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| Halo [R]Evolved - The Silent Cartographer | |
| Posted By: SonGoharotto <SonGoharotto@gmail.com> | Date: 5/1/11 9:07 p.m. |
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Okay, not going to lie. Kind of disappointed that my rewrite of The Truth and Reconciliation didn't garner any comments. That was the first level to see major changes in the plot. Oh well, on with the show. The Silent Cartographer {Cutscene} Two Pelican dropships, Echo 419 and Bravo 022, approach an island, low over water. The Master Chief is in the lead dropship, Echo 419. {Gameplay} • Cortana: "The Covenant believe that what they call the 'Silent Cartographer' is somewhere under this island. The Cartographer is a map room that will lead us to Halo's control center. The island has multiple structures and installations. One of them contains the map room.
Master Chief leads the Marines in a beach assault, wiping out a Covenant encampment. After the area is clear, Echo 419 drops off an M12G1 Light Anti-Armor Vehicle. This variant of the Warthog is mounted with a Gauss Cannon instead of the standard heavy machine gun. Despite a slow firing rate, it has the power to punch through Hunters and even bring down Covenant dropships. The contingent of Marines will guard this LZ, available for recruitment into the Chief's Fire Team. The island is a rough circle, so whichever direction Master Chief drives in, he will soon encounter a Covenant patrol supported by a Spectre, an armored transport with a plasma turret mounted in back. Analogous to the UNSC's Warthog, the Spectre is a menace to infantry, but falls readily to the Gauss Cannon. Approaching a particularly prominent structure, Cortana identifies it as the location of the Silent Cartographer. Master Chief will find that the Covenant are camped here as well, but there are a variety of approaches. Pushing into the structure, an Elite Zealot will abandon its troops to lock Master Chief out. Cortana consults with Captain Keyes, who is en route to the island with additional troops and a Hornet escort. She then traces the alien systems to a substation, where they may be able to override the Cartographer's security. Continuing around the island will uncover another Covenant patrol hiding in a copse of trees. Clearing them out reveals a path uphill, to the island's interior. The way is too narrow for a Warthog, so Master Chief proceeds on foot. Hunters await him in a clearing, but Overshields can be found off to the side. Taking out the Hunters prompts a pair of Ghosts to speed through. Hijacking one of these would be helpful in clearing out the last of the infantry outside the security substation. Descending into the substation, Master Chief finds a Elite Ultra directing Grunts and Engineers in unpacking cargo crates and examining the installation. Beyond them, a long hall leads to a giant holographic display and instrumentation panels that Cortana is able to use in deactivating the Cartographer's security systems. [You may notice I'm cutting down on the encounter rate for Hunters. I want them to be scary again, so less exposure is better.] It's Quiet... • Bravo 022 Pilot (COM): "Mayday, mayday! Dropship Bravo 022 taking enemy fire! Repeat! We are under heavy fire and are losing altitude!"
Exiting the substation, Master Chief is ambushed by a squad of camouflaged SpecOps Elites. Another back near the entrance crouches behind a mounted Plasma Cannon, growling Sangheili insults. The player may notice that this one has a unique character model: he has no helmet and his head is bandaged heavily. Zuka 'Zamamee has forsaken honor for revenge. As soon as his shields are dropped, Zuka will disengage and flee the battle. Returning to the surface, Master Chief will find that Bravo 022 has been shot down over the beach and a Spectre has come to pick the bones. Bravo 022 was ferrying in heavy weapons in case its was needed to penetrate the Cartographer's security doors, so Cortana advises salvaging the cargo. This encounter will differ depending on whether you have a Fire Team with you. If you left them in the copse with the Gauss Hog, they will return of their own accord to engage the Spectre -- on higher difficulty levels, they will fail without your intervention. If you brought your Fire Team with you, you can hoof it back around to the Hog, or jump down the cliff to the beach. They will attempt to follow, but may take damage from the fall or even die. The player may even choose to ignore Cortana's advice and circumvent this encounter. However, this is the first opportunity to hijack and drive the Spectre. Although its turret lacks the raw firepower of a Gauss Cannon, it seats four instead of the Warthog's three, and the agility afforded by its gravity-effect propulsion means it is ideal for suppressing infantry. Master Chief finds a Rocket Launcher amidst the wreckage of Bravo 022, as well as a Shotgun for close-quarters combat. [Makes sense to me. Why save it for The Library?] Driving back around the island to the Cartographer's installation, Master Chief finds the culprit behind Bravo 022's destruction: a Phantom gunboat. More heavily armed and armored than the Spirit, the Phantom is often reserved for hot insertions of crack troops. In the clearing below the structure, there is already a Ghost supporting a squad of Grunts. A Jackal Sniper leading a phalanx of shield-bearing Jackals will circle down from one side of the structure or the other, depending upon which direction the Master Chief approached. The Phantom will only observe the conflict until the Ghost is destroyed, at which time it will unload a Fuel Rod Shade turret on the structure's outer deck, then briefly lay down suppressive fire as it departs. Reentering the structure, Master Chief must contend with an Elite Ultra and a trio of Grunt Ultras, before finally getting