**Halo: Reach in MCC — Nightfall, without the forklift shortcut**

**Halo: Reach in MCC — Nightfall, without the forklift shortcut** *Mission spoilers. Conventional campaign route, with advice for Normal, Heroic and Legendary.* Nightfall gives you a sniper rifle, Jun and enough darkness to make the first few shots feel like they should solve everything. They won't. The opening compounds reward patience, but the later defense has Hunters and dropships. Keep something useful for the close fighting instead of carrying two nearly empty weapons into it. Turn on night vision when the terrain disappears into black. It helps with navigation as well as spotting enemies. If you are collecting data pads, the first is beside the starting path; the Legendary one is in the riverbed after the militia encounter. Neither requires finishing the mission first. **The first compound** Follow Jun through the rocks until you overlook the occupied buildings. Before firing, locate an Elite, the elevated enemies and a place to duck back into. You can start with a quiet melee kill if the opportunity is clean, but this is not an achievement that requires you to remain undetected throughout the mission. The sniper is worth saving for shielded targets and enemies that would otherwise pin you down from a distance. Use the pistol or a replacement precision weapon for exposed Grunts and Jackals. On Legendary, finish a shielded enemy deliberately rather than spreading a few shots across every Elite and leaving all of them alive. Clear the near side before crossing the open ground. Watch the upper positions: an enemy above the doorway can keep shooting while you're concentrating on the room below. If you lose your shields, retreat far enough to break their view rather than crouching behind a low object that still exposes your head. At the back, find the building built into the hillside. Its passage connects this compound to the next one. Go through, deal with the defenders on the other side and continue along the path away from the buildings. Jun is useful support, but don't stand directly in his firing lane while trying to line up your own shot. **The Gúta and the militia** The next stretch introduces two Gúta fighting the Covenant. Give the fight a moment to develop before making yourself the nearest target. Their size makes them easy to hit, but their charge can close the distance quickly. Keep room to move and use the terrain to interrupt the approach. Sprint is an escape option here, not a reason to run straight into both creatures. Continue to the settlement where local militia are fighting. This encounter is not a requirement to keep every civilian alive. For a normal clear, helping them makes the area easier to navigate and gives you an opportunity to replenish weapons before moving on. Pick a covered position with a view of the arriving infantry. Don't stand in the center of the settlement trying to cover every approach at once. A precision weapon handles the exposed smaller enemies; spend the heavier ammunition on the shielded threats that are preventing you from moving. Check the supplies while the area is quiet, not while a new group is already firing into your back. The route onward leaves the settlement through the riverbed. Follow that channel toward the hydroelectric facility. **Stop here for Legendary data pad 12** if you need it; passing through the rock arch and rushing on to the next objective can carry you beyond the detour before you notice it. **Clear the pylon area** The large Covenant device near the plant is your next objective. You are preparing it for a later detonation, not trying to blow it up with your own weapons. From the approach, take out the turret operators before exposing yourself on the bridge. Move forward in stages, checking the buildings as well as the structure in the middle. More infantry can meet you as you enter the facility, so don't spend everything on the first visible group and then sprint inside with an empty magazine. There are weapon supplies and health packs around the buildings. On Heroic and Legendary, use this pause to arrange a loadout that can handle both infantry and Hunters. A weapon that is good at removing shields is useful, but you still need a way to damage the Hunters' exposed orange areas. Once the area is secure, Jun starts working on the charge. Stay in the combat area and defend him while the Covenant arrive. Use the buildings as shelter instead of assuming a mounted turret makes you safe; a fixed position also makes you an obvious target. **The Hunter pair** The reinforcement attack includes two Hunters. Keep track of both. Trying to circle one while the other has a clear shot is how a manageable fight becomes a restart. Use cover to separate their angles. When one exposes its back or another unarmored area, put your damage there rather than pouring precision shots into its shield. If you have a heavy weapon, make those openings count. On Legendary, take the extra time to recover your shields between attempts; you do not have to stay beside Jun every second to defend the objective. After dealing with the Hunters, check for surviving infantry around the facility. Follow the objective and dialogue as Jun finishes, then move to the gate. You don't need to force a forklift through it or reproduce a speedrun trick. The conventional route opens after the defense and the mission's instructions advance. **Beyond the gate** There is still a final stretch after the pylon. Expect another Covenant deployment and Shade turrets along the dark route. Remove the operators from cover when possible. Running along the center of a firing lane because the end feels close can undo an otherwise clean clear. Work past the infantry, follow the path beyond the turrets and watch for the red flares near the rocky overlook. Approaching the final viewpoint triggers the discovery that ends the mission. You aren't meant to descend into the enormous Covenant force you can see below. For a first clear, that is the route worth learning: compounds, Gúta, militia, riverbed, pylon defense, then the final overlook. Once those transitions are familiar, a timed attempt becomes much less confusing. The ten-minute target is not a reason to turn a first visit into a blind sprint through every encounter.