Reach:ONI: Sword Base/Walkthrough

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ONI: Sword Base
Level overview
Player(s):	SPARTAN-B312
Objective(s):	Secure SWORD Base from the Covenant. Eliminate all hostiles.
Location(s):	SWORD Base, Babd Catha Ice Shelf, Eposz, Reach
Gameplay overview
Default weapons:	MA37 Assault Rifle M392 DMR M9 Grenade
Available weapons:	Human Sniper Rifle Target Locator Rocket Launcher Covenant Plasma Launcher Fuel Rod Cannon
Enemies:	Sangheili Sangheili Minor Sangheili Major Sangheili Ultra Sangheili Ranger Sangheili General Special Operations Sangheili Kig-yar Kig-yar Major Kig-Yar Sniper T'vaoan Skirmisher Minor Skirmisher Major Unggoy Unggoy Minor Unggoy Major Unggoy Ultra Unggoy Heavy

This is a walkthrough for the third level of Halo: Reach, ONI: Sword Base. It is written for play at the Legendary difficulty, but contains notes for lower difficulties. Your mission is to clear ONI: Sword Base of all Covenant hostiles, with additional objectives to be added later.

Level Notes

• On average, a good run of this mission on Legendary with no skips or excessive stalling will be roughly 50 minutes to an hour, about a quarter longer than Winter Contingency.
• The Daily Challenge for beating this is "Office of Not Dying". It awards 1250 cR.
• If doing a "kill X enemies" daily challenge, vehicles will count as two kills and dropship chin turrets will award a kill.
• If looking for a BOB to kill for the challenge "Golden Opportunity", the white BOB at SWORD Base will count despite not being a "Gold Ranger-class Elite". It can easily be sought out from Rally Point Beta, and one will always be in either the courtyard or the atrium second floor.
• There will be a Phantom hovering above and around Airview Base for the AA gun to destroy when activated. If it is destroyed by the player, it will be immediately replaced by another Phantom, and so on until the anti-aircraft gun is activated. The Phantom(s) in question will not attack the player; they only shift position from one side of the area to the other to avoid hostile fire. These two conditions on the Phantom(s) allow for very easy point (but not cR) farming; the player can constantly earn 2700 or more points depending on the difficulty and the number of skulls activated. It is recommended to drive a Warthog with a trooper carrying a Rocket Launcher as the Passenger (Kat will be on the LAAG and rather useless), which will keep pace and in range with the Phantom flying back and forth, or use a Wraith (steal one instead of blowing it up right after Rally Point Alpha) for higher damage per shot.
• Three sniper rifles can be found on this level. The first one is in the starting courtyard, on the far end of the left wall, and contains twelve rounds. The second is at the building next to the comms outpost with the power generator. It is found on the balcony where Jackal snipers were fought, and carries twelve rounds. The third is in a small building with armor abilities next to Airview Base, and carries sixteen rounds.
• Two rocket launchers can be found outside the base, one next to a dead trooper on a hill nearby the two Wraiths, and another inside the comms building on the second floor. Both contain four rockets.

The Best Defense (Mission Start)

The Courtyard

• Carter-A259 (COM): "Kat, Six: push back the attack on Sword Base, find out what we're dealing with."

• Kat-B320: "Roger that, we're your strike team."

Your landing site consists of two courtyards, and the Covenant have control of the one to your north. When you land, four Grunts, one Elite, and two Jackals will attack you. Your starting loudout is an assault rifle, a DMR and 2 grenades. Two or three Army troopers be should with you, as will be Kat, now armed with an assault rifle. Your first objective should be to gain a plasma pistol.

The four Grunts will come over the barricades to your north, the Jackals will attack from the stairs to your left and the Elite will attack from the right. Once you kill two Grunts, the enemies will retreat. So to gain that plasma pistol, let the Grunts charge until they reach the cover in front of you, this will bring their weapons close for easy grabbing. Pick off the Jackals then the Grunts; the Elite will usually just fire a bit at the troopers then fall back. Once the enemies have fled, swap your assault rifle for one of the plasma pistols and prepare to move up to the left balcony.