access to the installation's substructure. However, the Zealot who initially locked you out is nowhere to be seen. Shafted Master Chief enters the substructure. Inside, Covenant troops are so far unaware that humans have bypassed the installation's security. A security door leads to a winding ramp to the second sublevel. Descending this, the sound of chittering and buzzing wings can be heard. Jackals patrol an outer horseshoe-shaped corridor, while Hunters stand guard in the interior room that leads to sublevel three. Upon clearing out these Covenant and advancing through the next security door, the Chief comes upon a ramp that spirals down a wide-open shaft. A swarm of man-sized green insects fly down the shaft. These are Yanme'e, another client race of the Covenant. Nicknamed Drones, or alternatively Buggers, they are employed primarily as slave labor. As a species, they lack the ability to grasp the finer aspects of war, but can still be deadly when a swarm is allowed to bear infantry arms. They ignore the SPARTAN, for now. [Ah, Drones. So much hatred for these guys. I like the variety, when utilized properly. Indoor battles restrict their movements and with the Shotgun, it's almost like playing Duck Hunt.] Sublevel three is a much larger space that is mostly empty. Passing through this space, Cortana picks up comm traffic between Foehammer and your Marine contingent. The Phantom has returned to make strafing runs of the island and the Marines are trying to hold it off until air support arrives. A hidden Active Camo can be found and proves useful in dealing with the Covenant on sublevel four. Chief may catch them off-guard, but the final console chamber is another story: two Elites watching over an Engineer in close quarters is bound to get noisy. Master Chief takes them out and accesses the Silent Cartographer. {Cutscene} Cortana analyzes the available data. Halo's control room seems to be within a temple of some kind. {Gameplay} • Cortana (COM): "Cortana to Captain Keyes." Slight pause. • Foehammer (COM): (obscured by static) "Sorry, Cortana. I'm getting some kind of interference. Barely hear you as it is. I can't piggyback your signal out to the Captain."
Master Chief ascends through the sublevels, encountering the Drone swarm, as well as squads of mixed infantry. The Elite Zealot finally shows his face again in the tunnels leading to the surface. He is armed with an Energy Sword, as well as a Point Defense Gauntlet, similar to those used by Jackals. [Made a liar of myself. I'm starting to like the idea of giving Zealots a campaign-only loadout, acting almost like mini-bosses. In this case, the Zealot will stand his ground until the shield is overloaded. You are free to roam the installation for weapons in case you're low on ammo. He will then chase the player for the close kill as per normal. I don't feel guilty about making him a bit tougher, because even on my first play through of Halo: Combat Evolved, it was natural to save a couple rockets in case this guy showed up again. Also, now that his Energy Sword is wieldable, the next encounter may be almost too easy.] Defeating the Zealot isn't quite the end, however, as camouflaged SpecsOps Elites wait at the top. A Spirit is parked over the deck and will depart once the Elites are dead, but it is shot down by a spray of gatling fire and missiles. At Cortana's request, a duo of UNSC Hornets land on the deck; the air support summoned by your Marines. Though small compared to a Phantom, this attack VTOL is highly maneuverable and comes equipped with a fierce gatling gun, as well as guided missiles. [I understand why the Hornet was nerfed for Halo 3 multiplayer, but with a wider arsenal of anti-vehicle weapons, I think it can now be kept in check appropriately.] • ODST Pilot: "Sorry we're late, Chief. While the Phantom kept us busy, that Spirit set up comm jammers and anti-air turrets all over this island. Captain Keyes is going to hang back until we mop up the mess." In a single-player campaign, the pilot will hop on the skids of the second Hornet, which will follow you into battle. In a multiplayer campaign, both are available for player control. The pilots will have Rocket Launchers for trade as necessary. Master Chief commandeers a Hornet and leads them back into the fight. There are three Anti-Air Shade turret emplacements around the beach, each defending communications jamming equipment. Once these are taken care of, the Phantom will rise from the center of the island. [Previously, it was cloaked, so the player is not able to engage.] The Phantom is slower to maneuver than a Hornet, but between its Heavy Plasma Auto-cannon and Grunts manning mounted Plasma Cannons on either side of the troop compartment, it has a wide field of fire. {Cutscene} • Cortana (COM): "Echo 419, do you copy?"
The structure where the first Hunters appeared lifts up, revealing a shaft large enough even for a Pelican. Master Chief pilots his Hornet into the shaft and the cover starts moving back into place. • Foehammer (COM): "I hope you know what you're doing, Cortana. I won't be able to back you up down there."
The Hornet descends lower and communications are cut off as the hatch closes with a crash, plunging the shaft into darkness. Level ends. [Felt the need to clear up some inconsistencies with this level. How did Keyes get out of comm range when he was headed towards the island? Bringing in the comm jammers from Halo: Reach's New Alexandria stage helps fill that little plot hole. Also, this location is a prime opportunity for a dog fight. The island is already set up so you can drive anywhere, anytime; introducing a Hornet doesn't break the level. We can even add some Easter Eggs in places you ordinarily wouldn't walk around. Perhaps a tombstone atop the rock arch...] Frogblasted his last ventcore. | |
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