The Silent Cartographer (Level)
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On the surface of Installation 04 |
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Halopedia has a walkthrough guide for this level; see The Silent Cartographer (Level)/Walkthrough. |
The Silent Cartographer is a level in Halo: Combat Evolved where John-117 leads a platoon of UNSC Marines in an assault on an island.
The Covenant believe that what they call The Silent Cartographer is somewhere under an island. The Cartographer is a map room that will lead your forces to Halo's control center. The island has multiple structures and installations. One of them contains the map room. Locate the map for Halo's control center.
Weapons
UNSC
- M6D Magnum Sidearm
- MA5B ICWS Assault Rifle
- SRS99C-S2 AM Sniper Rifle
- M19 SSM Rocket Launcher
- M41 Light Anti-Aircraft Gun
- M9 HE-DP Fragmentation Grenade
Covenant
- Plasma Pistol
- Plasma Rifle
- Needler
- Energy Sword (unusable)
- Plasma Grenade
Vehicles
UNSC
Covenant
Transcript
Part 01: The Silent Cartographer
(Opening cinematic. The Theme Song or "the" Mjolnir Mix play. Two dropships approach an island, low over the water. You are inside the lead dropship Echo 419)
Cortana (radio): 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.
Foe Hammer (radio): We're approaching the LZ. It's gonna be hot. Get set to come out swinging. Touchdown! Hit it, Marines!
Sergeant Stacker: GO GO GO! and/or Sergeant Stacker: File out people, let's move!
Marine: Kick ass! and/or Marine: File out! (Once you clear the beach of Covenant hostiles)
Marine: Area's secure. All hostiles have been eliminated.
or
Cortana: Area's secure.
Foehammer (O.S.): Affirmative. Echo 419 inbound. Somebody order a Warthog?
Sergeant Stacker (O.S.): Hey, I didn't know you made house calls, Foehammer!
or
Marine (O.S.): Music to my ears, Foehammer!
Foe Hammer (O.S.): You know our motto: We Deliver.
(As you board the driver seat of Warthog/as you walk towards the map room)
Cortana: Okay. Let's move out. Let's go find the map room that will show us the location of Halo's control center.
(As you approach the main building)
Cortana: There, in the cliff wall; I'll bet the Silent Cartographer is somewhere inside that facility. (On heroic/legendary:) They're already inside! We need to get in there quick, before they discover the location of Halo's control center!
PFC Hosky (If he's on your Warthog looks at passing Covenant Dropship): Anyone else see what I see? How are we supposed to get around THAT, huh?
(As you shoot your way into the facility)
Cortana: The Covenant are putting up a real fight! The Cartographer must be here. My analysis indicates that the map room should be at the bottom floor of this facility. Let's keep going inside.
(As you see the open door leading to The Shaft)
Cortana: Don't let them lock the doors!
NOTE: Even if you manage to kill the Zealot with the energy sword behind the door, It will be replaced with another one.
(After all enemies have been killed)
Cortana: Interesting. I underestimated the Covenant's understanding of Halo's subsystems. They've locked the doors, and we don't have enough firepower to get through them. (O.S.) Cortana to Captain Keyes.
Captain Keyes (O.S.): Go ahead, Cortana. Have you found the control center?
Cortana (O.S.): Negative, Captain. The Covenant have impeded our progress. We can't proceed unless we can disable this installation's security system.
Captain Keyes (O.S.):{after slight pause} Understood. We're still en route to the objective. I may be out of contact when we get there. {pause} Here are your orders. I want you to use any means necessary to force your way into the facility and find Halo's control center. We have to get to the center before the Covenant. And failure, people, is not an option.
Foe Hammer (O.S.): Echo 419 to ground teams. I'll stay on station and keep an eye out for Covenant bogies.
Sergeant Stacker (O.S.): Second squad! Ready to roll, soon as everybody's topside!
Marine (O.S.): LZ looks secure Sir, nothing moving.
Captain Keyes (O.S.): Good luck, people. Keyes out.
Cortana: We need to find the security override to get this door open.
(As you approach the path leading up into the island)
Cortana: It looks like there is a path leading to the interior of the island.
(If you pass the substation, which juts out of the cliffs)
Cortana: Well, there's the entrance to the security substation, but it looks like we'll have to look for another way up.
(Alternative Dialogue: If the Security Station is entered before going to the auto-locking door to the map room.)
Cortana: This isn't the map room. Analyzing... (Pause) This is a security override station for the main facility, located somewhere else on this island. Shut the system down so the Covenant won't be able to lock us out.
(Holo-panel is activated, cutscene of Gold Elite)
Cortana: We should now have access to the main facility, let's find the map room.
(Once you get inside the substation and reach the security override, the "normal" way)
Cortana: Use the holo panel to shut down the security system.
(Holo-panel is activated, cutscene of Gold Elite)
Cortana: Good. That should open the door that leads into the main shaft.
Part 02: It's Quiet...
(As you move down the hall from the security substation, towards the exit)
Dropship Pilot (O.S.): Mayday, mayday! Dropship Bravo 022 taking enemy fire! Repeat! We are under heavy fire and are losing altitude!
Cortana (O.S.): Understood. We're on on our way.
(As you exit the substation)
Cortana: Chief, Bravo 22 was bringing us some heavy weapons. After I saw we were up against Hunters, I thought you could use them. Let's move down the beach. Keep an eye out for any cargo we can salvage.
(As you approach the now-unlocked door leading to The Shaft)
Part 03: Shafted
(Cinematic-Chief walks out onto the platform overlooking the shaft and kicks a loose piece of debris down it)
(As you move farther down into the facility, into the third of four levels)
Foe Hammer (O.S.): Foe Hammer to ground teams, you got two enemy dropships coming in fast!
Sergeant Stacker (O.S.): Dammit! Okay, people, we got company comin', let's set the table. Engage enemy forces on sight!
Cortana (O.S.): It'll be easier to hold them off from inside the structure. Can you get inside?
Sergeant Stacker (O.S.): Negative! They're closin' in too fast, negative! (Pause) Chief! You gotta find the Cartographer! We'll keep 'em busy as long as we can!
Cortana (O.S.): Give 'em hell, Marine. (to you) We'll be in a tight spot if we don't get out of here before additional reinforcements arrive. Let's find that map.
(when you finally reach the Cartographer)
Cortana: There. That holo panel should activate the map.
(Cinematic-the Cartographer holo display begins to spin, and the diagram of the ring begins to break into sections)
Cortana: Analyzing. Halo's control centre is located there. That structure appears to be some sort of temple or shrine, if I've interpreted this correctly. (Pause) Interesting. A shrine is an unlikely place to put such a significant installation. (O.S.) Cortana to Captain Keyes.
Foe Hammer (O.S.): The Captain has dropped out of contact, Cortana. His ship may be out of range or having equipment problems.
Cortana (O.S.): Keep trying. Let me know when you've reestablished contact, and then tell him that the Master Chief and I have determined the location of the control center. We'll be heading there as soon as we're topside.
Foe Hammer (O.S.): Affirmative. Foe Hammer out.
(As you near the exit of the facility, just before you meet the squad of activcammed Elites)
Cortana (O.S.): Cortana to Echo 419. The Chief and I are topside, requesting pickup.
Foe Hammer (O.S.): Roger. On my way.
(As you board the dropship)
(Cinematic-the dropship lifts off from the platform and rises quickly, circling the center of the island.)
