Armor permutations (Halo 3)

For other uses, see armor permutations.

A player using a mix of armor sets in Halo: The Master Chief Collection.

Armor permutations in Halo 3 allow players to customize their Spartan and Elite player model with a variety of armor pieces available to players. The feature is an improvement of Halo 2's player customization feature, and the first in the series to allow players to change the physical model of their character beyond species and colour selection.

Overview

Artwork by Isaac Hannaford revealing the existence of Recon, long before the armor was officially announced.

Halo 3 features a number of armor selections for both Spartan and Elite player characters, unlocked primarily by accomplishing feats within the campaign, Matchmaking and earning achievements. The system was initially unveiled in the July 2007 issue of GamePro, featuring a handful of images of the EVA and CQB armor sets alongside the standard Mark VI, though was noted by Bungie to not be the full set of armor available in game. Bungie later officially announced the inclusion of Elite armor variants, and on Bungie Day 2007 officially unveiled the CQB and EVA permutations' visuals and lore. A piece of art illustrated by Isaac Hannaford released at the same time additionally revealed the existence of the Recon armor, though the armor was not specifically called out by Bungie or given any attention until later.

In total, there are 17 armor sets included in Halo 3, 12 of which for the SPARTAN-II character model and 5 for the Elite character model. These armor permutations are organized into three categories: Helmet, Chest and Shoulder. Certain armor permutations can only be unlocked by completing the game on certain difficulties, accumulating certain Gamerscore, or by obtaining certain multiplayer-specific achievements. Some, such as Recon or the exclusive Bungie Armor, have more esoteric unlock requirements, and can only be granted under certain conditions. Additionally, some Spartan armor sets only contain a helmet piece or chest piece, with no other associated armor selections.

Halo 3 unlock requirements

Note: The below unlock requirements only apply to the original Halo 3 game on Xbox 360 or via Xbox One backward compatibility. In The Master Chief Collection, all armor is unlocked by default for all players - including the Bungie armor.

Spartan armor

Spartan armor
Armor	Helmet	Chest	Shoulders
Mark VI	Unlocked by default	Unlocked by default	Unlocked by default
CQB	Unlocked by default	Unlocked by default	Unlocked by default
EVA	Complete the entire Halo 3 campaign on Normal difficulty or higher (Campaign Complete: Normal)	Beat Tsavo Highway on Normal difficulty or higher (The Road)	Beat The Ark on Normal difficulty or higher (Refuge)
EOD	Complete the entire Halo 3 campaign on Legendary difficulty (Campaign Complete: Legendary)	Beat Tsavo Highway on Legendary difficulty	Beat The Ark on Legendary difficulty
HAYABUSA	Collect all 13 skulls	Collect 5 skulls	Collect 9 skulls
Scout	Unlock the Used Car Salesman achievement	Unlock the Too Close to the Sun achievement	Unlock the Mongoose Mowdown achievement
Recon	Be granted the Recon armour by Bungie (2007-2009) Complete all Vidmaster Challenges in Halo 3 and Halo 3: ODST (September 2009-March 2012) Unlocked for all Halo 3 players in two waves by 343 Industries (No longer attainable for new accounts)
Security	Get 1,000	N/A	Get 750
ODST	Reach the rank of Private in multiplayer (Spartan Graduate)	N/A
Mark V	Achieve the rank of Sergeant in multiplayer (UNSC Spartan)	N/A
Rogue	Reach the rank of Lieutenant in multiplayer (Spartan Officer)	N/A
Katana	N/A	Earn 49 achievements or earn 1,000	N/A
Bungie Armor ("Flaming head")	N/A	Be an employee of Bungie Studios	N/A

Elite

Elite armor
Armor	Helmet	Chest	Shoulders
Combat harness	Unlocked by default	Unlocked by default	Unlocked by default
Assault harness	Unlocked by default	Unlocked by default	Unlocked by default
Flight harness	Complete the entire Halo 3 campaign on Heroic difficulty or higher (Campaign Complete: Heroic)	Beat Tsavo Highway on Heroic difficulty or higher	Beat The Ark on Heroic difficulty or higher
Ascetic harness	Unlock the Steppin' Razor achievement	Unlock the Up Close and Personal achievement	Unlock the Overkill achievement
Commando harness	Unlock the Overkill achievement	Unlock the Triple Kill achievement	Unlock the Killing Frenzy achievement Auto-unlocked for all players in Title Update 1

Halo: The Master Chief Collection

The Demo, Suture and Compass armors introduced into Halo 3.

