Halo (Halo 3 Level)/Walkthrough
From Halopedia, the Halo Wiki
If you start this level after having finished Cortana, you will begin with whatever weapons you wielded at the end of the previous level. If you exited the game or ended your session prior to beginning this level, you will start with a Rocket Launcher and an Assault Rifle.
Contents |
[edit] Full Circle (Mission Start)
You start the level at the crash site of the Pelican you commandeered back on High Charity. At the crash site, you'll find fresh Battle Rifles, Shotguns, SMGs, and a Rocket Launcher.
Follow the path until you reach the structure housing the Control Room's entrance. It's here that the Gravemind starts his final offensive, using Flood Dispersal Pods to deploy a massive amount of Flood Combat Forms. Take out any armed Flood first; you'll especially want to kill the Brute Combat Form that wields a Gravity Hammer. Depending on your skill and the difficulty level, you may want to try grabbing a Gravity Hammer, Energy Sword, or even a Brute Shot -- anything with a strong melee attack.
Another good tactic when first encountering the Flood is to stand on the shelf above the entrance to the tunnel from which you came, because the Flood can't get there, giving you freedom to take them all out with a Battle Rifle or a Carbine. Plasma Rifles are also very effective and allow you to take out the Flood before they get to melee range; they are also quite plentiful, being dropped by the many Elite Combat Forms that you encounter. SMGs are similarly plentiful.
If you look immediately to your right, you'll find a Fuel Rod Gun on a small hill; there is also another one on the opposite side of the clearing. If you wish to give to the Thel 'Vadam a fancy Rocket Launcher right before you go in the open, then stick him with a grenade, wait for him to die, and trade your rocket launcher for his dropped Plasma Rifle.
Follow Cortana's instructions to reach the Control Room's entrance. However, if you walk along the left side of the Control Room, you can find a Flamethrower with full ammo, near the base of the structure. You can run straight ahead and let the Arbiter (or your friends) deal with the Flood, but it helps to do your part and cut down their numbers. The way up to the next level of the structure is always at the opposite end of where you first climb up, so you're in for a lot of action.
When you hit the top of the fortress, you'll find that 343 Guilty Spark, in his strict adherence to protocol, refuses to open the door until all nearby Flood forces are eliminated, so be ready to go on the defensive. A ton of Stalker, Ranged, Tank, and Combat Forms will land near you and swarm from all directions. In single-player mode, give the Arbiter plenty of room to do his thing and do your part in killing some Flood. There is an Invincibility power-up hidden in an alcove across from the doors, but it doesn't always appear, so don't always count on it.
A good strategy for dealing with the tides of Flood is to melee any Flood form you see in the midst of resurrecting or upgrading; it'll prevent them from getting back up, and, if you hit them bad enough, it'll shatter their corpse, rendering it useless for reanimation. Keep a Shotgun for close quarters and a powerful weapon, like the Rocket Launcher, Fuel Rod or Battle Rifle for the various Forms. If you have any Incendiary Grenades, use them to burn away corpses. If you are having a lot of difficulty on this part, you can drop back down to the ground below and fight your way back up, thus mitigating the Flood's ability to swarm and attack you from every direction. Another way to ease the pressure being put on you is to take the two Auto Turrets that are conveniently placed right in front of the door. Pick them up and activate them in approximately the same place they were laying, facing the Flood opposition. If they are still there after all the Flood are dead, destroy them -- they aren't going to remain friendly to you for much longer, and you will have to retrace your steps back through here. On Legendary, they will cut you down in about a second. Note that there is a Human Combat Form wielding a Rocket Launcher on higher difficulties.
After clearing the infestation, you have a few moments to calm down and get some ammo. If you want to retain any weapons you have right now later on, swap them out for something else -- you lose all of your guns and grenades after the Control Room segment. The only way to keep them is to drop them on the ground out here. It doesn't really matter what you pick up in exchange, as you will get the only weapon you need up ahead. So swap out your weapons and follow the Monitor into the Control Room, watch the cinematic, and prepare for what could be considered the only boss battle in Halo 3: 343 Guilty Spark.
343 Guilty Spark has two main attacks that he will use against you. The first is a force field that pushes you back and protects him from harm; the other is an extremely powerful version of the Sentinel Beam. Play defensive -- even without that shield, Guilty Spark's mighty construction keeps him from harm. Try to stay near the center of the bridge, as his shield can push you off the edge if you stray too close. If you have retained a Bubble Shield from outside, now is the time to use it. Back all the way up against the center of the door, deploy it, and stay inside. It blocks Spark's beam and you don't really need to return fire right now anyways, as all of your current weapons are basically useless against him. When Johnson blasts him with the Spartan Laser, run up to Johnson and swap weapons. 343 Guilty Spark is just the right size to fit into the reticule of your rifle, and he stays still too. That beam is deadly, so stay careful. Blast Spark three times to defeat him, and then watch the cutscene.
[edit] The Way the World Ends (Rally Point Alpha)
First things first: be ready to alternate between shooting and running. Any weapons you had before are now gone -- you have just a full MA5C Assault Rifle and no grenades, nothing else. Suffice it to say, you're outgunned here. No matter -- two Elite Combat Forms will appear with about 15-20 Infection Forms. Kill them, and grab their dropped Plasma Rifles. Outside, the Sentinels that were once your allies are now your enemies. Destroy them, and grab the weapons you left outside.
