Gears of War 2 Walkthrough

Gears of War 2 #1 from GamesPress
Gears of War 2 #1 from GamesPress

The Story So Far...

  1. The story of Gears of War takes place in an alternate reality in which humans live on a world known as Sera. The humans of Sera are much like those of Earth, and have spent most of their existence fighting wars over land, politics, and natural resources.
  2. The last such large war, known as the Pendulum Wars, was over an energy-rich fuel substance called Imulsion, which was discovered under the surface of Sera after the planet's fossil fuel reserves were exhausted. The Coalition of Organized Governments, or COG, came out on top during the conflict.
  3. Toward the end of the Pendulum Wars, when humanity was at its weakest, a horde of monstrous enemies called the Locust literally erupted from the ground and began slaughtering humanity. This event is known as Emergence Day, and the war with the Locust that followed has lasted for 15 years.
  4. Players control the character Marcus Fenix, a decorated soldier of the Pendulum Wars who was imprisoned during the beginnings of the Locust conflict for disobeying orders.
  5. Marcus is pardoned in the first Gears game and rescued from prison by his friend, Dom. Through the course of the first game, Marcus is promoted to sergeant and made the leader of Delta Squad, a group of soldiers that includes Dom and soldiers Baird and Cole.
  6. Delta Squad successfully detonates a weapon of mass destruction in the Locust Hollow at the end of the game, but we find at the beginning of Gears 2 that the weapon was less effective than the COGs believed it would be.

Basic Training

Getting Around and Taking Cover

  1. Gears of War 2 employs a third-person perspective, in which the camera is always displays the action over Marcus' shoulder.
  2. You can steer Marcus at a jog with the Left Analog Stick in order to get around.
  3. To move more quickly, hold the A Button to Roadie Run, which causes Marcus to duck down and run more quickly. However, he can't corner sharply or turn well.
  4. Taking cover behind objects is key to the combat of Gears of War. You can stick to almost any object by approaching it and pressing the A Button.
  5. To leave cover, press A again to stand up. You can vault over low cover by pressing Forward on the Left Analog Stick and pressing A simultaneously.
  6. You can also run around the corner of cover into a Roadie Run by pressing Forward and Left or Right (around the corner) and holding down A.
  7. If you need to exit cover quickly, you can dive by pressing to the Left or Right on the Analog Stick and hitting A.
  8. Finally, you can move from one piece of parallel cover to another that's nearby the same way you would dive from cover, so long as the second cover position is close enough.
  9. If you need help finding a teammate or an objective, hold the Left Bumper to bring up your TAC/COM screen. It tells you your objectives and gives you the location of your teammates.

Fighting the Horde

  1. You can select from your various weapons using the D Pad. Pressing Up accesses your pistol; Left brings up your smaller rifle or shotgun; Right for your larger rifle; and Down for grenades.
  2. In order to stay alive long enough to defeat your enemies, you have to take cover from enemy fire.
  3. While under cover, you can fire your weapon without aiming over the top of the cover by pressing the Right Trigger.
  4. To stand up and take aim on your enemies, hold the Left Trigger to aim from the shoulder. You can then fire with the Right Trigger.
  5. You can use any weapon from your arsenal when blind-firing. You can also fire from the hip, without aiming, when not in cover. Aim from the shoulder with the Left Trigger while standing, but you can only walk slowly while aiming.
  6. Pick up any weapon off the ground, in addition to extra ammo, by using the X Button. You can also kick down some doors or interact with objects like buttons with X.

Campaign Walkthrough

Act 1: Tip of the Spear

Welcome to Delta

  1. Start by following Dom and Carmine as they move through the area. You'll first get a tutorial in taking cover.
  2. Collectible! The Eagle Newspaper. Near where Carmine gets into cover, you'll see a rectangular newspaper on the ground. It's directly in the center of the road, just past the truck.
  3. Get down by pressing A. Continue to follow the other soldiers and take cover near the bottles.
  4. Shoot at the bottles with the Right Trigger. When you're done, you'll be trained in reloading with the Right Bumper.
  5. ACHIEVEMENT ALERT! When reloading, you'll be presented with a bar over which a slider moves. If you hit the Right Bumper again while the slider is on the slightly brighter area of the bar, you'll reload faster. Hit it at the brightest, smallest part of the bar and you'll reload faster and get a damage bonus to your bullets. Hit that spot 30 times and you'll unlock the Once More, With Feeling achievement.
  6. Head to the right and climb the small wall there with the A Button. Hit A to get into cover, then again while pushing forward on the Left Analog Stick to climb over.
  7. Continue to the gate. Kick it open with X.
  8. There are some grenades on the ground up ahead. Grab them with the X button. Stock up to four and access them by pressing Up on the D-Pad.
  9. Throw a grenade up into the window by holding the Left Trigger to aim it and throwing it with the Right Trigger. Then heal your teammates with the X Button.
  10. Follow your teammates, then cut through the barrier by holding the B Button. Head inside, then take the ladder down on the other side of the structure.
  11. Collectible! Ambulance Driver's Log. Turn right instead of going left and head to the room just ahead. Go left and approach the desk against the wall. Hit X when prompted to pick up the Ambulance Driver's Log. Finding items like this adds them to your War Journal on the Start Menu, and also goes toward the Collector Achievement.
  12. Return to Carmine and Dom and go through the fence.
  13. ACHIEVEMENT ALERT! Completing the training nets you the Green as Grass Achievement.

Desperation

  1. Go through the door to the right. After a short cinematic, you'll head deeper into the hospital.
  2. Up the stairs you'll need to take positions against the walls looking down into a courtyard. Get set up and wait for the Locust attack.
  3. Wait for the Locust troops to all get inside the room, then pop up and blast the blue tanks in the center. They'll explode, clearing out all the enemy soldiers.
  4. Collectible! Doctor's Journal Head left from where you entered this area and take the hallway there. You should see a door open on the left side. Go inside to find a piece of paper on the ground that goes toward your Collector.
  5. Fight your way along the path to the left, then take the door you come to. Continue fighting through the hallway and into the room you enter at the end.
  6. TIP: When the room is clear, run quickly to the left and find a door there. Inside this side room are grenades, and a convenient cover position to take up as the next enemy rushes into the room.
  7. Head through the door and check the alcove to the left for grenades. Then descend the stairs.
  8. At the bottom, you'll see two Locust soldiers opening fire on Dom and Tai. Kill them from behind.
  9. Collectible! Jacinto Medical Center File. In the reception room you just entered, check behind the desk where the two Locust were to find another collectible for the Collector Achievement.
  10. TIP: Go through the double doors back along the path that Tai and Dom took to find more grenades before proceeding.
  11. Follow your comrades through the door with the green light. Grab cover as you enter the courtyard and take on the retreating Locust there.
  12. After a second, a Reaver will drop into the middle of the fight. Blast it and it will fly off.
  13. Follow the retreating Locust. Head down the hall and check the side rooms for grenades.
  14. Take cover and clear the Recovery Room. Go through into the hallway.
  15. TIP: In the center of this area is the cafeteria, which will fill with enemies. You can flank them by following the hallway around to the sides and entering from there.
  16. Collectible! COG Letterhead. Take the hallway to the left of the cafeteria, or cross it heading left. It's the room just before the blue-tinted kitchen. You'll find a side office room with another collectible inside.
  17. TIP: If you go through the kitchen, you'll come to a gray door on the left. Kick it open to find a walk-in freezer that houses some ammo.
  18. Go through the cafeteria into the next room, which has a second story. You'll be attacked from above almost immediately.
  19. Break left (or right) and go to the stairs there. Head up and grab cover, then blast the Locust that attacked you.
  20. When you're clear, go to the middle of the room and take the door. Go down the hall and enter the next two-story room. There are grenades to the left as you enter.
  21. Collectible! COG Proclamation. Before going down the stairs, run to the right and take the path there. You'll find some ammo and your fifth collectible, netting you the Collector Achievement. Next you'll be looking for more collectibles to earn the Pack Rat Achievement.
  22. Go down the stairs and jump into the center reception area, behind the desk. The power will go out and you'll be attacked by three waves of Locust drones. Use your Y Button as they enter to zero-in on their locations.
  23. When you're clear, round up any ammo you might need from the Locust corpses. You can also check the rooms the Locust attacked you from for ammo boxes.
  24. Go through the door at the front of the room and meet up with Carmine. Then head out onto the hospital steps to engage more Locust.
  25. Collectible! COG Tag. Go to the right of the door where there's another cover barricade. Spin around and look in the corner to the right, where a piece of molding juts out from the wall. You'll see a set of Cog tags that will go into your collection for Pack Rat.
  26. Clear a path and head down to the street via the far left staircase. Shoot any Locust you can flank.
  27. Move up when you have clearance to do so. You'll soon see a broken window to the left. Head there and jump the wall to get inside.
  28. Run down to the other end of the building and flank the drones outside. Kill all of them, then move out.
  29. Head down the street to the left and clear out the last of the Locust. You'll end the mission when you're finished fighting and receive the It's a Trap! Achievement.

