Guardian

Guardian

Millennia of tending has produced trees as ancient as the Forerunner structures they have grown around.

DATA STREAM

Recommended Game Variants:

• Free for All
• Team Slayer
• Oddball
• Crazy King

Number of Players:

• Recommended: 2-8
• Maximum: 8

Advantageous Equipment:

• Sniper
• Shotgun
• Active Camo
• Overshield

Call-out Locations

Sniper Tower

Other names: S1 (Snipe 1st Floor), S2 (Snipe 2nd Floor), S3 (Snipe 3rd Floor)

This area is home to the Sniper Rifle and connects to Elbow, Top Mid, and Bottom Mid. It is accessible from the lift in Bottom Blue. Sniper Tower also serves as a primary spawn point. In Social Slayer, the Sniper Rifle spawns on S1 (Snipe 1, the tower’s first level) and the Overshield spawns on S2. In MLG, the Sniper Rifle spawns on S3.

Elbow

Other names: N/A

This L-shaped walkway connects Sniper Tower and Forest.

Forest

Other names: Bottom Green, Top Green, Stump

Forest is a secondary spawn location and connects to Elbow and Bottom Mid. It also contains a tree stump for access to Top Mid, along with a lift to Active Camo at Top Gold.

Available Equipment & Gear Respawn Times

Weapons

Equipment

Camo Lift

Other names: N/A
Located in Forest, this lift ends at the Active Camo.

Active Camo

Other names: Camo
Home of the Camouflage and two Plasma Grenades near the blue lift to Top Mid.

Gold Lift

Other names: Bottom Gold, Top Gold
Gold Lift is opposite Sniper Tower and is split into two levels: Top Gold and Bottom Gold. Top Gold connects to Blue Hall and the Active Camo spawn and serves as a primary spawn.

Shotgun

Other names: Shotty
Located beneath Blue Hall, this area is home to the Shotgun in Social Slayer or to two Plasma Grenades in MLG.

Blue Hall

Other names: Blue Barrels
This section serves as the connector for Top Gold and Blue Room.

Shortcut

Other names: N/A
This area serves as a quick escape from Gold Room to Blue Room or vice versa; just jump and crouch.

Blue Room

Other names: N/A
Blue Room is considered a secondary spawn and is located across the map from Forest. Gold Room lies on the left of Blue Room and Sniper Tower is on the right.

Blue Window

Other names: Blue Glass
Covered by glass from Sniper Tower, this area offers some protection and allows easy access to Blue Room, Sniper Lift, Gold Room, and Top Mid.

Sniper Lift

Other names: Snipe Lift
Located directly below Blue Window, this lift will take you to S3.

Top Middle

Other names: Top Mid
Located in the dead center of the map, this circular area offers no protection but allows you to connect to any section of the map through its outlets.

Bottom Middle

Other names: Hammer Spawn, Mauler Spawn
This area is home to the Gravity Hammer in Social games or to the Mauler in MLG games. Bottom Mid connects to Bottom Green, S1, and Bottom Gold.

Tactical Knowledge

The three most essential spots in Guardian are Green, Sniper Tower, and Gold. These spots are very open and allow unique views of the map.
Green, or Forest, can be reached by Elbow, Top Middle, and Bottom Middle. It has a lift that takes you over to Top Gold and lets you see any enemies approaching from Top Middle. Although Green offers a view of the entire Top Middle, it is a vulnerable spot to be in, as you are in view of almost all the most important zones. Green is also dangerous, as it has an exploding crate in the back of it. Shoot this crate as soon as you see it to avoid being killed. Directly in front of the barrel are Brute Shots. These weapons can be very powerful if used correctly. On the top level of Forest (Top Green), there is a Bubble Shield. Pick this up as soon as you see it, as it can be very beneficial to your survival.
Sniper Tower has three levels: Snipe 1 (S1), which is the lowest level; Snipe 2 (S2), which is the middle level; and Snipe 3 (S3), which is the top level. The Sniper Rifle is located on S1, the Overshield is on S2, and the Needler is on the ramp leading up from S1 and S2 to S3. On S3, there is another exploding barrel. With a large view of the map, Sniper Tower is a very useful place at which to camp.
Gold Room has two levels and various routes to crucial locations on Guardian. The two levels of Gold are known as Bottom Gold and Top Gold, and both are connected by a lift. To the left of Gold (if you’re looking at Sniper Tower), Camouflage and two Plasma Grenades spawn. To the right of Gold is the Blue Room. Also, on the way to Blue Room, there are more exploding crates inside the halls, which are known as Blue Halls. Shoot these crates (from a safe distance) to avoid being killed by an enemy behind them. In the Blue Room, there is a flare that you can use to blind enemies. Below the Blue Room, there is the Green Hall, which houses the Shotgun.

