Half Life 2 FAQ by Paraphrase for:
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Any other sites currently displaying
this FAQ are probably doing so without
my permission.  Feel free to let me
know.
[Version 1.06]
Half Life, Half Life 2, the Lambda symbol,
and all related materials are copyrighted and
accredited to VALVe Software and VU Games.
New for [Version 0.6]: THE DISCLAIMER
[DISCLAIMER]
For the most part, I try to pull my punches
when it comes to Spoilers.  I won't repeat
lines that characters say, and I won't give
away key plot points.  BUT.  You have to
bear with me.  THIS IS A WALK THROUGH.
That means I played this game a number of
times all the way through, so that I could
write this guide, which I wrote while
playing.  It WALKS you THROUGH the game,
step by step.  If that isn't your cup
of tea, please don't use this guide.
There are less comprehensive guides out
there, ones that advertise their lack
of spoilers.  (And content, if you ask
me)  That's all I have to say on the subject.
[Version 1.06]
12/8/04 2:33 PM PST - Version 1 complete
Disclaimer: Complete
Weapons: Complete (Expanded Grenade Entry)
Rides: Complete
Allies: Complete
Enemies: Complete
Walkthrough: Complete!!!
SCIENCE: Work in Progress
G-Man Sightings: Complete!
[Special Thanks]
Silvio for info on NPC's and the Tripod
Sentry Guns, and also on how much time
has really passed between Half Life 1
and Half Life 2.
Darren Greenburg for being my angelic
spell checker.
SysTem-X for editing and fixing
my grammatical errors.
Jamie Cain, for spotting and fixing
even more errors, and a prank played
on me by my last editor.  ( :P )
Brakman 18 for pointing out that the
Zoom feature isn't useless, and for
giving me some more information about
the ubiquitous Combine Soldier.
Drago for pointing out numerous
additions and information placement.
Kay Abendroth and Knut T. Oulie
for suggesting that you can move turrets
around in the Entanglement Chapter.
Mark Trombino for suggesting an alternate
solution to the second Entanglement
Turret Puzzle.
Pete Starr for suggesting even more
solutions for BOTH Turret Puzzles.
Jackson "Marcom" Dang for suggesting yet
another permutation that may help you
with the second Entanglement Turret
Puzzle.
Bertel for the amusing trick involving
Dog's "Ball".
Joshua Rodriguez for informing me of
Drone #4's proper name - Shield Scanner
Wietze Groenhof for reminding me about a
LAMBDA symbol I missed in Water Hazard
Robert Fremin for cluing me in to the
machine gun's real name - H&K MP7 PDK
The many people who have sent me G-Man
sightings, including but not limited to:
Radoslav
Robert Espinosa
Aaron Chong
Ken Yeoh
John Fogarty
P 3
Joe Dillon
And the five dozen or so people who kept
badgering me about the missing G-Man
sighting in Chapter Four.  I heard you the
first time, you freaks.
And thank you to many, many people who have
written with feed back and suggestions.
Always appreciated.
Please direct all problems and/or errors
to paraphrase.mccormick@gmail.com
*Note: Please put "HL2 FAQ" in the header.
I didn't realize I would actually get comments
and feed back, but I have been, and quite a bit.
This will make it easier for me to find and
reply to your stuff.
6/14/05 - I still get messages now and then
concerning the FAQ.  If you're hesitant
because you think I won't answer, don't
worry about it.  I answer every question
to the best of my ability.  :)
[HALF LIFE 2]
1) Introduction
2) Getting to know Gordon
3) Your Arsenal
4) Your Rides
5) Allies
6) Enemies
7) Walkthrough (FINISHED!!)
8) SCIENCE: The Gravity Gun and You (Work in Progress)
9) G-Man Sightings (Finished)
10) The Console (Coming)
-=   HL2   =-
1) Introduction
The sequel to what many call the greatest shooter ever, Half Life 2 again
seats you in the pants of Gordon Freeman.  Gordon, an M.I.T. graduate with
a doctorate in Theoretical Physics, is not your typical action hero.
He is, for all intents and purposes, a nerd.  But what he lacks in sheer
testosterone, YOU make up for.
Half Life 2 begins a number of years after the ending of
Half Life.  Having been corrected on how long that has been, I'm
not sure if revealing it would ruin the game or not.
The only things that have remained the same are yourself, and the G-Man.
The G-Man is an enigma.  He can move in and out of your world with
effortless ease, and always seems to be twelve steps ahead of you.
If you recall from Half Life's finale, the G-Man had given you a
choice.  In a manner of speaking.  You could either follow him
through a teleportation ring and accept a job... or stay behind
in the border world Xen to fight an endless stream of alien Grunts.
The correct "choice" was to accept his proposal.  This left you
stranded in a limbo like dimension.  Until now.
From out of the void the G-Man's all too familiar, halting speech reaches you.
It seems the time has come for your, as he puts it, limitless potential
to be tapped.  For some reason that is beyond your scope, you have been
chosen to once again be the right man in the wrong place.
-=   HL2   =-
2) Getting to know Gordon
This time around Gordon has a few new tricks to pull out of his miraculous
HEV suit.
An upgraded version of your suit, dubbed the Mark V, has a number of
improvements over the old one.  Lets go over them, as knowing when to
use each ability has tremendous advantages.
- The Zoom Function
Contrary to the demos shown at E3, you CAN NOT fire while zoomed in. The
only weapon in the game that allows for zoomed firing is the new Crossbow.
