The Silent Cartographer (Level)

Looking for Silent Cartographer, the map room?

The Covenant believe that The Silent Cartographer is somewhere under an island, with multiple structures concealing an installation. The Silent Cartographer is a level in Halo: Combat Evolved where John-117 leads a platoon of UNSC Marines in an assault on an island that contains the map room for the Halo Installation.

UNSC

 * Pistol
 * Assault Rifle
 * Rocket Launcher
 * M41 Light Anti-Aircraft Gun
 * Frag Grenade

Covenant

 * Plasma Pistol
 * Plasma Rifle
 * Needler
 * Energy Sword (unusable)
 * Plasma Grenade

UNSC

 * M12 LRV Warthog
 * D77H-TCI Pelican Dropship (Undrivable)

Covenant

 * Spirit Dropship (Undrivable)

Equipments

 * Active Camouflage
 * Overshield

The Silent Cartographer
{Cutscene}

(Two Pelican dropships approach an island, low over the water. You are inside the lead dropship Echo 419)

{Gameplay}

Cortana: "The Covenant believe that what they call "The Silent Cartographer," is somewhere under this island. The Cartographer is a map room that will lead us to Halo's control center. The island has multiple structures and installations. One of them contains the map room."

Foe Hammer (O.S.): "We're approaching the LZ. It's gonna be hot. Get set to come out swinging. Touchdown! Hit it, Marines!"

Sergeant Waller: "GO GO GO!"

and/or

Sergeant Waller: "Pile out people, let's move!"

Marine: "Pile out!"

(Once the beach is cleared of Covenant hostiles)

Marine: "Area's secure. All hostiles have been eliminated."

or

'''Cortana: "Area's secure."

Foe Hammer (O.S.): "Affirmative. Echo 419 inbound. Somebody order a Warthog?"

Sergeant Waller (O.S.): "Hey, I didn't know you made house calls, Foehammer!"

or

Marine (O.S.): "Music to my ears, Foehammer!"

Foe Hammer (O.S.): "You know our motto: We Deliver."

(As the Chief boards the driver seat of Warthog, two Marines occupy the passenger seat and the turret)

Cortana: "Okay. Let's move out. Let's go find the map room that will show us the location of Halo's control center."

(As the team approaches the main building)

Cortana: "There, in the cliff wall; I'll bet the Silent Cartographer is somewhere inside that facility." (On Heroic / Legendary): "They're already inside! We need to get in there quick, before they discover the location of Halo's control center!"

Private First Class Hosky (If he's on the Warthog looking at the passing Covenant Dropship): "Anyone else see what I see? How are we supposed to get around that, huh?"

(As the Master Chief shoots his way into the facility)

Cortana: "The Covenant are putting up a real fight! The Cartographer must be here. My analysis indicates that the map room should be at the bottom floor of this facility. Let's keep going inside."

As the Chief sees the open door leading to the shaft...

Cortana: "Don't let them lock the doors!"

After all the Covenant troops in the nearby area have been killed.

Cortana: "Interesting. I underestimated the Covenant's understanding of Halo's subsystems. They've locked the doors, and we don't have enough firepower to get through them." Cortana (O.S.): "Cortana to Captain Keyes."

Captain Keyes (O.S.): "Go ahead, Cortana. Have you found the control center?"

Cortana (O.S.): "Negative, Captain. The Covenant have impeded our progress. We can't proceed unless we can disable this installation's security system."



Captain Keyes (O.S.):{Slight Pause} "Understood. We're still en route to the objective. I may be out of contact when we get there. {Pause} Here are your orders. I want you to use any means necessary to force your way into the facility and find Halo's control center. We have to get to the center before the Covenant, and failure, people, is not an option."

Foe Hammer (O.S.): "Echo 419 to ground teams. I'll stay on station and keep an eye out for Covenant bogies."

Sergeant Waller (O.S.): "Second squad! Ready to roll, soon as everybody's topside!"

Marine (O.S.): "LZ looks secure Sir, nothing moving.'

Captain Keyes (O.S.): "Good luck, people. Keyes out."

Cortana: "We need to find the security override to get this door open."

As the Chief approaches the path leading up into the island.

Cortana: "It looks like there is a path leading to the interior of the island."

If the Chief passes the substation, which juts out of the cliffs.

Cortana: "Well, there's the entrance to the security substation, but it looks like we'll have to look for another way up."

(Alternative Dialogue: If the Security Station is entered before going to the auto-locking door to the map room.)

Cortana: This isn't the map room. Analyzing... (Pause) This is a security override station for the main facility, located somewhere else on this island. Shut the system down so the Covenant won't be able to lock us out.

Once the Chief shuts the system down...

Once the Chief gets inside the substation and reach the security override, the "Normal" way.

Cortana: Use the holo panel to shut down the security system.

{Cutscene}

Cortana: "We should now have access to the main facility, let's find the map room."

{Gameplay}

Cortana: "Good. That should open the door that leads into the main shaft."

It's Quiet...
As the Chief moves down the hall from the security substation, towards the exit.

Pelican Pilot (O.S.): "Mayday, mayday! Dropship Bravo 022 taking enemy fire! Repeat! We are under heavy fire and are losing altitude!"

