The Silent Cartographer/Walkthrough

Usable

 * Pistol
 * Assault Rifle
 * Rocket Launcher
 * Plasma Pistol
 * Plasma Rifle
 * Needler
 * Plasma Grenade
 * Fragmentation Grenade
 * M41 LAAG

Non-usable

 * Energy Sword

Vehicles

 * Warthog
 * Pelican (non-drivable)
 * Spirit (non-drivable)

Equipment

 * Overshield
 * Health Pack
 * Active Camouflage

Part 01: The Silent Cartographer
Players start with an Assault Rifle with a full clip and 240 rounds, a Pistol with a full clip and 72 rounds, and four Fragmentation Grenades. Nine marines will also follow you, all with an assault rifle.

Two Pelicans will fly you to an island. Predictably, Echo 419 will drop you off. The Landing Zone is filled with enemy Covenant. While in the Pelican, switch weapons so that when you get off, you will pull out a pistol. Snipe the Grunts in the head; this is important because your Marines have trouble with them in later difficulties. Once done, attack the Elite. It is best to use your marines as a distraction while you pummel him down with a Needler or your pistol. I recommend switching your Assault Rifle to a different weapon by this point, preferably a Plasma Pistol.

Continue on to the next two waves of enemies. The second group will have an Elite and several Grunts. As they are on higher ground, you can't snipe the Grunts. Rather, use your secondary weapon to melee them. Once they are all gone, try moving behind the Elite and meleeing him, otherwise use an overcharge shot on him and then headshot. Move to the last wave of enemies. There won't be any Grunts, but there will be Jackals and Elites. Kill them all. Use your plasma pistol to drop the shields of the Jackals and Elites.

Once you have eliminated the Covenant, Foehammer will drop off a Warthog. Now you have two choices. You can save some time and go clockwise, and only go to the Cartographer once, or you can use the Covenant as target practice. If you chose the first one, you should see a warning in bold. Skip to that part, as the next part won't concern you. If not, read on and follow the walkthrough.

Follow Foehammer counterclockwise and keep driving. Ignore the Jackal, he won't do anything, and plow through the Grunts and the Elite, then move up. You'll see a dropship. There are about five Jackals there, with an overshield. Take it if you want, but you don't need it. Kill the Jackals and then move up the facility. There are four Elites and a pack of Grunts up there. Plow through them and watch out for grenades. Drive the 'hog down the ramps and kill the Covenant. The doors will lock anyway, so don't worry. Drive up again and go left. You should be unopposed until you come across a path.

ALTERNATIVE METHOD WALKTHROUGH BEGINS HERE

Drive up that ramp and straight into the group of Jackals. or you can drive the warthog up the ramp but not so much that the Covenant can see it. Then, slowly walk up the ramp to the top and throw a fragmentation grenade in the middle of the group of Jackals, killing them all (Note: you must have a frag for this, plasma does not have a big enough radius, but will still work fine). Kill the remaining Grunts and Elite. You may try to take your warthog with you into the interior of the island via the path with the large tree partially obscuring the entrance. If so, accelerate to full speed and drive through the gap and slowly turn right. Leave the warthog and polish off the Covenant. Then move up the path with the 'hog.

Hope that you have Marines, but if you don',t there is a massive ammo cache ahead. There are also two Hunters. When the 'hog gets through, drive round the hatch, the slow-moving fuel rods can't touch you. If you didn't bring the Warthog, the pistol is best for use against the Hunters. After you have killed the Hunters, a small group of Jackals will appear over the hill on the opposite side of this small canyon. Once you have killed them, proceed up the path from which they came. There is one Elite, two Jackals and a few Grunts down there, eliminate them as you see fit. When you reach the security facility, there will be grunt. Head down the ramp. Walk forward until your Motion Tracker scans two large blobs. Let the Hunters see you, then walk back up the ramp. Wait until things quiet down, then go back. Those Hunters should be standing in non-combat position. Fire a quick volley of shots from your pistol. You can use the Needler, but chances are they’ll bounce off the Hunter’s shield. Once one is down, the other will open fire so repeat what you did before. Give him another volley from either weapon and proceed down the hallway to deactivate the security system.

