Halo 3: ODST - Storyline

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Campaign

Opening Scroll

Shown after the Bungie and Microsoft Game Studios logos, and before the main menu, is an opening scroll:

The year is 2552
Humanity is at war with the alien alliance known as "The Covenant".

We are losing.

The Covenant have burned our worlds, killing billions in their genocidal campaign.

Earth is our last bastion - a carefully guarded secret.

But not anymore.

A Covenant carrier has breached Earth's defenses and attacked the African mega-city, "New Mombasa".

Initial reports confirm major damage and heavy civilian casualties.

Now military leaders of the "United Nations Space Command" have prepared their response...

Teams of "Orbital Drop Shock Troopers" are ready to assault the carrier from Navy ships in low orbit.

This is a near-suicide mission.

But these troopers are the best of the best.

And saving New Mombasa could be the most important mission of the war...

The Drop

"The Navy put up a good fight."
—Private First Class Michael Crespo.
"'Course they did. It's Earth."
—Corporal Taylor Miles.
"Better late than never."
—Lance Corporal Kojo Agu.

The game begins on a UNSC warship orbiting high above New Mombasa, Kenya on Earth at about 4:00pm (16:00 military time) on October 23rd, 2552, where the majority of the Squad is relaxing around a holo-table displaying the Prophet of Regret's Assault Carrier hovering near the Orbital Elevator. Corporal Taylor "Dutch" Miles, Lance Corporal Kojo "Romeo" Agu, Private First Class Michael "Mickey" Crespo, and Lance Corporal "Rookie" are resting in the back, Romeo jokingly remarking how the Navy only put up a good fight until the Invasion of Earth and still managed to allow a Covenant carrier to slip by the Orbital Defense Grids high above the planet, to which Dutch criticizes Romeo for, stating that they left the lone ship for the Marines to infiltrate. Shortly after, the ship is put on alert when their team leader, Gunnery Sergeant Edward Buck, enters the room with an attractive Naval Intelligence operative named Veronica or "Dare". Romeo quickly responds to them entering the room with "hello, beautiful", which caught the attention of Buck, ordering them to their SOEIV "Drop Pods".

Walking to the armory nearby, Buck is stopped by Veronica who talks about the men in his squad being replacements, to which they go on about the small numbers of combat-experienced Marines they have to lead into combat. Conflicted about what she likely told him prior to entering the room, Buck attempts to protect his men by confronting his previous romantic interest about the Assault Carrier being a more vital concern than her covert mission. Dare reminds them they have orders to follow, and that she should be referred to her rank of Captain, in keeping with military regulations.

Buck directs the Captain to their pods, when Romeo asks about her; obviously angry about the mission, Buck confronts the curious Lance Corporal, informing that she is their "new boss". He gives a short speech to his men, and hands a SRS99D Sniper Rifle to Romeo, confusing him and his teammates about the Assault Carrier mission they were previously given by the Admiralty. Proceeding to enter their pods, Romeo hits the Rookie across the head with the stock of his rifle (the player then transitions to a first-person mode) while still in his pod, Dutch pushes Romeo out of the way and hands the F.N.G. an M7S Caseless Submachine Gun; the Rookie's pod is then shut closed, spun around, and lowered into the launch bay to begin drop preparations.
The Rookie approaches the Assault Carrier.

"Troopers, we are green, and very, very mean!"
—Gunnery Sergeant Edward Buck.

Marine forces are informed by Dare that the Covenant Army is massing beneath the carrier near the Mombasa Orbital Elevator for an organized retreat. Dozens of Orbital Drop Shock Troopers are launched into Earth's atmosphere in a coordinated drop to infiltrate and capture the Prophet of Regret aboard the Assault Carrier. They pass by a few destroyed Frigate-type ships in orbit around the elevator, and begin to enter cloud cover above the city. After a flash forward (as shown by a brief white flash), the Captain orders the squad to adjust their trajectory and drop locations on her order, which launches the Marines way off of their intended course.

Before the Marines can ever deploy the internal parachutes, the invasion forces have already evacuated inside the carrier. Dutch picks up a radiation alert in his pod, and the Assault Carrier proceeds to enter Slipspace. The slipspace rupture generates a devastating shockwave, while the UNSC In Amber Clad (FFG-142) enters the rupture provided by Regret's flagship. An EMP blast emitted by the rupture causes the Marine assault force to lose power in their SOEIV Pods, throwing them all over New Mombasa.

The Rookie Awakes

Six hours after being knocked unconscious by the impact of Mickey's pod and a violent landing into the side of a building, the Rookie finally wakes up at 10:02pm (22:02 Standard Military Time), to the noise of a Type-52 "Phantom" Troop Carriers flying low above the city. After regaining his situational awareness and waiting for the passing phantom to go by, the Rookie arms the four explosive bolts located in all four corners of the door to exit the pod. With the door removed from the pod, the Rookie jumps a few meters down into the streets below, completely draining his stamina and injuring him slightly. After combing the area for medical supplies, he regains his health, and proceeds to find his squad.

