Halo®:Harte-Hanks Combat Proprietary Information Evolved

HaloWalkthrough Walkthrough

First-Person Shooter

1-2 Players Co-operative 2-16 Players Multiplayer

Requires 3 to 227 Blocks to Save

DevelopedDeveloped by Bungie by Bungie Studios PublishedPublished by by Microsoft® Microsoft

Walkthrough created by Phil Cordova Halo Walkthrough Table of Contents

I. FAQ’s / Cheats / Codes ...... 5

II. Game Controls ...... 6

III. Power-up Items ...... 7

IV. Weapons List ...... 8-11 Human Weaponry & Covenant Weaponry

V. Vehicle List ...... 12-15 Human Vehicles & Covenant Vehicles

VI. The Good Guys... and the Bad Machine ...... 16-18

VII. Enemy Types and Recommended Tactics to Defeat Them Covenant Enemies, Flood Enemies & The Sentinels ...... 19-23

VIII. General Hints and Tips ...... 24-25 Single Player Campaign Hints & Tips Multiplayer Hints & Tips

IX. Single Player Campaign Level Walkthrough Level 1: Pillar of Autumn ...... 26-30 Mission Objective 1- Complete training diagnostic (p. 26) Mission Objective 2- Find Captain Keyes on the Bridge (p. 27) Mission Objective 3- Get off the Pillar of Autumn (p. 27)

Level 2: Halo ...... 31-33 Mission Objective 1- Evade Covenant patrols (p. 31) ⇒ Evade the Covenant patrols searching for you ⇒ Head for higher ground ⇒ Search for other lifeboats Mission Objective 2- Protect the human survivors (p. 32) ⇒ Stay with the survivors ⇒ Protect the human survivors ⇒ Wait for an evac dropship to arrive

2 Halo Walkthrough Table of Contents (con’t)

Level 2: Halo (con’t) Mission Objective 3- Search for additional survivors (p. 32) ⇒ Search for the three additional groups of human survivors ⇒ Protect the human survivors ⇒ Wait for an evac dropship

Level 3: Truth and Reconciliation ...... 34-37 Mission Objective 1- Board the Covenant Battle Cruiser (p. 34) Mission Objective 2- Find the ship’s brig and rescue Captain Keyes (p. 35) Mission Objective 3- Return to the Shuttle Bay for Extraction (p. 37)

Level 4: The Silent Cartographer ...... 38-41 Mission Objective 1- Clear the landing beach of hostiles (p. 38) Mission Objective 2- Find the entrance to the map room (p. 38) Mission Objective 3- Activate the map room (p. 39) Mission Objective 4- Find the door’s security override (p. 39) Mission Objective 5- Activate the map room (p. 40) Mission Objective 6- Return to the surface for extraction (p. 41)

Level 5: Assault on the Control Room ...... 42-49 Mission Objective 1- Reach the transition to the second chasm (p. 42) Mission Objective 2- Reach the transition to the third chasm (p. 45)

Level 6: 343 Guilty Spark ...... 50-57 Mission Objective 1- Locate Captain Keyes (p. 51) Mission Objective 2- Escape! (p. 54)

Level 7: The Library ...... 58-66 Mission Objectives 1, 3, 5, 7, 9- Follow the Monitor to the Index (p. 60-65) Mission Objectives 2, 4, 6, 8- Hold your position until the Monitor returns Mission Objective 10- Recover the Index (p. 66)

Level 8: Two Betrayals ...... 67-71 Mission Objective 1- Locate and destroy Pulse Generator #1 (p. 68) Mission Objective 2- Go to Canyon B (p. 68) Mission Objective 3- Locate and destroy Pulse Generator #2 (p. 69) Mission Objective 4- Locate and destroy Pulse Generator #3 (p. 70)

3 Halo Walkthrough Table of Contents (con’t)

Level 9: Keyes ...... 72-76 Mission Objective 1- Find a way into the control room (p. 73) Mission Objective 1a- Get out of the ship by jumping, and find another route in Mission Objective 2- Find another way into the ship (p. 73) Mission Objective 3- Hold your position under the lift until it re-activates (p. 74) Mission Objective 4- Follow Cortana’s directions back to the control room (p.74) Mission Objective 5- Recover Capt. Keyes (p. 76) Mission Objective 6- Escape via the shuttle bay (p. 76)

Level 10: The Maw ...... 77-80 Mission Objective 1- Make your way to the bridge (p. 77) Mission Objective 2- Get to engineering by way of the cryo storage facility (p.78) Mission Objective 3- Use the controls on the third floor to retract an exhaust manifold (p. 79) Mission Objective 3a- Destroy the open vent core with a grenade or rocket Mission Objective 4- Get to the elevator on the third floor (p. 79) Mission Objective 5- Escape from the Pillar of Autumn before it’s too late (p.79)

X. Credits ...... 81-1081

4 I. FAQ’s / Cheats / Codes

FAQ’s 1. Does the difficulty setting alter the endings? Yes. You will see another scene to the ending if you beat it on the Legendary setting. But the ending is the same for the Easy, Normal, and Heroic settings.

2. What are the major differences between the difficulty settings of the Single Player Cam- paign Mode?

There are a few key differences among the difficulty settings. As you go up in difficulty: • The enemies increase in number • The enemies fire at a faster rate • Harder enemies appear earlier than usual • Enemies throw grenades more often • You cannot take as much damage than easier difficulty settings

3. Is it worth it to save the Marines in Single Player Campaign Mode? Do you receive any- thing special for saving them all?

While you won’t unlock any extra levels or a better ending, by saving the Marines they will tell you valuable information regarding where to go. Better yet, you will miss out on some nice storyline-enhancing conversation if the Marines are killed. One more thing: don’t go out of your way to kill the Marines...they will fire upon you as a traitor.

4. Can I save the crazed Marine in Level 6: 343 Guilty Spark?

No. In the state of mind the Marine is in, he will fire upon you thinking you’re an en- emy. His shots will hurt you. But you will not be penalized for killing him, or rather, putting him out of his misery. He’s only there to enhance the storyline with his eerie ramblings.

Cheats There are currently no cheats for Halo.

Codes There are currently no codes for Halo.

5 II. Game Controls

Default Controls

Throw Grenade Fire Weapon

Move Forward / Back- ward, Strafe Left / Flashlight On / Off Right; Push in Stick for Crouch Switch Grenade

Switch Weapon

Melee Attack

Action / Reload

Jump

Move Forward / Back- Look Up / Down, ward, Strafe Left/ Right Rotate Left / Right; Go Back a menu Bring up Pause Push in for Scope selection Menu; Start Zoom Game

Controller Configurations There are other configurations to set up the controller. Go into the “Settings” of the Main Title Screen and select a character profile to adjust the control settings of the controller. While you cannot customize each button to your liking, there are plenty of pre-set con- figurations to choose from.

NOTE: If you want to change your controller configuration while playing a game, you have to press start to bring up the “Pause Menu” and select “Save and Quit”. This will save and quit your current game so you can go to the Main Title Screen and select “Settings” to change your configuration.

6 III. Power-up Items

Active Camouflage- Gives the player about 50 seconds of invisibility from enemies. A player will become visible for a quick second if hit by a weapon shot.

Over Shield- Your shield is given 2 extra levels of protection. The Over Shield boosts the color of your Shield Indicator to green which turns red then blue as its depleted. In multi- player deathmatch modes, the Over Shield will wear down on it’s own to the normal blue status after a little over a minute.

Health Pack- Located in various spots in all levels. One Health Pack will replenish your Health Meter completely.

7 IV-a. Human Weapons List

← M6D Pistol

Pistol Ammo → Pistol- While the Pistol doesn’t have a great deal of fire power, in the hands of a skilled player the zoom function allows you to score deadly head shots (especially in multiplayer deathmatches.)

Assault Rifle Ammo→

←MA5B Assault Rifle

Assault Rifle- The Assault Rifle is a great all around weapon that’s effective against Covenant enemies and Flood spores. Not recommended against Flood Elites or Flood Humans.

M90 Shotgun Shotgun Ammo→

Shotgun- This weapon is the best defense against Flood Elites and Humans. The Shotgun can spell a quick death in multiplayer deathmatches. One up-close shot usually eliminates a foe’s energy shield, while the next puts them down.

8

S2 AM Sniper Rifle Sniper Rifle Ammo →

Sniper Rifle- The Sniper Rifle is a great weapon to have if you want to scout out an area. It’s great for all Covenant enemies, but it’s very ineffective against Flood Elites and Flood Humans.

M 19 SSM Rocket Launcher Rocket Launcher Ammo

Rocket Launcher- The most powerful weapon you can carry. Be careful when using this weapon in close and tight quarters—the explosion of a Rocket Launcher round can damage or even kill you.

M41 LAAG- The M41 LAAG, or Wart-hog chain gun, has unlimited ammo. Which means unlimited fun in mowing down anything of the enemy-variety that gets in your way. In multiplayer combat through, you’re a sitting duck for a grenade or rocket launcher attack since the attached gun won’t allow you to run around freely on the ground.

M9 HE-DP Grenade (Also know as a fragmentation grenade) -

There’s not any special features about this weapon; just aim and throw. They explode after a couple of seconds of landing. You can bounce grenades off a wall to hit a target around a corner, but make sure you do it safely...and not bounce it back at yourself carelessly.

9 IV-b. Covenant Weapons List

Plasma Pistol– A popular weapon among Grunts. Hold down the fire button a couple of seconds and then re- lease to charge up a large shot that temporarily stuns and slows opponents. In multiplayer combat, use the stun- charge to slow down an opponent for a nasty Melee Attack. There is no ammo for the Plasma Pistol. Just discard the old one and pick up a new one off the ground.

Plasma Rifle– A favored weapon by Elites, this weapon is capable of semiautomatic or fully automatic fire just by holding down the fire button. Be careful of overheating the gun while in automatic firing mode. As with the Plasma Pistol, discard the used-up weapon for a new one off the ground.

←Needler

Needler Ammo→

Needler- The rounds that fire from this weapon travel relatively slow, but seek out your oppo- nent. If enough needles manage to find your foe, the small explosions from each successfully connecting needle can do substantial damage.

Plasma Grenade– Similar to the Fragmentation Grenade in explosive power and bounce-ability off of walls, but with an added twist. The key difference between this grenade and its hu- man counterpart is its ability to stick to a live target. Don’t run over a grenade that’s bee tossed; it can stick to you if you’re not careful.

10 Stationary Gun (Shade)- You will commonly find Grunts operating this immobile gun around areas of interest to your objective. Once you eliminate the gun’s operator, take it for a spin yourself and use it on the en- emy to give them a taste of their own medicine. The fir- ing rate of the Shade is not very fast, so you’ll do good to use it only on enemy ground infantry on not on airborne targets. And like the M41 LAAG, you’re a sitting duck for a grenade or rocket launcher attack while operating it.

Covenant Weapons that You can Look at, but not Touch:

The following weapons are not able to be picked up and used once you kill the enemy holding the weapon. What a shame...

Plasma Sword– An extremely deadly weapon to go up against, the Plasma Sword can only be used by Gold or Active Camouflaged Elites. Even on the tame Normal mode you can be taken down in just 2 swipes of the blade. The sword runs off the life source of the Elite equipping it—when the Elite dies, the Plasma Sword dies with it as well.

Grunt Hand Cannon– While not the official name of the weapon, the name pretty much says it all. With this weapon equipped, a Grunt’s firepower becomes equally as fierce as a Hunter’s. Grunts will carry these weapons in the last couple of levels. The gun goes for one last attempt at killing you by exploding with the force of a grenade, a few seconds after you kill the Grunt. Certainly a nasty surprise to newbies eager to grab it and give it a go.

11 V-a. Human Vehicle List

Below are the man-made vehicles you can drive in the Campaign and Multi-player modes.

M12 LRV (a.k.a. Wart-hog)– The Wart-hog is the best vehicle to have when carrying other Marines. The rear-mounted M41 LAAG, or chain gun, has an excellent zone of covering fire. Without a Marine in the rear-mounted gunner seat and another firing his weapon from the passenger side, the Wart-hog can only provide offense action by running enemies over. The maneuverability and speed of the Wart-hog is excel- lent, but very susceptible to flipping over on hilly terrain. In multi- player capture-the-flag, the Wart-hog is an excellent way to get to the opponent’s camp...just watch out for grenades and rockets.

M808B Scorpion MBT– The Scorpion battle tank may be the slowest vehicle, but makes up for it sturdiness and firepower. It’s mounted with a chain gun that can be fired simultaneously with the turret cannon. The tur- ret takes a few seconds to recharge once the round has been fired. It can carry 4 Marines at a time, but they’ll be prone to attacks. Another drawback to the Scorpion is its firing zone. You cannot hit enemies who are close to the tank. If you try the force of the explosion will hurt you.

12 Below are the man-made vehicles that you will encounter, but cannot drive yourself. They are important to the story line in Campaign Mode to help you find your location in certain areas of Halo.

Escape Pod– These lifeboats from the Pillar of Autumn are only seen in Levels 1 and 2 of the Campaign Mode. In Level 2, these are important vehicles to find to aid your search for survivors of these crashed escape pods. Ammo and health are always located near escape pods.

Pelican– This ship is responsible for dropping you and your Marines off to certain locations around Halo, and is your rescue whenever you need to pull out of an area. The Pelican will drop off Wart-hogs to your area as required by a mission. If you find a crashed Pelican you will almost always see ammo and health nearby.

13 V-b. Covenant Vehicle List

Below are the alien vehicles you can control. The Ghost is available in Campaign and Multi-player modes. The Banshee can only be used in Campaign Mode.

Ghost– The Ghost is a fast and highly maneuverable hover vehicle. It’s light on firepower, by providing plasma blasts from its Plasma Canon that are a little more powerful than the Plasma Rifle’s shots. While the control and agility is among the highest of all the vehicles you can control, you are very prone to attacks.

Banshee– This is the only airborne vehicle you can control. The Banshee is equipped with 2 weapons: a Plasma Cannon exactly like the Ghost’s and a Fuel Rod Cannon that delivers a shot similar in strength to the Hunter’s weapon shot. It can also hover in one spot (press down on the controller). When it’s flown by an Elite, the Rocket Launcher will bring it down in one hit, but you have to either time your shot or wait until it’s dive- bombing toward you.

14 Below are the alien vehicles that you will encounter, but cannot drive yourself. Be careful of their appearances throughout the Campaign Mode of Halo.

Wraith– The most powerful of the Covenant’s land vehicles. This hovering tank only has one weapon, and that’s all it needs. The Plasma Cannon from its central turret rivals the Scorpion’s own turret cannon in destruc- tive power. Unless you have a Rocket Launcher or Scorpion tank at your disposal, avoid the Wraith as much as possible. It takes 3 rockets or a couple of rounds from the Scorpion’s turret to bring down this behemoth.

Covenant Drop-ship– Equipped with a rear-mounted Pulse Laser Cannon (like the Shade), this alien coun- terpart to the Pelican drops a platoon of Covenant Grunts, Elites, and Jackals into open areas to eradicate any human life forms. You cannot destroy Covenant Drop-ships (even with the mighty Scorpion). Covenant Drop-ship’s will always drop troops in the same area. Try to anticipate a Covenant Drop- ship’s landing area and toss a grenade as the bay doors unload unsuspecting Covenant troops into the welcom- ing blast party you’ve just set up for them.

15 VI-a. The Good Guys...

Captain Jacob Keyes– Captain of the Pillar of Autumn and die-hard patriot of Earth. He lures the Covenant away from the direction of Earth into a blind warp to another part of the universe, knowingly putting his faithful crew into certain danger in doing so. You will have to rescue the Captain from the Cove- nant during the game, but don’t think he’s defenseless. With twenty-six years experience in the military and nu- merous decorations, his years of combat experience against the Covenant is still apparent when he picks up a weapon and joins the fray. His only request of you is to protect Cortana from the Covenant.

Cortana– As the highly advanced A.I. of the Pillar of Autumn, she holds a wealth of information on not only the ship and its crew, but more importantly vital info concerning the planet Earth. Which is why you are charged by Captain Keyes to keep her pro- tected from the Covenant at all costs. Once you slot Cortana into your suit’s helmet, she can hack into the Covenant’s Battle Network and retrieve valuable information on Covenant strategies and intentions. Cortana will be especially helpful in your journey by providing you with Navigation Points (or Nav Points) that appear on your HUD which direct you to areas of importance. She’s also kind enough to give advice on how to best approach a given situation...even though she may not sound nice when giving it.

The Marines– Representing the best of the best that Earth has to offer against the Covenant foe, they will provide you cover in combat against the enemy in various instances throughout the game. Most of the Marines share the same fierce determination to rid the universe of Covenant scum like their Captain. They also respect your presence and follow you where ever you lead them. Take care not to fire upon them in battle. They can tolerate a few rounds of friendly fire, but if you consistently target them with gunfire, you will be gunned down as an enemy traitor.

16

The “Sarge”- He’s called by many of his Marines as “Sarge”. You’ll encounter this brave soldier throughout the game as he sets an example for the rest of the Marines to follow. This resilient soldier leads his Marines into bat- tle and fights as fierce as any Covenant Elite. Though he’s just a minor character in the game, he’ll provide you with information regarding the status of fellow Marines and help enhance the story- line of the game.

Master Chief– You are the Master Chief. You were cre- ated in a classified military project codenamed SPAR- TAN II. The goal of the project was to create genetically superior soldiers enhanced for combat against the Covenant threat. Your battle suit of armor is the latest in state-of- the-art protection. It not only protects you from enemy fire, but also houses an internal network made of a layer of crystal that allows to you upload starship grade AI (like Cortana) who can overpower alien computer systems if necessary. Your genetically enhanced reflexes, eyesight, and coordination instantly work in tandem with your suit through a neural interface implanted into your brain. In other words, you armor’s movements and weapons are controlled by the speed of your thoughts. You are the human race’s best and last hope in eradicating the Covenant.

