Forge/Tricks

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Forge is a multiplayer gameplay mode in Halo 3 that allows players to create map variants by re-arranging the objects in a map. There are many useful tricks and glitches in Forge that allow mapmakers to perform very useful tasks and create very interesting maps; several of these techniques are detailed below. In Halo: Reach many of these tricks will be unneeded as the Floating and Interlocking features will be include in the game.

Tips and Tricks

Unlimited Money Exploit

As the name implies, the Unlimited Money Exploit is a glitch that allows players to completely circumvent the object limits imposed by Forge's budget system.

Method A

To perform this exploit, first buy one of every object you plan on using. Set each object aside, press X while hovering on it, and set the Run-Time Maximum to one value higher than the amount of the object placed on the map. Now, you can freely place as many of this object as you want, and the Run-Time Maximum will automatically increment with each new object.

Please note that once you've used up your entire "normal" budget, your budget will start going negative. If, after your budget goes negative, you delete an object after having placed the maximum amount of that object, then you will have to redo the glitch to place more of that object. To redo the glitch, you will have to delete enough objects to get your budget back up to a usable amount. If you don't need an item, set it aside until you're completely finished with your map and you know you no longer need it; then delete it. (A good idea is to set up a "trash bin" to sling objects into if unneeded.)

There is a way to retrieve items that you have lost. These methods include:

1. Saving the map variant
2. Ending the game
3. Starting the game
4. Changing the Run-Time Maximum of the object to 1 higher than the number on the map.
5. Carrying on with the map

Method B

It is possible for two players to cooperate and budget glitch a map without placing one of every item on the map—in other words, it is possible to have a budget-glitched canvas map. The method was discovered before August 27, 2008, by players with the gamertags "BuddhaCrane" and "TheCartographer". The players shall be called Person A and Person B; a Grav Lift shall be used as an example of the item to be glitched. The glitch may be conducted over Live or on Local. A guest profile may be used.

1. Person A should open the spawn menu and navigate to Grav Lift. They should hover over it, and press X to open its summary.
2. Person B should spawn a Grav Lift.
3. After Person B has spawned the Grav Lift, its Run-Time Maximum will change from 0 to 1.
4. Person A should hover over Run-Time Maximum and press A to select it.
5. Person B should delete the Grav Lift.
6. Person A should press A. Even though Placed on Map is set to 0, Run-Time Maximum should now be set to 1.

Note that the numbers provided above assume that all Grav Lifts have been deleted from the map. Such deletion is not necessary, however.

As with Method A, deleting the last of a budget-glitched item (e.x. the last Grav Lift on the map) will undo the glitch for that item. Furthermore, if the maximum amount of that item has been placed, deleting any of that item will undo the glitch. In both cases, the glitch will have to be re-done—and that is only possible if the budget has not been exceeded.

Method C

An alternative method starts by loading an unmodified version of the map. Next, find a weapon that uses energy rather than reloadable projectiles. Place a Covenant energy-using weapon exactly on top of it. The two items' spawn points (teardrops) should align exactly, such that they look like one spawn point. Once done, return to player mode, grab the new weapon, and use all of its energy.

Teleporters of Death

On many maps, you can place Teleporters outside of the level's boundaries without them being deleted. This allows an instant death, or one caused by the The Guardians on Snowbound, Sandtrap or Sandbox. On most maps, however, players entering such teleports will receive the rather inaccurate message that they "fell to [their] death". A specific method of placing floating items makes it extremely easy to place such Teleporters.

It is possible, on maps like Last Resort, to place a Teleporter such that players may use it to exit the level's boundaries without dying. Sometimes, however, when you are entering the Sender Node, it will say "Teleporter is blocked" if the corresponding Receiver Node is placed in certain areas.

Instant Respawn

To set an object to instantly respawn without any wait time, set the object's Run-Time Minimum and Run-Time Maximum counts (under the object's summary page, accessed with two presses of the X button) to the same number. The minimum count must be as high as it can go for this to work. The object will now instantly respawn when disturbed. (Weapons are an exception, because when you pick them up, they still exist on the map.) You can make an infinite Fusion Coil shower using this technique; it is also useful when attempting to use Trip Mines to overload maps.

Remote Control of Fusion Coil Bombs

With the infinite respawn tool comes a trick that allows you to remotely turn on and off Fusion Coil bombs—groups of perpetually-exploding Fusion Coils. When you have one running on infinite respawn, and it keeps blowing up, if you wish to turn it off, bring up the items menu with X, select Fusion Coil in the scenery object list, hit X, and then set the Run-Time Minimum to at least one below the maximum. The infinite respawn will now be turned off.

Teleporter Maze

A common mapmaking trick is to make several similar-looking rooms and place an intricate network of Receiver, Sender, and Two-way Nodes inside of them, set to a variety of different channels. This can turn a map into a rather difficult maze.

Detailed below is an example arrangement that you can try.

1. Make eight rooms that look as similar to each other as possible (the looks of first and last rooms don't matter).
2. Place Teleporters and channels in all rooms in this order:

   (R - Receiver Node || S - Sender Node || T - Two-way Node || Numbers - Channel)

   • First room: R8 S4 T4 S1
   • Second room: R1 T2 S4
   • Third room: R2 R2 T3 S4
   • Fourth room: R3 T4 S4
   • Fifth room: R4 T8 S5
   • Sixth room: R5 T6 S4
   • Seventh room: R6 T4 S7
   • Last room: T7
3. The last room can be a good place to shoot each other, contain powerful weapons/power-ups/equipment, or really anything that puts anyone controlling it in a powerful position.

Horizontal Grav Lift

It is possible to create a horizontal Grav Lift that propels players laterally instead of vertically. The process is simple. Start by placing a Weapon Holder on the ground. Then, simply place a Grav Lift (scenery, not equipment) on top of the Weapon Holder. The Lift will begin to rotate, until it eventually straightens out, pointing horizontally.

Please note that you can only place four of these, as you can only place four Grav Lifts. Furthermore, to rotate the Lift, you must rotate the underlying Weapon Holder, and then re-place the Grav Lift atop the Holder.

Garages

On Sandtrap, spawn a Crate and place a Turret Case on it. Then, spawn a Receiver Node on top of the stack and delete the objects beneath it. Next, place another crate with two turret cases on top of it and place a sender node on the pile and set it to a different channel than the Receiver Node. Place a Grav Lift on the Receiver Node and test to see if you can reach the Sender Node, and be certain that if you accidentally enter the gravity lift, you can get away before you get teleported off (in Player Mode, with normal speed and gravity) to the left of Elephant where the team without a Chopper spawns in.

Place a Receiver Node on the interior wall, with the illuminated "leg" pointing towards the opposite wall, and set it to the same channel as the Sender Node. Just inside each opening except the roof, place a Weapon Holder with one of the upward-facing extensions facing outside. Place a Mongoose a short distance behind each weapon holder (there isn't room for any other vehicle), making sure that there is enough room so that the Grav Lifts you are about to place will not blast the Mongoose unless you drive it out.

Next, add some Horizontal Grav Lifts using the Weapon Holders you placed earlier. Set the Run-Time Minimum for Grav Lifts to four. Place four Radio Antennas on top of the structure over the opening so that it is covered, and have the ends of each antenna alternate so it should be that on one side of the gap, there are two antenna bases, and the same should be true for the other side. Place a weapon holder on the thick solid part of each radio antenna to stop them from being blown off.

You can also make an effective 'Jail' by using the Horizontal Grav lift trick (this works well if you can forge a 'container open') by placing two horizontal grav lifts facing inwards. This could be effective if you are playing 'cops and robbers'.

Floating Objects

A base create