For the Halo 3 multiplayer component of Halo: The Master Chief Collection, all armor - including Recon and Bungie - was unlocked for all players for use by default. Between the game's launch in 2014 and the launch of Halo 3 on PC in 2020, armor customization was limited to full sets with no mix-and-match customization, due to the difficulties of running multiple engines in the menu component. In this launch rendition, the armor sets were displayed in the menu as static renders, with the armors using full armor sets or - in the case of armors with no associated armor for chest, helmet or shoulder elements - Mark VI to supplement missing elements. As such, using a helmet such as Mark V or ODST required the usage of all Mark VI for everything else. Using the Katana chest, however, would use Hayabusa for all other armor elements. Additionally and for the first time, The Master Chief Collection allowed players to use the Bungie Armor (now renamed "Flaming Head"), and would display the characteristic flames and EOD chest as it did in the original game, though with enforced Mark VI shoulders and helmet.

Following the launch of Halo 3 on PC and start of Season 2: Spark, this system was updated to display Halo 3 character models in Unreal Engine 4, with full customization in-game as it was at the launch of Halo 3. In this change, the Bungie Armor chest was renamed "Legacy", and the Security armour set was given a chest armour piece; in launch Halo 3, equipping the Security helmet additionally outfitted the chest with a small antenna. Following the Season 2 update, the antenna is now considered a separate chest, and can be used regardless of helmet.

With the launch of Season 3: Recon, Halo 3 customisation was updated with the inclusion of skins for application on a player's weapon and several new visor colour options for use with all helmets. The full list of Halo 3 skins can be viewed here.

In the Season 4 December update, Halo 3 was expanded to include new techsuit customization, with the players being able to change it between a new Halo 3 techsuit and Halo 4 techsuit (both colored and full black).

Season 5: Anvil included twelve new armor permutations for Halo 3, originally created for the cancelled Halo Online. Additionally, included new forearm and leg customisation, allowing players to choose between the new twelve armors or the default Mark VI. These armors can be toggled off for a more classic experience, with any players using Halo Online armor instead displaying as default Mark VI.

Season 6: Raven will include several new armor permutations, including six Halo Online armor permutations and the four ODST armors used by Fireteam Raven in the namesake game. It will also add a "Back Accessory" option, allowing players to choose between six new back packages (four being based on Halo: Fireteam Raven), three new techsuit options, and at least three new animated visor colors.

Armor

Spartan armor
Armor	Helmet	Chest	Shoulders	Forearms	Legs
Air Assault	Season 5, Tier 3 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 15 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 7( 1)	Season 5, Tier 12 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 27 ( 1)
Aviator	Season 5, Tier 9 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 11 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 17 ( 1)	N/A	Season 5, Tier 94 ( 1)
COS	Season 6, Tier 53 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 73 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 66 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 90 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 71 ( 1)
Compass	Season 5, Tier 82 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 96 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 62 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 74 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 89 ( 1)
Deadeye	Season 5, Tier 78 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 38 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 54 ( 1)	N/A	Season 5, Tier 97 ( 1)
Demo	Season 5, Tier 37 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 26 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 39 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 32 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 66 ( 1)
Hammerhead	Season 6, Tier 75 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 11 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 35 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 22 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 46 ( 1)
Hivemind	Season 5, Tier 64 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 41 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 59 ( 1)	N/A	Season 5, Tier 67 ( 1)
Infiltrator	Season 6, Tier 33 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 13 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 29 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 49 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 59 ( 1)
Lancer	Season 6, Tier 16 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 42 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 27 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 31 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 56 ( 1)
Navigator	Season 5, Tier 72 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 92 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 81 ( 1)	N/A	Season 5, Tier 75 ( 1)
Nomdagro	Season 6, Tier 4 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 39 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 19 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 7 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 26 ( 1)
ODST/COMM	Season 6, Tier 40 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 52 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 62 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 60 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 64 ( 1)
ODST/DEMO	Season 6, Tier 20 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 32 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 55 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 48 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 44 ( 1)
ODST/HVY	Season 6, Tier 57 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 72 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 93 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 68 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 76 ( 1)
ODST/TAC	Season 6, Tier 2 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 14 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 30 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 25 ( 1)	Season 6, Tier 6 ( 1)
Pioneer	Season 5, Tier 49 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 34 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 29 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 16 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 57 ( 1)
Rhine	75px75px75px Season 6, purchase at The Exchange ( 20)
Soldier	Season 5, Tier 19 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 98 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 73 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 99 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 44 ( 1)
Suture	Season 5, Tier 63 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 69 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 71 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 5 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 52 ( 1)
Tanker	Season 5, Tier 87 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 6 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 23 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 84 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 8 ( 1)
Warrior	Season 5, Tier 56 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 14 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 47 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 88 ( 1)	Season 5, Tier 46 ( 1)