Part 02: It’s Quiet
Proceed down the hall you just came from and enter the room that previously held Hunters. You will be met by Elites with Active Camo. They are unshielded so simply find them and kill them with a flurry of bullets. If you are playing on a harder difficulty, you may wish to try and just run through the room to the ramp. They will not follow you into the room but will stand at the doorway. You can then shoot them down or stick them if you wish. If you would rather, just ignore them. Head up the ramp and to your right there will be three overshields. Pick one of these up. Now take your pistol and snipe the grunts off of the mini island on the beach. You now have two options. You can go back the way you came, kill a number of Jackals and make your way to the Warthog, (assuming you left it behind) and proceed around the island. The other option is to look two your left of the cliff you are standing on next to the overshields and find a small narrow slope. Position yourself looking at the slope with the lower part below you and the higher part in front of you. Walk onto it being careful to hug the wall. Turn around and walk down the slope and off the end and fall the remaining distance to the beach. You can kill the Jackals or ignore them. Grab the Warthog and drop your Assault Rifle for the Rocket launcher if you choose. Drive the Warthog around the island the same way you have been for the duration of the level until you get back to the structure with the locked door. There will be a small party of Jackals waiting nearby the facility, just run them over. In front of it will be two Hunters. You can use the Rocket Launcher on them or my personal choice, the pistol. Drive the Warthog into the hallways of the facility as far as you can go and to the right down the ramp. You'll need it later. Proceed down the corridor and back to the locked door. You should see that it is now unlocked and open.

Part 03: Shafted
Method 1: You can take a right and see a short movie clip or just proceed to the left and down the hall. Melee the Elite in the back who was standing with his back turned to the door. Now carefully get a idea of your surroundings. There is a Elite out of the door right next to the dead Elite with a column almost immediately. Around that is an Elite and a Grunt. There will be other grunts circling the floor and a couple on a balcony circling the top of the room. Eliminate these anyway you wish. To your left is a door that immediately on the other side of there are jackals. Kill them and proceed down the ramps. In the next room there will be Jackals on Patrol in a long U-shaped hallway. Here is also a weapon stash. In the adjoining room are a pair of Hunters and sometimes a Jackal. Kill them and proceed down the ramps just behind them. In the next room there will be a door on the floor level which you can enter and immediately turn left. Sitting there just for you will be your very own active camo. Grab it and jump off of the platform you are standing on. Melee all of the grunts and Elites and proceed down the ramps to another control room. Activate the map (the Silent Cartographer). Head back upstairs. On your way upstairs you may notice a Overshield. Grab it. There is a Catwalk in the room where all the Grunts and the elite were. Walk up the ramp and follow the Catwalk to some ramps at the end. Kill the Jackals on the ramps and proceed up it. On the other side of the door you will face about eight to ten Jackals and directly above you but unable to hit you are a group of Grunts and an Elite. It is suggested that you kill the jackals with your pistol from a distance if at all possible. Then move quickly to the ramp on the opposite side of the room. You should climb this and see the Elite and grunts on opposite side. You may snipe them or walk around the hallway to engage in close quarters. When you have eliminated all opposition in this area, proceed down the hallways to meet several Jackals. Kill them and proceed up the ramp to the room which originally had the Hunters in it. There is a group of Jackals on the left side of the adjoining room and a party of Grunts and an elite on the right. Eliminate them and stock up on ammo. It is entirely your choice as to whether you keep you rocket launcher or not, but I suggest that for now, you do if you still have any rockets. Proceed to the upper level and remove the Covenant in that first room you encounter after the "Shafted" text that appeared on your screen. Then proceed very cautiously into the hallway that leads back to the originally "locked" door. In that doorway there is a Golden Elite with an overshield and an Energy Sword. I suggest that you pop around the corner and stick him with a Plasma Grenade and run. Your Rocket Launcher works well too. If you were successful in sticking him, your work is short. If you didn't, remember that he is faster, better shields, and the Energy Sword is pretty close to a one-hit-kill if it isn't exactly. But, if you were careful, you still have some rocket ammo! Once you have killed him head to your Warthog. Drive your men to the top of the ramp and prepare for Elites with active camo. Once they are killed, Echo 419 will come and give you a ride. Hop in, you're done!