Located only a few minutes away from the Rookie's location is a small area patrolled by at least two Covenant squads (one Jiralhanae and four Unggoy each); this is where the Rookie spots a ringing data terminal shortly after defeating both of the squads using his limited arsenal of suppressed weaponry. This ringing data terminal hooks him up with the Superintendent, a 2nd Generation dumb A.I. responsible for the infrastructure of the city. This A.I. provides data unlocked by their commanding officer, Dare, a long time before he encounters the terminal. Complete with maps and notable locations throughout the city, the Superintendent begins to aid this young Marine in his mission.

As the Rookie finds certain clues about his squadmates, the game's perspective shifts to each respective ODST. Six hours earlier, Gunnery Sergeant Buck lands safely and makes radio contact with Dare, who is stuck in her HEV. Aided by two marines, Buck attempts to fight his way to her position, but when he gets there she is gone. He encounters a Huragok that is holding Dare's helmet in one of its tentacles and begins to investigate him, both mistaking it's curiosity for hostility, Romeo snipes it from afar. The two regroup and Romeo informs the Gunnery Sergeant that Dare is dead. At the same time, the Superintendent records via a hidden video camera of where Dare's helmet ends up being tossed by the Huragok's explosion, where the Rookie would later find it.

Dutch and Mickey meet up and work to defend an ONI base. After leading Marines to a rally point, they destroy the bridge leading to the base, but are forced to fall back when the Covenant use Phantoms to land troops around the base. They fall back inside and continue to fight using an AIE-486H Heavy Machine Gun. Eventually they evacuate via Pelican and remotely detonate the ONI base, denying it to the Covenant.

However, they are shot down on a rooftop and make radio contact with Buck and Romeo, who fight their way to the rooftop and defend it against Phantoms and Banshees with missile pods, machine guns and rocket launchers. However, the Covenant then land troops on the rooftop. The ODSTs manage to fend them off using heavy weapons, but Romeo is seriously wounded by a Brute Chieftain before the latter ends up getting taken down by the combined effort of the other three ODSTs.

The ODSTs manage to stabilize Romeo with biofoam. They then proceed to hijack a Phantom and a Banshee to escape the city, blowing past enemy Banshees and even a Scarab while doing so, but notice the increasing number of phantoms and aircraft heading towards where the Slipspace crater was. However, shortly after Buck discards his Banshee and boards the captured Phantom, he remembers where Dare is and orders them to turn back.

Meanwhile, the Rookie finds Dare in sub-level nine of the Superintendent's data hive. Dare explains that she discovered that the Huragok were actually enslaved by the Covenant and were forced to work for them against their will. She also reveals that she has found one which can help the humans, but unfortunately a large force of Covenant is in the way. She explains that this was why she requisitioned their squad on her own mission; it would have been suicide to go alone and she needed backup. The two humans fight their way to the Huragok, Vergil, and eventually made contact with Buck. They escaped the data core and fought though hordes of Covenant troops before reaching the surface. The group reached an elevator that takes them to the interstate highway and when they reach the top, they notice dozens of Covenant ships in the sky. Buck explains, saying that he has a Phantom waiting in a scrapyard and ready to pick them up once they reach there. Vergil powers up an Elephant which Dare shortly enters to drive it, while been escorted by the Rookie and Buck in a Warthog and later a Scorpion tank.

However, more Covenant ships start entering the city and begin the process to start glassing the local area to uncover the portal to the Ark. Buck freaks out; claiming it's Reach all over again. After a Scarab scores a direct hit against the Elephant, the group was forced to change plans, abandon their vehicles, and hide inside a building where marines previously held before their death.

After fighting waves of Covenant troops, including a Brute Chieftain and a Wraith, the captured Phantom arrives. But when the group attempts to board it, a Covenant Carrier appears just over their position and begins charging its glassing beam. Vergil becomes frightened and attempts to flee, but Buck and Dare push and shove Vergil inside the Phantom, and manage to do so in the nick of time before the Carrier's beam glassed the area. The squad then watch the Covenant glass New Mombasa, slowly uncovering a massive Forerunner artifact.

A month later, Admiral Hood gives Sergeant Major Johnson clearance to interrogate Vergil. Dare warns Johnson to be careful. As they enter the room, Vergil is in the process of accessing the Covenant battle net. Johnson tosses the Engineer his lighter, surprising others in the room and causing them to yell in protest; they are concerned about the delicate nature of Vergil. The Engineer catches the lighter smoothly. Speaking of the Covanent excavation in Africa, Johnson confidently tells Vergil, "You're gonna tell me exactly what they're looking for. And then, you're gonna help me stop 'em." Vergil raises the lighter, flicking it open, and lights the cigar that Johnson just placed in his mouth. The Engineer is complicit, perhaps even friendly with the humans.

An additional scene plays upon completing the game on the Legendary difficulty. The Prophet of Truth is seen in the chamber that houses the Superintendent's core, smiling as Engineers uncover an extensive Forerunner complex beneath the earth. There is no clear indication whether this structure is part of the previously uncovered portal generator or something else entirely.