It may seem difficult at first to complete the Arm’s Length achievement in Halo: Combat Evolved since you must reach the end of the first level of 343 Guilty Spark without getting even one point of health damage. However, knowing that even a small damage to your shield counts as failure, you must make precise movements to be able to complete this task. Thankfully, on Easy difficulty level, this is achievable if you know about enemy locations and how to safely overcome each encounter. In this guide, we’ll show you through the entire section step by step to unlock the achievement on your first successful run.
Arms Length Achievement Guide
Achieving the Arms Length award is done by getting through the first level of 343 Guilty Spark without being harmed at all. Therefore, any harm that may be inflicted on your shields will disqualify you from getting the achievement. For an easy experience, start a new game on the Easy difficulty level and load the mission 343 Guilty Spark.
Clear The First Covenant Groups
At the beginning of the mission, you will find numerous Grunt and Jackal groups. Clear every group before moving forward. Some Grunts may not attack you but remain behind; make sure you have killed all of them before advancing.
When fighting the Grunts, beware because the explosion caused by their tanks could hurt you if you’re too close. After turning the next corner, you will meet another two Jackals. Killing these Jackals can easily be done by shooting them continuously using the Assault Rifle.
Further along the road, another group consisting of Grunts and Jackals will attack you as you enter the room. You do not need to kill all of them, but you need to enter the same room. Having too many of them alive will mean that they will hide inside and shoot you as you enter, thus increasing the chances of getting hit. Having cleared the area, take the elevator down. Note that you lose the achievement if you get attacked before getting to the first floor.
Use Grenades Whenever Possible
Once past the elevator, you will move to a chamber where there are lots of Grunts and Jackals. Just toss a grenade into the centre of the group to finish off most of them. There are also two Jackals. The Jackals normally move from the doorway, but in some cases, they may be found on the right side of the door. With proper placement of the grenade, you will be able to kill them both at once. From the upper platform, look down to spot three more Grunts. Another Jackal will appear through the nearby doorway shortly after, so deal with them before moving on.
Finish Off The Remaining Covenant
Three more Jackals can be found through the next door. It is usually possible to take out all of these Jackals by simply throwing a grenade at the group, but sometimes there will be one that survives, which you can take care of later. With these enemies taken out, you have pretty much ended your fighting with the Covenant.
Keep moving through the level and make sure to kill the Marine once you get to him, since he might attack you. Once you extend the light bridge, you can go to another room where you will find an Assault Rifle to use along with the SMG.
Survive The First Flood Room
The Infection Forms will start breaching the doors individually. Stand in front of each of the doors and keep shooting right away when it is breached. It is important to kill all the Infection Forms before they manage to spread throughout the room.
In case some of them manage to escape, they will surround you and make it very hard for you to avoid taking any damage. On the fourth door, it is necessary to throw a grenade before opening the door since there will be some bigger Flood Forms. Before you leave, you need to check your motion tracker because some of the Flood may get stuck in the walls or ceiling of the room.
After the room has been cleared, Flood will be spawned in from both of the ramps on the left and right. Clear all of the enemies on both sides and then move further into the game. In the next room, there is going to be a fight between the Flood and the Covenant. There is no need for you to fight all of them. Just avoid the ongoing fight and move into the next room.
The room after that is also fairly simple. Stick to the right side, eliminate the larger Flood nearby, clear any Infection Forms in your path, and continue forward. In the last big room, just jump up on the light bridge and wait for some time, as this will give the two enemies time to fight amongst themselves and reduce their numbers. If you have any grenades left with you, use them and then proceed further to unlock the door; as you enter the next room, the Arms Length achievement will get unlocked.