17 VI-b. ...and the Bad Machine

The Monitor (a.k.a. 343 Guilty Spark)

A small, floating mechanical sphere that emits an intense blue light, the Monitor is an A.I. whose intention to stop the spread of the Flood are good. But its the plan of action it takes that make it the antagonist of the game. The Monitor doesn’t seem so bad when you first meet at the end of Level 6. It enlists your help to eliminate the Flood—a common goal, no doubt—and lends his help in the form of killing machines called Sentinels. But through all of its oddly-cheerful, yet cold conversations with you it neglects to mention a slight drawback in its solution to eliminate the Flood. By using Halo, the Monitor wants to rid the universe of the Flood’s food source...which not only includes the Covenant race, but humans as well. And it will stop at nothing to achieve its goal, even if it includes eliminating you. While the Monitor isn’t a “true” boss of the game (you don’t actually fight it) you will have to battle the groups of Sentinels that do the dirty work of battling those who oppose its plan.

18 VII-a. List of Covenant Enemy Types and Recommended Tactics to Defeat Them

Grunt– The backbone of the Covenant army, Grunts carry a wide variety of Covenant weaponry and often toss Plasma Grenades. Although weak on their own, they gather strength in packs and often follow a Covenant that are higher in rank. Just Melee Attack lone Grunts….they’re a waste of ammo. If there’s a large group of them, throw a fragmentation or Plasma Grenade in the middle of the group and gun down the others that try to jump away from the grenade. If you don’t have any grenades handy, enjoy mowing them down with an Assault Rifle.

Elite– Usually known as the sergeants of the Covenant group, Eiltes come in multiple colors and have the ability to use Active Camouflage. The most powerful of the Elites are Gold Elites equipped with the deadly Plasma Sword. Elites are also protected by an Energy Shield that re- charges like yours. The most effective method in killing this enemy is to use a few rounds of any weapon (preferably the Assault Rifle) to weaken its force shield, and then use 2 or 3 Melee Attacks to finish it off. For Active Camouflaged Elites, avoid using Melee Attacks since they’re hard to see, and in- stead gun them down with the Assault Rifle or Shotgun.

19 Jackal– In the Covenant army, Jackals are loners that scout out areas for the Elites and Grunts. The strong energy shield that expands from their wrist is almost impervious to small arms fire. Their weapon of choice is the Plasma Pistol with which they often use the stun-charge capabilities. Jack- als come in 2 colors. To defeat a Jackal, go for a straight-on Melee Attack to its wrist shield. Then while it’s staggering from the initial Melee Attack, use an- other Melee hit or a few rounds of your favorite weapon (like the Shotgun) to finish it off. Other- wise, try to circle-strafe around the enemy and gun or Melee it on the unprotected side.

Hunter– The most fearsome Covenant creature, the huge Hunter is equipped with a destructive Fuel Rod Cannon that’s normally fitted to Cove- nant Banshees. Their enormous shield not only protects them from most gunfire, but also serves as a Melee Weapon in close combat. When in combat position the Hunter con- tracts into its highly protective blue plated body armor. Relaxed, it exposes its Achilles’ Heel— the soft, dark orange flesh around its neck and mid-section.

It is best to conquer this foe by long range weaponry, like the Sniper Rifle or (better yet) the Rocket Launcher. If using the Sniper Rifle, wait until the Hunter is “relaxed” and not in a defensive combat position. Aim for the dark orange fleshy parts at its neck or midsection area (especially its back) to deal the most damage. With the Rocket Launcher, just aim at the ground near it and fire. If you don’t have any grenades or a Rocket Launcher, you can still bring down the powerful Covenant Hunters if you carefully circle-strafe around them and use Melee Attacks. Let it charge at you then side step out of the way as a matador would with a charging bull, Melee Attacking it as it passes by. If you have a Shotgun, one blast directly to its exposed back will take it down, even if you’re playing on Legendary difficulty (the most difficult AI level).

20 VII-b. List of Flood Enemy Types and Recommended Tactics to Defeat Them

Flood Spore– A small insect-like larvae that hatches from Flood Spore Incubators. These quick critters jump in the air and try to latch onto you like the parasite it is. They are responsible for spreading the Flood infection to Covenant and Humans alike. Alone, a Flood Spore is just a mere nui- sance. But in large numbers, they can bring your health down surprisingly fast. These annoyances die easily with one round of ammo from an Assault Rifle. Once hit, they pop and make a small explosion that can cause nearby Flood Spores to pop in a chain reaction. In a small group of 4 or 5, just let them hit you if your shield is charged up. If there’s a swarm just fire a round or two in the middle of them to cause a chain reaction explosion to eliminate nearby Spores. You can always backpedal and Melee Attack them if you want to conserve ammo.

Flood Spore Incubator- This weaponless type of Flood creature was once a Grunt...now it’s a slow-moving egg sac for Flood Spores that are incubating inside. They wander aimlessly until they sense you’re near. If you get too close to these slow moving enemies, they will explode with the force of a grenade and spew forth 5 to 6 annoying Flood Spores that were incubating inside. Flood Spore Incubators will also trigger nearby grenades on the floor to explode when they pop, so be careful. Use a Shotgun blast from a safe distance to explode them prematurely. You can use a Flood Spore Incubator as a make-shift grenade by waiting to shoot them when they’re surrounded by enemies. Hit them with a Shotgun blast and watch the fun ensure as bodies fly through the air. But try to avoid shooting a Flood Spore Incubator surrounded by other Incubators— they won’t explode at the same time, and the flying Incubator body has a good chance of landing near you to explode.

21 Flood Human Soldier– A Marine overcome by the Flood’s infection. Flood Human Soldiers carry the stan- dard weaponry that Marines carry, although they will carry Covenant weapons every once in a while. The Flood Human Soldier’s other method of attacking is a powerful Melee Attack. It will often try to Melee Attack you when they get close to you and also as they jump to- ward you. Like it’s counterpart the Flood Elite, the Flood Human will get back up again if you use an Assault Rifle to gun it down. The best way to dispose of flood enemies is with a Shotgun: just one close-up blast with the Shot- gun brings most Flood down for good. If you don’t have a Shotgun handy, use whatever weapon you have and fire until they go down. Then run to their fallen body and Melee Attack them 2 or 3 more times or pump more lead into them to keep them down for good.

Flood Elite- The Flood Elite used to be an Elite until the Flood infection altered it physique into the grotesque creation its currently become. It mainly uses Covenant weaponry, but occasionally uses Human weapons; espe- cially Rocket Launchers. It also Melee Attacks when close and jumps frequently to close in on you. It will of- ten get back up once it’s knocked down by a Pistol or Assault Rifle. The most effective weapon to knock the Flood Elite down for good is the Shotgun. Melee Attacks alone are useless and suicidal against the Flood Elite (and Flood Human). The infection has robbed the Elite of its wits. A Flood Elite, like the Flood Human, doesn’t know any better to run away from grenades. But watch out if throw a Plasma Grenade on a Flood enemy as they may run to- ward you with it on them.

22 VII-c. The Sentinels & Recommended Tactics to Defeat Them

The Sentinels– The Monitor’s “pets” and guards, these machines only kill what the Monitor tells them to kill. They hover in packs of 6 and eliminate anything that it perceives to be a threat with its only weapon, an intense red laser beam. Your first impression with these machines is a good one, as they help you eliminate the Flood threat. But after key events unfold later in the game, you will have to fight against these machines in addition to the Covenant and Flood threats already present. Some Sentinels have energy shields protecting them. It’s dangerous to confront a group of these machines up close. Use a weapon with a scope zoom to safely kill the majority of them from a distance. Once you have whittled the group down to 1 or 2 Sentinels, 3 to 4 shotgun blasts per Sentinel will destroy the remaining ones.

23 VIII-a. General Single Player Campaign Hints and Tips

Single Player Campaign Hints and Tips:

1. Avoid killing your own men! They may occasionally get in the way and annoy you, but you may miss out on valuable information that they could have for you-- such as know- ing where to go to next in the game. And they will fire upon you as a traitor if they feel you are trying to kill them! 2. Kill the Covenant Elites first if they are leading a platoon of Grunts. The Grunts will generally scatter and dismantle without the leadership of an Elite. 3. Sneak up behind individual Covenant aliens and Melee them from behind for an instant kill. 4. Don’t waste an entire clip of ammo on a Covenant Elite. Use enough rounds to elimi- nate their energy shield, then finish them off with a few Melee Attacks to save ammo. 5. If you have the opportunity to do so, sneak up stealthily on Covenant instead of rushing in with guns blazing. Even though it’s more fun to just shoot everything in sight, you’ll save yourself the frustration of running low on ammo and health by being sneaky. 6. On the Heroic and Legendary settings, you will encounter plasma and Fragmentation Grenades more often than the easier settings. Use them often, but wisely. Avoid throw- ing them on lone Grunts, and instead throw them at Elites who tend to have Grunts sur- rounding them. And be careful not to throw them hastily—you might end up taking out a few of your own Marines. 7. Don’t forget to let your shields recharge! It’s easy to get caught up in the action of an intense gunfight and forget about the status of your shield. Duck behind a corner and take the time to let them recharge. 8. If you flip the Wart-hog and your occupants are standing too close to it to flip back over safely, use your Melee Attack to move the vehicle away from them so you can flip it back over without the danger of killing anyone.

24 VIII-b. General Multi-Player Hints and Tips

Multiplayer Hints and Tips:

1. Charge up a shot from the Plasma Pistol to stun your opponent. Then Melee Attack them while they’re stunned. 2. Memorize the layout of each arena. 3. Go for the Over Shield and Active Camouflage every chance you get. 4. If the Motion Tracker is turned on in Multiplayer, you can still keep from being detected by it if you don’t move around—which is great news for those Campers who like to snipe unsuspecting opponents.

25 IX. Single Player Campaign Level Walkthrough

Level 1: Pillar of Autumn

Scenario: Reveille

(The scenario Reveille is only available on the “Easy” and “Normal” difficulty settings. “Heroic” and “Legendary” skip this scenario since it’s just a training segment to learn basic controls—which a Heroic or Legendary skilled player should already know.)

Mission Objective 1- Complete training diagnostic This simple objective is designed to familiarize you with the basic controls and how your shield functions. A technician on the floor will lead you to 2 test stations that will test your targeting and shield abilities. There will be no enemies to attack you, so practice maneu- vering with the analog sticks. Find and stand in the middle of the red square on the floor to begin the first test at the “Optical Diagnostic” station. Use the Right Analog stick on the controller to look at each of the 5 lights to change their colors from red-orange to green. If you haven’t set up your looking controls to “Inverted” in the options menu under Advanced Controls, the 2nd technician in the Cryo-Storage Observation Deck above will ask you to look at the lights again with the up and down controls inverted (like controlling an airplane). Decide on which control style is best for you. Now follow the technician to the 2nd test station. After standing in the middle of the yel- low and black striped square, your shields will be fully charged again. Before leaving the sta- tion area, you will be asked to bring down your shields to test their recharging capabilities. Press A to do so. Once they regenerate, Captain Keyes will call on the loud speaker and re- quest your presence on the Bridge.

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Mission Objective 2- Find Captain Keyes on the Bridge When trying to find the Bridge it’s very important to pay attention to the blue arrow signs on the floor with the word “Bridge” stenciled in. Until you get to the Bridge, you will also be unarmed. So be careful and avoid enemy fire. In the hallway outside the Cryo-Storage Chamber jump over a set of pipes marked by a green arrow with “Maintenance” stenciled in on the floor nearby. After jumping the pipes turn right and follow the hallway all the way until you reach a dark room. In this dark room you’ll be forced to crouch underneath a half closed blast door. Crouch underneath the blast door and you will now be in a hallway where crew members are fighting off Covenant attackers. In this hall- way you’ll find the 1st blue arrow with the word “Bridge” stenciled on the floor. Just follow this arrow through a dark corridor and you will eventually come to a single Marine soldier who will lead you to the Bridge. If you lose sight of this soldier in all the confusion, just remember to look at the floor near the doorways for more blue arrows pointing the way to the Bridge.

Scenario: AI Constructs and Cyborgs First!

Mission Objective 3- Get off the Pillar of Autumn A Few Pointers to Keep from Getting Lost This next objective will surely test your sense of direction if you thought getting to the Bridge from the Cryo B Chamber was tough. Here are a few pointers to help you find your way to the life pods:

The best thing to remember when finding your way to the life pods is to look to the ground for different sets of colored arrows with various words stenciled into them (ex. “Bridge”, “Stairs”, “Maintenance”, Airlock”). Use these as points of reference to keep from getting lost. Listen to the Marines around you as you save them from groups of attacking Covenant. Some will give you helpful direction hints on where you should go to next. Most of all, listen to Cortana. She will give the most helpful information on what to do and where to go next.

Leaving the Bridge and Getting to Airlock 31 After leaving the Bridge you’ll have your first chance to fire a weapon on 3 Covenant Grunts in the hallway leading to the Mess Hall. Dispose of them and pick up the Assault Rifle in the entrance to a room full of tables and Marines engaged in combat with Covenant Elites and Grunts. After defeating the Covenant Elites and Grunts in the Mess Hall, take one of the 2 doorways that lead to the same hallway. In this hallway outside the Mess Hall, exit through the doorway with the red arrow on the floor marked “Airlock”. Follow this corridor until you come upon a Covenant Elite attacking 3 Marines.

27 After you kill the Elite, walk up to the 3 Marines. As you approach them, an outside explosion rocks the ship. One of the Marines will comment on something hitting the ship. Another Ma- rine then suggests that everyone should head for the airlock. Follow the Marines and they’ll lead you to the 1st Airlock which will have the number “31” in white on a red wall. Just as you round the corner to the airlock, you see two Marines killed by an explosion caused by Covenant Elites and Grunts boarding the Pillar of Autumn. Eliminate the Covenant threat here and col- lect ammo from the fallen Marines’ rifles. Don’t forget to go inside the airlock to collect one of two Over Shields.

Flanking the Covenant Facing away from Airlock 31’s entrance, turn right and make 2 left turns until you come to the entrance of a dark hallway with a green arrow on the floor labeled “Stairs”. Enter this hallway and follow it all the way, past a flashing red alarm light until you come to a branching hallway that goes right. Take this right hallway (instead of going straight) to flank attack Cove- nant Elites and Grunts who have some Marines pinned down behind barricades.

Another Flanking Attack Once you’ve killed the Covenant here, take the exit at the end of this hallway that’s marked with another red arrow labeled “Airlock”. Follow this hallway through a left and two right turns and you’ll come upon another choice of hallways. It’s the same situation as before, with Marines who are pinned down in the left branching hallway by attacking Covenant. And just as before, solve the problem by taking the empty hallway straight ahead and flank the Covenant as you round the corner to the left.

Going to Airlock 32 and onward to the Stairs After rescuing the Marines and killing the Covenant here, take a quick right and 2 left turns where you will find Airlock 32 already overrun by Elites and Grunts. First deal with the Covenant here accordingly, then go into the airlock and collect one of two Over Shields. Facing away from Airlock 32’s entrance, make a quick right then left continuing ahead into a darkened room full of red and blue striped canisters on fire. Crouch under the partially closed blast door in this darkened room and go straight ahead, ignoring the 2 branching hall- ways to the right. At the end of this hallway on the left is a doorway marked with a green arrow on the floor labeled “Stairs”.

The 1st Set of Life Pods Follow this hallway until you reach a large room containing a staircase. Help out the Marines in this area by killing the Elites and Grunts. After you rid the area of Covenant, go up the stairs and take the exit on the opposite side of the room from the top of the stairs. Follow this long hallway through a dark left and right mid-section. Continue on this same hallway and take a right. Through a series of windows on the left, you will see life pods trying to leave the Pillar of Autumn.

28 Before you can reach a life pod to escape, through the windows you see blue plasma shots from Covenant ships off-screen destroy each life pod that leaves. Thankfully, Cortana knows of other life pods that may be intact and tells you to use the Pillar of Autumn’s Main- tenance Access Ways. She will mark the entrance to the maintenance access way with a red arrow on the screen called a Nav Point, which has a numerical value below that tells you how far away the destination is from your current position. Once you reach the entrance to the Maintenance Access Ways, use your flashlight to light the narrow and dark corridors.

The 1st of 3 Sets of Maintenance Access Ways It can be easy to get lost in the dark corridors of the Maintenance Access Ways. Avoid running through these Maintenance Access corridors too quickly as you will lose your bearings. This will be the 1st of 3 mazes of Maintenance Access Ways on the Pillar of Au- tumn. So without further ado, here are the directions for the 1st set of Maintenance corridors There are 2 entrances from the life pod hallway into the Maintenance corridors (each one is marked with a green arrow on the floor with “Maintenance” stenciled in). No matter which entrance you take, they both lead to the same corridor. From this first corridor there is only one branching corridor. Take this corridor all the way, which will have you make 2 left-then-right turns. After the 2 left-then-right turns you should see an exit at the end of the corridor. Instead of taking that exit, take the branching corridor on your right. Follow this branching corridor and exit through the grated door that should be straight ahead, ignoring the branching corridor on your left.

To the Cryo-Storage Observation Deck and Beyond Now that you’re outside the Maintenance Access Ways, you should be in another dark room. If you’re playing on Easy or Normal difficulty you’ll see a damaged door that won’t open regularly. Cortana will mention that the door’s system may be offline, but with some force you can punch through it. Do as she says and Melee Attack the door. If you’re playing on Heroic or Legendary the door will be normal and operational. In either case, just follow the hallway past this door and take one of the 2 exits which should be on your left. They both lead to the same hallway. In this hallway you will encounter 2 Elites and 4 Grunts. Ignore the 2 grated door exits in this hallway (they lead back to the Maintenance Access corridors) and take the exit with the yellow arrow painted in its doorway marked “Cryo B”. Following down this hall- way will lead you through the Cryo-Storage Observation Deck, where Cortana will comment about the Covenant wanting to “catch you napping”. Continue past the Cryo-Storage Obser- vation Deck and make a right as you enter a room that begins to explode. Defeat an Elite and a few Grunts then take the grated door exit in this room to enter the 2nd of 3 Maintenance Access Ways of the Pillar of Autumn.

