Relic Approach

Relic Approach is the second level of the real-time strategy game, Halo Wars. During the mission, UNSC forces are on Harvest fighting their way through a snow-capped valley to stop the Covenant from detonating a bomb inside of a Forerunner structure.

Primary

 * Get Alpha Base Online
 * Build a Supply Pad
 * Build a Barracks
 * Train five Marines
 * Fight your Way to the Structure in the Ice
 * Enter the Structure
 * Destroy the Detonator

Optional

 * Destroy the Covenant Base
 * Kill 20 Jackal Snipers (This will unlock the level's skull).
 * Rescue all Trapped Warthogs
 * Destroy the Covenant Methane Refinery

Skull: Grunt Birthday Party
To obtain the skull, you must kill twenty Jackals. Once that is accomplished, the skull will appear at the southern end of Alpha Base.

Black Box #2
To the north of the Methane Refinery, there should be a shield barrier. The Black Box is located behind the barrier along with some methane tanks and supply crates. There are some Jackal snipers on a platform guarding the black box though, so be careful when sending infantry in.

Cutscene
Scene opens with Sgt Forge crawling to the edge of a cliff over looking a Covenant encampment.

Sgt. Forge: Let's just take one last look-see.

Forge takes out a pair of binoculars and observes an Elite, identified as an Arbiter, overseeing the Covenant activity, the Elite is approached by another.

Arbiter: The Hierarchs grow impatient! We can delay no longer!

Zealot field master: What if the infection defiles the Relic?

Arbiter: I care not for your little life...open the Relic.

The scene cuts back to Forge, as he watches Grunts open the doors to the Relic.

Forge: Well, well, open sesame.

The Arbiter looks behind him at Forge's location, the Sergeant no longer there, the Arbiter walks towards the Relic, the Level begins.

The scene then cuts to a view of the Spirit of Fire, then to the ship's Observation Deck, turned into Anders' makeshift lab, Cutter enters attempting to avoid the scattered equipment.

Captain Cutter: What made you choose my observation deck as your lab, Professor?

Anders: I like the view...it adds...perspective to my work.

Captain Cutter: Forge doesn't think it's safe for you to go down there yet, he's quite insistent.

Anders: I can be quite insistent too Captain, I can take care of myself.

Captain Cutter: Any idea what it is we've got down there?

Anders: It's all theories right now (this could be a reference to a level in Halo 2 when Sgt. Johnson said it was all theories and politics), and I'll know a lot more once I get down there.

Captain Cutter: I'm approving the misson, but the slightest sign of danger and I'm pulling you out. Is that understood?

Anders: Understood, Captain.

Anders leaves with a slight grin, a view screen shows the Relic entrance, then it changes to the actual Relic, we hear the Arbiter in mid-conversation with a Hierarch.

Arbiter: Hierarch, the Humans are closing and will soon be upon us!

Regret: No matter, the information you have gathered here is most appetizing.

The scene cuts to the interior of the Relic and it is shown the Arbiter is talking with the Prophet of Regret, who is there via hologram.

Regret: However, we must protect what we have learned here. Set the charges and destroy this place.

Arbiter:(taken aback) Destroy this holy relic? Surely you jest!

Regret:(annoyed) The Journey requires sacrifice! Set the charges. Return to us! Our patience is not infinite!

The Arbiter bows.

Arbiter: It will be done.

The Arbiter turns away.

Gameplay
Captain Cutter: Serina, we need to re-establish Alpha Base before we can proceed with the mission.

Serina: Captain, the base power system is offline and a lock down protocol is in effect. If we rebuild, the lock down will end the doors will open. Projection for new base location ready.

After base is constructed

Serina: The base is up and running again, we need Supply Pads built so I can send down materials.

Serina: The Command Center is online, but it can't house Marines, we'll need a Barracks to call in the troops.

Captain Cutter: We need to establish a larger military presence on the ground.

Serina: Keep constructing buildings and updating them where you can. The lock down is lifted and the front gate is opening, I've highlighted the area where Sergeant Forge found the structure.

There are now two ways you can go, through the gate closest to your base, or the gate to the left of the base, the following is if you choose the gate nearest you.

