Another journey to the frozen lands. The bad guys have found a sacred ruby the size of a fist. Now, it’s up to you to steal it from them before they sell it.
You can charge up the path to the mine with guns blazing if you like. But it’s dark, it’s quiet, the moon is glinting off the snow . . . why not get a little stealthy? Hug the cliff wall to the north/right and creep up and around the corner.
This first area has four enemies to worry about: Two guards at the gate across the road, a sniper in the watchtower on the east side of the road, and a sniper on the raised lookout a short distance up the road. Also, the first of three alarm poles stands right behind the watch tower.
Snipe the two snipers first, then the alarm box. Creep down the hill and wait for one of the guards at the gate to walk away, then take them both out. Once they’re down, you’ll find a grapple up near the first sniper’s platform.
If you have a hunting syringe, pop it. Your first target is the lone guard who hangs out just west/left of the shelter at the top. Then grab the health pack from the table and snipe the guard across the street, near the second alarm pole. Snipe the alarm, too.
Your goal here is to get to the mine, but you don’t have to lower the raised drawbridge in the distance. If you’re ready to uncork some firepower, just continue straight up the road and open fire. If you’re still feeling sneaky, you have two options, neither simple. You could continue hugging the cliffside and creep your way to a grapple that swings you onto a rooftop, from which you can climb onto an even higher roof, then disable the third alarm (if you like) and follow a raised, curving trail north to the next area.
Or, you could drop down and cross the street, then climb first the ledge near the alarm pole, then the ladder. You’ll find yourself right outside a cabin with a rocketeer inside, but if you’re good with close-quarters action and thrown rocks, you can clear enough of a path to sneak your way past to the third alarm and the trail up.
However you get to the new area, the first thing you’ll want to do is pop another hunting syringe and snipe the guard in the raised guardhouse to the northeast. Follow the trail toward the house and around it, until the cart rails lead back down the hill. Watch the guards’ patterns as you go and snipe them one-by-one as the opportunities present themselves.
When you reach the bottom (near the guard who often examines the wooden shelter), slip across the road and in through the open door in the cliff. From this tunnel, you can put down the welding guard and follow the tunnel all the way around to the guard on overwatch.
You’re almost there. Snipe the guard on duty and drop down on the guard sitting just under the ledge. Now follow the road up to the east, hugging the cliff wall and taking care to keep your distance from the troops patrolling the pit to the south. When you reach the trail’s end, you’ve got two guards to dispose of in the guardhouse to the east.
Wait for the guards to stand in such a way that you can snipe one without the other noticing, then take them both down and head into the guardhouse. Note the rocket launcher and shotgun conveniently placed within easy reach, and break out your repair tool to break into the storage box.
Reinforcements will show up as you cut into the box, but the rocket launcher will make short work of them.
Keep cutting, and the ruby will be yours.
Does this look delicious to anyone else, or is it just me?
From here on, it’s a straight-ahead shootout back to the place where you entered the level. You’ll encounter a heavy flamer almost immediately, but beyond him, your only real threat is a rocketeer waiting for you to jump a hijacked vehicle over the drawbridge (which is crazy fun, so you should totally do that. But maybe climb the ramp on foot and snipe the rocketeer first).
