Deutoros-pattern Scarab

Type-47 Ultra Heavy Assault Platform

The Type-47 Ultra Heavy Assault Platform, more commonly known as the Scarab, is a Covenant mining vehicle adapted for use in combat.

Introduction
Developed in an advanced construction site, Scarabs are mobile fortresses deployed from high atmosphere or low to medium orbit onto the field. Each Scarab is built to assault heavily defended structures and barriers, as well as lend quick, yet unstoppable support for Covenant troops on the ground. Quite notable for their intimidating, spider-like appearance, and massive firepower, the Scarab is the largest known ground vehicle in the Halo Trilogy, consisting of a huge, multi-level "body", and four legs. It is also the most powerful, equipped with an exceptionally powerful plasma beam cannon (mounted to a pivoting "head" at the front of the vehicle), and one or two dorsally-mounted anti-air cannon(s), depending on model. Despite its size, weaponry, and extremely thick armor, the craft remains vulnerable to boarding actions, and if the central core is eliminated, the Scarab will explode. To counter the threat of boarding action, each Scarab can hold squads of Grunts and Jackals, as well as a few Brutes or Elites, to aid in defending the vehicle from would-be boarders. Scarabs have been used in many battles during the Human-Covenant War, such as the Battle of Reach, the Battle of Earth and the Battle of the Ark, usually to great effect.

As noted earlier, the Scarab does not make use of the iconic Boosted Gravity Propulsion Drive usually employed on Covenant vehicles: For movement, it utilizes four large, powerful legs to traverse terrain most vehicles cannot, including climbing over buildings, trenches, mountains and other obstacles. These legs are surprisingly swift and accurate for their size, performing precise maneuvers, while also moving the vehicle at a respectable pace. The large legs can also be used as weapons, where a monstrous pointed leg is able to crush or kick anything that happens to get in its way, such as a truck, large debris, or even vehicles such as a Scorpion main battle tank. Like parts of the rest of the Scarab, the legs can be weakened or even destroyed with enough firepower. It is worth noting that, while primary propulsion is derived from the legs, it is thought that Scarabs utilize some sort of anti-gravity system to reduce stresses on the legs; It would be difficult for vehicles of the Scarab's size to endure the stresses that maneuvers such as jumping and orbital/atmospheric deployment involve without some aid to the locomotive appendages.

Weaknesses
In Halo 3, one way to destroy it is to damage the joints on the legs, enough so that the Scarab must shut down temporarily, then boarding it and destroying the reactor. However, there is another method: If the rear is hit with enough firepower, the armor protecting the reactor chamber will come off, exposing the core to small and heavy arms fire. In the level "The Covenant" in Halo 3, this tactic is commonly used via the Hornet VTOL gunships. In the level "The Storm", there is a crane with an elevator near the Scarab. If you get on the elevator you can jump off and land on the Scarab if it is near the elevator. Then just casually walk to the power core and watch it blow. Also, if you're lucky enough to get the right angle, you can destroy the exposed core with a stationary missile pod, which is the easiest and, if the Scarab doesn't point its cannons at you, the safest. In Halo 3, the Scarab beam is a slow moving projectile, which gives you a chance to dodge it.

Halo Graphic Novel


In the Halo Graphic Novel, the Scarab had a very different appearance from the two game variants with a roughly cross shaped body. The across sections bore dual cannons, and neither end had a visible plasma cannon.

Its legs were a distinctly different shape (straight, with an "L"-shaped joint to the body). It should be noted, however, that the story in which it appears, Second Sunrise Over New Mombasa, uses a very large amount of artistic license. The story is canonical (it was authorized by Bungie), but the visuals of the story clearly are not.

Halo 2


The Scarab was first seen in Halo 2 level "Outskirts", and appeared as a large, four legged, silver armored behemoth with an estimated height of ninety feet. It featured a deck on top that was guarded by numerous Elites, Jackals, and Grunts, along with a walkway going over the entrance to its control room (you cannot see any enemies on the Scarab in "Outskirts", only in "Metropolis" when you have to board the Scarab. There were two spine mounted plasma cannons to provide anti-air defense).

