Equipment

In Halo 3, Spartans, Elites and Brutes can carry one extra item of equipment (deployed using the “X” button on the default setting of the Xbox 360 controller). The type of equipment varies dramatically in its purpose, functionality, and appearance, but all can be used with deadly or strategic force. Click on the links below to find out what each one does, and where each could be found. There may be more to find and their availability is subject in matchmaking rules. The philosophy of equipment is simple: to add a variety to the combat in Halo 3 without unbalancing the game. The simple fact is that Equipment items, once deployed, can be used by both attackers and defenders. Someone on your team might accidentally activate your Trip Mine, and a Bubble Shield which is a geometric spherical shield – while they can’t shoot in, you can’t shoot out either. Suffice to say that equipment can turn the tide of battle if used correctly. To make it more balanced, it takes longer to deploy equipment than in the Halo 3 Beta, but you can launch it further. It is not entirely clear which faction - Human or Covenant - manufactures each piece of equipment in the first place without doing research on the specific equipment, as both are seen utilizing it in the single player Campaign.

List of Equipment

 * Bubble Shield
 * Power Drain
 * Radar Jammer (Has been removed from Matchmaking)
 * Gravity Lift
 * Trip Mine
 * Flare (Has been removed from Matchmaking)
 * Regenerator
 * Deployable Cover (Has been removed from matchmaking)
 * Automated Turret (Campaign Only)
 * Cloaking (Campaign Only)
 * Invincibility (Campaign Only)
 * Overshield
 * Active Camouflage
 * Flashlight

Equipment Abilities
Bubble Shield - The Bubble Shield releases a spherical shield around a center point. No bullets or grenades can pass through the shield either way, but vehicles and players (ally AND enemy) can pass through. However a clever soldier can place a bubble shield and position a sniper rifle so only the end protrudes, therefore you can snipe people without getting hurt.

Power Drain - When deployed, the power drain will generally strip your opponents shields fully and if thrown near a vehicle in motion an EMP effect occurs(same as the EMP effect of a charged Plasma pistol shot) which causes the vehicle to stop. However, if you stay too near to the power source, the explosion can effectively kill you.

Radar Jammer - When deployed, phantom contacts will appear on the motion sensors of anyone within the area of it, causing confusion. When moving away from the Radar Jammer, the contacts will begin to slowly disappear and eventually completely disappear.

Flare - This creates a blinding light, which results in players losing their sight for a matter of seconds. Turning away from the power source or blocking it out some way lessens the effect.

Deployable Cover - Once deployed, this creates a large shield, which can temporarily protect those hiding behind it. In Matchmaking, it will disable itself after approximately 30 seconds, where as in Campaign, it can last indefinitely, although it can be easily destroyed by shooting the base unit.

Regenerator - This creates a large green field, which regenerates the shields of anyone within it's radius. It differentiates from the Bubble Shield as, unlike the Bubble Shield, it just creates a field of energy, where as the bubble shield can shield you. Its effect can be described as the exact opposite of the Power Drain. Gravity Lift - Once deployed, the grav lift projects a bluish-purple gravity beam which can propel players or light vehicles into the air, much like The Covenants larger versions but on a much smaller scale.

Trip Mine - Once deployed, as said in name, it is an explosive charge which reacts and explodes to movement near itslef, effectively taking out your shields, even killing you if you stand directly on it or run over a vehicle or other object vulnerable to explosion. Luckily, when deployed, it lets out a beeping warning signal to let you know if you are near one of these, and the signal gets louder as you get closer (but don't get too close or you'll hear another sound!). NOTE: Trip Mines are only activated when deployed, there are no effects when you switch it for another equipment or drop it when you die or kill someone else.

Overshield - This shield adds 2 more layers of energy shields to Elites or Spartans. It is like Invincibility but more weaker.

Flashlight - When activated it'll brighten up dark areas you're in, but when activated in bright areas, it'll still look the same.

Active Camouflage/Cloaking - When activated, you'll become invisible or cloaked or camouflaged. Nobody will see you. You'll fool enemies and will be able to assassinate them from behind. It only lasts for a short time

Trivia

 * Though many of these are available in Multiplayer, the Automated Turret, Cloaking and Invincibility are exclusive to the Campaign for balancing reasons.


 * In splitscreen mode, if you throw a Flare, you and your enemy will be blinded. However, your motion tracker is still vierwable and if you manage to use it you can still kill your enemy, because the crosshairs still turn red if you have an opponent on target.


 * In the January 2008 issue of EGM, in an interview with Brian Jarrard and Tyson Green, it was revealed that there was a piece of equipment cut from the final game known as The Vortex. It was said to be deployed the same as a Power Drain, but would instead create a mini black hole that would "suck in any object within range, and diverting its course into the black hole, and away from your face." It was even able to affect nearby objects such as the Fusion Coil and even other players. The design was cut due to the fact that it was too "expensive" from a networking and performance standpoint.


 * When you try to drop a piece of equipment on a vehicle or an object (like a crate on Forge), the equipment will go through the object and end up underneath it. This happens to prevent players from driving around in vehicles with bubble shields and/or other equipment mounted on them.
 * Drivers of vehicles cannot use equipment (with the exception of the Invincibility and Cloaking); however, passengers can, which can be useful to certain and peculiar situations.


 * While using Active Camouflage, an Auto-Aim Turret can still detect you.


 * While using Active Camouflage and mounted on a Warthog turret, you can shoot and your Camouflage is not disturbed at all, unlike firing normal weapons in Campaign and Multiplayer.


 * In Campaign, the Deployable Cover lasts forever until it is destroyed. In Multiplayer, it lasts for around 30 seconds before self-destructing.


 * Grenades technically are listed as equipment items. In Forge, you can clearly see that.


 * There are pieces of equipment that appear before they are said to first appear in the Halo 3 Official Guide, such as the two Cloakings in Crow's Nest.


 * A Deployable Cover can also be destroyed by putting enough damage to its source, which is located in the center on the ground.


 * All equipment can be destroyed by destroying the source, including Regenerators, Bubble Shields and Grav lifts.(Regenerators spin, and if stuck with spike grenade, it will spin on it.) Grav lifts can be Forge-spawned as deployable or as already activated.


 * You can jump on top of the barrier emitted by the Deployable Cover. It also works to make a single or double box float is spawned inside one.


 * Try not to activate an Auto Turret while or after activating the replacement Halo ring in Halo 3. It will fire at you instead of your enemies. This could be because it is Forerunner technology.

-After you have deployed said Trip Mine, it is immediately activated and any motion near its vicinity will set it off, be it from you, your team members, or your foe, and this does not exclude moving vehicles. -You should deploy a Trip Mine in a close quarters area, or near explosive items/vehicles, for these both increase the chance of killing your foe and/or seriously hurting multiple players. Be sure to warn your team when and where you have deployed a Trip Mine to prevent a possible needless betrayal. -If you would like destroy a Trip Mine, just shoot or lob a grenade at it. Dropping objects on a Trip Mine also work.
 * Some fun facts about the Trip Mine:


 * The Flare and Radar Jammer were recently cut from matchmaking, due to a glitch causing you to jump to a secret location.


 * The Halo 3 Manual does not provide information for all the equipment, only for the Bubble Shield, Trip Mine, and Grav Lift.


 * Shooting anything plasma-related through Deployable Cover will drain the cover's energy.