advertisement
M12A1 Warthog LAAV (Multiplayer)
Crew: 1 + 1 (plus 1 more in rear)
Weight: 3.5 tons
Armament: 102mm rocket launcher
The M12A1 light anti-armor vehicle (LAAV) is a variant of the Warthog—the machine gun is replaced with a triple-barreled 102mm rocket launcher. Like its counterpart, it is fast and highly maneuverable. Although the rocket launcher makes it an effective anti-vehicle weapon platform, the time required to reload the weapon after firing all three rockets leave the vehicle and its occupants vulnerable to counter-attacks.
Covenant Vehicles
Ghost
Crew: 1
Weight: 2.25 tons
Armament: Two Plasma Cannons
(100–250 kW range)
The Ghost is the Covenant’s standard reconnaissance and rapid attack vehicle.
It is equipped with two of what are now accepted as the standard light vehicle mounted weapons: a directed energy weapon capable of projecting a bolt of superheated plasma in the 100–250kW range. While the vehicle is fast and maneuverable, the driver is virtually unprotected.
Banshee
Crew: 1
Weight: 3.25 tons
Armament: Two Plasma Cannons
(100–250 kW range)
Secondary weapon: Two Fuel Rod Cannons
The Banshee is the Covenant’s standard ground assault aircraft. It is very fast, extremely maneuverable and capable of hovering. It has two weapon pods mounted to either side of the fuselage. Both of these pods contain a light plasma cannon and a fuel rod cannon.
Though small arms fire may disrupt or disable the pilot, only heavy weapons are capable of inflicting damage or destroying the vehicle.
18
The
Pillar of Autumn
and Its Crew
The Pillar of Autumn is a Halcyon-class warship that has seen decades of service. An aging but sturdy vessel, and one of the smallest cruisers in the human fleet, the military High Command chose it specifically as an inconspicuous launch pad for a covert offensive against the Covenant. Genetically-engineered cyborg soldiers in state-of-the-art battle suits were supposed to board a
Covenant vessel and locate the Covenant home world. A surprise
Covenant attack on the human military base on the planet Reach annihilated all but one of the SPARTAN-II soldiers. Known only by his rank of Master Chief, this SPARTAN-II was stored in a cryosleep chamber on the Pillar of Autumn shortly before the ship made a blind jump across the galaxy in a desperate effort to lead the Covenant away from Earth. The Master Chief is easily the best soldier aboard the
Pillar of Autumn, but many of the human military’s finest also call the ship home.
Captain Jacob Keyes
Twenty-six years into his military career,
Captain Keyes commands respect as a keen strategist and inspirational leader of his men.
He became a minor hero early in his career, when he led a small group of security troops against a Covenant ambush of the colony ship
Meriwether Lewis and held them off long enough for the ship to escape. His many decorations and years of combat experience against the Covenant made him a natural choice to command the
Pillar of Autumn and its secret cargo.
19
The Marines
A rugged and diverse assortment of soldiers, the
Marines on the
Pillar of
Autumn are fighting a losing battle against the Covenant’s superior weaponry and numbers. Under the leadership of Captain Keyes they continue to wage a furious struggle against the Covenant, even as their numbers dwindle. They’re the best of the best—but they’re only human.
Cortana
Cortana is the highly advanced AI at the heart of the Pillar of Autumn. Her design allows her to be uploaded into an appropriately configured battle suit for increased mobility.
She is capable of hacking into alien computer systems, and has used this skill to intercept
Covenant communications during combat.
She interprets this data to provide her caretakers with directional waypoints and the best available information about troop movement and strategy.
The Covenant
The Covenant forces have spent more than thirty years trying to wipe out humankind. Because their efforts have been so successful, and because few Covenant troops have ever been captured alive, little is definitively known about their origins, society, or motivations. Intercepted communications and battlefield reports indicate a religious underpinning to their genocidal campaign. What follows are brief descriptions of the alien races known to belong to the Covenant collective, gathered mostly from encounters on the battlefield.
The Grunts
Approximately 5’ tall and relatively weak,
Grunts tend to travel in packs and stick close to more powerful allies. Individually they are easy to defeat, but in groups they can overwhelm careless Marines. Their armor seems to house some sort of lifesupport mechanism. They are known to use a variety of weapons including the plasma pistol, plasma rifle and plasma grenades.
The Jackals
With superior senses of sight, hearing and smell, Jackals serve as scouts and assassins for the Covenant forces. They use plasma pistols and carry a strong energy shield to compensate for their physical weakness; a well-positioned Jackal can hold his own against several Marines, though grenades are effective against them. They stand approximately 5’ 8” tall.
20
21
22
The Elites
There are a few varieties of the Elite, but all are roughly 8’ 6” tall and incredibly strong.
Their strength allows them to rely on brute force when necessary, but they’re quite capable of brilliant battlefield tactics as well.
Their natural resilience is augmented with full-body energy shielding which recharges when depleted. They wield plasma pistols, plasma rifles, grenades and needlers.
The Hunters
Hunters stand 12’ tall, though in their combat state they contract to approximately eight feet. Hunters fight with a Fuel Rod Gun integrated directly into their armor. They carry an enormous and nearly-impervious metal shield made of an unknown alloy, which they sometimes use as a melee weapon.
Multiplayer
There is nothing like pitting your hard-won Halo skills against another person. You can battle up to 16 friends (or strangers) in multiplayer mode. You can host the game and select the game settings, rules, and map; you can also choose to join a game hosted by another person.
You can play on a LAN or over the Internet via GameSpy Internet
Matchmaking. New weapons, vehicles, and maps expand the experience. Throw in teleporters, lots of ammo, and plenty of health power-ups for even more fun.
New Weapons, Vehicles, and Maps
Halo for the PC has several new weapons unique to multiplayer mode: the Fuel Rod Gun and the Flamethrower. In addition, the
Stationary Gun is now available in multiplayer mode.
Halo for the PC has added the Banshee and the Rocket-launcher
Warthog to multiplayer mode to help you get around in style. The
Banshee isn’t new to Halo, but it is new to multiplayer.
There are six new maps designed for multiplayer in Halo for the PC.
And you thought you had everything figured out...
Chatting in Muliplayer Mode
Communication is important when you are teaming up to nail that sniper who has a fix on your position. Press T and enter text to chat with everyone. To chat with your teammates, press Y. To chat only with the occupants of a vehicle, press H and enter text.
Team Play
To play a team game, select a “team” gametype. The first person to join is on the Red Team, the second person to join is on the Blue
Team, and so forth. To change teams, press ESC, click Change
Options, click Choose Team, and then click Red Team or Blue
Team. You will rejoin the game as part of the new team.
Accessing Multiplayer Mode
In order to play multiplayer Halo for the PC, you must have an
Internet or LAN connection with access to a server. To access
Multiplayer Mode, click Multiplayer on the Halo main screen.
23
advertisement