Sangheili Major

Elite Major, occasionally referred to as the Elite Major, Veteran, or Half-Commander, is a Covenant Sangheili (Elite) rank.

Rank
Elites bearing this rank are seasoned warriors whose rank is relatively low in the Covenant Sangheili rank structure: they are higher than a Minor Elite. Also, only a Major Elite can become an Ossoona, mainly due to the fact that a more seasoned warrior prefers combat, not stealth, and a Minor Elite is too inexperienced to become the Ossoona. The Ossoona is a temporary rank that is given to Elites. The job of an Ossoona is to spy on enemies but not attack them unless they are discovered.

They command groups of Minor Elites as well as other Covenant races in ground combat situations. On lower difficulties of both Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2, Major Elites are rarely seen without a Minor Elite present. However, on the higher difficulty levels (Heroic and Legendary), these Elites are more numerous than Minors, in order to increase the difficulty of the game.

They are the physical equivalent of a SPARTAN-II supersoldier, and are far more intuitive and quick-thinking than their subordinates. A single Major Elite can often hold its own against a squad of Marines. To humans, they would be and are considered Sergeants in the Covenant. The rank of a Major Elite can be compared to that of Grunt Majors among Unggoy, Jackal Majors among Kig-Yar, Sentinel Majors among Sentinels, and Heretic Elite Majors among Heretic Elites.

Equipment
Enemy Major Elites (encountered throughout Halo: Combat Evolved and in Halo 2 only when playing as the Master Chief) are only found wielding Plasma Rifles, Needlers, and sometimes Carbines. They also carry and use Plasma Grenades. However, when the player encounters them as the Arbiter they, like all Elite allies, can be given any held weapon, even the Energy Sword, although they aren't allowed because of its religious purpose.

These Elites have more powerful shields than their blue-clad Minor Domo subordinates, as fitting with their rank. In Halo 2, these shields are the same strength as those of Honor Guard Elites, Zealots, and Heretic Elite Majors. On lower difficulties they can take a maximum of three hits on the body, or a single head-shot from the Sniper Rifle or Beam Rifle, and in higher difficulties, they can take up to 4 body shots and 2 headshots.

In Halo 3 when Majors are dropped into the battle to aid the player they always wield Plasma Rifles, although the player can always exchange weapons with the Elites.

Fighting a Major Elite
The same tactics used to kill Minor Elites can be used against Major Elites as well. However, their stronger energy shields make them more resilient. For example, in Halo: CE on Normal difficulty, it takes eight headshots from the M6D pistol to kill a Major, compared to six for a Minor. Furthermore, the sniper rifle takes two headshots on Heroic and Legendary difficulty. However, the "noob combo" is just effective as it is against as any other Elite, as the Plasma Pistol's charged shot instantly disables any shields regardless of strength.

Tactics
Elite Majors fire in sustained bursts and evasively strafe while shooting. They are also far less prone to tactical mistakes, such as charging directly into a fight or forgetting to take cover. On higher difficulty settings, it is very dangerous to face a major Elite, as the quick bursts fired by major Elites can strip shields down in a matter of seconds.

Much like Minor Elites on higher difficulty, they will attempt to lure the player into the open. They do this far more often when they have support from significant threats such as Hunters, groups of Drones, or Jackal Snipers, but almost never attempt it while alone.

In Halo 3 Major Elite fire in what seems to be shorter bursts, roughly equivalent to a Brute Stalker.

Physical Appearance
Major Elites wear distinct red (specifically crimson or scarlet) armor, comparable to the red armor of Grunt Majors. Major Elites in Halo 3 are clad in metallic crimson or metallic red colored armor, and have white symbols on the front of their chest armor.

Halo: Combat Evolved
Major Elites were seen in almost every level in Halo: Combat Evolved, their first appearance being in The Pillar of Autumn. They do not appear on 343 Guilty Spark (Level), The Library (Level) and The Maw (Level). They appear almost whenever Minor Elites appear with about the same frequency on all levels, except Legendary.

Halo 2
In Halo 2, Major Elites appeared in every level where the player controlled the Master Chief except for High Charity. In Metropolis, two Elite Majors controlled the Scarab in the city-center. These Elites were unusual in that they could not be killed while still at their stations, even from a direct Rocket Launcher hit. Once they abandoned their posts, however, they were just as strong as normal Major Elites.

While playing as the Arbiter, Major Elite was gained as an ally halfway through Quarantine Zone, only if all of the player's allies had already been killed. In The Great Journey, one of these Elites would present the player with a Banshee to accompany Sergeant Johnson's Scarab.

Halo 3
There is a Major Elite leading a group of Special Operation Elites on the level Floodgate who talks to the Arbiter about the state of the Elite military forces and how as to the Flood-infested cruiser managed to reach Earth. This is an interesting point to note since Special Operations Elite are supposedly of higher ranking than Major Domos. Another point is that he can be seen carrying an Energy Sword, since generally it has been assumed that only Elites of Special Operations Elite rank and higher can carry them. There is also randomly generated Majors on the level The Covenant along with some Minor Elites; they are dropped in by a pair of Separatist Phantoms. On Heroic, they appear more frequently than Minor Elites and on Legendary entirely unseating and replacing their lesser comrades.

They come in two different types of colors; the standard crimson and an orange-tinged bronze.