Elongation

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Elongation is a multiplayer map that was added to Halo 2 as part of the Maptacular Pack. It is a remake of the map Longest from Halo: Combat Evolved.

Summary

"A human freighter cruises in high Earth orbit-, blissfully unaware of the explosive confrontation taking place on the far side of the planet."

Elongation is set aboard UNSC Onan, a freighter ship in high orbit above Earth. It was making its orbit at the same time as the Battle of Earth took place, though it was orbiting the other side of the planet. Hanging almost delicately above the sapphire serenity of Earth, this spacehome cargo cruiser shuttles materiel and supplies to the military and civilian installations encircling the globe. Conveyors move heavy packing crates along its central spine for delivery and distribution. Two conveyor belts exist on both sides, moving in opposite directions. As the game goes on, large crates appear on the belts.

Elongation is somewhat of a small, close quarters combat level, hence the presence of a Brute Shot and shotgun. It is advisable to keep to the small teams match, as larger groups in the confined space and limited weapons choices can quickly become chaotic (especially with more than 8 players).

Territories

• Red Base
• Center
• Blue Base
• Red Ledge
• Blue Ledge

Tactics

• There isn't much. It's two symmetrical halves of a whole map, making it extremely easy to navigate, which in turn makes it pretty much impossible to hide from other deadly players.
• Primarily, you should dual wield, unless you plan on standing on the conveyor belts and distance shooting enemies with the battle rifle the other side (which is a bad idea; there's too much cover and not enough sniping space to work), and always keep close range weapons.
• Although not available in Longest, the Brute Shot can be extremely helpful in this map. Its shot has enough explosive power to knock over the crates, eliminating enemy cover and making a clear running path in CTF. The fact that you can melee kill in one hit with a Brute Shot also makes it a very useful close-range weapon too.
• An interesting setup to experiment with is active camouflage and heavy weapons such as rockets, shotguns, and Brute Shots. This becomes extremely hectic and takes on the form of a random brawl.

Trivia

Production notes

• In creating Elongation, one of Bungie's goals was to rework Longest while removing many of the small traps and pits where players would get stuck. Additionally, the artists were able to give the map a makeover by colouring certain sections for easy visual indentification, and work again in the space station aesthetic established by the campaign level Cairo Station.
• Another design consideration that had to be addressed in developing this map was the presence of ladders in the original Combat Evolved map, with some Bungie employees disliking the odd appearance of climbing the ladders, due to no animation being created for climbing. The ladders were instead replaced with ramps to make map traversal smoother.
• The conveyor belts on the map were inspired by designer Tyson Green's preference of using the conveyor belts on Colossus to sneak into the enemy base. Because standing on the conveyor does not highlight the player on the motion tracker, this can be used to move around the map without being spotted as easily.

Trivia

• Players riding the conveyor belts are one of the very few occasions where you can end up in a different area without appearing on the motion tracker.
• If you get two people to stand in one of the spots where the conveyor belts start dropping boxes then you can cause a maximum of eight boxes to pile up.
• When you throw a plasma grenade on the conveyor belt, it won't move.
• Despite the map's description of the Onan being on the other side of the planet to where the Battle of Earth is being fought, the map's skybox shows Earth with Europe and Africa facing the ship - the same locale as where Cairo Station and the Fleet of Sacred Consecration were in the battle. This is likely for the reuse of the skybox seen in the Cairo Station level.
• The Cairo Station console message can be found on this map, as it shares assets from the Cairo Station mission.

Gallery

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  Elongation Map.

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  Red Base

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  A fight on Elongation.

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  A fight on Elongation.

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  A fight on Elongation.

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  A screen on Elongation showing Moncton-class orbital weapon platforms.

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  The sign showing the Onan's hull registration.

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  The blue half of the map.

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  The red half of the map.

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  The easter egg message present on the map.