Master Chief's Team

Master Chief

This guy hasn’t just permeated into our culture, he’s broken into it guns blazing; something he is apt to do in most situations. He’s been in a total of three games thus far, and he is one of the most recognizable video characters ever not created by Nintendo. He basically made Xbox into what it is today.

Biography

Master Chief’s backstory is way too lengthy to write down in detail here, mainly because there are literally books written on the subject. I will say that he was born as John on a colony world of the United Nations Space Command (UNSC) called Eridanus II. As a child, he was taller, stronger, faster, and smarter than any of his peers, which made him a candidate for the SPARTAN II program lead by Dr. Halsey, who eventually chose him as one of the 75 members. During the rest of his childhood, he was trained militarily alongside his fellow SPARTANs to become the best soldiers any world had ever seen. During this time, he proved to be one of the programs top candidates due to his bravery and leadership skills, among other things. After 8 years of intensive training in military tactics, marksmanship, physicality, and leadership, the SPARTANS were already the most deadly humans alive at that point, but that wasn’t enough. The SPARTANs went through a dangerous augmentation procedure that left only 33 SPARTANs in any shape to fight. Those 33 became unbelievably enhanced though, exhibiting above peak human capacity for strength, reflexes, and eyesight, as well as making their bones nearly unbreakable. While recovering from the augmentations in a micro gravity environment, he engaged in a 4 on 1 boxing match against some ODST’s; who were the best of the best up until the SPARTANs were created. He left 2 dead and 2 severely injured. Did I mention He was fourteen at this point?

After this he and his fellow SPARTANs spent their time taking care of rebel uprisings and fighting a new enemy: The Covenant, who had already proved their superiority by massacring a legion of soldiers upon first contact. Against them, they were known throughout the alien races as nigh unstoppable super-soldiers, but since there were so few of them, they couldn’t fully turn the tide of the war and the Covenant continued to push on until they took over Reach, which resulted in the deaths of all but a small few SPARTANs, and one of those SPARTANs was mortally wounded in a cryo chamber. Chief was one who made it out alive and well, and after the fall of Reach, he was a huge part in crippling the Covenant armada and stopping the destruction of Earth at their hands. He was such a huge part, in fact, that the Covenant began calling him “Demon” out of fear for his lethality in battle, and continued to call him that out of respect after the Elites switched sides.

Armor

Mjolnir Mark VI

This armor represents the epitome of technology in the Halo universe, and as such it has a stupid amount of bells and whistles that allow the wearer to become a Jesus reincarnate. For one, it has built in energy shields, which can reflect a decent amount of projectile damage before anything reaches the wearer’s actual armor. These shields regenerate after a short time of uninterrupted… not taking damage, time (note to self: Expand Vocabulary). They are very effective at deflecting projectile fire and shrapnel, but less effective at blocking energy weapons and direct explosive force, and as such they will deplete much quicker when hit with those attacks. It also increases the speed, strength, and reaction time of the wearer, which means that in the case of Master Chief who already had superhuman reflexes to begin with this armor makes him a serious bitch to hit with anything moving slow enough to actually see coming. Another huge asset this armor has is its automatic biofoam injectors, which automatically heals any wound by filling it with biofoam (That’s why the health bar was taken out in Halo 2 and 3; the Mark V didn’t have that technology.) This means that Master Chief will be able to fight as hard as he can even with mortal wounds. The armor is also a sealed system, so he can fight in a vacuum no problem.

The armor itself is composed of liquid crystal and hydrostatic gel layers. Because this armor was made with the Covenant in mind, it is most effective at deflecting energy weapons, while it suffers against projectile weapons and shrapnel. Its hydrostatic gel layer also helps against explosive force, and allows the user to enter a lockdown state which protects the muscles and joints of the user from heavy-impact injuries. It weighs over 1000 pounds with a person in it, and since Chief can run at very high speeds in the armor it’s entirely possible that he could just bowl the Federation Marines over if the situation calls for it.

