Hey all, (yes it's me, I know I don't come here anymore 6.6)

I'll just cut to the chase, I really am not sure about the whole concept they have going with the Citidel in HL2: Episode 1 and 2. I have some ideas.. but I'm not sure if they're right or not, so I'd like to hear what you think.

From what I understand, basically, the citidel's core is what we try to stablize in Episode 1. Now, I'm not even sure at this point, is this the Dark Energy Reactor? Or was that what was at the top of the citidel? The reason I'm so confused there is because it seemed like the device at the top was only like a focusing device for the portal... I dunno.

Anyway, so I understand that the combine (I guess) had a failsafe plan that if the citidel was compromised they'd send out a distress signal to the homeworld and try to open another super portal. (though I dont see why they can't just open on from their homeworld) Normally this would make sense, but given the situation it seems kind of wierd. For one, I mean, wasn't all that mechinery at the top needed to open a portal? (evidently since the portal at the end of HL2 closed when you destroyed the ..whatever it is. So if that mechinery at the top was needed to open portals, how the heck were they able to open a portal and send the transmission at the end of episode 1? I mean the whole top of the thing was blown off! But lets say that the stuff at the top WASN'T needed, the powersource was melting down, how could it even be working at all???

Then one last thing, the super portal in episode 2. I can understand that a transmission was sent eaither by soldiers inside or a automated computer sequence, but how were they able control that beam of "raw discharge of the meltdown" into making a portal? I mean there's no mechinery or anything to control the flow of discharge into doing such a thing? ... Could you guys please ease my mind on all this? : /

This isn't meant to dis HL, it's the most awesome series ever, I just want to understand.

The Dark Energy Reactor is the power source of the teleporter at the top of the Citadel. That teleporter is not used for local teleportation (which is what humanity has) but for inter-universe transportation, allowing a link between Earth and the Combine homeworld and their limitless reinforcements. When you blow it up at the end of HL2 you sever Earth's Combine forces from the rest of their military. Basically once the Combine conquered Earth they pulled back the bulk of the troops and left a smaller occupation force, the core of which is trans-human troops. With communication lost and no chance of reinforcement the Earth Combine are in trouble.

In EP1 the main power core of the Citadel is set to explode, which at first is thought as just an evil move to flatten City 17 as some sort of pseudo-MAD situation. However when you are going to buy time to evacuate the city you find the transmission packet. The packet is to be sent out when the core explodes. The exploding core would act as a recreation of the resonance cascade from HL1, causing portal storms worldwide. This would give the packet a chance to be sent out and reach its destination, the Combine homeworld. I don't exactly remember the exact details but the jist of it is: the packet is sent out, distress call sent, sustainable portal opened, bulk of Combine forces come through, humanity wiped out.

EP2 is getting the packet data to the rocket so that they can fire it up there and close the portal before additional forces can arrive.

Notes:
-Obviously the Combine can't open a portal from their homeworld into Earth, the whole freaking point of HL1 was that without the resonance cascade the Combine has no way of reaching Earth.
-I think the transmission and the resulting swirly beam was basically an anchor point and a small opening that the Combine on the other side could focus on, control, and expand. It wasn't an instantly viable portal.
-All that machinery at the top of the Citadel was required to have controllable, repeatable, and reliable teleportation. Obviously there's other ways of making portals, they are just a whole lot messier (HL1's resonance cascade, Citadel core destroyed)

? quoting Crono

We should change your screen name to sensitive-dude.

Maybe >.>

Probably, the way it sounded to me sounded VERY belittling.

"if you'd even PLAYED half-life..." notice the emphesis on the PLAYED.. thats how it sounded.