Serina: I'm picking up a lot of Covenant chatter around your position, looks like they're setting up defenses.

Forge: Take cover in those downed Pelicans! Move!

The Marines make their way up to a Covenant base

Forge: Well, well lookee here, the Covenant built themselves a little base.

Captain Cutter: Our primary mission here is to reach that structure, destroying that base is a secondary objective.

You can choose to engage the base or not, destroying it can be difficult, if not done properly.

If you loose all your troops attacking the base.

Serina: Well that didn't go as planned.

Serina: I've lost contact with some Warthogs out on patrol, keep an eye out for them will you.

''The following is if you go out the left gate, or go around from the front gate, note: if you go from the front gate it will be in reverse of what would happen if you went out the left gate. These will be in the latter.''

Forge: If we blow up these refineries the enemy airpads will go with them, nice!

Bravo-29: Alpha Base, this is Bravo-29 I can drop reinforcements at that landing pad if you can remove all hostiles in that area for me.

Serina: Here's some extra reinforcements, play nice.

Eventually UNSC forces breach the barrier blocking the entrance to the relic.

Intense fighting occurs as the UNSC slowly makes their way toward the entrance.

Once they reach the entrance they see the Covenant trying to blow up the relic.

Captain Cutter: If the Covenant detonate those explosives our mission here is over, get to the detonator!

The UNSC forces successfully destroy the detonator, saving the relic.

Captain Cutter: Good work, prepare for new orders.

Bravo-29: Alpha Base, this is Bravo-29, heavy inbound, I've got the Professor aboard.

Level ends

Walkthrough
The second level of Halo Wars takes place on the reestablished Alpha Base that you opened in the Last Level. You now have the opportunity to build the Base from scratch.

When the level begins, you are prompted to build the Command Center for the base. Simply highlight the lighted area and select station from the building menu. Once you build the station, Serina will tell you to build a Supply Pad which will produce resources to allow you to be able to produce more useful upgrades. Choose an empty building plot and select supply pad. Once again, you will be asked to build another building, a barracks. The barracks will allow you to train infantry units. After you build a barracks, you will be asked to train five marine squads. Simply select the barracks and highlight marine, and select it five times. After you train your squads, you will have the option to build structures on your own. You may want to upgrade to a fortress which will give you two more spaces to build on. Keep building more structures until you are comfortable with what you have. I do recommend building a Vehicle Depot, but after that it is up to you.

After you train a few infantry units and create a few Warthogs and Scorpions, you will be ready to do what the mission was for, proceeding toward the relic that Forge spotted. Select all of your units and follow the blue arrow. Once you get to the large field with Covenant guards, it's time to think strategically.

First of all, when you select all units, you should highlight the crashed Pelicans in the middle of the field and press X. Your marines will use them for cover, preventing them from being damaged. Use your vehicles to attack the sniper towers and finish off the ground troops when you are ready.

Once you take out all of the Covenant in the field, eject your marines from the cover by selecting the pelicans and choosing "Eject". Press up on the D pad and choose heal and repair from the circle menu. Try to get all of your units to enter the diameter of the green circle, so that you can heal your units and make them ready for the next battle.

If you lost some of your units, you can go back at any time and train more units. Make sure your army is at the maximum capacity, or wherever you are comfortable at. Once you are ready, proceed up the field.

You will see a Covenant base up ahead of you, which is an optional objective if you wish to destroy it. If not, proceed down the road following the blue arrow.

There will be a shield barrier preventing you from accessing it without using marines. Enter it, blow up the shield generator, and get out.

Behind the shield there will be various Covenant units, including ghosts. Use your marines grenade ability (Y) to destroy the ghosts, as well as your vehicles. Use Scorpions to destroy the sniper towers and take out all individual remaining units one by one. Once all of the Covenant units are down, proceed down the road to a large Detonator. Using all of your units, use their Y ability to blow it up and finish the mission off.

Once the Detonator is blown, your squad will proceed into the relic and investigate the Forerunner structure.

Trivia

 * This is the first level to feature the Cobra and Scorpion and the first level were you get to build a base and train units.
 * When the Arbiter is talking to the Zealot, what appears to be Sentinels can be seen in the background exploring the relic.