When the Elites die, the Grunts will spook and drop their guard momentarily. Charge in with your shotgun and take out the Covenant at close range, taking cover behind the purple pylons if your shields get low. When you’ve taken them out, glance at your motion sensor to make sure no more Grunts are making their way towards you. When the area is secure, stock up on goodies. Directly ahead is a small spiraling ramp. Follow it all the way up. At the top you’ll find a healthy stash of ammo, a health pack, a pistol and a sniper rifle. Pick up the latter. There are only eight shots available so use them wisely. If you drop down the slot between the ledge and the wall, you can fall back down to ground level and not die because there is an incline at the bottom that will gracefully break your fall. You may want to take advantage of this shortcut because you’ll be coming back here at least one more time. Looking out at the clearing ahead, move to your right and take out the Elite patrolling below with your rifle. Pick off a few more targets, expending all eight rounds. Go back up to the stash and swap the rifle for a pistol. Be careful to avoid the health pack if your health is still out of the red. Slide down again with your pistol in hand and snipe out the enemy as you make your way downward. Don’t forget to use your grenades. Switch to shotgun if you experience a close-range encounter. On the far right of the pyramid you’ll come to a ramp that leads down to the bottom level of the pyramid. There will be two Elites guarding that corner, so hail plasma grenades at them and charge in with your shotgun. When an Elite is ducking behind cover, he is waiting for his shields to recharge. This is the best time to slap him with a wad of buckshot. If you continue downward, you’ll come across a rocket launcher and a health pack. However, in this walkthrough I’m going to have you try something a bit unorthodox and stay away from it. From this upper corner on the right, hop over the ledge and slide down the slope to the snow-covered ground. Directly ahead of you will be a tree, and beyond that, a Wraith. Keep the tree between you and the Wraith. Surprise him by emerging from behind the tree on the right. If you stay close to the Wraith, he won’t be able to fire his cannon at you. Use the Wraith for cover from the large group of Covenant at the base of the pyramid. As it takes fire from behind, slam it with your shotgun from 8 feet in front of it. When it starts smoking, back up a smidge and deal the final blow (being careful not to catch heat from the explosion). As soon as you dispatch the Wraith, make a beeline for the banshee and hop on board. At this point, you can either try to take out the forces at the base of the pyramid from the sky, or you can ignore them altogether –your choice. When you are ready, head towards the nav point on your screen. As you get close, the door on the platform will open. Launch a plasma burst from your banshee into the doorway and clear the area out before setting down. Make sure there is enough ledge behind your banshee before exiting the cockpit (you’ll pay the price if there isn’t). Pull out your shotgun and enter through the doorway.

There will be no opposing forces in this room at all –no powerups either. Head toward the center of the room. When you get to the pulse generator do a 180 and face the doorway. Carefully back into the generator. As soon as you hear the explosion, run forward and out the exit. You’ll pass a few Sentinels on your way out. Fight them only if you feel like it. They usually won’t even follow you out. When you exit the platform, you’ll find the banshee fairy has left you a little gift while you were inside. Hop aboard this fresh vehicle and move down to the next nav point.

The next nav point will be a door on the land bridge below. On the land bridge will be a small wave of Covenant. Use your plasma bursts to send them flying. Be careful to avoid theirs, or you will find yourself flying. If you get down to one pip of red health on your banshee, either head back up to the platform above and swap for your slightly used model, or land the thing. Keep in mind, that the plasma cannons the Grunts drop will explode when they die, so stay clear. If you want to freshen up a bit, land your banshee on the pyramid and grab a powerup or some ammo from either the stash at the top of the spiral ramp or the health pack by the rocket launcher at the base. Enter into the doorway signified by the nav point when the bridge is clear.

A Grunt will pass in front of the doorway; when he gets about half way past, sneak up and smack him on the back if he doesn’t see you. Typically he’s carrying a plasma pistol. Swap your shotgun for the plasma pistol and creep toward the entrance to the central room. Hanging behind the block in front of the entrance, use grenades and overcharged plasma followed by pistol fire to take out as many units as you can. Once the Elites are gone, go back and get your shotgun again. Follow the outer hallway clockwise and take out the remaining group by the exit with grenades and gunfire. Several Jackals will be waiting in the room below. Toss one or two frag grenades down the exit ramp and charge in with your shotgun to take out the rest. Follow the bend around to a long hallway. Although it looks empty, there will be a large group of Covenant waiting in the alcoves on the right. Toss a grenade their way to flush them out. Go back to the large room you came from and swap a needler for your shotgun. Fire your needler willy-nilly down the long hallway. This should take out most, if not all, the forces ahead. Go back, get your shotgun and move forward.

