Sacred Icon

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Sacred Icon is a Halo 2 campaign level. As Arbiter Thel 'Vadamee, the player makes their way through a wall filled with Sentinels and Flood, ending in an open-air Elite encampment. The player must defend it successfully from the Flood onslaught before the next level Quarantine Zone starts. This is the first and only level where Jackals are encountered as allies. This is also one of three levels with human enemies ever in the whole series.

Transcript
{Cutscene}

Fade in on Covenant structure.

Sanctum of the Hierarchs, Covenant Holy City, High Charity

Camera pans down, we see a large hallway with rows of Honor Guards, Thel 'Vadamee walks through, close up of 'Vadamee.

'''Vadamee watches as the Jiralhanae take Honor Guard equipment from the Elites. Some Brutes fight each other for choice parts. As 'Vadamee ascends the stairs leading to the Prophet's Inner Sanctum, a pair of former Honor Guard Elites pass by him, without their helmets and carrying Plasma Rifles instead of Energy Staves. 'Vadamee walks through a large doorway, past the new Honor Guard Brutes to where the Prophet of Truth and Mercy speak with Rtas 'Vadumee and two of his Spec Ops Elites.''


 * Rtas 'Vadumee: "This is unprecedented... Unacceptable."


 * Prophet of Truth: "A Hierarch is dead, Commander."


 * Rtas 'Vadumee: "His murderer was within our grasp. If you had not withdrawn our Phantoms-"


 * Prophet of Truth: (slightly indignantly) "Are you questioning my decision?"


 * Rtas 'Vadumee: "No, Holy One! I only wish to express my concern that the Brutes-"

Prophet of Truth holds up a hand for silence


 * Prophet of Truth: "Re-commissioning the guard was a radical step. But recent events have made it abundantly clear that the Elites can no longer guarantee our safety."


 * Rtas 'Vadumee: "I shall relay your... decision, to the Council."

''Rtas 'Vadumee and his Elites leave. He nods to 'Vadamee, who returns the nod. Prophet of Truth speaks to the Arbiter''


 * Prophet of Truth: "Politics (small sigh)... How tiresome. Do you know, Arbiter, the Elites have threatened to resign? To quit the High Council? Because of this... exchange of hats?"


 * Thel 'Vadamee: "We have always been your protectors."


 * Prophet of Truth: "These are trying times, for all of us."


 * Prophet of Mercy: "Even as the humans' annihilation filled us with satisfaction, the loss of one of the Sacred Rings wracked our hearts with grief."


 * Prophet of Truth: "Putting aside our sorrow, we renewed our faith in the prophecy that other rings would be found. And see how our faith has been rewarded."

They turn to a large view screen of Installation 05.


 * Prophet of Mercy: "Halo! Its divine wind will rush through the stars, propelling all who are worthy along the path to salvation."


 * Prophet of Truth: "But how to start this process? For ages, we searched for one who might unlock the secrets of the ring. An Oracle. And with your help, we found it."

They turn toward 343 Guilty Spark, who seems to have been suspended in a gravity beam.


 * Prophet of Mercy: "With appropriate humility, we piled the Oracle with questions. And it, with clarity and grace, has shown us... the key."

Mercy triggers a hologram of the Index


 * Prophet of Truth: "You will journey to the surface of the ring, and retrieve this Sacred Icon. With it, we shall fulfill our promise."


 * Prophet of Mercy: "Salvation for all!"


 * Prophet of Truth: "And begin the Great Journey."

''Fade to black, fade in on Delta Halo. A Phantom flies toward the surface. Cuts to Phantom interior.''


 * Tartarus: "Once the shield is down, we'll head straight to the Library. I do not wish to keep the Hierarchs waiting."

Focus on 'Vadamee, zoom in as he speaks.


 * Thel 'Vadamee: "The human who killed the Prophet of Regret... Who was it?"


 * Tartarus: "Who do you think?"


 * Thel 'Vadamee: (surprised) "The Demon is here!?"

Focus on Tartarus


 * Tartarus: (affirmative snort) "Why?" (re-focus on 'Vadamee) "Looking for a little payback?"

'Vadamee draws a Carbine and readies it.


 * Thel 'Vadamee: "Retrieving the Icon is my only concern."


 * Tartarus: (skeptical laugh) "Of course."

''Cut to exterior panoramic view of Delta Halo's Library, with the Sentinel Wall in the foreground. The Phantom flies towards the Sentinel Wall and stops over a landing. A battle has been fought here recently, as evidenced by Sentinel wreckage and Covenant blood on the ground.''

'''Vadamee drops from the Phantom, which then flies off. Behind 'Vadamee, an Enforcer rises up and slowly advances. 'Vadamee whirls around and fires three shots from his Carbine, to little effect. Suddenly, the Enforcer is hit by a sustained burst of plasma fire and loses its right-back leg. The Phantom flies by, and the Enforcer chases after it.''