The neural interface is another part of what makes this armor so great. It synthesizes the armor with the brain of the use so that all movements the armor makes are controlled directly from the mind of Chief. This is why his reaction time is nearly impossible to chart. Add in an A.I. like Cortana and the SPARTAN now has unrivaled intelligence and the ability to take over and use most ships and constructs regardless of the technological origin. Also, he has a motion tracker; a small addition with huge benefits for him and his team.

Weapons:

Melee- Weapon Smash

Unlike the ODSTs, who all carry knives, Master Chief has always preferred bashing grunts’ skulls in with whatever weapon he happens to be holding at that point in time. This may be a very primitive attack but Chief’s strength makes it very powerful, often able to kill smaller covenant members in one bash. Its power and speed generally depend on what weapon he’s holding, so a rocket launcher is going to hit harder than an SMG, but the SMG is going to be much easier to recover from. Generally this is an attack saved for when he’s out of ammo and in close quarters with his enemy, but he won’t hesitate to finish someone off with the butt of his gun if he’s in range.

At this point, all of Chief’s Weapons are identical to the ODSTs’, so these next few sections will be for everyone.

Close Range- M90 Close Assault Weapon System, M7 Caseless Sub-Machine Gun

The M90 Close Assault Weapon system is a fancy way of saying shotgun. As far as shotguns go, you can do a lot worse. It has an 8 gauge shell, and if you don’t know very much about calibers, let’s just say that if a 12 gauge shell can blow someone’s head off, an 8 gauge can probably bisect someone at the right range. Anything within 10 meters of this weapon is within the kill zone; even Samus will get rocked by this weapon if she’s dumb enough to get that close. The problem is its extremely short range. Anything outside 15 meters will probably not even be effected by this weapon, making it very situational. Its 6 round magazine is another downside, but it’s not like anything can survive that many shots anyways.

The M7 is the SMG used in Halo 2 and 3. It fires the very small 5x23mm Caseless full metal jacket cartridge. The Caseless aspect of the gun is actually partially good and bad, since it doesn’t have to eject spent casings, which means it can fire a lot faster (and it fires off its 60 round magazine at a crazy 15 rounds per second with low recoil to boot), but it has to keep an open bolt to prevent any rounds from cooking off. This means that its accuracy is compromised in exchange for a high fire rate, which is precisely why it’s an effective close range weapon and not viable for use at further ranges. It won’t be able to pierce any thick armor, but it can definitely do damage to any pre-exposed parts of the armor, whether that was from a grenade or a sniper. The sheer amount of rounds will also serve to wear down the armor of the Space marines. If that wasn’t enough, Master Chief can dual wield these, meaning he can spit out 30 rounds per second at that asshole Ridley.

Mid Range- MA5C Assault Rifle, M6G Pistol

The MA5C is the Assault Rifle use in Halo 3, and as an Assault Rifle this is going to be one of the two main weapons for Master Chief’s team (the other being obvious for any true Halo fan.) It has a 32 round magazine with a 7.62x51 mm FMJ cartridge, which is a very big round for an assault rifle. The rounds were made to be able to be effective at piercing armor while still retaining its ability to tear through flesh. As is always the case with versatility however, the round doesn’t excel in either category, with many rounds over penetrating unarmored flesh and failing to fully penetrate thick armor.  This means that while this weapon will need to wear down the armor of Samus’ team before penetrating, it will be ideal against the large, unarmored body of Ridley, as the rounds will go deep into his body and do damage- not an easy thing to do against that bitch.

The M6G Pistol is the short-barreled rifle used in Halo 3 that was called a pistol for some reason. The reason I call it a short barreled rifle is because it’s a massive pistol; bigger than any contemporary pistol I can think of. Its cartridge is equally large, firing .50 magnum rounds out of an 8 round magazine. These rounds are Semi-armor piercing AND explode on impact. How is this combination possible? Not entirely sure, but I’m assuming that it’s the reason that they’re semi and not fully-armor piercing. These huge rounds may not directly punch through the armor of Samus’ space marines, but they’ll sure as hell stumble them. The main drawback to this weapon it its recoil, which is manageable, but still considerable compared to the other weapons. This keeps the fire rate on this weapon low to compensate. The accuracy is very good though, and it could even be considered a long range weapon if it weren’t for the recoil. Also, once again, Chief can duel-wield these at the expense of some accuracy.

