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Subject: Legendary Difficulty Isn't That Hard

-Sic transit gloria mundi

Hardly an original topic of discussion, but I noticed that Legendary difficulty isn't really that hard.
I've played Halo: CE since June 2002, and I always did it on Normal or even (I'm ashamed to admit it) Easy. Once, long ago, I tried it on Legendary, but my "charge in guns blazing" strategy that worked so well on other difficulties made it nearly impossible, so I quit.

That was many years ago, so this summer, I decided to do it on Legendary, and I completed it in two or three days.

It was so simple, I just had to stop using the quite foolish "charge in" strategy and use more intelligent tactics: Avoid getting hit, only engage when your shields are full (so be patient and use cover frequently,) and use the pistol.

I really don't understand why so many people say it is so hard. There were a few levels I got through without even dying on my first time through. 9 out of 10 times that I did die, it was because I foolishly charged in or was too impatient to let my shields recharge before the next fight. There are difficult spots (yes Mr. Bertone, I'm talking about all those damn sword elites you threw at me in "Into the Belly of the Beast") but with the appropriate strategy all can be surmounted quickly and easily.

It isn't that hard, in fact it's actually quite fun, and now it's the only difficulty that I play campaign on.

  • 10.23.2010 10:40 AM PDT
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Your 'beliefs' mean less than dick to me.

it's not even legendary for me anymore, it's normal. i actually tried to go back to normal and was having some trouble with it lol.

  • 10.23.2010 1:05 PM PDT

Same here. When you know what you are doing, it isn't as hard.

  • 10.23.2010 1:21 PM PDT

Don't worry, you're still your mom's favorite Bnet member.

The same could be said for every Halo game.

  • 10.23.2010 1:29 PM PDT
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Your 'beliefs' mean less than dick to me.

Nah, Halo 2's difficulty is ridiculous. Mainly thanks to the sniper jackals. Seriously, there are areas with about 5 or 6 jackals with about 8 or 9 potential spawn points for them (making them hard to predict and prepare for). Combine that with their super accuracy and ability to take you out even if it grazes your calf muscle, and it's a joke.

Combat forms with sniper rifles annoyed the hell out of me too. Because it wasn't even a boss or preset battle type thing (at least not that I could see), they'd randomly spawn with a sniper in the same way they'd randomly spawn with a plasma rifle or SMG. Of course they take you out in one shot too. I'd be running through one of the dark rooms in high charity, complete silence, then BOOOM!!! dead.

The levels without this crap, Cairo, Arbiter, Oracle, and Sacred Icon (I think, haven't run into sniper flood on there for some reason), really aren't too bad. Even Quarantine Zone, Delta Halo, Great Journey, and Metropolis aren't over the top since the sniper jackal thing is under control. But Regret, Uprising, and Outskirts are a joke.

[Edited on 10.23.2010 2:28 PM PDT]

  • 10.23.2010 2:27 PM PDT

-Sic transit gloria mundi


Posted by: MrR46
Nah, Halo 2's difficulty is ridiculous. Mainly thanks to the sniper jackals. Seriously, there are areas with about 5 or 6 jackals with about 8 or 9 potential spawn points for them (making them hard to predict and prepare for). Combine that with their super accuracy and ability to take you out even if it grazes your calf muscle, and it's a joke.

Combat forms with sniper rifles annoyed the hell out of me too. Because it wasn't even a boss or preset battle type thing (at least not that I could see), they'd randomly spawn with a sniper in the same way they'd randomly spawn with a plasma rifle or SMG. Of course they take you out in one shot too. I'd be running through one of the dark rooms in high charity, complete silence, then BOOOM!!! dead.

The levels without this crap, Cairo, Arbiter, Oracle, and Sacred Icon (I think, haven't run into sniper flood on there for some reason), really aren't too bad. Even Quarantine Zone, Delta Halo, Great Journey, and Metropolis aren't over the top since the sniper jackal thing is under control. But Regret, Uprising, and Outskirts are a joke.

Indeed, I would say that Halo 2 Legendary would be equivalent to Halo: CE if it wasn't for those damn snipers.

  • 10.24.2010 8:53 PM PDT
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Plasma/Human pistol was how I got through the majority of it.

  • 10.25.2010 12:00 PM PDT
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Oh and on the Halo 2 thing, I tried playing legendary a few years ago. There was one time when I slowly moved out of cover to snipe a jackal on Delta Halo and I watched the beam come out of his rifle at a right angle and kill me. I just gave up and I haven't tried to beat it again since. It's still the only one I haven't beaten on legendary.

  • 10.25.2010 12:06 PM PDT

every halo game was easy on legendary for me accept the first level of Halo 2 which was IMPOSSIBLE!, Ask my smashed in Xbox 1 pad.

  • 10.25.2010 7:52 PM PDT

I like Call of Duty and Gears of War, AND Halo. Why must everyone else like only one or the other?

