Half-Life Platinum Collection walkthrough/FAQ - version 1.5 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (Half-Life, Team Fortress, Opposing Force, Counter-Strike, Blue Shift) =============================================================================================== DISCLAIMER This file is entirely my own idea and has in no way been sanctioned or authorized by Sierra (http://www.sierra.com/) or any other persons responsible for the creation, production, and distribution of the game. Any errors contained herein are entirely my own; use at your own risk. =============================================================================================== =============================================================================================== REFERENCES Special thanks to "El Greco" (Don Fleming) and his excellent walkthrough/FAQ... also thanks to GameFAQS. I used the "InfernalColonel" walkthroughs for "Opposing Force" and "Blue Shift" for reference, but they're pretty basic. Other credits are noted where necessary. GameFAQs, IGN and my own sites are the only authorized places for this walkthrough/FAQ - everybody else needs to get my permission first. =============================================================================================== Table of Contents: Disclaimer (above) References (above) Intro Binding - creating your own hotkeys Weapons (Half-Life) Good Guys (Half-Life) Bad Guys (Half-Life) "Half-Life" Hazard Course "Half-Life" Walkthrough "Half-Life" Cheats Spawning "Half-Life" Map Access "Half-Life" Easter Eggs & Oddities "Team Fortress" Information "Team Fortress" maps & cheats Weapons (Opposing Force) Good Guys (Opposing Force) Bad Guys (Opposing Force) "Opposing Force" Boot Camp "Opposing Force" Walkthrough "Opposing Force" map access and cheats "opposing Force" Multiplayer "Counter-Strike" Information "Counter-Strike" maps & cheats Weapons (Blue Shift) Good Guys (Blue Shift) Bad Guys (Blue Shift) "Blue Shift" Hazard Course "Blue Shift" Walkthrough "Blue Shift" map access and cheats "Blue Shift" Easter Egg Credits Sig =============================================================================================== "HALF-LIFE" INTRO You are Gordon Freeman, research scientist with a degree in Theoretical Physics from MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). You've been assigned to the Black Mesa Research Facility, a converted Cold War missile base out in New Mexico where top secret scientific research is going on. You're just a worker bee right now, but you'll end up saving the day... When it was first introduced in 2000, "Half-Life" won just about every award there is, including Game of the Year. A FPS (first-person shooter) loaded with detail, and with an actual plot... it's not just ye old "blow up the Bad Guys" (well okay, it is). Note: this walkthrough and FAQ is based on the 5 disk "Platinum Collection"... while most things will be the same as the original, some commands may be different. "Team Fortress" is just a multiplayer add-on for "Half-Life", and "Counter Strike" is a multiplayer game of terrorist vs. counter-terrorist; neither one requires a walkthrough, though I've noted a few things. "Half-Life", "Opposing Force" and "Blue Shift" are all single player FPS, and I've included a complete walkthrough for each. In "Opposing Force" (OpFor), you play one of the Marines tasked with killing Freeman, while in "Blue Shift" you play one of the Barney security guards. "Half-Life", "Team Fortress" and "Opposing Force" all use the same executable (Sierra\Half-Life\hl.exe) as they are all part of the same game. As with any other FPS, there are secret areas and the occasional Easter Egg... in some FPS, you need to get the secret areas in order to complete the game, but in this one you don't. However, the secret areas usually contain ammo or healing. Easter Eggs are areas that usually require cheating or some very fancy moves to get to, but they don't contain any toys you can pick up - instead, they usually contain pictures of the developers, or silly stuff. Easter Eggs will be listed as such in the walkthroughs, but secret areas - if that's what they are - won't be listed seprately. The only real difference between "Easy" and "Hard" is the fact that Bad Guys will be harder to kill, and power-ups (Batteries, First Aid Kits & Stations) won't give you as much. =============================================================================================== BINDING You can 'bind' a command (cheat or otherwise) to a single key so you have a hotkey... instead of typing in the command, just hit the hotkey and it will work. There are two different ways to bind keys... through the console or by editing the configuration file. Obviously, through the console is the better method. If you haven't set up your game to access the console, see the beginning of the different "Cheats" sections below for directions. Open your console with the ` key (the tilde ~), and type: bind g "give ammo_9mmclip" Note that you MUST use the quotes! Bind all of the hotkeys that you want... if you're not sure what keys are already used, you can look through the configuration. However, unless you did something drastic in your configuration, the following keys will be unused: 0 6 7 8 9 F1 F2 F3 F4 F8 F9 F11 F12 For the function keys, type it in, such as bind f11 "give item_healthkit" Note that while '6' and '7' are unused in "Half-Life" and "Blue Shift", they are used in "Opposing Force", part of your weapons inventory. I would suggest that you bind the same key to the same command in each game, unless you like confusing yourself. For example, in each game you'd have F1 set as "give ammo_9mmclip" (Glock ammo), rather than having F1 set as something different in each game. The other way to bind keys - make sure you know what you're doing! - is to open the configuration file with a plain text editor (such as Windows Notepad)... don't use Word or any other formatted word processor. The configuration file is: C:\SIERRA\Half-Life\valve\config.cfg (your directory may be different, of course). Look at how they've got it, and add yours in the same way. Follow the same order... numerically and alphabetically in order from first to last. Note that "/god" doesn't work when bound. While "Half-Life", "Opposing Force" and "Team Fortress" all run off the same executable, you need to bind the keys separately in OpFor. The config file for "Team Fortress" is the same as "Half-Life", and will use the same binds as "Half-Life". The configuration file for "Opposing Force" is: C:\SIERRA\Half-Life\gearbox\config.cfg and the configuration file for "Counter Strike" is: C:\SIERRA\Counter-Strike\cstrike\config.cfg while the configuration file for "Blue Shift" is: C:\SIERRA\Blue-Shift\bshift\config.cfg =============================================================================================== -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =============================================================================================== WEAPONS (HALF-LIFE) Weapons are arranged in categories, and can be accessed either through the scroll wheel on your mouse, or through the 1-5 keys at the top of your keyboard. Some categories will have more than one selection in them... hit the appropriate number and then scroll to the weapon you want, and hit Fire to acquire it. Your weapons inventory will not appear on the screen until you've gotten your HEV Suit. They call it a Glock pistol, but the graphics make it look a lot like a Beretta P-92 (9mm), which is now the standard military sidearm, and is used by a lot of police forces as well. Who cares, as long as it works? 1 (Low Tech) - Crowbar - handy for breaking into things, or breaking heads. 2 (Handguns) - the 9mm Glock Pistol can be fired underwater, which is quite handy. 9mm Glock Pistol - standard Barney gun; hold down secondary for rapid fire. 357 Magnum - powerful, but slow to reload. 3 (Assault Weapons) MP5 Rifle - basic military assault rifle with Grenade launcher (secondary). Oddly enough, ammo for the Glock pistol will also work in this. Shotgun - pump action nastiness; secondary is a double-shell blast. Crossbow - fires poisonous darts that work on almost anything organic; secondary zooms in. VERY slow to reload. 4 (Distance Weapons) RPG - ye old rocket launcher... slow to reload, slow to use - but powerful. Secondary fire turns the laser sight on or off. Gauss Rifle - hold down secondary fire to charge it up, release it to fire. Takes twelve ammo to fully charge, and can bring down aircraft. Primary fire is very rapid, and does nice damage as well. Gluon Gun - AKA "The Egon". Fires a particle stream that can annihilate any target, uses the same ammo as the Gauss Rifle. Use it sparingly. I hate the noise this thing makes... very annoying. Hornetgun - an alien entity that fits on your hand and fires little 'hornets' that will chase their target. It regenerates itself, so no ammo is needed - however, it only works on living beings, not machines. Secondary is rapid fire. 5 (Throwable & Placable) Hand Grenades - primary fire to throw... the longer you hold it, the shorter the fuse - don't let it explode in your hand. Aim higher to throw farther. Satchel Charge - primary fire to toss it, fire again to blow it up. Once the first charge is placed, use your secondary fire to toss as many others as you want, and primary fire to blow them all at once. Tripmines - place them against a wall or other flat object (such as a crate), then get the hell out of Dodge; anything that breaks the beam - including you - will set it off. Snarks - little throwable bugs... be careful, because once you've thrown them, *anything* is a target - including you. Found in the form of a pinkish pulsating blob on the floor. One thing that is *not* a weapon, but does come in handy, is an "Ammo-All Container". This is a sealed green tube that looks like an RPG tube, but instead it will replace ammo of any type that you have missing - not all of it, of course, but some. These can only be found in Xen, and even if all of your weapons are fully loaded these are good to grab. =============================================================================================== GOOD GUYS (HALF-LIFE) There are actually a few Good Guys in the game... not many, but a few. Always stop and listen to any of the Good Guys if you can. Occasionally Good Guys will be of use to you, such as opening doors and acting as cannon fodder; hit 'use' when facing them to get them to follow you. Scientists - these should be obvious; they're the guys in the white coats. Barney - any and all security guards in the game are called "Barney", for whatever reason. They can open doors for you, and occasionally they can act as additional firepower. Don't be afraid to kill them once their usefulness is over... and steal their weapons. Just watch out - sometimes you actually need to keep a Barney or a scientist alive for a little while... usually because there's a door that needs to be opened. After those doors have been opened, then they can be killed or discarded. =============================================================================================== BAD GUYS (HALF-LIFE) Just about everyone (and everything) in the game is a Bad Guy... and it's not just the aliens that are Bad. Humans: Soldiers - come in a variety of flavors, including one type (Black Ops) that can 'cloak' and become almost invisible at the higher difficulty levels. They're here to cover up any events that may have occurred, and that includes covering up *you*... six feet under. It's very obvious that somebody at Valve is an ex-Marine... the dialogue is authentic, though nowhere near as profane as I remember (I served four years in the Corps). G-Man - these mysterious bureaucratic buttheads will show up at various places in the game... you won't be able to kill any of them or affect them in any way, darn it. aka "Suits" Miscellaneous: Tripod Guns - military automated guns mounted on what appear to be camera tripods; they'll fire at you quite rapidly. These are usually triggered by a red laser beam crossing a corridor - if you don't trip the beam, you might not get shot. Turrets - wall or ceiling mounted gun turrets; sometimes in concealed alcoves as well. Some of them can be shut off with a wall switch. Aliens: Headcrabs - They'll only jump at you when they're facing you, so if you can get them while they're turning or with their backs to you... AKA "facehuggers". Houndeyes - little three-legged 'puppy' critters with a sonic squeal. AKA "runhounds". Zombies - humans that have been taken over by a Headcrab. Also known as "mawmen" because of their toothy chest. Barnacles - red things that stick to the ceiling and dangle their tongues down - always look up! Alien Slaves - ghoulish beastie that spits electricity... AKA "voltigaunts" or "power slaves". Bullchicken - funky looking tentacle-faced beasts that spit a strange slime. AKA "squidspitters". Tentacle - a huge green tentacle... it can't see, but it hears quite well. Impossible to kill except under special circumstances. AKA "Beaky". Gargantua - big ugly blue monster that spits flames or beams from its chest, and has a seismic stomp. Takes a lot of killing. Leeches - tiny little swimming worms, easily killed with the Crowbar. Only found in water. AKA "tubeworms". Icthyosaurs - these alien 'sharks' have quite a bite. Alien Grunts - big, bulky, ugly, with a third arm growing out of the center of their chest... it takes several shots (or a good Grenade) to kill one. They're usually armed with a Hornetgun. Alien Controllers - ugly roundish flying beasts that shoot out green beams. Fairly easily killed, but... AKA "Xen Masters". Gonarch (technically, it's called "Big Momma") - a big, ugly alien spider... it spits out radioactive 'snowflakes' and baby Headcrabs. Keep shooting it in the balls to kill it. Nihilanth - the final Boss, it looks like a big (and very ugly) baby. White beams will severely damage you, while green beams will teleport you to differing places throughout the level. Requires special (and specific) killing. As usual in any FPS, the best and quickest kill is by shooting the monster / bad guy in the head. For Zombies, this means shooting the Headcrab on top. =============================================================================================== HALF-LIFE HAZARD COURSE One of the things about "Half-Life" that makes it different from just about any other FPS out there is the training section of the game... you can familiarize yourself with your character's moves, weapons, and other features. It would probably be a good idea if you went through the "Hazard Course" - available from the Main Menu - to get used to how your character moves, especially the Long Jump. All your binds will be available during the training courses, as will all of the cheats. =============================================================================================== WALKTHROUGH: HALF-LIFE 0) Black Mesa Inbound Believe it or not, this intro is actually a level, though you can't do anything in it. You also can't skip it unless you cheat, so just sit back and enjoy the ride. Take note of the rocket that you'll pass on the right - you need to play with that later in the game. You'll also see several of these areas again as you go along. Tips: Always listen to the chatter from scientists, Barney (security guards), etc. Eavesdrop on radio chatter and military conversations. Smash every box you can (use the Crowbar) - they sometimes contain items, ammo, etc. However, note that you'll need some crates to jump up to another area - check everything out before smashing. Bookcases, filing cabinets and other items can also be smashed, though they won't get you anything. Be very careful when backing down ladders... they can be a real pain. You don't *need* to back down a ladder... you can actually put your back to the ladder and just move forwards to descend. However, if you're going to do that, your best bet is to back down the first rung or two and then turn around. When facing a ladder, aim upwards and hit forwards to climb up, or aim down and hit forwards to climb down. Whenever you're crouched, you're in 'stealth' mode... Bad Guys can't hear you. When using a wheel or a lever, you usually need to hold down your 'use' key or button until the wheel or lever is fully moved. All throughout the game you'll see little triangular bugs zipping around here and there... don't waste any ammo on them, as they appear to be the Half-Life equivalent of La Cucuracha. If you're playing the game for the first time, you should really do the Black Mesa Hazard Course (available from the main menu)... it'll familiarize you with movements in the game, including the Long Jump. Obviously you'll want to save often... just before the end of a level, kick out to your Main Menu and hit Save, and often enough during a level in progress hit your QuickSave (default is F6). There are various points in the game where you'll appear to get 'stuck'... you'll be able to turn and fire any weapons, but you won't be able to move. If that happens, hit F7 (default) for QuickLoad and continue on. When you smash a crate, wait for the ephemra (ghost images) to fade... that way you'll see if there's actually anything in the crate for you. One bit of silliness: if you have the cheats enabled, open the console and type in 'thirdperson' (once you have your HEV suit) - while your suit should be orange in color, when you're in 'thirdperson' mode it's a strange-looking blue thing. Odd. (Type in 'firstperson' to return to your regular view) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 1) Anomalous Materials As soon as the tram stops, move to the door and wait for the Security Guard (Barney) to open the door for you; follow him to the gate and wait for him to open that. Into the next room, and wait for that door. Go up to the Security Desk, where Barney will tell you that you're needed in the Test Chamber as soon as you're in your HEV (Hazardous Environment Vehicle) suit. Turn right, and follow the green line to Personnel (around the corner and down the ramp). Note that if you follow the red line and into that one room on the right (you'll see this room later), the scientists in there will grouse at you until you leave. Just for kicks, turn off the lights and then move out of the way... after a minute, one of the scientists will come over and turn the lights back on. Keep following the green line... check out the break room if you want, but you should head for the Locker Room. Freeman's (that's you!) locker is straight ahead, on the right end of the middle row. First, however, go into the room ahead and left, and hit the center switch on the console to open your HEV booth. Get into your HEV - just walk right up to it. Once it's on, open your locker and charge up by picking up the HEV Battery. Check out the bathroom if you're interested... there's a First Aid Station (FAS) on the wall. The hand dryer on the wall works, but nothing else does. Soda machines work, but things like the microwave won't. Exit the Locker Room and head back to the ramp, and follow the blue line (don't go up the ramp, just keep going straight and right around the corner). Wait for Barney to open the security door, and through, then through the next. Walk around that central structure to the other side, and hit the button to summon the lift (check out the ads on the walls in here if you want). In the lift, face back towards the door (note the ladder now on your right) and hit the button on the left. At the bottom, note the ladder on your left, and head through the doors. Make sure you stop by the two scientists to get the chatter; head through the next door. Follow the green line to the Test Labs - past the next scientists, past Barney, through the door. In the Control Room, listen to the chatter and then move to the door... eventually one of the scientists will open it for you. Listen to the chatter, watch the console blow... open the door and get on the lift, hit the button and down you go. To the Test Labs door. Chatter, most of it silly. Wait for them to open to blast door for you, and enter. Head around and up the ladder; hit the switch to start the rotors (you may have to wait for the switch cover to lift out of the way). Back down the ladder and wait - when the specimen is delivered, get behind it and push it into the center... and wait for all hell to break loose. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 2) Unforeseen Consequences Aliens from space, basically... or an alternate dimension. Whatever the case, life just got a lot more interesting. Once all the fireworks are over and this level has loaded, head out of the Test Labs... use the damaged optical scanner to open the door. Retrace your steps to the lift (watch out for falling machinery), get on and head back up to the Control Room. Head over to the scientists (note the 'facehugger' in the tube) and listen to the chatter - hit 'use' to have that one scientist follow you so he can open the security door. In the next room, watch out for the green beam coming in the window... it'll blow open the door at the far end of the room, but don't let it blow you open as well. Watch it as you move along - a Headcrab (a whitish blob with red legs... it'll only jump at you when it's facing you, so - when you have a weapon - kill it when its back is turned or it's turning around) will jump out at you... just keep running. Though it doesn't matter right here, remember that your HEV suit goes into a kind of 'stealth' mode when you're crouched. Watch out for the lasers in this next hall. Past the dead Barney is the lift door, and your first weapon... the Crowbar (perfect for smashing crates or busting heads). Your first use for it... crouch down and smash the glass in either of the lower panels of the door, and duck through. Down the next hall, and hit the switch next to the lift door... and watch a couple of scientists plunge to their deaths (yes, you need to drop that lift in order to maneuver through the shaft yourself). Smash the glass and duck through. Climb down the ladder and get a HEV Battery, then back up and up the next ladder. Kill the Zombie (a scientist or other human that's been taken over by a Headcrab... also known as "maw-men" because of their toothy chest) or let Barney do it, then listen to his chatter for a moment. If Barney wasn't killed by the Zombie, kill him yourself and steal his Pistol. Kill the next Zombie, and continue on through the next door... head back to the Locker Room (a couple more Zombies on the way, as well as a Headcrab chewing on a scientist's head along the wall to your right... while that one won't attack you, kill it anyway) - get a Battery from your locker, and ammo from Guthrie's. Note that you can smash the soda machines with the Crowbar. Stop in the bathroom if you need to use the FAS, then head out to the Security Desk... when you go up the ramp, turn right first and work your way up that slope - look through the opening and you'll see a fallen vent duct in the next room; shoot at the middle section to blow it open, then shoot the Headcrab inside. As you approach the Security Desk, a vent near the floor will blow open... watch out for Headcrabs inside. If you're feeling a little destructive and want to waste ammo, you can shoot out all of the TV screens along that one wall. Something else you can do - though not necessary - is to go around the security desk... stand at the end of the keyboard and aim at the switch underneath the desk, hit 'use' to shut off one of the alarms. Just for silliness... go up to the big doors you originally came through at the beginning, and shoot the small blue screen next to the keypad - it will blow, and the lower half of the door will open. Duck on through, and through the next as well - you can collect ammo from the dead Barney. Carefully start moving out towards the trapped scientist, and he'll start screaming at you to stay back... then the catwalk will break and he'll fall, followed by some kind of animal grunt as something chows down on his corpse. Crouch inside that blown-out vent... watch out for Headcrabs (usually a console will fall on one of them) and up on the angled console on the other side of the room (hit the FAS in here if you need it). You can also shoot out the rotating spotlight in here if you wish. Into the duct, and drop out the other side. To your left will be an angled duct, the one you shot at earlier... if you walk up on it, it will break and a Headcrab will pop out (presuming you didn't blow it away already). Rooms on either side in this hall... in one, you'll see a scientist under attack by a Headcrab - you can't get in there without cheating, and there's nothing in there for you anyway. In the other room, climb through the window and hack the Zombie in the chair to death with the Crowbar; you can also smash the two laptops, the filing cabinets and the chalkboard. Continue heading down the hall, and around the corner towards Section B - in the next area there will be a dying Barney (grab his Pistol) and a FAS, and in the corner there's another scientist being chewed on by a Headcrab. Duck through the lower left hand corner of the door, then through the next door (hit the switch on the wall to open it)... you'll hear the sonic sounds of a Houndeye. Kill these things quick... they may act like little puppies, but that sonic attack can really damage you. To the right at the junction there's a vent up on the wall... a scientist will get pulled into it and chewed up; ignore that, as you can't get up in there. Head left around the corner, and you'll notice a "G-Man" up on the catwalk - unfortunately, you can't do anything about him. These mysterious "suits" will show up at different places in the game - whether there's just one of them or a half ton, I don't know - and unfortunately there's nothing you can do to them. Damn. Watch out for the Houndeyes in here. That silverish barrel can be pushed or pulled if you want, but you don't need this one right now. In that reddish window on your left is a FAS if you need it... otherwise just keep following the hall. Two different ways to go here... to your right is a door with a 'poison' symbol next to it (skull & crossbones in a yellow triangle), to your left is a hall with "19" marked above it; go right first. Through the corridors and up the short ladder - watch out for the beasties at the top. You can shoot the cylinders at the end of the hall there, but watch out for the explosion. To the left is a catwalk (you'll be facing that "19") while to the right is an alcove with a scientist. 'Use' the scientist to get him to follow you, and head for those catwalks... you'll see another explosive cylinder, and at the end of that hall is a Zombie chewing on a corpse. Kill the Zombie (try not to shoot the explosive... the life you save may be your own), and let the scientist use the retinal scanner. Inside the room is ammo, and Grenades. Head back down to "19". As you round the corner, there will be a door straight ahead of you, with a fan to the left... bump up against the door and then back up - have a weapon handy and loaded. The door will explode outwards, and behind it will be your first Alien Slave (skinny green-eyed beasts that shoot electricity - also know as "power slaves")... kill it quick, while it's charging up. Note that on the highest difficulty level, its charging time is cut in half - watch out. In the room where it was is some ammo. Around the corner is a hole in the floor and a gate - shoot the Zombie through the grate. Continue on in the hall for another fan, a Headcrab, and a dumpster... bump into the dumpster for an amusing bit of interaction; behind the dumpster is a FAS. It should be obvious... drop down the square hole in the floor at that gate. From where you dropped down - watch out for the Headcrab... aren't you glad the Pistol works underwater? - there are tunnels to the left and right; head right and down to that wheel. 'Use' the wheel to turn it (hold down your 'use' key until the wheel has stopped turning) and fill the tunnels with water... don't lose your orientation or you'll end up drowning down here. With the wheel at your back, head into the right tunnel, and swim up through the grate (there are several in here). Just follow the hall... in the big room, take either ramp up (get the ammo from Barney), and at the top use the lever. Race back down and get on the lift, but watch out for the Headcrabs that will jump down on you. Near the bottom of the lift is a platform on your left with a FAS on it... try and get on that as you go past, because down in one of those crates is a Houndeye. After you kill that (and any remaining Headcrabs with a Grenade), use the FAS if you need to, then drop down on the lift slope and down. There's another FAS on the other side of the lift, but be careful you don't fall in that slime because the machinery underneath will chew you up. In some of those crates are ammo and a Pistol. Head down the hall, but don't get on that catwalk yet... a squid-faced alien (a Bullchicken, also known as a "squid-spitter"... two-legged leopard-skinned beasties that spit a green slime for an incredible distance; if you get too close they'll jump on you for some nasty damage) will spawn in and wreck the catwalk. Get on the remains and quickly get on those pipes on the right side... follow those around and smash your way into the vent. Follow that around to the end and smash through the grate (not the first one at the corner, but the second one... the one that's angled) to drop into the hall. That area under the first grate - the red-lit octagon - is something you'll see soon enough. Smash open the crates for HEV Batteries. Pass by that door for now. Don't be too eager to get to the next busted catwalk... look around first. Note the red things stuck to the ceiling with the gray ropes hanging down... those are Barnacles, and if they grab you with that tongue they'll suck you up and do some damage. Usually 4 shots from the Pistol will kill one of them (aim at the red) - once you get other toys, 2 shots from the Shotgun or one from the 357 will kill them. The Barnacles are one reason you should always look up... and watch out for 'ropes' or 'wires' hanging down, because they might be Barnacle 'tongues'. The best shot is directly at the 'mouth' of the creatures. Across the way on the ledge below is another Bullchicken, and a Headcrab or two... I'd suggest letting the Bullchicken kill the Headcrabs for you, then kill it with a Grenade. Those boxes and crates on the ledges below don't contain anything, so don't worry about them. Once you've blown them away, head back to that door you passed and head down the ladder. I suppose you could just drop into the 'water' from the busted catwalk (after you've killed the aliens) and not bother with the ladder down - if you're careful, you won't hit the machinery under the water and take any damage. Either way works, and you won't be missing anything. Now for the fun part... first, there's a FAS down to the right at the end of the ledge. Just drop into the sewage and swim left, around and through, up the ladder to a FAS. Through the door, and you're across the canal. If you want to avoid the sewage, you can push the barrels and crates into the crap and hope they land right so you can jump across them. Through the door and follow the passages around. Yeah, you guessed it - up the ladders, then jump from crate to crate until you get into that opening. Quicksave before and after each jump! Through the door, up the ladder, through the next door, down the halls... through the door and you're out on top of that ledge, on the other side of the busted catwalk. Head down the hall and hit the button to summon the elevator. Get in and hit the button... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 3) Office Complex Out the elevator and you'll see a scientist being sucked into the ceiling - nothing you can do about that. Here in the hall are a couple of sparking wires which make going that way impossible at the moment, but those wires are also zapping the various Headcrabs. Get close to that vent and the sparks will blow open a section of floor - use that as a marker to determine how far down the hall you can go before the sparks get you; obviously you can get into that vent. First, though, take a look through the door to the right... a bit messy: a scientist being ingested into the ceiling by a long red 'tongue' (Barnacle). Neither door here will open, which is not at all unusual in this game - a lot of the time you'll need to find other ways around. Grab the HEV Battery, crouch down and smash open the vent, then go in. Inside you can go left or right... go left first and look into that area: a dead Barney, a spinning fan and a couple of Headcrabs. There's another section of vent here to your right which will take you around to the grating behind that fan, but obviously you can't do that yet. If you're lucky, the two Headcrabs will try and get at you through the grate and will get chopped to bits by the fan; otherwise, you can toss a Grenade through the grate and back away quickly. Head right in the vent, up the slope and into the room you saw through the doors - watch out for the various Barnacles which will break through the ceiling. Chat with the remaining scientist (then blow him away if you want), and go into the small room labelled "High Voltage". Use the switch to shut off the power. Now out through the doors, and back into the vent - follow it around, smash through the grate behind the now-dead fan, and grab any ammo... then get back out into the hallway. At the end of the hall smash through the window and jump in... there's a broken window to your right, and the hall continues on past a pair of double doors. Take a look in the window, and you'll note that a broken wire is electrifying the water - don't go in there yet. If you want, you can shoot the Headcrab on the table, and you can even shoot away the grate on the wall... if you're really good, you can toss a Grenade into the now-open vent shaft to take care of the critters in there, or wait until later. Continue down the hall first - obviously you can't open those double doors - and on your left will be a short, lit hall labeled "Storage". Bump into the wooden door and then back off, weapon ready... a Zombie will smash its way out - make sure you let it smash all the way through the door before killing it or you won't be able to get in there. A couple of ammo clips inside. Back out to the hall and continue around through the darkened area... lots of crates in here, just smash them all (Headcrab in the last one). In the next area, grab the Shotgun and Buckshot from the open crate... head towards the caged Barney at the end, and a Zombie will attack him. Kill the Zombie, and Barney will let you in. In the next room, grab all the ammo you can... but watch out for the vent above - toss a Grenade into it to kill the Headcrabs (don't miss the vent and toss the Grenade into the hall - you don't want to kill Barney). Back out to the catwalk area and down the ladder... smash the crates for First Aid and HEV Batteries. Back up the ladder and back to where you first entered this section through the window you smashed. Head back out to the first room, the one with the broken window... be careful jumping into that window; the live wire has electrified the water. Move from table to table until you can get across to the light switch (note the FAS), and shut off the lights. Once the lights (and the power) are out, you can jump in the water and over to the tall locker (on the same side of the room as the sink) - inside is an HEV Battery. Use the FAS if necessary, then smash through the vent grate in the wall and climb into the duct (watch out for a trio of Headcrabs). Carefully work your way through here and stop short before you leap out... *this* fan is still going. Just over your head is an open vent in the ceiling that will disgorge Headcrabs... crouch under the fan to the next corner, and the Headcrabs will splat to death on the spinning fan. Keep walking around the fan until you come to the next area, where you'll fall through the ceiling on the other side of those double doors. If you want to, you can go out through those doors and get Barney to follow you back here as additional firepower. The ceiling will break to disgorge a pair of Headcrabs... kill them and then push the large crate under the end of the ladder in the ceiling, then the small one next to it - jump up the ladder and on up. Jump off to the left and through the grate in the 'floor', then smash the next grate - but *don't* go through it yet; there's an automated turret down to your right which will shoot at anything that moves... that includes the scientist and the Headcrabs that will come running when you bust the grate. Back into the duct and wait until the turret quiets down (you'll be able to hear it withdraw into the ceiling), then jump out and run like hell for that corridor across the way. There are a ton of Headcrabs in here, so before you even leave the duct, lob a Grenade as far as you can into this hallway. Again, stay just out of view - when the turret withdraws, duck out and toss a Grenade down that way - you can't kill the turret, but you will blow up the crates in your way. Retreat again, and at the right time run like hell for the area under the platform the turret is on - use the switch under there to shut off the turret. Head for the square doorway at the opposite end of the room from the turret... to the right is Shotgun ammo, to the left is pistol ammo and a door leading back to the hallway where you jump up on the crates and up the ladder. Grab the small crate from out here and bring it into the room with the automated turret... you can use the small crate and one of the larger ones to get up on that platform with the FAS (nothing in the crates up here). Now head down the curving hallway leading off this room - if you haven't killed all the Headcrabs in here yet, lob in a Grenade to polish them off. Up the stairs to where Barney is taking potshots at Headcrabs... have him follow you and get ready to rumble - numerous Alien Slaves down this way. First, though, bust the crates (Pistol ammo in one), then watch out as you enter the doorway - Headcrab falls from the ceiling. Look through the grilled window on your right, and a scientist will shut off the lights in that room. In the first door on your left ("D-AL 101"), you'll see a pair of scientists being ingested into a vent - nothing you can do about that, so just grab the Battery and go back into the hall... you can hear Alien Slave noises from further ahead. If you haven't already, go back and grab Barney - let him do some Alien Slave killing so you don't get hurt. Up ahead the hall branches in various directions... toss a Grenade down each corridor to clear out the Alien Slaves, then go straight ahead to the lit room you can see. Above the couch is a sign saying "Maintenance Access" - blow away the ceiling, jump up on the couch, and climb that ladder. Once up there, go straight ahead and shut off that switch - don't go around to the right until you hear the Turret retreat up into the ceiling; then you can go and collect ammo. If you want, you can carefully lean out the window and blow away the Headcrabs below. Back down the ladder. In these corridors, clean out every area... go in through the "D-AL 102" doorway, blow away the Barnacle (and Slaves), and through the next door is the room where the scientist turned off the lights. As wth most anything else, you can use Grenades to blow up the filing cabinets and bookshelves, though there's nothing there for you other than a FAK on the desk. Clear out the other rooms, getting anything you can (not much). In one corridor - to your left as you first entered this area - is a pair of soda machines... past that is the exit from this area. In the next room is a scientist (alive or dead - if he's alive, he'll tell you that soldiers (a possible rescue team) have arrived), an FAS on the wall, and a trash can - just as with anything else, a Grenade will blow up any trash cans, though they rarely (if ever) contain anything. Head up the stairs. At the top of the stairs - if you didn't get them earlier - will be a bunch of Headcrabs, and high up in the wall is a Turret. Hopefully you shut it off earlier and retrieved any ammo up there... if not, try and take it out quickly now. In the next room are a pair of crates, one of which is explosive - wait until the approaching Zombie is next to it, then shoot the crate... sometimes it kills the Zombie, sometimes it doesn't. Through the next doorway, and when you're next to the rusty pipe on the wall, toss a Grenade around the corner to take out any Alien Slaves. Through the next door and you have several choices... a vent right behind the door, a ramp down, and more hall (as well as Barney). Go down the ramp first... in the area at the bottom is a Bullchicken and various bits of ammo. Get those, and on the way back several Alien Slaves will spawn in. At the bottom of the ramp, look up - you'll see a crosspatch of girders with a vent at either end; you'll get to that area later. Back up to Barney, and smash through that vent behind the door. Up the ladder, and get on the fan motor... when the broken blade is in the right place, jump across into the next vent. Jump across the gap with the sparking pipes below, through the grate, kill Headcrabs, through the grate, around the ledge, and through the next two grates. Get out on the girders, and you might recognize the room below. You'll have to work your way across the girders on the right, and as you do so the wall on the right will bust out with a few Headcrabs. Get across to the next grate and in, and work your way around the maze of girders until you drop through the ceiling... this is the locked room you saw way back when that had all the ammo in it. The door, of course, opens easily from the inside. Further along the hall you'll come to an open area with a doorway blocked by planks (and several dead scientists draped over tables). There are short steps down, and around to your left is a locked door... down the steps and blow away the Zombie, and the Headcrabs that fall out of the ceiling. Once you've killed everything, look up at the ceiling of the open area - you'll see a rounded balcony above that you'll get to later. Blast through the planks - you can use the Crowbar on them so there's no ammo wasted. Down the hall you'll find a couple of Zombies chewing on corpses... kill them - when you see the lit-up panels on the wall (one is a coffee machine, the other one says "Valve"... the folks who created "Half-Life"), edge forward a little further and toss a Grenade down past the corner - and use the FAS, then through the door by using the switch next to it. Into the freezer room - immediately on your right is a ladder to the upper shelves... remember where it is. Work your way through all of the freezers (don't bother closing those other doors), killing the Headcrabs and Bullchickens. Eventually you'll see a red switch on the wall next to a doorway, and a red overhead platform further on - blow away the crates on the platform (or wait until you get up on it - there's HEV Batteries in them) and throw the switch. Note that you can smash or blow away the hanging meat and the various boxes, if you want. Get back to the first freezer room and up the ladder... follow the vents around until you come to the point that the platform passes - get on it, and across to the other side and through. To your right first for a dead Barney, an HEV Battery, and ammo (you may have seen this from that room through the grate, where you killed a Bullchicken). Then the other way and through... into a room of ducts. Watch out for the various Barnacles... then collect ammo and an HEV Battery. Jump up on the duct in front of the ladder, and keep going up until you get to another vent. Through that (killing a few Headcrabs), and out the next grate where there are stairs, a scientist, a couple of Barneys, and a Zombie. Kill the Zombie, and the scientist should have opened a door when he ran. Ignore the stairs up for now - you'll get to them shortly. Through the door and around the corner are three crates, but there's nothing in them. Through the next door, and you'll find yourself back in the room where you blew away the boarded-up doorway. Head back to the stairs, and grab Barney. Through that door, and up the stairs - at the top is a lit doorway and a darkened doorway... the darkened doorway is locked (with a G-Man behind the glass). If you feel like it, you can use the 'noclip' cheat to move through this locked door, but there's nothing in this area other than that half-round balcony that you saw from the open room below. Head into the lit doorway. You'll see a suspended glass corridor with a Zombie in it, and a window on your left. The Zombie will break the glass on the corridor and fall out, and a scientist will come barreling through the window on your left... make sure you kill the right one. Into the room the scientist jumped out of for ammo and healing, then into the broken wall (the one the Zombie came out of) for more ammo. In a silly note, look at the sign above the door: Dr. Van Buren, Diplomatic Relations... as in "Dear Abby" (Abigail van Buren, the advice columnist). Never trust a programmer. You can't get up into that glass corridor, but there's nothing up there anyway. Head for the elevator shaft at the end of the hall... jump across the shaft and climb up the ladder. Climb up the other ladders, and as you do so, a scientist that was clinging to the top one will fall screaming down. Get to the top, jump across to that last ladder, climb up on top of the elevator car, bust through the panel in the roof of it, and drop in to end this level. