TheCobaltOcean

As much as I would love to debate the equality of the Spartan series, this not the thread As for your balancing methods, I see where you are coming from and agree on most parts. The Spartan III disqualification though I see where you're coming, the height and hit box difference etc. would be an issue... or would it? seeing the difference in size between elites in Reach and the Spartan III's in that? Baring in mind they were Beta Company Spartans and in Halo 4 they would have to be Gamma Company ones... I mostly agree though TCO

Spartan III's are the same/ if not better than Spartan II's- They could dual wield most things if they wanted to like Spartan II's could- it's just they were never given the feature in Reach...

I like this idea- Though Short Swords are bombers and Long Swords are interceptors- just clearing that up... I think there is a Battlefront 3 on the way soon (It's in production I think)...

This idea of yours could prove to be fruitful. Though before I say why I would like to state- 'Proper Spartan 2s return'!?- If this was a shot at the Noble Team Spartan IIIs then I take offence- Spartan III's are every bit as good as/ if not better than Spartan II's... My agreement: I think your idea could work well though I think a lot of balancing features- as you said- would need to be added. Brutes: would be a lot stronger melee wise compared to a Spartan II (Halo: First Strike) and an elite (Halo: First Strike) though, to balance, give them more health but less accuracy (Bloom maybe?) Elites: would have stronger shields and <melee than a Spartan II?> and would be able to jump higher than Spartans and Brutes. Spartan II's: would have Halo 2 style shields and health, would have slightly less strength than elites, Would be faster (Sprint- Not an AA!) and would be more accurate (Targeting reticule in HUD). Both Elites and Spartans could dual-wield due to brutes being stronger (?) With Spartan III's implemented- they would be smaller, faster and just as effective as Spartan II's- Unless they had SPI armour on- In which case they would suffer 1/2 damage from bullets, 1 1/2 from plasma and would have no shields but they would have semi-stealth and have more health (Mutagen implemented into Gamma company SIII's). I agree with this- The Reach Customisation armoury is far superior to the one in halo 3 and is one of my favourite things in Reach. I also believe there could be a lot done with additional armours (SPI for example... The arms, legs, helmet, chest everything- even if it's just a perm and holds no benefits) and the colouring system (as stated in a different thread- brush on damage (from paint scratches to bullets holes etc.) etc). Also, I believe a link between armour customisation could be provided e.g- A camera on the side of helmet lets you fire without bullet bloom or the HUD attachment across visor (I've forgotten it's name) gives you VISR (H3: ODST) for help finding stealthed opponents etc. I agree that there also should be a system between Elites and Spartans with the armoury customisation and also include Spartan III's and Brutes too (Reference to above). A multiple character game type would be good too

Any more views?

The grenade stick function of which you speak could be interesting- it could bring some kind of strategy to game play. Though I believe the M7 SMG should make a return with the plasma rifle as they were the two - absolute main Dual-wield able weapons on Halo 2 so they should definitely make a return- As well as the H3 ODST M7S SMG as a single fire weapon (Because it's so fantastically strong ) I await the MA5K as a single fire weapon too...

No problem

^ I agree with this Spartan III's are my all time favourites and what you said is true, though the SPI armour (permutation of FULL armour please) doesn't give away much clues as to gender (Which I question now because of the Reach female models (Curves and Cleavage) ). Though the way they walk and such would distinguish them (as read in Halo: Ghosts Of Onyx). I also agree with keeping a female Spartan model- I'm male but my body (spinal curvature and such) matches the female Spartans model (Though the voice doesn't obv) better than the male one does.

Yes it is in a lot of them e.g Fall Of Reach, Ghosts Of Onyx etc.

What Spartan type makes no difference- Spartan III's had similar and safer augmentations as Spartan II's and had arguably better training- also Noble Team had MJOLNIR armour too- they could of dual wielded- and so could the rest of the 900+ SIII's created

Halo 2, It was just 2 amazing Cwhatididthar?

I was just about to mention that, but the slipspace bubble and time anomaly were part of the effect caused by the Forerunner Crystal... OT: It's viable... But I'm hoping Gray Team makes an appearance at some point... If any states the planet is Onyx or Onyx is going to be related to this series, I will eat your souls- Read Ghosts' again, Look at the hostile sentinels which would kill John and then look at the end of Halo Reach and see Halsey eulogising in 2589 which is around when they were released- either by working with forerunner A.Is or by the Sentinels releasing them after a set time after which the halo array signal had passed...

I understand that spamming with a pistol has been notorious over the past games on the multiplayers, but I have seen the bloom counter measure on the Pistol on Reach and makes it nigh unusable to me unless I am within a metre of the target. I thought the Bloom on the DMR was good, it makes placing shots manageably harder and makes me slow down and concentrate for the kill. Also the with AR, it makes me fire in bursts to make sure all the shots hit and count because of the bloom- it is also much more accurate than previous ARs anyway... (I also fire in bursts because that's what the Spartans in the books do - Problem? ) As long as the bloom is manageable in Halo 4, I will be happy to see it return...

