Weapons:

Name: Assault Rifle

Clip: 60

Maximum ammunition: 660

Overview: The Bungie-appointed “bread and butter” weapon of Halo, the Assault Rifle makes up for what it’s missing in accuracy with the ability to kill in less than 1 of its quickly delivered rounds. It’s almost completely worthless at ranges greater than a dozen feet or so, though, since its bullets begin to scatter after about twenty feet. The Assault Rifle’s abysmal accuracy can be improved somewhat by firing in quick bursts, rather than relying on sustained fire. It can carry a huge amount of ammo, and a skilled user can kill in a matter of seconds with careful aim adjustment. If someone’s using one against you, just keep backing away to throw off the weapon’s accuracy.

Name: Flamethrower

Clip: 1 tank of fuel

Maximum Ammunition: 7 tanks of fuel

Fuel use per shot: 2

Overheat time: 3-4 seconds

Overview: In all seriousness, if any weapon should be banned, it’s the Flamethrower. Nothing pisses people off more than being killed by less than 2 seconds of sustained fire when they were about to score. Yes, you heard me right: the Flamethrower can kill with LESS THAN 2 SECONDS OF SUSTAINED FIRE. You see, even if exposure to the flames doesn’t do you in, being set on fire and freaking burning to death will. It even works well against vehicles. To slightly compensate for this ridiculous overpower, the Flamethrower is imbued with three major flaws: it burns through fuel VERY quickly, it has really short range, and if you use it too close (which is made more difficult to avoid by the previously mentioned range) the backwash from the flames will almost definitely kill you before you can react. The Flamethrower – use it, don’t abuse it.

Name: Fuel Rod Gun

Battery use per shot: 3-4

Consecutive shots until overheat: 5

Overview: A PC exclusive armament and the most powerful weapon that isn’t capable of a 1HKO, the Fuel Rod Gun works wonders against walkers and riders alike. Its only problem is that it’s rather difficult to aim, as the burst of green plasma it fires moves in an arcing motion, rather like a thrown grenade. If you see a Warthog or Ghost headed towards you, simply let loose a quick shot of plasma to send the vehicle and its occupants reeling. The quick firing rate of the Fuel Rod Gun, combined with its power and shockwave, makes it great for close-quarters combat. 2 to 3 rounds from a Fuel Rod Gun are enough to put most people out of commission. The gun’s great size means it covers up more than half of your vision, though, so don’t carry it around as your active weapon if you don’t have to.

Name: Needler

Clip: 20

Maximum ammunition: 100

Overview: The Needler is the only weapon that has true homing capabilities. It is also the most vastly underestimated weapon in history. The Needler shoots rapid-fire plasma-charged needles which stick to anyone they hit and explode shortly thereafter. If several needles (16 or more) cluster on the same target, they will detonate seconds after the last needle hits in a massive chain explosion, causing a blast more powerful than that from a Plasma Grenade and instantly killing the victim, and damaging and sometimes killing those around them with the initial burst, or the after-blast that usually follows. Needlers, as previously mentioned, also have a homing capability, meaning that once the needles have locked onto a target, they will follow it until they catch up. Needlers have four flaws: the needles, when fired, tend to spread out after a given distance, and thus become much less effective. They also explode in mid air shortly after that, so the Needler shouldn’t be used if you’re more than eighty feet or so away from a person. The third flaw is they are heat-seeking, rather than actual “smart” tracking, meaning that if someone goes around a sharp corner, the needles following them will likely bounce harmlessly off the wall. Of course, the solution to this is to use Needlers in open areas or straight-aways, rather than twisty passages. And the fourth is that the needles ricochet off of solid, angled surfaces, making them almost completely worthless against vehicles. Despite these flaws, the Needler is one of the most reliable and deadly close-in weapons in the game.