 * Tartarus (COM): "Lower the shield, Arbiter! I'll pick you up when you're finished."

{Gameplay}

Uncomfortable Silence
''On the first room, there are some Constructors repairing an entrance. If the Arbiter destroys one, some Sentinels will appear (if on Legendary difficulty, the Sentinels will appear automatically) and will only stop spawning if the Arbiter destroys the Sentinel launchers that create them.''

After the Arbiter jumps into the passageways moving downward, and the first room, he meets a Grunt, who greets him.

''After the Arbiter enters the next room, he finds a group of Grunts and Jackals fighting Sentinels. After he defeats the Sentinels and cuts off any more from entering, a Grunt might speak to him.''


 * Grunt: "Arbiter... our savior!" (pause) "Stupid Jackal, say thank you!"

If the Arbiter stares at the Grunt long enough, or just waits around:


 * Grunt: "If hungry, eat Jackal!"

When the Arbiter moves into the next room:


 * Tartarus (COM): "You're getting close to one of the shield generators. Many of my Brutes have fallen attempting to take it down. Let's see if you fare better."

When the Arbiter stands near the Grunt running toward him


 * Grunt: "Big, scary thing! Run away! Please! Don't make me go back!"

Upon encountering more Sentinels


 * Grunt: "Ahh, more bad things! Arbiter! Protect, protect!"

When the Arbiter reaches the Shield Generator


 * Tartarus (COM): "You've reached the power source, Arbiter."

An Enforcer descends from above


 * Tartarus (COM): "It is useless to attack the Enforcer at the front, especially when its shields are up. Stay in the shadows, wait until it loses interest, then strike the beast when its back is turned."

After the Arbiter destroys the Enforcer


 * Tartarus (COM): "You've reached the power source. Overload the locks holding it in place."

After the Arbiter overloads (or pushes them to save ammo) the first three locks


 * Tartarus (COM): "One more, Arbiter."

Note: On higher difficulties, the dormant Sentinel Launchers in the room will activate and start spawning Sentinels.

After the Arbiter overloads the last one:


 * Tartarus (COM): "Release the power source. Now, find a way to remove it from its cradle."

''The Arbiter uses the holo-panel. The Sentinel Launchers in the room all explode. The platform starts moving and the door in front of him opens.''

Buyer's Remorse
The Arbiter looks up, and sees the bright-green shield surrounding the Library fading away, followed by Tartarus's Phantom flying lower towards the other side of the wall.


 * Tartarus (COM): "Our path to the Library's clear. I'll pick you up on the ledge ahead."

The door of the approaching wall opens to another Enforcer firing on the Phantom.


 * Tartarus (COM): (growls) "Blasted machines! Make your own way through the wall, Arbiter!"

The Phantom leaves, followed by an attack by Sentinels, Sentinel Majors and a break-out of Flood Combat Forms.

Once the Arbiter gets through the wide-opened door in the wall, he reaches a piston at the other end.

As 'Vadamee proceeds through one of the hallways below, his COM link picks up a Marine's transmission.


 * Marine Sergeant (COM): "Proceed to the objective, we'll hold out as long as we can! (screams painfully) Get it off me!"


 * Marine (COM): "Suppressive fire, suppressive fire!"

''The Arbiter rushes towards the source of the commotion and sees in the distance a group of humans fighting a mass of Flood. The parasites usually overwhelm and kill the outnumbered Marines. If any Marines do survive and they see 'Vadamee, they will shoot at him.''

After 'Vadamee reaches the next bottom floor:


 * Marine Sergeant 2 (COM): "Negative, ma'am! They are not Covenant!"




 * Marine (COM): "Cover that doorway!"

''The Arbiter fights through hordes of Flood, Sentinels and Enforcers. He finally drops down to a long tunnel, and reaches the bottom of the wall.''

100,000 Years War
As soon as the doorway opens, an airborne Sentinel Production Facility can be seen in the distance as it is shot down by Wraith mortars and crashes into the Quarantine Zone.

''The Arbiter proceeds through the snow. Orbital Insertion Pods land across the canyon. Elites exit from them.''


 * Elite: "Forerunners be praised, the Arbiter!"

With the Elites' assistance, the Arbiter defeats small waves of Flood.


 * Elite: "This Quarantine Zone has been compromised, we must do what we can against the Flood. Our Commander has landed further in, let us join him."

The Arbiter crosses a bridge and through a tunnel, and meets the Spec Ops Commander, Rtas 'Vadumee.


 * Rtas 'Vadumee: "Arbiter! What are you doing here?"

Rtas 'Vadumee is interrupted by screeches of the Flood.


 * Elite: "The Flood is upon us!"


 * Rtas 'Vadumee: "We must hold this camp until reinforcements arrive."

''After the fight has gone on for a while, a Phantom descends from above, firing on any remaining Flood in the zone. Fades to white.''

Level ends.

