March 11, 2008

Crows Nest Addendum

> — Cocopjojo @ 8:48 pm

Download the single-player Legendary saved film:

File Share (slot 2)

Gameplay Tips 

The saved film for this level is 31:27 in length.

The Brutes remain the toughest opponents on this level. In tight, confined spaces, beserking Brutes can be lethal if not quickly stopped. Be sure to always have a BR or Carbine on hand to headshot beserking Brutes.

Just like Sierra 117, one of the most important things to stress here is the tactic of taking cover when your shields are down, and not re-emerging until they are completely refilled. Your shields recharge a lot faster than Brutes’ do – we’re no longer fighting Elites who have to be attacked immediately or else the chance to headshot them is lost. Most of this level will consist of taking potshots at enemies, and in order for that strategy to be effective, you have to always take cover when your shields are down, no matter how close you feel like you may to be taking down your enemy.

Get to the Hangar!

  • Don’t feel bad for the marines on the ‘hog; it’s extremely hard to save them.
  • This part is relatively easy. Headshot the enemies and stay close to cover. Use grenades on the Jackals if you have to.
  • There are plenty of Plasma Pistols lying about; use them in combination with your BR to take down the Brutes.
  • As you move into the hallway, a few grenades should take down the enemies at the end of the corridor.
  • If you’re out of BR ammo, grab a Carbine from one of the dead Jackals.

The Hangar

  • Stay high, and use cover. Keep taking potshots at the enemies, headshotting as often as possible.
  • Wait for the Brutes to get close enough for your shots to be accurate.
  • Oftentimes the Brutes will move onto the level directly below you, walking right up to you, giving you the opportunity for an easy plasma/Spike grenade stick.
  • If you run out of ammo, head up to the overlooking area above; there is BR and Assault Rifle ammo in the room on the right.
  • Let your marines do some damage; they can be pretty effective in this area, since they have the higher ground.

Drones!

  • Keep to the left-hand side of the room, behind the BR crate. Keep inching out and taking shots at the Drones. This may take a long time, but on Legendary, they are deadly with their Plasma Pistols. There’s more than enough ammo to take them all down.
  • This section is very tedious, so just tough it out, and don’t break cover until your shields are full.

Uphill to the Chieftain!

  • This encounter can be pretty rough. When you first enter, they don’t see you, so use this opportunity to get a stick or two; it’s a long toss, but even taking out one or two Brutes at this point is helpful.
  • Be sure to have a Plasma Pistol and a BR/Carbine with you. Keep your distance, and PP/BR them.
  • I like to stay near the shotgun crate on the right, so that if the Brutes get near, I can trade out a weapon for a shotty and shotgun/melee them when they get too close.
  • When you take cover to let your shields recharge, be sure to back further away from the corner than you normally would; these Brutes pack Brute Shots, and the splash damage can easily kill you around a corner.
  • When the Chieftain beserks, deploy one of the grav lifts lying in the center of the area. Keep taking headshots at him, while switching between the lower level and the higher level. In my experience, he’ll keep backtracking to get to whichever level you’re on, rather than using the grav lift or jumping. This gives you plenty of time to take him down, without him ever getting near you.
  • Grab his Hammer before you leave; trade out your Plasma Pistol for it.

Barracks

  • There are a lot of Brutes in the Barracks, but stay behind cover, and take headshots when possible, and this encounter isn’t too difficult.
  • There are ventilation shafts above this area that allow you to progress forward without fighting, but you eventually have to drop down; I don’t find them too helpful since you just end up being pinned in the middle.
  • Whenever there is a lull in the battle, be sure to check for ammo. There is plenty of BR ammunition in this area.
  • Always go for the stick whenever a Brute isn’t alerted to your presence.
  • Once you’ve taken out his subordinates, use the side passages to get near the Chieftain, and take him down with your Hammer.

Brutes! They’ve Got Jump-packs!