Name: Pistol

Clip: 12

Maximum ammunition: 132

Overview: While the Pistol is capable of rather quick semi-automatic fire, it is much better as a weapon when each shot is fired individually. This is because its accuracy, normally rather pinpoint, is ruined by the backlash of sustained fire. So it’s much better to use it one shot at a time. When you do, it has incredible accuracy, almost on par with that of a Sniper Rifle. This is made even better by its 2X Zoom function. It also carries a good-sized clip, a large amount of maximum ammunition, and takes very little time to reload. This weapon is a favorite for Snipers in the absence of an actual Sniper Rifle. A combination of both weapons can be quite effective too, since you can use the rather expendable ammo of the Pistol when you’re low on the more valuable Sniper Rifle ammo.

Name: Plasma Pistol

Battery use per shot: 0.2 – 0.25 or 11 (Overcharge)

Consecutive shots until overheat: 15 or 1 (Overcharge)

Overview: This strange little weapon is incredibly weak, until you use the Overcharge function. Basically, you hold the trigger for a second, and a glowing energy ball will form at the end of the Plasma Pistol. When you release, it blasts out after the foe, and can completely cut shields in one hit. Unfortunately, you then have to wait for the weapon to cool off again, and it takes a lot of batteries, and it isn’t enough to kill in one hit, even with the energy shielding already down, so it should be used ONLY to take out the shields before you quickly switch to another weapon. Luckily, the Overcharge will actually correct its course very slightly and sort-of tracks the target, but not very well. It really just bends its trajectory a little, so it can’t be counted on entirely, but it still means that you don’t have to aim perfectly when firing the Overcharge. Like I already said, other than Overcharge, the regular Plasma shots fired by this weapon are pitifully weak and inaccurate, so don’t even bother with them. The one good thing about regular use of the Plasma Pistol is that it takes almost no batteries at all, so it will last a very long time before you’ll need to switch weapons.

Name: Plasma Rifle

Battery use per shot: 0.5

Consecutive shots until overheat: 22

Overview: The Plasma Rifle is great, because it carries over the same effect as all blue plasma: stunning. Being hit by a blue plasma weapon causes the target to jerk, slowing them down almost to a standstill. And of course, what’s better than a rapid-fire weapon that stuns?! Even though it’s not tremendously powerful, it definitely isn’t weak, and even if your opponent has a weapon that out-powers you, they’ll have a hard time firing it while under a barrage of Plasma Rifle fire. It can hold sustained fire for a fair amount of time before overheating, too. Like most “rapid-fire” weapons, though, its accuracy drops while you hold down the trigger, so it’s better to fire one shot at a time to ensure hitting the target, even though it’s not quite as fast.

Name: Rocket Launcher

Clip: 2

Maximum ammunition: 10

Overview: There’s nothing quite like the satisfying “pa-thunk” sound and backlash of a fired rocket, followed by a burst of fire, a shout, and a furious cry of, “LAY OFF, YOU BLASTED ROCKET ADDICT!!!” Rocket Launchers, although they can only carry a minimal amount of ammo, deliver an instant kill with a hit or even a near-miss, and even a not-so-near-miss can do a very large amount of damage. Many people constantly carry a loaded Launcher around with them for tight situations, especially against vehicles. They are best used at a medium range, because although the rockets travel fast, they can be easily dodged if you see them coming, but if you’re too close, the shockwave from the explosion will likely kill or severely injure you. You can use the Rocket Launcher’s 2X Zoom to target your shots better, and you should try to, since a dead-on hit from a rocket can even kill someone with a fresh Overshield. A counter for this weapon is “Rocket-Jumping”, in which you leap over an approaching rocket as it’s about to hit, and land behind your assaulter, Backstabbing them while they’re still looking at the explosion. This only works, obviously, when the rocket is fired very close to you. Another note, Rocket Launchers take a very long time to reload after both rockets have been fired, so if you can lure someone into firing both rockets and missing, you can easily pick them off as they reload. If you’re USING a rocket launcher, try to reload after every firing, as you’ll take less time and will therefore be less likely to miss that perfect shot.