Cortana (O.S.): Understood. We're on on our way.

As the Chief exits the substation.

Cortana: "Chief, Bravo 22 was bringing us some heavy weapons. After I saw we were up against Hunters, I thought you could use them. Let's move down the beach. Keep an eye out for any cargo we can salvage."

As the Chief approaches the now-unlocked door leading to the shaft.

Shafted
{Cutscene}

Master Chief walks out onto the platform overlooking the shaft and kicks a loose piece of debris down it.

{Gameplay}

As the Chief moves farther down into the facility, into the third of four levels.

Foe Hammer (O.S.): "Foehammer to ground teams, you got two enemy dropships coming in fast!"

Sergeant Waller (O.S.): "Dammit! Okay, people, we got company comin', let's set the table. Engage enemy forces on sight!"

Cortana (O.S.): "It'll be easier to hold them off from inside the structure. Can you get inside? '

Sergeant Waller (O.S.): "Negative! They're closin' in too fast, negative! (Pause) Chief! You gotta find the Cartographer! We'll keep 'em busy as long as we can!"

Cortana (O.S.): "Give 'em hell, Marine."

Cortana (O.S.): 'We'll be in a tight spot if we don't get out of here before additional reinforcements arrive. Let's find that map."

When the Chief finally reaches the Cartographer.

Cortana: "There. That holo panel should activate the map."

{Cutscene}

The Silent Cartographer holo display begins to spin, and the diagram of Halo begins to break into sections.

Cortana: Analyzing. Halo's control centre is located there. That structure appears to be some sort of temple or shrine, if I've interpreted this correctly. (Pause) Interesting. A shrine is an unlikely place to put such a significant installation.

Cortana (O.S.): "Cortana to Captain Keyes."

Foe Hammer (O.S.): "The Captain has dropped out of contact, Cortana. His ship may be out of range or having equipment problems."

Cortana (O.S.): "Keep trying. Let me know when you've reestablished contact, and then tell him that the Master Chief and I have determined the location of the control center. We'll be heading there as soon as we're topside."

Foe Hammer (O.S.): "Affirmative. Foehammer out."

Once the Chief reaches to the exit of the facility.

Cortana (O.S.): "Cortana to Echo 419. The Chief and I are topside, requesting pickup."

Foe Hammer (O.S.): "Roger. On my way."

As the Chief boards the Pelican.

{Cutscene}

Echo419 lifts off from the platform and rises quickly, circling the center of the island.

Cortana (O.S.): "Let's get moving. Foehammer. Here are coordinates and a flight plan I've worked out."

Foe Hammer (O.S.): "But, Cortana...these coordinates are underground."

Cortana (O.S.): "The Covenant did a thorough seismic scan. My analysis shows that Halo is honeycombed with deep tunnels, which circle the whole ring."

The structure where the first pair of Hunters appeared, lifts up, revealing an underground tunnel; Echo 419 lowers into it as the structure comes back up again.

Foe Hammer (O.S.):' "I hope your analysis is on-the-money, Cortana. This Pelican won't turn on a dime."

Cortana (O.S.): "Look on the bright side, Foehammer. The last thing the Covenant will expect is an aerial insertion from underground."

Echo 419 continues to lower through the structure, the top closes with a bang before everything goes dark.

Easy Walkthrough
This reminds me of D-Day only in a furturistic time,in which there are aliens, spaceships, and faster than light travel is now a possibility. You'll start the level in a Pelican, with lots of Marines to assist you in the beach raid. When you land, switch to your Pistol. Shoot the Grunt directly in front of you in the head. There are three more running around you can shoot. Two more Grunts are to your left, and one is cowering behind a rock. Let your Marines take care of them. Reload your Pistol, and switch to your Assault Rifle. Tackle the Elite charging you with semi-automatic bursts. You should bring it down fairly quickly. There are more enemies over the hill, and a Marine would throw a frag right about now, so hang back unless you want to get blown to shreds. Pick off the survivors, and move ahead. You should have some plasma grenades on you by now, so stick an Elite, and it will take down a lot of enemies. When you face the Jackals, shoot their hands, or you can get a better angle. If you're close enough, whack them. Checkpoint...done. Foehammer will bring down a Warthog for you. Thank you Foehammer. Get in the driver's seat, and bring two Marines with you. Then, follow the edge of the beach. Give the gunner a good angle, and splatter some of them if you can. Eventually you'll reach a slope that is slanting up with an Elite and two Grunts, just run them down or you can leave the job for the gunner.