Long Range- BRHB55 SR Battle Rifle, SRS99D-S2 AM Sniper Rifle (what the fuck is up with all the letters and numbers)

The Battle Rifle is the essential weapon in the Halo franchise… despite only being in two of the games. Ok, so maybe that’s just an old Halo 3 multiplayer veteran talking, as this weapon represented the epitome of versatility and reliability to anyone whose sensitivity was set too high to be any use with the Sniper Rifle (I go 10 to scare people who try to assassinate me, so naturally I just fired off all of the sniper rounds to prevent someone smarter from using it. Pro.) Its most notable feature is its three-round-burst firing method, which is unlike any other weapon in the Halo franchise and precisely the reason for its versatility. The burst-fire preserves accuracy at long ranges while still allowing potent mid-close range fighting, though not to the extent of the assault rifle. It fires strange-sized 9.5x40mm rounds, which are also semi-armor piercing. These rounds have an experimental propellant that allows them to achieve very high muzzle velocities despite their size. While they won’t do much against the armor of the space marines (and nearly nothing against Samus’ suit,) this weapon is the second primary weapon for the ODST’s, so they will be able to outrange Samus’ team without a problem.

The Sniper is going to be a major factor for the ODST’s combat abilities against their opponents. Up until now, nothing has been able to reliably pierce the armor of Samus’ team, save for the Shotgun, but that’s so close range that its uses are very limited. The Sniper Rifle was made to pierce armor, and pretty much nothing else. The AM in its ridiculously long name stands for “Anti Materiel,” which translates into, “Able to Pierce Tank Armor.” This makes troopers under Samus’ command very susceptible to getting their limbs blown off and heads destroyed at ranges that they can’t fight back from. This is a huuuuuge disadvantage for them, Since even Samus, whose armor is thick enough in places to withstand the shots and has the weaponry to fight back from that range, is much better at mid range fighting, and cannot match the power and accuracy of this weapon without closing the distance and combining a lot of her beams. The best they can do is fire missiles as suppressing fire to get closer, which is a major waste of ammo when missiles very well may be the best aspect of their offensive arsenal. Oh, and it has a four round magazine, and a 14.5x114 cartridge. For those of you that play COD, that’s the same round used in a PTRS Anti-Tank Rifle.

Big Guns- M41 Rocket Launcher

This rocket launcher is a very powerful weapon- moreso than even Samus’ super missiles- so naturally its primary function is to destroy vehicles. It still works well against infantry because of its immense power, with a direct hit almost always killing its target, even if that target is Samus. There are disadvantages to this weapon in this fight though. For one, the missiles are pretty slow moving, which may not be a problem against Brutes and Grunts, but against a team of highly trained marines wearing armor that enhances speed and reaction time, there will not be anything more than a few glancing blows scored on them, which will likely be absorbed by their armor. It also has a two round clip, and is very cumbersome to the ODST holding it- Chief is the only one able to move well while using this weapon. It will be extremely useful against Ridley, whose large size will make an easy target for this weapon, and it has the capability of crippling his ability to fly, which is going to be an absolute necessity against him. Once his flight ability is gone, he’s a very easy target for concentrating assault rifle fire on, which can bring him down in a few seconds. Great weapon against Ridley, but almost a liability against Samus’ Team.

The Spartan Laser is purely an anti-vehicle weapon, and in a small-scale scenario like this they definitely would not have one. Plus it’s like an auto-win for the ODSTs, and that’s no fun.

Explosives- M9 Grenade

This is a standard fragmentation grenade, with standard fragmentation grenade properties. It has a short killing radius, but a good fragmentation radius, meaning it can hit from up to 15 meters and still do major damage. It does have a unique safety device on it which stops it from exploding until after it hits the ground, which has advantages in that it cannot explode in the ODST’s hand, but it also cannot be cooked, so there’s a good chance that the marines will dodge the explosion, and it also cannot hit a flying Ridley. Upside is that every ODST and Master Chief carries FOUR of these suckers into battle, meaning that there’s 44 grenades viable for use. That basically kills the Space Pirates right there, who honestly, much like the Brutes to the Marines, were never much of a major threat to the ODSTs to begin with. In case you didn’t figure it out already, the major challenges for the groups are going to be Tartarus and Ridley, who are both major assholes that have close range weapons with long range capabilities and a major aspect that must be dealt with for them to be defeated (Tartarus’ shields, Ridley’s flight.)