The HEV suit's zoom is merely for scouting purposes.  Don't overlook that.
Just because you can't zoom in with your pistol doesn't mean the zoom is
useless.  To use the Zoom function, press and hold the "Z" key.
*Note: Thanks to Brakman 18 for pointing out that the Zoom Function
can be used with Vehicle weapons.
-Speed Booster
Drawing on your suits new Auxiliary Power unit, mechanics in your legs
can boost your running speed CONSIDERABLY as long as you hold down the
SHIFT key.  The only drawback is that you can only run at top speed until
your Auxiliary Power unit is drained.  Keep this ability in mind in the
later stages, particularly "Sandtraps", as you can outrun the Antlions
long enough to get back on to rock and then proceed to take them out safely.
It is also useful as it makes it much safer to run between cover while
dodging machinegun emplacements.
-Flashlight
The only notable change to the flashlight is that it also draws power away
from the Auxiliary Power unit.  Don't forget that!  It's generally best to
turn your flashlight off before using other abilities, especially the
oxygen tank.
-Oxygen Tank
In Half Life 2 there is actually a functional meter for your O2 levels
while underwater.  The downside is that your suit's re-breather runs off
the Auxiliary Power unit.  And thus, if used in conjunction with
other suit abilities, cuts your time underwater in half, at least.
-Charger Interface
Dr. Kleiner has adapted the charger couplings of the HEV suit to work
with Combine technology, allowing you the opportunity to run up the bad
guy's electric bill whenever you find their chargers laying around.
-=   HL2   =-
3) Your Arsenal
A few new weapons, a few old ones, but everything has changed, with the
exception of the good old Crowbar.  I've ordered the weapons in the
manner that they appear on your HUD.
________________________
[Crowbar]       |
Ammo: N/A               |
Effective Range: Melee  |
________________________|
Once again your first weapon is the Crowbar.  Don't fret though, a few
whacks from this will drop any Combine foot soldiers that are hassling
you.  And then you can take THEIR weapons.  You'll mainly use the Crowbar
for breaking planks, boxes, and grates.  It's a tool more then a weapon.
_________________________
[Gravity Gun]    |
Ammo: N/A                |
Effective Range: Medium. |
_________________________|
I'm hoping to better detail the Gravity Gun in section 8 of this
FAQ.  Bear with me while I fine tune.
_______________________________________________
[USP Match 9mm]                        |
Ammo: 18 Round Magazine, 150 Rounds in Reserve |
Effective Range: Medium                        |
_______________________________________________|
The pistol this time around is surprisingly potent.  While it's best to
give it the shaft when you pick up the machine gun, it can drop Combine
foot soldiers just fine.  I would like to point out, however, that you
generally have plenty of ammo for the pistol, and should use it for
picking off Tripwire Bombs, Explosive Barrels, Headcrabs, etc.  Things
where you could conserve ammo from heavier weapons.
(Thanks to Drago for prompting me about that.)
*Note: The pistol is apparently packing a new trick.  First, hold down
secondary fire.  Then, hold down primary fire.  Count to about
ten (or longer).  When you see an enemy, aim at him and release
secondary fire.  You will unleash a large number of bullets
simultainiously.  I don't know why, but it does work.  Just bear
in mind that you can usualy only do this once, as a surprise
attack.  (Thank you to Zero for letting me in on this little
trick)
*Note: A recent patch to the HL2DM mod removed the bullet charging trick.
I'm not sure if it affects single player at the moment.
________________________________________
[.357 Magnum Revolver]          |
Ammo: 6 rounds chambered, 12 in reserve |
Effective Range: Medium to Long         |
________________________________________|
The Python makes it's triumphant return.  This thing packs even more punch
then it did in Half Life, thanks to the physics system.  Enemies will
literally be blown back by the force of it's bullets.  Keep in mind,
however, that while this gun can drop Combine foot soldiers in one head
shot, Zombies are not as susceptible.  Use the Magnum primarily for picking
off targets at medium to long range, as it's very accurate.  At close range,
other weapons do the job better.  EXCEPT!  Except for the "Leaper" Zombies
in Ravenholm.  When those bastards are climbing up the rain gutters to get you,
stand on the ledges and fire into their headcrab head.  This will drop them in
one shot, before they can get to you.  Very handy.  Also bear in mind that the
Magnum takes a bit longer to reload then most of your other weapons, and it's
generally a good idea to switch to something else if you're still under fire,
rather then wait for the reload.  Granted, if you can find cover, it's not
a problem.
____________________________________________________________________
[H&K MP7 PDK - Machine Gun]                                 |
Ammo: 45 round magazine, 225 rounds in reserve ; 3 contact grenades |
Effective Range: Medium                                             |
____________________________________________________________________|
The Machine gun has changed substantially.  No longer the military issue
MP5 from Half Life, this baby will keep you wanting for ammo.  The secondary
fire is still the contact grenade, however these new grenades have a much
wider blast radius (Which is good).  Remember that you have to "indirectly"
fire the contact grenades, as they travel in a slight arc.  The farther
from you the target is, the more of an arc you need to land the grenade
at his feet.  Take the opportunity to practice - Quick save when you have
some grenades and try lobbing them around.  Then just load your game back
up and keep moving.
___________________________________________________________________
[Pulse Rifle]                                              |
Ammo: 30 rounds in magazine, 60 rounds in reserve ; 3 energy cores |
Effective Range: Medium to just under Long                         |
___________________________________________________________________|
This baby is truly kick ass.  It can drop soldiers in just a few rounds.