The 2nd of 3 Sets of Maintenance Access Ways This system of corridors is a bit easier to navigate through than the 1st set of Mainte- nance Access corridors, but has more exits into the same hallway than the previous set of Maintenance corridors. Of the 4 possible exits, one will place you among a group of Ma- rines fighting off Covenant Grunts and an Elite.

29 Another will place you directly behind the Covenant in this hallway, while the other will place you a bit further behind the attacking Covenant and closer to a group of Grunts standing around. The 4th exit is blocked by fallen debris. As you enter the dark corridors you’ll be forced to make a right. After taking that right, you will come to a T-section with 2 Grunts that try to surprise you. After killing the Grunts, the T-section will force you to go one way (the other way is a dead-end). Follow this corridor and you’ll come to a 2nd T-section that dead-ends to the left. To the right you’ll see one of the 4 possible exits to take at the end of this corridor. Shortly before the exit is a corridor that criss- crosses to the left and right, leading to the other 3 exits. Instead of taking one of the other 3 ex- its from the criss-crossing corridor, take the exit straight ahead to surprise flank the Covenant attacking the Marines in the hallway.

The 3rd set of Maintenance Access Ways, 2nd set of Life Pods, and exit out of this level Once you’ve eliminated the Covenant attacking the Marines in the hallway outside the Maintenance Access corridors, go left from the exit and turn left around the next corner. Take out the 4 Grunts in this area then continue right. On one side of this wide hallway is the en- trance to the 3rd set of Maintenance Access Ways. On the other side are 2 exits that lead to the same hallway. At the far end of this wide hallway is a left turn that leads to the 2nd set of life pods. Before you can leave on the life pods, you will have to eliminate the rest of the Covenant in these surrounding hallways. If you choose to go through the Maintenance Access corridors you can use them to sneak up on the remaining Covenant guarding the entrance to the life pods through each of the 3 exits that face the entrance to each life pod. Or you can choose to go to the far end of the wide hallway and use the Fragmentation Grenades to throw at the remaining Covenant. Once the Covenant are eliminated an automatic cut scene will show you and the rest of the Marines left boarding the life pods, bringing an end to level 1.

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Level 2: Halo

Scenario: Arrival

Mission Objective 1- Evade Covenant patrols Sub-objectives: Evade the Covenant patrols searching for you Head for higher ground Search for other lifeboats

Quickly collect the extra ammo and grenades surrounding your crashed escape pod then immediately head left from the pod across the bridge. Now head left from the pod across the bridge and follow along the mountain wall up the incline. As you cross the bridge, a Covenant Patrol ship will arrive and circle around the area, dropping Covenant troops at your crashed pod and at a second area up the incline ahead. If you run fast enough, you will only have to deal with a group of 4 Grunts and an Elite at the top of this incline. Otherwise, you’ll have to battle the dispatched group of Covenants on the incline. Keep following this incline over its peak and descend to the left. You will come upon a large building that’s the scene of a battle between a group of Marines and a force of Grunts and Elites. Help the Marines eliminate the threat by going after the Covenant Elite first. Then the Marines should help clean up the rest of the Grunts with you. After cleaning up the area of Covenant, get ready to protect the Marines here from an onslaught of Covenant.

31 Mission Objective 2- Protect the human survivors Sub-objectives: Stay with the survivors Protect the human survivors Wait for an evac dropship to arrive

Now that the first batch of Covenant troops have been eliminated, you’ll have to protect this group of Marines from 5 more groups of Covenant forces comprised of Grunts, Elites, and Jackals. Try to get to each Covenant drop-ship’s landing point as they’re arriving and greet them with grenades. Then gun down the rest that scatter from the explosions. The 1st group will be dropped in front of the main structure (look at the sky towards the big pink moon to see the craft descend). The 2nd group is dropped left of where the 1st group landed. Just find the crashed escape pod in front of the buildings and head right if you’re facing the pod’s entrance. Look for the 3rd group of Covenant behind the main structure, near the entrance to this area from the incline. The last two groups are dropped off almost simultaneously. The 4th group will be dropped off at the same spot the 2nd group arrived, and the 5th group will land at the same area the 1st group arrived. After clearing out the area of all 5 ships of Covenant troops the evac ship will arrive. As it lands, 3 more escape pods streak across the sky. You’ll need to find each of the pods and provide the same type of cover that you did for the 1st batch of survivors here. Follow the Nav Point on your HUD to find and get aboard the Wart-hog so you can use it to rush to the survivors before the Covenant find them.

Mission Objective 3- Search for additional survivors Sub-objectives: Search for the three additional groups of human survivors Protect the human survivors Wait for an evac dropship

From the Wart-hog’s drop point, head away from the main structure and down the steep incline toward the bluish grey valley. In this valley is the entrance to an underground man- made tunnel that will lead to another section of Halo.

The Underground Man-Made Tunnel and Activating the Light Bridge Within While the trek through the beginning and end of this tunnel is fairly easy and straight forward, midway through the tunnel is where the challenge lies. It’s there where you’ll come to a huge room full of Covenant Grunts, Elites, and Jackals. There will also be a large gorge that divides the room in half, and cannot be jumped across. You’ll need to activate a switch that will form a bridge made of bright blue light allowing you to cross the gorge. The switch to activate the light bridge is located on the right hand side of the room. From the entrance into this room, trace the wall on the right to find a narrow pathway that in- clines upward. Just follow this pathway to get to the switch. Be careful of the Elite soldiers that are hiding in this pathway though. You might want to park the Wart-hog at the base of the pathway so your Gunner can provide extra coverage from the Elites. Once you’ve activated the switch, get aboard the Wart-hog and cross the bridge. Following the pathway from the bridge will eventually lead you out of the tunnel and into another forest of Halo where you’ll continue your search for the 3 additional groups of survivors. 32

Scenario: Reunion Tour

The area after exiting the tunnel is wide and expansive. It can be easy to lose your sense of direction here if you don’t pay attention to surrounding land formations and landmarks. Even though the escape pods you periodically find will not have survivors in or near them, you can find extra ammo and Health Packs scattered around them. Most of the life boats have Sniper Rifles nearby as well. You’ll definitely want the Sniper Rifle in this area of Halo to snipe the enemy from excellent hiding areas among the trees. The three groups of survivors you are searching for can be rescued in any particular or- der. There are 2 pathways into each location of survivors which are marked with blue flashing lights on the ground. Each time you make initial contact with the survivors, you will have to fight off invading Covenant drop-ships and clear the area of all Covenant before the Marine Pelican drop-ship can land safely to pick up the survivors. Once you rescue one of the 3 groups of survivors Cortana and the pilot of the Foe Hammer will tell you of the other 2 locations. The three locations where the survivors can be found are near the head of a river (on a hill side), near a cliff edge, and in a rockslide.

Survivors Near the Head of a River (on a hill side) Throughout this wooded section of Halo there are 3 rivers that meet in a central loca- tion. Use the rivers as a guide to help find each survivor area. For example, to find the survi- vors in the hill side, from the exit of the man-made tunnel go straight ahead to find the first river. Trace this river upward and you will find where the other two rivers fork. Follow the forking river to the right all the way until you get to a tall waterfall flowing high from the mountains. This is the head (or source) of the river system. Go up the incline to the left of the waterfall to find the 2 blue lights that mark the pathway into the hill side survivor area.

Survivors near the Cliff Edge Another way to find the survivors in the hill side and the survivors near the cliff edge is to look to the horizon for long blue streaks of light that shoot skyward every 15 to 16 seconds. You can easily see them from the entrance of the man-made tunnel. Follow the source of the blue flares to find the area of the survivors. The survivors located by the cliff edge sought shelter from the Covenant underground a group of bluish-purple metallic buildings. Of the 3 structures in the cliff side area, the en- trances to find the survivors can be found in each of the 2 smaller buildings, marked by yellow blinking lights at the top of the entrance. There is no entrance for the large middle building emitting the blue flare of light.

Survivors among a Rock Slide The group located among a rock slide can be the hardest to find. From the entrance of the man-made tunnel, head up the incline and carefully trace the mountain walls to the right. After you pass the peak of the incline you should eventually see the entry pathway into the sur- vivor area marked with 2 blue flashing lights on the ground. The survivors are located among the groupings of rocks in the far end of this area. The level is over once you’ve successfully rescued the last group of survivors. Just jump aboard the Marine evac ship to exit this level and begin level 3, Truth and Reconciliation.

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Level 3: Truth and Reconciliation

Scenario: Truth and Reconciliation

Mission Objective 1- Board the Covenant Battle Cruiser Quick Tip: An important tip to remember before boarding the Covenant Battle Cruiser is to be as sneaky as possible. Use the area to your advantage at all times to snipe as many Covenant as you can. As the level starts, Cortana will suggest that you silently recon the enemy from the ledge that is on your right. Continue on this ledge and snipe as many covenant soldiers as you can before they start shooting back. Be sure that you snipe both of the Grunts in the stationary ma- chine guns first, then shoot the Elites next. After the Elites, take out the Jackals and finish up the remaining Grunts. As long as the enemy doesn’t fire upon you, it’s possible to eliminate the Covenant in this area before the Marines move in.. Proceed along the trail, sniping enemies when you can. Deal with the 2nd group of Covenant much like the same way you did with the 1st: snipe Stationary Gunners first, any El- ites next, then Jackals, and finish up the remaining Grunts. Keep following the narrow trail to a 3rd group of Covenant who are patrolling a bowl-shaped area. There’s a middle pathway cut- ting into the center of the bowl and another pathway along the cliff edge that follows the edge of the bowl. Whichever pathway you choose, the remaining platoon of Marines will take the other one to surround the Covenant in the area. Collect the Active Camouflage located among a group of trees to help fight off other Covenant that come into the area from a Covenant drop- ship. Descend into the bowl-shaped area and take the narrow pathway with flood lamps lining the walls to get to the Gravity Lift.

34 As you enter the area before the Gravity Lift continue sniping as many Covenant as you can (you will probably be low on sniper ammo by now). Like before, try to take out Stationary Gunners first and Elites on the ledge next. After killing the Covenant patrolling the area around the Gravity Lift, groups of Covenant begin to beam down from the lift. Use the stationary guns in the area to take out most of the enemies from the Gravity Lift. The last enemies to come out of the lift will be the fearsome Hunters. Be careful using the stationary guns against the Hunters, as one of them could most likely fire an explosive shot of green plasma at you before you can kill the other. It’s best to constantly move around when dealing with the Hunters. If the Hunters aren’t close to each other, try circle-strafing each of them with Melee Attacks. After you kill the Hunters get under the Gravity Lift and join the Marines aboard the Covenant Battle Cruiser.

Scenario: Into the Belly of the Beast

Mission Objective 2- Find the ship’s brig and rescue Captain Keyes You start this area inside a room with 4 small red-lighted doors and 4 large muster bay doors. Pay attention to your radar to see which doors the Covenant are coming out of. There will be around 6 groups of Covenant that attack one group at a time. The last group will come out of one of the large muster bay doors. [There’s an Active Camouflage behind 5 Covenant canister objects collected together, that’s right of a parked Covenant Wraith armored attack ve- hicle.] Enter the large muster bay door that the last group of Covenant came out of and follow down the descending hallway. You will reach a large muster bay door that cannot be opened. Cor- tana will tell you to use the side passageways to find a way to open this door. Go back up the hallway to the Gravity Lift room and enter the one of the 2 small doors that are now highlighted white (NOTE: red-lighted doors are locked; they turn white when they become unlocked). They’re on the same side of the room and lead to the same hallway. Follow the hallway that the 2 small white doors lead to. Go through the already open door and follow the hallway that as- cends upwards. This ascending hallway will have a branching hallway to the left—ignore the branching hallway to the left. Follow this ascending hallway to the right and it will lead you to the room with the switch to the closed door that the Marines are behind. Clear out the Covenant on the walkway. On this walkway there’s an exit that leads to a series of hallways that bring you to the large open area below. It’s a waste of time….ignore it and jump down from the walkway onto a Wraith to land safely (jumping from the walkway to the floor directly is too great a height to land without taking some damage). Cortana will point out the switch for the locked muster bay door with a Nav Point on the screen. You can choose to hit the switch to open the closed muster bay door so the Marines can come in and help, or you can eliminate the Covenant on the floor in this room by yourself and then open the closed muster bay door. The latter method will no doubt save the Marines from possibly getting gunned down. After the room is cleared completely of Covenant forces, Cortana will put up another Nav Point for the door that you need to go through next. All 3 of the doors on this side of the room lead to the same hallway, so pick a door then follow the hallway all the way around a u- turn to the Shuttle Bay.

35 In the Shuttle Bay area, prepare for a large onslaught of Covenant forces from the ground floor you’re on and the 2nd floor above you. Help the Marines (if you have any left by now) eliminate the ground Covenant first. Then use your Sniper Rifle to take out the Covenant on the 2nd floor. If you don’t have ammo for the Sniper Rifle, pick up some rounds from the fallen Marine’s body next to the dividing platform in the middle of the Shuttle Bay. The Ma- rines will comment that all the doors on the ground floor of the Shuttle Bay are locked. Cortana will mention that she’s trying as fast as she can to hack into the Covenant’s Battle Network to open an exit for you, but that you’ll need to hold on a little longer. Towards the end of the on- slaught of Covenant, a couple of Hunters will enter the Shuttle Bay. After you kill them both, Cortana will finally open up a door for you to escape out of the Shuttle Bay. Once you take the door that Cortana unlocks for you to escape the Shuttle Bay, follow the long ascending hallway ahead. The end of this hallway will force you to make a quick left and right turn then a u-turn. The u-turn will lead to another quick left and right turn. After the last quick left and right turn, you’ll come to a door way that will lead you to the 2nd floor of the Shuttle Bay. Depending on how many Marines you have with you at this time, Cortana will radio in more reinforcements. You’ll need to hit a Nav-point indicated switch on the 2nd floor to open the Shuttle Bay door so that the Pelican can drop off more troops. After you enter the Shuttle Bay on the 2nd floor, go left (facing away from the doorway) and take the doorway at the end of the walkway. The hallway beyond this doorway will lead you to the 3rd floor of the Shuttle Bay through a series of left and right turns. When you’ve reached the 3rd floor of the Shuttle Bay, follow the walkway to the door at the far end. Through this doorway follow the hallway through a left then right turn until you reach a point to go left, straight, or right. Going left will lead you to a dead end occupied by 2 dead Marines with ammo and a Health Pack around them. Going straight will lead you to a large room that’s the Command Center of the ship. Going right will lead you to a hallway that traces the circumference of the Command Center room. If you’re low on health or ammo, go left toward the 2 dead Marines and take the sup- plies. Then double back and enter the Command Center room. A Gold Elite Covenant soldier armed with a Plasma Sword and other Covenant Elites patrol this room while Grunts are sleep- ing at scattered spots around the area. Eliminate the Gold Elite first and then deal with the El- ites and Grunts next. After clearing the room of Covenant, take the door marked with a Nav Point and go left. The hallway beyond the Nav Point-indicated door will eventually lead you to the Brig, which houses 2 Prison Detention Stations. Although the hallway from the Nav Point-indicated door has several turns along the way, it’s populated with locked red-highlighted doors that will help to keep you from going in circles. This long turn-infested hallway will eventually lead you to a T-section that inclines slightly up toward a white-highlighted door on the left and a descending hallway to the right that ends in a turn to the left. The white door on the left of the T-section leads you to a Prison Detention Station that is empty. Go right at the T-section and follow the turn to the left. The hallway ahead contains a turn to the right that will lead to the Prison Sta- tion with the Captain and several Marines imprisoned. Eliminate the Gold Elite, the Elites with Active Camouflage, and Covenant forces within and free the Captain and the other Marines by pressing X at the switch on the platform.

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Scenario: Shut up and get behind me…Sir

Mission Objective 3- Return to the Shuttle Bay for Extraction Now that the Captain is free, you’ll need to lead him to the Shuttle Bay so the Foe Ham- mer can pick you up. As you exit the Prison Room, be careful of the Active Camouflaged El- ites...just throw a grenade as you head toward the door to take them out. Keep an eye on the Captain as you’re making your way back to the Shuttle Bay. DO NOT LET THE CAPTAIN DIE! If he dies, it’s the same as you dying. The other Marines ac- companying you and the Captain are expendable. Once you’ve backtracked to the Command Center room (it’s the large room that had the plasma-sword equipped Gold Elite and other Elites patrolling with Grunts sleeping) take out the Active Camouflage Elites with a few rounds of the Sniper Rifle. Cortana will then radio for the Foe Hammer to pick you up. The Foe Hammer won’t be able to pick you up, but the Captain adds that he can fly a Covenant drop ship out…you’ll just have to lead him there. Fight off the Covenant that will invade the Command Center room and keep backtracking to the Shuttle Bay. The level is over once you press the X button on the Nav-pointed switch to release the Cove- nant drop-ship in the Shuttle Bay.

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Level 4: The Silent Cartographer

Scenario: The Silent Cartographer

Mission Objective 1- Clear the landing beach of hostiles Once you’ve landed on the beach, help the Marines around you kill the Covenant occu- pying the area. Toss grenades to take out the clumps of Covenant huddled close to each other. Be careful not to toss grenades near your comrades. If you’re playing this level on a harder dif- ficulty setting, remember to duck behind obstacles and rocks to recharge your shields. After you’ve killed the Covenant on the beach, the Foe Hammer will fly by and drop off a Wart-hog. Jump in the Wart-hog and begin your search for the entrance to the map room.

