Heroic

"Your enemies are as numerous as they are ferocious; their attacks are devastating. Survival is not guaranteed."

- Description from Halo: Combat Evolved, Halo 2, Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, and Halo: The Master Chief Collection.

"Fight against formidable foes that will truly test your skill and wits; this is the way Halo is meant to be played."

- Description from Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, and Halo: Reach.

"Fight against foes that will truly test your skill - this is the way Halo is meant to be played!"

- Description from Halo 4.

"Formidable opposition will test your resolve. Skilled, tactical play required. Recommended for veteran Halo players."

- Description from Halo 5: Guardians

"You will have to utilize every skill and tactic you've learned to survive. Recommended for players who have mastered Halo Wars 2."

- Description from Halo Wars 2

Heroic is the second hardest difficulty in the Halo series campaign mode.

Summary
The symbol for the Heroic difficulty setting in the trilogy is represented with a shield that has the Marathon logo encrusted into the center; over the shield are two UNSC machetes crossed over each other. In Halo 3: ODST, it is represented by two silenced SMGs crossed over a shield with the Marathon symbol encrusted into the center.

Heroic pits you against the Covenant, who are now slightly smarter, and their weapons inflict more damage per hit than their Normal-level counterparts. Even the weakest of infantry, the Grunts, can withstand quite a few bullets before they go down. It is otherwise considered "Hard", in other games. Although in Normal Master Chief, The Covenant and the Marines have a more reasonable strength and health, Bungie has stated that Heroic difficulty is the "true Halo universe", due to the fact that in Heroic enemy numbers and accuracy are more realistic.

The following are a list of changes in the Heroic difficulty:
 * Health meter is smaller. Hits do more damage.
 * Shields are only 75% their "normal" capacity.
 * Increased shields and/or armor for enemies.
 * Many Minor Elites are replaced by Major Elites. Major Grunts are more frequent as well, along with other opponents.
 * Enemies are smarter regarding tactical actions, and are thus harder to kill (ex. starting to hide behind barriers when their shields are down).
 * Marines have reduced effectiveness and are weaker; their tactical intelligence has also been reduced.
 * Ultra Elites and Ultra Grunts appear ever so often and for the Elites, they normally dual wield.
 * Many more Jackal snipers are placed throughout levels, and in Halo 3 and Halo 3: ODST, some of them have Beam Rifles instead of Carbines.
 * The numbers of enemy forces will be increased.

All of these wrap up into a nice gameplay option for more experienced players, who find Normal less exciting, and Legendary too hard. This difficulty may be deemed the most realistic by some players; however, this is not to be stated as a fact, as each player has his/her own comfort zone, regarding difficulty.

In Halo 3, Heroic was intended for those who have played the prior games and multiplayer, resulting in increased skill. This increase means that those who found Normal comfortable in Halo 2, will find Heroic just right for Halo 3, according to Frankie. Martin O'Donnell stated that, 'Normal is for beginners who are embarrassed to pick Easy. Heroic is what we intended.'

Awards

 * In Halo: Anniversary:
 * The This One's for Jenkins! achievement is awarded for killing 50 Flood combat forms on 343 Guilty Spark on Heroic or higher.
 * The Popcorn.gif achievement is awarded for killing 100 Infection forms during Keyes on Heroic or harder.
 * The Brovershield achievement is awarded for completing a level of Halo: Anniversary on Heroic in cooperative play.
 * Shared between Halo: Anniversary and Halo: The Master Chief Collection:
 * The Beachhead achievement is awarded for storming the beach during The Silent Cartographer without suffering any Marine casualties on Heroic or harder.
 * The Grenadier achievement is awarded for escaping the map room during The Silent Cartographer without firing a shot on Heroic or higher.
 * The That Just Happened achievement is awarded for completing The Library on Heroic or harder without dying.
 * The Look Out for the Little Guys achievement is awarded for completing Two Betrayals on Heroic or harder without killing any Grunts.
 * The Tying Up Loose Ends achievement is awarded for killing every Elite on the level Keyes on Heroic or harder.
 * The Believe in a Hero achievement is awarded for completing Halo: Anniversary on Heroic.

