Uplift Reserve

Uplift Reserve is a Halo 3: ODST Campaign level. Played from Dutch's point of view, it takes place in the Uplift Nature Reserve in New Mombasa.

Summary
Uplift Reserve is the chronologically second flashback level of the game. The level opens 30 minutes after the drop, as a UAV observes Dutch walking on the beach of Uplift Reserve. He watches the aircraft fly by, right into New Mombasa, and proceeds to move out of the park through the heavy Covenant resistance, which includes Wraiths and multiple other vehicles. Several Marine platoons are also present in the area, and at one point Dutch is tasked with finding one of them. While driving into the last section of the park, Dutch witnesses the collapse of the Orbital Elevator. In the end, he manages to drive out of the park, through a large gap in the wall surrounding it caused by a piece of the elevator, right into the streets of the city.

Transcript


{Cutscene}

DUTCH

Uplift Nature Reserve

30 minutes after drop

''Two Drone Fighters fly toward the city over the Uplift Nature Reserve, one of the Drone's cameras zooms in on an SOEIV on the beach, and an ODST walking away from it. The ODST is Dutch who watches the Fighters fly overhead. View then switches to Dutch's perspective.''


 * Dutch: "Good hunting, boys... But I'm keepin' my boots on the ground."

{Gameplay}

Dutch heads up a hill to a clearing where Marines are engaging Covenant armor and infantry, a group of Marines are taking cover near an overturned Warthog, one of the Marines spots him.


 * Marine #1: "Trooper, over here! Help us secure this vehicle!"

Together they take out the enemy infantry.


 * Marine #1: "Thanks for the assist, trooper! Get this Warthog movin', our CO needs us to clear this sector."


 * Dutch: "Affirmative."

They engage heavy Covenant armor, including Wraiths, Choppers and Ghosts.


 * Marine #1: "Watch that Chopper! Hit it head on, and it'll tear us to pieces."


 * Marine #1: "Keep movin'! Don't let that Wraith take a shot at us!"


 * Marine #1: "Swing behind the Wraith! It's got less armor in back!"

After defeating the first Wraith, another moves up and a Phantom arrives dropping off reinforcements; those are soon defeated as well.


 * Marine #1: "Colonel! Sector's clear, and we found some backup!"


 * Colonel: Say again, Marine? I got Drones overhead and ONI brass yellin' in my ear!


 * Dutch: "ODST reporting for duty, sir!"


 * Colonel: "Nice of you to drop in, trooper. Head to the next section of the park, to my second platoon's location! They're taking heavy casualties, need immediate assistance."


 * Dutch: "Roger that, I'm Oscar Mike."


 * Marine #1: "Where's the rest of your team, trooper?"


 * Dutch: "Scattered, dead. I don't know."


 * Marine #1: "That's too bad. We're gonna need all the men we can get."

The Marines move to another section of the park where they encounter Shades, Choppers, Banshees and more infantry, the Marines head up the hill taking out the Covenant defenses.


 * Brute: "Warn the Chieftain! The enemy has breached our lines!"

A Brute tries to escape on a Ghost.


 * Marine #1: "Take out that Ghost! Before it raises an alarm!"


 * Colonel: "Trooper, you're almost at second platoon's location. Give 'em a hand and push toward the primary objective!"


 * Dutch: "What is the objective, Colonel?"


 * Colonel: "You know the Covenant Carrier that slipped away from the city? We need to secure its old LZ. Snatch a Tier One asset."

''Dutch arrives at second platoon's location. They are under heavy fire from more Covenant armor and infantry.''


 * Marine #2: "Trooper, this is second platoon! See what you can do about those Wraiths!"


 * Dutch: "Where's the Colonel?"


 * Marine #2: "He's near the Covenant LZ! Once we take out this enemy armor, we can roll across the bridge to his location."


 * Marine #2: "Trooper, drive toward the Space Elevator, it'll lead you to the bridge."

If Dutch takes too long:


 * Marine #2: "Move your ass, trooper! Get across the bridge, now!"

As Dutch and the Marines cross the bridge, the Space Elevator, already weakened from the Slipspace rupture, implodes in different sections and collapses, sending debris flying for miles.

A part of the elevator crashes into the building Dutch and the Marines are driving to.
 * Marine #2: Look, the elevator! INCOMING!!!


 * Dutch: "What the hell just happened?"


 * Marine #2: "Slipspace rupture! Must have weakened the support rings."


 * Colonel: "All units, (coughs) target assets are...on the move. Everyone clear the area...before more debris comes down. (coughs)"


 * Marine #2: "Colonel? Sir? Damnit, he's gone. Trooper, head up the hill! We gotta find a way outta this park."

If the player stops:


 * Marine #2: "Keep driving uphill, trooper. It's the only way out!"

