Avalanche

Avalanche is a multiplayer map featured in Halo 3. It will be featured as one of the three maps in the Legendary Map Pack available on April 15th, 2008.

Setting
Avalanche is a huge Forerunner power station set on the front of a huge glacial shelf on the reborn Installation 04. The structure pulls its power out of the densely compacted ice that constantly builds up behind the station before it falls into the ocean below.

Design
Avalanche is a reimagination of Sidewinder, a map in Halo: Combat Evolved, removing certain design elements, such as the tunnel in between the two bases, while adding new ones, and adding many Man Cannons. The map itself is centered around two bases at each end of a U-shaped snowy valley, and to add an interesting dynamic, there is an asymmetry in the vehicles — in objective gametypes one base has exclusively UNSC vehicles to begin, while another has exclusively Covenant vehicles to begin. The map is set to prefer objective gametypes.

Gameplay Features and Changes

 * The hallway between the 2 bases has been removed. This includes the gate where the Overshield and Active Camouflage spawned.
 * A few Man Cannons and a large cavern area have been added to the original 'Sidewinder'.
 * In the Legendary Map Pack Darkness trailer as seen here it shows that the Forerunner architecture on the side can/might perform as a man cannon
 * In one-sided objective gametypes, the assaulting team has UNSC Vehicles, while the defenders have Covenant and Loyalist vehicles.
 * All UNSC vehicles will now feature snow camouflage colors instead of the traditional green UNSC color scheme.
 * The Scorpion Tank is only available to the assaulting team on one-sided objective based games; during team slayer, neutral and multi objective games both sides will have the Scorpion Tank.
 * A bottomless pit is located in the center infantry area of the map. This pit can be crossed by man cannons. They are located in the middle of the canyon, opposite to the bases.

Forge
In the Bungie.net Weekly Update on 4/4/08, it was revealed that there will be many new and unique Forge items for Avalanche. These are mostly Forerunner-themed, to keep with the style of the map. A few of these items are:


 * Forerunner-style walls
 * Energy-Blockers (Shield doors that cannot be walked through).
 * And a sniper perch, which is in one picture turned upside-down, thus being able to hold a Scorpion tank.

Trivia

 * During production, Avalanche's code-name was "Cottonball".
 * First map in the Halo 3 extra maps that has a forerunner/covenant POV.
 * It is the first multiplayer map to see the Hornet get downgraded. The missiles were removed, and the chainguns do less damage, to balance out the map. As such, the vehicle will be included in Matchmaking for the first time.
 * Avalanche is the first and only Halo 3 map to feature teleporters by default.
 * Avalanche is the first multiplayer map in which the vehicles get an appearance makeover in the Halo franchise.
 * This map is said to reveal more information in the relation between the lekgolo and the Halo 3 scarab.
 * Avalanche is also the first Halo 3 multiplayer map to feature a Hornet and Scorpion by default.
 * The map is set on the Installation 04 (II) and resembles the last level of Halo 3, Halo, although the campaign level has no trees like the new map.
 * A structure in the background is identical to the shield towers on The Covenant.
 * Bungie stated that this map will expand the Scarab/Hunter mystery, but it is not known yet what sort of thing this map will have. The most controversial discussions have been about the mystery of whether a player will be able to drive a Scarab and/or a Phantom (This scenario is highly improbable).
 * The map's sky setting is slightly darker than Sidewinder's.