In this method you bounce off the near left ledge from part way up the V, then get cushioned by a sloping part of the Shade plateau base then a rock. It's easier than the earlier plateau base rock method which has a higher run-off point. Suitable only for PAL.

Full description

To get into position for a run-off from the V, you have a few options. The quickest is to jump off the left of the start of the bridge to land on the V, then go slightly past halfway down the steep slope and about about-face. Alternatively, get onto the V from the bridge's lower deck, then move up into position. The steep slope is in two sections, the higher being the steeper (unclimbable). You should be on the lower section, a few steps down from the join, and near the edge. Be looking along the cliff - the direction you're about to go.

Run up the slope and off the edge just before the join. Optionally you could jump as you run off, but I don't think it's any help, so I'd say don't bother. Keep the motion joystick forward to try to cover distance.

Along the ledge down below, there's a longish dark patch which is useful as a guide for where you need to bounce off. Try to hit where it gets nearest the ledge's edge, or thereabouts; and don't crouch as you hit. In my picture the arrow tip indicates the approximate spot to aim for. It's within a hazily perceptible dark triangular patch which Sligfantry mentioned in his original description, saying to aim for the middle. I'd say aim for the middle or slightly right of it (still within the dark). If you get the bounce right you'll take health damage - typically losing over half your health - but you should have enough speed for the next bit.

Namely, sail on down to get cushioned by a sloping part of the Shade plateau base, then the nearest rock. I also recommend doing a crouch as you hit the rock to try and further soften the landing, because in a test I did with one particular rock (the one I had in BCM172), doing a crouch more than doubled my success rate. This aspect of the landing may be different from Sligfantry's earlier plateau base rock method, for which I gained no evidence in favour of crouching; or possibly I just didn't test that method extensively enough?

If your ledge bounce is slightly too near the edge (e.g. just out of the dark patch), what you can expect is that you take no damage on the bounce, but fail to get enough distance to reach the rock. As such, failing to lose health on the bounce is pretty much an indicator of imminent failure. Actually, survival is still possible if you happen to get cushioned by a friendly part of the plateau base - see the second plateau base method - but the chance of saving yourself like that are rather slim. It would be hard to drift into the right area for cushioning. It's hard to hit that area even when planned from the outset, let alone attempting it as a late course-change.

If you're heading for the ledge even nearer the edge, you can expect to die from the impact. However, there shouldn't be much danger of you being so far off-target, since aiming is pretty easy.

Incidentally, maybe it's possible to survive just by hitting the rock alone (like you can with a few rocks on the right of the bridge), but I think you'd need to be very lucky. It's never happened to me.

Checkpoint advice

To make things as easy as possible for repeat attempts, get a delayed checkpoint when ready to fall from the V. The considerations for this are just the same as I mentioned for the earlier plateau base rock method, namely that you might want to first eliminate the patrolling Elite and any Banshee (but especially the Banshee, as it's otherwise likely to attack and could easily cause health loss).

Difficulty and system differences

This method seems far easier than the earlier plateau base rock method, which featured a run-off from the top of the V. In tests from a run-off checkpoint, I got a success rate of 44% with the rock shown above and featuring in BCM172 (there was also a time when I succeeded 5 times in a row), and a comparable rate with the fifth rock in the randomization sequence shown in that movie at 3:32. Just to remind you, the rock type gets randomized at the previous loading point. In contrast, the earlier method never gave me better than 8%. Usually rather less.

Much of the trouble with the earlier method is the difficulty of targeting the landing area, the ledge bounce being so fickle - difficult to control. But with this new method it's far easier. From a run-off checkpoint, I find myself almost always heading for the right general area, and in particular there's no overshoot problem.

The method is unsuitable for NTSC and PC. Sligfantry tried it on PC and reported dying on hitting the ledge.

History and links

This method was shown by Sligfantry at the start of his video Halo - AOTCR - 4 More Ways Down From The Bridge on February 9th 2013, just two months after showing his earlier method involving the same landing. There was also an HBO forum thread. The video is hard on the eyes, being recorded by pointing a camera at a screen, but is helpfully accompanied by written details. I eventually covered the method in BCM172.

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