Yeah, outside of Halo 2, Legendary isn't that bad. Even on Halo 2, it's just the very first level that's pretty bad. The one-shot kill snipers are only bad on the first few times through on Legendary. After you get used to them, you can anticipate them most of the time and as long as you are careful you'll be fine. That said however, most of the time I'll play the game on Heroic. I like to be allowed to be a little more reckless without having to worry about dying most of the time. (Though if I'm playing co-op it's always Legendary. No excuse for anything lower except on Halo 2. Don't feel like going back to the last checkpoint just because someone died.)

  • 10.25.2010 8:06 PM PDT
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Fantastic name there, Elite Elite. Legendary only for me. Seemed ridiculously hard back in the day, but after some practice and about a million deaths, it becomes the norm. And, as a guide said, "It's like a whole new game." Stuff really changes on that setting. It's a fun challenge, and I can't recommend it enough.

  • 10.25.2010 9:03 PM PDT

Yes and no to the original poster. I found you had to change your tactics, but sometimes being ultra agressive pays pretty rich rewards.
In PoA you can charge the second wave of elites storming into the cafeteria. Just make sure you have grenades. Later you can utilize the overshield to charge up the stairs to get to the hangar door before it opens(a few stickies in an enclosed space wipes out half you opponents).
On HALO you can recklessly charge the six dropships and be positioned to have detonating stickies take out elites as soon as they touch ground.
Silent Cartographer's dropzone rewards you with a warthog gunner if you stay in front of your fire team. A warthog without a chaingunner is almost worthless.
AotCR- if you ditch the Scorpion and use the warthog you can get into their spawns before they can assemble. I've driven over an entire squad of grunts, jackals and elites in those hallways of the giant ice tower halfway through the level.

Legendary makes you re think your tactics. Don't always think careful, deliberate use of the plasma overcharge followed by the old M-6D is the only way.

  • 10.26.2010 11:35 AM PDT


Posted by: KamelToad
Yes and no to the original poster. I found you had to change your tactics, but sometimes being ultra agressive pays pretty rich rewards.

This is possibly my favorite thing about HCE's gameplay. Most shooters have a structure where 'slow' is the easiest way to get by anything. In HCE, aggression used intelligently can work wonders. The obvious example is the opening of Silent Cartographer, but arguably a more potent one is the grav lift area in T&R; on the ground, working up-front on the cliffs with your marines works wonders.

[Edited on 10.26.2010 2:01 PM PDT]

  • 10.26.2010 2:01 PM PDT
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This is a well timed thread as a week ago I swapped the H2 disk for the CE disk after 2 had been in the tray for almost a month.

There are definite differences between Legendary for the 2 games:

1-Your ability to play more free-style is better in CE than H2 on Leg. I find that I can play with a wider variety of weapons combos in CE on leg than in 2 (this allows me to make the game that much more challenging, but still finishable). I can ignore every useable vehicle (except needed banshees to get to elevated goals) and walk the entire game if I want, but could never do that in 2's campaign, on any difficulty.

2-I find that the degree to which you can be reckless is much narrower playing 2 due to a variety of reasons, mostly the Jackal Snipers. What fun is it to be a careful MC!

3-The enemy vehicles are much more difficult to deal with in 2 than they are in CE. It is especially annoying when you have skulls like sputnik, mythic or angry active to have ghosts that are almost unstoppable (other than a single shot to the fuel tank with any sniper rifle, you have to be patient to get the shots though).

4-CE leg is actually fun, 2 leg without skulls is boring but doable on a regular basis, add skulls and it can become very annoying (to the point that I do not even bother with the flood levels or arbiter levels, they really suck arse with the game play on steroids).

  • 10.26.2010 2:40 PM PDT

It's easy for me on the first level. Not on the others.

  • 10.26.2010 3:46 PM PDT

Halo CE definitely had the best Legendary gameplay IMO. It was tough, but you could still play in a way where you didn't have to hide behind walls and rocks every 2 seconds.

  • 10.27.2010 3:30 PM PDT

By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe.

Posted by: Random 1177
Halo CE definitely had the best Legendary gameplay IMO. It was tough, but you could still play in a way where you didn't have to hide behind walls and rocks every 2 seconds.


Ah, the glorious days when the Covenant didn't have snipers...

  • 10.27.2010 3:38 PM PDT

Supreme Dictator, Industrial Polluter, Megalomaniac, Corrupt Politician, Underhanded Reprobate, Rainforest Ravager, Puppy Kicker, Oil Spill Coordinator, Holiday Hater, and an Insurance Salesman.

Truth and Reconciliation kicked my ass on Legendary, but the rest wasn't so bad overall. It's definitely the most enjoyable Legendary.

  • 10.27.2010 5:04 PM PDT

Save Lives. Go Vegan.

