Halo 2 (Mission 12) Gravemind Walkthrough
Video Walkthrough: Halo 2 (Mission 12) Gravemind Walkthrough
Skull Location: Anger Skull Location
Terminal Location: Gravemind Terminal Location
Gravemind begins with Master Chief in a room with some Brute Chieftains and various other Covenant. Kill all of them then head over to the door on the opposite end of the room, Cortana will ask you to put her down on the pedestal next to the door (just approach it, the rest is automatic). She will open the locked door for you and tell you to go find Truth.
When you come to the large platform that's outside you'll need to kill all of the enemies to activate the gravity lift on the far end. A Brute Chieftain with a Brute Shot will come up the lift - it may seem like a cool weapon but I actually recommend you avoid using it. I recommend you check out my Halo 2 Weapon Tier List for a list of what weapons are good and why.
TLDR; on this level I normally use 2 Plasma Rifles (Brute version preferably) with a Covenant Carbine as my other weapon. Sometimes I will use a Beam Rifle instead if there is one around. The exception is if I am fighting Drones - they're annoying and I prefer a Covenant Carbine for them.
Tip: Search the purple crates on this mission for tons of Covenant weapons. These crates normally carry 4 or more weapons all full ammo of Plasma Rifles, Plasma Pistols, Brute Shots, Covenant Carbines, Beam Rifles and Needlers. I am probably missing one weapon but you get the point!
After taking the grav lift continue through the hallways until Cortana contacts you about a group of Marines nearby. The next large room you come to will have a grav lift in the middle that we need to take down. When you approach it Cortana will appear in the pedestal next to it and tell you to go down... so it's pretty hard to miss!
This next area is going to be a scripted event - you will need to go to various levels in the prison using the grav lifts to free Marines. Cortana will direct you the entire time so all you need to focus on is remembering which lift goes where and killing enemies. Once all the Marines are free you'll want to return to the grav lift we took down here originally and ride it back up to the top.
On the second floor of the room look for a door that will open (approach it and if it opens - you win!) enemies will pour out of it when it first opens so kill them then head through. You'll go through a few hallways until you come to an outside courtyard with a bunch of enemies - including some annoying snipers that you'll need to take out.
If you're interested in getting the Cortana Toy on this level for an Achievement it's found in this courtyard area. Check out my Cortana Toy Location on Gravemind Youtube Video for the exact location and the easiest way to get there. Go through the door on the far end of the courtyard to find a grav lift that will take you across a bridge. There will be a few more of these throughout the mission so get used to it.
From this point on in the mission you'll occasionally see Brutes and various other Covenant fighting. It's up to you if you'd like to eliminate the Covenant or use their fighting as a distraction and run past. Continue until you go across another bridge gravity lift, after which you'll come to a large square room with a bunch of Drones and some jetpack Elites.
The only door you can go through in this room is the one opposite of where you entered on the second floor; Brutes will come pouring out of the door when you try to go through so be careful. Going through this door will lead you to another bridge gravity lift that leads you to an outside area similar to the one we just went through. You'll need to run across this atrium to another bridge gravity lift on the other side.
My advice if you get turned around during this part is to pay attention to the deployable shields on the ground. I use them as markers to memorize which gravity lift I came from so I know which I have to use next. After going across this next gravity lift you'll come to a room with a large slope in it with a door at the top.
Brutes will pour out of the door when you get close enough and you'll have to take them all out. After you go through this door you'll find yourself in another outside courtyard area similar to the one that had Cortana's Toy earlier. Go through the door on the opposite end of this courtyard, through another hallway and another square room that looks similar to the one from earlier.
If you want better directions I recommend you watch my Halo 2 Youtube Walkthrough for Gravemind, this part of the mission is pretty straight forward and kind of like a rail shooter. All doors that lead to possible branching routes are locked so you can't really get lost unless you get turned around.
Eventually you will come to a large bridge that Cortana says leads to the Mausoleum (pictured below). There will be a bunch of enemies fighting here and you should take them all out before proceeding because we don't want them interfering in the upcoming fight.
The Mausoleum has a bunch of Brutes and Elites fighting inside of it along with two Hunters. You will need to kill every single enemy inside of this room before the door will unlock allowing you to proceed. My advice is to pick off wounded enemies until eventually only one side is left standing - then kill any survivors. There will also be a badass song playing while you're fighting in this room, it changes depending on if you're playing with advanced graphics or not.
Once all the enemies are dead continue through the door that opens - there are a few more enemies to fight but you are basically done the level. Just continue along the linear route until you trigger the cutscene.
Continue to Mission 13: Uprising Walkthrough
Return to Mission 11: Quarantine Zone Walkthrough