Canon

Ruwaa-pattern Shadow

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This article is about Covenant ground transport introduced in Halo 2. For other vehicles of the Shadow family, see Shadow.
Ruwaa-pattern Light Transport
H2A T29-TVT.png
Production information

Manufacturer:

Assembly Forges[1][2][3]

Technical specifications

Length:

13.8 meters (45.4 ft)[2][3]

Width:

7.6 meters (24.9 ft)[2][3]

Height:

6.77 meters (22.2 ft)[2][3]

Mass:

69.75 metric tons (68.65 LT; 76.89 ST)[4][3]

Maximum speed:

66 miles per hour (106 km/h)[2]

Armament:

One Type-29 Anti-Infantry Weapon Emplacement/Mounted[2][3]

Crew:

Complement:

Usage

In service:

Human-Covenant War

Role(s):

Ground transport for vehicles and infantry

Affiliation:

Covenant[2]

 

The Ruwaa-pattern Light Transport[3] (UNSC Type classification: Type-29 Troop/Vehicle Transport, T-29 T/VT),[1] or more commonly the Shadow, is a Covenant ground transport vehicle.

Overview[edit]

Design details[edit]

The Shadow is a Covenant light troop transport vehicle analogous to human armored personnel carriers such as the M650 Mastodon. The vehicle is broadly arch-shaped, with the driver cabin located at the vehicle's front and protected by heavy frontal armor, with a turret located on the top. The centre of the arch boasts powerful gravitic fields capable of hosting a single Ghost, equipment or a small bench seating eight passengers. Unlike the front, the sides of the vehicle have virtually no armor, and are completely exposed to enemy fire.[5][3][6][7]

Armament[edit]

The Shadow is equipped with a Mamua'uda-pattern Shade turret, mounted on the aft of the vehicle. Aside from this, any passengers riding on the vehicle are able to contribute their own firepower to the vehicle's defense.[5][3]

Usage[edit]

Due to the vehicle's minimal armor coverage, the Shadow is typically deployed by the Covenant as rear-echelon light equipment and personnel transport. This makes the Shadow a vital component in Covenant occupation efforts, and the vehicle's extremely fast top speed in open terrain allows it to serve as a rapid deployment vehicle for such tasks. During extended travel, the crew may take turns defending the Shadow from atop the arch, or from their seated positions below.[3]

Operational history[edit]

T-29 Shadows were used by the Covenant during the Battle of Earth in 2552 as a troop and prisoner transport.[8][9] They continued service in the post-war era, with the Banished making extensive use of them during the conflict on Reach in 2559.[10]

Production notes[edit]

The Shadow's design dates back to the original 2000-era builds of Halo: Combat Evolved, when the game was still intended to be a third-person shooter. At this time, the vehicle was simply known as c ground transport, and had a noticeably blockier appearance. The vehicle was ultimately one of many vehicles cut from Combat Evolved, later making its in-game debut in Halo 2's Outskirts level.[11] The original Combat Evolved design for the vehicle was later canonised as the Adsk-pattern Shadow.

Interestingly, during the original Combat Evolved era, another vehicle was intended for inclusion under the name of the Shadow. This vehicle was also similarly-cut, and ultimately also revived in Halo 2 - ultimately renamed as the Spectre.[12] The original Combat Evolved design was later canonised as the Wuchek-pattern Spectre.

Trivia[edit]

  • In the level Outskirts, a total of 7 Shadows can be found.
  • Halo 2's files show the Shadow as being hijackable and drivable, but this is not possible to do in the base game. Using mods, these mechanics can be accessed. Additionally, there are two versions of the Shadow, one which transports Ghosts (seen in-game) and another which transports infantry.

Gallery[edit]

List of appearances[edit]

Sources[edit]

  1. ^ a b Halo: The Essential Visual Guide, page 172
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Halo Waypoint, Shadow (Retrieved on Jun 30, 2021) [archive]
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Halo Encyclopedia (2022 edition), page 276
  4. ^ Halo Encyclopedia (2009 edition), page 246
  5. ^ a b Halo 2, Shadow in-game model
  6. ^ Halo 2 manual, page 19
  7. ^ Halo 2 Limited Collector's Edition manual, page 17
  8. ^ Halo 2, campaign level Outskirts
  9. ^ Halo: Uprising
  10. ^ Halo: Shadows of Reach, chapter 4
  11. ^ Twitter, Marcus Lehto (@game_fabricator): "Yes, at that time it was just called "c ground transport"" (Retrieved on Jul 9, 2021) [archive]
  12. ^ Bungie.net, The Origin of Halo (Retrieved on Jan 18, 2021) [archive]