Energy projector

"...And you, Ship Master, just glassed half a continent! Maybe the Flood isn't all I should be worried about..."

- Terrence Hood

"Were it not for the Arbiter's counsel, I would have glassed your entire planet!"

- Rtas 'Vadum

The Energy Projector is a Covenant weapon used exclusively by large ships. It fires a thin beam of energized matter which has very long range and is extremely accurate and destructive, capable of destroying ships effortlessly and "glassing" planets, systematically rendering them sterile and incapable of sustaining life.

History
The Energy Projector was first encountered during the Battle of Reach, where it was used by a Covenant Supercruiser, a ship that was seen for the first time. It is more frequently seen several months later, where Regret's Carrier uses one to destroy the Prophet's temple after he had been assassinated by the Master Chief on Delta Halo. In Halo 3, parts of Eastern Africa, Kenya and the city of Voi were glassed by Rtas' Vadum to stop the Flood infestation.

Operation
The weapon can fire a thin beam of extremely powerful and energetic particles. It is possible to predict when it was about to fire as it typically charges the beam up before firing. The beam has an effective range of over 50,000 kilometres, longer even than that of a UNSC MAC gun used by Orbital Defense Platforms. It is described as looking like pulse lasers, but tinged silver white, which is compared to the scintillation effect that is seen when a Covenant ship's shields are hit. The long range allowed a ship armed with this weapon to 'snipe' targets during ship-to-ship combat, albeit less effectively. The weapon has been observed to gut UNSC ships from stem to stern, such as the Frigate Gettysburg over Reach. It also seems to be able to expand in size, depending on the size of the ship. Regret's Carrier seemed perfectly capable of destroying the Main Temple without moving its beam. It just grew in size and diameter, although power was probably dispersed as it grew.

Effects
The Energy Projector's beam is able to take down the shields of a Covenant Frigate or Covenant Destroyer with a single hit.

Against UNSC vessels, the weapon was able to pierce dozens of Titanium-A armor layers with comparative ease, rendering any form of physical solid defense useless. Therefore, a single hit or perforation could potentially disable or destroy vital systems, such as the MAC Cannon or engines, rendering the ship useless for combat (as seen at the First Battle of Earth when a single shot from an Assault Carrier crippled a Marathon-class cruiser), or if the shot was in a critical area, such as the reactors of a ship; it could destroy the ship completely.

The beam is similar to the Particle Beam Rifle on a larger scale in how and what it fires. It is also speculated that the beam can be focused to varying degrees. In space, they can be focused to a smaller, therefore more powerful beam generally used to decimate enemy ship fleets from afar. It also seems to drain all or most of the energy in a Covenant ship for a brief period unless the ship is big enough to supply the power without too much of a drain. This weapon is also used for glassing enemy planets.

When glassing a planet, the beam causes atmospheric and biospheric destruction by exciting the atoms in the air, thus scorching land and air life, and evaporating water with ease, suffocating aquatic life and destabilizing the planet's surface temperature. Therefore, merely firing it through the air would cause biospheric destruction on a planetary scale. In addition, the excitement of atoms could chemically alter the atmosphere or even blow it away. The combined effect can make the planet permanently inhospitable to life, as was the case with Harvest.

Distribution
According to Fred-104, only the "big ships have them." Ships of the, the Covenant Supercruiser, and the Assault Carrier were known to wield this weapon. Other large ship classes, such as the Covenant Supercarrier, are very likely to have it too. The CCS-class Battlecruiser have them too, albeit they have only two projectors, located under the ships bow, and under its middle. The Prophet of Regret's cleansing beam acts as a mini-Energy Projector in Halo Wars.

Trivia

 * The weapon's beam has a similar appearance to the Particle Beam Rifle's Beam, and also has a similar purpose: To land a precise shot into critical areas of the enemy, and works using the same principle: accelerate small amounts of mass to near light speed to burn through human ships or human heads respectively.
 * It has been noted that a small group of Wraiths could glass an area. This is possible due to their extremely powerful Plasma Mortars.
 * It is not entirely known as to why the carriers did not simply use the energy projectors to destroy the Orbital Mac Cannons during the First Battle of Earth, although it may have rendered them sitting ducks.
 * This beam is never used in gameplay apart from in Halo Wars.
 * In Halo 3, on the level The Storm, Covenant ships can be seen uncovering The Portal by glassing.
 * In Halo Wars, the color of the Energy Projector in based on your team color.
 * A Covenant Assault Carrier boasts an armament of four energy projectors as well as five pulse laser turrets and 12 plasma torpedo launchers.
 * Even though the energy projector is capable of cutting through the armor of several UNSC ships at a time, it is seen as only a needle thin beam going at light speed.

Internal

 * Glassing
 * Covenant Supercarrier