Method 2: An easy way to skip half of this chapter is to get a full Overshield and go to where the cutscene activates where Master Chief kicks that pebble down to the bottom of the chasm. Walk to the right edge and look down to where the Overshield should be in the structure. Jump all the way down there and if you keep holding forward you should land right next to the Cartographer. The fall will only wipe out your Overshield and there is one right where you landed. Please note though that you will have to fight twice the amount of enemies to get topside again.

Part 01: The Silent Cartographer
Normal way: When you get dropped off, quickly look to the left, switch to your pistol, and headshot the two Grunts who are trying to flank you. Switch your Assault Rifle for the Plasma Pistol one of them drops, and clear the remaining Covenant using the Noob Combo that you just picked up. There will be plenty of Plasma Pistols, so don't worry about running out of ammo. If you prefer, you can use the Needler, but the Jackals will be a problem. Use grenades as appropriate. Most of the time, all of your Marines will die.

E419 will drop a Hog when all of the Covenant are killed; you'll need it. At this point, you can turn around and drive back to the point where you were deployed; see the alternative way. If you choose to continue the normal way, you will encounter several Jackals. One is hiding in the rocks by the shore; do not let him flank you. Splattering will not work for all of them because some are on the large rock; you must get out if you want to kill them. You can use the nOOb Combo or the LAAG. If you choose the latter, be prepared to get out when you see an overcharged shot; these are frequent on Legendary. Continue around the island, and deal with the squad of Grunts and Elites on the hill.

After the sharp turn, you will find a few Jackals. Splatter them, then drive onto the platform. There will be a large squad of Grunts and Elites at the entrance to the main shaft; you can deal with them using splattering, the nOOb Combo, or the .50 caliber turret. There are 4-5 Elites inside the first floor of the structure, 2-3 of which are Majors. If you step out into the main hallway, you will die in seconds. Use Plasma Grenades to kill them, then drive (or walk) down the ramp. Kill the Covenant in the room by the locked door on the second floor (don't worry about the Zealot yet) and return outside. If you want instead, you can park the Warthog so that it faces the shaft and the driver's seat is essentially in contact with the locked door. When you get out, you will glitch through it.

If you are completing the level without glitching, kill the Jackals near the beach (splattering works well), then continue counterclockwise. Save the overshield. Drive up the ramp, but stop before you jump off.

Quick way: After being dropped off, or at any point along the normal way, turn around and go clockwise around the island. You will not encounter any resistance until you reach the path to the interior of the island.

Normal way resumes here

There will be about eight Jackals; you can use a frag or your Warthog. If you came here without a Warthog, you will find one overturned in plain sight near the shore. If you are running low on pistol ammo, there is some next to the overturned Warthog. There is also a health pack. There will also be several Grunts and two Elites; kill them however you would like.

Go past the tree into the pathway. Look to your left for Covenant, or you will be ambushed. Many of them carry Needlers, so be ready to take cover. Kill the Covenant here; grenades work well.

You will have come to the center of the island. There is an ammo cache and two health packs slightly ahead. You will now have to deal with two Hunters, but if you're lucky, you can take one out before they notice you. Get close and sidestep their melee attacks. Quickly shoot them in the back before they turn around for a one-shot kill. Although you are on Legendary, it still takes a direct hit to deplete full shields. The two overshields can be useful. Do not use grenades because the eight you are carrying are simply not enough to kill both Hunters.

After the Hunters are defeated, you will encounter several Jackals, then a field of Grunts, Jackals, and Elites. Kill them as you would like, then continue to the entrance to the security substation. Kill the Grunts, then enter the substation. There are two Hunters in the room full of Covenant drop pods; it is possible, although difficult, to kill them without alerting them. If you do alert them, kill them the same way you killed the two in the center of the island. There are three overshield powerups just outside the substation; they can be useful here. Deactivate the security system behind the Hunters.