Its shell was invulnerable to damage from 90mm shells, missiles, .50 cal. rounds, and ANVIL HE missiles (the armor could be similar to the ship plating the Covenant use on their warships, and Hunter's shields). It proved vulnerable to boarding actions and destruction from inside. Bungie has joked that this Scarab looks more like a basket than an actual assault platform. As well, this Scarab did not have the plasma turret on top like the Halo 3 version. It is likely that this Scarab was more of a transport for weaker soldiers because of all Elites, Jackals, and Grunts that were giving covering fire for the pilots inside; also, it may be that this may be just a distinct Scarab only for High Prophets, for example, the Prophet of Regret.

Yet another theory is that the Scarab in Halo 2 is more closely related to the original mining platform, and that the Scarab seen in Halo 3 is a more modified version. This would make sense, as Regret did not expect Earth to have such a heavy human population, and may have intended to use the Scarabs as mining equipment. Yet, other people think that the Halo 2 Scarab was changed to the Halo 3 model after the events on Delta Halo where Johnson took control of one. Since the model for the Halo 3 Scarab had been made as early as the Third Battle of Harvest, the Covenant Loyalists may have began to produce modified variants using Lekgolo worms instead of pilots to prevent this problem. Additionally, since the Halo 3 Scarab acts as a more interactive enemy designed for combat against troops, the Lekgolo would prevent any Human from taking over the vehicle. That model would be more fitting, as the Halo 2 Scarab acts more like a hybrid between an assault platform and a siege engine, and not being designed for intense, direct combat against enemy forces. It is possible that these Halo 2 models have been phased out, are used for excavations, used as a siege device, or the primary Scarab of the Covenant Separatists.

A third well supported idea of the change is that the Halo 2 version is a Heavier Assault version, that of which is rarer and costlier, while the Halo 3 version is a lighter, but more advanced version. The older Halo 2 model is still widely used among the loyalist, but due to its long production time and cost, the lighter Type-48 Light Assault Platform, Halo 3 model, scarab was preferred due to its more maneuverable body, shorter production times, and lighter cost. The brutes preferred it's ability to sustain fire for longer periods to increase fatality in the opposing force by using swiping tactics with the longer lasting beam, even if it was significantly weaker. The Type-48 is more advanced than the Type-47 model, using Lekgolo worms to control it, giving more free hands to shoot out and off the Scarab. The Type-47 had a lowering lift on its underside to allow transfer from ground to the Scarab, while the newer version had a less costly approach by just adding a backdoor and angling the legs to allow it to crouch.

In the final level, The Great Journey, the Arbiter attempts to hijack a Scarab with the intent to break into Delta Halo's control room. Sergeant Johnson gets to the Scarab first, however. Since both he and the Arbiter were intending to keep the Halo from activating, they agree to work together. After fighting through numerous Banshees, Wraiths and other oppositions, Johnson blasts open the door to control room (which, to it's credit, takes multiple shots to destroy), and then leaves the Scarab, since it had served it's purpose. Like in "Outskirts", the Scarab can't be destroyed.

Halo 3
The Scarab received major changes, and upgrades between Halo 2 and Halo 3, with the Scarab actually being able to be completely destroyed, as opposed to just killing all of the enemies inside, as seen in a Halo 2 cutscene. The Halo 2 Scarab was also piloted by a Covenant soldier, whereas the Halo 3 Scarab is controlled by a colony of Lekgolo worms in the reactor. Appearance wise, its body was changed to have a different shape, being more bulbous at the end, similar to the Wraiths of Halo: Combat Evolved. In Halo 3, it seemed to have a greater width than in Halo 2, but wasn’t as tall as previously. The Scarab in Halo 3 is also a different color than Halo 2's variant, being purple instead of silver and blue.



In terms of weaponry, it wielded a smaller plasma beam that seems weaker (On Legendary the player is able to withstand sustained fire for a short amount of time [approx 0.8s]), as opposed to the instant death of the Halo 2 Scarab gun). The two anti-air turrets were removed for Halo 3, having been replaced by a single, large turret at the rear (which would shoot at you if you were in a Hornet or Banshee, and you were able to shoot off the covering of it with Hornet air-to-surface missiles.)

The flaps on the plasma beam were removed, and replaced by two destructible stationary plates. As pointed out before, the Scarab now appears to have no crew controlling it, just guards, to keep boarders off, and it is controlled by Lekgolo worms. Also while shooting exposed Lekgolo worms the worms can actually bleed, although the blood will not show on the ground. This has been proven in the December issue of Game Informer, in an article on the Mythic map pack. The level "Assembly" was shown to be a Scarab factory, and it was stated that tubes could be clearly seen on the level, injecting the worms into the Scarab shells.