Rolling Thunder

  1. You start this next mission aboard a massive rolling Derrick, a huge troop carrier.
  2. Collectible! Grindlift Notice. Turn around toward the back of the rig. On the left side of the round part of the wall is a square piece of paper. Grab it for the collectible.
  3. Things go to hell pretty quickly. You can move up and use the turret at the front of the vehicle, or you can grab cover along the edges and use your own weaponry.
  4. First, you'll need to defend from the nemacyst mortars. They all come from the front of the rig, so orient yourself and shoot them as they come at you.
  5. TIP: The turret is pretty much your best option here. It takes a second to get moving, but the chain gun has more ammo and is more powerful than any other weapon you carry. However, watch out for it to overheat, as indicated by a bar in the top right corner of the screen.
  6. When the mortars are destroyed, you'll be attacked by Reavers. Quickly turn to the left to see one matching speed with your rig. You have to kill this Reaver to advance.
  7. Ignore the two drones riding on the reaver. It'll hit your rig twice before you kill it, but if the big monster hits you three times, it's game over. Use the turret to pour the fire on and try to hit it in the facial region.
  8. When the rig stops, you'll have to disembark to defend it. When you hit the ground, quickly run to the left and pick up grenades.
  9. Collectible! Munitions Requisition Form. It's easy to miss, but just to the left of the ammo is a scrap of paper you can grab.
  10. An Emergence Hole opens up just ahead of you. Throw a grenade into it to seal it up and prevent Locust reinforcements. Do so quickly to limit the number of attackers that make it out.
  11. When they're dead, another hole opens up. Use your last grenade to close it quickly, then get in position to defend yourself from a flanking force that appears on the ridge to your right.
  12. Some other rigs will appear to assist you. A third emergence hole opens up ahead, but you can't do much about it. Shoot at the Locust and quickly fall back to the rig to board it again. That ends the mission.

The Big Push

  1. Your rig will come under attack almost immediately by a horde of Locust. Get up to the turret to start out.
  2. Locust take over the Derrick next to you, so you need to clear it continually. Blast at the Locust aboard with the turret to put the hurt on them. More will keep appearing, though, so be ready.
  3. Before long, you'll pass some drones with grappling hooks. They'll shoot a hook up to the side your rig. Drop the turret and blast the hook to knock it off before any can board.
  4. Turn your attention back to the hijacked rig. When the windows in the cab are blasted out, drop the turret and get over there to kill the driver. Do so quickly or he'll crash your rig.
  5. Next you'll be attacked by several Brumaks. These hulking beasts are fairly invulnerable, so focus your fire on the huge guns strapped to them.
  6. Before long you'll face down a Brumak face-to-face. Hit the gun on its back to kill it.
  7. You'll end the mission and collect the Escort Service Achievement.

Roadblocks

  1. The road ahead is blocked, so grab the ammo crate near the cars and then go left to a wooden door there. Kick it down with X.
  2. Inside you'll find more ammo behind the bar, plus a staircase. Take it up to find grenades.
  3. Collectible! Jacinto Sentinel Newspaper. In the center of the room at the top of the stairs.
  4. Go back down and follow the hallway through the building. You'll see some Tickers. Head into the room and face out to fight them.
  5. When all the tickers are dead, the path will be clear for the rig. Cross the street and go through the fence the tickers blew open into a back yard.
  6. Follow the path through and take cover when you return to the street. More tickers appear, but you should have little problem mopping them up.
  7. When the way is clear, head forward down the street to where it turns left.
  8. Collectible! Memorial Inscription! Turn right instead and you'll see a statue. Read the inscription for a collectible.
  9. Go back left and you'll come under nemacyst mortar fire. Take cover and kill the Troika turret gunner just ahead.
  10. If you move any further forward, you'll trigger Locust reinforcements ahead of you. There's also a troika to the left.
  11. Clear out the Locust you can shoot at and try to kill the Troika ahead of you. Ignore the gunner to the left as far as trying to kill it.
  12. When you can, move up to the Locust position and a derrick will drive in to help out.
  13. Collectible! Truck Driver's Note. Inside the small structure the drones came out of, on the floor.
  14. With the Locust cleared out, head to the opposite side of the troika that was just destroyed. You'll see an opening in the fence you can mantel over.
  15. Continue along the path and enter the tunnel. Inside you'll have limited light, so move carefully. Tickers appear just ahead of you, but stay back in the light from the derrick and take them out from a distance.
  16. Keep pushing forward in the tunnel, stopping to blast tickers when they appear. Try to look for the dust they kick up as a sign for where they are, as it makes them visible even in the dark.
  17. Collectible! COG Tags. Soon you'll come to a dead end. When you do, there's a staircase that leads up to a door. Go back toward the derrick on that same wall and look for an opening into a small room. Grab the COG tags to the right of the door.
  18. Go back to the stairs and take them up. Kill the two tickers inside this room and go down the hall to the next door. Head back into the tunnel and keep going forward to draw the light from the derrick after you.
  19. You'll fight a few more tickers as you head forward. At the end of the tunnel, a reaver drops in to attack you.
  20. You can focus all your fire on the reaver's head to kill it, but you'll probably have an easier time clearing the two drones on its back first. Be careful of the reaver's powerful rocket attack in the meantime.
  21. The reaver's death means you're clear to leave the tunnel, but now you'll have mortars to deal with. You can choose either the right or the left path. The right path, to the rooftops, affords you the chance to try out a new weapon, the mortar.
  22. If you take the right, go up the stairs and turn right for some ammo, then head back left. Kill the two drones that appear and follow the roof around to a ladder.
  23. Kill the drone up here and grab his mortar. You can use it to kill the Locust on the other side of the roof. You also need to drop a round through the hole in the roof across from you.
  24. Fire the mortar by holding Left Trigger to aim. Hold the Right Trigger to adjust the distance at which the mortar deploys. The longer you hold the trigger, the further the blast will go.
  25. ACHIEVEMENT ALERT! Killing 30 enemies with mortars earns you the Shock and Awe Achievement.
  26. Go back down the ladder and wait for Jack to open the door at its base. Kick it down and head inside.
  27. There are Locust through the windows to the left. You have to go to the door at the other end of the room to fight them outright. Kill them to clear the last of the mortars.
  28. Grab a fresh mortar off the ground and turn your attention to the edge of the building facing down the road, toward your objective. A tunnel there will soon reveal a brumak.
  29. Use your mortar to blast the brumak. He shouldn't be more than two or three distance notches away from you, so just keep up the fire with active reloads. The mortar ought to make quick work of him. With that done, the mission ends.

Digging In

  1. You start standing beside a mortar. Grab it and head up to the turret position, because you'll need it in just a moment.
  2. Use your mortar to attack the Locust drones as they start pouring out of emergence holes. You should be able to thrash quite a few of them fairly quickly.
  3. Pay attention to the range you need on your mortar for the area just in front of the large statue to the right. A pair of mortar teams will set up there momentarily, and you need to kill them quickly.
  4. When the mortars appear, blast them as fast as you can. If they get any shots off, make sure to dive backward to get clear of the explosions or you'll die for sure.
  5. If you can't kill them with your mortar, grab the turret and use that to mow them down. Do so quickly or they'll tear you apart.
  6. TIP: Back away from the turret. Even if you kill the mortar teams, chances are they've fired a shot and the turret will be damaged no matter what you do. The explosion will actually knock you down, unless you're close enough to be killed by it.
  7. When the mortars are down, your rig will be boarded, one drone on each side. Kill them, then turn your attention back to the front to eliminate a pair of Boomers, which carry what are essentially grenade launchers.
  8. If you still have mortars, use them to thrash the boomers. Between your fire and your squad's fire, you should put them down rather quickly.
  9. Finally, two reavers show up. Their chief ability is firing rockets at you, but they don't move, so pick a good spot and lay into them until they die.
  10. Finishing this last wave ends the mission and the act. You'll receive the Girl About Town Achievement for completing both.

