Halo Reach: LASO Guide – Part 2: ONI: Sword Base - II

ONI: Sword Base LASO Walkthrough Part II:

(Find Part I here.) 

Unleash Hell.

You can go either direction now, towards the Comm Station or the Anti-Air battery.  Most people seem to go towards the AA Battery, so let us do that.  There will be a small group of enemies but they are easily dispatched.  Drive your Wraith up onto the pond but do not pass it.  The General up there will nail you with a Plasma Launcher if you get to close.  Just bombard the base like crazy.

Bastard With Your Damn Concussion Rifle...

Halo Reach: LASO Guide – Part 2: ONI: Sword Base - I

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Winter Contingency LASO Guide.

Here are some general strategies to remember for LASO difficulty:

• Be a Team Player - Let your Teammates do the work.  The rest of Noble Team is invincible and has unlimited ammunition.  You are not and do not have that.
• Avoid, Avoid, Avoid! - Avoid any fight or enemy that you absolutely do not need to engage.  Sometimes you will have to clear an area to continue the mission, but other times you can just sneak around.
• Melee for Shields - Black Eye Skull is on, which means that meleeing an enemy will bring your shields back up.  If you are close in, with a low number of enemies, melee and make sure those shields are strong.
• Sneaky, Sneaky - Crouch and you will find that you can sneak around quite a few enemies if they are far enough away.  Stick to walls and this will help you avoid fights.
• Cover - Use it.
• Assassination - The best way to deal with strong enemies, like Elites, is to assassinate them.  It is a one hit kill and a hell of a lot faster than the traditional method of killing them.
• Two Player? - The Challenges are for beating the level on LASO difficulty, not SLASO (Solo, Legendary, All Skulls On).  Turn on a second controller and then you will not have to restart the entire mission every time you die.  The enemies will become slightly harder, but then at last you do have to be perfect through the entire level on its hardest difficulty.
• Headshots - Headshot anything you can, because it kills them faster.  Enough said.
• Mark the Spot - Get a small piece of paper and some tape, or just tape and a sharpie.  and Make a dot with the sharpie on the tape and then put the tape on your screen where the reticule should be.  Do not write on your screen, please. 

Now that you have brushed up on your LASO knowledge and strategies, let us get down to business.

ONI: Sword Base Walkthrough:
(Warning: This is a long walkthrough and contains spoilers.  Links lead to pics illustrating strategies.)
NOTE: Currently, the Challenge does not require the Blind Skull to be turned on.  Do yourself a favor and keep it off.  Do not get used to it though.

Kat will be your teammate for the majority of this mission.  You will start out in a courtyard outside Sword Base and are required to clear it and then to clear three other areas outside the base.  Then you will come back inside and clear out the base.  Obviously, you cannot run through much of this like Winter Contingency, but there are some tricks and shortcuts.

The Right Ramp.

At start, run up the right ramp and you will have an Elite one on one.  Melee, sidestep, and assassinate.  Watch out for the kick because it is lethal.  Grunts down below will probably go kamikaze so take them out before they kill your second player since he is just a stand in.

Melee, Sidestep, and Assassinate.

Now you will want to sneak across the small foot bridge and got to the opposite side.  There will be a pair of Jackals there that you can possibly flank plus some ammo, grenades, and a health pack.  Try to clear this upper walkway entirely.