Uh-oh, here come the Flood again. Let's see what a mess I can make of them with a needler and shotty…

(6:12) Level 9 ('Keyes') on Heroic. When recording for my previous Flood onslaught challenge movie BCM121 at the end of last year, I really enjoyed the challenging combo of needler and shotgun, so here's a dedicated movie featuring three more rounds of needle-heavy action from around that time, using the set-up seen created in BCM120. I generally try to use the needler as much as I can, switching to the shotty when I see fit.

Released April 19th 2014, gameplay recorded December 24th 2014.

00:02 (Play 1) In this commentary I'll just make remarks on a few things, rather than covering the action fully. At the start of this first play I deliberately send needles into a specific spore to make an explosion which pops plenty. You'll also see that tactic in play 3.

00:47 A carrier gets blown my way and I stand back while it pops. Just after that when I advance, a Flood misses a swipe as he jumps past me. After briefly attacking Flood at the far end, I about-face and let that guy have it almost point-blank, thwarting his second swipe attempt, hee hee!

01:33 Nearing the end, I have a bit of a shotty spree as the Flood pressure me, and I manage to avoid getting whacked a few times. One guy unexpectedly reanimates though, and I take a whack while trying to needle him (I had the needler out to finish off the spores I think). No danger though.

01:59 After killing this last combat Flood, there were actually also a few spores I found around the next corner in the spawning area. But in the interests of maintaining hot action, I haven't bothered to include that triviality.

02:03 (Play 2) At the start of this play I opt for some individual spore popping, in contrast to the explosion tactic of play 1.

02:48 In all my plays I was keeping an eye out for dropped needlers of course. Here, a leaping needler Flood goes down, giving me a chance to grab some more ammo. Just after that, another guy leaps at me and I try to throw a plasma past him, but it tags him instead so I hastily switch to the shotty to stop his advance and save my skin. Phew!

03:05 With combat Flood pressuring and spores all over the place, I bounce a frag off the corner wall as I run clear, and the explosion clears things nicely. An enjoyable tactic, which you'll see used again later in the play at about 3:45.

03:09 Two pistol Flood are attacking. My first shotgun blast fails to put the nearest guy down, but as I move across I time my shot to get both guys at once - although one of them reanimates a few seconds later.

03:35 I'm under pressure but try to stick with the needler. It gets me into trouble though. One of two guys fails to go down when I thought he was going to, and I take a whack. Fortunately the enemy pressure isn't too great though, and I'm able to stay in control.

04:01 (Play 3) For the start of this play I'm back to the explosion tactic with the initial shower of spores. Certainly my favourite way to start.

04:20 After throwing a plasma towards the far end, I'm faced with a whole heap of spores closing in with my back to the doorway, and I try and get them with a plasma blast. Worked ok I think.

04:46 I switch to the shotty for a nice spell of blasting. Part way through, I throw a plasma towards the far end but it's intercepted by a spore and explodes almost instantly. Dang!

05:10 I spend a bit too long trying to get needles into an AR Flood. Nibbling spores help bring down my shield and suddenly I'm in trouble, especially when a Flood manages to whack me (I couldn't shoot fast enough). I could've been dead in seconds, but I manage to keep things together with good movement, some shotty work and a few frags. Only two health bars lost.

05:56 Things look clear but I hear a bit of gurgling around the corner, so I fire a needle to attract attention. One final combat Flood comes running, and gets the remainder of my clip.

Closing remarks In my commentary for BCM121 I mentioned that I was planning to do a whole movie focusing on the needler & shotgun combo - so this is it at last. Watching this old footage, it makes me want to go play the onslaught again. If you've never tried it, you should! It's one of the very best things in the game, so exhilarating.

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