Act 2: Denizens

Scattered

  1. There are three different paths you can take when you start. One leads left, one right, and the last is a ladder behind your grindlift. This is deceptive, however; all the paths end in the same place, and the ladder can lead you to both the left and the right path at a fork just up ahead.
  2. Just pick one. Dom will take the opposite route, but there's not really anything along the way that you'll miss by going either right or left. This is just a walk through the Hollow to give you an idea of what you're dealing with.
  3. Follow the path you pick until you reach a barrier. Cut it with your chainsaw and flank the drones fighting Carmine to save him.
  4. Run over to the grindlifts and grab ammo and grenades. When the Locust appear, take cover and fight them off until they're all dead. Watch out for tickers, which appear later in the battle.
  5. Now go the lift and hit X. When you go through the tunnel, it seals behind you.
  6. Follow the path down to where another team of gears is fighting off some Locust. Stop at the grindlift along the way for some grenades.
  7. Move up, grab ammo, and take cover near where the Locust are amassing. Look for tickers among the drones; kill them behind enemy lines and you might be able to take a few extra Locust with them.
  8. At the end of the battle, two boomers show up at the very back of the area. Blast them from afar with active reload Lancer ammo and they shouldn't be a problem.
  9. TIP: You can pick up the boomers' Boom Shots for seven shots of explosive power.
  10. Head to where the Locust came from. It grows dark, and the path ahead will be blocked. Follow your team and Jack toward the red bioluminescent plants.
  11. Before long, your team will be attacked in the dark by Wretches, which move fast and use melee attacks to hit you. Blast the ones you can see with your Lancer.
  12. TIP: An effective strategy against wretches, especially ones you can't see, is to just run around with your chainsaw revving. Hold down B to keep it running. Any wretch you run into, whether you see it or not, will be cut in half.
  13. Continue down the path and cut through the barrier to start the next mission.

Indigenous Creatures

  1. A big gross monster, called a Rock Worm, appears ahead of you and snacks on the red glowing fruits. Shoot one off the ceiling to demonstrate that you can lure it where you want it to go.
  2. You'll use the rock worms ahead as mobile cover. Treat them like any other obstacle and use the fruit to send them where you want them to go.
  3. Take the path down to the left. You should see a grindlift on the left side of the area. Bear left and you'll see a barrier you can cut through to grab some ammo.
  4. Collectible! Gear's Journal. There's also a big sheet of paper right here next to the lift.

  5. You'll soon come to a fork. Pick a side, grab the grenades and ammo from the grind lift, and head down toward a Locust checkpoint. It's outfitted with a troika.
  6. Use the rock worm and the glowing fruit to create mobile cover, allowing you to get closer to the checkpoint. A well-placed grenade will clear the troika, then just finish by mowing down any other Locust troops.
  7. TIP: Try to hit the Locust in the face here, because they're hard to hit on the ground. If you leave them down, other drones can revive them, just like you and your teammates.
  8. Head into the checkpoint. Grab the red Locust ammo boxes if you're carrying any of their weapons, including the Boom Shot. Then climb the ladder at the back.
  9. On your right, a barrier will blow up revealing tickers. Blast them, then head left to find more ammo and grenades. Return to the right and catch up with your squad.
  10. Out ahead, a rock worm will appear to give you cover just as an emergence hole opens dead ahead of you. Throw a grenade to seal it and finish off the Locust here.
  11. Keep going until you see some grindlifts. Grab cover up ahead at the sandbags and find a sniper rifle near the lift to the right. Use it to pick off the roughly one million snipers that are set up ahead of you.
  12. You can also run forward to find more cover, and use a rock worm that appears there as cover to get closer. Hit the glowing explosive pack near the Locust position to take out several at a time.
  13. When that's done, follow the rock worm that appears ahead as you move up. Pick a path and use the sniper rifle to shoot down at the Locust patrol before it can move into cover.
  14. At the top, you'll come across another Locust position. Focus first on the troikas, as they'll give you the most trouble. Then mop up the drones.
  15. Just as you finish killing the standard troops, a reaver will drop in more or less in the middle of everything. If you're still carrying that Boom Shot, now's a good time to put it to use. Two good shots takes the reaver down.
  16. Otherwise just tear into it with what you have. Keep moving if you're in the open to avoid its rocket attack and take cover when you can. When it's down, you'll get a checkpoint.
  17. Collectible! Kantus Scroll. Look to the edges of this area. You should see one that has an ornate railing, with an ammo box nearby. Look for an item on the ground that looks like a scroll.
  18. Grab what ammo you can and get ready for another fight. The big doors at one end of the area burst open, allowing drones, wretches, tickers and a pair of boomers to come at you.
  19. You can jump on the troika here to do some damage, but your best bet is to grab cover. Pick off the little guys as they come at you, then turn your attention to the boomers. Mop up what's left afterward.
  20. When you've got all the ammo and weapons you need from the area, proceed through the door. Go all the way down until you reach a troika with a team defending it.
  21. Clear the drones and get on the troika to shoot across and help defend Alpha Two. There also is ammo around for you to use if you still have a Longshot sniper rifle or other long-range weapon. Finally, a mortar on the ground to the right of the troika helps as well.
  22. Follow your team further down and mantle the low wall to end the mission.

Disturbing Revelations

  1. Follow your squad down further in the Hollow. You'll soon come to a waist-deep pond with a staircase at the far side. Grab the Longshot here, then climb the stairs.
  2. You'll enter a battle with a new kind of Locust enemy: the Kantus. He carries a powerful burst-firing pistol, the Gorgon pistol, and chucks poison Ink grenades at you.
  3. Thin out the numbers of the Locust assisting the Kantus. You'll deal with some tickers, wretches and drones.
  4. TIP: On the ceiling to the left is a red glowing fruit you can shoot down. Doing so brings a rock worm into the middle of the room, providing you additional cover.
  5. TIP: Kantuses have the ability to resurrect fallen Locust soldiers. Make your shots headshots to keep them down, and make the Kantus your top priority in order to make the other soldiers vulnerable.
  6. When the doors open in the center of the wall, concentrate your fire on the kantus. When he's dead and you've mopped up, search the area for ammo. Then head through the door.
  7. Collectible! Locust Emblem. To the right of the door the kantus opened for you, just beyond the threshold. Look for a red Locust ammo box. It's nearby.
  8. Continue along the path until you come to a fork. It doesn't matter which way you pick; soon you'll be fighting.
  9. If you take the top path, you'll have to shoot down red fruits for a rock worm in order to provide Dom and Carmine with cover. When you do so, however, you'll be swarmed by wretches.
  10. After clearing the room, look for a switch near the door. Use it to open the way through. On the other side is a troika.
  11. Dom and Carmine will clear the big gun for you, so head down to the left and take on the kantus and drones there. Also you'll have to deal with another troika, but you should still have your Longshot. Use it.
  12. When you've thinned the numbers down, the doors will open and a boomer and more drones will appear. Just keep your cover and gun them down as they run at you. Doing so will help you stay clear of getting hit by that Boomshot.
  13. Finishing these enemies ends the mission. You'll also receive the That Sinking Feeling Achievement.

Sinking Feeling

  1. Proceed into the new sinkhole ahead. Grab ammo as you go. Before long, you'll encounter another new Locust enemy: the Bloodmount. It's essentially a mean Locust horse that carries a drone and can tear you up with melee attacks.
  2. As you head down, you'll encounter a running Stranded and right after, Locust. Concentrate first on the bloodmount, as it's the most deadly.
  3. When you've cleared the way, keep going down. You'll have Locust ahead of you and snipers to your right. Clear out the ones ahead before engaging the snipers.
  4. TIP: Around here, maybe a little bit closer to where you fought the first bloodmount is a mortar that does well against the distant snipers to the right.
  5. Collectible! Ilima City Help-Wanted Ad. Head toward the snipers, just past a wrecked car, to find a scrap of paper on the ground.
  6. Continue forward and a reaver will drop in to attack you. Steer clear of its rocket attacks and hit it with the strongest gun you have.
  7. When the reaver's down, keep moving. Grab ammo as you come to it.
  8. In the next big area, a tunnel opens up that spews drones, including snipers. Run the furthest to the left you can go, grab the Longshot, and turn toward the tunnel.
  9. Clear the enemies at the tunnel out as fast as possible, as a reaver is on its way to make your life more difficult. When it shows up, jump behind the angled piece of cover just behind you.
  10. Start out your fight with the reaver by dropping the drones on its back. If you still have the Boom Shot, this is the best weapon for the job.
  11. Now hit the reaver hard with whatever you have. Keep clear of its rocket attacks and you should do fine. When it's dead, mop up the Locust across the gap.
  12. Go through the new path and grab the ammo. Go all the way left for grenades, then enter the building by taking the path to the right.
  13. Take cover under the Locust ambush and survive as best you can. Knock down the enemy soldiers if you can, keeping a special eye out for Grenadiers. These guys have little armor, carry shotguns, and will heave annoying grenades at you.
  14. After a moment, Cole will show up to rescue you with a cinematic.
  15. Collectible! COG Tag. After the cinematic, look to the left of the path where the rest of your squad goes. Inside another room you'll find a dead soldier and his COG tags.
  16. Follow your squad out. You'll come to a graveyard. The first thing you'll deal with is a reaver. Keep moving to avoid its close-range spearing tentacle attack.
  17. When that's done, you'll face drones coming out of the tunnel, followed by a kantus. Kill the shaman first, then mop up the remaining drones.
  18. Grab all the ammo you can handle and go into the tunnel. Keep going until you find some man-size capsules along the way. A little further and you'll find Baird, get the Freebaird! Achievement and end the mission.

