Flag dropping

Flag dropping is the intentional act of dropping the flag and wielding it again. It is performed rapidly and constantly to circumvent the restricted player speed for flag carriers.

Overview
Flag dropping is a common tactic performed in the Capture the Flag gametype when the flag carrier has no access to a vehicle; since carrying the flag reduces the player's speed, constantly dropping it ahead and grabbing it is a precious time-saver, especially when time is running out. Flag dropping is also used as a form of match-time celebration. When someone steals a flag, they may drop and steal it constantly while on their way back to their base. This leads to the narrator repeating "flag dropped" and "flag stolen", to the annoyance of the other team.

The tactic was effectively killed in Halo: Reach due to a new gameplay mechanic that only lets players build up normal running speed again after one second of dropping an objective item, and in Halo 4 which prevents flag carrier from dropping the flag.

Trivia
The tactic is not limited to only flags. Players can use the same tactic for the skull used in Oddball gametype and the Human bomb in Assault gametype.