Cortana (O.S.): Let's get moving. Foe Hammer. Here are coordinates and a flight plan I've worked out.
Foe Hammer (O.S.): But, Cortana...these coordinates are underground.
Cortana (O.S.): The Covenant did a thorough seismic scan. My analysis shows that Halo is honeycombed with deep tunnels, which circle the whole ring.
(Cinematic (continued): The structure where the first pair of Hunters appeared lifts up, revealing a tunnel; the Pelican lowers into it as the structure comes back down again.)
Foe Hammer (O.S.): I hope your analysis is on-the-money, Cortana. This Pelican won't turn on a dime.
Cortana (O.S.): Look on the bright side, Foe Hammer. The last thing the Covenant will expect is an aerial insertion...from underground.
(The Pelican continues to lower through the structure, the top closes with a bang. Before everything goes dark the end of the Theme Song play. People with just the demo think this even more of a ending because of only one level.)
Walkthroughs
Easy Walkthrough
submitted by Arbiter116
- NOTE: This Walkthrough may seem similar to the General one as Arbiter116 has previously edited it
Yeah yeah the cutscene (did you notice the Marines' eyes are the same colour as their skin?) okay, here we go. Switch to your M6D sidearm (packs quite a punch too), and take out the Grunt in front of you and two on your right. There are two more on your left and one cowering behind a rock to your right, but let the Marines take care of them. Reload and swap to Assault Rifle. Get in range of the Elite and pulse the trigger until his shields go down (you'll know when they don't flicker anymore). Run up to him and finish him off with a melée. Charge forward over the hill, kill the Elite first. One of the Marines would throw a frag right about now, so I suggest you fall back. If not, kill the Grunts with your Pistol. Move on. Wait for a Marine to throw a grenade, or do it yourself. Preferrably a plasma one, if you stick one it will usually panic and run into its group. If you like a big blast, then I suggest a frag. Finish off Jackals by whacking them.
Checkpoint...done. Foehammer offers a Warthog, Waller or Hosky makes a banter, and two climb on. Get in and get moving. You will come across two Jackals, one on a rock. Run over the one on the ground. There is an excellent tactic to do this. Charge at it slightly off to one side, and swerve it in the opposite direction at the last second when it rolls out of the way. Slam the Warthog up directly beneath the rock, where the Jackal's blind spot is. Get out, walk around, and climb up the rock. The Jackal will be facing away from you, trying to shoot the Marines (don't worry, he can't). Whack it in the back, get back in the Hog, and move on.
Squish the Elite using my tactic, and let the Marines shoot the Grunts. Go up the hill. You will see a Spirit dropship unloading Jackals and taking off. If you turn the Warthog around and follow it, it will disappear. But not on Legendary. Move back to the cliff wall. Run over all the Elites and let the Marines kill the Grunts. If the Jackals come, squish them.
Move downstairs. Prime a grenade and blow apart the squad, and shoot down the survivors. I usually kill the Zealot for fun. Move back upstairs, and take the Marines to the interior of the island.
Drive up the ramp and squish the Jackals posted there (does anyone ever notice Jackals are always stationed separately from the Elites and Grunts?). Squeeze the Warthog into the path and drive it in. Kill the first group, and get out of the Warthog. Take out your Pistol, keep close to the wall. Do not crouch, you will be too slow and the Hunters will spot you. Shoot one in the back. It will die instantly. The other Hunter will look for you. Go back for the Warthog, and run at it. Either squish it or let the Marines kill it. Pick up an overshield and ammo from the squad of dead Marines (you see a lot of them on this level). Keep going. You will run into another group of Covenant. Run over the Jackals first, since they can drain your overshield quickly with an overcharged blast. Drive around, and suck any unfortunate Covenant under your LRV's lethal wheels. Keep going. You will run into a group of Grunts, and squish them. Leave the Warthog there. Take out your Assault Rifle, and face the Hunters head on. They will be a bit surprised. Pulse the trigger, and whack them when you can until they are dead. Activate the override, and come back out.
Let's hurry up, we might save Bravo 022 (no chance really). Take out your Pistol, as this is the only weapon you will need for this point. Two headshots will kill the Ossoonas as they don't have shields. If you turn on your flashlight it will be easier to see them.
Come out of the structure. Damn. The Pelican crashed, and landed a twisted and the Marines inside mangled. You'll see a lot of that in Halo: CE. Turn on your 2x Snipe on your sidearm. Shoot the Grunts on the cliff, and pick off the Jackals who come to investigate. Although they are at a far range, they can hit you with an overcharged blast. Move slightly to the right and up to shoot the other two Jackals. Pick up an overshield.
At this point, you can do two things: run the Warthog off the cliff, or slide down and use the other Hog.
If you decide to use the Hog, run it down through the trees, and you will get a safe landing most of the time. Pick up a Launcher and drive back to the main structure.
If you slide down the rock, flip the Warthog, swap your Pistol for a Launcher, and drive it back to your LZ. Pick up two Marines and drive to the main structure.
Squish the Jackals and drive to the Hunters. I prefer to save Rockets, so drive the Warthog at them, dodge fuel rod blasts, and let them do a bit of undignified jumping around. Kill them.
Enter the structure, and leave the Marines outside the door. You will know why later. Turn to your right and watch the cutscene. Don't jump, as this will cause you more trouble later when you push your way back to the surface. Move back, and whack the Elite in the back. Now, there are two ways to do this. One: you can run in, shooting wildly until they're all dead, or two, you can follow Asmodeus' tactic written in the General Walkthrough (thank you Asmodeus). When they are all dead, keep going.
There is another way down inside this room, and another one outside of it. The one in the shaft allows you to skip half the level, but you'll only survive if you have overshields on. The one inside the room leads one floor down, and therefore is not much help.
Whack all the Jackals, force the two Hunters together, and kill them all with a single rocket. Or you can swap your Launcher for a Pistol at the pile of dead Marines (charming). Keep going. NOTE: If you're feeling bored, you can trick the Hunters into jumping to their death. Stand at the middle of the pit, so that the Hunters will do the melée and fall off. When they hit the ground, there's a splatter of orange blood. Very rarely, one will survive, becoming a problem later.
At this point, Foehammer will inform Waller's squad that two enemy dropships are on the way. Waller will bravely hold off the platoons from entering the structures to head you off.
Nothing like a little time pressure to get the adrenaline pumping. Go down another floor. Melée all the Grunts, and give the Elite a barrage of AR bullets. Pulse the trigger, as he will duck and roll a lot.
Move into the Map Room. Stick one of the Elites, and he will most likely wipe out the other one too. If not, shoot him.
Now...time to use well what those Marines on the surface gave their lives for. Activate the map, and head back to the surface. You will mostly encounter Jackals, and whack them, as it would be stupid to fire at their shields. Walk into the room on your right, and take the ActivCam. Move your way back up stealthily, jumping and dodging the enemies. If you really can't resist, whack the Elite in the back and watch the little Gruntys panic, scream, and run around.
By the time you reach the room where the Hunters lay dead, your camouflage will run out. Kill the enemies. Collect ammo and move up.
Fire a rocket at the Elite standing outside the shaft, and the plasma grenades on the ground will trigger and kill the Grunts and Jackals. Clean it up.