Head up the ice slope to your right (when exiting the Control Room). Be careful if you set up those Auto Turrets; they will kill you almost instantly as you exit the Control Room. Take the ice bridge directly to the right of the entrance and follow it to a cave. Mow down the Combat Forms in your way, and grab the plentiful Assault Rifle ammo they drop. Inside the room, a battle between Sentinels and Flood is taking place. Lighten their ranks with Assault Rifle fire, and head down the hallway.
Stick the Carrier Forms with Plasma Grenades, and continue to the left up a ramp. Kill the swarm of Infection Forms, and head out. A Warthog sits there, so drive it and floor it. However, if you like a challenge, head to the left before you reach the tiles. Depending on the difficulty, a Mongoose may rest in the corner on a platform, or a pair of Brute Choppers. The Mongoose is especially hard to complete the level on, due its lighter weight, slower speed, acceleration time, lack of clearing jumps, and lack of on board weapons. The Brute Choppers are slow too, but their on-board boost alleviates the problem somewhat. The 35mm auto cannons are good for tearing through Flood and Sentinels.
Escape is, to say the least, tricky. Trust in the Arbiter to shoot any oncoming Flood, and watch where you're driving. Installation 04 (II) is in the middle of activating and destroying itself. When you see an explosion, stay away from where it was. Those panels are gone now, and the only thing underneath them is instant death. Keep your cool, watch for where the ground is solid, and keep note of where you see the plumes of fire marking the explosions. You'll find Flood in straightaways, so feel free to step on the gas and dodge the falling debris. The Flood aren't too much of a threat in this area. Just be sure not to splatter carrier forms, as they are practically waddling trip mines. The panels are falling behind you, so don't screw around for too long. The path is pretty straightforward, so don't worry about getting lost. The Sentinels can be a major threat on Legendary, not only because their Sentinel Beams do a fair amount of damage, but also because their beams can push your vehicle. In the Warthog, you mostly just have to worry about this during jumps, but in the Mongoose the beams should be avoided as much as possible, as they can and will flip your vehicle even on completely flat terrain.
You'll eventually reach a series of roundabouts. Follow the red-tile road to find the path off of them before they explode and plummet to the ground below, taking you with them. You'll reach the end of the path eventually -- when you see the UNSC Forward Unto Dawn over in the distance, you'll know you're near the end. When you finally see the frigate pull in front of you, go straight and fast and take the jump. Do not slow down here -- the panels will start falling the instant you enter this area.
It can be a really good feeling when you beat this level, and a bit sad, especially after watching the ending. Although it's disheartening that the original Halo trilogy is over, you'll know that you finally defeated the Covenant, and eliminated all the Flood on Installation 04.
[edit] The End
Watch the ending, stay for the credits and hit the next level of difficulty! Halo 3 is short, but legendary and sweet, and there's always one more challenge over the hill to face against the Covenant and the Flood. On Legendary starting from mission start, after destroying 343 Guilty Spark, and the two Combat Forms and Infection Forms, outside the doorway, jump down a floor to your left and you will find some Ghosts. Then, when you are in the Warthog, right before you are heading into the exploding tiles turn left past the two rocks and you will see two Choppers.
[edit] Cooperative Walkthrough (With the final Terminal Location)
Here we go. Time to finish this once and for all. If you started a new game, both players should have an Assault/Plasma Rifle and a heavy weapon. If you just finished Cortana, you should have your previous weapons, which will most likely be low on ammo. Switch any weapon you want for a Shotgun, and keep your heavy weapons, if you have them. Move out.
Seventh Terminal: When you see a few beams extending across an icy ceiling, turn right, and jump over the snowy ledge onto an extending beam. There should be a doorway. Walk down the hall, and facing you should be the terminal.
Return outside, and move on. Flood dispersal pods will drop. Take care of the Hammer-wielding one, and take it. If you don't have heavy weapons, move to the opposite end of the pyramid. There will be a Rocket Launcher and a Fuel Rod Cannon. Move back up.
Player one should take the Flamethrower, and player two should cover him. Kill the Range Forms first, they're really annoying. While Player one torches the enemies ahead, Player 2 should cover the six, in case of any enemies sneaking up on you. When you make it to the top, set up Auto-turrets by the edge, and kill the remaining Flood. When the door to the Control Room opens, drop any weapons you want to keep outside -- you will lose any power weapons that you take in there.
Note that on your way to the Control Room, you can perform the Spartan Laser Glitch, allowing you to obtain multiple Lasers, one of which may have infinite charge.
Go inside. Hold out, and try not to fall off the edge while Johnson recuperates and lasers him. Take the weapon and kill Spark.
Go back outside, and pick up the infinite laser. Destroy the Auto-turrets, kill the Flood with the laser, and get to the Warthog. Go, and don't take any jumps unless you have to. Some just lead to the bottom of the ring.
| Preceded by Cortana | Halo 3 Campaign Walkthrough for: Halo | Succeeded by none |
