Armor customization

Armor Permutations are a feature in Halo 3, allowing the player to aesthetically customize their multiplayer character (the armor doesn't have any effect on gameplay).

Introduction
Permutations allow a player to customize his/her multiplayer character (either a UNSC SPARTAN-II or a Covenant Elite) by swapping different helmets, shoulder pads, chest armor, and detailed colors (primary color, secondary color, and armor detail). All permutations are aesthetic only and do not change actual gameplay in any way, shape, or form.

They were originally discovered in the foremost release of the Halo 3 Beta in internal hexadecimal codes by modders and were later confirmed to provide high levels of player customization by GamePro's June magazine issue. Calculated together, there are 187,947,000 possible combinations for permutation pieces for the player to choose from.

Armor Permutations are available only in Halo 3 (at the beginning of the game, the only parts unlocked are the Mark VI Spartan Armor CQB Variant, and the Elite assault variant.), and are unlocked by achievements in both the Campaign and multiplayer modes of Halo 3 or by finding the hidden skulls.

NOTE: Bungie has confirmed that there will not be DLC armor permutations. NOTE: Bungie has also confirmed that the armor permutations do not effect gameplay, although the visibility and size of the helmet may make you more visible to snipers.

SPARTAN Armor Permutations
There are a wide variety of SPARTAN II armor permutations, with 11 helmets, 8 shoulder pieces, and 8 chest pieces for a total of 6,144 different SPARTAN armor permutations: one helmet, two shoulder pieces, and chest piece per permutation, with the exception of the Rogue, Mark V, and ODST, which do not have either chest nor shoulder pieces, and Security, which does not have a chest piece.

Helmets

 * Mark VI: Unlocked by default.
 * CQB: Unlocked by default.
 * EVA: Unlock either Campaign Complete: Normal, Campaign Complete: Heroic or Campaign Complete: Legendary achievements.
 * EOD: Unlock the Campaign Complete: Legendary achievement.
 * Hayabusa: Collect all 13 Skulls.
 * Security: Unlock all Halo 3 achievements
 * Scout: Unlock the Used Car Salesman achievement.
 * ODST: Unlock the Spartan Graduate achievement.
 * Mark V: Unlock the UNSC Spartan achievement.
 * Rogue: Unlock the Spartan Officer achievement.
 * Recon: Bungie employees, winners of tournaments/double exp weekends, and those that impress (or amuse) Bungie in any other way.

Shoulder Pieces

 * Mark VI: Unlocked by default.
 * CQB: Unlocked by default.
 * EVA: Unlock the Refuge achievement.
 * EOD: Complete the level The Ark on Legendary difficulty.
 * Hayabusa: Collect at least 9 skulls.
 * Security: Earn 750 of 1000 gamerscore on Halo 3. Due to inconsistency, this armor permutation is not always given at 750. There are some reports that the Security Shoulders need a minimum of 800 gamerpoints, even though the official guide to Halo 3 lists the requirements as 750. Even then, the armor permutation may appear for a short time and then disappear, as has been reported. This permutation may need the player's model to have accessed online to unlock it. Another way to unlock is to gain 30 achievements.
 * Scout: Unlock the Mongoose Mowdown achievement.
 * Recon: Bungie employees, winners of tournaments/double exp weekends, and those that impress (or amuse) Bungie in any other way.

Chest Armor

 * Mark VI: Unlocked by default.
 * CQB: Unlocked by default.
 * EVA: Unlock the The Road achievement.
 * Hayabusa: Collect 5 skulls.
 * Katana (Add-On): Unlock all achievements in Halo 3. (NOTE: The Katana is a sword on the back of your armor, and when selected it is the same as having the Hayabusa chest plate. The katana itself is not a chest plate and the katana is not usable.)
 * EOD: Complete the level Tsavo Highway on Legendary difficulty.
 * Scout: Unlock the Too Close to the Sun Achievement.
 * Recon: Bungie employees, winners of tournaments/double exp weekends, and those that impress (or amuse) Bungie in any other way.
 * Bungie: Bungie employees. This piece is known as the Employees Of Bungie (E.O.B) chest. The Piece looks similar to the EOD piece, and makes any helmet piece appear to be on fire, by forming flames in the location of the player's head. This makes the flames seem bigger on smaller helmets like the Rogue permutation. The disadvantage is that the flames can be seen with the Active Camouflage on, lessening it's popularity, even though it is the Bungie staff trademark.

Sangheili Armor Permutations
There are a wide variety of Elite armor permutations, with 5 helmets, 5 shoulder pieces, and 5 chest pieces for a total of 625 different Sangheili armor permutations: one helmet, two shoulder pieces, and chest piece per permutation.

NOTE: Elites, compared to Spartans, have larger heads, providing a generally easy target for headshots. There is a popular belief that it is very hard, or impossible, to perform a headshot on an Elite when its back is turned to you. However, if an Elite is facing you in any other direction, it is easier to hit, for its head juts out from the body when seen from the side, and elongates over some of the upper torso when seen from the front.

Helmets

 * Combat: Unlocked by default.
 * Assault: Unlocked by default.
 * Flight: Unlock either Campaign Complete: Heroic or Campaign Complete: Legendary achievements.
 * Ascetic: Unlock the Steppin' Razor achievement.
 * Commando: Unlock the Overkill Achievement.

Shoulder Pieces

 * Combat: Unlocked by default.
 * Assault: Unlocked by default.
 * Flight: Complete the level The Ark on Heroic or Legendary difficulties.
 * Ascetic: Unlock the Overkill achievement.
 * Commando: Unlocked by default after Auto Update 1 was applied on February 19, 2008. At first, the Killing Frenzy achievement was needed to unlock the piece, but a bug prevented this. Some people reported getting the shoulder pieces, but then they relocked themselves after a certain amount of time without using them.

Chest Armor

 * Combat: Unlocked by default.
 * Assault: Unlocked by default.
 * Flight: Complete the level Tsavo Highway on Heroic or Legendary difficulties.
 * Ascetic: Unlock the Up Close and Personal achievement.
 * Commando: Unlock the Triple Kill achievement. This chest piece is also seen in the level The Covenant, being worn by one of the crimson Elites. Shooting this Elite can result in him shouting at you to "Get back to work, soldier!"

Unlocking Permutations
Note: The Arbiter's armor cannot be unlocked.

Note: The Recon Armor does in fact have Shoulder/Chest pieces, but they are not featured here.

Trivia

 * There was a prank pulled on April 11, 2008, on the 1UP show, which involved a falsified armor permutation called the Assassin Armor.
 * Among the most popular helmets for the Elite armor classification is the Assault and Ascetic. Similarly, the most popular helmets for the Spartan armor classification is the Security, Rogue, and Hayabusa.
 * Among the least popular helmets for the Spartan armor classification is the EVA.
 * The Arbiter's armor was originally going to be included in the Elite armor selection.
 * The EOD armor chest is surprisingly alike the Mark V chest plate.
 * The Hayabusa Armor is an easy target in matchmaking. The silver spikes reflect sunlight, even in dark areas, allowing for the user to be seen easier.