Phaeton/Gameplay

General

 * As with the Banshee, the Phaeton is armed with two different weapons, each with their own reticle. They can be switched with the "switch weapons" button (default: Y); by default, the autocannons are equipped.
 * The Phaeton's autocannons are very powerful, as they can kill a Spartan in 6 hits and 1.1 seconds or slightly less.
 * They overheat after 8.93 seconds of continuous fire and begin to fire faster upon becoming hotter, similarly to the M343A2 chaingun found on Warthogs.
 * The Phaeton exhibits tracking behavior against enemy vehicles, thus yielding opportunities to make use of the Phaeton's pulse missiles.
 * The Phaeton can use slipspace translocation to evade enemy fire in any direction (default button: LT).
 * Shooting the Phaeton in its underbelly deals heavily increased damage. As few as 19 or 20 bursts from a BR85N battle rifle to the underbelly will destroy a Phaeton.

Campaign

 * The Phaeton appears as an enemy in the missions Evacuation and Genesis. It is pilotable in Reunion and Enemy Lines.
 * When flying through the canyon on Reunion in a Phaeton, make use of the pulse missiles to destroy the rock walls and combine the pulse missiles and autocannons to destroy the Focus Turrets and enemy Prometheans from the ground below.
 * If the player travels through the canyon without a Phaeton on Heroic or Legendary, they unlock the "Take a Hike" achievement.
 * When engaging the Kraken on Enemy Lines using a Phaeton, be sure to continuously circle around the Kraken and always use the Phaeton's evasive maneuvers, as the Anti-Air Shade Turrets and enemy Banshees will destroy you quickly on higher difficulties.
 * Players who escape the falling Kraken aboard a Phaeton piloted by another Spartan unlock "Emergency Boarding Procedures".
 * Destroying the Phaeton towards the end of the mission Glassed unlocks the Iron skull. This is only possible on Legendary difficulty, however.
 * The Phaeton's pulse missiles can kill a campaign player character and make them unrevivable until their next respawn.

Multiplayer

 * Unlike other vehicles, the Phaeton is never featured in Arena maps at all. Instead, it only appears in Warzone.
 * Players can fight Promethean bosses piloting Phaetons:
 * A Phaeton Gunship or Recon Pilot as a standard boss.
 * Phaeton Helmsmen and Captain Hestro as Legendary bosses.
 * Warzone features the Superior variant of the Phaeton, called the Phaeton Helios.
 * The Phaeton Helios features better armor and agility, as well as homing pulse missiles in rapid-fire pods and a cleansing beam. The Phaeton Helios is considered the best vehicle to use against Legendary or Mythic Warzone bosses, especially s and the Warden Eternal, as it has the agility that the Scorpion and Wraith don't have.
 * When using the Phaeton to fight enemies like the Warden Eternal, the Grunt Goblin, or Banshees, make use of evasive maneuvers to avoid taking serious damage from the multiple tracking attacks they have.