Mission Objective 2- Find the entrance to the map room The map room facility you need to enter is about 30 seconds of driving from the Wart- hog’s drop off point, so it isn’t very far. The structure is a grey building that’s built into a cliff wall. Proceed from the Wart-hog’s drop off point along the beach as it curves left under a small cliff. In the next stretch of beach you will see Covenant Jackals perched on rocks to the left. As you continue forward, you can choose to drive the beach’s edge around the bottom of the cliff ahead, or you can travel the slim trail that rises and curves into a wooded area. I’d rec- ommend traveling up the slim trail and follow it through the trees where you will run directly into the raised platform of the facility. There’s also a hidden tunnel leading to the right side of the facility’s platform. The entrance to the tunnel can be reached if you travel to the front of the facility below the platform and turn left past the 2 maroon-colored Covenant containers (an Over Shield is between them). Go up the hill through the trees to find the entrance in the side of the mountain wall.

38 Use the Wart-hog as a weapon by running over the Covenant forces on the platform and just inside the hallways of the structure. Since the left and right entry ways into the facility are wider than the central entryway it would be easier to drive back and forth repeatedly through the left and right until most of the Covenant have been eliminated. Using the Wart-hog as a weapon can be treacherous though…beware of the occasional Plasma Grenade. After finishing off the rest of the Covenant on the platform Cortana will comment that the map room should be on the bottom floor of the facility.

Mission Objective 3- Activate the map room (Find the Silent Cartographer [pause menu mission objective]) Get off the Wart-hog and follow the downward inclining corridors to a room full of Grunts and a couple of Elites, one of them a Gold Elite. Cortana will tell you to try to get to the door before they close it, but you will not be able to….not matter how fast you run. You will have to find the security override to get the door open.

Mission Objective 4- Find the door’s security override (Find the main facility security override [pause menu mission objective]) Get back on the Wart-hog and exit the facility heading left. Go through the rock arch formation left of the facility and continue left around the bend. Shortly ahead you should see a sharply inclined hill that can be driven up. On the other side of the hill is a small clearing sur- round by trees that’s full of Covenant grouped together. Kill most of the Covenant by happily driving up the middle of the hill and gleefully jumping into the middle of the group. To the left of the hill towards the mountain side is a narrow opening. You’ll have to abandon the Wart- hog here and continue the rest of the way on foot. Follow the narrow canyon-like trail as it winds upward through the island’s interior, tak- ing out Covenant forces along the way. The trail will lead to a concrete structure on a circular concrete foundation with 2 Hunters patrolling the area. In the circumference around the struc- ture are 2 dead Marines with health and ammo near them…just head left of where you entered this area to find them. On the concrete foundation are 2 Over Shields near a couple of maroon- colored Covenant containers. Kill the 2 Hunters and take out the Jackals hiding among the trees in the circumference around the concrete structure. Follow the trail just beyond where the Jackals were hiding and you’ll come to an area full of trees and Covenant Grunts, Jackals and Elites. Use your grenades to take out most of the enemies here and proceed through the trees to the trail exiting from this area. If you get lost here, just trace a mountain wall carefully to look for the trails. If you pick a trail that leads you to dead Jackals and the concrete structure on the circular foundation, you went the wrong way. From that trail just go right and trace the wall, where you should find the outside wall of a building. As you travel down the trail, be careful not to run too fast down the hill…there’s a cliff edge nearby. Enter the building and descend into the hallway. You’ll find yourself in a room full of maroon-colored Covenant containers. In this room you’ll have to fight off 2 more Hunters, so use the containers to your advantage by hiding behind them. After killing the Hunters, proceed into the long hallway at the far end of this room. This hallway will lead you the holo-panel for the security system. A light-blue rotating hologram of the facility’s main shaft floats above the panel. Press X to shut down the security system, opening up the locked door in the facility which will lead to the main shaft.

39 Scenario: That was easy!

Mission Objective 5- Activate the map room (Find the Silent Cartographer [pause menu mission objective]) As you’re exiting the holo-panel room, beware of the Active Camouflaged Elites hiding in the same room that you fought the 2 Hunters in just moments ago. When you exit this build- ing, on the beach below, you will see the remains of the wrecked drop-ship Bravo 22. Before heading to it, use the scope on your Pistol to take out some of the Covenant Grunts on a tall rock formation above the drop ship and toss a couple of grenades at the Jackals on the ground near the drop ship. Then head to the drop-ship by carefully scaling down the right hand side of the cliff outside the structure. Pick up some supplies scattered around the drop-ship, including the Rocket Launcher, and head for the 1st facility again. Take the flipped-over Wart-hog near the drop-ship to make the trip quicker. Be careful of the 2 Hunters that are now on the platform of the facility. Use your Rocket Launcher to make short work of them and head inside. Go through the now unlocked door.

Scenario: Shafted

Once you’ve passed the door, you will be in a dark hallway that allows you the choice of going left or right. If you head right, you will see a cinematic of your character admiring the depth of the main shaft. Instead, head left down the dark corridor and be careful to sneak up on the Elite soldier who’s back should be toward you. Melee Attack him in the back for an instant kill. In the immediate area near you there is a ramp that leads to an upper walkway. Ignore this walkway as it will lead to nowhere. Instead, head into the room ahead and eliminate the Cove- nant forces within. There are 2 exits out of this room. One is a sliding door that will lead you to a long, descending walkway that lines the 3 walls of a tall room. The other “exit” is a deep, dark vertical shaft that you can fall down (there’s a cushioning incline on one side of the shaft that you can see with your flashlight on; you’ll take some damage from the fall if you miss the cushioning incline, so make sure your shield is charged before taking the plunge). Both exits will lead to the same room that you want to go to Whether you took the sliding door exit that leads to the long winding walkway, or the dark vertical shaft, you should be in a U-shaped room with 2 Hunters and a few Jackals occupy- ing the area. Take out the Hunters and the Jackals then make your way toward the center of this U-shaped room. There you should see a long, thin, blue florescent light bulb from the ceiling that illuminates the middle of the room with a blue hue. The florescent light bulb hangs over a raised partition in the floor. Follow the partition carefully to its end where you should see a long fall below, and more importantly you should see a descending walkway to the right of the partition’s end. The walkway will line the walls and descend to another room. Follow the walkway down, being careful not to fall off into the middle. Following this walk- way will eventually lead you around the perimeter of a large room that has 2 sliding doors on the same wall. You can choose to fall from a safe height from the walkway into the center of this room, or follow the walkway completely around and take one of the 2 ramps to the floor of the room.

40 Follow the walkway down, being careful not to fall off into the middle. Following this walkway will eventually lead you around the perimeter of a large room that has 2 sliding doors on the same wall. You can choose to fall from a safe height from the walkway into the center of this room, or follow the walkway completely around and take one of the 2 ramps to the floor of the room. When facing the wall with the 2 sliding doors, the door on the left (illuminated by an aqua-blue florescent light) takes you to a platform with an Active Camouflage power-up. Get the power-up then take the door on the right (illuminated by a yellow light) where you’ll go down a descending walkway with a transparent glass floor section that lines 2 walls. Keep fol- lowing this pathway as it descends into a short hallway that becomes a suspended walkway. Towards the end of the suspended walkway is a skinny ramp that goes down into the floor of a room with Grunts and an Elite you’ll have to deal with. In this room there are 3 exits total, with 2 of them leading to the switch panel to activate the map of Halo. Two exits are hallways on the same side of the room that are lit with aqua blue florescent lights that line the ceiling. Of these 2 hallways, take the one that descends down and follow the hallway to the switch panel that activates the map of Halo. The other exit is on the opposite side of the room from the 2 hallways and leads to the back entrance to the area containing the Halo map switch panel. Press X on the switch panel to activate the Silent Cartographer.

Mission Objective 6- Return to the surface for extraction Once you’ve activated the Silent Cartographer, back-track your way to the surface. Along the way you’ll have to fight off a large amount of invading Covenant forces. Watch out for the Gold Elite with a Plasma Sword who will be waiting for you at the once-locked door to the main shaft. There will also be Active Camouflaged Elites waiting for you at the top of the facility. After killing the invisible Elites, jump into the Pelican drop ship awaiting you at the platform to exit the level.

41

Level 5: Assault on the Control Room

Scenario: Fortress World

General Tips for Level 5: 1. As you wander around the hallways and rooms, look to the ground for white trian- gles that point the right direction you need to go. Remember: WHITE TRIANGLES ON THE FLOOR ARE YOUR BEST FRIEND! 2. The rooms, hallways, and bridges in this level tend to mimic one another in their layout quite often, which can make things confusing if you get lost. Again, the white triangles on the ground will help point you the right way should you question your sense of direction. 3. Try to resist the urge to mow down any room full of sleeping Covenant Grunts. A single gunshot from any weapon will wake them all up, and before you know it you’ll be showered in a hail of Covenant gunfire. Take the easy route and just Me- lee Attack them, saving you ammo and life.

Mission Objective 1- Reach the transition to the second chasm

Once the Pelican drop ship drops you off, kill the Covenant that rush out of the only door on this platform. Try to kill the Elite running from the door before it gets to the parked Banshee at the end of the platform. Enter the door and follow the hallway (white triangles on the floor point the direction you need to go) to a circular room.

42 The 1st Circular Room After you eliminate all of the Covenant in this circular room, Cortana will comment that the “Covenant presence is stronger than she anticipated and that they seem to have the entire region secure”. The center of the room has a deep hole with 2 transparent-floor bridges cross- ing the hole. Exit the room through the door with a white flashing triangle on the floor pointing at the doorway. Make your way along the hallway, following the direction the white arrows on the floor are pointing, and you will end up to an area outside where it’s snowing.

Fire Team Zulu Requesting Assistance as you cross the Bridge After Cortana comments about the weather patterns of Halo, a Pelican chased by Ban- shees flies across while its operator asks for immediate assistance from any UNSC forces. Cor- tana tells them to hold their position and that you’re on your way to help them. Run across the bridge and gun down Covenant, taking care to avoid running over panes of glass that can be shot out from Covenant below (if you fall through, just make your way to the nearest ramp to get back to the bridge’s surface). Beware of a Gold Elite armed with a Plasma Sword that’s waiting for you behind the doorway at the end of the bridge. If you ever get surrounded by Covenant, throw a grenade and you might coax an Elite to jump off the bridge if it’s close enough to the edge as it tried to evade the grenade. Go through the doorway and follow another hallway with white triangles pointing the way forward.

The 2nd Circular Room You will be in another circular room similar to the 1st circular room, except the center of the room is useless space with 2 pyramid-like structures you can use to evade enemy shots. From the entrance to this room, head left and follow the pathway to find the exit. This time, in addition to the regular Covenant that populate the area, there will be 2 Hunters and Active Cam- ouflaged Elites roaming the circumference. Deal with the Hunters and Covenant then help yourself to some health and ammo scattered about a couple of dead Marines’ bodies along the circumference of the room. Keep moving forward past the 2 dead Marines and you’ll come to a short descending hallway with a white flashing arrow on the floor. It leads downward to a small room with a sliding door.

Taking the Lift Down to a 3rd Circular Room…with Sleeping Grunts Go through the sliding door and follow the short ascending hallway to another sliding door that opens to a circular platform elevator lift. Activate the lift’s panel with the X button and ride the lift down a long way to a sliding door.Once the elevator stops, go through the door and follow the short hallway through another sliding door. Once you go through the door carefully sneak up on the sleeping Grunts and Melee At- tack them in the entry hallway (which is lit up with yellow lights in the ceiling). Throughout the hallways in this large circular room, there are other sleeping Grunts and Elites patrolling the halls. The center of this room has a vertical glass tube surrounded by wandering Jackals and awake Grunts. If you’re quiet and sneaky, you can take out most of the Covenant forces in the circling hallway with Melee Attacks. After ridding the room of Covenant, take the exit out of here by following the circumference of the room and look to the floor for a white flashing trian- gle pointing to the exiting door.

43 The door from the circular room will lead to yet another hallway with white triangles on the floor pointing the way out. Follow the hallway and go through the door to reach a wide open snowy area.

Marines near overturned Wart-hog attacked by Wraith Tank Zoom in with the scope of your Pistol to kill the Grunt in a stationary gun to the left of the door, and help out the platoon of Marines near an overturned Wart-hog. Near the over- turned Wart-hog is a Rocket Launcher that you will want to pick up to take out the Covenant Wraith tank that’s bombarding the area of Marines (to the left of the large rock formation with a Stationary Gunner on top, Rocket Launcher ammo is by a dead Marine’s body behind a group of small rocks). When the Covenant are exterminated from this area, pick up the Sniper Rifle (along with some ammo and a Health Pack) and take the Wart-hog or commandeer a Ghost.

Rescuing the Marines from downed Fire Team Zulu Pelican Drop-ship Travel through this valley pass over a small frozen lake and past a short cliff drop-off, and you will eventually see the Fire Team Zulu Pelican drop-ship which crashed into the moun- tain side. Ammo and Health Packs are scattered near the drop-ship. Marines that survived the crash are fending off Covenant forces, so help them out by getting into the Scorpion tank and making short work off the Covenant here (watch out and don’t kill your own Marines by mis- take…the blast radius of a tank shell is large). After killing the Covenant here, you can choose to follow the frozen river pathway going left, or you can go through a cave that leads to the same wide open area.

Taking out Covenant Forces and Wraith Tanks Guarding the Man-Made Tunnel Entrance With your Sniper Rifle, snipe as many Covenant enemies in the area. Use the Rocket Launcher or Scorpion tank to take out the Covenant Wraith tanks that are guarding the entrance to a man-made tunnel. The Wraith tank above the tunnel entrance is best destroyed from the top of the rock formation that has 1 or 2 Stationary Gunners. Make your way to the tunnel once you’ve cleared the area of Covenant, but don’t forget to pick up some ammo, health, and an Ac- tive Camouflage power-up scattered about 3 dead Marines’ bodies that are near a maroon- colored Covenant container at the right of the tunnel entrance.

The Man-Made Tunnel and the Bridge Within As you near the entrance to the tunnel, be careful of the 2 Hunters that wander out. There’s a switch just inside the entrance that you’ll need to activate (with the X button) to open the closed tunnel blast door. Proceed through the tunnel and you will reach a large cavernous area with a bridge crossing a deep and wide gorge. If you have any rounds left for the Sniper Rifle, take out the 2 Stationary Gunners on each side of the gorge and as much of the Covenant inside this cavern so you won’t have to worry about them when dealing with the pair of Hunters on the other side of the bridge. Activate the switch left of the tunnel blast door to open it and then continue through the rest of the tunnel.

44 Scenario: Rolling Thunder

Mission Objective 2- Reach the transition to the third chasm From the man-made tunnel you will make your way up a long snow covered incline. Use a Ghost at the bottom of the incline to help you kill the Covenant (mainly Jackals) as you ascend.

The Long Valley Pass after the Man-Made Tunnel Now that you’re out of the tunnel continue ahead through this long valley pass through the mountains. Standing tall in the middle of the pass is a rock formation that houses an inter- nal structure comprised of 3 hallways that all meet in one room. There are Active Camouflaged Elites inside and an Active Camouflage power-up. Only enter this structure if you want an Ac- tive Camouflage power-up; otherwise you don’t need to go inside. Nearing the end of the mountain pass you will face a Wraith tank and a pair of Hunters on a frozen lake. If you need a Rocket Launcher and some ammo you can find it between the mountain wall and the rock formation with a sloped ramp leading to a Stationary Gunner on top. There’s also some health and other ammo among 3 dead Marines’ bodies where the Rocket Launcher is located. Use the Rocket Launcher to destroy the Wraith tank and the 2 Hunters. Then continue on to a narrow trail covered in the shadows of the mountains walls on the left and right. This trail will lead you down a treacherous and skinny pathway that winds downward to a frozen lake. As you approach the lake, Cortana remarks how she thought that the Covenant had eliminated all Marine forces in this area, but to your surprise you see a group of Marines fighting off a pair of Hunters. When you reach the area to help out the Marines, a Covenant drop-ship appears dropping off more Covenant enemies. If you have the Scorpion tank with you still, it will easily help clear out the area of enemies. At the far end of the frozen lake is the entrance to a short cavern pass. Pick up the Health Packs, ammo, and the Active Camouflage to the left of the entrance, and then proceed through the cavern. Watch out for a couple of Camouflaged Elites with Plasma Swords that will try to ambush you from inside the cavern. Don’t pass up the health and ammo that’s to the right as you exit this cavern. From the cavern you will travel up a ridge to a wide pass that is heavily populated with Covenant forces, ranging from Grunts to Elites riding Ghosts. Watch out for the Stationary Gunners as you ascend the ridge. Gun down everything in sight and con- tinue on.

6 Large Horizontal Pipes and the Entrance to more Circular Rooms and Hallways with White Triangles on the Floor After traveling up the ridge and through a wide pass, you should see up ahead 6 large pipes with a blue light in the center of each of them that stretch horizontally across a descending pathway. Ignore the descending pathway…it only leads to 2 hallways with locked doors. In- stead, go through the doorway entrance built into the mountain wall which is surrounded by 2 Stationary Gunners and sits across from the 6 horizontally stretching pipes. As you near the doorway, kill the Elites that rush out and continue down the hallway (which has white triangles on the floor similar to earlier hallways in this level). At the end of the hallway you will reach another door that enters into a large circular room.

45 From the 1st Circular Room (full of Sleeping Grunts) to the Elevator Lift AVOID FIRING YOUR WEAPON IN THIS ROOM! It’s full of sleeping Grunts and wandering Elites. By killing each Grunt with a Melee Attack and sneaking up on the Elites to kill them instantly with a Melee Attack to the back, this room will be extremely easy to clear out. Otherwise, you will die rather quickly should you awaken any of them. The center of this room has a cylindrical type of structure divided by a blue cylinder of light. Head left from the entrance into this room and trace the outer circumference pathway to find flashing white arrows on the ground which will point you to the exiting hallway (which is lit up with yellow lights in the ceiling). Go through the exit into a hallway that leads to a lift. Press the X button to take the lift up a long shaft.