The real problem is you'll run out of ammo real quick.
Thankfully, most Combine platoons have a few pulse rifles amongst them,
so you can usually replenish your supply after a fire fight.  BE CAREFUL
WITH THE SECONDARY FIRE. Myself and most of my friends were not ready for
the Energy Core, and sometimes accidentally took out allies with it.
When you fire the secondary mode of the Pulse Rifle, a large pulsing
ball of light will shoot out of the gun, and ricochet around the
area for a few seconds.  Try to fire it INTO groups of enemies,
not at their feet, but INTO them.  Laugh as they are disintegrated,
but make sure it doesn't hit you on it's way around the room.
____________________________________________
[Shotgun]                           |
Ammo: 6 rounds loaded, 30 rounds in reserve |
Effective Range: Close to Medium            |
____________________________________________|
The biggest change to the shotgun, aside from looks, is the reduced
amount of ammo you can carry.  In Half Life, you could hold up to 125
rounds of 12 gauge - This time around it's only 30.  You get the Shotgun
for the first time in Ravenholm, from Father Gregori.  USE IT.  You will
need it.  Ammo will be a bit short but Zombies go down fast in front of
buckshot.  Always aim for the head of your target, and wait until they are
at CLOSE RANGE.  You can still hit things that are farther away, but you
won't do nearly as much damage.  As before, the Shotgun's secondary fire
mode is to unleash two shots at once.  Always use that at CLOSE range, and
only on the tougher "Leaper" zombies.  Never on the standard ones.  It's
a waste of ammo.
____________________________________________
[Crossbow]                          |
Ammo: 1 round onboard, 10 rounds in reserve |
Effective Range: Very Long                  |
____________________________________________|
This crossbow is very different from the one in Half Life in two important
ways.  First off, it only fires a single shot before you have to reload it,
but during the reload you WILL NOT lose your zoom.  That's handy.
Secondly, at extreme range the Crossbow "bolt" (which is actually superheated
rebar) arcs down a bit.  So make sure you aim just above the heads of distant
enemies.  That ensures a body shot, which is all you need to kill someone with
the Crossbow.
____________________________________
[Grenade]                   |
Ammo: 5 grenades in reserve         |
Effective Range: Just beyond Medium |
____________________________________|
Grenades are different!  Very different.  First of all, you throw them harder
and straighter then you could in Half Life.  Secondly, no matter what you do,
the grenade will have a five second fuse as soon as it leaves your hand, and
not a moment sooner.  This means you may have to anticipate enemy movement
to score a good hit.  But For the most part, if you only use grenades
for room clearing and for taking out snipers (That is detailed later),
they work just fine.
(Thank you to Rangerband for cluing me in to something I should have seen)
Secondary fire on the grenade, if standing, is a gentle lob that sort of
tosses the grenade onto the ground with no real finesse.  If you crouch
and hit secondary fire, however, you ROLL the grenade, in a fairly aimable
line.  This is a KEY manuver to use when dealing with pop up turrets late
in the game.  Crouch down outside the turret's laser sensor, and roll a
grenade into the cavity it pops out of.  Boom, no more turret.
________________________
[RPG]           |
Ammo: 3 rockets onboard |
Effective Range: Long   |
________________________|
Rockets have changed too.  For starters, you don't have to reload the
launcher, there's just a short pause in between shots.  Secondly, you
only have three rockets at any given time.  Don't fret, though.
Whenever you're faced with a Gunship, an enemy that can only be brought
down by Rockets, there will always be an ammo crate SOMEWHERE that you
can utilize.  Now, the Rocket only has one firing mode - Laser Guided.
And it will FOLLOW that laser.  You can execute some pretty impressive
acrobatics with the rocket.  And you'll have to – Gunships can shoot
down Rockets that fly directly at them.  You'll need to weave the rocket
around, and sometimes behind, the Gunship before bringing it in for the
kill.  It takes five to six rockets to destroy a gunship, so make sure
you know where ammo is incase you miss.
____________________________________________
[Pheremone Gland; "Bug Bait"]       |
Ammo: Unlimited                             |
Effective Range: Close to Long, Arcing Shot |
____________________________________________|
This isn't so much a weapon as it is chaos in the palm of your
hand.  When you get this, Drone Antlions will no longer attack
you.  Instead, they will follow and protect you!  Keep in mind
a few things, however.  First being that Antlions can go places
you can't.  If there's an enemy shooting at you way up high,
just toss a Pheremone Gland up to him and your Antlion army will
FLY up there to eviscerate him.  If you want to call them back,
just use secondary fire to squeeze your Gland, and the Antlions
will return chittering happily.  The big warning, however, is
that this will not work on Antlion Warriors.  So don't even bother.
Another note - The large ground pounders that keep Antlions away will
confuse any Antlions following you.  It's best to send them to a spot
away from the pounder by chucking a Gland where you want them to go,
and then returning to turn off the Pounder by yourself.  The Antlions
will quickly return to you once the pounder stops.
-=   HL2   =-
4) Your Rides
Vehicles in Half Life.  Mmm mmm.  And these actually work, unlike
the fantastic failures of many Half Life 1 mods.  Now, you won't
exactly have GTA freedom when it comes to the vehicles, you
generally have them for a few levels and then the game moves on.