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 4) "We've Got Hostiles" As soon as the doors open you'll see a scientist run across your path and over to a window on the right, screaming at whomever is inside to open the silo doors. Look through the window and you'll see a Barney dragged into a vent. You can't get into that office right now, and the big silo doors to your left are locked, so go straight ahead - next to the silo doors are a HEV Charger and an FAS, so use them. Hit the 'fire door' switch (just use it through its glass covering) and get through the door before it closes. Note that while you don't *need* to close all of these fire doors - as far as I know - they'll help protect your back from spawning monsters... though the main thing to worry about with the fire doors is to make sure that you don't close them - accidentally or otherwise - before you go through. Around the corner there are a pair of lasers, but they're the least of your worries... beyond the fence is a military gun on a Tripod - that thing will start firing at you almost immediately. The best way is to move up to the lasers - but don't touch them - and set your aim at the top of the square column in the distance (not the one with the yellow and black stripes, but the one to the left of that) - switch to your Grenades and toss one at that point, then duck back around the corner; it should go through the fence and take out the Tripod Gun. The crate in the corner in front of the fence has an HEV Battery, but to the right will be a couple of Headcrabs. You may also pick up an MP5 Assault Rifle here... a version of ye old Colt M-16A1 with a collapsible stock and a grenade launcher under the barrel - a beautiful toy. Secondary fire is the grenade launcher; they detonate on impact unlike your other Grenades, and they'll also go much farther... unfortunately, those Rifle Grenades are very rare in this game, so don't use them unless you have to. This version, for whatever reason, is 9 mm, and can use the same ammo as the pistol. The real thing (the M-16A1/A2) is 5.56 mm. Get around the fence, and get ready to run - Headcrabs will be spawning behind you, but just around the corner is a Tripmine... stand back at the fence and toss a Grenade towards those crates to blow the Tripmine, then duck through the door as it closes. You can also jump over the Tripmine if you wish, and just use the emergency switch to close the door. Duck under the next Tripmine, and watch out for the Alien Slaves that spawn in the checker-floor room ahead. In there is a window and door you can't get through at the moment, so go the other way. Use the FAS while you have a chance. You can't get through the next door either... blow the barrels at the bottom of the ramp before you go down. Watch out around the corner for a laser, and in the next room are two Tripod Guns. Toss a Grenade to blow both of them up, and keep moving... watch out for the spawning Alien Slaves. In this next room with all the crates blocking the way, you can smash the wooden ones if you want - you don't need them to get on top of the others and over... but watch out for the two Tripod Guns on the other side. Be careful where you toss your Grenades, because you need to get through that next door. While you're on top of the crates, you'll be able to see Shotgun ammo through the fence... you'll be able to get that later. Through the next door, and over the next set of crates. Be wary - the floor on the other side is slick, and there are several lasers... don't go sliding into the open elevator shaft. Around the corner are a couple more Tripod Guns, more lasers, and another fire door - with a scientist just past them; kill the Tripods without closing the door or killing the scientist. Of course, the scientist may get blasted by the Tripod Gun... it doesn't really matter. Just past that in the next room - you'll see another one of those G-Man up on the catwalk - is a pair of Tripmines... those you can jump over easily. Various crates block the hall under the catwalk, and there's a ladder up on the right wall - there's also a FAS just inside the door, so make use of it. Smash those crates under the catwalk to pick up ammo, then head up the ladder, and up the next one (one of the crates on the first catwalk has an HEV Battery). All during this time you'll be hearing military radio chatter... believe me, it actually isn't good for you. As you round the corner into the next area, a soldier will blow away a scientist - I guess they aren't actually here to rescue you. Kill him before he gets you (there are a pair of explosive barrels against the wall that will do the job quite nicely), and down on a crate is another MP5 Assault Rifle - if you don't have one already, grab it! It runs through ammo fairly quickly if you're not careful, but it's such a nice toy. There's also a FAS... after doing your killing bit and healing up, use the elevator. At the top there will be a crate somewhat blocking a small dark passage to your left - smash it or push it to get into that area, which will let you sneak up on the Baddies ahead. You'll notice various Marines running across the catwalks... you may get lucky with a few shots; your Rifle Grenades will come in quite handy in here, but use them sparingly as you won't find many laying around. Be careful tossing Grenades up on to the catwalk on the right - you don't want to accidentally close the fire door up there. The crates on the right near the lift have an HEV Battery; other crates in the area contain ammo and First Aid kits, and there is an FAS and a HEV charger at the far end. Do your killing, and up the stairs. Blow away the explosive barrels if you want, then use the emergency switch and get through the door. Go down the ramp carefully... various Barnacles are dangling their tongues at you. At the next junction you've got a choice... to the left are a pair of Tripmines, and at the bottom of that ramp are a pair of Tripod Guns. To the right is a conveyor belt, several crates and several Barnacles. Down past the Tripods (and more lasers) is another emergency door, and past that another Tripod - don't use Grenades on that one, as you'll cut off your escape route. Your best bet is to head right... kill any enemies (up on the ledge on the right), then get on the conveyor; you can walk against its movement (yes, you can even destroy the hanging crate). In the next area, get up on that next conveyor; there's an FAS and HEV Charger on the wall. Follow that belt, blow away the explosive barrels, and on the opposite side is a pile of sandbags with a Marine firing at you. Once he's dead, there's an FAS on the wall. Kill the Tripods from up here if you want, then either just drop down to where they were, or retrace your steps on the conveyors. Either way, shut the door behind you. Just through the door is a Tripmine... but before you go beyond that, throw a Grenade ahead and try to bounce it off the crate on the right to take out the Marine waiting around the corner. Various soldiers sniping at you from the catwalks, and if you look long enough, you'll see a Barnacle suck someone up just over the stairs at the far end. Just keep heading up the stairs... at the top will be a short concrete hallway to your left, and to the right another catwalk - at the end of that catwalk is an FAS (watch out for the Barnacle), then head through that hallway. Down the ramp and across the bridge - which you might recognize - and up the other side... continue straight across that catwalk with the two crates (one of which contains an HEV Battery) and look down to see an elevator labeled "Surface Access". Look down the other way and you'll see the end of the conveyor you were playing with earlier. Make your way down the stairs, killing and smashing... get on that elevator (use the FAS). Whoops... maybe not a good idea. Just on your left beyond the crate is an FAS... and beyond that is the opening to the surface - but there's a swarm of Marines waiting there that will take your head off. Kill 'em all, race out into the open (choppers circling overhead, which you can't destroy), and head left - drop into that yellow-striped hole and in the door. *Don't* sit up top and try to take out everyone... you can't, since they just keep respawning. Don't touch that fence either, unless you want to fry. There is absolutely nothing out here for you, so don't hang around - believe me, I've gone through this entire area. Just drop in the hole and down the ladder - they'll be tossing explosives at you, so climb down quick... get away from the bottom of the ladder immediately or the ensuing explosion topside will kill you. So much for "get to the surface", huh? There's only one way to go down here... through the "Vent Access" door (rifle ammo in two of the crates before you go through). Marines will be rappelling down this shaft, so don't waste any time - drop down to the next ledge, then down that ladder; watch yourself at the bottom so you don't drop into the fan blades. Through the duct and watch out... again, don't drop into the blades. There's a vent opening to your left, one to your right further down, and a ladder. *Walk* out of the duct to get to that narrow ledge, and check out the vents. The uppermost vent opening (on your left) is long and doesn't really go anywhere, but you can do some killing and get some ammo (including the locked room you couldn't get into earlier). The first opening off of this duct leads to some Shotgun ammo. The second opening leads to more ammo, but as soon as you get near it a Headcrab will leap out, so be ready. Continue through this second opening and you'll come across a grate where you can overhear a pair of Marines complaining that the scientists haven't fought back... give them something to remember you by. At the end of this duct is a small area with MP5 ammo and that's it. Back to the main section of this duct and continue on... there will be a sharp left which leads to an opening where you can drop to a checkered floor, but don't yet - continue through the duct to a pair of grates in the side where you can blow away spawning Alien Slaves in the room below. Once they're dead, *then* you can drop out of that opening to the floor below. Looks familiar, huh? Grab all the ammo & Batteries you can (there's nothing through that door except a corpse), then head back to the fan shaft. If you go right and check out the middle opening (drop off the ledge and watch out for the fan blades), it just leads to some Shotgun ammo... and a small ledge overlooking that slick- floored room you traversed earlier in this level. Not really worth it. The vent opening at the bottom (down the ladder) is where you need to go... just be careful of that fan. Through the opening and up the ladder - the top opening has absolutely nothing, so into the lower one (bloodstained). Ah... back where you started. Listen to the scientist's chatter - get to the Lambda team by going through the Rocket Labs - grab all the ammo you can, heal up, and hit the button to open the silo doors. Step on through, and follow the corridors to a barrier... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 5) Blast Pit Break through the planks (up close and personal with the Crowbar, or stand back and blow them away with Grenades) and the sawhorses and through you go... there's a Bullchicken in the next area spitting away at you - there's also a couple of Headcrabs on those crates, but sometimes the Bullchicken will spit them to death, which is cute. Watch out for a Headcrab attack as you go through the yellow-striped opening. Obviously you don't just want to drop into the pit, so go up the ramp... a Zombie will break through the door when you bump it, so be ready. In that room is a First Aid kit, some ammo, and even a Crowbar... the barrel in the corner is explosive, so watch out. Use the lever on the console to open the lift shaft; either worm your way around to where the Bullchicken was and drop down that way, or use the ladder in the corner. Get on the lift and hit the button... Down at the bottom are a couple of First Aid kits, and plenty of Houndeyes to keep you busy... get on the rail car and 'use' it - hit your 'forwards' button or key to accelerate it, 'backwards' to slow it down. Near the end of the trip - several Houndeyes and a Bullchicken along the way - you'll pass a red light on the right side, after which the rail car will go out of control... jump off before the end or you might be flung into the radioactive toxic waste. Note that in a couple of those large crates in the 'water' there are some First Aid Kits, if you're absolutely desperate. Get up on the ledge and follow it around, accompanied by the ticking of your Geiger counter... duck around under the pipes - another Bullchicken - climb up and into the opening in that one pipe. When you get to the next opening, toss out a Grenade or two to hopefully take out the Bullchicken below. Duck-jump out of the opening and get on top of the pipe... if you haven't yet, kill the Bullchicken below. There's nothing down there that you need, so jump across to the other pipe and around - kill the Bullchicken in the toxic waste pool, then jump across to the catwalk. Down the stairs and out - there's a barrel at the left end of the ledge which is filled with toxic fumes, so blow it away from a distance or just ignore it. Another Bullchicken spitting at you from under the lift platform... you should be able to shoot it from here. Cross that pipe to the other side (another Bullchicken off to your right) and jump on to the angled pipe to continue to the lift, or get up on the angled wall at the end... follow that around to the left to get to another ledge with healing on a shelf at the end. Use the lift... at the end on the right will be a Bullchicken with its back to you; shoot it in the ass. Or shoot those barrels... though they explode. Several Houndeyes will be charging down the catwalk, and up ahead you can see a glowing green Houndeye flanked by a pair of barrels - don't shoot those barrels or you'll blow the bridge, which you *don't* want to do. At that bridge, to your right will be a pair of explosive barrels with FAK behind them, and on the other side of the bridge are a pair of Headcrabs... again, kill them without blowing those barrels on the bridge. A Bullchicken will be spitting at you from an opening below... you can kill it from here if you want to, or wait. Across the bridge and through the door... use the lever to close it and blow away the Zombie behind the other door. The scientist in the hall mentions using a rocket engine to destroy "it" before it gets any larger, and you've got a Barnacle overhead to kill. Through the next door and... a huge green/brown beaked Tentacle will bust through the window and grab the scientist. You're safe for the moment, but "Beaky" is a nasty target... one that can't be killed by conventional means. They don't actually see, but they hear quite well... stay crouched to avoid detection, and tossing a Grenade as a distraction seems to work. On the console at the window is a button labeled "Test Fire", and gauges for "Power", "Fuel", and "Oxy"... the button doesn't work, so guess what? You get to fix it. Out the next door and you'll see a green glowing Zombie down through the grate... unfortunately, you can't kill it from here, so don't worry about it - worry about the Barnacle instead. Up the ladder, and Barney will tell you that "this thing can hear us" - he's right. Tentacle can't actually see you, but it can hear you - remember that when you're crouched, you're quiet, so crouch throughout the center area with Tentacle. Grab any Grenades you can, and get somewhat close to the door... crouch, and throw a Grenade as far to the left as you can. Tentacle will go after the explosion, letting you crouch over to the ladder. Take a good look around... on the next level down you'll see several crates blocking a ladder - toss a Grenade at them. On the two levels below that, you'll see doorways that have been boarded up - you can either try to blow them open with Grenades from up here (Rifle Grenades are even better), or wait until you get down there. Down the ladder - keep crouching! - and around to the next ladder down... if Tentacle shows any interest in an area you're trying to get to, toss a Grenade the opposite way to distract it; remember that you can't crouch down a ladder, so distract Tentacle before trying to go down. Just don't run out of Grenades. Through the first boarded doorway and you can stand up again... use the lever and out that door - *this* bridge you can blow up, as there are pipes along the side to walk on. Kill the Zombie, and if you want, blow the crates on the other side to reveal some FAKs (and a Houndeye). Down the hallway, and of course the door on the left ("Fuel Room") won't open... to the right and down the ladder (kill the Zombies first), blow away the grate and down the next ladder. Straight ahead when you get to the bottom is a Bullchicken behind a grill which you can ignore if you want to... it can't hit you from there, and you don't need to go that way. Turn around, and follow the pipes to the junction... go left - blow away the grate at the top of that ladder (and the Zombie in the room above), and go up. Grab the Grenades in the side room, then head for the huge fan shaft. Climb all the way down, out to the fan base, and turn on the fan... get back up the ladder past the moving blades *quickly*. Once up to the next ledge - wait for the fan blades to reach full speed - jump out into the shaft and let the fan carry you up. Smash through the boards and go in the vent - wait until you actually get up there to smash the boards, because it'll take a ton of ammo if you try from below (where's the Rocket Launcher when you need it? Though just for the record, it only takes 3 RPG rockets to smash all the boards from where you entered this room, and another to bust the vent). Through the vents - watch out for Headcrabs - through the boards and the grates, and before you drop down the ladder, try and toss a couple of Grenades through that doorway - at least 4 Zombies down there, plus a Headcrab. Or just shoot 'em all if you don't want to waste Grenades. Hit both switches to turn on the Fuel and the Oxy, then up the ladder at the top of that short ramp. Out the door, and hey, guess where you are? Get back to the central cylinder across the pipes (or the bridge, if it's still up), and in... back in to Tentacle, and down the ladder to the next level. Go right out the doorway, jump the first gap, then wait in the next doorway for debris to fall from above, smashing through the walkway. Kill the Zombie, and out the switch door. You can blow this bridge if you want... you could follow the power cable back. Blow away the crates on the other side, however, killing the Bullchicken if you didn't get it earlier. Down the hall, kill the Houndeyes - use a Grenade (Rifle or Hand) on the bodies so they're not blocking that puddle - and kill the Bullchicken and the Barnacles in the next room. Take all 5 of those crates there and push them out into the hall, lining them up in that puddle so you can walk over them instead of in the puddle - otherwise you'll get fried when you turn the power back on. An alternate (and better) method is to push one of the crates out into the next room, placing it next to the big crate / machine with the '8' on it out there - jump up on the crate, up on the machine, and from there jump up on the power conduit along the wall and use that as a catwalk to get past the electrified water. You can use the lift here if you want, or use the ladder at the right... either way, hit the button to summon the lift, because that will turn on the lights in the shaft. If you climb up on the railing and aim it right, you can jump across to that ladder and go down it... if you get in the lift and use it, it crashes at the bottom, dumping you into radioactive waste. Climbing down the ladder is safer, but you might still take some radiation damage. Get into the hall as quick as you can and talk to the scientist. At the bottom, be careful in that hall - that's radioactive waste spilling out of that pipe, and you don't want to step in it more than you need to. Watch out for the Zombie around the corner, and the spitting Bullchicken in the waste below. Before you step out, check out the moving platform above... be careful of that thing when you're doing what you need to. Step out on to the platform down here and activate it, then get up the ladder - jump off to the right (watch out for the malfunctioning platform) and up the next ladder. Walk out on the beam - ignore the scientist - and hit the switch... jump up on top of the generator quickly, because electrified spikes will extend out from the wall and cut off the ladder. Across to the other side and down to hit the other switch, then race down that ladder before it too is cut off. When you get back out into the hallway where you came in, you'll notice that the dials on the gauges are spinning around... success. Climb back up that long ladder - yes, you need to climb all the way to the top and jump across to that small ledge before dropping down, but you don't seem to take any damage - and make your way across the now-electrified water using the crates, across the bridge and back out to the center section - you've got to get all the way back up to that control room where the "Test Fire" button is. Hit the button and barbecue Tentacle... Don't get close to the window or the flames will fry you as well... stand back against the wall and watch Tentacle cook. Don't worry about the doors closing off... one will open up again. Once Tentacle is completely and totally cooked (probably stinks to high heaven in there), go out into that center area (the flames will blow those explosive crates and kill Barney). Climb all the way down to the bottom, and climb down the ladder into the pit where Tentacle was. Really! Continue to drop down (yes, it's almost too dark to see) until you come to a ledge where you can see water below, and a dead Barney with a toxic waste drum. Drop into the water, climb out on the ledge and grab Barney's 357 Magnum - it's slow to reload, but it's a powerful weapon... able to kill most beasties with a single shot. There's a box of 357 ammo right here as well, and another one on the opposite side in a small alcove. Drop into the water and swim down through the holes and up the sloped side (not in line with the fans) to exit the water. Get up on the ledge, and if you need HEV or health, go down the ladder - otherwise get out on the pipes. Follow them around, dropping down where necessary - when you get to that dip in the pipes (opposite a grill in the wall), jump across and use the wheel you find there, which extends the pipe you need to go through. Get in the pipe and follow it - jump that gap - until it breaks and drops you into a room. Headcrab under the table (which will collapse if you land on it... squashed Headcrab), and there are Tripmines and FAKs in the crates. Just place Tripmines against a wall to use them... make sure you get out of the way of the beam. CLIMBING NOTE: you can, if you wish, use Tripmines as a ladder - place one against the wall, jump up on it, place the next, etc. This can allow you to get to areas you wouldn't normally be able to get to. Just be careful that you don't trip the beam while you're climbing. Just head through the twisting corridors... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 6) Power Up Whoa... get around the corner and you'll see a big beastie (Gargantua) frying Marines somehow - don't you get caught by it. While it's not small enough to fit in these halls, its energy bolts can reach, and it has a foot-stomping attack that sends red shock waves down corridors. You can actually kill this thing if you're willing to use every Rifle Grenade in your inventory (make sure all of them hit), but you're really supposed to just avoid it for now - there's an in-game way to kill it later which won't cost you any ammo. You'll see a G-Man in the window across the way, a rail hallway on the left and one around to your right, a small square tunnel almost directly ahead, and a gated alcove to the right of that. The small square hallway leads to Tram Control (that window) and to the lower levels, while the short tram tunnel on the left has the tram car, but the power is off. The right tram tunnel is blocked by Jersey barriers. Go straight across into the square tunnel and head right - shoot those explosive barrels to kill the Alien Slave nearby. Around the corner and there's another Alien Slave at the bottom of the stairs... killing it causes the ceiling to collapse on the stairs, so you can't go any further that way. Take the other branch of the hall and head up - watch out for Alien Slaves and the flaming pipe. In the next room, the floor will collapse under you, and there's a couple of Headcrabs. Kill them, grab any toys, and up the ladder... smash the crate and the boards, but don't get hit by the opening door. There's an injured Barney in here, and he tells you that power needs to be restored before the tram can be used. Whatever you do, do *not* touch that switch on the console! That rotates that tram turntable outside, and can only be used once - you need to get the tram on to the turntable before you use it. Don't get too close to the window or Gargantua will get you. Back out and down the ladder - kill any more Headcrabs lurking - and down the stairs, round the corner and kill the Alien Slave (watch out for falling debris). More Headcrabs, and blocked stairs... you've seen those before. Note the signs up on the wall opposite the stairs - one way to the Power Generator, the other to Tram Control. Around the corner are a couple of explosive barrels; toss a Grenade at those to kill the lurking Alien Slaves. Beyond where they were is a wheel - use it to open the doors, then use the one on the other side to close them again once you're through (maybe... I don't know if you actually need to). Obviously you don't want to drop into that gook, so up the ladder... there will be a Marine shooting at you from above, so take him out quick. The little alcove here has nothing but some ammo and a dead Marine being pulled into a hole by a Bullchicken - toss in a Grenade to waste the monster, but otherwise don't bother. Up the next ladder, watching out for falling debris. In this next room there's a Tripod Gun to your left, a radio, and a couple of Marines to your right - take out the Tripod first, then the jarheads. The crates contain Crossbow ammo and 357 ammo; you can also destroy the radio (you can't use it). Take a look at the map on the chalkboard... the greenish bit is the tram lines, the part marked "maintenance shaft" is where you just climbed up the ladders. You can smash this chalkboard as well. Head down the hall and around the corner are explosive crates... blow those up, and then around the next corner is a sandbagged emplacement with Marines - and explosive crates right behind it, which is really stupid. Blow the crates to kill everybody, of course. There's a small ramp between the two you just came down... it's (just) a small room with Grenades and health. On either side is an opening in the wall; toss a Grenade in each to kill anyone in there. Straight across this room and up the ramps... go right first, and kill everybody down that way - blow up the explosive crates from a distance, and watch out for Headcrabs dropping down from the ceiling. The crates next to the radio contain ammo. Blow the Tripmine on the stairs, jump over the flaming pipe, and at the bottom of these steps (to your right) is an alcove with a lot of various types of ammo. Head to the end and kill anyone you haven't hit yet, then back up to the top of the ramps. Go down the other hall, and you'll find more Marines to kill, and a lift down to the Power Generator. Push the button to start the lift, but don't get on it yourself... watch it, and when it gets near the bottom, toss a Grenade or two - there are Tripmines surrounding the lift, and a Houndeye whose sonic cry will detonate them. One those are all taken care of and the lift is back up, hit the button again and ride the lift down this time. Drop into the water if you want to, but there's absolutely nothing down there. Around the corner you can blow up barrels at the top of the ramp. Head down and take out the Houndeyes, then take a look over the sides of the center bridge - on one side is a moving fan, on the other side a fan is stopped. Into the next room and down the stairs... at one point a room will branch off to the right. Go in there if you want (kill the Headcrab), but be careful - electrical arcs are flying around this area. On the right and left are the fans you saw from above... to your right is the working one. Ahead in the next room you can see switches for the generator - but obviously you can't go in there. Continue heading down the stairs until you come to the water... waving underwater on the bottom step is a Leech, a little swimming critter with a stinging bite - shoot it from here or take it out with the Crowbar. You'll run into more of these - just remember that the only weapons that work underwater are the Crowbar and the Pistol. Watch out for the Zombie under the stairs at the bottom. Smash the crates at the end which are blocking the generator pistons, and the water will drain from the room. The easiest way is to stop on the stairs just before you touch the water - you can shoot the crates from here. Head back up the stairs, and time your charge - run between the electrical arcs when they're down, and use the switch on the left to start up Unit One. Watch out for the electrical surges outside, and head back up to the lift - you'll have Marines coming down on the lift; one Grenade will take care of them. More Marines at the top of the lift - kill them all and head back to Tram Control... down the ladders, and through the halls (watch out for the Alien Slave along the way) until you get back to Tram Control. Barney dies. Stay away from the window or Gargantua will get you. Okay, what you need to do now (other than move fast) is kill Gargantua while at the same time turning on the power to the tram. Exit Tram Control and jump across to the other catwalk, then down the hall... watch out for Gargantua at the end. RUN into the hall on the left (the one that was fenced off before) and keep going - run all the way to the end, up the steps on the left, and to the end of that ledge... use the switch to turn on the power and to fry Gargantua. Your best bet is to turn on the power, then run back down the ledge and into the small room at the bottom of the steps. Everything should be fairly easy now... at the bottom of the steps, go right into that short corridor and around through the door to avoid the electricity. Get back to the tram (don't touch the tracks now... they're electrified) and move it to the turntable at minimum power; it will stop by itself. Go up to Tram Control and throw the switch, turning the tram. Get back to the tram and head it down the next set of tracks; get it up to full speed quickly to bust through the Jersey barriers. Stop and get the First Aid Kits if you want. A note on these tram cars (you'll see more of them than you want in the next level): only the yellow striped center section of the rails is electrified... you can walk along the tracks as long as you don't touch that center section. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 7) On A Rail (aka the tram level) The tram will stop at a barrier... jump off (don't hit the rails) and talk to Barney - he tells you that you need to get up to Rocket Control and launch the rocket to get a satellite up into orbit. In the next room, blow away the Barnacles, then get back on the tram and drive it forwards on to this elevator (the tram must be moving for the elevators to work). At the bottom, keep moving the tram forwards... if you get into that water you'll be electrocuted. Up a slope and down a hall (the 'Loading' screen will probably make the tram speed indicator vanish; just hit your forwards button again to make it reappear), and the track splits - the tram will go right, and looking the other way you'll see several Houndeyes on a platform. If you want to, stop the tram (keep hitting your 'backwards' key until it stops), turn around and shoot the heck out of them or pop a Grenade that way. The tram will run over a couple of wooden platforms; on one of them is an HEV Battery. Up a slope with water underneath - there's a Barney corpse and MP5 ammo in the water, but if you drop in there you'll have to swim a long way through Leech-infested waters to get to a ladder out - but it's not worth it. At the next junction (a 'Y' with a fork leading off to the left), stop the tram and carefully jump on to the narrow ledge if you need the 357 ammo hidden in a crate on the left; otherwise just keep going. Around the next corner is a sparking wire - just duck under it - which you'd better get used to seeing. When you see blue water below, it's electrified - don't drop into it. Green water is 'safe', but Leech-infested, and probably doesn't have anything worth a damn down in it. Along the way you'll occasionally see red & yellow arrows along either side just before a junction... these control which direction the tram takes at that junction; you'll need to shoot them to change them, flipping them over. Don't touch this first one, as there's a crane blocking that set of tracks. Watch out for the Houndeyes and the Bullchicken in here, and you'll be fired upon by a Tripod Gun up in the crane control room. You'll need to get up into that room and move the crane, but for now just continue on the tram - stopping first to take out the monsters, and to pop a Grenade up to take out the Tripod. Leave the signal alone at the next junction as well... at the platform on the left will be those Houndeyes you saw earlier; kill them and stop the tram here, and get out on to the platform. Through the hall, and in a room to the left you'll see several dead Marines - there's a Bullchicken to the right which you need to blast. There's a red blast door down at the end - go in there (the base of the rocket) and kill the Marine and the Headcrabs waiting for you. EASTER EGG: When you first get to the huge rocket (the Marine and the Headcrabs at the base of the rocket), use the 'noclip' cheat to "float" upwards - in the area above the grating, you'll see a picture of one of the developers tiled across the inside of what will be a blast door later in the level. Climb the ladder upwards for more of the same. Cheating is the only way to see this. Also note that this is the only place where you can do this - when you get to the rocket later in the level, the blast doors will just look like blast doors. Another Easter Egg in this same area: use 'noclip' to fly up the inside of the rocket... turn on your flashlight, and in that upper room (the highest grating level), you'll see lettering on the 'ceiling' inside the rocket. It's not easy to read, but it appears to say "BWB6 - ETA IIIV". Back out and continue along the hall and up the stairs... Houndeyes at the top, and a Bullchicken down in the pit. Shoot the explosive barrels in the water to kill the Bullchicken, then use the switch on the wall to extend the bridge. Headcrabs may try to jump out and attack, but if you just keep moving they'll fall in the water, missing you. There's a Tripmine down in the water near that green crate, but it's not really worth going after, as you'd have to contend with the sparking wire when trying to get back out. On the other side there are a pair of Barnacles, and up on a ledge to the left there are crates which are hiding a Bullchicken - take the crates and the spitter out with a couple of Grenades, then continue on through the hall. Up on that ledge there are Grenades, ammo, and on top of a crate there's a Satchel Charge. To use these, just hit your fire button to place it... hit your fire button again to set it off. Or, use secondary fire to place more charges, as many as you have if you want, then use your primary fire to set them all off at once. Great for traps or blowing stuff up. You can't do anything else in here right now, so head back to the tram (there will be another Bullchicken waiting for you in the hallway outside the room with the blast door)... back it up along the tracks past the junction, shoot the directional arrow, and take the tram down this new track (or just continue driving straight ahead until you come around to this point again and shoot the arrow). You'll come to a railed platform on the right... stop the tram and kill the Bullchicken on the platform, then jump over to it (First Aid Kit). Kill the Barnacles in the area ahead, and in the crates at the end are a Grenade and an HEV Battery. There's a corpse down under the water along with a 357 and several Leeches... play with it if you want. Back to the tram and continue on your way. You'll come to a crossing that you passed earlier - up on the right is another platform with a Bullchicken. Kill it, get off the tram, and collect the toys (including Grenades under the stairs). Up the stairs, and blow the crates (357 ammo and a Tripod Gun), and throw the switch to move the crane. Again you can go down in the water, but there's absolutely nothing down there but Leeches. Back to the tram and just ride it all the way around (under the sparking wire for the second or third time, depending on how you've done it) to the next directional switch; this time you can shoot that one and go up that side tunnel where the crane was. You'll come to another of those elevator things for the tram... stop the tram and watch out for all the Marines firing from above and the sides. Get off the tram and go up the ladder if you want to for a FAS and ammo in a crate, otherwise just continue on the tram, killing along the way. The next directional switch is broken, so just continue on - in the side tunnel you pass there's a firefight going on across the tracks. Around the bend and there's another platform - do your killing bit and then turn to shoot the Marines across the tracks in the back. Jump off to that side (not the sandbag side) and ease around the right corner... pop a Grenade at the Alien Slaves down there (beyond the striped barrier). Head up the stairs (Headcrabs) and collect any ammo - at the top is an HEV charger. Back to the sandbag platform (yes, you can use that machine gun there... use it and fire) and head up the stairs - at the top are more Marines. Across from the top of the stairs is a small empty office, and to the right more hallway and Alien Slaves. There's a small storeroom off to the right with 357 ammo in the boxes on the floor, but other than that there's nothing in there... continue down the hall, killing as you go. If you look over the railing you'll see a pair of Tripmines across the tracks below... don't try shooting them as you'll take some nasty damage - instead, drop a Grenade and back off. Down the stairs to more Marines and Alien Slaves, and more toys hidden in crates. Back to the tram and raise the barrier in front of it, then continue on the tram. It will stop by itself at the end of the tracks, and on the left is a platform with Marines firing at you. Blow them away and grab any goodies, then head for the other side... just around the corner are Marines and a Alien Slave or two. On your left is a small boarded-up room with toys in the crates (357 ammo and a First Aid Kit) and a Barney that you can use for additional firepower. Around to the right is a small break room with a couple of crates and a FAS behind them (watch out for Headcrabs dropping from the ceiling) - don't blow up the crates; instead, use them as a way to get up into the ceiling, where there are 3 HEV Batteries. After that you can smash the crates; one contains an HEV Battery. Around the next corner (to the left) are more crates, and beyond them a machine gun firing from a sandbag emplacement. Note the "Surrender Freemen" spray painted on the wall... where's Toto when you need him? Darn, they misspelled your name, using an 'e' instead of an 'a'. Jerks. You can go up the concrete slope next to the sandbags... at the top is an HEV Battery. Carefully open the blast doors (these are the ones involved in the Easter Egg earlier in the level, but obviously that won't be applicable now), back off and blow away the Tripmines (if you move back to the sandbags you won't take any damage), then proceed inside. I love that rocket... look down and you'll see a big American flag on the side, and "U.S.A."; this is the same rocket that you saw at the beginning of the game during the introduction when Freeman is heading to work, the one you're supposed to launch. Watch out for the Marine firing from below, then go down the ladder. If you really want to, you can 'noclip' your way down to the base of the rocket, but there's absolutely nothing down there now. Open the blast door and... another tram. The office to the right has 357 ammo in a crate and a FAK on the floor; behind the office is an HEV charger. Time for another tram ride - if you're careful and stop the tram just after the second laser, Tripod Guns on either side will take out the Bullchickens on either side... just make sure you kill the Tripod Guns after that. Even better, duck under the lasers and take out the Bullchickens yourself - if you don't hit the lasers then the Tripod guns won't fire at all; a single shot with the 357 will take out a Tripod. Past these platforms (check them for toys), and watch out for the next Tripod Gun ahead on the left. You can skip this platform and door if you want... there's nothing in there but a Bullchicken and a Headcrab (and a Barnacle above the corpses), plus "Yore Dead Freeman" spray painted on the wall. Okay, there's also some ammo in there, but is it worth the bother? Continue on the tram... be careful when you see the next 'Loading' message, because just beyond that is a missile launcher that has your number. Crouch down, and after you see a missile whiz by overhead, pop up and shoot. The best way is to click your 'use' button twice after you get the 'Loading...' message (restoring your speed indicator), and crouch down - as soon as you're far enough along, stop the tram and get off on the platform on your left. Keep crouching, and ease your way out just enough so you can see the tunnel beyond the missile launcher - shoot the Tripmines in that tunnel, and they'll kill the missile launcher. There's a FAK on that platform where the launcher is, but otherwise just