Snowbound

Snowbound is a medium sized multiplayer map in Halo 3. From Bungie Q&A on a weekly update, they hinted that it may take place on a former Forerunner planet near Earth, though it is currently occupied and being excavated by the Covenant.

Note about cardinal directions

Cardinal directions in this article are based upon Bungie's heatmaps. North is "up". In this article, the secondary map (with the numbered locations) is inverted, so north is "down" and south is "up".

Layout

A birds-eye view of Snowbound.

Snowbound is a medium-sized, semi-symmetrical map set in a snowy Forerunner construct with two large Covenant bases at either end of the map. The bases, known as high base and low base, are connected by an underground tunnel network. Several rock outcroppings are found around the perimeter of the map, as well as other Covenant and Forerunner constructions. A unique feature of this map is the infamous shield doors, similar to those found on Epitaph, these doors stop all weapons (except Energy Sword and Gravity Hammer, you can still lunge through the doors) and explosions, but let players pass through^[1]. Although Spike Grenades can stick to the shield itself, vehicles cannot pass through them. Due to the map's structure, fighting often takes place in or around these shield doors. The most unique part of this level, however, is its boundaries. Here, automatic turret sentries will shoot any player who ventures out of bounds.^[2]

In bungies 8/22/08 Weekly Update [1], Bungie announced that a version of Snowbound called Boundless without shield doors (except the four which can be accessed on top middle) and slightly different weapon laout.

Low Base

Overview of Snowbound, with Camo in view.

Low Base is often referred to by players as "BR Spawn" due to the two Battle Rifles which spawn on the outer rear walls. Inside, you will find a Spartan Laser, two Brute Spikers, and a Bubble Shield. Outside the base spawns a Carbine, Spiker, Mauler (left side), and Active Camouflage (right side). On top of the base are a Needler, Plasma Rifle, and a pair of Plasma Grenades. This base's lights do not flicker.

High Base

Directly adjacent to Low Base, High Base offers a different set of weapons. High Base is commonly referred to as "Sniper Spawn" or "Carbine Base" due to the Carbine and Beam Rifle which spawn in this location. Behind the base, players can find a Battle Rifle or a Plasma Rifle around the rock terrain. Outside, players can find a Mauler to the left of the base, and an Overshield to the right. Inside, you will find two Plasma Rifles, a Beam Rifle, and a Power Drainer. On top of the base are a Plasma Pistol, Plasma Rifle, and a pair of Plasma Grenades. The lights of this base flicker and buzz.

Upper Map

Snowbound at the foot of the mountain when viewed from a distance.

The upper portion of the map is home to many predominant features and access ways, and is also a Sniper's paradise. Located between both bases, to the south, is the Underpass (or "Ghost Spawn"), where a single Ghost (or Warthog) spawns. In the center of the map, you have access to the lower levels by way of the Ice Cave Tunnel. A common tactic for players is to blindly toss grenades into the map's lower levels from this area, utilizing the underground corridors and tight spaces to trap players in the explosions. Further to the north, on the opposite side end the Underpass, lies the Ice Cave's main entrance with its distinctive overhang and large shield door.

Ice Cave

The deadly quarters of the Ice Cave.

Predominantly known as the "Shotgun Spawn", heavy fighting occurs in this cold and icy cave. This area sees frequent carnage, due to its high traffic, tight quarters, and position between the High and Low bases. To the immediate south is an elevated opening with no shield. West of this is the tunnel to Low Base. East of this is the tunnel to High Base. Directly south is the Main Entrance, which is protected by a larger shield door. Entering the Ice Cave from any of these 3 methods is usually extremely risky. This main entrance is very defensible, as it affords the player with a full view of the cave's three most-used entrances. The shield door further enhances this area's strategic potential. Above the Ice Cave's main entrance spawns a Brute Shot (top), as well as a Spiker to the west and a Mauler to the east. Players have several points of entrance and exit, but the tight quarters of this cave make maneuvering quite difficult. An often seen tactic on this map is to hide on the other side of a shield door with the Shotgun or Mauler, and kill players as they pass through.

Key Areas

An inverted layout of Snowbound; click for full size

01. Low Base - Bubble Shield found here
02. High Base - Power Drain found here
03. Low Base Batteries
04. High Base Batteries
05. Rock Side
06. Tundra Side
07. Ice Cave Entrance (Concrete call-out)
08. Ice Cave
09. Ice Cave Tunnel
10. Ice Tunnel
11. Underpass
12. Far Rocks

