Hard sound rifle
From Halopedia, the Halo wiki
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- " I don't know what they'll do if I give them your location. Maybe a hard sound pulse to drop you while you're crossing the street... or gas, they're using gas more these days."
- — Herzog, describing the use of hard sound rifles by the Office of Naval Intelligence.[3]
The hard sound rifle is a sonic weapon developed by the UNSC Navy originally intended for use in sniping and assassination missions against political leaders. Unlike a regular firearm, the hard sound rifle does not fire a physical projectile; it uses compressed sound waves to precisely and cleanly cause injuries to its targets. A well-placed shot is capable of causing a "resonance cascade", resulting in a cerebral hemorrhage.[1][2] Targets killed by a hard sound rifle exhibit few, if any, signs of external injury or damage (including burns, powder residue, or entry wounds), save for some bleeding in the ears.[4]
Hard sound rifles have picked up a number of nicknames, including "Buzzer", "Skull-Splitter", and "Soundwave".[1][2]
Operational history[edit]
Thanks to their nearly-silent nature and a lack of forensic evidence on their victims, sound rifles are the preferred weapons for ONI assassins. However, during the Human-Covenant War the weapons also became widespread on the civilian black market,[4] falling into the hands of organised crime. The United Nations Space Command were involved in attempts to stop the proliferation of the weapons, though to limited effect due to the ongoing war against the Covenant.[1][2] The black market proliferation of hard sound rifles was such that even regular civilians, such as Billy-Jay, were able to acquire them.[4]
In 2552, an ONI assassin disguised as a homeless man was sent to kill Rani Sobeck for her investigation into a covert evacuation of the human colony of Troy. A protective detail dispatched by Colonel Herzog eliminated the operative through use of a hard sound rifle. Having fallen off the roof to the street below, local authorities dismissed the death as an accident resulting from use of alcohol or drugs.[4][5]
List of appearances[edit]
- i love bees (First appearance)
Sources[edit]
- ^ a b c d Halo Encyclopedia (2009 edition), page 310
- ^ a b c d Halo Encyclopedia (2011 edition), page 324
- ^ i love bees, Axon Clips, Chapter 10: Herzog: "Triangles, Lines, Dots"
- ^ a b c d i love bees, Axon Clips, Chapter 6: Rani: "Jumper"
- ^ i love bees, Axon Clips, Chapter 6: Herzog: "My Conscience"
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