Windward

Mission 06: Windward

Fight High Above the City Streets

In this mission, you fight in a two-sided structure with an interior, two-level spawning building in the middle with three exits outside. The northern edge of the map exterior is a sheer drop to your death, so concentrate on remaining on the ground. There are two Pelican platforms, and a tiered open-air area on each side of the map. A winding corridor links the platform to the tiered areas. A sky bridge links from east to west but is inaccessible. Use the unique Missile Pod Turrets, as Banshee attacks and Covenant infantry squads are expected.

Data Stream

Expected Enemies

• Grunts
• Jackals
• Brutes
• Brute Chieftains
• Jump-Pack Brutes
• Brute Stalkers
• Drones
• Hunters

Special Enemies

• Banshees

Expected Vehicles

• Covenant Phantoms
• Covenant Banshees

Optimal Weapon Combinations

• Gravity Hammer & Magnum
• Magnum & Plasma Pistol*

*After Set 3, on Heroic and Legendary difficulty.

Preferred Weapon Combinations

• Carbine & Fuel Rod Cannon
• Carbine & Rocket Launcher
• Carbine & Gravity Hammer
• Carbine & Plasma Pistol
• Fuel Rod Cannon & Gravity Hammer
• Fuel Rod Cannon & Magnum
• Rocket Launcher & Gravity Hammer
• Rocket Launcher & Magnum

Par Score

• 200,000 Points

Notable Offense

Weapon: Fuel Rod Cannon or Rocket Launcher?

Although the Fuel Rod Cannon and the Rocket Launcher are excellent and highly damaging, the Fuel Rod Cannon is slightly more proficient at getting the job done. It may not be as powerful, but it has much more available ammunition; foes drop this weapon somewhat frequently, so you can pick it up from the ground after combat with them. Fuel Rod ammunition is abundant compared to the Rocket Launcher’s missiles; you are only given six in total to fire (four from the Launcher and two from a Rocket Pack close to your spawning location). The Rocket Launcher is on the wall on the map’s southeastern edge, overlooking a Pelican platform, and the Fuel Rod Cannon is dropped by some Brutes, Chieftains, and Grunts.

Weapons: Gravity Hammer and Magnum Mayhem

Highly entertaining and thoroughly recommended, the Gravity Hammer and Magnum perform a very specific function: accumulating masses of points in the easiest possible way. Dash about with the Gravity Hammer, killing large groups of enemies for lengthy kill chains and hammer sprees before swapping to the Magnum and running to the next group of foes, plugging Grunts and Jackals in the head to keep the kill chain going. With practice, you can continue this kill chain through multiple waves of foes. Choose the Hammer over the Rocket Launcher or Fuel Rod Cannon, as it gives you an additional multiplier to your score.

Weapon: Pistol Packing in the Later Rounds

As the Firefight wears on, especially on higher difficulty levels, the Plasma Pistol, coupled with a quick-firing and accurate weapon such as the Carbine or Magnum, is the optimal combination with which to kill the Covenant. For enemies without shields, employ the Magnum or Carbine. For Jackals, “ping” their shield with a single Carbine or Magnum shot, then immediately follow up with a headshot execution. For foes with shields, such as Brutes, charge your Plasma Pistol and fire it to deplete their shields, then quickly swap weapons for a headshot to finish them off.

General Plans

Tactic: Incursion Points—Phantom Drops

Brace yourself for four possible disembarking spots where Covenant Phantoms hover before depositing their brood: both Pelican landing platforms at the front of the map and above the stepped exterior tiers to the sides of your team’s spawning interior building. Using Rockets or the Missile Pod Turrets, deal with the incoming Phantoms at the Pelican landing platforms by wiping out as many foes as possible prior to them spilling out of the craft. When foes drop onto the platform, have a Gravity Hammer–wielding ODST lunatic waiting for them or a well-placed Rocket or Grenade that kills multiple foes. Have snipers on the platform above near the Missile Turrets backing up these attacks. When Phantoms encroach the exterior tiered area, retreat to higher ground, using the doors to the middle spawning building as partial cover and culling as many foes as you can as they drop from the craft. Then, mop up remaining foes (usually Brutes) with your favored weapon combinations.

Tactic: Incursion Points—Monster Closets

There are eight monster closets for Covenant foes to stream out of, making the location of each wave much more harrowing than on other missions. There are two doorways in the chamber leading to the landing platforms [1], two outside on the upper tiered area on the same level as the upper doors leading to your spawning building, two inside the room atop the landing platform walkway, and two on the rooftops that lead to the sky bridges [2]. Reacting early to enemies exiting these doorways is the key here; after you’ve defeated each round of foes, post two teammates to scan the sky for Phantoms or intrusions on the tiered areas, while the other two check the chambers linking the landing platforms and the sky bridge.

Tactic: Inside or Out?

There are numerous defensive sections of environment to use to your advantage, such as the inside of buildings, especially the interior with the three doors in the map’s center, allowing a quick retreat to the spawning building or to the map’s other side; on top of walkways; and behind support pillars. If you aren’t interested in taking out the Phantom’s Turret, then dive behind cover when Phantoms head in to drop their enemies. With multiple cover opportunities, you can avoid most projectiles if you keep your distance and try staying at a higher vantage point than your foes.

Tactic: Correct Weapon Pairing

The biggest threat during the waves of foes that swarm you in this mission is not having the flexibility to deal with any offensive situation. Mitigate this problem by complementing a heavy-hitting weapon with a quick-firing, accurate piece of ordnance. The Pelican platforms, the corridors from the platforms, and the stepped exterior platforms are locations where the enemy tends to congregate. In these highly populated areas, employ the Rocket Launcher, the Fuel Rod Cannon, or Grenades to blow multiple foes to smithereens in a single shot before finishing stragglers with a slightly more focused weapon.

Cooperative Plans

Tactic: Two-Player Takedowns

If you have only two players against the Covenant, it is usually better to have each person stay on one side of the map (one on the left, one on the right). Stay there unless called upon to help; this helps prevent you both being outflanked. Or you can try the following tactic, which is usually utilized when playing on a four-person team; however, you should each partner into two pairs of two and stay together while patrolling one side of the map while the other takes the opposite side. This reduces the number of foes that you’ll face in a single encounter. If you experience heavy enemy fire, an often under-used area is the corridor from the outer side building that winds around to the lower Pelican platform door and back up to the central structure’s entrance. These places come in handy during Drone takedown battles or to flee from dropped Grenades or lunatic Brute Chieftains.

Tactic: Four-Player Foresight

Aside from having adept communication, warning teammates early of foes, and having the flexibility to aid teammates, four-player tactics involve positioning yourselves to quickly sort out any potential threats. First, split the team into two pairs, each responsible for one side of the map. Second, launch shots from Missile Pods or Rockets at incoming Banshees and Phantoms. If Phantoms arrive, have one or both members lob ordnance at foes before they depart, with one teammate optionally mopping up with sniper fire. For doorway incursions, quickly ascertain the location of the threat, lob in Grenades or Rockets, and seek higher ground and begin methodical sniping takedowns of the survivors.

Bonus Round Plans

Tactic: Heads-up

Prepare for the bonus round by obtaining a Carbine or Magnum (or both) with large ammunition reserves, and begin the infamous headshot kill chain tactic. The Plasma Grenades that you must avoid come thick and fast, so stay farther away than normal while tagging your Grunts, ideally near the spawning building’s doors, and keep moving so you aren’t struck by a Sticky Grenade. Try to cause chain reactions by lobbing in Plasma Grenades at Grunts.