As well as the Halo 2 dual wield M7 SMGs, The Battle Rifle from Halo 2, The DMR (I don't mind bloom- it makes it more realistic), The Halo CE MA5B AR (all sixty rounds ), The Halo Reach MA37 AR, The Halo 3 MA5C AR, the Halo: Ghosts of Onyx MA5K Carbine, the Halo: Reach Sniper rifle (SRS99 AM), and more if I think of it...

This makes me very sad... This goes completely against common knowledge that a Spartan would be able to sprint for a very long time- that any MJOLNIR can lock down when falling from great height (And thus they would be stuck in locked armour until they were unlocked), That 0G are not incorporated in MJOLNIR armour MKVI or V variants (Halo: Fall of Reach/ First Strike/2 Cairo Station). As much as I liked the Drop Shield, If Spartans needed extra shielding, they stole Jackal Shields... To see Armour Abilities makes me very, vary sad... That said, If they are incorporating things from Reach- including Team A.Is - We may see Gray Team (Jai, Adriana and Mike from Halo: The Cole Protocol)

Fix'd It would help if knew what you were talking about. First, ADS would not matter anyway, that is why Spartans have the aiming reticle installed in their Heads Up Displays. Secondly, There is every possibility that some Forerunners survived the activation of the Halo Arrays inside of the shield worlds which is what they were designed for. Also, yes- their weapons could be fantastically powerful, yet I doubt we would see any apart from sentinel beams- If any... Thirdly, No- the races of the Covenant are not extinct though the San 'Shyuum could possible be after their planet was destroyed by natural stellar collapse and they've no where to go (To our knowledge). Also, the Sangheili had stated they had simply vanished... The Brutes would be killing each other because of their barbarian instincts and the others would be running from the Sangheili... 'Spirit Of Dawn'!?- The Spirit Of Fire has been missing since Halo Wars -21 years from Halo 3- While the Forward Unto Dawn's aft section never made it to Earth... I would of though that was obvious... Also, the Forward Unto Dawn was a Flagship Frigate- That doesn't mean it is going to have replacement pieces of MJOLNIR MKVI for the Chief... And finally, There is every possibility that The Flood could be on that planetoid. The Flood is a parasitic infection which came from outside our Galaxy- the ORION arm (The Milky Way). They would have taken every possible opportunity to study The Flood for a viable defence- which, because of unsuccessful research, led them to the Halo Array and the obvious- If it can't live with out food, Starve them. With the new game being a threat to the Universe now though, it could be the planetoid is both a Sword and Shield and part of a larger system. If the Forerunners discovered that The Flood had spread to many galaxies, they would fire the large installations and wipe them out and save as much as they can - Similar to the Halo Plan. Yet we can merely speculate - but a standing rule of speculation is Don't rule anything out- Anything could happen... TCO

I liked the idea of dual wielding in Halo 2. On the flood missions as the arbiter (Quarntine Zone, Sacred Icon), using dual SMG's would be my favourite thing to use The SMG should definitly make a return- dual wield or not- with the ODST M7S which is amazingly powerful I like your ideas, though the dual energy swords I'm not sure about- unless one could block (John vs Luda' Rolumee> 'Halo Legends: The Package') while the other slashed, then it might work... The jackal shield should definatly be able to be used as it states in a number of Halo books ('Halo: Ghosts Of Onyx for example) Also, the Honour Guard weapon is called an Energy Stave.

