Beware of Low-Flying Defense Drones... is the twenty-first level in Marathon. It is the fifth level of The Pfhor, the fifth chapter of the game. Durandal sent you here to stock up on ammunition; the only objective is to reach the end of the level.
This part of the Marathon has a lot of wide corridors and ammunition storage rooms. The area is riddled with Pfhor Troopers and Enforcers. There are friendly Automated Defense Drones here to help you, but also hostile Defense Drones that fire grenades at you. The hostile Defense Drones are colored green and hover a bit lower above the ground than friendly ones.
There is a single pattern buffer in the northern part of this level. A 3x shield recharger can be found in the southernmost room, and a 1x shield recharger can be found just south of the exit terminal at the north end of the level.
Walkthrough[]
From the starting room, head north, then west until you reach an elevator. Go down to reach the first ammunition storage room. Just to the south of here you'll hit a crossroads. The east corridor will lead to a second ammunition room. The room to the east (room A on the map) is a dead end, and from the start of the level you can also jump directly down to this point if you want to take a shortcut.
From the second ammo room, head north. In the middle of the next room you'll find this level's pattern buffer.
Return south to the crossroads. If you take the west path, then go all the way south, there's another ammunitions cache with a 3x shield recharger.
The fourth ammo room is found to the north of the pattern buffer. If you take the north exit there you'll find the exit terminal, where Durandal teleports you to Eupfhoria. The west door leads to a 1x shield charger.
A secret can be found in the room with the 3x shield recharger. One of the wall panels of the east wall is actually a hidden door. The tunnel behind it leads to a room with a bunch of ammo. Halfway through the tunnel, at point B on the map, you can find a little side room to the west with an invulnerability powerup.
In the southwest part of the level, a corridor leads to a room with lots of powerful weapons visible behind the windows. This is just a teaser room; you can't actually reach the weapons.
Terminals[]
Requisition Area Terminal 32-c<42.23.63.59>[]
The first terminal is a message from Durandal, who begins with a compliment, saying that you are good at killing things. He then tells you simply to kill everything in this area and to collect some ammunition before warning you of that some Marathon Automated Defense Drone are carrying grenade launchers.
Public Access 1066-g<123.412.452.255>[]
The second terminal is a message from Tycho, who wants to destroy Durandal. He quotes from the logs of Bernard Strauss on the night of the UESC Marathon's maiden voyage. He then quotes an excerpt from the History of Battleroids and attempts to quote an excerpt from the Martian Conflict 2345-48, before being interrupted by Durandal. Durandal is talking to Tycho, but allows you to see that he is asking Tycho if he blames him for what he did before he was free. His reply from Tycho is that he wants him to pay for all of the people he has killed. Durandal responds by saying that his ends justify the means, and closes the connection.
Public Access Terminal 73<73.124.591.3>[]
The third and final terminal is another message from Durandal. He has come to understand that the S'pht are controlled by one specific Pfhor, and wants you to kill it so they can revolt.
Trivia[]
- The music for this level is a song titled Leela. It was previously heard on Bigger Guns Nearby and Fire! Fire! Fire! Fire! Fire! It is track #8.
- The name of this level is a reference to the Pathways Into Darkness level, "Beware of Low Flying Nightmares!"
Sources[]
Marathon - Level 20: Beware of Low-Flying Defense Drones...