Moving forward, you'll come a large Forerunner base surrounded, and inhabited by lots of Covenant warriors. Drive right in and run over as many of them as you can, aim for the 4 Elites. Once most of them are gone, get out of the Hog. Follow the narrow pathway, and when Cortana says "Don't let them lock the doors!", stick the Zealot for fun. Kill the enemies, and get back to the Hog. Drive up the ramp, and out of the building. As you come out, take a left, and continue until you reach an incline. If the Jackals didn't notice your Assault on the structure, drive over and kill them. Gather ammo at the overturned Warthog, and squeeze your Warthog into the path (side tip the Warthog) and drive it in. Beware, as some Grunts will stick your Hog, and that will turn out really nasty. Take out your Pistol, and keep close to the wall. Do not crouch, you will be too slow and the Hunters will spot you. Shoot one of the Hunters in the orangey back. If you're quick, you can shoot the other one too. If not, go back for the Warthog, and run at the other one. Either squish it or let the Marines kill it. Pick up an overshield and ammo from the squad of dead Marines (Where do they come from?). Keep going. You will run into another group of Covenant. Run over the Jackals first, since they can drain your overshield quickly with an overcharged blast. Drive around, and suck any unfortunate Covenant under your LRV's lethal wheels. Keep going. You will run into a group of Grunts, and squish them. Leave the Warthog there. Take out your Assault Rifle, and face the Hunters head on. They will be a bit surprised. Pulse the trigger, and whack them when you can until they are dead. Activate the override, and come back out.

Take out your Pistol, as this is the only weapon you will need for this point. Two headshots will kill the Ossoonas as they don't have shields. You can mêlée them with a weapon if they come close enough to you. If you turn on your flashlight it will be easier to see them.

Come out of the structure. The Pelican crashed, and landed a twisted and the Marines lying mangled. You'll see a lot of that in Halo: CE. How sad. Turn on your 2x Snipe on your sidearm. Shoot the Grunts on the cliff, and pick off the Jackals who come to investigate. Although they are at a far range, they can hit you with an overcharged blast. Move slightly to the right and up to shoot the other two Jackals.

At this point, you can do two things: run the Warthog off the cliff, or slide down and use the other Hog.

If you decide to use the Hog, run it down through the trees, and you will get a safe landing most of the time. Pick up a Launcher and drive back to the main structure.

If your Marines are very injured, slide down the rock, flip the Warthog, swap your Pistol for a Launcher, and drive it back to your LZ. Pick up two fresh Marines and drive to the main structure.

Squash the Jackals and drive to the Hunters. I prefer to save Rockets, so drive the Warthog at them, dodge fuel rod blasts, and let them do a bit of undignified jumping around. Kill them.

Enter the structure, and leave the Marines outside the door. You will know why later. Turn to your right and watch the cutscene. Don't jump, as this will cause you more trouble later when you push your way back to the surface. Move back, and whack the Elite in the back. Now, there are two ways to do this. One: you can run in, shooting wildly until they're all dead, or two, you can follow Asmodeus' tactic written in the General Walkthrough (thank you Asmodeus). When they are all dead, keep going.

There is another way down inside this room, and another one outside of it. The one in the shaft allows you to skip half the level, but you'll only survive if you have overshields on. The one inside the room leads one floor down, and therefore is not much help.

Whack all the Jackals, force the two Hunters together, and kill them all with a single rocket. Or you can swap your Launcher for a Pistol at the pile of dead Marines (charming). Keep going. NOTE: If you're feeling bored, you can trick the Hunters into jumping to their death. Stand at the middle of the pit, so that the Hunters will do the mêlée and fall off. When they hit the ground, there's a splatter of orange blood. Very rarely, one will survive. If it does, a grenade should take down what health it has left.

At this point, Foehammer will inform Waller's squad that two enemy dropships are on the way. Shit.

Nothing like a little time pressure to get the adrenaline pumping. Go down another floor. Melee all the Grunts, and give the Elite a barrage of AR bullets. Pulse the trigger, as he will duck and roll a lot.

Move into the Map Room. Stick one of the Elites, and he will most likely wipe out the other one too. If not, shoot him.

Now...time to use well what those Marines on the surface gave their lives for. Activate the map, and head back to the surface. You will mostly encounter Jackals, and whack them, as it would be stupid to fire at their shields. However, if you must kill them, use a plasma rifle or a charged plasma pistol shot from one of the many scattered around the floor. Walk into the room on your right, and take the Active Camo. Move your way back up stealthily, jumping and dodging the enemies. If you really can't resist, whack the Elite in the back and watch the little Grunts panic, scream, and run around. Note that this is a good technique to use through all 3 games. Kill the Elite, and the grunts will run. It is sad to kill them as they flee, but they will just turn and shoot again eventually, so you must.

By the time you reach the room where the Hunters lay dead, your camouflage will run out. Kill the enemies. Collect ammo and move up.

Fire a rocket at the Elite standing outside the shaft, and the plasma grenades on the ground will trigger and kill the Grunts and Jackals. Clean it up.

Aren't you glad you left the Marines at the door? They will provide you with a diversion, and you can easily snap the spine of the scary Elite with the Energy Sword. Get in the Hog and drive to the surface. Run over the Ossoonas and let Foehammer pick you up. If you want a little revenge for the dead Marines, drive to the interior of the island, and kill the five Jackals stationed there.

Foehammer will pick you up for the next level.

Normal Walkthrough
As the level begins, just before the entire HUD becomes visible, press Y (or tab if you're playing on PC). That way, you'll switch to your Pistol. Zoom in immediately and snipe any Grunts you see. (Note: don't worry about burning through most of your ammo and grenades in this first battle, because supplies will become available soon.)

