Ghosts of Meridian

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Next:	Memories of Reach
Ghosts of Meridian
Includes content for:	Halo 5: Guardians
Season information
Start date:	April 6, 2016
End date:	May 12, 2016
Number of REQs:	33
Total unlock cost:	115,000 REQ points (11 silver packs, 6 gold packs)

"New maps for Arena and Warzone, all-new vehicle variants, new power weapons and more cosmetic REQs arrive in the free Ghosts of Meridian release for Halo 5: Guardians. If Warzone is your multiplayer flavor of choice, party up and drop into Skirmish at Darkstar to take down opposing Spartans and never-before-seen bosses. In Arena, you can engage in furious 4v4 battles and epic objectives on Tyrant, a new small-scale symmetrical map built for Capture the Flag and Assault game modes. Ghosts of Meridian also includes a myriad of adjustments for Forge, as well as bug fixes and tweaks to Multiplayer, Campaign, UI, and more!"

— Ghosts of Meridian description

Ghosts of Meridian is the fifth major content update for Halo 5: Guardians and was released on April 6, 2016. The update included new multiplayer maps, weapons, vehicles, Requisitions, and Forge options. This update would also see the beta for Warzone Firefight, a gametype intended to release within the update of the same name in June of 2016.

Update content

General overview

• 33 new REQs
• New armor sets
  • Dynast
    • Dynast Lilioc
    • Dynast Cincindel
• New multiplayer maps:
  • Tyrant
  • Skirmish at Darkstar
• New sandbox items:
  • Grenadier armor mod
  • Gravity Hammer
    • Corpsemaker
    • Grinder
    • Tartarus' Gavel
  • Z-130 Suppressor
    • Song of Peace
    • Razor's Edge
  • Hannibal vehicle variants for the Scorpion and Mantis

General customization

• 2 armor skins: Mark IV GEN1 Arcadia, Mark V Alpha Reflex
• 5 weapon skins: Blue Steel (MA5D assault rifle, M6H2 magnum, BR85 battle rifle, M395B DMR, M20 PDW)
• 1 visor: Glacier
• 6 emblems: Sol, Distraction, Supercombine, Dog Pound, Steaktacular, Money 8S
• 2 assassinations: Fisticuffs, Take a Look
• 1 stances: Pink Mist

Marketing

Ghosts of Meridian livestream teaser

Main article: Ghosts of Meridian livestream teaser

A small, 20 second teaser for the Ghosts of Meridian update, showcasing the Suppressor variants, along with a small tease of the Hannibal Mantis on Skirmish at Darkstar. This was shown during the Hammer Storm livestream held by 343 Industries on February 23, 2016.

Ghosts of Meridian teaser

Main article: Ghosts of Meridian Teaser

A small skit and teaser for the then-upcoming Ghosts of Meridian livestream held by 343 Industries, released on April 4, 2016.

Ghosts of Meridian Launch Trailer

Main article: Halo 5: Guardians - Ghosts of Meridian Launch Trailer

A full trailer released on April 6, 2016, showcasing the update's content and features.

Patch notes

April 6, 2016 (update launch) patch notes

New features and updates:

• New Warzone map added: Skirmish at Darkstar
• New Arena map added: Tyrant
• Weather effects added to Forge
• New sound effects added to Forge
• Spartan Company members will now appear in the Active Roster
• April 14 – 18: Warzone Firefight Beta playlist goes live.

Multiplayer:

• Fixed exploit that allowed players to hide inside Armory base geometry in Warzone
• Significantly improved the speed and responsiveness of the REQ Menu, especially for players with a large number of REQs
• Favorited friends now appear at the top of Active Roster
• Fixed issue where players that a join a match in progress did not have full REQ Energy to start
• Reduced instances where the assaulting team could be spawn blocked on Warzone Assault maps
• Fixed issues with invisible environment boundaries allowing vehicles to push players out of normal map boundaries
• Fixed issue where some players who had recently dealt damage to a Boss did not receive Takedown credit when the Boss was killed by a teammate
• SWAT DMRs added to the SWAT playlist
• Fixed an issue that caused the Event Feed to not display at the end of a round or match
• SWAT game type options have been balanced to allow for even weighting between Magnums, BRs, and DMRs
• Gravity Hammer is now the starting weapon in Grifball
• Reduced Boss Takedown damage requirement from 10% to 1%
• Random Weapon and Random Vehicle REQs can now unlock the most up-to-date REQs, including those from Ghosts of Meridian
• Daily Win Bonus Packs can now unlock the most up-to-date single-use REQs, including those from Ghost of Meridian
• Players can now “ping” their location in a game when alive to alert teammates by pressing UP on the d-pad in Warzone or Arena
• Fixed an issue that caused explosive barrels to not be explosive when the Deathless option is turned on in Custom Games

Sandbox:

• Fixed a bug that caused the Spartan Laser to deal incorrect damage against shields
• Fixed a bug where damage dealt to Gungoose Cannons did not properly transfer damage to the rest of the vehicle. (The Spartan Laser is excited about this change, too)
• Mantis armor has been increased
• Reduced the explosion radius of the Whiplash
• Needler projectiles now do damage to Wraith and Scorpion weak points
• Fixed an issue where Rail Gun aiming light can be seen through geometry
• Fixed server crashes surrounding picking up powerups
• Fixed a bug that made picking up powerups impossible
• With Speed Boost activated, Spartan Charging now kills upon impact
• Hydra Launcher now only locks onto the torso of enemy Spartans
• Fixed a bug that allowed players to perform a Spartan Charge after performing a Thrust in mid-air
• Fixed a bug with Phaeton damage regions that resulted in incorrect weak spot hit markers
• Slightly reduced bloom for the Halo: CE Pistol
• Improved readability of shields popping immediately after they begin to recharge
• Lowered the damage of an uncharged Plasma Pistol shot when fired upon a Ghost’s weak point
• Fixed a bug that did not allow Ball holders to pick up grenades
• Fixed a bug with Advanced Sensors’ speed threshold that caused players to show up on radar in some cases where they were not moving at Sprint/Thrust speed or faster

Forge:

New & Updated Features:

• Weather Effects added to map properties [Rain, Snow, Dust, Embers, Papers, Motes]
• Sound Effects added to extras menu
• Starting energy can now be adjusted on weapon
• Starting energy and clips can now be adjusted for weapons on weapon pads

New Assets:

• props> cover> style> plated>
  • Cover: Plated [3x12x12; forge]
  • Cover: Plated [3x12x12; torque]
  • Cover: Plated [3x12x16; forge]
  • Cover: Plated [3x12x16; torque]
  • Cover: Plated [3x16x8; forge]
  • Cover: Plated [3x16x8; torque]
  • Cover: Plated [3x16x12; forge]
  • Cover: Plated [3x16x12; torque]
  • Cover: Plated [4x12x4.5; forge]
  • Cover: Plated [4x12x4.5; torque]
  • Cover: Plated [5x16x12; forge]
  • Cover: Plated [5x16x12; torque]
• natural> trees> fulls>
  • Tree: Full [34x36x44; acacia; glacier]
  • Tree: Full [38x40x52; acacia; glacier]
  • Tree: Full [42x46x44; acacia; glacier]
  • Tree: Full [55x52x70; acacia; glacier]
  • Tree: Full [72x70x72; acacia; glacier]
  • Tree: Full [60x70x94; acacia; glacier]
  • Tree: Full [75x95x95; acacia; glacier]
• natural> plants> ivy>
  • Plant: Ivy [10x10; glacier]
  • Plant: Ivy [20x20; glacier]
  • Plant: Ivy [10x10; glacier; top]
  • Plant: Ivy [20x10; glacier; top]
• natural> plants> bushes>
  • Plant: Bush [4x4x3; glacier]
  • Plant: Bush [8x8x6; glacier]
  • Plant: Bush [8x8x8; glacier]
  • Plant: Bush [16x16x16; glacier]
• natural> plants> grass>
  • Plant: Grass [2x3; glacier]
  • Plant: Grass [4x6; glacier]
  • Plant: Grass [6x6; glacier]
• natural> trees> fulls>
  • Tree: Full [34x36x44; acacia; alpine]
  • Tree: Full [38x40x52; acacia; alpine]
  • Tree: Full [42x46x44; acacia; alpine]
  • Tree: Full [55x52x70; acacia; alpine]
  • Tree: Full [72x70x72; acacia; alpine]
  • Tree: Full [60x70x94; acacia; alpine]
  • Tree: Full [75x95x95; acacia; alpine]
• natural> plants> ivy>
  • Plant: Ivy [10x10; alpine]
  • Plant: Ivy [20x20; alpine]
  • Plant: Ivy [10x10; alpine; top]
  • Plant: Ivy [20x10; alpine; top]
• gameplay> shields> type> two-way>
  • Shield: Two-Way [8x48]
  • Shield: Two-Way [16x48]
  • Shield: Two-Way [24x48]
  • Shield: Two-Way [32x48]
  • Shield: Two-Way [48x48]
  • Shield: Two-Way [64x24]
  • Shield: Two-Way [64x48]
• gameplay> gravity-vols> type> invisible>
  • Gravity Volume [8x8x16; invisible]
  • Gravity Volume [16x16x32; invisible]
  • Gravity Volume [32x32x64; invisible]
  • Gravity Volume [64x64x128; invisible]
  • Gravity Volume [128x128x256; invisible]
  • Gravity Volume [128x256x128; invisible]
  • Gravity Volume [256x256x256; invisible]
  • gameplay> gravity-vols> type> visible>
  • Gravity Volume [8x8x16; visible]
  • Gravity Volume [16x16x32; visible]<