Halo 2: Delta Halo — from the ODST landing to the Honor Guards

Halo 2: Delta Halo — from the ODST landing to the Honor Guards *Halo 2: Anniversary in The Master Chief Collection. Mission spoilers. Conventional route for Normal, with Heroic and Legendary advice.* Back with Chief, back on a Halo ring, and finally a chance to put a tank between yourself and some of the things shooting at you. Enjoy that part. Delta Halo eventually takes the tank away and sends you through a valley full of snipers. This route clears the landing zone, accepts the vehicle support and follows the level normally. No mountain shortcut, broken bridge jump or out-of-bounds route. The Prophet of Regret's actual boss fight is in the next mission; this one gets you to the lakeside structures. **1. Clear the ruins above the landing pods** You start with a rocket launcher and SMG. Move toward the ramp leading up to the ruins, taking cover from the elevated Shade turrets. Rockets are useful against those emplacements; give yourself room to fire rather than catching a nearby wall with the blast. Get a battle rifle from the available UNSC equipment or an ally when you can. The SMG is fine up close, but the upper structure has a Jackal sniper you need to deal with before wandering into its view. Use the side approach and solid walls to break up the defenders' sightlines. Clear the turret positions, sniper and infantry around the building. Don't stand at the bottom of the hill firing at an Elite while a gun above you has an unobstructed shot. On Heroic or Legendary, a plasma pistol and battle rifle are a useful pairing once weapons are on the ground: strip the Elite's shield, then finish with precision fire. That is an option, not a requirement to throw away every remaining rocket. **2. Hold the landing area for the Pelican** Clearing the first defenders isn't the end of this encounter. Phantoms bring further Covenant groups into the area. Watch where each group lands and reposition between waves rather than settling into one corner for the entire fight. Stay out of the dropship's direct fire. You want to fight its passengers after they land, not trade shots with the ship while the passengers spread around your cover. Use gaps between waves to reload and pick up ammunition. Check the lower floor and approaches if the next wave doesn't seem to arrive; an enemy left behind the building can keep the encounter going. The late reinforcements include cloaked Elites. Look for their outlines and weapon fire, and keep space between yourself and a sword carrier. On Legendary, don't count on a charged plasma shot tracking a cloaked target for you. A clear precision shot or a grenade placed on the actual target is preferable to firing blindly at its last location. Once the landing area is secure, the Pelican delivers a Warthog. Let a gunner board before leaving if you have a surviving Marine available. Restock first; you don't need to drive away the instant the vehicle touches down. **3. Reach the bridge-control building** Follow the outgoing trail through the canyon. There are Jackal snipers along the approach, so don't park in the open to admire the next area. Keep moving between protected positions, or stop behind cover and remove them with a precision weapon before continuing. The route brings you to a chasm and a retracted bridge. The building beside the crossing contains the control you need. Ghosts and infantry defend the area, with Wraith fire another reason not to linger on exposed ground. Approach a building entrance, park where you aren't stepping directly into enemy fire and clear the interior on foot. Use a doorway to control the fight rather than rushing into the center of the room. Activate the bridge control once the room is safe. The bridge extends across the gap. **Terminal stop:** the collectible terminal is also in this bridge-control structure, in the room with the Prophet's hologram. It is separate from operating the bridge. Switch to Anniversary graphics and interact with the collectible panel before leaving if you're collecting terminals. **4. Take the Scorpion across** Wait for the Pelican's Scorpion delivery rather than immediately charging over the bridge in the Warthog. You can take other approaches, but the tank is the straightforward choice for the next stretch. Deal with the Wraiths before putting yourself halfway across with nowhere useful to retreat. Watch the sky for Banshees as the fighting develops. A target behind you is still dangerous even when the cannon is pointed at a Ghost ahead. Cross the bridge after reducing the immediate opposition. Keep enough distance from nearby Marines that turning the tank doesn't run them over, and check your firing line before sending a shell through a group containing friendlies. Don't confuse the Scorpion's armor with immunity. On Heroic and Legendary, stop at a position that lets you fire into the next area while keeping some cover available. Driving into the middle of several vehicles merely gives all of them a clean angle. **5. Push through the vehicle courtyards** The route continues through large passages and open ruins. Use the cannon against Ghosts, turret positions and distant concentrations of enemies before moving close enough for them to surround you. As each courtyard opens up, check the opposite structures and higher firing positions. You don't have to drive right up to a turret to identify it. Take a shot, let the cannon cycle and move forward when the immediate threat is gone. Eventually you reach a larger square area with a substantial central structure and defenses around it. Clear the outside first. Cortana calls attention to Covenant coming from the building as you approach the next route. The Envy skull detour is in this later ruined complex, not back at the bridge-control terminal. If you're collecting it on Legendary, use the separate route before committing to the next on-foot section. Leave the Scorpion in a cleared position and approach the building's shielded entrances on foot. Don't spend the next ten minutes trying to wedge the tank into every narrow opening. Bring weapons suited to infantry combat, not an empty launcher you're only carrying because it was useful at the landing. **6. Clear the inner ruins and prepare for the valley** Work through the defenders at the entrance and into the inner courtyard. Use the walls and ramps to separate the fighting instead of standing in the middle where enemies on different levels can reach you. Friendly support joins this part of the advance. Watch your grenades when Marines are moving into the same space. Keep a precision weapon available, because the next outdoor section is not another close-range room. As you reach the stream and waterfall area, remove the nearby Jackal sniper and take its beam rifle if you need a long-range weapon. Check its remaining charge. Picking up an almost empty rifle isn't the same thing as being equipped for the whole valley. **7. Move through the sniper valley a section at a time** Before dropping into the lower clearing, inspect the opposite ledges and the ground below. Kill visible snipers from cover rather than jumping down and trying to locate them by the direction of the shot that kills you. On Legendary, give each new angle its own check. Move a little, stop somewhere protected, scan, then continue. Don't remain zoomed in while walking; that makes it too easy to miss another enemy entering from your side. More threats become visible as you progress. Drones are part of this section too, despite the chapter heading making it sound like nothing but Jackals. Keep a weapon that can handle a moving close target, and use the rocks or cave mouths to limit the angles they can attack from. Follow the route through the clearing toward the far-side cave passage. Collect fresh ammunition from the available Covenant equipment along the way. Don't pass up a charged beam rifle and then discover your last shot was spent on the first Drone. If a new group activates ahead, pull back to a position you've already cleared. Forward progress doesn't have to mean fighting from whatever exposed spot happened to trigger the next enemies. **8. Enter the lakeside structure** Coming out toward the lake, you have a view of the temple and its elevated defenders. Use that view before descending. Remove the visible snipers, watch for Drones and then move down the approach. There is UNSC equipment near this final stretch. Restock and choose something for the close fighting inside while retaining a useful ranged option. A sword can be effective, but you don't need one to complete the encounter. Inside, the Honor Guard Elites are the final obstacle. Watch for sword carriers as well as ranged fire. Back away from a charging Elite, break its shield or land a plasma-grenade stick, and finish from a position where another guard isn't already reaching you. Don't rush into the back of the room after the first guards fall. More enter the fight. Clear the remaining defenders and let the mission's ending sequence trigger. That is Delta Halo finished. The gondola journeys and the confrontation with Regret come next; you haven't missed them by reaching this room without seeing the Prophet in person.