But boy howdy, fun stuff.  Doing them in order:
[Air Boat]
Controls
E - Enter/Exit
W - Forward
S - Backward
A - Left
D - Right
F - Headlight On/Off
Mouse 1 - Machine Gun (When acquired)
Mouse look - Aim Machine Gun (when acquired)
*Note: Thanks to Brakman 18 for pointing out that you can
use your HEV suit's Zoom Function to zoom in and
fire the Machine Gun.
The Air Boat is amphibious, moving on and off land with relative
ease.  However, bear in mind that the boat will have a harder time
turning on dry land.  When you hit the water after a jump, be
careful about leaning on the controls, as the boat will instantly
JERK in the direction you're holding.  The boat will not flip,
however, as you won't have the Gravity Gun at that point in the
game and you'd never be able to right the boat on your own. You will
have to dodge a number of obstacles, ranging from floating barrels
of explosives to magnetic mines to Barnacle tendrils under bridges.
If you touch a Barnacle tendril you will be taken out of the boat
and dragged upward.  Immediately shoot the damn thing so that it drops
you, and then just hit your USE key to re-enter the boat.  You can
also exit the boat at any time (And you will need to) by simply
pressing your USE key.  Once you have made it through the
"Water Hazard" chapter, you will come across a Resistance way station
and a Vortigaunt.  The helpful alien will attach a stolen Combine
machinegun to your boat, giving you the power you need to take out
the roving Hunter helicopters (more on this later).  The machinegun
has unlimited ammo, but operates on a "Charge" system.  You need to
let it rest once the ammo meter hits zero, and it will quickly be
ready to fire again.
[Scout Car]
Controls
E - Enter/Exit
W - Accelerate
S - Brake/Reverse
A - Left
D - Right
Shift - Turbo
Space - Handbrake
Mouse 1 - Fire Tau Cannon
Mouse 2 - Charge Tau Cannon (Release to fire a charged shot)
Mouse Look - Aim Tau Cannon
*Note: Thanks to Brakman 18 for pointing out that you can use your
HEV suit's Zoom Function to zoom in and fire with the Tau
Cannon.  Spiffy.
The Scout Car is a very jittery thing that can roll easily, but the
levels in which you have it are perhaps my favorite out of the entire
game.  It's sort of like Mad Max from that point on, until you lose
the car later.  But I digress:
*note: Don't forget that your car has a machinegun ammo crate on the
back.  If you need ammo for the machine gun, simply go to the back
of the car and hit your USE key.
You NEED the car.  Like the boat, it is the only way you'll make it
through.  And if for some reason you chuck the car off a cliff or let
it get blown up or crushed or any number of things that would destroy
it (Which is hard) the game ends.  You will be driving over rough
terrain.  Highway 17 is badly in need of repairs that it won't be
getting, and sections of the road may be blocked - or may have been
blown away altogether.  Using the Gravity Gun you can clear a path for
the Scout Car, and using your head you can find ways around gaps in
the freeway.  The car, while it looks fragile, can easily tear through
wooden fences and run over Combine Foot Soldiers and Antlions with out
trouble.  The biggest obstacles to your car are Roller Mines and getting
flipped on it's back.  Roller mines will cling to the car and send
jolts through it every few seconds, damaging you.  The best way to
remove them is not your crowbar, but the Gravity Gun.  Use secondary
fire to pry the Roller Mine(s) away from the car, and then use Primary
fire to shoot them into the ocean, where they will explode.  Yay.
When your car is flipped, immediately get out and hit your "G" key to
whip out the Gravity Gun.  Use Primary fire to flip your car back upright,
and then get in.  Don't bother wasting time with Antlions, you can just
run them over.  If you have to leave your car for any reason, and you're
in Antlion territory, try to park it inside the radius of a Pounder.
You'll know them when you see them.  Pounders will keep Antlions
occupied while you do whatever you need to do.  Well.  For the most
part.  Sometimes they work their way around the Pounder and come after
you, but at least your car will be safe.
*note: At the urging of a Steam buyer of HL2, Aaron Sharpe, I will put a
reference for the Crane here.
[Crane]
W - Swing arm out
S - Pull arm back
D - Swing Crane Right
A - Swing Crane Left
Mouse 1 - Drop Magnet
Mouse 1 (When Carrying Object) - Drop Object
-=   HL2   =-
5) Allies
A number of your associates and coworkers from Black Mesa have survived
during your absence.  Flying the Lambda symbol as their flag, these
charismatic and brilliant individuals have rallied humanity to the cause
of freedom.  The Resistance will help you whenever, and where ever,
they can.
*Note:  Thank you to Silvio for pointing out that Essential NPC's CAN
die.  That tip was much appreciated.
[Barney Calhoun]
We loved him.  We hated him.  We made him talk to his clones.  Barney
is back.  You first encounter him in Chapter One, "Point Insertion".
This is mostly story and I'll leave that for you to enjoy, but the gist
is Barney has infiltrated "Civil Protection", the politically correct
term for the Combine militia.  He will help you escape capture a number
of times, and you'll get the chance to save his ass later on.
[Dr. Issac Kleiner]
Quite possibly the same Kleiner that got Gordon his job at Black Mesa,
the good doctor is a bit... absent minded.  Though undeniably brilliant,
he also keeps a de-beaked headcrab as a pet (Lamar).  Vital to the story,
and the one who gives you your upgraded HEV suit, the Mark V.