Offense

Because there are so many different weapons on Guardian, an offensive setup is always fun.
Always keep control of the main power weapons—the Shotgun and the Sniper Rifle. Your team can easily win the game if these weapons are in your possession at all times.
Take advantage of the strong power-ups on this map—Camo and Overshield. The Shotgun and Camo or the Shotgun and Overshield can be deadly to any unsuspecting enemies.
After your team has control of the power weapons, push to wherever the opposing team is setting up. Have your team’s sniper stay at Sniper Tower, always checking behind him to make sure that he is in the clear to snipe.
Make sure the player with the Shotgun can sneak around the map—either by crouch-walking or hiding in ambush spots—and kill unsuspecting enemies.
Another important power weapon is the Gravity Hammer, located at Bottom Middle. Have a player who is skilled with this weapon (as it is sometimes tricky to use) mimic the player with the Shotgun by sneaking around the enemy’s setup and taking them by surprise.
No matter where your enemies spawn, always rush them in an organized fashion. Make sure your entire team is with you while you rush your enemies, but do not stand directly next to each other, as this is an easy triple kill for the opposing team.

Defense

Even though there are a variety of weapons on Guardian that make it tougher to set up a defense, gaining control of these weapons and taking advantage of the power-ups can make for a healthy defensive setup.
Have two teammates go for the Sniper Rifle and two teammates sneak for the Shotgun; these are the power weapons, and an enemy with a Shotgun can absolutely destroy a defensive setup.
It is important to make sure that your team has the power-ups on the map, as an enemy with an Overshield is twice as hard to kill.
Pick the Gold Room, the Blue Room, or the Sniper Tower to be the home for your team. You want your team to control all possible entrances to your base so that whenever an enemy approaches, your team knows where they are coming from.
When Camo spawns, have one player (preferably the one with the Shotgun) grab it, wait until he is fully invisible, and then crouch-walk or sneak around and assassinate foes. Do not have your team push with the invisible player, as it will give away his position. The invisible player should always try to assassinate an enemy, as this is the easiest and most effective way to use the Camo to your advantage.
If an enemy with the Overshield approaches your team, have a majority of your teammates attempt to kill him. The more shots this enemy takes, the quicker his Overshield will go down and the quicker he will be eliminated.
Wait for the opposing team to push/rush your team; do not rush out on your own, and make sure that your team knows they will be holding a defensive position.

Enhanced Knowledge

In Oddball, your main objective is to score as many points as possible; however, you should “bait the ball” at the start of the game. This means that you allow your opponent to run after the ball, then your team opens fire on them. After you kill three or four of them, try to get the ball and return to your team.
Blue Room and Sniper Tower are two great areas at which to hold the ball. Blue Room provides a little bit more cover if your team is uncomfortable at Sniper Tower. If you hold the ball at Blue Room, have a teammate across at Forest and another at Sniper Tower or Gold Room. This allows your team to have eyes on all of the map and hopefully kill the opponent before they reach your other two teammates with the ball in Blue Room.
If you have the oddball and are about to die, try and “play ball”—throw the ball over the edge so it respawns on Top Mid. This allows your team to set up and respawn if necessary while the opponent gains little to no time with the ball.
Crazy King is a free-for-all variant of King of the Hill. Familiarize yourself with the rotation of the hill in order to succeed. When playing, leave the hill a few seconds early as you run to the next location for the new hill. You will be surprised at how much extra time this gives you for each game!

Sniping

Snipe 1

The Sniper Rifle spawns at this level of Sniper Tower. You can see all of Bottom Middle and Top Gold. This position is great for killing approaching enemies. Opponents who drop down to Bottom Gold or rush Bottom Middle from Green or Top Middle make easy targets to kill.

Green

This is a great spot for sniping. You can see the entrance to Blue Room, all of Top Middle, the entrance to Top Gold, Camo Spawn, Bottom Middle, Elbow, and Sniper Tower. Being able to see all of these areas allows you to call out enemy locations to your teammates and even get a few kills in the process. Watch Elbow closely so enemies don’t sneak up and assassinate you.

Top Gold

Sniping from Top Gold is always a good choice. From Top Gold, you can see all of Top Middle, Top Green, Bottom Middle, Blue Room, Sniper Tower, and Barrels Hallway. Have the sniper on Top Gold, where it’s easy to kill opponents on Snipe 2 and Snipe 3.