BCM238 - Rockslide megabattle, 12-man far area defence, AR x2

(6:11) Level 2 ('Halo') on Heroic. After the plasma combo used in the last movie, I switch to an AR which is one of my favourite ways of fighting this battle as it makes things way harder and really pushes me. There's some good work here, but in both plays I end up going down to only one health bar due to getting a bit too gung-ho near the end. Need to be more careful!

Released May 14th 2017, gameplay recorded May 11th-12th 2017.

Commentary

00:02 (Play 1) One Grunt gets splattered on my way to the squad. A Jackal attacks before I've got hold of an AR, but he comes under a hail of fire and I join in to quickly finish him off.

00:33 Moving down the slope, I decide to try a bit of ambush mischief by crouching behind the hog. When an Elite turns up I step out and drill him, getting assistance from a Jackal's plasma ball. I lob a plasma at the hog as I back off, hoping to catch any Elites who get near it, but they stay distant. Around this time Johnson throws a frag which appears to kill three Grunts ("Hah! Cancel Christmas!"), but he's killed moments later, in a phase where I help finish two Elites with the aid of frags and AR fire.

01:14 When I start to advance I see a blue Elite take a plasma ball in the back, and I try to finish him with AR fire then a frag, but he escapes. My frag shunts another Elite forward though, and then a Marine frag finishes that guy off. A red Elite soon advances, but gets badly weakened by AR fire and killed by my plasma grenade. A blue Elite dodges around near the hog - I guess that's the guy who got hit by a plasma ball earlier - but goes down from AR fire.

01:39 For a while I take care of some lesser enemies, including fragging a Jackal on the right, but then a red Elite advances to the hog. He doesn't get time to do much damage though. My frag sets off some loose plasmas which take him out in spectacular fashion, sending the hog flying. I see him drop three plasmas, and I eagerly scoop them up.

02:00 After pulling off a nice tag on a yellow-shielded Jackal on the right, I start working on covies to the left. They're pretty aggressive though, and by the time I get into the rocky semicircle (enjoyably whacking a fleeing Grunt just ahead of me) I'm down to four health bars with a bleeping shield.

02:30 I really should've paused to do a bit of recharging, but after lobbing a plasma grenade I get a bit gung-ho and leap out, feeling that the covies are about to start running away. The grenade kills a Jackal and AR fire also takes down a Grunt, but moments later I'm under attack from four covies who are encouraged by my bleeping shield. I'm exposed too long and come within a whisker of death, especially thanks to a vicious needling Grunt, but I manage to escape; and after a bit of recharging it's easy to finish the battle.

02:57 (Play 2) Driving a different route, a blue Elite dives clear along the way and I don't take a single hit. At the defence location I'm soon busy killing the first attacking Elite (after doing a jump which was going to be over Johnson's head, except he dived left before I got there).

03:27 I throw a plasma to take out a Jackal on the left, then help the Marines kill a blue Elite with AR fire. After drilling a fleeing Grunt on the right, I switch attention to the left and soon take out another yellow-shielded Jackal with another well-placed plasma. I also hurt a blue Elite with a frag, and try to finish him with AR fire, but there's so much dust that I lose track of him. In fact he advanced, and gets finished by a bit of Marine fire moment later (4:02).

04:03 The chaos continues, and pretty soon I finish off a red Elite who gets hurt by a Marine frag near the semicircle. Just after that, I sneak a frag past the hog to kill a blue Elite on the left. Had to be careful with that throw, in case I hit the hog. After fragging a panicking Jackal (who almost got away), I charge a red Elite who's advanced to attack the Marines, drilling him good before backing off to safety.

04:33 Only one Elite left now, but he's holding back. I attack various minors but take damage and eventually crouch behind the hog for cover. While I'm there I throw a long-range plasma towards a Jackal near the tree on the left, and it gets him.

04:58 Now recharged, I get bold again. Dry on grenades, I'm tempted out into dangerous territory to pick up a plasma, which I quickly throw towards a yellow-shielded Jackal on the left who tried to get me with a plasma ball. The blast isn't seen but it must've got him, and a Grunt is killed too.

05:09 Meanwhile I've moved to the right but start to get into a bit of bother with Jackal fire. When I emerge from behind a tree I take Elite fire too; the red has ventured out and taken me by surprise. By the time I get back to relative safety I'm down to five health bars, and I take a bit more damage when trying to help out with a Jackal and Grunt on the left.

05:33 The red is now attacking the Marines, and although I'm not recharged I decide to risk aggressive action. I charge the red and drill him dead, but it takes me down to my last health bar and there's a Jackal beyond who doesn't turn to flee. Fortunately I catch him with a bit of AR fire which makes him pause, and then he rolls too, giving me enough time to close in and finish him. Close call!

05:48 Once I start to recharge, I'm ok, and quickly get through the last four covies, ending with a nice tag on a fleeing Grunt.

Closing remarks Ok, this may be the last time you see this set-up for a long time. I've used it for a load of movies by now, and I need to give other battle plans some attention. In particular I need to do more battling at the plateau and nearby. I still need to do some set-up tutorials too; I've got those planned out actually. Coming soon? We'll see.