Part 02: It's Quiet
As you leave the substation, you will have a rough-in with 5-6 stealth Elites. They don't have shields, even on Legendary, so they will die to headshots. Alternatively, you can stick them, and if you have an overshield, you can simply run past them.

You can leave the way you came, but you will encounter Covenant resistance. You can simply drop to the beach at the expense of an overshield. But the best way to leave is to look down from across the overshields. The cliff is broken by a sloping face; by sliding down, you can skip the Covenant resistance and the fall damage. Before you leave, you may want to pistol-snipe the Grunts on the rock by B022. You will not be able to kill all of them. There are several Jackals, but trying to nOOb-Combo them from where you are is pointless because they will sidestep the overcharged plasma shots. Be wary; they will shoot overcharged shots of their own, and these will take out overshields. After the Covenant are dead, you can pick up the rockets that Cortana mentioned. I recommend it. If you have picked all of them up, you will have a fully loaded rocket launcher and 7 spare rockets. But from now on, Jackals will be a problem. Use grenades against them. If you left your Warthog by the path to the substation, flip the one that B022 was carrying when it crashed and use it.

When you get back to the entrance to the main shaft, you will find two Hunters. If you skipped this part, the original squad will still be here. Splatter the Hunters to save ammo. Then go back to the second floor. I recommend driving to it. The door is now unlocked.

Part 03: Shafted
At the end of the first tunnel (if you go by the cutscene, you can jump with an overshield to the lower floor to the cartographer unharmed), you will find a Major Elite working with a drop pod; use this opportunity to assassinate him. Note the location of the door, but do not use it. Instead, go up the ramp to the “balcony”, quietly, and kill the sleeping Grunts. You will not be able to kill all of the enemies in this room without alerting them, so be ready for a fight.

After you clear this room, go down the ramp to the third floor. There are a few Jackals and a pair of Hunters. Kill them, but save your rockets if you have them. Next to the main shaft, you will find yet another ammo cache. This is where you drop if you glitched earlier. It is possible to drop from this cache onto the overshield powerup on the sixth floor without dealing with the Hunters; the few seconds of invincibility you have while your overshield charges will negate the fall damage.

If you do not choose to do so, go down the ramp onto the balcony of the fourth floor. There will be no resistance here, but the area from here to the bottom is somewhat labyrinthine. There is another ramp, although you may drop if you prefer, to the floor. There are two doors; take either one, but if you take the one on the left, you will see an Active Camo. It is best to save this powerup. The door on the right leads to the fifth floor balcony. You will be ambushed by a Covenant squad; kill it. You can either go to the main shaft, and there will be a ramp onto the sixth floor and an overshield (this is where you land if you choose to drop), or you can go down another ramp. Either way, you will deal with a Major and a Minor Elite. Try to remember a way to get back up.

Activate the Cartographer and watch the cinematic. When it is finished, head back up to the fifth floor. Get to the balcony and head toward the fourth floor. You will encounter some Jackals on your way up. You can shoot your way out, but it is recommended that you leave to the fourth floor, turn right, and then head back to the fifth floor through the door on the left that I mentioned earlier. You will meet two Jackals; lay waste to them. Now is the time to grab the Active Camo. Then rush back up the way that you memorized. Try not to bump any enemies; they will notice you if you do. Depending on what route you choose and how quickly you run it, your Active Camo should expire somewhere on the third floor. If you are quick, you will have just passed the hunter room. Leave the hunter room to the right, and you will encounter a squad of Unggoy led by a Major Elite. Blast them with a rocket if you have one; aim for the Major's feet, and it will kill the Elite and most of the Grunts. If you do not have rockets, throw a few frags. Those that remain should not be a problem. Go back to the second floor, and walk directly out through the door. Kill the Major and Minor Elite near the one you assassinated earlier with a rocket. Go back through the tunnel just after the Shafted cinematic. Be very careful; there is a Zealot. His energy sword does 151 plasma damage, which is a one-hit kill. Kill him with a rocket, then get back in your Warthog.

Drive back up to the first floor and get out. There are too many Stealth Elites to rush past in your Warthog, so you must switch to the .50 caliber turret or blast them with rockets. Wait for E419 to show up, then get on board.