High Ground

High Ground is a multiplayer level in Halo 3. It is an old UNSC base in New Mombasa that was reactivated after the Slipspace cataclysm that destroyed Mombasa. It is one of the few non-symmetrical maps in the game.



Layout
"High Ground" is an asymmetrical map consisting of an elevated, but crumbling, UNSC base surrounded by cliffs on 3 sides, and a beach to the front. High Ground was originally thought to be the successor to Zanzibar until Bungie revealed Last Resort. However, due to its general appearance, namely the beachhead assault layout, it has several familiarities to Zanzibar. The layout of the map is such that defenders spawn in the war-torn base, with attackers spawning on the beach. There are multiple ways to approach and enter the base; through the main gate that must be activated (only in team objective matches, otherwise it is open by default), or side passages which offer more protection and discretion. In a way it is like the World War Two D-Day landings in Normandy, due to the fact the attacker start at a beach and the defending base has a more firepower.

Beach
Attacking players spawn at the far side of the map, aptly named "the beach". To the players backs, an African vista can be by melee. If the main gate is open, it can be used as a quick entrance or escape from the base.

A variety of weaponry and equipment has been placed near the beach, and outside the base walls to aid attackers in storming the base. Perhaps the two most valuable weapons include the Sniper Rifle System 99D-S2 AM and the M41 Rocket Launcher. Players can also find a Portable Gravity Lift, Bubble Shield, and Overshield to aid in their attack. In addition to the weapons and equipment, players can choose from a Mongoose or Ghost to get to the base wall faster.

Fortress
This large, but crumbling base is where defending players spawn. In the back of the base, to the left, players can find a large mortar or a SAM (Surface-to-Air-Missile) site. It was originally thought that this missile battery would fire devastating missiles upon incoming attackers. This was disproved by Bungie, stating that it is unusable and is merely a piece of scenery for the level. Several vehicles spawn in the back of the base, allowing defenders to quickly catch fleeing attackers, or for attackers to make a quick getaway. These vehicles are a Ghost and 2 Mongooses. A broken down control room is located in the center of the base, complete with computers and a radio set. This control room is the objective area for CTF and Assault gametypes, in which attackers must steal the flag, or arm the bomb in this room. It is also possible to jump above the control room by first jumping on the crumbling wall, then to the top. This position offers no protection though, and a good sniper can take you down from the beach. To the far left of the base is the "Pipe Room," where attackers can enter the base via a small pipe that connects to the front of the base (A bit of a Metal Gear Solid reference).

The right of the base is mostly indoors, and offers 2 levels of play. The lower-most level can be accessed several ways; by attackers coming through the bunker or multiple entry points from above or ground-level by the base defenders. The upper level is used as a choke-point to keep attackers from reaching the gate controls on the catwalk. If a player is able to access the gate controls, the base wall gate will be permanently opened, just as the gate in Zanzibar or Last Resort would be. The base is designed to promote dual-wielding, and as such, a number of dual-wieldable weaponry can be found behind the base wall.

The base wall is an important area for defenders as it gives them a line of site to incoming attackers. It also leaves them open to Battle Rifle or Sniper fire from the beach as well. The Spartan Laser can be found on the tower on the right side of the base wall. This tower is somewhat vulnerable however, as there are some fusion coils stacked on one side of it. In addition, a Machine Gun Turret is mounted above the main gate. The Rocket Launcher can be accessed by defenders as well, if they quickly rush up and over the base wall, beating the attackers.

Near the top of the base you'll find a tower with a Spartan Laser. Snipers are well-positioned here unless the base has invaded by the opposing team, and if that's the case have either an Assault Rifle, Battle Rifle, Brute Shot or two Maulers. But consider this, it also is the good spot an attack vehicle with an active Spartan Laser. Beware of this tower though, because explosives are very dangerous here with the fusion coils, making the tower very vulnerable to attacks.