Go at the first Elite, firing until he goes down. If your shield is down, hide behind the Covenant energy shield. Then, charge forward and throw a Grenade between the two Elites, and then handle the Jackals and the Elite survivors with the AR. Now, if you like handling Hunters with your AR, swap your Pistol for a Covenant Plasma Pistol or Plasma Rifle, or better yet, a Needler.

When Foe Hammer drops off the Warthog, get into the driver seat, wait for a passenger and a gunner, then get a move on. You should run into a patrol composed of several Grunts, two Jackals, and an Elite on a small hill. The Marines will gun down the Covenant for you, so you can ignore this group if you want.

Once you round the bend you should see a Covenant Dropship. Stay away from the ramp as the Spirit will fire at you. Then drive towards the structure right into a group of Covenant. They will try to jump away, but try to at least splatter one of them., beware of the Major Grunts as they will throw grenades to disable your men, and will cost you some health. The rest will seek shelter in the structure.

If you drive inside the structure, you should splatter many Covenant, but also risk being stuck by grenades, and also, beware of the Major Elites as they will pour plasma onto you.

Eventually, the remaining Elites should retreat further down into the structure. Get out of the 'hog, and go down and gun them down, or melee them, or splatter them. Use the tight quarters to your advantage. You can't miss. Proceed downwards.

A small squad of Grunts and an Elite is waiting in ambush on the bottom floor, and a Zealot is standing with an Energy Sword behind them. If you're quick, you can throw a Plasma Grenade at the Zealot, killing him before the door closes. If not, forget about it and concentrate on clearing out the room.

Drive the Warthog to the small ridge, where a Warthog with dead Marines are. Collect some ammo and Grenades. Splatter as many of the Jackals as possible, and avoid being stuck by grenades.

Then go up the hill. You should meet lots of Grunts and Elites, and combat will drain your shields, but there are rocks nearby that you can hide behind.(And there are also health packs at the bottom of the hill in case you need them.

Go back to the Warthog, and get in. Drive up to the tree. As you can see, you can drive the Warthog past the tree up the ramp.

This will be a little tricky, but if you can do it, it'll pay off. So, back up a little, and try to get a straight shot between the tree and the rock wall to the left. When you're ready, floor it, and slam right between the left cliff and tree. (Some Major Grunts may throw grenades and tip your Warthog over, but there is always a second chance as you pick up a health pack near the overturned Warthog.)

This part is tricky, and it might take a couple tries. Keep flooring it while carefully moving the joystick to the right. You want to curve around the tree, and turn hard to the left at the right moment. If you did it right, the jeep will crawl through, and you'll be home-free.

Note: Make sure the Covenant are neutralized before doing this. Why? Because these AI aren't stupid. When they see you doing this, they'll know neither you, nor the Marines, will be able to shoot them. So, they'll start shooting you, and have fun throwing grenades.

Now if you flip the Warthog in between the tree and cliff, don't bother flipping it right, because you'll just crush your Marines to death and kill them. Instead, hit pause, and restart the checkpoint.

If you managed to get through, congratulations. You just saved yourself a load of trouble. Drive up the slope, until you reach the next area. At the top of the hill, at a large Forerunner structure, there should be two Hunters. Don't panic. As soon as your free from the annoying rocks, FLOOR IT!! Get moving! and fast, before the hunters blow you and the two Marines to hell. Your gunner will immediately open up on the two Hunters, and the passenger will help.

I suggest driving around the perimeter/ring of the structure. So long as you don't stop, the Hunters won't be able to hit you. If your a good driver, veer off and smash into a Hunter. But, after that, keep moving, because the other will want some revenge.

There are are several dead Marines nearby with assault rifles. If you need to reload, or if you need health, don't forget that there are two health packs and plenty of ammo.

Note: Near the Covenant ammo crates are two overshields. DO NOT PICK THEM UP, unless you're playing in Legendary. You'll need them later.

Jackal investigators will arrive, and begin shooting charged plasma burst at you. They really like to do that here. Drive the Warthog into them, and let the Marines do the fun work. If you're taking heavy fire, I suggest you bail out and use an M6D to snipe the aliens. Once the area is clear, drive down to the bottom and kill whoever is still alive.

Note: You should leave the overshields alone for this reason, because the Jackals with charged plasma pistols will immediately drain the shields, thus making them a waste.

To the right, you'll see a path. Now be careful. This path is thin and you might fall off. I suggest flooring it through there and getting onto safe ground before the Grunts can toss a grenade, or before you fall off. Once you're under the structure, get out and assist the Marines in clearing the area.

If you're a good driver, go back across the thin pathway, and drive over to the dead Hunters. Get one of the overshields, and return to the structure. If you don't want to risk the Warthog, then just run back.

Once you have the overshield, slowly drive the warthog down the ramp IN REVERSE. The idea is to get your gunner to fire through the doorway, and for good a reason. When your Marine gunner is carefully positioned, get out and enter the room. This crammed with Covenant cargo boxes, which looks spooky enough without the darkness in it. However, this spookiness will only escalate when two Hunters emerge.

