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Halo 3 Mythic Walkthrough by Daniel Morris


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Cortana

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    I'll come right out and say it. When playing this mission, I feel like I'm assaulting Gravemind's rectum. This one does tend to receive the most flak from Halo 3 players across the globe, so let's clear up a few things right from the get-go.
    This level is not the hardest in the game. Third easiest is more accurate. It's a Flood level, so there will be plenty of opportunities for shield recharging. Plenty of ammo (and exactly what you need) is available, making that one less thing you need to worry about. Also it's relatively short. In fact, as large as High Charity was made out to be in Halo 2, it's nothing short of a miracle that the Chief just happened to land his banshee roughly 10 traveling minutes from her little energy prison.
    Why do people fear this mission the most? While I'm sure this goes on a case by case basis, most of these concerns come from things such as players finding their way around, getting lost, and easily finding themselves overwhelmed by Flood of all types. However, contrary to popular belief, the Flood do not have an infinite respawn. Each area has a preset number of Flood associated with it. As long as you know what to expect on the road ahead, the mission will be a breeze.

Rampant

    High Charity is quite a different place from when we visited in Halo 2. Unfortunately you won't have the impressive view you had of the vast alien city in the previous game, but that doesn't make the creative and often living scenery any less breathtaking.

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    You'll be dropped off in the middle of a cavernous room where the walls, ceiling, and floors are literally covered in Flood matter. Your entry weapons on this level are the shotgun and assault rifle. Believe it or not, the shotty will benefit you the least at this point, so we're going to ditch it early on. For the time being, head forward by hugging the right side and jumping when you reach the little hill to avoid getting overwhelmed by a plethora of Infection Flood.
    Head through the grotesque sphincter and you'll be provided with two avenues of travel. Go right and up the slope. At the top will be a carbine and an energy sword just over the gap. Leave the carbine and trade out your shotgun for the sword. Jump down and head through the next... uh... "door".
    This is the first instance where you'll encounter Gravemind and Cortana bickering back and forth. Honestly I love this mission, but the constant chatter really should have a "press X to skip" option. It was cool the first time, but not the next 50. The bright side is you won't be attacked while the two beings are talking your ear off.
    Again you will have two paths. You might as well take the left since it's the most direct and quickest route. Drop down through the next door and enter Pelican Hill. Shamefully, this is one of the few areas that really isn't worth fighting. All walks of Flood will be crawling around, and you aren't really equipped at this point to deal with them all. Plus, there's really nothing to gain from sticking around, and it's far easier to just run it. Below is little video showing you exactly where to go.

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    Timing is everything. Go through the mini-cave and up the ridge. Most of the time, the Combat forms won't even see you. The tough part is just on the other side of that hill. A shielded Elite form will be waiting for you on the other side, and he'll either be wielding a gravity hammer, energy sword, or shotgun. If it's a melee weapon, just simply jump over him and keep running. If he has a shotgun, you'll have to engage him. Otherwise you'll be gunned down from behind as you run. Jump as he gets the first shot off, then strafe around him as you melee with the sword. Three swipes will bring him down. Just make sure he isn't facing you.
    Once you're past him, continue running through the tightened area and avoid the Flood that drop in your way. The Carriers near the next door will pop once you get to close to them, but as long as you keep your distance and don't stop, you'll make it through just fine.
    Go through the door and whip out your assault rifle. This is the only time in campaign where it'll actually be useful to you. It does a superior job mopping up Infection Flood, and you'll have plenty of ammo at your disposal.
    Let the Gravemind and Cortana do their whole cryptic message bit and hop through the next anus. Consider this next area a freebee for shields. Give it a good spray of AR bullets to reduce the Infection number. Then whip out your sword. None of the Combat Flood here will have shields or firearms, so as long as you take them one at a time, this should be a cakewalk. This is the method I find easiest.