[Lamar]
Is a de-beaked Headcrab.  She's harmless.  Mostly.  (Yes, she)
[Dr. Eli Vance]
A pioneer of the technology behind Teleportation, Dr. Vance has been a
driving force behind the resistance.  He's missing a leg, and is a bit
grey on top, but this is the same Dr. Vance who asked you for help after
you caused the resonance cascade at Black Mesa.  Makes you wonder about
just how long you've been gone.
[Dr. Judith Mossman]
One of the main contributors to the teleporter project, Dr. Mossman is
a big fan of yours, or at least comes off that way.  She doesn't get
along too well with Alyx, something that will be readily apparent to
you.  She'll talk your ear off about science.  Don't worry if you can't
understand her.
[Alyx Vance]
Has the hots for you.  Seriously.  She's the daughter of Eli Vance, and
is brilliant in her own right.  She's responsible for the "growth" of her
robotic companion, Dog, and will lead you through a number of tight spots
in the game.  Well.  And she sends you to Ravenholm.  Bitch.
[Dog]
This guy is fun.  I know he seems goofy when you first meet him, but give
him a chance to show you how much ass he can kick, and you will be
impressed.  Oh, uh.  Alyx's fiercely loyal companion.
[Father Gregori]
Is insane.  But that's ok.  He gives you a Shotgun, and a bunch
of traps you can play with.  Lighting zombies on fire should
always be this much fun.
[Resistance Militia]
An assortment of citizens armed and ready to give their lives to
combat the Combine.  They arm themselves with whatever is available,
but you typically see them carrying Shotguns, Machineguns, and
Pulse Rifles.  Rarely you'll find one with an RPG, but that's usualy
a tell tale sign that a Strider is near by.  There are also Medics
mixed in with the regular Infantry, and you can easily spot them thanks
to the bright Red Cross emblem.  They will pass out medkits to both you
and any other injured soldier in the squad.  Try to keep them alive.
These men and women will follow you everywhere, and obey your commands
unquestioningly.  To order them to a position, simply look at it with
your reticule (crosshair), and press your "C" key.  Tapping C twice will
cause your squad to briefly stop following you.  Pressing C again, or
just waiting too long, will cause them to resume their following.
[Vortigaunts]
You will also encounter a number of friendly Vortigaunts, which you
might know better as "Alien Slaves".  Freed from their oppression by
your triumph over Nihilanth in the first game, the Vortigaunt bear
you no ill will for the lives of those you killed.  But they also
don't offer any forgiveness.  As the one who tells you this says,
"It is not mine to give".  They will do a number of interesting things
for you, cool things, that I'll leave you to be surprised by.
-=   HL2   =-
6) Enemies
Where you meet 'em, how to beat 'em.
*Please note that all descriptions are based on playing the game at the
Normal difficulty setting.  Toughness in Hard will undoubtedly be greater.
[Combine Foot Soldier]
These guys are omnipresent, literally everywhere.  You will always
have plenty of them to fight, and will have to adapt to their tactics.
If you don't see any, you can usually bet that a Drop ship is on the way
to dump some off for you.
When it comes to beating the standard Foot Soldier, just shoot them.
Be on the look out for grenade throwers, and be ESPECIALLY careful of
Foot Soldiers with Pulse Rifles - They might use the Energy Core secondary
attack, and if you're on the ball, you can catch it with your Gravity Gun
and fling it back at them.
The easiest way to tell that Foot Soldiers are around is their distinctive
radio chatter.  You'll know.
*Note:  Thanks to Brakman 18 for pointing out the "Ranks" of foot soldiers:
[Metro Cops]
These are the first Combine Soldiers you interact with.  As Brakman
pointed out to me, they're armed only with Pistols and Stun Wands.
[Combine Soldier]
Wearing black armor, these are the bulk of what you encounter for
the rest of the game.  Armed with Machine Guns and Pulse Rifles.
[Elites / "Assassins"]
Wearing white armor, with red glowing eyes, these soldiers are
tougher then the black armored counterparts, and will always be
wielding Pulse Rifles.  They are also the only Soldiers that use
the Energy Core secondary fire on the Pulse Rifle.
[Combine Snipers]
Easily noticed by the distinctive blue laser beams they use to target
enemies, Snipers will be holed up in small, inaccessible rooms.  Your
only option in dealing with them is to use cover until you are close
enough to their window to lob a grenade inside.  If the grenade goes
into the window, you have a kill.  RPG rounds also work in a pinch.
[Headcrabs]
These little bastards come in three flavors this time.  Your standard head
crab, the "super leaper" headcrab, and the "Black Super Leaper" headcrab.
The Combine have mortar rounds that don't explode, and instead open up to
offload one of the three headcrab types.
[Standard]
Easy enough.  They don't do much damage, but they can get annoying.
Plus, even these little bastards have a new trick up their sleeves.
When you kill a zombie now, it's Headcrab might not die, and will
instead fall off, get up, and come after you.  Make sure it's dead.
[Super Leaper]
Easily identifiable by the longer legs.  They move like spiders,
and are much faster then normal headcrabs.  Again, not very dangerous,
but they can surprise you.  The biggest problem with these guys is
the zombies they make.  The "Leaper" Zombies are noisy, fast, and
dangerous.  Very unlike the standard Zombie.
[Black Super Leaper]
These guys are NOT fun.  If they bite you, they inject a neurotoxin
that instantly reduces your health to 1 point.  You heard me.
