UNSC (United Space Command) Weapons
The Assault Rifle has been brought back into the Halo series. There have been a few modifications such as smaller clip, greater fire-power, longer range, and greater accuracy. The assault rifle considered the most "balanced" weapon in the game for its fast rate of fire and medium effective range.
The Battle Rifle was a favorite in Halo 2. It has been brought back with a few modifications such as it is not a "hitscan" weapon (which means it takes more than 0-1 frames to reach its target). It is still more accurate than most weapons in the game thanks to its triple burst fire. Also it has the headshot bonus of all precision weapons. Its only downfall is its slow rate of fire, which is beaten by the carbine, assault rifle, and the neeedler.
The Flamethrower is one of the new "support/turret" weapons in the game. It slows you down, it can't be reloaded, and it has a short range; these might seem like very bad things, they are, but the flamethrower is one of the most powerfull close-range weapons. Like all turret weapons, you are pulled into the 3rd person view, which has some usefull applications; such as: spying on enemies behind cover.
The Frag Grenade has become less powerfull than in Halo 2 and Halo CE. It is still a fantastic weapon though. A well timed grenade can kill a 0 to half shielded player and completely take out a fully shielded player's shields.
The Human Turret is now more versitile than it was, you can still stay on its mount and kill people, but now you can rip it off the mount and move around with it! Just like the flame thower it slows you down.
The Halo 3 Magnum is now a cross between the Halo CE and the Halo 2 pistol. It still does not have the scope, but it looks the same as the Halo CE pistol. It does an amount of damage somewhere inbetween the Halo CE and the Halo 2 pistol. As with all precision weapons, a headshot kills instantly. The magnum is also slightly harder to aim than the sniper rifle, battle rifle, or carbine.
The Missle Pod is one of the new "support" weapons in the game. It has the same vehicle lock-on feature as Halo 2's Rocket launcher. Its missles do slightly less splash damage than the rocket launcher. It has a higher ammo capacity than the rocket launcher. Like all support weapons, it slows the player down and shifts them into 3rd person view.
The Rocke Launcher has lost the abilit to lock on to vehicles. It has been changed also by making the rocket travel at a higher velocity. The rocket launcher is a fantastic anti-vehicle and personel weapon. The most effective way of killing a person is to aim at their feet, so even if you don't kill them they will still be hurt.
The Shotgun now has half the clip size it did in Halo CE and Halo 2. Now it has more pellets per shot which means that its spread is better so a few stray pellets will not have as much impact on its preformence. Because of its extremely short range, the shotgun is great for dealing with sword and hammer wielders, both can be cancelled by quick reflexes and a shotgun.
The SMG (Sub Machine Gun) is no longer the default starting weapon in Halo 3. It has the largest clip in all of Halo 3 (60 rounds per magazine) and has an extrodinarily fast rate of fire. It is not as high on most people's weapons list because of its short range, low accuracy, and lower damage than a Brute Spiker. Its advantage over the spiker is the fact the player does not have to lead the target and it does not have a decaying trajectory.
The Snipe Rifle is back from Halo CE and Halo 2 with a few modifications. For starters, the fire rate has been reduced, and the recoil has been increased. Also, the scope, when not zoomed in, has gone back to the night-vision variant. The over penetration from Halo CE has come back, so if there are people in a line, you can kill or damage more than one with a single shot. The sniper rifle does need to be lead a little, but not by much, for the farthes away of targets.
The Spartan Laser (Splaser, SL) is the most powerfull single hit weapon in Halo 3. A single hit to anything but a tank will completely destroy whatever the target used to be. Also, the spartan laser is a hitscan weapon, meaning it does not have to be lead, just point, charge, shoot. To balance the spartan laser's power, it takes a few seconds to charge, then it will fire.