Once you step onto the left balcony's stairs, quickly fall back; a Phantom has spawned and will rain down fire on you. Wait for it to leave then move halfway up the left balcony stairs. Kat will usually head to the balcony on your right and the troopers will go to the left. While Kat will be a useful distraction with her assault rifle, the troopers won't be much help, as most of them have shotguns and are too far and weak to be of any help.

In the courtyard ahead of you there will be numerous Jackals, assorted Grunts, and three or four Elites, the leader of which is an Ultra with a concussion rifle. They'll be behind four stationary shield generators, though they'll be shooting so much that at least one or two will be down. The Ultra is the biggest threat; on Legendary his concussion rifle takes just two direct shots to kill you and he is not shy about tossing plasma grenades. But you can't get him now; first you have to get him alone. Pick off as many Grunts and Jackals as you can with your DMR while on the left balcony stairs; this is the safest place to fall back from the concussion rifle. If the enemies get clustered, move up to the balcony and toss grenades over the side; feel free to use all of them, including the two spare ones left by a dead trooper. He also has spare DMR ammo if you need it.

Once most of the small infantry are dead, all but the Ultra Elite will fall back. While he's distracted fighting Kat, arm your plasma pistol, jump down to the first courtyard where you landed, head up to the barricades under the bridge, then surprise him with a plasma overcharge and a headshot. If he spots you, then keep strafing to avoid his concussion shots or fall back and wait for him to refocus on Kat. Watch out for plasma grenades, he tosses them very quickly.

When the Ultra is dead, head to the right balcony where Kat is and pick off more infantry. The Covenant will have fallen back to behind the freight crates so they're pretty far from you. On occasion one of the Elites will charge to your balcony. If you see him approaching, fall back, arm your plasma pistol, watch your radar, and surprise him with a noob combo. Once he's dead, move off the balcony into the courtyard and keep picking off enemies. While you're there, try not to enter the pathway to your right that leads to the gate; this will trigger the Skirmishers. Wait until all the enemies are dead before going there.

Once they're all dead, head in front of the right pathway. When you see a checkpoint load, scope in your DMR and aim for a fusion coil lying in front of a barricade. Skirmishers will charge over and around this barricade. If you land two shots on the fusion coil just in time, the coil will explode and kill most of the Skirmishers. Mop up any that are left. Once all the enemies are dead, go back for DMR ammo, grab a new plasma pistol, and then head for the gate.

You may have noticed that we did not use the sniper rifle on the far end of the left balcony here. That's for two reasons: 1. on Legendary it will be of little use in this close-quarters area full of cover, and 2. we're saving it for later; it will still be there when you return.

Get The Hell Off My Lawn! (Rally Point Alpha)

Two Wraiths at the Gate

• 3 Echo 57 (COM): "3 Echo 57 heading back to base, we got enemy tangos on our six. How copy?"

• Kat-B320: "Six! Use the Target Locator on that Wraith!"

In this next area, you, Kat, and three or so troopers will face two Wraiths, an Elite, and several Grunts in a long valley. While it's easy enough to kill them all with your new Target Locator, try for a new goal here: hijack one of the Wraiths and leave with one shot left on your Locator. Here's how to do so.

At the gate entrance will be the Target Locator, which Kat and an ordnance marker point out for you. But you still need the weapons you've brought with you, so drop-carry the plasma pistol and Target Locator out the gate by swapping weapons while moving. Head for the rock on your left; sometimes going straight forward will cause a glitch where the weapon gets stuck inside the gate threshold and can't be picked up anymore.

When you hear 3 Echo 57 call for help, arm your Target Locator and aim for the Wraith on the left. Done right and you'll destroy it and maybe even a few of the infantry that cross the blast zone. But now there's still one more Wraith, and most likely an Elite and several Grunts with it, so you've still got a challenge ahead of you. Strafe back and forth to dodge the Wraith's mortars, Sprint if you see one headed your way. While you're dodging, pick off all the Grunts with your DMR, including the Grunt in the Wraith's plasma turret. When most of the Grunts are dead, Kat and any living troopers will move up to attack the Elite. He'll likely be too far away for you to noob combo him, so let your allies wear down his shield then finish him off with your DMR.