Yeah, I thought this match through.

Something To Think About- Interchangable Weapons, Two guns at a time, all need to reload.

This is not a category, but a major aspect of this team. Basically It means that every ODST and Chief can carry two guns at a time (Unless Chief is going Rambo with two SMGs) and can use each others’ weapons. This is a great advantage, as Ridley may be able to kill one of the ODSTs firing rockets at him, but any of the other ODSTs can pick up that rocket launcher and use it just as effectively. Killing one of Samus’ rocket troops permanently destroys the use of that rocket launcher. This also means that the less ODSTs there are, the better the surviving members’ arsenals will be, since they can pick up a Sniper and Battle Rifle from their dead comrades and go to town on their enemies. This also solves most ammo problems, since in the rare case that there is absolutely no ammo on any ODST dead or alive, they can just pick up a different weapon. They can also carry only two weapons at any given time, which is better than the space marines with Samus, but not even close to Samus herself, whose ability to combine beams gives her a nearly endless list of possible weapons she can use. Overall though, this is a big advantage for Master Chief’s squad.

A big disadvantage, however, is the need to reload all of the guns listed here. Samus' team can fire away until they are either out of ammo or overheated, but all of these weapons' effectiveness are limited by their clip size. It doesn't take long to reload, but that precious few seconds could definitely give an opening for the enemy to go on the offensive.

This is where it stops being for both ODSTs and Master Chief and goes back to just Master Chief’s abilities.

Non-Directly Offensive Abilities

Agility:

Master Chief’s agility is excellent due to his natural abilities, drug enhancements, and Mjolnir Mark VI armor. Compared to Samus, he’s faster at running and reaction time, but worse at acrobatics and jumping, though he can still jump and roll like a champion. His reaction time will be a big factor in this match, since there are a lot of slow moving energy projectiles coming at him, which he can dodge reliably.

Pain Tolerance:

Master Chief’s huge pain tolerance given to him through his SPARTAN II drug sandwich is enhanced again by the armor, this time because of the biofoam that’s automatically dispensed into his wounds. The biofoam will allow him to get though any non-lethal injury. Debilitating injuries like broken bones can still slow him down, but will very rarely happen, since his skeleton is basically made of adamantium… ok maybe not that hard, but combined with his armor It would take a spaceship landing on him to break his bones.

Training:

Being trained to be a super-soldier and nothing else from age 6 has its advantages- mainly in the form of being a super-soldier trained from age 6. His training put him in Batman-level conditioning, and his drug-sandwich put him above and beyond that- like if Batman had a gay wing-suit that enhances his strength and speed. Unlike Batman though, Master Chief does not lose his awesome factor when gaining these abilities, and he has no aspirations of defeating a combatant who is clearly superior at one-on-one fighting than himself.

Sorry, got a bit carried away there. Chief’s training was amazing, and it covered the aspects of individual and squad engagements, meaning he has no weaknesses in any situation. He was also trained in military tactics, meaning he can effectively command his ODSTs.

Leadership:

Master Chief had a natural leadership ability that allowed him to become leader of his own squad of SPARTAN IIs, who were all trained to be able to lead squads of marines, so he literally led a squad of leaders. His presence on the battlefield also provides a huge morale boost for UNSC members, so he’ll have no trouble getting his ODSTs to do everything he tells them to do to the best of their abilities.

Special Abilities- Cortana, Luck

Cortana is an extremely advanced Artificial Intelligence that was created from the brain of the woman who devised the entire SPARTAN II program, Dr. Catherine Halsey. She is also designated as a “Smart” AI, meaning she is capable of learning and adapting indefinitely. Her primary function throughout the games is to infiltrate enemy installations and basically take them over, but she also gives the Master Chief combat advice when he needs it. She is intensely loyal to Chief, and she’ll do whatever she can to help him.