Captivity

  1. Further along you'll descend slightly into an area with even more prison capsules.
  2. Collectible! Stranded's Journal. Just as you enter this flat room, turn right. An offshoot area has a crate, and just behind it, a journal on the ground.
  3. Go past the cages and you'll be engaged by some drones and a boomer. Grab cover and pummel them before continuing to the beast barge.
  4. Aboard the barge, look down the ship toward the right. Grab cover because you'll be dealing with another big Locust, a Grinder, coming down that elevator.
  5. The Grinder itself isn't extremely hard to kill, but it has a huge gun -- the Mulcher. This thing is a chain gun that can tear you up very quickly if you let it.
  6. Fortunately, the grinder is big and slow, so once you're in cover, it's an easy target and you're next to invulnerable. Make quick work of it and go up the elevator.
  7. TIP: If you grab the Mulcher, you'll be able to use the very powerful gun, but you'll be much slower. Also, you can't fire the gun without setting it down or mounting it on cover, so that means your reaction to enemies is slowed as well.
  8. There are two levers inside the barge. The one on the bottom level opens the cells, but there's nothing inside. Go to the top and clear out the Locust soldiers, then hit the lever up top.
  9. That starts the barge moving. You'll face some flying reavers and a nearby barge. The barge's chief threat is the troika it carries. Try to clear that off.
  10. After a moment, you'll crash into the other barge. Clear the immediate vicinity and board the other vessel.
  11. Go down the ramp on the second ship and hit the lever to open the cells. You'll go down to the lower level, where Locust will attack from the nearby ridge and lower a bridge to the barge.
  12. Snipe or otherwise clear the Locust soldiers shooting down on you, keeping an eye open for a grinder. He's your priority, because his weapon is far more dangerous than those of the other Locust.
  13. When the way is clear or it's to your advantage, charge up the bridge and finish up the soldiers. Grab the Mulcher, as it's helpful, and any ammo you need.
  14. Follow the path through and you'll be attacked by a mess of enemies, including bloodmounts and a kantus. Grab cover and set up your Mulcher to quickly mow down everyone.
  15. Keep going all the way down. You'll pass more prison pods and a raised drawbridge, then encounter a bloodmount and some tickers. Just beyond them is a kantus.
  16. You'll fight some more drones as you move down, and before long come to a collapsing building with a sign that says "Lunch." Look left here for another path that has some ammo, then double back and clear the Locust on the right.
  17. After you kill the kantus and the drones here, a reaver will drop in. Don't bother taking cover; this thing will chase you around. Hit it with your strongest weapons and avoid its rockets.
  18. TIP: You can dive under a reaver if you're fast, which leaves it confused and vulnerable.
  19. With the reaver down, keep heading forward. It'll seem like you have a ton of options for paths here, but they ultimately lead to the rooftop of a burning building ahead. All of the paths contain lots of ammo, so if you need some, just look around. You'll also face pockets of Locust drone opposition along the way.
  20. Either head up the burning staircase on the left or loop around on the right and head up the back stairs, but make for the roof of the building when the Locust troops are cleared out. There's more ammo here, so fill up.
  21. Make your way into the structure where there's a roof, as the other entry points are about to fill with Locust. You'll be dealing with grenadiers and drones, as well as a kantus.
  22. Stick close to your squad. Locust will be charging at you from the left and right, so use something like the Lancer or Shotgun to inflict maximum midrange damage. There's not a lot of cover, so find safety where you can.
  23. The Locust will come at you in waves, but you only need to survive for about a minute or two. After that, the mission ends.

Intestinal Fortitude

  1. Collectible! Car Gold Magazine. Go to the left wall and look for a squarish item on the floor near the wall. It's under a chunk of roof. You should get the Pack Rat Achievement if you've been following this guide.
  2. Head into the Riftworm's intestine. Your first task will be to dodge the "digestive teeth," which are huge walls of flesh that drop down at regular intervals, hoping to crush you.
  3. The key is just to move quickly. Roadie Run over the raised areas that mark where the teeth fall. Go as soon as they rise and you'll have no problems.
  4. TIP: If you want a demonstration of what to do, sit tight a second and watch as your squad mates brave the hazard.
  5. Once you clear the first set of teeth, you'll come to a set that moves both laterally and vertically. There's safety in between each set, however, so just take your time and dive through when the way is open.
  6. Next you'll come to a hole that spews small ticker-like creatures. They're just as weak as tickers, however, so use bursts of Lancer fire to thin them out.
  7. Go a little further and suddenly the intestinal tract will fill with debris (read: poop). You don't want to be a part of that, so you'll have to outrun it.
  8. Collectible! COG Tags. This one is tough. At the very beginning as you're running from the debris, hug the left wall. Right before you come to a bend that leads right, you should find a set of COG tags.
  9. Roadie Run along the path and just keep moving. You'll turn into some of those small Locust guys, but you can ignore them for the most part.
  10. Roadie Run along the path and just keep moving. You'll turn into some of those small Locust guys, but you can ignore them for the most part.
  11. Before long you'll come to a giant sphincter. Blast the hole with your guns and it'll open to allow you through. More little enemies will be after you here.
  12. Follow the path to the right to a Thin Membrane. Cut it with your saw.
  13. Put your head down and run. Enemies will pop up but they can't hurt you if you keep moving. Haul down until you hit a dead end and look up for a car that's hanging off a piece of gullet. Shoot the car and it'll fall, creating a bridge.
  14. Run across and keep going until you hit another thin membrane. Cut it to escape the poop.
  15. The paths ahead are covered by jets of green acid. You can stop the jets temporarily by shooting the glowing green orbs in the center. The acid kills you instantly if you get a shower of it, however.
  16. There's ammo down the lower right path, but the way through is to the left. Knock out the sprays, then run through.
  17. Try to keep moving. Stop on the darker parts of the path, quickly shoot the next acid nozzle, and run through. Before long you'll clear them.
  18. Next you have to brave pools of acid. Keep to the thin path and move slowly to avoid getting melted.
  19. When you're through that, you'll come to a chamber that's toxic. You have to run through, but the longer you're inside, the lower the visibility.
  20. Make for the green light. The path is twisting and you'll feel turned around, but avoid dark areas and make for light areas and you'll be fine. Before long, you'll come to a patch of flesh you can cut with the saw to escape.
  21. You're now entering the vascular system. Follow the path until you reach the heart. The two tan and pink hoses running into it are arteries. Cut them with your Lancer to open a way out, and escape before the chamber fills with blood.
  22. You're messier but you're not done yet. Continue forward, killing the erupting minion creatures as you go. Soon you'll come to another doorway to cut through, and another heart.
  23. Sever the arteries again and you'll open a path that leads upward and out. Follow it and you'll hit a checkpoint. Keep going and you'll come to the third, biggest, heart.
  24. This time it's a battle. The minion creatures sprout up all over the place in here. Keep your Lancer reloaded and shoot them down as they appear.
  25. Make yourself a hole to the heart start cutting arteries. There are two on each side. Cut them both as fast as you can, then run to the other side and cut it too.
  26. TIP: You have to do both arteries in one go because the whole chamber fills with blood extremely quickly. If you screw up for some reason, you'll drown before you can correct your mistake.
  27. Cutting all four arteries gives you a cinematic, the end of the mission and act, and the Heartbroken Achievement. It also opens up the Kantus character for you to use in multiplayer.

Act 3: Gathering Storm

Dirty Little Secret

  1. Move around the outside of the facility until you come the front door, to the right of all the parking out front. You can explore out here, but there's nothing to see, so head inside.
  2. Inside, keep going until you come to a vault door. The room to the left contains a couple of options for pistols.
  3. Follow Jack through the hallways. You'll find a Scorcher flamethrower, which you should take, and a button to restore power.
  4. You'll take another path back to the Centaur. Use the button to open the door to the right when you enter the warehouse room and you'll come to a two-story room that soon fills with wretches.
  5. The Scorcher is good for killing lots of wretches fast. There's more ammo for it on the second story, if you take the first set of stairs up.
  6. After the battle, Dom and Jack will direct you to a valve that opens a door. Open it to return to the Centaur.

