I've only played through it once. My brother and I beat it on co-op Heroic, which was perfect for the first time through, as far as the challenge ratio. Not knowing the perfect lines to take or the best strat for a certain part, there was room for mistakes without both dying and starting at the previous checkpoint.

I missed some of what was said during certain cut-scenes. We'd both be talking about the level we just beat.

As for the artifact in New Mombasa, it seemed to be designed to open up a worm-hole.

I also thought it was implied that the Forerunners were humans. Perhaps that's why only a human could activate the ring. In H1 we learned that only an organic life form could activate it. But, it was never more specific than a "Reclaimer". In H3, it seemed they narrowed the definition for a reclaimer, to only include humans.

I always saw the relationship between Cortana and MC as plutonic. She had witty comments, he had his reckless behavior, and it meshed well during gameplay. But in H3, it almost seems like love, or a somehow romantic relationship, if only in the way she claims to have "chosen" him... Either way, the dialogue was weird. Some if it was eerie, and added to the game. Then some of it was awkward. It didn't seem to fit with the dynamics of what a relationship between a human (albeit a super-human) and an AI would logically be limited to.

Maybe MC isn't dead, but only laid to rest in the Hushed Casket. Hence the line, "Were it so easy." They never specifically concluded it one way or other.

(spoiler: read at your own risk..........)

What was the death star? That's what sent a chill down my spine at the end.

Disavowed, you need to watch the cutscene that rolls after the credits (and the one that rolls after that when you beat it on legendary).

Oculus, I think the "death star" may be Onyx, or perhaps another Forerunner shield world.

Wow, I didn't know there were scenes that come after the credits...

Now I have a good excuse to play the warthog run again!

(spoiler ahead.........)

yep, I was delighted that I would be required to play the warthog run a second time. It brought back good memories of H1.

The hog run is probably my favorite event in the H3 campaign. However, I think it will get old as you memorize which tiles fall. I wish the tiles falling were random.

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currently playing: Halo 3, Shadowrun, Call of Duty 4 MP beta
currently supporting: Ron Paul - issues

Spooooiiiilllleerrrzzzz:

I don't understand how the chief survived, either. Here's my understanding of the situation:

1. Chief activated the Ark.
2. Chief and the Arbiter got in the ship, Arbiter in front, Chief in back.
3. The Arbiter flew toward the portal to escape the blast from the Ark's halo.
4. The front half of the ship made it through, escaping the blast.
5. The back half of the ship got caught in the blast.
6. Somehow, the back half of the ship wound up in a different part of space with the Chief still alive.

How did the Chief survive, again?

This isn't really from the end, but in the level "Crow's Nest" there is a funny piece of dialouge. Right after the beginning and you enter the long hallway with the overhead pipe, go all the way to the far end where a marine is knocking on a door. He has an interesting convo with a marine on the other side about a password. Just thought it was funny and wanted you guys to know.

That was hilarious. We showed Midnight that one during coop play. There's 2 versions of it, one for co-op, and one for single player. Both are equally funny.

The Chief is out here!
[long pause]
Does he know the password?

I laughed hard when I heard that line.

It's from Red vs. Blue.

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currently playing: Halo 3, Shadowrun, Call of Duty 4 MP beta
currently supporting: Ron Paul - issues

@rap, can you remember which season?

No idea.

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currently playing: Halo 3, Shadowrun, Call of Duty 4 MP beta
currently supporting: Ron Paul - issues

It's not FROM RedvsBlue, it IS RedvsBlue. They went to Bungie Studios and recorded those lines just for the game.

From my understanding after beating it co op with my buddy last night. Is that halo that was activated before it was ready only destroying the ARK, not local space.
While the Chief and the Arbiter are escaping through the portal only half the ship made it through leaving Cortona and MC near the Arc and the Arbiter on Earth. Only concern I have is how much air dose MC have.. Two years on half a ship open to space.

Far as I could tell that was a cryo tube. So he could stay indefinately until someone showed up or Cortana missed him too much.

You're correct. I also don't think anybody here was confused about that.

So MC and Cortana were near the Ark when it exploded, but not close enough to die?

I got the impression based on Cortana's dialogue that the ship had already entered the portal completely and that the portion of the ship ferrying the Arbiter had exited when the blast from the destruction of the incomplete Halo struck the portal causing it to destabilize.

As the entire ship had not emerged from the portal when the portal went unstable the portion remaining inside with MC and Cortana re-entered at a random point in space.

Matt, that is a good theory. It makes all the pieces fit together.

anybody know anything about the "12th Statue"? Could that be about Chief finding the Spartans and the good Doc?

Has anyone beat thegame with the IWHBYD Skull on?
maybe that will clear some things up

I've read some interesting theories; I think Cortana knows where they are (if only by approximate distance from Earth), which is why she said it could take years for them to be found.
As for the Arbiter's words, "Were it so easy," I believe the first one was him saying he would've killed the MC there had things not turned out how they did in H2. The second time, however, is more a notion of respect and reverence. It's partly disbelief of his death, yes; but it's deeper, in a sense that he did not WANT to believe the MC had died. And, it could be about MC's selfless sacrifice to his kind and the Arbiter seeing a similarity and even wishing he had had that honor as well. Just my thoughts...as I see the elites as very noble sentients.

The transcript of the terminals was fascinating. I had to read it twice to really get all the info from it. Here's what I gleaned:

-The forerunner had a civilization of at least 226 billion people.
-They fought the flood for 300 years.
-They eventually formed a "Maginot Line" in space to divide the space they would defend from that which they "surrendered" to the flood. Apparently there were many inhabited worlds outside the Maginot Line when they made this decision. They did it because they could no longer support defending everyone.
-Someone called the "librarian" went around to inhabited worlds in an effort to "index" sentient beings (take them to the ark). He did this by building machines that would open portals to the ark. The last place he did this is earth (this was implied, not stated). Its inhabitants were indexed and the librarian stayed. He was killed when the Halos fired.
-The Forerunner created an alternate plan to firing the Halos. It involved creating an AI that would try to "attack" the flood graveminds while they battled with Forerunner forces. Apparently they never got to use it or it was unsuccessful.

One thing that is never answered is whether the Forerunner reinhabited the planets they indexed, thereby becoming the ancestors of modern humans. They could just as easily be the ancestors of Covenant, I suppose. Any thoughts or corrections?

This is clearly explained when Guilty Spark says something along the lines of "You are the children of your ancestors! You are Forerunner!" So it seems like the Forerunner left an Adam and an Eve. I think the Covenant probably came from another galaxy and evolved from single-celled organisms or something.

RE: the diorama - there is a section of time between the end of H2 and the beginning of H3 which is covered in the comic Halo: Uprising - I imagine the diorama battle scene comes from that period.

Good thought, but Master Chief has just arrived (fallen 2 km) to earth at the beginning of Halo 3. I don't think he had time for a battle. However, we may find later that the beginning of Halo 3 is not him jumping from the Forerunner ship as I assumed, but from some other aircraft. If so, then there is a chance you are correct.

That battle is supposed to be the Battle of New Mombasa I think. Or something like that. Wikipedia...