1 point.  Your suit will immediately administer an antidote, but that
takes time.  You need to kill these things before they hit you, or at
least make sure that it's only them you have to worry about.  Another
enemy could just waltz up and smack you after you've been stung, and
that would be it.  The Zombies these guys make are almost worse then
the "Leaper" Zombies.  But that's next.
[Zombies]
Oh we hate them.  Oh they're everywhere.  Ravenholm is Zombie central,
but it won't be the last you see of them.  As with the headcrabs, there
are now THREE types of Zombies, as follows.
[Standard Zombie]
They make a lot more noise now.  Try lighting one on fire.  You almost
feel bad for it.  But you won't.  As stated above, make sure the
headcrab is dead.  If you shoot the Zombie in the chest, there's a
good chance the Headcrab will just drop off and attack you.  Go
for headshots.  Be elite.
[Leaper Zombie]
These things are just muscle and bones.  No skin.  And they MOVE.
They can leap over obstacles, leap at you, climb walls, jump from
rooftops, basically everything normal zombies can't do, these CAN.
You'll know they're coming when you hear the telltale howling,
almost like a monkey being run over very slowly by a steamroller.
You want to make these things dead, and fast.  Shotgun to the
Headcrab is your best bet.  Go double shot if you have to.  And
MAKE SURE THE HEADCRAB IS DEAD.
[Piggy Back Zombie]
This is what the Black Leapers do.  There will never be more
then two of these fighting you, and for good reason.  The Black
Super Leaper that controls the Zombie will be giving about three
other Black Super Leapers a ride.  The Zombie will, when it sees
you, allow the Black Leapers on it's back to jump at you.  This is
bad news.  And even if you manage to take out the carrier zombie,
the Black Super Leapers just jump off and run at you.  Don't forget
about that, you want to have something to take out the passengers.
Large objects like fan blades can sometimes kill a Piggy Back Zombie
in one hit.  Use your Gravity Gun to fling the objects.
[Robot Drones]
These are Combine drones, and they get annoying.  And they all fly!
[Scanners]
These don't do much, but they will tell Guards where you are.
You may or may not see results.  If they get in your face, just
use your crowbar on them, no need to waste ammo.  On the upside,
they sometimes drop batteries.
[Man Hacks]
Flying buzz saws.  They whiz around, bouncing off walls, coming
in through windows or pipes or air ducts, and then they zero in
on you and try to cut you.  Use your Crowbar or Gravity Gun.
If you get them with the Gravity Gun, Shoot them INTO a wall,
don't just chuck them.  If you don't break them, they WILL come
back.  Soldiers will sometimes carry these things, and you can
actually watch them being launched by hand.  Shoot the guy before
the Man Hack comes online.
[Flash Bulbs]
Think of an intelligent flashbang grenade.  That's about what
these things are.  They blind you, so that Combine Soldiers can
have an easy time of picking you off.  SHOOT THESE.  They stay
at a distance, so your only option is to use a gun.  You don't
want to use the Gravity Gun because if you pull them in close
and they go off, you'll be blind for a good while.
[Shield Scanners]
You encounter these in the Anticitizen One chapter, where they
will continually pose a threat by dropping Hoppers on you.
Their body consists of a cylindrical part, and then a long,
stretching and expanding arm which they use to drop the Hoppers.
(I was clued in to the name by Joshua Rodriguez)
[Barnacles]
They're back.  They look different, but they're still the same deal.
Just like before, Barnacles hang out on Ceilings.  If you get caught
by a Barnacle, it will pull you up into it's mouth.  Don't let it.
Look straight up and unload on the corpulent bastard.  It shouldn't
take much to kill one, and you're rewarded by it's death animation
in which it vomits the remains of it's last meal on you.  Yay.
(Thanks to Drago for suggesting I place this earlier in the FAQ)
You should also be aware that you can feed Barnacles just about anything.
They will chew on bits of trash, barrels, even enemies - I've watched
happily as a Barnacle has eaten a Headcrab that got caught in mid leap.
But perhaps the most useful thing you can feed it is an Explosive Barrel.
Give the Barrel to the Barnacle's tendril, then back up and shoot it until
it lights on fire (The Barrel, stupid).  The resulting explosion will kill
the Barnacle and most likely any other Barnacles near by.
[Antlions]
There are two different types of Antlions, the Drones and the Warriors.
The Warriors attack you at predetermined points along the story, but the
Antlions show up during "Highway 17" and stick with you all the way
through "Nova Prospekt" although by then they are on your side, thanks
to the Pheremone Gland.
[Antlion Drones]
Are annoying.  They are attracted to noise, and your little car
makes a lot of it.  Once they start coming, they won't stop.
So keep moving.  If you have to deal with them, use the Shotgun or
machinegun.  But your best bet is to keep moving!  During the
second half of "Sand Traps" you'll need to stick to the rocks to
avoid stirring up angry Antlions.  If you happen to fall on the
sand, get to a rock before you start attacking the Antlions.  That
way, you can deal with the ones that pop up, and not an endless
wave of them.
[Antlion Warriors]
These suckers are big.  They will knock you around quite a bit
if they manage to hit you.  Don't stand still when facing a Warrior,
keep moving.  Circle strafe.  And focus as much damage as you can
on it.  Unlike the Gargantuas from Half Life 1, these enemies seem to
be susceptible to all types of weapon fire, though I strongly suggest
you use your heaviest weapons first.  A few rockets and clips of pulse
rifle ammo would be well spent on taking one of these down.  When
attacking, the warrior will charge you, which is why you keep moving.