Glitches

 * Because Sacred Icon is the first part of a two-part level, your weapons will carry over to Quarantine Zone, unless one of your weapons is a Rocket Launcher. If you finish Sacred Icon with a Rocket Launcher you will start Quarantine Zone with a Covenant Carbine and an Energy Sword.
 * Invincibility can be obtained via a glitch in the part where players fall down one of the tubes to see the Phantom for the first time.
 * When you hear the Marines on the radio for the first time stating they will hold the Flood off, look out the window to the right of you. Three Marines will be fighting a big wave of Infection Forms and Human Combat Forms. If they manage to kill all the Infection Forms, when you follow the path, you will trigger something and the Marines will drop dead. At the second place where Marines argue over radio, three Marines will drop dead after you go around some of the crates. It is possible, with some practice and the Sputnik Skull, to grenade jump across the chasm and land next to the Marines. They will show red in your reticule and will attack you even when you do not attack them.
 * If you look at any of the dead Marines or Brutes throughout the level, you can see their eyes blink from time to time.
 * In Co-op, during the part where you first encounter the Enforcer, if a Flood hits you the exact time you are hit by an Enforcer's rocket you will sometimes be sent across the map onto the top of the area you just came from. However, you cannot return to the area so you must restart the level.
 * You can do the Jackals' Unlimited Plasma Pistols glitch on this level.
 * A little bit after you enter the Flood wall, it is possible to get two Sentinel Beams at once.
 * During the fight with the first Enforcer, if you blow off all its attacking parts, you'll start getting hit by an Invisible Sentinel Beam coming from the Enforcer.
 * If you proceed to power-up all Absorbers without destroying the Enforcer, it (with all Sentinel Launchers and Sentinels) will self-destruct just before the door starts to open.
 * When you reach the section where you first do battle with the Flood, your Jackal (if still alive) may drop its shield and its weapon, though this is a very rare occurrence. (This glitch is made easier if the Jackal is holding a Plasma rifle).
 * In the beginning of this level, turn to the east and you may see a Jackal corpse with Grunt blood. A similar corpse was seen in 343 Guilty Spark, with the same blood.
 * You can make a Flood form freeze by jumping over it repeatedly.
 * Since Jackals are your allies in this level, you can give them Carbines to hold with their shield, and if you fire a charged plasma pistol shot to them, they will drop the carbine and have a full plasma pistol.
 * The Charging Needler Glitch can be performed on this level.
 * If you have a Sentinel Beam, you can activate a Piston with at least 2 melee hits, but you'll have to be close to it.
 * Sometimes the first Grunt you see in the level is invisible.
 * The first Grunt you see can be turned invincible when he falls down the tube. It only works with this one Grunt.
 * In the beginning of the level, a strange weapon can be seen when the Phantom attacks the Enforcer. It appears to be a Battle and Plasma Rifle fused together.
 * There seems to be an unknown glitch that causes your allies to lose their weapons, making them useless to you for the rest of the level.
 * Sometimes if you give your jackal(s) a carbine and reach the area where the Enforcer and Sentinel Majors are attacking the Flood, their carbine will become invisible.

Miscellaneous

 * You can also give the Jackals many other weapons such as Covenant Carbines, SMGs, Needlers, Magnums and Battle Rifles.
 * At times you may initially find two Grunts and one Jackal instead of two Jackals and one Grunt, and on some occasions two Jackals and three Grunts. However, this is quite rare.
 * Occasionally when sliding down the pistons alongside a Grunt, it may die on impact.
 * When the Grunt is sliding down the first piston, it will sometimes stop just before falling onto another slide and refuse to follow you any further. This can be avoided by letting the Grunt jump through first and pushing him down when you jump.
 * This is the first level to have Flood Infected Marines, Sentinel Majors, and Enforcers. It is also the first where you can use Human Weapons while playing as the Arbiter.

Mistakes

 * When a game play starts, for some unknown reason, your Carbine will be maxed out and even though you fire 3 rounds into the Enforcer, your carbine will have a full magazine. This is similar to when the Arbiter shoots at the Heretic Leader's banshee, and no rounds or charge is expended on the weapon.
 * Notice when sliding down the last Piston in the level, there will be snow in the tunnel even though you're inside a fully concealed tunnel. The snow could possibly be Flood ash. More likely this is a glitch that happens because the outside level has been loaded (and the snow with it) causing the snow to show early.
 * One of four Elites who came by Orbital Insertion Pod does not have his energy shield.
 * When you get to the first dead Brute there will be an Elite plasma rifle near his body instead of a Brute plasma rifle.
 * In the beginning cutscene, when the Enforcer is about to attack the Arbiter, the Enforcer does not have its primary shields activated.

Easter Eggs

 * The Mythic Skull can be found on this level.
 * Throughout the level you can find weapons containing more rounds than their capacities, including Battle Rifles, Pistols and Needlers.