  • Brutes typically won’t fire while they’re in the air, so this encounter isn’t too tough. Keep your distance and take shots at them – oftentimes they’ll attempt to get closer by flying, and that gives you a good few seconds to take them down. And if they get too close, you should still have your Hammer.
  • Watch the door on the right; Brutes will come out of it when you’re almost through clearing the pad.
  • Once this area is clear, be sure to head through the door on the right that the Brutes came through. Follow the corridors to the end to find a room with a cloak; grabbing this now will make the next encounter monumentally easier. Break the glass to quickly drop back down onto pad.

Last One Out, Get the Lights

  • The enemies here can be pretty grenade-happy, so keep your distance.
  • Use grenades to take out Jackals.
  • Don’t move out into the open until all enemies have been cleared; there are enough of them in this area to quickly down you.

Ops Center

  • Use the cloak to assassinate the Chieftain.
  • Quickly stick the two Brutes, and headshot the Grunts.
  • Watch out for the Brute up top on the Plasma Cannon.

Escape!

  • Getting out is easy. You’ll only encounter a few Grunts, who will not fire at you, and a couple of Jackals, whom you can run past without even losing your shields.
  • Keep to the right in the hangar; deploy any equipment you have if you need to.

10 Comments

  1. You can actually save the ‘hog and the Marines. It’s entirely possible, though not plausible. Also, there shouldn’t be a sword on the level for you to drop your hammer for unless you kill the Arbiter.

    Comment by Psychophan7 — March 13, 2008 @ 10:02 am


  2. Yeah, you’re right about the ‘hog. I talk a little bit more about it in the full review; from what I’ve read at HIH, it’s possible to save them, but very hard. I should probably reword that at the top.

    And yeah, you’re right about the sword, too! I just went back and checked and, indeed, the Arbiter died and dropped it. Check out this screenshot, and you’ll see why I thought it spawned there:

    But it was so perfectly placed! Haha.

    I’ll make the appropriate edits above, and leave our comments here so folks can know what a noob I am.

    Comment by Cocopjojo — March 13, 2008 @ 10:45 am


  3. I found this helpful, after dealing with the drones, grab the gatling gun way off on a hill to the right and bring that with you. As soon as you enter the room, move off to the right or left and let them come to you. They really can’t do anything while you’re laying into them. I usually get about 4 this way.

    Comment by Still hacking at Legendary — May 26, 2008 @ 11:47 pm


  4. I actually find it helpful to take one of the turrets from the hangar and use it to kill the drones. Tried it out on legendary and it works reasonably well. Plus, it saves a whole mess of time, as you can wipe out most of them before you run out of ammo. Thanks for the tips.

    Comment by NaRc — June 22, 2008 @ 9:30 pm


  5. A good strategy to use when you need to clear the landing pad would be to stay in the lift and shoot out of the holes in the side of the lift facing towards the landing pad.

    The brutes will return fire but 99% of the fire usually doesn’t make it through the small gap of metal you’re shooting out of, you can easily keep constant fire on the brutes using this hole and they don’t seem smart enough to make there way to the door of the lift, and if they do it’s usually only 1 and you can quickly dispatch him.

    Comment by Fusbun — July 8, 2008 @ 9:10 am


  6. One thing I always find Helpful is to grab a deployable cover from the Hangar (there’s like, three) and deploy it in front of the turret.

    Comment by Someguy — August 11, 2008 @ 11:30 am


  7. wow 🙂
    its very unconventional point of view.
    Nice post.
    realy gj

    thx 🙂

    Comment by bad72 — September 3, 2008 @ 1:45 am


  8. you can actually use the Trip mine as a grenade! Once you acquire one on the landing pad, just get close to a Brute and toss it.It will kill the brute or any brutes in the area.

    Comment by Chistian Bethel — April 30, 2009 @ 12:57 pm


  9. There should be a Brute or 2 with a POWER DRAIN in the Barracks. You can use them if you can be quick enough to kill those Brutes before they use them.

    Comment by Deadlock — November 11, 2009 @ 1:58 pm


  10. I forgot to say that the POWER DRAIN also messes up vehicles. I found that out when I destroyed one of my friend’s hornet in multi.

    Comment by Deadlock — November 13, 2009 @ 1:03 pm