You can even do a bull fighting maneuver and steer the Warrior into a
wall.  This will stun it for a few brief seconds, believe it or not,
but then it will quickly turn to face you.  Just keep up a steady
stream of fire while dodging it's charges and you'll be fine.
[Roller Mines]
Usualy buried in the ground waiting to spring up at you, these annoying,
magnetic enemies can also be dropped from passing Combine dropships.  These
are quite prolific along "Highway 17", but are surprisingly easy to deal with.
Simply use your Gravity Gun's secondary fire to grab a hold of the Roller Mine,
and then turn and throw them into the ocean or off a cliff.  And trust me,
there will be a cliff near by, or the ocean, or both.
[Striders]
Striders are literally gigantic.  They tower over you, standing at least
3 stories in height, and it takes a lot of fire power to bring down one
of these bastards.  A Strider takes at least six rocket hits before going
down, and this will require you to find an ammo crate so that you'll have
enough rockets to do the job.  Resistance rocket infantry can also help you,
but you can't always count on having one near by.  The best advice I can give
you is to stay the hell away from Striders whenever possible.  When you must
fight them, try to do so from as far away as possible, or from an elevated
position.  I say this because Striders can not only shoot at you, but also
step on you, resulting in instant death.  Striders are also equipped with some
kind of blue Combine energy beam that disintegrates anything caught in a direct
blast.  Normally you'll get hit by the splash damage, and it's damn hard to
avoid, but that's just one more reason to take Striders down as quickly as
possible.
[Hunter Helicopters]
One of the less alien vehicles used against you, the Hunter Helicopters
are most prolific during your Air Boat ride.  Most of them will do
diving attacks at you, spraying machine gun fire all over the place.
You have to simply avoid them as best you can until you acquire the
Combine Machine Gun for your air boat.  Once you have the gun, you'll
be able to take out the Helicopters.  You should also be wary of the
mine laying helicopters - These helicopters will fly back and forth
above you, dropping row after row of magnetic floater mines.  Keep moving,
and dodge the mines as best you can.  If you do get hit, don't panic,
just adjust your steering to compensate for the blast.
[Armored Cars]
You'll see a lot of these through out the game, but for the most part
they'll be stationary.  The only time you really have to worry about
them is during "Water Hazard".  They will be parked on the various
docks along the canal and will fire barrages of rockets at you.
At first, you can only dodge the rockets.  But once you have acquired
the Combine Machine Gun, you'll be able to blow them up.  Do so.
[Sentry Guns]
There are a few varieties of Sentry guns, and different ways to deal
with each of them.
[Tripod Sentries]
*Special thanks to Silvio for pointing out that the
Gravity Gun is more proficient at knocking these things
over then regular gunfire.
These freestanding sentry guns are fairly annoying, and
different then their Half Life 1 counterparts.  In order to
disable these guns you will either need to get on the side of
them and knock them over with gun fire, or throw a well placed
grenade and hope the blast knocks them over.  Don't be too
quick to run by them if you do manage to knock them over, as
they will continue to fire erratically for a few moments.
At a later point in the game you will have to set these guns
up yourself and use them to defend key points in the
"Entanglement" level.  To do so, simply open the locker they
are stored in, and then hit your USE key to pick them up.  Carry
them to a spot that offers them a good field of fire, and hit your
USE key again to drop them.  If they are knocked over by enemy
fire, just run over and hit your USE key again to pick them up.
You may have to shake your view around a bit to get the sentry
gun up right, but once it is just drop it so it can resume firing.
[Pop up Sentries]
These guys are hidden beneath floor tiles, and will only pop
up once you trip their laser sensor.  When they do pop up,
a second laser will begin sweeping the floor in front of them.
If you trip this laser, they will open fire so do your best to
avoid it.  The only way to deal with these annoyances is to lob
a grenade INTO their cavity.  Once the grenade is inside the
sentry gun, just get out of the way and wait for the boom.
[Gunships]
These bio-mechanical, aerial enemies are quite dangerous.  Despite their
large size they are incredibly maneuverable, and will perform all sorts
of acrobatic tricks to keep you in sight of their machine gun nose.
Gunships can only be taken out with RPGs, and it takes a total of five to
six rockets to bring one down.  You have to weave the rocket around the
Gunship, however, as a direct attack will allow the Gunship to shoot the
rocket down easily.  Try firing away from the Gunship, and then bringing
the rocket back towards the Gunship from a different direction.  Don't
forget that your Rockets are MUCH more responsive in this game, and any
movement you make with the laser sight will be followed by the rocket,
even barrel rolls and loops.  If you miss with one of your rockets,
don't fret - There WILL be a supply crate or ammo box near by to keep
you loaded up during any of the Gunship fights.
[Hoppers]
Hoppers are semi intelligent land mines.  They can distinguish between
friend and foe.  If you get too close to one, it will literally hop
into the air and try to land on your head, where it will then explode.
Regardless of whether it hits you or not, it will explode.  The best
way to deal with Hoppers is to use your Gravity Gun's secondary fire
to yank them out of the ground.  This will reset a Hopper, making it
friendly to you.  You can then either throw it at someone or drop it
gently with secondary fire to make your own land mine.
The best way to tell if a Hopper is around is to listen.  They will
click and chitter if anyone gets close enough to them.  Whenever
you hear that noise, freeze, and look around.  You'll find it if
you just use some observational skills.