Now it's time to hijack the Wraith. When all the infantry are dead, the Wraith will focus on Kat, who will take position on a hill with a dead trooper and rocket launchers. Swap your locator for your plasma pistol, sprint to the base of the hill, and wrap around it to the left. Keep your eye on Kat; oftentimes the Wraith's mortar will fly over her and might strike you. Once you're behind the hill, charge your plasma pistol, move around, and disable the Wraith with an EMP. As soon as the Wraith is disabled, run and jump on top of it; do not hold X to board the Wraith. Hit it with a second charge if the Wraith starts recover before you can get aboard.

Once you're on top of the Wraith, it won't fire and will slowly drive around in confusion. Get in the Wraith's plasma turret and then immediately get out. This will trigger the Wraith's driver to leap out. Once he's outside, the Elite (usually an Ultra) will try to do one of two things. He'll either try to attack you with his plasma rifle or jump in the Wraith's turret and mow you down. Don't give him time to do either; hit him with a plasma pistol overcharge then swap to the DMR for a headshot.

Things not to do: 1. Do not stay in the turret when the Elite jumps out; he is much stronger than you and can kill you faster than you can shoot him. 2. Do not immediately take control of the Wraith while he's still alive; he'll be close enough to board it and will often punch you out. 3. Do not approach the Wraith while a gunner is still in the turret; sometimes one of the Grunts or the Elite will jump into it after the first gunner is killed, so stay back and headshot them if they do. 4. Do not hold X to board the Wraith; this will kill the driver but will also damage the tank and knock the door hatch off, making you more vulnerable while driving it.

• Sword Control (COM): "The old Farragut Station has its own comms array that should bring us back online with Command. Airview Base has an anti-air battery that will help clear the skies."

• Kat-B320: "AA gun is to the west, comms array to the east. Let's roll."

Once all the Covenant are dead, go back for your Target Locator, leave your plasma pistol, jump into the Wraith, and let Kat take the gunner seat. It's now time to reclaim some bases. From there you have two choices. You can either head west to Airview Base to activate its AA gun, or head on the east path to activate the comms array. They can be done in either order, but the strategy for each is roughly the same. Therefore, the following walkthrough will go in the order of traveling from Airview to Farragut, with specifying notes for either route.

The Western Ponds

On the way to Airview Base, your Wraith will come to a small valley with ponds, where you'll encounter a Ghost and three Grunts. They won't be a problem unless they disable your Wraith with an overcharge and toss grenades; even the Ghost will take a while to damage you. Keep your distance and shell them; fall back if you see an overcharge approaching. When they're all dead, keep driving up the path.

If you're leaving Airview after activating everything and so heading back to the gate, you'll encounter the Ghost first, followed by an Elite and Grunt. The Ghost will charge for your vehicle, so it's best to stay back once you see it and blast it as it approaches. The Elite and Grunt are past the ponds behind a rock on a hill. They're little threat, as they're out in the open with no cover.

A few words of caution. First note when returning is that the Phantom that just dropped off the Ghost may still be nearby and will be powerful at close range. Wait for it to leave then engage. Second is that sometimes, though rarely, a Revenant may leave the gate and hide in this area. Keep an eye on your radar and fall back behind a boulder if it's there; you'll be fighting it at very close range.

Airview Base (Anti-Air Gun)

• Kat-B320: "I'm picking up a power source, we're close to the AA gun."

Tons of Covenant are occupying the base and defending the captured AA gun. Elites, Grunts, and a formidable Sangheili General with a plasma launcher. Approach too close and Elites will dodge all your shots, the Grunts will disable you, followed by the General sticking you with the launcher and blowing you up. What's more, there are more dropships waiting as soon you kill too many enemies. If you want to nail them all with the Target Locator and clear this area in 30 seconds, here's how.