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    As a precaution, you may want to slash any Combat bodies that haven't already crumbled under your blade. This keeps Infection Flood from bringing them back to life. Once all threats have been neutralized, pick up a Deployable Cover, head through the small tunnel, grab the fresh sword, and drop down into the Projector Room.

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    The second you start taking fire, drop the Deployable Cover and dart right. Jump the Combat Flood in your way and head down to the sub-level. This is where we'll be setting up camp. Most of the Flood will be coming at you from the left side. There are a number of both Combat and Pure forms that will try and invade your area, but having them all come from the same direction will make your life much easier. The cloaking equipment in this room is the main reason we want it cleared. We'll be returning later for more, and not having to fight your way through every time makes things a lot simpler.
    Take your time and fight them as they come. Use the AR against the Infection Flood and the sword against Combat forms, Stalkers, and Tanks. While most will be coming from the left, keep one eye on the right just in case. Occasionally a Stalker or two may decide to sneak in via the backdoor. When they stop coming in on their own, lure them by poking your head out and spraying a few AR bullets around. Even larger numbers of various forms can be handled at the same time. Check out the video below for an example.

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    Remember to melee-backpedal-melee against the Tanks and strafe in circles against shielded Elites. Stick the cowardly Ranged Flood who insist on hiding further up the walls just out of your reach. Pull out your AR for the trickling Infection Flood and avoid popping the Flood Mushrooms on the walls. Each one contains roughly a dozen Infection Flood eager to feast on your flesh. To make matters easier, you can actually see right through the ceiling and gain a clear view of the threats lingering above.
    The return trip through this room is actually far more difficult, so once you've cleared the current enemies, we're going to set it up to help make things easier down the road. Use the deployable covers and place them as shown in the video below.

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    Make sure you have one of the cloaking devices and proceed to the exit. You'll encounter two Carriers in the cramped room ahead. Stick them. Hell's Hallway is dead ahead. This area has the potential of being an absolute deathtrap given the number of Pure forms patrolling the walls, ceiling, and floor. There's also a gang of Combat Flood waiting hungrily for you at the other end. How will we ever survive? Just watch.

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    Jump on top of that broken beam, and from there, leap to the next level. Wait until you start taking extensive damage before activating your cloaking device. Essentially, we'll be running right past the Combat forms. Before you run too far ahead, though, pause just before you reach that Covenant pedestal. We're not done yet. Turn back around and re-enter Hell's Hallway. You'll find that all the Combat Flood have mysteriously vanished. Even more curious, all Pure forms in the area have transformed into Stalkers and retreated back to the Carrier room. I just love pulling a fast one on Gravemind. Make your way down there and kill any Infection Flood that trickle down from above. Slide into the Carrier room and dispose of the Stalkers.

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    Retrieve another cloaking device from the Projector Room and head back to Hell's Hallway once again. Over on the left you'll notice a crate of carbines and another crate containing swords. Grab a fresh energy blade, trade out your beloved assault rifle for a carbine, and proceed forward.
    Through the next disgusting door we find the bright orange and yellow Hive. Again this has the potential of being an absolute nightmare, but slow & steady wins the race. Ready your carbine and hang back by the door to headshot all the shieldless Combat Flood ahead. The Elites will be shielded, but the rest are relatively defenseless against you from that distance. Next move forward and into the alcove on the right. The next video shows what happens here.

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    A number of Pure forms will transform into Stalkers and come to you. From the safety of the mini-cave, you can melee them to death one by one. Your main concern here should the ones that suddenly transform into Tanks. Aside from that, this tactic will help you reduce the number of Pure forms in the Hive drastically.
    Soon things will start to quiet down. Head to the next little cave, out the opposite end, and towards the right.

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Home | FAQ | Skulltacular! | Know Thy Enemy | The Nine-Step Program | Version 2.0

Sierra 117 | Crow's Nest | Tsavo Highway | The Storm
Floodgate | The Ark | The Covenant | Cortana | Halo



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