-=   HL2   =-
7) Walkthrough
The big one.  Finally Finished!
As requested, Chapter List:
A) Point Insertion
B) A Red Letter Day
C) Route Kanal
D) Water Hazard
E) Black Mesa East
F) "We don't go to Ravenholm..."
G) Highway 17
H) Sandtraps
I) Nova Prospekt
J) Entanglement
K) Anticitizen One
L) "Follow Freeman!"
M) Our Benefactors
N) Dark Energy
A)    [Chapter One: Point Insertion]
You will begin this chapter with a visit from the G-Man.
That's for you to enjoy.  Suffice it to say that the game
doesn't really start yet, so take the time to orient yourself
with your new surroundings.  Talk to people, pick things up
with your USE key (Yes, you can pick things up without the Gravity
Gun).  Take in the sights and sounds of the oppressed populace.
But do so while working your way through the customs gate.
*Note of Interest:  As you first exit the train, follow the two gentlemen
who are in front of you.  When they turn left, you
turn right.  Go to the fence there and get your first
look at a Vortigaunt that is still enslaved by the
Combine.  There's nothing you can do for him now, so
give him a little wave and move on.
After looking at the poor Vortigaunt, do a 180 and head past the
baggage cart, and through the Turnstyle.  Welcome to City 17.
*Note of Interest:  Try making a phone call with your USE key.  You'll find
that all communication with the outside has been cut
off by Civil Protection.
Continue moving through the train station, weaving through the fences
erected around the guard checkpoint.  The guards will wave through
the people in front of you, but ask you to stop.  They will direct you
towards an ominous train marked "Nova Prospekt", but thankfully you won't
make it that far.  You will be trapped in a small enclosure, and a side
door will open.  A guard will step out and order you to follow him.
Do so.  Follow him down the corridor, past what appears to be an
interrogation room (The guard inside will slam the eye slit on you if you
try to look in), and will stop outside an empty interrogation room.
You'll be ordered inside, and you have no choice but to obey.
Don't get too excited though.  The guard will put on a show like he's
going to beat the crap out of you, but it's not really a guard...
*Note of Interest:  It's really Barney Calhoun, your security guard buddy
from Black Mesa.
After some more story chatter which I again leave for you to enjoy,
a knock will come at the door.  Barney will panic, and shove you into
a back room.  He tells you to pile up some boxes to escape out the window,
and to make your way to the plaza.  Use that USE key and get stacking.
In case you didn't notice, the window is on the second floor loft, so
climb the ladder first and THEN use a box to get out the upper window.
Don't worry about the fall, the box outside will break it for you.
Continue through the door to your right and up a flight of stairs.
Use your USE key to open the door, and then turn left.  You find
yourself now in what must have been the ticket area of the Train
Station.  A guard will confront you here, knocking a can onto the
floor and ordering you to pick it up.  Do so, and then throw it into
the trash can.  The guard will get a hoot out of that and leave you
alone.  Feel free to throw some garbage at the Guard if you don't mind
getting a few whacks from the Stun Baton.
Continue forward past the guard, and through the opening on the
far left.  There will be a large double door.  Open it with your
USE key and behold the square.  There's a lot going on out there,
but don't neglect to view the large blue building in the distance -
The Citadel.  It is an ever present symbol of oppression, and the
source of all Combine incursions into the city.  After you're done
looking around, head down the alley way to the right of the Train
Station entrance.  Any other way is blocked by force fields.
Down this alley, you'll see a door to your left that is blocked by a
Guard - Ignore it, you ain't going that way.  Farther down the street
is a roadblock - Not going that way.  Instead, turn right again into a
smaller alley, and use a dumpster to boost yourself up to a Fire Escape.
Go up the ladder and then turn to your right and drop through the hole
there, which will deposit you on the other side of the fence that was
previously blocking your way.
Down this alley you'll see a bust going down to your left - Avoid that.
Go to your right instead and talk to the civilians that are watching a
pair of Civil Protection soldiers break into an apartment.  Things could
get dicey.
*Note of Interest:  You can play with all the playground equipment.  Use your
body, and your USE key to flip X's and O's, spin the
merry go round, and smack the swings.  Fun.
Head towards the pair of guards, but duck into a building to the left.
Follow the hallway until you reach a spiral staircase going around an
elevator.  Take the stairs up.  Work your way through the apartment
building, it's not difficult, just avoid the guards.  They will "Herd"
you towards where you're supposed to go anyway.
Things will get a bit heated as Civil Protection rushes the building,
and all you really need to do is not go in the direction of the guards.
Wherever there's an open path, go.  Eventually, you meet a gentlemen
holding a door open for you, who asks you to come inside.  He'll slam
the door shut and hold off the guards while you get to the roof.
Once on the roof, MOVE.  Combine Soldiers with pistols are now on your
tail and they are going to shoot at you.  Follow the roof up and then
to the left.  You'll drop down onto a ledge on your right, and hug the
building until you reach a pair of open windows.  Go down the stairs,
and then you'll be cornered.  Don't worry though, they will knock you out,
but someone comes to your rescue.
When you come to, all the guards are dead and the only one in sight is...
a girl.  That should tell you immediately how dangerous she is.  Despite
that, follow her through a series of secret passages...
B)    [Chapter Two: A Red Letter Day]
Follow Alyx to Dr. Kleiner's lab.  And then enjoy the show.
*Notes of Interest:  Take a look around the good doctor's lab, especially the