Soon you will come to a short ramp leading upward. As you look up, you should see a large battle raging. While everyone is distracted, toss a grenade into the melee and let God sort ‘em out. Hang back in the doorway until the fighting stops and toss another grenade at the survivors. Charge in with the shotgun and finish them off. Turn around and look for a shotgun stash and a pair of health powerups. Grab one and move through the outer hallway clockwise. By the exit will be a large group of Covenant. Throw a few grenades and charge the rest with your shotgun. Exit through the door. A few enemies will emerge from the central room, but by that time you should be long gone. The covenant won’t follow you out.

The door ahead will open and you will find yourself on a familiar bridge. Now that the Flood has been released, however, you will be hard-pressed to find any sleeping Grunts. Several Jackals will be preoccupied fighting Flood across the chasm. Fill them with buckshot before they know what hit them. Immediately reload. A yellow sword Elite will see you and charge. Fire shell after shell at him while backing up until he drops. Move forward across the bridge, ignoring the Flood across the way until they hop over. Much of the Covenant resistance will be softened up by the Flood. You should be able to cross the bridge fairly easily with grenades and shotgun fire.

This next room will be not so easy. Poke your head through the doorway and head out toward the middle room. A group of Flood fighters will spot you and charge your position. Open fire with your pistol and when they get in range, throw a plasma grenade at the fighter who's leading the pack. Back into the doorway and duck behind the first corner with shotgun loaded and waiting. Use this corner as a choke point to cream the Flood as they funnel in to you. Toss a frag grenade around the corner if you get a large cluster together. When they stop coming, poke your head out again and move in. Proceed clockwise. Let the Spore forms pop on you or melee them; you don’t want to alert the others. At the exit you will meet up with a group of fighters. Use grenades and shotgun to clear the area. Around the next bend is another long hallway. An Elite will be there, but that’s about it. Blow him away and move on to the next room.

In this room, there will be a few Flood fighters to contend with, but that’s about it. Just keep yourself from getting surrounded and wail away with your shotgun. Avoid triggering too many at a time. Fight a manageable group before moving along to the next one. At the exit, you’ll find a health pack. Behind the exit door will be a swarm of spores, so make sure your shields are fully recharged before opening it. Blast a few shots at the cluster and let the rest pop. Let your shields recharge before opening the next door.

Your next area will be another bridge. A pair of Banshees will give you grief from the onset. Use your pistol from a distance; slap them with buckshot if they get close. Stay behind the initial barrier. Keep an eye out for a Flood Carrier or two that may try to attack while you’re thus engaged. Once they are gone, move forward. A pair of Flood Fighters will jump at you. Backpedal and take them out with your shotgun. Towards the middle of the bridge will be a few Fighters wielding rocket launchers. Stay behind cover, making sure that something is between you and them. Snipe them with your pistol, take out any companions they may have and move forward to the exit. Go down the elevator and out to the hallway ahead.

A few fighters will spring from the ceiling. Back up and blast them away. A few more will come to see what the commotion is about. Stay there and fill them with buckshot. Continue counterclockwise through the room. There will be little resistance. Continue to the exit and go outdoors into the snow.

See that Flipped Ghost in front of you? Go for it. Take a shot or two at the Elite ahead on your way. Once in, another Ghost will come and attack you on the right side of the structure. Move toward it and engage. Keep strafing and firing at him, eventually, you’ll bring him down. A Banshee will join the fray. Stay in the Ghost and spray plasma at him. Keep moving and keep an eye open for green plasma bursts. He usually fires one off as he starts a new pass. When he is gone, take the ramp down to the base of the structure next to you. At the base, there are two doorways. In one is a pair of health packs; in the other is a stash of ammo. Go ahead and load up. Swap your shotgun for the rocket launcher. Hop back in the Ghost and move up the ramp. At the top will be a small outpost of Covenant. Stay in the Ghost and stay back on the concrete landing pad. Strafe back and forth in that general area, taking out the Covenant nearby and avoiding the mortar fire from the Wraith. When the last enemy falls, you can either hop out and waste on the Wraith with your rocket launcher, or you can take the safer route and pummel it from afar with your Ghost. If you ever get to the point where your Ghost has one pip of health left in it, get out and swap it for the one below the structure. When the Wraith is vanquished, grab the Ghost in better condition and head towards the small cave below.

Drive between the pillars and open fire on the Jackals ahead. Hop out at the downed Warthog and stock up on stuff. Watch out for falling grenades! Get back in your Ghost and zip up the ramp to the top of the hill and open fire on the Grunts. When they are gone move forward to the clearing ahead.

