Exclusion Zone (mission)

"Survive the military power of the Cabal and find the Gate to the Black Garden."

- In game description

Exclusion Zone is a story mission that takes place on Mars.

Objectives

 * Infiltrate Cabal Bunker
 * Hack Cabal System
 * Repel Cabal Assault
 * Find the Gate
 * Scan Cabal System
 * Steal an Access Key
 * Access Survey Post

Transcript
{Cutscene}

''The Guardian's ship zooms through Mars' low orbit, making their way towards the surface. It eventually makes its way to the skyline of Mars, over The Barrens of Meridian Bay. It weaves through the desolate buildings in the area.''


 * GHOST: These coordinates put the gate to The Black Garden near the lost city of Freehold. It's been buried in the sands since the Collapse. Now, the Cabal occupy the area, and most of Mars. No one gets through their Exclusion Zone.

''The ship speeds over the sands, then slows, reversing as it does so. It hovers over an unoccupied area. The Guardian warps out, and the ship takes off. The Guardian looks around. Fades to black.''

{Gameplay}


 * GHOST: Great. The gate to the Black Garden is miles from here, and the Cabal got a lock on Orbital Communication. If you want your Sparrow, we're going to have to break into one of their bunkers and disable the system.

The Guardian sprints towards a seemingly abandoned bunker.


 * GHOST: Here's what I have on the Cabal: Eight hundred pounds and highly militarized. They blow up planets and moons just for getting in their way... just so you know what we're dealing with.

''The Guardian finds a door with an electronic lock. Sounds can be heard through the walls.''


 * GHOST: (whispering) They're inside... my advice, we avoid engagement until we understand them better.

The Guardian sends their Ghost to work on the lock, which opens quickly.


 * GHOST: Hmm... easier than I thought.

The Guardian walks inside the bunker, which is completely empty.


 * GHOST: Scanning for something linked to their Orbital Grids.

The Guardian continues exploring, eventually finding an active computer terminal.


 * GHOST: That one.

The Guardian sends their Ghost to work on the terminal.


 * GHOST: (to self) Access key? I don't need an access key... DOS is more complicated. (pauses) ...oh...

An alarm starts to blare.


 * GHOST: I think I initiated a fail-safe.

''Red lights activate and the alarm grows louder. A door behind the terminal opens. revealing the other side of the area, and a Harvester dropping off several Cabal Legionaries and Phalanxes, their main infantry. They all open fire on the Guardian.''


 * GHOST: I guess that was their fail-safe.

''The Guardian kills the defending Cabal soldiers. A second Harvester drops, releasing more infantry. The Guardian kills them all, and the Ghost neutralizes the alarm, re-linking the Guardian with their vehicle.''


 * GHOST: Sparrow is accessible. Let's head toward the gate.

Traveling at a much faster rate on their Sparrow, the Guardian speeds their way into the Scablands, the neighboring area of The Barrens.


 * GHOST: The Cabal appear to be at war with the Vex here. Maybe they know something about the Gate. There's a few outposts nearby. Let's check them out.

The Guardian spots several Cabal fighting Vex.


 * GHOST: You want to get in the middle of this, that's your call.

The Guardian either stays and fights, or ignores them and continues on to the next area, a small outpost.


 * GHOST: An outpost should be up ahead. I can dig into their systems and see what I can find about the Gate. Look for something I can access.

''The outpost is heavily populated with Cabal. The Guardian searches for an access post while fighting them off. It eventually finds one, releasing the Ghost.''


 * GHOST: Alright, find out who's in charge here, and steal their key!

''After a few minutes of fighting, a Harvester lands into the area, providing heavy cover fire, and dropping off more Cabal, including new types of enemies, Psions and Centurions. A Major Centurion, Bracus Tho'ourg, makes his way out of the ship. The Guardian quickly deals with him, finding an Access Key on his corpse.''


 * GHOST: There's another Cabal outpost right near the gate. Let's hope this key works.

''The Guardian travels to the next adjoining area, the Valley of the Kings. To the far left, at the edge of a cliff, is a massive opening, currently inactive; the Guardian has found the gate to the Black Garden. A much larger outpost sits across from the gate, seemingly built into the mountainous terrain. The Guardian finds an access port with a holographic image of the gate.''


 * GHOST: Let's see what they know about the gate.

The Guardian lets the Ghost out and it starts analyzing the data.


 * GHOST: Impressive... The Cabal managed to penetrate the Vex cognition mesh.

''As the Ghost works, the Guardian notices the Gate begin to surge with electricity, as if brought to life. It attempts to open, but the teleportation field collapses with a resounding thunderous crash, echoing across the entire canyon.''


 * GHOST: There's a lot here. I'm not sure they even understand what the Gate is. But if we're going to wake the Gate Lord's Eye and get into the Black Garden, looks like we're going to have to go through the Cabal.

{Mission Ends}

Walkthrough
After your traditional first mission cutscene about Ghost explaining the area you are going to, an area right by the Golden Age city of Freehold, you touch down in the The Barrens. Ghost will explain that you cannot simply get your Sparrow as the Cabal have a lock on orbital communication. To obtain the Sparrow, the Guardian has to break into one of the Cabal's bunkers and disable the system.

Strangely, you will not encounter enemies right away. Use Ghost to open a side door and sneak into the Bunker. Making a U-turn, Ghost will point out a terminal where he can access the system, he will talk about not needing an access key, and setting off an alarm, opening the front door and causing two Harvester drop-ships to fly in, deploying two squads of a Cabal division known as the Sand Eaters. The first Harvester will drop a random assortment of Cabal, and the second will drop in about eight Legionaries. Note: these eight Legionaries will be Majors on Heroic mode. After dealing with the Cabal, you will have access to you Sparrow.

Ghost will say some dialogue about another Cabal outpost, and direct you toward it. You will pass by Firebase Rubicon, and Ghost will mention the Cabal are at war with the Vex here. He will then mention that the Cabal might know something about the Gate, and direct you to another terminal in the Trenchworks. After fighting through some Cabal and accessing the terminal, Ghost will tell you to take out their leader, who happens to be Bracus Tho'ourg, a powerful Major Centurion. After taking him out, you will get a key. Ghost will then tell you to head for the Gate.

Upon leaving the Trenchworks and entering the Valley of the Kings, the first thing you will see on your left is the giant, looming but inactive Gate to the Black Garden, guarded by a few Vex. But instead of going in to the Gate, you go up to another outpost to the right and into a lookout on top of a cliff. Scanning the terminal reveals the Cabal have actually broken the Vex "cognition mesh", possibly a firewall. After looking at what's inside, Ghost reveals the Cabal don't even know what the Gate is, but if the Guardian is going to charge the Eye, they have to go through the Cabal.

Enemies
Vex (not mandatory to engage, but might see when passing Firebase Rubicon):
 * Goblin
 * Hobgoblin
 * Harpy

Cabal:
 * Legionary
 * Phalanx
 * Centurion
 * Bracus Tho'ourg
 * Psion