When you reach this point, I would suggest having either a M6D and MA5B, or M6D and Plasma Rifle. Whatever you choose, make sure you've got the handgun. If you feel like wasting grenades, then do so. Whatever you do, make sure you back up while firing.

Naturally, there will be two Hunters. Back up so your Marine can assist you in taking them out. Other than that, just do your best, try to dodge the Hunters' attacks, and be careful. If they've destroyed the overshield, run to the warthog, and zoom up the ramp. You can also drive the Warthog down to where the Hunters are and ram them, this is a bit tricky but it's very satisfying. If you feel as though you just scratched the Hunters, then take the time to go back to the last two hunters, and get the last remaining overshield there. If not, then there are a couple overshields just to the right of the ramp as you exit.

When your ready, go back down there. Hopefully, the Hunters haven't blown your gunner away. If they did, get the passenger Marine to take his place. As horrible as it sounds, these Marines are expendable for you to sacrifice in order for you to survive. So, reverse back down there, and resume fighting.

I don't know how good you are against Hunters, but if you need to keep getting overshields, then do so. When they are finally dead, go get another overshield if you need it. If not, or you don't have anymore, then forget about it. Hopefully, your Marine(s) is/are still there, and have a good covering point. Go past where the Hunters popped out of, and continue on until you get to a control panel, the security override! Deactivate the locked door. You should see a cinematic, which shows the Zealot emerging from the open door. Looks like a pain-in-the-ass to deal with right? We'll see.

Part 2: It's quiet...
As you return to the Hunter-room, you'll hear a UNSC pilot as he is going down. He says his Pelican is Bravo 22. Two stealth Elites will immediately came out of nowhere, if you got the Assault Rifle, whack it out and spray bullets around, if you have Marines in the Warthog, you will have a lot easier time finishing them off.

When you're done, hop into the Warthog and drive up the ramp. You should get a checkpoint. If you look around the structure, you'll see the wreckage of Bravo 22, and some Covenant around it. Now, instead of driving all the way back down, what you should do next is gonna be cool. When your ready, floor it right off the Structure!!!

Trust me, with the superb suspension in the Warthog jeep, you and the Marines will be fine (provided you land on all four wheels). If not, and either you or the Marines die, just try it again. If you can't make it, then try driving onto the tree branches right under the structure. Whether it's a glitch, or just really strong, the thin trees will hold the Warthog up as it slowly slides down. Quite a short-cut huh?

One thing you'll notice when doing this is the Grunts on the top of the ridge, and the Jackals patrolling below. If your still behind the wheel, and the Marines are still in, THEN MOVE IT, NOW!! What the hell are you waiting for?!? The faster you move, the harder it'll be for them to hit you.

(Note: Just in case you decided to ignore me, then let me tell you what to expect as you cowardly walk the long-way back down to the beach:

There should be a Spirit at the site where you killed the first hunters. It'll dispatch several Jackals, who will be a pain in the ass and pin you down. Once you're done with them, you'll have to drive all the way around to Bravo 22.)

Some good supplies were left at the crash site, complements of your late gentlemen comrades. The most important of these is the M19-SSM Rocket Launcher. This is the first time you get to use it, so grab it and fill up on Rockets (9 rockets is Maximum). Grab some Pistol ammo, and a health pack if you need it. Now hop in the 'Hog and get back to the group of Marines where they fought that battle at the beginning of the game. You will most likely have some broken, battered, bleeding, wounded, hurt, and tired Marines on that Warthog by now...if you even have any left. Once your back at the Marine base, get out and get the two Marines out by walking over to their side of the jeep and pressing X. Once they pile out and walk off, get in and get two healthy Marines. Now, go back the Silent Cartographer entrance.

When you get there, you'll notice two Covenant crates on the beach just in front of the structure. Now, if there is still an overshield there, grab it. Keep driving past the structure, until you can't see it. Closely look at the cliff wall. You should see a black hole in the side. Drive into it. Keep driving through the tunnel, until you reach a left turn. Now, get ready for some action.

Floor it through the rest of the tunnel, and pop out of the exit, right into a Covenant Hunter. This element of surprise won't last long, so use it well. Whatever you do, DO NOT STOP. Stopping is like suicide-by-cop here, because the Hunters will blast the S@#$ out of you. Your Marines should be able to take them down. If your good at driving a Warthog, try to run one over...it's deeply satisfying. You can also force the hunters to jump off and die, and if trying to run one over, pin them between your Warthog...and a wall.

Now, if the idiot Jackals off to the side (where you first came from at the beginning of the game) haven't shot at you yet, floor it over there and slam into them. Once they're dead, drive into the structure, down the ramp. You see another ramp that's thinner. Just force the 'Hog down there. The tires will rub the side, and it'll be slow, but you can do it. Once you're down there, maneuver the Warthog around a bit until the gunner is facing the door. Back him up so that he has a clear field of fire. Now, get out, and go through the door.

Part 3: Shafted
Just for kicks, take a right. Nothing will grab ya.....or will it?

You'll walk over to a long ledge that's like a spade. The game will take control as you:

Watch a cinematic. The Master Chief, MA5B in hand, walks over to the edge and kicks a small bolt or rock over the edge. He leans over and peers down, expecting to hear a clink as the object hits the ground...but it never does. We see a HUGE cavernous area and no floor.