A LOT OF TEXT- IF YOU DON'T READ, DON'T VOTE Helps if you have read any of the books I have been wondering for some time if the producers of the Halo games (First Bungie, Now 343i) would make a game or game type which would follow the canon of the books. During such a game type, it would cause players to think about their actions rather than just going along and jumping into groups of covenant and such. It would also show how Spartans had to be self-sufficient in the field and look after themselves should they be injured etc. Or, if they are grossly out numbered for example , how they need to use tactics to thin out opponents to a manageable level for example. Using canon, such features of this would include such things as: Plasma damage - Once you get hit with your shields down, it damages your armour and affects game-play E.g - You're hit on your leg by a plasma bolt and it knocks out your shields and burns your armour- making it weaker and less resistant to damage. Another effect could be thus -You're are hit and lose your shields and are hit in again in the chest by an entirely new plasma bolt- Your armour melts on your chest (making chest area less resistant to damage) and you suffer internal damage - Harder breathing= reduced Sprint/ movement- lack of Oxygen to the brain causes slight disorientation (Augmentation reduces shock effects (Unless you're a Spartan III in which case shock is nullified almost completely)). Shock/ Injuries and treatment : Shock and Disorientation could be displayed in a similar effect to a COD Stun Grenade (split vision, black dots, slower reactions etc.) and could be caused by loss of blood or by trauma (Punched by a Brute for instance, thrown back by an over pressure wave (shock wave) from an explosion, Large injuries such as dismemberment or plasma burns are also an example) . Any small injury could usually be fixed by using Biofoam and Stimulants to combat blood loss and/or disorientation etc until treatment could be sought, while more serious Injuries and thus a limited lifespan for the Spartan may result in having to make a sacrifice (Like Carter's >'Halo: Reach' or Sam's >'Halo: The Fall Of Reach') or if on death (MIA/WIA) - armour detonation (Like Grace's > 'Halo: First Strike'). One example, the trigger hand is rendered unusable for some reason (plasma damage for example- lost fingers etc.), the weapon would have to be swapped to the other hand and it would have to be lowered should a grenade need to be thrown. Tending to yours or others injuries could be done using a open menu (as seen in Halo Wars) to select treatment by holding the trigger button while aiming at the wound (for teammates) or holding X (for your self), using the joy sticks to select treatment and A to accept. Needless to say, a trigger guard would be in-place to stop teammates from wasting ammo and injuring each other (Some people ) There are a lot more features which could be added in that department too (That was the 'Self Preservation' Department ) More helpful features to the player maybe thus; Heads Up Display- A TACtical Map for planning use E.g arranging 'distractions' (Blowing up a building), planning stealth attacks and traps etc. Also using the HUD, be able to place NAVigation points on positions, targets, patrols etc. Also, have the in game option (Press back for example) to change your motion tracker to a live Camera link to what a team mate is seeing (Like in Ghost Recon: AW2 (It could be featured in other games too)) for better Co-ordination. I had thought about the effect of using hand signals when a player was close to enemy equipment (They would detect radio transmissions and find the Spartans) but that would require Kinect which none are too keen on. However, acknowledgement lights would be a viable replacement and would be possible with the buttons available. Using the additions bought from the armoury, effects to game play rather than aesthetics looks would added too (Which I think would be amazing). One example is the use of the camera attachment to give members of the squad a view of what you are seeing. Another use could be the HUD attachment which could help detect active camouflage or could grant VISR (as seen in Halo ODST and read in 'HeadHunters'). Spartan Strength and Agility- We have all seen the insane use of melee in the Halo games. In ODST a few melee's kill brutes when, in actuality, the ODST would be dead and the Spartan II fighting it (As proved by John and a brute> 'Halo: First Strike) would be struggling. We all want to be able to use our arms and legs to inflict maximum damage which is why, I propose in this, you should be able to do that. I propose that you could just use the melee button to create a quick smack with the weapon or hold it, similar to an assassination, to create a combo (when fighting a tougher target e.g An Elite) or to create a push back (against a Brute or Hunter) or to just a create a quick and concise kill (E.g a neck break against Jackals, Grunts etc.). Also, Spartans could much faster than the game describes and also much slower too- and they could sprint for a very long time. They could side step and counter most threats quickly and effectively with their MJOLNIR armour further augmenting their skills. There is so much which could be done with this. What do you think? Vote and Comment Please point out any mistakes too I'll add any more ideas to this as they come in (My own or Yours) Your Thoughts?

jun still alive I like this Although when the Spartan II's find her in the First Strike- Jun is no where to be seen (which makes me sad)

Unless they had shields, sense says they would be killed easily by Spartans or Elites etc.

Agreed on most apart from the Scarab. Also the Short Sword is the Bomber, The Long Sword is the Interceptor Also, as said, you missed the Sabre, and the Sparrow Hawk and Spirit Drop Ship All covenant ships would be massively nerfed for Humans to stand a chance. In a 1vs1, A Halcyon or Marathon Class Cruiser (I think) would get owned by a CCS Class Battle Cruiser- It's good thought though- I assume you mean space battle style of Battle front 2? Awesome (Avoiding 50mm Auto-Cannon Shells or point defence lasers )

This

In my opinion, I preferred the Halo:Reach multiplayer to Halo 3's as well as the campaign. I found Halo 3 (figuratively) as bad as people found Halo:Reach. Having played Halo CE and Halo 2 for much of my time, I came to like them more than Reach or Halo 3 and so think of them as 'The Originals/Classics'. The addition of Armour Abilities in reach and Equipment in Halo 3 put me off them both really as they seemed to stray from the preferable game-play of Halo's 1&2. I had never really liked the multiplayer of Halo (I started with 3 and went on 2 before it went down) but Halo:Reach was an interesting turn for the better I thought - particularly with the introduction of Credits, an improved ranking system and an all accessible armour display . But I must say I'd prefer to go to a more Original Halo experience free from AA's (Sprint should be included with near infinite length) and Equipment though they should defiantly build upon the Credits, rank and armoury systems (SPI ARMOUR please). This thread outlines more wants --> http://www.343industries.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=452#p3395 <-- I agree with what most of you are saying in terms of Forge though. TCO

I agree, There can be also sorts of weapons vehicles etc. to feature but asking for a Machinima funstion may be pushing it a bit to be honest