MAP: Bastion

Layout

Set on the surface of Mars between a Cabal landship and a Vex-corrupted series of rocky complexes, Bastion is a large outdoor map. Bastion has two primary areas of conflict: the sandy exterior roads and the rocky interiors. The roads make a rough figure eight in the bulk of the map, with two connected rings circling the two largest interior Vex-marked areas, while the dunes closer to the Cabal side of the level are more open. The two interior areas within the rings are connected by a bridge over the roads below, and both have several entrances and exits out to the roads.

Near the dunes portion of the map, there is a small ruined exterior stone structure. Beside this is a cavernous area hewn out of the Martian stone. The map slopes gently uphill from the dunes area to the “top” of the figure eight, though the elevation changes are more severe between some of the interior and exterior areas.

Tactics

The roads are a dangerous place to be, whether or not any vehicles are active. The long clear lines of fire mean you are extremely exposed to snipers and long-range gunners, and you may not have time to get to cover before you are downed.

If you plan on playing an infantry game, stick to the rocky areas, and move between the different parts of the map by traveling through the interiors or hugging the walls as you move along the roads.

If you intend to make heavy use of the vehicles, patrol the roads and keep your distance from the entrances to the interiors (and the turret near the dune structure).

As long as you avoid getting too close to potential grenade or super attacks, you limit your exposure to danger, and you can harass and contain the opposing team. This is particularly useful if you are coordinating with your teammates: if an enemy is focused on you, your teammate can flank them, and if they push the target into the open, you can pick them off with ease.

While the exterior areas very much favor sniper, scout, and pulse rifles, the interiors are perfectly suited to any type of close- or medium-range weapons. This means you can choose your engagement distances on Bastion, despite the size of the level.

Don’t forget to switch your scopes around: putting on a decent magnification sight is a good way to extend your range while keeping a favored weapon.

Motion Tracker

You can use the Motion Tracker to easily detect enemies in the interior areas, particularly if you’re patrolling the map on a vehicle (or even on your Sparrow).

On the flip side, while you’re hanging out in the interiors, it is usually fairly easy to tell when an adversary is getting close to your position. However, be careful about false positives, as an enemy hugging the walls nearby can show up in the same wedge as a player that is actually moving into your space.

In some of the longer stretches outside, enemies can be far past the range that your Motion Tracker can detect… but watch for the telltale gleam of sniper scopes in the distance.