  7. You're now saddled with a huge box of explosives that you need to carry back to the vault door. You can only use your pistol during this and you can move quickly or corner well.
  8. Walk to the door you just opened coming back out, which has a small freight elevator. Go into the room and wretches will attack you.
  9. An effective way to deal with these wretches, if you can't hit them with your bullets or they're too close, is to just melee them. You shouldn't have much trouble despite their numbers.
  10. After a moment, the door ahead will open. Keep going through, fighting off wretches along the way. You'll turn right in the next room, which looks like a restaurant.
  11. The vault door is in the distance, but wretches will drop in from the ceiling. Kill them from a distance if you can or melee them, then drag the explosives to the door. That ends the mission.

Origins

  1. Collectible! Interoffice Memo. Go through the vault door and climb the stairs. At the top, you'll see a room ahead and another to the right. Go into the right room and then to the right again, toward the back wall between two desks. The piece of paper is on the ground.
  2. Backtrack and go into the big room. Take the stairs up and look out the window to trigger a short event. Then go back down and left, where a door has opened.
  3. Follow the hallway until you descend some stairs. The hallway here will extend to your left, but first turn right and kick down the door. You'll enter a security room with a button. Push it to activate turrets that will clean out wretches in the room ahead.
  4. Hit the button again to turn off the turrets, then leave and head down the hall. Kick the door in. Go left if you want a Hammerburst rifle, right otherwise.
  5. You'll soon come to another fork. To the left you'll see a turret through a door. You can run past it into the door to the left to shut it down, and also pick up grenades. Then head back to the right.
  6. Collectible! Memo. You'll see an open door halfway down the hall as you go to the right from the turret. Go through and kick down another door to enter an office. A memo is on the ground to the left, the furthest into the room you can go.
  7. Continue down the hall. At a bend, another turret will be activated. Run into the room at the back of this hallway for some ammo for the flamethrower.
  8. Now run to the room to the right. You'll have to use cover in the hallway to move up without getting killed. When you get to the end, jump into the room to the right to find the button.
  9. Move through the room into the next, where two wall-mounted flamethrowers are torching wretches. Use the cover to move all the way to the right of the room, then Roadie Run past both flamethrowers to the button on the wall to the left.
  10. Three more criss-crossing turrets await in the hallway beyond. Run to the door just in front of you and kick it in to enter a shower room. Go through to the far door, then step out to the left and hit the button to clear the way.
  11. Continue on to a door you have to kick down that leads outside. Kill the wretches and turn right to another door. More wretches will break it down and attack you. Clear them out and head back inside.
  12. There's a turret waiting for you just down the hall. Dive past it into the kitchen and take cover from two more wall-mounted turrets.
  13. Use cover to move up to the right of the turrets, where there's cover that's perpendicular to the wall the turrets are on. Kill the wretches that come after you. then run to the spot between the turrets, where you're safe.
  14. Now Roadie Run to the buffet table ahead and get behind it to hide from the turret. Dive through the door. The button is to the left.
  15. Continue down the hall. Soon you'll come to another room, with a turret button you can see clearly to the right.
  16. Collectible! New Hope Medical File. Go through this room toward the red turret button the far wall. Beside it is a door. Go inside and grab the medical file off the floor.
  17. Wretches will invade the room outside once you're here. Step out and kill them. The turrets should give you some additional help. When the way is clear, hit the button and go forward.
  18. The next room has turrets you can't turn off. Instead, charge past them.
  19. Take the door and then the stairs down. You'll reach a hallway with mounted flamethrower turrets. Wretches will break the door ahead down, so kill them, then Roadie Run the gauntlet to the end of the hall.
  20. Next you'll split up. You can either work the controls for the turrets in the hallway, or run between them. It's easier to take the controls if you're alone, where you just need to push each button in succession.
  21. If you take the hallway, wait for Dom to deactivate each set of turrets before continuing forward. You need to run from set to set, as the turrets in the safe spot you're standing in activate as the next set deactivate.
  22. At the end, hit the button to open the door. You'll continue through a lab into a room with a big lever. Pull it to end the mission and get the Longitude and Attitude Achievement.

Rude Awakening

  1. Exit the room and head into the lab filled with stasis tanks. Before long, you'll encounter a Sire, a new brand of monster.
  2. Sires are hard to bring down. They can lose limbs and keep coming, as well as fall down and get back up. The employ powerful melee attacks and can seriously hurt you at close range. The flamethrower is fairly effective against them. For a very quick kill, also try the chainsaw.
  3. TIP: When facing sires, a great way to deal with them is to hold B with your Lancer equipped while moving through the area they're in. They have to get close to you to attack you, so just leaving your chainsaw revving means instant death to any sire that engages you.
  4. Keep going out of the room. When you come to the door, sires will break it down and come after you. Destroy them and move through the next room.
  5. After a few more sires, you'll move into a large room filled with stasis tanks. These almost all explode, allowing sires to come at you in waves. You'll face them two or three at a time.
  6. When the room's clear, go to the top left corner for more ammo. Then exit by the nearby door.
  7. The next room is also a death trap of exploding tubes. Fight your way through to the door and use the two valves there to open it and escape.
  8. Go through this room and to the left to find a switch to deactivate the computer system. It opens the door on the side opposite where you entered.
  9. Follow the hall until you come to a room with a center section that's got two doors in it. Locust will break down the wall, putting you into a fight with drones and a new kind of fighter: Flamers.
  10. Flamers are Locust fighters about the same size as drones, but a little bigger. They're heavily armored and carry flamethrowers. While not impossible to kill with direct gunfire, targeting the tanks on flamers' backs will cause them to explode with a lot less ammunition expended. Look for the jet of flame shooting out of the tank for an indicator that you've done enough damage.
  11. TIP: Flamers have a tendency to run straight at you when they're about to explode. Keep that in mind.
  12. Run quickly to the right and you can enter a small room that has a button to activate defense turrets. Doing so gives you a big edge against the Locust here. When they're dead, deactivate the turret and go through the hole in the wall.
  13. In the next room, grab cover and kill the drone and flamer. Don't take the door they entered through, which leads to a hallway that's guarded by a turret. Instead, go to the far left to another door, which gives you cover looking across the hallway ahead.
  14. Ignore the Locust across form you and move to the far left in this room to find a button. Hitting it shuts down the turret in the hallway and turns on one in the Locust's room. Backtrack and take the hallway you ignored.
  15. Next you'll come to a long hallway with Locust at the end. Hit the flamer first, as he's most dangerous. Then knock down the sniper, followed by the rest of the drones.
  16. TIP: Just behind your position is a small room that contains grenades.
  17. With the last of the Locust dead, you're in the clear. Kick down the door at the end of the hall. You'll enter a round room.
  18. Take the first cover you come to. The door at the other side of the room will burst open, revealing a grinder, flamer, and several drones.
  19. Hit the flamer first to blow it up. The ceiling in the center of the room will burst, allowing razorhail to fall in, which should help you mop up the Locust troops. Avoid it yourself, as it's deadly.
  20. Exit by the door the Locust used. You need to stay under the rooftops to avoid getting cut up by the weather.
  21. Collectible! Doctor's Journal. Dash through the hail to the right into a small outbuilding. Inside at the far end is a journal.
  22. Head back to the building to the left. Move through and engage the Locust in the train car. Clear it, then get in and move to the left to find a brake release. Pull that and the train car starts moving.
  23. Take cover on the far side of the car. You'll fight some Locust that appear here as you move past, including a grinder. Try to close the two emergence holes if you can with grenades, or just kill the enemies you can.
  24. When the train stops, disembark and another hole will open in front of you. You can fight them here, but it's an ineffective position. Instead, head to the right to find a path through a train car.
  25. Clear them out and continue along. You'll come to a room broken in half by razorhail. Clear out the drones here, then open the valve to the left to draw up the large door overtop of you. It'll act as a roof so you can shoot at the enemies to the left.
  26. Continue moving to the right. You'll open another garage door, then have to go outside. Kill the Locust attacking you and open a third door from a valve outside to move back in.
  27. TIP: There's ammo in the room behind you. Go through the door and hug the wall to the right, then the wall at the back. Doing so allows you to avoid the hail and grab the bullets.
  28. Move through the next doorway. You'll have to dash through some hail to the covered area ahead. Dom will board the train.
  29. Collectible! Captivity Marks. Follow the path away from the train car, which goes right and then right again. Dash through the hail to a small building that contains some ammo. As you go through the door into the building, turn left and look at the wall on your left, which contains the door. You'll see some white markings on the wall that look like tally marks. These are your collectible.
  30. Return to the train car and get in. Hit the brake release to set the car moving.
  31. You'll face enemies on both sides of the car. On the far side is a boomer and drones, on the other a grinder and drones. If you grabbed the sniper rifle off the Locust bodies earlier, put it to work here tagging the big enemies with active headshots.
  32. When you get to the end of the track, exit the car and go left, then take the ladder there. Up top, dash through the hail. You'll eventually get outside to where you started in the parking lot.
  33. Emergence holes open up in front of you as you go here. Stop at each carport, take out the Locust ahead, then dash to the next carport.
  34. As you get to the end of the area, you'll face two huge Locust call Maulers. These guys carry two major inconveniences: one, a shield that can deflect razorhail and bullets very effectively. Two, a melee flail that has a long reach and explodes when it hits you or the ground near you, sending you flying and rendering you defenseless.
  35. Do as much damage to the maulers as you can before they get to the cover of the carport. Then double back and take cover behind a barrier. These big guys can't get to you over these, so just kill them.
  36. Grab a mauler shield, called a Boomshield. When you're carrying it, you can only use your pistol, but holding Left Trigger allows you to hide behind it while shooting, avoiding most gunfire.
  37. While carrying the shield, walk through the hail to the next carport. The weather breaks and you won't have to dodge the rain anymore.
  38. Mop up the last Locust fighters and head for the Centaur. As you do, reavers will start swarming you. That includes one landing near where you just came from to fight you on the ground.
  39. Hit the reaver's riders and then lay into it with whatever you have to kill it. Almost as soon as it is dead, another reaver lands to take its place.
  40. Do the same thing, grabbing cover to avoid its initial rocket attack. Fight off the second reaver by keeping on the move. When you've killed it, the mission ends.

