My 12-man far area defence series finshes off with a pistol powered triple play!

(6:42) Level 2 ('Halo') on Heroic. Last in a five-movie sequence which began with BCM129, this shows three plays of a rockslide megabattle save featuring a squad of 11 Marines waiting for me to join them in a far area defence against 33 covies. For this finale I use a pistol, which only seems right because for my money the far area defence offers the best pistol shooting in the entire game. If you've never experienced it, you're missing a real treat (check out BCM101 for further pistol work).

Released March 1st 2015, gameplay recorded February 20th-21st 2015.

00:02 (Play 1) To start things off I take a cross-field route, splattering first a Grunt and then a blue Elite. There are so many covies around, it's hard not to splatter someone!

00:24 Having reached the defence area without losing any health bars, I set to work on three approaching Jackals, finishing in time to face an approaching blue Elite. My frag hurts him, and Marine fire finishes him off before my follow-up grenade can blast the hog onto him.

00:42 There are plenty of Elites arriving now. I send a plasma grenade out to one in the rocky semicircle, and it gets him as he tries to dive clear. Silly fellow didn't react fast enough! A closer Elite gets finished by my frag, but a Marine dies from friendly fire at about the same time. Another blue approaches from the left, but my frag shakes him up and I finish with pistol fire.

00:59 Two reds are causing problems now. I get the central one with pistol fire and then manage to finish the second with a frag, though it wasn't a good throw and landed rather short.

01:18 With no Elites left and minor enemies in a tizz, I head forth to clear the area on the right. After getting a yellow-shielded Jackal at far right I turn to make my way back across, using long-range pistol fire to try and curtail Jackal fire on Marines.

01:48 Once they seem safe, I move back towards the rocky semicircle, clearing some Grunts and evading most of their needles. After delivering a headshot on a latecomer, I tag a Grunt then jump over him, then headshoot a Grunt and tag another; a nice little sequence. After killing a Jackal there's just a Grunt left, and he delivers the "Bad bad cyborg!" line as he flees. Luckily there's a nearby plasma grenade to pick up, and I use it to launch him, subsequently scoring a mid-air hit for fun (you can see the blood).

02:21 (Play 2) This time I head right then sweep across the battlefield in a long left curve, splattering first a Jackal who foolishly stopped to point, and then two Grunts. Taking the upper fork, the hog is caught by a plasma ball just before I dismount, and I lose a health bar.

02:48 I see an Elite approaching from the central gap and deliberately let him get closer before throwing a frag. That shakes him up badly, and he's finished with a hail of fire. Over on the left a Marine dies from Jackal fire, but I throw a frag to avenge his death.

03:00 More Elites are arriving now, and in a hectic spree of pistol shooting and grenade throwing I kill four, scoring a nice tag on the fourth around 3:20. The tag sets off a chain reaction, and perhaps the spectacle contributes to my failing to avoid a long-range plasma ball. My shield goes down just as a red Elite arrives, and I lose a health bar to his fire before bringing him down with the pistol.

03:31 After reloading I kill the final Elite without taking a hit, and it's now time to clear the minor enemies. That gets off to a good start with a plasma grenade which kills two Jackals at the semicircle, and meanwhile I also headshoot a close needling Grunt on the right. I never feel under serious threat after that, as I head out and work my way around the the area. My favourite bit is at 4:18 when I jump over a rock and headshoot a Grunt.

04:28 (Play 3) I take a short route through the rockslide, and two Jackals lie in my path. The first dives clear after scoring a hit with a plasma ball, but I splatter the second. The first gives chase, and a plasma ball narrowly misses the hog as I reach the squad. Dismounting, I quickly get him with pistol fire, and then also another Jackal higher up.

04:55 Time to tackle some Elites now. A red advances from the semicircle and dives clear of my frag, but is soon finished by additional pistol fire. I'm aware of a blue approaching on the right, but I first throw a frag at the red on the left. Without waiting to see what happens, I turn around and tag the blue. When he goes flying I get busy on another, who's taken a position near the hog. He backs off from my plasma grenade but gets finished by my frag, which explodes just within range.

05:18 After reloading I notice an inviting cluster of minor covies on the right - notably some Jackals - and throw a quick grenade. It only kills a Grunt and a Jackal, but my pistol fire gets another Jackal before I turn left again. A red Elite attacks the Marines but I tag him on the head.

05:34 The next Elite is a blue coming in from the right, but he's quickly killed by pistol fire. Meanwhile there's a vicious red attacking the Marines on the left, and one Marine dies before I can take care of things. He leaves me a frag though, which helps me kill the last Elite - a blue with a needler.

05:58 There's plenty of enemy panic now, but there's a nearby Grunt trying to needle me. While avoiding his needles I throw a frag which kills two distant Jackals. I was pleased with that, as it was a quick and long throw made under pressure. It makes the right hand side of the area pretty safe now, and it becomes safer still when I shoot a fleeing Jackal dead and headshoot a Grunt.

06:07 Turning back left, there's just a little more work needed, during which I tag a Grunt on his backpack, and then a Jackal on his foot. The last Grunt is finished by a Marine who's out in the open.

Closing remarks This whole 12-man defence series was a lot of fun to do, but I especially enjoyed using the pistol. These three plays were done within a period of a little over three hours, stretching across midnight, and they're also in chronological order.

Once the Elites were killed I could've remained back near the Marines to pick off the minor covies from relative safety of course, but it's a lot more exciting to venture out on a clean-up rampage.

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