HAVOK tactical nuclear weapon

The HAVOK Tactical Nuclear Device is a highly effective nuclear weapon used by the UNSC.

Description
The HAVOK Tactical Nuke is one of the most powerful ground based nuclear ordnance in the UNSC arsenal, and has a thermonuclear yield of 30 megatons. The HAVOK mine is described as looking like a small black half sphere, and does not contain any external indicators, the device only contains a thin slot on the unit’s face to allow the detonation key to be inserted. The bottom of the unit contains bonding strips that allows the HAVOK to be attached to any type of surface. The HAVOK can only be detonated by a remote signal and if the device is placed underneath thick concrete and steel, or other objects that may cause interference, a ground-return receiver must be set up to allow the signal to reach the device.

The HAVOK is used in situations where the UNSC must eliminate Covenant forces in an area already claimed by them, or to prevent an area from falling into their hands. However, there are situations where the UNSC will use a HAVOK to eliminate Covenant ships deploying infantry and equipment. Nuclear Weapons like the HAVOK are employed often but not always, and are only used when all civilian and military populations have been either evacuated, or compromised in a target area.

Variants
Several variants of the HAVOK nuclear device have been developed for use in different tactical situations, apart from the mine version of the nuke there also exists the Variant V HAVOK. The Variant V HAVOK is designed to maximize the thermonuclear yield in the vacuum of space. The Variant V HAVOK is a warhead that is attached to a missile and can be launched from either the ground or from a ship.

Tactical Uses
HAVOK Variant V nuclear missiles were carried on the UNSC Spirit of Fire in 2531.

On February 12 2535 UNSC NavSpecWep deployed three teams of SPARTAN-IIs on Jericho VII to combat Covenant forces invading the colony. At one point during the engagement Red Team was successfully able to plant a HAVOK Nuke near a Covenant rally point where a Cruiser was to deploy ground forces.

On July 18 2552, during the Battle of Sigma Octanus IV, Blue Team detonated a HAVOK nuclear mine in the city of Cote D'Azur, during the battle taking place on the planet, destroying the city and all the Covenant in it.

In October-December 2552 multiple HAVOK Nuclear Weapons were used during the Battle of Earth, a notable use was around October 21, 2552 when Blue Team was deployed to Mount Erebus in the Antarctic to destroy a Covenant excavation force using a HAVOK. Throughout the rest of the battle for Earth key city's and locations were most likely destroyed using HAVOKs to ensure the Covenant did not gain control of these areas; or to eliminate Covenant that had gained controlled of key locations. It is unknown how many civilian and military casualties were sustained due to the subsequent detonations.

Trivia

 * THe HAVOK nuclear warhead shares its name with the HAVOK physics engine used in the Halo games. However, Halo: The Fall of Reach, which introduced the warhead, was published in 2001, whereas the HAVOK physics engine was not implemented into the series until Halo 2, which was released three years later, so it is unlikely that the warhead was named after the physics engine.