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I agree that it can be easy with good strategy. I always get lazy and charge, or at least am too lazy to take cover, so I end up dying multiple times each mission, but if I really wanted to I could eliminate most of my deaths. A few parts that are hard regardless of whether or not one charges are the first room when you board the Truth And Reconciliation and the spot where you have to keep Keyes alive (the idiot stands in the middle of the battle doing nothing, pretty much begging to be killed). Both are on the mission Truth And Reconciliation.
And yes, Legendary is extremely fun, regardless of whether you charge in and die a bunch of times or hang back and pwn. It's all I ever play (but usually with a reckless style).

Just curious, what were the levels you got through with no deaths? Guessing 343 Guilty Spark would be one of the easiest ones...

[Edited on 10.27.2010 5:49 PM PDT]

  • 10.27.2010 5:45 PM PDT

-Sic transit gloria mundi


Posted by: ShadowVegan
I agree that it can be easy with good strategy. I always get lazy and charge, or at least am too lazy to take cover, so I end up dying multiple times each mission, but if I really wanted to I could eliminate most of my deaths. A few parts that are hard regardless of whether or not one charges are the first room when you board the Truth And Reconciliation and the spot where you have to keep Keyes alive (the idiot stands in the middle of the battle doing nothing, pretty much begging to be killed). Both are on the mission Truth And Reconciliation.
And yes, Legendary is extremely fun, regardless of whether you charge in and die a bunch of times or hang back and pwn. It's all I ever play (but usually with a reckless style).

Just curious, what were the levels you got through with no deaths? Guessing 343 Guilty Spark would be one of the easiest ones...


If I can recall...
I didn't die on The Pillar of Autumn
I didn't die on The Silent Cartographer.
and I didn't die (I didn't even lose health) on 343 Guilty Spark.

The rest weren't too bad, in fact I died less than 5 times on The Library.

  • 10.27.2010 8:45 PM PDT
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Your definition of difficulty is flawed.

If it was any harder than what good tactics and patience could get you through then it would devolve into randomly and unavoidably killing you for no reason with no skill involved.

Just because you aren't dying doesn't mean it is easy.

I'm curious how you would handle the library "easily" it's open, without cover, the flood have bloody rocket launchers and you often have to wait for 343 for an inderterminate amount of time in small spaces with endless waves of these things pouring in.
You can't exactly apply patience there.

Ah well, I always play on Heroic. It's the way it's meant to be played, and I prefer to get my hands dirty and kick some ass instead of hanging back like a little girl.

[Edited on 10.28.2010 1:51 AM PDT]

  • 10.28.2010 1:47 AM PDT

I just started working on beating the game on Legendary, and I've made it so far to the Truth and Reconciliation level.

That level started to kick my ass though the moment I entered the ship.

  • 10.28.2010 6:36 PM PDT

Constantly awesome (60% of the time)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFZrzg62Zj0

i beat the game legendary back in 2003, two betrayls took me a good 6 hours... the rest of it is okay

  • 10.29.2010 4:59 AM PDT
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Posted by: ARACHN0TRON
I just started working on beating the game on Legendary, and I've made it so far to the Truth and Reconciliation level.

That level started to kick my ass though the moment I entered the ship.

The problem with levels like that and higher difficulties is that often I'd rather take the swords in my chest than have it kill the marines. :/
That sort of standard makes it very hard to complete. If I just ignored the marines it'd probably be far easier.

  • 10.29.2010 6:29 AM PDT

-Sic transit gloria mundi


Posted by: BmB23
Your definition of difficulty is flawed.

If it was any harder than what good tactics and patience could get you through then it would devolve into randomly and unavoidably killing you for no reason with no skill involved.

Just because you aren't dying doesn't mean it is easy.

I'm curious how you would handle the library "easily" it's open, without cover, the flood have bloody rocket launchers and you often have to wait for 343 for an inderterminate amount of time in small spaces with endless waves of these things pouring in.
You can't exactly apply patience there.

Ah well, I always play on Heroic. It's the way it's meant to be played, and I prefer to get my hands dirty and kick some ass instead of hanging back like a little girl.


We seem to be using to different definitions, but perhaps you have a point. it's better to say that Legendary difficulty is simple, but involved.

And as for The Library, it is actually pretty simple. The rocket launcher flood always spawn in the same location, you just have to play through it enough to recognize where they spawn. When you encounter them, just take them out from a distance with a pistol, or even a rocket launcher that you acquired from one of their freinds.
Also, contrary to popular myth, there aren't any infinite flood spawns on the Library (well, the very last part, where you're running for the index elevator might be, but I'm not sure.) Just take the extra minute or two to completely clear out each flood spawn, and then you'll know for sure that you're rear is a safe place to retreat to if you get overwhelmed in the next encounter. Additionally, if you've done this, you can always use the corners as cover. This works out nicely, because if you force the flood around a corner, they'll bottle up, making a grenade or two extremely handy.

  • 10.29.2010 6:46 AM PDT

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