From the Elevator Lift to the 2nd Circular Room Once you reach the top, proceed through the short hallway into a room that has a dead Marine on top of a ramp. Collect the ammo and Health Pack near the Marine and continue up an incline that has a flashing white triangle pointing toward the circular room you’re about to enter. Head right from the short inclining hallway and keep going until you see the exit from this room, indicated with a white flashing triangle pointing at the door. Don’t bother wandering toward the center of this room…there’s nothing of importance, just a vertical glass tube. The exit from this room takes you to a hallway with white triangles on the floor directing you where to go.

Crossing the 1st Side of 2 Side-by-Side Bridges The exit from the hallway will take you to a bridge that has teal-blue bullet-proof glass shields at each end of the bridge. Looking to your right you can see a neighboring bridge you will soon cross. Near the entrance to the bridge you’re on are several sleeping Grunts that are easy tar- gets for Melee Attacking. The rest of the bridge is full of Elites and Jackals patrolling the area. There panes of bullet-proof glass spaced throughout the floor of the bridge. Through them you can see far below to the 6 horizontally stretching pipes that you saw earlier as you entered the mountain facility that you’re currently running through. Cut a swath through the Covenant ahead and run across the bridge to the exit at its far end. The exit from the bridge leads to another hallway with white triangles on the floor direct- ing you to another circular room.

The 3rd Circular Room and a Hallway Prone to Ambushing The center of this room contains 2 pyramid-like structures like the ones from the 2nd cir- cular room from the previous facility near the beginning of this level. From the entrance into this room you can either head left or right. I would suggest heading left to find a Rocket Launcher with health and ammo scattered around 2 dead Marines. Continue past the Marines’ bodies just a little further to find the exit to this room marked by a flashing white triangle pointing to a short hallway. The short hallway from the circular room will force you to turn right where you will see a long hallway ahead. Beware of the Covenant that try to ambush you from the lower left pas- sageway that lines this long hallway. Continue on but slow down before rounding the corner to the next hallway…

46 The 4th Circular Room…with Sleeping Grunts Sneak slowly around the corner from the long ambush-prone hallway to keep from be- ing spotted by walking Elites in the circular room ahead. Since the circular room is full of sleeping Grunts, TRY TO AVOID FIRING SHOTS IN THIS ROOM, and instead Melee At- tack as many of the enemies as you can. Hide behind corners in this room to sneak up behind walking Elites and Jackals and give them an instant-killing Melee Attack to the back. If you’re careful, you can sneak through this room without having to make any contact with Covenant enemies (but that wouldn’t be fun now, would it?). The center of this room has a ramp leading to a second floor platform with walkways leading to the circumference hallway of the room. There are no Health Packs or ammo on the second floor platform (or anywhere in this room), so ignore the center of the room. From the entrance into this room, you can head either left or right and trace the circum- ference pathway to find the exit, indicated by a flashing white triangle on the floor pointing to- ward the door. The exit from the room leads to the usual hallway with white triangles telling where to go. The hallway’s door exit will lead you to the 2nd of the 2 side-by-side bridges.

Crossing the 2nd Side of 2 Side-by-Side Bridges This bridge is identical in appearance and layout to the bridge next to it that you recently crossed. Just run and gun down the length of the bridge, watching out for deadly shots from Hunters that just stormed the bridge across from you. An Active Camouflaged Elite will try to surprise you as you near the exit, so be careful. The end of the bridge will lead to another hall- way with the standard white triangles on the floor pointing you to the exit into another circular room.

The 5th Circular Room…with Sleeping Grunts…and another Hallway Prone to Ambushing This center of this circular room has a deep, rectangle-shaped hole with 2 walkways crossing the hole made of thick bullet-proof glass. There are Grunts asleep in various spots around the room, and patrolling Jackals. From the room’s entrance, head right and follow the circumference pathway to find the narrow declining hallway exit out of this room, indicated by a flashing white triangle. The de- clining hallway exit leads to a small room with a ramp structure in the middle of the room. Continue through this small room to a hallway that forces you to turn right, into a long hallway prone to ambushing because of the lower level passageway that lines this long hallway. Watch out for Camouflaged Elites that try to ambush you from this lower level passageway on the left. Follow through this long hallway until it forces you to turn right into a small room (just like the one you passed through) with a small ramp structure in the middle of the room. Go through this room up the short ascending hallway with a flashing white triangle on the floor, entering another circular room.

The 6th [and final] Circular Room, leading to a Snow Covered Bridge Outside In the center of this circular room there will be health and ammo (including rocket rounds) by 2 dead Marines’ bodies, with some Sniper Rifle rounds at the top of a structure near a 3rd dead Marine body. But there are also 2 Hunters walking the center of the room as well. If you can take out the Hunters easily, go for the supplies in the center of the room.

47 Head right from the entrance into this room and trace the circumference pathway to the flashing white triangle on the floor pointing to the exit out of the room. Covenant Jackals and Grunts will rush out of the exit door from the hallway. After kill- ing the 2 Hunters, Jackals and Grunts Cortana will mention that enemy resistance is increasing, indicating that you must be near the Control Room. Follow the hallway (with the standard white triangles on the floor) to a door that leads to one end of a snow covered bridge outside. If you have a Sniper Rifle on you, break it out before you open the door to the bridge….and get ready to quickly sniper the Elites making a break for Banshees parked on the bridge. You’ll definitely want to commandeer a Banshee for a killer shortcut that will bypass you going through another 2 circular rooms, 5 hallways, and an elevator lift that will take you to the same location (unless you feel like doing all that running around…).

Scenario: The Control Room

The exit from the hallway will place you at one end of a snow covered bridge made of rock high above the ground. On one side of the bridge is a tall frozen waterfall that disappears high into the white sky above. On the other side is a giant pyramid structure containing the Control Center Room to operate Halo. On this bridge are 2 Banshees.

Trying to Get a Banshee before an Elite does (for a great shortcut to the end of this level) As you step foot onto the bridge Elites will immediately head for the Banshees. If you have the Sniper Rifle with you, use it to take out one of the Elites before it can reach a Banshee. If you can commandeer a Banshee, fly the craft to the upper platform of the giant pyra- mid structure. The entry door to the pyramid structure is huge, marked by a large white triangle on the floor pointing away from the door. Just activate the switch panel to the right of the door to open it and get ready to mow down heavy Covenant forces within a huge and wide hallway with transparent floors. At the end of the hallway around the corner to the right, you’ll have to activate another switch panel closest to a 2nd huge door. Continue on through the hallway ahead and activate the switch panel at the end of the hallway to open the last locked door to the Con- trol Center Room of Halo, ending the level.

The Pathway you take if you didn’t get a Banshee (and it involves more Circular Rooms and Hallways with White Triangles on the floor…and an Elevator Lift…and more Sleeping Grunts) If the Elites get to the Banshees before you do, you will have to cross the snow covered bridge while dealing with Covenant forces that include a pair of Hunters. The snow covered bridge will exit to a hallway with white triangles on the floor direct- ing you the correct way. This hallway will lead to a circular room (with a vertical glass tube in the room’s center) full of sleeping Grunts and patrolling Jackals and Elites. Head left from the entrance into this circular room to find the exit, indicated by the flashing white triangle on the floor by the door. Descend down the short hallway and go through the small room with a ramp structure in the middle. Continue on through another door leading to a short hallway that leads you to an elevator lift.

48 Take the elevator lift down and go through the short hallway beyond to enter another large circular room. In the center of this circular room is a ramp leading to a second floor platform that has health and ammo for the Sniper Rifle and Rocket Launcher scattered about 3 dead Marines’ bodies. Head right from the yellow-lighted entry hallway into this large circular room full of sleeping Grunts and wandering Jackals and Elites and take the exit door marked by a flashing white triangle on the floor. Be careful of the Camouflaged Elites in the circumference pathway as you exit this circular room through the hallway past the door. Follow the white triangles on the floor in this hallway to a door that will lead you to the ground level outside…at the base of the giant pyramid structure.

The Pyramid Structure and the Entrance to the Halo Control Room Now that you’re on the ground outside, watch out for the Wraith tank. You can get a Rocket Launcher and ammo for it by going into the area underneath the long, giant stabilizing arm of the pyramid structure. There’s also a Sniper Rifle and Health Packs scattered around the 3 dead Marines’ bodies lying about. Once you’ve dealt with the Covenant Wraith and other Covenant forces guarding the pyramid, head toward the base of the structure and make your way up the pathways surrounding the building. When you get to the upper platform of the pyramid structure you will see a large white triangle on the floor pointing away from a huge door. Activate the switch panel to the right of the door to open it, and get ready to mow down heavy Covenant forces within a huge and wide hallway with transparent floors. At the end of the hallway around the corner to the right, you’ll have to activate another switch panel closest to a 2nd huge door. Continue on through the hall- way ahead and activate the switch panel at the end of the hallway to open the last locked door to the Control Center Room of Halo, ending the level.

49

Level 6: 343 Guilty Spark

Scenario: The Lost Away Team

General Tips for Level 6: 1. Try to keep your Assault Rifle with you…the LED Compass above the ammo count on the rifle itself will come in handy in the confusing layout of the swamps in the beginning and end of the level. 2. Watch for these environment landmarks to help you from getting lost in the maze of rooms and corridors that is the Facility: ⇒ The colored lights on either side of the doors ⇒ The alien symbols painted on a wall of some of the rooms ⇒ The colored lighting in the rooms and hallways 3. Ditch the Pistol and acquire a Shotgun as soon as you can to deal with the Flood

The swamp area that you start this level in can easily have you wandering around lost for hours. The area from the point you’re dropped off to the entrance to the facility is not that far. Try to keep your Assault Rifle with you so you can use the tear-drop shaped digital compass on the LED ammo read-out of your gun to help your sense of direction.

50 Mission Objective 1- Locate Captain Keyes

[If you’ve been wandering around lost in the swamp, it’s worth it to press Start and select the “Restart Level” menu selection so you can return to the ship that drops you off. The following directions will lead you to the facility by using the crashed Pelican drop-ship as a starting point.]

Making your way through the Swamp to the Facility At the beginning of the level, you’ll be dropped off in the middle of a swamp. There’s an abandoned Pelican drop-ship that crashed into the swamp very close to your drop-off point—you can hear a repeating radio transmission in the distance that’s coming from the ship. Look at the Assault Rifle’s LED ammo readout (on the gun itself) and observe the tear-drop shaped compass needle located above the ammo count. Turn in place until the compass needle is pointing south (or down) on the LED readout and then follow in that direc- tion. You will find the drop-ship after about 6 to 7 seconds of running. Several blue flashing flares have been placed behind the ship and plenty of Health Packs and ammo are littered around the area. Facing away from the cargo bay entrance of the crashed drop-ship, turn until the Assault Rifle’s compass needle is facing east then go straight ahead over some small boulders sur- rounded by ferns. You should be heading toward a small pond and continuing on to a valley pass that is lit up with white flood lamps lining the passageway. Keep following the valley pass with flood lamps and you will come upon a crashed Covenant drop-ship on the left. You’ll make your first contact with Covenant forces here, which consist of Jackals and Grunts. Turn left past the wrecked Covenant drop-ship and continue to follow the trail lined with flood lamps as it ascends. The trail marked by flood lamps will lead you to the base of a gigantic fallen tree with its roots sticking up in the air. The tree now serves as a bridge across a large valley. Cross the tree trunk and walk up the left of three finger-like tree roots to climb up the steep incline. Once you’ve reached the peak of the incline, you should see more flood lamps on the ground guiding you along into a bowl-shaped valley full of trees, ferns, and Covenant Grunts and Jack- als. The entrance to an abandoned facility you need to enter is marked by 2 huge flood lamps situated above the entryway.

The Facility Overrun by the Flood Here are a few pointers to keep in mind before adventuring through the facility: The facility is a maze of rooms connected to each other by corridors. These corridors would form the outline of a square if you were able to look at them from above or on a map. Most of the rooms in the facility have an upper floor platform, including the connecting corri- dors. There are a total of 3 elevator lifts in the facility which are located at the beginning, mid- way, and at the end of the level. There are also 5 long rooms that contain blue bridges of light to help you across the upper platforms of the facility. Also, each room has doors with colored lights on either side that you can use for a point of reference on where you’ve been and where to go next. To keep from getting lost you’ll want to pay close attention to the colored lights on either side of the doors and the circular alien sym- bols that mark some walls in the facility.

51 From the 1st Elevator Lift to the 1st Room with a Light Bridge (and 2 Aqua-Green Alien Symbols on a Wall) The 1st room of the facility contains the 1st elevator lift. Activate the switch panel and take the large, circular elevator lift down to a room similar in layout to the 1st room above. Sneak up to the exit of this room and toss a grenade to eliminate most of the unsuspecting Covenant Grunts and Jackals that are crowded around it. The room outside the lift room is the 1st of 5 rooms you’ll encounter with a light bridge. You will enter this room on the upper platform. The light bridge is inactive when you first en- ter the room, and does not need to be turned on right now. You can also see 2 horizontally- placed, aqua-green colored circular alien symbols painted on the wall above a door at the far end of the room. [Above the entrance to this room are more circular alien symbols—3 in a tri- angle formation with 2 of them aqua-green and the other pink in color.] Covenant Jackals and Grunts will assault you from the upper and lower floors in this room. Exit this room by jump- ing to the floor below and taking the door lit with green lights on either side.

Going through a Set of Corridors lit in White Light to a Room of Jackals Though the green-lit door (from the light-bridge room) you will take some connecting corridors, lit up in white lighting, that form a square if you were to look at it from above. There are 4 total exits from these corridors, including the one you entered the corridors with. Two of the four doors are locked. Take the unlocked door opposite of the one you used to enter these corridors. This next room has 2 floors. You will be entering it on the bottom floor. If you look at the entrance into this room you will see there’s a green light on either side, but the one on the right is flashing and both of them emit a small glow. There’s only one exit from this room on the ground floor, and it’s guarded by a group of Jackals. Deal with the Jackals (they’re bunched together…perfect for a grenade toss) and go through the door that has bright glowing green lights on either side and a yellow light above the entrance.

Going through a Set of Corridors lit in Yellow Light to the 2nd of 5 Light Bridge Rooms (with 2 Red Alien Symbols on a Wall) You will enter another series of corridors that have a square-outline formation. This time the corridor is lit up with yellow lighting (any series of corridors with distinctive lighting will be denoted by a light above the entry doors, such as the yellow light above the door you used to enter these corridors). Just like the previous corridors you went through recently, there are 4 doors total. One of the four doors is locked, while another is open but blocked by debris. Take the door opposite of the entrance door to enter the next room. You will now be in the 2nd of 5 light bridge rooms. The light bridge has not been acti- vated, and there is no need to activate it just yet. You will enter this room on the bottom floor. If you look at the top floor you should see a green-lit door with 2 horizontally-placed, circular alien symbols painted in red. You will eventually go through that door, but to get to it you need to first take the door at the far end of this room which is lit up with green lights on both sides (but the green light on the left is flickering as if it were about to short out). Go through the green-lit door to enter another series of corridors.

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From another Set of Corridors (in White Lighting) to getting to the 2nd Floor in a Room (lit up in Green) with a Crazed Marine The series of corridors you have entered are lit up in white lighting. There are four total doors as usual, with 2 of them locked. Take the door opposite of the one you used to enter these corridors, but be careful. As you approach the door, you will hear a voice franticly shout- ing from the next room. When you enter the next room, quickly run to the left or right to avoid being shot from a crazed Marine sitting across from the door you used to enter this next room. From the corridors you will enter a room that is mostly lit up in green lighting. You will be entering on the bottom floor. There is only one door on the bottom floor—the one you used to enter this room (which has red glowing lights flashing on either side). You will need to get to the upper floor by making your way to the far corner of the room which is on fire. The upper floor in this area is a little lower because of the explosion that damaged it. Jump on the debris near the damaged upper floor and jump again to reach the upper floor. Follow the walkways and exit through the only door on this room’s 2nd floor (it’s lit up with 2 bright green lights). The Marine on the bottom floor of this room can and will inflict damage to your shield and health meter if you let him shoot you. He yells deliriously about losing members of his squad to monsters and thinks your one of them. Just ignore him (you can shoot him if you want…and you won’t be penalized for doing so).

Going through the 2nd Floor of a Set of Corridors (in White Lighting) and back to the 2nd of 5 Light Bridge Rooms (with 2 Red Alien Symbols on a Wall) From the exit of the green-lit room, you will enter another series of corridors lit up with white lighting. The floor in this corridor is made of thick glass and allows you to see below to the series of corridors you just went through. There are only 2 doors in these corridors, so take the door opposite of the one you used to enter. You should now be on the 2nd floor of the room with an inactive light bridge. At the far end of the room you should see the 2 horizontally-placed, circular alien symbols painted in red on the wall above the green lights on either side of a busted door. Activate the light bridge by pressing X on the Light Bridge Panel. Cross the bridge and make your way to the green-lit busted open door marked with the red alien symbols.

The Observation Deck leading up to a Dramatic Cinematic This next room is an observation deck that has a large window allowing you to see into the next room you’re about to enter. Go down either one of the 2 descending ramps in the mid- dle of this room. Both ramps lead to a single door. As you approach the door, a cinematic of what happened to a squad of Marines who entered this facility will play. Once the cinematic is over, you will be in the large room that you saw from the observa- tion deck’s window from above.

53 Scenario: The Flood

Mission Objective 2- Escape!