Aren't you glad you left the Marines at the door? They will provide you with a diversion, and you can easily snap the spine of the scary Elite with the Energy Sword. Get in the Hog and drive to the surface. Run over the Ossoonas and let Foehammer pick you up. If you want a little revenge for the dead Marines, drive to the interior of the island, and kill the five Jackals stationed there.
Mission accomplished (too bad the surviving Marines can't accompany you to the next level).
General Walkthrough
As the level begins, just before the entire HUD becomes visible, press Y (or tab if you're playing on PC). That way, you'll start with your Pistol. Zoom in immediately and snipe any Grunt you see. (Note: don't worry about burning through most of your ammo and grenades in this first battle, because supplies will become available soon.)
Take out any other Grunts nearby, and switch to your Assault Rifle, and go at the first Elite, firing and meleeing until he goes down. If you're shield is down, hide behind the Covenant energy shield. Then, charge forward and throw a Fragmentation Grenade between the two Elites, and then handle the Jackals and the Elite survivors with the AR. Now, if you like handling Hunters with your AR, swap your Pistol for a Covenant Plasma Pistol or Plasma Rifle, or better yet, a Needler.
When Foe Hammer drops off the Warthog, get into the driver seat, wait for a passenger and a gunner, then get a move on. You should run into a patrol composed of several Grunts, two Jackals, and an Elite on a small hill. The Marines will gun down the Covenant for you, so you can ignore this group if you want.
Once you round the bend you should see a Covenant Dropship. Wait for it to pass before moving on. Then drive towards the structure right into a group of Covenant. They will try to jump away, but try to at least splatter one of them. the rest will seek shelter in the structure. Beware of grenades.
If you drive inside the structure, you should splatter lots of Covenant, but also risk being stuck by grenades. It can also blow your Warthog into the air, flipping it over, and leaving your Marines vulnerable.
Eventually, the remaining Elites should retreat further down into the structure. Get out of the 'hog, and go down and gun them down, or melee them, or splatter them. Use the tight quarters to your advantage. You can't miss. Proceed downwards.
A small squad of Grunts and an Elite is waiting in ambush on the bottom floor, and a Gold Elite is standing with an Energy Sword behind them. If you're quick, you can throw a Plasma Grenade at the Gold Elite, killing him before the door closes. If not, forget about it and concentrate on clearing out the room.
Drive the Warthog to the small ridge, where a Warthog with dead Marines are. Collect some ammo and Grenades. Splatter as many of the Jackals as possible, and avoid being stuck by grenades.
Then go up the hill. You should meet lots of Grunts and Elites, and combat will drain your shields, but there are rocks nearby that you can hide behind.(And there are also health packs at the bottom of the hill in case you need them.
Go back to the Warthog, and get in. Drive up to the tree. As you can see, the Warthog can't squeeze in on either side...or can it?
This will be a little tricky, but if you can do it, it'll pay off. So, back up a little, and try to get a straight shot between the tree and the rock wall to the left. When you're ready, floor it, and slam right between the left cliff and tree.
This part is tricky, and it might take a couple tries. Keep flooring it while carefully moving the joystick to the right. You want to curve around the tree, and turn hard to the left at the right moment. If you did it right, the jeep will crawl through, and you'll be home-free.
Note: Make sure the Covenant are neutralized before doing this. Why? Because these AI aren't stupid. When they see you doing this, they'll know neither you, nor the Marines, will be able to shoot them. So, they'll start shooting you, and have fun throwing grenades.
Now if you flip the Warthog in between the tree and cliff, don't bother flipping it right, because you'll just crush your Marines to death and kill them. Instead, hit pause, and restart the checkpoint.
If you managed to get through, congratulations. You just saved yourself a load of trouble. Drive up the slope, until you reach the next area. At the top of the hill, at a large Forerunner structure, there should be two Hunters. Don't panic. As soon as your free from the annoying rocks, FLOOR IT!! Get moving! and fast, before the hunters blow you and the two Marines to hell. Your gunner will immediately open up on the two Hunters, and the passenger will help.
I suggest driving around the perimeter/ring of the structure. So long as you don't stop, the Hunters won't be able to hit you. If your a good driver, veer off and smash into a Hunter.
There are are several dead Marines nearby with assault rifles. If you need to reload, or if you need health, don't forget that there are two health packs and plenty of ammo.
Note: Near the Covenant ammo crates are two overshields. DO NOT PICK THEM UP, unless you're playing in Legendary. You'll need them later.
Jackal investigators will arrive, and begin shooting charged plasma burst at you. They really like to do that here. Drive the warthog into them, and let the Marines do the fun work. If you're taking heavy fire, I suggest you bail out and use an M6D to snipe the aliens. Once the area is clear, drive down to the bottom and kill whoever is still alive.
Note: I suggest you leave the overshields alone for this reason, because the Jackals with charged plasma pistols will immediately drain the sheilds, thus making them a waste.
To the right, you'll see a path. Now be careful. This path is thin and you might fall off. I suggest flooring it through there and getting onto safe ground before the Grunts can toss a grenade, or before you fall off. Once you're under the structure, get out and assist the Marines in clearing the area.
If you're a good driver, go back across the thin pathway, and drive over to the dead Hunters. Get one of the overshields, and return to the structure. If you don't want to risk the Warthog, then just run back.
Once you have the overshield, slowly drive the warthog down the ramp IN REVERSE. The idea is to get your gunner to fire through the doorway, and for good a reason. When your Marine gunner is carefully positioned, get out and enter the room. This crammed with Covenant cargo boxes, which looks spooky enough without the darkness in it. However, this spookiness will only escalate when two Hunters emerge.
When you reach this point, I would suggest having either a M6D and MA5B, or M6D and Plasma Rifle. Whatever you choose, make sure you've got the handgun. If you feel like wasting grenades, then do so. Whatever you do, make sure you back up while firing.
Naturally, there will be two Hunters. Back up so your Marine can assist you in taking them out. Other than that, just do your best, try to dodge the Hunters' attacks, and be careful. If they've destroyed the oversheild, run to the warthog, and zoom up the ramp. If you feel as though you just scratched the Hunters, then take the time to go back to the last two hunters, and get the last remaining overshield there. If not, then there are a couple overshields just to the right of the ramp as you exit.
When your ready, go back down there. Hopefully, the Hunters haven't blown your gunner away. If they did, get the passenger Marine to take his place. As horrible as it sounds, these Marines are expendable for you to sacrifice in order for you to survive. So, reverse back down there, and resume fighting.
I don't know how good you are against Hunters, but if you need to keep getting overshields, then do so. When they are finally dead, go get another oversheild if you need it. If not, or you don't have anymore, then forget about it. Hopefully, your Marine(s) is/are still there, and have a good covering point. Go past where the Hunters popped out of, and continue on until you get to a control panel, the security override! Deactivate the locked door. You should see a cinematic, which shows the Zealot emerging from the open door. Looks like a pain-in-the-ass to deal with right? We'll see.
Part 2: It's quiet...
As you return to the Hunter-room, you'll hear a UNSC pilot as he is going down. He says his Pelican is Bravo 22. Two stealth Elites should be waiting for you outside in the Hunter-room, carrying Plasma Rifles. surprise them, and then try to make out where they are, and shoot like crazy in that direction(don't use grenades). If you still have Marines in the Warthog, they'll try to hit the invisible elites (especially if you knock out the Elites' invisible shields). If you want, get ready and go back to kill them.