Ascension

  1. You need to pilot the Centaur up the mountain, which is pretty easy. You can take either path.
  2. TIP: As you go, your tank will take damage. Stop at any point and wait a few seconds and Baird will repair it, allowing you to take more damage. Just don't get shot in the meantime.
  3. At first you'll face troikas and boomers, but later on there are reavers among the Locust enemies. The key is to find the biggest threat and eliminate it first.
  4. The tank fires its rocket cannon quickly, so take advantage. On Hardcore difficulty, it takes three blasts to knock out a reaver, so hit it as fast as you can. Then mop up the other Locust.
  5. Be careful not to get pinned somewhere. The tank can be tough to steer, so remember that chiefly you can move forward and back. Steering sideways while going in reverse is a crapshoot, so try to keep things in between you and your enemies in order to lessen the amount of damage you take.
  6. Occasionally you'll come to a ramp. Use the A Button to activate the tank's turbo boost, allowing you to make the jump.
  7. Before long you'll come to a frozen lake. It's not huge, but you'll be attacked by mortars as you go across. Falling in the open holes means death.
  8. The tank barely handles on the ice, so this section can be frustrating. Go right to start. Take your time, as the area ahead will break up pretty thoroughly. Continue to the right until the initial mortars are finished, then make your way across between the holes.
  9. Go slowly in the second half as well, as a few more holes will open up ahead of you. You should be able to make it across without much difficulty before long.
  10. On the other side, two reavers land ahead of you. Blast them as fast as you can.
  11. The second frozen lake is easier, even though you'll come under reaver attack while you're crossing. Ignore the rocket fire and stick close to the right side of the first hole. As more open up, hug the edges as you turn to the right.
  12. A reaver will land ahead of you. Face it down without trying to dodge its fire, then cross to the exit.
  13. Go left and deal with the three boomers. When they're dead, as you continue up, you'll face another reaver. As soon as it's dead, a second will take its place.
  14. Keep moving up. A Locust checkpoint awaits through an archway. Destroy it and ahead a pair of reavers will drop to attack.
  15. Another reaver waits ahead, and then a pair of Seeders on the ridge far above you. Move back and hit them before they can destroy you with nemacyst mortars.
  16. Next is a pair of reavers. You know what to do. Try not to let them double team you with their rocket attacks.
  17. You'll approach a huge bridge before long, but it's out. Look to the right for a ramp you can jump with A.
  18. When you get to the other side, head up to the left. Two more reavers wait ahead, so back up to avoid their attacks, then pound them with your own.
  19. Another reaver will land on a rooftop to your right as you approach a bend. Kill it and go around to the right, where you'll encounter another Locust stronghold.
  20. This is a bigger fight. Kill the reaver on the path ahead of you, then turn your attention to the ground ahead. You can kill the big reaver down below from here, rendering it ineffectual against you.
  21. Now look for Locust boomers, which may be slowly making their way toward you. Kill them from afar as well, and turn your attention to the roofs and landings around the outer edge of the barrier. There's a troika there. Knock it out.
  22. As you approach, the tower to the left becomes a rocket-heaving nightmare. Blast the base to collapse it and take out the defenses on the left side of the base.
  23. TIP: Turn around and backtrack up the trail if you take too much damage, which is likely under the reaver dive-bombing you'll be suffering.
  24. Make your way down through the destroyed barrier. Try to kill the reavers as you go, and soon you'll come to a dead end. A corpser will open the way for you.
  25. If you thought driving in the daylight was annoying, get ready for a new experience as you have to start driving in pitch black with only a headlight. Despite the noises, just keep moving forward.
  26. Eventually you'll drop off a cliff and the power in the Centaur will go out. When it finally kicks back on, you'll face three corpsers.
  27. As soon as the light goes on, look for the corpser whose legs are back and face exposed. Shoot it quickly or it'll kill you.
  28. Repeat the process with the other two as soon as they expose their faces to kill them.
  29. Keep going. After another drop you'll be in a big chamber and three brumaks will appear to kill you.
  30. This can be tough because the brumaks fire a lot of ammo at a time. Pick one, probably the right one, and try to destroy it quickly with shots to the face.
  31. Now move back and sideways to get clear of enemy fire. The brumaks take a while to reload, so use the opportunity to target a second one and dump your ammo into it until it dies.
  32. Do the same with the final brumak, which should be easier now that its allies are dead.
  33. When the last brumak goes down, you'll end the mission and earn the Tanks for the Memories Achievement.

Displacement

  1. Follow the pathway all the way down until you come to a fork. Just ahead is a Theron Guard, a slightly tougher version of a drone you haven't run into yet.
  2. Therons are enemies that return from Gears of War and carry a weapon called the Torque Bow. There's a bow for you to grab if you take the right fork through the small tunnel. Use it by holding the Right Trigger to charge up a shot. When the reticule turns orange, take your shot. Otherwise, the explosive-tipped bolt will bounce off your target, rather than sticking.
  3. There's also a path here that leads down to the left. Take it for more weapons and ammo.
  4. Into the ruins ahead. You'll face some drones and a theron guard. Even more annoying is a gunboat armed with a troika strafing you on the left side.
  5. Ignore the gunboat for the moment. Clear out the drones ahead and move up. Watch that theron guard, as one good hit from his bow can take you out.
  6. Move up until you find some stairs that lead up to the right. There's ammo up there, as well as wretches. Kill them, then look ahead to see a flamer heading your way.
  7. Kill that flamer fast. There aren't many places to safely hide from his devastating flamethrower. Once he's down, you can mop up the kantus behind him.
  8. Now look to the gunboat. It's running sideways along the area and it is laced with orange glowing lights. Those are explosive crates. Hit one with some bullets or a torque bow bolt to destroy the whole boat.
  9. That should be about all of them. Kill the last of the Locust and gather up the ammo around the site.
  10. Collectible! Stranded's Journal. The mission's only collectible is back at those stairs where you fought the wretches. Go all the way to the top to find a journal beside the big door.
  11. Cross the boat to the other side. As soon as you do, new drones and some tickers will appear to oppose you.
  12. First look for a kantus standing behind the main force and drop him with some fire or a couple of torque bow bolts. Afterward, mop up the drones and move forward.
  13. As you approach the longer, thinner path ahead, you'll see a bloodmount. You have a lot of distance on it at first, so pick your shots and try to make a couple of good torque bow sticks.
  14. Through the archway are a kantus, some tickers and a few drones. Be careful not to get cornered in the tight confines ahead. Push through and you'll reach the pier.

  15. A gunboat lands and drops off a few Cyclops drones to fight you, which carry either Lancers or Hammerburst rifles. There's also a grinder at the far end of the pier to deal with.
  16. Use your torque if you have any against the grinder, then mop up the decidedly easier cyclops. When the way is clear, grab all the ammo you can and head to the rowboat.
  17. Aboard the raft, you'll have to defend yourself from multiple gunboats. Keep moving to each cover position as it becomes viable and just keep shooting. Grenades are pretty effective here if you can aim them well.
  18. Soon you'll clear those boats and have a few seconds of respite, after which you're immediately attacked by a boat with a flamer aboard.
  19. Kill the flamer by shooting the tank, then run aboard his boat. It's back to being attacked on all sides again, but this time the boats often will overlap one another.
  20. Start by fighting the boat on the left. Kill as many of the Locust as you can before a boat catches up to you on the right.
  21. Pop over to the other side and lay into this boat. If you thinned the numbers from the left well enough, you'll be okay to take your time and fight off this boat.
  22. TIP: The troika mounted at the front of the boat is ineffective against enemies that are too far behind you, but you can still use it to get a few good shots in as the boats approach, or at enemies that are close to the bow of either boat. Don't rule out the turret as being helpful to you.
  23. When the two boats are cleared, a third will appear on the left, carrying a grinder. Hit him first, hard, to eliminate that threat.
  24. TIP: The ammo box on your boat at the stern constantly respawns to keep you in bullets.
  25. After the grinder boat, you should have only one other standard gunboat to deal with. Kill it and you'll enter a tunnel. Sit tight while the ride gets bumpy and the mission ends.