The main gun also changed, with it appearing like a hose in Halo 3, instead of just the straight beam appearance of Halo 2. The Scarab appeared to have high impact legs due to all the jumps it makes, and it can move freely around the area it's fighting in unlike Halo 2's Scarab which had a completely scripted path. However, against the popular belief that the Halo 3 Scarab does not leak liquid coolant or extra plasma from the main gun, if you get close you can see very clearly, green liquid being dripped from the head. This is most likely inflammatory fluid (as the Scarab's weapon is probably similar to a Hunter's assault beam).



A likely conjecture is that this version of the Scarab was intended to be a weapon. Its color changed to a shade of purple, like other Covenant war-ready vehicles and it was better-defended, having superior weapons. It has been speculated that Scarabs of Halo 2 were not weapons, but rather mining tools that were deployed as emergency combat relief by Regret upon finding humans on Earth. They could have been the mining Scarabs from Fall Of Reach. This is supported by the fact that Regret was looking for the device that opened the portal to the Ark, and he needed digging machines to excavate it.

Differences aside, it still had many similarities to the old Scarab. There were three levels (or decks), and the lowest was accessible when the Scarab had been temporarily disabled. This level featured a rear-mounted plasma turret, and usually one to four Brutes, depending on the difficulty level. There was a ramp that led to the second level, where there were a varying number of enemies, depending on the level and difficulty. Usually, you could expect to find a few Brutes and Grunts. On this level, there were two more plasma turrets, aimed to either side of the Scarab. If you turned 180° immediately upon ascending the ramp to this level, you could go up the purple slope to the third tier. This was just an open, unprotected platform below the large turret. Past the turrets on the second level (round the corner) is the power core that must be destroyed to have taken down the Scarab.

Bungie had also stated in the September issue of EGM, that the Scarab used an unscripted game Artificial Intelligence (not to be confused with story artificial intelligence units like Cortana) to create a more dynamic battle with it, as it would roam across the battlefield of its own accord and attack targets in its path. This way it would no longer require a relatively easy boarding action every time but a tactical approach.

Halo Wars
The Scarab in Halo Wars seems to be nearly identical to Halo 3 Scarabs. It also seems to be much smaller than previously encountered Scarabs in both Halo 2 and Halo 3 (probably because of gameplay reasons).

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A recent article in Xbox Magazine comments that an attacking Scarab "ripped (a UNSC base) a new one." It is very slow and expensive to build (3,000 resources and 20 population in Skirmish), with no upgrade available due to their cost to be made on such a big war machine.

Since Scarabs count as twenty population and cost 3,000 resources, up to three can be spawned at a time in a Standard Skirmish and four in Deathmatch mode (each base you have gives you ten population points and max population is 99. The population count in standard is fifty for the Covenant but can be increased via basses and Forerunner) life support modules. Scarabs are very good against buildings, excellent against vehicles, and great against infantry. Given their extremely tough armor and powerful weaponry, destroying a Scarab is a difficult prospect. Overwhelming it with large numbers works, especially using anti-vehicle units such as the Cobra or Hunter, but a significant number of your units will be destroyed in the attempts, unless Professor Anders' Cryo bomb is used to immobilize it first. More powerful upgrades for the UNSC MAC and carpet bomb can destroy it very quickly, as can several Vulture gunships using their missile barrages. For the Covenant, leader units' special abilities can deal significant damage to the Scarab, such as the Prophet of Regret's cleansing beam.

It can also climb over most obstacles, provided they are not craters, on fire or other miscellaneous reasons. Even though it resembles the Halo 3 version, it is controlled by infantry like the Halo 2 version. The fact that an Elite responds to commands given to the Scarab and that a SPARTAN is able to control an empty Scarab in campaign support this theory.

Like Vultures, Scarabs cannot be jacked by Spartan units, the only exception is on the Halo Wars level "Beachhead", where it is possible to hijack an empty Scarab being attacked by the Flood and grants the player the achievement Beaming with Pride for destroying 25 enemy units with it.