Name: Shotgun

Clip: 12

Maximum ammunition: 72

Overview: Although not many people are aware of it, the Shotgun is another weapon capable of an instant KO. Its version is what I have dubbed a “Gutshot”, or a well aimed shot the upper torso. This is much harder than it sounds, due to the scattering effects of shotgun fire. The Shotgun has a slow firing rate, so it’s better used as a “final strike” weapon than your active gun. Basically, fire a few shots from another weapon, and then finish them off with a single Shotgun blast. It almost never fails, and it’s very quick. Unfortunately, like the Assault Rifle, the Shotgun is very inaccurate at a range, and is better used for in-your-face firefights. It should also be noted that it takes an insane amount of time to reload after the full clip of 12 bullets has been fired, so it is imperative that it becomes automatic for you to reload after every shot, since a single bullet only takes a second to replace. Speaking of automatic, the Shotgun is not affected by the drastic accuracy reduction of sustained fire suffered by my most weapons, due to the amount of time between shots.

Name: Sniper Rifle

Clip: 4

Maximum ammunition: 28

Overview: Mwahaha, the Sniper Rifle, Master of all Weapons. This is easily the best and most popular overall weapon in Halo. It is the only weapon capable of what is known as a “Headshot”, meaning a well-aimed hit to the cranium, which is an instant kill prevented only by Overshields. The well-trained sniper holds the life of its foes in its hands. If you can aim well, and do it quickly, you decide who dies. This is made that much easier by the fact that the Sniper Rifle also features an 8X Zoom and Night Vision, which is activated with the flashlight key. Interestingly, Night Vision, aside from making it easier to locate targets hiding in the shadows, also makes it considerably easier to spot foes with Active Camo cloaking. The Sniper Rifle has incredible accuracy, being able to reliably hit the same 1-inch-round spot on a rock from multiple hundreds of feet away. Additionally, it is much better at close-in combat than most people give it credit for, being able to kill in just 2 shots (or 1 quickly-aimed Headshot). The one and only disadvantage to the Sniper Rifle is that it has only a small amount of shots before it must reload, and it can’t carry much ammo total. Because of this, you should be constantly seeking Sniper ammo – even if you aren’t using it, you can at least keep it away from your ammunition-starved opponent!

Grenades:

Name: Fragmentation Grenade

Fuse time: 1.5 seconds

Overview: The Fragmentation Grenade can be ricocheted off of walls, making it very good for narrow corridors: simply bounce it off the wall around a corner that you can’t see into. If you hear a shout, you’ve obviously found a camper. The Frag Grenade causes a larger and more destructive explosion than a Plasma Grenade does, but it bounces off the ground much more, so it can be difficult to judge a successful throw. On the other hand, if you have good aim, the short fuse time makes it hard to escape. Used properly, it can be a deadly force. Frag Grenades also make great distractions – hurl one in a random direction, and then attack the opponent while they’re looking away, searching for the source of the explosion. Also, if you’re about to die, just toss a Frag Grenade at the foe and hope for the best – more often than not, even if they kill you anyway, they’ll still die, giving you a point. By mixing grenades strategically with weapons fire, your score will rise exponentially.

Name: Plasma Grenade

Fuse time: 3 seconds

Overview: Ahh, the beloved Plasma Grenade. Some people call this the “Sticky Bomb.” When thrown, it acts much like a Frag Grenade, except it doesn’t bounce off walls and such. However, if it hits a vehicle or person, this small glowing blue ball will attach itself to it. One of the best ways to combat Banshees (or any vehicle, really) is to try to get them to attempt to run you over, and then toss a Plasma Grenade or two onto their windshield as they slam into the ground. And if you stick one to a person, it spells instant death (unless they have a recently-acquired Overshield). A popular strategy in CTF games is to take a few teammates with fresh Overshields, stick several Plasma Grenades to them, and have them charge into the enemy base like so many Bob-Ombs, killing anyone inside. Note that, should you ever get a Plasma Grenade stuck to yourself, you should try to follow your attacker as closely as possible until it detonates, so as to take them down with you in the blast.

Others:

Name: Melee Attack

Overview: A Melee Attack is a physical hit delivered by your currently held weapon. The speed and power of a Melee Attack varies with what weapon you’re holding, but it’s generally of medium speed and decent strength. The one thing that a Melee Attack is very good for is a nice little feature called the “Backstab.” By hitting your opponent from behind instead of a frontal assault, you get an instant – and almost totally silent – kill. A clever user of Active Camo can infiltrate an enemy base, hitting everyone inside with Backstabbing, and since you don’t make any noise when killed by a Backstab, and the sound of the attack itself is no more than a quiet, muffled thump, nobody will know that their time is coming until it already has.