When you're done, hop into the Warthog and drive up the ramp. You should get a checkpoint. If you look around the structure, you'll see the wreakage of Bravo 22, and some Covenant around it. Now, instead of driving all the way back down, what you should do next is gonna be cool. When your ready, floor it right off the Structure!!!
Trust me, with the superb suspension in the Warthog jeep, you and the Marines will be fine (provided you land on all four wheels). If not, and either you or the Marines die, just try it again. If you can't make it, then try driving onto the tree branches right under the structure. Whether it's a glitch, or just really strong, the thin trees will hold the Warthog up as it slowly slides down. Quite a short-cut huh?
One thing you'll notice when doing this is the Grunts on the top of the ridge, and the Jackals patroling below. If your still behind the wheel, and the Marines are still in, THEN MOVE IT, NOW!! What the hell are you waiting for?!? The faster you move, the harder it'll be for them to hit you.
(Note: Just in case you decided to ignore me, then let me tell you what to expect as you cowardly walk the long-way back down to the beach:
There should be a Spirit at the site where you killed the first hunters. It'll dispatch several Jackals, who will be a pain in the ass and pin you down. Once you're done with them, you'll have to drive all the way around to Bravo 22.)
Some good supplies were left at the crash site, complements of your late gentlemen comrades. The most important of these is the M19 SSM Rocket Launcher. This is the first time you get to use it, so grab it and fill up on Rockets (9 rockets is Maximum). Grab some Pistol ammo, and a health pack if you need it. Now hop in the 'Hog and get back to the group of Marines where they fought that battle at the beginning of the game. You will most likely have some broken, battered, bleeding, wounded, hurt, and tired Marines on that Warthog by now...if you even have any left. Once your back at the Marine base, get out and get the two Marines out by walking over to their side of the jeep and pressing X. Once they pile out and walk off, get in and get two healthy Marines. Now, go back the Silent Cartographer entrance.
When you get there, you'll notice two Covenant crates on the beach just in front of the structure. Now, if there is still an overshield there, grab it. Keep driving past the structure, until you can't see it. Closely look at the cliff wall. You should see a black hole in the side. Drive into it. Keep driving through the tunnel, until you reach a left turn. Now, get ready for some action.
Floor it through the rest of the tunnel, and pop out of the exit, right into a Covenant Hunter. This element of surprise won't last long, so use it well. Whatever you do, DO NOT STOP. Stopping is like suicide-by-cop here, because the Hunters will blast the S@#$ out of you. Your Marines should be able to take them down. If your good at driving a Warthog, try to run one over...it's deeply satisfying. You can also force the hunters to jump off and die (LOL), and if trying to run one over, pin them between your Warthog...and a wall.
Now, if the idiot Jackals off to the side (where you first came from at the beginning of the game) haven't shot at you yet, floor it over there and slam into them. Once they're dead, drive into the structure, down the ramp. You see another ramp that's thinner. Just force the 'Hog down there. The tires will rub the side, and it'll be slow, but you can do it. Once you're down there, manuever the Warthog around a bit untill the gunner is facing the door. Back him up so that he has a clear field of fire. Now, get out, and go through the door.
Part 3: Shafted
Just for kicks, take a right. Nothing will grab ya.....or will it?
You'll walk over to a long ledge that's like a spade. The game will take control as you:
Watch a cinematic. The Master Cheif, MA5B in hand, walks over to the edge and kicks a small bolt or rock over the edge. He leans over and peers down, expecting to hear a clink as the object hits the ground...but it never does. We see a HUGE cavernous area and no floor.
Note: If your playing on easy mode, or have an oveshield, and wish to shave a LOT of time off, then take a running jump, and leap off the spade-ledge. If you do it right, you'll land about 3-4 floors down, ruin your overshield, and shave off about 10 minutes of time. However, you'll have a lot more enemies to face on the way up (because you never killed the ones on the way down. So it's them plus the reinforcments.
But let's not do that. Go back to the door. Don't worry, that energy-sword wielding Zealot elite won't show up, yet. keep going, past the door, and move down the hall to find an Elite tapping on his purple box machine. Probably playing X-box on company time! Do his boss a favor and snap his lazy spine with a melee attack. You can hear an eerie hum from the machine as you walk next to it. There's three grunts on the upper level, two awake and one snoring; three grunts on the lower level, two patrolling and one asleep, an Elite, and two grunts on a ledge above him. With that knowledge you have a couple options.
You can simply pick them off one by one from the doorway, but the Elite could prove a bit of a challenge. You could try and catch them all in a couple of rocket blasts.
From the purple box, take a right turn. Head about halfway up the ramp and crouch. You should see a couple of grunts patrolling. Wait for both of them to come to about your position and turn around. Then, once they're both headed the other way, crouch-walk up the ramp, sneak up on them and hit both of them in the back. I'd recommend the pistol melee, as it's faster.
If you stayed crouched through all of this, you are probably still hidden to the rest of the Covenant squad. Just remember, if they see you, haul back to the doorway and use cover to kill them all. Less classy, but also more alive.
Now for the ground level. Head back down the ramp, remembering to crouch. Go through the little door-not the big, open gate, but the tiny little one next to the ramp. Walk just through it and crouch. The grunt are patrolling around the central structure. Wait until they are both facing away from you, then quickly run out and hit the grunt in back. Then duck behind the central structure so that the other grunt doesn't see you. The sleeping grunt should be right there. Melee him and head back to the door.
When the last grunt is headed away from you again, sneak up on him and assassinate him too. Then, head around back up to where the first three grunts are, and look above the elite. There are two grunts there, neither of whom can see you. Plug them in the head, one bullet each. You'll want to do this very quickly, as the other grunt will panic and run away if he's left for too long.
There are three Jackals in the hall ahead. Drop a Plasma Grenade into their midst and wait for the screams to stop. Corridor cleared. Down below, however, is a room with two Hunters and numerous jackals. The room has an outer ring, with the Jackals, and an inner ring with the Hunters. Near the place where you come in, there is a tiny corridor from the outer ring to the inner ring.
This corridor can be very handy. The Hunters won't shoot into it, and the Jackals won't go in there. Sometimes they don't even see you there. In fact, you can sometimes lure each and every Jackal into its entrance and then melee them with your M6D.
Follow the path down to a empty space. Take a few seconds to have a look around, check cover, etc. Also, know the two doors. The one on the left leads to an Active Camouflage, which you shouldn't take yet.
The one on the right leads down to another hallway. There are three oblivious Grunts at the end. Headshot them all. The next room has six Grunts and an Elite. Get as many headshots on the Grunts as you can, then let the rest flee down the shaft.
Drop the Rocket Launcher for a second and grab a Needler. Send shots down after the grunts until they're all dead.
If you jumped, congratulations. Wise choice. Next comes the Silent Cartographer itself, along with an overshield and two Elites. Rockets work well here, but standard gunplay doesn't—these guys are careful, and they cover each other well.
It's all too easy to be overwhelmed by one while you take on the other. Explosives are your friend, anyway. Once they're dead, move in, grab the overshield, and turn on the Cartographer.
Whew. Now that's over with, it's time to get back to Echo 419. Turn around, head back over the two Elites (who are now dead) and head straight up the ramp. This should take you to the activcam room, where the Jackals have taken up residence.
Dislodge them with some bullets, but for the sake of saving ammo, melee them if you want. Jackals always were a waste of ammo. Now, by jumping at the corner just right, you can get the active camouflage from the upper level. Cool. Now, time to make use of your invisibility. Run quickly out of this room and under the catwalk in the next room.