If you're doing this site first, drive your Wraith to the edge of the pond and park it; If you're doing it second, park your Wraith at the cliff overlooking the hill. You should be far enough that the Covenant will notice you but won't approach. Get out of the Wraith, target the General with the locator, and get back into the Wraith as an airstrike blasts him in the head and kills everything else in the base. If this site is done first, all that should be left are a few confused Grunts; approach with the Wraith and Kat will mop them up. If it's done, a few Elites will survive and take position at a spare Warthog. They'll jump into the Hog and fire its turret, though they don't seem to be able to drive it, making them sitting ducks. Circle your Wraith carefully around the boulder between you and their Hog, so that their turret can't quickly damage your tank. One mortar will blow up their Hog and wipe them both out.

But now that everything's dead, the two dropships are coming. One is a Spirit carrying two Sangheili Rangers and a group of Grunts and another is a Phantom dropping two Ghosts (the third Phantom milling about the area will completely ignore you.) This is more than enough firepower to finish you off, so you have to move fast. Just after calling in the airstrike, jump back in your Wraith, mop up anything left, and watch for the approaching Spirit. It will park to the left of you and the base, just above a prominent rock. Aim to the right of the rock, and your mortar should wipe out everything as soon as they land. If the Rangers live, fall back. The Ranger with the concussion rifle is the biggest threat; he's fast and has “bottomless clip”, meaning he will quickly blast your Wraith apart. If you can't hit him directly, at least get his shield with the mortar's shockwave and Kat will finish him off with her turret. If he's too close to blast, boost and ram into him.

When the Spirit's infantry are down, the Phantom carrying Ghosts will arrive. Luckily, this one is much easier. It will drop them in the pond, but you can easily blast them both while they're still on the Phantom. Kill them both, maybe even blow up that third wandering Phantom, and so you've killed everything in the area. Done correctly and this entire encounter, from the moment you called in the airstrike, can be done in under 30 seconds.

Climb out of the Wraith, head into Airview Base, and press the button on the second floor to activate the AA gun. While you're there, you'll find DMR ammo and the General's plasma launcher. If your target locator is empty but you have the comms array next, then swap it for the launcher.

The Steep Hill

• Sword Control (COM): "Spartans, what's the ETA on that comms array/AA gun?"

• Kat-B320: "On our way. Let's move, Six."

In between Farragut and Airview is a plain with large boulders and a steep hill. There a Phantom will drop off two Elite Majors, four Grunts, and two Ghosts. If you're coming from the comms to the AA gun, then this area is easy. Your Wraith can easily hide behind a hill near the start of the area, fire mortars, and take cover with attacked.

If you're going from the AA gun to comms, then this area is harder. You'll be at the very top of the hill, with almost no cover on the way down. Those Ghosts have incredibly long range, and your aim with the mortar is likely not going to be great, as you'll have to aim extremely high to account for its firing arc. So instead park your Wraith out of their sight, and pull out your plasma launcher. Then aim down the hill, lock on to a Ghost, and fire a homing grenade at it. It takes two shots to destroy a Ghost, but only fire one at a time because sometimes the first explosion will cancel out the second one.

If you can't get a fix on the Ghosts, move up in the Wraith and stick to the left side of the path for cover. As long as you engage one Ghost at a time you should be fine; they take a while to damage the Wraith. Once they're down, move up and engage the Elites before they flee, then engage the Grunts who are hiding behind the big rock at the cliff. The Elites will focus more on dodging than fighting back, and the Grunts will be too far away to aid them. As such, they can all be picked off one by one.

Farragut Station (Comms Array)

• Kat-B320: "Hope that comms array has a working generator."

At Farragut Station, there are two source of enemies: the Covenant infantry coming out of the power generator house and the Revenant guarding it. The Revenant is the greater threat; it's more maneuverable than your Wraith, has better aim, better range, and can fire faster and so send multiple mortars your way. That said, your Wraith can withstand one direct shot from it, and you might still have the plasma launcher if you just came from Airview. You have two options to take out the Revenant. You can either shell it from afar (it will stay fairly still if you keep your distance), try to shell it from close by traveling along the raised ridge on the side of the area (riskier but you'll have better aim) or using your plasma launcher (which may have low ammo). If you're shelling from afar and doing the comms first, then keep your Wraith at the top of the entrance slope overlooking the area and raise your reticle until it aligns with the top edge of Reach's moon