Visors

Visor customisation was introduced to Halo 3 in Season 3: Recon. A number of visor colours can be unlocked for Season Points, though like other Halo 3 skins, they can be toggled off in the menu. Season 6 will include animated visor colors. Season 6 introduced more visors in the form of animated visors.

In-game	Appearance Name	Unlock Requirements	Description
	Blue	Season 3, Tier 1 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Red	Season 3, Tier 3 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Green	Season 3, Tier 4 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Yellow	Season 3, Tier 5 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Purple	Season 3, Tier 7 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Orange	Season 3, Tier 8 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Bronze	Season 3, Tier 10 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Silver	Season 3, Tier 11 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Dark Red	Season 3, Tier 13 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Dark Yellow	Season 3, Tier 15 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Dark Purple	Season 3, Tier 17 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Dark Blue	Season 3, Tier 19 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Dark Green	Season 3, Tier 20 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Spectrum	Season 3, Tier 23 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Dark Orange	Season 3, Tier 26 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Pastel Blue	Season 3, Tier 27 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Pastel Green	Season 3, Tier 29 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Pastel Red	Season 3, Tier 30 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Pastel Yellow	Season 3, Tier 32 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Pastel Purple	Season 3, Tier 34 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Pastel Orange	Season 3, Tier 35 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Groovy	Season 3, Tier 37 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Pearlescent Yellow	Season 3, Tier 38 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Pearlescent Blue	Season 3, Tier 41 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Platinum	Season 3, Tier 42 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Pearlescent Red	Season 3, Tier 44 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Pearlescent Green	Season 3, Tier 45 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Pearlescent Orange	Season 3, Tier 47 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Pearlescent Purple	Season 3, Tier 48 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Onyx	Season 3, Tier 49 ( 1)	Part of a suite of experimental VISR enhancements.
	Another Sunrise	Season 6 Challenge: Package Deal	Every sunrise is proof of victory.
	Cool Depths	Season 6, Tier 5 1	What lies beneath?
	Neon	Season 6, Tier 37 1	Let's be frank...
	Burn Radius	Season 6, Tier 98 1	Danger! Do not touch!
	Nebula	Season 6, Tier 74 1	So close, yet so far away.
	Old Salt	Season 6, Tier 82 1	Worn, but ready for battle.
	Patina	Season 6, Tier 69 1	Mark of a true veteran.
	Plated	Season 6, Tier 84 1	Anniversary edition faceplate.
	Red Shift	Season 6, Tier 92 1	Spartans in motion around distant stars.
	Shadow	Season 6, Tier 89 1	What lies within?
	Shoreline Sunset	Season 6, Tier 10 1	This is living.
	Tall Tales	Season 6, Tier 80 1	The after-action reports may have been exaggerated.
	Turbulence	Season 6, Tier 67 1	Spartans work well in murky environments.
	Uncontrolled Growth	Season 6, Tier 78 1	Even the flower of life can bring death.
	Tropic Cove	Season 6, Tier 8 1	Smells like vacation.

Back accessories

Back Accessory customisation was introduced to Halo 3 in Season 6: Raven.

In-game	Appearance Name	Unlock Requirements	Description
	Default	Default	No backpack
	Tactical Pack	Season 6: Raven, Tier 23 1	All-purpose hardened storage.
	Demolitions Pack	Season 6: Raven, Tier 50 1	A one-stop shop for your front-line combat engineer.
	Communications Pack	Season 6: Raven, Tier 54 1	Battle network relay. Provides the user with a multi-channel secure network uplink. The case meets or exceeds all UNSC mil-spec standards for temperature, impact, moisture, vibration, and foreign particulate resistance.
	Ammo Pack	Season 6: Raven, Tier 97 1	Keep the party going with additional ammunition reserves and a back-up knife. In field situations packs such as these extend the duration of combat excursions and reduce the need for supply drops, but in training environments they have no effect.
	Pulaski	Season 6: Raven, Tier 86 1	Spartans serve as a fire break for many existential threats.
	Sword and Board	Season 6 Challenge: Best at Both	Survive the onslaught.
	Katana	Unlocked by default	Fortune favors the honorable and dedicated.

