Victory Mine
For other uses, see Mine (disambiguation). |
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| Victory Mine | |
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| General information | |
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The Victory Mine (Russian "Шахта победы", "Shakhta pobedy") is an abandoned mining area located in the Outlands, visited by Gordon Freeman and Alyx Vance during their journey to White Forest. Early on, Alyx is injured by a Hunter and Gordon must go deep inside the mines in an Antlion colony to retrieve larval extract to save her.
Contents
Overview[edit]
The name "Victory Mine" comes from the several signs written in Russian visible in the area. Some signs include a logo and read "Шахта победы им 50-летия", which roughly translates to "Victory Mine - in memory of the 50 years anniversary". The name implies the mines were inaugurated or renamed 50 years following an important event, which in this context could be the the end of World War II or the October Revolution.
The mines were serviced a small railway spur, briefly seen as the location where Alyx gets injured and the Lone Vort is introduced. Gordon and Alyx acquire the Muscle Car from a small industrial area which is assumed to have also been part of the Victory Mines complex.
By the time of the events of Half-Life 2: Episode Two, the mines have long-since been abandoned, likely disrupted by the the Combine invasion and occupation of Earth. In the intervening years, large portions of the mines have been infested and claimed by an Antlion colony. Despite this, the Resistance maintains presence in the mines, and there are also signs of Combine intervention. Evidence of both factions' past activity includes the large number of Resistance and Combine corpses found inside the mines, as well as Zombies of all types. When Gordon collects supplies from one of the Antlions' victims, the Lone Vort remarks: "The sad fate of these others is our good fortune."[4]
A crashed Dropship Container can be found in one of the mine silos, and a Thumper has been set up in the same chamber, providing direct evidence for past attempts by the Combine to intervene in the mine. While effective at holding off regular Antlion attacks, the Thumper does not stop distant acid spits from Antlion Workers, which might have contributed to the Combine expedition's failure. Gordon arrives to find the area already in ruins and infested by various types of Zombies. The Combine have also set up Thumpers outside and around the mines, likely in an attempt to control the spread of Antlion infestation.
Similar to White Forest, the mines feature a number of Cyrillic signs pointing out various directions.
Resistance outposts[edit]
The main Resistance outpost in the area is a large silo linking the outside to the rest of the mines through three tunnels, numbered 12, 24 and 36. An additional entrance, simply known as "the breach", has been dug in at some point after the mines' abandonment. During the events of Half-Life 2: Episode Two the outpost is held by the Resistance members Griggs and Sheckley. The tunnels have been equipped with Antlion Detectors and the outpost possesses reprogrammed Hoppers and Sentry Guns, which can be used to hold off intruding Antlions. To distinguish them from unmodified Combine technology, these Hoppers and Sentry Guns have had yellow stripes and various designs spray painted onto them.
The remains of another Resistance output are located in a presumed related series of buildings across a small gorge where Combine Thumpers have been set up. By the time Gordon, Alyx and the Lone Vort arrive, this outpost had already been overrun by Combine forces and shelling. One or more of the rebels had apparently attempted to flee from the Combine attack using the Muscle Car, but did not manage to get further than across a nearby bridge.[5] Gordon and Alyx acquire the Muscle Car and use it to travel to White Forest.
The Antlion nest[edit]
Much of the Victory Mine has been claimed by Antlions who converted it into their nest, where Antlion Grubs are hatched and raised. These nesting grounds sprawl over some sections of the original mine as well as what appears to be a deeper natural cave system. Antlion Workers, normally not seen outside their nests, patrol the caves and tend to the young. The Workers also use their acid spit to carve through the rock, borrowing tunnels that connect various parts of the mines and the caves. In some areas, the Workers have carved out notches in the cave walls where Grubs are kept safe and are provided with nourishment, mostly in the form of corpses of past victims. These notches and tunnels are blocked off by Antlion webs. Similar webbing can be seen covering sack-like excursions which might be food stores.