Vehicles:

Name: Banshee

Armament: Dual Plasma Rifle, Fuel Rod Gun

Maximum occupants: 1

Overview: The only flying vehicle, the Banshee can be extremely deadly if flown by a skilled pilot. The flyer is equipped with both light and heavy weaponry, although its “big gun,” a Fuel Rod Gun, takes a full five seconds to reload after every firing, making it considerably less effective than the hand-held version of the plasma weapon. Pulling reverse will back up extremely slowly, and can be used to suspend the Banshee in mid air while you target an opponent. Releasing all steering controls will cause the Banshee to suddenly drop out of the air, which is useful for dodging fire or other situations where a sudden change in altitude is required. The banshee is also very fast, although it doesn’t turn very quickly. Perhaps the best thing about a Banshee is its ability to go places that you can’t otherwise get to – high up ledges and towers, underneath bridges, into endless pits – all of which can typically be utilized for some strategic position or situation or another. Of course, another thing they’re good for is staying high and far away from you assailants, while still being able to target them with your Fuel Rod Gun.

Name: Chain Gun Warthog

Armament: Chain Gun

Maximum occupants: 3

Overview: The quick and light Warthog (A.K.A. Jeep, Four-Wheeler, ATV) is a medium-sized vehicle used mainly for reconnaissance and bringing in reinforcements. The Chain Gun Warthog is not nearly formidable as it could be unless you have at least one ally. It features the ability to carry up to 3 people (a driver, a passenger, and a gunner), but in the event that you find yourself without any teammates, you can still position the Warthog as you please and then use the powerful Chain Gun mounted on the back to wreak havoc as a stationary turret. The occupant of the passenger’s seat can use any weapon they desire, as well as toss grenades. Nothing helps more in a side-by-side moving vehicle firefight than having the passenger stick a Plasma Grenade to your enemy’s ride. Although they’re fast, Warthogs have a tendency to swerve, skid, and roll on turns and bumpy terrain. Luckily, pressing and holding the jump key will activate breaks, which will stop the vehicle if you think you’re about to flip. One thing that should be noted, ice plays hell with steering and braking for a Warthog, so try to stay away from it.

Name: Ghost

Armament: Dual Plasma Rifle

Maximum occupants: 1

Overview: The Ghost is the smallest and lightest of the vehicles, and it’s my personal favorite. Although Ghosts have no heavy weaponry, their Dual Plasma Rifle suffices, its only problem being that it can’t aim very high. The area in which the Ghost really shines is speed and maneuverability. Being a hovercraft, it isn’t affected by terrain such as ice, and it is affected less by hills and bumps than a Warthog is. Additionally, it’s very quick, and it can turn on a dime. But the best part is, Ghosts can strafe, meaning move left or right without changing direction. Strategic use of strafing, combined with the fact that Ghosts move at the same speed no matter what direction they’re facing or moving in, means you can go anywhere you want, and still not have to take your eyes or fire off of your opponent for even a second. There’s something unnerving about a Ghost rider sidling up alongside your moving vehicle, turning in place while moving to face you, and opening fire. Another boon that comes with this increased maneuverability is that you can turn almost anyone you want into roadside pancakes without really having to think about it, especially with the stunning effects of the Ghost’s armament. And the vehicle’s small size allows it to fit into many caves, corridors, and tight spaces than no other vehicle could even think about entering. Ghosts are very well protected from the front, but less so in the rear and the sides are completely vulnerable, so you should take advantage of strafing to keep yourself facing the opponent at all times. One neat little added feature is that by holding down the jump key while moving, the Ghost will do a sort of wheelie maneuver, which allows you to hit crouchers with the lowered back end of your ride. If you do it while going over a jump or hill, it will greatly increase your height and air time, and if used in mid-air while falling it can correct your position to stop you from smashing into the ground and falling out.