Getting out of a Large Room soon to be filled with Flood Spores and back-tracking to the 1st Room with a Light Bridge (and a shorted-out Light Bridge Switch Panel) After watching the cinematic sequence of the Marine squad entering the facility and get- ting attacked by the Flood, be prepared for a massive onslaught of Flood Spores bursting through 4 of the 6 doors in this room. There are 6 total doors on the ground level of this room. Four of the doors will burst open, each releasing a swarm of Flood Spores. After you’ve killed most of one swarm, the next door will burst open. Be prepared by keeping an eye on your motion tracker radar for the next glob of red that shows up as a swarm is about to attack.

Here is the order in which the doors burst open with Flood Spores: 1) The door at the opposite end of the room from the entrance 2) The door closest to the entrance into this room on the left hand side (facing the entrance) 3) Face the door that the 1st swarm came from…the 3rd swarm will come from the closest door on the left hand side (facing the door of the 1st swarm) 4) The final swarm will be from the door that you used to enter this room. This time you will have to face Covenant Elites who are infected with the Flood disease.

Kill off the Flood Elites then exit this room. From here to the exit of this facility, you will have to fight your way through these Flood creatures. Make your way all the way back to the 1st room that had a light bridge with a sparking, shorted-out bridge switch at one end and 2 horizontally-placed aqua-green alien symbols painted above a door.

If you forgot how to get back to the 1st Light Bridge Room again, here’s a quick 4-step process to get you there from the 2nd Light Bridge Room: 1) From upper floor of the 2nd Light Bridge room jump down to 1st floor and go through unlocked door with green lights on either side that aren’t flashing 2) Go through yellow-lit corridor leading to next room 3) Exit the next room through door on ground lit up with 2 green lights that don’t emit a bright glow, with the green light on the right flashing 4) Go through white-lit corridor leading to lower floor of 1st Light Bridge Room

You should now be in the 1st Light Bridge Room. You need to get to the 2nd floor of this room—do so by jumping on top of a large group of stacked maroon-colored Covenant con- tainers near a corner of the room. From these stacked containers you can reach the upper floor. Go through the newly unlocked door with the 2 horizontally-placed, circular aqua-green alien symbols painted above it to enter a narrow room. [Don’t go back to the 1st Elevator Lift! It’s a waste of time. If you try to activate the lift to escape the facility through the original entrance, you’ll be greeted with a falling, flaming ele- vator lift once you activate the elevator switch panel.]

54 Making your way to the 2nd Elevator Lift from the Narrow Room From the narrow room just outside the 1st Light Bridge Room, exit this area through the brightly lit hallway. The hallway will lead you to a long room containing a concrete structure filled with lightning in the center of the room. Exit through the only other door in this long room and you will be brought to the 2nd Elevator Lift Room. Activate the elevator switch panel and ride it down to the second half of the facility.

From the 2nd Elevator Lift to the 3rd of 5 Light Bridge Rooms (with a dysfunctional Light Bridge) As you descend down the 2nd lift, you will see Covenant blood stains all over the eleva- tor shaft’s walls. Once the elevator lift has reached the bottom, be sure to collect the Over Shield that’s located on top of the piled up maroon-colored Covenant containers blocking one side of the entrance into the next room. Entering the next room you will come upon the 3rd of 5 Light Bridge Rooms. You will be on the upper floor. Be sure to collect an Active Camouflage near the entrance into this room before jumping down to the lower floor. If you enter this room soon enough you will witness 2 to 3 Marines getting slaughtered by Flood Elites and Flood Humans [don’t worry if you can’t save them—they will most likely die from the sheer amount of Flood in the room]. You will also notice that the bridge of light in this room flickers on and off in surges. The bridge is not passable due to the damage it has taken. Jump to the lower floor of this room and go through the door that has been busted open with a green light glowing brightly on either side (the light on the right of the door flickers). There’s a yellow light above the middle of the door.

Taking the Yellow-lit Corridor to the Room with a Collapsed Upper Floor you can jump to; Then going back through the Yellow-lit Corridor’s Upper Floor to return to the Upper Floor of the 3rd Light Bridge Room Go through the yellow-lit corridor, ignoring the 2 small rooms that branch from the cor- ridors, and exit into a large square room. One of the corners of this room is on fire. The explosion that caused the fire made a section of the upper floor collapse so that you can jump to it from the surrounding debris. Make your way to the upper floor and exit this room from the only exit on the upper floor (the door has 2 green lights on either side; the left one flickers while the right one flashes steadily). Going through this door will take you to the upper floor of the yellow-lit corridor you just came through. Go through the yellow-lit corridor to find yourself back in the 3rd Light Bridge Room. Go across the upper platform on this side of the 3rd Light Bridge Room and take the door with the yellow light above the middle and the green lights glowing brightly on either side (the left light flashes steadily while the right one flickers).

55 Going through another Yellow-lit Corridor to Large Square Room that leads to a White-lit Cor- ridor Go through another yellow-lit corridor and take the only exit to the upper floor of a large square room. Ignore the locked door on the upper floor of this large square room and jump down to the lower floor. Take the busted open door that is lit up with brightly glowing green lights on either side (the left light glows steadily while the right one flickers). Through the busted door you will make your way through a set of corridors lit up in white light. Ignore the 2 side rooms that branch from the corridors and exit into the next room, the 4th Light Bridge Room.

From the 4th Light Bridge Room through the last Yellow-lit Corridor and onward to the Large Square Room whose Upper Floor you can reach via a Fallen Concrete Block You will enter the 4th Light Bridge Room on the bottom floor. You won’t have to worry about searching the upper floor of this room because you won’t be able to get there. Of the 4 total doors on the bottom floor, there’s just one that you need to take. Ignore the unlocked door with 2 red lights on either side (it leads to a pointless series of corridors with 3 small rooms full of Flood creatures). Take the busted open door in the yellow-lighted section of the room with brightly glowing green lights on either side of the door entrance (the left light flickers and the right one shines steadily). You will go through your last set of yellow-lighted corridors (again, ignoring the 2 small rooms that branch off from the corridors) and exit into another large square-layout room. On the bottom floor of this large square room, ignore the busted open door you can exit…it’s a total waste of time [it leads you through a series of white-lit corridors and to the dead end bottom floor of the 5th Light Bridge Room]. Instead, find the fallen concrete blocks lit up by flood lamps and blue flares and jump on top of it to reach the upper floor of this room. DON’T FORGET THE SHOTGUN ON THE FALLEN CONCRETE BLOCK! Replace the Pistol you have and take the Shotgun in case you haven’t attained one by now…the Shotgun is the best weapon against the Flood Traverse the upper floor of this large square room and exit through the door with brightly glowing green lights on either side of the door entrance (the left light is flashing stead- ily while the right one shines steadily).

From the Last Set of Corridors (lit by White Light) to the 5th (and final) Light Bridge Room leading to the 3rd (and final) Elevator Lift exiting the Facility Run through the white-lit corridors and take the only exit to the 5th Light Bridge Room. The only thing you need to do in this 5th Light Bridge room is activate the bridge of light and cross it to reach the 3rd Elevator Lift Room. Inside the 3rd Elevator Lift Room, activate the elevator switch and take the lift up out of the room. Even though you’re out of the confines of the facility, you’re not out of the prover- bial Woods just yet---there’s one last stretch of swamp you have to run through to exit this level for good.

56 Easy Way: Using the Assault Rifle’s Compass as a Guide to exit the level If you still have the Assault Rifle on you, take a look at the LED compass above the ammo read-out for the following directions to the tall tower structure. Exit the facility with the compass needle pointing northeast. Keep going northeast as you run over boulders, ferns, and go through a body of swamp water. When you reach the entrance to a valley surrounded on 2 sides by steep hills with a huge boulder at the entrance of it, go through the valley to see a large tree with tall roots shooting up out of the ground. Your compass should be pointing either north or northwest now as you head toward the tree. Go under the tree and you should see some red flashing lights in the distance to the northwest. Go toward the lights and you should see the large tower appear from the dense fog. Circle around it while looking upward at the tower to find a small, blue, hovering ball of light. Once you see it, a cut-scene will automatically play, ending level 6 and starting level 7, The Library.

Not-so-Easy Way: Exiting the level without the aid of the Assault Rifle’s Compass If you don’t have the Assault Rifle on you, use these directions to get you to the tall tower structure. From the exit of the facility, go left and trace the steep hillside. Keep follow- ing this steep hillside, passing by a body of swamp water on your right, until you reach the en- trance to a valley with a huge boulder on the left. Go through the valley to and you’ll see a large tree with tall roots shooting up out of the ground. Go under the tree with tall roots and head toward the red flashing lights on the ground at the edge of a large body of swamp water. Once you get close to the red flashing lights on the ground you should be close enough to see the red flashing lights of the tall tower structure. Walk around the tower while looking up at it to find a hovering blue ball of light. If you hear a voice cheerfully humming a tune, that is the ball of light making the sound. Once you are close enough to the blue ball of light, the screen will fade to white and start the next cut- scene. This cut-scene marks the end of this level and begins the next one, The Library.

Scenario: New Friends This scenario is a cut-scene that leads you into level 7. There is no mission objective until level 7 begins.

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Level 7: The Library

Scenario: The Library

General Tips for Level 7: 1. Follow the Monitor as closely as possible—which means in order to do this you only need to kill the enemies that get in your way, instead of going after every single one. 2. The Monitor will appear as a yellow dot on your motion tracker radar. If you lose sight of it, just glance at your radar. If you can’t find it on the motion tracker, survey the area for an intensely bright blue light that reflects on the surrounding environment. 3. Ditch the Pistol and acquire a Shotgun as soon as you can to deal with the Flood 4. Use the Flood Spore Incubators as a form of a grenade you can detonate at will. Shoot them when they have other Flood surrounding them for maximum effectiveness. Just be careful shooting Flood Spore Incubators close to one another—the explosion of one will make others close by fly through the air, potentially landing next to you to explode. 5. Be extra careful of the glass panes in the floor of the wide hallways! They cover deep deadly pits that will kill if you fall down them…which can happen easily if you’re fight- ing Flood or simply looking up at the Monitor to follow it. 6. Periodically, you’ll come to trenches in the floors of this building…explore them. More often than not you will find Health Packs and other goodies hidden there, as well as un- derground passageways that lead you to other sections of the building.

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The building that level 7 occurs in is gigantic. The size of the hallways can make you feel like an ant. Most of the structure is comprised of wide hallways connected by large secu- rity doors that the floating blue sphere, known as the Monitor, has to unlock. Despite the gargantuan size of the building, this level is pretty straight forward. As long as you follow closely to the Monitor, maneuvering through the level will be fairly easy. If you lose sight of the Monitor, it will stop at certain points of the level and wait until you arrive. The further you get from the Monitor, the brighter and more intense its blue light becomes. Throughout the course of the level you will take a single elevator to get to the top, where the key to activating Halo, called the Index, awaits you. The elevator doesn’t go all the way to the top in one run, requiring you to venture through the surrounding hallways to find another entrance into the Index Chamber to use the elevator.

♦ A Quick Word about the Monitor In the beginning of level 7, the Monitor will be very easy to follow. It will stop fre- quently for you at a close proximity. But as you progress and get to the wide hallways with open shafts high in the wall, the Monitor will (without warning) often abandon you temporarily by taking its own shortcuts through the shafts. Usually you don’t have to walk much further to regain its presence again, but if you’re fighting off Flood left and right, it’s easy to get lose track of where it went and where you’re at. Do your best to tailgate it as much as possible. The following section of the walkthrough for Level 7 will help you at those mo- ments when the Monitor leaves you and will tell you where you need to be to trigger the re-appearance of the quirky blue sphere. The phrases in quotes are what the Monitor says, and the descriptions underneath the phrases describe where it’s at and where you will need to go to find it again.

♦ A Quick Word about the Mission Objectives There are only 3 Mission Objectives to this level, with the 1st and 2nd repeating quite of- ten. At certain areas in the game, you will come to a large security door that’s locked. The Monitor will fly off to find the switch to open it, but in the meantime you have to “keep your position” until it comes back. “Keeping your position” usually means you’re going to be am- bushed with a swarm of Flood. Eliminate enough Flood and the Monitor will “conveniently” return to let you through the door.

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Mission Objective 1- Follow the Monitor to the Index You should not have a problem if you follow the Monitor in the beginning area. There are only 2 corridors leading to the Index Chamber from the side of the structure you start out on, and only one of those corridors is open. The Monitor will make 2 stops in the hallway you start the level out in before saying the phrase below.

“We are near the Index Chamber…follow me.” It will stop directly in front of and at the end of the corridor you need to go through to enter the Index Chamber.

“The energy field above us contains the Index. We must get up there.” Once you’re in the Index Chamber the Monitor will hover toward and stop directly in front of the only exiting corridor to the other side of the structure. As you near the Monitor again, it will fly above the corridor and stop above the corri- dor’s exit. Moving near it again will make it fly to the right of the corridor’s exit and down the hallway. As you run after it, keep an eye on the left wall—you will eventually find it hovering in front of the 1st of 10 security doors of this tower structure. (The security doors are as tall as the hallways, and have a holographic lock in the center of the door that the Monitor pushes through.)

“The security doors have sealed automatically. I will go access the override to open them.” The Monitor will disappear into a nearby shaft high in the wall left of the security door. A few seconds later it will reappear from the same shaft and open the door. Then it will say the quote below.

“Please follow closely…this portal is the first of ten.” After opening the security door, it will wait on the other side of the open door for you at a T-section that leads left or right. Once you near the Monitor, it will lead you to the right of the door down the hallway. [If you try going to the left it will tell you: “This is not the correct direction. If you do not follow me you may become lost.”]

“Puzzling... You brought such ineffective weapons to combat the Flood, despite the contain- ment protocols.” The Monitor will fly down the hallway and disappear in a shaft high in the wall to the right. Run down the hall after it and stop at the 3 panes of glass on the floor to get it to reappear from the left, out of a shaft directly across the hall from the one it entered. It will then hover briefly above the 3 panes of glass in the ground before flying down the hallway while saying the next quote below.

“The Flood must not escape the installation. They consume all.” He’ll stop at the very end of this hallway where it ends in a T-section. Once you near it, the Monitor will say the following quote below as it heads to the left down the next hallway.

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“You can see how the bodies have been transformed by the genetic restructuring of the Flood Infection. The small creatures carry spores that cause a host to mutate. The mutated host then produces spores that can pass the Flood to others.” While saying the above dialogue, the Monitor will lead you down the hallway and through a quick left-then-right turn into another hallway.

“It is insidious, and elegant. As long as any hosts remain, the flood is virulent” Still talking and moving, it will make a stop midway in the adjoining hallway after the quick left-then-right turn. Once you get near it, the Monitor will disappear into the shaft at the end of this hall. You will find the Monitor again if you go right from the shaft it went into and go down the next hallway where it will reappear from the middle of 3 shafts on the right. [Before you chase after it though, you may want to go down the ramp to the trench in the floor at the beginning of this hallway and collect the Over Shield.] The Monitor will say the quote below once you see it emerge from the middle of 3 shafts on the right.

“We must continue. This way please.” The Monitor will pause for a brief second before continuing toward the end of the hall- way. If you are far from its position, it will stop and wait for you at a point just before this hall- way ends. Once you near it, it will move again toward the end of the hallway while saying the quote below.

“This installation’s research facilities are most impressive. Perhaps you will have time to see them later.” While saying the quote above, the Monitor will begin to pick up some speed as it leads you around the corner to the right. You will have trouble following it down the hallway where it will quickly fly and disappear in a shaft around the corner. Look at the shaft that the Monitor went into (it has green gas spewing from it) and ob- serve the holographic image left of it, high on the wall. The image is a bright peach colored circle with 3 light blue lines that radiate from the left, right, and bottom of the circle. Face 180 degrees away from the holographic image and go down this hallway. The Monitor will briefly reappear from a shaft at the end of this hallway.

61 “These Sentinels will supplement your combat systems, but….” When the Monitor returns, flying machines will appear from an adjoining dead- end par- allel hallway to the left of the one you’re in. These flying machines, called Sentinels, will assist you with killing the Flood. They won’t stay with you all the time, and can be shot down by the Flood. Stay out of the way of the Sentinels’ laser beams--they can hurt you. Avoid shooting at the Sentinels as well, which will defend themselves and turn on you if you seem to pose a threat. As the Sentinels arrive, the Monitor will fly into a large room at the end of this hallway, disappearing again. Stand in the middle of the huge, circular platform on the floor of this room. You will see blue rings of light shooting downward from the top-center of the room that will pull up the platform you’re on. This platform is a lift that’s the 1st of 4 elevator rides you will take in this tower.

Scenario: Wait, It Gets Worse!

The 2nd Floor Look up at the ceiling of the lift room’s exit, once the lift has stopped, to see the Moni- tor come out of a shaft. It will fly from the shaft of the exit and go left. Follow it left from the exit down the long hallway where it will round a corner to the left (ignore the left turn into a dead-ending hallway that Sentinels will fly out from). The Monitor will stop and wait for you around the corner, accompanied by the Senti- nels.

“Flood activity has caused a failure in a drone control sub-system. I must reset the back-up unit. Please, continue on. I will rejoin you when I have completed my task.” As the Monitor completes the end of the above phrase, it will fly into a shaft on the left. Just below the shaft is a trench in the floor where you can find some Health Packs. Go down to the end of the hallway and you’ll see the 2nd of 10 security doors. Once you reach the end of the hallway a new objective will appear onscreen that you will get used to see- ing throughout the rest of the level. Don’t forget to pick up the Health Pack on the floor to the right of the security door…you’re about to need it.

Mission Objective 2- Hold your position until the Monitor returns All you have to do is eliminate Flood that spill out of shafts into the hallway. There will be a swarm of them to kill, but you’ll have help from the Sentinels. Eventually the Monitor will rejoin you and open the 2nd security door.