Brackish Waters

  1. This entire mission is a boss fight with a sea monster called the Leviathan.
  2. Take a second to grab the ammo and the Lancer if you don't have one.

Boss Fight: Leviathan

  1. This thing looks scarier than it is, at least at first. Start by hanging back at the stern of the ship and watching for its tentacles. They'll appear either on the right or the left and slam into the boat between each set of crates.
  2. Gauge where the tentacle will fall and get close, then run forward and cut it with the Lancer saw. Do so quickly because if you take too long, the monster will capsize the boat.
  3. After four or so times doing that, the monster will try something new. It attacks the front of the boat with its teeth. Shoot it in its big blue eye to make it dislodge, then grab the grenades it leaves behind.
  4. The fish comes back, biting the bow of the boat again. Blast it in the eye and when it rears back, mouth open, run inside.
  5. You'll see some tentacles inside the fish's mouth. They'll turn blue at the top, meaning that tentacle is active. The blue one will attack you if you don't shoot it, but it's also your target. So shoot it.
  6. When you hit the tentacles enough the inner mouth will open. Toss a grenade in. You may have to repeat the process. With a proper hit or two, flames will shoot out of the inner mouth and the fish will withdraw.
  7. TIP: Aim high. The mouth bucks around a lot, but a high throw at least puts you in the ballpark. Too short and the grenade will hit the lower part of the mouth harmlessly.
  8. Back to tentacle attacks. Repeat the process of standing aft and running forward.
  9. Cut down the tentacles and the fish will bite the boat again. Blast the eye, run inside, and repeat the grenade process.
  10. The fish backs off, but only for a second. It'll bite down again. Get inside the mouth one last time with a grenade to finish the fight. It nets you the Water Sports Achievement and ends the mission and the act. You'll also unlock the multiplayer character Tai Kaliso.

Act 4: Hive

Priorities

  1. Follow the path up to an open door that leads into a tunnel. On the other side you'll get swept into a cutscene.
  2. Stick with Dom until you come to a button that raises the lift. Follow him a little further and you'll hit another elevator. In the next room, the way across is flooded. Use the valve to the left to close the sluice gates and drain the water.
  3. As soon as you enter the center section where the water was, Locust drones appear on the other side. Grab cover and shoot at the one that goes left to the valve before he can drown you. Kill him at risk to your health, as he can kill you with that valve.
  4. After he's down, it's a regular firefight. Mop up and cross the flood area.
  5. Ahead is another elevator. At the bottom you'll come out into another big room. Here you'll fight a mauler and some wretches.
  6. Concentrate fire on the mauler, especially while it's far away. Melee the wretches if they get close and keep firing on the mauler until it goes down. Mop up and head left.
  7. As soon as you hit the cover here, a spotlight will shine in your eyes as drones take positions ahead. There are snipers, a theron guard, and a troika in the distance that are all hard to snipe at because of the light.
  8. Pick your shots here. Wait until you know you can hit a guy, or figure out where to aim ahead of time, then pop down and heal. Pop up again when you're in good shape for a fast shot at the troika or the snipers.
  9. With the major players in this battle out of the way, the rest is easy. Clear the area and look for ammo.
  10. Go up to the left when you've policed the bodies. You'll see two yellow-screened Locust terminals, the first of which will draw you to it for the objective. Don't touch it yet.
  11. Collectible! Locust Terminal. Instead, go past the first terminal to the second yellow one and check it for a collectible.
  12. Now press the other terminal to move the story forward. After the cinematic, weave through the capsules until you come to a terminal. Then follow Dom forward.

Answers

  1. You'll see an enemy patrol up ahead. Take cover and watch them leave.
  2. Collectible! Locust Prisoner's Journal When the patrol has moved on, bypass this terminal and head left. Hug the wall the terminal is on near the truck and look for a piece of paper on the ground.
  3. Return to the terminal, then follow Dom. You're gaining on that patrol, but you can still sit tight and hide from them.
  4. Repeat the process at the next terminal. Check it, take cover, follow the patrol.
  5. Move up through the various pieces of cover, then sit for a second while the patrol moves on again. When Dom gives the all clear, head up to the terminal. That'll trigger another cutscene, and also an attack.
  6. Enemies will take turns alternating which flank you have to defend. You'll start with wretches and a bloodmount from either side, starting with the way the enemy patrol went, which we'll call right.
  7. When they're down, drones and a grinder come at you from the right. Take them out fast and head to the left side cover to deal with two therons and a couple of drones.
  8. That's the last wave. You'll get the There's a Time for Us Achievement during the next cutscene.

Hornet's Nest

  1. You start in a big room with a lever just ahead. Note that it raises cover: You'll run across more of these. Run to the left and grab the ammo and the Torque Bow if you want it. Then head out the door in the top right corner of the room.
  2. Collectible! Locust Jailor Document. Just ahead, the hallway forks. Take the right fork under the drawbridge. When it bends left, look for a piece of paper on the ground.
  3. The path loops back to where it forked. Ahead is a dead end, but just left of it is a door you can kick down.
  4. Locust appear in the area ahead as soon as you clear the door. Look out for a theron guard in the distance, winging Torque Bow bolts at you from the tower.
  5. When the ground floor is clear, race forward and take the stairs along the right side of the tower. Clear it of guards and kill the theron in the top. Hit the switch here to open the way forward.
  6. The open door allows two flamers to come charging in, though. They're backed by two therons and some other drones.
  7. Get your Lancer out and head to the stairs. Let Dom get ahead of you if you're playing alone, as the flamers will stop to fight him. Shoot at their tanks to take them out, then revive Dom.
  8. Go through the door. It closes behind you. Grab ammo and take cover as soon as you hit some.
  9. You need to kill the bloodmount up ahead first. The rest of the troops are easy to deal with once it's dead. Concentrate your fire.
  10. Mop up the last of the troops. Go through the doors the Locust came through. If you head left, you'll find a spiral staircase that leads to some grenades.
  11. Go through the next door and you'll be in a huge room with little cover and lots of Locust on the far side. Use the lever nearby to increase the amount of cover you can use and try to clear out the Locust troops quickly.
  12. TIP: Look for Locust explosives behind the enemy position to knock out more soldiers at once.
  13. TIP: Behind your position on the left side is a Longshot that'll make things easier.
  14. After you've killed a few guys, you'll hear Marcus screaming about a Locust lowering your cover. Look up to the right to see a drone running for a lever. Kill him to keep life easy.
  15. Right around the time you drop that Locust, a reaver will drop in. With your large pieces of cover intact, you can fall back and the reaver can't really get to you. Lay into it with your regular weapons.
  16. An explosion soon after creates more cover in the center of the room. Move up and finish off the last of the drones. Grinders will come through a door behind the Locust position afterward. Use cover to avoid their Mulchers and kill them.
  17. Go through the door and follow the path into another large room filled with pillars.
  18. Collectible! Human Finger Necklace. As you enter this room, big iron doors start to close. Ignore the first one and head up the stairs with Roadie Running. Ahead will be one that is closing that you can just make it under. Inside, hang a right and wander around until you find a human finger necklace. You can then go to the other end of the room and use a switch and the troika in the next battle.
  19. You'll face opposition in the next big room, including two large mauler-like enemies called Butchers.
  20. Butchers carry big swords and are lighter and slightly more agile than maulers, but they're easier to kill because they have less in the way of defenses. Just stay back and unload until they die.
  21. Clear out the drones and move into the open area outside the door. This is a big food preparation area, marked by dead rock worms to the left.
  22. Move through the room by using the trenches for cover. Clear out drones and move up until they're all dead.
  23. The door will open after you've cleared the way to reveal a flamer at the far end of the room. Kill it from far away.
  24. Now head through the door and take the stairs into a hallway. There's a door to the left just ahead, but pass it and go to a second door for ammo. Then backtrack to the middle door and try to catch the Locust soldiers ahead unawares.
  25. Blow up the flamer to the left on the overhead bridge in the next room to collapse the structure. As you move into the room, a butcher is ahead but be careful of the crossfire you'll take from the left. That position is elevated, which spells bad news for you.
  26. Stick to the side of the bridge for cover and kill the butcher. Another one will show up over there in a few seconds, but relax for now. Move along the bridge toward the stairs at the far end.
  27. Kill the second butcher and move up to flank the Locust forces in the higher area.
  28. Follow the path up until you reach another big room. To the right is a flat, wide-open area with little cover; a sure battle location. Head down to the left to find a lever. Pull it to raise some cover on the higher ground.
  29. Move up to the cover. The whole area starts to change and Locust troops will move in ahead of you. There's a big coverless gap between the two positions.
  30. Look right for an orange Locust explosive. Blast it to knock down a pillar that provides a place to hide. Move to that cover and use grenades and gunfire to clear out the Locust.
  31. Killing the last of the soldiers triggers a cutscene, and now you're defending this position. Start by pulling the lever right next to you to raise the cover. There's also a cover-lever behind your position.
  32. Take out the tickers and the drones as best you can. The faster the better. After a few seconds, a reaver will drop in to give you hell. Keep moving and blast it, trying to stay clear of enemy fire from the other side of the area.
  33. Another reaver drops in after the first is dead. Kill it quickly, then look to the gate behind you. It drops to reveal a mortar team.
  34. When the mortar fires, jump clear of your cover and run straight at the mortar soldier. Kill it and you'll earn the Better Wrapped in Beacon Achievement.
  35. Go through the open gate and grab that mortar from the ground. There are also grenades nearby. Pull the lever to give yourself some cover.
  36. When the gate drops, be ready with the mortar. The enemy has a mortar team too: It's right up front, to the right. Kill it fast.
  37. As soon as the way is clear, run in and pull the lever at the back of the area to raise more cover. A gate opens in the room's back left quadrant, and there's another mortar team setting up way in the distance.
  38. There's a Locust explosive right next to the mortar team back there. Focus your fire on it for massive damage. If it does manage to get a shot off, just run in any direction away from where you were standing.
  39. Another gate opens up ahead, and this one has a mortar, tickers, and two grinder.
  40. Quickly find the lever and pull it for cover, then backtrack and find a spot to get set. Use grenades or anything else big to put some hurt (or death) on the grinders. If you hear someone yell incoming, move away immediately and as fast as you can.
  41. Also, try to hit the Locust explosive to do more damage to the backup drones behind the grinders.
  42. When the battle is won, take a second to run around and gather weapons and ammo. Then take the stairs up to the right.
  43. Now that you're reinforced, grab the ammo and grenades, then pull the lever to end the chapter.