Note: If your playing on easy mode, or have an overshield, and wish to shave a LOT of time off, then take a running jump, and leap off the spade-ledge. If you do it right, you'll land about 3-4 floors down, ruin your overshield, and shave off about 10 minutes of time. However, you'll have a lot more enemies to face on the way up (because you never killed the ones on the way down. So it's them plus the reinforcements.

But let's not do that. Go back to the door. Don't worry, that energy-sword wielding Zealot elite won't show up, yet. keep going, past the door, and move down the hall to find an Elite tapping on his purple box machine. Probably playing X-box on company time! Do his boss a favor and snap his lazy spine with a melee attack. You can hear an eerie hum from the machine as you walk next to it. There's three grunts on the upper level, two awake and one snoring; three grunts on the lower level, two patrolling and one asleep, an Elite, and two grunts on a ledge above him. With that knowledge you have a couple options.

You can simply pick them off one by one from the doorway, but the Elite could prove a bit of a challenge. You could try and catch them all in a couple of rocket blasts.

From the purple box, take a right turn. Head about halfway up the ramp and crouch. You should see a couple of grunts patrolling. Wait for both of them to come to about your position and turn around. Then, once they're both headed the other way, crouch-walk up the ramp, sneak up on them and hit both of them in the back. I'd recommend the pistol melee, as it's faster.

If you stayed crouched through all of this, you are probably still hidden to the rest of the Covenant squad. Just remember, if they see you, haul back to the doorway and use cover to kill them all. Less classy, but also more alive.

Now for the ground level. Head back down the ramp, remembering to crouch. Go through the little door-not the big, open gate, but the tiny little one next to the ramp. Walk just through it and crouch. The grunt are patrolling around the central structure. Wait until they are both facing away from you, then quickly run out and hit the grunt in back. Then duck behind the central structure so that the other grunt doesn't see you. The sleeping grunt should be right there. Melee him and head back to the door.

When the last grunt is headed away from you again, sneak up on him and assassinate him too. Then, head around back up to where the first three grunts are, and look above the elite. There are two grunts there, neither of whom can see you. Plug them in the head, one bullet each. You'll want to do this very quickly, as the other grunt will panic and run away if he's left for too long.

There are three Jackals in the hall ahead. Drop a Plasma Grenade into their midst and wait for the screams to stop. Corridor cleared. Down below, however, is a room with two Hunters and numerous jackals. The room has an outer ring, with the Jackals, and an inner ring with the Hunters. Near the place where you come in, there is a tiny corridor from the outer ring to the inner ring.

This corridor can be very handy. The Hunters won't shoot into it, and the Jackals won't go in there. Sometimes they don't even see you there. In fact, you can sometimes lure each and every Jackal into its entrance and then melee them with your M6D.

Follow the path down to a empty space. Take a few seconds to have a look around, check cover, etc. Also, know the two doors. The one on the left leads to an Active Camouflage, which you shouldn't take yet.

The one on the right leads down to another hallway. There are three oblivious Grunts at the end. Headshot them all. The next room has six Grunts and an Elite. Get as many headshots on the Grunts as you can, then let the rest flee down the shaft.

Drop the Rocket Launcher for a second and grab a Needler. Send shots down after the grunts until they're all dead.

If you jumped, congratulations. Wise choice. Next comes the Silent Cartographer itself, along with an overshield and two Elites. Rockets work well here, but standard gunplay doesn't—these guys are careful, and they cover each other well.

It's all too easy to be overwhelmed by one while you take on the other. Explosives are your friend, anyway. Once they're dead, move in, grab the overshield, and turn on the Cartographer.

Whew. Now that's over with, it's time to get back to Echo 419. Turn around, head back over the two Elites (who are now dead) and head straight up the ramp. This should take you to the Active Camouflage room, where the Jackals have taken up residence.

Dislodge them with some bullets, but for the sake of saving ammo, melee them if you want. Jackals always were a waste of ammo. Now, by jumping at the corner just right, you can get the active camouflage from the upper level. Cool. Now, time to make use of your invisibility. Run quickly out of this room and under the catwalk in the next room.

On the ledge leading up, however, is a pack of five grunts and an elite. Since the pistol isn't that effective in this situation, grab a plasma pistol and kill them.

You're in no hurry, and there are five plasma pistols lying around. But one or two should do the trick just as well. Once all six Covenant are dead, get the M6D back and head up the ramp.

The next room up has, again, three Jackals, four Grunts and an Elite. The Jackals are on the upper level, with the Grunts and Elite down below.

Just keep going up through the levels until you get to the original underground level. The one where you killed those Grunts and one Elite. Be quick and take most of the Covenant forces by surprise. They'll never know what hit 'em. Now, time for the Zealot.

Go back to the idiot Elite who was playing X-box when you whacked him, and go down the hall. Switch to Plasma grenades. I suggest you have a either a Plasma Rifle or MA5b AR. Now once you're at the corner, get ready.