Super Scarab


There is a large Scarab in the seventh Halo Wars campaign mission, but it isn't complete. It is substantially larger than a standard Scarab and appears to have more armor than a Scarab. It appears to be completely mechanical, instead of being made up of Lekgolo worms, making it more like the Scarab in Halo 2. Its weakness is that there is a beam of light that it projects that shows where its attention is currently focused. To slow down the speed of its searchlight, you must destroy seven power nodes, each destroyed power node slowing it down more than the last. Also, in all actuality, it seems to be closer in size to the Scarabs in Halo 2 than the ones in Halo 3. It has extremely high hitpoints, taking approximately nine MAC rounds to destroy on the easiest difficulty and can destroy just about any unit you can build in under six seconds. It should also be noted that the pilotable Scarab in "Beachhead" is referred to as Super Scarab, though it seems to be a normal Scarab in every regard but title. This may just be another of Ensemble's mistakes in scripting. Another possible explanation is that this was an excavation scarab (as seen in Halo 2) under construction. This mostly comes from the similarities in the two's chassis.

The Scarab is also being constructed in what looks like the outside of a Forerunner relic, meaning that the Covenant may have been using Forerunner technology to upgrade the Scarab before UNSC forces destroyed the machine. It is also possible that they were using the power to "super-charge" the beam.

Halo 2
The Halo 2 Scarab was almost indestructible and immune to damage in the game. It's movement was entirely scripted, and did little else than appear as giant piece of BSP geometry. It was only destroyed in a cutscene. It should also be noted that the Scarab in the level "The Great Journey" seemed to be damaged under the main gun; as it fired, green plasma leaked out onto the ground, but this could be because of the firing of the gun left residue.

The forward plasma turret could be destroyed with just a few melee attacks, as could the rear plasma turret. The flaps on the main gun could be destroyed only by using a Scorpion tank. Also, the underside grate could be destroyed.

Halo 3


There are far more destructible parts on the Halo 3 Scarab than the Halo 2 Scarab. All four of the Scarab's knee joints were destructible to the point that the Scarab temporarily buckled under the weight of the platform, though given time they appear to repair themselves. The armor on these legs could also be blown off. The flaps covering the Scarab's main gun could be destroyed. This did not, however, disable the weapon. The crest on and around the AA turret could be completely blown off, slowing the rate of fire and reducing the size of the plasma bolts. This had been reported to temporarily disable the turret, which diverts it's attention from it's chosen target. Two side door panels near the bottom rear could be torn off to allow a singular entry.

The barrier protecting the core could be ripped away from the back of the Scarab by shooting the red glowing circle at the top of the barrier. Doing so would result in the core being completely exposed, making it easier to destroy. All three plasma cannons can be destroyed, as can the core. If the core is destroyed, all parts of the Scarab will be destroyed at once, except for the crest of the AA turret and the barrier protecting the core.

Halo 3: ODST
In Halo 3: ODST, the Scarab makes an appearance in Kikowani Station, in which it is destroyable, as well as a few background appearances in Coastal Highway, in which it is not.

Primary

 * (One) Front-Mounted Cannon
 * Ammo: Super-Heated Plasma/incendiary, napalm-like fluid; presumably unguided. They have unlimited ammo.
 * Rate of Fire: Four second stream; thirty to forty per second
 * Movement of cannon: Through careful examination, one can see that the inside gun part seems to move forward from a cradle as the flaps open up.
 * Notes: The projectile emitted from the Scarab's main gun emits a neon-green/bluish glow, indicating extremely high temperature. As the gun fires, white, hot liquid pours from the barrel onto the ground. The gun's force is enough to destroy any vehicle smaller than the Scarab in a matter of seconds. Also, on easy or normal difficulty, if you are in a small vehicle (Mongoose, Warthog, Ghost, Chopper) the sheer force of the plasma stream hitting the ground will flip your vehicle if you are close enough. If this happens close to the Scarab it may step on (and destroy) your vehicle.
 * Approx. Range: The effective range on a Scarab's main cannon is not exceptionally good, about 650 metres as seen during the Citadel and Cartographer battles, where its attack can easily be evaded if at a distance, but the Halo 3 Scarabs have almost unlimited sight. For example, on the level "The Covenant", even if you glitch out of the invisible barriers with a Hornet and fly until you can barely see one, it will still shoot at you.

