Introduction
Recon armor was not originally to the public when Halo 3 came out. After the release of Halo: ODST, recon armor become unlockable by completing 7 "Vidmasters" and accessing the menu on Bungie.net. After official support for Halo 3 dropped, I am not sure how to access the Bungie menu to click "Unlock," but I am sure you can find that updated information somewhere through Google. Nonetheless, this guide still provides all the information you need to complete each Vidmaster.
The Vidmasters
There are seven in total, and some require Halo 3: ODST and some require Halo 3. Note: Most of these also need to played online in order to be completed.
Earn all seven Vidmasters and then you should be able to unlock your new recon armor!
1) Vidmaster Endure
I begin this guide with Endure since it is probably the most difficult and time-consuming of all achievements. Remember that you cannot earn this achievement OFFLINE or APPEARING OFFLINE. Please watch the film in my fileshare. I strongly suggest completing this achievement on Alpha Site. The map is small, indoors, and only has TWO possible entrances for enemies. The setup is to have all four players at the back of the base. One person on each side should always have a headshot weapon to kill Grunts, Jackals, and any Brutes who have no armor. The other two should have a Power Weapon to deal with Brute Chieftains and Hunters. The people who have pistols should also have a Silenced SMG and a Plasma Weapon. Use the SMG for any Drones and Jackals. Towards the end, stock up on Plasma Weapons (especially Plasma Pistols) to drain shields of Brutes. Kill the Grunts as FAST as POSSIBLE. When "Catch Skull" is turned on, grunts will throw dozens of grenades at you and commit suicide. Having five grunts is much more dangers than two Brutes. Finally, do not get into Melee battles with anyone. The Mythic Skull DRAMATICALLY increases the health of all AI, and it can take three or five melees to kill even armorless Brutes or Jackals.
If you are going for the endure achievement only (and not the points), patience is the most important thing. Just have each player wait for the enemies to appear. There is no point or need to rush out to where the enemies land and kill them. If you want to rush, it can be done in the first two rounds, but after that I strongly suggest stopping. The main reason you should play defensive is because of Grunts and Chieftains. At a certain point, the Catch Skull will be on almost every round. Grunts will constantly spam Plasma Grenades. If you kill a Brute, then they will all charge at you and commit suicide. Chieftains use a Hammer which has a wide splash damage which can also knock you off the map!
While you wait for your opponents you can Pistol, Carbine, Snipe, or BR the Grunts and Jackals coming to you. They will walk in a straight line allowing for easy multi-kills. Switch to your night vision to see the outlines of cloaked Brutes. To deal with the brightness of the game, simply change your Screen Settings to "Low." Only use Frags against Grunts and Jackals. Save your Plasmas and Spike Grenades to stick Brutes as these are almost instant kills. When things become chaotic, simply chuck grenades into the middle of the map - just be sure your teammates are not there.
Other important tips:
If you are going to try this on Alpha Site, then take a look at the screenshots and descriptions below.
The picture above is the LEFT side of the center. Have two people on each side at the top of the stairs. Between each wave, one person from each side should go and get Plasma weapons from the center or from the other side of the map. Sometimes there will be one or two enemies remaining when a new wave starts, so that is why one person on each side should remain to keep an eye out.
The picture above is the RIGHT side of the center. Do not forget to use the crates as cover. They can can moved around using melee - but this can be time consuming. Note: A Hammer swing or grenades can cause the crate to fly at someone and splatter them. They should only be used for cover from enemy fire. If a crate gets knocked off the map, a new one will spawn.
This is the center and your main battlefield!
POWER WEAPONS!
A Rocket Launcher spawns on the wall on the opposite side of the map. Just go outside and it will above the bench of this picture.
At your base, a Sniper and Shotgun spawn on the wall. The Shotgun eventually becomes too dangerous and inffective to use in the latter rounds.
2) Vidmaster Classic
This achievement is probably one of the easiest achievements.. The requirement for this achievement is to beat any level, solo, on Legendary without firing a single round or throwing a grenade while on XBOX LIVE. Please note that you CANNOT earn this achievement OFFLINE or APPEARING OFFLINE. To clarify, you cannot shoot anything at all - no turret or any weapon of any kind. If you throw a grenade at any time, regardless if it kills anyone or not, you have to revert to the last saved checkpoint. The best mission for this achievement is Lost Platoon. It takes about ten minutes or less once you learn the route. You are allowed to use vehicles; however, if you use a Warthog you cannot honk the horn, power slide or allow a passenger to get in. I suggest using a Ghost. See this excellent video tutorial I found on YouTube from CyberlineFiIms.