No Turning Back

  1. It's time for a gondola ride. As you get out over the abyss, you'll be faced with reavers dive-bombing you.
  2. It's useless trying to hit the reavers when they're far away, so wait for them to get close and commit to an attack. You don't need to hit them particularly hard, but you do need to do a fair amount of damage as they close in on you.
  3. Avoid taking three hits to the gondola to survive. After clearing three reavers, a second gondola full of Locust will descend from the palace and attack you. Kill the drones, then hop aboard. Hit the switch on the wall.
  4. Shoot down two more reavers and you'll survive into the palace. Disembark and head inside. Take the spiral staircase when you come to it, but grab the ammo around the left side of it first.
  5. Collectible! Locust Calendar. Look for a sundial-type object to the left at the top of the stairs.
  6. Descend the stairs on the other side and you'll come upon a Locust patrol. Find their kantus and kill it first. There's a lever to raise cover just before the Locust position as well.
  7. TIP: On an offshoot path to the left of this fight is ammo and grenades.
  8. When the Locust are clear, grab some ammo and take the stairs to a lever. You can pick which path you want: the staircase or the lift. Both go to the same place, but the lift team has to help defend the staircase team so it can use the controls to keep the lift moving.
  9. Each level has gets tougher as you go down. The second level has a boomer, and the third a grinder. Clear out the third level and rejoin the squad a little further down the path.
  10. In the next room, use your elevated position to pick off the two boomers and kantus. When the bridge activates to the right, run down and across it to find a thin hallway. Inside is a lever that drops the Locust's cover.
  11. Collectible! Locust Defensive Plans. Look for an ammo box in the room with the lever. It's right next to it on the floor.
  12. Clean out the last of the Locust and descend into their area. After the cutscene, you'll need to find cover quickly to take on two grinders.
  13. Despite their power, in the bottleneck where they appear, you should be able to rout the grinders pretty fast. A drone will bust down a door behind you. Kill it and exit that way.
  14. You'll be on a staircase above Locust again. Use the better positioning to take out the kantus, then the flamer.
  15. Now descend and head left. A door will open, leading you into a tunnel. A lift rises, revealing a mess of Locust, including two maulers, two therons, and a kantus to keep everyone in the game.
  16. Kill either the kantus or the maulers first, whichever seem to pose a bigger threat. Keep good cover and try to knock them all out as fast as you can. As soon as you kill everything, the chapter ends.

The Best-Laid Plans

  1. Leave the lift and head toward the palace door. As you do, you're ambushed.
  2. Get behind cover and be careful not to step on the switch in the center of the ring. Doing so raises and lowers cover, so if yours goes down, step on it to raise it back.
  3. These bad guys are heavily armored Palace Guards, and they're tough. Try to hug the walls to keep them from getting a bead on you, then plaster them with fire until they go down.
  4. Eventually the ambush will end. Head back toward the lift and hang a right around the outside of the palace.
  5. Ahead are bloodmounts and some other enemies. These bloodmounts are tougher because they carry palace guard riders, equipped with Torque Bows. Keep your head down.
  6. TIP: The cover in this area is activated by standing on the yellow-tinted metal surrounding the slot that it rises out from. Keep this in mind when moving around or finding a place to dig in.
  7. More enemies arrive by lift just beyond this fight. Look for a foot switch to the right to activate cover, then lay into the kantus that's accompanying the palace guards. Kill it and mop up.
  8. Collectible! Locust Invasion Map. Go past the lift a little ways until you see another foot switch for cover. Just ahead of that should be a sealed door on the right. In front of the door is a piece of paper.
  9. If you want Torque Bow ammo, follow the path around the outside of the palace to find some. Otherwise, board the lift and head down.
  10. You'll enter the bloodmount stables. While it's tempting, don't bother to shoot the animals in the cages. Instead, proceed to the lever ahead to get a choice of paths.
  11. You'll soon be facing various kinds of boomers, including flamers and maulers. After that, a bloodmount with a palace guard rider shows up to join in.
  12. When you're done, you'll be reunited. Continue across the room to the exit.
  13. Collectible! Trinity of Worms. As you reach the outside, you'll see the staircase is on the far right. Do a 180 and head back up the stairs to the area where the grinder attacked your team from the window. Run all the way down that hall to the base of the stairs at the other end. Look a little to the left for an artifact shaped like a three-pointed pinwheel.
  14. You'll need to fight your way down the stairs. None of the palace guards you meet are particularly threatening, but be careful of the one-hit kill possibilities the guards armed with Torque Bows present.
  15. You'll fight something like 10 or 12 guards by the end of the stairs, plus tickers. At the bottom, the room opens up, with palace guards to the right and left, and a kantus to the left as well.
  16. The palace guard to the right has a Torque Bow, making him the most dangerous. If you have something strong like the Longshot, use it on him first.
  17. Next is the kantus. Bring him down to take away the living dead ability from your enemies.
  18. Kill the last of the guards and the chapter ends.

Royal Inquisition

  1. Grab all the ammo you can and head out. The mulcher is a good idea too, even though you'll be slowed.
  2. Collectible! Locust Tablets. Head out the very first door and turn left. Walk to the end of the room where the columns are. You'll find the collectible between the last two columns on the left side.
  3. Almost instantly you'll split up. You'll be on opposite sides of a huge room, with a gap between. You can support the other team some from your side, but mostly your hands will be full.
  4. Head down your hall expecting to face palace guards, tickers and maulers. The mulcher should squash them pretty easily.
  5. Nothing is too surprising along the way and before too long, you'll reunite. You'll also find a lift there.
  6. At the bottom, you'll fight palace guards in waves. Step up to the cover tiles so cover pops up for you and lay into your enemies. You're separated by an impassable gap, and the only way across is to finish all the guards.
  7. Look for the guard with the Torque Bow to kill first. After that, destroy the enemy at your leisure.
  8. Grab ammo and continue on. You'll come to another spot where you'll have cover. Move up to the best position for your style of fighting and kill the guards ahead to advance.
  9. For the third set of guards, you have to hit a foot switch to activate the cover, but it's all along the front and left sides. This means you have the opportunity to flank your enemies. </