Awards

 * In Halo 2: Vista:
 * The Demon achievement is awarded for completing a level of Halo 2: Vista without dying on Heroic or harder.
 * The Hero achievement is awarded for completing Halo 2: Vista on Heroic.
 * In Halo: The Master Chief Collection:

Awards

 * In Halo 3:
 * Completing Tsavo Highway on Heroic will unlock the Flight harness chest for multiplayer use.
 * Completing The Ark on Heroic will unlock the Flight harness shoulders for multiplayer use.
 * Completing the campaign on Heroic will unlock the Flight harness helmet for multiplayer use.
 * The Campaign Complete: Heroic achievement is awarded for completing Halo 3 on Heroic.
 * In Halo 3: ODST:
 * The Campaign Complete: Heroic achievement is awarded for completing Halo 3: ODST on Heroic.
 * The Vidmaster Challenge: Endure achievement is awarded for passing the fourth set in a game of Firefight on 4-player co-op on Xbox Live.
 * In Halo 3 on Halo: The Master Chief Collection:
 * The With Your Shield or On It achievement is awarded for completing Halo 3 on Heroic.
 * In Halo 3: ODST on Halo: The Master Chief Collection:
 * The Shoot and Scoot achievement is awarded for completing NMPD HQ without firing the sniper rifle on Heroic or harder.
 * The One Way Ride achievement is awarded for completing a level of Halo 3: ODST without using a health pack on Heroic or harder.
 * The Just Sayin...I Ain't Dead achievement is awarded for completing a level of Halo 3: ODST without dying on Heroic or harder.
 * The First In, Last Out achievement is awarded for completing Halo 3: ODST on Heroic.

Awards

 * The Adjudicate the Arbiter achievement is awarded for completing Halo Wars on Heroic.
 * The Mr. Punctual achievement is awarded for completing all missions in Halo Wars on Heroic, under the par times.
 * The Big Al's Scooter achievement is awarded for winning a Heroic Skirmish game against AI in under ten minutes.
 * The Penny Pincher achievement is awarded for obtaining a winning high score against a Heroic AI with ten or less squads.

Awards

 * The Folks Need Heroes... achievement is awarded for completing Halo: Reach on Heroic.
 * The Wake Up, Buttercup achievement is awarded for destroying the Corvette's engines and escort in under three minutes during Long Night of Solace on Heroic or harder.

Awards

 * In Halo 4:
 * The Bropocalypse achievement is awarded for completing any campaign mission cooperatively on Heroic or harder.
 * The Bromageddon achievement is awarded for completing Halo 4 cooperatively on Heroic or harder.
 * Shared between Halo 4 and Halo: The Master Chief Collection:
 * The This is my Rifle, this is my Gun achievement is awarded for carrying a UNSC weapon all the way through Forerunner on Heroic or harder.
 * The Bros to the Close achievement is awarded for completing Infinity without one preventable Marine death on Heroic or harder.
 * The Mortardom achievement is awarded for hijacking a Wraith and using it to kill four other Wraiths during Reclaimer on Heroic or harder.
 * The Skullduggery achievement is awarded for completing any campaign mission with three or more Skulls on Heroic or harder.
 * The I Need a Hero achievement is awarded for completing Halo 4 on Heroic difficulty.
 * The No One Left Behind achievement is awarded for saving at least one Marine in the Spartan Ops mission Hacksaw on Heroic or harder.
 * The No Easy Way Out achievement is awarded for surviving the enemy assault during the defense portion of Spartan Miller on Heroic or harder.
 * The What Power Outage? achievement is awarded for completing Spartan Thorne without losing a generator on Heroic or harder.

General differences

 * Jackal Snipers with Beam Rifles appear more often.
 * Promethean Crawlers' built-in Boltshots exhibit stronger tracking behavior.

Awards

 * The Enemy of my Enemy achievement is awarded for helping the Elite General Kitun 'Arach charge the hill in Osiris on Heroic difficulty.
 * The Savior achievement is awarded for keeping 6 miners alive at the elevator in Evacuation on Heroic difficulty.
 * The Fire Drill achievement is awarded for completing Evacuation within 18 minutes without dying on Heroic difficulty.
 * The No Witnesses achievement is awarded for destroying the Phantom at the Covenant camp in Reunion on Heroic difficulty.
 * The Take a Hike achievement is awarded for traversing the canyon without a Phaeton in Reunion on Heroic difficulty.
 * The Rolling Thunder achievement is awarded for operating four different vehicles at once during Genesis on Heroic difficulty.
 * The Prison Break achievement is awarded for simultaneously destroying two Wardens in The Breaking on Heroic difficulty.
 * The Icy Cool achievement is awarded for using a ground pound on an exterior power core in Guardians on Heroic difficulty, as per the achievement's official description.
 * It is actually unlockable on any difficulty.
 * The Double Stuff achievement is awarded for simultaneously destroying two cores in Guardians on Heroic difficulty.
 * The My Rules achievement is awarded for completing any mission with three or more skulls active on Heroic difficulty.
 * The One for All achievement is awarded for completing any mission in co-op on Heroic difficulty.
 * The All for One achievement is awarded for completing all missions in co-op on Heroic difficulty.
 * The Heroes Rise achievement is awarded for completing Halo 5: Guardians on Heroic difficulty.

Awards

 * The The hard fight achievement is awarded for completing Halo Wars 2 on Heroic.