On the ledge leading up, however, is a pack of five grunts and an elite. Since the pistol isn't that effective in this situation, grab a plasma pistol and kill them.
You're in no hurry, and there are five plasma pistols lying around. But one or two should do the trick just as well. Once all six Covenant are dead, get the M6D back and head up the ramp.
The next room up has, again, three Jackals, four Grunts and an Elite. The Jackals are on the upper level, with the Grunts and Elite down below.
Just keep going up through the levels until you get to the orginal underground level. The one where you killed those Grunts and one Elite. Be quick and take most of the Covenant forces by surprise. They'll never know what hit 'em. Now, time for the Zealot.
Go back to the idiot Elite who was playing X-box when you whacked him, and go down the hall. Switch to Plasma grenades. I suggest you have a either a Plasma Rifle or MA5b AR. Now once you're at the corner, get ready.
When you turn, you'll see the Energy-Sword Elite standing there. The Marine on the LAAG isn't firing at him, yet. This is kind of funny because it's as if they were waiting for you to join the party. Toss a grenade on the Zealot, and run back down the hall. The Marine on the LAAG will open up, and rip him apart as he explodes. Return to the Warthog. Hop in and drive to the surface. Once you get there you'll see a Spirit drop off several Ossoona elites. Kill them with the Marines' help, and get on the Pelican once it arrives.
Good Job.
Legendary Walkthrough
If you manage to finish Truth and Reconciliation on Legendary, The Silent Cartographer will seem like basic training. Not only is this level relatively short and easy, but you can also skip whole sections of it. That said, it's one of my favorite levels to play.
It has a beautiful island setting contrasted nicely with intricate alien architecture. You get seven overshields, an active camouflage, three warthogs, and even a rocket launcher to play with. It sure beats scrounging for plasma pistols on the purple people eater. But enough digression. Here's how to beat it.
The Silent Cartographer
The first battle of the level is totally optional. If you don't like the way your fellow marines smell, just leave them to die. Turn around, go the opposite direction as everyone else, and follow the beach half way around the island, keeping the ocean on your left. Stop when you see a flipped warthog in front of you and skip the next few pages of this walkthrough.
If you decide to stay, you're safest bet is probably to hang back and let the marines stir up trouble while you snipe with your pistol. But you're not going to leave and you're not going to play it safe. You're going to personally kill as many Covenant as possible and save those marines!
There are two grunts to your left, two in the middle, and two on the right as you hit the beach. Lob a grenade at the ones in the middle, switch to your pistol, and go for the ones on the left. Zoom in and mercilessly gun down these two grunts. Don't worry about ammo, there's plenty of it around.
Reload while you run towards their position. Switch out your assault rifle for the plasma pistol one of them just dropped. Charge it up and head back towards the carnage. Behind the first line of grunts is a single elite. He should be concentrating on marines so hit him with that charged plasma shot.
Follow up with your pistol. Aim for the head and keep shooting until he's beyond dead. Reload. Use the energy shield as cover and lob a grenade into the next group of Covenant. There's an elite and three grunts here that need to go down.
Send a charged plasma shot at the elite, then follow up with the pistol as usual. Help the marines out with the remaining grunts. When you're sure they're all dead, throw every grenade you have at the next group of Covies. You may need to switch out plasma pistols before moving on.
There are two elites and two jackals left to kill, and they're the nastiest foes out here. Send as many charged plasma shots as you can towards them. Approach on the left and try to stay ahead of the marines. Run around behind the Covenant.
Try to trap them between you and the marines. If they go after the marines, bash them from behind. If they go after you, send a charged plasma shot into them and follow up with a melee attack. Hopefully you will have saved two to accompany you in your warthog. And remember to come back here whenever your gunner and passenger die to pick up new ones.
Again you have an optional battle ahead of you. You could just speed past these guys, but that won't stop us from taking a moment to kill everything we can find here. There are seven jackals to face at first. Plow into them as fast as you can. Make one pass, swinging the back end around into a couple of them, then take off back towards safety. Now stay just on the edge of their range.
Let the gunner work if he's firing. If he's not, swing back in for another pass or just snipe with your pistol. Once all the jackals on the ground are history, ditch the hog and sneak up on foot. The guys on the rock can be tricky. Keep moving around until you can get a good shot. Be patient and keep sneaking around the base of the rock until they've been eliminated.
In the distance ahead of you, two elites and six grunts are waiting. Again you want to drive in and run over a few Covenant while your passengers dispatch a few more. Quickly drive away before they can organize themselves and fight back. Give yourself time to recharge then hit them again.
The elites will tend to head for cover since your gunner has been spraying the area with bullets. After the grunts are paste, you may have trouble hitting these guys with the hog. Try using the rocks as cover to sneak a plasma grenade onto one or unload a needler on them.
Past these enemies is the entrance to the tunnels where the cartographer is located. You'll have to deal with these Covenant eventually. It might as well be now. The path splits here. One way continues against the cliff towards the structure. You can go that way later, take the path on the right. It leads back to the beach. Take out the three jackals down here on the ground. They're near the overshield. Let your gunner go to town, or just run them over if you don't have one.
There are three elites and five grunts waiting just outside the entrance. You can access the platform they're on three different ways. If you're on the beach facing inland, the first way is to the left. You can go back up the path you just came from and take the other fork. You can also walk up the side of the hill on the right and get up that way as well.
The last way is through a tunnel far around to the right. The easiest way to take them out is to drive your warthog up there and make roadkill out of the lot of them. Or if you prefer a method that's gentler on the marines that are hopefully still riding with you, try this.
Go up on the left and find some nice cover to snipe from. Take out any grunts you can. Head back down below the platform and come up on the right. Snipe any you couldn't get to before. Once all the grunts are taken care of, you have to be sneakier. Pop up on the left and get the attention of the elites. Quickly, sneak back down and come up on the right.
If you're really slick, you can catch them with their backs turned and melee one of them. A bit safer tactic instead of meleeing is to stick a plasma grenade to them. As soon as you hit one, drop back down below the platform. Repeat as necessary if this tactic is working out for you. If not needlers also work well here. Whatever. As long as they die.
Moving further in you'll find the entrance itself guarded by four more elites. That's a lot of elites, so you may need the overshield here. A couple of them will wander around patrolling. Keep hidden right beside the entrance and melee them in the back when the opportunity presents itself.
Send several grenades in towards the back of the hall. That should take care of another one or two. Keep moving further in the hall. Needlers and charged plasma shots will both work well here, but keep your pistol as the back-up weapon to finish them off. If you're having a real tough time, try driving in with your warthog. The gunner will tear these guys up at close range.
The last group down here consists of an elite and four grunts. The elite commander quickly slips behind the closing security door. They're in a tight corridor, so peek in and throw a grenade or two. These guys should be easy. Since you can proceed no further, you'd better head back out, grab your warthog, and drive around to the next side of the island.
If you turned around at the beginning and left your comrades to the carrion birds, you can tune back in now. Either way you go, you'll soon see a flipped warthog and some dead soldiers in front of you. Head to this warthog and look towards the center of the island. You should see a pack of Covenant behind a fallen tree.
There are seven jackals, with an elite and four grunts to back them up. It may be tempting to drive over the cliff to the left of the Covenant position and land on the jackals, but there is a better way to take care of them.
