much as you can. If not, it will take three shots, instead of two in the head; so conserving ammo is an issue still. If the second wave shows up, just throw a grenade to kill several, then rush in and finish them off with some charged plasma pistol shots. If you encounter the third wave, throw a grenade first, then make sure you kill the Elite with the sniper rifle, then finish off the rest of the guys in that wave. Make sure to keep your eye on your radar; I would rather have a leftover Grunt then a leftover Elite. If you do this correctly, you should even be able to save some Marines! Of course, I will have a section if things go haywire. The plan above can work either really well, or it can fall apart pretty easily. There are a couple ways that it could fall apart. One way is that you get behind and you aren't there to throw a grenade when the door opens because you are dealing with other doors. Another way is that your health gets low and you need that health pack, causing you to fall behind. Here is a strategy for if you fall behind. I think that the best way is to catch up and give yourself a hefty advantage is to basically go with guerilla tactics. When the Covenant open their door and attack you, kill them but enter where they came from to take shelter and destroy anything that enters. Beware however, if you enter a door and you get to a hallway, that means that more guys can come from these hallways, so keep on watching your radar to make sure you don't get blind sided by an Elite. Once you finish this excruciating battle, there will be a short break. Gather yourself and if you are hiding in the hallways, you will see a checkpoint signaling when it is okay to come out. You think that was it? Guess again, because a fresh batch of two Hunters will come to please you. Dispatch of them quickly, you will find them somewhat easier compared to the monstrous battle you just won. Once you win that battle, head down the open path where they came from and you will see the door is shut. That will cue Cortana telling you to go around the place to open the door and let the marines through, if you have any left, which I highly doubt. Go back to the main battlefield and look for newly green shaded doors. Enter one of them and head into the hallway. You will come upon two grunts, which you can kill easily. Around this next corner will be a pain in the butt, as you will find regenerating guys. Sounds annoying, doesn't it? Well it is just a Grunt and Jackal that keep on coming back for more. Around the corner you will also see a door, which opens to an open area with several Grunts and a couple of Elites present. The best way to kill all of them without them laying a scratch on you is to use charged plasma pistol blasts primarily, and maybe some Needler action as well. Once they are all dead, you will find yourself on the highest level of a small Covenant hanger with Covenant ghosts and banshees inside. Sorry, but you can't ride them in this level. Head across the hangar and move into the halls that will take you downwards. It will eventually take you to the lower levels of the hangar. In these hallways you will find a couple of grunts, a jackal and an elite. Hopefully if you don't make too much noise, the elite won't hear you and he will have his back turned towards you. An easy knockout for you. :) Anyways, move on until you get to lower part of the hangar and in front of you should be some health and a couple boxes of sniper ammo, load it up, if you need to, and get ready for another pretty big brawl, but not nearly as big as the last one. When you get to the ammo and health you will see guys at the bottom. Unless you decided to snipe them from up top, which would be a bad idea considering they have a much bigger advantage over you if you try to kill your shooting enemies from higher or farther below them. Anyway, the easiest way to kill these guys is to snipe, because you have so much ammo right by you. Make sure you use the boxes wisely, and get them when you are out or very close to out of ammo as to eliminate "lost" rounds. Once the first wave is gone, several other waves will join in the fun. You might find it overwhelming to snipe, but do your best to snipe as long as possible, and then continue on to your normal strategies to eventually defeat them all. Make sure to use your by now superb, hopefully, guerilla tactics in defeating them, which can also include retreating into the tunnel that you came from. Don't hesitate to run and make them follow you; it is one of the best ways to kill a guy. BTW, if you had any Marines that survived that huge battle at the beginning, you can open the door for them now at the other side of where you came in. After you defeat those waves of guys, you will be able to move out of this damn hangar. Don't worry, you will be saying that about another place pretty soon... In this next long hallway there are several dead-ends as well as a couple of grunts, jackals, and of course one elite. The elite likes to catch you by surprise and hide in a dead-end and blind-side you. Be careful and ruin his surprise. Now when move on and get to a loading point in the game FREEZE! If you continue on the door behind you will shut, closing off the whole first part of this ship. If you did it right the door will stay open, granting you access to ammo or health until you pass that point. Make sure your sniper rifle has full ammo and then continue on. You will now start to ascend the big place to get to the enormous hangar, which originally can hold two drop-ships. You will have to go up three "flights" of hallways to get to it. In this next part however, you will have to deal with many upon many Covenant troops. Don't fret however there are, count it, 8 more boxes of sniper rifle ammo in this part of the hangar alone. So go absolutely crazy with the sniper rifle. After you kill the first wave of guys, the next wave will appear and the next one, until you are almost overwhelmed. Here is where it would really pay off to have Marines, seeing as this is such a big area the Marines could easily distract them long enough for you to get into position and snipe them. Also in this room is a health pack and an over shield so use them wisely. Here is the best way to make sure you stay alive in this onslaught as well as some item and enemy information. ======================================================================= (thanks to halo.bungie.org) The next area will take quite a while to clear out. It's a large three-story hangar capable of holding two Covenant dropships. There are four boxes of rifle ammo and a health pack on the far side of the first bay and four more and an over shield on the far side of the second bay. That's 128 sniper rounds you have access to, so snipe away. One elite and a few jackals and grunts will snipe back at you from the second story, so taking them out should be a priority. Work through the ranks of the enemy until you've cleared out everyone here. Multiple waves of bad guys will come through the doors to make you're life difficult, but it can sometimes take a lot of wandering to trigger them. Always keep track of the door you used to originally enter the area though. You'll want to head back there as soon as a new wave arrives. Sometimes there are Covenant coming out of this door as you're trying to get in it, but a grenade should clear the way nicely. Once you're safely inside, switch back to sniping until the room is once again clear. ======================================================================= So continue with that strategy or the strategy with the Marines, whichever applies to you, until all of the enemies are taken care of. Now you can leave...oh wait, I forgot the Hunters! Yes a battle like this wouldn't be the same without Hunters. Kill them like you normally would, maybe waiting on the over shield until now if you have trouble defeating Hunters. Once they are defeated, follow the Navigation Point to continue on. Now you will really start to ascend the hangar through these hallways, and boy it isn't easy. By the way, the purpose of going to the top of the hangar in case you were wondering is because there are two rooms full of prison cells sort of near the top floor, so we must ascend. If you haven't grabbed the overshield, now would be a good time to do it. Move ahead and try to use your sniper rifle as much as possible. If you can't see them from that far away, just turn on your sniper at each corner. Once you move ahead, you should have killed a couple grunts and an elite. Also further along in this first hallway series is a couple of stealth/invisible elites there to kill you. That is why I told you to get the overshield now, because they pack a punch and you can lose serious health if you are not careful. Once you get to the second story ledge, peek out to the right to see some baddies sitting there waiting for you. Obviously if they saw you they will start running towards you, otherwise take out your sniper and pick them off one by one. If you find that you are low on ammo or don't feel like wasting the time with a sniper rifle, another ill-advised method is to throw a very well placed grenade. The elite will only dodge it right before, so even two well placed ones would really get the job done. Anyway, once they are killed move along, and keep on sniping/killing guys on the way, about halfway through the ledge in the middle, enemies will spawn from the door behind you. I suggest taking care of them before you move on, as there are bad guys up ahead as well. There are probably two elites, many grunts, and several jackals in the wave that appears behind you, so they are noteworthy opponents. Once you defeat that wave, get ready for the next one. They will only appear as soon as you get close to the door on the right hand side, so prepare some grenades. Get close to the door, fire away, and then move back to deal with the survivors. Rinse and repeat with this strategy for optimal results. In the next hallway, there are just a couple of grunts and jackals as well as the lonely elite. Take care of them, preferably with the sniper rifle, and continue on to the third and final (yes!) level of the hangar. Once you get to the top, look to the right to see a group of bad guys waiting to get it. A couple of well-placed head shots will take care of the three or four guys that are there. Now this next part is pretty much suicide. As you continue on through the small barricades on your right across the ledge, you will see on your radar a massive red spot both in front and behind you. Yes, the have got you surrounded on this ledge, and trying to fight a battle from both sides really is suicide. So my advice is to get the hell out of there. One floor below you, you should see a piece of land stick out in the middle. It should have a Shade on it as well, so if that's what you are seeing, you are correct. Jump out onto that and then move up to a more tactical position on the third hangar, so you can kill every last one of them, snipering of course. Once everyone is dead, you can move on to where Captain Keyes is located. But first off (almost there...) you will reach a command center or control room. This place is definitely not fun, but that is a later-on issue in the mission Two Betrayals. Before you get to the large control room, off to the left you will see...a health pack and ammo! Pick up as much as you need and stand in the doorway to the control room. Inside you will see several guys, including two or three elites, several grunts and jackals, and one gold commander elite. This definitely will not be easy, but they start out nicely, because absolutely none of them see you! Start off sniping an elite, not the commander, because it will not kill him, then the rest of the crew will wake up to welcome you. Tear through the ranks with your sniper and if it gets too heavy, back off a little and wait to regenerate health or whatever you need to do to get back in it. Once you defeat every one of the guys in that control room, give yourself a round of applause and continue forward. Continue through the door that is straight ahead of where you came from and continue to find Captain Keyes. You are almost to him; he is only a heartbeat away. In these next hallways, follow them the only way you can go, and beware of the many Jackals that will be in the halls. They are usually in pairs also, so more fun for you. There is an occasional grunt around, but mostly Jackals. The first group of jail cells you come to should be completely empty, unless you missed it. Use the switch in the back to open the doors. By the way, up ahead is the room with Captain Keyes in it, not this one. Now here is a strategy for beating the other guys in the room with Captain Keyes in it and utilizing the Active Camouflage effectively. ======================================================================= (thanks to halo.bungie.org) The halls ahead hold a few grunts and three pairs of jackals. You can snipe them all if you're careful. There's an empty brig off to the left, but don't worry about that yet. Make sure these halls are totally cleared out and find the second brig where Keyes is being held. You can peek in and snipe any grunts around. There are also two stealth elites and an elite commander on guard. Now you can go back into the empty brig. There's a health pack in a cell and an active camouflage hidden away in the back. Grab it and run as fast as you can to free Keyes. You should have plenty of time to sneak in and beat everyone down. Now just hit the switch and you're set. ======================================================================= Following this strategy is the best way to defeat the gold commander and stealth elites in the room guarding Captain Keyes. Once you defeat all of them, continue and press the switch and you will reach the final and most annoying part of the level. __________________________________ / SHUT UP AND GET BEHIND ME...SIR / ?????????????????????????????????? >> Return to Shuttle Bay for Extraction Finally!! Keyes is finally free, now all you have to do is escort him out of this damn forsaken place. The sooner the better if you ask me, but you still have a little work to do before you can leave, and you can bet the Covenant will be there to impede your every progress. From the get go, the Covenant are there to make your life interesting. BTW, if I didn't mention it before, you must guard Captain Keyes with your life. If he dies, you will automatically fail the mission. Now on easy, he can take a pretty good beating, but on legendary, he will die pretty damn quickly so make sure you know where he is at all times. As soon as you start heading towards the door, two Invisible or Stealth elites will show up. Start blasting them as soon as possible to make your Marines start to see and shoot them as well. Once those two guys are dead, get the health and ammo in the left corner from where you start to leave and then head out. In the hallway, there is an elite and some grunts off to your left waiting for you, so stick them with a plasma or fragmentation grenade to get rid of them quickly. On the way back to the control room you will meet several groups of Covenant, do the best you can, with the sniper rifle, grenades, and the occasional charged plasma pistol shot for the elites. Make sure you are keeping Captain Keyes safe, and be careful not to snipe your own guys, because they are damn foolish and get in the way. Once you defeat these couple groups of guys, head on and go to the Control Room. You will want to be swift about this because otherwise the Marines will barge in and make an ass of themselves. As soon as you can, run towards the Control Room and whip out your sniper rifle. In the Control Room are now two Invisible Elites with Plasma Swords. Take care of them quickly, as many, many Grunts are about to rush in and try to overwhelm you, which they can. Back off at that point and try to let your Marines do some of the work, but still protect Captain Keyes. Grenades are important to try to clear out the many ranks of Grunts and eventually, their stupidity and your intelligence will lead to their downfall. Continue through the Control Room and out, that wasn't a fun place to be, and continue out to the third level of the hangar. You are almost home free, so stick with it! There will definitely be some guys waiting for you on the hangar, which would include a couple Elites, several Jackals, and many Grunts. Use the door as cover for your sniper rifle and grenades, and take your time. Once they are all dead, you are pretty much done. Run out and to the left to see a switch floating there on your right. Press the switch to release the drop ships and watch Captain Keyes ram over the Hunters and zoom out of the place. This is arguably the hardest level so don't worry, it will get easier from here. _____________________________________________________________________ { } {---------------------d. THE SILENT CARTOGRAPHER----------------------} {_____________________________________________________________________} ***Mission Overview*** Search for the map room that will lead you to the secrets of Halo. __________________________ / THE SILENT CARTOGRAPHER / ?????????????????????????? >> Clear the landing beach of hostiles Wow, since you beat the last level on legendary, this level will seem like a joke. This is my second favorite level, as you can really do whatever you want on this ginormous island that you are on. As a matter of fact, you can almost skip half of it right from the beginning. Isn't that cool? I will write it like you are supposed to do the level, and also include some bits on where you can skip certain parts and whatnot. So let's begin! You start out getting dropped off by a Human dropship, not the one you stole from the Covenant, and you get placed on the beach along with several other Marines. Now from here there are a couple things you can do. You can follow the Marines and take the longer but usual route and you can follow this walkthrough. If you feel like skipping a lot of this then turn around and start walking the other way, keeping the ocean on your left. You are going to have to go halfway around the entire island, but there won't be much to any activity. You will eventually reach a place with a flipped warthog and a forested area guarded by several logs with many guys in that area. If you decide to do the first method read below, if not skip down to where you see a series of symbols that look like this: !@#$%^&*. Follow these next steps: 1. Highlight it 2. Press Ctrl (or Apple) + C 3. Press Ctrl (or Apple) + F 4. Press Ctrl (or Apple) + V 5. Press Enter or Return All right, if you are reading here you decided to take the longer but relatively safer route as well. With this route you should always have some Marines with you. If you follow this route it is the route the game intended so you will see the entire plot. Anyway, from the start follow your Marines, now in Easy mode you could probably let the Marines do the dirty work and kill the enemies, but here in Legendary, as you know, the only purpose they really have is to a kill a couple guys and serve as bait. With this however, you want to keep a minimum of two alive so you must go and help out. Until you find a plasma weapon use either your pistol or assault rifle to mow down some baddies, then use their weapons to take the rest of them down. There are several rocks here so you can hide as well as the elites can hide. There are threee groups of two Grunts when you first start out, and take them out with your zoomed in pistol. After that first part there is a lone Elite waiting for a Plasma Pistol blast in the face followed by pistol shots. Then the next wave includes another Elite and three Grunts, take them down and lob some Grenades for this last group of two Jackals and two Elites. Once they are all dead you will receive confirmation of that by Cortana requesting a Warthog and receiving it. You will get a Navigation Point to the Warthog being dropped off by the enormous human dropship, and with your two remaining Marines, have them load up with you to aid you in your journey. Continue on around the bend in the mountain, keeping the ocean on your right, and you will see some guys on your left. Not just some actually, you will see seven or eight jackals, oh man that is a nightmare. This is optional and you can just speed by, but here is what to do if you want to kill them. The guys on the ground are easy enough to kill, but the guys on top of rocks can provide you with a lot of pain. The best way is to get out of your Warthog and take care of them yourself, as the aim of the Marines with the Chain Gun on the back of the Warthog is pretty subpar. Once the enemies in that area are eliminated, move a little further to see some Grunts and two Elites. Right away, go for killing the Elites and run their ass over, because they will provide nothing but trouble for your gunmen. Usually the gunmen will take down the rest of the Grunts, but help them out as well by running a few over. Once they are all dead in this area, continue up the slope and left until you get to the top of the slope. You will now be able to see the cave where the Cartographer is located. Before going to the entrance however, you might want to backtrack and head along the beach to find an overshield guarded by three Jackals, or three run-over Jackals. Once you get the overshield, the entrance awaits you. At the entrance you will see three or four Elites and several Grunts. Obviously the Elites are a priority, as they can rip you apart pretty damn fast. Try to either run them over or make room for your gunners to mow them down. Once the entrance is free, you get to enter the structure. As soon as you enter you will see a narrow hallway with three pairs of alcoves on both sides, so one on each side. In this area there are, count it, four Elites. Sounds like trouble? Well it is trouble. The best thing for you to do is to not stand and wait for them, but have them wait for you, sort of. They will all be standing there stupidly until you pass that alcove, so head into the first one and peer across to see if an Elite is there. When you peer around the next corner and you see an Elite, stick him quickly with a Plasma Grenade and listen to him wail. This might wake up the others, and it probably will, but it is better to fight three then four right? Take cover when needed and use the Plasma Pistols often to kill them quickly. Once you kill these people, head down this hallway and take right, and down the narrow slope. When you get to the bottom, take a peek left to see a couple of Grunts, a regular Elite as well as a Commander Elite with a Plasma Sword. Throw a grenade down there to hopefully kill some guys, but the Gold Elite will retreat behind the door and close it, leaving you with those guys. Throw grenades and plasma pistol blast them and they will die quickly. GO to the bottom realizing that the door is locked! You must go back and unlock the door, oh goody! >> Find the main facility security override Retreat out of here and get back to your warthog. Your guys will have faithfully stayed there, hopefully, unless they got killed. Take them down to the beach and follow the ocean to your right until you get to the next area. It will include a flipped warthog and several guys in a wooded area. Read on to figure out what to do. !@#$%^&*. Well, here we are at the wooded area with the flipped warthog. If you are coming from the beginning, you will find this part a little more difficult, because you don't have a plasma pistol, but with your sharp shooting skills with a pistol, you should be fine. Stand back, and if you have Marines let them shoot, otherwise just let it rip. There are several Grunts, several Jackals, and I believe two Elites. Those are going to be a pain in the ass, so be careful and take your time with them. If you find they are hiding, charge at them, this means they are weak and are trying to regenerate their shield. This might take a while to defeat all of these guys, but be patient and use whatever you can as cover for your mayhem. Once they are all dead, move up the slope behind into a narrow passageway of trees and such. In this section, you will find several other people to fight, and this my friends includes another two Elites, a couple of Grunts and a couple of Jackals. Hiding behind rocks is a good idea as the enemies can get overwhelming, so just be patient and you will be victorious. Once they are all dead move on until you get to an opening. I wouldn't go too far in the opening, because to your right will be two Hunters waiting for you. I think this is the easiest setting to beat Hunters in. Across from where you came from you will find a Health pack as well as some well-deserved pistol ammo. That gun is what you need to kill these guys. Also, down by one of the shield type objects in the ring by the Hunters is a couple of over shields. Doesn't get any better than this does it? Once you defeat them, you can continue on. Continue down a sort of slope to a bigger area with many trees and a large structure on the right. In this area there are many enemies, and these include three or four jackals on the right side and four or five grunts with an Elite on the other side. Taking out the Jackals first is recommended otherwise, they will just be getting in your way as you shoot the others. Plasma Pistol is very useful here to take them all down efficiently. The ground will be covered in Plasma Pistols, so don't worry about that. Also, you have another over shield back by the Hunters if things get messy. Once they are all dead, head around the corner to meet another Grunt and Jackals waiting for you at the entrance, dispatch of them and move past the entrance to find THREE OVER SHIELDS!!! I have no idea what you would need three over shields for, but you never know I guess. So now, enter the structure to find the security system switch. There is only one group of enemies that are waiting to stop you, and that is another two Hunters. Joy! This is a pretty large area where you end up fighting them, and you have three over shields up top and a health pack in one part, so this should be a sinch. Once you kill them, continue on through the door at the other side to get to the switch. Press it to open the door to the Cartographer. Once you press the switch, you will see that the door to the Silent Cartographer will open, letting the Gold Commander Elite free, but don't worry, you won't fight him...until later. _____________ / IT'S QUIET / ????????????? >> Find the Silent Cartographer Well, now you get to trek all the way back to the Silent Cartographer base, and that isn't an easy task. But first things first, we got to get out of this place. Head back the same way that you came. When you reach the area where the Hunters were, you will be in for a big surprise, and my worst nightmare. Not 2, not 3, not 4, but 5, yes, 5 stealth/invisible elites are in this area. Thankfully they don't have plasma swords, or you would be very screwed. You can stand back and try to fight them all, and you eventually should kill them all for a checkpoint, but that is a bad strategy, seeing as how they are invisible. If you really want to try this strategy, then the best way is to try your best to single each one out, or focus on just one, so you can for sure kill that one. If you shoot all of them three or four times, they will appear for a second, but then their invisibility will regenerate, putting you back to where you started. There is another way to do it, and here is a strategy that I recommend ten times over the last one. ======================================================================= (thanks to halo.bungie.org) There are five stealth elites now in the room where you killed the hunters and they can be very nasty. The easiest way to eliminate them is to run as fast as possible straight through this room. Your overshield should keep you alive. Once you're safely on the ramp leading out of here, you can peek in and pick them off much more easily. They'll bunch up together just inside the door. Take a moment if you wish to gloat over the pile of bodies. ======================================================================= Whatever you decide to do, once you complete this part of the level, you won't have any trouble finding the outside and, some fresh air. Now we have to get back to the Silent Cartographer, and you know that your last failed assault on the Cartographer will make the Covenant try extra hard to kill you with more and harder enemies. Hunters anyone? Anyways, there is again a split in the road. From the entrance of the Security System Facility you can fall down the cliff ahead of you, effectively creating a shortcut, or if you prefer the path more traveled turn around to the left and back where you came from. Either way works, but the Covenant troops are waiting for you back where you came from. As always, I will provide you with a strategy for both directions, and a way to get to each direction. This is a much smaller detour, but it less killing of guys and less traveling. On the other hand the longer way is safer than taking the huge drop. If you prefer the path less traveled via going down the cliff and taking a shortcut, just skip the next paragraph. If you are going back the way you came, read on to the next paragraph. If you are here, that means you are going back the way you came. Pick up an overshield, which you probably need after the onslaught of those five stealth elites. So go back the way you came, and eventually you will end up at the place where you fought the first Hunters. You will see a Covenant dropship coming in, and they will give you, five jackals. My favorite. Get down behind some of the cover and use some charged plasma shots to take them down. Keep shifting so they don't catch up with you, and eventually they will fall. If you need some more ammo, go back to where you killed the Grunts to get some Plasma Pistols. Once they are dead, head left and down the narrow passage out into the open to find your old abandoned Warthog. Take the Warthog left with the ocean on your right and around the bend. You will end up where the people who have dropped down have ended up, with a fallen HUMAN dropship and a tall mini-plateau ahead of you. Alright, if you took the long route you must skip a couple paragraphs, as it entails how to go about getting to the bottom of this cliff by jumping, and not affecting your health. To get to the paragraphs after these you must search for this: *&^%$# @!. Yes, it is the same thing, but it is backwards. It is simple, yet effective. If you decided to take the shortcut, read on to the next paragraph. Anyway here are those steps again to find the next part if you decided to take the shortcut: 1. Highlight it 2. Press Ctrl (or Apple) + C 3. Press Ctrl (or Apple) + F 4. Press Ctrl (or Apple) + V 5. Press Enter or Return Once you exit the main structure, head over to the right side of the cliff and scope it out. There are several palm trees and a not as steep slope further right. There are two ways to do this, one would include having good jumping skills, the other would require not as much skill, but good concentration nonetheless. Obviously the second one is easier, but whatever you like to do. If you are doing the first one, read on to the next paragraph. If you are doing the second one, skip the next paragraph. To get down the cliff by jumping, you must have good jumping skills. You will have to judge and time yourself correctly for this to work properly. The idea is to jump on one of the trees and on to another one so that you can fall safely without getting hurt. Again, timing and distance judgement is key to this, and if you feel these aren't very, very good for you, then this isn't for you. Nevertheless, once you get down, you should see a crashed human dropship and a tall mini-plateau. BTW, if you haven't figured it out already, skip the next paragraph. To get down the cliff by sliding, basically all you have to do is jump and make sure you land on the down slope. It should take you most of the ways down, and if it doesn't you should be able to jump down the rest of the way without losing health. You might lose your shield, so take a moment and regenerate it, but you shouldn't lose any health. Taking an overshield at the beginning of this might help as well. Anyway, once you get to the bottom, you should see a crashed human dropship and a tall mini-plateau. *&^%$# @!. Head up to the dropship and grab all of the goodies. There is a health pack, lots of pistol ammo, assault rifle ammo, needler ammo, and (sings heavenly music) a rocket launcher. Definitely take this as it can really help you out. Anyway, if you managed to get to the goodies without killing anyone or getting hurt, I applaud you. For the rest of us, we have to take care of them. Facing away from the dropship there are four jackals on the left as well as a couple on the right, with about five or six Grunts on top of the plateau. First, kill the Jackals on the left. Either run over them with your Warthog or whip out your pistol and zoom in and take their heads off. From wherever you came from, it is a good idea to stop and snipe at least one of these guys with your pistol. Once they are all dead, move on to killing as many of the Grunts on top as you can. You can use the pistol, but for this part I would use the Needler. Stand back as far as you think you can hit them with the Needler and let it rip, as you aren't going to be keeping this gun anyways. Unfortunately, the Grunts are chickens, so you won't be able to kill all of them, but you should be able to kill enough to keep the enemy fire from up there to a bare minimum. Once most of the Grunts on top are dead, move on to killing the other Jackals at the other side. This is the way that you want to go, so that is why I picked them last. Run them over or shoot them, it doesn't really matter, just take care of them. If you need to you can snipe, but running them over works just fine. Once everyone in the area is dead, grab your Warthog and head left with the ocean on your right. You will come up to where you first started, and if you skipped this part earlier, you will now have dividends to pay as not only does the original group of people still exist, there are more Covenant waiting for you. Luckily you have a Warthog before the battle, so barrel through their ranks with it and get the hell out of there. Once you pass them, you will reach the part right before the Cartographer base. Again, if you haven't been here yet you might have to fight some guys, look up from before to get more details on what to do, or not to do. Once they are all dead you can go up the slope and you will be just to the side of the base. There will be several Grunts here before you get to the outside part and they are just in the way. Massacre them, but keep an eye by the base, because out come the Hunters. A pair of Hunters will show up and firing at all cylinders. Sadly enough the Hunters will not only aim at you, but at your Marine friends in the Warthog. Hmm, I wonder what you should use for them? Maybe that crappy rocket launcher you picked up could do the trick! Blast them both away quickly and effectively and start to enter the structure. Go into the complex and go through the security door, which you opened up. Turn right at the T-intersection and look at the depths of this place. You will get a cutscene of the Master Chief staring around this enormous facility. __________ / SHAFTED / ?????????? I really don't know why Bungie decided to put a subtitle there, it doesn't mean anything really. It is more funny to me but anyways, go back the way you came and continue straight into the complex. Here is one of the most in-depth strategies and ways to get into the place unheard and unseen and getting the Cartographer. ======================================================================= (thanks to halo.bungie.org) Moving along, you'll come across an elite hard at work on his big purple box thingy. Hit him from behind then head half way up the ramp to your right. One or two grunts will be patrolling the upper floor. If you wait patiently on the ramp, they will wander over near you, turn around and expose their backside to you as they walk away. Make sure to wait for the second one if there are two, then run up and hit them from behind. There's also often a sleeping grunt up here so take him out while he's snoozing. Head back down the ramp and take an immediate right through the door. Again there are one or two patrolling grunts and often one sleeping. Peek around the corner and wait for the second one to pass. They patrol around the central structure in the room. They also like to turn when they reach the corner nearest to you and look in your direction before proceeding, so be careful. Run out and bash the second one after it turns away. The first will turn around after it reaches the next corner so move fast. Duck behind the central structure after you strike so it doesn't see you. Use your motion tracker to notice when he moves on, then go for the sleeping grunt. Retreat to the door and wait for the first grunt to return. He should be easy to sneak up on this time. He uses the same pattern as before. Now you should be left with one elite down below, one grunt on the ledge above him, and possibly another near him. Find a good sniping spot out of view of the elite and send one round through each grunt's head in turn. The elite will be alerted, but will have no idea where you are. You should be able to use the upstairs catwalk to sneak around and pistol-whip him. Now that the area is yours, switch out your rocket launcher for a plasma pistol. There are three jackals in the hall ahead. Empty a plasma pistol on them. Just keep sending charged shots down the ramp. Throw a grenade down too. If they get into the room with you, run up and smack them then go back to gunning down the ones in the hall. After they're toast, pick up a more fully charged plasma pistol. The next area has two pairs of jackals roaming about and two hunters blocking the way forward. As you enter the room, you'll see a hall extending to your left and one in front of you overlooking the shaft. Move into the one ahead of you and look to your left. You should see a narrow corridor that leads to the interior of this room. This short, narrow corridor is a beautiful place. Only very rarely will Covenant follow you in here. You'll use it now on the way down and again on the way back out. Send charged plasma shots at the jackals from a distance then follow up with your pistol. Grenades as well work wonders against jackals. Hang out near the corridor and use it for cover whenever necessary. There's a pile of goodies here, but save it for after you face the hunters. These guys should be easy. Try to get the two of them in a line so they can't both fire at you. Dodge up to them then backpedal and shoot them in the gut when they charge. Go fill up on good stuff and retrieve your rocket launcher. Follow the path down to a mysteriously vacant area. As you enter this place, the exits are directly beneath you. You could just hop down, but wander around for a moment to familiarize yourself with your surroundings. This place will be crawling with jackals later. There are two doors out of this room. The one on the left leads to an active camouflage. Go down and take a look. Memorize where it is. We'll be getting it later. The one on the right leads down a ramp to a long hallway with three grunts at the end. Zoom in right at head level for these shorties and nail them. There are six more grunts and an elite on the lower floor. Move ahead and look down. Just before you expose yourself on the ledge ahead, you should see little triangular openings next to the floor. Through the one on the left you'll see several grunts milling about. Crouch down, zoom in, and start shooting. After you've sent many of them to an early grave, the rest will retreat down a ramp overlooking the shaft. This leaves the room they were in nicely vacant for you. Notice there are four ways in and out of this room. If you're still standing on the catwalk facing the center of the room, there's one behind you, the one you came from. The Covenant retreated through another. It's to your left, and you can see the shaft through it. To your right and in front of you there's a ramp that leads down to two more elites. And to your right behind you another ramp leads up to the room with the active camouflage. Take a moment to look around the theater and familiarize yourself with the location of all emergency exits. Drop down and go to the fallen bodies of the most recently deceased grunts. Grab a needler and drop the rocket launcher for now. Peek out into the shaft and unload your needler on the elite and grunts that retreated. Keep firing until the grunts at least are all definitely dead. The elite might be trickier. A charged plasma shot will send him behind cover. While he's hidden you can creep up next to him and drop a grenade or run around and blow his head off. There's an overshield here behind cover, but wait until after you've dealt with the next two elites before snatching it. These guys cover each other very well. You could always get their attention from one direction then run back into the previous room and use another exit to get around behind them and stick a grenade to their back. Or you can just toss several grenades into the hall with them. Unloading a couple of clips of needles works well too. You have many options. Try them all. Just as long as they die. Whew. At last you can activate the cartographer, grab that overshield and your rocket launcher and get ready to blast your way out of here. ======================================================================= Wasn't that an awesome strategy? Wow, it amazes my every time I do it. Anyway just because you finally got the damn Cartographer, doesn't mean this mission is over yet. In fact, the hardest part is yet to come. You now have to get out of this place with the Covenant alerted that you are here. Sounds like fun right? Well get ready to rumble. From the Cartographer, head back the way you came to the room with the catwalk in the middle and head straight across. Head up the ramps and through the next door with you will then come to a room with an active camouflage. Sounds like fun huh? Well, first take care of those pesky Jackals firing at you, or just run in and out, grabbing the Camouflage. Anyway, once you get it, head back into the room with the catwalk. You must definitely make the most of your Active Camouflage by getting the hell out of this place. Hopefully you remember the way you came from, so you don't waste time looking for the exits. Head down the ramp and to the ramp going down the long hall. If you are lucky, you can make it to the room with the active camouflage, except where those Jackals were firing at you. Hopefully you took care of them, if not fire Plasma Pistol shots at them to take them down fast. There are originally six or seven of them, so it might be a challenge, but tough it out and stay conservative and hang back firing those Plasma Pistols. Once they are dead you can move on. Moving on, get out of this damn pit that you get to. Blocking that will be an Elite with some Grunts. If you diddle dawdle you will be gunned down, period, so make sure you take it to them with some Plasma Pistols blasts. Once they are all dead continue on. You will get to another ramp up and several more...Jackals. Man I am starting to hate these guys! You know the drill, Plasma Pistol them and melee or pistol. BTW, if any guys give you a lot of trouble, you should have a rocket launcher, so make use of it well. Once the Jackals are dead you will end up in a room with an exterior hallway around the room along with an interior that is quite large. In this room there are several Jackals (ugh!), some Grunts, and an Elite. Hide in one of the little pockets in the interior to take care of as many guys as possible from that point of view, then use their Plasma Pistols to take out the rest of your foes, including the Elite. Continue on to one of the last rooms before your victory. You will find yourself in the upper deck of a room with a couple Jackals (GEEZ!!) a couple Grunts and of course and Elite. The Jackals will be stationed all around the top floor waiting for you as the Grunts and Elite will be at the bottom. Give the Grunts and Elites some Plasma Pistols before continuing on. The Jackals shouldn't give you too much trouble, and you can almost ignore them. Continue out the top-level door and you will see an Elite guarding the lower level door. Stick him with a Plasma grenade and watch him squeal. You are almost done, hang in there! Now we come to the Gold Elite Commander with a Plasma Sword. You should have gotten a checkpoint before this, so you can try as many times as you need. Basically, go through the halls until you are looking straight at the place you got shafted with the door on your right. In that doorway is the Elite. The best way to kill him is to stick him with a Plasma Grenade. Once you do, GET THE HELL OUT OF THERE!! He will come running after you, because he is pissed off. I guess I would be too so I can't complain. Anyway, once he dies, continue through the door out to the room with many alcoves. This is the last battle, so hang tough. The last battle consists of about five or six stealth elites. The best way to kill them is to fire a couple bullets in the hallway to get the interested and then back off. They will usually congregate right around the corner, waiting for you to blast there butt away. With any luck you should be able to sidestep out and blast them all away with a well-placed rocket at their feet. If all of them don't die, you can kill the rest easily enough. You can basically use the same strategy and kill them quickly and effectively. You are now home free, as nothing can stand in your way. A Pelican will be there to pick you up and the mission will be completed! Congratulations, but save the celebrations for if you beat this next level, because it is one of the hardest in the game. _____________________________________________________________________ { } {-------------------e. ASSAULT ON THE CONTROL ROOM--------------------} {_____________________________________________________________________} ***Mission Overview*** Defend the Control Room against wave after wave of Covenant troops. _______________________________ / I WOULD HAVE BEEN YOUR DADDY / ??????????????????????????????? >> Reach the transition to the second chasm Before I start this level, I have a little word of warning. This is the longest and therefore one of the toughest in the entire game. It is still only a two-sided war, you versus the Covenant, and in the next mission another race will come into the war with us, so this is the last time you will have to fight the Covenant alone in a level. So beware of this level and don't be discouraged if you get killed a lot. Hopefully, my strategies can help you through this level. Now here we go! You start out by getting dropped of from the Pelican dropship in an area right outside the Control Room complex I guess. This part of the mission can seen harmless until it starts to overwhelm you. First off, there will be two elites that come out along with several Grunts following them. More coming.... Legendary: Note* this guide is a lot different than those other 3 difficulty guides. =============================================================================== = A) Level 1: Pillar of Autumn kw-poa =============================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-=-= = Reveille =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-= _____________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Find Captain Keyes on the Bridge |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????? On Legendary, the game assumes that you already know how to walk around and look at things, so it skips the basic tutorial. I'm hoping you are completely comfortable with that, because if you aren't...well, let's just say that you're in for a tough time. Anyways, as soon as you gain control, the tech will let you know that you need to find Captain Keyes, and start leading the way. Follow him out the door of the Cryo chamber, and then turn a right. The tech will start running towards another door, so keep following (but not too close) him until the explosion rips through the door you were heading towards, killing him. Poor guy - we don't have time to grieve, though, so turn around and head in the opposite direction. Almost immediately, you will see a green arrow labeled "Maintenance" pointing to the right. Run and jump over them, then turn right (the door to the left is locked). You should be facing another door, which you can go through with no trouble at all. Once you enter, you'll be in a narrow corridor - head straight across and through the next door, but be mindful of an explosion that comes out of the right wall just before you get to the door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as you are through the door, you will see another human to your left, just beyond a half-opened door. Crouch and walk under it, but be careful to not get hit by the plasma bolts fired by the Covenant. Unfortunately, we're still unarmed and aren't much use in combat just yet. Soon after, the door between the battling Humans and Covenant should close, so head to the right. Directly ahead is another group of Covenant, who will also be firing at you and the Humans. Once again, the door should close, so don't worry about them too much. On the ground, you'll notice a blue arrow labeled "Bridge" pointing to the left. Go through the door it's pointing at and enter a darkened room. Continue straight across, and then turn left, following the green lights of unlocked doors if you get disoriented. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ At the end of another corridor, turn right, and you should see some more fellow Humans straight ahead, battling some Covenant troops to the right. Once again, all we can do is sit and watch, until another door closes and blocks them off. Once it has closed, walk up to the Marine, standing on another blue arrow. He'll tell you to follow him the rest of the way to the Bridge, so do so. You'll move through a large, spacious room before getting to another narrow corridor, with Covenant to the right. Another door will seal them off, so turn left and follow the Marine to another blue arrow, pointing right. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the door that the arrow was pointing at, then left, and you'll have arrived at the Bridge (you'll see a sign with a red star to the right). Make your way around the room with the red star, and you'll eventually find yourself at Captain Keyes' position. __________ -=| Cutscene |=- ??|???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????\ | Captain Keyes will tell you that things aren't going so well. The | | Pillar of Autumn will soon be hit by a boarding party, and it's MAC | | Cannon, the main form of defense, disabled. Since destruction or | | capture of a shipboard AI such as Cortana is unacceptable, the Master | | Chief is charged with the task of getting her off the ship. She is | | then inserted into your helmet, and Captain Keyes gives you his | | sidearm, the M6D Pistol. | |_______________________________________________________________________| =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = AI Constructs and Cyborgs First! =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= _________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Get off the Pillar of Autumn |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????? Unfortunately, the M6D isn't loaded, so we'll have to find some ammunition for it. Walk back around the way you came, to the entrance to the Bridge. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Once you've exited the Bridge, turn left, and then a quick right through the open door. As soon as you're in the short corridor, you should pick up some ammo. Quickly reload, and then wait: a Major Grunt should walk right into your view. Take him out with a single headshot, then repeat with two Minor Grunts around the corner. Head down the corridor the Grunts were in and turn a quick right through the unlocked door (once again, with green lights). You should pick up an MA5B Assault Rifle, and already see a skirmish taking place. Now, some people feel that the Marines are useless. I disagree, and even if they were absolutely worthless, I'd still feel guilty letting them die. So, quickly rush into the cafeteria and head straight ahead, where two Minor Elites are firing near another door. There will also be a Major Grunt chucking Plasma Grenades, so quickly take him out first. Personally, I prefer the Plasma Rifle to the MA5B, so I'll trade for one if possible, as well as pick up any grenades lying around. Shortly after the Elites are dead, another group of Covenant should make their appearance. This second group is much more formidable, consisting of at least three Minor Elites and several Grunts. It wouldn't be a bad idea to quickly dispatch the Grunts as soon as possible, as they will throw a few Plasma Grenades otherwise. Hopefully, you got through the last battle without taking much damage. Walk around and scrounge around for grenades and any ammunition you might need, then head through either of the two unlocked doors that the Covenant entered the room by. There may be a Major Grunt or two as soon as you go through the door, if they didn't join the last battle. Head for the red arrow labeled "Airlock" on the ground, and walk through the door, picking up the Med Kit to the right if you need it (hopefully you don't). Walk to the end of the corridor, turn left, and then right. As soon as you come out of the right turn, you should spot a Major Elite. Oftentimes, his back will be turned, making for an easy melee attack or Plasma Grenade to his rear. Anyways, you'll notice that he's a bit tougher than the Minor Elites you faced earlier. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ After the Elite is dead, switch rifles if you need to, and pick up any Plasma Grenades you can. A group of Marines should have appeared by now, so continue down the corridor. The ship should then lurch, as if something had hit it. Continue on your path towards the Airlock, and you should see an explosion take out a couple of soldiers. Chuck a grenade where you saw the explosion, to hopefully kill some Covenant as they emerge. The first to appear will probably be a Minor Elite, as well as a few Grunts. Finish them off if the grenade didn't, and then get ready for another Major Elite and another Grunt or two. Once they're all dead, you'll see that they boarded on one of their ships, which has two Overshields in it. Grab one, and exit their boarding ship. Head to the right, along with the Marines. Shortly, you'll arrive at a green arrow labeled "Stairs" on the floor, pointing into a darkened room. Be very careful, however, as there are a couple of Elite hiding in there. Take them out, using Plasma Grenades to make the task a little easier. Once they are taken care of, continue down the dark corridor until you reach the more well- lit area. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Make a left turn, and you should see Marines battling in the far distance. While you have the option of heading straight towards them, instead take the first right you can (the corridor floor should be bloody, with a dead marine). Then, make a quick left, and you should see a group of Covenant, including at least four Minor Elites and eight Grunts. Toss a Plasma Grenade in there, preferably hitting one of the Elites. Continue mopping up with such weapons as the Plasma Rifle and more Plasma Grenades until they're all dead, then walk around and replenish your weapons. If you'd like, walk all the way back to the Covenant boarding ship from before and pick up the remaining Overshield. Otherwise, look for another red arrow labeled "Airlock," taking the nearby Med Kit if you need it. Go through the door, and continue down the corridor, until you encounter another group of Covenant. This group consists of at least one Minor and one Major Elite, as well as several Grunts. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ After they're all dead, move on, following the surviving Marines. You'll soon find yourself face to face with more Covenant, including several more Elites. Use your Plasma Grenades to quickly kill several Covenant once, then pick up the ones they drop. Occasionally, an Elite will be hiding behind a stationary energy shield. There should be plenty of grenades lying around, so use one to take down the shield, then quickly finish off the Elite with another or your weapon. Continue down the corridor towards the energy shield. Before you get there, however, another Covenant boarding ship is to the right (there will be a red arrow on the ground pointing towards it), and this one also contains a pair of Overshields. Pick one up, and then move on. Once you're past the energy shield, turn left, and you should see a darkened room, with flaming barrels - head towards them. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ To the right of the flaming barrels is a half-closed door, which you'll have to crouch and walk underneath. As soon as you're through, quickly take the first right and make your way through the corridor. You'll soon encounter a Minor Elite - take it out quickly however you choose. Go to where he was standing and look through the opened door, and you'll see several Grunts and a Major Elite. Since they're packed so closely together, use another Plasma Grenade to take as many of them out as you can, then mop up the rest. There's a Med Kit near where they were bunched up, if you need it. Continue on through the door with the green arrow labeled "Stairs" pointing at it, then turn right and go through another unlocked door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Once you go through the door, you should see more red contacts on your motion tracker. Hurry in that direction, and you'll hear that there are Covenant on the landing above. Run up the stairs, quickly taking out any Elites or Grunts you encounter. You will almost certainly take damage rushing up like that, but if you do it quick enough, the Elites will oftentimes be firing down below at the Marines. This makes for an easy melee attack to the back or Plasma Grenade stick. Circle around the top landing, killing any enemies you meet, then drop back down and help the Marines finish off any down below. After such an intense battle, walk around and pick up any fresh Plasma Rifles (or ammunition for whatever weapon you're using) and Plasma Grenades you can find, then walk back upstairs. At the top of the stairs, go to the opposite side of the upper landing, and turn a right. There will be more Covenant up ahead, so use the pillars/supports for cover. They're unaware of your presence if you're far enough away, so I like to be a little sneaky and throw a Plasma Grenade at the Major Elite. If you're lucky, you'll take out most, if not all, of the Covenant. Proceed cautiously, in case there are any stragglers, taking cover behind the various blockades and pillars. You'll approach another stationary energy shield, with a darkened room behind it. Be careful - you may have noticed a red contact on your motion tracker. Quickly take out three Grunts in the dark area, using your flashlight to make it a little easier. Continue on, but don't go all the way out of the darkened room. More Covenant are waiting on the other side, in the well-lit area, including a Major and Minor Elite and several Grunts. Again, it's possible that they won't notice you at first, so aim well and hit the Major Elite with a Plasma Grenade. Duck back into the dark room if they start returning fire, then pop out for a few more quick shots. Once they have all been taken care of, continue on towards another stationary energy shield, then turn right as you pass it. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You should hear the call to abandon ship, but don't worry about that just yet. Move down the corridor and turn right. You should find yourself in a corridor with windows to your left, with life pods blasting off. There's also a Med Kit on the ground, if you need it. Turn left at the end of the corridor, and you should find yourself in another Airlock area. In the far distance are three Grunts, which you can take out from before. Move towards where they were, and Cortana will tell you that the blast doors are closing. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Cortana will also put a navigation marker on your HUD, so continue walking towards it. Eventually, you'll find yourself at a green arrow on the ground, labeled "Maintenance." Walk through the door, and turn on your flashlight to make things a little easier to see. Turn left the first chance you get, and move through the winding corridor. After a few turns, you'll see an unlocked door (notice the green light?) ahead of you. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You might have also noticed that there are now red contacts on your motion tracker, so be careful. Don't go through the door in front of you! Instead, turn right, and walk towards another unlocked door in the distance (you'll pass a second one on the left as well, but ignore that one). Once you go through the door and exit the dark Maintenance tunnel, turn off your flashlight and go through another door just ahead and slightly to the left. Make your way around the winding corridor, noting that the red contacts are to your left. Shortly, you'll come across an open door to your left, facing the doors to the Maintenance tunnels. Walk past it, however, then turn left at the end of the corridor. There should be a Minor Elite facing away from you - easy kill. Unfortunately, there's also several grunts, another two Minor Elites, and a Major Elite that you have to take care of. I would recommend sticking a Plasma Grenade to the back of the first Minor Elite that you snuck up on, in hopes of him taking several of his buddies with him. Run back the way you came, as another Minor Elite will probably go through the door that I told you to walk past earlier. You do NOT want them flanking you, so wait by the door until he comes in, then quickly kill him. Now, we still have a Minor and Major Elite to take care of, as well as any remaining Grunts. Do a little ducking in and out of the corridor to take pot shots at the Grunts until they are dead, making your job a little easier. Oftentimes, the last two Elites will duck into the Cryo B corridor (there is a yellow arrow pointing at it), occasionally popping out. Anyways, take them out with a combination of grenades and weapons fire, then pick up the nearby Med Kit (if you need it) and enter the Cryo B corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Just after you walk down a small ramp, you'll see the observation deck to the right, looking down on where you were frozen. There are three Major Elites down there, but the glass is protecting you from them for now. Walk through the observation deck and you'll come across the body of Sam Marcus, the tech. Let's get some revenge for him, shall we? You'll be in a very long corridor, with a Major Elite at the far end. There's several different strategies you could try - chucking grenades, charging full speed and firing as quickly as possible, etc. Once he's dead, be mindful of a group of Grunts in a little nook to the right, across from some flaming barrels. Also be careful of some explosions that occur in that area as well - they aren't just for show, they actually cause damage! Once the Grunts have been taken care of, look for a small door in the nook that they were in. Enter and turn on your flashlight, and move through carefully. After making the first right, there will be a Major Grunt right after you make the turn. Kill him, then turn right again and take out a Minor Grunt. Once you've done that, turn around and head down the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You'll be at a T-intersection, with the left path leading to a dead-end, the right leading to an unlocked door. Through the door, you should see a Minor and Major Elite, and maybe a Grunt. Quickly move to the door to automatically open it, then chuck a Plasma Grenade (or two) to quickly kill them before they get your Marine buddies. There will also be a couple more Grunts running around, so take care of them as well. Take the Med Kit hanging near a door if you need it. Go down the hallway (right after you exited the door, it'd be to the left) towards the blue-striped barrels, then turn another left. Take out some Grunts at the end of the corridor, near some yellow barrels, then proceed cautiously. Turn right at the yellow barrels, and there will be more Covenant forces, some of them hiding behind another stationary energy shield. Throw a Plasma Grenade or two over the energy shield, and mop up with your weapon. Hopefully, you'll be able to take out the Major and Minor Elites with the grenades. Continue moving forward, using the beam supports as cover. Also note that just before the first stationary energy shield is a corridor to the right, with several Grunts in it. Kill them, so that they don't shoot you from the sides or back, then move on, towards the second stationary energy shield. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Turn left at the shield, and you'll see another Airlock area. In the far distance, you'll see another stationary energy shield and Covenant, but between you and them is a barricade. Luckily for you, the right side of the barricade has quite a few M9 HP-DE Fragmentation Grenades for you to try out. There's plenty, so chuck a bunch at them to take out the Major Elites and Grunts. Once they're dead, hop over the barricade and continue on, killing several more Major Grunts. Continue down the corridor, and you'll hear Cortana say that you need to hurry to the last lifeboat. Go through the Airlock door, and you are done! __________ -=| Cutscene |=- ??|???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????\ | Just before boarding, Master Chief rescues a Marine and tosses him | | like a sack of potatoes into the lifeboat. Unfortunately, on approach| | to the ring-like structure dubbed "Halo," the lifeboat starts losing | | altitude way too fast... | |_______________________________________________________________________| =============================================================================== = B) Level 2: Halo kw-hal =============================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Flawless Cowboy =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _________________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Evade the Covenant patrols searching for you |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ___________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Head for higher ground |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????? _______________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Search for other lifeboats |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????? Quickly exit the lifeboat and pick up all the M9 HE-DP grenades and MA5B rounds you can, then turn left and run over a narrow bridge. As you cross, a Covenant Dropship should fly overhead. Ignore it for now, turning right as soon as you are over the bridge, and running as fast as you can. Keep close to the rock face to your left, and shortly thereafter, you should hear the familiar whine of a Banshee. Ignore that as well, and keep running until you get to some big boulders. If you do this quickly enough, the Banshee won't even have the chance to take a shot at you, as it leaves you alone as soon as you get to the boulders. Of course, you could go ahead and take out the Banshee if you wish, but doing so doesn't really benefit you that much. Anyways, as soon as you get to the boulders, you'll notice a Grunt in the distance running your way. Zoom in with your M6D and take him out, and you'll see a Major Elite and more Grunts running towards you as well. Take out the Grunts with your M6D, to make killing the Elite much easier. If you wish, go ahead and try to use the pistol against him, but I find that he simply ducks behind boulders as soon as his shield is gone. So, I just charge him with my MA5B and take him out as quickly as possible. Of course, I like the Plasma Rifle much better, so I switch for it as soon as he is dead - keep the MA5B if you prefer, however. Continue up the hill, turning slightly to the left. Once you're at the top, the path will narrow and start descending. Walk down and jump off a small ledge, keeping the large boulder to your left. Continue on, and Cortana will tell you that there is a lifeboat just beyond the next hill. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Run as fast as you can, and you'll notice that a Covenant Dropship is rising. That means it must have just dropped off some troops, so we'll have to hurry if we want to keep our Marines alive. As you run towards the Dropship, try to stay to the left, and jump just before the big drop, so that you go over the boulder. Run around the huge boulder on the slope to the left, and then turn right and start taking out Grunts left and right. There will also be several Major Elites, so try to stick them with Plasma Grenade. Even if you miss, they are useful for flushing them out of cover. Hopefully, you'll be able to kill them all easily enough - the reason I said to go around the left side is so that you don't get attacked by Covenant on both sides, making your task much easier. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _____________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Stay with the survivors |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????? _________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Protect the human survivors |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????? _________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Wait for an evac dropship to arrive |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Quickly run past the large building structures, and you should see a Covenant dropship about to land. Run to the Dropship's right side, throwing a bunch of Grenades just as the troops are about to be dropped off. If you do this right, you should be able to take out the Major and Minor Elite, and maybe some more enemies. Once you've thrown the grenades, however, you may want to back up and find some cover. Finish off the Jackals by circle-strafing and firing, until there are no Covenant left. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Unfortunately, you'll get a message that another Dropship is on approach. Look up in the air to quickly locate it, then move towards it rapidly. You may want to pick up a Needler...they are simply the best weapon against Elites. The Dropship dumps off at least one Major and one Minor Elite, so unload full clips of needles at each, and they should explode. Otherwise, repeat your hit and run strategies, ducking behind cover when your shield is down. You'll also have to take out a large group of Grunts, but they're easy enough to take care of, and drop more Needler ammo. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Again, another Covenant dropship approaches, this time near where you first entered this area. As I said before, I like to use the Needler, as it makes ducking out of cover and quickly taking out an Elite much easier. Of course, there is also a large number of Grunts to take care of as well, but they simply run straight at you, so should be relatively easy to take care of. Take them all out and quickly replenish your ammunition and grenades. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ This time, TWO Covenant Dropships appear, one after another, and in the same areas as the first and second ones. Uh oh...if you need a Med Kit, there is a crashed lifeboat roughly in between where the two new Dropships appear. Littered around the entrance to the lifeboat are some grenades, ammunition, and the Med Kit. In addition, there is also a Med Kit or two atop the large structure. Now, these battles are so dynamic that it's hard to give a specific walkthrough. However, there are several strategies to keep it as painless as possible. First, do not attempt to take on both groups of Covenant at once, as you will certainly die. Instead, go around the sides, trying to isolate each group of enemies. Secondly, there's no shame in running. When you're hit, run and take cover behind the various structures and boulders until your shields recharge. Keep in mind that they seem to sense that you're hurt, though, so oftentimes, they will pursue you - be ready for any Covenant troops foolish enough to chase you around a corner, using grenades and weapons fire to keep them at bay. It may take you several tries to kill all of them, but keep at it until you succeed. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _______________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Search for the three additional groups of |--+ +--| human survivors |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? _________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Protect the human survivors |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????? _______________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Wait for an evac dropship |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????? Good job. You should hear Foehammer relay a message, and Cortana will inform her of your position. Shortly thereafter, you should see several lifeboats crashing onto Halo, and Cortana will request that Foehammer drop her M12 LRV Warthog. Make your way to the Warthog (a navigation marker appears on your HUD), and climb in. Before you do so, however, make sure you stock up on ammunition and grenades, and even if you're only missing a tiny bit of health, grab a Med Kit anyway. We're not coming back here, so there's no reason to save it for later. Once you're in the Warthog, head in the direction it was already facing and drive down the grayish ramp cluttered with boulders. As you round the bend, Cortana will inform you that the cave is not a natural formation - since someone built it, "it must lead somewhere," right? Drive through, and Cortana will beep in again, letting you know that she's monitoring the Covenant's radio chatter. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Continue driving through the tunnel, and eventually, you'll see a ledge to your left. The ledge drops down to a ramp, which leads up to a gap and another ramp on the other side. Drop down to the close ramp and move as far back from it as you can. Now, align your Warthog so that it's going straight up the middle of the ramp and gun it. You should have enough speed that your vehicle makes it over the gap. Continue on through the tunnel. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Shortly thereafter, the tunnel should open to the left, into a large, expansive room. You'll see some Covenant troops patrolling in the distance, but don't rush down to engage them yet. Now, there are certainly different strategies you could try down here. I'm not the most aggressive player, however, so I like to simply drive straight down the path to the bridge while the Gunner does his job. Then, I turn around and head back to where I entered the room, and keep going back and forth as many times as it takes. Eventually, most, if not all, of the nearby Covenant should be dead. Doing this, I always avoid taking any damage whatsoever, to the Master Chief or to the Gunner. Of course, you could try something more aggressive, like try to run over the Covenant. Whatever way you finish off the Covenant, after you're done, head to the right side of the room (coming from where you entered). Get out of the Warthog and walk along the wall until you come to a narrow passage- way heading up. Once you get near the top, be careful: just around the left turn are three Major Elites. Carefully peek around the corner, and stick a Plasma Grenade to the closest Elite - this should hopefully take out two of them. Finish off the last one, then head down the corridor. After it ramps up slightly, you should see a blinking blue light in the distance. Walk up to it, then press (X) to activate the light bridge. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Walk back down to your Warthog, and drive over the now activated bridge. After you cross, you'll enter another narrow tunnel, and get a message from Cortana. Apparently, a lot more people got off the Pillar of Autumn than was first thought - if you can find Keyes and the survivors, a more effective resistance could be coordinated. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Continue driving through the tunnel, which is an easy enough task, as there is no resistance whatsoever. After driving for awhile, you should see the tunnel open up to the outside world. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Reunion Tour =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As the Mission Objectives state, we need to find the three groups of survivors. Not that we can do them in any order, but I'm going to start with the closest group first. As you exit the tunnel, just ahead of you you'll see a river and waterfall; turn right and drive up the hill. While heading in this direction, you might see some pulsating blue lights over to the left, but ignore them for now. Once you're at the top of the hill, the river should be narrow enough that your Warthog can easily cross, so do so. As soon as you cross, turn left and head back towards the blue lights I mentioned earlier and drive up the narrow passageway. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As you traverse the small hill, you'll see a large structure ahead of you, and Cortana will mention that the humans may have taken cover inside of it. Of course, you know the area will be crawling with Covenant forces. Once again, you can try various strategies. What I feel is the safest route, however, is to turn right as soon as you've over the hill and drive through the two large structures. Your gunner will have plenty to keep him occupied, so keep driving back and forth between the two structures, and he'll thin their numbers by quite a bit. Once all of the Covenant on the ground are killed, dismount and enter the structure (there are at least two entrances). +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Make your way down, and you will eventually find the Marines. You'll also meet quite a few Major Elites, but fortunately, they're usually busy fighting the Marines, so stick a Plasma Grenade on their back for a quick kill. Continue moving deeper into the structure, and it'll eventually start leading back to the surface, where the other entrance was. Once they're all clear, Foehammer will come in to pick up the survivors. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ ___________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Search for the two remaining groups of |--+ +--| human survivors |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? _________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Protect the human survivors |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????? _______________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Wait for an evac dropship |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????? Pick up the Med Kit near the structure, on the side near the cliff, if you need it, and get back into the Warthog. If you didn't already have one, a Marine should accompany you in the passenger seat. Now, orienting yourself from where you came in, drive towards the right, and you should see another hill, with another narrow passageway. Drive through and down the hill, towards more blue lights and the river. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as you're through the aforementioned opening and down the hill, you should see more pulsating blue lights across the river. Drive right across it, and you may encounter a pair of Banshees. Drive in erratic patterns to avoid getting hit, letting your gunner make short work of them with the M41 LAAG. Once they've been taken care of, drive up the hill near the blue lights. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As you round a big left bend that opens up into a wider area, you should see another structure up ahead, and a crashed lifeboat nearby. Drive town towards the lifeboat, letting your gunners and passenger take care of the two Jackals or running over them yourself. Now, drive back and forth closer to the large structure, so that the Marines you're driving can thing down the number of Covenant around it. Soon, you should hear Cortana say that there are some Marines hiding in the hills above the structure. You can continue attacking the enemies near the structure, or you can go ahead and drive up the hill (to the left side of where you came in). If you do the latter, two Major Elites will probably come up the hill to attack - hop out of your Warthog to add your fire to that of the Marines. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ There are probably still Covenant troops down by the structure, so get back in the Warthog and drive down there. Don't get too cocky, however, as a Covenant Dropship will arrive near the crashed lifeboat and drop off more enemies. Be careful of the Dropship's plasma beams, and run over as many troops as you can, letting your Marines take care of the rest. In particular, try to run over the Elites, as they do the most damage. It shouldn't take long before all of the Covenant are dead, at which point you'll get another message from Foehammer. Shortly thereafter, she arrives to pick up the Marines. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _________________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Search for the last group of human survivors |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? _________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Protect the human survivors |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????? _______________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Wait for an evac dropship |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????? Head over to the aforementioned crashed lifeboat, and hop out to pick up any supplies you might need. Get back in the Warthog and drive up the hill that the Marines were on earlier, and follow the left rock wall as it curves around to another opening on a hill (you should see a huge waterfall directly ahead). +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Cortana will chime in and say that you need to hurry and find the last of the lifeboats, so drive down the hill and turn right. Look for a segment of the river that is short enough for you to cross, then do so and turn left, heading back in the direction of the waterfall. To the right, you will see a tunnel descending into the rock wall - drive through. Turn right as you leave the tunnel and enter the open area, and head for the crashed lifeboat ahead (look for the smoke). On your way there, you should encounter some Grunts to the left, near the rocks, but your Gunner should be able to take care of them. If you'd like, hop out near the lifeboat and grab any supplies you need, including the S2 AM Sniper Rifle! Now, get back in the Warthog, and drive up the hill near where you first entered. There are some tight areas, but you should be able to squeeze through and drive all the way to the surviving Marines! Now, get ready for a Covenant Dropship that appears near where you came in, and take out the tougher Covenant with your newly found S2 AM. Be careful of the Dropship's plasma beams, and take out as many as you can. One thing that made this part of the mission much easier for me was the park near where you met up with the Marines, then hop out and help with your weapons fire. The hill you are on is pretty defensible, especially with the added firepower of the M41 LAAG and you on foot. Stick in the general area of the Warthog, retreating to it when you're hurt, so that it can cover you. Several waves of Covenant Dropships will unload, so be prepared for groups of Major Elites and Grunts that come up from paths to your "rear" (near the rock wall, not facing the big grassy area down below). Once they're all dead, look around near the crashed lifeboat and where the Covenant Dropships appeared, taking out any stragglers. Usually, I find a couple of Major Elites that stay down below, so take them out with two quick S2 AM rounds to the chest. Finish all of the Covenant off, and Foehammer will radio in, as will Cortana. Looks like Captain Keyes has been found, and is being held on a Covenant cruiser, the Truth and Reconciliation. Get back in your Warthog, drive back down to where Foehammer is waiting, and hop in. Congratulations! =============================================================================== = B) Level 3: The Truth and Reconciliation kw-tar =============================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Truth and Reconciliation =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _______________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Board the Covenant Battle Cruiser |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Alright, the Covenant Cruiser is about 300 meters away, on the other side of the plateau. We'll have to fight our way over there, of course - luckily, you are equipped with one of the most powerful weapons in the game, the S2 AM. The Marines that are accompanying you are going to hold back, while you take out as many of the Covenant Stationary Guns and troops as you can. Having said that, it does not mean that you should go rushing in for the kill. If ever there was a good time to be as inconspicuous as possible, it is now. If you get noticed and fired at while you're trying to snipe, you might as well go back to your last checkpoint. The S2 AM is a wonderful weapon, but if an Elite is firing at you, he WILL hit you and your scope is rendered worthless. So let's start, shall we? Head to the right, but don't go too far into the narrow path. I like to position myself so that I can see the stationary energy shield and Shade right behind it, but as far to the right and back as possible. Zoom in to 10x with your S2 AM and turn on your light-amplification - you will probably see a Major Elite walking from left to right, passing behind a large boulder just in front of the stationary energy shield. Take him out with two headshots. In front of the boulder I mentioned above, either a Minor Elite or Major Elite (it varies) should appear every once in awhile - kill him with a single headshot if he's a Minor, two if he's a Major. Also make sure to target the Grunts that man the Shade, as well as the Jackals. Once you've cleared all the Covenant that walk into your viewpoint from here, move further to the right, against the rock wall, and forward until you can see more enemies. Kill them as well, using as little ammunition as possible (that means go for headshots every time). Finally, move as far right along the ledge as possible until you can see a second Shade far to the left - take out the Grunt manning it as well. Once the area is clear, rush in and grab some Plasma Grenades, and switch your MA5B for a Plasma Rifle as well, if you wish. Make your way to the large corner near the second Shade, and use a combination of grenades and weapons fire to kill the Covenant as they arrive. The first wave should have a Major Elite or two, but the rest are pretty easy - just Grunts and Jackals. Once they stop coming, round the corner and head up the path (be careful not to fall off the ledge to the left). +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As you climb up the path, stop at the large boulder and pull out your S2 AM - up ahead you should see a Major Jackal, which you can take out with one shot. As soon as you do so, take out the Minor Elite that appears, as well as the Grunt that runs for the Shade. Head forward, and take out another Major Elite, as well as Grunts that fire from the ledge above. There's a Med Kit and ammo, but I would really recommend saving them for later - if you're badly hurt at this point already, you may want to just start over. Make your way around the bend curving to the right, cautiously. If more Covenant show up, back up and regroup with the Marines for assistance, if necessary. Continue on, taking out and stragglers left behind, then walk up the narrow path, once again making sure not to step off the ledge. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Cortana will let you know that Covenant forces have been detected up ahead. As you round the corner, you should see another Shade on a ledge up high. Walk towards it, stopping at the tree to the left, near the edge of the ledge. Look straight ahead (slightly to the right of where you see Halo's ring), and you should see another ledge, with some spiky looking plants on it. Zoom in with your S2 AM, and wait for a Minor Elite that shows up. Quickly take him out, then a Jackal that appears to the left and below where the Elite was. Now, what I like to do is walk back to the ledge that the Shade was on. In the corner where that ledge meets the rock wall is a boulder. Move to the left of the boulder and you should be able to jump on. Switch to your rifle, and you can just jump up and down for a little while, taking out any nearby Covenant as you pop up, while their shots miss you as you descend. Sneaky, huh? Of course, you could go the direct route if you prefer. Move around the path, and to your right, you'll see a hill that leads up to where all the Covenant are. Run past it though, until you get to an area with a tree and a spotlight. Peek around the right corner, and you should see a Major Jackal - kill him quickly. Now, look further right, and use your sniper rifle to take out another Jackal and a Major Elite. At this point, Cortana should radio in, saying that you've taken the left flank, so the Marines should go up the middle (the hill I told you to run past) for the attack. Run up to the rock wall ahead/left of you, and use a Plasma Grenade to take out the Shade and Grunt manning it. Also make sure to take out any other manned Shades first thing, so that your Marines stay alive longer. Quickly run in and take out the rest of the Covenant, and Cortana will let you know that a Covenant Dropship is inbound. Run towards it, and chuck as many grenades as you can as the doors open, to hopefully take them out as soon as possible, then finish any survivors off with your weapon. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, head to the path (it has two ledges to either side, with a Shade on each) that heads further into the plateau, grabbing the Active Camouflage near a tree to the left of where you first entered this area. Of course, you can save it for later as well. Several Grunts and at least two Major Elites should come out, so back up and kill them, with the assistance of your Marines. Plasma Grenades work wonders in the small passageway that they come through, by the way. Once they're all dead, Cortana will say that you're now directly under the ship - all you have to do is simply use the gravity lift to enter the cruiser. Unfortunately, it's not going to be that simple. If you're low on health, go all the way back to that Med Kit near the beginning, then head back here and make your way through the narrow passageway. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Even before you are fully through the passageway, you'll notice some red blips on your motion tracker. Head back to the side of the area that you entered from. On a hill, there should be three gnarled trees, and on the ground near them is an Active Camouflage! Line yourself up with the passageway, then run full speed and pick up the camouflage while heading straight for the red blips. Don't fire your weapon, but instead club two Jackals as soon as you exit the passageway, then go up a hill to the right and club an Elite and some Grunts. By this point, your Marines should have joined the fray and helped finish off the rest of the Covenant that were present. However, a Covenant Dropship soon comes in and unloads more troops. One strategy that worked well for me was to quickly take out all of the Shades, and then get in the middle one in the rear (furthest from where you came in). From there, you can use the Shade's rapid fire to quickly take the Covenant from the dropship, and then the ones that drop down from the lift. Of course, you can try the old-fashioned run and gun, but that will require lots of running around scrounging for ammunition and grenades. The important thing to remember if you use the Shade is to GET OUT when your shield is drained - you are a sitting duck while you're in it. This tactic will work best if you keep your fellow Marines alive, obviously, as they will draw fire away from you. Anyways, after several waves, each with a few Grunts, Jackals, and an Elite each, the battle slows down its pace. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Instead of the swarms of enemies coming out, you're now going to battle a pair of Hunters. If you were using the Shade strategy, now is the time to stop. Not only is the stationary gun ineffective against them, but their Fuel Rod Cannons will make mincemeat out of you. Again, there are several different things you can try. Hopefully, you still have the S2 AM, and can quickly snap off a shot to the weak spot of each. I actually find it easier to pick up an MA5B, however, and close in. Then, one at a time, sidestep each and unload into their weak spots. You'll have to repeat this a few times with both of them, but if you have the sidestep timing right, it should be no problem at all. The trick is to get in close enough to both of them that neither of them fire their Fuel Rod Cannons, yet far enough from one of them that you're only being charged by one at a time. Once they're dead, Foehammer will arrive with more Marines, thankfully. They all make their way straight to the lift, but don't do so. Instead, scrounge around for weapons, grenades, a Med Kit, etc. Ideally, you should have a full bar of health; trust me on this one. And in my not so humble opinion, you will definitely want the S2 AM, with as many bullets as possible. You might be wondering why, since we're going into a ship, which means close-range combat, not sniping. Well, you're right on that count - but even if you can't use the scope of the sniper rifle, the power of each individual round is unmatched by anything else you can lay your hands on so far. Think of it as one big, dumb- fire hand cannon. Once again, feel free to do as you wish, as this is just my recommendation. As for your other weapon, I'd recommend either the Plasma Pistol or Rifle, as I feel that they are more effective against Covenant than the MA5b. After you've loaded up on ammunition and health, step onto the lift. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Into the Belly of the Beast =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ___________________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Find the ship's brig and rescue Captain Keyes |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Keep your head on a swivel, listening to a small chime and flashing lights that indicate that a door is opening. Without using the scope of the S2 AM, simply point and shoot - it's a Stealth Elite with a Plasma Sword. It'll take two shots, unless you are lucky enough to hit him in the head. As soon as he is dead, look for contacts on your motion tracker and run towards the door in that direction. Sometimes, it's a Commander Elite, which will require three S2 AM rounds to the chest. Don't wait for him to die - just pump three into his chest as fast as you can, then quickly use a grenade to take out the Jackals and Grunts behind him. If it's not the Commander Elite that comes out, chuck a grenade at the door to hopefully take out most of the Covenant (Jackals and Grunts) that come pouring out, then quickly switch to your Plasma weapon to finish them off. Don't get distracted, though - continue to watch your motion tracker, as another Commander Elite may appear from another door. It is imperative that you kill them as fast as possible, because they can absolutely decimate your Marines, not to mention you. Always make sure your S2 AM is fully reloaded. Remember, if it's not an Elite that comes out of the door, throw a grenade and switch to your Plasma weapon to finish them off. If it is, shoot him three times, and then throw a grenade and switch to your Plasma weapon. If you do this quickly enough, constantly keeping and eye on your motion tracker and running to the doors that the Covenant come out of fast enough, you'll succeed, even if it takes a few tries. I'm proud to say that I'm able to do this while keeping most of the Marines alive! An alternative strategy to try if you can't keep them alive and are getting overwhelmed is to grab the Active Camouflage, which is behind a crate near the left of the two doors that interconnect (the other two doors lead to darker corridors with dead ends). After you've grabbed it, quickly run around and use your melee attack from behind, as well as grenades, to take out as many of the enemies as you can (especially the Elites). After a little while, if more Covenant are still pouring out of the doors, you may want to run up into the corridors that they run out of. From there, you can quickly pop out and take out an enemy or two, then retreat back. Keep in mind that if you entered the better-lit doors which lead further on into the level, they often appear to your sides or rear, so keep an eye on your motion tracker to make sure you don't get flanked. Eventually, they should all fall. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You've just survived what is probably the toughest battle of the game for most people, so give yourself a round of applause. Take a well-deserved break if you need to, but when you're ready to play again, run around and find a dead Marine and switch your Plasma weapon for a MA5B. A pair of Hunters should come out from the side doors, so run up close to them to keep them from firing their Fuel Rod Cannons at you or your Marines. Sidestep when they charge, and unload into their orange weak spots. You can also use a single S2 AM round for each, but I prefer to use the MA5B, simply because I like to conserve sniper rifle ammunition. After those Commander Elites, Hunters are a piece of cake, huh? +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Even if you are really low on S2 AM ammunition, I still recommend that you keep it with you, because it'll come in handy a little bit later. For now, though, pick up a Plasma Pistol to go with it. Go down the passageway that the Hunters came out of, and you'll see that the next door is locked. The Marines will stay here, while you go and look for another way around. Go back up, and enter the second door on the right as you exit. Near it is a Med Kit, if you need it. At the top of the ramp, turn right, go through the door, and kill two Grunts with your Plasma Pistol. Walk to where the passageway turns left, then immediately turn around and run back to where you came from. A red contact should have appeared on your motion tracker, representing either a Jackal or two Grunts. You'll have to repeat this constantly in this passageway, unless you want to get attacked from the rear. Anyways, head back to the left turn and move further up, until the Elite spots you. Retreat, and wait for him to come after you, then kill him with an overcharged shot (to take down his shield) and a few more normal shots. You may also be able to sneak up on him and melee attack him, as he stands in a nook on the right side. Either way, once he's dead, turn back around. Take out the two Grunts or Jackal that appear at your rear (on the other side of the door), then walk back to the left turn. You'll have to repeat this process of going up the ramp, then doubling back to clear your rear several times. It can get a little tedious, but eventually, they'll stop appearing behind you. Note that there is also a second Elite up the passageway, in addition to the first one you killed. Once both your front and rear are safe, make your way to the top of the ramp, near the pillar. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Turn right at the door, and cautiously approach. There will be a pair of Major Jackals in front of you, as well as a Major Elite. Quickly throw a few grenades, and supplement that with your overcharged Plasma Pistol shots to take out most of them quickly. If you ever need a fresher pistol, simply walk back and pick one up from the countless Jackals and Grunts you killed earlier. There will also be another Major Elite and a pair of Jackals further up ahead and slightly to the right. Take the Jackals out with overcharged shots; if you can find a Needler, those work well against the Elite. Once the upper landing has been cleared, feel free to take out a few of the Covenant down below and to the right as well. Cortana will point out that the locked door blocking the Marines is down there. If you wish, you can jump down there, but I prefer to go through the passageways, as that is a bit safer. Go all the way across the upper landing and through the door. As soon as you go through, you'll see an intersection just ahead. Use a grenade and your Plasma Pistol to take out two Jackals and two Grunts lurking around the right corner. Go down the passageway that they were in, then turn left at the pillar, then right again. Move slowly, however - there is a Major Elite just around the right corner. Hopefully, you'll be able to sneak up on him and place a Plasma Grenade right on his back. Continue through the nearby door, then turn right once again, and you should be at the bottom floor of the hangar. Proceed in cautiously, and pick up some S2 AM ammunition from the bodies of the Marines. Now, a word about doing this: you may have recalled starting off with 64 rounds of ammo for your sniper rifle, at the start of the level. That was a one time thing, though - once you went below 24, that is the maximum you can ever have from now on. Since each box of S2 AM ammunition gives you 16 rounds, don't waste them! For example, if you still have 20 rounds, don't go and pick up a box, because you'll only get 4 (reaching the 24 maximum limit) - wasting 12 very, very valuable bullets. There's also a Med Kit on one of the bodies if you need it. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ A wave of Covenant should soon enter the room, consisting of several Grunts and Jackals and at least two Minor Elites. Play it safe and back up into the passageway you just came out of, forming a chokepoint, and using a single S2 AM round into the head of each Elite. Once the first group of Covenant has been killed, another wave should come, so quickly restock on ammunition or a fresh Plasma weapon if you need to, then retreat back into the passageway. If you'd like, you can even go back up to the upper landing if that's easier for you. Once all the Covenant have been killed, make your way to the console marked by a navigation arrow, and use it to open the door blocking the Marines. Now, make your way through the next door, marked by another navigation arrow on your HUD. For some reason, my Marines wouldn't follow me, but no matter. Turn left at the intersection, right at the pillar, then kill the Jackal around the corner. Continue on, taking out another Jackal and a pair of Grunts. Note that you will pass a dead-end on your left walking down the long corridor. The second dead-end on the left sometimes has a Major Elite hiding in it - if not, he'll be further down the corridor. Kill him and continue all the way down, finally arriving at another door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Walk forward until the door opens, then stop. Here starts my favorite music in the game! Also, if you had any surviving Marines from before, they should meet up with you here. Anyways, you'll see a Covenant Dropship take off, and to the left, a pair of Grunts. Move a little bit forward until you can see the top of a high platform directly in front of you, with a patrolling Major Elite. Take out the Grunts with your S2 AM (note that if you fire early enough, before the Dropship leaves, it may be a single Grunt and a Jackal to the left), and then the Elite above with two headshots. A second Grunt (if you killed the Jackal instead of him earlier) should come running around the left side, so kill him quickly as well. Move a little bit further into your room, and a second wave of Covenant should come pouring in, from the right. Most likely, your Marines will die here, so to avoid being overwhelmed, duck back into the passageway you came out of. Pop back out and use your S2 AM to one by one take out the Covenant. Once the first wave has been destroyed, another will come out. This second wave will have Jackals up above, so be careful. If you run low on rounds for your sniper rifle, there is some at the base of the platform that the Elite was walking on earlier. Once the area has been cleared, make your way further into the bay. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ More Covenant should quickly appear, so run back as fast as possible to the same door/passageway. Once again, kill them all with your S2 AM, since there is plenty of ammunition around. Once they're all dead, run further in to the bay, and then all the way back to the door. If you went far enough, you should have triggered another wave of Covenant, with some of them coming out the door we've been hiding behind. Quickly kill the Grunts and Jackal coming out of it, then repeat with the others that emerged from a different door. After you have cleared the area, move to the far side of the bay and approach the door. Once you get close enough, Cortana will say that she's going to try and override the door - run back to, you guessed it, the original door. A few Grunts should be coming out, so use a grenade to quickly kill them. Also kill an Elite that should be lurking around, and after they're all dead, the music will change tone. You've heard it a few times before, usually when Hunters appear. Well, guess what? Trade whatever plasma weapon you're using for one of the Marines' MA5B rifles, then charge in to close range, so that they don't fire their Fuel Rod Cannons. Once again, sidestep and unload, sidestep and unload. Of course, you can try to back far away and use your S2 AM as well. As soon as they're dead, Cortana will open the door. Before moving through, make sure to pick up the Overshield near the newly-opened door and the Med Kit near the S2 AM ammunition, if you need it. Once you're all stocked up, go through the door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as your turn right, you'll see a Grunt that is easily taken care of. Keep on your toes, however, as up ahead are more Grunts and a Major Elite. Use grenades to kill these quickly, as they are so effective in narrow corridors like this one. Up ahead are more Grunts and two Stealth Elites - and this time, they're not armed with Plasma Swords that totally defeat the purpose of being invisible. You may be able to use your S2 AM to try and take them out, because the light-amplification makes them slightly visible. However, I prefer to simply throw grenades and rush in with my Plasma Rifle. They're not very well shielded, so are pretty easy to kill. Continue on, keeping an eye out for several Jackals as well. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Sometimes, the Jackals will be going in the same direction as you, and walk through the door that you're headed towards. Try to take them out before they get there, as it makes things slightly easier. Go through the door, and use a few grenades to take out several more Jackals, as well as a Major Elite. For the latter, it may be easier to run back down and grab a Needler, then switch back to whatever you were using once he's dead. Now, run straight ahead about halfway down the landing you're on, then turn around and run back to the door. From the left (when looking out the door), several Covenant, including about two Elites, should run in. Use the Needler again if you wish, as the exploding needles may even take out several enemies at once. After they're all dead, continue down the left side, but walk down that way BACKWARDS (facing the door we've been hiding behind). After just a little ways, you should see the door flash and hear it opening. Quickly throw a few grenades and supplement that with weapons fire to kill the Covenant that come out. Walk all the way down the left side now, then slowly approach the door to the left. If you're lucky, the Major Elite on the other side will be facing away from you, making for an easy kill. Kill the Grunts in the corridor as well, then go through. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Turn right at the pillar, and there may be several more Grunts, if they didn't come out earlier. Further in the distance are a pair of Major Jackals as well, so use your S2 AM to take them out easily. Pick up a Needler from one of the Grunts you killed, then move up to where the two Jackals were. Turn right, then immediately unload a full clip of needles into the Elite to quickly kill him. Go ahead and switch back to a different weapon if you wish, and if you are running low on S2 AM ammunition, you can still run all the way back down to the bottom floor (where you fought the Hunters) for more. Continue on the path where the Elite was, and the ramp will start to descend slightly. Turn the corner and take out a couple of Grunts, then move on, as the corridor starts to climb again. At the top, turn right, and you'll see the door leading to the third floor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as you go through the door, immediately turn right. In the distance, near an opened door, you'll see a Major Elite and two Grunts. Use your S2 AM to quickly take out the Elite, then kill the Grunts however you choose. Walk down to where they originally were, then turn left. Now, proceed very, very cautiously. Once you get far enough, a group of Covenant will appear to your front, another from the door that you entered this room from. You have several options to make this battle easier. One, you could drop down to the lower level, then walk all the way back up, so that none are behind you. Or, what I prefer to do, being too lazy to walk that far, is simply run as fast as you can back to where you came in. Throw a few grenades and use your Plasma weapon to quickly destroy the Grunts and Jackals. That wasn't so bad, was it? As soon as they're taken care of, go ahead and take care of the far ones. Once again, it's only Grunts and Jackals, so you shouldn't have too much trouble. Again, walk all the way down to the other end of the landing, and you'll then reach a door to the right. You should be expecting this by now: two groups of Covenant appear, one from behind and one from the door. I prefer to just use grenades to clear the Covenant exiting the door, but of course, you can always jump down to the next level and work your way back up if this is easier for you. This wave of Covenant is slightly tougher, as there is a Minor Elite from behind the door you're trying to go through. After all the Covenant lay dead, continue on through the door, turning left at the pillar. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Once you get to the next pillar, turn right - by this point, you should see quite a few red contacts on your motion tracker. Ahead of you, you will see a four-way intersection. To the left is a dead-end with a Med Kit and S2 AM ammunition, while straight ahead is a door into the control room. Taking the right path and going through the door leads to another passageway, with another two entrances to the control room. Stock up on ammunition if necessary, then enter the control room from the door straight ahead. You should see several Grunts laying asleep, but I wouldn't recommend trying to go in to club them. There is a few Major Elites patrolling on the lower level, and a Commander Elite (armed with a Plasma Sword) on the raised platform. If you entered from the door I told you to, one of the Major Elites, as well as the Commander, should both be in plain view. Use two S2 AM rounds to kill the Major Elite first - the Commander Elite should then charge you. Quickly reload your rifle while backing up into the hallway, then pump him full of three S2 AM rounds to the chest. From the relative safety of the hallway, try to take out a Jackal, the other Major Elite, and the Grunts, backing all the way up to the pillar to make sniping easier. Several Grunts from another room will also rush in to help, but are more of a nuisance than anything else. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ After all the enemies are dead, restock on ammunition and health if you need to. Cortana will tell you that Captain Keyes' signal is strong, so must be pretty close. Head towards the door indicated by the navigation marker on your HUD, go through, then turn left. As you reach the next left turn, a pair of Grunts will be right around the corner, so quickly kill him and approach the right turn. Peek around the corner, and take out a pair each of Jackals and Grunts. Move on once they're dead, turning left at the pillar. Carefully take the next right, as a pair of Jackals are patrolling the small intersection ahead. They probably won't be able to see you right away, so simply throw a grenade to take out both of them. Move past their bodies and turn left, then right at the next intersection. Up ahead, you'll see a locked door, while an unlocked one is to the left. First go down the right path, however, which descends slightly. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Look around the left corner, and you should see two Jackals walking one behind the other. Quickly take them out with your S2 AM, then head down to where they were. To the right is an opened door, in which you should be able to see a Commander Elite wielding a Plasma Sword, as well as more sleeping Grunts. Don't be fooled, however - there are also a pair of Stealth Elites in there as well. Head back where you came from, all the way to that unlocked door I told you to ignore earlier. Go through, and you'll see that it's empty. Move to the control panel and hit (X) to open the prison doors. In the far right cell (looking from the panel) is a Med Kit and S2 AM ammunition, while behind the platform that the console is on is an Active Camouflage. Now, before you pick it up, do you remember the way back to the room with the Commander Elite and Stealth Elites I told you about? Okay, pick up the Active Camouflage and haul ass all the way back to that room. Before your Active Camouflage wears off, melee attack everyone you can, or stick a Plasma Grenade on them. The Stealth Elites can be pretty difficult to see, but do your best. Hopefully, you'll be able to take everyone out before they even know what hit them. Stock up on grenades and fresh Plasma weapon, the go up to the console and hit (X) to open the prison doors. __________ -=| Cutscene |=- ??|???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????\ | Captain Keyes admonishes you for coming to rescue him - but despite | | appearances, he is nonetheless very thankful that you did so. He and | | the Marines grab some weapons, and Cortana informs you that she has | | learned that the Covenant seem to think that Halo is a weapon, and | | are trying to figure out how it works. Of course, we have to stop | | them from doing so, but first we need to get out of here... | |_______________________________________________________________________| =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Shut Up and Get Behind Me...Sir =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= _________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Return to Shuttle Bay for Extraction |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Immediately after regaining control of the Master Chief, run towards the door to the prison. Throw a grenade as the door opens, and firing as well. Two Stealth Elites are entering, and even if you don't destroy them, hitting them reveals where they are, for your Marines to help finish off. Go through the door and kill a pair of Jackals as well. Now, I've already mentioned in this walkthrough that I really like to keep my Marines alive as long as possible. Many others simply don't care, and consider them useless. Whatever your stance on their effectiveness, it is absolutely imperative that you don't let your fellow soldiers (in particular, only Keyes, really) die. This means that you should always be at the front of every melee, taking damage to save them from taking it. Yeah, it sucks, but what're you gonna do - it's your job. Turn left after exiting the prison, then quickly take out the Elite with your S2 AM. Finish off the Grunts as well, then continue down the corridor. Turn right, then left, and take out another Major Elite. This one is too close to snipe, so use your Plasma weapon or a grenade. Continue through the corridor, taking out several more Grunts and Jackals, then press on towards the control room from before. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Turn right and move slowly up the ramp to open the door to the control room, and you will see a pair of Stealth Elites (wielding Plasma Swords) on the lower level. Use two S2 AM rounds each, firing where you think their bodies are. Keep in mind that they hold their swords in their right arms, and that the S2 AM's light-amplification makes them easier to see. There is a third Stealth Elite on the lower level as well, but he's usually on the far end of the room, obscured by a pillar. When you finally spot him, repeat as you did with the other two, then immediately run far enough back into the corridor that the Marines and Keyes are not in the control room. Cortana will request Foehammer come in for an extraction, but the Covenant are keeping her from doing so. We'll have to find our own ride - Captain Keyes will ask Cortana to locate a ride, and she'll find a Covenant Dropship that is still docked. Now, slowly approach the control room, trying to keep the Marines from rushing ahead of you. A large swarm of Grunts will have entered the control room, and would have made short work of your soldiers if you hadn't backed out. Try to take out as many of them as you can, before the Marines rush in. Don't they ever learn that they should leave the hard work to you? Anyways, shoot the Grunts before they can throw any grenades, and your group shouldn't have any casualties. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ If you have any Med Kits and ammunition stockpiles you didn't pick up earlier, go ahead and run all the way back to pick them up, then return to the control room. Now, make your way back to the hangar from before, using the navigation marker on your HUD as a guide. Go through the door into the hangar, and as soon as you do so, throw a few grenades, preferably at the nearby Major Elite. This is the last battle of the level, so there's no longer any need to conserve your weapons. Again, don't let the Covenant throw any grenades, as these can easily take out all of your troops. Once they're all dead, move to the nearby console and hit (X) to release the Dropship clamps. __________ -=| Cutscene |=- ??|???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????\ | The Master Chief, Marines, and Keyes board. Rather then wait for | | Cortana to interface with the controls, Keyes decides to pilot the | | Covenant Dropship himself, quickly pancaking two Hunters that rush in | | to attack. The getaway is then made - now, on to finding Halo's | | control room. | |_______________________________________________________________________| =============================================================================== = B) Level 4: The Silent Cartographer kw-tsc =============================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = The Silent Cartographer =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Clear the landing beach of hostiles |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? As soon as you regain control of the Master Chief, run straight ahead and throw a fragmentation grenade at the Grunts in front of you. As soon as you throw it, turn left towards some boulders near the rock wall. Use your MA5B or M6D to take out the two Grunts taking cover there, then quickly switch your MA5B for the Needler. Head in the original direction you were going, unloading a full clip of needles into the Elite, then on any other Grunts nearby. Taking cover behind the next set of barricades (past the stationary energy shield) is another Major Elite, so use another clip of needles on him. Your Needler should be just about out of ammunition, so switch it for the Elite's Plasma Rifle. Continue on as fast as you can, trying to stay ahead of the Marines. As you pass the large structure to the right, into a darkened area, use a few grenades to clear out several Jackals, and the finish off two more Major Elites. Make sure to focus on one at a time, as they will try to hide behind the boulders when their shields are down. With the combined firepower of the Marines behind you, you shouldn't have much trouble. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _______________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Find the entrance to the map room |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Foehammer should then fly in, dropping off a M12 LRV Warthog. Note that if one of the Marines in your Warthog is pretty hurt, you can walk over to his spot hit (X) to make him exit the vehicle. Then, get in the driver's seat and head over to where the other Marines are, and another one (hopefully in better shape) will get in. Just be careful not to run them over. Once you're happy with your crew, head down the beach in the same direction as you were running, keeping the water to your right, then round the big left curve. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as you've rounded the corner, you should see some Jackals far ahead - some on the beach, some on a large rock slightly to the left. I like to aim for the Jackals on the beach and gun it, trying to run them over while the passengers support you with weapons fire. You should be able to get the Jackals on the beach with one run, although the ones on the rock are harder to hit, because of the angle. Also note that there are several Grunts and a pair of Elites near the steep path as well, although they like to take cover among the trees. Simply drive back and forth, letting your Marines do the work. If the Covenant on the rock are giving you too much trouble and you can't seem to finish them off, feel free to dismount and go take care of them on foot. After all the Covenant are dead, make your way up the climbing path that the two Elites and Grunts were near. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ At the top of the hill, you should see some Jackals below you to the front, and a large structure to the left. Be warned that the structure is very well guarded, with at least five Major Elites and one Minor Elite, as well as a large number of Grunts. I like to drive straight for the three Elites outside, on the far side of the structure, then turn just before I get to them. Time it right, and your slide should take out all three of them. As soon as you come out of the turn (you should be facing where you came from), gun it to get out of there. Go just far enough so that your gunner can cover the exits of the structure, then get out and finish the rest of them with Needlers or Plasma Grenades. Once again, feel free to try other strategies, such as sniping from afar with your M6D pistol. I just like the more direct approach, because you can catch the three Elites outside unaware, running them over faster than they can react. Also, go ahead and take out the Jackals down on the beach if you wish, as there is an overshield near the barrels down there. Hopefully, your Marines will not have taken much damage, if any at all. Park your Warthog and make your way into the structure, and Cortana will contact you. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Find the Silent Cartographer |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????? Go down the steep ramp to the right, turn left through the door and go down another steep ramp, then carefully poke your head around the left corner at the bottom. Throw a grenade or two down there to take out the Major Elite and four Grunts. You may have noticed a Plasma Sword wielding Elite on the other side of the door down there, which Cortana will tell you to not let them lock. Unfortunately, it does get locked, so Cortana will contact Captain Keyes, who is on his own mission. He requests that you find some way into Halo's control room, so we'll need to find a way to get this door open. _____________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Find the main facility security override |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Make your way back up to your Warthog and climb in, then drive down to the beach. Continue in the same direction as before, keeping the water to your right, and passing underneath a small overpass. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ After going beneath the underpass and making a slight left, you'll see a small hill in front of you. Park at the base of it, then get out and walk up the hill - at this point, Cortana should inform you that there is a path into the interior of the island. Climb up until you can just barely see over the edge, and you'll spot a Major Elite, about seven Jackals, and some Grunts. It's a long distance throw, but you should be pretty good at aiming grenades by now. First hit the Elite with a Plasma Grenade, then use a few more to take out most of the Jackals. There will most likely be a few stragglers, so head back to your Warthog and start driving back and forth in front of where they were (near another crashed Warthog), until your Gunner takes care of the rest. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Climb out and pick up any supplies you need from the crashed Warthog, as well as from the dead Covenant, then head towards the narrow path. If you'd like, you CAN drive your Warthog through, by squeezing to the left of the tree in the middle of the path, with your left wheels on the rock. To get through, you have to be driving pretty fast, then turn right just as you get to the gap. It's not necessary, of course, but either way, be prepared for another Elite and several Grunts. The Grunts will be moving from left to right at the top of the hill, with the Elite following soon after. After the first group, another group of Grunts and an Elite will be further ahead, behind some boulders to the left. Grab a Needler from one of the Grunts you killed earlier to make getting them much easier. Once the area is clear, climb up the hill that the last group of Covenant were on. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ At the top of the hill, you'll notice some large red blips on your motion tracker. To your right is a large structure, as well as a pair of Hunters. They should be absolutely no problem at all, however, with your M6D. Snipe them if they haven't noticed you, or rush in and sidestep their charge. As soon as the Hunters are dead, a group of about five Jackals will come down the hill opposite of where you entered this area, so use a grenade or two to help whittle them down, before taking care of the rest. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Littered around where the Hunters were are several crates, and two overshields right near them. Also, there is a Med Kit and some ammunition on the grassy area, near where you came in. Once you're all stocked up, head on up the hill that the Jackals came from. It descends into another area, with an Elite and a about five Grunts straight ahead in the open, and about three Jackals to the right. If you were able to get the Warthog through, this part should be a piece of cake. Park at the top of the hill, climb into the Gunner's seat, and use the M41 LAAG to take out the Grunts in the open, as well as the Jackals that very stupidly move into view. Then, drive back down and let your Marines take care of the Elite. If you don't have the Warthog, however, use your M6D to take care of the Grunts first. Pick up a Plasma Pistol, and use overcharged shots in combination with your M6D to take care of the Jackals, and then finally, the Elite. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Continue on the narrow path to the left of the large structure. As soon as you turn the corner, you should encounter a large number of Grunts, which you can take out whatever way you wish. Make your way around the structure, keeping it to your right, and you'll see a total of three overshields on the ground! Go ahead and pick one up (or, run back to get one of the ones near where the Hunters were, to keep these ones closer at hand), then enter the structure. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go down the large ramp, then turn left into the room with all of the crates. Quickly run to the left into one of the lighted nooks, then use the scope of the M6D to locate the pair of Hunters in the far end of the room. You may only be able to see one at first, but that's ok - if you ran here quickly enough, you should be able to snipe him without him even knowing you're there. Repeat with a single shot to the next Hunter. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Check your overshield - is it still at full strength? Good, let's move on, then. Continue on through the door behind where the Hunters appeared, all the way to the end. Cortana says to use the console to shut down the security system, so hit (X) to do so. You'll see a short scene of the locked door opening, with the Plasma Sword-wielding Commander Elite waiting. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = It's Quiet... =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= _________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Find the Silent Cartographer |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????? The name of the sub-mission says it all; it's TOO quiet, in fact. Head back towards the room where you killed the Hunters, and you should hear a distress signal from a Pelican Dropship, that is losing altitude. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Continue heading back towards the room with the Hunters, but don't enter quite yet. I should probably warn you that there are five, count 'em, five Stealth Elites now present. It's probably not a good idea to stay in an open room and take on five Elites of any type, let alone ones you can't see. So run as fast as you can through the room and up the ramp; hopefully, the overshield I told you to pick up before should prevent you from taking too much damage. You can also use M9 HP-DE grenades as you run through, to hopefully clear a path. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Once you're outside, go ahead and pick up another overshield. Cortana will inform you that Bravo 22, the Pelican we heard earlier, was bringing us heavy weapons. Crashed near the cliff across the way, you'll be able to see the Pelican, and it doesn't look like there's any survivors, unfortunately. Now, there are two ways to get down there: you can simply drop down, or you can go all the way back to the beach and drive around the island to get back to this point (keep in mind that there are new enemies on the way back, however). Dropping down is a lot quicker, but whatever you decide, try to take out the Grunts on the far away cliff first. Then, once you drop down or drive around to the Pelican, take out two groups of Jackals, one at each end of the cliff. You shouldn't have much trouble running them over and letting your Marines finish off the rest. Once they're all dead, drive over to the Pelican and dismount. There's four Med Kits if you need one, as well as an M19 SSM Rocket Launcher! Personally, I would recommend keeping your M6D Pistol and trading whatever else you're using for the rockets. Once you're done picking up the goodies, get back in the Warthog and drive down the beach, in either direction, back towards the structure with the locked door that we just opened. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as you climb the large hill just before the structure, you'll encounter a trio of Jackals waiting for you at the top. Now guarding the structure is yet another pair of Hunters, and these ones are pretty aware, so you may have a hard time trying to snipe them, what with Fuel Rod Cannons firing at your head. Go ahead and try to use your M19 SSM if you wish! Or, use your Warthog to run them over/take them out with the M41 LAAG. I have a thing about saving ammunition, even though there's plenty of it, so I usually do the latter. Anyways, once you're ready, head down into the structure - we don't need to worry about that Commander Elite just yet. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go down the right ramp as before, down another ramp, and then left through the opened security door. =-=-=-=-=-= = Shafted =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ That was a quick checkpoint...oh well. Turn right after having gone through the security door, and you'll see a short cutscene, in which Master Chief looks down at the depths of the room. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Once you regain control, you may have noticed some red contacts on your motion tracker. Turn around and head back, then take the second left (the first takes you back to where you entered). Proceed down this corridor slowly, and then peek your head round the right corner. You should see a Major Elite staring at one of those purple crates (or whatever they are), so go ahead and give him a whack in the back of the head. It doesn't make much of a difference, but I like using the M19 SSM to do this, just for laughs. Now, keeping in mind that we're soon about to fight a whole bunch of Covenant, you might be better off switching your M19 SSM for the Elite's Plasma Rifle. We can always come back here and pick it up again, of course, so don't worry. Walk partway up the ramp to the right, just enough so that you can see a Grunt patrolling back and forth. When he's walking left, run up and club him in the back of the head, then repeat with a sleeping Grunt in a little nook to the left. Now, head back down the ramp, and peek your head around the door near where the Elite was. You should see a second Major Elite ahead, partially obscured by a pillar. Aim carefully, as this throw is going to really count, then stick him with a Plasma Grenade. Now, back up into the narrow corridor, and take out the Grunts and Jackals as they stupidly come after you. Use grenades to make the task even easier. Alternatively, you could ignore the Elite at first and try sneaking around like you're Sam Fisher, but I prefer the first route. Note that if you go the sneaky route, the Jackals might not come in, as they are originally behind the door to the left, and only come in when they hear the fighting. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the door on the left, that the Jackals came out of, and make your way down the winding ramp. Don't fall off, please. Go through the next door, carefully, as you may have noticed the motion tracker contact. Take out the two Jackals in the corridor to the right, then another two Jackals that are usually found in the middle section of the room. Finally, whip out your M6D and take care of the two Hunters, sidestepping their charge before putting a single bullet into their backs. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You may have noticed some supplies to the right of where you first entered the room - if you need some, go ahead and grab them. Otherwise, run back upstairs and grab your M19 SSM again. We're going to be doing a lot of this "leap- frogging": taking a weapon we want to keep, dropping it for something more useful, then running back to get it again, etc. Walk back down into the room with the Hunters, then move to the far end of the middle section. In the back is another winding ramp, so carefully make your way down, even though it's pretty short. Turn left into a wider area, and you'll hear that the Marines have company; two Covenant Dropships are inbound with a bunch of reinforcements. The Marines will try to hold them off as long as possible, while we continue our search for the map. Anyways, you'll be on a high ledge, overlooking a large room. Head down into it. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ I would STRONGLY recommend that you remember the layout of the room - it can be quite confusing, with all the pillars and such all over the place. Drop down from the ramp heading down into the room, though, and look underneath the ramps. You should see two doors, one on the left, one on the right. If you go through the left door, it leads down a small ramp to an Active Camouflage. Do not pick it up yet, as you'll need it later; the right door is where we want to go next. Go down the winding ramp, then turn left and you'll see a long corridor, with three patrolling Grunts. Take them out from long range with your M6D, then move cautiously down the corridor that they were on. To both the left and right are small triangle-shaped holes, in which you can see more Covenant forces. Throw a grenade through the left hole to try and whittle their numbers down, hopefully killing at least the Major Elite. If you go too far into the middle of the ledge, you'll be in plain view for them to fire at you. Anyways, hop down and move to the left side of the room to finish off any remaining Grunts. If you continue down the nearby ramp, there's an overshield, but save it for later. Now, exchange your M19 SSM for a Needler and go down the ramp in the far right corner (if facing the direction that you were when you originally entered the room). Don't go around the left corner yet - orient yourself so that you will be facing down that corridor if you step to the right. Now, quickly pop out and unload a full clip of needles, then sidestep left back out of view. The first clip should take out the first Elite, so sidestep right and unload a second clip of needles to take out the second. Head back up to where the overshield was, then pick it up and drop the Needler for your M19 SSM again. Head down the corridor where the two Elites were, then hit (X) to active the Silent Cartographer. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Return to the surface for extraction |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? After you have discovered the location of the control room, Cortana will try and contact Captain Keyes - apparently, he is unable to be reached, however. Head back the same way that you came in, past the Elites, and up the ramp. Cross the room straight across, and you'll head up another ramp. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Some red contacts will appear on your motion tracker, and the music will then change, so you know you're in for a fight. Turn right, and you'll see some type of hologram on a ledge above - partially obscured are two Jackals, so toss a grenade up there to clear them out. That ledge is actually where the Active Camouflage I told you to save earlier is, but we can't jump up that high. So, head back to the last room, then climb up onto the long ledge that the Grunts were on earlier. Head back up the winding ramp, taking out the lone Major Jackal. Now, if you remember from before, the door near the one we're facing led to the Active Camouflage. So, head through this one and immediately turn right to run to the next one. Of course, you can always stay put and fight, but I find running to be easier, as the room is literally swarming with Jackals. Once you've picked up the Active Camouflage, head back up through the door and to the far side of the room. The Jackals actually are quite useful, as they light the way up the ramp. Run up the ramp, making sure not to fire your weapon. Melee attack them if you get behind them, but for the most part, you just want to run as fast as you can. Continue following the winding path around, and you'll come across a Major Elite accompanied by several Grunts - stick a Plasma Grenade on the back of the Elite and continue on. Head up another ramp and then turn right around a corner to encounter more Jackals. Your Active Camouflage is probably about dead by now, so use grenades and weapons fire to take them out. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Continue up the winding ramp, again being careful not to fall of the ledge, then go to the top of the ramp to find yourself in the room where you fought the Hunters a while back. Once again, the room is now filled with enemies. There are three Major Jackals, a Major Elite, and several Grunts. There are various things you can try, but I like to run up from the ramp, then jump left out of the middle section. Then, turn left and head to the dead-end, and use that area for cover. The three Jackals should arrive first, but you can make short work of them with your M6D as they come around the corner. Hell, use your M19 SSM if you wish, we've been lugging it around all day. Once the Jackals have been taken care of, move ahead a little bit until you can see all the way across the room to the right. Zoom in with your M6D and take out the Grunts, then make your way around the room and take out with Elite, with grenades or your rocket launcher. Also, those supplies from earlier should still be here as well, if you need them. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Head through the door and up the winding ramp, to the next door. Move just far enough that the door open, then stop. You'll see several Jackals on a high ledge, as well as a few more and some Grunts down below. Use your M6D to take them out from afar, ducking back down the ramp to avoid fire. If you wish, use your M19 SSM, but make sure to save one or two rockets for later. Then, move just a tiny bit into the room, so that when you face right, you can see the doorway where you clubbed the Major Elite earlier. Another one should be there along with a Jackal, but hopefully they haven't noticed you yet. Throw a grenade in there to clear them out. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, head through that door and down the narrow corridor, very cautiously. You haven't forgotten about our Commander Elite friend, have you? In the corridor, he's in the first right. As soon as you see him, stick him with a Plasma Grenade and get your ass away from him. After all that buildup, that showdown was kind of a letdown, huh? Oh well...continue down the corridor he was in and up the ramps. Cortana will request pickup from Foehammer, and she'll be on her way to extract you. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Be careful - there are a total of six Stealth Elites milling about, waiting to kill you. Since this is just about the end of the mission, this is a great time to use the rest of your rockets. Of course, we're in a narrow area, so make sure not to kill yourself along with them. Most are in the top area in which you can see outside, but sometimes, one may be further in the structure, on the ramps. Anyways, once they're all dead, run to the back of the Pelican and hit (X) to enter. Congratulations! +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ __________ -=| Cutscene |=- ??|???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????\ | The coordinates for Halo's control room are underground, so Foehammer | | heads there to drop you off. You'll see a large landing-type area, | | already occupied by the Covenant and reinforced with Shade stationary | | guns. A Grunt then runs off - presumably to gather his buddies for | | your welcoming party... | |_______________________________________________________________________| =============================================================================== = Level 5: Assault on the Control Room kw-acr =============================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = I Would Have Been Your Daddy =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _____________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Reach the transition to the second chasm |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? As soon as you're out of the ship, IMMEDIATELY turn to the right and start for the door. Throw a fragmentation grenade just before and just after it opens, and you'll hopefully take care of both the Minor and Major Elites that come out. Mop up the Grunts with your MA5B, then switch it for a Plasma weapon if you prefer. If you were able to get both Elites early on with the grenades, you probably will still be at full health, hopefully. If you're low, you may want to simply restart the level. Grab some Plasma Grenades as well, and head through the door. There may be a straggler Grunt here, but he should be easy enough to take care of. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as you enter through the next door, you'll see a Major Elite. Quickly hit him with a Plasma Grenade and back up. After he's dead, walk just a tiny bit into the room, and look to the right. You should see another Major Elite that you can try to sneak up on and melee if you wish, but I prefer to just hit him with a Plasma Grenade as well. You should really get familiar with the layout of these rooms, by the way, as you'll be seeing a lot of them. Note the large central room in the middle, and the side paths on either side. There are also ledges above the side paths, which usually have a Grunt or two on them. Anyways, once you've taken care of both Elites, work your way around the room, taking care of the Grunts and/or Jackals however you choose. Usually, I like to stay by the entrance, move in a little bit, then when I see an enemy, fire at them while moving back to the entrance for cover. Doing this also lessens the chance of you getting flanked from behind, as you walk through the room. Once the room is cleared, Cortana will tell you that the Covenant presence is a lot stronger than expected - they seem to have the region secure. Stock up on fresh Plasma Grenades and weapons, then move through the next door into the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the next door, and you'll be outside, with snow falling. Cortana will mention that the weather seems natural, not artificial, indicating that Halo's weather system may be malfunctioning. You'll also hear some Marines, Fire Team Zulu, requesting backup - Cortana will let them know that we're on the way. Anyways, even before they're finished talking, go and smack around the sleeping Grunts, in particular the ones near the Shades. Note that the location and number of Grunts is random, so there might not even be any next to the Shades. Try not to let the Banshee catch sight of you, as it will let other Covenant nearby know of your presence. Run down the stairs ahead and to the left, then look for a Major Elite down below, hopefully with his back turned. If the Banshee had spotted you earlier and fired at you, he'll be ready for you. If he doesn't know you're there, though, stick him with a Plasma Grenade - otherwise, take him out with your Plasma weapon and head back to the top level. Back up to the door that you entered through, then switch to your M6D to take out the Banshee. Duck back into the corridor if your shields get too low, and then put a few more rounds into the Banshee to see it burst into flames. Now, carefully continue along the bridge, taking out a couple of Jackals as well. The Plasma Pistols that the sleeping Grunts had work wonderfully against them. Note that the Jackals will sometimes move to the level below, so keep an eye out for them. Further down the bridge are more Jackals and Grunts - be careful that they're not on the level below you, allowing them to get at you from behind. Backtrack and change levels as necessary, eliminating any enemies as you move forward. Once you're almost all the way across the bridge, you'll see the far door open. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Throw a grenade over the barrier at the door, then start backing up. Several Jackals and a Commander Elite with a Plasma Sword should come running out, and hopefully be killed/damaged by the grenade. Otherwise, use an overcharged shot to take down the Elite's shields, then your M6D to finish him off. Or, you can always stick him with a Plasma Grenade when he runs toward you. Either way, kill any surviving Jackals after the Elite is dead, then go through the door into the next corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Head through the next door and stop, then turn left; don't worry about your right side, as it's blocked off. Snap off a few quick shots against the Grunts in the distance then back into the corridor you came from. Wait for a little bit, and a Stealth Elite should come right into view. Quickly kill him, wait for your shields to recharge, then go back in and finish off the Grunts. Now, pull out your M6D. Make your way around the left side of the room, and look for two Hunters. Your best bet is to close the distance and sidestep them when they charge, putting a bullet into their backs when they do so. As you moved around the left side, you may have noticed two dead Marines, along with some M9 HP-DE grenades, ammunition, and a Med Kit. Hopefully, you haven't lost any health yet, but if you're badly hurt, go ahead and pick it up. Continue making your way around the room until you're almost back to where you entered. To the left, you'll see a small passageway with a blinking light, which you should go through. It leads to a small room with a ramp and another door, so go through it and up the next ramp. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Walk through the door and get on the lift, then hit (X) to descend. At the bottom, head through another door and into the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through yet another door, and you'll spot quite a few sleeping Grunts. Play Whack-a-Grunt with your weapon of choice; you should have no problem melee attacking them all before any wake up. Once you're done, check the left-hand junction for any more Grunts, then head back and go down the right junction. Make sure not to linger in front of the windows looking into the central area of the room, as enemies in there might spot you. Somewhere down the right side of the room, you'll see a Major Elite patrolling. Sneak up on him and melee attack him or stick him with a Plasma Grenade. Doing the first option is a little bit harder, but will allow you to sneak up on even more Grunts, rather than fighting them. Continue making your way around the right side of the room and melee another sleeping Grunt. Take cover and wait for another Grunt to come out of the center section of the room, then hit him from behind as well. Of course, you can always go the direct route and shoot it out with them, as you are probably going to get spotted sooner or later anyway. There are a couple of Jackals in the central area, as well as more Grunts. Back up so that you don't get attacked from several sides at once, then take them out with grenades and weapons fire. Continue making your way around the edge of the room until you get to another door - go through and enter the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, before you go through the next door, I have to warn you that you're in for a pretty tough fight. Not necessarily tough in the sense that you'll die alot, but tough in the sense that the Marines you heard earlier will die alot. Ok, you ready? Run through the door and immediately turn left, until you can see a Shade firing. Quickly shoot out the Grunt as you continue running in that direction, and you should see some Marines, as well as a flipped M12 LRV Warthog. Head straight for the Warthog, taking out and Covenant you may see on the way with grenades, then flip it over with (X) and get in. Definitely make sure that a Marine gets in to man the M41 LAAG, but if noone is able to make it into the passenger seat, don't worry about it too much. The key thing to remember is that you never want to stop moving - if you do, the nearby Ghost, Shade, or Wraith will blow you to bits. Drive in a wide circle, letting your gunner take care of the Ghost, then drive closer to the high ledge with the second Shade, and he should be able to take care of that too. Now, we need to worry about the Wraith. It's atop a frozen pond near the ledge with the Shade - do not, at any cost, drive onto the ice, or you'll skid and pretty much be a sitting duck. For that matter, stay as far away from the Wraith as you can, but still be in close-enough range that your gunner will fire at him. The reason I say to not get too close is because the mortars that it fires are much easier to avoid when you're further away - they have to arc much more, thus giving you more time to dodge out of the way. Once the Wraith blows up, you should focus your attention on more Covenant forces, including an Elite and some Jackals, that head down from the path next to the frozen pond. Simply continue what you've been doing, driving around and letting your gunner do all the work. Try and run over them if you wish, also. Drive down the path that the last group came from, and take out several more Jackals. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, drive all the way back to where the Warthog originally was. Dismount and pick up the S2 AM Sniper Rifle and M19 SSM Rocket Launcher if you wish, as well as the Med Kit if you need it. Now, get back in the Warthog and drive down to where we killed that last bunch of Jackals. Gun it right off the short cliff, aiming for the right side. As soon as you land, you'll see a M808B Scorpion Main Battle Tank! Drive towards it and quickly hop off of the Warthog, before jumping right into the Scorpion. As soon as you do so, locate the group of Covenant and fire with both triggers at the large groups of Covenant. You want to CONSTANTLY be using the machine gun, then firing your main cannon as soon as it recharges. Take out all the nearby troops, and check to make sure that the Sarge (you'll know it's him because he's using an S2 AM Sniper Rifle, instead of a MA5B) is alive. He'll jump aboard the Scorpion as well, but don't get too comfortable. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Two Ghosts soon fly out from the nearby tunnel, but they shouldn't be any problem against your tank. A group of Jackals will also emerge from the same tunnel, so take them out as well. Don't go through it, however - instead take the icy path to the left of the tunnel. There will probably be an Elite and a couple of Grunts here, but once again, troops aren't a problem with the tank. Just make sure they don't hit you with a Plasma Grenade - if they do, revert to your last save. Continue down the path. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Move cautiously forward, until you see a Ghost ride over the hill straight ahead. Take him out with your cannon, then turn to the right. They can be somewhat hard to see, but use your cannon to take out some Jackals running around. Now, move a little bit forward, until you can see a high ledge far to the right. There's a Shade on top of it, so use your cannon to send it flying off the ledge. Now, drive up the hill that the Ghost attacked you from, so that you can get a better angle on the Wraith. Two hits from your main cannon and the Wraith is gone. Far ahead in the distance, you should see what looks to be some large tunnel - on a ledge atop it is another Shade. Keep firing your cannon at it, and you'll eventually see it go flying. Since you have unlimited ammunition, you can really take your time, looking for anything that moves and shelling it. Too bad the Scorpion doesn't have a nice scope, but you can always hop out and use your S2 AM to look for more targets. Anyways, once you're happy with the destruction you've caused, head towards the large tunnel. There's also a Shade, as well as some Elites, to the far left of the tunnel entrance as well, so be careful and take it out as soon as possible. Above the tunnel entrance, near the Shade you knocked off earlier was, is a second Wraith, but it's usually out of view and hard to hit. Just make sure you don't get hit by it - if you do, and it kills your Marines, I would revert to your last save. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As you head towards the large tunnel, keep your eye out for a Banshee that will fly in from above and behind. Quickly take it out with your cannon, then turn back to the tunnel and take out some Hunters emerging from it. Now, drive down to the door, then hop out and walk to the console. Hit (X) to open the door, then get back in your Scorpion and drive on. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ After a little while, you'll come upon a large, wide-open room. Don't drive into it yet, however - you'll see two Elites patrolling right through the door, one walking from left to right, the second walking in the opposite direction. Aim your cannon at the big blocky thing, and just as they both pass in front of it, fire. It'll take a couple shots to get them both, but it should be easy enough. Drive in just far enough that you're on the bump where the door would be. Use your cannon to take out some Covenant far ahead, on the ledge opposite you. Now, look to your right, and you should see a broken bridge. There's a Shade on it, which is probably obscured by the large pipe. Aim just to the right of the pipe, however, and fire your cannon - it should hit close enough that it sends the Shade careening off the bridge into the pit. Move in just a bit further, and take out some Jackals on the left bridge. You really have no need to rush - simply wait and shell anything that moves. Note that there is another Shade in the far left corner across the way, and another in the left corner nearby. When every enemy, including the Hunters across the chasm, have been killed, head across the left bridge. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Jump out and hit (X) at the console to open the next door, then drive through the next corridor. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Rolling Thunder =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Right after the transition into this part of the mission, turn right and you will see several Grunts, a pair of Elites, and a pair of Ghosts. Aim for the large purple box with your cannon, and you should be able to take out several enemies. Finish the rest off with your two guns, then drive down to where the Covenant were and turn left. Now, you'll be looking up a steep, climbing path, littered with boulders. Scattered among the boulders are several groups of Jackals, so stay at the bottom and shell them from long-range. Once they're dead, start driving up the rocky path. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _____________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Reach the transition to the third chasm |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? A little ways up the path, you'll see a Covenant Dropship appear to unload some more troops. Start backing up, as a pair of Ghosts soon fly down the path towards you. Quickly take out the first one with your cannon, then the second one with another cannon shot as you back up. Now, continue further up the path, but not all the way up - there is a large number of Covenant just waiting for you to emerge. Move up until you can barely see a tree to the left of the exit, then shell it. Your Marines will let you know if you get something. Repeat with a shell to a boulder near the right side of the exit, hopefully killing some more Covenant. When it's relatively safe, climb up the rest of the way and exit the tunnel, then pause to look around for any stragglers to kill. Now, head to the right side of the massive rock formation in front of you. In the distance, you'll see a small hill, with a Shade on top of it. Shell it, then continue in that direction. Dug into the rock formation to the left, just before we get to the hill with the Shade, is a door. Head towards it, and wait for the door to open before using a cannon shell to destroy most, if not all, of the Covenant that pour out of it. Kill any stragglers with your machine gun and cannon. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ To the right of the hill that had the Shade, you'll see some dead Marines, along with an M19 SSM and rockets, as well as a Med Kit. Pick up anything you need, then get back into the Scorpion and head on past the hill, just barely. As soon as you're past, you should see a Wraith on a frozen pond. Hopefully, it hasn't noticed you yet, so blast it with two quick shells to destroy it. Back up, as a Ghost should also take you on - as soon as your cannon recharges, take it out. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Continue moving around the rock formation, and you'll see a high ledge with another Shade on top of it. Shell it, then turn to the right. If you went too far out onto the frozen pond that the Wraith was on, a pair of Hunters will emerge from a path behind it. Use your cannon to take them out as well, then move on. You may also have heard the familiar whine of a Banshee engine, so look to the sky and take him out with another cannon shell, making sure to hit him before he fires the Fuel Rod Cannon. You may also encounter a second Ghost. Note that you may be able to avoid triggering some of these enemies by staying very close to the rock formation as you move around. Near the high ledge that had a Shade, look at the rock formation, and you'll see a passageway inside, a little bit above the ground. A couple of Elites may pop out of there, so be wary. If they do show their faces, use a cannon shell to take them out, then move on. Very shortly thereafter, you'll come across a second door leading into the rock formation. Wait for it to open, then use your cannon to destroy the Covenant that come out. If you'd like to, go ahead and enter through the door that they came out of. You'll have to fight two Stealth Elites, however. There is an Active Camouflage inside, but it's pretty useless - we're going to be driving a very obvious tank, after all. Now, head back to the frozen pond that had the Wraith, then drive down the path that the Hunters came from. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Right after the checkpoint, you'll see a large number of red contacts on your motion tracker. Back up slightly, then prepare to use both of your Scorpion's guns to take out the Covenant that come around the right corner. Far ahead is another group of Covenant, including an Elite, near the tree. Shell the area to take care of them as well, then cautiously move around the right corner. A Jackal or two may still remain, as they're a bit smarter than the Grunts and don't rush right in front of your cannon. Once you've emerged from the path, look to the right and destroy the Shade directly across the canyon, and another one far to the left of it, but also on the other side of the canyon. Now, head for the winding path leading down. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, here's a trick you might want to try, especially since the checkpoint is so close. Drive straight off the path, but turn your turret all the way around to face your back as you do so. If you do it right, your Scorpion will not flip over as it goes over, and you'll land right next to, or even on top of, a pair of Hunters! Quickly take them out, then head for the bottom of the path that you would've gone down. If you decide not to do this, simply drive down to the bottom of the path and turn left to destroy the Hunters. By this point, a Covenant Dropship should be inbound, and fire at you as you pass. If it kills the Sarge, revert to your last save and try again. Anyway, the Dropship will unload some troops up above, which will come down the path that we just went down. Pick up additional Marines on your Scorpion, then take out the Covenant with both of your guns. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, SLOWLY drive down the path where the Hunters came from - the Marines don't seem to know how to avoid getting out of the way of a massive 66 ton tank. You'll soon come upon a bunch of vertical pipes, which block the way of your Scorpion, unfortunately - there's no use trying to get it through, so dismount. Note that there's a dead Elite nearby, with an Active Camouflage next to him. You may also want to switch one of your weapons for his Plasma Rifle, just for now. Before you head on into the next area, I have to warn you that there are two Stealth Elites with Plasma Swords, as well Grunts and Jackals. Move through until you can see the tunnel exit, then roll a couple of grenades up the path to hopefully take them out. Finish them off with your Plasma Rifle, then go back and switch it out for the M19 SSM when they're all dead. You may also want to grab an M6D from one of the dead Marines. Now, go through the tunnel and face backwards. Move back until you can see a Shade high above the tunnel you just exited, then take out the Grunt manning it. Now, cautiously move towards the area ahead, and get ready to take out a Major and Minor Elite that come down. Your Marines should provide a lot of help as well. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Cortana will tell the Marines to hold their position, while we take out the guns. Go up the small path that the Elites came down, then take out a large number of Grunts with M6D shots. Or, grab one of the Elite's weapons and use that if you prefer. Move up a little bit to where the Grunts were, then look for a Shade to the left; it's near the far tree next to some boulders. It will probably be out of view, but aim a grenade in between the tree and the boulders and you should send it flying. It's a pretty long throw, so aim really high; you should almost be looking at the bridges far above, if you're standing near the path the Elites came down earlier. Now, pull out your M19 SSM and walk forward. Do so slowly, until you see some red contacts on your motion tracker, then back up a bit. Two Ghosts and a Banshee should start attacking, so quickly take out the Banshee first, as its Fuel Rod Cannon is the most damaging. Use a single rocket for each of the three vehicles, then head all back to the bodies of the Marines and pick up any supplies you need. I like to switch the M6D for the S2 AM, but that's up to you. Once you're ready, head back to where you just fought the Covenant. To the right, you should be able to see a door. Don't get too close to it yet, however. Zoom in with your S2 AM and take out the Grunts manning the two Shades, one on each side of the door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, head closer to the door, and get ready to use grenades and rockets as soon as the door opens, to destroy several Elites that come out. Don't worry about wasting the rockets, as there should still be many more reloads back at the dead bodies. As soon as the Elites area dead, Cortana will tell the Marines to wait for evac, while we continue on. Once again, head all the way back to the bodies to resupply, then run back here and go through the door into the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ At the end of the corridor, you should see a large room, as well as a bunch of sleeping Grunts. Go down the right side first, whacking each Grunt as you go. Once you reach the end, turn around and go down the left side, repeating as before. Keep an eye on the motion tracker, as the red contacts represent one Major and one Minor Elite. It's definitely possible to sneak up on those as well, but be careful to not alert them. Use the nooks on the left side of the room to hide in, then run up and hit them when they exit the center area of the room and turn back around. Once the two Elites are dead, make sure to smack all of the Grunts. There's too many for me to count, but they're all over the place, including the higher ledges, so make sure to explore every nook and cranny. As you make your way around the periphery of the room, you'll come across the door to the next area, to your left. Continue past it and melee some more sleeping Grunts before heading through, however, into the next corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the next door and get on the lift, then hit (X) to activate it. Be careful, however, as there is a Jackal waiting for you at the top. Use two quick melee attacks to cave his skull in, then switch one of your weapons for his Plasma Pistol. Round the corner and quickly melee attack another Jackal twice before he can even react. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Before heading through the next door, you'll probably have noticed quite a large number of red contacts on your motion tracker. Overcharge your Plasma Pistol, then move towards the door until it opens. There'll probably be a Jackal right on the other side, so let loose with the overcharged shot before finishing him with regular shots. Now, back up into the corridor, overcharge again, then walk forward and repeat with a second Jackal. There's a small ramp in the middle of the room with some supplies, but we should save those for later. Just on the other side of the ramp is the path into the next room, and you'll probably be able to see some Jackals scurrying back and forth near the entrance. You want to stay in the room that you are in now, using overcharged shots and following up with normal shots to kill the Jackals. There are also some Grunts up there, but they shouldn't be too much of a problem. Continue staying in this room, popping out to kill an enemy before taking more cover. Once they have been whittled down, go ahead and walk up into the next room to finish them off. There are still some enemies in the central section of the room, however, including a Commander Elite. Move to the left side, and you should be able to see him through the window. When he's not looking, use two quick S2 AM shots into his brain to kill him. Now, move around the right side of the room, but keep an eye on the central area. When you can see the hole that leads into the middle of that big central structure, throw a Plasma Grenade in there. The Grenade should take out an Elite, but you'll notice more red contacts show up on your motion tracker. You may want to run back to that first room with the supplies, so that they don't flank you. Then, cautiously move back up as needed, whittling their numbers down carefully. They often appear on the left side, but you can throw grenades and fire through the small gaps to kill them. Be especially careful of the Elite and the Jackals. Eventually, you'll kill them all, and the music will calm down to let you know. Good job. Go back and pick up any supplies you need, and your S2 AM or M19 SSM, whichever one you switched for the Plasma Pistol. Now, head down the right side of the room all the way until you see the door - go through into the next corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the next door and you'll find yourself on another outdoor bridge again. Walk around and melee all of the Grunts, but try not to get spotted by the Jackals a little ways down the bridge. Switch out one of your weapons, preferably your M19 SSM, for one of the Grunt's Plasma Pistols. Overcharge shots to take down the Jackals' shields, then quickly follow up with normal shots to finish them off. There are three Elites way further down the bridge, but don't worry about them yet. Instead, use overcharged shots to take out the Grunts on the bridge to the right; there should be plenty of fresh Plasma Pistols around for you to use. Once the Grunts on the other bridge have been taken care of, focus your attention on the Elites. None of the nearby Grunts dropped any Needlers, so to save your S2 AM ammunition, use an overcharged Plasma Pistol shot to take down an Elite's shields, then quickly zoom in with your S2 AM and use a single round to take him out. There are three Elites total to do this for. Once the Elites have been taken care of, continue on down the bridge. Pick up more Plasma Pistols to use against more Grunts and Jackals ahead of you, as well as more Grunts on the bridge to the right. If you still have plenty of S2 AM ammunition, feel free to use it, as you can get more in the next room after the bridge. After you have cleared both bridges, slowly and cautiously move towards the door at the end of the bridge. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ When you get close enough, the door will open for some Covenant forces to come out, so be ready to throw grenades over the barrier into the doorway. The group consists of two Stealth Elites and several Grunts, so hopefully you'll be able to get at least one of the Elites with the first grenade. Back up, then move forward cautiously, taking out the Grunts if they come around the corner. Make sure not to let the surviving Stealth Elite get around you, then quickly kill him as soon as you see him. When it's clear, head through the door and into the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Move into the next room slowly. There are four Elites patrolling the sides of the room, and it is quite possible to sneak up on each of them for a quick kill from behind. Just make sure not to rush it, taking cover as necessary. I usually turn right after going through the door and taking care of that one first, then running around to the left side of the room to get the next. Head further down the left side of the room to get the third Major Elite. Finally, there is a Minor Elite left, but he's usually running, so it's harder to sneak up on him. Pick up one of the Elite's Plasma Rifles, then quickly unload on the Minor Elite before he knows you're there. Now that all the Elites are dead, feel free to pick up some supplies from the dead Marine. Hopefully you don't need the Med Kit, but there's ammo for your S2 AM. There's also some rockets, but I'd recommend grabbing a M6D instead of it, as well as a Plasma Rifle. After the next room, we can always come back here to restock and/or switch weapons. Head into the next corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ A large number of Jackals and Grunts will start pouring in from the sides of the long hallway. Back up into the last room and turn the corner to avoid any damage, then pop out to quickly kill a few Covenant before ducking back into the last room. Repeat several times until at least all of the Grunts are dead. You may need to use your M6D or S2 AM to take care of the distance Jackals. Once the hallway is clear, move to the end and turn right to look into the next room. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You may see a Major Elite or two patrolling nearby, right near the entrance. As best you can, sneak up and melee them to make clearing this room easier. Don't be in a rush to do so; take your time and wait for them to pass, and don't try to melee them when they're in the center area of the room, as you may be spotted by some Jackals at the far end. Continue down the right and left sides of the room to smack some sleeping Grunts on both sides, making sure not to be spotted by the Jackals. Go down one side, and when you can see the glow of the energy shields, walk all the way back around the other way. When the Grunts have been taken care of, go all the way back to where you entered the room. Carefully peek into the center area, and you should see a ramp leading up. You may want to switch one of your weapons for a Plasma Rifle first, and then when no Jackals are in sight, quickly run up to the ramp. Do not go all the way up, however - you should be able to see two Major Elites, so quickly stick at least one, or both if you can, with Plasma Grenades. As soon as the grenades stick, run back down to the entrance. If there are any surviving Elites, you may want to grab a Needler to easily take care of them. Use Plasma Pistols to take care of the Jackals and Grunts, and then when the room is clear, head back through the long hallway and into the previous room to restock on supplies, then back to this room. Before going through the door to the next area, you may want to switch your M19 SSM for a Plasma Rifle, for a little more versatility. We can come back here later to grab it again if we need it anyway. Head through the door into the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the next door and you'll find yourself on a bridge again. Quickly move to the left, then look to the right at the adjacent bridge. You'll see two Hunters running around on it, so zoom in with your S2 AM and try to quickly take both of them out. By this point, a large group of Covenant will close in on your position, so throw a grenade at them to hopefully kill the Major Elite then run back to the door. Take cover here, popping out for short periods of time to whittle their numbers down. Once you've taken care of this last group and the Hunters, move further down the bridge and you'll encounter a single Minor Elite - take him out with a single S2 AM round to the head. Continue moving along the bridge slowly, until you get to where the Minor Elite was. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Two Major Elites and several Grunts should now appear. Back up as far as you can, then zoom in with your S2 AM and use two headshots for each of the Major Elites - they'll try to take cover, but you can almost always see a little part of them sticking out. Switch to your Plasma Rifle to take care of the Grunts, then continue on. The far door should now open, and a pair of Stealth Elites should come out. Throw a grenade over the barrier as soon as the door opens, then back up. If you don't see them come after you, move back towards the door slowly. Before attacking, a hiding Stealth Elite will make noise, at which point you should quickly locate him and fire. Once the Covenant are all dead, run all the way back and pick up your M19 SSM, then head back to the bridge and through the far door into the next corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As you come in, there will probably be a small group of Jackals to the left; wait until they move out of view, then go along the right side of the room, caving in the skulls of the Grunts as you do so. Switch out your M19 SSM for a Plasma Pistol as soon as you can, then continue clubbing them. Watch out for Jackals that are walking in the opposite direction as you, however - take cover and wait for them to pass, then club them as well. If you get spotted, you may want to run back to the entrance just in case, then take the enemies out from there. Remember, overcharged shots to take down a Jackal's shield, then normal shots to finish him off. Work your way around the room until all of the Covenant are dead, then pick up your M19 SSM and head through the small passageway with the blinking lights into the room with the ramp in the middle. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Turn so that you're facing right, then sidestep left until you're looking down a long hallway. There are four Stealth Elites in this room, two with Plasma Swords, two with Plasma Rifles. As soon as you sidestep into view, launch a rocket right at the feet of the one with the sword, hopefully killing a few of them with one shot. You should be able to get the first three looking straight down the hallway. The last one, armed with a Plasma Rifle, is usually in the darkened area to the left, at the end. Try and throw a grenade down there, and switch one of your weapons for a Plasma Rifle to take him out. There is also an Active Camouflage in the dark area to the left, but don't pick it up yet; head on to the end of the hallway. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the room with the small ramp and you'll come to another large room, of which the layout should be pretty familiar by now. Instead of large numbers of Grunts and Jackals, however, there are just two Hunters, however. They are usually in the central area, so try and snipe them through the windows if you can. Otherwise, get up and close and sidestep them, before putting a single round into their weak spot. Once they're dead, go into the central area of the room and stock up on supplies that you might need. You may want to switch your weapons out for an MA5B and M6D. When you're ready, continue down the room until you get to the door. Arm your M9 HP-DE grenades, and throw one in as soon as it opens, then follow up with your MA5B to kill any survivors. After the first group of Jackals, several Grunts will also appear, but shouldn't be any problem. When Cortana tells you that we must be close to the control center, go back and grab your M19 SSM and S2 AM again, as well as the Med Kit, then run all the way back to where the Active Camouflage was. Before you do, however, remember the shortest route through this room. When you're ready, grab the Active Camouflage and run as fast as you can to the room that had the Hunters, turn right, then take the first left, into the central area. Run straight across the central area and you should see the exit to the next corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = If I Had a Super Weapon... =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= You'll see the game transition into the next part of the level, but don't stop. Keep running as fast as you can, exiting through the door into the outdoors. Don't shoot at the Elites, but go ahead and stick them with Plasma Grenades as you run by, if you really want to. Your goal right now is to reach the Banshee ahead, as it will make the next part of the mission MUCH easier if you get to it, before the other Elite does. As soon as you reach it, hit (X) to climb in, then start moving immediately, before the Covenant on the ground can do too much damage. You may have noticed another Banshee in the air as you were making your way to yours - try to get on its tail and knock it out of the sky as soon as you can. After you destroy it, fly straight up as high as you can, preferably directly above the snow bridge. Now, point you Banshee so that it is pointing right at the bridge, but pull backwards on your stick, so that you are just "hovering" there. Now, use a combination of your Plasma and Fuel Rod Cannons to destroy the Covenant on the bridge, and even the Wraith far below. Note that the Wraith is very durable and can take quite a few direct hits from the Fuel Rod Cannon. Just watch the green explosion to make sure that it is actually hitting him. There are also several Elites on the ground, though they may make a run for a Ghost. Destroy them as well, while hovering. If you were listening to what Cortana said as you ran to get into the Banshee, you'll have learned that the control room is at the top of the pyramid here. Since you're in the Banshee, you can just fly up there. Of course, you could fight your way up there if you didn't get it, or if you just want to, but I'll assume that you want to avoid extra battles if they're unnecessary. Anyways, land on the top level of the pyramid (you'll be able to see a large door). +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Park your Banshee so that it is facing away from the structure, because you'll want to make a quick getaway in second. Walk up to the console to the right of the large door, then hit (X) to activate it. As soon as you do so, run into your Banshee and take off, because a tough group of Covenant, including a Commander Elite, are just on the other side of the door. Take off then fly a little distance away from the pyramid, then circle back. Hover and try to take out the Commander Elite with a couple of Fuel Rod Cannon shots, then the grunts as well. There are also two Elites way in the back of the tunnel, so try to use your Banshee to take them out as well too, but you will most likely have to do it on foot. Whip out your S2 AM and quickly take them down (if you need more ammunition, there's a small ramp leading up to a tower with some). When the area is clear, walk up to the far console in the tunnel and hit (X) to activate it. Cortana will say that she detects no Covenant, so walk through to the next console and activate that one as well __________ -=| Cutscene |=- ??|???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????\ | You've found Halo's control center! The Master Chief walks across a | | long ramp to a holographic console and plugs Cortana in. Cortana | | discovers that there is a ton of information - this ring was built by | | the Forerunners, in order to...uh oh. The Covenant found something | | horrible in this ring, and the weapons cache that Captain Keyes was | | looking for is not what it seems. We need to find him before it's | | too late! Foehammer drops you off in the middle of a swamp, in which | | Grunts seem to be running away from something, but nevermind that; we | | need to worry about finding Keyes first and foremost. | |_______________________________________________________________________| =============================================================================== = Level 6: 343 Guilty Spark kw-343 =============================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Well Enough Alone =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Locate Captain Keyes |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????? Foehammer will lift off, letting you know that you should contact her for extraction when you're ready. Check out your surroundings if you wish, then orient yourself so that your MA5B's compass is pointing to the right/down and head in that direction. There's some ammunition near the crashed Pelican, which you might want to grab. After a little while, you will see a small explosion to the right, and a Grunt should go flying. Three Grunts should then come from that direction, so quickly take them out. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You may wish to switch your MA5B for one of their Plasma Pistols, but that's up to you. Continue moving forward, and you'll see a crashed Covenant Dropship to the left, as well as another Grunt and Jackal. Turn left past the Dropship and take out several more Jackals hiding behind the rocks. As always, use your overcharged shots to take out their shield, then finish them off with regular shots or your M6D. Continue on up the hill when they're dead, and you'll see a large tree. Jump up on it, then walk along it. To the right, you should see a large pipe; keep that in mind, as there is an Active Camouflage near it (in the bushes), which we will be saving for later. Continue walking down the branch, heading for the Shade in front of you. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Hurry and get in it, then immediately start firing down the hill slightly to the right. In the distance, you should see Grunts and Jackals running from right to left, and a Shade down there soon be destroyed. There are yellow blips on your motion tracker, so it must be fellow Marines, right? Take out as many of the Covenant as you can from the Shade, but eventually, you will probably have to get out to avoid taking damage. Just simply move down the hill right behind the Shade, wait until your shields recharge, then get right back in and take out some more. Keep in mind that some Covenant also come down the hill from the left. An alternate strategy would be to run back and grab the Active Camouflage, then head back here to melee them from behind. Repeat until they're all dead, then head down where they came from, beneath the large spotlights up above. If you did the above right, you shouldn't be hurt at all, but if you are, go back to the Pelican from the start; there are three Med Kits there. Head into the large structure, and you should see a lift come up for you. Where are your Marines, anyway? +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Get onto the lift and hit (X) near the console to activate it. On your way down, keep an eye on your motion tracker. When you see a large number of red blips appear, turn and face in that direction. As the lift reaches the bottom, you should see a structure with stationary energy shields on either side. Arm your M9 HP-DE grenades, then quickly move to one side and chuck one in. The grenade should take out most of the Covenant in there, and your Plasma Pistol will take care of the rest. Go through the door and use another grenade to take out several Jackals at a time, then mop up the rest with your Plasma Pistol. You'll be on a high ledge, looking down. There is another large group of Jackals and Grunts below and to the right, so throw another grenade down there. Use overcharged Plasma Pistols to take out the survivors, since there are plenty of spares around you. Keep ducking out and firing, then moving back into cover. Pick up a fresh Plasma Pistol and repeat until they are all dead. When it's clear, jump down and grab another fresh weapon. There are some dead Marines and a Med Kit in the far left corner, but save them for later. For now, move into the door near where the last group of Covenant was. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ This next room is a cramped, square-shaped room with three doors. Only one, with the green lights, is unlocked, so go through that one. To the left, near the next door, is a group of five Jackals. Throw a grenade over there, then used overcharged shots followed by normal ones to finish off the rest. If you need a fresh Plasma Pistol, you can always run back a couple of rooms. When the Jackals are dead, go through the door that they were standing near. It's another square room, literally smeared with blue Covenant blood...go to the right and look over the barrier, and you'll see a small room filled with more dead Covenant. When you're done looking, move on through the unlocked door. You'll be in a large room with stationary energy shields and a couple of Shades. In the trench running down the middle of the room is more blue blood, as well as a whole bunch of Needlers and needle clips - don't pick one up quite yet, though. Right next to the Needlers is a purple box, which you should jump on to. Then, jump onto the ledge with the door and go through. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go around the square room into the next larger room, and you'll meet a Marine who has apparently gone crazy. While screaming "you're not going to turn me into one of those things," he'll even fire at you! If you've been reading my walkthrough, you know I like to keep the Marines alive as much as possible. Make an exception with this guy and smack him with your Plasma Pistol - if it makes you feel better, you can pretend you just laid him down for a short nap. Make sure to pick up his M6D ammunition, then have a look around the room. Looks like more Covenant were killed here, as blue blood is everywhere, even on the ceiling. If you want to, you can switch your Plasma Pistol for a 100% charged Plasma Rifle, but it's not necessary, because we're not going to be keeping it long anyway. Make your way to the flames in the back left corner, then jump on the debris and onto the ramp. At the top, go to the right and enter the door. Make your way through another square-shaped room and you'll find yourself in the room that you were in earlier, with the Shades and stationary energy shields. Move forward and you'll see a console to the left; hit (X) to activate the energy bridge, then cross it. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Right in front of the next door is an MA5B, which you should exchange whatever Plasma weapon you're using for. You don't have much ammunition for it, but make sure to reload it anyway. Go through the door and turn left. You'll see a dead Marine, along with some ammunition and two Med Kits. You should be at full health still, so just get the ammo. Continue down the ramp and turn left at the bottom to see another unlocked door, which you should head toward. __________ -=| Cutscene |=- ??|???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????\ | Is it me or are things WAY too quiet? The last few rooms have been | | covered with blood, but no living Marines or Covenant are around. | | The Master Chief opens the door, only to have a dead Marine fall in | | his arms. Pulling out Private Jenkins' helmet video, you watch it. | | At first, everything looks normal...fast forward a little bit, and | | you'll see Jenkins, Keyes, et al. enter the structure. Fast forward | | some more, and it looks like an Elite has been brutalized. A little | | bit later, the Marines are entering the very same door you just went | | through, and it looks deserted - but it's NOT. Suddenly, scurrying | | noises can be heard, and countless tentacled life-forms make their | | way into the room, literally drowning the Marines in their bodies. | |_______________________________________________________________________| =-=-=-=-=-=-= = The Flood =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now that was pretty creepy. Go ahead and pause the game, so that you can change your pants - I'll still be here. Ok, ready? First, walk over to the left and fill up on ammunition; you will definitely need it. Then, head to the far door and wait: a large swarm of Infection Forms, the Flood you saw attacking the Marines, will soon make their way out. The important thing is to not panic. To be honest, these guys are pretty harmless, except when they are accompanied by lots of other Flood. You can simply not even fire a single shot, instead moving constantly and melee attacking them to death. Use very short bursts of your MA5B to kill them. You don't need sustained fire as each exploding Infection Form will take a few of his buddies with him. Turn around when most of them have been taken care of (so that you're facing the door that you came in), and more Flood will come in from a door to the left. After most of those have been killed, another swarm enters from a door on the opposite side, across from the last group. Finally, a swarm will come from the door that you entered from. This last group doesn't only consist of Infection Forms, however, but Combat Forms at all. Go ahead and unload on these guys, making sure they don't get back up to haunt you again. One thing that really helps in this large room is to constantly move. Run in a huge circle around the room, then turning to face the Combat Forms and firing as you back up. Repeat until all of them are dead. Hopefully, you don't need it, but in one of the small side rooms (on the left side if you had first come into this room) there is a Med Kit. Cautiously move out the door you entered from. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _____________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Escape! |--+ ????????????????????????????? As soon as you've stepped out of the room, you'll see your mission objective change and some red contacts appear on your motion tracker. Check both the left and right ramps to make sure no Flood are there. Now, you do NOT want to fight them while surrounded, so try to do something to catch their attention, like firing a few rounds up the ramp. Back up into the room that we were just in, then wait for them to come down. Fire them as they appear in the doorway, hopefully taking them out one at a time. You may have to just run all the way up for them to spot you, however, before you run back down to the doorway. After they are all dead (there are about four Combat Forms and some Infection Forms), grab more ammunition and a Med Kit if you need it. Go back up and enter the room that had the Shades and light bridge. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ In this room, a large number of Covenant and Flood will be battling on the floor below. Let them do so, hopefully eliminating each other in the process. Make your way around the right side of the upper level, then enter the door. Move through the square room and another door. In this room, there are a ton of Combat Forms down below. Fire a few shots to get their attention, then quickly run back into the square-shaped room, putting your back against one of the corners facing the door. As the Combat Forms come in after you, use grenades and your MA5B to take them all out. Again, make sure that they don't wake up and smack you. You might have to pop out a few times to get the attention of any others on the floor below, before moving back into the square room. Once it's safe, drop down a level and go through the door directly beneath the one you just entered the room from. Go through the square-shaped room, and you'll see the door leading into the room where the Covenant and Flood were battling. As with the previous room, fire a few shots to grab their attention, then back into a corner to take them out one at a time. If there are a lot coming in, however, feel free to use a grenade, being careful not to get caught in the blast yourself. Now, go back to the large room that you dropped down a level earlier, then turn right and go through the door into another square-shaped room. Poke your head in through the next door, and another Covenant-Flood battle should take place. You definitely want to wait and let them kill as much of each other as they can. If the Flood win, repeat as you did before, popping out to get their attention, then backing up to form a chokepoint. When it's safe, go to the far right corner, picking up the Med Kit if you need it. Then, jump up on the nearby purple boxes and then onto the upper level. There may be some surviving Covenant hiding up here, so finish them off if you find that to be the case. Go through the door where the Covenant were and turn left, and you'll find some much needed ammunition, as well as a pair of Med Kits. Continue through the unlocked door, and you'll be in an empty room with some type of electrical device. Move past it to another door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Finally, another checkpoint! I was starting to get worried. Anyway, enter through the door, then move to either side. It's dark, but there are a couple of Combat Forms in here. Fire a shot to get their attention, then run back into the previous room to take them out. When it's clear, go back and get on the lift, then hit (X) to activate it. As the elevator goes down, you will probably notice lots and lots of blue blood... +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as the lift hits bottom, run and start gunning. You are in for one pretty tough battle, as these Flood are capable of using weapons against you! Some are carrying Needlers, while at least one is carrying an MA5B. Make good use of your grenades and weapons fire to take them all out. In one corner of the room, there is a "stairway" of purple boxes, leading up to an overshield. Go ahead and grab it, then enter the nearby door. You should be pretty used to this by now, but fire a few shots then duck back into the room to kill any Flood that come after you. Repeat until most are dead, but there are also some Combat Forms on the floor below. If you're lucky, they will all just be standing around in a cluster, which is a perfect opportunity to throw a grenade down there. Don't bother trying to cross the energy bridge, as it's not working. I suppose if you timed your jumps right, it might be possible to make it across, however. Anyway, once it's clear, hop down and look around for weapons. Hopefully, you'll find the M90 Shotgun! Head to the door below and to the left of where you came in. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Be careful as you enter the square-shaped room, as there are Combat Forms on both sides. Do something to grab their attention, then back out, before using your new M90 on them when they're up close. Once you've killed them (there are about three), head through and you'll see a larger room with even more Combat Forms. Try to clear as much of them as you can, but there are some above you that are hard to get to. Enter the room, moving around sides of the walls. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Make your way to the far left corner near the flames, then jump up on the purple boxes to grab a Med Kit and some M6D ammo. Carefully sneak around and take out any more Combat Forms near the next door. Go through the door and into another square room, then through another door. This room should be empty unless you missed any enemies before, so just make your way straight across and go through another door. Kill the Infection Forms in the square room and wait for your shields to recharge before proceeding. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Once again, draw attention and back up to take out several more Combat Forms. When the top level is clear, carefully enter and move to one of the near corners, looking down below. Hopefully, the Flood will be clustered together, making for easy kills with a grenade. Drop down and head through the door with the blinking green lights. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Make your way around the square room and peek into the next, larger room. Try to take a Combat Form out with your M6D, then back up and arm your M90 to take out any that come in after you. Repeat until all the ones on the lower floor are dead. Once again, there are some on the upper floor that might be harder to get, but you don't have to really worry about them. Make your way around the left side of the room, jumping across to the platform and then to the other side. Now, go through the door that was directly across the one that you had entered from. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ It's another square-shaped room, and this one has about three Combat Forms. Take them out quickly with your M90, then proceed carefully. In the next room, repeat as you have been, using your M6D to grab their attention and your M90 to kill them when they come after you. Try to clear out the bottom floor, but again, be aware that there are some above as well. When it's relatively safe, enter the room and turn right. You'll see a bloody box with some loot on it. The side closest to you should have a little slope near the top, so run and jump on top of it, grabbing the Med Kit and some much-needed M90 shells. There's also a Needler, but I wouldn't grab it just yet. Don't dawdle too long, however, as there are still the Combat Forms up top, and they may spot you and attack. Move around on the box to where you can see the broken ramp, then jump up on it. Finish off any Flood up here, then head through the unlocked door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the square room and you'll find yourself in a large room with an energy bridge, which is currently off. Take out the nearby Combat Forms with your M90, then the far ones with your M6D. Of course, you can go back and use the Needler for the far ones, but I personally prefer the human pistol. Then, move around the sides until you can see the Combat Forms clustered down below. Use another grenade to finish them off, then when you're ready, go and activate the console by hitting (X). Run a little bit down the bridge until you see red contacts appear on your motion tracker. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Immediately head back to the console and hit (X) again to deactivate the energy bridge. A whole bunch of Combat Forms should come out, but won't be able to get to you, so take them out from long range. Again, use your M6D or go back and get the Needler - now would actually be a very good time to use the latter. Just make sure to go and pick up your M6D again when the area is clear, as well as any M90 shells and the Med Kit if you need it. Then go back to the room with the energy bridge, activate it, then go across and through the door. You will now be at another lift. Go ahead and get on it and hit (X) at the console to ascend. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ While you're riding up, Foehammer will finally be able to contact you again, as she had lost your signal when you descended into the structure. You'll also notice that there are lots of fellow Marines around, finally. There's a pile of M90 shells and two Med Kits, but you probably don't need them, since we just filled up a little while ago. Foehammer will let you know that there is a tower relatively near to your position, and if you make it there, she can pick you up. Head out of the structure and into the swamp. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as you see the red contacts on your motion tracker, head straight for them. I know it's dangerous, but you know me, always wanting to keep the Marines alive as long as possible. Of course, you can wait for their help, but more will die if you do. Simply wade right into the fray, blasting each Combat Form at close range with your M90. If you get lost, simply stop, and the Marines will move ahead in the direction where you want to go. When they stop in a narrow gully, with hills on both sides, don't rush forward yet. Head back and kill Flood approaching from behind. Then, carefully move forward. Eventually, they will ambush you, coming in from several different sides, along with Infection Forms. This is one of the few times that you should actually use your M90 against the Infection Forms, to prevent them from getting to your troops. As best as you can, fight off the Flood and keep the Marines alive if you can, using your fragmentation grenades to kill the Combat Forms approaching from a distance. Look for some blinking red lights on the ground, and head in that direction. Continue forward, holding off the Flood as long as possible. Eventually, you will see some flying robots, the Sentinels, attacking the Flood as well. Help them out, and after a little while, a strange floating robot, 343 Guilty Spark (AKA the Monitor), will then introduce himself and teleport you to the Library, where he will tell you that we need to collect the Index before we can proceed. =============================================================================== = Level 7: The Library kw-lib =============================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = The Library =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _____________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Follow the Monitor to the Index |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Don't you wish the game would just let us keep our weapons from the last level? We no longer have the shotgun, just the M6D and MA5B. Oh well. Follow the Monitor, and you'll come across a large group of Infection Forms. Don't even bother wasting any bullets on them; just melee the ones you can and let the rest burn themselves on your shield. Move forward to where they were (the Monitor will be floating right above the spot), then immediately turn around to the left. You'll see a whole bunch of Infection Forms, as well as the bloated Carrier Form. Use a couple of M6D rounds to blow him up, then turn around and face where the Monitor was, to take out several more that are approaching. Once the Carrier Forms are dead, take care of the Infection Forms with your melee and wait for your shields to recharge. Move forward slightly, toward a pair of box-like objects, with blue lights running up them. There are two vents high above to either side, and when you get close enough, Flood will start pouring out of them. Quickly back up and take out the Carrier Form first, hopefully destroying a few of the Combat Forms with his explosion. Finish off the rest with your MA5B, then scrounge around for some ammunition. Continue on, looking for more Flood in the distance. Zoom in with your scope and take out the Carrier Form, then mop up the rest with your assault rifle. Remember, you can always back up if they're getting too close - there's no shame in retreating. Once again, continue to where the Monitor is waiting, and he'll say that we're near the Index and to follow him. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Don't follow him yet, however, as a large group of Covenant are coming in from the front. Zoom in with your M6D and take out the Carrier Forms, backing up as you do so. Use your MA5B on the Combat Forms, then look around for an M90, as one of these guys usually carries one. Use your flashlight to help in the search, especially if you blew up a Carrier Form and caused bodies to go flying all over the place. Move forward, and you'll spot the Monitor waiting for you slightly to the right. Ignore him for now, keeping an eye on the vents high above. More Flood will come out of these, so once again, use your M6D to take out the Carrier Forms while backing up, then waiting for the surviving Combat Forms to chase after you before blowing them away with the M90 at close-range. I like to hide behind one of the large sloping walls, then blast them as they come around the corner. You may have to move forward several times until all of them are out of the vents and chasing you. Once it's clear, go through the tunnel that 343 Guilty Spark is waiting over. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as you're through the tunnel, you'll notice a large number of Flood on the other side. Get their attention and back into the tunnel, so that they can't get at you from multiple sides. One-by-one, take them out as they come after you. Of course, there IS an exception: don't do this with the Carrier Forms. First of all, when they blow up, they'll scatter all those weapons and ammunition that you're piling up in front of the tunnel. Secondly, in such a cramped space, they can really hurt you! So, either take them out from far away or back up and let them chase you for awhile before killing them. Once the area is clear, move through and towards the door on the left, near the Monitor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the tunnel until you get near the end, then immediately back up. A Combat Form will leap down from above, so put him down with a single M90 shell, then back up as more Combat Forms come. You may even want to back all the way out of the tunnel and then move to one of the sides, blasting them as they exit the tunnel. Restock on ammunition, then run through the tunnel into the next room and then quickly back into the tunnel. Another wave of Flood will appear, including Carrier Forms. If they haven't noticed you, take them out from far away with your M6D. If they enter the tunnel, however, run far back and let them get far away from the ammunition before killing them. You'll have to repeat this process several times, but this is actually good, as you should be pretty much full on grenades and ammunition by the time the waves stop coming. Once it's clear, go through the tunnel and turn right. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Move a little bit forward and you should see some Combat Forms leaping toward you. Duck behind one of the sloped walls, then kill them as they come around the corner. As soon as they have all been taken care of, quickly go and face where they were coming from to take out about four Carrier Forms. Hopefully, you should only have to shoot one, taking out the others when it explodes. After they are dead, zoom in with your M6D, and look for a lone Combat Form standing on one of those slopes that we've been hiding on, far ahead. Kill him with a couple of shots, then move on. To the left of where he was standing is a large door, where the Monitor is waiting. Walk over to it, and he will leave to go open it. After just a little while, he'll return and the door will open, so go through. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ 343 Guilty Spark will then hover over a door to the right. If you're pretty badly hurt, which you really shouldn't be if you're taking advantage of choke- points, turn left and walk to the end to find a Med Kit. You'll encounter tons of Infection Forms, however, so be careful. Otherwise, turn right and move forward slowly. As soon as you see red contacts, back up and try to take out the Carrier Forms with your M6D. Once you've taken care of them, take cover behind a slope and wait for the Combat Forms, before blowing them away with the M90. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, be careful as you move on, because the Flood will try and ambush you from both sides. Move forward until you see red contacts appear, then run as fast as you can to where you were when you turned right, near the large door that the Monitor opened. Take cover and use grenades and your M90 to take out the Combat Forms, and your M6D to take out the Carrier Forms. Try to time it so that you destroy several enemies at once when killing the Carrier Forms. When they've been taken care of, continue on towards the Monitor, near the large T-intersection. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ When you see the contacts appear, back up and once again, take cover behind a sloped wall. You may have to fire a shot or two with your M6D to grab their attention, then wait for them to come. By the way, make sure you try and stay off the glass panels on the floor - they can shatter beneath you due to weapons fire, explosions, etc. Now, move forward to the T-intersection again, and another wave will come. Keep repeating what you've been doing until waves of Flood stop appearing, then head forward and turn left at the intersection. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Just a little ways after you turn left, there is another left turn. Move toward it, then get ready to take out several Combat Forms that leap out. You can always retreat if necessary, of course. Turn left where they leapt out of the vent, then right just beyond that. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ 343 Guilty Spark will disappear into a vent high above in front of you. Head toward it, but be ready to retreat, as a whole bunch of Combat Forms, followed by four Carrier Forms, will leap out of it. If you can, try to take out the Carrier Forms first, but the Combat Forms will be firing at you as well, so you may just have to back around the corner and take the Carrier Forms out after the Combat Forms are dead. When it's safe, move forward and turn right just before the vent. You'll see a Med Kit, so go ahead and grab it if you really need it. Now, you see that pit just a bit past the Med Kit? There are some Combat Forms that will leap out as you approach, so do so carefully and then back out as soon as you see them jump. Also, more Combat Forms will approach from further down the direction you were heading. Take them out as you did before, waiting for them to come around a corner. Now, if you go down the ramp into the pit that they leaped out of, you'll find an overshield; however, I would save it for later. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Continue walking, past the pillars with the blue lights. Do so carefully, as a large group of Flood will now appear from both the right and left sides. Run back quickly, leaping over the pit, then take refuge around the corner of the sloped wall. Wait for the Combat Forms to arrive, then take them out before popping around the corner to snipe the Carrier Forms with your M6D. Refill on ammunition, grab the overshield, then run down to where the Monitor is waiting. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ He'll start talking to you, but more importantly, you'll notice some red blips on your motion tracker. Ignore them for now, however, and turn around and run back. Near the large pillars with the blue lights, you'll see two pairs of Carrier Forms, one on the right, one on the left. Destroy one on each side to hopefully take out both groups. Now, take cover behind a slope and wait for the Combat Forms that appeared far ahead, then blow them away with the M90. Also, there will probably be a couple of Carrier Forms in that group as well. Now, move forward, and once again, you'll have to duck back, as more Flood drop down. Repeat several times until waves of them stop coming, then restock on supplies. The thing about having an overshield is that you can't let Infection Forms hit your shield, because it just wastes your overshield. However, there should be plenty of MA5Bs laying around, so go ahead and pick one up to mop up the Infection Forms. Make sure to pick whatever weapon you dropped for it back up, however. Head down to the end of the hall, look left to make sure there are no stragglers, then turn right. Walk forward cautiously, keeping an eye on the next right turn. As soon as you see some Carrier Forms, pop them with your M6D and mop up the Infection Forms, then turn right where they were. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Turn left and head down the long hall, and you'll see a huge group of Flood come running towards you from the front. Throw an M9 HP-DE to take care of most of them, then take cover. 343 Guilty Spark, accompanied by a host of the Sentinels you spotted earlier, will fly in from the left and mop up the rest. Apparently, he brought them here to supplement your outdated (!) suit. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Get any supplies you need from the dead Flood, then continue on down the hall. Turn left, and you'll see some rings coming down from the ceiling; it's the lift to the next level. You don't have to activate anything - just jump on and move toward the center, and it'll start rising. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Wait, It Gets Worse! =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Step off the elevator and walk through the narrow hallway, looking to the right side. A whole bunch of Carrier Forms will drop out of a vent just past the hallway, so pop one with your M6D and that should start a chain reaction of explosions. Take care of the Infection Forms, then head down the left hallway, where the Monitor went. Continue walking down for a little while, and a few Sentinels will fly in from the left to join you. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Walk all the way down the hall, then turn left, where the Monitor is waiting. He'll have to leave, but no matter. Up ahead are a couple of Carrier Forms, but since they have no offensive capability really, just conserve your ammo and let the Sentinels destroy them and the Infection Forms. Now, you may have noticed more pits like the one that had the overshield. The first one you see has two Med Kits at the bottom, so keep that in mind for later. Of course, go ahead and grab one if you need it, then walk forward past where the Carrier Forms were. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _________________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Hold your position until the Monitor returns |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? As soon as you get the new Mission Objective, turn around and head back to where the pit with Med Kits is. Just wait here for a little while until you hear 343 Guilty Spark's cheerful humming, signifying his return. Of course, you could run forward to the door instead of heading back and waiting, but then you would have had to fight more. I'm assuming you can already handle yourself in combat pretty well, but you'll be fighting plenty more Flood later, so one missed fight isn't a big deal, right? +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _____________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Follow the Monitor to the Index |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Head to the end of the hallway and through the now opened door on the right. There's some fragmentation grenades and a Med Kit just past the door on the right, but for now, head forward and take the first right. You'll see a very large group of Flood rushing your way, so try to zoom in and take out the Carrier Forms and any nearby enemies first, then finish the rest off with your M90. Hopefully, most of the Sentinels will live through the fight. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Refill on ammunition, then make your way to where the Monitor is waiting. Zoom in with your M6D while you're heading that way, however, looking for more Flood to appear. Take out the Carrier Forms first, and you should be able to take out most of the Combat Forms with them. Once again, finish any survivors with the M90, then scrounge around for more ammunition. When you're ready, continue ahead until you get to where the Monitor is waiting for you. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, be VERY careful. One of the Combat Forms you'll encounter next is using an M19 SSM Rocket Launcher, and as tough as your MJOLNIR armor is, you will still die if hit with it. Throw a grenade far ahead, to where 343 Guilty Spark moves and where the Flood arrive. Hopefully, it'll take out most of them, but if not, just run in with your M90, moving constantly. Again, look for more ammunition, then head over to the door on the right, past where the last group of Flood showed up. If you'd like, grab the M19 SSM, but keep in mind that you are probably better off with a more versatile weapon, like your pistol. Of course, it'd be a shame to waste it, so you can always pick it up, use it, then drop it for your original weapon. _________________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Hold your position until the Monitor returns |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? The Monitor and Sentinels will fly off, leaving you alone at the large door. A large number of Infection Forms will drop down from the ceiling, but they shouldn't be a problem. After just a little while, the Monitor returns and opens the door, so head on through. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _____________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Follow the Monitor to the Index |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Once you're through the door, you arrive at another T-intersection. Don't go left, however, but right instead. Walk forward a little bit, and a whole bunch of Combat Forms should appear and start charging you. Use your M19 SSM if you have it, but otherwise, back up and take cover behind the sloped wall, waiting for them to come around and meet your M90. When they're dead, resupply and move on. When you get to the pit with the ramp leading down, turn right and look behind the pillars with the blue lights. There's a Med Kit if you need it. Otherwise, head on down the ramp into the pit. Equip your M6D and move forward cautiously, then take out one of the Carrier Forms ahead. The explosion should take out the other one as well. Deal with the Infection Forms however you wish, then wait for your shields to recharge before moving on. Peek around the first right corner, and you should see more Carrier Forms, so take them out, making sure not to get caught in the explosion yourself. Walk down to the end and take another right, and the exit should be in sight. As you approach the end of the tunnel, pull out your M90. As you get closer to the ramp, a Combat Form should drop right down in front of you. Blow him away with the M90, then back up and turn the corner, as this will alert a very large number of Combat Forms. Throw a grenade down the tunnel if you wish, but you can also just wait for them to come around the corner to die. You may have to keep heading out towards the ramp to attract the attention of more before retreating back, to make sure you get all of them. Also note that there are some Carrier Forms as well, so make sure it's not one of them that you blow as soon as it comes around the corner. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ When it's clear, move up the ramp and to where the Monitor is waiting for you. As soon as you round the corner, more Flood arrive, so run back and hide behind the sloped wall near the ramp, or even go down it and back into the tunnel if you wish. After the first wave, which includes a pair each of Carrier and Combat Forms, is dead, round the corner again to trigger the next one. Repeat as you did with the first one until the waves of Flood stop showing up. Make sure to resupply when done, then head down the left corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Make another left turn, then carefully peek around the right corner. You will see a Combat Form in this distance, and this one is also carrying an M19 SSM. There are also a bunch of Carrier Forms, so take those out first, in hopes of killing the one with the rockets. He'll most likely be still alive, however, and unfortunately, he knows to keep his distance instead of chasing after you. So, I like to just peek around the corner using the scope of the M6D, fire off a few quick shots, then duck back behind the corner if I see him fire a rocket. Keep in mind that he sometimes WILL chase after you and fire a rocket at point blank range, however. Pick up the M19 SSM if you wish, but again, it's not something you want to be carrying around the whole level. Head down to where he was and turn right. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ A whole bunch of Combat Forms will then leap into view, so use your M19 SSM if you picked it up, or duck back behind the corner if you didn't. Either way, make sure to kill all of them, including the one on the sloped wall ahead. Resupply, then continue on past the pit, and 343 Guilty Spark should fly back in and talk to you. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Follow him carefully, but be ready to turn back and find cover. A whole bunch of Carrier Forms should come out of a nearby vent, as well as Combat Forms up ahead. Take out the Carrier Forms first, then wait for the Combat Forms to come around the corner before killing them. Again, you'll have to repeat this for several waves, moving past the pit to trigger the next each time. Once they stop coming, continue forward past the pillars to where the Monitor is waiting. He'll then fly forward and to the right, so carefully head in that direction as well. As soon as you reach the right turn, a whole bunch of Carrier Forms will appear, so retreat further back and take them out from a distance. When they're dead, move forward, take the right turn, and then another right. The Monitor will then fly off to the left, so follow him. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ After a little while, more Flood appear, but you shouldn't be surprised. Once again, retreat and take out Carrier Forms from a distance, Combat Forms as they round the corner. More waves will come, however, so you may wish to just run and quickly turn left into the lift area and climb aboard to have it take you to the next level. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = But I Don't Want to Ride the Elevator! =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Get off the lift, move through the narrow hallway, then turn left. Turn left again, and you'll meet up with 343 Guilty Spark and some more Sentinels. Keep following him, and you'll encounter a group of Combat Forms. A coupe of them are standing on the sloped wall, so watch out for them. Once they're all dead, hop up onto the slope that the two Combat Forms were on and grab some M6D ammo. There's also a Med Kit up here if you need it as well. Once you're ready, continue on past the pit and the slope that they were on, then turn left. It's a dead end, but there should be a dead Combat Form there, along with an M19 SSM Rocket Launcher. Go ahead and pick it up if you want, then head down the ramp into the pit. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Head to the end and peek around the right corner, before zooming in and firing a M6D round at a Combat Form. Back around the corner and wait for the five of them to chase after you, then kill them with the M90. One or two of them will probably be carrying shotguns as well, so refill on ammunition on continue on. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Keep heading toward where the Combat Forms were, and a whole bunch of Infection Forms will soon appear. Just melee as many of them as you can, letting the rest kill themselves against your shield, then head on after your shield is recharged. Peek around the next right turn, and you'll see a couple of Carrier Forms. Pop them, mop up the Infection Forms, then carefully head toward the end of the tunnel. Up top, you'll see a bunch of Sentinels battling the Flood, so go ahead and join them. The Flood will keep coming out of the vents for awhile, however, so if the Sentinels are destroyed and things get a little too hairy, feel free to retreat back into the tunnel, to take the Flood out one at a time. Keep in mind that plasma weapons hurt the Sentinels more than human weapons, so focus on Combat Forms carrying those if you want to try and keep them alive. Even before you focus on them, however, take out the Carrier Forms in order to hopefully catch a few Combat Forms in the explosion. If you saved the Med Kit on the sloped wall from before, remember to go back and get it if you need it. Once the area is secure, walk past the large pillars with the blue lighting. Turn right and keep walking, and you should see the Monitor fly into a vent above and ahead of you. Take the next right, and you'll see another large door and get a new mission objective. _________________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Hold your position until the Monitor returns |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Only we're not going to listen to it. "Hold" your position, and you'll most likely take a ton of damage, so instead, run back the direction you came from, and take cover behind a sloped wall. Kill the Combat and Carrier Forms that come after you, then wait. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, you have a couple of options. You can run back to where the large door was, or you can stay here and wait for awhile. If you do the first, you'll have to fight. If you choose the latter, you'll have to sit there for awhile until the Monitor returns and opens the door. Whatever you decide, go through the door when 343 Guilty Spark opens it, grabbing the nearby Med Kit (to the right before entering the door) if you need to. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _____________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Follow the Monitor to the Index |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????? As soon as you go through, you'll see a whole bunch of red contacts appear on your motion tracker, to the left. They'll be charging toward your position, and one of the first ones to arrive will be carrying an M19 SSM, so take him out first. Once the rest of them are dead, continue on to where the Monitor is waiting. Of course, you can go ahead and pick up the rocket launcher, but just remember where your M6D is for later. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Use the M19 SSM on the large group of Combat Forms that appear ahead, or back up and take cover behind a wall if you didn't grab it. Repeat as usual, then resupply and head back to where they came from. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You'll see several Combat Forms leap onto a block ahead of you. Back up, and use your M6D or M19 SSM (if you have it) to quickly take out one of them from a distance. Preferably, you want to kill the one that isn't using the shotgun, as it doesn't do much damage from a distance anyway. Once you kill the first one, back behind a corner and kill the Combat and Infection Forms that come after you. After they're dead, peek around the corner and finish off the other Combat Form on the block. When it's safe, move past the blocks and turn left, where you'll see another large door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ A little past the door, underneath the vent ahead, is a Med Kit and some M9 HP- DE grenades if you need them. Turn right and head toward the pit on the ground ahead. Once you get close enough, a whole bunch of Combat Forms leap out, so quickly move to the right, behind the sloped wall, and take them out with your M90. Peek around the sloped wall, and you'll see one remaining Combat Form, standing on the next sloped wall over. Zoom in and take him out with the M6D. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Continue on past the pit and turn left at the intersection. Once again, a whole bunch of Flood will come pouring out of the vents, so retreat and take cover behind a sloped wall to kill them safely. You'll have to repeat this several times, but each wave only consists of two Combat Forms, so it should be pretty easy. Keep walking down the corridor, and look around the next left turn. There may be some Carrier Forms, so shoot them with your M6D. Move past where they were and then turn right. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Take the next right, and you'll see 343 Guilty Spark waiting for you again. Walk past the pit and through the partially-opened door. Now, as soon as you go in, take a look at the sloped wall just past it and to the right. Keep it in mind, as it'll provide some very valuable cover to you later. Ahead and to the left are two pillars with blue lighting; behind them is a pair of Med Kits, so go ahead and grab one if you need it. Ok, now that you're aware of your surroundings, look to see that the Monitor is waiting at another door. Head over to where he is, and he'll fly away to open the door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _________________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Hold your position until the Monitor returns |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Now, you have two options: one, you can hold your ground and fight like a man. Or two, you can run and hide like a SMART man. If you decide to take the first route, just make sure move constantly, blasting each Combat Form at point-blank range with your M90. Make use of your fragmentation grenades as well, and pick up any of the three Med Kits when you need it. There will be several waves, so just try and stay alive until 343 Guilty Spark gets the door open. If you decide to take the second route, immediately run back and take cover behind that slope I pointed out, noting that there is another Med Kit to the left when you're heading that way. You will also notice that the partially- opened door that you went through to enter this room is now closing. Wait behind the sloped wall, even though you will see a lot of red contacts on your motion tracker. If you were quick enough, they will not have spotted you! A couple minutes later, 343 Guilty Spark will return and open the door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _____________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Follow the Monitor to the Index |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Head through the newly-opened door, blasting the Combat Forms with your M90 or even throwing a grenade or two. Sentinels will also be present to help in the fight, so it should be relatively simple. Make sure to check the dead Flood for supplies; go ahead and pick up the M19 SSM if you wish. Walk over to the intersection and turn right. Shortly thereafter, a whole bunch of Combat Forms should appear, but the Sentinels should have their attention. Fire a rocket or two into the crowd, and mop up any survivors with your M90, before going back and picking up the M6D again. Head back down the hall and take another right. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as you turn right, make a quick left. A bunch of Carrier Forms will drop down, but just ignore them and let the Sentinels take care of them, while you run past. Make another left through the narrow hallway onto the lift, and it will automatically start rising to the next level. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Fourth Floor: Tools, Guns, Keys to Super Weapons =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Step off the lift and go through the narrow corridor carefully. Peek around the left corner and put a couple of rounds into the Carrier Forms, or let the Sentinels take care of them. There's also a Med Kit right in front of where you exited the hallway. When you're ready, turn right and take out a few more Carrier Forms in the distance. Take the next right turn, then immediately run back behind cover when you see the Flood drop out of the vents. Once again, there are several waves, so keep running out after each wave to trigger the next, before ducking back behind the sloped wall. Keep doing this, and you won't have any trouble with this fight. When they eventually stop appearing, stock up on ammunition and head down the corridor to the left, and then another left. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You'll see a pit right in front of you, so head down the ramp into it. Turn left at the corner, and you'll see a whole mess of Infection and Carrier Forms. Try to pop one of the Carrier Forms with your M6D to hopefully get all of them, then finish off the surviving Infection Forms however you choose. Continue down to where they were, then turn left. There may be a few Carrier Forms down this way as well, so be careful. After your shields regenerate, cautiously head toward the exit. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, you should know what to expect when you're leaving the tunnel. However, this battle is slightly different than the previous times we did it, because Flood will also appear from behind you, in the tunnel. This new group includes Carrier Forms, so if you get too close, the explosion will severely hurt you. So, you can either run back down into the tunnel and try to take out the Carrier Forms from a distance, or you can exit the tunnel and stay up there to fight. I think it's easier to do the latter: run up the ramp and immediately turn right. Run to the other side of the sloped wall and wait there for the Flood to move around the corner. Eventually, they should all be dead, and 343 Guilty Spark will open the nearby door - head through. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You'll come across another pit, and this one has a Med Kit if you need it. Otherwise, continue past it and turn left at the intersection. Head to the next left turn, then as soon as you see red contacts on your motion tracker, run all the way back to where you came from. A whole bunch of Carrier Forms will have dropped down, and doing this prevents them from surrounding you. Take them out from a distance with your M6D, then head on and make the left turn and then a quick right. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Take another right turn, and the Monitor will fly out of a high vent. At the same time, a bunch of Flood will show up, so back up and wait around the corner for them to come to you. Of course, there are some Carrier Forms in this group as well, so make sure it's not one of those that you shoot as soon as it comes around the corner. When it's safe, move around the right turn and go behind the pillars to the left of the ramp/pit. There's a Med Kit and an M19 SSM that might come in handy. Head toward the door on the left, where the Monitor is waiting. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ This is it, the last battle of the level. The door will open only partially at first, so only a few Combat Forms can get through at a time - thus, use your M90 to take them out. Watch out for a Carrier Form that is hiding near the vent behind you as well. When the door opens all the way, however, use your M19 SSM and start retreating. Go ahead and start moving all the way back to where the Med Kit and the rocket launcher was, even, firing your rockets when you see that the Combat Forms are bunched up. Use grenades as well. After you're out of rockets, switch to your M90 to finish off the survivors, and trade the empty M19 SSM for your M6D. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Head back toward the door, but don't go through yet. There are two sloped walls past the door and to either side, the left one with a single Combat Form, the right with two. Zoom in and take them out with your M6D, then head into the room. A wave of Flood should come out, so back up and take refuge behind a corner, waiting for them to show their faces. Once again, we'll have to repeat this many times until the waves stop coming, but you shouldn't have a problem. When they finally stop coming, you'll get a new mission objective: _______________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Recover the Index |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????? Move toward the large blue beam coming out of the ceiling and watch your well- deserved cutscene. __________ -=| Cutscene |=- ??|???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????\ | The large lift descends, and the Master Chief retrieves the Index. | | Almost immediately, however, 343 takes it, as protocol requires that | | he take control of it. The Flood must not get it, and are spreading, | | so we need to hurry. Back in Halo's Control Room, 343 gives you the | | Index, as it is your job (as the "Reclaimer" to reunify it with the | | core. You do so, but Halo isn't activated. Cortana pops out of the | | core and knocks 343 Guilty Spark to the ground, as he is supposedly | | trying to "slit out throats." Taking possession of the Index, she | | explains that Halo doesn't kill the Flood, but rather, their food. | | In other words, it tries to wipe the galaxy clean of all sentient | | life. The Monitor then hints of other similar structures, and starts | | to take on a threatening tone. Sentinels then fly in, and it looks | | like you're going to have to fight your way out of here. | |_______________________________________________________________________| =============================================================================== = Level 8: Two Betrayals kw-bet =============================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = The Gun Pointed at the Head of the Universe =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= As soon as you regain control, immediately start moving, or the Sentinels will slice and dice you into bits and pieces with their lasers. Take cover behind one of the glass-like barriers, then duck out and fire an overcharged shot at each Sentinel. You don't even have to aim all that accurately, as the homing shots easily track the Sentinels and destroy them with one hit. When they're all dead, Cortana tells you that we have to stop 343 Guilty Spark from activating Halo - we need to destroy it by triggering a large explosion, such as the destruction of the Pillar of Autumn's fusion reactors. Make your way to the large door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Hit (X) to activate the console and open the door, then run in. This battle can be very, very tough. There are about four Sentinels, as well as two Elites and several Grunts and Jackals. Armed with their plasma weaponry, it's pretty obvious which side is going to win. As I said earlier when we first saw the Covenant battling the Flood, however, you want to focus your attention on the side that is winning. Look at it this way - without your help, the Covenant will absolutely decimate the Sentinels, leaving you with a very tough fight against them. However, if you take out many of the Covenant, you will be left with a less tougher fight, as the two groups will do a better job of wiping each other out, rather than it being a one-sided affair. So, throw an M9 HP-DE grenade at the group of Grunts running forward. Hope that you can take out most of them that way, then use overcharged Plasma Pistol shots to take down the shields of the Elites. The Sentinels should then be able to kill them easily, and as soon as they do so, pick them off with more overcharged shots. If either of the two Elites happens to survive, rush him and take him out with your M90. Your Plasma Pistol is probably pretty low on charge by now, so pick up a fresh one and head to the end of the tunnel. Hit (X) near the console to open the door, then walk on through. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Move to the next console and hit (X) to activate the next door. Immediately start backpedaling, and once the door is open, toss a few grenades to take out some Grunts and Jackals. Use overcharged shots against the Jackals that are still surviving, remembering that we can always run back to the site of the first battle if we need a new Plasma Pistol. There are still two Elites we need to worry about, however. You can try using the Needler, but these Elites are pretty good at ducking behind the purple boxes to avoid getting hit. So, you can try several different strategies. Try throwing grenades to flush them out, then following up with the Needler, or simply rush in with your M90 and put two shells into each Elite (or, one overcharged Plasma Pistol shot and one M90 shell). +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ ___________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Locate and destroy Pulse Generator #1 |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Cortana tells you that if we destroy the Pulse Generators, the Monitor will be forced to repair them before Halo can be used, buying us some time. She'll then mark the nearest generator with a navigation arrow on your HUD. Now, before we get started, grab a Needler and head up the nearby ramp into the tower. At the very top, trade your M90 Shotgun for the M6D, then head down one level from where you saw the Med Kit and ammunition. Look through the gaps between the ramp and the tower as you walk, and you will eventually be able to see several Elites, Jackals, and Grunts down below. Pull out your Needler and unload a clip into each of the three Elites, then use your M6D to snipe any Jackals and Grunts. Oftentimes, the Elites will be near a pillar or box, so don't fire the needles then - wait for them to be somewhat out in the open. Once all the enemies are dead, fill up on needles and head down the small slope to the left of the tower ramp. Carefully peek over the left edge, and you'll see two Elites and a Jackal. Quickly snipe the Jackal with your M6D, then use your Needler against the Elites. Staying on the same level, make your way over to the right side and peek down. There are a few more Elites, so once again, unload a full clip of Needles into each. Or, stick them with a Plasma Grenade, as they'll probably be unaware of you. Once the area is relatively clear, head a little bit down the ramp on the right. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ There may still be a few enemies the next level down, so be careful. One level lower, to the right, are a couple more Elites, so use any remaining Needles you have on them. You probably won't be able to take out both of them, however, so keep heading down the ramps, taking out any stragglers that you missed earlier. You should be able to find more needles, so use them on the remaining two Elites. Now, head all the way back to the top of the tower and grab your M90, to go along with your M6D. The S2 AM only has a few rounds of ammunition, so go ahead and get it if you want, but it's not going to last very long. A good idea is to grab some crap weapon from down below, trade it for the S2 AM, then bring it all the way back down to the bottom. Now, drop your S2 AM there for another crap weapon, then run all the way back up top for the other weapon you want. I know it's a lot of running, but it'll be worth it - just make sure you don't lose anything. Once you're done stockpiling and trading weapons, make your way down to where the last two Elites you killed were. Go down the next ramp. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ In the snowy field to the right (as you're heading down the ramp), you should be able to see a Banshee. Continue heading forward, and you'll see a Major Elite run out from behind it. If you still had a lot of needles, go ahead and use those on him; otherwise, use two S2 AM rounds to his head. When you are out of needles, run back up and grab the M6D to go along with your S2 AM. Head into the tunnel ahead, so that you are protected from the Wraith's mortars. Keep peeking out each end of the tunnel to vary your routine, sniping at the remaining Elites with the S2 AM and the Jackals and Grunts with your M6D. Each Elite should take two headshots to kill, including the Commander. Once all the ground troops are killed, run through the tunnel and pick up the M19 SSM. I would save the Med Kit for a little bit later, unless you REALLY need it. Head back into the tunnel, and listen for the Wraith's mortars. As soon as the last one he launched hits, pop out and nail him with a rocket. Duck back in and take cover, wait for the mortar to hit, then pop out and hit him with another rocket. It'll take a third rocket to destroy him once and for all, but you can even just use a couple clips of M6D ammunition to finish him off as well. Once all the enemies are destroyed, pick up your M90 to go with your M6D, then head to the top of the tower to resupply, then all the way back down to the Banshee. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as you take off, start climbing straight up, facing the direction of the pyramid we just left. After you've climbed for a while, turn 180 degrees and head toward the door near the navigation marker - you should be coming in at an angle to the door. As soon as you see it open, fire your Fuel Rod and Plasma Cannons, taking out the Elite and Grunts. Try not to take too much damage to the Banshee...if you do, simply revert to your last save and try again. Once they're dead, land and trade your M6D for the Plasma Rifle, then head through the door and into the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Walk through the next door and into the central area of the room. When you get close enough to the Pulse Generator, Cortana will tell you that you need to interrupt the beam, by stepping into it! Unfortunately, doing so will totally drain your shields, leaving you pretty vulnerable. Orient yourself so that you are facing the door that you came in through (your back should be facing the generator), then walk backwards until you step into it. As soon as you do so, start running back toward the door. A large number of Sentinels will come in, so blast them with your Plasma Rifle. Alternatively, after stepping into the beam, run the opposite direction and hide until your shields recharge. Then, take out the Sentinels as you please. Personally, I prefer the latter, as the Sentinels seem to like to stay in the central area, allowing plenty of time for your shields to recharge. Keep popping in and out of view, firing through the windows, until they are all dead. You could even just run out of the room if you wanted to, leaving them in there. Either way, make your way back into the corridor and to your Banshee. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Breaking Stuff to Look Tough =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= _______________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Find and enter lower entrance to Canyon B |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You'll notice that there is a second Banshee to the right immediately after exiting back outside. Leave that one there for later, however. The original Banshee we used hopefully isn't too damaged, but it's probably lost at least a single bar of health, so let's use that one until it's almost destroyed. Pick up your M6D first, however. Take off, then climb high above the bridge. Once again, we want to hover above it, using the Fuel Rod and Plasma Cannons to take out the Covenant below. Be extra careful this time, however, as some of the Grunts are wielding Fuel Rod cannons themselves - if hit, your Banshee will be utterly destroyed. Fortunately, their weapons don't have nearly the range that yours does, firing from above, so just stay high enough and you'll be safe. When the bridge has been cleared, land and head through the door. By the way, if you had any M19 SSM rockets left over from when you were fighting the Wraith, it could come in handy about now. It's not necessary, of course, but feel free to fly back and grab it before heading into the corridor, if you'd like. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Enter the next door, then sneak up on the Grunt patrolling right in front and knock him out. Unfortunately, the rest of the room is not so easy. Take the Grunt's Plasma Pistol (or one from the bridge outside), and slowly whittle down the Covenant, staying by the door for cover. Make good use of Plasma Grenades, especially against the Elites. Oftentimes, they won't know where you are, so can easily be stuck with one. Once the central area is mostly clear, make your way around the left side of the room. When you get to the rear, there is yet another two Elites that you can easily stick a Plasma Grenade to, as well as several Jackals and Grunts. When the room is secure, finish making your way around to the narrow passageway with the blinking light. Pick up a Plasma Pistol, then kill three Jackals in the next room with overcharged shots followed by normal ones. Most likely, the last one will try to run away into the next room, but try to get him before he can escape. Head back to the previous room and grab a Needler, then back here. Head up the small ramp and turn left, to find yourself in a long hallway. Move forward slightly, then as soon as the Covenant appear, back up. Take out the Grunts and Jackals with your Plasma Pistol or M6D, and the two Major Elites with the Needler. When the hallway is safe, go back and get your M90, then head down the hallway and turn left at the end. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Slowly move into the room, and you'll notice the different music start up. Cautiously move to the ramp leading to the next room, and you'll see that a battle is taking place between the Covenant and Flood. Wait at the bottom until you no longer hear gunfire, then slowly move to the top of the ramp. Do not go all the way into the room, but instead, look over the left wall. You will be able to see several Elites, so stick one with a Plasma Grenade, and it will hopefully take out more than one. They'll try to fire at you, but will just keep hitting the wall instead. Throw another grenade to take care of the Jackals and a Commander Elite that runs around as well. Grab a Plasma Pistol then back down the ramp. Several Jackals will come after you, so use a combo of overcharged shots and normal shots to kill them. Also note that there are two Med Kits to the right after going up the ramp. There are some more Grunts and Jackals on the other side of the barrier, so fire a Plasma Rifle or Pistol through the slots to take them out. Also, right next to the barrier is a window, with some Elites on the other side. Break the window and stick them with Plasma Grenades. Of course, you can also walk around the left side of the room, and then when you get to the gap, you can throw a grenade all the way across at them. Soon after, more Flood rush in to attack the surviving Covenant. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ The presence of Flood means that you want your M90, so go back and get it. There is also one near the two Med Kits on the right side of the room, as well. Kill the Carrier Forms with your M6D first, and then the Combat Forms with the M90. At least one of them will be carrying a pistol as well, so make sure to load up on ammunition. Go around the room to the next door and go through, into the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As you exit the corridor and go through the next door, you'll be back on a bridge, with a battle raging on between the Flood and Covenant. Peek around the left side of the barrier and quickly take out a couple of nearby Jackals. After a couple are dead, the rest will start retreating further down the bridge. Chase after them, making sure to take cover behind the barriers as you advance, and more Flood should arrive. While the Covenant are occupied, toss a Plasma Grenade at the Elites, particularly the Commander Elite with the Plasma Sword. Again, the Covenant will start retreating, so head after them. As soon as you see some red contacts appear on your motion tracker to the left, start backing up. More Flood will leap over from the left bridge, and you want them to go after the Covenant, not you. After the two sides take a couple more of each other out, throw another Plasma Grenade at any surviving Elite. Once all the Covenant are dead, head toward the end of the bridge, watching out for a couple of Combat Forms that leap over and attack you. Take them out quickly with the M90, then head through the far door and into the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the door into the next room, and then walk a little bit right, to where you can see into the central area of the room. Several Combat Forms will spot you and start rushing toward you, so throw a grenade to hopefully kill all of them. These particular Combat Forms are armed with M90s, so you don't want to deal with them at close-range. Hopefully (yes, hopefully) the grenade will have shattered the windows and gotten the attention of the Flood on both the left and right sides of the room. Duck back into the corridor and use another grenade to take out some of the first Flood that come after you, then use your M90 on the rest. Feel free to keep retreating further into the corridor, as the Infection Forms will probably take your shields down a bit. Once they stop coming after you, carefully make your way around both the left and right sides of the room, as there are probably still a few Combat Forms on each side. When it's clear, head to the door on the opposite side of where you entered. A few Elites will be battling the Flood, and you really have to watch out for the latter, as one Combat Form is armed with an M19 SSM. If you want, you can let him kill the Elites, then quickly finish him off with your M6D from long range. Go ahead and pick up the rockets if you want, but I prefer to use something more versatile. Head on through the hallway. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ At the end of the hallway, turn left and you'll see more Flood forces. Take out the Combat Forms that cluster right in front of you, then finish off the Carrier Forms with your M6D. Carefully move into the center area of the room and look to the right. The first vent on that side has one Combat Form, so take him out with your M6D, then repeat with a second Combat Form on the ledge second from the left. Across the room is probably another Combat Form or two as well. Now, move further into the room until you hear an explosion. As soon as you do so, run back into the corridor that you came from, then take out the Infection Forms with your melee attack or simply letting them burn themselves on your shield. After your shield recharges, head back into the room, looking for more Combat Forms. There are several on the far end, near the next door that we want to go through, armed with M6Ds. Usually, they won't flat out charge you, so snipe them with your pistol, as they have plenty of ammunition for you. Get the Med Kit if you need it, then head through the door - be ready for a whole bunch of Infection Forms waiting on the other side, however. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Exit the corridor, and you'll find yourself on another bridge. There are Flood on the bridge, as well as two Banshees flying above. Try to stay out of view, letting the two side battle each other. Hopefully, at least one of the two Banshees will get shot down, and I've even seen both get shot down before. When the battle has died down, take out any surviving Banshees with your M6D. It'll take quite a few shots, but we have plenty of ammo in the last room. You can even run back and get that M19 SSM from the long hallway also. If the Flood actually won the battle, take them out with your M90 and M6D. Continue down the bridge, watching out for any survivors, then go through the far door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the corridor and the next door, and you'll see a bunch of Infection Forms feeding (or whatever they do) on a dead Elite and Grunt. They just stand there, so smack them with your weapon. Go left and into the central area of the room, and you'll hear an explosion. More Flood appear, but there are just a couple of Combat and Carrier Forms, so you shouldn't have too much trouble. Head through the center area of the room and turn right. Near the blinking passageway are several more Combat Forms, so take care of them in the usual manner before moving through. Head past the small ramp in the next room and go through the door, then up another ramp. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through yet another door and you'll find yourself at the lift. Hit (X) to activate the console, but get ready to use your melee attack, because Infection Forms start dropping from above as you descend. Melee them all, or simply head through the door at the bottom. Carefully approach the end of the hall, then kill two Combat Forms that drop down from above. Another two should appear to the right, as well. Continue making your way around the right side of the room, taking out more Combat Forms as you proceed. None of these are even armed with weapons, so only leap at you - blast them as they get close. Eventually, you will reach a door on the right, so go through. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Head on through the corridor and the next door, and you'll be outside once again. A battle is already in progress between the Covenant and Flood, with an Elite and Grunt directly in front of you, along with a flipped-over Ghost. Try and stick the Elite with a Plasma Grenade if you wish, but it's not a big deal to do so - they head to the left after a little while. Now, staying relatively safe in the doorway, look up in the sky for a circling Banshee. Fire a couple of clips at it with your M6D, ducking back into the corridor if he gets your shield down. After you knock him out of the sky, head toward the Ghost. ___________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Locate and destroy Pulse Generator #2 |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Flip it over and hop in, then turn around and go to the right (in terms of if you were still looking out from the doorway). You'll see another Ghost start up, so circle strafe until it's destroyed. Now, you have several different things you can try to proceed. Nearby where the Ghost was is a large ramp leading down to an M19 SSM, two Med Kits, and another Ghost. You can pick up the rockets to destroy the nearby Wraith with. Or, you can do what I prefer. Drive through to near where the Wraith is, and constantly strafe side-to-side in the Ghost. There are several Grunts and Jackals nearby, so concentrate on them first. The Grunts will keep getting in the Shade, so take them out as soon as they do so. As long as you keep moving sideways, you'll be able to kill all of them without taking a single hit. Do the same thing to the Wraith, moving side-to-side while firing. As long as you're a good distance away, he won't be able to hit you at all - after awhile, he'll explode. After everything is dead, head back down the ramp and stock up on ammunition - you probably want your M6D and M90, not the rockets. Grab a Med Kit if you need it as well, then hop in whatever Ghost is least damaged. Drive past where the Wraith is smoldering and down into the tunnel. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as you are through the tunnel and past the pillars, you'll see a Major and Minor Jackal ahead, behind the large block of ice. Circle-strafe and kill them quickly, before they can do too much damage to your Ghost. Continue on ahead, and you'll come to a crashed Warthog at the bottom of the ramp. Ignore it for now and drive up the ramp. At the top, behind the two stationary energy shields, are about four Grunts for you to kill with the Ghost. Drive on past where the Grunts were to get the next checkpoint. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, we have several different options on how to proceed. Turn right on the frozen ice, and you'll see the large tower ahead. To the left are several Elites on the ground, two parked Banshees, two Banshees already in the air, a Shade on the hill, and several more Grunts on the same hill. Now, if you're really brave, you can head over there and try to quickly take out a couple of enemies and then hop out of the Ghost and into the parked Banshee, before flying away to finish the rest off. This of course, allows you to do a little bit of dogfighting against the two Banshees, which is always fun. A second, safer strategy is this: drive to the frozen lake with the Ghost and then get out. Now, run (not drive) down to the flipped-over Warthog. Drive the Warthog over next to the frozen lake (but not on it), then hop out and get in the gunner's position. Using the M41 LAAG, you can very easily take out both Banshees. Once they're both down, get back in the Ghost and head to the right, away from the Elites. There is a pair of Hunters here, so circle-strafe them until they're dead. As long as you keep moving, they shouldn't be able to hit you. Now, continue around the right and you'll eventually see the Wraith. As with the previous one, keep moving side-to-side while firing, and you'll eventually take him out without any damage to yourself. Do be careful that you don't get hit by the Shade, however. Now, I like to drive all the way back to where the Warthog was, then drive that over here, just to where I can barely see the hill with the Shade. Jump in the gunner's position again, and use the M41 LAAG to take out the Grunts and Shade. Finally, there are the Elites on the other side of the hill that we need to worry about. Climb up the hill and grab one of the dead Grunt's Needlers, fill up, then peek over the edge of the hill. Unload clip after clip of needles until all of them are dead. Now, go through the door nearby the hill with the Shade to grab a Med Kit, or go all the way back to where you got the Warthog and get that one, if you prefer. When you're good to go, hop in either of the parked Banshees. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As you takeoff in the Banshee, don't fly straight up yet; instead, fly over to the frozen lake near where you parked the Ghost and Warthog earlier, and then fly straight up. This puts a little bit of distance in between you and the Covenant forces ahead - flying straight up right away would make you a sitting duck. Anyway, after you've climbed for a bit, turn around and hover while facing the top of the tower. Be on the lookout for a Banshee or two that may come after you, but start pounding the troops atop the tower with your Fuel Rod and Plasma Cannons. After the Banshees have been destroyed, make the Shades and Grunts with Fuel Rod Cannons your priority - don't forget to clear out the Covenant near the door, as well. When they have all been killed, land near the door, dismount, and go through into the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As soon as you exit the corridor into the next room, run slightly to the right and look into the central area. A ton of Flood Combat Forms are battling a couple of Sentinels, so help the Sentinels out by throwing a couple of M9 HP-DE grenades into the mess of them. Some of them are armed with M19 SSM Rocket Launchers, so be very, very careful. As soon as most of them are dead, you'll get another checkpoint. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ There may still be some Flood left, so finish them off. Now, go back into the central area, but don't step into the Pulse Generator. You see those vents to the sides? Practice jumping into them until you're pretty comfortable doing so. Put your M6D in a safe place and gather a M19 SSM and some rockets. Now, facing the vent that you've decided to jump in, back into the generator and immediately run and jump up into the vent. A whole bunch of Combat Forms will appear, so take them out with your rockets and M90 as they make their way into your hiding spot. If you jumped up quickly enough, most of them will not have spotted you, so simply peek out and fire rockets as needed. Don't forget about your grenades, either. When the room is relatively clear and you've exhausted your rockets, hop down and finish the rest with your M90 and pick up your M6D. Head back out the way you came onto the landing with the Banshee. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = The Tunnels Below =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= _____________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Move through tunnels and enter Canyon A |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Cortana will tell you that we need to find Captain Keyes or obtain his neural implants to detonate the Pillar of Autumn. First, we need to disable one final Pulse Generator, however. Hop into the fresh, undamaged Banshee to the right. If you need a Med Kit, first drop down and go through the door near the hill with the Shades and Elites from before or back to where you first got the Warthog, if you didn't pick those up earlier. Head in the direction of the navigation marker on your HUD. Don't fly too far into the tunnel, however - you will see that there's a battle going on within, between the Flood and the Covenant. When the battle has ended, take out any survivors with your Banshee's Fuel Rod Cannon. Be especially careful if the Flood won, as some of them are armed with M19 SSMs. After they're all dead, dismount and grab some rockets, then head down to the bottom of the tunnel. As you approach the right turn at the end, carefully move around so that you can just barely see the Combat Forms grouped down there. Take them out with a couple of rockets, before they can fire some of their own at you. After they're dead, run back up and grab your M90, then get into either the Ghost or Banshee (it doesn't really matter which, although I prefer the former) and drive through the corridor until you get to a door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Hop out of your vehicle, move over to the console, and hit (X) to open the door. Unfortunately, the door malfunctions and only opens partially, so we'll have to leave our ride behind. Move through the small crack and take out the Carrier and Infection Forms nearby. Of course, you can just run back to your vehicle and use its weapons against these first few Flood. After the first group has been taken care of, make your way over to the right bridge and start heading across. Once you get about halfway across, a whole swarm of Infection Forms will make their appearance, and several unarmed Combat Forms behind them will start charging toward you. Now, you can always just back up and take them out the normal way, with your M90, but we can also preserve some ammunition by running all the way back to our vehicle, then using its weapons to kill the Flood that chase after you. Once they're dead, head back across the bridge, but be ready for more Combat Forms to appear. Many of them are unarmed, but there are also some wielding M19 SSMs, so as you backtrack, try to move diagonally to avoid getting hit. These guys are less likely to charge after you, so resort to your M6D from long range to take them out. When they are all dead, cross the bridge and pick up one of the two Med Kits if you're even the tiniest bit hurt. There's not any M90 or M6D ammunition, unfortunately, and you may want something a bit more versatile than the M19 SSM. Head to the console by the next door and hit (X) to activate it. Walk for a little while until you get to the next door, then hit (X) to activate that one as well. Go through, and you'll find yourself on an ascending ramp, covered in snow - looks like we're back outside again. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ =-=-=-=-=-=-= = Final Run =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-= ___________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Locate and destroy Pulse Generator #3 |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Head up to the top of the ramp. Now, there are several different things you can try here. To the right is a group of Flood, and flying somewhere in the area is a Banshee. We could try and take out the Flood and Banshee ourselves, but then again, why not let them hurt each other? If you do decide to do the dirty work yourself, head to the right after exiting the ramp and throw a grenade in the middle of the Flood, before finishing the rest off with your M90. Take out the Banshee with your M6D, but make sure to take cover when your shields are low. I like to let the two sides kill each other off, though. Go far to the left after exiting the ramp, left/behind the huge boulder with the blinking blue lights on it. Jump up on the smaller rocks, and you will see more Combat Forms in a shallow cave. When they can see you, they'll activate; just hope that they go after the Covenant instead of you, as some are armed with M19 SSMs. If you hadn't done this, they simply would have stayed there, rather than join in the fight. Activating them will give the Flood the edge and most likely, they would kill all of the Covenant, including the Banshee. Head over to where the battle was taking place (near the stationary energy shields and Shades). Personally, I think the Flood are easier to kill, so I'd rather they have won the battle. Either way, finish off the survivors and scrounge around for any ammunition you might need. Once again, there doesn't seem to be much in the way of M6D or M90 ammo. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Get into either of the Ghosts and continue on toward the lighted path, ahead and to the left. Go through (note the cave ahead, with the supplies scattered around, for later) and turn right, and you'll see another battle going on. The Covenant have the superior numbers this time, so you may want to use your Ghost to take several of them out. Or, sit back and take them out after the battle - your choice. Circle-strafe the survivors, and then when they're all dead, get out of the Ghost. Exchange your M90 for any old Covenant weapon, get back in the Ghost, then drive all the way back to where the first battle after exiting the ramp was. Look for any M19 SSMs the Flood were carrying, then trade your Covenant weapon for it. Now, get back in the Ghost and drive back to the dark cave, picking up more rockets. If you don't want to, you don't have to go back and pick up the first M19 SSM, since there is another one here, but doing so gives you some extra rockets. Now, very cautiously continue on. At the end of the frozen lake (opposite where you drove in with the Ghost) are four Combat Forms, each wielding an M19 SSM. Try to kill them from long range, with either your M6D or rockets, making sure to sidestep as soon as you see them launch a rocket. After they're dead, fill up on rockets and M6D ammo, then get back in your Ghost (if it's badly damaged, drive all the way back to the first battle and get in the fresh one). Head to the end of the frozen lake, where the Combat Forms were, and turn left. You'll see a ledge ahead, but it's possible to get your Ghost over - aim for the left side of the ledge, near the tree, and it'll hop right over. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ This next battle can be VERY difficult. There are several Wraith tanks you will have to deal with, not to mention Elites, Grunts, Jackals, and Flood Combat Forms. Oh, and don't let me forget to mention the several Stealth Elites wandering around looking for you. The strategy that I've had the most success with is to slowly ride forward in the Ghost. Stop at the first frozen lake you get to, and you should see Combat Forms scrambling ahead of you, toward the Covenant. They don't stand much of a chance, so don't try and kill them - let them soften up the Covenant for you. Go around the large rocks on the right (you will have seen the Flood exit from there just a moment earlier), and you'll see a Wraith. Don't worry about him yet, however, but instead turn left and try to take out the nearby Jackals and Grunts. Continue on in that direction, and make sure to shoot out the Grunt manning the Shade. By this point, the Flood behind you will have joined the battle, and are hopefully using their rockets to good use, taking out Covenant forces and maybe even a Wraith. Keep making a big circle as before, going behind the large rock from before and then turning left and attacking the Covenant, then getting the hell out of Dodge. By doing these big circles, you'll thin out the Covenant with the help of the Combat Forms, hopefully enough that things will die down a bit. Now, you may have noticed the two Banshees in the back - one of those is our goal. Of course, you can go ahead and just make a run for it, but you don't stand much of a chance of taking off and getting away if you don't whittle down the Covenant forces. Eventually, all the Flood will have been killed, but hopefully, they will have taken out at least one or two of the Wraiths. Drive back a distance from the Covenant in your Ghost, and if you're far enough, they won't even fire. The Wraiths will still lob mortars, but at this distance, they are easily avoided. Just keep firing, moving sideways when you see them launch mortars. Eventually, the Wraiths will explode, leaving only ground troops left. Go ahead and try to use your M19 SSM, but the Covenant will most likely be able to duck out of the way. So, drive back to the cave with the scattered supplies and pick up an S2 AM. Now, go to town on the enemy, especially the Elites. Also note that two Hunters will have joined, so go ahead and take those out as well. Once the area has been clear, head forward and hop into a Banshee. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Fly through the canyon, making your way toward the navigation marker on your HUD. As you make the final left turn, however (approximately 100m away), be prepared to fight several Sentinels waiting outside the door. Destroy them with your Plasma Cannons and land, then walk over to the pile of goodies. Pick up the Med Kit even if you're barely hurt, as well as a Plasma Rifle (near the edge of the landing) and a M19 SSM (on a body to the left of the door). Head through the door and into the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ At the end of the corridor, go through the door and peek to the right. In the central area of the room, you should see several Sentinels. Use your Plasma Rifle, rockets, or even Plasma Grenades, to destroy them. You'll notice that these Sentinels are shielded, and can take quite a bit more damage than the other ones we have faced. Stay near the door for cover, then popping out and destroying as many as you can before your shields get too low. When they are all dead, walk into the Pulse Generator. __________ -=| Cutscene |=- ??|???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????\ | All three Pulse Generators have been destroyed, meaning that Halo's | | activation has been delayed...for a while. Cortana has learned how | | 343 Guilty Spark teleports, and she decides to experiment, hopefully | | taking you as close as possible to Captain Keyes, somewhere on the | | Truth and Reconciliation. Apparently, the Flood have overwhelmed the | | Covenant cruiser. While the Covenant have been ordered to abandon | | Halo, they are terrified that the Flood will repair the ship and be | | able to escape the ring-world. At any rate, Keyes is still alive and | | his neural implants still intact, so Cortana will try to bring the | | Master Chief as close as possible. | |_______________________________________________________________________| =============================================================================== = Level 9: Keyes kw-key =============================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Under New Management =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _____________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Find a way into the control room |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Walk forward just a little bit, and you'll hear a message from Captain Keyes, telling you to leave him. We're not going to do that, of course, so continue on through the door ahead. You'll see a Combat Form chasing a Grunt, but don't worry about them; turn left at the intersection. Pick up the Plasma Grenades, but save the Active Camouflage for later. Now, head down the direction that the Combat Form and Grunt were running. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Take the first left, and you'll see some Covenant forces, including Elites, battling the Flood. Once again, let them soften each other up, then wade in and finish off the survivors (most likely, it'll be the Flood). Retreat if necessary, taking them out with grenades and your MA5B. At least one of the Combat Forms will have been using an M90, so trade your assault rifle for it, even if it doesn't have much ammunition. Now, before you continue on, head back and grab the Active Camouflage. As soon as you do so, run back to where the battle between the Covenant and Flood was, turn left, and then right. Head through the door and Cortana will start talking - ignore her, though, and drop down the large hole. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You'll land in a large pool of coolant. You should still be able to remain invisible for a little while longer, so quickly move out and use grenades (but no weapons fire) to take out as many of the Flood as you can. Head to the nook where most of the battle is taking place, then take cover behind the purple box near the stationary energy shield. Several Combat Forms will have dropped down into the coolant by now, so try to get their attention then duck back here to take them out one at a time. When they're dead, scavenge around for more M90 ammunition and a M6D, which will really come in handy. Now, look for the next path (if you're behind the purple box, looking in the direction of the stationary energy shield, it's in that direction) and head up it - the coolant should be on your right as you pass. Remember to use your flashlight to make things a little easier to spot, but don't forget to stop and turn it off every once in awhile before it runs out of juice. Carefully make your way through until you get to a right turn. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Turn right and move ahead slowly, and another battle should start between the Flood and Covenant. The Covenant probably won't be able to take out the Flood on the ledge ahead and to the right, so snipe them with your M6D, to save yourself a little bit of trouble later. By this time, the battle should be mostly over, and the Combat Forms should head your way. Duck back behind cover and take them out with your M90. Also watch out for a whole bunch of Infection Forms that drop down from above. To the left of the coolant pond is a path leading up to another ledge, so make sure to check this area for more ammo. When you're done, head to the right of the coolant pond and up the path. Do so carefully, however, as a whole bunch of Combat Forms are up ahead. Back up as necessary, using grenades and M90 fire to put them all down. By this point, you should be pretty full on ammunition for both of your weapons, so head on. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ After you've gone a little ways through the path, you'll see a Carrier Form drop down from above. Quickly back up to avoid getting caught in the ensuing explosion, then take out the Infection Forms and Combat Forms that approach, while being on the lookout for more Carrier Forms further ahead. Keep walking, and Cortana will put a new navigation marker on your HUD, pointing toward the Truth and Reconciliation's gravity lift. Just around the corner are some more Carrier Forms, however, so don't rush around headlong quite yet. Keep heading forward, and you'll see a Med Kit on the ground - if you need it, go ahead and pick it up. Near or just a little bit past the Med Kit is an S2 AM Sniper Rifle, but you may want to leave it for now. Head around the right corner, and you'll see another large battle going on. Cortana will say that the crash did more damage than she suspected, and the ship's reactor should already have gone critical. Now, I would just wait for a (long) while, letting the two sides soften each other up. Sit back and watch the battle, but don't let the Hunters spot you and fire their Fuel Rod Cannon. After a little while of watching, you'll get a Checkpoint for some reason. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ The Flood, particularly the Carrier Forms, seem to respawn continuously, so they will eventually win. When the battle has died down, snipe the Combat Forms on the high ledges with your M6D (the S2 AM won't work), then run down. Don't stop at the bottom, however, but run up past the stationary energy shields under the bridge to the coolant waterfall. Otherwise, the Carrier Forms will just continually respawn with you as well. Take out any surviving Flood, then pick up the Med Kit if you need it. Now, pick up any supplies you need, then head up the path between the two nearby coolant pools. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ About 125m away from the navigation marker, turn the corner and you'll see a Shade. Do not fire at it yet, however! Instead, throw a grenade to the left of it (there's a path down there). This should draw the attention of some Flood troops down there, which will subsequently come up and battle the nearby Covenant. The Flood should easily win, so grab their attention, then duck back into the corner to take them out with your M90. Now, there are several more waves of Flood, but there are several options you can do. You can run to the path they come from, and simply wait and blast them with your M90 and grenades as they come around. Or, you can get in the nearby Shade and fire at them as they come around. Note that if you use the Shade, you may have to fire at the walls ahead to trigger the next wave, or even get out and run down to the corner and back up. You can even just run all the way back to the first corner each time a wave comes, if that works better for you. Do whatever way works best for you, until they stop showing up. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Head around the corner and up the path, and a couple of Combat Forms will show up. Quickly take them out with your M90, then move on. At the top of the path, you'll come to a large drop, with a whole bunch of Infection Forms falling from above. Since we won't be able to jump back up once we fall down, you may want to head back and grab a Med Kit if you saved any, even if you're only missing a bar of life or two. When you're ready, drop down and move down the path, but be ready for any Combat Forms that may be in the area. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go around the left corner, and you'll see yet another battle between the Flood and Covenant. Sit and wait until the battle dies down - most likely, it'll be won by the Flood again. This one shouldn't last long at all, so when it's over, shoot your M6D to get their attention, then greet them with the M90 when they come around the corner. Now, carefully head forward out of the path. To the right, there is a ledge in the distance (look above the stationary energy shields) with several Combat Forms on top of it. Snipe them with your M6D, then repeat with more Combat Forms on another ledge further to the right and even higher up. Once the Combat Forms are dead, move past the energy shields and turn left. Go up the path for a little bit, but as soon as you see some red contacts appear on your motion tracker, run back to where you entered this area. To the right, near the coolant, are a whole bunch of Carrier Forms. A couple shots should take out the lot of them, however. Head back up the path near the energy energy shields, watching out for a whole bunch of Infection Forms. By the way, did you notice the dead Elites on the ground? They're in black...anyways, go up the path and turn right, and you'll see the Truth and Reconciliation's lift. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _______________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Hold your position under the lift until it |--+ +--| reactivates |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Head forward slightly, and you'll hear what sounds like a pretty intense battle going on. On the ground ahead is an overshield that you'll want to keep in mind for later - for now, though, just wait until the battle dies down. When the Covenant are dead, fire a few shots of your M6D at the surviving Flood, then duck back behind the corner. Kill the Combat Forms as they approach with the M90, but be careful for Carrier Forms that come after you as well. Now that the area is relatively clear, you have several choices. First, keep in mind that some more Flood WILL respawn. However, it is not necessarily required that you kill them, so therein lies your options. You can stay or fight, or you can simply run up to the lift and hope you ride up before taking any damage. If you decide to do the latter, grab the overshield before you head up. Otherwise, leave it for later, and simply run off the lift when the new group of Flood appears. The fall shouldn't hurt too much, so simply run to the narrow path where you entered this area, and wait for them to come before blowing them away with your M90. Now, grab the overshield and head up the lift. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Upstairs, Downstairs =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _____________________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Follow Cortana's directions back to the control |--+ +--| room |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Remember this place? Fortunately, we're not going to have to deal with a whole bunch of Commander Elites with Plasma Swords this time around, although it may have been an interesting battle, now that we're armed with the M90. Anyway, there's a couple of Infection Forms milling about in here, so smack them with your weapon before we head on. Go through the door with the two dead Grunts and dead Elite, then turn left. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Cortana will tell you that the ship's BattleNet is a mess; however, she marks what should be a shuttle bay with a navigation marker on your HUD. Continue through the corridor, but watch out for a whole bunch of Carrier Forms in the way. If you run fast enough past them, you'll be out of range of their explosion by the time that they actually detonate. Go through the next door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Okay, so you're back in the Shuttle Bay. Look down over the edge, and you'll see a large number of Flood, all different types of forms. Don't worry about them just yet, however, as there is a Combat Forms (armed with an M90) on your level to take out first. Once you do so, watch down below and observe the movement patterns of the Combat Forms. Most of them will eventually pass by a Carrier Form, so as soon as they do so, fire two quick M6D rounds into the Carrier to blow it (and hopefully the Combat Form as well) up. We're going to head down there later, so it's okay if you don't kill everything just yet. From the door that we entered from, look down in the bottom right corner, and you will see an overshield. Cortana will note that the Flood are gathering up the Covenant bodies - rather gruesome, huh? Head over to the door and enter the corridor. To the right is a flaming door, to the left a Combat Form. Get his attention, then wait behind the corner until he comes around and kill him when he does so. Head down the left side to the pillar when he's dead. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Turn right at the pillar, then back up when you see red contacts on your motion tracker. A couple of Carrier Forms will come around, so shoot them before they get too close, then take care of the Infection Forms however you see fit. Now, keep heading partially down that ramp and then back up behind a corner. There are several waves of Combat and Carrier Forms, so you'll have to repeat this many, many times. It's almost like we're back in the Library! When they stop dropping out of the ceiling, fill up on ammunition (there should be plenty of it around) and head down to the vent that they were dropping out of. Usually, a Combat Form is still up there, and will snipe at you as you pass. If you're lucky, there's also a Carrier Form up there that you can pop to destroy all of them up there. Head past the vent and turn left at the next pillar. There will be even more Combat and Infection Forms down here, so once again do something to get their attention, then back up around the corner and kill them with the M90. Continue down the hallway, then turn another left, and you'll be able to see the door into the bottom floor of the Shuttle Bay that we were in earlier. Any Flood that you didn't kill earlier will still be there, so, you guessed it, use your M6D to get them to chase you, then duck behind a corner and kill them with the M90. Head diagonally across the center of the room, to the far right corner, very carefully. If you didn't kill them from above earlier, several Flood may come from the nearby door. Pick up a Med Kit if you need it, but you should probably save the overshield for later. Now, head to the open door, which was directly across from where you entered this level of the room, and go down the ramp. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Quickly head down to where the ramp turns left, but don't round the corner. A few Combat Forms should soon walk right in front of you, so blast them with your M90 at point-blank range. Note that there are about nine Combat Forms in this group, however, so go ahead and use a grenade if that's easier for you. Also note that they don't always come after you at the same time, but they will other times. Restock on ammunition, then head down to where they came from. There's a big hole right in front of you, but don't drop down yet, as we won't be able to come back up later. Walk around the edge of the hole, looking for several Carrier Forms. Shoot all of them, then head back up and grab a Med Kit and the overshield from the Shuttle Bay before dropping down. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Watch out for any Carrier Forms in the flaming hallway ahead, taking them out with the M6D as soon as you see them. Turn right at the corner, and you'll see another battle going on between the Flood and Covenant. Wait until the battle has died down, then kill anything that survived. If it's the Flood, just use your M6D to grab their attention again. If an Elite actually survives, stick him with a Plasma Grenade when he's not looking. When it's clear, head down to where they were fighting and turn left. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Peek around the next right turn, and more fighting may be going on. Note that there is also another door directly ahead, which CAN open and which does have more Flood on the other side. Keep that in mind, so that you don't get two different groups of enemies on both sides of you. This particular group of Flood will respawn, so keep moving in a circle around the hallway once they're dead to trigger the next wave. It probably isn't necessary to kill them all, but it's pretty easy. If you go through the door that they were behind and just keep making your way around the hallway in a clockwise direction, you'll sneak up on them every time - destroy the Carrier Form to get most of them all at once. Sure, it can get a little tedious, but it's better than having the risk of then sneaking up on you later. After they're all dead, turn down the next corridor and turn left to go through the door. Head down and turn right at the pillar. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You'll see another Shuttle Bay ahead, from which we could reach the Control Room if we got to the third floor. Before we worry about that, however, there is yet another fight between the Covenant and Flood going on. Directly ahead of you as you enter the Shuttle Bay is a group of stationary energy shields, with several Elites nearby. The battle is easily won by the Elites, so hurry and throw a Plasma Grenade or two at them. Place them well, and they'll all be dead within a few seconds. You'll also get another message from Keyes, telling you to get the hell out - "He's delirious and in pain," Cortana says. Head left (save the Med Kit for later) through the open door, then take the first left and move to the pillar. This route is actually taking us down, in the opposite direction of where we want to go, but this will clear the lower levels out, keeping our rears a little bit safer. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Look down the right ramp, and another battle is taking place. Let the fight die down, then head down there. Most likely, the Covenant will have won, as their battle group consisted of a Hunter. Pull out your M6D and put a round into its weak spot. A few Grunts may have survived as well, so kill them as well, then make your way down the next ramp. You'll see some Combat Forms down at the bottom, but don't let them notice you, as they'll soon start fighting some more Covenant. They Flood will once again probably lose, so carefully peek around the left corner, and stick a Plasma Grenade to the unsuspecting Elites (two Major, one Minor). Finish off the Grunts with your M6D, then head down to where they were. Be sure to restock on Plasma Grenades, then turn right at the green mist. Turn left at the pillar and go through the next door, and you'll be in the bottom floor of the Shuttle Bay. Kill anything surviving down here (usually some Infection Forms), then head all the way back up to the level we entered on, near the stationary energy shields. Turn left once you get to this floor, walking past the platform with the energy shields (to your right). Go through the door to your left and up the ramp, and you'll hear another battle. Fleeing Grunts may soon come into view, so be ready to smack them down, to save a little bit of ammunition. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, peek around the right corner and take out several Carrier Forms with your M6D. Head up the tunnel, and once you get to the flaming wall to your right, you'll get another checkpoint. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Up ahead, you'll see more Grunts running away, from right to left. Take cover in the nook to the right for a little while, then go in and mop up whatever side won. Carefully head up the hallway, checking to make sure there are no enemies hiding to the left, then turn right and go up toward the green mist. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Turn right and go down the descending ramp, but not too far. Carefully peek around the left turn, and throw a grenade at the mass of Flood. This should take care of most of them, but you'll probably have to snipe a couple more Combat Forms further up the ramp. Restock on ammunition, then head to the top of the ramp. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Just around the right corner is a Med Kit, if you need it. Through the open door, you should now be able to see that you are on the third floor of the Shuttle Bay. Look over the edge, and you'll find that a Covenant Dropship is unloading some troops, including at least three Elites. These Elites are also wearing black - they're Special Ops, and are some of the tougher enemies that you will face. Also note that there is now another Elite on the central platform with the stationary energy shields, even though you killed the ones there earlier. Your main concern, however, is to the right (after exiting the door): another group of Flood Combat Forms are standing in front of the next door. Sometimes, I've been able to sneak over to the ledge and look down on the Covenant Dropship without the Flood noticing, allowing me to stick the Special Ops Elites with a Plasma Grenade or two. This doesn't usually happen, however, so instead draw the attention of the Combat Forms, then duck back into the doorway and take them out. When the first group of Flood is dead, move to the door that they were near, keeping as close as possible to the right side. A second group of Combat Forms will appear once you get close enough, but will hopefully not notice you if you were close to the wall. Throw a grenade or use your M90 to finish them off. Now, feel free to peek over the edge and try to kill some of the Special Ops Covenant down there, as it'll make things a little easier later. Usually, they will have scrambled to cover by now, however, but if they are still around, there should be some Needlers laying around, so go ahead and try using those - even better would to be to catch the Elites unaware with Plasma Grenades. If you're having trouble, however, don't worry about it too much, and go on through the door where the Flood was. Turn right and go up the ramp, then left through the door. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = The Captain =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-= You'll hear Captain Keyes' screams of pain, and Cortana will tell you that his vital signs are fading, so we need to hurry. Don't feel rushed, however, as there is no time limit. Head up the path and turn right. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the door ahead, and you'll see some Covenant and Flood battling up ahead. To avoid being spotted, move slightly forward and into the left ramp, with the flaming boxes. Note that there is a Med Kit here if you need it. Usually, the battle will die down, even though neither side has really won yet, so you may have to try and do something like fire a shot or two or simply let the Covenant ahead spot and fire at you to get them to start fighting again. Just keep ducking out of the nook you're in whenever the fighting stops, to get them to fight some more. Eventually, the Covenant will probably be killed. Head down toward where the Covenant were, then check the left turn for any remaining Flood. If there are any, kill them with your M90, focusing on any Carrier Forms first, to hopefully take out most of them at once. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ ___________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Recover Captain Keyes |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????? Continue to walk up the left ramp (where the Flood was grouped), until more of them come out of the room. Then, quickly duck behind a corner and wait for them to come to you. It'll take awhile, as the room that they're coming from is actually the Control Room, and is swimming with Flood. When they stop congregating outside the door, carefully approach it until it opens, then take a quick look around to see if there are more inside. If there are, backtrack to the corridor and around a corner, as usual. There's another Med Kit just through the door, on the ground to the right. Get the one in the nook that we were hiding in before, however, if you need it. Now, you'll see the large central platform ahead, but don't go up it yet. Instead, turn right (if you had just gone through the door) and walk toward the corner of the room. You'll see a small nook here - remember how to get here! I can't stress how important that is, but also remember where the door you just came through is as well, in relation to the central platform. Ok, you got it? Head up the ramp to the large blob. __________ -=| Cutscene |=- ??|???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????\ | Sadly, this massive blob is all that is left of Captain Jacob Keyes. | | Apparently, the Flood were scrambling his brain, erasing his memories | | one by one, in order to find one in particular: the location of Earth.