Dutch soon arrives at the Assault Carrier's old LZ, where a group of Marines are pinned down by more Covenant troops.

''If Dutch drives over to the Marines, one of them has broken his ankle. Although a Medic is tending to him, the first Marine has lost his mind.''


 * Crazed Marine: "No, no, no! You're not listening! It's a zoo, okay?"


 * Medic: "Well, technically it's a corporate-funded wildlife reserve."


 * Crazed Marine: "Semantics! This whole place is one...big...cage!"


 * Medic: "Listen, Marine. You're wounded, you need to try and relax."


 * Crazed Marine: "Except we, we're the zebras. All fenced in...and ready for the slaughter!"


 * Medic: "And the Covenant?"


 * Crazed Marine: "They're the lions...RAAAR!"


 * Medic: "Careful. I think you just strained a metaphor."


 * Crazed Marine: "Oh, oh god! Is that...serious?""


 * Medic: "Only if you keep it up."

Dutch finally reaches the top of the hill, and is faced by one final Wraith, a War Chieftain and many Covenant forces.


 * War Chieftain: "Let no humans escape, to say what they have seen!"


 * Marine #2: "Find a hole in the wall, trooper! Drive right through it!"

If Dutch stalls:


 * Marine #2: "Trooper, there's a hole! Floor it!"

If Dutch further stalls:


 * Marine #2: "Make the jump, now!"

Dutch drives off the cliff, into the streets below.

{Cutscene}

''Dutch's Warthog/Ghost/Chopper flies off the cliff and lands on the streets below, bouncing once, then crashes into a building. Dutch falls out after the bounce, and his helmet falls off.''


 * Dutch: "Uh, Lord? I didn't train to be a pilot. Tell me I don't have any more flying to do today."

''The view switches to a Superintendent camera that is watching as a Drone Fighter crashes into a monument. The Superintendent's avatar shows the "sad face" image. The optics detaches from the fighter and crashes to the ground, where the Rookie later finds it. Dutch gets up, helmet in one hand.''


 * Dutch: "So...was that a yes or a no?"

''The vehicle Dutch was driving previously explodes behind him. He turns around to face it.''


 * Dutch: "Amen."

Fades to black.

Level ends.

Trivia

 * Despite the mission being 30 minutes after the drop, it is shown that Dutch has only just left his Drop pod. This can mean that either Dutch was unconscious for a short period of time or was simply overlooked by Bungie.
 * There is an achievement called Wraith Killer which requires the player to destroy every Wraith encountered during the course of the level in order to be unlocked.
 * Near the Covenant landing zone with the gravity lift base, where a group of Marines are taking cover behind a ridge, there's a crazed Marine with a broken ankle, and another Marine trying to calm him down. This is likely a reference to the AWOL Marine in Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 3's suicidal marine.
 * The Covenant landing zone appears to be an aesthetically upgraded version of the one encountered on The Truth and Reconciliation in Halo: Combat Evolved.
 * In the area when you encounter the first Shade turrets, if you turn left towards the shore you will see a dead zebra that has no eyeballs. There are also two more zebras located near the entrance to the section of this level.
 * This is possibly the easiest level to get Vidmaster Challenge: Classic, by getting in a Ghost or Chopper and boosting until the end of the level.
 * At the end of the level, the vehicle you use will always be the one in the cutscene. You can use a Warthog, a Ghost, or a Chopper. They will have the same speed when the vehicle lands and plunges into the wall, and will blow up at the same time. If you jump off without a vehicle, the Warthog cutscene will play instead.
 * Wraiths in this level self-destruct if the pilot is killed, much like the Anti-Air Wraiths in Halo 3. However, they can be commandeered using the same method.
 * Because the Wraith was not intended to be used for this level, if the Wraith is sent over the cliff using the above method, it will transform into either a Warthog, a Ghost, or a Chopper.
 * Even if you have a fully manned vehicle, when you jump the cliff, the vehicle you are using will be empty, except for Dutch.
 * During the Second Warthog fight when you drive over the hill inside a tunnel, allied warthogs will either stop near the Ghost on the rock or drive around in front of the Tunnel. It is possible to move them into the next area but they may drive right back to the start. This is probably an AI navigation error in the game code.
 * In the first two sections of the reserve with the open beaches, Old Mombasa can be seen across the water. Barrages of anti-air fire can be seen flying into the air from an unknown point of origin in Old Mombasa.
 * At the part with the Checkpoint loading exactly when a UAV passes overhead if you die or revert to last Checkpoint (if you did not get another Checkpoint) when the UAV passes overhead it doesn't make a noise.
 * When you reach the bridge where you get to view the space elevator collapse, if you look up above the doorway at the other side of the bridge you can see a section of the New Mombasa Coastal Highway, the same thing happens when you get to a certain section of the Highway.
 * The Firefight level Lost Platoon is based on this level.