Name: Rocket Warthog

Armament: Rocket Launcher

Maximum occupants: 3

Overview: A PC exclusive version of the “regular” Warthog, the Rocket Warthog is the same in every statistical aspect as its counterpart, except that it trades the rear-mounted Chain Gun for a Rocket Launcher, which is better suited for doing battle with other vehicles. Unlike the hand-held edition, the Rocket Launcher on a Rocket Warthog can fire 3 missiles, rather than only 2, before it has to reload. Like the Missile Launcher on a Scorpion and the Fuel Rod Gun on a Banshee, it takes 5 seconds to reload after all 3 shots have been fired. The only visual difference between the two types of Warthogs, other than the different mounted weapons, is the paint job. Rocket Warthogs feature a snazzy black-and-yellow coat, which makes them slightly more noticeable, and also blatantly distinguishes their armament to anyone who sees it, meaning you can’t expect to fool your opponent with a rocket to the face when they were expecting a chain gun. It can be fun to get a few Rocket Warthogs up on a high ledge and bombard the enemy position with volleys of rockets. It can also make it helluva hard to fly a Banshee if there’s an endless cloud of rockets streaking through the sky.

Name: Scorpion

Armament: Chain Gun, Missile Launcher

Maximum occupants: 5

Overview: The Scorpion is a big brute of a vehicle. Armed with a devastating Missile Launcher, it can blast any other vehicle to hell in one well-aimed shot, and it even has a Chain Gun to boot. The Chain Gun is the same as that on the back of a Chain Gun Warthog, but the Missile Launcher, despite it’s similarity in name to the Rocket Launcher, is a weapon unique to the Scorpion. It’s about a dozen times faster than a rocket, and three times as devastating. Unfortunately, it also takes five seconds to reload after every shot. The scorpion itself is slow and cumbersome (as would be expected from a tank), but it’s still faster than walking. It has very good traction, and can climb over ledges and even other vehicles with ease. Better yet, it’s very well defended – the driver is protected by a metal cage and is very hard to kill without well placed grenades or rockets. Also, a whopping total of 5 people can occupy a Scorpion at one time – 1 driver and 4 passengers riding on top of the treads. The passengers can use any weapon from their post, and can even throw grenades, but they’re physically totally undefended. Even so, a fully loaded Scorpion is akin to a mobile fortress.

Name: Shade

Armament: 3-Barreled Plasma Cannon

Maximum occupants: 1

Overview: Not a vehicle in the traditional sense, the Shade is actually a stationary Covenant turret. The Plasma Cannon it is armed with is quite powerful indeed, and is the same weapon used by Covenant Dropships (A.K.A. Forkships). Like most vehicle weapons, it has a rapid fire function, but the Shade also has a much better firing radius than most, being able to aim considerably higher up than, for example, a Ghost’s weapon systems can, and it turns faster, too – about the same speed as you can while not in a vehicle. The Shade also features a wide screen that protects the occupant from most frontal fire, although, unfortunately, it isn’t high enough to stop snipers from getting headshots. The rear of the Shade is also highly unprotected, so you should try to take on no more than one or two opponents at a time while in a Shade to stop them from circling around behind you. The Shade is extremely heavy, but it is possible to reposition one using another vehicle. Shades also have very high centers of gravity, meaning if you push one off a cliff, though it will tumble around in the air, it will roll to an upright position upon landing 99.999% of the time.

Powerups:

Name: Active Camouflage

Effect time: 45 seconds

Overview: Most people call this “invisibility,” but that’s not really correct – Active Camouflage actually only makes you transparent. Well, technically, it makes the surface of your MJOLNIR Armor mimic exactly the area around you… but the end effect is that you’re transparent. This means you can be seen, but your opponent will have to be looking VERY closely. The transparency effect drops for a split second when you shoot, so it’s best to kill people with grenades or melee attacks while cloaked to avoid detection. Also, the transparency will fade almost entirely while you’re holding a flag. Active Camo is basically used for two things: first, as an anti-sniper device – very hard to spot a transparent opponent from the typical high-up, far-away sniper outpost. Second, a skilled player can infiltrate a fort, backstab anyone guarding it, and make off with the flag before anyone has the chance to react.

Name: Overshield

Effect time: 1 minute, 30 seconds