3) Vidmaster Deja Vu
The description for this achievement is to beat the last level with four players on LIVE without using a Warthog or Scorpion with the Iron Skull on. Again, this achievement MUST be completed ONLINE. As stated in the description no Warthog or Scorpian can be used at all. Do not drive or even get into these vehicles at any point. Do not worry about leaving Buck behind. He will automatically teleport next to you at each checkpoint. This achievement can be painful or easy. The main thing to keep in mind is teamwork. If one person dies, the game will reset to the last checkpoint. I have beaten this twice already, and the second attempt was completed much faster because people were not screwing around. The time range to beat this would be twenty minutes to an hour.
How to play: First off, no one should die. As easy and obvious as this sounds, it can be quite difficult. Some people naturally do not talk. This will make this achievement a living nightmare if your friends do not communicate. Make sure no one is alone and that if one or two players are weak, you provide immediate help. Likewise, if you are weak, ask your friends to help you out. It is better to play it safe and take cover then trying to be clutch only to die. To make sure you earn checkpoints, make sure there are no enemies around and that you are all together.
Some things to keep in mind:
You can find another great video tutorial from CyberlineFiIms.
4) Vidmaster Brainpan
Although this achievement is found in Halo 3, you must have the Multiplayer disk from Halo 3 ODST to access the last set of Mythic Maps. The achievement states that you must find all skulls on each Mythic map which are: Heretic, Citadel, Longshore, Sandbox, Orbital and Assembly. The maps Sandbox, Orbital and Assembly are available on the Marketplace. To find the skulls, you must be in Forge. Simply locate the skulls via monitor and switch to a Spartan to pick them up. For those that have trouble or difficultly locating the skulls, check out the video tutorial below from Achievements4Gamers.
5) Vidmaster Annual
This vidmaster requires you to play the Halo 3 Campaign. This achievement is similar to Deja Vu in that you need four players to complete the last level on Legendary with the Iron Skull on. This time, however, you need to finish the level with all four players in a Ghost. Again, this achievement MUST be completed on XBOX LIVE. This achievement takes anywhere from thirty minutes to an hour and a half. Again, the difficulty of this achievement depends whether or not you work together with your friends. The good news is that you can use any weapon or equipment throughout the level. When it comes to the driving part, you simply have to have all four players in a ghost. The ghosts are ONLY available on Legendary COOP, so do not try looking around for them on other difficulties. Also, they are located under a ramp outside the main entrance to the Control Room. See the video below from CrazyJezus.
Because you have the iron skull enabled, any death will cause all four players revert to last saved checkpoint. This can be frustrating and time-consuming. The good news is that if you die a lot, checkpoints become much more frequent. The main thing to keep in mind is that you must communicate and work together. No one should be alone at any time. If you have half or less of your shields left, run for cover. You are playing on Legendary difficulty and you can be killed in a matter of seconds. To beat the first half of the level is much easier than most players think. There is a way you can skip most of the fighting up to the Control Room. It requires your best player to grenade jump up the side and then betray Johnson, twice, and use his unlimited Laser to kill all the Flood at the top. See the video below by me.
6) Vidmaster Lightswitch
This is achievement is relatively easy. By now, I am sure most people have earned this achievement. In case you have not, you get this achievement by earning 50 EXP in any playlist. To clarify, this is not your global experience. It is playlist specific experience. One EXP is awarded for winning a game, two EXP during double EXP weekends. If you quit, one EXP is deducted. The fastest ways to earn 50 EXP is by playing Rumble Pit or double EXP weekend games.
Rumble Pit is free for all social playlist with eight players. Games are very easy to find and they tend to be less serious. You do not even need to win the game to earn EXP because EXP is award to the top four finishers (if there are 8 players). If there are less than 8, then the top half (rounded to the nearest whole number) are awarded EXP. So, if there are 7 players, then the top four earn EXP.
Note: Rumble Pit requires downloaded content. If you do not have any DLC, then Social Slayer, and Lone Wolves are your only options. Though if you are going for Recon, then you have to purchase maps anyways.
7) Vidmaster Seventh on the 7th
This achievement is quite easy, but also annoying in that it is only possible to earn this once a month. The achievement requires you to earn 7 EXP in any playlist on the 7th day of any month. By now, most players have earned more than 7 EXP in every playlist. Do not worry, Bungie comes out with a NEW social playlist each month on the seventh so that you can earn this achievement. This playlist usually lasts one to three days. Most of the time, however, all DLC or most of it, is required to play this playlist. Do not quit out until you have 7 EXP. Though it will work, you risk getting banned for excessive quitting. To be clear, once you EARN 7 EXP you must play on it to register that you have earned 7 EXP. Sometimes the achievement will unlock as you search with 7 EXP, other times you need to play a game on the 7 EXP (it does not matter whether you win or lose).
Conclusion
The seven Vidmaster achievements seem time-consuming and difficult, but through this guide, I think you will find the process much easier and, hopefully, more enjoyable. Unfortunately, since I have not played on LIVE for a years I am not sure if Bungie has made any changes to the playlists. Please let me know if something is wrong, I will update it. Have fun with your new Recon!