An Antlion Guardian also lives within the nest, hunting down all intruders.
At the deepest portions of the nest, honeycomb-like structures can be found. The exact function of these remains unknown outside the fact they hold "larval extract". According to the Lone Vort, the larval extract contains certain compounds which "dissolve the false veils that divide the vortessence."[6] Gordon helps the Lone Vort to obtain such an extract, which is then used by the Vortigaunts to revive Alyx.
Appearances[edit]
Half-Life 2: Episode Two[edit]
After Gordon Freeman and Alyx Vance escape from City 17 by the railway, their train is derailed by the explosion of the Citadel at the very end of Episode One. After Gordon is freed from the train with the help of Alyx and the recovered Gravity Gun, the ruins of City 17 are revealed, and Citadel is completely demolished, and a Superportal has emerged from the ruins. Then a Portal Storm occurs and Gordon and Alyx proceed into the mines.
In the upper mines can be found a communications center which Alyx uses to contact White Forest. After exiting this area, Alyx Vance is severely injured by a Hunter, and her life hangs by a thread. A Vortigaunt then appears and helps Gordon Freeman transport Alyx to the lower mines, where the player assists Griggs and Sheckley in holding back the Antlion forces. After the battle, Gordon and the Vortigaunt journey deep into the mines to locate the larval extract, then used to save Alyx's life. After fighting through hordes of Antlions, Antlion Workers and avoiding the Antlion Guardian, Gordon Freeman, the Vortigaunt and Alyx Vance exit the underground mines to see Combine forces moving North, presumably to the White Forest base.
After killing the Antlion Guardian, the trio reaches the last Victory Mine settlement, originally turned Resistance outpost but now infested by Headcrabs. Gordon must go through the area to reach the Muscle Car located on a nearby bridge, while Alyx gives him additional support with a mounted Overwatch Sniper Rifle above. Leaving there the Vortigaunt, Gordon and Alyx continue their journey to the White Forest base with the car.
Related Achievements[edit]
| Half-Life 2: Episode Two | |
|---|---|
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Acid Reflex (5G) |
| Kill an acid Antlion Worker. | |
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Get Some Grub (20G) |
| Squish every Antlion Grub in Episode Two. | |
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Piñata Party (5G) |
| Find and break every web cache. | |
|
Twofer (5G) |
| Defeat both Antlion Guards outside the White Forest. | |
Behind the scenes[edit]
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- Texture files containing the mines' name and logo are
sign_victorymine01 to 04. The full title, "Шахта победы им 50-летия" ("Victory Mine named in memory of the 50-year anniversary") is typical for the Eastern European setting of Half-Life 2, where many names for places, vessels and infrastructure follow the same pattern. Of particular note is the Russian nuclear-powered icebreaker 50 Let Pobedy, which bears a striking resemblance to the Borealis and started operating the same year Episode Two was released.
- The Antlion caves were originally to appear in the Coast chapters of Half-Life 2, in maps such as
antlion_cave01,antcave(both last edited 2002) orcave_canyon08(last edited 2000).[7] An Antlion King, replaced in Episode Two by the much smaller Antlion Guardian, was to rule the caves and the nests.[8] Antlion Grubs were already to appear, as the model, with slight differences, was already made before Half-Life 2's release.[2][9]
- An unused Antlion egg model can be found in the retail game files. The model appears unfinished, being a simple untextured sphere.
- The Victory Mine compound is where the Garden Gnome is first found under the bunk bed among old bottles in the communications building early into the journey.
- According to Valve's Elan Ruskin, the turret battle design went through many changes. Early stages had the player controlling 3 turrets and not ever having to fight Antlions directly. After playtesters complained of not having anything to do during the battles, the number of turrets was changed to leave the player underhanded when in later rounds all the tunnels are active. Later a tweaked version of the hoppers was added to give players yet another tool for fighting the onslaught.[2]
Gallery[edit]
Pre-release[edit]
Concept art[edit]
Concept art for the mine shafts.