Techsuit

A comparison of all Season 5 techsuit variants. From left to right: the original Halo 3 techsuit, the new GEN1 techsuit, the GEN2 techsuit and the GEN2 Tinted techsuit.

As of the December 2020 update, Spartans in Halo 3 can now choose between three different techsuits to display underneath their MJOLNIR armor. Season 6 will include three new colored techsuits, with these techsuits not inhereting the player's primary color. These include the following;

• GEN1: Integral to the entire Mjolnir system, the techsuit encases the wearer's body and provides attachment points for the armor plating above it.
  • This techsuit replaces the standard Halo 3 techsuit available in the original game and pre-update MCC. It is noticeably more detailed than the original, and is much more form-fitting.
  • By Season 6, if the player has the toggle option for Halo 3 skins off, the Spartan model will be replaced with the original Halo 3 Spartan model.
• GEN2: Though similar to earlier systems, the GEN2 techsuit is a bespoke form-fitted armored polymuscle exoskeleton.
  • The standard GEN2 techsuit introduced in Halo 4, Online and Halo 5: Guardians. This undersuit is only available in black.
• GEN2 Tinted: A variant of the standard GEN2 techsuit with additional chromatic customization options.
  • A coloured variant of of the GEN2 undersuit, which inherits the player's primary colour.
• GEN2 Azure: The sky is not the limit.
  • GEN2 techsuit with blue coloration.
• GEN2 Gunmetal: Never one for subtlety.
  • GEN2 techsuit with grey coloration.
• GEN2 Maroon: A pleasant color for a gruesome business.
  • GEN2 techsuit with dark red coloration.

• 

  Azure techsuit.

• 

  Gunmetal techsuit.

• 

  Maroon techsuit.

Trivia

Mistakes

• In reusing tooltips from Halo: Reach's appearance menu, the updated customization menu for Halo 3 in Halo: The Master Chief Collection now erroneously states the choice between a Spartan and Elite player model is only applicable to appropriate, species-specific gametypes, despite the option being available regardless of gametype.
  • Additionally, when hovering over the menu element to change Elite armor permutations, the game erroneously states the option is to change Spartan armor. This would be fixed with the release of Halo 3: ODST on PC.

Miscellaneous

• A certain conceptual helmet seen in The Art of Halo 3 greatly resembles the AIR ASSAULT-class Mjolnir set that'd later appear in Halo: Reach.
• In Halo 3, the neck of an Elite (regardless what armor permutation used) is completely immune to any form of damage except for a shot from an overcharged Plasma Pistol. In addition, the projectile will simply pass through the neck, as though the neck wasn't there, without a blood spatter. This is because both Elites and Spartans have similar models.
• Many people speculate that hitboxes of the Spartans and Elites are shared but this is not true. While Bungie has officially commented on the hitboxes, they regard the size of the hitbox not the arrangement. Hitboxes are an unseen registry mechanic, which fall into the player models. They determine whether or not something has collided with the player. If an Elite is facing profile (sideways), and a shot is fired underneath the head (to where a Spartan's chest would be), the game will not register a hit. The head "hitbox" is forward more on Elites than it is Spartans.

Gallery

Concept art

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  Four conceptual armor sets from The Art of Halo 3. The Scout helmet is visible.

Menu images

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  The armor permutation menu for Spartans in the Xbox 360 edition of Halo 3.

• 

  The armor permutation menu for Sangheili in the Xbox 360 edition of Halo 3.

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  The armor permutation menu for Halo 3 on The Master Chief Collection prior to Halo 3: ODST's PC launch, featuring an erroneous tooltip, and a different pose for the player's Spartan.

• 

  Color choices for Halo 3 in Halo: The Master Chief Collection, following Halo 3: ODST's launch, with an updated character pose.

Screenshots

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  All the Elite permutations in Halo 3.

• 

  A recreation of a Sangheili Zealot on Valhalla using the armor customization system.

• 

  The glitched armor from Floodgate, It appears to be a combination of the front part of the Assault permutation and the back of the Combat permutation.

Miscellaneous

• 

  All of the Spartan permutations in Halo 3. Note: If a part of the armor set doesn't exist, it has been substituted with its Mark VI counterpart.