Trivia

In the sky to the west, you can see the words "Out of ammo press y to"
In the Red vs Blue transition to Halo 3, Church shows this map as well as High Ground and Valhalla as a place where they can move to. Church speaks of property value and how this map, though in the arctic, could be a good investment should global warming arise.
This was the first Halo 3 Multiplayer level reveled to the public.
This is one out of two multiplayer maps in Halo 3 which take place on a Covenant-controlled territory.
Snowbound is also the title of a 1994 movie, starring Neil Patrick Harris and Kelli Williams.
There are several automated turrets, positioned along the outside of the map which will shoot at any players who go beyond the boundaries of the map.
When killed by the boundary turrets, A message appears saying, "(Player) was killed by The Guardians."
When you venture outside the boundaries a siren wails as a warning to go back before the turrets kill you.
In the Beta you could use a Bubble Shield to defend yourself from the stationary AI turrets, allowing you to travel further out of the map than usual. This has been fixed in the final version of the game though.
A tactic introduced after the Beta is for the leader to rush out with the Oddball and be killed by the turrets, leaving the ball unattainable, thus allowing the team or player that has more time holding the ball to win before the round ends.
Like Sandtrap players may leave footprints in the snow (which could be tracked) for a few seconds before fading away. This is helpful when opponents are in Active Camo. ^[3]
Even if you are invulnerable, the turrets will still be able to kill you.
In the sky, the visible planet has a Marathon symbol on it.
The spheres in both bases appear to be vehicles or some sort of manned Covenant equipment since there are seats inside them.
In the Active Camo tunnel there is a Canadian $1 coin (or loonie) buried in the snow beneath the Active Camo, perhaps an homage to the "lucky loonie" customarily buried under the ice during Canadian National ice hockey or curling events. The "lucky loonie" was made famous during the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic games when both the men's and women's team won the gold medal.
In the Beta, the engine incorporated real time reflections into many aspects of the game. The outside of Snowbound's bases, as well as the Ghost, player armour, and a few weapon holders, utilize the graphical enhancement of real time reflection. However, this was removed from the final version of the game.
A majority of the fighting, takes place in the Ice cave.
It is a good place to get the "Maybe Next Time Buddy" Achievement if you get the Ghost and going down into the Ice cave where potential hijackers have little to no place to go within once hijacked.
The Default version of Snowbound has been removed from all Matchmaking playlists except Lone Wolves and Rumble Pit. It has been replaced with the Hard Core (HC) Snowbound in which many changes have been made, which deletes the Spartan Laser and Shotgun from the map and puts the Beam Rifle on the original Shotgun spawn point.
It is possible using the forge to "box in" the turrets , allowing you to move freely until an invisible barrier stops you.
You have to overload the map twice to disable the guardians fully. Once to disable the energy doors, twice to disable the turrets for the rest of the game.
This map is the perfect map to play Snow Tigers. Play with no weapons on the map, have players start with a Gravity Hammer, set player speed to 200%, player gravity to 50% and for more fun use Forge to put Firebomb grenades all over the map. Having all player's colors forced to white can add excitement too.
On IGN during the time of the Halo 3 Beta, IGN stated that Snowbound was probably inspired by the Battle of Hoth.
In Forge, it is possible to spawn 32 Supply Cases, 32 Supply Cases (Open--one side without a cover), and 32 Supply Cases (Bare--both sides do not have a cover); this amounts to an incredulous 96 possible Supply Cases--no other amount of Forge items comes close, excluding Grenades (With Firebombs, it adds up to 104). Even the Boxes (Double Box, Double Box--Open; Single Box, Single Box--Open) add up to only 56. With this amount of boxes, one could only imagine possible Forge possibilities (how high a Supply Case Tower would go, blocking all the Guardian Turrets, etc.).
It is possible that the Maulers on this map may removed from this map, since Snowbound is a relatively a Close-quarters map as well. There are two Maulers on the map (Near the rocks that are near the Ghost spawn), and they are sometimes used by players to compensate for the Shotgun when they do not have access to it.
A new version of this map named "Boundless" will be included in the September update without shield doors that lead into the ice caves from the bases.

Strategies

After swapping for the Spartan Laser when spawning in Team Slayer, if your team doesn't plan on using the Ghost, a good tactic would be to wait for an enemy to get in it, eliminating the Ghost, that enemy, and possibly the Overshield threat.
Even though the outside is good for sniping, the Beam Rifle is more commonly used inside for no-scoping and double shots, which is usually rather effective.
The rocks lined up near the Ghost spawn is normally a less risky way up top when traveling from base to base.
The ceilings inside the bases are in fact transparent, enabling you to see potential assailants above you.
The Needler is a very useful weapon on this map.
The Maulers on the Tundra side of the map can prove very useful if you intend to patrol the ice caves.
In the ice caves a Deployable Cover is useful in team games, as you can throw it out when an enemy is trying to get through.
From almost the beginning of the game a majority of the fighting takes place in the Ice Cave or the tunnels leading to it. The team that holds the Ice Cave has the advantage because of how tight the entrances to the cave are allowing the team on defense to get some easy grenade kills but are also easily killed by grenades as well.

Forge

In Forge you can block off all tunnels to the ice caves (using mostly crates and boxes, and weapon holders to keep them there), this lets you focus on long to medium range combat.
In Forge, you can get under the Ice cave and float around. You can keep going in Monitor form until you come out under the Ghost. Once there, you can turn into a Spartan/Elite and fight. Also, you can build on this area as it is a solid surface.

Images

BoundaryTurret.jpg

A turret firing on a player.
Battle near the base.
Another battle on Snowbound.
Snowbound Carnage.jpg

You can see a planet with Marathon symbols.
1210389081 SpecOps Ice.jpg

An Elite in Snowbound.

Sources

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[1] ttp://forums.xbox.com/7661336/ShowPost.aspx

[2] ttp://carnage.bungie.org/haloforum/halo.forum.pl?read=755574

[3] ttp://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=72856

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