Scoot your Ghost to the right and head toward the pair of Hunters. When you are right on top of them, hop out of the Ghost and pop them each in the soft tissue with your pistol. You should be getting fairly good at it by this point. Get back in the Ghost. Shortly, a Banshee will come swooping down to get you. Fire your double plasma cannons at it until you see him light up the sky. With those two nuisances out of the way, it’s time to commandeer another Banshee. Move to the right and climb out of your Ghost. Creep around the central pillar until you can see the small base guarding a pair of parked Banshees. Go for the easy target first. As soon as you see it, zoom in and snipe the Shade turret with your rocket launcher. If you can topple it, you can prevent any Covenant fighters from mounting it and reaming you. Having done this, climb back into your Ghost and slide out into the open field. A second Banshee will notice you and attack. Use your Ghost again to take out the Banshee. Be careful to keep out of the range of the Wraith guarding the entrance to the tunnel ahead. Back up in your Ghost and head around the right side of the pillar again. Flank the Wraith and open fire with your Ghost. Stay a good 50-80 feet away and pummel him with plasma. Strafe left and right to avoid getting shelled. Eventually the tank will explode. Scoot forward toward the ramp ahead. There should be a cluster of cornered grunts atop it, begging for mercy. Pull out your rocket launcher and send a payload at their center. As they fly in a variety of directions, run towards the point of impact and take the hill. As you creep forward, you will discover that you now have the advantage over the three Elites below. Launch a few rockets at their feet. When you’re done gloating, saunter over to a waiting Banshee and fly upward to the nav point. As you climb upward, a pair of Elites will notice you from the landing platform atop the pillar and take to a pair of Banshees. Have fun dogfighting. Top Gun Tip of the Day: get behind the enemy and shoot him. Oh, and keep your finger off the X button while flying or you’ll eject and your goose will be cooked. It’s dark out here, so watch for the contrails. Try to stay below the platform and fly around the midsection of the column, staying out of range of the gunners above. Once you have taken out both pilots, it’s time to take out the forces on the air base above. Fly just below the horizon of the plateau and pop up just long enough to fire a blast from your plasma cannon at one of the turrets. Dip back down and continue to circle the column while your cannon recharges. Peek back up, fire your cannon at another target and dip back down. Continue to do this until you have taken out all the Covenant fighters off the platform. If your Banshee begins to smoke, it’s time to swap it for the other one on the ground below. Once the air base is clear, concentrate a few bolts on the doorway marked by your nav point. When the area is secure, land your Banshee and head in through the door.

When you get inside, pull out your rocket launcher and run to the central room. At the far end a large group of Flood fighters will be engaging a small gaggle of Sentinels –but not for long. Without hesitation, launch two rockets through the room at the cluster and back up into the entryway. The survivors will charge you. Toss grenades in their path and fire your pistol. As soon as you can, swap the pistol for a shotgun. When you hold your position in the doorway, make sure you can easily duck for cover, because there are several SPNKr-wielding Flood Fighters with clumsy trigger fingers. When the area is secure, move forward. On the opposite end of the room will be a large group of Spores. Run around and eliminate them all or they will plague you when your shields drop off. Take a moment and collect all the ammo you can. When you are ready, switch to your rocket launcher and head towards the exit door. Keeping the doorway in front of you, back up slowly until you hit the pulse generator and your shields drop off. Immediately jam the stick forward and run toward the exit. As soon as you enter the outer hallway, scoot to your left and hone your SPNKr on the doorway. As soon as you see the door open, fire a rocket, banking a shot off the back wall of the entryway. Another group of Flood will charge from the right of the doorway. Back up counterclockwise down the outer hallway, tossing grenades on the floor like rose petals before a king. Be liberal with your rockets too, you’ll come across plenty of them around these parts. When all the flesh lies prone, scour the floor for goodies and mosey on out the exit.

A fresh Banshee will be waiting on the platform just outside the exit. Hop in, scoot off the dais and let your flyer drop to the ground. Hovering just above the ground like a Ghost, creep toward the cave entrance. A small battle will be ensuing on the slope below. Hang back at the cave entrance and start firing random blasts of plasma at anything that moves. Clear the immediate area as best you can. Cautiously scoot in and fire a shot or two at any survivors. When you get the chance, shoot off several cannon blasts at the clump of rocks on the right side of the base of the hill. There is a smug little Floody rocketman waiting to turn your banshee to scrap metal. If you stay back far enough, you can flush him out with cannon blasts before being in his range. Once you feel confident that you got him, hop out of your Banshee and walk down the slope. Just around the corner will be a small clump of smug little Floody rocketmen standing around waiting for you. As soon as you see where they are, squeeze the trigger and send ‘em flying. There should be a Ghost sitting nearby. At this point I would recommend that if you are low on shotgun shells that you swap your shotgun out for an assault rifle. Collect ammo and hop in. Move through the tunnel until you get to the malfunctioning door that only opens a crack. Scoot your Ghost in close and shoot anything that moves. A few Carrier forms will try to explode near you, so be careful and pop them before they pop you. Once you have cleared away everything you can while in a Ghost, ditch it and squeeze through the doorway into the large room.