Map Overview

 * 1) Beach
 * 2) Base
 * 3) Bunker
 * 4) Bunker Cave
 * 5) Broken Wall
 * 6) Missile Launcher
 * 7) Bunker Cave
 * 8) Beach Tunnel
 * 9) Broken Tunnel
 * 10) Ledge
 * 11) Tower
 * 12) Gate
 * 13) Gate Switch
 * 14) Pipe Room
 * 15) Backside

Trivia

 * A picture of Cortana appears for a brief second on the small computer closest to the flag.
 * "Red vs. Blue" as well as "This Spartan Life" held "transition" episodes on this map, or at least made a reference to the map. These references are used in order to make a smooth transition from Halo 2 to Halo 3.
 * Bungie had set several AIs to man the turrets that were put on the towers of the base in order to test how hard it would become for the attackers to enter. 3 turrets were originally planned, but the firepower was so immense that it was switched to one.
 * The radio inside the fort where the flag spawns transmits three different Morse Code messages. When translated they are "frogblast the ventcore" a reference to Bungie's classic FPS Marathon, "sababwl" an acronym found on the Halo Soundtrack which was a quote from Bungie's Martin back when the original Halo was about to be released, the acronym stands for "shiny and bumpy and bursting with love!" and "Don't make us kick your ass" a classic Bungie saying.
 * The Radio inside the fort where the flag spawns also transmits a musical piece from Halo: Combat Evolved, entitled "Under Cover of Night".
 * A glitch can be exploited in Forge if a player opens the gate and places Fusion Cores where the gate is. By first opening the gate and placing fusion cores where the gate is (stacking, preferably) and putting propane tanks around that in an oval style. Setting the run time to maximum and coming back in another game(any gametype where the gate is closed at the start of a round) with the same saved map will result in the cores continuously exploding, making progress through the gate impossible. A Forge map has been created for this, known as the Wall of Hell
 * There are small fish that can be seen and killed and will wash up on the shore which is strange, because the fishes are elephant fishes and live in freshwater lakes and rivers, but High Ground seems to be set near the sea.
 * It is possible to go deep into the water on this map by overloading it with trip mines then sticking a respawn point out side.
 * Based on the scenery in the distance (specifically the radio antennae that can be seen on the hill across the water), this map appears to be in the same general area as Standoff; they are both located in Africa.
 * There is a hatch on top of the bunker that can be blown open by shooting or jumping on the lock for quick entry.
 * In the piles of trash, there is a paper crane.
 * You can push the bunker hatch back up by deploying a gravity lift inside the bunker, by that very hatch you can see a ladder, which cannot be used.
 * It is likely that the base was under the control of NATO, as several NATO symbols can be seen throughout the map.
 * Even if the gate was left shut in Forge, it will be open in multiplayer.
 * If you go on the side of the Missile launcher and look through it toward the beach, up from the area where the back of the launcher is, you can see that two of the three parts of the launcher where missiles would be held are empty, but one has a missile inside.
 * There have been many sightings of the Ghosts of Halo on this map.
 * On some of the computers in the Control Centre, there are readouts of Pelican Dropships.
 * A good place to hide is behind the Laser Tower; there is a small opening in the wall where there is a stone ledge where players can simply jump over and camp there with the laser, sniper, or rocket launcher.
 * The lake at the foot of the map may have been planned to include a waterfall, but could have been scrapped.The reasons for this are unknown.
 * High Ground has the most number of Covenant Carbine spawn points than any other Halo 3 maps.
 * There is a Multiplayer map on Metroid Prime Hunters with the same name as High Ground. Although, this could be a coincidence.
 * High Ground is the setting for the Machinima, 'Critical Connection'.
 * A popular trick is to use the portable grav lift to get onto the laser tower.
 * The portable grav lift can be used to drive vehicles and jump people over the gatehouse.
 * The bridge has been a fanatic locale for emplacing forts and bulwarks, leading up the Spartan Laser respawn tower where a Stairway to Heaven can be implemented.
 * The Halo machinima "Spriggs" takes place mostly on this map.
 * The machinima "Higher Ground" is filmed on this map.
 * Episode 10 and Episode 15 of the machinima series "Matchmaking" were filmed primarily on this map.

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