Drive your warthog to the right of the fallen tree and drive toward the group of jackals. Skillfully maneuver your vehicle so that the back end flies outward causing the vehicle to slide sideways. Doing this correctly will turn every last jackal into roadkill.
You may then retreat back to the beach and mow down the grunts with the turret. Stop when there is only the one elite left. He'll often be found hiding behind the tree blocking your route to the next area. Park near him and your gunner will keep him nicely pinned behind cover. Throw a grenade around behind him or fill him with needles or shoot him with whatever is handy.
You don't actually have to leave your warthog and gunner behind now. If you head to the left of the tree at just the right angle and with a lot of speed, you'll pop right through. I'm going to assume though that you don't have the warthog at your disposal from here on though. There are two little groups here consisting of an elite and four or five grunts.
They should be pretty easy. Send a lot of charged plasma shots their way. Plasma pistols should be littering the ground near your previous engagement. Take on the elites after the grunts are gone and after you hit them with a good shot to take out their shields. They'll hide behind cover allowing you to get close enough to stick a grenade to them. Grab a good full plasma pistol after you're done and move on to the hunters.
You should be familiar with these guys from Truth and Reconciliation. Just run right up to them, but try to keep them in a line so you only have to deal with one at a time. Their shots are infrequent and easy to dodge, so it shouldn't be a problem getting close.
Once they charge, quickly back up and shoot them in the gut once it's exposed. There are two overshields here. Go ahead and grab one. There isn't anything too nasty ahead, but they'll just go to waste otherwise. Oh, and try to save one of the health packs to pick up on the way out.
As soon as you dispatch these guys, hurry to the other side of this area where five jackals will be moving in to attack you. If you're quick you can catch them all in a bunch and take them out with a grenade or two. If not, use a charged plasma shot to take out their shield, then shoot them with whatever is handy.
Past them is yet another fight. Plasma pistols should again be readily available, so use them up. There are three jackals hiding in the rocks on the right and an elite with five grunts out in the open.
Find some good cover and pour on the plasma. You've probably noticed by now that the trunks of the trees on this island extend out farther than they seem. You have to peek far out sometimes to get your shots around the edge.
Eliminate the grunts first. Then move in after giving the elite a good shot in the kisser. Finish him off with a few shots and a melee attack. The remaining jackals should be easy enough. Drop their shields with a charged shot, then beat them to death or gun them down.
Further around the building six or seven grunts will stumble out into the open in two groups. You know what to do. Peek out and shoot till they all be dead. Just past them are three, yes, three overshields tucked away in this inconvenient little corner of the island. Really makes me wish you could kick them down to the ground below. It's not really worth trekking all the way back here to get them later. Leave them for now.
Move into the structure and down the ramp. As you move into the next room, two hunters will come out to greet you. Quickly run and hide in one of the little cubicles to the side. If you're fast, they will fail to notice you and one at least should be easy pickings. Be careful of the cramped quarters, but run up and deal with the other as usual. Shoot him in the gut after he swings his shield at you and misses.
Now would be a good time to pick up one of those overshields. Then go shut off the security system to move on to the next phase of the level.
It's Quiet
There are five stealth elites now in the room where you killed the hunters and they can be very nasty. The easiest way to eliminate them is to run as fast as possible straight through this room.
Your overshield should keep you alive. Once you're safely on the ramp leading out of here, you can peek in and pick them off much more easily. They'll bunch up together just inside the door. Take a moment if you wish to gloat over the pile of bodies.
Once you're back in the fresh air you'll see a friendly dropship has crashed below you. You could just drop down here. There's a good spot off to the right near the overshields. The structure you just exited extends out over the beach and you can walk out pretty far onto it.
Wandering back to where you first met hunters on this level, you'll see a Covenant ship dropping off a present for you. Five jackals. Carefully shield yourself from the bulk of them while you work on one at a time.
Drop his shield with a charged plasma shot, switch to the pistol, zoom in, and put half a clip into him. When there's only one left, just run up and smash his head in. Fill up on goodies here then go back to the warthog you left behind.
Cruise back to the beach and take a left around the island to find the crashed dropship. If you just fell down here, you can sneak up and make off with the goods pretty easily. You might have to kill a few jackals on the way out, but you don't really have to fight these guys.
If you drive in you'll have to do a little more work. There are four jackals in a group in front of you and four more on the other side of the hill. On top there are five grunts. If you're a good driver, you can make roadkill out of both groups of jackals on the ground.
One will probably retreat up the hill, so get out and go beat him down in person. If you're not such a good driver, your gunner and passenger will do most of the work for you. If you've used up all your marines, you can use the chaingun yourself from long range to take these guys out. Use short bursts, aim for the hole in their shields, and get down whenever a plasma shot comes at you.
The grunts on top could be ignored, but I hate these guys so move up the hill and look for their little heads peeking out. Zoom in with your pistol and pop 'em. The jackals on the far side are easier to eliminate from the top of the hill. Rain charged plasma shots down on them until their bodies litter the ground.
Fill up on weapons, ammunition, and health here. You should have a full pistol, full health, and be just one rocket shy of a full SPNKR. There's even another warthog for you if you dropped down from the ledge. Now head back around the island to the open security door to find the cartographer.
Now turn around so the ocean is on your left and follow the beach back around until you see a couple of purple Covenant boxes littering the beach. This is where you must enter to find the cartographer.
If you dealt with these folks already, there will only be three more jackals up the path on the left, which should be easy to run over or smack around, and two hunters on the platform. The rockets you've just been given were meant for these guys, but by now you know a much less wasteful way to eliminate this threat.
Save the rockets for later. It's especially important here to keep both hunters in a line so they can't both shoot at you. They have a lot of open space to work with and can be very annoying. Get them to swing their shields out of the way and plug 'em in the gut.
Move into the complex and through the security door. Head to the right and gaze upon the depths of the shaft.
Shafted
Moving along, you'll come across an elite hard at work on his big purple box thingy. Hit him from behind then head half way up the ramp to your right.
One or two grunts will be patrolling the upper floor. If you wait patiently on the ramp, they will wander over near you, turn around and expose their backside to you as they walk away.
Make sure to wait for the second one if there are two, then run up and hit them from behind. There's also often a sleeping grunt up here so take him out while he's snoozing.
Head back down the ramp and take an immediate right through the door. Again there are one or two patrolling grunts and often one sleeping. Peek around the corner and wait for the second one to pass.
They patrol around the central structure in the room. They also like to turn when they reach the corner nearest to you and look in your direction before proceeding, so be careful.
Run out and bash the second one after it turns away. The first will turn around after it reaches the next corner so move fast. Duck behind the central structure after you strike so it doesn't see you. Use your motion tracker to notice when he moves on, then go for the sleeping grunt. Retreat to the door and wait for the first grunt to return. He should be easy to sneak up on this time. He uses the same pattern as before.
Now you should be left with one elite down below, one grunt on the ledge above him, and possibly another near him. Find a good sniping spot out of view of the elite and send one round through each grunts head in turn. The elite will be alerted, but will have no idea where you are. You should be able to use the upstairs catwalk to sneak around and pistol-whip him.