Move forward to the bridge ahead. Although it looks clear from your point of view, you’re actually about to walk into an ambush. About a third of the way across, a swarm of Flood Spores will amass and charge, followed by six or more combat forms. Grenades and AR fire clears the path well. Just backpedal and don’t get surrounded. About two–thirds of the way across, the entire deck ahead will fill with Flood Fighters, some of which will fire rockets at you. Just stay back, giving yourself ample time to react and dodge while returning rockets in their direction. Mop up the stragglers with your gun. Replenish your ammo supply, take a health pack and open the exit door.

Make your way afoot through the large corridor until you hit snow. When you get to the point where the letterbox is triggered, you will also trigger a group of Flood that will engage the Covenant. Until the first shot is fired, though you will be the most interesting target for everyone. Hang back and keep an eye on the Banshee circling around in the sky. When you see it open fire on ground forces, make your way up to ground level. To your right, a small group of Flood will become interested in this latest development and hurl themselves into the melee. Hang back and enjoy the view. If you’re feeling particularly manly, you can join the mosh pit. Otherwise, hang back behind the first tree on your right and wait until there is a clear victor. More often than not, the Banshee will cease to be an issue. Move in for the kill and mop up all survivors. Grab one of the Ghosts sitting on the mound here and scoot to the next area. Another battle is going on at the next opening. Your Ghost will provide you with enough advantage that you can ream the enemy cluster without getting yourself surrounded. When the initial cluster is dead, hop out of your Ghost and look towards the shadow area across the frozen path. Three Fighters with Rockets will show up and open fire on you. Stay far back enough to dodge the rockets and volley a few of your own. To your left is a large cave opening with a massive supply of artillery. Head over there and swap your AR for a sniper rifle. Get back in the Ghost and move forward down the path. Eventually, you’ll come to a short ledge. On the far left side of the ledge is a small rock. With a little perseverance, you can slide to the rock, press the ‘A’ button to pull up the nose of your Ghost and get over the ledge.

In the next clearing ahead, there will be a huge mass of Covenant including two Wraiths, a pair of Hunters and five cloaked Elites. If you just jump into the fray, you won't survive. Your goal is to commandeer one of the two parked Banshees at the far end of the field. Your first goal should be to take out the Wraiths. Pull up to the large rock on the right. A group of Flood will emerge from behind the rock. Quickly back up to avoid becoming rocket fodder. Stay back and open fire on any Flood Fighters that decide you are more interesting than the Covenant. When the area is clear, park your Ghost behind the large rock and ready your rocket launcher. Fire a couple rounds at the Wraith closest to you. It’s important to attack them while there are still Flood around to draw their fire. Keep an eye on the other Wraith and make sure you stay clear of the mortar explosions. If you are detected by a Wraith, move behind the rock and pop out on the other side. When you can, fire a few more rockets across the clearing at the other tank and take him out. Hop back in your Ghost and harass the Covenant front lines. Fall back to the large icy area. A few invisible Elites will open fire on you. Trace their projectiles and blast away at their point of origin until you see an Elite drop. There are about five of them, so keep track. By this time the Hunters will have emerged into the clearing. Scoot forward and park your Ghost behind the rock again. Snipe the hunters if you can get a clear shot at their midsections; otherwise, concentrate on the Gold Elites. You only have a few shots, so make them count. Hop back in your Ghost and travel back to the cave with the massive stash. Swap your sniper rifle for the pistol. Use a medkit if you need to. Climb aboard the Ghost again and zip back to the enemy. Hang back a ways. If the turrets are still standing, zoom in and fire a rocket at them; you'll flip them over and make them inaccessible to the Covenant. Pull out your pistol and snipe away at the rest of the resistance. When their numbers are few, run forward, pistol a-blazin’, and take out the rest of the crew. If any Hunters are left, charge them head-on to make them stop firing their plasma cannons at you, and pop them up close with your pistol. When the field is quiet, swap out your pistol for a plasma pistol. Climb aboard one of the Banshees and fly towards the last waypoint.

If you need health, stop for a brief layover at the nearby treasure cove and grab a medkit. Fly your Banshee high above the waypoint. You’ll want to approach from high above. As you get close to your destination, you’ll find a small swarm of Sentinels guarding the entrance. Their energy weapons are very effective against Banshees, so try to take them out from high above or behind.

Finally, you will get to your last pulse generator. A few Sentinels will be guarding it, but charged plasma shots make quick work of them, Whenever you feel inclined to end the level, hop in the beam of light and get it over with. That’ll do, Chief. That’ll do.