Sangheili Zealot

''Zealot redirects here. For the Halo: Reach multiplayer map, see Zealot (level).''

"The true devotee honors our name with actions, not words."

- Sangheili Zealot's mantra

Zealot is a category of high-ranking Sangheili warriors in the Covenant. Less of a rank than a philosophy, Zealots are among the most devout followers of the Covenant religion.

Background
"The Path is strict, Jora—it brooks no deviation, no remorse. We are zealots. We serve the Way. These are our orders. We do not question them."

- Thel 'Vadamee to Jora 'Konaree

Zealots are greatly experienced and unparalleled in combat skill. Equipped with advanced armor systems and equipment, they are also among the most resilient and powerful Sangheili infantry. It has been said that although most Sangheili males are trained to kill as soon as they can hold a weapon, future Zealots seem to be born with an innate desire to kill.

Unlike the majority of the Covenant's conventional military forces which fall under the authority of the Ministry of Resolution, Zealots are a separate group that reports to the Ministry of Fervent Intercession, which deploys small teams of Zealots during all significant engagements to locate, analyze and amass intel regarding reliquary sites, as well as to recover Forerunner artifacts or otherwise important data.

Aside artifact retrieval, Zealots also serve in a variety of roles in the Covenant military. Individual Zealots are often tasked with direct intervention in the battlefield, commanding the forces they fight alongside. These Zealots often assume positions of command such as Shipmaster, Field Master or Fleet Master. In addition, the extremely high rank of Field Marshal is exclusive to the Zealot-class. They hold supreme authority over Covenant land forces, and are occasionally tasked with leading Zealot strike teams. During the Human-Covenant War, many Zealots were assigned to battlefield duties in order to directly partake in the destruction of a species the Covenant viewed as heretical.

Physical appearance
Though Zealot special operations teams wear maroon armor, most Zealots who serve with regular Covenant military forces appear to wear gold armor, distinguished from a General's armor by being less elaborate in design.

In Halo: Combat Evolved Zealots wear solid gold armor, a pointed helmet and shoulder pauldrons (signifying rank), blue lights running on their armor and a Forerunner glyph on their back. Their shields are much more powerful than those of their subordinates, and wield either an Energy Sword or Plasma Rifle (They fire much faster than other Elites and with greater accuracy). In Halo 2 Zealots wear the standard armor of all Elites, with orange lights running on their armor, but this time wear gold and tan armor. Zealots do not appear in Halo 3, but make a significant appearance in Halo: Reach. In Halo: Reach, the Zealot wears a more ornamental helmet, with blue lights running on their helmets and shoulder pauldrons and also a little bit on their body and thighs. Zealots have a maroon color, similar to the Field Marshal.

In Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, Zealots wear the same armor configuration seen in Halo: Reach, with the only noticeable difference being that the armor is now yellowish gold similar to previous incarnations, rather than the maroon color seen in Reach. The armor retains the blue lights from Reach, however.

Known Zealots

 * Thel 'Vadam - Supreme Commander of the Fleet of Particular Justice; later became the Arbiter.
 * Luro 'Taralumee - Supreme Commander of the Third Fleet of Glorious Consequence
 * Jora 'Konaree - A Zealot warrior who fought in Thel 'Vadamee's Zealot team.
 * Saal - A Zealot in Thel 'Vadamee's team.
 * Veer - One of the Zealots in 'Vadamee's team.
 * Zhar - One of the Zealots in 'Vadamee's team.
 * Thon 'Talamee - Shipmaster of the Clarity of Faith.
 * Re'gish Wamik - A Field Master during the Harvest Campaign.
 * Noga 'Putumee - A Field Master during the Battle of Installation 04.
 * Lat 'Ravamee - Shipmaster of the Truth and Reconciliation.
 * Avu Med 'Telcam - Field Master and Bishop of the Servants of Abiding Truth.

Trivia

 * The Zealots featured thus far have not had a black or steel secondary color like lower-ranking Elites. In Halo: Combat Evolved, they are solid gold. In Halo 2, they have a tan secondary color.
 * Zealots will never ride or drive in a vehicle, nor will they board an enemy vehicle if one is near them.
 * The plasma rifle-wielding Zealots of Halo: Combat Evolved will not melee. This is due to the fact that they are programmed to berserk when they see you, and have no provisions to melee while in berserk mode.
 * On the Legendary difficulty in Halo: Combat Evolved, it takes two to three plasma grenades to kill a Zealot.
 * Thel 'Vadamee appeared before the Council in the golden armor of a Zealot, although he wore ceremonial armor while commanding his fleet.
 * Some Zealots in Halo 2 have glitches, including running back and forth, teleporting from one spot to the other, disappearing, and saying two things at once.
 * In Halo: Combat Evolved, Zealots (as with all Elites), will usually jump out of the way to avoid a grenade: when near a ledge, they will jump over and will fall to their deaths. However, on Legendary, the Zealots will sometimes charge through the blast and try to kill the player.
 * Zealots have only the shields of a Sangheili Major in Halo 2, but what they lack in shields they make up for in skill. Their armor is stronger than normal, but they can still be killed by a single headshot.
 * Zealots' gauntlets are blue in Halo: Combat Evolved, (the same color Spec Ops have), but in Halo 2, they wear the usual orange gauntlets of all other Elites.
 * In Halo: Combat Evolved, Zealots can deflect plasma grenades with their energy sword.
 * In Halo: Reach, there is a loadout called Zealot, which gives the player a needle rifle, a plasma pistol and two plasma grenades. There is also another loadout available only in the third phase of Invasion called "Royal Zealot." This loadout is an improved version of the standard Zealot loadout. It provides a needle rifle, a needler, and three plasma grenades, although once the player uses the third grenade, they will only be able to hold two.
 * The real-time strategy game StarCraft features a Protoss unit known as the zealot; these warriors also wear golden armor and wield powerful energy blades.
 * In Halo: Reach, the Zealot armor is available as an Armor Permutation once the player has reached the rank of Captain.
 * There are a total of 7 Zealots that appear to fight Noble Team: 2 in Winter Contingency towards the end (not counting the Field Marshal), 1 in Tip of the Spear who can be killed for an achievement, 3 in the end of The Pillar of Autumn (again not counting the Field Marshal), and 1 in the final cutscene in Lone Wolf during Noble Six's Last Stand.
 * In Halo: Reach, the Zealot encountered in the level Tip of the Spear is able to use Active Camouflage once he jumps down the gap in the floor while trying to escape. The Zealot is also able to switch from his Concussion Rifle to his Energy Sword once he is close enough to the enemy.

List of appearances

 * Halo: Combat Evolved
 * Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary
 * Halo 2
 * Halo: Reach
 * Halo 4
 * Halo: The Cole Protocol