There is an easier way to do this room; by kiling only the Grunts on the top floor. One you kill them, wait for all the enemies on the ground to move so that they are facing away from the back wall(the one with all the blue holo-symbols on it), then quickly drop down and head into the small alcove in the left-hand corner. There will be a small hole to the next floor which you can drop down without taking any damage, but wait for the red dot below you to move away from you BEFORE you go down; that's a Jackal, and he'll alert his friends to your presence. Be warned, however. If you use this method, the enemies that you didn't kill will still be up there, along with their reinforcements. [Added by Azure-nighmare]
Now that the area is yours, switch out your rocket launcher for a plasma pistol. There are three jackals in the hall ahead. Empty a plasma pistol on them. Just keep sending charged shots down the ramp. Throw a grenade down too. If they get into the room with you, run up and smack them then go back to gunning down the ones in the hall. After they're toast, pick up a more fully charged plasma pistol.
The next area has two pairs of jackals roaming about and two hunters blocking the way forward. As you enter the room, you'll see a hall extending to your left and one in front of you overlooking the shaft. Move into the one ahead of you and look to your left. You should see a narrow corridor that leads to the interior of this room.
This short, narrow corridor is a beautiful place. Only very rarely will Covenant follow you in here. You'll use it now on the way down and again on the way back out. Send charged plasma shots at the jackals from a distance then follow up with your pistol. Grenades as well work wonders against jackals.
Hang out near the corridor and use it for cover whenever necessary. There's a pile of goodies here, but save it for after you face the hunters. These guys should be easy. Try to get the two of them in a line so they can't both fire at you. Dodge up to them then backpedal and shoot them in the gut when they charge. Go fill up on good stuff and retrieve your rocket launcher.
Follow the path down to a mysteriously vacant area. As you enter this place, the exits are directly beneath you. You could just hop down, but wander around for a moment to familiarize yourself with your surroundings. This place will be crawling with jackals later.
There are two doors out of this room. The one on the left leads to an active camouflage. Go down and take a look. The one on the right leads down a ramp to a long hallway with three grunts at the end. Zoom in right at head level for these shorties and nail them. There are six more grunts and an elite on the lower floor. Move ahead and look down.
Just before you expose yourself on the ledge ahead, you should see little triangular openings next to the floor. Through the one on the left you'll see several grunts milling about. Crouch down, zoom in, and start shooting. After you've sent many of them to an early grave, the rest will retreat down a ramp overlooking the shaft.
This leaves the room they were in nicely vacant for you. Notice there are four ways in and out of this room. If you're still standing on the catwalk facing the center of the room, there's one behind you, the one you came from. The Covenant retreated through another.
It's to your left, and you can see the shaft through it. To your right and in front of you there's a ramp that leads down to two more elites. And to your right behind you another ramp leads up to the room with the active camouflage. Take a moment to look around the theater and familiarize yourself with the location of all emergency exits.
Drop down and go to the fallen bodies of the most recently deceased grunts. Grab a needler and drop the rocket launcher for now. Peek out into the shaft and unload your needler on the elite and grunts that retreated. Keep firing until the grunts at least are all definitely dead. The elite might be trickier.
A charged plasma shot will send him behind cover. While he's hidden you can creep up next to him and drop a grenade or run around and blow his head off. There's an overshield here behind cover, but wait until after you've dealt with the next two elites before snatching it.
These guys cover each other very well. You could always get their attention from one direction then run back into the previous room and use another exit to get around behind them and stick a grenade to their back. Or you can just toss several grenades into the hall with them. Unloading a couple of clips of needles works well too. You have many options. Try them all. Just as long as they die.
Whew. At last you can activate the cartographer, grab that overshield and your rocket launcher and get ready to blast your way out of here.
From the cartographer, turn around and head back over the bodies of the two elites. Follow the ramp and head straight through the next room. The next ramp up should lead you to the room with the active camouflage. It's on the ledge above you with a few jackals.
Lob a couple of frag grenades up there to dislodge them. They should run screaming. Take a moment to read ahead and plot your course back out of here. You don't want to get lost while you're invisible.
Now comes the fun part. You can get the active camouflage from down here. Walk into the middle of the room and face the exit. Since you dutifully memorized where the active camouflage is, you'll know the spot to jump to.
The idea here is to grab it through the wall. Run up and hit the peak of your jump as your left side is bumping into the corner of the wall. If you're lucky, you'll become invisible.
Make the most of your time while invisible. Run as fast as you can back out of here. Head to the far side of the next room and go under the catwalk. Turn around and head back up the ramp and down the long hall. There might be some jackals on ramp spiraling up to the previously vacant room. Try to get behind them and smack them silly.
Before you killed the guys squatting on the active camouflage, there were seven jackals in this group. Hopefully you got at least two with the blast. That leaves five to take out now.
They should all be hanging out near the door where you emerge. Hit them from behind or stick grenades to them. On the other side of the room are another five jackals. These guys suck. Use a rocket if you can get two with one shot. Just hitting them from behind is still the preferred method of execution, but you'll be running out of time very soon. Hopefully when you become visible, only stragglers will remain. Switch out your rocket launcher for a plasma pistol and take them out as usual.
On the ledge leading out of the pit is an elite and five more grunts. These guys have a clear shot and will nail you if you dawdle down below them. With the abundance of plasma pistols nearby, your choice should be obvious. Charged plasma shots for the lot of them. Save the elite for last. Drop his shields then run around and fill him full of lead.
The next foes you will encounter are four more jackals on the next ramp leading up. Peek out and down them with charged plasma shots as usual.
Move on up the ramp and across the interior of the next room. Hide yourself in that wonderful little hallway located in the far right corner of the wall. Use it and abuse it.
There are three jackals, four grunts, and one elite. Take out the jackals on the inside first with a barrage of charged shots. Then use their pistols on the grunts roaming about in the exterior of the room. The elite shouldn't be a problem. Drop his shields with some charged plasma and he'll go hide.
You can then sneak behind him or just run around and dump a clip of bullets into him. Scavenge the pile of goodies nearby and go retrieve your rocket launcher.
The next room again has around three jackals, four grunts, and an elite to offer. Open the door into the room and look through. You should see jackals on the upper floor and grunts down below. You should be full of ammo and don't have much left to use it on. And since you're nearing the end of the level, you can start to use those rockets you've been conserving.
Once a number of grunts and jackals have perished, they will retreat into the smaller room to the side. Move on in, head up the ramp to the upper floor, and follow it around. If there are any jackals left, run up and punch them or toss a grenade at their feet.
Ahead to the right, you'll get a good view of the remaining Covenant. Rain bullets and grenades down on them until only the elite remains. Retreat, hop down, run around, and sneak up behind him. You may have to run back and forth a few times, but you should be able to sneak up behind him or at least stick a plasma grenade to him.
Now all that stands between you and sunshine is the elite commander. This guy is actually very easy to kill. Peek around the corner and stick a plasma grenade to him.
Once he's reduced to a smoldering carcass, you're seemingly free to waltz out of the building. Stay vigilant though. There's one last fight and they'll catch you totally off guard if you forget about them. Six stealth elites block your way to the Pelican. Peek out down the last hall to freedom and fire off a couple of bullets to get their attention.
Quickly retreat and they'll pile up in the hall just around the corner. If you saved any rockets this is a load of fun. Sidestep out and shoot one right at their feet. With any luck, you'll catch almost all of them in the blast. They go flying. Any leftovers should be easy to gun down.
Speed Run Walkthrough
As soon as you begin, go the opposite way around the island, until you reach the Warthog. Flip it over and get in it. Drive forward, and go to where the Covenant Dropship is dropping off the Jackals. Kill them and grab the Overshield. It is easier to kill the Hunters if you go to the wrecked pelican somewhere on the island and get the rocket launcher, just look around on the ground and you will find it.