| | We still need the neural implants to destroy the Pillar of Autumn and | | Halo, so the Master Chief plunges his fist into Keyes' half-dissolved | | brain, retrieving them. | |_______________________________________________________________________| +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _______________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Escape via the shuttle bay |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????? Ok, pause the game if you'd like, so that we can go over our strategy. So the door that we entered through now has Covenant forces waiting on the other side, but they won't enter, unless you get near enough the door that it opens. Flood will also be swarming the room. So, quickly hop off the platform and get close enough to the door that it opens, then run like hell to the little nook I told you to remember earlier. Hide in there while the two sides try to kill each other, and you will hopefully remain unnoticed. If you do it right, you won't even have a single shot fired at you. Of course, be prepared if anyone wanders right into your nook, but that probably won't happen. When you no longer hear the sounds of battle, carefully peek out. Most likely, the Flood will have won, and will be grouped near the ramp up to the central platform. How I wish I had an M19 SSM Rocket Launcher right now - tough luck, but we do have some grenades, so make use of them, then duck back into the nook and wait for any survivors to come after you. Blow them away with your M90 when they do. When it's relatively safe, leave your hiding spot, but be on the lookout for more Flood lurking somewhere in the room. Go and pay your last respects to Keyes if you wish, then pick up the Med Kit if you need it (you probably won't have taken any damage whatsoever, though). Exit through the door that you entered by. Turn right at the intersection, pass the flaming blocks and Med Kit to your right, and go through another door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Turn left and go down the ramp and through another door. Even before it opens, however, you'll hear a Grunt scream - not good. Carefully peek around the right corner, and you'll see another battle taking place. Wait for a little while, then head down to the pillar. The door to the Shuttle Bay is right there, but waiting outside of it are a bunch of Special Ops Covenant, including Elites and Grunts armed with Fuel Rod Cannons and Needlers. Hide behind the pillar, waiting for a perfect opportunity to stick a Plasma Grenade to the back of at least one of the Elites (there are two). Once they notice you, make sure that you don't just sit there near the pillar, as the Fuel Rod Cannons will severely hurt you. You may want to go pick up the dead Grunt's Needler, and try using that against the Elites as well. Try to take out the Grunts with a single headshot each first, however, so that you can be sure the needles are homing in on the Elite and not them. When the Covenant ahead and the Covenant to the right have been taken care of, carefully head out onto the ledge. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Now, you have several options on how to proceed. We already know that we need to escape, and several Banshees escorting a Covenant Dropship full of Special Ops will soon be arriving. They will all land on the bottom floor, however, so we can either fight our way through the halls or we can jump down. The second option is far, far easier, so I'll explain that route. Look around the Shuttle Bay, and you'll see that the opposite end from where you entered has a couple different ledges, one underneath another. Jumping down to the bottom on the side that we're on now results in death, so head over to the far side and drop down to the next lower ledge, and then again to the bottom floor. You'll take some damage, but no matter. Now, quickly run to the nearest landing Banshee, cave in the skull of the Special Ops Elite with a melee attack, then hop in. Fly straight forward, and you will make your getaway. __________ -=| Cutscene |=- ??|???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????\ | The commandeered Banshee heads for the crashed Pillar of Autumn, which| | looks so peaceful and serene from the outside. You know that there's | | trouble inside, however - unfortunately, the Banshee starts to fall | | apart, so just before it plummets into the side of the Autumn, the | | Master Chief dives off, barely catching hold and making his way into | | his former home. | |_______________________________________________________________________| =============================================================================== = Level 10: The Maw kw-maw =============================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = ...And the Horse You Rode In On =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= _________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Make your way to the bridge |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????? Walk forward a little bit, and Cortana will tell you that we need to get to the Bridge; from there, Keyes' neural implants can be used to initiate a manual overload, causing explosions powerful enough to destroy Halo. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Switch to your Plasma Rifle and turn around 180 degrees, so that you're facing outside the Pillar of Autumn. Soon, you should see some red contacts appear on your motion tracker - as soon as the Sentinels come into view, blast them with plasma. They only take a few shots each, as these are the unshielded variant. Usually, only two will come into view outside; you may have to turn around and go in, then turn left to spot the other two. Either way, they should crash relatively easily. Head down the hallway where the last two Sentinels were, then turn right. Go over the grates with the green steam rising out of them and turn right into the Maintenance tunnel. In the tunnel, take the first left and then a second left. Walk toward the ladder sticking out of the ground, and a whole bunch of Infection Forms should start coming out. Melee as many of them as you can, while letting the rest burn themselves on your shield. You may hear several explosions from down below, as some Carrier Forms burst, so just wait for a little while and you'll get a checkpoint. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Drop down, and you'll see some Sentinels - they must have been what destroyed the Carrier Forms. Using the support beam as cover, take out the four of them with your Plasma Rifle. They aren't too aggressive, so simply hide behind the beam when your shields get low. Once they are dead, head down to where they were and turn right. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Head down this hallway, killing the couple of Infection Forms running around in it. Don't go too far down it, though, as around the next right turn is a large number of Combat Forms. Of course, we don't have our trusty M90, so we'll have to make do with grenades and MA5B fire. The first Combat Form you see wields an M90, however, so if you can, try to kill him quickly and grab his weapon to use on the rest. Once they are all dead, scavenge for supplies - you should pick up the M6D to go along with the shotgun. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ As you make the next right turn, a small door should burst open, with a ton of Infection and Combat Forms. Throw a grenade into the narrow hallway they are in, then finish up the rest with your M90. At least one of these Combat Forms was also using one, so make sure to pick up some more shells. Head through the hallway they were in, then peek your head around the next left turn. There are a couple Carrier Forms and some Combat Forms, but they shouldn't be any trouble at all, if you wait around the corner for them to show their faces. A couple of these will provide more M90 shells, so you should be pretty good on ammo. Continue past where they were and make a right turn, and you'll see a door with a fire blazing to the right of it. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go through the door and melee the nearby Infection Forms. If you walk a little bit further into the room, however, a group of Carrier and Combat Forms will start attacking some Covenant Forces, including a pair of Hunters. I like to quickly take out the Hunters, especially since the Covenant will easily win the fight anyway. Directly in front of the door you entered through is a pillar with a Med Kit behind it, but save it for later, unless you are badly hurt. To the left and right are doors into the cafeteria, which you may remember from the first level. Peek through, and you'll see a large number of Special Ops Elites and Grunts, and any Hunters you haven't killed. Eventually, the Flood will all be killed, so you'll have to take this group on yourself. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Carefully peek through either of the two doors, then try to stick a Plasma Grenade to the backs of any of the nearby Elites you see, before they notice you. After you throw them, try to take out the Grunts with your M6D - they still only take one headshot to kill. Now, there will probably still be some Special Ops Elites on the far side of the cafeteria, which usually run in after you walk partway into the cafeteria. You can once again try to stealthily stick them with Plasma Grenades, but if you've lost the element of surprise, you may want to scrounge around for a Needler and use that against them. If you keep going through the two different doors, you can oftentimes get the far Elites to forget where you are, allowing for a long distance throw. As a last resort, try charging them with the M90 - a couple shots will take the Elites down, but you'll most likely take some damage in the process. When the room looks clear, carefully head to the opposite end and look for any survivors before proceeding; the far door usually has more Covenant on the other side. Again, use Plasma Grenades to make short work of them, and when they are all dead, you'll hear a change of music. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Go back and get the Med Kit outside the cafeteria if you need it, then head through the far door of the cafeteria. Turn left, and head for the opened door, where you'll see another Med Kit on the ground. Head past it, and Cortana will let you know that you made it to the bridge. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Carefully look around the left corner, and you'll see another Special Ops Elite for you to stick with a Plasma Grenade. Hopefully, he'll run into the Bridge as soon as you hit him and take out several more Covenant troops within. Don't get your hopes up, however - turn right into the Bridge and kill any Grunts you see with headshots, using the M6D. When they are all dead, Cortana will tell you to get to the terminal to upload the neural implants. Before you do so, however, switch your M6D for either the Plasma Rifle the Elite was using or the Needlers the Grunts had (I prefer the Needler). Keep the M6D in a safe place, of course, then make your way into the center of the Bridge. __________ -=| Cutscene |=- ??|???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????\ | Cortana starts to initiate the Pillar of Autumn's manual overload, to | | cause the self-destruction of the ship and Halo. Unfortunately, 343 | | Guilty Spark shows up and puts an end to that plan, so we're going to | | have to blow up the ship the good ol' fashioned way: with explosives | | such as grenades. | |_______________________________________________________________________| +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ ___________________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Get to engineering by way of the cryo storage |--+ +--| facility |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Duck behind any cover you can, then fire half a clip of needles (or your Plasma Rifle) at each of the Sentinels outside, ducking back behind cover as needed. Repeat until they are all dead, then go and trade the Covenant weapon for your M6D. Now, head back out the way you came in, toward the Med Kit (which you probably won't need just yet). +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Turn left right after you pass the Med Kit, and you'll see that the cafeteria has now been sealed up. Continue down the hallway, and as soon as you pass the diagonal structural support beam, you'll see some Flood Combat Forms appear from the right. Use your M90 to kill them as soon as they come around - make sure your shotgun is fully loaded before you start, however, as they'll keep coming until your clip is almost empty (there's about nine of them). As long as you stay behind the corner and wait for them to come to you, however, you should have no problem. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Turn right into the area the Combat Forms came from into the armory and move through to the opposite end. There's a lot of MA5Bs laying around, but not much else, unfortunately. When you approach the door ahead, you'll hear the sounds of a battle between the Flood and Covenant. Don't peek your head out the door yet, instead waiting until the fighting stops. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ After the battle has died down, carefully exit and look for the survivors of the fight - it's usually a Special Ops Elite and a pair of Hunters to the right after going through the door. There's a large barrier in between you and them, so lob a Plasma Grenade over it, hopefully hitting the Elite. Now, charge the two Hunters, and one should quickly try to melee attack you. Quickly sidestep out of his way, turning as you do so, then put a M6D round into this back. Do the same with the other Hunter. The corridor is kind of cramped, but you will still have plenty of room to maneuver around their charge. If you do take a lot of damage, simply revert to your last save, since it's so close. There's a Med Kit at the end of the hallway (to the right) where the Hunters and Elite were, if you need it. There should be some M6D and M90 ammunition lying around, so fill up. Once again, put your M6D in a safe place, switching it for one of the Plasma Rifles lying around. There should be quite a few, so look for the one with the most charge. Now, head through the door that was straight across from where you entered the hallway (the one that doesn't have a blue arrow pointing to it). Turn left in the corridor, and then right. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ On the other side of the next door are some Sentinels and a whole bunch of Infection Forms. While the Sentinels are busy with the Infection Forms, pop out, turn right, and destroy a Sentinel or two, before ducking back when they focus on you. Some of these are shielded, so can take a bit more damage than the normal ones. When all the ones in this hallway are dead, finish off any surviving Infection Forms, then crouch to move underneath the partially-opened door to the left. Head slightly to the right to the next door, then destroy another group of Sentinels waiting in the narrow corridor. If you can hit one with a Plasma Grenade, you could probably destroy all of them at once. Now, head back and grab your M6D again before heading back here. Go through the next door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ You'll immediately hear the sounds of a pretty intense firefight. It's going on behind the door just to the right, with the yellow arrow labeled "Cryo B" pointing at it. It'd probably be a good idea to wait until the battle dies down before entering. Look for any surviving Combat Forms, then fire a single M6D round to get their attention. Duck back and wait for them to go through the door, and kill them with the M90 when they do so. Sometimes, the Sentinels may survive, so head back and grab a Covenant weapon to use against them. Head further into the room, toward the ladder. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ The music will change, and you'll see a few Sentinels flying through the glass passageway above, before they start firing on more Flood up there. Go up the ladder, and some Combat Forms should enter the room down below, from where you came in. As soon as you see the red contacts appear on your motion tracker, throw an M9 HP-DE toward the door while running toward it. Quickly pick off any Flood that survived the grenade with your M90, ducking back out into the hallway for cover. Back out in the hallway, you'll see some flaming pipes. If you jump over them and turn left, you'll find a Med Kit - pick it up if you need it. Now, head back into the Cryo B room, back up the ladder, and toward the Cryo control room at the end. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ There are some more Flood to the left after entering the control room. If you can see a Carrier Form, pop it with the M6D to hopefully take out a couple of Combat Forms with it. Now, duck back behind cover, so that you can kill the Flood as they rush out the door toward you (you should still be on the upper ledge, facing the control room door). The windows of the control room are bulletproof, fortunately, so feel free to stand in front of them. However, the game has a little bit of clipping, so the Combat Forms' arms can sometimes "reach" through the window, so they CAN hurt you if this happens. Keep popping in and out of the entrance to trigger more Flood, and repeat until they are all dead. When they stop coming, make sure to pick up more ammunition before heading through the corridor they were in. Don't forget to pick up the Med Kit in the control room if you need it. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Head straight across the more open room, and you'll find an overshield in the dead-end. Pick it up, then quickly head back to the open room, turn left, then run down and go through the small door on the left. You'll probably want to turn on your flashlight, to make seeing a little easier. Head forward into the tunnel and take out a small group of Infection Forms, before they damage your overshield. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ In the tunnels, turn right, then left, then right again. You'll see an open door ahead of you, with Flood, Sentinels, and Covenant all duking it out. If you wait near this door, a pair of Hunters should cross your path, so quickly take them out with your M6D. This will let the rest of the forces whittle each other down even further than if you had let them live. Facing this door, if you turn left and go through another door, you'll probably encounter a Special Ops Grunt in the burning room. Quickly kill him and fill up on Plasma Grenades if you're not already full. Facing the door that the Hunters walked by, if you turn right, go to the end, then turn left, you'll find a Med Kit. Anyway, when the battle has died down, peek out the door and look for survivors. If the Sentinels still live, run back and pick up a Covenant weapon to use against them. If it's Covenant, try to hit them with Plasma Grenades. Keep in mind that Flood will keep running from the left as well. When you have the chance, run straight across the hallway through the door with the green light. Check your rear to make sure nothing followed you, then head down the corridor. Turn right, then right again, and you'll come to another door. Carefully move toward it until it opens, and you'll see two stationary energy shields ahead. Look to the right for any enemies, then turn left past the energy shields when it's clear. Continue down the hallway, and you'll see a red arrow labeled "Engineering" pointing to the left, and another one labeled "Armory" pointing straight ahead. Go toward the armory first, turn right, then left, and slowly walk toward the door. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Okay, so we've dealt with Stealth Elites before - now we're going to be dealing with Flood wearing Active Camouflage. Stay near the door and zoom in with your M6D. As soon as you see some distorted form running, pop it with a couple of rounds to make it visible, then finish it off with your M90 when it gets close. After you get the first one, duck back, as a second "Stealth Combat Form" and several normal ones approach. Finish them off the normal way, with M6D rounds at long range to grab their attention, and the M90 up close. Make sure to fill up on M90 shells as well - there is plenty of ammunition around. Now, switch your M6D for an M19 SSM Rocket Launcher and fill up on rockets for it, then leave the armory and head through the corridors toward Engineering. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Light Fuse, Run Away =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ ___________________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Use the controls on the third floor to retract |--+ +--| an exhaust manifold |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? After the transition to the next segment of the mission, continue forward and take the right turn to the next door. Go through, and Cortana will inform you that we've reached the Engine Room. The Monitor has disabled the Pillar of Autumn's computers, so we'll have to detonate the fusion reactors. Cortana will walk you through the process, letting you know that we first have to open the exhaust manifold. Take care of the Infection Forms that by now are heading toward you. You'll also hear the familiar, cheerful voice of 343 Guilty Spark as well. Once the Infection Forms have been taken care of, turn right and go up the ramp to the next level. Be ready to kill more Infection Forms, then note the large banks of computers on this level. Each has two Med Kits on it, so that's kind of reassuring. Continue down this level, staying as close to the right wall as possible. At the end, you'll reach another door, so go through. Go up the next ramp and turn right. Start walking forward, but keep in mind that some Combat Forms are at the end. (If he's not here, continue on ahead to the third level). Approach carefully, then take out the first one with your M90. Wait around the corner for another one to come around, then kill him as well, before peeking around up the right ramp to take out a Carrier Form. Mop up the Infection Forms, then head up the ramp. There should be several more Combat Forms, so fire a shot to get them to come after you, then duck behind the corner. Once again, wait for them to come around before killing them. Head up the ramp and go through the door to the third level to the left. Most of the enemies should be clear, as they were the ones that came running down when you were on the second level. However, if you are hurried and didn't encounter any resistance on the second level, they will all be up here. Either way, take any Combat Forms the same way as usual, then head up the small ramp and through the door at the end of the corridor. You'll see two control panels ahead, as shown by the navigation markers on your HUD. Switch to your M19 SSM, run out to the closest console, then hit (X) to activate it. _______________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Destroy the open vent core with a grenade |--+ +--| or rocket |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? As soon as you activate the console, jump onto the narrow beam to the left, slightly below where you just were. Turn around 180 degrees and wait until you see the open vents (it'll be red). Fire a rocket into either of the two red slits, and it'll blow. Do this as quickly as possible, as a group of Sentinels will be on their way to attack you. With nothing to hide behind on this beam, they will do quite a bit of damage. If your rocket flies true, you will see a huge explosion. Try to jump back up near the console if you can or drop down. You'll take a lot of damage when you fall, but simply turn around and run up the ramp that we went up earlier. Grab a Med Kit from the computer banks, then head back up to the next floor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ In the same area as before, you'll see more Flood Combat Forms; deal with them accordingly, the same way you always have. Head back up to the third floor, watching out for any stragglers. Once again, head up the small ramp and through the door, then head for the far console. Equip your M19 SSM, activate the console, then jump down to the beam (to your right this time). Turn around and fire another rocket into the red slit as soon as you see it, then fall down and run back up the ramp and grab another Med Kit if necessary. Start heading up to the third level. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Once again, you'll encounter more Combat Forms in the same area as before, right before you get to the third level. When it's clear, head up there and go through the door. These two consoles are done, so head across and turn left into the corridor with the flames. There are some Combat Forms ahead, so rush up and take them out with the M90 at point-blank range. Continue through the corridor and you'll see the final two consoles. Once again, switch to your M19 SSM, activate the right console, jump down to the beam, turn around, and fire a rocket into the red slits, before dropping down. You know the drill - run back up the ramp to the second level. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Take out more Combat Forms and head back up to the third floor. Once again, go left through the flaming corridor, then head to the left console. After you blow up the final fusion reactor, turn back around 180 degrees and run and jump on the nearby platform with the yellow barrels. Head through the door and into the corridor. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ ___________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Get to the elevator on the third floor |--+ ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Cortana will tell you that you only have a short time to get off of the Pillar of Autumn, and Halo, for that matter. You'll need to head for the third floor, so look for the same way that you've been heading up as before, when you were destroying the fusion reactors. If you jumped down to the platform I told you, head down, and then jump down when you get to the computer banks with the Med Kits. Run across the room (the two doors that lead to the armory should be to your right) and up the ramp. Turn left at the top of the ramp and head for the door at the end, on the right side. You should know where you are now - head up the ramps to the third floor as fast as you can, as there are no more Combat Forms to worry about. Now, go straight across the ledge to the far door and go through. Head through a second door, then turn right past the flames. Go through the next door, and then another, and you'll be back in another corridor. Turn left, and you'll see the elevator ahead. +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ Head closer toward the door, then wait for the lift ahead to descend. Several Special Ops Covenant, including Elites and Grunts, are riding it, so as soon as it lowers, throw a couple of grenades or use your M19 SSM. When they're dead, get on the lift. As the lift ascends, Cortana will contact Foehammer to arrange for pickup at a specific location, where we'll meet her. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Warning: Hitchhikers May Be Escaping Convicts =~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= +------------- - CHECKPOINT - -------------+ _________________________________________________________________ +--| MISSION OBJECTIVE: Escape from the Pillar of Autumn before it's |--+ +--| too late |--+ ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Head straight ahead, then turn right. Jump into a nearby Warthog and start taking off. Turn toward the flaming Warthog ahead, then turn left when you get to it. Drive right over any enemies in your way and head straight up the middle of the steep ramp. Right after you climb over the top, you'll descend down a ramp, but as it starts climbing again, move to one side as you exit. This way, you won't run into the large obstacle ahead - as soon as you pass it, however, drive back into the middle and up the next ramp. Driving at full speed, your Warthog should jump over a couple of small gaps before descending down another ramp. Keep driving full speed, and you'll drop through another hole. Drive straight ahead through a large, empty tunnel, but as you exit, drive all the way to either the right or left side. Continue straight along the edge of the room, then turn back into the middle to enter the next tunnel. In this tunnel, you'll see some small ramps next to the pillars. Drive to the left of the first pillar, then to the right of the second, then into the narrow hallway to the left. You'll see some explosions ahead, but don't worry. Turn left as soon as you get out of the hallway, then when you see the next large room, angle yourself to one of the sides of the room again (the left is easier to me, since we were turning that way already anyway). At the end, turn back into the middle to go up the next steep tunnel. Continue straight ahead, and you'll make several drops. When you get to the large room with the pillars, you'll have to slalom your way through. Don't try and make your turns to tight, but instead, make wide, gentle turns. For example, go to the left of the first pillar, to the right of the second, and so on. Make sure you don't run into the large building at the end of the pillars, but head up on the ramp right after it. As you head up the ramp, you'll see the shadow of a Covenant Dropship fly over you, but ignore it. Gun it and keep going forward, and Cortana will again contact Foehammer. Head straight for awhile, and Cortana will tell you to stop and wait for your ride. SPOILER: Don't wait. Foehammer gets shot down (too bad - she was always so friendly and helpful), so keep going to shave a couple more seconds off your time. Continue straight through the tunnel, until you get to more pillars with small ramps next to them. Right after the second one, on the right side of the tunnel, is another hallway you should go through - be careful not to get stuck on the entrance. Go straight ahead and turn right at the end. Slalom around the pillars, and after a little while, Cortana will tell you of large gap ahead. That's your cue to get right in the middle and drive STRAIGHT forward, at top speed. You'll make the huge jump if you're lined up and going fast enough, but don't relax, as there's another small drop right after it. Continue on past the next narrow hallway, around the pillars, and you'll get to a whole bunch of obstacles blocking your path. Quickly get out and run past them, using your M19 SSM to take out anything in your way. Run your ass off to the navigation marker, and you've made it! Congratulations, you've just beaten Halo on Legendary Difficulty! Glitches and Tricks: Here is a way to go secret place and do funny stuff. First of all, there is a way to get outside of Maw: First, you know there is falling down place where you start of in the last level, fall down to black platform. You'll eventually survive, and keep waiting, you'll see sentinels come to you. This is really funny, you can actually ride on them and you can go anywhere of Maw. Pretty nice eh? Glitch on Maw: First, you know the elevator part right? You have to sit down in corner, and elevator will launch without you, this is stupid. And I've done that 2~3 times, I've seen some other people have done that too, but I think I'm the first one to try it. Even Bungee haven't tried this if you see, Bungee didn't know this will happen around the game, and I reported this to internet. Easy defeating Covenents: Covenents are allien invaders who travel around the Halo and whole universe. Their object is to destroy earth, are they really going to destroy the Earth? I founded out that there is a way to defeat Covenents really easily. First of all, a way for Grunts: Grunts are weak, and they have various colors. There are Orange, Yellow, Red, Black. For Orange, he's really weak and slow, you just have to shoot at his head with Pistol or Plasma full-charge attacks. You can also kill him easily with 3 shots Assault rifle on his chest or one-hit Sniper Rifle. For Yellow, this one is quite harder,of course he's not able to defeat Marine though, but he's a little stronger than Orange Grunts. Some of you don't see any difference with orange but there is really huge difference, this one usually holds Needlers and Plasma Pistols, Kill him with one head shot with Pistol or Assault rifle/Plasma Rifle. Red one is really challenging, he can actually kill a marine on his own. He holds nasty Plasma Rifles, and in legendary difficult, he shoots really fast as. Yeah, even faster than Elite on Herodic. Kill him with Pistol (head), or Plasma Pistol. Black one is weak, but they hold Fuel rod gun, this weapon is the same weapon as the one hunter holds, fortunately he can't attack twice in the row. After you've killed him, he'll pop. Beware, the poping damage is really high and sometimes might kill you. The reason that he pops is because bungee don't want you to use Fuel Rod gun. Only they allowed in Halo PC. Jackals: There are 2 types of Jackals, one of them holds Orange Shield, and other holds Blue Shield. Jackals with Orange shield has weak shield, they are weak. But extremely hard on Legendary mode. They use Plasma Pistol and they are able to use full charge attack. Thist will cause large amount of damage to shield. Beware for this one. Kill him with pistol on the little hole where he holds Plasma Pistol, or use full charge attack with Plasma Pistol and melee attack him. Blue Shield is just a normal Jackal, but has little more powerful shield. They pretty much has same tactics. Elites: Now, Elites is the hardest covenent you find. Of course they are weaker than Hunters, but they are really smart and some of you think they are coward. But they aren't, they recharge their shields and even run faster than we do. There are 4 types of Elites. Blue, Red, Grey, and Gold/Yellow. Also invincible. Blue ones are ordinary one, they appear most in the game, they are weakest Elite and they holds Plasma Rifle or Needlers. Kill them with Red ones are quite challenging, on Legendary, they shoot really fast with plasma Rifle. Needler ones are weak, since you can dodge Needlers easily. (see skill guide) Lots of time they hide, they do that a lot since they have to recharge their shields and wait until Plasma Rifle to active again. Grey ones are extremely strong!!!!!!!!! You think they are same as other Elites since they have no aren't just strong and have same life/shield as Red. But think again! They are more faster and they shoot really fast! You can barely kill them using full charge Plasma Pistol on them and then use Pistol. (3 shots) Invincible Elites are the ordinary Elites that are invincible. Normally you have to shoot everywhere with Assault rifle to set them to visible or a while! Luckily, they are weaker than blue ones, so you can defeat them easily. Now, it's time for Gold! If you are new player on Halo, and plays Herodic/Legendary. You have to practise playing Easy or Normal. Remember, there are lot difference between Halo and Counter Strike, even you are master of Counter Strike, you won't able to defeat this guy in Legendary. only experienced halo player can defeat him. He's really fast and equipped with overshield. He's really hard to kill and balanced armor. You can kill him using Plasma Rifle, he'll stun when you shoot him 8 times with Plasma Rifle. Also, use Plasma Pistol Full-charge attack to peel of his shield. ^_^ Hunter: Hunters are covenent species thats quite odd. They are really tall and armed with everything. Their Shield was made by magical steal that are unbreakable, and that only exists in other Planet. And they don't exists on Earth. -.- The reason that you can't get his gun is because that gun is stuck on his arm. He shoot fuel rod gun twice in a row. Means if you dodge one barely, don't just hide in same place again, try to dodge same way again. To kill him, use Pistol or either Shotgun on his Butt or the orange part behind him. He won't turn back unless he melee attack you and you've dodged. Easy defeating Floods: Floods are another alien species which also plan to destroy the Earth. Fortunately, they aren't allience with Covenents. The objective to kill them is just wait until they finish battle with Covenents. ^_^_^_^_^ There are 4 types of floods: Infection flood: These flood is flood that has only head and jumping around. Sometimes, you can see them 1000 or more together, especially when you are in Guilty Spark. They barely damage or hurt you when you have active shield. When your shield is down, they'll hurt your ass really hard. So flood's strategy is damage your shield with guns and then damage your health bar with these infection floods. They arevery effective against assault rifle. Human Flood: These floods are just one head shorter than you, they use any sort of guns and melee attack. You can destroy them with Pistol or Shotgun. Be careful, they sometimes just lie down when they were hit, and you think they were dead. But they aren't, they will stand up again when you reach close to that corspe. So basically, destroy their both arms, so they'll be handicap and will not attack. Elite/Master Chief Flood: These floods are quite more stronger than Human floods, sometimes they form as invincible mode exactly same as Elites. They holds any guns and their melee attacks really hurts. Sometimes, they can overcome Gold Elites. so be careful. Terrorist flood: These floods suicide with you and they'll bomb up. After they have popped, infection floods will appear inside them. Never go close to them. Use Grenades for them. Easy defeating Sentinels: Sentinels are army from Guilty Spark. They are really weak, but in Legendary difficulty, a 4 of them can own your ass easily. So beaware, the most effective guns against them are Plasma weapons. Enjoy killng them. Currently there aren't any tpyes of them. Weapon/Vehicle guides: I. Weapons A. Human Weapons 1. Pistol- The best all-around weapons. You can snipe with it, and it isn't too shabby at close range. One-shot kill with a headshot on soft tissue, besides Floodˇ¦. (2 xs zoom, fires 12.7mm rounds.) 2. Assault Rifle- Your primary gun. You almost always start out with this gun. It takes most of a clip to take down Elites shields. Better used for large mobs of Grunts and other, exposed soft targets. (15rnds/sec, fires 7.62mm rounds) 3. Shotgun- The best close up gun. Best for Flood at medium-close range and very effective on Elites at point-blank. Don't bother wasting precious ammo on Jackals behind shields, though. (Fires 8" Gauge magnum shells) 4. Rocket Launcher- Well, what can I say? Always kills if you hit something, except for Hunters and Gold Elites on Legendary. (Fires 102mm shaped-charged high-explosive rockets) 5. Sniper Rifle- The gun is absolutely useless at close range, so make sure your target won't have time to rush you before he dies. A guaranteed kill is a headshot, obviously. (Fires 14.5mm AMFSDS, can over-penetrate one target) B. Covenant Weapons 1. Plasma Rifle- Elites primarily use these. They take shields down quickly, but will eventually overheat from overuse. It becomes virtually useless in the few seconds it cools off. 2. Plasma Pistol- Grunts and Jackals use these, basically a smaller, semi-automatic version of the Plasma Rifle. You can, however, hold down the trigger the gun becomes over-charged and can take down an enemies shield in one shot always. 3. Needler- Both Elites and Grunts se these. They fire purple, needle-like projectiles. Get enough of them on one target and a massive explosion ensues. They are hell on unshielded targets. 4. Shade- The stationary gun emplacement. Fires purple plasma-bolts. Both Elites and Grunts use them, but it's mostly Grunts. 5. Fuel-Rod Canon- Hunters and Black Spec-Ops Grunts use these. They fire huge, green plasma balls. They have to recharge, so after one shot it takes a few seconds to get another shot off. (You can't use these in the game, as if you kill a Grunt with one, the weapons explodes, and on Hunters, in integrated directly into their armor.) 2:Vehicles A. Human Vehicles 1. Warthog- A three person All-Terrain-Vehicle. Driver, passenger, and gunner. The gunner operates the triple-barreled Anti-Aircraft gun.(fires 12.7mm rounds at 550/min, so it's basically three pistols shooting very fast) 2. Tank- Has a 90mm HV main gun that can fire one round every four seconds. It's like the Rocket Launcher, if it hits something, whatever it may be, it's done for. B. Covenant Vehicles 1. Banshee- The only flying vehicle in the game. Has two Plasma Rifles and one Fuel Rod Cannon. 2. Ghost- very fast ground based vehicle, has two plasma rifles. C. Undrivable Vehicles 1. Pelican- Can't drive these, but they are your transport. 2. Wraith- Giant mortar tanks that lob massive blue plasma balls that slowly fall. Word of advice: don't be near one when it hits the ground. 3. Drop ship- Carries up to 12 Covies. It has a Shade mounted underneath. Online guides: You didn't know Halo was also availiable Live didn't you? Well, here is a tip: If you have online one home computer with a broadband connection, I'd reccommend using the first method below, "Installing using a hub." If you'd prefer not to use a hub, or if you have a USB cable/DSL modem, you must use the second method below, "Dual NIC method." There is one other method of connecting, using a NAT which I will not describe here as most people should be ok with one of the two methods listed below. If you think you need to use a NAT (or just to be certain that you don't), please read http://www.gamespyarcade.com/support/tunnel_xbox.shtml. That is the URL for GameSpy's support info on this topic, which goes into more detail than I do. Again, this is intended to be a "quick and dirty" guide, not a manual. INSTALLING USING A HUB Required items: A TV An Xbox A copy of Halo A Ethernet cable (aka RJ45) A hub A IBM compatible computer A broadband connection to the Internet GameSpyArcade software, available from www.gamespy.com GameSpyArcade Tunneling software, also available from www.gamespy.com Install the GameSpy software on your computer, followed by the tunnelling software, per instructions that you should find on the GameSpy website. Once this software is installed, shut down your computer and connect the hub. It should go between your DSL/cable modem and the computer itself. Reconnect your computer by plugging its Ethernet cable into the hub, rather than the modem. Connect your Xbox to the hub as well, using the Ethernet cable mentioned above, and power your computer back up. Try reconnecting to the Internet as you normally would, you shouldn't have any problems. Turn on your Xbox, with Halo in it, and run the GameSpy software on your computer. Again, for instructions on using the GameSpyArcade software, turn to www.gamespy.com, or any help files in GameSpy's software. Once you connect to a game in the GameSpy software, you should be able to simply select Multiplayer in Halo, choose System Link, and join or create a game as you normally would. DUAL NIC METHOD Required items: A TV An Xbox A copy of Halo An Ethernet card* A crossover/twisted pair cable A IBM compatible computer A broadband connection to the Internet GameSpyArcade software, available from www.gamespy.com GameSpyArcade Tunneling software, also available from www.gamespy.com *If you have a USB DSL/cable modem, you only need one Ethernet card in your computer, if you use a standard DSL/cable modem (ie, it connects to an Ethernet card in your computer) you need a total of two Ethernet cards. It is possible to play Halo online with no hub, and if you use a USB DSL/cable modem, you actually MUST use this method. Begin by ensuring that you have an available Ethernet card in your computer when you are online(by available, I mean one with no cord plugged into it. If you do not, install the second Ethernet card, using the instructions and drivers included with that card. TCP/IP protocol MUST be bound to both Ethernet cards. Once the second Ethernet card is installed (or in the case of a USB DSL/cable modem, the only Ethernet card), install the GameSpyArcade and GameSpyArcade Tunneling software. Power on your Xbox; join a game in the GameSpyArcade software (again, see http://www.gamespyarcade.com/support/tunnel_xbox.shtml for further instructions, or look at the GameSpyArcade Help file), then go to the Multiplayer menu in Halo itself. Choose System Link, and either create or join a game. From here, you should be able to play! Contact me: You can contact me by hunwoo1991@hanmail.net. Ot if you are registered member, just Pm me. Enjoy my Faq guides please, thanks to members/guests who reads it. Also, I'll be updating this Faq later. Thanks again.