Secondary

 * Mounted Anti-Aircraft Turrets (two in Halo 2, one in Halo 3)
 * Ammo: Super-Heated Plasma, (similar to the shielded plasma cannon) They have unlimited ammo. However, the Halo 3 version appears to fire blue fuel rods.
 * Rate of Fire: 150-250 rounds/minute
 * Notes: Presumed computer controlled, but a close look indicates that it may be manually controlled. It does wildly spin around when the core is destroyed as if the automatic controls crashed. Could be shot off with little firepower. NOTE: In Halo 3 the anti-aircraft cannon couldn’t be shot off and was invincible. The anti-aircraft gun(s) were unsurprisingly extremely effective against aircraft.
 * Approx. Range: These weapons have a much greater range than the primary cannon on the Scarab. They are extremely effective against airborne vehicles, but can also be used against ground-based vehicles, such as Warthogs or Scorpions. They are effective up to approximately 2,4 kilometres, which is a rough but evidence-based conclusion drawn from ships and vehicles with similar weaponry.

Other Weapons

 * 3 X Type-52 Directed Energy Support Weapon
 * Ammunition Type: Super-Heated Plasma
 * Rate of Fire: 300 Rounds/Minute
 * Notes: The Three Plasma turrets are used primarily in an anti-infantry role but are also effective against Mongooses and Warthogs and make aircraft such as Hornets keep their distance.
 * Feet
 * Damage type: Kinetic
 * Notes: Anything the scarab steps on is instantly destroyed.

Strategies
The Scarab is most often killed by boarding or by an air-based attack on its core although bombing runs and orbital bombardment are also effective. Before you can board the vessel, attack it's legs. This will make it immobile and you can now board the Scarab. Head to the back of the Scarab and you will find a vulnerable piece of electroics. Shoot it or you can use a grenade. Once it is destroyed, jump off the Scarab and make as much distance from it as possible.

Character Compatibility

 * Elites (Halo 2 only)
 * Sergeant Avery Johnson (Halo 2 only)
 * Brutes - Passengers
 * Lekgolo - Confirmed pilots and part of the core system of Scarabs in Halo 3.
 * Grunts - Passengers used as platform for plasma cannons.
 * Jackals - Passengers
 * SPARTANs - Halo Wars Campaign only
 * Master Chief - Halo 2 cutscene only

Trivia

 * Taking out one of the Scarab's joints forces it to buckle and use all of its power into standing up again, which deactivates its main gun.


 * In Halo 3, on the level "The Covenant", two Scarabs are deployed by the Covenant Loyalist's fleet overhead, to defend the Citadel. However, on the previous level "The Ark", Rtas 'Vadum claimed that "Truth's fleet lies in ruins". It could be possible that these were launched by a remaining ship as a last (failed) push to win the battle. Or it could have come from Truth's Forerunner Dreadnought, which was landed at the time. It could have used cargo transports to drop it off.


 * The Scarab is one of the only Covenant vehicles that is not named after supernatural beings (like a Ghost, Banshee, Wraith, or Vampire), with the exception of Brute-made vehicles, although a scarab was a mythological Egyptian giant beetle that pushed the sun across the sky. This may be because it is in fact not a war machine but a piece of repurposed mining equipment. The Locust, a smaller but otherwise similar machine, also shares its name with an insect instead.


 * The Scarab gun is a weapon that players can pick up in Halo 2; it looks like a plasma rifle and can be found on the levels "Outskirts" and "Metropolis". It fires the same plasma stream as the Scarab's main gun, never overheats, and can fire continuous rapid fire. The Scarab gun earns you an achievement on Halo 2 Vista.


 * At close range, the explosion of a Scarab has enough power to kill a SPARTAN (or anyone else who is close enough). It can be observed that every level on which there is a Scarab also has many vehicles nearby to make a good escape.


 * It is also notable that when a Scarab's leg is disabled, it emits a loud beep, much like that of a reversing truck (except at a lower pitch). This effect is perhaps a nod to the same death sequence (and sound) of the Juggernaut flying tanks in a previous Bungie game Marathon.


 * The Halo 3 Scarab was recreated in Halo Actionclix and is the largest figure ever made by Wizkids, the game's creator. A battle-damaged version was released at the 2007 San Diego Comic-Con for $250, which included the Scarab, two outdoor maps, an indoor map (representing the Scarab's interior), four character cards, and rules for both the Scarab and the game itself. A normal one was also released at select retailers in November 2007.


