This is Samurai Gamers’ walkthrough for The Face of Extinction, the final mission in Guerilla Games’ Horizon Zero Dawn.
The Face of Extinction picks up almost immediately after the events of the previous mission, The Looming Shadow. NOTE: There will be potential spoilers for the ending of the game in the walkthrough ahead if you haven’t completed the previous missions.
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Main Quest Walkthrough – The Face of Extinction
A cutscene signals the start of the mission, with Aloy resting before the start of the battle ahead. A guard wakes you, and asks you to come with him to see Sun-King Avad because signs of an invasion from Helis have been spotted on the horizon.
The next cutscene shows you talking with Avad at the palace when an explosion goes off in the distance. It’s a squad of massive Deathbringers accompanied by several Corrupters – the siege has begun.
Another smaller explosion goes off below Aloy and Avad; this time, it’s Helis leading his men on the attack. Aloy orders Avad off to command his men and call for reinforcements, while she joins the battle in earnest.
Objective 1: Kill Helis
You will gain control of Aloy as she starts battle in the palace courtyard. To start off the battle, several of Helis’ cultists armed with Deathbringer guns will come at you from both sides of the courtyard. Their guns deal serious damage to your health, so you need to nail them with head shots to take them out as quickly as possible. You may loot the corpses as soon as the cultists go down to keep your resources up. If you have the supplies, set up some traps and lure them to add damage. (Tip: There are supply crates in the courtyard)
Keep your back covered by sniping the cultists while keeping your back to a wall. This is because Helis will sometimes do a surprise attack from behind. He will stalk you around the courtyard; keep your distance from him and shoot him to chip away his health. Engaging Helis in melee combat is dangerous, as he inflicts heavy damage.
From time to time, Helis will also use a fire projectile that adds burn damage if it hits you. Shoot the Blaze containers around the courtyard when he is near them to make them explode and damage him. You can also use some of the guns that Helis’ men brought; lay down some shock wires and let loose on him when he gets incapacitated. Loot Helis for supplies when he goes down.
Objective 2: Go to the Ridge/Defend the Ridge
Break open the decorated door in the courtyard, loot the supply crate you come across, then grab onto the zipline to go down quickly.
You will end up at a small area where you will mount a defense against a Deathbringer and waves of other Machines using an Oseram Cannon. Hold down L2 and R2 to load ammunition from the pile nearby, and fire the cannon by releasing R2. The ammunition will float and load the cannon automatically. Concentrate fire on the Deathbringer to bring it down quickly.
Aloy will note that she needs to move away; this is a cue that the Deathbringer has unleashed an attack. Duck when the shots hit your area to keep HP loss to a minimum, but do not leave the first area just yet. Do so only when one of the Oseram calls out that the Machines have started attacking from the other side. Pick up the Oseram Cannon there and lay waste to the Machines. An attack will also start from the area between the two areas, which you can mount a defense against from either area.
When you have taken out most of the Machines, a trooper will announce that there is a lull in the attacks. Take a breather and replenish your healing items and arrows from the supply crates in the area. Don’t bother crossing over to the other side of the river to loot the Machine carcasses, as an attack will start again almost immediately.
More powerful Machines will be part of the next wave of attacks, including several Ravagers, Glinthawks and a Stormbird to cap things off, not to mention the constant attacks from the Deathbringer.
The next cutscene shows the battle reaching its turning point when a cadre of Deathbringers start moving towards your position. The Machines will open fire, destroying the walls of the palace, while Aloy will get knocked down and passes out. She is woken up by Teb, who tells her of what happened – the Deathbringers are going to the Spire, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake.
Follow the trail of destruction: Aloy will only have a sliver of health left when you regain control of her, so make use of your medicines, as you will still have a long battle ahead. Follow the waypoint to the location of the Spire, keeping your eyes peeled for supply crates along the way. Keep the waypoint ahead of you as much as possible, because a wrong turn here can lead you to a fire trap. In addition, a few Machines that are still in the area will attack you.
Turn to Page 2 for the next part of the walkthrough for The Face of Extinction!
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