62 Mission Objective 3- Follow the Monitor to the Index After the area is cleared of Flood, the Monitor will wait for you at the 2nd security door. Go through the security door and the Monitor will fly through the open door and into the hall- way on the right. It will stop for you above the second set of yellow lights on the ground, fur- ther down the hallway. Once you meet up with the Monitor, you will hear it say this about the Sentinels as it moves on down the hall…

“The Sentinels can use their weapons to manage the Flood only for a short time. Speed is of the essence.” The Monitor will stop and wait for you above the third set of yellow lights on the ground. It will continue ahead and stop for you again above the fourth set of yellow lights on the floor. When you catch up to the Monitor, it will lead you to the 3rd security door and begin to open it. But instead of fully opening the door, the Monitor tells you to wait there as it flies off to the middle of this tower structure. It’s time to hold your position again.

Mission Objective 4- Hold your position until the Monitor returns You won’t have to fight any Flood Elites or Flood Humans while you wait; just Flood Spores that spill down from the floor above toward the middle of this structure. Shortly after leaving you the Monitor will return and finish opening the door.

Mission Objective 5- Follow the Monitor to the Index Follow the Monitor past the 3rd security door. It will rapidly head toward the end of this hallway and turn right, disappearing up another shaft. Take the ramp incline into the trench at the end of this hallway and follow the long underground passageway to its exit to find the Monitor. It will be waiting for you to the left of the underground passageway’s exit. The Monitor will tell you the phrase below once you meet up with it.

“Your environment suit should serve you well when the Flood begins to alter the atmosphere. You are a good planner.” As it’s speaking the phrase above, you will follow it down a hallway through a short left-then-right turn. Then it will disappear into another shaft at the end of the following hall- way. If you’re low on health, pick up the Health Pack hidden in a corner below and to the left of the shaft that the Monitor disappeared into. Continue to the right of the shaft that the Monitor took and run down the hallway. The Monitor will meet up with you again midway through this hallway from a shaft on the right and tell you the phrase below.

“The installation was well-conceived. It was surely to only way to end the Flood threat.” If you’re lagging behind, the Monitor will wait for you at the end of the hallway. Once you find it, follow the Monitor to the right. It will round another corner to the right and wait for you once more. When you reach it, it will lead you to the 2nd elevator lift platform, taking you to the 3rd floor of this structure.

63 Scenario: But I Don’t Want to Ride the Elevator!

The 3rd Floor After the elevator stops, head left into the hallway outside and follow it down. You will see the Monitor pop out of the shaft at the end of the hallway and move left down the next hall- way…joined by its Sentinels.

“I would conjecture that the other species currently on the installation is responsible for releas- ing the Flood. They seem most persistent in their attempts to access restricted areas.” As the Monitor speaks the phrase above, it will lead you all the way down the hallway and then disappear into a shaft to the left. Take the nearby ramp incline into the trench in the floor at the end of this hallway and traverse through the underground passageway to its exit. Once you ascend the incline at the end of the underground passageway, head left from the incline and follow the hallway ahead. At the end of this hallway, the Monitor will come out of a shaft from the left and lead you down this next hallway….only to ditch you again in a shaft at the end of this same hallway that the Monitor entered a few seconds ago. Turn right from the shaft he disappears into and follow the hallway ahead as it curves to the left. You will come upon the 4th security door as the hallway curves to the left. An onscreen objective will pop up to tell you to hold your position.

Mission Objective 6- Hold your position until the Monitor returns Be prepared for another tough onslaught of Flood from the nearby shafts. Fend them off long enough and the Monitor will eventually open the door and wait for you to follow it again. There’s a Health Pack in the dark corner to the right of the security door if you need it.

Mission Objective 7- Follow the Monitor to the Index

“Why, naturally the Flood is simply too dangerous to be released. Alas, sterilization protocols may again need to be enacted. Of course, samples were kept here after the last catastrophic out- break….for study. It seems that decision may have been in error.“ Go through the 4th security door and follow the Monitor as it floats to the left down a hallway with yellow lights on the floor, curving to the right. It will stop for you at the end of this hallway on the left-hand side at the 5th security door.

“The installation was specifically built to study and contain the Flood. Their survival as a race was dependant upon it. I am grateful to see that some of them survived to reproduce.” Once you pass the 5th security door, the Monitor will guide you down a hallway to the right while saying the phrase above. It will wait for you at the end of this hallway. Once you reach it, the Monitor will turn right and disappear into the shaft at the end of the next hallway. You will need to turn left and follow the hallway through a short left-then-right turn into an- other hallway. Turn right when you reach the end of the hallway (past the left-then-right turn) and you will see the Monitor waiting for you midway down the next hallway. The Monitor will take you through an open 6th security door when you meet up with it. Follow it to the 7th security door that’s locked.

64 “I will deactivate the security lock. Wait here.” The Monitor will say the phrase above when you reach the 7th security door. It’s that time again to hold your position.

Mission Objective 8- Hold your position until the Monitor returns As usual, mow down Flood that spill out of the shafts nearby, until the Monitor can open the 7th security door. There’s some health located midway in this hallway if you need it.

Mission Objective 9- Follow the Monitor to the Index While the Flood are still attacking, the Monitor will open the locked door from the other side. Hurry through the 7th security door and let the Sentinels (that have reappeared next to the Monitor) help you out.

“Please stay close…time is short.” Follow the Monitor as it heads to the right down a short hallway. You’ll most likely be left behind as it speeds off through a left-then-right turn. Go through the left-then-right turn and keep following the hallway as it leads you to the elevator lift room. Take the lift to the 4th floor.

Scenario: Fourth Floor: Tools, Guns, Keys to Super Weapons

The 4th Floor You’ve made it to the last floor of the building! You’re almost to the end of the level. But the last stretch will be a battle zone with Flood almost every step off the way to the end of the level. Head right after the elevator stops and follow the hallway ahead as it makes a quick right-then-left turn. Continue onward and turn left into another hallway that ends at the 8th locked security door. The Monitor will appear from a shaft and go through the small center opening of the large locked security door, but won’t even bother opening it up for you. Just before the 8th security door you should see a ramp that descends into a trench in the floor. Go down the ramp and follow the underground passageway to its exit. When you ascend the ramp from the underground passageway you will find the Monitor waiting for you above and to the right of the ramp’s exit. Follow it as it opens the 9th locked security door just a little bit away from the underground passageway’s ramp. Go through the 9th door and follow the hallway as it turns left. Keep going down this new hallway and go through a left-then-right turn to come to a hallway where you will meet up with the Monitor again, who will come out of the shaft at the end of the hallway.

“The Flood are already hard at work preparing your vessel. Its parasitic nature belies the Flood’s intelligence.” The Monitor will lead to the right of the shaft it exits to a long hallway. Keep following it until it stops to the left at the 10th (and final) security door. Go through the door to perform the final objective for this level.

65 Mission Objective 10- Recover the Index The objective is simple enough—just run toward the center of the room. But you’ll need to cut a swath through the Flood that fill this room to make your way to the bridges in the center of the room. The level ends once you cross one of the bridges toward the bright blue tower of light beaming upward in the center of the room. A cinematic sequence will bring you directly into Level 8: Two Betrayals.

66

Level 8: Two Betrayals

General Tips for Level 8: 1. In areas with Sentinels vs. Covenant or Covenant vs. Flood, let them fight each other… don’t interfere with their fun. Instead, clean up the remaining “winners” of the strug- gle.

You will be back in the Halo Control Room, in the huge pyramid structure from level 5. After watching the cinematic of the Monitor and Cortana arguing over control of the Index and Halo’s purpose, you will need to eliminate the Sentinels that the Monitor directs at you. Hide behind the glass shields for cover against the Sentinels’ lasers. Peep around the glass shields once your shields have recharged and lay down fire in between the Sentinels’ laser bursts. Use the Shotgun for up-close contact, but mostly rely on the Pistol…especially when you’re behind the glass shields.

Scenario: The Gun Pointed at the Head of the Universe

Once you kill all of the Sentinels, you’ll need to make your way out of the Halo Control Room. Go across the bridge and activate the switch to the right of the locked blast door to get out of there. Like you did in level 5, you’ll need to activate switches in the huge hallways ahead to make your way outside of this facility. And once again you’ll fight off Covenant ene- mies in the hallways. But this time there are Sentinels that are not only gunning at the Cove- nant, but at you too.

67 Mission Objective 1- Locate and destroy Pulse Generator #1 When you exit the hallways of the Control Room, Cortana tells you that exploding the fusion reactors of the Pillar of Autumn should be sufficient enough to destroy Halo. But since Cortana hasn’t been able to locate the Pillar of Autumn just yet, she suggests that you destroy Halo’s Pulse Generators to delay the Monitor’s ability to use Halo’s weapon abilities. A Nav Point will show up on your screen, directing you to the 1st Pulse Generator. But before heading to the Nav Point, you might want to go up the ramp (with a white triangle on it) leading up a tall structure directly in front of the entrance to the Halo Control Center. There is plenty of health and ammo to be collected (including the Sniper Rifle). Make your way down the pyramid structure via the pathways that surround the building. Along the way down, you’ll have to deal with heavy Covenant forces that include the usual Grunts, Jackals, and Elites. Once you’ve made it to the base of the structure, Cortana will tell you to steal a Ban- shee. The Banshee is easily located in the snow directly in front of the base of the pyramid structure. Watch out for the Covenant Wraith tank to the right of the Banshee, though. Once you’ve attained the Banshee, follow the Nav Point to a platform sticking out high on the canyon wall. When you land on the platform, enter the door and simply follow the white triangles on the floor to the Pulse Generator. You won’t face any resistance as you maneuver the hallway leading to the circular room with the Pulse Generator. Walk into the Generator to short it out with your shield. As soon as you do, get ready to battle Sentinels that ambush the room and the hallways leading to your Banshee. Head back to your Banshee once the Generator is destroyed to go for Pulse Generator #2.

Scenario: Breaking Stuff to Look Tough

Mission Objective 2- Go to Canyon B (Find and enter lower entrance to Canyon B [pause menu mission objective]) When you get back to the platform with the Banshee, another Nav Point will appear on the screen. The Nav Point will lead you to a door on the rock bridge. Be careful of the Cove- nant Grunts armed with guns that have the same force as a Hunter’s cannon. The hallways and circular rooms ahead have not changed since the last time you ran through them in level 5. Just follow the white triangles on the floor, and remember to go against the direction they point (since they haven’t changed either). The only thing that has changed is that there aren’t any sleeping Grunts anymore. All Covenant forces within this structure are very alert, making stealth tactics next to impossible…just run and gun your way to the exit of this structure. Halfway through the building, you will also face Flood Elites and Flood Humans as well. When you reach one of 2 side-by-side bridges, sneak out onto the platform and let the Flood and Covenant go at each other. Be careful of the Flood that super-jump to the bridge you’re on from the other bridge. Every chance you get, let the Flood and Covenant attack each other, then clean up the stragglers.

68 Mission Objective 3- Locate and destroy Pulse Generator #2 Once you’ve made your way outside to ground level again, Cortana will put up the Nav Point for the 2nd Pulse Generator. It’s high on a platform on the sticking out from the mountain wall just like the last one. Unfortunately, there’s not a Banshee ready for you outside this build- ing. You’ll have to find one. From the exit of the building you were in, head left down the ridge to a small cave. If you need health, head to the trench underneath the 6 large horizontally-stretching pipes and en- ter one of the hallways. Then make your way down the ridge to the small cave at the end of this area. After you go through the small cave make your way across the frozen body of water to a treacherous and skinny incline. Take the Wart-hog at the base of the incline and collect the health and ammo scattered about it. But waiting outside the building are Covenant ground forces with assistance by Elites on Ghosts, a couple of Stationary Gunners, a Banshee, and a Wraith tank. Before you dive into the action, head to the wide trench underneath the 6 large horizon- tally stretching pipes to grab some health and a Rocket Launcher from the 2 hallways in the trench. Take out the Banshee from the protection of the ravine, then move top-side to eliminate the Wraith. You’ll have to do some more running-and-gunning action to deal with the remain- ing forces. When you’ve cleared the area of Covenant enemies, search the areas in front of the building and surrounding the 6 large pipes for a Ghost. Then go through the cave at the end of this area to the treacherous and skinny incline. If you couldn’t get a Ghost to ride, you’ll find an overturned Wart-hog with health and Rocket Launcher ammo at the base of the treacherous and skinny incline. You’ll find 2 parked Banshees once you make it up the skinny incline, past the narrow mountain pass, and near the mountain wall left of the frozen body of water. There are heavy Covenant forces in this area, with a couple of Hunters joining the mix in addition to 2 Wraith tanks laying fire from below and Banshees soaring the air. Make your way to a Banshee and head to the Nav Point in this canyon area. As you land on the platform watch out for Elites and Grunts equipped with cannons that have the same explosive power as a Hunter’s weapon. Deal with the Covenant on the platform and enter the cliff-side facility, following the white triangles on the floor (that point the way to the exit you entered) to find the circular room containing Pulse Generator #2. Destroy the generator the same way you did the first one, which is to walk into the blue light and destroying it with your shield. This time however, the room is full of Flood, and since your shield will be brought down after touching the generator you’ll be very vulnerable. Take out the Flood first then go for the generator. Watch out for additional Flood that suddenly appear once you destroy the generator. If you have any rounds left for the Rocket Launcher, now would be a great time to use it on this crowd of Flood (some of which are equipped with Rocket Launchers). Exit the facility and head for the Banshee again.

69

The Tunnels Below

Once you exit the Pulse Generator #2’s facility, Cortana will inform you that she has found the Pillar of Autumn and verified that the fusion reactors are still powered up. She will put another Nav Point on the screen to point you to the tunnel entrance to the 3rd and final Pulse Generator. Take the Banshee on the platform and follow the Nav Point and continue through the man-made tunnel. As you’re flying through the man-made tunnel take care to dodge the enemy fire from Covenant and Flood on the ground. Some of the Flood will have Rocket Launchers. Do your best to maneuver through the rocket rounds. You’ll have to get out of the Banshee to activate the switch to the left of a locked door. As it opens, an explosion from the door occurs prevent- ing it from opening all the way. You’ll have to leave the Banshee behind and walk the rest of the tunnel on foot. The large area midway through the tunnel will be relatively quiet, until you cross the bridge over the gorge. Flood Spores will spill onto the bridge from both sides, then Flood El- ites and Flood Humans will storm the end of the bridge. Cut a swath through them and make your way to the blast door entrance to the 2nd half of this man-made tunnel.

Final Run

Mission Objective 4- Locate and destroy Pulse Generator #3 A Nav Point will appear onscreen once you exit the man-made tunnel. There used to be 2 exits out of the wide open area in front of the man-made tunnel’s entrance: a cave and a nar- row pass. But since the cave has filled with fallen boulders, the only exit is the narrow pass (look up at the Nav Point; directly below is the narrow pass). Flood and Covenant ground troops will be battling it out on a mound just before the nar- row pass, with Banshees raining fire on the Flood as well. Let the Flood and Covenant have their fun and wait until they’ve killed most of each other. Then run toward the leftover skir- mish and clean up the rest. You should see a couple of Ghost vehicles near the Stationary Gun Pods. Don’t take one of these vehicles just yet, because you’ll want to be quiet as you near the end of the narrow pass ahead (the whine of the engine will prevent you from being stealthy). Instead, go through the narrow pass on foot and sneak up on the scene of another battle between Covenant and Flood. As you go through the narrow pass, hide behind one of the rocks to avoid being seen. You might be spotted by a couple of Covenant close to the rocks, but just take them out and re- main hidden. Once the battle dies down (or too many Covenant detect you) go in and clean up the stragglers. To the left of the narrow pass into this area, there are weapons (Sniper Rifle and Rocket Launcher), ammo, and health in front of the cave that’s blocked with fallen boulders. Return through the narrow pass and retrieve a Ghost. Then head through the narrow pass and onward, past the frozen rivers and up the ridge (you’ll need to approach the ridge from the left-hand side to get the Ghost over it).

70 When you cross the ridge, stop just before the frozen body of water. If you have the Rocket Launcher or Sniper Rifle, break it out and use the zoom lens to observe another fierce battle between Flood and Covenant. Sit back and wait till the action dies down. Then eliminate the rest (the Sniper Rifle does a great job with all the rocks you can hide behind). You will find 2 Banshees parked at the end of the valley pass. The area around the 2 Banshees is heavily guarded by every kind of Covenant ground troop (including Hunters and Active Camouflaged Elites) in addition to a Stationary Gunner and 2 Wraith Tanks. Take out the tanks first with the Rocket Launcher then move in and eliminate the Stationary Gunner next. Once you have a Banshee, just follow the Nav Point onscreen. When you get to the platform leading Pulse Generator #3, take out the Sentinels that will try to ambush you as you land. There’s a Health Pack and plenty of ammo on either side of the entrance. Follow the white triangles in the hallway leading to the circular room containing the 3rd Pulse Generator. You’ll be greeted with shield-enabled Sentinels inside the room. Don’t bother shooting the Sentinels—instead just run into the Pulse Generator which will kill the Sen- tinels and end the level. Now get ready for Level 9: Keyes.

71

Level 9: Keyes

General Tips for Level 9: 1. Any chance you get, let the Covenant and Flood finish each other off before you jump into the action. 2. You will want to use your flashlight while in the valleys and canyons below the ship to see pathways you may have passed up. 3. To keep from getting lost in the dark valleys and canyons below the crashed Covenant Cruiser, pay attention to the placement of Covenant Plasma Shields and pools of coolant; use them as points of reference for where you’ve been and where to go. 4. If you fall into a deep pool of green coolant, look up to trace the contours of the land around the pool to help you find your way out.