When you turn, you'll see the Energy-Sword Elite standing there. The Marine on the LAAG isn't firing at him, yet. This is kind of funny because it's as if they were waiting for you to join the party. Toss a grenade on the Zealot, and run back down the hall. The Marine on the LAAG will open up, and rip him apart as he explodes. Return to the Warthog. Hop in and drive to the surface. Once you get there you'll see a Spirit drop off several Ossoona elites. Kill them with the Marines' help, and get on the Pelican once it arrives.

Speed Run Walkthrough
As soon as you begin, go the opposite way around the island, until you reach the Warthog. Flip it over and get in it. Drive forward, and go to where the Covenant Dropship is dropping off the Jackals. Kill them and grab the Overshield. It is easier to kill the Hunters if you go to the wrecked pelican somewhere on the island and get the rocket launcher, just look around on the ground and you will find it.

Now drive up the ramp, the same direction you were going in the Warthog. Turn around to go into the structure. Drive through, and turn right, down the ramp, and left. It's hard for the Warthog to get through this passage, but it's possible. Slow down near the end, and turn into the door. Don't worry about killing the Covenant there, just ram the Warthog through the door. If you do it fast enough, you can get the Warthog stuck, and the door won't close.

Now get out, and turn right. You'll go to the Shafted platform. If you are facing out, like a diving board, stand on the bottom-right corner. Walk straight off at an angle. You'll land on the very corner of where you can activate the map. Make sure to grab the Overshield, it is helpful because your health is so low.

Activate the map room and then advance up like in the guide above. Some ways into the path back to the surface, it is possible to grenade jump to an Active Camouflage in a room with Jackals on an elevated platform, which can be used to bypass a large number of enemies, including at least one pair of Hunters. When you get into the Warthog at the end, make sure not to try to drive it out--you can't. Walk outside and get aboard the dropship.

Basis
The first two checkpoints of the level are pretty easy like normal and easy but, after the Cartographer is activated, you are going to have a hellish time getting out of the Silent Cartographer with no Warthog.

Ammo Problems Basis
Okay you heard the basis, you are going to have hell time in here, the enemies will be so strong you're going run out of ammo and have to use your rocket launcher to get some ammo, ranged or bashing.

Guide
You should be able to get the Silent Cartographer activated and away from the area of the Cartographer, but when you should reach a high ledge overlooking the Covenant Grunt, you should be tangling with a Jackal troops and a few Grunt and an Elite commander, use a Needler or a Rocket Launcher to kill most of the Covenant. There is one more goal to you, a empty room with two Hunters and a stack of the plasma bursting Jackals, take cover to make sure the deadly Plasma Pistol bursts of them. Use a rocket launcher to kill the Hunters. The next few battles are easy but the final battle should keep you busy. A Spirit dropship will come firing plasma bursts, then the elites will tangle with you, like the Hunters and Jackals, TAKE COVER! Or you could just go outside and dodge the Plasma bursts erupting from the turrets of the Spirit. Hold out for ten or fifteen seconds until the Pelican comes. In five seconds, the Spirit will flee. The Elites will run to you, get in the Pelican now. Good work, you finished The Silent Cartographer in the second most hardest difficulty!

Trivia

 * Bungie's code name for this mission was B-30.
 * It is possible to save at least 4 of the Marines (besides the two you take with you in your Warthog) by transporting them away from the beach with the two other Warthogs you encounter. But if you somehow get all of the surviving Marines inside of the structure, they will all die for no particular reason.
 * On Easy and Normal difficulties, you sit next to Sergeant Stacker on Echo 419; however, on Heroic and Legendary difficulties, you sit next to an Asian Marine.
 * This level was featured in the Halo PC demo, Mac demo, and Xbox demo.
 * Bungie stated that the Silent Cartographer was sort of a sandbox where they just threw a lot of things in to have tested, like lighting, graphics, new weapons or vehicles. It was never intended to be a level for players to play in, until it later became a memorable, official level.
 * You can get the Marines in the structure, but for them to be alive you need to get them in the Cartographer installation.
 * You also can get the Marines and the Warthog in the security sub-station, but when you return, you will notice the Warthog turned down and only one marine alive.
 * The level was originally going to be a mission to assassinate a Prophet.
 * It is possible to kill the Elite Zealot guarding the cartographer before you actually open the door. Jump around and see whether you can find him through the glass on the door. Then shoot at him and he will go down.
 * If you kill the Zealot behind the door, a second one will replace him after the cutscene of the following objective.
 * The Engineer is hidden in the map's code, and can be spawned with the help of Halo Mapping Tools. Apparently, the Engineers were supposed to be on this level, but were removed from gameplay, but not the map's code.
 * The Marines you left on the surface are not even mentioned as you return for extraction, and Foehammer does not inform you of their status, even if they are KIA.
 * Since this level takes place in an island, this level is some what similar to the multiplayer map Death Island since both maps are islands and its area looks the same.