He also has an immeasurable advantage known simply as luck. Seriously, it’s one of his qualities, and the reason that Cortana chose him to live in over every other SPARTAN. It won’t really affect anything, it’s just interesting to note, and will probably be showcased at least once in the battle.

ODST

The Orbital Drop Shock Troopers are known for going feet first into Hell. I’m not sure what other direction you’d be facing while traveling there, but they’re very proud of this motto, so don’t tell them I said that.

Background

Orbital Drop Shock Troops are a special operations branch of the UNSC Marine Corps. They are best known for their effective insertion method, which is dropping towards planets individually in small pods from outside of Earth’s atmosphere- An orbital drop. This combined with their increased skills over normal marines make them ideal for taking on unique and dangerous mission that would be unsuitable for a normal marine squad. As a purely volunteer force, the ODSTs were all normal marines at one point, but showed various physical and mental capabilities that allowed them to become a part of the superior force renowned throughout Earth and the Covenant for their effectiveness in battle.

Armor- ODST Battle Armor

The ODSTs have a specialized combat uniform that is based partially off MJOLNIR technology, though still it cannot come close to the effectiveness of that armor. IT is made primarily of titanium and ceramic composite, making it great at deflecting ballistics rounds, and not so great against energy projectiles. The armor is vacuum rated, for obvious reasons, so they can fight without oxygen for extended periods of time. They also receive an HUD borrowed from the armor of a SPARTAN II, and in fact it even has an added VISR ability that will be explained further in the Special Abilities Section. Because of the ODST’s ability to deploy from space and fall to earth, they also have a good amount of temperature control in their suit. This helps them against energy weapons, but they are still more vulnerable to them than ballistic weapons and shrapnel.

Weapons

Melee- Close Quarters Combat Weapon System (yeah, even their knives have stupid names)

The ODSTs all carry a Combat knife into battle, either on their lower backs or left shoulder. The proficiency with it varies on how much time the user has put into training with it, but they all receive a base amount of training time in CQC which makes them all at least lethally effective with this weapon. Against Samus the knives won’t pierce her armor, and against the Space Pirates their scythes will outmatch the ODSTs, but against Samus’ Space Marines they could be useful

Everything else is documented above

Non-Directly Offensive Abilities

Agility

These guys definitely suffer here in comparison to everyone else. Most guys either have a suit that boosts their movement speed, or a suit that doesn’t really affect it one way or the other. The ODSTs have a lot of equipment, and it definitely weighs them down. They have plenty of endurance training to counteract this, but their overall speed suffers, and as a result will have a hard time dodging missiles coming their way.

Pain Tolerance

As a Special operations branch of the Marines whose job it is to fall to Earth in a tiny pod, these guys have a degree of pain tolerance that is unmatched by the unenhanced, but it falls short against those like Master Chief who have ultimate armor on. Some of them do carry biofoam packs though, and all are trained in their use, so any major injuries sustained can be healed for a short time to prolong their battle capabilities. They will slow down after this though, as unlike the Master Chief they don’t have the power of drugs to suppress the pain that the biofoam gives them as it heals their wound.

Training

When the ODSTs first entered the Marines, they went through over a year of intense physical and mental training. When they entered the ODSTs, they trained some more and picked out their specialties in the field, such as sniping or close combat. This means that they have the ability to utilize certain weapons to an enhanced degree; something that will be reflected in their initial loadouts.

Special Abilities- Orbital Drop, VISR

It may seem a bit redundant at this point, but there is a significant advantage to being dropped into atmosphere directly from space.  By the time they are detected by their enemies, they’re on the ground, battle ready, giving them a major element of surprise while fighting in a terrestrial environment. Obviously this ability is situational, but still useful.

What things look like while in VISR mode.

The VISR ability is a built-in nightvision of sorts that not only allows the user to see better in low light situations, but also highlights friendlies in green and enemies in red, allowing for them to detect and communicate with each other easily while attacking enemies on sight. This makes them stealthier as well, as they won’t need flashlights in dark environments.

I'll probably separate these profiles from the other two with a short segment setting up the scenario for the battle to keep things from getting tedious.