continue. No, you can't use that launcher. Just beyond the next corner (after the missile launcher) are more Tripmines across the tunnel, as well as "Die Freeman" sprayed on the wall - a single Grenade will take them out if you stay back far enough. The passage is blocked at the next junction to your right; sandbags which can spell trouble for you later - or not. In any case, stop the tram and toss a Grenade over the sandbags, towards the left side. Continue on the tram to the next striped barrier... watch out for Alien Slaves all along the platform to your right. There's nothing in those boxes on the shelves, but there is an FAS on the wall... kill anything you haven't hit yet, and head down the hall from this platform. On your left will be stairs blocked by green boxes - blow away the Tripmines above them and watch out for more Alien Slaves down the hall. Crouch-jump over the boxes, and at the top turn and pop a Grenade down the next hall to kill the two (or more) Marines waiting for you. Out at the end, use the lever on the console to raise the next set of barriers... look down and left and you'll see the tail end of another tram, but you won't get to use that one. Bust open these crates for a Satchel Charge, then head back down the stairs... go to the end of the hall and nuke any Baddies you haven't hit yet. Your best bet is to jump across both sets of tracks and use that tram... drive it backwards through the now-open barrier - if you return the way you came and take your first tram along, this second one will be in motion with a Marine on it firing at you. One thing you can do is to place a pair of Tripmines on the wall just in front of this second tram - when the Marine on it gets in motion, he'll hit the Trips and blow himself up. If you continue on your original tram after you've got the barrier raised, you'll end up in a dead end lined with explosives (those sandbags mentioned earlier) - and a Marine waiting to push the plunger as soon as you appear. There's nothing for you down there anyway. From here you can either take this second tram (obviously the Marine can't use it if you are), or you can wire it with Trips and go back to your original tram. Either way, you'll be seeing this second tram again soon enough. If you take your original tram, jump off when you get to this area, and follow the path of the second tram along the ledge at the side - not far ahead, it'll be stopped at another barrier, with plenty of Marines waiting in ambush in the room to the right. Just work your way through this area... if you ease around that wall you can probably manage to pop a Grenade up into the sandbagged machine gun up to your right - the switch for the barrier is next to that. Kill off everybody, check out the crates, and use that switch. There's also an FAS on the wall for your enjoyment. Get back on your tram and continue on... not much further ahead is another of those tram elevators. On the platform to the right is an elevator, and a pair of crates containing Satchel Charges. Don't use that elevator... there are explosive crates blocking it at the top. Or... *do* use that elevator - toss a Satchel Charge in it, and hit the button on the wall to send it up - when it gets to the top, trigger the Satchel Charge. There's also a Satchel Charge in the lift well. Call the elevator back down, and ride it up - at the top, go partway down the ladder and toss a Grenade down there to kill off anyone waiting below. In the red-lit alcove across the shaft there are Rifle Grenades. Climb the ladder all the way up and pick up 357 ammo in one of the crates, then head back down to the tram. Move your tram on to the tram lift and take it up, then move it forwards slowly... time the electrical charges and zip through them. Just around the corner are a pair of Tripmines across the tracks... if the tram seems to get stuck at the next corner (I don't know why it does that), just jump up, then use the tram again and continue moving forwards. Time the moving crates and zip through (or just duck under them), then kill the Marines on the right and raise the barrier (does this thing go on forever? I thought we were supposed to launch that rocket?). Up the slope for more moving crates - note the lasers on either side; apparently they're there to trigger the Tripod Gun just ahead... if you don't touch the lasers, the Tripod Gun doesn't fire (usually). Silly. Just around the corner will be another rocket launcher... duck, pop up and fire. Past that are more electrical charges, and beyond them is a directional switch that you need to shoot if you don't want to end up going in circles. The tram will stop by itself at the next elevator, which is broken below. Down the ladder, and watch out for the 4 (yes, 4) Tripod Guns at the bottom, along with a few Tripmines. The best way is to drop a Grenade down the ladder... that will take out the Tripmines and one of the Tripod Guns - go down the ladder some and you might be able to toss a Grenade into the office below; there are a couple of Zombies in there, along with a FAS and several Grenades. Kill off the rest of the Tripod Guns and continue down the tunnel on foot. Around the corner you've got a bit of a dilemma... there are several crates here (just a single Tripmine in them), and past that is a sandbagged emplacement at the end of the tunnel with a machine gun in it. Not only that, but past the crates on the right is another Marine shooting at you. Take 'em out any way you can, and make your way up the steps... stop at the top and listen to the chatter, which is kind of cute - pop a Grenade at them to let them know that you care. As you go down these short steps, look to your left - there's a sniper nest hidden behind that camouflage netting up on the canyon wall. Take it out, and jump across the tracks... FAK and Shotgun ammo over on this side. Through the blast door, and just past this next blast door are a pair of sandbag emplacements... but you've got a bit of help. Zip around to the left and use the machine gun there to wipe out the soldiers on the other side. In through the next doors, and be very very careful... lasers across the stairs will trigger the explosives on either side. You can crouch under the first two, but you'll have to get on the edge of the stairs and jump over the next. An easier way is to carefully move the silver boxes, and use them to jump up on the ledge, carefully inching your way around the explosives. Through the door and listen to the chatter... everybody likes to complain, especially military. Not that you can blame them. Creep up to the corner and you can probably kill the Marines before they know you're there. The first room - to the right - has absolutely nothing for you (other than a FAS), though you can 'use' that globe to stop it (make sure it's going before you continue, though). In the next room is what you've been looking for... use the Launch button and back against the wall so you don't get fried. That's it, basically... go back the way you came - again, walk the ledge alongside the explosives and drop down beyond the lasers - and once past the blast doors, turn left. The door that was closed before is open now; inside is a ladder down. At the bottom are various crates containing ammo... and another tram. Climb on board and start it up... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 8) Apprehension Be careful on your ride... the tram will start to speed up at a corner - jump off to the side (not on to the tracks) and let it crash by itself. Carefully make your way along and kill the Marines waiting for you. You can get through the door up here, but the ladder is broken partway down... if you go down the ladder you'll fall off - and it's easier to get to that area from the other end. Go into the shaft and drop through that gap on the left; the crate at the end of this ledge has Pistol ammo in it. Look down over the edge and you'll notice that a couple of barrels have popped up in the water... nothing to worry about at the moment. In this doorway and at the top of the stairs is a crate with a Battery, and a FAS on the wall next to it... down on the landing is a Zombie chewing on a corpse. Continue on down the stairs, and there's another Zombie down there, along with more Pistol ammo. Out the door and you'll see the barrels (eventually four of them will pop up in a row) in the water... you can use them to get across to the other side, which will take you through a couple of submerged doors and corridors until you pop up in the small room at the bottom of that busted ladder... Shotgun ammo on a crate there, but nothing else. Watch out for Leeches in the water. If you do decide to cross the barrels... you'll find an MP5 clip inside the doorway on the other side, and stairs going down into the water. Follow that around to a doorway which leads back out into the shaft... another doorway across the way leading to more stairs down (air pocket along the ceiling), but when you get to the end of that area the ceiling will collapse. Follow the other set of submerged stairs through the various doorways to get to that room with the busted ladder (which you can climb somewhat, to get your head above water). Other than Leeches there's nothing really down here, so head back up and across the barrels. Go back up the stairs, and drop down on to that striped beam... drop to the catwalk below (not the side with the barrels), and smash that crate if you want (rifle ammo). Jump in and swim all the way down to the bottom... in that doorway and along the corridor. When you come to a door on the right, go in there and surface for air, then continue along the stairs/corridor. After a section of hall with a collapsed ceiling - easy to worm through - you'll come to a junction... out in that hall you can surface for air. Down to the right there's a grate in the floor you can break through, while down to the left is a barred window and a door that won't open. If you go through the grate in the floor you'll come to a small set of T-shaped tunnels... down the short branch and up through another grate to get into that room with the barred window; tons of Crossbow ammo and Rifle Grenades in here (as well as an air pocket). Down the corridor and around the corner to another corridor... follow that and it will eventually slope up, bringing you back out into the air. You'll come to a water-filled room where Jaws is playing catch with a scientist... don't fall in the water yourself! Blow away the Barnacles hanging down, and make a note of the cage hanging over the water. Work your way around the room - the next doorway leads to stairs going into the water, obviously the way you don't want to go right now - watching your step on the water-slicked sections of catwalk. Maybe you can get a shot or two at the Icthyosaur when it surfaces briefly, maybe not... don't waste your ammo. On the other hand, I managed to kill it once with 7 shots from the 357... Up the ladder and greet the scared scientist at the top, and listen to his chatter. Walk out on the beam and drop into the cage... grab the "tranquilizer gun" (the Crossbow) and drop down to the bottom of the cage. Make sure you're standing on the bottom of the cage, not on the bench... it'll drop into the water. Take careful aim, because it will take all 5 shots in the Crossbow to kill Jaws (if it still doesn't die after 5 shots, switch to your Pistol and use that to finish it off). Swim up out of the cage and get up on the turbine for air, then back down into the water and turn the wheel next to that barred door. Make sure the door is all the way up before ducking under, because it'll drop right back down as soon as you let go of the wheel. Get up the stairs and into the air, then back into the water to retrieve the Crossbow ammo if you didn't get it. Don't go back into the pool at the top of the stairs (through that door), obviously... continue down the hall to the next door, and watch out for all of the Barnacles inside. Grab the Shotgun ammo if you want, but be warned that the crates will break under you, dropping you to the floor. You'll be greeted by a Alien Slave down there, and another will spawn on the ramp. Note that the Alien Slaves apparently won't appear until you smash the crates... or maybe they'll appear anyway. Don't slip off the catwalk in the next room... more Icthyosaurs in the water. Follow the catwalk around - make sure you stay in the middle - and when that one section breaks under you a Alien Slave will spawn up ahead. Unfortunately, you need to deal with the Icthyosaurs, so either wait for them to surface and shoot at them, or drop into the water and take 'em on with the Crossbow. Don't even think of trying to swim down to the bottom of this pool... even Superman doesn't have lungs that good. Once they're dead, go up the ladder and continue on the catwalk to the sparking area. Don't try and jump across where the live wire is... that's not good. Instead jump through the hole on the right, where you can see the sign for "Generator Room". Swim down through the passage - more Leeches - and climb up the ladder, and if you turn immediately to your left, you'll see a G-Man on the far catwalk. Head along the 'front' of this room to kill the Bullchicken, and another will spawn in behind it. Nothing else in here for you - at the moment - so back to where you climbed up the ladder and head down that passage. Up that ladder, and hit the switch on the left side of that control panel only if you're going to go after the Satchel Charges in the middle. Continue on through and down the stairs only if you need ammo and healing... in that door and smash the crates for all sorts of goodies. Don't go any further along, though - you'll be back at that live wire. Get back up into the control room. Note the gap in the rail, all lined up with the pistons - you can jump from piston to piston, but that's only if you need a pair of Satchel Charges; otherwise, don't bother. To get up to the other side... shoot the wooden crate you can see in the distance, then push one of the crates up on this catwalk down to the floor through that break in the end of the railing. Just one, you don't need both. Push it across the floor to the green crates, and up you go. A Headcrab will spawn in on the far walkway only if you jump across the pistons. Sometimes the game will 'hiccup' and the G-Man will still be there in the doorway... just worm past him as you can't, unfortunately, kill him. You'll see a FAS up ahead - be careful, because a Bullchicken will spawn in behind you. In the next room, kill the Alien Slaves and Headcrabs... once they're dead, a scientist will open the door for you. There's an HEV Charger out here as well. Listen to him, then prepare to do a frozen run. Several Alien Slaves and Headcrabs in the freezer, but don't worry about them - if you really feel the urge, the 357 works beautifully. Run (or skate) straight ahead to the end, make a left, straight ahead, then another left and down the ladder. Rest and recover, then down the next ladder. You can blow up those barrels under the platform, though there's nothing in them. There are a few (very few) items in some of the crates along the way, mainly healing. Watch out for Alien Slaves, and continue down this hall to the lift. At the top, Barney will start to tell you something, then he'll get shot in the back. "Freeman, right? I got a message for you. Make sure you don't... aaarrrggghhh". Oh, well. In the next area, watch out for the three black-clad female "ninjas" (Black Ops)... they're fast and deadly. On the highest difficulty level they can cloak and almost seem invisible, so watch it. Kill them as quick as you can, then explore the area. Various crates containing various items, an FAS, and ammo. Use any and all of your weapons to take out the Black Ops killers - because you'll lose everything after this. need them. One thing you can do - as soon as you get off the lift and meet Barney, you'll see what looks like a hallway up ahead, after the wall of this room - in there are various crates, an FAS, and an HEV Charger. Set a Tripmine at either end of this room to 'seal' it off from the Black Ops killers. If you've got plenty of Grenades, Rifle Grenades, and Satchel Charges, use them now - get up on that platform where the access lever is and use everything in your arsenal. Around the corner from the hall where you met Barney is a short U-shaped hall with a rusted door in the middle... various ammo in there, along with an FAS. Once you've got everything, go up the ramp and hit the Surface Access lever (hold your use button until it's all the way over), then go back down the ramp and through either door. Save your game before you go through the next doorway... you'll see a FAS up ahead. Go to it, and wham! Ambush. Great, just great... weaponless in a room of boxes. Run straight ahead and turn to the right, using the crates to climb up to the top quickly, because you're in a trash compacter. Get up on that small ledge and wait... when the compacter stops, crouch across it and get the Crowbar. Down the ladder to the floor, smash through the grate, and drop in... follow it along until it spits you out into a puddle. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 9) Residue Processing (aka the conveyor belt level) The bright sunlight and the buzzing of a fly tells you that you're on the surface, while the aches and pains in your body tell you that it's payback time. Through the canyon and kill the spawning Headcrabs. Use the wheel on the side of the tower, then quickly climb the ladder and drop on to the descending platform; turn on your flashlight and head into the pipe. At the end of the pipe you'll see Barney shoot a couple of Headcrabs and run off... follow him and watch as he gets ingested by a Barnacle - and drops his gun. I'd suggest that you use the Crowbar to kill the Barnacles and Headcrabs... save your ammo. Besides, there's an HEV Charger and FAS at the bottom of the stairs. Check out the Observation Area... you just know that you're going to need to jump on those pistons at some point. Note the ladder on the side of the tank, and in the other room you can see an FAS on the wall. Down the stairs, keeping an eye out for Headcrabs... at the bottom is an HEV charger and a couple of locked doors. Go back to where you first saw Barney... climb the ladder on the side of the tank and jump from chunk to chunk to get to the vent. Through it and... see? What did I tell you? Jump from piston to piston to get to the red vent on the other side. There's a door at the far left which leads out to those stairs, and another one which leads to the next room - you could use that to get to the next room instead of jumping from piston to piston, except for the fact that it won't open from this side. There's nothing in any of the tanks or anywhere else in the room. Just follow the pipes... despite what it looks like, don't drop down between the pipes in the next room; stay on the pipes. Stay on the left pipe, and jump over to the right pipe only when you can't move any further on the left (the right hand pipe will break at the red light). In the next room, you need to jump on the moving arms if you want to get across - if you try walking along the edge of the tank you'll just slide off. Climb down to the floor if you need healing, and the doors down here will now open back out into that hall (at the bottom of the stairs) with the HEV charger, and into the piston room. Yes, there is a pipe where you first enter this room (you'll be standing on it), and yes, you can get in there... but there's absolutely nothing in there. Through the pipe, and in the next room you can smash the crates to get a First Aid Kit, Rifle Grenades and Shotgun ammo - look down through the grates to see the next area you'll be in. You can't get into any of the pipes sticking out into this room, and even if you could, there's nothing in them - so after you've collected the various items, get on the sloping conveyor belt and let it take you up and dump you into the water. You can get out on the ledge on either side, but as expected the doors don't open. Swim down and through the pipe into the next area, get out on the ledge (this is what you saw from those grates just moments ago), around the central section (take a look through the slanted slits to see what's coming up), then back into the water. Down and through, up and around to the left and into the next section of water. Just past that rotating drum that you need to swim under is a square opening on your right... get out there if you need to hit the FAS (and a door leading back to where you first dropped into the water), but otherwise just swim down into the next channel. Once you go down in there it's one way... a fan under the water will push you along. As soon as you can surface, get out on the ledge on the right... get the 357 Magnum and blow away the Bullchicken chewing on Barney. Grab anything you need from this room... smash the shelves (just those two Batteries), the desk (a pair of Satchel Charges), even the trash can, though there's nothing in any of them. If you go up the stairs in this room, you'll end up back where you first dropped into the water. Don't hit that switch - in the room with the Bullchicken - yet... first you need to walk out on the right hand ledge and head down to the other end; shoot the Bullchicken in the water below, and use the middle switch to reverse the middle conveyor's direction. If you hit either of the other two switches in here, you'll seem to get stuck... you can turn, you can fire, but you can't move - just use the switch again to unstick yourself. Head back to the room with the Bullchicken remains, and face the switch... watch through the window, and when the mashers on the right hand conveyor belt are (at least) halfway up, hit the switch. Run out and jump on the right hand belt, and crouch along it until you're past the mashers. Note that the switch only temporarily stops the mashers, so don't linger. Just stay on the belt, twisting and turning, until it goes down a slope and into a room with another conveyor belt below at right angles - jump off to the ledge on the right if you need a breather. Get on that lower belt, avoid the pistons, around the corner and avoid the mashers. Up ahead this belt ends at a waste tank; drop down on to the next belt before you fall in. Note the ledge to the right, with a door - that door won't open from this side (of course), but if it did you'd be at the top of a set of stairs which would lead down to a Bullchicken and an FAS at the bottom of the stairs. Just keep dropping from conveyor to conveyor, and after you round a corner you'll see where the belt passes between a set of flaming grates. Look down to your left and you'll see a sign marked "Stairs" - if you drop off to the floor anywhere along these conveyors, the maze of rooms only lead to one place... that Bullchicken (plus a few other monsters), and the stairs leading up to that door by the first conveyor. There is another door down in that maze - guarded by three Headcrabs - which would take you out to the area at the end of the conveyors... if you could open it from this side, which you can't. Sorry, but there's no way to avoid the conveyors. Other than the FAS at the bottom of the stairs, there is absolutely nothing in this area. *Run* between those flaming grates, follow the conveyor up to another drop to another conveyor, and keep doing this until you see a pair of belts running side by side below you - get on those and then immediately drop off on the ledge below them. Get up on the rail, and back off until you can barely see the Tripmines - that'll be a safe distance to shoot them. However, there's another pair of Trips around the corner in that tunnel... if you're very careful, you can drop a Satchel Charge on the belt, and once it's gone around the corner (about 4 seconds), trigger it. Get back on the belt and follow it around - once it gets out into the open again, drop off to the ledge between the belts. You could, of course, try jumping from one conveyor to the other, avoiding both sets of Tripmines. If you really need an FAS, go down the ladder and through the door (which opens from this side, of course) - blow away the Headcrabs, and follow the signs for the stairs. Kill the Bullchicken at the bottom of the stairs and use the FAS - don't bother climbing up the stairs unless you want to do the conveyors all over again; just make your way back to that ladder. Get back on that double belt and follow it along, jumping from belt to belt to avoid the rollers; get back on the right hand belt before going into the tunnel. Crouch into the tunnel, and as soon as you're out in the open get off the belt, or you'll be dropped into the chopper (the left hand belt would have taken you to that lower opening here, and the belt slanting down into the chopper... not as easy an escape). Watch the choppers to time them - wait for all of the falling Headcrabs to get squashed first - and drop down to the next belt. Get out on the catwalk in this next room - don't drop into the radioactive gook. Don't worry about all of the Barnacles in here... you probably don't have much ammo to waste. Up the ladder, and head into the red passages. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 10) Questionable Ethics Smash the grating, climb the ladder most of the way, turn around and toss a Satchel Charge towards the rear of the room... drop back down the ladder and zip into the red corridor until you get to the corner, then trigger the Charge. It'll kill the Houndeyes, and it should blow open the fence - if not, drop another Satchel Charge to the left of that tan crate, back off and trigger it. The sonic cry of a Houndeye might also blow the fence, if it's in the right spot - but you risk taking damage that way. Nothing else up here but 357 ammo. Switch to the 357 and head down the hall... in the next room, circle around the central post and check out the Alien Grunt inside. That funny looking thing on his right hand is a Hornetgun, but you won't be able to get this one. Smash the box over the button (you'll need to shoot it), then turn and face the Grunt - two or three shots from the 357 will kill it; hitting the button also opens the door. In the next room, drop a Satchel Charge just through the door opposite from where you entered, then get in the control booth and hit the button - back up away from the window, and watch the caged Headcrabs fry. Once it's over and the doors open, trigger the Satchel Charge to blow away the approaching Marine - with any luck, you'll be able to grab his MP5 when he drops it. There may also be a Grenade there, and just a little further on is an FAS. Just around the corner is a Barney - don't shoot him! Listen to him, but don't get him to follow you just yet. As you get up in the reception area, you should see a pair of Marines across the way - if you're careful, a Rifle Grenade (you should have at least 2 of them) will take them both out. Up here there are four different ways to go... where you just came from, the door leading to the outside on the left (locked - you need someone who can use the retinal scanner to open it), a sloped hall to the right (that door is also locked), and a hallway straight ahead (where the two Marines were). There's an HEV Charger next to the outside door, and there's Shotgun ammo on the reception desk. Go back and get Barney, grab the Shotgun from a corpse, and make your way down this hall. You can't get through the door at the end of the hall, so up the stairs. Through the door into a familiar-looking (but different) lab... if Barney is still with you, he'll hit the button on the left, opening the cages with the Headcrabs inside. Either blow them away, or duck into the booth and fry them along with Barney. Once everything is dead, go into the left cage to pick up the Crossbow... that pulsating mass in the right cage is a Snark Pod - believe it or not, that's a weapon that you can use. Snarks are little bugs... like fire-and-forget missiles. Toss them out into an area, and they'll bounce around all over the place until they hit something organic, when they'll explode. Unfortunately, they have absolutely no intelligence at all and will attack *anything*, including you. A weapon of last resort. Through the door and down the ramp... at the junction, there will be Marines to the right. Going to the left will just bring you back out to the reception area, so head right and down the ramp. In the next lab, blow away the Tripmines to the right and then run to the doorway straight ahead (and on the left) from where you entered... up the ramp and watch the battle (you'll pick up 3 Tripmines along the way). With any luck, the Marines and the Alien Grunts will kill each other. Wipe out any survivors. Go out the doorway that was blocked by the Tripmines - up ahead on the left is an alcove filled with explosive crates, and just out the left side of that doorway is a waiting Marine. Around to your right, you'll pass a door (won't open this side) that leads to what looks like a food processor... revolving arms with blades. There's nothing in the area that's blocked by the crates other than a FAS, and a view of the other door to that blade room, so continue down the hall - there are cages on either side filled with Headcrabs... shoot the glass on one, and all of them will break, setting off more alarms - just kill 'em all. In between the cages on the left is a set of stairs, and continuing down the hall just brings you back to the reception area... so head up the stairs. Kill the Bullchickens and the Marines. There are several rooms along here - in each of them, hit the switch to turn on the lasers... one room will have a warning about a laser shield; *don't* turn that one on until after you've turned on all of the other lasers. Before you turn it on, though, move that crate so it's against the edge of the raised portion of floor, under the laser shield warning. 1st room on your right - turn on the laser. 1st room on your left (hallway) - explosive crates and Gauss Rifle... get close enough to the crates to initiate the conversation, then back off because they're going to blow; after they've blown there will be more conversation, and then some carnage - when it's finished, go in there to collect the Gauss Rifle. 2nd room on your right - laser shield; leave until last. 2nd room (hallway) on your left - laser & Houndeyes. 3rd on your right - laser, FAS, Gauss ammo. The Gauss Rifle is a very nice toy, very powerful... but it uses ammo (the little yellow boxes with the nuclear symbol on them) quickly. For secondary, hold down your secondary fire key until the Gauss Rifle is fully charged (about 12 ammo)... hold down secondary too long, and you'll get shocked, but secondary is good at bringing down helicopters and the like. For a cute little flying trick, aim the Gauss at the ground and use secondary fire - you'll go flying upwards. *Don't* try this with the RPG or you'll get killed. Once you've got the place cleaned out and all the lasers turned on, go back to the room with the laser shield warning - make sure that crate is under the sign - and hit that switch. The laser will blow a hole in the wall... step out it carefully and on to the tiny ledge - from there jump to the pipe, to the next tiny ledge, to the crates, all the way down. There's nothing in the crates so don't bother. In through the door to the spinning arm room... there are 3 scientists in there; shut off the machine (time it so the blades leave the center area clear) and have one follow you back to the reception area (out through the next door, around to the left, and straight through the corridor where the Headcrab cages were, up the stairs to reception). Lead him up to the retinal scanner (watch out for any Marines firing from the right), and when he opens the door step through quickly. Listen to his chatter, then go through the revolving door (just keep walking up against it on the right). You can go back inside once you've come all the way out, if you need to pick up ammo or use the HEV Charger. There's a Marine around the corner to the right, and several Tripod Guns on the roof of this exit. Blow the explosive crates in the tunnel and proceed - those other crates contain HEV Batteries and ammo. Head for the door. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 11) Surface Tension Through the door - it closes quickly - and use the conveniently placed explosive barrels to wipe out almost everyone... you'll still have a Marine on either side of the door as you go through, but that's better than a full squad. First Aid Kits at the sandbag emplacements. More barrels and more Marines... when you get into the next area, you'll hear a chopper overhead - get out the Gauss Rifle and charge it up full (secondary fire), then shoot the chopper to bring it down. Don't be too quick to kill the chopper, though... it'll take out the Alien Grunt coming out of that tower, and a few Marines as well. Down the ramp, and from the other end of the dam on the right, you'll get rockets firing at you... charge up the Gauss (secondary) and fire at the left side of that emplacement; the ensuing explosion should take out anyone else down that way as well. Straight ahead - at this end of the railing - you can look down into the water... use the weapon of choice to blow away the Icthyosaur in the water so you don't have to deal with it later, though that won't be easy. I got very lucky once and took it out with the MP5... it took a full clip, and I only succeeded because the stupid shark stayed on the surface in one spot for several seconds. Across the dam and the door is locked... time to go swimming. Jump off the broken bridge and into the water... climb the ladder on the side of that tower and in; hit the switch to turn off the turbines. Back into the water and swim to the bottom of the dam in the middle... there's a pair of vents down here as well as a wheel; turn that (hold it) and the grates in those vents will open - they don't stay open, however, so you'll have to dive in immediately and swim through the short tunnel before you can surface for air. Up on a rock on your left is a corpse and a HEV Battery. Head for the other end of this channel, and up the ladder (the gate under water won't open). In either opening, and head left... as you move along these tunnels you'll hear another chopper overhead, but don't get out the Gauss yet. Outside the end of the pipe you can see crates and a ladder straight ahead, and to your left are several Headcrabs. Kill them, get the ammo etc. in the crates, and climb the ladder. Down at the end of the area where the Headcrabs were is a small cave, but there's nothing in it but a bloody corpse and a First Aid Kit. Get out the Gauss now... jump across to the ledge with the Marine corpse (and the HEV Batteries) for your best shot at hitting the chopper. Once it's down, jump back across to the ledge... follow the ledge around the corner, and go up the next ladder. Up the slope, and you obviously don't want to touch that fence. Two ways to go from here - to the left and through the rocks for a Tentacle (the mound of sand that rises is a Headcrab - kill it quick), or straight ahead and into the cave there. You obviously don't want to mess with the Tentacle - though there are First Aid Kits, Snark Pods and Gauss ammo in that area around it - so go straight and into that hole in the rocks; head left. If you really need to, you can temporarily knock the Tentacle into its hole with the Gauss Rifle, then rush out and get what you need. Carefully edge around the corner and you can snipe at the four Marines in this area. To your left you'll see a sign that says "Storm Drain Hatch" with a hole in the rocks just to the right of it... straight ahead is a camouflage net and a small tower structure. Just to the left of the net is a pair of small openings in the rocks... the one on the far left has ammo in it, while the one immediately to the left of the netting has three First Aid Kits (and a Tripmine you don't want to hit). Go into the tower and use the wheel to open the Storm Drain... as usual, hold down your 'use' key until the wheel stops turning. Head for that hole in the rocks next to the sign, and follow that around (more burrowing Headcrabs)... uh-oh, a mine field. While you can avoid some by going between the rocks on the right and up the slope, there's a pair of mines right in front of the barbed wire fence surrounding the hatch. Your best bet is to stand off - don't go past the sign - and toss some Grenades into the area, spreading them around. Once the ones closest to the sign have been blown, move up to the sign and lob one over to the fence around the hatch (that barbed wire you can see to the right). You can get over that fence by going up the slope on the side and jumping over it from there... but first, head for the rock wall at the end of this area... under a net is health and ammo. Up on top of the berm on the left (that is, to the left of that first "Mines" sign) is another "Mines" sign... go down over the slope there, crouch through the opening and up to get to the area where the Tentacle is. If you go into that area, go left and hug the wall to get back to where the "Storm Drain Hatch" sign is. Okay, so jump the fence and go down the hatch... down the ladder, smash the grate, and through the pipes. When you get near the end (red pipe), you'll see a jet fly by near the bottom of the screen. Carefully ease out to the end of the pipe and turn right... a Marine and a Tripod Gun firing at you from below (the 357 works best for taking them out). Drop on to the ledge and ease to the left - you should be able to snipe at the Marine below; after that, carefully drop to that small ledge, then the one below it. Work your way along the ledge, and when you come to a large gray angled pipe, slide down it, watching out for the Marine at the bottom. Facing out over the canyon, head left first - you'll come to a rickety wooden bridge... the only thing on the other side is a single HEV Battery, so you might not want to risk it. Most of the bridge will collapse as you run along it, but you can get back via the cables on either side. Make sure you save often on this ledge, obviously, but definitely make sure you save before the next target. Head the other way down the ledge - watching out for Marines along the way, and another chopper - and you'll come to a large door; save your game before you go in... sometimes after you pick up the RPG it seems to screw up and won't reload itself. Inside is the RPG and various other toys, including health. Continue on to the end of the ledge and climb the ladder up. Follow that ledge around - carefully - and take the next ladder up, Quicksave, then get in the pipe. Watch out for the Headcrab in the pipe... do it right, and it'll jump out of the pipe and go sailing over the edge. Just after the 'Loading' message you might get stuck... you can turn and use anything you have, but you can't move forwards or backwards. You can either use a brief shot of 'noclip' to get unstuck, or restore your last Quicksave... that seems to do the trick. If you go left at the junction, you'll come to a short ladder... pop a Grenade up there and you'll be rewarded by a cry of "Oh, shit!". However, you need to go right. Go right at the junction and before you get in the water, pop a few Grenades upwards just for fun. Drop into the water and go straight down to the end... up the ladder for a brief firefight, then back down. Into the pipe at the bottom of the ladder and at the junction, go right - it won't be easy getting up that ladder, but keep trying... you'll end up coming up behind an M1 Abrams tank. Use 4 Satchel Charges to blow it up, then clean out the rest of the area. Real military tactics time for future reference: the weakest part of any tank is its top armor, especially the hatches. The RPGs in the game can be aimed, somewhat... fire it up at an angle, then quickly move the crosshairs down to where you want to hit - the rocket will arc and come down on top of the target. Boom! Obviously you want to do this from some distance away. You can also use Rifle Grenades, Satchel Charges, and regular Grenades. Basically anything that goes 'boom' works, either on top or on bottom of the tank. The only obvious way is to hit that blinking switch - that'll open the door right next to this revetment. The reason that switch looks so odd is that whomever made this particular map goofed - that switch is supposed to have separate red and green textures, one on top and one on bottom, but they put both on bottom. Oops. Careful going around the corner... sure, there's a bunch of crates, but beyond that is a LAWS-firing M113 APC that has your number. Use the same methods as you did to kill the tank (with the Rockets), but keep moving around - move when you see it firing at you, then pop it a shot and move again. One way is to ease your way out around this corner... you should be just able to see the top of the APC by looking through the gap between the crates here; 5 RPGs (remember, there are more in the area you just left) properly aimed will punch its ticket. Hop through the hole in the fence first... before you go too far, lob a couple of Grenades down the slope, and watch out for return fire. Grab any goodies and get back up the slope and through the hole. Down behind the APC is a door which will actually open when you get near it... go through, and prepare for nasty before you go through the next. Open that door, and an alien flyer will go by overhead chased by a jet... an Alien Grunt and a Alien Slave will drop in - kill them quick. The door ahead of you won't open, of course, and neither will the one up on the platform. Clear out the minefield on the left and head that way to check it out - through the fence you'll see a downed high voltage tower that's sparking like crazy. Head the other way and blow the Tripmines before going in... high up on the right (behind the camo netting) is a bunker you need to toss a couple of Grenades in. Watch out for falling debris at the top of the stairs, and Tripmines along that passage. At the top of the stairs lob a few Grenades into the camo netting above. Out in the open is a dying Barney with a Shotgun, but there's nothing there for you. Ignore the doors that won't open, clear the minefield, and around the corner - run ahead to the bloodstain on the wall, turn around quick, and toss a couple of Grenades up into the netting. Crouch under the barbed wire, but before you past the end of it, turn left and shoot the explosive barrels - that will kill the electricity in this area. Up the slanted high voltage tower (it's safe), and on the roof wend your way around past the fan until you get to a hole in the roof... drop on in and say hello. You can maneuver around on the roof and the ducts enough to get into any of those sniper nests you took out earlier, but there is absolutely nothing in them, not even a body. Listen to the scared scientist, smash the crates - for God's Sake don't use Grenades or explosives in here! - and head out into the corridor. Your first inclination will be to shoot the Tripmine or otherwise blow it up... DON'T. There are nuclear warheads in this complex, and *any* explosion could set them off... so of course there are Trips all over the place. There are a few crates through that door across the way, but all they have is a single Tripmine. Crouch under this first Trip, then jump over the one on the stairs (jump up on the railing). An alternate method is to crouch and push the crate in the hallway - the one between the Trips - as far into that corner alongside the stairs as you can, get right up against it (you'll just miss the Tripmine when you stand up), jump up on it then on to the next platform. In the next door are more crates - but don't smash the stacked ones in front of that window, because that will set off a Tripmine. Jump over the next Trip and down the ramp - 2 Headcrabs in this area, so get them quick before they set off a Trip. You can smash any crate in here that isn't 'connected' to a Tripmine (except for any right next to an explosive barrel), which will make maneuvering a little easier. I find it easiest to slip under