Concept art for the mining hub.
Concept art for the Antlion tunnels.
Concept art for the nests.
Screenshots[edit]
Antlion Grubs in
antcave.
Ditto.
Antlion Soldier in
antcave.
Ditto.
Inside
cave_canyon08.
Ditto.
Developer test map
styleguide_antlion_tunnel, found in the game files of Episode One for Android.
Ditto.
Developer test map
styleguide_mining, found in the game files of Episode One for Android.
Ditto.
Ditto.
Ditto.
Vortigaunts battling Antlions in Episode Two trailer.
Gorge in the Half-Life 2: Episode Two trailer.
Retail[edit]
The first entrance to the mines.
The Garden Gnome in the communications building.
Surface section.
TEM2 DMU freight locomotive and dead Antlions.
Alyx Vance attacked by a Hunter.
Alyx dying.
First chamber the player enters after Hunter attack.
Side view of collapsing mineshaft.
Inside the mines.
Ditto.
Ditto.
Antlion Worker trying to hit the player inside the mines.
A large cave intersecting the mine tunnels.
Antlion web sacks.
Griggs and Sheckley's chamber.
Ditto.
Top view.
Griggs.
Sheckley.
An Antlion Detector.
Sheckley standing next to a reprogrammed Sentry Gun.
Griggs and Sheckley battling Antlions.
Ditto.
Ditto.
Hoppers about to jump at Antlions.
The Lone Vort inside the mines.
The Vortigaunt confronting an Antlion Worker.
Minecarts inside the mine.
Ditto.
Ditto.
Physics puzzle room.
Antlion caves.
Combine Thumper inside the mines.
Ditto.
Crashed Combine Dropship Container inside the mines.
Top of Thumper chamber.
Gruesome scene encountered soon after the Thumper room.
Cyrillic direction signs inside the mine.
Elevator shaft.
Ditto.
Bottom chamber.
Ditto.
The Vortigaunt taking the larval extract.
The Vortigaunt holding larval extract.
Vortigaunts healing Alyx.
Alyx is alive.
Exit.
Victory Mine outpost, with the Antlion Guardian below.
The last outpost.
The G-Man walking away on the last outpost's bridge.
The Overwatch Sniper Rifle used by Alyx to protect Gordon in the last outpost.
The Muscle Car in its original location.
Alyx giving the Vortigaunt a grateful kiss before departing.
Mining cart model.
Reprogrammed Sentry Gun model.
Ditto.
Reprogrammed Hopper model.
Ditto.
Unused Antlion egg model.
"Victory Mine" sign.
Ditto.
Ditto.
Ditto.
Cyrillic direction signs textures.
List of appearances[edit]
Main games[edit]
- Half-Life 2: Episode Two (First identified as Victory Mine)
Other[edit]
- Half-Life 2: Raising the Bar (Indirect mention only)
- Source Particle Benchmark (First appearance) (Game files only) (Non-canonical appearance)
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ The Orange Box Prima Guide
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Half-Life 2: Episode Two commentary
- ↑ Half-Life 2: Episode Two model repository leak,
.smdfiles withMACHINE=RLORDidentifier - ↑ Vortigaunt Quotes (filename
vort_breakweb02) - ↑ Vortigaunt Quotes (filename
vort_bridge_attempt) - ↑ Vortigaunt Quotes (filename
vort_extract_bond05) - ↑ WC map pack
- ↑ Half-Life 2: Raising the Bar, page 101
- ↑ Half-Life 2 leak
| Preceded by Technical Trainstation |
Half-Life 2 story arc journey | Succeeded by Radio Tower settlement |
| Antlions | |
|---|---|
| Castes | Antlion Grub · Antlion Guard · Antlion Guardian · Antlion Soldier · Antlion Spitter · Antlion Worker |
| Other | Antlion Detector · Pheropods · Thumper · Victory Mine |
| Castes (cut) | Antlion King |