 * In a Halo 3 video documentary (ViDoc) about the new Scarab, the art directors stated that the Scarab in Halo 2 had a horrible design; Shi Kai Wang claimed "It looked like a basket with a handle and could go shopping with it."


 * A Scarab's explosion is extremely visible, as R'tas 'Vadum remarks how he saw the explosion of a Scarab from orbit, although it is probable that he may have been exaggerating or he was observing the battle through some sort of a telescope. It is also possible that, due to the inclusion of both the Arbiter and the Master Chief in the battle, and the proximity to the map room on Installation 00, that he was paying particular attention to the battle.


 * When Sergeant Major Johnson takes control of a Scarab in Halo 2, he finds a way to deploy an energy shield that protected the control room from a boarding party. Apparently the Covenant at New Mombasa either didn't have it, didn't consider the possibility of being boarded, or it could be to allow the crew to walk outside and defend the Scarab and kill the "Demon" pursuing them.


 * In Halo 3, battling a Scarab can be rather like battling a Hunter. Its weak spot is towards the back, and can be destroyed, like the Hunter's armor. Both wield incredibly powerful beam cannons and both are the largest of their respective catalogs (Hunters being the largest Covenant ground force and Scarabs being the largest Covenant land vehicle). This was perhaps intentional by Bungie Studios, seeing as how they are both seemingly powered by Lekgolo worms.


 * You get the achievement Beaming with Pride, when you destroy 25 enemy units with a Scarab in mission thirteen of Halo Wars.


 * An older screenshot of Halo Wars shows a different Scarab model than the model in the the released game. The old version look very similar to the Halo 2-era Scarab, while the new one looks more like the Halo 3 variant.
 * In Halo Wars, if you use the Wuv Woo skull, you can make the Scarab shoot rainbow beams of pure love. This doesn't affect the Super Scarab.


 * It is possible to use a Protector Sentinel to deploy a massive bubble shield around the Scarab on the Halo Wars level "Labyrinth".


 * In lower difficulty campaign levels that have a Scarab, the Scarab's main beam seems to have reverse tractor beam properties and hardly causes any damage if you are in a vehicle.


 * The Scarab is the vehicle that has gone through the biggest cosmetic change from Halo 2 to 3.


 * In Halo 3: ODST, the Halo 3-era Scarabs are present the same day the Halo 2-era Scarab was in the New Mombasa. Which can be seen as an inconsistency, but a possible explanation could be that there are two different variants of Scarabs.


 * Scarabs encountered during Coastal Highway are indestructible.

Glitches

 * In Halo 2, if you jump correctly from the main platform, you can see, shoot and throw grenades through the wall and even see Sergeant Major Johnson holding a plasma pistol in the front.


 * In Halo 3, if you jump onto one of the legs of a Scarab, and the leg rises up, it will cause you to fly through the air for a considerable distance and finally die after a while, possibly after hitting a barrier.


 * On the level "Outskirts", when you see the Warthog being destroyed by the Scarab, you can grenade jump out of the map and see the Scarab walking away, but it disappears afterward.


 * On the Halo 2 level "Metropolis", when the Scarab stops at the end of the level, you can shoot off the two turrets at the front and rear of the Scarab. When the cut scene with it being destroyed starts, the two turrets will still be there. The turrets also have no destruction animation, they simply disappear.


 * On the level "The Covenant", where you face two Scarabs, if you destroy a Scarab before it starts moving while you are inside it, you will be launched at a nearby mountain then you will die, but it is possible to survive and watch the Scarab be destroyed and the rest of the battle but not join it as you will die if you jump off but, surviving the launch requires some luck.


 * On the Campaign level "The Ark", if you destroy all allies and enemies on the part where you fight the Scarab, and get onto its front side, it will walk in that direction, since it is programmed to follow either Marines or Covenant. This glitch is commonly called "Driving the Scarab".

Internal Links

 * Locust - A smaller version of the Scarab which appears in Halo Wars.
 * Scarab gun - A weapon resembling a Plasma Rifle with the power of a Scarab's main gun in Halo 2.
 * Assembly - A Mythic map where Scarabs can be observed in the manufacturing process.