the Trip down near the end (to your far left as you come down the ramp) - smash the crate on the lift, then make your way back around to the stairs down at the end (not the ones across from the ramp, but the ones at the other end). Look up to see the two nuclear-tipped missiles hanging from the ceiling... Once at the top, edge your way around the corner and take out the Headcrab before it can jump at you. Jump over the Trip (watch out for the one across the ceiling) and hit the switch. Out the window and on to the elevator; use it as a platform to jump over the Trips and on to the other lift... hit the button to send it down. At the bottom grab the Hornetgun... it can be fun. Oddly enough, you can blow up stuff down in this area with no problem... it was just that building above where you needed to watch your step. Use the Hornetgun to take out the Marines chasing Barney if you want, but watch out for that truck - there's a Tripod Gun inside. Just for fun, shoot several Hornets past the truck and watch the Tripod Gun try and shoot them down. Get to the end of this corridor, but don't get on that ramp yet - wait for the airstrike. As soon as it hits, run up the ramp, turn, and up the next ramp - jump up on the rail and then on to the ledge, get into the corner up here and turn around. When any Marines stick their heads out, blow 'em off. Edge your way along the ledge until you can just see the front corner of the APC, and take it out with your RPG. The crates here contain HEV Batteries and FAKs. Head down to the other end - killing along the way - and drop down at the now-dead APC. Head around the end of the building, around this first corner (long window above you), and up ahead on the left will be a sniper's nest... take that out then go into the alley. The green door along the left wall and the double door at the end don't open, and you can't get up the fire escape, so into the building via the open door. Kill the Marines in here, smash the crates, and up the stairs. Get the Barney to follow you and he'll open the door to the storage room... start drooling (hit the light switch just inside the door for a bit of cute). Stock up on everything you can - you won't get another chance like this (the only thing that seems to be missing is Rifle Grenades). Head back out to that window at the top of the stairs... jump out and on to the ledge. Around the corner and on top of the circuit box, from there to the next one, then to the ladder and up, and up. Walk out on to the broken ledges, killing the Marines below... jump across to the other side of the room, and in that door that you can see (down below on the floor there's a small room with a couple of First Aid Kits, and a green door which opens out on to that alley you just jumped across). In the next area, wait for the Osprey... as the Marines rappel down, take it out with charged shots from the Gauss Rifle, which of course will also take out the Marines as it crashes down on them. You *must* use secondary on the Gauss to kill the chopper... RPGs will not do it. You must be through the doorway, even if just barely, in order to shoot down the Osprey. Note the door between the two "Stop" signs... it's locked right now, but shortly you'll have a very big key. Blow away the two Alien Grunts when they appear, then head into the opening the Alien Grunts appeared near and go down the ramp. If you go all the way down this ramp and into the next tunnel, a pair of green doors open out on to (where else?) that alley you jumped across. Jump up the boxes to get to that cannon, then aim it to the left at the doorway between the "Stop" signs... keep firing until you blow it open. Kill any Alien Grunts that appear, but before you head for your new opening, take care of yourself - get down from the gun via the boxes, and through the tunnel to the alley... get back into that building, head upstairs and recruit Barney. Have him follow you back through the tunnel, to that locked door just before it - HEV Charger and FAS inside, with Rifle Grenades, a Tripmine and a Battery in the crates. The door at the top opens from the inside, but that only leads to the cannon that you just used. Head for that new opening. Up the ramp and use the machine gun nest to kill all of the Alien Slaves (I've counted at least 17 on the easiest difficulty level) as they spawn in... once they're dead, head up into that area yourself. That ugly pink pit is actually a jump pad... use it to get up on the ledge. Head for the edge and watch the battle... then take out the survivors. If you see a yellowish bug jumping around, kill it - that's a Snark, and it'll explode on contact. Blow up the wooden crates, then back up and take a running jump: you can land on top of the crates where the FAKs are. Drop down and enter the vent... watch out for Snarks inside; at the junction are a trio of Snark Pods you can collect. Continue along until the duct is ventilated and you fall through... kill 'em all. You can play with the switches hanging down if you want, but all they do is raise or lower the two car lifts in here - not needed for anything as far as I know. Get the HEV Batteries then head out through the door... jump over the crates and run like hell, because they're explosive. Kill everyone, and use the cannon to blow open the door directly ahead of it - and the Alien Grunts that'll come running. Head in and watch the battle, then kill any survivors. I don't know if you can kill the APC or not, but you can have fun trying. Once everybody is dead, head down the catwalk and down the ladder... under where you entered is a ramp up (and probably another Bad Guy or two), and various toys to collect (including Batteries and Rifle Grenades). Once you've got them, get back up on the catwalk and run/jump across the gap to the other side; a Alien Slave will spawn in to greet you. In here on the left is a FAS. Go down the hall and you'll see a Marine being hurled through the wall... kill the Alien Grunt that did that, then snipe at the Marines below. Kill the Marine on the far roof with the Crossbow, then drop down on to the crates... straight across from this room is a ramp - get on that and turn around to take out the Alien Grunt on the roof. The small darkened area next to the ramp will spawn a Alien Slave, while the darkened hall at the top of the ramp doesn't lead anywhere (yet). Use the jump pad to get up on the roof to where you shot the Marine with the Crossbow. Through the grate and drop into the water, get in the pipe. About halfway along a Marine will open the other end and toss a Satchel Charge in - retreat! Get back out and duck under the water until the flames disappear (you'll still take damage), then get back in the pipe. All the way through and kill the sapper, then around the corner... ignore the firefight below (Marines vs. Headcrabs) if you want, or join in. Either way, use the ladder at the end of the catwalk only if you need healing (FAS under where you entered). Jump across to the pipe and use the wheel... then get knocked out of the way (gently) as the hatch opens. Get back up there and in that pipe, up the ladder and along this pipe until you get to the jagged end above some stairs. Lean out to the right and kill the Marine below, then drop out and into the room at the bottom of the stairs - kill the Marine in here (beyond the second set of shelves... a Rifle Grenade works wonders) and use the FAS. Go up the stairs and get Barney to follow you; he'll unlock that door downstairs. Don't let him die yet, because you'll need another door opened. Go outside (look familiar?) and kill the Alien Slave at the bottom of the ramp, then go back in and get Barney; have him open that door at the far end, past the jump pad (if he dies after this it doesn't matter). Through these halls and you'll come upon a Gargantua playing monster truck smash... you can kill him with whatever you've got, or let Barney distract him while you run past. There is an in-game way to kill Big Blue which I'll mention later. Head around to the right through the parking garage (past the SUV and then left) and back out into the open... note the jump pad to your right; use it to toss you over the wall - face directly towards the fence (the one with the sign), and angle just slightly to the right before moving on to the jump pad... you should land in a tank of water on the other side, saving you a little damage. Once over (and out of the water), you'll notice a pipe connecting your tank to another one - you need to get on top of that one. You'll also see a jump pad at the base of that tank, which you won't need unless you fall off or didn't hit the water. If you get down on the ground, you can go down into the canal at either end... but there's nothing down there for you. Note the walled compound... you need to get into that, but to do that you're going to need a little bit of subterfuge. Listen carefully to the radio, then start playing... click on the arrows to move the pointers on the map, then hit the levers to mark. You need to bomb that tower in front of you, and you need to bomb that concrete wall and the gate inside of it. Look carefully at the map, and hit the levers (hold them down until the cursor line has stopped where you want it)... the two circles at the bottom middle of the map are the tanks that you're on. Above the right hand circle is a rectangle, and above that is a blob... center the cursor lines on that blob (the tower) and hit the button in the middle to call in the strike; the tower should fall to the left. Now move the cursor lines so they cross just inside the corner of that box in the upper left hand corner, and call it in. Note that if you didn't kill Gargantua, he'll follow you and eventually break through that gate into this area - hit him with an airstrike, because he will climb the ramp next to this tower. In fact, he should be the first target you 'fire' on. Finally, call in an air strike on the tiny box in the very upper left hand corner... that door that you can see. Once that's all done, go down the ramp, cross the tower, and into that doorway... hurry, because they'll be continuing to bomb behind you. Through the corridors, and at the end climb the stairs and into that hall. Note the big door that says "Lambda Complex" - which is where you've been trying to get to - and the big Half-Life symbol... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 12) "Forget About Freeman!" Air strikes are continuing, so watch out for falling debris. Move off of the catwalk to the right to avoid everything falling on it, but as soon as the walk is covered in debris get up on it and in the doorway - this entire room will collapse, and you don't want to be in it when it does. Note the vehicle tracks on the floor... between them and against the big door is the best place to stand, at least until the debris has fallen on the walk. In the next room you'll hear frantic radio chatter... move the chair out of the way and use either the wall switch or the keyboard to activate a ceiling-mounted sentry gun in the next room, but don't do it yet. Go around the corner, over the rail and at the far end of this area is an Alien Grunt - get it to chase you, get back in the office and activate the sentry gun... but stay away from the windows, because that thing doesn't know friend from foe. Or just kill the Alien Grunt yourself and don't even play with the sentry gun. Don't worry about the Barney... he's doomed in any case. In either case, once it's dead go ahead back out and smash crates... a Alien Slave and another Grunt will spawn in, and more will spawn near the office. After everything's dead, head down the ramp to the "Stop" sign. To your right it's open, but the hall to the left is blocked by an organic wall with a ball in the center that has a green light coming out of it. Shoot that ball, but be careful - it will unleash 6 or 7 Snarks. If you don't shoot it, it will break automatically when you walk through one of the beams. The best way is to shoot it from a distance, and stay away - the Snarks will run around in a small area and eventually explode. Go into the left hall first - almost immediately on your left is a set of steps blocked by a wall of organic goo... you can shoot through that with no problem, or even just break it with the Crowbar. Further up the steps is another Snark ball, and 357 ammo. At the top is a busted elevator and a FAS. EASTER EGG? Or just a goof? When you go out to that area with the crates, you'll notice a ledge to your left with an elevator on it - you can get to it by going down the ramp, to the left and up the stairs, or by getting on the green crates and jumping the rail. However, you'll notice that this elevator doesn't work - the switch is sparking. If you use your 'noclip' cheat to get inside the elevator (and then turn it off), you'll see that it looks like a normal elevator, except it has a big red triangle to the right. Just walk right up to the triangle, and you'll end up in an area that's still coming up: a tank, a pair of Alien Grunts, and a pair of Marines. But... you're stuck on the ceiling like you're a camera; you can swing around in all directions to view the room, but you can't move. Turning 'noclip' back on doesn't help; you're stuck no matter what - you'll have to exit the game and start it up again (trying to load a save just exits the game). Continue down the left hall... to the left will be some explosive crates and a cage, along with another Snark ball - blow them away, and in the cage (door on the left side) is a RPG and Rocket, and a pulsating Snark Pod in the corner (with a Barnacle above it). Down on the ramp is another Snark ball. In the room at the bottom are a couple of Grunts, and once you blow them away another will appear on the ramp. The crates don't contain much except a First Aid Kit and a HEV Battery. Use the jump pad to get up on the ledge above for a pair of pulsating Snark Pods and a First Aid Kit, and from there to the top of the crates for more ammo. Back up to the "Stop" sign... around the corner to the right is an explosive crate - blow it away to kill several Alien Slaves in the area, and on the platform in the middle of the water is a Snark ball. Most of them will fall in the water, but I don't know if you'd call that lucky or not. The door at the end is locked, of course. You need to use the wheel (hold your key/button) to open the hatch, then climb down... but if you want to go swimming first, there's an HEV Battery (and a corpse) in the water - along with a swarm of Leeches. If you toss a Grenade down the ladder first, try and bounce it off the ladder so it skitters towards the room away from the ladder... a couple of Headcrabs down there. There's also a laser and a Tripod Gun at the bottom, and more Headcrabs on the middle platform between the two channels. An easier way is to go partway down the ladder, and when you can see the waiting Headcrab, shoot it - then go a little further down (without hitting that laser tripwire) and take out the Tripod Gun. Of the three crates, you only need one... and the bluish-green one can't be smashed, so use that one to go swimming - the right (smashable) crate is empty, but the left one contains a First Aid Kit. Push the bluish-green crate into the water... once it's at the fence, use it to get over the fence. You need to head straight and to the left... there's an HEV Battery at the bottom of the channel at one point, and there's a Barnacle or two. Eventually you'll come to another fence, one you can't jump over - but that's okay, because there's a ramp on the left (complete with Headcrab). Don't be too quick to get back in the water on the other side... there's an Icthyosaur waiting for you. If you really feel like wasting ammo, get on the metal flooring here and toss 5 Satchel Charges out into the water, scattering them around - back off as far as you can and trigger them; no more Icthyosaur. Or take care of it the old fashioned way, with the Barney Pistol or the Crossbow. Once that's disposed of, look down the channel in either direction - one way there's a fence... go that way first, and you can pop up higher than the fence just long enough to lob a Grenade at the Tripod Gun by the sandbags; in fact, there are Grenades in the water at the base of that fence. Back the other way, where you saw the pipes... you've got an obstacle course going this way, and plenty of opportunities to get hurt. First off, do NOT try to surface under any of the pipes - they're blowing off steam (literally), and you'll be cooked. At some points you'll have to worm your way between pipes while remaining underwater; surface after to get a breath. Secondly, there are plenty of Leeches in the water. Finally, there are a couple of underwater gears that you need to work your way past. Here's how you go: over the "waterfall", under that first pipe, right, duck underwater and time your move to slide between the gear teeth. Surface immediately after, with your back against the gear, and you'll see the steam jets. Underwater again, and start slaughtering Leeches... don't worry, they're not a protected species. Make your way under and between the pipes until you get to an underwater ledge - stay far to the left, because there's a Barnacle above the center of the channel. Now you'll come to the next gear... with this one, you've got to time it so that you fit into a gap between teeth and the gear pushes you through. Note: after the first gear and after you've ducked under the first set of pipes, you can use the next pipe to get out of the water and on to the ledge at the right... there's a padlocked door here, but the Crowbar will break the padlock. Inside this area is a FAS and an HEV charger. Once up there, you can jump on to the second set of pipes, kill the Barnacle, and continue that way, avoiding being steamed. Get up on the ledge by the sandbags any way you can, and watch out for the Marine in the next area. Two First Aid Kits and a ton of Rockets can be found at the base of the ladder. Pop a Grenade up the ladder if you want, but no matter what you'll need to do some fighting up there. You'll be hidden by a pair of boulders, so use them for cover and kill the two Marines... then switch to your RPG and kill the tank on the left side. The "Secure Access" door is locked, of course, so duck around the tank - watch out for the Tripod Gun on the left - and use the elevator. It's a radioactive area up here, so don't linger... and don't step in anything green either. At the junction there's a Barney corpse in a pile of sludge, and beyond the corpse (on the left side of that machine) is an HEV Battery. Head to the right and blow away the two Marines at the stairs. Past the stairs there's another one of those yellow machines - this one intact with an HEV Battery to it's right side, and a crate with a First Aid Kit. Up the stairs, and watch the battle... kill any survivors and get what you need from the crates. Get down to the floor, climb up on the tank, and aim at the green machine inside the hatch (you don't need to duck down) to blow away the door... and the Grunts and Alien Slaves that appear after. Splat! Yes, if you crouch down you can also use the machine gun on top of the tank... also good for blowing away alien scum. Carefully creep partway out the door and kill the Grunt on the right, then duck back inside the doorway and get out your Gauss rifle... once it's fully charged, kill the cannon on the left, then the various Grunts. Watch yourself when peeking out the doorway, because the wall opposite will fall down, just reaching the doorway where you are. Nothing to the right but a busted door, so head left. This door works, so hit the switch and inside, and hit the button in there... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 13) Lambda Core You've finally made it... the Lambda labs, where you've been trying to get to since the lab accident. As if your troubles are over... brother, they're just beginning. It doesn't matter if you close the door behind you, but go ahead if you want. The only way out of here is to hit the button in the control booth and get on the lift with the truck... get ready for a reception committee at the bottom; Headcrabs on top of the crates and a Bullchicken off to the right. HEV Battery in the crate in the tunnel, all sorts of Rifle ammo in the crates, Shotgun ammo and Grenades up on the ledge. Up the ladder and down the next, and out into the warehouse... three more Black Ops await you in here. No way to get past that fence to the Chargers, and getting on top of all of these crates doesn't really do anything for you... so into the side hall and smash the crates to gain access to the stairs. Another Ninja on the stairs, then from up on the catwalks if you go across and left, you'll come to stairs down which will lead to the Chargers. After that take the other hall; at the darkened end is a lift down. The door on the right is locked, so head left and immediately behind the door is a Grunt, with more waiting. Once they're all dead (including the one that spawns in the hall behind you), wander around the entire room - including that darkened dead-end tunnel - and up the ladder; the scientist inside will open the door for you. Listen to his speech... you need to activate the reactor on your way to the Teleportation Labs, and you'll need to flood the core to get through it. Gotta love this job... I want a raise. Grab the Crossbow bolts if you need them, then go over to the other door - the scientist will automatically follow you and open the door for you. Blow up the crates if you want (FAS and HEV charger here), up the lift, and to the right... inside is the dreaded Gluon Gun, otherwise known as the "Egon". Hit the buttons on the control panels across from the test doors to give it a whirl... There's no secondary fire, and it uses the same ammo as the Gauss Rifle, but use it sparingly all the same (I hate the noise it makes). Back out into the hall and in the other door. The lift will start automatically when you get on, and the doors open automatically at the bottom. Straight ahead is a sign saying "Coolant System 02", a hallway to the right (and a red map)... to your left is a hallway going left, and down at the end of this area (turn left out of the lift and straight ahead to the end) is a sign saying "Coolant System 01", and a hallway leading that way. Straight ahead of you, over the edge of this ledge, is a pair of bridges below across the water, with a pair of ladders. You want the hallway in the middle first... left out of the lift, and left into that hallway - Grunts and Alien Slaves will spawn in, so play with the Egon if you want. Watch out for explosive crates on the way - you don't want to blow yourself up while killing the aliens. At the end of this short hall is a sign on the left saying "Aux. Tank Reactor Access", and there's a sign on the right which says "Maintenance Station"; that last is the way you want to go first. Just ignore Barney (for now) and head down the stairs... in the room, listen to the scientist (fairly) carefully, grab any ammo you need (including Rifle Grenades - yeah!), use the Chargers, then head back up to the main area. Note the red map down here - it's the same as the one above; with each system you activate, the lights will turn green on the map. Grab Barney if you want to - extra firepower never hurts. Play with the Coolant Systems first... it doesn't matter which ramp you go down, because they both lead to the same hall. All along the way in both Coolant sections you'll have Alien Slaves and Grunts spawning in, so watch out. I don't suppose it really matters which Coolant System you activate first, but it's easiest just to do them in numerical order, so head for the blue "Coolant System 01" first. As soon as you go in the door you'll be greeted by 3 Grunts to the left, one up on the catwalk. Go up the ladder on the right to "Pump Station 01" and along the catwalk... when you go through the door you'll be greeted by a little bit of shaking and creaking, but it's nothing to worry about. Up the stairs - a couple of Headcrabs in this room - and down the ladder, where you'll be greeted by a pair of spawning Alien Slaves. Throw the switch, and head back the way you came, back out into the central area. It's basically the same for "Coolant System 02", though you have a few more incidents along the way... as you round the corner of the first hall, the ceiling up ahead will collapse partially, but you can get past it and in the door. There are a few Barnacles hanging from the ceiling, a couple of Grunts firing at you, and the overhead crane is in motion. Again, climb up the ladder to "Pump Station 02" and start along the catwalk... a Grunt will spawn in and break the catwalk. You can easily jump the gap, but if you don't feel like trying, you can cross on the moving crane. Just inside the door use the wheel on the right to shut off the steam, then wend your way past the wreckage and up the stairs. Barnacles and Headcrabs in here... across the catwalk and down the ladder; use the switch and grab the Batteries by the corpse. Make your way back up to the main reactor area and note the changes in the red map... head for the Aux Tank Reactor Access - kill the 2 Grunts in here, then the two that spawn in. Climb down the ladder and swim through the tunnel labeled "Main Access - Flow to Main Reactor", popping up for air in the area labeled "Radiation Hazard" (oh, great). Swim through that tunnel, and there will be a wheel on either side in this next area. It doesn't matter which wheel you use first... use it, head up for air, and when the water (coolant?) has stopped rising - just short of the red line - drop back down and use the other wheel. Surface and climb the ladder - watching out for the electrical arcs - and go from catwalk to catwalk, climbing the ladders until you're out the door. Next to one of the first ladders up is a window - you'll see a pair of glowing green and yellow globes... those are some of the teleporter portals. You'll also note an HEV Charger and Gauss ammo in that room. Don't worry about the Alien Slaves spawning in... they usually get taken out by those electrical arcs. At the end of the hall is a Supply Room with various bits of ammo; load up and head for the elevator. It's dead, so you'll need to climb the ladder up... you'll have to jump to that broken door protruding into the shaft, but you shouldn't take any damage. There's a Supply Room to your right ("B-101") where you can heal up and load up... don't bother with the ladder in there as it leads nowhere (at the moment). Head the other way in the hall and in the next door (on your right) - more healing if you need it, and a Barney you can use... have him follow you. Continue down the hall, and at the end on the left jump over the crate and look in the window on the right - just in time to see a G-Man disappear in a flash of light. So *that* explains it... bureaucrats come from an alternate dimension! Head down the other hall... Grunts and Alien Slaves will spawn in, but if you want, use the wheel to turn on the steam, which can damage them as well, making them softer targets. You'll have to turn it off to go that way yourself. You can't get in the "Radiation Hazard" door, of course, so continue down the hall, killing Alien Slaves and Grunts along the way. The next room on your left is open, and has two teleportation booths... only the one on the left will open; go in there and walk through the glowing "Portal"... you'll reappear in the other booth, which opens from the inside. On my 'map' below, these two Portals are listed as #12 and #13. The side door off this room doesn't really lead anywhere... there will be a ladder down to a grating catwalk, and below you can see a pair of Portals as well as First Aid Kits and Batteries - but you can't get there from here. (That area below is Supply Room 1 on my list) Note the colors of the portals - a 'sending' portal is orange on the outside, green on the inside, whereas a 'receiving' portal is the opposite. Just a little further down the hall is a wheel hanging down from the ceiling pipe... whatever you do, DON'T use that wheel - you'll turn on the steam permanently! Kill the spawning Grunts and Alien Slaves, and on the right is a (locked of course) door which reads "Lab B-105". Around the corner - on the left - is "Lab B-106" (locked), further ahead on the right is "Core Level B" (which is actually unlocked and open), and at the end of the hall is a ladder. Go down the ladder first to "Lambda Reactor Core Level C"... I love that 'you are here' map on the wall. Look out the window and you'll see a series of revolving platforms and a rising ring - you'll get to there eventually, but first you need to play with the (slightly confusing) Portal system in "Core Level B". Hop over the fence down here for Gauss ammo and a FAK. Inside the door of "Core Level B", the two Portals inside on the left are #10 (nearest the door) and #11. #10 just acts as a receiver for various of the other Portals... you step through them and you end up here. #11 starts you through the Portal process - you need to make your way up the various levels of the Core until you're at the top. The ladder at the side leads nowhere for your purposes... it's just a way to get back up to #11 if you fall off anything in the center area. I don't know what methods other people have used, but I've numbered all of the Portals and have them listed below. #'s 1 through 9 are in the Core itself and are labeled as such. #10 and #11 - as mentioned - are here in the entrance to "Core Level B". #12 and #13 are the test room where the Lambda team first tried the concept, and #14 through #25 are in the rest of the complex. Here's my list... at the end is what you need to do: #1 - takes you inside the "Radiation Hazard" room, where you saw the G-Man disappear... the grates will collapse under you, and there are loads of Headcrabs. At the end is Portal #15. Worthless Portal. #2 - a long drop through Portal #19; use this one to get on the middle rotating parts (duck under the pipe) for access to #4, #5 and #6; stand on the small ledge outside of #2 and look upwards - when a rotating part is just getting under the glowing Portal above, move backwards into the Portal. #3 - to supply room 1 (ammo, Batteries and healing); the other Portal in here is #16. #4 - to #20 (upper level); face outwards from #4 and look to your upper right, move backwards when a rotator is just under the Portal. #5 - to supply room 2 (Batteries & healing); three arguing scientists in here. Go out the door for more HEV Batteries and toys, through the next door for Portal #22 and back to #10. If you go down the ladder, you'll end up in the supply room you found before you ever started teleporting (down the hall from the security office). #6 - long, long drop through several ceilings to end up back at #10 - don't bother. #7 - to #25 and the end of the level (note the Portals on the ledge across the way). #8 - to supply room 3 (HEV Charger and Alien Slaves); Portal #23 takes you back. #9 - death (malfunctioning Portal). #10 - nothing; receiving Portal for #s 15, 17, 22 & 24. #11 - to the lower level of the rotating machine (Portal #18), allowing access to #1, #2 and #3. Note that you must time it right to land on the moving parts; watch them and go through when one of the rotators is right next to the Portal, just outside the rail. #12 - takes you to Portal #13 - where the Lambda team tested the concept, obviously. #13 - nothing; receiving Portal for #12. #14 - nothing; receiving Portal for #1 (Rad Hazard room). #15 - to Portal #10 (from Rad Hazard room). #16 - receiving Portal for #3 (supply room 1). #17 - to Portal #10 (from supply room 1). #18 - receiving Portal for #11; to lower level of core (1 - 3). #19 - receiving Portal for #2; to middle level of core (4 - 6). #20 - receiving Portal for #4; to upper level of core (7 - 9). #21 - receiving Portal for #5 (supply room 2 - arguing scientists & healing). #22 - to Portal #10 (from supply room 2). #23 - receiving Portal for #8 (supply room 3 - HEV Charger & Alien Slaves). #24 - to Portal #10; (from supply room 3). #25 - receiving Portal for #7... to the endgame. For a cheap text graphic: #25 - from #7; to end of level Supply Room 3: #23 & #24 Upper Core: #7 (to #25), #8 (to #23), #9 (death) #20 Supply Room 2: #21 & #22 Middle Core: #4 (to #20), #5 (to #21), #6 (long drop) #19 Supply Room 1: #16 & #17 Lower Core: #1 (to #14), #2 (to #19), #3 (to #16) #18 Core Level B: #10 & #11 (to #18) Radiation Hazard: #14 & #15 Test Room: #12 & #13 To make it easy... go through #11, (to #3 if you need it), #2, (to #5 if you need it), #4, (to #8 if you need it), #7 Whew! After all of that, you need a break - guess what. Note that when you go through #4 and get up to #7, you'll see a pair of Portals over on the ledge; you'll get to those in a moment. Anyway... when you arrive at #25, you'll see a variety of moving parts in front of you, which you saw from the window of "Core Level C". (The door here is locked, of course) Yes, you have to get to the center core... but first there are a couple of things to do. Time it and get to the middle (vertically-moving ring) platform, head left and face outwards... jump across to the button #1 when you can; don't worry, this middle ring doesn't go below the surface, so it's a safe way to travel. Get back out to the middle ring and make your way around to button #2... from there, back to the ring and make your way to the moving inner platforms. You'll note that some of the walls of the inner core have dropped far enough for you to enter... just walk through the Portal. This Portal will bring you to the ones you saw from #7... don't go into the other Portal here, because it will just return you to #10 - you definitely don't want that. Through the doors and left... kill the Headcrabs, and in the darkened dead end beyond them is a corpse and a Battery. In a small alcove next to this dead end is the ladder you need to go up. Save when you get to the top of the ladder. Through the odd door - there's nothing in those crates or past them - and listen to the chatter from the scientist and Barney... fate of the world time. Grab anything you can from the rooms along here, and grab the "long jump" module. Use the Long Jump by moving forwards, holding crouch and then jumping - if you need to, go through the "Hazard Course" from the main menu to practice the long jump and other moves. In one of the storage rooms you'll see a pair of Containers which look like sealed RPG Rocket tubes... they appear to be "Ammo-All" Containers - if you need ammo for any weapon, these will supply it. Even if all of your weapons are fully loaded you can still pick these up... they can't hurt. You'll find them scattered throughout Xen, which is where you're headed next. {Programming / mapping goof: just for fun, jump up on any of the crates, and get up high enough - you'll find that those supposedly-suspended lights are hanging from anything - they're hanging in mid-air. Oh, well... even the best mappers screw up every once in a while.} Have Barney follow you, and into the next room to wait for the scientist to open the Portal (he's up and on the left as you enter the room) - I'd suggest saving here before you go in this room... unless you /like/ listening to that damn scientist in the other room give that same speech all over again - and again. Work your way around to the right for the 'runway' into the machine - be careful when firing, because the scientist will be directly opposite you, up above in a gantry-type thingie. Before he can open the Portal, nasty flying monsters (Alien Controllers, AKA "Xen Masters") will appear - when the 'arms' on the machine start opening, the first Alien Controller will appear just to the left of the center, near the ceiling (as you're facing the 'runway'). Kill them quickly before they can wreck the machinery or kill the scientist, and when he gives you the signal, go through the Portal. The main worry is not killing every single alien, but making sure that they don't kill the scientist up on his platform - that will end the game for you. This is the most pain in the ass part of the entire game. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 14) Xen Welcome to Xen. Look around and you'll see various moving rocks, and on one of the floating rocks you'll see a corpse and an HEV Battery. Long Jump to the three stationary rocks, then make your way to the various moving ones until you're down on the 'ground'. Watch out for spawning Alien Slaves and Houndeyes as you go along. Once you're down on the central rock, move to the edge and out on one of the 'spikes' - when the next moving rock comes along, get on it. Don't be too eager to get off this mover... let it take you around the central area so you can kill anything you see underneath. The waving orange things on the ground are just a shy light of some kind (don't bother with them), but the hanging purple 'lights' are actually sentry weapons of a sort - kill as many of them as you can from your moving platform. Once you're on the underneath section (that thing that looks like a watery jump pad is actually a "healing pool"... the Xen equivalent of an FAS), move into the middle... there will be a cave behind an orange light that you can duck into. Get out your Crowbar and smash the organic wall/net, and in. You'll see white/yellow balls on stalks (nothing to worry about), tentacles in the water (again, nothing to worry about), what look like mushrooms with arms on top, and to your right as you enter is an organic cage filled with what looks like butterflies. Smash open the cage and then 'use' the mushrooms; the butterflies will get on the mushrooms and get captured - when all three are activated, a Portal will form in the middle. Save your game before jumping in! Hmmm... magic mushrooms that transport you to a land of fantasy... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 15) Gonarch's Lair Now for the not-easy part... look around quickly, because trouble is coming: the Gonarch. It's a huge, ugly spider-like creature with a sac hanging underneath - it spits out radioactive 'snowflakes' and it spawns miniature Headcrabs. From where you start this area, straight ahead you'll see a corpse with a trio of HEV Batteries and one of those whatever- Containers. Just left will be a pair of Headcrabs, and beyond them in the distance will be the Gonarch. Grab what you need to, and head to the left side of this plateau... get around behind these rocks and you'll be able to fire at Spider-Butt without it 'shooting' back. Just off the edge of the plateau - available via Long Jump - is a floating rock with a Healing Pool. Keep firing at Gonarch's sac (spider balls?), and eventually it'll retreat down a tunnel... follow it and keep firing; it won't charge at you when you're zapping it in the sac. In the open area at the end of this tunnel is some of that organic netting across the ground - you can't break it, but you don't need to; around to your left is a hole in the ground which will take you down to three small ledges. There's the one you're on, one with a corpse and Batteries (and respawning Headcrabs), while the other leads to a Healing Pool. That hole in the wall - which you can't get into - is just a respawning Headcrab source. Once you've done all of that, follow Gonarch into the next tunnel, firing at it as you go... it will drop into a hole in the ground at the end; follow it down using the narrow ledges. At the bottom, keep firing... up ahead is more of that netting across the ground - drop down through it and keep firing. Gonarch will eventually break through and join you down here, but just keep shooting the sac - it'll die, and when it does it will break open a hole in the ground. Along the walls in this small area is another of those Ammo-All Containers, and 4 HEV Batteries. Work your way around the edges and you'll notice a Healing Pool on a ledge, then a Portal at the bottom just above another Healing Pool. Drop on in... Note: some people have mentioned there is a glitch that causes the game to refuse to break open the ground at the end... if that happens, you can blow open the ground with a ton of explosives - but your best bet is to (sorry) restore your game and try again. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 16) Interloper Use your Hornetgun as much as possible in this level so you don't waste needed ammo. You can't kill those triangular flying things, so just keep out of their way - not only do they drop Alien Slaves on you, but they spit an electrical beam as well. Also watch out for the occasional flying Alien Controller. Note that there are two different types of alien flyers... some have a pointed 'nose', and will fly straight and level. The other type has a 'v' notch for a nose, and those ones will dive and swoop... stay away from those ones. The rock you arrive on will shatter underneath you, dropping you down to the ground - no worries. You'll see spikes rise up out of the ground - those you need to play with. Just to your right as you drop down is an irising hole in the ground... that's a form of jump pad - when it opens up, drop down in it, wait for it to close, and when it opens up again, jump up (you'll take a little bit of damage). There's a floating rock off to one side which has one of those Ammo-All Containers on it, and there's also a rocky (?) ridge which you can get up on. Get on a spike, and then on top of one of the pointed-nose flyers... work your way over to that Portal floating out in space. From where you arrive in this cave, there's a corpse and HEV Battery to your left... and all sorts of weird chanting. Out the right side of the cave is a Tentacle, and beyond it is a cave up in the rock that's spitting out guts. Go left and up the slopes, where you'll be able to snipe at several Grunts and Alien Slaves with your Hornetgun. Note the moving columns near the back (that you don't need to play with), and the cave on the ground to your left (as you face those piston columns). One interesting note about the Tentacle here, though it won't do anything for you: shoot it (just once) with the Crossbow, and it will temporarily sink under the surface of the pool it's sitting in. Actually, it does help you just a little, as you'll see shortly. Go down near those piston columns and there'll be a cave on your right... a couple of Alien Slaves in there. In a side cave (to the right) there's a whole bunch of Batteries and more of those Ammo-All Containers, as well as a couple of corpses (and an Alien Slave). Through, and at the end you have a rotating rock; jump across to that and then to the Healing Pool. From on top of that slope, look left to see a lit cave... that's where you need to go. Get in the cave (avoid the tentacle at the entrance), and inside (almost straight ahead, just slightly left) is a small rock on the floor - get up on that, and you can get into the square hole to your left. Follow this tiny passage and you'll come to a large Healing Pool (along with a pair of Barnacles)... across the other side is another opening leading to another tiny passage, which will bring you to that spitting cave next to Tentacle - shoot Tentacle with the Crossbow and you can jump across to the rocks where you were before. Whatever you do, don't fall in the 'water' that Tentacle is sitting in... it's highly radioactive. Anyway... into the first cave, then to the right and into the next cave... get up on the rock and you'll see a Gargantua; kill it from here with the Egon. Even better, get it to chase you back outside... get up on top of that slope, and it won't be able to get at you other than with it's foot stomp, which you can avoid by jumping up out of the way; you can annoy it to death with the Hornetgun, which won't waste any of your needed ammo. In the next cave (where Gargantua was) there's a small dead end on the right with a Snark Pod, FAK and Battery, and on the left is the lit exit from this cave. Be careful jumping up on the rock blocking the way... there's a big chasm there. You can either Long Jump from here, or jump to that rock on the left, and from there jump to the lower ledge you see ahead on the other side of the chasm. Either way, watch out for the Tentacles (and the Barnacle). If you jumped to the upper ledge, you'll see that it forms a ring around the Tentacles, with a gap in it. If you jumped to the lower area, you'll see that gap off to your left. Either way, there's Batteries and Grenades down on the other side of that gap; that gap forms a set of steps leading back up to the upper 'ring' ledge. Make your way around that ring - between the two Tentacle areas - and into next rocky area... you'll be able to shoot a Grunt in the back, but there's another one to the right beyond that small pointed rock. Grab the ammo-Container on the right side of the Portal, the Battery on the left, and walk on through, boldly going where others have tried and apparently died. To your northwest as you exit the Portal you'll see a tunnel - through that, and act fast in the next room... various Alien Slaves and Alien Controllers waiting to greet you. Those blue egg-shaped things are apparently the alien version of cargo crates... no worries. At various points in these caves you'll see things that look like waterfall beams... those are actually a different version of the Healing Pools, so use 'em when you can. Get on that weird lift to the next ledge up - there will be a Alien Slave on this ledge, but shooting at it won't kill it... instead, it will run away and get into a bluish 'waterfall' and heal itself. This is just the game's way of telling you that those things are the same as a Healing Pool... cute, I guess. Get on top of the lift and up on to that conveyor belt. Get across to the middle support, and from there to the other conveyor belt, snuggling right up against the crate in front of you... don't get on this belt until you find a place with a big gap between cargo pods. Follow it to the end and drop into the pool. Get out quick or get killed by falling crates. Jump over to the ledge - if you want to explore the lower area, go ahead... there's another HEV corpse down there along with an HEV Battery in a darkened alcove - and cross over the next conveyor belt (don't get on it). All along through this area you'll see egg-shaped crates that are gray & red rather than the bluish of the ones on the belts - shooting these gray crates will reveal an Alien Grunt, and possibly a Alien Slave. Unfortunately, you can't just avoid shooting them... I think they'll break and spawn in any case. More Alien Slaves and Alien Controllers in here... use whatever you want to kill them, but I'd save the Gauss Rifle and Egon for later, though they're really the only things you'll find ammo for in these caves. Once across the belt, head left and scoot over the belt into the next area (after you cross the belt for the first time, if you go to the left side of that blue field the crates are going in, look down to see a corpse and a couple of HEV Batteries), and around the ledges at the end. Up the ramp and into the next area - Alien Slave on the other side of that railing - and get on the slowly rising column to go up to the next set of ledges; or get up via the two pistons on the other side. Work your way around the ledges (various items in the darkened alcoves to either side), killing Alien Slaves, Alien Controllers and Grunts. Blow up the crates in that hall - corpse and one of those Ammo-All Containers next to the Healing Falls - and in the next room crouch into the red lit holes. Follow that around, then drop from beam to beam and to the ground. Save before you drop through the next holes. You'll notice several spinning lifts on poles... you need to get on those to continue. Go up the ramp and on to the first lift, and off on to the ledge. Before you get on the next lift, however, walk along the curved beam and into the red tunnels... at the end of them is a supply room of sorts with First Aid and ammo (and a few Baddies); after you've loaded up there, head back out and get on the next lift. Again, with each lift up explore the side areas for ammo and healing before continuing up. At the top, jump on to that spinning thing and save, then drop into the Portal. In this final area, follow the bobbing platforms down to the red glow... SAVE IT NOW, then jump into that Portal to go to the Boss Bad Guy. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 17) Nihilanth Uggggg-ly! Well, I guess... it looks like a big baby. It's anything but, though. The white energy balls it fires will do severe damage, while the green ones will teleport you to different area every time - some are supply rooms of a sort, but all of them have Bad Guys in them and you'll need to climb or ride to the top to get through the return Portal. Your best bet is to avoid both types of beams (no kidding!). The green beams especially can be a royal pain. There are various stalagmites in here - use them to shield yourself from Big Ugly while you're taking out the large pointed yellow crystals (three of them) high up around the perimeter of the room. Two RPG rockets each, if you aim them right. Nihilanth will also teleport various Alien Slaves and Alien Controllers into the room to fight you, if it can't get to you directly. Once those three crystals are gone, take out the 'sparks' floating around its head - use any weapons except your Gauss and Egon to take out these sparks. Again, stay hidden behind one of those columns as you're firing. Once the sparks are gone, use the jump pads to get up as high as you can - Nihilianth's head will open up, and inside is what looks like a big crystal... destroy that, then just wait out the various special effects as Big Ugly goes boom. You may also be able to get right underneath Nihilanth and fire straight up - that seems to do the job as well, if you don't want to play with the jump pads, but it also seems to take a lot more ammo. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 18) Conclusion A G-Man! And no weapons to deal with it... drat. Listen to its nonsense chatter, and wait... in the tram car, as soon as the door starts to open hit your QuickSave - that way you'll be able to experience both endings, if you want. After all you've been through, this is all there is...? Somebody has obviously seen "The Matrix"... When the screen goes completely black, open up your console (make sure it's enabled - see the cheats section below) and type: brightness 9999999999999 (that's 13 '9's, in case you're wondering) Not much to look at. If you use this, the next time you run the game brightness will still be up at that high level... type brightness 0 to return it to normal levels. Unfortunately, after the credits and the end of the game, it seems to just get stuck here... hit Esc or F10 to return to the Main Menu or just quit completely. =============================================================================================== CHEATS (HALF-LIFE) Enable the cheats with the console... on the command line, add -dev -console so it reads: C:\Sierra\Half-Life\hl.exe -dev -console In the game, open the console with the ~ (no Shift), type in the cheat, Enter, close the console. You can bind most cheats (and other commands) to a single hotkey - see the "Binding" section for that. Note that sometimes they don't seem to work... a bit odd. They do seem to work after you get a 'Loading' message - that is, enable them, and after the next 'Loading' message you get they should work. The cheats don't seem to be case sensitive. Anyway... why are you cheating? In the "totally friggin' weird" category, the MP5 can also use the 9mm clips for the Glock pistol. /god God mode this cheat does not work as a bind, for whatever reason. It does, however, save... so you only have to set it once in a game give ammo_357 ammo for the 357 Magnum give ammo_9mmAR ammo for the MP5 rifle give ammo_9mmclip ammo for the Glock pistol give ammo_ARgrenades grenades for the MP5 rifle give ammo_buckshot ammo for the Shotgun give ammo_crossbow ammo for the Crossbow give ammo_egonclip ammo for the Egon -- note that this will sometimes boot you out to the main menu... use the gaussclip cheat instead as they're both the same type of ammo give ammo_gaussclip ammo for the Gauss rifle give ammo_glockclip ammo for the Glock pistol give ammo_mp5clip ammo for the MP5 rifle give ammo_mp5grenades grenades for the MP5 rifle give ammo_rpgclip ammo for the RPG You really shouldn't try and get the ammo for a weapon until you've got the weapon itself. Do NOT use the "give ammo_9mmbox" cheat... you'll exit the current game, losing everything since your last save. give item_antidote ? give item_battery gives you a HEV Battery give item_healthkit gives you a First Aid Kit (don't use this if your health is at 100... you'll exit the game) give item_longjump gives you the Long Jump module give item_suit gives you a HEV (Hazardous Environment Vehicle)... if you're already wearing one, it will just drop it on the floor; this does not recharge your HEV Note that you should be ultra-careful when using the Battery cheat: you need to be standing on a solid surface (not water, not grating) or else it will probably crash you out of the game. give weapon_357 gives you the 357 Magnum give weapon_9mmAR gives you the MP5 Assault Rifle give weapon_9mmhandgun gives you the Glock Pistol give weapon_crossbow gives you the Crossbow give weapon_crowbar gives you the Crowbar give weapon_egon gives you the Egon give weapon_gauss gives you the Guass Rifle give weapon_handgrenade gives you 5 Hand Grenades give weapon_hornetgun gives you the Hornet Gun give weapon_mp5 gives you the MP5 give weapon_python gives you the 357 Magnum give weapon_rpg gives you the Rocket Launcher give weapon_satchel gives you a Satchel Charge give weapon_shotgun gives you the Shotgun give weapon_snark gives you 5 Snarks give weapon_tripmine gives you a Tripmine brightness [0-9] increases the brightness of the game... "brightness 9" is maximum, "brightness 0" is normal chase_active 1 3rd person view ("chase_active 0" to switch back to regular 1st person view); what's really funny about this is the fact you show up as "Gina", the holographic guide from the Hazard Course... obviously the only 3rd person model they have in an HEV noclip noclip (walk through walls) notarget enemies won't target you r_fullbright 1 eliminate shadows (0 turns them back on) sv_gravity [0-999] set gravity level... 800 is normal, 0 is none, 999 = no jumps sv_gravity 800 The normal jump sv_gravity 0-999 You are now the master sv_gravity 0 You can float and walk in air for amount of time; highest jump sv_gravity 999 You can't jump at all thirdperson 3rd person view; use "firstperson" to switch back (some impulse codes don't seem to work in "Half-Life GotY" or the Platinum Collection) impulse 76 Creates a human grunt. Be careful, this can crash the game. impulse 101 all weapons, ammo, armor. impulse 102 Spawn gibs. impulse 103 While looking at an NPC, displays stats. impulse 104 Lists global entities. impulse 105 Enemies can't hear you (notarget). impulse 106 While looking at an object, displays model/sprite stats. impulse 107 While looking at an object, displays the texture name. impulse 109 Control onscreen monsters. May not work in some versions of the game. impulse 195 Displays AI node information. impulse 202 Creates blood in front of you, like spray paint. impulse 203 Deletes target NPC or monster from the game. Note that there are two "impulse" codes already used by the game... impulse 100 your flashlight (default 'f') impulse 201 spray logo (default 't') -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- SPAWNING Other FPS games will allow you to 'spawn' NPCs (non-player characters; that is, anyone else in the game other than yourself), but you can't really do that in "Half-Life", with one exception. With the console enabled, use the "impulse 76" cheat (see above) to spawn in a Marine. Be careful though - lots of times this will crash you out of the game. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- HALF-LIFE MAP ACCESS in the console, type "map ####" (you may have to 'noclip' to move from your start position). For example, to get to the second map of "Power Up", you'd type in the console: map c2a1a and you're off and running. c0a0, c0a0a, c0a0b, c0a0c, c0a0d, c0a0e Black Mesa Inbound c1a0, c1a0a, c1a0b, c1a0d, c1a0e Anomalous Materials c1a0c, c1a1, c1a1a, c1a1b, c1a1c, c1a1d Unforeseen Consequences c1a2, c1a2a, c1a2b, c1a2c, c1a2d Office Complex c1a3, c1a3a, c1a3b, c1a3c, c1a3d "We've Got Hostiles" c1a4, c1a4b, c1a4d, c1a4f, c1a4g, c1a4i, c1a4j, c1a4k Blast Pit c2a1, c2a1a, c2a1b Power Up c2a2, c2a2a, c2a2b1, c2a2b2, c2a2c, c2a2d, c2a2e, c2a2f, c2a2g, c2a2h On A Rail c2a3, c2a3a, c2a3b, c2a3c, c2a3d, c2a3e Apprehension c2a4, c2a4a, c2a4b, c2a4c Residue Processing c2a4d, c2a4e, c2a4f, c2a4g Questionable Ethics c2a5, c2a5a, c2a5b, c2a5c, c2a5d, c2a5e, c2a5f, c2a5g, c2a5w, c2a5x Surface Tension c3a1, c3a1a, c3a1b "Forget About Freeman!" c3a2e, c3a2, c3a2a, c3a2b, c3a2c, c3a2d, c3a2f Lambda Core c4a1 Xen c4a2, c4a2a, c4a2b Gonarch's Lair c4a1a, c4a1b, c4a1c, c4a1d, c4a1e, c4a1f Interloper c4a3 Nihilanth c5a1 Conclusion Note that when you 'jump' to a new map using this method, you'll arrive there without *anything*... no HEV Suit, no weapons, no ammo, nothing. You'll have to use cheats to give yourself an HEV Suit, as well as any weapons you want. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- HALF-LIFE EASTER EGGS & ODDITIES For those of you who have never heard of the term before: an Easter Egg is a surprise or goody placed into a program by one (or more) of the developers. It isn't a secret area (though you do have to search for it / them), and it usually doesn't have anything to do with the program; usually it's something silly, or a bit of personal info (pictures or data) about the developer(s). It may be a reference to a previous game, or to a movie. While they don't count as secret areas, you usually do have to hunt for them or do something special (possibly even cheat) to get to the Easter Egg. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Throughout "Half-Life" you'll see 'photos' inside lockers and file cabinets - these are usually pictures of either the developers or their kids. Ones that aren't hidden - you don't have to do anything special or fancy to see them - are not considered to be Easter Eggs. (from GameFAQS) To see a picture of one of the game developers: During the "On A Rail" level, when you first get to the huge rocket (the Marine and the Headcrabs at the base of the rocket), use the 'noclip' cheat to "float" upwards - in the area above the grating, you'll see a picture of one of the developers tiled across the inside of what will be a blast door later in the level. Climb the ladder upwards for more of the same. Cheating is the only way to see this. Also note that this is the only place where you can do this - when you get to the rocket later in the level, the blast doors will just look like blast doors. [contributed by ZOLTRIX, edited by Nightwolf] Another Easter Egg in this same area: use 'noclip' to fly up the inside of the rocket... turn on your flashlight, and in that upper room (the highest grating level), you'll see lettering on the 'ceiling' inside the rocket. It's not easy to read, but it appears to say "BWB6 - ETA IIIV". [contributed by Nightwolf (me!)] How to make a staircase: Place Tripmines on the wall, one above the other (staggered) to form a staircase leading up. This will allow you to reach areas you wouldn't normally be able to reach. You'll have to move quickly to avoid triggering the Tripmines, and you'll probably have to cheat in order to get all the Tripmines you need. You can also do this with Snarks, but that's a little harder. [contributed by KeeperBvK] Weapons flight: In some FPS games, you can use a Rocket Launcher (pointed at the ground) to push yourself upwards... if you try that in here, you'll only take damage. Instead, use the secondary fire of the Gauss Rifle to propel yourself upwards. [contributed by KeeperBvK] =============================================================================================== -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =============================================================================================== INFORMATION: TEAM FORTRESS "Team Fortress" is 'merely' the Multiplayer add-on for Half-life... once it's installed, start up Half-Life and choose "Multiplayer". Customize your avatar (the character you'll use online), then connect. If you want, you can look around any of the Multiplayer maps without going online... it'll be boring as hell, since there won't be any enemies, but you can see what they look like, pick up weapons, etc. How to: Multiplayer, LAN Games, Create Game, choose the map you want from the list, OK. Most of the cheats that work in "Half-Life" will work in here, and any binds you have for Half-Life should still work in here... ie, if you have "f1" bound as "give item_healthkit" in Half-Life, it will still be bound in Team Fortress. Of course, you've got to have the console enabled to do any of this... see the cheats above for Half-Life on how to do this. Note that depending on what version of the game you have, some cheats will not work. "god" does not work, but "give item_healthkit" and "give item_battery" do, which are essentially the same thing. Just as in Half-Life, you can jump from one map to another... just open the console and type: map mapname such as "map boot_camp". The original maps that come with Team Fortress are: boot_camp bounce crossfire datacore frenzy lambda_bunker rapidcore snark_pit stalkyard subtransit undertow You can create your own maps for "Team Fortress" (and "Counter-Strike")... you'll need a special mapping program for it (them), available from http://www.qeradiant.com -- for help on mapping, check out sites such as Map-Center (http://www.map-center.com), but watch out for the sharks. There *are* stupid questions... =============================================================================================== -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =============================================================================================== WEAPONS (OPPOSING FORCE) Weapons are arranged in categories, and can be accessed either through the scroll wheel on your mouse, or through the 1-7 keys at the top of your keyboard. Some categories will have more than one selection in them... hit the appropriate number and then scroll to the weapon you want, and hit Fire to acquire it. Your weapons inventory will not appear on the screen until you've gotten your Power Vest. 1 (Low Tech) Wrench - handy for breaking into things, or breaking heads; believe it or not, this actually has a secondary fire mode. Combat Knife Barnacle Hand - hold down primary fire while aiming at a Flytrap to shoot out the tongue and bungee, release to let go. Can also latch on to Xen columns - but only in the Multiplayer maps. 2 (Handguns) - the Glock can be fired underwater, which is quite handy. 9mm Glock Pistol - standard Barney gun; hold down secondary for rapid fire 357 Desert Eagle - seven shot clip only, but fairly powerful; secondary fire activates the laser sight. If the laser sight is not on, the weapon does rapid fire. This can also use boxed ammo for the 357 revolver from "Half-Life". 3 (Assault Weapons) MP5 Assault Rifle - 9mm action with a 50 shot clip... good all around weapon. Secondary fire launches grenades which explode on contact. Shotgun - pump action nastiness; secondary is a double blast. 4 (Distance Weapons) Rocket Launcher - packs quite a punch, but it's slow to reload. Secondary fire turns the laser sight on or off. 5 (Throwable & Placable) Hand Grenades - primary fire to throw... the longer you hold it, the shorter the fuse - don't let it explode in your hand. Aim higher to throw farther. Satchel Charge - primary fire to toss it, fire again to blow it up. Once the first charge is placed, use your secondary fire to toss as many others as you want, and primary fire to blow them all at once. Tripmines - place them against a wall or other flat object (such as a crate), then get the hell out of Dodge; anything that breaks the beam - including you - will set it off. 6 (Big Guns) M-249 SAW - 'Squad Automatic Weapon', aka machine gun. Fires 5.56mm ammo and is very powerful... but runs through ammo quickly. Displacer - while it looks like the Gauss Rifle, it isn't (even though it uses the same ammo). Primary fire sends the target through a no-return Portal; secondary fire returns you to Black Mesa, but uses a *lot* of ammo. AKA the Portal Gun. M-40A1 Sniper Rifle - one shot at a time (7.62mm), only five shots per clip... obviously not a close combat weapon; secondary fire is a sniper scope. 7 (Alien Weapons) Spore Launcher - shoots green glowing missiles; secondary shoots bouncing missiles. Recharge it by finding an alien Flytrap and stealing the glowing spore from the center. AKA "Squid Hand". ShockRoach - used by ShockTroopers, it recharges itself, slowly. =============================================================================================== GOOD GUYS (OPPOSING FORCE) There are actually a few Good Guys in the game... not many, but a few. Always stop and listen to any of the Good Guys if you can; hit 'use' when you're facing them to get them to help. Occasionally Good Guys will be of use to you, such as opening doors and acting as an extra weapon. fellow Marines - that's it; everyone else is the enemy. (more or less) Engineer - this cigarette-smoking loudmouth is good for opening sealed doors. Medic - need some healing? Be warned that they have limited supplies, and even though they're armed, you shouldn't have them leading the charge. basic Grunt - these come in several varieties, and can provide some nice additional firepower. One of them carries the SAW, which you'll want to acquire. Note that if any Marines tagging along with you think that you're shooting at them - deliberately or accidentally - they'll open fire on you... watch out. Barney - occasionally a security guard can be of some help, such as opening locked doors and acting as cannon fodder... er, additional firepower. The fat ones are called "Otis". Scientists - while they're not actually on your side, they're not actually the enemy either... occasionally they'll provide you with information or healing, or even opening doors. =============================================================================================== BAD GUYS (OPPOSING FORCE) Just about everyone (and everything) in the game is a Bad Guy... and it's not just the aliens that are Bad. Military: while you and your team were called in to eliminate the scientists and any other witnesses, it will soon become evident that Black Ops soldiers have been called in to eliminate *you*. Comes in two flavors, male and female... the females, of course, are especially deadly. Miscellaneous: Tripod Guns - military automated guns mounted on what appear to be camera tripods; they'll fire at you quite rapidly. Turrets - wall or ceiling mounted gun turrets; sometimes in concealed alcoves as well. G-Man - these mysterious bureaucratic buttheads will show up at various places in the game... you won't be able to kill any of them or affect them in any way, darn it. aka "Suits". Aliens: Headcrabs - They'll only jump at you when they're facing you, so if you can get them while they're turning or with their backs to you... AKA "facehuggers". Houndeyes - little 'puppy' critters with a sonic squeal. Zombies - humans that have been taken over by a Headcrab. Also known as "mawmen" because of their toothy chest; they come in two different sizes, with the larger Marine version being known as a "gonome". Alien Slaves - ghoulish beastie that spits electricity... AKA "power slaves". Bullchicken - funky looking tentacle-faced beasts that spit a strange slime. AKA "squidspitters". 'Tentacle' - a huge green tentacle.. it can't see, but it hears quite well. Impossible to kill except under special circumstances. Gargantua - big ugly blue monster that spits flames or beams from its chest. Takes a lot of killing. Leeches - tiny little swimming worms, easily killed with the Crowbar. Only found in water. Icthyosaurs - these alien 'sharks' have quite a bite. Alien Grunts - big, bulky, ugly, with a third arm growing out of the center of their chest... it takes several shots (or a good Grenade) to kill one. They're usually armed with a Hornetgun. Alien Controllers - ugly roundish flying beasts that shoot out energy beams. Fairly easily killed, but... Pit Drones - ugly little pinkish-brown critters that move fast and spit slime. ShockTrooper - well, they're all ugly, but this one just looks plain weird... tall and grayish-white with an eye in the center of its chest. Fires electrical bolts at you from its hand weapon, which you can acquire (the ShockRoach). ShockRoach - believe it or not, these little bugs will jump at you and do damage... if you don't have one already, it will attach itself to you, and you can use it as a weapon. If you already have one, it will damage you. Pit Worm - only one of these, and it takes special killing. Alien Voltigore - big ugly spiders found in some tunnels... they take a lot of killing, and they shoot electricity. Geneworm - the final boss critter. =============================================================================================== OPPOSING FORCE BOOT CAMP Available from the Main Menu, "Boot Camp" will take you through a training course designed to familiarize yourself with the moves your character can make and the weapons they can use... as well as techniques of command (well, sort of). All of your binds and cheats will be available to you. Yes, when you have weapons you can blow away the loudmouthed Drill Instructor, but that just gets you court-martialed... :) This is a much milder version of Marine Corps boot camp... but it's still cute. =============================================================================================== WALKTHROUGH: OPPOSING FORCE In "Half-Life", you play Gordon Freeman, scientist at the Black Mesa Research Complex. When everything goes wrong, Marine Special Forces are called in to wipe out the mess... which includes wiping out Freeman. In "Opposing Force" (aka OpFor), you get to play one of the Marines called in to eliminate Freeman... Corporal Adrian Shepard. Being an ex-Marine myself, I can appreciate a lot of the authenticity that goes into this... though the language is much less profane than I remember. ;) I will say that I hate the Hollywood bullshit about the Marines (or any other military) being called in to kill a bunch of civilians just because the government doesn't want them as witnesses... Hollywood is the only place where you'll find that nonsense (and in games). However, OpFor is fun. You can blow up or shoot fire extinguishers - but don't get too close to them when you do so. Books on tables (or on bookshelves) can also be blown up or smashed, as can cardboard boxes. 0) Introduction Just as with "Half-Life", this intro is actually a level... and just like "Half-Life", the only way to skip it is to cheat. Basically, you're Corporal Adrian Shepard of the US Marine Special Forces, inbound to the Black Mesa Research Complex on an unknown mission. As you would expect, it quickly becomes SNAFU when your chopper is shot down by alien beasts... Note that even though Marine Force Recon and Special Forces are a breed apart (and crazier than the average Marine), that "Sir, no sir!" nonsense doesn't last beyond boot camp. As one Sergeant told me (when I was young and stupid), "Don't call me sir! I work for a living!" ;) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 1) Welcome to Black Mesa When you come to, a scientist is trying CPR on one of your buddies... with no success. Listen to him chatter (the main info is about the radio), then head out the door. Down the hall, and in the double doors on your left... behind a glass wall you'll see a pair of scientists go by with a loaded stretcher. The first thing you need to do in this area is retrieve your Personal Combat Vest... so head left and all the way down the hall to where you can see the table lying on its side. In that next room (where other victims are, along with a pair of scientists playing with Headcrabs), grab your Vest off the table, then head back out to the glass wall. Note: once you get your PCV, you can go back and climb those fallen iron beams if you want to, and if you're careful enough, you can even get on to the exposed ceiling plates from them. However, there's absolutely nothing up there. The short hall next to the on-its-side table has a locked door, so head for that large glass wall... that door is locked also, so keep going down the hall. Around a corner you'll see an MRI lab, where a Zombie soldier attacks the technician inside then busts through the window - don't get caught by it! {Trivia: if you cheat and give yourself a weapon (such as the Desert Eagle 357), you can kill the Zombie. Inside the room you can shoot the computer monitor, and there's a button on the equipment next to the MRI which will cause the 'bed' to slide into the machine. You can also shoot out the glass front cabinets in the hall, boxes on the shelves, and if you really feel like it, you can kill all of the scientists you've seen so far, with the exception of the one poking at the Headcrab in the cage.} There's nothing in that room for you, so keep going down this hall and down the stairs to where a Barney (security guard) has just killed a Zombie. Listen to him chatter, then wait for him to unlock the door for you. If you get tired of waiting for His Fatness, walk up to him and hit 'use', then walk to the door - he'll start to follow then go into his speech. Down the hall - watch out for the sparking wires - you'll get your first weapon... the Wrench. Doesn't seem like much, but it's better than nothing. {Weapons Theft: use your 'noclip' cheat to go back into that room (where fat Otis the security guard is), you can kill Otis with the Wrench and get the Desert Eagle 357 Magnum pistol before you're supposed to. Very handy. There are a couple of other spots in the game where you can do this - getting a weapon before you're supposed to - as well.} In the next room, watch out for the lasers... what you need to do is maneuver around and destroy the mirror that the purple laser is bouncing off (just get near it and swing the Wrench), then head up the stairs. In the hall, a pair of Headcrabs will drop down out of the ceiling just in front of the hanging wires... crouch and smash them. In the next hall, jump over the green glowing toxic waste (watch out for a pair of Headcrabs), and continue around the corner. Smash the crates to find a Vest Battery and a First Aid Kit. The security door won't open (you'll see a G-Man talking to Barney), and attempting to use the retinal scanner will just destroy it, so up the stairs. {Weapons Theft: if you use your 'noclip' cheat to get into that room (where G-Man is talking to Barney), you can kill Barney with the Wrench - which will get you the Glock 9mm pistol before you're supposed to.} Up the stairs, and one of the crates in the next hall has a First Aid Kit, but that's it... so through the door and head outside. Down the steps and jump across to the next ledge (lower, not upper), and continue around, jumping from ledge to ledge. When you get to the Alien Slave corpse, walk over it to get the Combat Knife. This door is closed, so jump across to the next piece of walkway (jump across to get the First Aid Kit if you need it), and in that door. Crouch into the small opening at the end (watch out for the Headcrab) and through the tunnel... walk down the pipes and into the next area. The chopper (an Osprey tilt-rotor craft, actually) is all smashed, and you can see Batteries and First Aid beyond it, but you definitely don't want to walk through that electrical mess. The fence is still electrified, so in the door here - watch out for the Headcrabs. In the 'cage' area, Otis will say hello... then the dumb fatass will electrocute himself trying to open the gate. Smash the crates for 357 ammo and a First Aid Kit, then in the vent. In this room, don't exit the vent immediately... watch the beams, especially on the right. When the first one goes out, rush over there, and wait for the second one to vanish, then run and get into the next vent. Smash the grate and exit the vent... head left around the machines, but don't touch the fence. Grab the 357 Desert Eagle on the ground near Otis' body, then turn right and watch the beams - once they go out temporarily (and the explosion on the far side happens), run straight ahead and turn right after the machines. Hit the switch on the wall (use it) to turn off the electricity, and then you can just walk out the gate. Now the fence is safe to touch, so open the gate and head back to the chopper... Alien Slaves will spawn in the first tunnel, so watch out. At the chopper, use the radio to get instructions - then smash the crates for a (very) few toys, and go down the ladder to the left. If you feel like it, you can climb on top of the Osprey and from there get up on top of the now-dead fence - but there's nothing there for you. Down the next two ladders, then blow away the Barnacles hanging over the catwalk and continue. You can go down the next ladder and into the water if you want, but there's nothing down that way except some 357 ammo (through a small tunnel and outside by the corpse). Head down the hall and through the door... the only way to go should be obvious: across and through the next door. Around the corner of the hall and blow away the Alien Slave messing with the corpse. Grab the Shotgun next to the corpse and descend the ladder. Kill the Alien Slave, avoid the steam, kill the Barnacles, down the next ladder. Alien Slave, Barnacle, through the door. Up the shorts stairs and around the corner... as the lift comes down, blow away the two Alien Slaves on it. There's a grayish barrel in the corner next to the stacked crates, but it's of no use in here - this one can only be pulled (not pushed), and it won't through the doorway. Smash the crates and get the toys, then head into the hallway on the left (ignore the lift - it doesn't go anywhere, nor does the ladder next to it). Stop in the doorway - don't step on that busted catwalk yet. Look around and see what's what... on either side, there's a red "Secure Access" door, on the right is a ladder, and straight across is a door. Jump across the gap (the flooring behind you will fall in), but don't cross that yellow warning line yet. Run across the yellow warning line and onto the brown walkway in the center, then get back to where you started. As quick as you can, get under that busted ladder on the left and face straight out into the room - electricity will be striking all over the place, and the room will start falling to pieces. Don't fall into the gook below, because it's radioactive. Eventually a piece of the upper catwalk will collapse, forming a ramp you can jump on to get up to the next area - hurry, because the slime water will be rising. At the top of the 'ramp, turn left and work your way across to that door - the G-Man in the window will open the door for you, but by the time you get in there he'll be gone. Get on the lift and down. In this next room, don't step in the waste, no matter what you do - not only is it radioactive, but it's now electrified as well. Blow away the explosive crates on that platform in front of you, and smash the crate on your left to get the First Aid Kit. Run and jump across the metal flooring... you should be able to make it easily without hitting any slime. Jump up on the crates in front of the window (watch out for the Headcrab hiding in there) and scan around... from here you should be able to blow away 3 Headcrabs - one back on the side you just came from (to the left of the crates you're facing on that side), and 2 in the darkened doorway on this side. You can go ahead and smash the crates on this side, but all you'll find is Shotgun ammo. You can smash the crates in the darkened doorway - watching out for Headcrabs - to get the Shotgun shells in one of them. Blow away the Headcrabs on the stairs and head up. In the office, use the lever... with the lever directly centered in your view, hold it until the left vertical support of the platform is just past the left edge of the window (you'll know it when you see it). The green & red switch on the console is nothing - I think it's supposed to be for that big red "Secure Access" door, but obviously that's broken. No worries. Get back outside and use the crates in front of the window to get over to the platform... from there, jump over to the crates on the other side, on the left side of that door (where you see the Vest Battery). Clamber down and hit the switch, then jump back to the platform and head back up to the control lever. Hold the lever until the platform appears centered in line with the crates on the other side directly in front of you (where the Headcrab was). Get back on the platform and jump across, creep around to that lower (left side) box, and jump to the gray hallway, avoiding the gook. Down through the hallway, and if you played "Half-Life" recently, you should remember this area from the intro to HL. You can hit the switch to raise the gates, or you can just crouch under them - either way, it doesn't matter. Head to the left and yes, you need to jump into that pipe on the right. HOWEVER - before you jump in the pipe, Save your game! Every once in a while the next level ("We Are Pulling Out") will get stuck when it's trying to load, accompanied by an "alien stuck in wall" message, and the game will exit. Saving here will give you something to restore from without having to do the entire level all over again. Let it carry you down, splash down, and let the stream carry you to the next drop-off. Surface quickly, turn on your flashlight, and look for the broken grate on one side (opposite the unbroken one). Go carefully through this, and in the next section blow away the waiting Barnacles. {Just Strange: in this area, if you turn on your 'noclip' cheat and go through the grates directly ahead, when you turn to the left you'll see a ladder hanging in the middle of the air. You can climb it, but it doesn't do anything. Weird.} Go through the openings on the right, and in the next room blow away the Barnacles, and head for the ladder at the far right. Up the ladder, through the hall (kill Barnacles), across the bridge, and to the right is 357 ammo and a Grenade pack. Now head the other way in this hall, and through the door. Lean over the rail on the left and shoot the explosive crate, unblocking the cargo bot. Once it's finished its chore and leaves (the sirens will stop), go down the second ladder (not the one where you entered) carefully and get on the box at the bottom. Jump across to the control platform using the boxes and hit the button there. Wait for the sewage to completely drain, then get over to the door and hit the switch to open it. Get on the lift and hit the button. At the top, kill the 4 Houndeyes before their sonic scream kills you. Go up the ramp, and push the cart up against the edge of the drop (don't worry, it won't go over), and push it along the ledge until the end of the plank is even with the open door of the tram car. Save your game, then jump up on the cart, walk the plank and walk straight into the tram (yes, it looks like a gap that needs to be jumped, but you can just walk in). Move to the handicapped section of the tram and it will start up. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 2) "We Are Pulling Out" Every once in a while - very rarely - this level will lock up when trying to load ("Error: Monster monster_alien_slave stuck in wall--level design error"), and the game will exit. Just restart the game and load your last save. Along the way, kill any Bad Guys you see, including several Alien Slaves. When the tram stops and you get out, quickly turn around - 2 Alien Slaves will be spawning in - one next to the tram, and one on top of it. Grab the 9mm pistol (standard Barney weapon - this one uses standard 9mm ammo, unlike the other pistol you have) and the clip, then around the corner to the vending machines. Make sure you have fat Otis follow you... not only is the extra firepower handy, but he can unlock doors for you. Through the door and immediately kill the Zombie on the left, then up the stairs. Kill the Headcrab and Houndeye (and Zombies), then up the next set of stairs (obviously don't mess with the radioactive waste at the end of the hall). In the darkened hall, watch as a beastie beams into the office and kills the two people inside... listen to the conversation, and you can tell George Lucas was here. Once it's gone, jump in through the window and then go around and open the door so Otis can get in (don't forget to grab the pistol under the windows). In the next hall, Otis will unlock the security door for you... go in to get some ammo (clip and Grenades for the MP5); his usefulness is at an end now, so kill him with the Wrench and steal his pistol. Go across the hall and smash the window, and jump in. While the scientist inside obviously doesn't want to know you, when you get up close and use him he'll inject you with a healing solution if you need it. Turn around before you get on the lift and look up - Headcrabs will be coming out of the vent on the wall. Get on the lift and ride it up, then kill all the Alien Slaves at the top - you can't save your buddies, so toss a Grenade up in that area before you get up there. At the top you'll get the MP5 Assault Rifle, very handy. There's nothing behind that Security door at the top, and Otis can't follow you up the lift anyway. Smash the crates for stuff, use the HEV charger to repower your Vest and then jump up on the crates by the HEV charger. From there, carefully jump to the top of the HEV charger, smash the grate, and into the vent. Climb the ladder all the way up (that vent in the middle doesn't open), through the duct, smash the grate and out. You can see the evac chopper through the window, but do you actually think you'll make it? Hah! Nothing in the crates, so head for the door... interesting radio conversation in the next room if you remember the end of the "Surface Tension" level in "Half-Life". Kill him if you want ("You want some of me?!") and steal his rifle. Grab the Satchel Charge and Grenade over on the shelves, then go through the right door... if you're quick enough, you can get past your buddy and into the room where he's interrogating the scientist so you can grab the Vest Battery. Or, you could just kill him ("Friendly fire! Friendly fire!"), picking up his MP5 in the process. Two ways to do this: if you get into the room before the Marine blocks it, smash the grate and go through the vents until you can break out the other end (at the bottom of the stairs). Or, just ignore this stuff and head down the stairs. Don't bother smashing any of the crates, as there's nothing in them... but before you go into the next room, shoot the explosive barrels that you can see (more around the corner). Out the door and run left, but it doesn't matter how fast you move... a damn G-Man will close the door in your face, keeping you from making the dust-off. That REMF (Rear Echelon Mother F***er, in case you're interested... someone who rides a chair for a living and gets the front line troops killed) is going to die, slowly... {More Weapons Theft: if you use your 'noclip' to get through that door - after the Osprey has lifted off - turn left, and you'll see a Marine in the Security door; kill him to get the M-249 SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon) ahead of time. He's not easy to kill, but he won't fire at you either. The crates aren't smashable, and there's nothing else out here. You can't kill the G-Man - dammmit.} Turn around as Alien Slaves spawn behind you... kill them and then kill the one emerging from the hole in the wall. Get into the hole yourself and follow it around. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 3) Missing in Action At the junction, head left... stop before the steam, and when it shuts off (temporarily), run through (that door is locked). Crouch under the pipes and in the next room, kill the Headcrabs. The green stuff is slippery, not dangerous, so don't worry about it. Kill the spawning Alien Slaves, then jump up the pipes, smash the vent and enter it. Don't smash the first grate you come to (you'll get back to it in a few minutes), but smash the second and drop down to get the First Aid Kit in one of the boxes. Through the door and you're back where you just were. If you want, you can smash that grate above the crates, but there's no real way to get into that vent, and there's nothing in it anyway. Smash the crates if you want (only 1 HEV Battery), then go back into the duct. Now go up and in and smash the first grate... be careful in here. When you see the hole with the sparking wires, carefully move alongside it, then go left just behind the hole... follow these tiles until the column, then turn right. Turn on your flashlight if you haven't yet, and avoid stepping on any tiles that look water-stained, as they'll break, plunging you into the electrified water below. Jump over any you can, and don't go down the sloping duct unless you're desperate - there's enough stuff down there to avoid the electrified water, but all that's down there is a single HEV Battery and an FAS... not really worth it. Keep going along the ceiling, and stop before you fall out and land on the fans. Walk out carefully on the fan beams, and just as carefully jump across to the next fan and to the opening on that side. Drop down on the catwalk, and when the steam stops race through (you're going to take some damage no matter what) and then duck under the second steam spray. Don't drop into the water, as there's absolutely nothing down there but Leeches, little stinging alien worms (kill them with the Wrench, Knife, or Barney Pistol... nothing else works underwater). Drop down the next short ladders - you'll be going through those fans soon - and get up on the rail... jump the break in the catwalk and through the door. Smash the crates to get the ammo (including an RPG round), then back out - if you back up to the door, you can run and jump straight across to the other side of the break, which will left you avoid the steam pipe spewing to your right. Face the middle of the fans, and very carefully walk between them, then just as carefully go down the ladder on the left. As carefully hug the wall and walk along to the broken fan... time it and drop down through the broken grate. Drop down from this next support, smash through the grates, and into the hall. Time the flames and jump across when they're stopped, and the same for the next one - watch out for the Headcrab and the Zombie on the far side. Through the hole in the wall and follow it along, smashing the floor grate at the end. Drop down carefully, race across when the flames stop, and at the second flame, race into the tube on the left when the flames stop. Jump out at the end and kill the 4 Zombies (2 regular, 2 large; the large ones are called "Gonomes") - whatever you do, don't use Grenades of any type to kill the monsters; there are a lot of explosives over there. Push the crate labeled "Danger Explosives" in red & white to the vent labeled "Do Not Obstruct Test Flame"... go up the ramp and hit the "Test Fire" button (crouch until the explosions die down). Drop into the hole in the floor that was created... on the slope, crouch and you can shoot the large Zombie further on. Drop down all the way and continue up this tunnel, killing Headcrabs as you go. Down the slope, kill the Headcrab in the vent, enter it and head left. When you exit the vent, look left and down to see a dying Marine collapse next to the truck... but before you jump down to the ramp, make your way to the end of this ledge and down to the next one - into the vent for a corpse and ammo. Race down and talk to the dying Marine (he doesn't have much to say), then go around the back of the truck and grab the ammo from the crates. Head down and left, down the ramp... the crate to the left of the one marked "Fragile" has a First Aid Kit in it while all of the others are empty. As you go through here you'll see various Pit Drones run by on the grates overhead... unfortunately, you can't kill them from here. Head for the red doors, then keep going and around the corner - a couple of odd-looking (like everything else isn't) critters (Pit Drones) will run up to you (kill them, of course), and bust the crates for some toys. The partly open door in here is nothing - an absolutely empty room on the other side. Go to the red doors and hit the switch in the middle - the door on the right will open, and you'll get to kill 4 more of those odd critters. The crate in the back of the truck contains a Tripmine, and there's a Battery and RPG up on the walk. Head around and head up the stairs to the Service Elevator. Kill the Pit Drones (ignore the scientist unless you feel like killing him), and ignore the crates - there's nothing in them. Through the elevator door, jumping to the left and down the ladder. Head down the next until you're at the crashed elevator car - get into it, and just climb that access cover like it's a ladder. Jump out into the hallway and head left (right is blocked). You can tell those doors won't open just by looking at the situation (they don't), so carefully make your way across the slippery floor and to the other side (jump up on the "Caution" sign, then the crates... you'll probably get zapped no matter what). Hop over the crates and head left... in and shut off the power with that switch (there's 357 ammo in one of those crates). Get back to the crashed elevator car and climb back up the shaft - jump across and climb up the wire, and get onto that upper elevator car. You can make the rope sway back and forth by facing the direction you want to go and hitting your forwards and backwards keys... when you're closest to the elevator car, jump off. There are a pair of Vest Batteries in the elevator car if you need them, then get into the hall and head left. Move that crate over to the vent, smash the grate and in. You can't jump up that gap (watch out for the steam), so keep moving - after the explosion, keep going down the duct and into the water. Turn to your left and kill the Bullchicken past the duct... the corpse will have an MP5 which you can grab. Head down this corridor and to the right... looks like almost everything in this hall is blocked, huh? Go through the unblocked door, grab your favorite crate, and drag it back to where the trash can is on the pile... use the crate to get over (the vent in this hallway leads to a Battery and a corpse on the right, the other end of the duct you just came down on the left). Grab the Hand Grenade on the crate, then fire through the window to blow the explosive crate. There's a First Aid Kit under that leaning bookcase in there. Back out into the hall, and push your crate in through the wall you just blew out, then under that vent in that blocked off area. Into the vent... Through the duct, kill the Headcrab, and in the next room you can see a scientist doing the electrical fandango... obviously nothing you can do for him. Out into the hall, and *of course* these doors open from the inside. However, you already know what's out there. Head down this new hall - watch out for the falling Headcrab - and drop into the hole in the floor (the end of the hallway is blocked, but there's an FAK there). Don't bother with the scientist, just grab the two Vest Batteries and throw the switch at the end of the room. Climb up the now-dead electrical cable (above the switch) and into the next room. Grab any toys near the corpses and then use the radio. Wait until they blow the door, then go out and use the Engineer (the loudmouth with the helmet and cigarette)... lead him to the elevator and then stand back. Let him cut through the door and kick it in, then join him in the elevator. Hit the button to go up... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 4) Friendly Fire At the top, use the Engineer and exit the lift... 4 Alien Slaves will spawn in. Kill them off and lead the Engineer to the door, where he'll cut through it. In this next room there's a rocky area to the left, and up above to the right is an odd looking window. Through the tunnel or around to the left, either way just leads to a dead security guard (in his hut you'll find a few toys). Jump up on the box at the base of the duct and up on the rocks to get on the roof above for a Vest Battery. You can't get into those yellow-barred openings up here, so back down to the floor. That Engineer doesn't shut up, but sometimes it's cute... "This mission is way beyond FUBAR [F***ed Up Beyond All Recognition]". The Engineer isn't needed any more, but if you want, have him follow you upstairs... a Alien Slave will conveniently blow open the door for you; make sure you thank it by blowing its head off. Kill any others and in the office... pistol on the desk, First Aid Kit on top of the filing cabinet, and a cute diagram of the Portal Gun on the wall. The red door actually opens, and a pair of Alien Slaves (along with a Alien Grunt) will spawn in. The door at the end is locked. In the double doors (another Portal Gun diagram on the table) to kill three Alien Slaves, including one that breaks through the projection screen. Circle around to the right behind the screen, and as you get past it the wall will blow out - more Alien Slaves. Head left, and on your right will be a short hallway with a doorway at the end... you'll hear the sound of an air strike and smoke will come through the doorway. At the end of this main hall is that red door (which opens from this side) and a small alcove. On the right as you enter this hall is a red door, blocked - but there's nothing behind it but a tiny empty room. Go through the air strike door. In the office on the wall is a crooked and cracked picture of Gordon Freeman under the title "Employee of the Month", and if you duck down and look in the filing cabinet drawer you'll see a picture of somebody's twins. Through the hole in the wall, up the pipes, then jump up on the vent ducts to the area above (HEV Battery in the darkened corner, along with a corpse) - watch out for the Barnacles. Jump across the gap, up the ladder, on to the catwalk and jump across the broken section... through the door and left. Lots of electrical sparking in the next area (partially lit by dead Barney's flashlight), and a couple of Alien Grunts across the way. Shoot the upper electrical source on the left, and then you can swing across to the next catwalk using the now-dead wires (jump to the first wire, swing forwards and jump to the next wire, swing forwards and jump to the catwalk). In the broken crate are a couple of Grenades, and in the other crates are 357 and MP5 ammo. There's nothing the the 'water' below, and falling in it will kill you quicker than chow hall cooking, so don't try. Head down the catwalk and hit the switch, then get on the lift. At the top, grab everything you can and kill the two Houndeyes. Use the radio if you want, but you'll just get a message about your buddies being under attack. Up the ramps, kill the Houndeye, and climb the downed tower. At the top you'll find a Medic; let him heal you, and then leave him here for the moment... you'll need him later. The door labeled "Secured Access Lambda Sector Transport" is locked, but the other door across the way is open - with a Tripod Gun right behind it as well as a laser. Around the corner in this hall are a pair of Tripmines and a locked door, so toss a Grenade in and get out of there. Get into the broken vent and listen at the grate... these guys have been sent to clean *you* up. Great. Bust the grate and kill them both, but DON'T toss any explosives to the right, over near that missile.. you'll get a mondo explosion that will send you back to your last save. After these guys are dead (five total), look around... on the other side of the truck is a nuclear missile - is that the "package" they were talking about? Also around to the right are a pair of doors, one with a broken switch. Around to the left is a door with a wooden bar across it - this you can blow open, but do so from a distance, as there are Tripmines behind it which will be triggered by the opening door (the same ones in that short hall with the Tripod Gun). Note the misspelled "Traiters Die" sprayed on the wall. The crates in this area contain various bits of ammo and a pair of FAK. Open the door with the working switch (the one on the right), and inside is a wounded Engineer... head back out and get the Medic to follow you through that hall where the Tripod Gun was (that's the door with the wooden bar, now open). Once the Engineer is healed (there's a First Aid Kit in that crate as well), have him follow you to the "Secured Access" door outside, and let him open it. Inside the door is a Tripod Gun, and around the corner are a pair of Tripmines... if the Engineer dies, he dies. Down the stairs and you'll run into a pair of Marines from your unit. None of the doors in here open, so have the Marines follow you and into the small warehouse, where you'll come under attack by 5 female Black Ops. Once they're dead, head to the right rear and up the stairs (there's nothing in any of the crates). At the top (another Black Ops killer), hit the switch at the end to open the first red "Secure Access" door, and head back down to it. Just keep following the ramp alongside the tracks... down and around a corner, and it's time for more killing. Plenty of Black ops scattered throughout this area, so watch out... the Marines with you probably won't survive, so grab their weapons and ammo when they're gone (including the M-249 Squad Automatic Weapon). At the bottom of the ramp you'll see a red & yellow sign with an arrow on the right side of the tracks - this changes the track direction; shoot it to change it (don't shoot it yet). Past that and up is a small office. To your left is a small room with health and ammo in boxes; head beyond that for an opening across the tracks. Look left to see the rail car, while straight ahead is an area with more crates - jump across the tracks (they're electrified) and into that area. To your left is a security office with a knife stuck in the desk, to your right is a storeroom with a Powered Combat Vest Charger (the only one you see in the whole game) and some ammo in boxes. Around the corner up ahead is the rail car; you can climb the concrete slope on either side of it, but there's nothing up there. Across the tracks and around to the left... on your left is a small office while on the right is a room labeled "Storage Area 3" - some stuff in there for you to gather. In the office the boxes contain ammo. Finally you'll come to stairs... go on up. Hit the switch at the end to raise the barrier and open the red door. Back down and get on the rail car... hit use to start it up, then go backwards (your Down arrow). Face towards the front of the car, and once you're past the directional switch, stop the car, shoot the switch, then go forwards. Duck under the sparking wire and around the corner... up ahead on the right are some openings in the wall that should look familiar - that's where you started this level. Down around the next corner, and on the left will be an open area with sandbags... pop a Grenade in there to kill the Black Ops soldier. The rail car will stop automatically at the red door; jump off to that sandbag area. In through the window and gather the goodies, then move the barrel and the crate around until you can jump up on the pipe (watch out for old sparky). Into the vent, follow it around... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 5) We Are Not Alone Exit the duct and head left - you'll hear Freeman going through the final Portal here at Black Mesa. HEV Charger and FAS on the wall to your right, but left is the way you need to go. Use the switch next to the door and through, and start blasting - while you'll see Freeman (you can't kill him, unfortunately) jumping through the Portal, you'll also see several flying Alien Controllers. Kill them all and then step back as things collapse... once everything has calmed down (relatively), climb that downed walkway and go into the glowing Portal up there. (A hell of a lot easier for you to get to this master portal now than back in Half-Life!) Don't try jumping into the central green portal that Freeman went through - you'll just be electrocuted. That was now, this is Xen... look around the alien landscape. On a rock close and lower, you'll see a corpse with an Ammo-All Container next to it... jump over to that. Use the jump pad to get up to the next rock (the tall one, in a straight line from the corpse to the jump pad) - once up there, a scientist will fall through and die on the next platform. Jump over to there and grab the gun - while it looks somewhat like the Gauss Rifle from "Half-Life", it's actually a Portal Gun; secondary fire shouldn't be used except in special cases... because it will teleport you to another world. The Portal Gun uses the same ammo as the Gauss Rifle. Jump across to the next platform. Look up and you'll see some rocks moving around in a circle, with a flickering orange light in the center of them - that's your portal back. EASTER EGG (of sorts): use secondary fire on the Portal Gun now, and you'll be teleported to the "Half-Life" Hazard Course. Get through the pipes (kill the Alien Slaves), collect the Shotgun if you need it, and shoot out the window on the side of the room. Get up in that room, and on the corkboard you'll see a picture of a grinning developer. Jump through the portal to return to Xen. Use the jump pad to get higher - turn around (keep facing the jump pad) so the purple arc in the sky is directly above the two rocks on your right; you'll have two higher / taller rocks in front of you (across the jump pad) - aim for the one on the right. The next jump pad is close to one edge, so back away until you've got the platform top between you and the jump pad (so the jump pad is on the other side) - of the two tall platforms you see lined up in front of you, the one on the right is what you need to aim for. Jump up there, kill the Houndeyes on the next platform, and jump over to there. Aim for the tallest platform you can see and jump up to there, and from there look down over the edge. You'll see the floating Portal, and several floating rocks. Technically you're supposed to jump from floating rock to floating rock to get to the Portal, but you can actually walk through it from up here - just walk (run) straight off the edge. Note: if you use secondary on the Portal Gun while you're in Black Mesa, it will bring you to a small area of Xen consisting of a lot of floating rocks - there will be Batteries and FAKs on some of the rocks. Jump through the portal here to return to Black Mesa. Another Xen area that you can get sent to is a small open area with a couple of Bullchickens and a large healing pool; the return portal will be in the tunnel behind where you arrived. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 6) Crush Depth Back in Black Mesa... up ahead on the left, hit the switch and get on the lift, and hit the switch to use it. As you exit the lift you'll see a ladder going down on your right, but there's absolutely nothing down there. Out into the hall and head to the right first - you do need to go left, but not yet. Shoot out the glass on the right door and through to head for the "Hydrofauna Labs". In the labs, a scientist in a giant fish tank will ask you to operate the transporter... blow away the Pit Drones and hit the button. HEV Charger and FAS on the far wall. Use the scientist and have him follow you around down the hall and past that Leech fish tank, where he'll open the door for you. Around the corner is a Bullchicken and several Leeches flopping around in the water, as well as ammo for the Portal Gun on a shelf. Have the scientist follow you again to the next door, but stand back as he tries to open it... once he's dead, go back out to where the Bullchicken was and into the busted tank; head up the ladder. Climb the grating and in the windows... kill the Pit Drones; after they're dead, grab the First Aid Kit and the Barney pistol (on top of the grates at the top of the ladder), and a Pit Drone will break through the wall at the end. In there, kill, and in the next vent. Drop out the end, and there's only one obvious place to go... into the machine. Hit the switch, watch the fireworks, endure the darkness. Once you can see again, swim up to grab air, then down and into the vent (down on your left as you teleport in). Follow that along until you go up a ramp and into the air again. Along the catwalks, kill the Zombies and Headcrabs, and into the next vent... you'll fall through the grates at the end and into the water. Surface immediately, and head for the ladder almost straight ahead of you. (There's a grate in the wall down under the water, but it's not open... and nastiness lurks behind it). Up and into the hallway, kill the Zombies and Headcrabs, and down the next ladder (more Zombies). There's a busted First Aid Station (FAS) on the wall, but don't use it because it will explode; instead, there's a First Aid Kit under the platform you just came down. The HEV charger works just fine. Heal up, charge up, and down the next ladder. Leeches in the puddles, and through the windows you'll see an Icthyosaur... an alien shark. Guess where you need to go... Hold down the wheel at the end to open the grate. Back up the ladders and back out to the water - get out the Portal Gun because it's the only thing (other than the Wrench and the Barney pistol) that works underwater. Move to the far right of the platform and jump in - the grate is right there, but the Icthyosaur probably will be too. Kill it or just get past it, turn the wheel at the other end and when the water drains you'll be safe (relatively). Don't hit that button because it explodes... instead, head left. Actually, you can hit the button, but only if you back away immdeiately after doing so. Note the X-ray people through the glass. Head left and through the door, and beyond the electrical arcing you'll see a switch on the far wall... shoot that to shut off the power. Through the blower and kill the two Pit Drones and the ShockTrooper, then the next ShockTrooper... get its weapon (the ShockRoach), an electrical 'hand' that never needs ammo. Also note the graphic of the Icthyosaur on the wall. Note that in a battle against ShockTroopers, when they're dead their weapon - a living creature of some sort - will jump at you and try to inflict damage. If you don't have one already, no problem... it'll join you. If you already have one, you'll need to kill this one. Also note that the ShockRoach doesn't seem to last long on it's own when its owner is killed - get up close to grab it. Out and through the door with the airlock warning, and hit the button. Through the next door and into a glass tunnel, where you'll see a pair of Icthyosaurs swimming around... and a Portal near the end. You can't get at these two to kill them (unless you cheat), so don't worry about them. Jump through the portal and you're in Xen again. Jump across to the next rock, but don't be too quick to go through that Portal... look around first. There are other floating rocks here, some with items on them - and one way below that has another Portal on it. If you carefully walk off the edge, you can get down to that next Portal... there's ammo, healing, and a Battery down there as well. Going through that Portal will bring you right back to where you were on that catwalk, allowing you to go through the Portal there again. Other rocks in this area contain Batteries as well as HEV corpses. Leeches in the puddle, and a switch... change over to your Portal Gun and hit the switch. Through the door, and while you can easily jump across the gap to the other section, that door won't open - you need to go swimming. Check through the glass to find out where the Icthyosaurs are, then dive in and take them out with the Portal Gun. Next to the pipes is a vent leading up; swim up and smash through, and into a partly-flooded hallway. Head down to the Biohazard sign for the next level... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 7) Vicarious Reality Down the hall and climb up the slanted conduit... don't get zapped. At the top, jump up and on to the catwalk via the side ledge - a couple of Headcrabs up here as well as a dead Barney, and a 357 Desert Eagle pistol. There's nothing in the area past the malfunctioning door (the noise of it will drive you nuts after a while), so head up the stairs on the left for a Headcrab. There's the tiniest of narrow ledges under the slanted beam up here (on the outside of the window), so crouch along that and in the next window for another Headcrab and a Vest Battery. Back out and up the other stairs (Headcrab and First Aid Kit), and through the next door. Along the Observation Area hallway, and the door at the end is locked... start back along the hall and a couple of Pit Drones and a ShockTrooper will spawn in, breaking one of the windows. Out the window, down the slope towards the open door, then back up quick: a big ugly spider-creature will appear... that's a Voltigore, and it's not easy to kill; I'd suggest your Portal Gun. In through the door in the rock, hit the switch and through the door. Hit the button to bring the lift down, then get on the lift and hit the button again to send it up. To your left is a Gonome Zombie, while to your right (around the corner) is an open cage with a pair of Headcrabs - kill all of them, then play with anything else. That door to the right leads you back out to the red-lit hallway where you just were. Hit the buttons on the panel next to that door to open the other cage (Bullchicken), and you can shoot out the door on the pet carriers to kill the critters inside. Down the other end of the lab (where the Gonome was) are more cages to play with - a Houndeye in one, and in the other are a pair of Snark Pods... these are weapons that you can use, but would probably prefer not to. 'Fire and forget' weapons... but once they're tossed, they'll attack anything in sight, including you. Around the corner is the door you need to go out. The door directly ahead (with the blood trail) won't open, but to the right is a FAS. Head down the hall to the broken lift... on your right will be a broken door, and just inside it is a Vest Battery; the storage room on the left has ammo and Batteries, as well as a Headcrab. At the lift, shoot the glass on the right door and climb through... climb the hatch cover that's hanging down. Climb the ladder in the shaft all the way up... you need to either jump to or drop to that next opening and out into that hall. To the right the hall is blocked, so go left and through that door. Another observation area, but this one looks like Xen. Through the next door. You can go down past that "Caution" sign and through the next door, but just past that is a "Danger" barrier and a long drop to a room with a couple of Tentacles, so go down the other hallway to the lift. Get in and take the lift down. Those ceiling slabs are blocking most of the hall, so the only way you can go is right and through the door... a trio of Pit Drones. Push the chair over to the machinery next to that open vent on the left, and jump on up... Snarks will attack you from inside the vent, but at the end are a couple of Snark Pods that you can gather. Back down, up the ramp, and break the window... step out on the ledge and start firing down - 4 (or more) Houndeyes and a Bullchicken below. Make your way down to this little slice of Xen... watch out for the brown pointed tentacles. The little greenish things appear to be a form of Venus Flytrap - shoot the green spore in the center and it will bounce up and explode; on the other hand, if you walk (run) over the Flytrap, you can collect that green spore before they close up - and while you can't do anything with them now, they'll come in handy later. After you've collected a spore, wait a moment or two and the Flytrap will produce another one - for now, keep gathering those Spores until you can't get any more. The orange things are just shy lights. Head through the open door in the rock. Open the next door, and it looks familiar, no? Up the lift and into the lab. Again, if you feel like opening the cages and killing the beasties inside, do so. The green squid thing on the floor (the Spore Launcher) at the busted tank is another alien weapon for your use, but this one needs to be reloaded. Primary fire is a gooey exploding missile, while secondary will make the missile bounce around a bit before exploding. Those green spores you collected earlier from the Flytraps are ammo for these Spore Launchers. For a giggle, just sit there for a moment while you've got the Spore Launcher out... it'll make a noise, and Adrian will pet it's "head", just like a dog. The door up ahead on your right is the one you couldn't get through from the other side (the blood trail one), so ignore it... around the corner ahead is a large Zombie. Shoot the glass on the tank, and you can jump/crouch into it to collect more spores for the Spore Launcher. Out through the door and... another familiar area, though the sign says this is area 02. Through the next door and along this observation hall... the green glows are more Flytraps, and they actually will come in handy as you go along. Just keep heading down the hall (follow Tinkerbell) and through the next door. Through the windows you'll see the area you were just in - you're going in circles. Geez... another area looking just like this... through the door, kill the Houndeyes, and out through the next door. In to the next lab - two windows on your right with Barnacles behind them (unfortunately, you can't break the glass and kill them now... because you've got to go through that area in a short while); between the windows is a blinking sign that says "Message Waiting". Hit the button on the console and listen to the message about Specimen 1176; after, the next door will open for you. In the specimen room, the first cage on the right is broken, while the second on the right contains one of those shy lights. The first cage on the left contains a ball on stalks (they're harmless), while the second cage contains the Barnacle the message mentioned. Grab it. How this thing works: when you see a Flytrap high up on the wall, aim the Barnacle Hand at it and hold down - don't release it - your primary fire... the Barnacle's "tongue" will shoot out and latch on to the Flytrap, turning you into a human bungee. To let go, just release your fire button. Since "Opposing Force" doesn't have a 'long jump' module like "Half-Life" did, this will be your primary way of crossing seemingly impossible distances and climbing up walls. Note that you can also latch on to the tall 'stone' columns in Xen with the Barnacle Hand (Grapple), b ut only in the Multiplayer maps. Into the next room, grab the Battery on the table, and play with the caged creatures if you want. You can actually kill Headcrabs with the Barnacle - just aim at them and fire, holding down your fire button; the Headcrab will get sucked into the Barnacle and killed, with no damage to yourself. That's the only alien creature that the Barnacle can kill, however, and obviously it's going to be much easier to kill the Headcrabs with conventional weapons. Out into the next room, and down the ladder... now that you've got the Barnacle Hand, there are two ways to 'harvest' the spores from the Flytraps - one way much harder than the other. The first way is to simply run over the spore as before to add it to your inventory. The other way... crouch and get as close to the Flytrap as you can, and click primary fire while wearing the Barnacle Hand (don't hold it this time) - the Barnacle will grab the spore. Take out the various Pit Drones in here before doing anything else, though. These spores - as I mentioned before - are ammo for the Spore Launcher... you can only carry 20 at a time, plus the 5 already in the loaded Spore Launcher. Personally, I haven't found much of a use for the Spore Launcher, except perhaps at the end. Up on the broken ledge, aim the Barnacle Hand at the Flytrap above the other ledge, and hold down your primary fire key... the Barnacle tongue will shoot out and you get to be a bungee. At the right time, let go of your fire button and drop on to that next ledge. Through the door, down the lift, and through the next door... these Barnacles aren't friendly, so blow them away, along with the Headcrabs (this is the room you saw through those windows before, when you played the message about Specimen 1176). Through the next door, up the lift, through the door and kill the Pit Drones and the ShockTrooper. From here, you can go through the double doors at the end for some more killing and a few toys, or just up the stairs to continue the level. If you go through the double doors, go up the lift, kill the Pit Drones, through the double doors to immediately face a ShockTrooper, down the hall past the swaying light, to the right around the wreckage, through the door and into a room full of crates where you'll find ammo and Batteries. The window overlooks the area with the Tentacles, which is where you'll end up when you go up those stairs. Oddly enough, there's a vent grate high up on the wall that you can blow away, but there's no way to get up there to get in the vent - and there's nothing in there anyway. Once you've gotten everything you want to, head back to the lab and those stairs. Up the stairs, through the door, turn right and head to the crates. Smash them if you want (there's a Vest Battery in the green covered crate, but that's it), then through the door. Another red-lit hall, with a "Caution" sawhorse ahead... get past that, and you're in the open area with the two Tentacles. You can't kill them, and even the Portal Gun doesn't work on them... the only thing you can do is distract them - they can't see, but they do hear, so toss Grenades in the direction opposite of where you want to go - and crouch (not run) to where you need to go. Get the Vest Batteries if you want, but you need to use the Barnacle Hand to get up to that hole in the wall. The easiest way is to stay on the ledge where you entered this area, and look at the hole high up on the far wall - aim your Barnacle Hand at the glowing green Flytrap inside that hole. Go right into the duct and all the way through, then out on to the catwalk. Down the slope, grab everything you can (including ammo for the SAW), and use the switch on the wall. Use the radio if you want - fellow Marines under attack in the waste sector - then up the ladder, break the grate on the fan and in. Just follow the duct until... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 8) The Pit Worms Nest ... you hit the slope and slide on out to land in the water. Various crates in here bobbing about (all of which contain either Batteries or FAKs), a doorway in the wall on a ledge, and a window way up high where a G-Man is watching you. Get up on the ledge, kill the Bullchicken in the next room, and in. The crate in here contains a First Aid Kit. Use the lever on the wall to open the door to "Waste Station 01 Toxic Disposal Basin". Across the bridge - watch out for the dripping waste - and up the ladder. Grab all the weapons and ammo you can, and in the next room take a look through the window to see the Pit Worm... a Boss critter. Just as with Tentacle back in the "Half-Life" level "Blast Pit", there's only a certain way to kill this critter... so don't even waste any ammo on it. Head out the door and you'll notice that the Bridge Control panel says "Obstruction"... no kidding. Off to your right you'll see a panel labeled "Steam Vent", but you don't want to touch that yet. Crouch to your right and go down the ladder, and race to your right, through that doorway. You're going to take damage from the Worm no matter what, so save often. Unlike the Tentacles of "Half-Life", the Pit Worm can't be distracted with Grenades, so your best bet when trying to get past it is to just watch and then run when it's attention is elsewhere. Kill the Pit Drones in this room, and drop down the broken stairs. Don't smash these crates, as you'll need them to get back up the stairs later. If you *really* need a FAK (large crate) or Battery (small crate), then smash them - you can get back up to that bridge control without using these stairs; it's just a longer, more round-about trip. Smash the grate under the stairs and in; out the other end. Take a look at the "Flush Toxic Waste" panel (guess what you'll need to do to get rid of the Worm), and you'll see a central button, flanked by lights (currently out) labeled "Gearbox" and "Valve"... the creators of "Opposing Force" and "Half-Life". Funny, huh? You'll need to get those lights lit before you can flush the world's biggest tapeworm down the toxic toilet. At either end of this room you'll see doors leading to the "Valve" and "Gearbox" areas. Use the lever on the wall to open the door which leads back to that broken staircase ("Basin A-03 Access"), then go through the door labeled "Waste Station 02 Primary Pump Gearbox", which should tell you what you'll be doing. Down the ramp, crouch, and wait until the Worm's attention is elsewhere, then run like hell for that next door. In, use the lever, and through the next door. Kill the Pit Drone, down the ladder, grab any ammo, and through the door. Kill the Pit Drone, then through the opening and into a room that looks much like the one you splashed down in at the beginning of this level. There's a First Aid Kit in that crate down to your right, and the big green crate next to it is open on the other side, revealing Guass ammo. Make your way across this compactor and through that next doorway, keeping an eye out for Barnacles. Jump over the puddle of waste (avoid the drips as well), and on to that girdered lift. At the top, kill the Pit Drones and then hit the button by the window to activate the garbage compacter (Luke & Leia not included). {An Oddity: as soon as you hit that button, get out of the room - you don't have to go back down the lift yet, just out to the corner of the grating. Otherwise you'll take a lot of damage; apparently just enough of the compacter extends upwards into the floor of this room so you'll take crush damage from it. Bloody weird.} Head back down that way, grab everything, smash the grate in the middle and drop down. Climb the ladder and smash the glass - note the measurements on it, which don't mean anything, but will show you that you're in deep crap - and around the corner. Kill the Bullchicken, around the corner and hit the switch. Look at the pretty Gearbox... Swim out, back to the trash compactor and ride the tide up. Get out on the ledge and through the door (make sure it's the one with the broken pipe)... through and up the ladder, and head all the way back to that "Flush Toxic Waste" switch. You'll notice that the Gearbox light is lit. Through the other door - "Waste Station 03 Main Pressure Valve" - and kill the Pit Drone, collect the ammo, and up the ladder. At the top is more ammo for the SAW, and a pair of Pit Drones. Around the corner and hit the lever for the "Steam Vent", and duck back inside the doorway - but not for long. Back out on to that catwalk, and use your Barnacle Hand to get across to the wheel you see (far right). Use the wheel (Main Pressure Valve), holding it down until it stops. Down the ladder, and race along the catwalk to the doorway at the far end... you've been here before. Now both lights are lit on the "Flush Toxic Waste" board, so hit the switch and watch the Worm fry (stay back from the windows). Once it's finally gone, go back out the way you just came, use the crates to get up the broken staircase, out and up the ladder, and hit the switch on the Bridge Control panel. Or, you can head back to the steam vent control (door 03), and at the top jump over the rail and down to the next catwalk, then up the ladder and hit the switch. Down the ladder, across the bridge, use the lever to open the door. Down the hall... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 9) Foxtrot Uniform For anyone interested, "foxtrot uniform" is military phonetics for the letters 'f' and 'u'... guess what it stands for (it doesn't mean "fouled" up). Usually used in the phrases 'SNAFU' (Situation Normal - All F***** Up) and 'FUBAR' (F***** Up Beyond All Recognition). In the door and immediately shoot the Bullchicken down at the other end, then take care of the Barnacles on the right. If you fall in the water here, no worries - it's not hazardous. There's a ladder right next to you on this ledge. Head down to that end of the catwalk (another Barnacle down there), and in the door on the right... Bullchicken to the right. Smash the crates for First Aid Kits and a Battery, then use the Barnacle Hand to get up on that ledge. Continue that until you're all the way up, then jump over to the catwalk. The doors at either end are locked, so up the ladder... ah, fresh air! Unfortunately, that truck you see pulling in is full of Black Ops troops that want you dead, so get into the firefight. Watch out when you get near the truck because there's a cannon to your left - you can hide from it by using the truck as cover. The open red shipping trailer directly ahead of you as you exit the ladder has a SAW and Satchel Charges; over by that cannon are some toys, and the crates at the end (that big double door does not open, of course) contain First Aid Kits. Get into the slanted red shipping container and work your way up... when you get to the opening, take out the two Black Ops on the ground, and use the RPG to take out the one in the tower across the way. The crates in the shipping container have MP5 Grenades. Drop down to the ground - one of the stacked crates to the left contains a RPG Rocket, but that's it - and continue on to the tunnel under the tower... head on in to greet more of your squad. Grab everything you can off the shelves, grab your two buddies and head out the door. Immediately to the right aim up and take out the guy in the tower, then turn left and blow those two explosive crates - but whatever you do, do NOT blow up the explosives crates around the corner to your left, because then the world will go black. In fact, other than those two crates, don't blow up anything... don't blow up crates, don't blow up Tripmines, don't use Grenades. You can use Rockets on the suckers up in the towers, but that's it. Okay... around to the right is a dead end, but you'll need to go that way to take out any Black Ops troops (after killing the one up in the tower, of course). Once that's clear, head back to the doorway, and head around the containers on the other side - don't bother going around the corner to the left from the doorway, because that is a dead end as well, protected by Tripmines. From the doorway, turn left, then go around the containers on the right... you'll get up to an intersection of sorts, with a blue container on your right, red ones in front of you, and an alley with Tripmines to your left. That area beyond the alley is where you need to get to, but you need to go round-robin to get to it. From here, go right... take out the sniper behind the camouflage netting up above, and keep going. In the doorway, up the ladder, and pick up the ammo for the M-40A1 Sniper Rifle (possibly the rifle itself, if it didn't drop to the ground). When you do get the Sniper Rifle, check it out... it's absolutely worthless in a full scale battle like you're waging right now, but it's very neat for single targets at a distance. It has a five shot clip, and secondary mode is a sniper scope... primary to fire when scoped. Another way is to have your fellow Marines give you covering fire (have them follow you) and run up into the tower - shoot the sniper in the back and take his Rifle. Back down the ladder and back to the 'intersection'... go around the other side of these containers and forwards, and to the right... crouch under those two Tripmines, and if you didn't get the Sniper Rifle up above, it'll be down here. Turn around and face straight out... duck under the Trips again, and hug the right wall - weave around the barrels and out to the left. Ahead on the left is an alley (the one protected by Tripmines), and that building right there with the boarded-up window is a good spot to get to, after you've done some killing. The two stacks of explosive crates in this area can be blown up if you wish. Pick up an ammo and toys in here (in the back room you'll see a grate in the floor that you can't break), then go back outside - facing out of this doorway, go left, then left again (you'll be along the wall with the boarded-up window)... ahead you'll see a couple of sandbag emplacements. Around to your right to the second set of sandbags, and up ahead you'll see an open double door - head in there. Work your way around the red containers on the left side and continue straight ahead... up to the next wall, and to your left a battle will be going on, Black Ops vs. Aliens (gee... who to bet on?). Once the fighting has stopped, get in there and take out any survivors. Collect any ammo and weapons (First Aid Kits in the back of the truck), and go up the ramp on the left and around... down the ladder. This area down here is what is known as the Spider Maze... no surprise; crazy Marine Recon and Special Forces have been going into spider holes for years, chasing Charlie. I'll try to list exact directions, but you'll probably find yourself turned around at points... because down here, There Be Voltigores. Big ones. Very big. They take a *lot* of killing, and they spit electricity. If you can avoid them, fine... but you're going to run into at least five of them. Through the halls... as soon as you turn the first corner, you'll hear loud explosions behind you (that makes me jump every time) - no going back, I guess. Don't worry about the hanging plant life... that's just decoration and won't affect you at all. Don't over-use your flashlight down here if you can help it. Okay... at that first junction, go left - a couple of Voltigores down this way, unfortunately. Keep going straight... even with your goggles off you should see a pipe ahead of you (Voltigore to the left). Crouch under the pipe and head right... you'll see another Voltigore ahead; shoot it from behind with the Portal Gun and pull back under the pipe - it can't go far under the pipe (you hope), and it won't zap you with electricity. Once it's dead, head out to the junction where you saw it and get into the water. To the right and shoot the Bullchicken at the end, then climb that ladder you see down here. You'll have to work fast from here... this is the Land of the Never-Ending Pit Drones. Up the ladder and run straight ahead as fast as you can... use that lever to shut the door, but you'll still have to deal with all of the Pit Drones still out here. Then cross the bridge to the other side, left, and run down to hit that lever as well. Kill any remaining Pit Drones and take a breather. It is literally impossible to kill every single Pit Drone because they keep respawning - close those doors quick! Back to the ladder and across the narrow ledge to the crates... various bits of ammo in them, along with a few First Aid Kits. Once you've done that, go back across the bridge (to the side with the second lever), and on your right is a darkened tunnel... in you go. Around a couple of corners, and here be a couple of Voltigores. At this junction, go straight, hugging the right wall even as it turns. You'll come to a square pillar with water just beyond it... keep following the right wall, and you'll come to what looks like a nest with a broken egg in it - you'll be attacked by a pair of Baby Voltigores, but these things are nothing. Keep going straight past the egg... but this time follow the left wall no matter how it turns. You'll be attacked by another Baby Voltigore, but thankfully there are no more adults to worry about. Keep going to the pipe, and then right - you should be hearing Marine voices now. In the next room (another nest, this one with a pair of Flytraps), turn left and go up the ladder. Do as the man suggests and back down while he cuts it, then go on up. Whew! No time to relax yet... another big firefight coming up. Grab everything you can, then grab these guys - you'll need the firepower. Head out in to the busted room, and straight ahead of you (out the busted window) you'll see what looks like a pair of silver tanks laying on the ground just beyond a red container - shoot those tanks; blowing them up blows open a container beyond them which contains a few items. Out the window you'll see a ShockTrooper running to the left... plenty more where he came from. There's also a large Voltigore. Go that direction yourself, and into several ShockTroopers and another Voltigore... keep going that way until you get to a sandbag emplacement on your left - turn right here, straight and then right to go through the open blue container. Around to the right is another sandbag emplacement, this one with a Satchel Charge and a First Aid Kit. Go the only way you can, around the broken building... weave your way around the flaming debris, take out a couple more ShockTroopers, and now you've got two choices of path: to the left of the broken red container will get you a few more enemies (including a big Voltigore), after which you'll turn right and under a slanted container, while to the right of the broken red container is a cratered area... through that and head right (still plenty of nasty things to blow up, no matter which way you go). Over the refuse and in the broken red "Secure Access" door... head right towards the sounds of the voices, making a u-turn to your left around the pile of stone. Into this next area, and use the HEV Charger and FAS on the wall. Whoops... Gargantua. These things take a lot of killing, so your best bet is to get past it somehow. Don't bother with the G-Man in the tower to your left. One way to avoid Gargantua - you can just run along the wall to its right - is to dive into the lake on the left... swim to the other end of the dam, and up above you'll see a pair of 'Flytraps' - just use your Barnacle Hand on the right side one (not the one facing out over the water) and go on up. You'll be greeted by a pair of ShockTroopers more likely than not. Either way, get past Gargantua and on the far side of the dam, use the plunger to blow the whole thing. Make sure your buddies are following you and go up the slope to kill a pair of ShockTroopers. Boom! The dam blows, and with it, Gargantua. Now that you've raced across and blown the dam, this area should look familiar... well, somewhat. Gordon Freeman came here from the other direction (from where the plunger was) and went swimming. You've got to go swimming too, but in a different way... go back to where the dam was blown (you can jump across and use the FAS again if you need to), and drop into the pipe. Keep moving forwards and you'll fall through a grate; start moving with the stream... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 10) The Package Just go with the flow, and eventually you'll get swept through a broken grate (you might have to maneuver a bit to aim that way), which will be the second opening on your left. Splashdown, and swim ahead, go up the slope, and greet some old buddies from your unit. Before you exit the water, you can collect a Shotgun and shells for it... get on that floating barrel, and up on the rocks beyond it - follow those around until you're above where you came out. They'll take off running automatically when you get near them, so just follow along and into the battle. If you want - for a pleasant little surprise - plant several Tripmines across the trail just before that corner up ahead... when the Black Ops try to come down this way... boom! Let them lead and take the initial damage... down the canyon, and to the next river - there's a Black Ops trooper in the crashed chopper, and one across the river in that small emplacement... just shoot him to death or use the Sniper Rifle; there are also some explosive barrels just behind that gun if you want to do that instead. At that emplacement - small cannon - there are a couple of First Aid Kits. Get to the chopper, and a couple more Black Ops will be coming down the river, which is where you need to go. At the same time, a trio of Black Ops will pop out in the area where you met these Marines, so let them take care of the Bad Guys. Grab any surviving Marines and head down the river past the chopper. Down the river, around the bend, and out into the next canyon... you'll come to a group of buildings ("Ordnance Storage Facility"), but before you creep out any further use the scope on the Sniper Rifle to check out the area. Head right and run to the far side of the wrecked building, then creep around that far wall - sneak up on the corner, and you should be able to take out the Black Ops trooper up at the mortar, saving yourself a lot of trouble. Drop into that wrecked building... grab any ammo, then take out the 3 ShockTroopers that will appear on both sides. There's an RPG and Rockets in those crates. Over on the left side (from where you entered this area) is a sloped door in the ground - that's the bunker door. You'll see a fenced area with a gate, a large door between two slopes, and at the corner of that building a small door - go in that door. First Aid Kit and Battery in the crates, and around the corner is a Black Ops trooper... toss a Grenade down there before playing with the crates. Once he's dead, go down and use the radio - your buddies are pinned down. Back outside - take out the two Black Ops troopers - and go into the now-open bunker door. One corpse, one busted radio, one SAW and one box of ammo for the SAW... doesn't look like much. Use the boxes to get up on the pipes and drop down between them. Follow these along to the hole in the wall... as you exit, a Black Ops trooper will open fire from up on your left, on the stair landing. That security door is locked (nothing through it anyway), so head up the stairs... more Black Ops troops along the way. At the top, head right to smash a bunch of crates (lots of ammo and 1 First Aid Kit), then the other way and up more stairs. At the top, open the door to find the mortar setup... look down to the ground and you'll see a pair of Alien Slaves that will teleport up to just behind you. This should be obvious... use the mortar to blow away that fence to your left. A pair of ShockTroopers will come out the door, and the one of those big Voltigores... since you've got the mortar here, why not? Raise the mortar to get more distance. Once they're dead, you can have a bit of fun by using the mortar to blow up the water tower, the APC, and that gray stone building. All the way back down the stairs (or just go down along the wall to your left) and to the red door. Actually, the red door won't open, but that small door to the left will, so in and do some killing - around the corner will be a broken section of wall, and beyond that you'll see some 'friends'. A big Voltigore will come rushing up to that gap, but it can't get through and it won't try to zap you... so blow it away at your leisure. After that are a pair of ShockTroopers. When you get out in this open area you'll hear a chopper... but it's definitely not friendly. Run ahead to the next wall (or into the area on the right with the red door) and let it do the killing in the area ahead, then shoot it with the Portal Gun or your RPG - just remember that with the Portal Gun, you need to lead the chopper a bit. Just inside the next door is a ShockTrooper, and once you get into that room there are a couple of First Aid Kits to the left. Through the next door and back outside, and jump your way up the broken stairs to the roof. Down (there may be a large Voltigore if the chopper didn't get it), grab the Batteries and ammo out of the crashed truck, then head left (right is blocked by a fence), and get any toys out of the dumpster that's on its side. Up the ladder, jump up on the stove pipe then up on the crate (AC unit?), and from there to the roof. See that sparking wire? Betcha you're going to have to shut off the power and cross that wire. Head straight across and down that next ladder inside the fence, and duck under the door. In the little door, grab the ammo, and guess what... a switch on the wall. Use that to turn it off, and head back up to the roof and that wire. Cross over, grab the First Aid Kit, and to the fan housing on the roof; get up on that and drop on in. Look down through the grates to spot the Pit Drone (you can't kill it through the grates, unfortunately), drop down and punch its parking ticket. There's another past the booth (which contains SAW ammo and First Aid Kits), and there's a ShockTrooper down the ramp that can be taken out with Grenades before it even spots you. Head down that ramp. Around the curve and down and you'll hear fighting from below... a pair of ShockTroopers will appear down there, but they don't even notice you - make them pay for that by leaving them alone and waiting for one side or the other to win. At least 2 ShockTroopers (in addition to these two below you), a big Voltigore, and a pair of Black Ops troops. Move further into the garage and a pair of Black Ops troops will rappel down from the fan housing... take 'em out quick, or even better, toss a Satchel Charge or two under that fan housing before they rappel down, then blow 'em when they drop. Explore the garage for ammo and toys, smash the crates, and when you're finished, climb that SUV and into the AC unit where you can see a Barney (Otis) cowering. Grab the Battery and listen to Barney... the Black Ops are planning to blow up the base (probably with that nuke you saw way back at the beginning). Through the vent and out the other side; scan around to spot the two Black Ops troopers over by that office. Drop down and kill, and in the two crates by the stack of tires are Satchel Charges... nothing in the other crates. Go up to the office, and Barney tells you he won't open up until the bomb is shut off. Go left and through the open gate... slip round the corner and use the Sniper Rifle to take out the two Black Ops troopers at the truck; for best results, kill the guy standing at the back of the truck first, then the one on the truck. Climb in the back of the truck and use the green circular button to shut off the bomb... head back to the office where Barney will now let you in. Work your way through here, collecting items and smashing crates... as you round the corner, if you look through the window you'll see a G-Man checking out the bomb you disabled - damn, I wish you could kill those suckers... but unfortunately, the gate you went through is now closed. Get on the lift and use it. Funny... when Barney says to make sure that "they" come back for us... is he talking about Black Ops or the aliens? ;) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 11) Worlds Collide Crates, crates, crates... and plenty of Black Ops in this area as well. Work your way through until you come to the cargo conveyor... on the other side of that is a cannon; take the trooper out with a Grenade then race over there and man it yourself - use it to take out any more Black Ops that come after you. Note the two small crates on top of the stack directly across from you as you're using the cannon - those crates have a Battery and a FAK in them. How you get up there I don't know... unless you 'cheat' by using Tripmines as stairs. You can't get past the crates on the belt to the area where they're coming *from*, so don't try... instead, head for that opening where they're going *to* and duck around the side of the red container. Jump up the crates and through here (Rifle Grenades and Gauss ammo in crates up here), and drop down the other side (a Black Ops trooper below, but he'll probably be hit by the moving crates). Use the alcoves to zip back and forth down the tracks, then in the next area take out the Black Ops up on the ledge. Some toys in those crates. Use the lift at your right to get up there. Work your way down through this area - the best way is to go straight in, then right, left, right. Put your back against the stack of crates and toss a Grenade over the big crate straight ahead (the one the light is hanging over), then immediately switch to your 357 - cap the Black Ops trooper that runs out to avoid the Grenade, then do it again for the next Black Ops. Use the pallets at the end (SAW ammo on them) to get up on the crates and containers, and head back the way you came. Once at the top and around, there will be openings on either side for the cargo system... below the opening on the right (the way you need to go) is a small crate that contains Grenades - if you drop down to get them you'll have to jump up here again, but that's not a problem. Through the opening on the right. Various ShockTroopers and a couple of Voltigores down there taking on a slew of Black Ops... kill them from up here, then use the swinging crates to get to that red container to the right, to the beam, and kill the rest of the bad guys (more ShockTroopers and Black Ops). Get down to the floor, and there are a couple of FAKs in the small crates on the floor. At the end on the left is a ramp. The crates at the top of the ramp have 357 ammo in them. Go up the ramp and Barney will open the door from the other side... listen to his chatter about the Big Boss Alien, grab everything you can, and head for the lift. When you get to the bottom, a fan will be blowing you backwards... just keep walking forwards and down the stairs. The two crates being blown towards you have 357 ammo and MP5 ammo. At the bottom of the stairs you'll see a hatch in the wall (under the stairs)... you can get to that by lining up the crates (357 ammo and a Satchel Charge) and the barrel - there are a pair of Batteries at the far end of this section. Don't worry when the hatch closes behind you - you can open it again from this side (make sure you jump up to get on the doorsill). Head for the door at the other end of the room, hit the switch and in. Despite the big doorway in here, don't go that way... climb the ladder and then the rope to get up top. Get on either gun and face the big purple portal... once all of the little flying lights have entered that purple mass (so *that's* what Tinkerbell was all about!), the final Boss critter appears (the Geneworm). Once big ugly is in place, use the gun to shoot out the yellow crystal (eye) on its body, then race around to the gun on the other side and shoot out the other yellow crystal. Its belly will open revealing a purple energy sphere... shoot that with any weapon (the various 'alien' weapons, such as the Spore Launcher, seem to work best), and a red Portal will pop out, which teleports a ShockTrooper into your area. Kill that, get back up to the guns... keep repeating this until big ugly is dead. Big ugly will break the bridge between the two guns, so you'll have to use the Barnacle Hand to get up to that one gun. Note that you can actually escape from the Portal that the Geneworm shoots out when it dies by somehow getting into the other room... but if you do that, the level (and game) will never end - and as you can't go back up the elevator, you'll be stuck down here. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 12) Conclusion Again, the G-Man... I wanna kill this f'er one of these days! When it all goes black, open your console (see the cheats below if you haven't already enabled it) and type brightness 9999999999999 (that's 13 '9's, in case you're wondering) Not much to look at, and just like "Half-Life", when the credits finish the game seems to get stuck - so just exit to your Main Menu to end it all. Note: the next time you run the game, brightness will still be at that high level... open your console and type brightness 0 to return it to normal =============================================================================================== CHEATS (OPPOSING FORCE) Enable the cheats with the console... on the command line, add +sv_cheats 1 -game gearbox so it reads: C:\Sierra\Half-Lifehl.exe -console +sv_cheats 1 -game gearbox OR... you can type it so it reads: C:\Sierra\Half-Lifehl.exe -game gearbox -dev -console Either way works just fine. In the game, open the console with the ~ (no Shift needed), type in the cheat, Enter, close the console. You can bind most cheats (and other commands) to a single hotkey - see the "Binding" section for that. Note that sometimes they don't seem to work... a bit odd. They do seem to work after you get a 'Loading' message - that is, enable them, and after the next 'Loading' message you get they should work. The cheats don't seem to be case sensitive. Anyway... why are you cheating? Note that any weapon or ammo available in "Half-Life" is available in here... even the ones that aren't in "Opposing Force" - for example, you can use a cheat to get the Crossbow, which in OpFor will fire explosive bolts. god God mode this cheat does not work as a bind, for whatever reason. It does, however, save... so you only have to set it once in a game give ammo_357 ammo for the 357 Magnum (which also works for the Desert Eagle) give ammo_556 ammo for the M-249 SAW give ammo_762 ammo for the Sniper Rifle give ammo_9mmAR ammo for the MP5 rifle give ammo_9mmclip ammo for the Glock pistol give ammo_ARgrenades grenades for the MP5 rifle give ammo_buckshot ammo for the Shotgun give ammo_crossbow ammo for the Crossbow (which isn't actually in this game) give ammo_eagleclip ammo for the 357 Desert Eagle pistol give ammo_egonclip ammo for the Egon -- note that this will sometimes boot you out to the main menu... use the gaussclip cheat instead as they're both the same type of ammo give ammo_gaussclip ammo for the Portal Gun (and Gauss Rifle and Egon) give ammo_glockclip ammo for the 9mm Barney pistol give ammo_mp5clip ammo for the MP5 rifle give ammo_mp5grenades grenades for the MP5 rifle give ammo_rpgclip ammo for the RPG give ammo_spore ammo for the Spore Launcher... note that this actually places a Flytrap right where you're standing - you'll need to "noclip" to move from that spot, but the Flytrap will remain hanging in midair; you'll be able to use it as usual Do NOT use the "give ammo_9mmbox" cheat... you'll exit the current game, losing everything since your last save. give item_battery gives you a Vest Battery give item_healthkit gives you a First Aid Kit (don't use this if your health is at 100... the game will exit) give item_longjump gives you the Long Jump module give item_suit gives you a PCV (Personal Combat Vest)... if you're already wearing one, it will just drop it on the floor; this does not recharge your Vest Note that you should be ultra-careful when using the Battery cheat: you need to be standing on a solid surface (not water, not grating) or else it will probably crash you out of the game. give weapon_357 gives you the 357 Magnum (which isn't actually in this game); secondary zooms in give weapon_9mmAR gives you the MP5 Assault Rifle give weapon_9mmhandgun gives you the Glock Pistol give weapon_crossbow gives you the Crossbow (which isn't actually in this game) give weapon_crowbar gives you the Crowbar (which isn't actually in the game) give weapon_displacer gives you the Portal Gun give weapon_eagle gives you the 357 Desert Eagle pistol give weapon_egon gives you the Egon (which isn't actually in this game) give weapon_gauss gives you the Gauss Rifle (which isn't actually in this game) give weapon_grapple gives you the Barnacle Hand give weapon_handgrenade gives you 5 Hand Grenades give weapon_hornetgun gives you the Hornetgun (which isn't actually in this game) give weapon_m249 gives you the M-249 SAW give weapon_mp5 gives you the MP5 give weapon_penguin gives you 5 Penguins with a Grenade strapped to their backs (Multiplayer only) give weapon_pipewrench gives you the Wrench give weapon_rpg gives you the Rocket Launcher give weapon_satchel gives you a Satchel Charge give weapon_shockroach gives you the ShockRoach (this doesn't always work properly) give weapon_shotgun gives you the Shotgun give weapon_snark gives you 5 Snarks give weapon_sniperrifle gives you the Sniper Rifle give weapon_sporelauncher gives you the Spore Launcher give weapon_tripmine gives you a Tripmine Somebody obviously saw "Batman Returns"... a very funny weapon you can get (in OpFor Multiplayer only, not the Single Player game) is, as listed above, a Penguin with a Grenade strapped to its back. Just like a Snark, it will run around a bit (about 10 seconds) before it explodes... and just like a Snark, it will blow up *anything*, including you. brightness [0-9] increases the brightness of the game... "brightness 9" is maximum, "brightness 0" is normal chase_active 1 3rd person view (0 to switch back to 1st person) noclip noclip (walk through walls) notarget enemies won't target you r_fullbright 1 eliminate shadows (0 turns them back on) sv_gravity [0-999] set gravity level... 800 is normal, 0 is none, 999 = no jumps sv_gravity 800 The normal jump sv_gravity 0-999 You are now the master sv_gravity 0 You can float and walk in air for amount of time; highest jump sv_gravity 999 You can't jump at all thirdperson 3rd person view; use "firstperson" to switch back (some impulse codes don't seem to work in "Half-Life GotY" or the Platinum Collection) impulse 76 Creates a human grunt. Be careful, this can crash the game. impulse 101 all weapons, ammo, armor. impulse 102 Spawn gibs. impulse 103 While looking at an NPC, displays stats. impulse 104 Lists global entities. impulse 105 Enemies can't hear you (notarget). impulse 106 While looking at an object, displays model/sprite stats. impulse 107 While looking at an object, displays the texture name. impulse 109 Control onscreen monsters. May not work in some versions of the game. impulse 195 Displays AI node information. impulse 202 Creates blood in front of you, like spray paint. impulse 203 Deletes target NPC or monster from the game. Note that there are two "impulse" codes already used by the game... impulse 100 your flashlight (default 'f') impulse 201 spray logo (default 't') -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- OPPOSING FORCE MAP ACCESS in the console, type "map ####" (may have to noclip to move from your start position). For example, to get to the second map of "Crush Depth", you'd type in the console: map of3a5 and you're off and running. 0f0a0 Introduction of1a1, of1a2, of1a3, of1a4, of1a4b Welcome to Black Mesa of1a5, of1a5b, of1a6 We Are Pulling Out of2a1, of2a1b, of2a2, of2a3 Missing in Action of2a4, of2a5, of2a6 Friendly Fire of3a1, of3a1b, of3a2 We Are Not Alone of3a4, of3a5, of3a6 Crush Depth of4a1, of4a2, of4a3 Vicarious Reality of4a4, of4a5 The Pit Worms Nest of5a1, of5a2, of5a3, of5a4 Foxtrot Uniform of6a1, of6a2, of6a3, of6a4 The Package of6a4b, of6a5 Worlds Collide of7a0 Conclusion =============================================================================================== OPPOSING FORCE MULTIPLAYER They must have learned their lesson with the original "Half-Life", because OpFor has its own multiplayer section. All of your controls and binds will be the same as OpFor - no need to change anything - but for some odd reason your mouse scroll wheel won't always work. Just as with "Team Fortress", your cheats may or may not work in OpFor Multiplayer. "god" does not work, but "give item_healthkit" and "give item_battery" do, which are essentially the same thing. =============================================================================================== -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =============================================================================================== INFORMATION: COUNTER-STRIKE This is and it isn't part of the Half-Life series... it is, but it has nothing to do with Black Mesa or any of the aliens. Instead, you get to choose whether you want to be a Terrorist or a Counter-Terrorist - you can use the same maps either way, but the goals will be different. For example, there's one map that takes place on an oil rig... if you're Counter- Terrorist, you have to escort a Federal witness to the waiting chopper. If you're a Terrorist, you have to kill that witness before he gets to the chopper. Run it just like you would "Team Fortress"... and the same if you want to look around without going online - click on "Play CS", "Lan Games", "Create Game", and choose from the list. You won't be able to do anything other than roam around, of course... without other players online there's nothing to do. In any of the "cs" maps, if you play as a Counter-Terrorist then you can actually go around and rescue the hostages (gaining money for each one rescued) even if you're not online. In any of the "de" maps you can place the bombs (as a Terrorist) or defuse them (as a Counter-Terrorist). Note that in "Counter-Strike", as opposed to any of the earlier games, you can only carry one weapon of each type at a time... you can only carry one Pistol, one Rifle/Shotgun, etc. =============================================================================================== CHEATS (COUNTER-STRIKE) First you need to enable the console... on the command line, add: -console so the full thing now reads: C:\SIERRA\Counter-Strike\cstrike.exe -console In the game you'll need to enable the cheats before you can use them... open the console (with the ~) and type (without the quotes): "sv_cheats 1" To use any cheat, just open the console and type it in. Some cheats can be bound, but note that most keys are already used by the game. Also note that some cheats will not work, depending on what version of the game you have. god Makes you invincible notarget Bad Guys won't target you noclip walk through walls mp_startmoney change your starting money in-game! -- use as "mp_startmoney 16000" (or whatever number you want) changelevel [levelname] Level select; ie "changelevel de_dust" spaceweapon_awp gives Arctic Sniper Rifle weapon_ak47 gives AK-47 weapon_aug gives Steyr Aug weapon_awp gives Arctic weapon_deagle gives Desert Eagle weapon_defuser gives Bomb Defuser weapon_elite gives Dual Berretas weapon_flashbang gives Flashbang weapon_g3sg1 gives H&K Sniper Rifle weapon_glock18 gives Glock 18 pistol weapon_hegrenade gives HE Grenade weapon_kevlar gives Kevlar Vest weapon_m249 gives Para weapon_m3 gives M3 Super Shotgun weapon_m4a1 gives Colt M4a1 Carbine weapon_mac 10 gives MAC-10 weapon_mp5navy gives MP5 weapon_nightvision gives Nightvision goggles weapon_p288 gives SIG p288 weapon_p90 gives Fn P90 weapon_scout gives Scout weapon_sg552 gives Commando weapon_sig550 gives SIG 550 weapon_smokegrenade gives Smoke grenade weapon_ump45 gives Ump.45 weapon_usp gives Usp.45 weapon_xm1014 gives Benelli xm1014 sv_clipmode 1 turn on noclip mode (walk through walls)... sv_clipmode 0 to turn it off impulse101 $16,000 sv_aim Auto-aim with sniper rifle -reload Auto-reload disabled +reload Auto-reload enabled adjust crosshair Change crosshair color cvarlist or cmdlist List cheat commands, press [Page Up] or [Page Down] to scroll gl_zmax 0 See and fire through walls and objects lambert See things brightly without flashlight mp_c4timer sets time on C4 charge mp_buytime sets time to buy items cl_observercrosshair <0 or 1> Toggle crosshairs in observer mode, default is 1 mp_flashlight <0 or 1> Toggle flashlight use, default is 1/1 mp_footsteps <0 or 1> Toggle footsteps, default is 1/1 mp_friendlyfire <0 or 1> Toggle friendly fire dm <0 or 1> Toggle map briefings after new levels load, default is 1 ghosts <0 or 1> Toggle to see ghosts in observer mode, default is 0 -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- COUNTER-STRIKE MAP ACCESS Make sure the console and your cheats are enabled (see above), then open the console and type in (without the quotes) "changelevel levelname", where "levelname" is the name of the map. For example, to change to the Oilrig map, open the console and type in: changelevel as_oilrig The map names: as_oilrig cs_747 cs_assault cs_backalley cs_italy cs_militia cs_office cs_siege de_aztec de_cbble de_dust de_prodigy de_train tr_1 tr_1a tr_2 tr_3 "as" is an assassination mission - Counter-Terrorists have to protect the witness, while Terrorists have to kill the witness. "cs" are counter-strike missions... rescue the hostages, kill the terrorists. "de" are bombing missions... Counter-Terrorists must defuse the bomb, while Terrorists must place the bomb. "tr" are training missions. =============================================================================================== -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =============================================================================================== "BLUE SHIFT" INTRO You've been Gordon Freeman, you've been Cpl. Adrian Sheperd... now for your toughest persona: Barney Calhoun, Security Guard. No kidding. You actually get to play a Barney security guard on that fatal day at Black Mesa when the worlds collided. This game is shorter than the previous two, and it actually has an ending. Other than that, it's the same old same old. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - WEAPONS (BLUE SHIFT) Weapons are arranged in categories, and can be accessed either through the scroll wheel on your mouse, or through the 1-5 keys at the top of your keyboard. Some categories will have more than one selection in them... hit the appropriate number and then scroll to the weapon you want, and hit Fire to acquire it. Your weapons inventory will not appear on the screen until you've gotten your Vest. 1 (Low Tech) Crowbar - handy for breaking into things, or breaking heads. 2 (Handguns) - some pistols can be fired underwater, which is quite handy. 9mm Glock Pistol - standard Barney gun; hold down secondary for rapid fire 357 Magnum - powerful, but slow to reload. 3 (Assault Weapons) MP5 Assault Rifle - 9mm action with a 50 shot clip... good all around weapon. Secondary fire launches grenades which explode on contact. Shotgun - pump action nastiness; secondary is a double blast. 4 (Distance Weapons) Rocket Launcher - packs quite a punch, but it's slow to reload. Secondary fire turns the laser sight on or off. 5 (Throwable & Placable) Hand Grenades - primary fire to throw... the longer you hold it, the shorter the fuse - don't let it explode in your hand. Aim higher to throw farther. Satchel Charge - primary fire to toss it, fire again to blow it up. Once the first charge is placed, use your secondary fire to toss as many others as you want, and primary fire to blow them all at once. One thing that is *not* a weapon, but does come in handy, is an "Ammo-All Container". This is a sealed green tube that looks like an RPG tube, but instead it will replace ammo of any type that you have missing - not all of it, of course, but some. These can only be found in Xen, and even if all of your weapons are fully loaded these are good to grab. =============================================================================================== GOOD GUYS (BLUE SHIFT) There are actually a few Good Guys in the game... not many, but a few. Always stop and listen to any of the Good Guys if you can; hit 'use' when you're facing them. Occasionally Good Guys will be of use to you, such as opening doors and acting as an extra weapon. Barney or Otis - occasionally a security guard can be of some help, such as opening locked doors and acting as cannon fodder... er, additional firepower. Scientists - occasionally they'll provide you with information or healing, or even opening doors. =============================================================================================== BAD GUYS (BLUE SHIFT) Just about everyone (and everything) in the game is a Bad Guy... and it's not just the aliens that are Bad. Military: Marine Special Forces - while I hate killing these guys, sometimes you have no choice... and if you don't kill them, they'll kill you. G-Man - these mysterious bureaucratic buttheads will show up at various places in the game... you won't be able to kill any of them or affect them in any way, darn it. aka "Suits" Miscellaneous: Tripod Guns - military automated guns mounted on what appear to be camera tripods; they'll fire at you quite rapidly. Aliens: Headcrabs - They'll only jump at you when they're facing you, so if you can get them while they're turning or with their backs to you... AKA "facehuggers". Houndeyes - little 'puppy' critters with a sonic squeal. Zombies - humans that have been taken over by a Headcrab. Also known as "mawmen" because of their toothy chest; they come in two different sizes. Alien Slaves - ghoulish beastie that spits electricity. Bullchicken - funky looking tentacle-faced beasts that spit a strange slime. AKA "squidspitters". Alien Grunts - big, bulky, ugly, with a third arm growing out of the center of their chest... it takes several shots (or a good Grenade) to kill one. They're usually armed with a Hornetgun. Alien Controllers - ugly roundish flying beasts that shoot out green beams. Fairly easily killed, but... =============================================================================================== BLUE SHIFT HAZARD COURSE Available from the Main Menu, this allows you to get used to your character's moves and weapons. All binds and cheats are available to you. =============================================================================================== WALKTHROUGH: BLUE SHIFT Unlike the other games in this collection, you need to have the CD in to play "Blue Shift". Back at Black Mesa... but this time, you're not the scientist Gordon Freeman. Instead, you get to play Barney Calhoun, a security guard. Let's face it - you're not getting paid enough for what you're about to go through... 0) Introduction Just as with "Half-Life" and "Opposing Force", the introduction is actually a level... unfortunately, you can't skip it except by cheating, so just sit it out. I'm not going to sit here and tell you to hit switches to use lifts or open doors... you've played these games enough to know that stuff already. You should also smash any crates you come to for the few items they may contain (I will tell you when not to, as you may need some for climbing), and always try to talk to any humans you run across, unless they're actively trying to kill you. For a bit of twisted fun: once you've gotten the first 'Loading' message, use the cheats to give yourself any weapon you want - you can kill the two guards at the first security checkpoint while you're on the tram. These are the only two you can kill during the game. Just remember - you're one of the good guys now. If you kill anyone you're not supposed to (such as security guards or scientists), you will be "terminated" for "improper handling of a firearm within the facility"... you'll end up going back to the last in-game checkpoint. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 1) Insecurity While you're waiting for your buddy to open the door, turn around and take a look at the passing tram... that's Gordon Freeman on his way to the last day of work he'll ever have. (Yes, you can kill him if you want - an RPG works nicely) Once your buddy opens the door, wait for him to open the next and then through. Follow the green line to Area 3 Security... stop at the desk, then follow the red line to Personnel Facilities. Go to the second set of lockers and get your Vest and Helmet... open your locker door for some odd photos and cute books. One thing that bothers me about this locker room... the flag is backwards. When the American flag is hung straight down like that, the field (the stars) is supposed to be in the upper left hand corner, not the right. You can turn on the water in the sinks, but the toilet doesn't flush. Head back out to the desk. EASTER EGG: in the locker room, turn on your 'noclip' cheat and go into the "Out of Order" toilet stall - inside, turn around to see a picture of one of the developers (or a comic book character) on the inside of the door. This same picture can be found at various other places throughout the game. Cheating silliness: use the cheat to give yourself a weapon - you can blow up the rolls of toilet paper on the shelves in the bathroom. Okay, you need to head for Sector G... but first, arm yourself (and if you want, stop and listen to the complaining scientist). Follow the blue line to the Armory, down the lift and keep going around. Get your pistol from the desk, and head to the range - but not to fire any. Grab all the ammo you can, and check out fat boy (that's Otis) admiring his doughnut physique. If you really feel the urge to waste ammo, you can - go into any booth and fire away, hitting the buttons under the shelf to move the target forwards or backwards. Check out Video Surveillance if you want... just go up to a screen and hit 'use'; it will exit by itself after a few seconds. The screen on the far left will show you Gordon Freeman heading to work. Head back up to the lobby and the desk, out the door and up the stairs... straight ahead and follow the red line for the H-E Particles Lab. Around and up the stairs, then stop to watch the shenanigans at the console. Up the stairs, around, and out the door... stop by the guy on the bench to hear about the tram. At the end of this platform is a ladder down. Ignore the next ladder down and head through the door at the end. At the bottom of the stairs, go into the cage and use the switch straight behind the door, then move that barrel and go through the door at the end of the room. Hit the switch behind the door to turn on the lights, and wend your way through the crates and barrels - there's nothing in any of them, and as the only way you have of breaking them right now is your pistol... don't waste the ammo. Out the other end and up the ladder, around the catwalk and out the next door. Before you can hit the switch for the bridge, you'll have to wait for the tram to go by... and yes, I usually pop off a few shots at the G-Man inside the tram, even though you can't do anything to him (damn!). Across the bridge, through the door and up the stairs. In the snack lounge at the top, note the rail map on the wall. Just follow the red line to the lift... and yeah, I'd like to smack the loudmouth too. Use the panel to start the lift. You can't do anything in here, so just watch all the fireworks as the lift crashes... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 2) Duty Calls Once you finally come to, exit what's left of the lift and grab the Crowbar. There's a FAS (First Aid Station) on the other side of the boxes that you can get to by jumping on them or by smashing them with the Crowbar, but you'd better smash the two Houndeyes first (they're cutesy puppy-like critters with a grid for a face... they have a sonic scream that can be devastating, and they tend to run in packs). Anyway... a couple of the boxes in this area have ammo for your pistol, and there's some on one of the shelves. Unlike "Half-Life" and "Opposing Forces", the smashable crates in "Blue Shift" don't contain much at all. The door at the bottom of the stairs won't open, so head into the back room and shoot the switch on the wall (the one that says "Disconnect power before attempting maintenance"); now that door will open. There's a clip on the shelves just outside this room. Down the stairs, through the door, and continue on... in the next room, kill the four Headcrabs (little jumping creatures that will attack your face... if they get on you, you'll eventually become a Zombie. They're known as "facehuggers", not surprisingly, and they won't jump unless they're facing right at you - so kill them while their back it turned or while they're turning) roaming the area, and whatever you do, don't step in that toxic crap. Across the table and in that other door (Headcrab, ammo on the shelves) and up the ladder. To the right and listen to the scared scientist. Head left (from facing the scientist), and shoot the barrels down in the cage to blow them up. Head back down and get in there; weave through this area to the lift. (You can kill that scientist once he's finished speaking) Hit the switch on the wall and get on the lift - as you're moving along, shoot the Houndeyes on the other ledge. Off to the ledge - Alien Slaves (ghoulish one-eyed critters that shoot electrical bolts... aka "power slaves") will spawn in - and the big doors at either end are locked. In the door next to the "North Tunnel" entrance, and hit the switch for the "South Tunnel" door... back out and head through that door. Make your way through the crates - more Houndeyes - to the door that's blocked open (First Aid Kit in one of these small crates, but that's it). In here I bet you can already see what to do... you'll have to use those cranes to get yourself up to that ladder. You can jump to it from on top of those stacked crates, but you need to get up there first - use the levers on the panel to maneuver the two carriers; move the left one so its bottom is covering the words "Black Mesa" on the crates, and move the right one so its bottom appears even with the line on the wall under the ladder. Move the small crate over and get on the left carrier, to the stacked crates, to the right carrier, to the ladder and up (I always feel like a trained monkey when doing this). Into the lighted hall to the left, kill the four Alien Slaves that spawn in, and down the ladder at the end on the right. In through that square opening, down the ramp - whatever you do, don't drop into the water at any point - and right, through that door. To the right, then jump across and up the ladder in front of you; use the wheel (hold down your use key until it stops). At the other end of this catwalk is a busted pipe pouring out steam, and you could just go through it... you'd take damage, of course. Instead, go down the ladder just in front of the steam, and at the bottom turn the wheel there to shut the steam off. Before you go back up, head down to the end of this catwalk and grab the Shotgun by the corpse. Look straight up, and you'll see a ladder that passes through a grate - if you could get up there (which you can't), you'd find yourself at the beginning of the "Captive Freight" level. Back up the ladder, through where the steam was, and hit the switch on the panel by the window. Note the HEV Charger on the wall... but unlike previous games, that will not work for you - the only way for you to increase your armor is to grab Vests and Helmets from the corpses of dead colleagues. A lift will come down the slope across the way... kill the three Alien Slaves on it. Back down that ladder to the second valve, jump over the rail into the water (you won't take any damage), and climb the ladder across the way... if you want, you can go around and down the ladder you first jumped over to instead. There's absolutely nothing down in the water, so don't go diving. Head back out the door and make your way down to the other end of this catwalk... turn left, and get up that ladder. Head across to the rusty beam and proceed down it. Through the opening and blow away the Barnacles (the red things with the long gray tongues) hanging from the ceiling (the Shotgun works quite nicely for this). No way to get across, so jump in and head right, and through the broken grate. Swim left, use the wheel, and get back out into the rising water... get on top of one of the pipes to get on the ledge. Grab the Shotgun and ammo if you need it. One of the crates at the end contains pistol ammo, but other than that, nothing. Head through the door and kill the two Alien Slaves that spawn in. Out on the catwalk, and oh, funny... a Alien Slave spawns in and goes right through the catwalk. Watch out for the one spawning in behind you. On the other section of catwalk are a pair of First Aid Kits - the only way to get to them is to let yourself be sucked up by the Barnacle hanging from the ceiling, and then drop off on the broken section; drop down to the pipe to continue. Drop down on the pipe and make your way across... no way to jump up to the catwalk, so go down on to the ledge... around the corner and you'll see a pair of Zombies (humans that have been taken over by a Headcrab) playing tug of war with a captive at the end. Not much you can really do about that... he's dead no matter what. But if you race down to the end you may be able to kill the Zombies. If not, well... you'll see them soon. Continue around, grab the Vest and ammo, kill any Zombies, across the catwalks and into the next area. Kill the Bullchicken (a tentacle-faced critter that spits green slime) down in the water, and climb down the ladder yourself. Head right, and three Alien Slaves will spawn in. Kill them and continue on, and in the opening on the left at the end there will be a Bullchicken. Kill it, in the opening, right, shoot the Bullchicken in the ass, left (another opening further ahead on the left with another Bullchicken) and use the switch at the end. Turn around to nail the Alien Slave spawning in, then head down that way to the lift. Grab anything you need, and use the lift. At the top smash the crates for a First Aid Kit, then head down the catwalk at the other end of the room. This lift should seem familiar... it's the one you activated earlier. Kill any remaining Alien Slaves, then push the explosives crate over the edge into the water. Jump over to the top of that lift rail next to the edge and hit the switch... when the lift gets up here, ride it back down. Alternatively, you could just jump into the water. Go with the flow of the water, staying to the left... at the end climb the ladder. You'll hear voices from above talking about Shepard, who was the star of "Opposing Forces". Just interesting, I guess. You can kill them if you want, but unless you cheat there's no way to get up there, and all you'd get would be the Shotguns they're carrying anyway, so why bother? Head into the hallway and keep moving on... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 3) Captive Freight Note that this ladder is directly above the area where you found your first Shotgun. Climb the ladder, but don't get all the way out... just poke your head up and look around. To your right is a sandbag emplacement with a pair of Tripod Guns, while at your back is a small alcove with a big door - that's the way you want to go. However, if you want to pick up all sorts of ammo (Grenades, Rifle Grenades, Satchel Charges) and a First Aid Kit, then you're going to have to play with that truck. As soon as you get close to the sandbags a pair of Tripod Guns will open up... a pair of Shotgun blasts each to take care of them, though you're going to take damage. Grab all the toys from the truck (and the crate), then head for that big door. Get through this door and check out the scene ahead... grab the armor and 357 Magnum next to the corpse (a powerful handgun... even if it isn't in the Eastwood category). Hit 'use' at the tailgate to open it up for ammo and First Aid. From behind the front of the car shoot the explosive barrels on the dock... that'll blow the door open. If you go down the end of this tunnel, the Marine forces down there will close the door... but not before tossing a Grenade at you. (The area beyond this door is one you'll run into later in the level, when you get out into the open - if you're quick, you can toss a Grenade through the doors before they close, possibly killing a few) Into the cage you blew open, turn the wheel, and down the ladder. It'll break under you, dropping you down... you don't seem to take any damage, though. Kill the Headcrabs, and make your way through the tunnels... at the end of the grating (stay in the center - any of these pipes along the walls will burn you), turn the wheel to open the next door. Down the stairs, and in the next area you'll need to be careful if you don't want to get hit - crouch along the left wall until you're past the first steam, turn right and crouch your way to the wheel... turn it and wait until the steam is fully gone before continuing. Those two breaks in the wall around the corner are nothing... you're going to have to go swimming. Stay away from the sparking wires, and at the other end duck under to turn the wheel for this door. Up the stairs and around the corner for a Bullchicken, and another in the next hall. Down to the end and the lift (a pair of Headcrabs in here) - but first, shoot the explosive barrels on the left as soon as you see them; they'll kill a Headcrab waiting around the corner. Get on the lift and head up... more Headcrabs and empty crates. Further up ahead, it doesn't matter if you step in that stuff or not - it's slippery, not radioactive; just worry about the Headcrabs. Around the corner, and shoot the explosive barrels down at the end, or wait until the Alien Slaves spawn in and shoot it then. Around the next corner, don't even think about walking under that ladder (just kidding - and one good shot from the 357 will blow away the ladder anyway, if you aim at the right side of it)... at the junction there's old sparky, but don't go that way yet. Head down the other hall and go all the way to the end and smash the crates to reveal a FAS. But wait, this is a dead end... Back to old sparky and watch it for a bit... there's a pattern to the discharges; time it right and you'll get past it. Around the corner and shoot the explosive barrel for some Alien Slave splatter. Smash the wooden crates and position the two metal ones so you can climb into the duct - and as with most anything else in this game, you'll see the other side of that obstruction later. At the junction go right for just a tiny bit; there will be a breakable grate on your left. Watch out for all of the Headcrabs in these ducts, but just continue on to the end. Move the barrel out of the way to get out of this room, and head left first... down at the bottom grab everything that you can. Hmmmm... gears in a box - what's that supposed to mean? Gee... (this is the other side of that obstruction you just maneuvered around via the vents) Go the other way, up the stairs and kill the two Marines. You should pick up the MP5 Assault Rifle here... a very nice toy, especially with the Grenades it uses for secondary fire - just be warned that while the Rifle Grenades are very handy, they're also rare; you won't find many in the game, so save them for when absolutely needed. Go into the room and talk to the dying scientist - find Dr. Rosenberg - and head for the other door, killing the Marine on the other side. Note that in the room with the dying scientist, the center locker can be opened to reveal 357 ammo, and on the inside of the door is a baby picture (one of the developer's kids?) - this doesn't count as an Easter Egg, just a secret. In this next hall, you'll see a slab (it looks like fiber board) leaning against the wall - that's breakable. Around the corner there's a broken section of wall with one of those slabs blocking it; break through to find an elevator... but don't use it until Rosenberg is with you. (You can try, but there's a door at the bottom that requires a handprint to open... you can't get in unless you're Adam and Jamie. You can get into the Security Office and gather all sorts of toys, but you'd be better off saving those for later). It'd be a good idea to save your game now, before you round this final corner and head up the stairs. Stairs, stairs, stairs... keep going until you get to them, then head up - even though the doors on the second and third floors won't open, you should go up to kill the soldiers on the stairs, then head back down and into the door on the first floor. Through the storeroom (First Aid Kits on the shelves and in the boxes), and through the next door... edge out carefully and you should be able to kill at least one Marine before they all become aware of you. (The doors at the end of this open area are the same ones you saw from the other side, when you picked up the 357) As you edge out further, the window high on your left will break open and you'll take fire from there. That's the way you've got to go... after clearing out this area, make your way up and through the window. The door on the right opens from this side, of course, now that you don't need it. Head left and through, right and through. In the "Warehouse Security" door, and you can smash the lock on the cage with the Crowbar. Armor up, and head out. In this next area, splash the four Marines and then open the door on the red container car on the right... talk to the scientist inside, though he doesn't have much to say. If you open the blue container car, you'll have 4 Alien Slaves to play with... some of them frozen in ice. Smash open the crates on either side for First Aid, Hand Grenades and a Satchel Charge. Go into "Parcel Receiving" and flip on the lights for an ugly sight... smash open the boxes for a couple of First Aid Kits. Out in the warehouse, go through the door to the right of the red container - you'll immediately come under fire from two Marines. In the crates are ammo and healing. Out through the next door and into what we used to call a "shitstorm"... lots of fire, none of it friendly. One way to do some damage while at the same time stay somewhat protected is to crouch underneath one of the rail cars... you can shoot people in the legs from under here, and that works just as well as anything else. Once everyone's dead, you've collected all the ammo, smashed all the crates, etc, go to where the red container car is and you'll hear banging. Unfortunately, you can't open the door with those spools of cable blocking the way. Shoot out all of the wooden wedges front and back, and the spools will roll off the end of the car. Another Not-Rosenberg... and once you exit the container, more Marines - quite a few - will enter this area, looking for blood. Kill 'em all. On a railroad flat car in here is a crate labeled "50 Cal Mounted Machine Gun"... blow open the crate and you can use that against everyone if you want, since they'll be coming out of the big door labeled "Freight Yard Storage Car Access". Through there and whoops... more Marines, and even worse, a tank. Get into the back of the truck, collect everything, then head back up the tunnel. Switch back to your rifle and take on the Marines as they come after you... once they stop coming, switch to the RPG and inch back to the mouth of the tunnel. Destroy the tank as mentioned above in the "Opposing Force" walkthrough, and after everyone and everything is dead and gone, sweep through the area for health and ammo - you'll need it. Directly in front of the truck is a rail car with a couple of big crates on it - blow those away for items, and then blow away the crates inside the blue container beyond them for more toys. Go in through the little side door (next to the tank) labeled "Maintenance Access"... inside you can open that cage, but there's nothing to do in there, so continue on. Out the next door, but be careful... immediately outside on the right is a Tripod Gun. Neither door will open, but up on that rail car is the solution... time to play demolitions expert. Use your Rockets or whatever else to destroy all of the crates up on the car, then get up on it yourself... switch to your Satchel Charge, toss it just under the CO2 tanks, and back off a bit - hit the trigger and watch the tanks blow a hole through the door. If it doesn't quite succeed, you can use conventional explosives (ie, grenades) as well, or try shooting the tanks. In any case, go out through the new hole and do more killing. On your left as you go through the hole is a small office... once you're finished blood-letting, go in there and hit the switch for "Bay 5", then hit the Turntable lever. Go to the back of the (yet again) red container car, climb aboard the shunt engine and hit the switch. It'll stop by itself at the other end of its run... get in the container and talk to (finally!) Dr. Rosenberg. Whoops... the door closed behind you, and from it sounds like, there are more Marines out there. Doc Rosey boosts you through the roof vent... start firing. Once all three are dead, open the door to the container again and go in. Make sure you 'use' Rosenberg so he'll follow you. Head for the door to the Freight Warehouse (you've been here before)... it's up on the platform next to that Bay 5 door. In, and head up the stairs to the third floor. Kill the Marine behind the right window, then the one down at the end of the hall... make sure Dr. Rosenberg follows you, but make sure he doesn't get shot. (Yes, that water fountain / bubbler works) Through the door at the end, left, through the door, and continue on through the door to Freight Records. Through the door on the left, kill any Marines in the area (there won't be any there if you nailed them earlier), and go all the way down the stairs to the basement. Just keep going until you get to the area under construction... Rosenberg will stop at one point and tell you that you need to break through it; get out your Crowbar and go to work. Open up the elevator and take it down. (Of course, you may have broken through this earlier... it doesn't matter). EASTER EGG: at the bottom of the elevator, go out into the hall and climb up the broken vent shaft - at the top, shine your flashlight into the next section of vent to see a picture of one of the developers. From here, just follow Dr. Rosenberg... stay close to him and listen to most of his chatter. Just before he uses the hand scanner to open that door, go into the Security Office across from it - plenty of ammo and weapons, and best of all, plenty of Vests and Helmets. In that first room you'll see an elevator shaft, and you'll meet "Walter" - note the orange battery they're next to; you'll need to play with that later. A little weird, considering the fact that Walter was the one who told you about Rosenberg in the first place, and he died... oh, well. In the next room, note the ladder directly across from the door you came in - you'll need it soon enough. Once he activates the machine, jump on in... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 4) Focal Point That was now, this is Xen... oh, wait - I've done that one before. Hmmm... Xen, the planet where Gordon disappeared in a Flash? Nah, just as bad. Anyway... this is the planet where all those weird aliens have been coming from, so don't expect a warm reception. At least 5 Houndeyes in this area that you need to take out quickly. The orange things are just shy lights, but those tall pointed tentacles (brownish-pink) aren't safe, so avoid them if you can. Up the slope is a small glowing pool - that's the equivalent of a health kit, so use it if you need to (the little black tentacles around it are nothing). One thing you'll notice about Xen is the fact that the gravity is a bit lighter than what you're used to... so you can make longer jumps than you could back on Earth. Behind where you arrived are a set of rocks... jump up those and on to that circular ledge above. The cave to your right has nothing (not yet, anyway - that's where you'll eventually exit when you start the teleporter on this side), so follow this ring ledge around and in the next cave (another Houndeye). Over by the big tentacle you'll see a small patch of organic netting... smash through that with the Crowbar. Through the tunnel and smash out the other end, and in the small cave you'll see more netting across from you - but you want to go through the netting hidden on the right (left leads nowhere). There will be a Headcrab as you get near the glowing crystal, and then a junction - head left. In the next cave grab the Ammo-All Container next to the corpse (even if your weapons are all fully loaded these are good to grab). Note the hole in the ceiling - you can't get up there, of course, and there's nothing up there any way... it's just decoration. Get back into the tunnel and head down the other way from the junction. More Headcrabs, through a small cave and into an even smaller tunnel - getting claustrophobia yet? - and continue along to the next cave and the next Headcrab. Remember where this cave is because you'll need to come back to it. There are four tunnels leading out of this cave, the second from the left being the biggest - kill the Bullchicken in the entrance to that tunnel, but go into the one immediately to your left as you exit the tunnel. In the tunnel you'll come to a junction - Headcrabs either way, but go straight (past the glowing crystals) to pick up another Ammo-All Container, then head back to the cave with the four openings (that other tunnel just leads back to the very first cave). There are openings at the top and bottom of that small ramp... either one leads to where you need to go, but the one at the bottom of the ramp is partially flooded, meaning you'll need to go swimming at one point. The one at the top of the ramp is easier. Watch out for the Headcrabs, of course, including the one that will drop out of a hole in the ceiling. At the next junction, go right... left just leads to a cave-in with nothing in it. In this next area (Headcrabs and Barnacles), go right to use the Healing Pool, then head through that next tunnel. (You can drop into the water... if you swim down very quickly, you'll find another corpse in an HEV suit and an Ammo-All Container). Out into the cave, and then out into the open. Guess where you need to go... across the floating platforms to that next cave. Start with the one at the left, and work your way across one by one... save often. When you reach the rock that's furthest out, three Alien Slaves will spawn in on the rocks around you... you may even see some 'birds' flying by, but they're harmless. Once you're at the next tunnel, kill the Houndeyes inside, and there are three more out the other end. Only one way to go, really... didn't we just do this? Jump across the floating rocks to the next cave. When you get up on the big middle ring, watch out... not only will Alien Slaves spawn in, but electrical strikes will carve the ring into pieces. Use the healing pool, but be careful. As a note of interest, one of the strikes will knock down one of the spikes, which will form a bridge across to another section - that's how you actually need to go. Nice of them, huh? However, you might want to try to get to that other cave... another Ammo-All Container, and a Portal which will bring you back to the healing pool. The easiest way to do that is to quickly jump to the first three floating rocks and just as quickly to the center ring - from there, rush over and jump to that cave... the electrical strikes will take out these rocks, so get there as fast as you can; the teleporter will bring you back to the healing pool in the center ring. Once across the broken spike, smash the netting in the ground and drop in. There's only one way to go when you hit the water... just make sure you take a deep breath when the tunnel roof slopes down. Surface quickly at the pool (nothing in it), and watch out for the Bullchicken ahead of you on the left. Get out, and head around right to the steps down and the next pool. Stay close to the edge of the stream and you can walk along it instead of being swept away. Kill the Bullchicken below, then drop in... make sure you land in the water or it's a big ouch. Note the jump pad down here, and the two different waterfalls feeding this pool (other than the one you came down) - you need to jump up to the one that's not stairs... that is, the one across from where you came in. Don't worry, you'll see the other one soon enough. There are several Barnacles along this tunnel - if you're good you can probably shoot the first one before you even land. At the top, use the healing pool and pick up the Ammo-All Container by the corpse, and follow the other stream. When you come out the other end - carefully, don't get into this stream, as it's the other waterfall you saw and will just sweep you back to the cave - kill the Bullchicken across the way and use these side paths to make your way upstream. A couple of Houndeyes, and at the top another Bullchicken. Collect the Ammo-All Container, and use the jump pad to go up. Once through this cave, you'll see a variety of human devices... about time. Follow the cables on the ground to the control pack, and then to the generator. Turn that on, but before playing with the controls make sure you duck into the short cave for First Aid (you can collect them after if you want, and you'll need them). There are also a couple of those Ammo-All Containers in this area - one to the right of the emitter switches (as you're facing them) on the other side of those columns, another across on the other side on the right at the foot of the cliffs. At the control panel, use each dial (you can't touch the switches) until the yellow pointer is in the red triangle - you'll hear a chime telling you when each is successful, and the switches will go green... when both are correct, you'll see a message about the emitters being aligned. At this point several Alien Slaves will spawn in as will a few Alien Controllers - ugly round-headed flying critters that shoot bolts of energy - and an Alien Grunt will spawn in on the ledge you came down from. Once they're all plant food, head into that tunnel/cave... another Alien Slave will spawn in, but a cave-in will squash it. Jump up those rocks and into the hole, over the ridge and drop down into the healing pool. Blow away the three Headcrabs, down the tunnel, and kill the Bullchicken. Out in the open, several Alien Slaves and a couple of Alien Controllers will spawn in... kill them all, then use the jump pad to get to that floating rock directly across from you for an Ammo-All Container. Jump back, and up the slope. Headcrabs, Headcrabs... grab the Ammo-All Container at the top of the slope and into the tunnel (more Headcrabs)... at the end just drop down. Make sure you save it before you drop down, because you need to move quick. Ignore the Alien Slaves that spawn in, or take them out *very* quickly... you'll hear Rosenberg screaming at you to return. No time for anything fancy or safe... just jump off the ledge and into the Portal. When you return, listen to Rosenberg's speech... I guess your work is never done. Follow him to the lift, and take it down. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 5) Power Struggle At the bottom, through the door... kill the Bullchicken munching on the corpse. The door at the left won't open, though you'll hear military chatter through it - so head right and on to the other lift. At the top you'll see a Barney trying to protect a scientist... the next short hall to the left is a door, but it won't open - I guess that Barney is dead. The door at the end of the hall won't open either... but you're not stuck. Go back down to that broken door ("Reserve Coolant Basin") and wait for the Marines to cut through it... duck back into the lift doorway and wait for them to get the door open, then lob a Grenade into that doorway (aim halfway between the ceiling and the sign), blowing the tanks just inside and killing everyone. Around the corner and do some more killing. You can't do anything with that power panel right now... you'll notice the gauge is in the red. Into the offices on the left (nothing in the one to the left), head right and do more killing. Out the door, lob a Grenade to the left and kill the Marine up ahead. The power panel to the left and the panels to the right are just decoration, so go straight ahead. What looks like a catwalk to your left is actually a lift that goes up a slope (Level 2 Access Lift), and a small lift straight ahead. The HEV charger on the wall is busted (and doesn't work in this game anyway), but the FAS works. The small lift straight ahead just takes you back up to the locked door at the end of that security hall and a Tripod Gun - there's no need for you to go up there, but you'll want to toss a Grenade up there (to the left side) and take out the Tripod Gun, or it will be firing at you later in the level. Head back to that sloped lift - don't use it yet - and head across it; obviously you've got to watch that opening up on the left for a Marine. You'll notice that there's a grating catwalk below this bridge on the right, but there's absolutely nothing down there - at best it's a way to try and sneak across the bridge. Kill the others in this hall and around... the access door at the end is broken, so head right and up the ladder. At the top you can go up the stairs for that opening, which is actually just another switch for the sloped lift - don't use that one yet either - but instead you'll want to go right and down the slope ("Auxiliary Generator Access"). You'll see a dynamite plunger ahead, but don't touch it yet - follow the wire and you'll see that it's broken... you've got to splice it somehow or bridge the gap. Go right and out to the 'water' to kill the various Houndeyes, and take a look around... barrels floating in water and a broken bridge. Whatever you do, don't get in that 'water' - it's actually reactor coolant, and is very toxic. Nowhere to go in there yet. Back out into the hall and grab that barrel in the corner... put it over the break in the primacord, then hit the plunger. Boom! (Gotta admit, that was inventive) Through that now-open door, kill the Alien Slaves, and toss a Grenade up on that ledge before climbing the ladder... four Headcrabs up there. Don't bother with the sparking machines, just head out into the hall. Go in the door on the right and use the wheel for the Coolant Pump - look out the window and watch the coolant basin drain, leaving two barrels up on the ledge across the way. Out the door and straight up the slope... kill the Bullchicken and grab any armor you need. Take this lift down, kill the Headcrab, and head out into the drained basin. Push the four barrels of Coolant out into the center, on to the metal grating - including the two up on the ledge; you can push them off the ledge with no damage. On the grate, look up to see the ends of the bridge above... try to line up the barrels so when they're floating, they'll form the center of the bridge. Make your way back through the blown-open door to the dynamite plunger, then out to the catwalks above the basin. Kill anything on the other side and use the barrels to jump across. The only way to go is through the door to the right... kill the Alien Slaves that spawn in, and through the next door. Don't worry about the Marines on the other side; they'll probably be dead before you get there... and in all actuality, there's no way to get over to that side except by cheating. Don't step in that puddle of coolant, no matter what - it isn't pleasant. There are two coolant barrels here - one on its side and the other upright. Push the one standing up over the edge and down into the toxic coolant, and use the one on its side to get up on the crates... an Alien Grunt will be firing at you from a ledge on the other side of the crates, so watch out. Once across those, drop down and on the other side push that coolant barrel over the edge (you'll probably have to back off and toss a Grenade at the corpse to get rid of it so it doesn't block the barrel as you push it), then head through the door. Avoid the flamejet, up the stairs, Headcrabs, avoid the flamejet, and through the next doorway. Just keep going until you get to the Control Room - note the fenced area outside the Control Room which overlooks the coolant basin. Inside, kill the Bullchicken, then hit both switches on the panel. Wait for a bit, and you'll see the Auxiliary Power Meter charge up. Now you need to head all the way back to that sloped lift (Level 2 Access), and there are two different ways you can go... go back the way you came, but this time instead of clambering over the crates you'll need to go down the ladder and jump across the barrels to the other ladder and up. OR... when you exit the control room, turn right and jump through that opening down to the coolant basin below. You'll won't even take any damage, and it's much much easier... just watch out for the sparking wire on the wall below; from here, cross the coolant via the barrels to the other side and head back to the sloped lift. Down the hall with the dynamite plunger, and in the room with the radio go up the stairs... this time you can hit the switch for the lift and let the bridge (the sloped lift) come up to you. Across and around the corner... take out the spawning Alien Slaves; the window on the left faces out to the area where that Tripod Gun was - if you didn't take it out earlier it'll probably be firing at you now. This area is the one you saw at the beginning of the level, after you came up the original lift and watched through the fence. Continue around (don't open the "Elevator Access" door yet - sometimes doing that seems to screw up the sequence of events in the game somehow, meaning that you'll have to reload your last save), and listen to the dying Barney. Once he's dead and out of the way, push the battery through the gate and on to the charging station, then hit the button. Once it's charged, push it back out and on to the "Power Cell Delivery Lift", and hit that button. Once that's done, go through the "Elevator Access" door and head back to the original lift you came up on (out the door and right)... Make sure you save your game just before you go back up the lift - you will need to reload if the game screws up later. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- 6) A Leap of Faith Dr. Rosenberg greets you at the top of the lift, and at least he has a few kind words... however, you've got a few final tasks. Follow him into the main room and listen to his instructions. He's going to be nagging you the whole way, and you'll need to move fairly quickly. Up the ladder - same side of the room as the little control booth he's in, across the catwalk (don't touch that wheel yet) and down the next ladder... hit the Main Power switch. When he starts yelling again, go back up the ladder and turn the wheel, holding it until it's as far as it will go into the green... unfortunately you'll have a pair of Houndeyes spawn in on you, so you'll take some damage. Every once in a while the Houndeyes won't appear, and the needle won't stay to the right no matter how much you turn the wheel. In that case, you'll need to reload your last save and try again. Once that's turned and the Houndeyes are dead, head back to the control room - but stop to scatter all of your Satchel Charges... one or two in that tiny hallway in front of that door, and the rest along the catwalk; they'll save your life later. In the control room, wait at the button on the green panel in front of the window - when Rosie tells you to, hit that button. Walters will go through, Rosenberg will charge the system again, and Simmons will go through. Now it's Rosenberg's turn... he'll go through, and set it to automatic. He'll make it through, and then all you need to do is watch the lights on the wall near the control station below. Just as they hit full, the soldiers will bust through that door near the top of the ladder - wait until you actually hear that door hit the ground, then trigger the Satchel Charges you scattered earlier. Switch to your assault rifle, hit the button on the console, and get the heck out of here. Up the ladder, across the catwalk - pop a Grenade or two at the soldiers down on the floor - down the ladder and into the teleporter. Flicker, flicker, flicker... you'll zap around to different locales at first, including one point in "Half-Life" just before the soldiers toss Freeman into the garbage compacter. While you can move around in any of these locales, there's no need to... you'll zap to the next one automatically. If you really feel the urge, you can kill Dr. Rosenberg (or any of the other scientists with you) at the very end... give yourself a weapon (and ammo) with cheats - I'd suggest the 357 - and once Rosie has finished his speech with "We made it", go ahead and start shooting. The end credits are just the end credits... nothing else to see at this black screen, so don't worry - and after the credits finish, it will actually return you to the Main Menu all by itself. =============================================================================================== CHEATS (BLUE SHIFT) Enable the cheats with the console... on the command line, add -dev -console so it reads: C:\Sierra\Blue-Shift\bshift.exe -dev -console In the game, open the console with the ~ (no Shift), type in the cheat, Enter, close the console. You can bind most cheats (and other commands) to a single hotkey - see the "Binding" section for that. Note that sometimes they don't seem to work... a bit odd. They do seem to work after you get a 'Loading' message - that is, enable them, and after the next 'Loading' message you get they should work. The cheats don't seem to be case sensitive. Anyway... why are you cheating? god God mode this cheat does not work as a bind, for whatever reason. It does, however, save... so you only have to set it once in a game give ammo_357 ammo for the 357 Magnum give ammo_9mmAR ammo for the MP5 rifle give ammo_9mmclip ammo for the Glock pistol give ammo_ARgrenades grenades for the MP5 rifle give ammo_buckshot ammo for the Shotgun give ammo_crossbow ammo for the Crossbow give ammo_gaussclip ammo for the Gauss rifle give ammo_glockclip ammo for the Glock pistol give ammo_mp5clip ammo for the MP5 rifle give ammo_mp5grenades grenades for the MP5 rifle give ammo_rpgclip ammo for the RPG give item_battery gives you a Vest Battery give item_healthkit gives you a First Aid Kit (don't use this if your health is at 100... you'll exit the game) give item_longjump gives you the Long Jump module give item_suit gives you a Vest and Helmet... if you're already wearing one, it will just drop it on the floor; this does not recharge your Vest Note that you should be ultra-careful when using the Battery cheat: you need to be standing on a solid surface (not water, not grating) or else it will probably crash you out of the game. give weapon_357 gives you the 357 Magnum give weapon_9mmAR gives you the MP5 Assault Rifle give weapon_9mmhandgun gives you the Glock Pistol give weapon_crossbow gives you the Crossbow give weapon_crowbar gives you the Crowbar give weapon_egon gives you the Egon give weapon_gauss gives you the Guass Rifle give weapon_handgrenade gives you 5 Hand Grenades give weapon_hornetgun gives you the Hornet Gun give weapon_mp5 gives you the MP5 give weapon_python gives you the 357 Magnum give weapon_rpg gives you the Rocket Launcher give weapon_satchel gives you a Satchel Charge give weapon_shotgun gives you the Shotgun give weapon_snark gives you 5 Snarks give weapon_tripmine gives you a Tripmine Note that the special weapons and ammo from "Opposing Force" are not available in "Blue Shift", but any weapon or ammo found in "Half-Life" can be used in "Blue Shift" as well. chase_active 1 3rd person view (0 to switch back to 1st person) noclip noclip (walk through walls) notarget enemies won't target you r_fullbright 1 eliminate shadows (0 turns them back on) sv_gravity [0-999] set gravity level... 800 is normal, 0 is none, 999 = no jumps sv_gravity 800 The normal jump sv_gravity 0-999 You are now the master sv_gravity 0 You can float and walk in air for amount of time; highest jump sv_gravity 999 You can't jump at all thirdperson 3rd person view; use "firstperson" to switch back (the model is Gordon Freeman - I guess there's no Barney model) (some impulse codes don't seem to work in "Half-Life GotY" or the Platinum Collection) impulse 76 Creates a human grunt. Be careful, this can crash the game. impulse 101 all weapons, ammo, armor. impulse 102 Spawn gibs. impulse 103 While looking at an NPC, displays stats. impulse 104 Lists global entities. impulse 105 Enemies can't hear you (notarget). impulse 106 While looking at an object, displays model/sprite stats. impulse 107 While looking at an object, displays the texture name. impulse 109 Control onscreen monsters. May not work in some versions of the game. impulse 195 Displays AI node information. impulse 202 Creates blood in front of you, like spray paint. impulse 203 Deletes target NPC or monster from the game. Note that there are two "impulse" codes already used by the game... impulse 100 your flashlight (default 'f') impulse 201 spray logo (default 't') -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- BLUE SHIFT MAP ACCESS in the console, type "map ####" (may have to noclip to move from your start position). For example, to get to the first map of "Duty Calls", you'd type in the console: map ba_canal1 and you're off and running. ba_tram1, ba_tram2, ba_tram3 Welcome to Black Mesa (intro) ba_security1, ba_security2, ba_maint, ba_elevator Insecurity ba_canal1, ba_canal1b, ba_canal2, ba_canal3 Duty Calls ba_yard1, ba_yard2, ba_yard3, ba_yard3a, ba_yard3b, ba_yard4, ba_yard4a, ba_yard5, ba_yard5a Captive Freight ba_teleport1, ba_xen1, ba_xen2, ba_xen3, ba_xen4, ba_xen5, ba_xen6, ba_teleport2 Focal Point ba_power1, ba_power2 Power Struggle ba_hazard1, ba_hazard2, ba_hazard3, ba_hazard4, ba_hazard5, ba_hazard6 A Leap Of Faith ba_outro Credits Note that though I know that above mapnames are correct ("ba_tram1", etc) I'm not completely sure about which map goes with which level. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- BLUE SHIFT EASTER EGGS At the very beginning, when you first pick up your armor from your locker, go into the bathroom - turn on your 'noclip' cheat and go into the "Out of Order" toilet stall. Turn around to see a picture of one of the developers (or a comic book character) on the back of the door. In the "Captive Freight" level, after you've rescued Rosenberg and have gone down the hidden elevator, go out into the hall and climb up the broken vent shaft - at the top, shine your flashlight into the next section of vent to see a picture of one of the developers. =============================================================================================== -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =============================================================================================== CREDITS "Half-Life" and its various add-ons are copyright 2000 - 2005 Sierra Studios, Valve, and Gearbox. Sierra Studios -- http://www.sierra.com Valve -- http://www.valvesoftware.com Gearbox -- http://www.gearboxsoftware.com Mapping credits: http://www.qeradiant.com -- QERadiant, home of GTK - search for the game you want to map. http://www.map-craft.com - an excellent mapping site for quite a few different games, including the "Half-Life" series, LucasArt's "Jedi" series, and the Quake set. =============================================================================================== SIGNATURE David "Nightwolf" Masters -- david_masters AT comcast DOT net the Roundhouse -- http://roundhouse.8m.com/ (Railroad Tycoon II) TerokNor -- http://tnhp.tvheaven.com/ (Star Trek silly, filks, fanfic) personal site -- http://home.comcast.net/~david_masters/games.htm LiveJournal site -- http://community.livejournal.com/nightwolf_jfo Walkthroughs / FAQs: Doom 3 Far Cry Half-Life Platinum Edition (Half-Life, Opposing Forces, Counter Strike, Blue Shift) Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy Quake Ultimate (Quake I, Quake II, Quake III Arena) Return to Castle Wolfenstein Unreal Gold (Unreal, Return to Na Pali) Editing / Scenarios / Strategies: Railroad Tycoon II Railroad Tycoon III Tropico, Tropico 2: Pirate Cove Zeus / Poseidon 1st version: June/July 2005 August 2005 (ver 1.1) - added various bits of info, including OpFor Multiplayer section, and finally figured out all of the cheats for Opposing Force, including the Multiplayer-only 'penguin' cheat. Silly. Also spellchecked. June 2006 (ver 1.2) - brief touch-up, adding spawning info and Easter Eggs. August 2006 (ver 1.3) - minor corrections, finally gave correct names to monsters and NPCs, fixed Easter Egg info. "Half-Life": found how to get to original tram area in "Unforseen Consequences" level, minor changes to "On A Rail" level. Found Easter Egg / goof in "Forget About Freeman!" level. Minor changes to "On a Rail" level. "Opposing Force": found the "early weapons". "Blue Shift": found 357 ammo in locker where you first learn about Rosenberg, found the Easter Eggs. June 2007 (ver 1.4) - various spelling and grammer corrections, some minor additions. July 2007 (ver 1.5) - "Opposing Force": finally found that 'better way' in "Welcome to Black Mesa" (in the exploding room). Also added in the first weapons theft. Other minor tweaks.