Scenario: The Maw

You’ve been beamed aboard a Covenant Cruiser that has crashed atop some mountains. Cortana has received a signal showing that Captain Keyes is alive and the neural implants in his head are intact. (The neural implants are necessary to activate the codes for a meltdown of the Pillar of Autumn’s fusion reactors.)

72 Mission Objective 1- Find a way into the control room You start the level in a straight hallway that has 4 locked doors and only one exit. As you near the exit you will hear Captain Keyes tell you to “don’t be a fool and leave the ship”. Go through the exit and you’ll come to a T-section (where you see a Grunt being chased by an armless and headless Flood Elite as you approach the end of the hallway). Take a left at the T- section and collect an Active Camouflage behind the unlocked door. If you run, you can make it to the next objective without being spotted by enemies. From the spot that you collected the Active Camouflage, run straight ahead and take a left at the hallway intersection. Follow this hallway the rest of the way, as it forces you to make a left turn and eventually a right turn to a door that leads you to a giant hole in the floor.

Mission Objective 1a- Get out of the ship by jumping, and find another route in [This objective is optional and won’t come up if you jump down the big hole on your own.] When you come to the big hole, Cortana will analyze the hole and say you should con- tinue your search somewhere else…initially thinking the hole is not a good exit. But if you be- gin to return through the hallways you started off in, an endless swarm of Flood will spill down from the upper shafts of the ceiling. You will have no choice but to jump down the big hole and into the pool of coolant below.

Mission Objective 2- Find another way into the ship You start off this objective in a rectangular-shaped pool of green coolant. There is an- other rectangular-shaped pool of coolant neighboring the one you landed in and a smaller, cir- cular 3rd pool close to the 2nd rectangular one. Make your way out of the rectangular-shaped pool of coolant and take the narrow path- way out of this area. If you have a hard time finding this pathway, go away from the 3 pools of coolant and look for the Covenant plasma shield—the shield sits across from the beginning of the pathway (turn on your flashlight to see it better). The narrow pathway from the area you started from will lead you around a corner to the right and into an open area with a sizeable pool of coolant in one corner. Flood Elites and Flood Humans from ledges above you will fire upon you when you enter this area. You can take 2 ways out of this area which both lead to the same pathway. One way is wide and ele- vated above the pool, and has 2 Covenant plasma shields placed in it. The other way is a nar- row and directly below the ledge with Flood enemies (also a shorter way than the one with the shields). Take the narrow pathway exiting from the area (with the pool of coolant and the 2 Plasma Shields) and follow it. This pathway will force you one way, leading you around a cou- ple of sharp corners. After you round the first corner, Cortana will put up a Nav Point, indicat- ing the ship’s Gravity Lift. Continue on through this pathway and it will end in a cliff edge overlooking a big pool of green coolant. Just before the cliff edge, you will find a Sniper Rifle and a Health Pack. Before jumping down into the pool of coolant from the cliff edge of the pathway you’re on, let the Covenant and Flood fight it out below you. Use the Sniper Rifle to kill the pair of Hunters if you want to speed the fight up. After you jump down, keep following the Nav Point. Don’t stick around the pool too long, because a steady stream of Flood Spore Incubators will continue to come out.

73 After you jump into the pool of coolant, follow the pathway rising from the pool and go between the 2 Covenant Plasma Shields. Keep following this path, where it will lead you around a left turn past another small, circular pool where a Stationary Gunner sits. This path will still continue to lead you around a wide right-turn (bordered on the left side by a large body of coolant) that elevates and ends in a surprising drop-off. When you fall off the pathway’s drop-off, keep going forward and the path will lead you through a last stretch that s-curves among bodies of coolant. After you pass a large open area with Flood enemies gunning at you from ledges in the cliff walls above, the path will end shortly thereafter at the Gravity Lift. The Gravity Lift is concentrated at the end of an inclining land formation. When you enter this area, you can find an Over Shield if you go to the right of the Gravity Lift and head toward the edge of the pool of coolant. Head into the center of the Gravity Lift and hold your position till it activates.

Mission Objective 3- Hold your position under the lift until it re-activates All you have to do is hold your ground as swarms of Flood bombard you. Take cover from enemy fire with the assistance of the 4 Plasma Shields located inside the Gravity Lift’s beam.

Scenario: In No Mood…

Mission Objective 4- Follow Cortana’s directions back to the control room This objective will start you off in a Gravity Lift room that looks a little like the Gravity Lift room of Level 3’s Truth and Reconciliation Covenant Battle Cruiser. Take the only exit out of this room and follow the hallway. While running through the hallway from the Gravity Lift room, Cortana will mention she’s been trying to access the Covenant Battle Cruiser’s schematics but can’t because the Covenant Battle Network (that she gets her info from) is in total chaos. She thinks the way to the ship’s Shuttle Bay should be at a point that she will mark with a Nav Point. Follow the Nav Point that Cortana marks on your screen. When you’ve maneuvered through the hallways from the Gravity Lift room, you will enter the L-shaped 2nd floor walkway of a large room where Cortana comments on Flood gathering bodies in the corners. In the mid- dle of the floor you will see a parked Covenant Wraith tank near 2 Covenant Ghost vehicles. You’ll also see a few Covenant bodies strewn about the floor, with blue blood streaks under- neath them as they were dragged to the corners of the room. Follow the L-shaped walkway in this large room and exit through the only door located at the far end (or the foot of the walk- way’s “L” shape).

[Short-cut Tip: You can skip the next hallway of Flood (and the paragraph below) if you carefully fall—not jump—to one of the groups of maroon-colored Covenant containers closest to the walkway’s edge. Falling on the container won’t damage you at all, but the maneuver is a bit tricky and should only be performed if you are comfortable with the controls…which at this point in the game shouldn’t be a problem….]

74 Continue to follow the Nav Point through the hallways beyond the large room you were in. You will face Flood dropping in from the shafts in the ceiling. Just keep moving toward the Nav Point through the descending hallways and you will eventually return to the large room with the L-shaped 2nd floor…only this time you will be on the ground floor. Now that you’re back into the large room with Covenant bodies strewn about, collect the Over Shield and Health Pack in one of the corners of this room (by a locked red-highlighted door). Ignore the large gray muster bay door that opens when you collect the health and Over Shield. Exit this room through the open door leading to a descending hallway. As you run your way through the hallway, it will end with a square-like hole in the floor. As you drop down the hole, be careful of the Flood Spore Incubators below. Follow the hallway from the drop-point as it makes you take a right turn and then a left turn. After the left turn you should see a red-highlighted locked door ahead and a descending hallway to the right. Take the descending hallway to the right and you’ll see a platoon of Covenant Elites and Grunts fighting off Flood…let them go at each other before stepping in to clean up the rest. Shortly after seeing the Covenant, you should come to a fork in the hallway with a branching hallway to the right, and a hallway that branches off and ascends to the left. Since the Nav Point is point- ing to the hallway on the right, follow it until you come around a left corner to an unlocked white-highlighted door. Go through the unlocked door and follow the hallway beyond the door all the way to reach the Nav Point. You should now be in the Shuttle Bay that was marked by the Nav Point. At the en- trance into this room, Cortana will tell you that you should be able to reach the Covenant Cruiser’s Control Room on the 3rd floor of this Shuttle Bay; and then you will hear Captain Keyes again, telling you he orders you to get off this ship. Cortana will mark the next area you need to go to with another Nav Point. Get to the Nav Point on the 3rd floor by taking the open door located at the very end of this L-shaped floor you’re on (ignore the 1st open door on the way and take the 2nd open door). [If you accidentally fall down to the ground floor of the Shuttle Bay, take the unlocked door that’s on a side of the room by itself (it’s left of the door jammed open by a maroon-colored Covenant container) and follow the hallways back to the 2nd floor.] Once you go through the open door at the very end of the Shuttle Bay’s 2nd floor follow the long winding hallway until you reach the 3rd floor. You will see the open door marked with the Nav Point when you head down the 3rd floor’s walkway. Go through the open door and fol- low the hallway ahead to an unlocked white-highlighted door.

75 Scenario: The Captain

Mission Objective 5- Recover Capt. Keyes You will hear Captain Keyes suffering through your radio intercom as you pass the white-highlighted unlocked door. Continue ahead to another white unlocked door and follow the hallways. You can only go one direction in these hallways…other branching hallways are blocked by debris and fire or lead to short hallways dead-ending in red-highlighted doors. This area will be full of Covenant and Flood battling each other. Hide in the hallway ending in fire and debris and wait until most of the Covenant and Flood have eliminated each other. Take the only short straight hallway that ascends to the Control Room. When you’re inside go to the center of the Control Room and head up the elevated platform to get the Cap- tain… or what’s left of him.

Mission Objective 6- Escape via the shuttle bay After watching the cinematic of retrieving the Captain’s neural implants, immediately head toward the unlocked white-highlighted door, but don’t go through it just yet. When you reach the white door, do a 180 turn and run toward the trench near the Control Room platform. The red-highlighted doors should open at just the time you trigger the white door to open. If you time it right, you’ll enjoy watching the Covenant that come from the white unlocked door take on the Flood from the red doors as you back out of the trench from the ramp at its end. Let them have at each other and wait for a lull in the fight to make your way out of the chaotic Con- trol Room through the white unlocked door. Back track all the way to the Shuttle Bay. When you get there, you’ll be greeted by an onslaught of the toughest Grunts and Elites—grey-silver Grunts and Elites. They populate all 3 floors of the Shuttle Bay and surrounding hallways that lead to each Shuttle Bay floor. A Nav Point will show up pointing you to the Banshees that you can take to get out of this ship. They’re on the first floor of the Shuttle Bay, so you’ll have to fight all the way down to get there. Once you get to the bottom floor of the Shuttle Bay, head straight for the Ban- shees. The level will end once you press the X button to board it, and you’ll begin the last level of the game, Level 10: The Maw.

76

Level 10: The Maw

Scenario: … And the Horse You Rode In On

Mission Objective 1- Make your way to the bridge You start off the level in the Escape Pod Bay area of the Pillar of Autumn. From the escape pod bays, head down the hallway in front of the pod bays and go around the corner to find the entrance to the Maintenance Access Ways. Make your way through these corridors to find a ladder that goes down. Watch out for Flood Spore Incubators before going down the lad- der. Once you go down the ladder, follow the hallway ahead. Toss a grenade at the Sentinels that await you at the 1st right corner you come upon. Then follow this hallway as it leads you around 2 right corners and around a 3rd corner where you’ll see a door burst open with Flood Humans and Flood Elites running out. Toss a grenade as the door bursts open to take out most of them in the small confines of the hallway. Head down the hallway through the busted door after you’ve cleared out most of the Flood and continue following this hallway until you come to a door that has fire on the wall to the right of it. Go through this door to be in the hallway just outside the Mess Hall. (You should remember the Mess Hall from the first level: it’s a big room full of tables where you had your first armed-fight supporting a group of Marines against Grunts and Elites…awww, the memories).

77 You can enter the Mess Hall from 2 door ways. Before you enter the Mess Hall from the hallway you’re in, wait and let the Covenant forces inside (which includes 2 Hunters, unless you’re playing on the Easy difficulty) fight it out a while with the Flood. Once the enemy has been dwindled down to a number you can deal with, storm in and finish off the remaining ene- mies. Exit the Mess Hall through the door at the far left corner of the room (if you’re facing away from the 2 doorways you used to enter this room, this door will be on the left). Once you exit the Mess Hall take the only open door in the next hallway and follow the hallway beyond this door to the Bridge. You must kill any and all Covenant inside the Bridge area and head to the front windows to trigger a cinematic cut-scene.

Mission Objective 2- Get to engineering by way of the cryo storage facility After the cinematic cut-scene, Sentinels will ambush you from the front windows of the Bridge. You don’t have to kill these Sentinels; instead get out of the Bridge and head to the cryo storage facility. Backtrack your way out of the Bridge and take the only exit in the hallway outside the Bridge. You will come to a room full of Flood Elites and Flood Humans. The center of this room is lit up over rows of empty weapon racks. It’s also dark on one side of the room with riot barrier shields populating half the room and used up weapons all over the floor. Take the only exit out of here to a hallway with a couple of Hunters and Flood going at it. You will see on the floor a familiar blue arrow on the ground pointing the way to the Bridge. In this hallway with the blue arrow pointing back to the Bridge, take the only exit and follow the hallway ahead all the way through its winding turns until you reach a wide hallway full of Sentinels trying to kill Flood Spores. Take out the Sentinels and Spores then duck un- derneath the half-closed blast door. The hallway that connects to the dark room with the half-closed blast door will lead you to the Cryo Storage facility. Go through either one of the unlocked doors with the yellow “Cryo B” arrows below them to get inside the facility. Inside the cryo storage facility you’ll witness Sentinels fighting against Flood. Take the ladders at the far end of this room to the 2nd floor of the cyro storage facility. Follow the cat- walks to the cryo observation deck and take the hallway leading from the observation deck. You will face numerous Flood coming from the hallway leading from the observation deck. This hallway connects to a wide hallway that has a short dead-end hallway with an Over Shield hidden at its end. Take the Maintenance Access corridors from the wide hallway and maneuver through them. There are 4 exits from the corridors; 2 that exit to the same corridor and 2 that are dead- ends. The exit to the far left leads to a short hallway that dead-ends with a partially closed blast door you can see through. The exit on the far right is blocked by fallen debris, but has a Health Pack and grenades. Take either one of the 2 middle exits to enter a wide hallway occupied by 2 Hunters among several other Covenant fighting off Flood and Sentinels. Once you enter the wide hallway outside the Maintenance Access corridors, you will see red arrows on the floor that point you to the engineering room or the armory. You will defi- nitely want to visit the armory and pick up a Rocket Launcher and a Shotgun for the next objec- tive you’ll face. The red locked door at the dark end of this room will open up and release Flood Elites (some of them Active Camouflaged) if you get near it, so watch out. After stocking up in the armory, follow the red arrows on the ground with the word “Engineering” stenciled in to get to the Engineering Bay.

78 Scenario: Light Fuse, Get Away

Mission Objective 3- Use the controls on the third floor to retract an exhaust manifold Cortana will use 4 Nav Points to mark each of the controls on the 3rd floor that you need to use to retract an exhaust manifold, so you will not be able to get lost in this area. Take the doors on the left or right sides of this room to go to the 2nd floor (there are Health Packs located on mainframe computer walls on the upper platforms of the 1st floor). You’ll want to observe which manifold is retracting once you activate a control panel, then jump down onto the slowly retracting manifold to get into position to throw a grenade or fire a rocket into the bright orange glow that you’ll see through the slowly rotating vents. It takes just one hit from a grenade or a Rocket Launcher round to take out a reactor. While traversing through the floors and hallways to get to each exhaust manifold con- trol, you will face a tough onslaught of Flood and Sentinel resistance. Save your Rocket Launcher ammo and use the Shotgun. You won’t be able to clear the room of Sentinels and Flood, so just kill the ones that interfere and concentrate on the objective. Despite the resis- tance, the objective is very straight forward and easy to accomplish. After taking out all four reactors, Cortana will tell you that you have 15 minutes to get off the ship.

Mission Objective 3a- Destroy the open vent core with a grenade or rocket This objective repeatedly appears every time you activate on of the 4 exhaust manifold control panels.

Mission Objective 4- Get to the elevator on the third floor Cortana will point out the elevator you need to take to the escape route out of the Pillar of Autumn with a Nav Point. Just make your way to the 3rd floor of this Engineering Bay room. Watch out for the group of grey-silver Elites and Grunts that are aboard the elevator when it descends to you.

Scenario: Warning: Hitchhikers May Be Escaping Convicts

Mission Objective 5- Escape from the Pillar of Autumn before it’s too late Cortana miscalculates the time that it will take for the Pillar of Autumn to explode… instead of a comfortable 15 minutes, it’s now 7 minutes. A timer will appear in the lower right corner counting down the explosion. The elevator will lead you to a vehicle garage full of Wart-hogs. You must take a Wart- hog and drive the long escape route to the pick up point where Foe Hammer should arrive. This last stretch of the game will test your skill at driving the Wart-hog. You’ll have to negotiate jumps and switch from driving in the center of the tunnels to the sides when appropriate. In the portions of the tunnel that curve, avoid the ramps that alternately appear on the left and right… these ramps will more than likely cause you to flip the Wart-hog. Let off the accelerator when you approach the peaks of hills to keep your Wart-hog from flipping over its front end. Upon reaching the pick up point, you’ll see the Foe Hammer drop-ship shot down by pursuing Banshees. Cortana will find another way to escape by telling you to continue on through the tunnel ahead to reach a Longsword fighter craft.

79 On the way to the Longsword fighter craft, Cortana will warn you of a jump that you’ll need top speed to clear. Don’t floor it over the next immediate jump you reach or the Wart-hog will flip from the very long fall. Gun it over the next jump to clear it easily with enough top speed. When you reach the Longsword fighter, you’ll have to get off the Wart-hog and run to- ward the craft to get aboard. Make it across the last wide pathway and up the ramp to the craft to end the level and the game. [If you don’t make it in time to the Longsword fighter, you’ll see the Pillar of Autumn explode; after which you’ll restart from the previous checkpoint that’s not too far back. You’ll be given enough time to make it to the end with at least 30 seconds to spare…so don’t worry].

80 X. Credits

A Big Thank You to all of these fine upstanding citizens of the community that helped in organizing and completing info for this walk- through (in no particular order of importance):

Danny Magallanes Andrew Brummett Ali Khan Kevin McGilligan Ben Chacko ….a.k.a. the X-perts Team

And another, more important Big Thank You to the following people, who are more important than the above people:

Craig Stum (for all the nit-picky questions I had) Duncan McDonald (for being patient with us X-perts) The Bungie Development Team (for making such a cool game) Microsoft Corporation (for publishing such a cool game)

Seriously, thanks to everyone that helped out … it was much appreci- ated.

Walkthrough created by “That Guy” Phil Cordova, 10/18/2001.

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