Now drive up the ramp, the same direction you were going in the Warthog. Turn around to go into the structure. Drive through, and turn right, down the ramp, and left. It's hard for the Warthog to get through this passage, but it's possible. Slow down near the end, and turn into the door. Don't worry about killing the Covenant there, just ram the Warthog through the door. If you do it fast enough, you can get the Warthog stuck, and the door won't close.
Now get out, and turn right. You'll go to the Shafted platform. If you are facing out, like a diving board, stand on the bottom-right corner. Walk straight off at an angle. You'll land on the very corner of where you can activate the map. Make sure to grab the Overshield, it is helpful because your health is so low.
Activate the map room and then advance up like in the guide above. Some ways into the path back to the surface, it is possible to grenade jump to an Active Camouflage in a room with Jackals on an elevated platform, which can be used to bypass a large number of enemies, including at least one pair of Hunters. When you get into the Warthog at the end, make sure not to try to drive it out--you can't. Walk outside and get aboard the dropship.
Heroic Guide
Basis
The first two checkpoints of the level are pretty easy like normal and easy but, after the Cartographer is activated, you are going to have a hellish time getting out of the Silent Cartographer with no Warthog.
Shafted: Half of Checkpoint Done
Ammo Problems Basis
Okay you heard the basis, you are goin to have hell time in here, the enmies will be so strong youre gona run out of ammo and have to use your rocket launcher to get some ammo, ranged or bashing.
Guide
You should be able to get the Silent Cartographer activated and away from the area of the Cartographer, but when you should reach a high ledge overlooking the Covenant Grunt, you should be tangling with a Jackal troops and a few Grunt and a Elite commander, use a Needler or a Rocket Launcher to kill most of the Covenant. There is one more goal to you, a empty room with two Hunters and a stack of the plasma bursting Jackals, take cover to make sure the deadly Plasma Pistol bursts of them. Use a rocket launcher to kill the Hunters. The next few battles are easy but the final battle should keep you busy. A Spirit dropship will come firing plasma bursts, then the elites will tangle with you, like the Hunters and Jackals, TAKE COVER! Or you could just go outside and dodge the Plasma bursts erupting from the turrets of the Spirit. Hold out for ten or fifteen seconds until the Pelican comes. In five seconds, the Spirit will flee. The Elites will run to you, get in the Pelican now. Good work, you finished The Silent Cartographer in the second most hardest difficulty!
Skipping Guide
There is a way to skip the lower levels that lead to the Silent Cartographer. Make sure you picked up an overshield. Enter the doorway that was unlocked due to the security override. There, walk forward and make a right, to the ledge. A cutscene should activate, showing Master Chief kicking a pebble over the ledge. Look down, and you will see the ledges of the lower levels. Jump down and land on the ledge with the overshield on it. From there, proceed to a much shorter trip to the Silent Cartographer.
Trivia
- It is possible to save at least 4 of the Marines (besides the two you take with you in your Warthog) by transporting them away from the beach with the two other Warthogs you encounter. But if you somehow get all of the surviving Marines inside of the structure, they will ALL die for no reason.
- On Easy and Normal difficulties, you sit next to Sergeant Stacker on Echo 419; however, on Heroic and Legendary difficulties, you sit next to an Asian Marine.
- This level was featured in the Halo PC Demo and Mac demo.
- Bungie stated that the Silent Cartographer was sort of a sandbox where they just threw a lot of things in to have tested, like lighting, graphics, new weapons or vehicles. It was never intended to be a level for players to play in, until it later became a memorable, official level.
- You can get the marines in the structure, but for them to live you need to get them IN the installation.
- You also can get the marines and the "Hog" in the security sub-station, but when you return, you will notice the Warthog turned down and only one marine alive.
- The level was originally going to be a mission to assassinate a Prophet.
- It is possible to kill the gold elite guarding the cartographer before you actually open the door. Jump around snd see whether you can find him through the glass on the door. Then shoot at him (Pistol works best I reckon) and he will go down. This makes no difference as he is still alive afterwards but it's fun to watch
Glitches
- It is possible to pick up two, probably three, of the overshields.Simply run through them as fast as you can.
- If you hang around the Pelicans when you are first dropped off, they will not move. On the lower difficulty you can wait for your marines to wipe out the covenant and a second Foehammer will fly in to give you the warthog. Note Foehammer is supposed to be flying the dropship Master Chief came in on.
- You can go through the whole level by going in reverse. When you get dropped off, go backwards until you reach the path into the security override. You can go through about mid through, a marine will say "LZ clear", kill everything, and activate the panel. Cortana will say " Chief, this isn't the map room" The cinematic will start and then Cortana will say " good, now the covenant won't be able to lock us out. Then go outside, get the the warthog and rockets. Go to where you were dropped off and the pelicans will leave and start battling. You can bring the warthog in and get the marines in turrets. Then the Warthog Foehammer drops off will be there.Odd.The hunters will be there and nobody will be in the instillation.
- When you get into a warthog, drive into the water and you will keep going down until you fly off a cliff. You can get back up the cliff but it is so very easy to get lost as you go deeper. Eventually your warthog may explode for unknown reasons and on your motion sensor red dots will go past. Then you will be attacked. Once there was a tentacle for flood. Or a plasma blast that killed marines.
- When the cutscene is over, and you land, if you walk over to the other Pelican, Bravo 022, it will say "E419" as well as yours.
- On your first attempt to enter the Cartographer, if you let one Grunt live, it will run up the stairs and kneel on a ramp. Even if you shoot it, it will stay in that position.
- When you inspect the crashed Bravo 022 after you deactivate the security system, it will say "V933" instead of "B022"
- If you bring two Marines with you on the Warthog on the second attempt to enter the Cartographer and leave them outside the shaft, they will survive the Covenant dropships' onslaught, although the others won't (There will still be only 2 survivors even if you force all of them into the shaft).
- After the covenant lock the door when you first attempt to enter the building, you can kill the Zealot elite by shooting through the little glass window. (With the assault rifle at least. Other weapons probably work, too. The needler does not.) If you don't take an absurdly long time opening the door again, the Zealot will come out of the door and walk over his own dead body. You can also stick him before the doors close, although this doesn't kill him right away, due to the superior shielding of Zealots.
- At the end of the level, when you have to get in the Pelican, press X like it says to get in, and then press it again, and you should jump back out. The cutscene will then start, but with the Pelican leaving you behind on the platform.
- When the Marine says area secure, if you are at the hill pass, you will notice the Pelican dropship which drops the "Hog" flying into the Hunter Area and then it will disappear.
- The Spirit Dropship will appear at the Silent Cartographer entrance and the marines will be saying "Whoa". After this if you follow it down, it will disappear.
- On the trial version for PC, if you stick yourself and then get into the pelican at the end, the screen will say "Loading... done" as normal, and then when the grenade goes off,the screen goes black, then goes to a third-person view behind the pelican flying past the tree, then a first person view where the chief would be standing, then fades out to black, then fades in as normal to the cinematic where Sarge tells you to buy the full version. The easiest way to stick yourself is to use the covenant storage containers as a surface to bounce the grenade off.
It is also possible (at least in the demo) to drive the Warthog into the installation. When you open the door where the Zealot is, the marines in the Warthog will shoot at the Zealot, allowing you to sneak up on it if they do not finish it off first.
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