Glitches

 * In two of the four hunter areas, there is a steep ledge. One, where you enter the Cartographer facility after deactivating the security override. The Hunters will be standing at the place Echo-419 picks you up at the end. Facing the Hunters, back pedal almost to the edge of the ledge. Then, get one to lunge at you. If you time it right, you can sidestep and it's own momentum will send it tumbling down below. On the 3 higher difficulties this will not kill it. BEWARE: It will immediately walk up the hill and back to the area it is supposed to be. This also works with the last Hunter pair of the level. Run past them right to the large drop next to the slope, and repeat what you did before. In the two higher difficulties, this will not kill it, and you can peer at it as it stumbles around, confused, not able to get up to where it is supposed to be. Do not peer too long though, as it will fire it's rod gun straight up, killing you quite easily.
 * If you enter the security terminal without killing off the Grunts and Elites first. They will be toast and blood will be spurted all over when you come out. The same works for the Cartographer, and if you get out fast enough, the normal Elites and Grunts you left behind will die spontaneously while shooting you right as the stealth ones spawn.
 * It is possible to pick up two, probably three, of the overshields. Simply run through them as fast as you can.
 * If you hang around the Pelicans when you are first dropped off, they will not move. On the lower difficulty you can wait for your marines to wipe out the Covenant and a second Foehammer will fly in to give you the warthog. Note: Foehammer is supposed to be flying the dropship Master Chief came in on.
 * You can go through the whole level by going in reverse. When you get dropped off, go backwards until you reach the path into the security override. You can go through about mid through, a marine will say "LZ clear", kill everything, and activate the panel. Cortana will say " Chief, this isn't the map room" The cinematic will start and then Cortana will say " good, now the Covenant won't be able to lock us out." Then go outside, get the the warthog and rockets. Go to where you were dropped off and the pelicans will leave and start battling. You can bring the warthog in and get the marines in turrets. Then the Warthog Foehammer drops off will be there. The Hunters will be there and nobody will be in the installation.
 * When you get into a warthog, drive into the water and you will keep going down until you fly off a cliff. You can get back up the cliff but it is so very easy to get lost as you go deeper. Eventually your warthog may explode for unknown reasons and on your motion sensor red dots will go past. Then you will be attacked. Once there was a tentacle for flood. Or a plasma blast that killed marines.
 * When the cutscene is over and you land, if you walk over to the other Pelican, Bravo 022, it will say "E419" as well as yours.
 * On your first attempt to enter the Cartographer, if you let one Grunt live, it will run up the stairs and kneel on a ramp. Even if you shoot it, it will stay in that position.
 * When you inspect the crashed Bravo 022 after you deactivate the security system, it will say "V933" instead of "B022"
 * If you bring two Marines with you on the Warthog on the second attempt to enter the Cartographer and leave them outside the shaft, they will survive the Covenant dropships' onslaught, although the others won't (There will still be only 2 survivors even if you force all of them into the shaft).
 * After the Covenant lock the door when you first attempt to enter the building, you can kill the Zealot elite by shooting through the little glass window. (With the assault rifle at least. Other weapons probably work, too. The needler does not.) If you don't take an absurdly long time opening the door again, the Zealot will come out of the door and walk over his own dead body. You can also stick him before the doors close, although this doesn't kill him right away, due to the superior shielding of Zealots.
 * At the end of the level, when you have to get in the Pelican, press X like it says to get in, and then press it again, and you should jump back out. The cutscene will then start, but with the Pelican leaving you behind on the platform.
 * When the Marine says area secure, if you are at the hill pass, you will notice the Pelican dropship which drops the "Hog" flying into the Hunter Area and then it will disappear.
 * The Spirit Dropship will appear at the Silent Cartographer entrance and the marines will be saying "Whoa". After this if you follow it down, it will disappear.
 * There is a flipped Warthog on the beach, but if you go into the installation it disappears. You can find a Rocket Launcher near it.
 * On the trial version for PC, if you stick yourself and then get into the pelican at the end, the screen will say "Loading... done" as normal, and then when the grenade goes off,the screen goes black, then goes to a third-person view behind the pelican flying past the tree, then a first person view where the chief would be standing, then fades out to black, then fades in as normal to the cinematic where Sarge tells you to buy the full version. The easiest way to stick yourself is to use the covenant storage containers as a surface to bounce the grenade off.
 * It is also possible (in the demo and in full game) to drive the Warthog into the installation. When you open the door where the Zealot is, the marines in the Warthog will shoot at the Zealot, allowing you to sneak up on it if they do not finish it off first.
 * Your can skip one third of the level. When you walk over to the ledge when you enter the Cartographer, you will trigger the cutscene, there, you should be able to over look the lowest level where leads directly to the map room. There is an Overshield near the Covenant boxes, jump over the edge and you should be able to get the overshield without losing your shield and health. It's a tricky jump as players will often fall to their doom if you could retrieve the Overshield.
 * It is possible,(but very difficult)if you drive the warthog in to the building to jam the security doors open and then by leaving the warthog you end up inside the passage and can go straight to the silent cartographer, bypassing the hunters etc. if you do this Cortana will continue to talk as if you had not.
 * To do this glitch you have to be in co-operative mode. First get you and your teammate into the warthog and drive as far into the water as possible, until you reach an invisible wall. Get your teammate out of the warthog and get him to stand in front of the wall, then slowly push him, and he will go through, free to explore the wide open sea...

Related Links

 * Warthog Jump
 * Death Island